Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Daegu

Daegu (Korean: [tɛɡu]), formerly spelled Taegu,and officially known as the Daegu Metropolitan City, is a city in South Korea, the fourth largest after Seoul, Busan, and Incheon, and the third largest metropolitan area in the country with over 2.5 million residents. The city is the capital and principal city of the surrounding Gyeongsangbuk-do province, although it is not legally part of the province. The two areas combined are often referred to as Daegu-Gyeongbuk, with a total population of over 5 million.
Daegu is located in south-eastern Korea about 80 km from the seacoast, near the Geumho River and its mainstream, Nakdong River in Gyeongsang-do. The Daegu basin, where the city lies, is the central plain of the Yeongnam region, making the city the natural center of the region's politics, economy, and culture.
In ancient times, Daegu was part of the Silla Kingdom which was the first successful attempt to unify the Korean Peninsula. During the Joseon Dynasty period, the city was the capital of Gyeongsang-do which was one of eight provinces of the country. Daegu was an important motor during South Korea's rapid economic growth period (1960s–1980s) and is currently focused on becoming a leading center in Korea for the fashion and high-tech industries. Due to its status as a cultural center, popular nicknames for Daegu include "Apple City", "Beauty City", "Textile City", and "Fashion City".

History
Prehistory and early history
Archaeological investigations in the Greater Daegu area have revealed a large number of settlements and burials of the prehistoric Mumun Pottery Period (c. 1500-300 B.C.). In fact, some of the earliest evidence of Mumun settlement in Gyeongsangdo have been excavated from Siji-dong and Seobyeon-dong.Dongcheon-dong is one of the substantial Mumun agricultural villages that have been excavated.[5] The Dongcheon-dong site dates to the Middle Mumun (c. 850-550 B.C.) and contains the remains of many prehistoric pit-houses and agricultural fields. Megalithic burials (dolmens) have also been found in large numbers in Daegu.
Ancient historical texts indicate that during the Proto–Three Kingdoms of Korea period, Daegu was the site of a chiefdom or walled-town polity known in historical records as Dalgubeol. The first mention of Dalgubeol is dated to 261. Nothing is known of the earlier history of Dalgubeol, and little of what came later, except that it was absorbed into the kingdom of Silla no later than the fifth century. The vestiges of the wall at that time are seen, and then relics were excavated in the current Dalseong Park.

Silla
Silla defeated the other two kingdoms of the Three Kingdoms of Korea in the late 7th century, with assistance from Tang China. Shortly thereafter, in 689, Silla's King Sinmun considered moving the capital from Gyeongju to Daegu, but was unable to do so.This initiative is known only through a single line in the Samguk Sagi, but it is presumed that it indicates both an attempt by the Silla king to augment royal authority and the entrenched resistance of the Gyeongju political elites that was the likely cause of the move's failure.The city was given its current name in 757.
In the late 1990s archaeologists excavated a large scale fortified Silla site in Dongcheon-dong, Buk-gu. The site at Locality 2 consists of the remains of 39 raised-floor buildings enclosed by a formidable ditch-and-palisade system. The excavators hypothesize that the fortified site was a permanent military encampment or barracks. Archaeologists also uncovered a large Silla village dating to the 6th to 7th centuries AD at Siji-dong.

File:Dalseong.jpg

Later Three Kingdoms and Goryeo

During the Later Three Kingdoms period, 892–936, Daegu was initially aligned with Hubaekje. In 927, northern Daegu was the site of the Battle of Gong Mountain between the forces of Goryeo under Wang Geon and those of Hubaekje under Gyeon Hwon. In this battle, the forces of Goryeo were crushed and Wang Geon himself was saved only by the heroism of his general Shin Sung-gyeom. However, it appears that the conduct of the Hubaekje forces at this time changed local sympathies to favor Wang Geon, who later became the king of Goryeo.
Numerous place-names and local legends around Daegu still bear witness to the historic battle of 927. Among these are "Ansim", which literally means "peace of mind", said to be the first place where Wang Geon dared to stop after escaping the battle, and "Banwol", or half-moon, where he is said to have stopped and admired the moon before returning to Goryeo. A statue commemorating the battle now stands in northern Daegu, as does a memorial to Sin Sunggyeom.
In the Goryeo period, the first edition of the Tripitaka Koreana was stored in Daegu, at the temple of Buinsa. However, this edition was destroyed when the temple was sacked in 1254, during the Mongol invasions of Korea.

Joseon
Always an important transportation center, in the Joseon Dynasty Daegu lay on the Great Yeongnam Road which ran between Seoul and Busan. It lay at the junction of this arterial road and the roads to Gyeongju and Jinju.
In 1601, Daegu became the administrative capital of the Gyeongsang-do, which is current Daegu, Busan, Ulsan, Gyeongsangbuk-do, and Gyeongsangnam-do. At about that time, the city began to grow into the national major city. The status was continued for nearly three hundred years, then the city has been the capital of Gyeongsangbuk-do since Gyeongsang-do was divided into two provinces, Gyeongsangbuk-do (means the northern Gyeongsang-do) and Gyeongsangnam-do (southern) in 1896.
Daegu's first regular markets were established during the late Joseon period. The most famous of these is the Yangnyeongsi herbal medicine market. This became a center of herbal trade in Joseon, and even attracted buyers from neighboring countries. Traders from Japan, who were not permitted to leave the Nakdong River valley, hired messengers to visit the market on their behalf. Seomun Market which stood at the city's west gate at that time, was one of the top three markets in the Joseon period.
File:Daegu dalseongdo.jpg

Korean Empire and Colonial rule

Korea began to open to the world in the late 19th century. In 1895, Daegu became the site of one of the country's first modern post offices, as part of the reforms enforced after the murder of Empress Myeongseong.
Beginning in the late 1890s, many foreign merchants and workers came to Daegu, which further lay on the newly-constructed Gyeongbu Line railroad connecting Seoul and Busan.
In 1905, the old fortress wall was surreptitiously destroyed. The rest of the fortress wall is remembered only through the names such as the streets Dongseongno and Bukseongno, "east fortress street" and "north fortress street", which now run where the wall once stood.
The Korean independence movements were active in Daegu. These began as early as 1898, when a branch of the Independence Club was established in the city. As the demise of the Korean Empire approached in 1907, local citizens led by Seo Sang-don organized the National Debt Repayment Movement. This movement spread nationwide, although it was unsuccessful in its attempt to repay the country's debt through individual donations. Resistance activities continued after the 1910 annexation, notably during the March 1st movement of 1919. At that time, four major demonstrations took place in Daegu, involving an estimated 23,000 people.

Partition
After the liberation in 1945, Daegu was a hotbed of unrest. In October 1946, the Daegu uprising took place, one of the most serious incidents of unrest after the foundation of South Korea. where police attempts to control rioters on October 1 caused the death of three student demonstrators and injuries to many others, sparking a mass counter-attack killing 38 policemen. It was also the site of major demonstrations on February 28, 1960, prior to the fraudulent presidential election of that year.
Daegu and all of North Gyeongsang saw heavy guerrilla activity in the late 1940s, as thousands of refugees arrived from the fighting in Jeolla. In November 1948, a unit in Daegu joined the mutiny which had begun in Yeosu the previous month.
During the Korean War, much heavy fighting occurred nearby along the Nakdong River. Daegu sat inside the Pusan Perimeter, however, and therefore remained in South Korean hands throughout the war. As in many other areas during the Korean War, political killings of dissenters were widespread. A large series of engagements were fought around the city to prevent North Korean troops from crossing the Nakdong, the Battle of Taegu.
In the second half of the twentieth century, the city underwent explosive growth, and the population has increased more than tenfold since the end of the Korean War. The city was heavily politically favored during the long military dictatorship of Park Chung-hee, when it and the surrounding area served as his political base. Conservative political movements remain powerful in Daegu today. Daegu is a political base for Korea's ruling Grand National Party.
In the 1980s, Daegu separated from Gyeongsangbuk-do and became a separately administered provincial-level Directly Governed City (Jikhalsi), and was redesignated as a Metropolitan City (Gwangyeoksi) in 1995. Today, Daegu is the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Korea with respect to both population and commerce.
Politics
There are two local governments in the city, the Daegu Metropolitan Government in Jung-gu and Gyeongbuk Provincial Government in Buk-gu. The provincial government will be relocated to Andong in its proper province, Gyeongbuk. The mayor and heads of city's eight districts are directly elected by the citizens every four years. The city council has twenty nine members which consist of twenty six from the same number of electoral districts and three proportional representations. They are also directly elected every four years. Most of them are the members of the Grand National Party (Hannara-dang), the main conservative political party in South Korea. Daegu is the home to the party and has produced many Presidents of the Republic of Korea. As the capital of the Korean conservatives, the city has strong political power.

File:Daegu city hall context.jpg
 Administrative divisions


The 7 districts and 1 county of Daegu.
Daegu is divided into 7 districts (Gu) and 1 county (Gun)
  • Jung-gu (중구, 中區) – means the central district.
  • Dong-gu (동구, 東區) – means the east district.
  • Seo-gu (서구, 西區) – means the west district.
  • Nam-gu (남구, 南區) – means the south district.
  • Buk-gu (북구, 北區) – means the north district.
  • Suseong-gu (수성구, 壽城區)
  • Dalseo-gu (달서구, 達西區)
  • Dalseong-gun (달성군, 達城郡)
Geography
Topography
Daegu sits in a basin surrounded by low mountains. Palgongsan to the north, Biseulsan to the south, Waryongsan to the west, and a series of smaller hills in the east. The Geumho River flows along the northern and eastern edges of the city, emptying in the Nakdong River west of the city.

Climate
Daegu has a humid subtropical climate. The mountains that comprise the basin trap hot and humid air. Similarly, in winter, cold air lies in the basin. The area receives little precipitation except during the rainy season of summer, and is sunny throughout much of the year. Data gathered since 1961 indicates that the mean temperature for January, the coldest month in Daegu, is 0.6 °C (33 °F) and that for August, the warmest month, is 26.4 °C (80 °F). The City's lowest record temperature was −20.2 °C (−4 °F), and the City's highest record temperature was 40.0 °C (104 °F).
Economy
Daegu is a manufacturing industry city. The major industries are textiles, metals and machinery. The quality of the apples grown around the city is renowned around Korea. Many companies such as Daegu Bank, Korea Delphi, Hwasung corp., and TaeguTec are situated in this city, and Samsung and Kolon were founded here. Numerous factories are located in the industrial complexes situated in the west and north sides of the city including the Seongseo Industrial Complex, West Daegu Industrial Complex and the Daegu Dyeing Industrial Complex.
The city is the economic and industrial core of the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region, one of the major industrial areas in Korea. It accounted for as much as 94 percent of Korea's trade surplus in 2006.[22] The electronics industries in Gumi and the steel industries in Pohang provided great services to that surplus. World-leading manufacturing facilities for Anycall (Samsung Mobile) and POSCO's main factories are located near the city. Daegu and its neighbouring cities were designated for the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Free Economic Zone by the central government in 2008. It is specialized in knowledge-based service and manufacturing industries.
Historically, Daegu has been the commercial center of the southern part of the Korean Peninsula with Seoul in the center and Pyongyang in the north (currently North Korea), because of its advantageous location. Some of the large, traditional markets like Seomun Market are still flourishing in the city.
Additionally, Daegu was considered the third major economic city in Korea, after Seoul and Busan. However, due to the decline of the textile industry, which is the heart of Daegu's economy, the overall economic growth of the city has also fallen.
Also, the city is the warmest region in South Korea due to the humid subtropical climate. This climate condition provides the region with high quality apples and oriental melons. The fruit industry is a crucial support for the local economy. However, because of the Korean Peninsula’s change in climate due to global warming, the sweetness and popularity of Daegu’s fruits has declined.
Due to the stagnant economy, Daegu’s population began to decrease after 2003. Recently, the local government has begun focusing on working towards economic revival and concentrating on improving the city’s fashion industry.

 Fashion industry

Beginning in the late 1990s, Daegu has been actively making efforts to promote its fashion industry based on its textile and clothing manufacturing industries under the 'Daegu: Fashion City'. The city opens many exhibitions related to the fashion and textile industries including the Daegu Fashion Fair and Preview in Daegu annually or semi-annually, and invites national institutes. A large new town specializing in the textile-fashion industries is currently under construction in Bongmu-dong, northeastern Daegu. The district, officially named Esiapolis, takes aim at the fashion hub of East Asia. Textile complexes, textile-fashion institutions, an international school, fashion malls as well as residential areas plan to be developed in the district.

Culture and sightseeing
Generally, Daegu is known as a conservative city. As well as being the largest inland city in the country beside Seoul it has become one of the major metropolitan areas in the nation. Traditionally, Buddhism was strong; today there are still many temples. Confucianism was popular in Daegu, with a large academy based in the city. Neon cross-topped spires of Christian churches can also be seen in the city.

Sights
The most well-known sight of the city is the stone Buddha called Gatbawi on the top of Gwanbong, Palgongsan. It is famous for its stone gat (Korean traditional hat). People from all over the country visit the place, because they believe that the Buddha will grant one's single desire. Administratively, the site itself is located in the neighboring city, Gyeongsan, Gyeongbuk.


Scenery of Donghwasa

On the outskirts of the city, mountains keep many traditional and renowned temples such as Donghwasa, Pagyesa, and Buinsa ("-sa" means temple). Donghwasa itself dates from the Silla period, and many artifacts of the period are found around the temple in northern Daegu. Some lecture halls or memorial halls such as Dodong-seowon (도동서원, 道東書院) and Nokdong-seowon (녹동서원, 鹿洞書院) are also located in the suburbs. Those places have served as resting places for the citizens mentally and physically. The old villages such as the Otgol village (Gyeongju Choi clan's original residence area) and the Inheung village (Nampyeong Mun's) rarely remain.
In the urban area, the Joseon Dynasty's administrative or educational buildings including Gyeongsang-gamyeong (경상감영, 慶尙監營) and Daegu-hyanggyo (대구향교, 大邱鄕校) remain. The main gateway of the city in that period called Yeongnam-jeilmun (영남제일문, 嶺南第一門, means the first gateway in Yeongnam) is restored in Mangudang Park, east of Daegu.
Western style modern architectures like Gyesan Cathedral and the old building of Jeil Church are preserved in many places of the urban area. Gyesan Cathedral is the third oldest gothic church building in Korea[24] and the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Daegu which is one of three archdioceses in South Korea. Several buildings, in the present Keisung Academy and the KNU middle/high school, are famous too.
Yangnyeongsi (약령시, 藥令市) in Namseongno (often called Yakjeon-golmok) is the oldest market for Korean medicinal herbs in the country with a history of 350 years. Bongsan-dong which has some art galleries and studios is being developed as the artistic center of the city since the 1990s.
Nearby tourist attractions include Haeinsa—a Buddhist temple that houses the Tripitaka Koreana (a woodblock edition of the Tripitaka and one of the world's oldest extant complete collections of the Buddhist scriptures)—. Haeinsa is located in Gayasan National Park of Hapcheon, Gyeongnam. The historic city of Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Silla is located east of Daegu.

Mountains and parks

Dalgubeol-daejong, a city bell at the Gukchae Bosang Park

Palgongsan, Biseulsan, and Apsan are the representative mountains in Daegu ("-san" means mountain). Apsan, just in the southern part of the city, is the closest mountain from the urban area among them. It has many trails, Buddhist temples, a Korean War museum, and a gondola ride to the peak. Additionally, Waryongsan, Hamjisan, and Yongjibong are located in the city. These serve as neighborhood parks to the citizens.
In the urban area, several small mountains and hills play the same role. Dalseong Park, sits inside a 1500-year-old earth fortress, is a historic place of the city. It contains the city's only zoo and some monuments as well as the wall. Duryu Park or Duryusan is a large forest in the middle of the urban area. It has Daegu Tower, Woobang Land, Kolon Bandstand, Duryu Stadium, and many sports facilities. Daegu Tower, also called Woobang Tower or Duryu Tower, is the tallest contemporary structure (202 m) and the symbol of today Daegu. Its observatory commands good views of the city. Woobang Land is the largest amusement park out of the capital area. Many small gardens in the heart of the city such as the National Debt Repayment Movement Memorial Park (Gukchae Bosang Park) and 2·28 Park, are loved by people. The former park includes Dalgubeol-daejong (달구벌대종, 達句伐大鐘, means the Dalgubeol grand bell), a symbolic bell of the city. The bell is struck every week and year.

 Downtown and shopping
Dongseongno (동성로, 東城路) is the downtown of Daegu lying from the Daegu Station to Jungang pachulso (central police station) near the Banwoldang subway station in the center of the city Jung-gu. It has the Jungangno subway station as the nearest station from its heart. Like its name meaning the street in the east fortress, the eastern part of Daegu-eupseong (대구읍성, 大邱邑城, means the Daegu-Principality Fortress) was situated along this street. The fortress, however, had been demolished in the early 20th century. Although Daegu is the nation's third or fourth largest city, the Dongseongno area form the largest and the broadest downtown area in the whole country except the capital city, Seoul. In most cases, famous brands open their branch shop first here out of the Greater Seoul area.

The sign of the Seomun Market

Sub-downtowns in the city have its own commercial powers and colors. The area around the Seongseo Industrial Complex subway station in Dalseo-gu is a concentration of many amusement spots, and young people easily can be seen around Kyungpook National University in Buk-gu. Deuran-gil (means the street inside the field) in Suseong-gu is known for many restaurants.
The city has a number of department stores. Many of these belong to national or multinational chains, but the local Daegu Department Store also operates two branches, while another local chain, Donga Department Store operates four in the city proper. The six department stores among them gather at the downtown. The traditional markets such as Seomun Market and Chilseong Market sell all sorts of goods.

 Festivals

Many traditional ceremonies and festivals in agrarian society disappeared in the process of modernization. A Confucian ritual ceremony called Seokjeondaeje is held at Daegu-hyanggyo every spring and autumn. The Yangnyeongsi herb medical festival and Otgol village festival are the contemporary festivals about traditional culture.

Daegu Musical Awards in DIMF 2009

Lately in the city, enthusiasm about performing arts is growing and the local government is trying to meet its demand. Daegu International Opera Festival (DIOF), Daegu International Musical Festival (DIMF), and Daegu International Bodypainting Festival (DIBF) are three of the most famous festivals on each field in Korea, although those have short histories.
Various festivals in various themes like the Colorful Daegu Festival, Dongseongno festival, Palgongsan maple festival, Biseulsan azalea festival, Korea in Motion Daegu, and so on, are held by the city, each ward, or the specific groups, all through the year.
On August 25 through August 31, 2008, Daegu hosted the first ever Asian Bodypainting Festival, a sister event of the World Bodypainting Festival in Seeboden,

Museums

Theaters

MediaThere are three terrestrial TV broadcasting stations in the city: KBS Daegu Broadcast Station, Daegu MBC, and TBC. These are affiliated companies of central broadcasting stations in Seoul just like other local broadcasting companies in South Korea. TBC (Taegu Broadcasting Corporation) depends on SBS. They cover to Gyeongsangbuk-do out of the city. Each television broadcasting company has its own radio station as well.

[edit] International Daegu

Daegu is largely a homogeneous community that includes few non-Koreans. However, a number of immigrants from South and Southeast Asia work in automotive-parts factories on the city's west side. In addition, there is a small group of English-speaking Westerners working in English schools and university programs. The American military bases are also home to several thousand Americans. Recently Chinese students have begun studying Korean at universities in Daegu, and there is an increasing number of graduate and post-graduate students from other Asian countries. As elsewhere in Korea, Korean food overwhelmingly dominates; Chinese, Japanese and Western food forms the bulk of non-Korean food but recently Indian and Russian foods have become available.
Daegu hosts three American military bases, Camp Henry, which house Daegu American School, Camp George and Camp Walker. Camp Walker houses Daegu American School for high school children, while Camp George hold the school for elementary and middle school (both of which are primarily for children of military personnel). Camp George also houses most of the [Enlisted]ranked soldiers. Camp Henry serves as the primary place of work for all the military personnel. Camp Walker services as the home to Officer ranked soldiers Major and up. Although non-military families can enroll their children at the school, most either home-school their children or send them to a small Christian private school which teaches about 25 children near the central business district of Daegu.

 Education

As of 2009, Daegu has 215 elementary schools, 123 middle schools including the Dong-Pyeong Middle School, and 91 high schools.[27] There are two specialized public high schools which are Daegu Science High School and Taegu Foreign Language High School, and some other high schools such as Keisung Academy, Gyeongsin High School and Daeryun High School have good grades for university admission. Most of well-known high schools are located in Suseong-gu. Because its educational grade and zeal are high standard in the country.
File:Spring Keisung.jpg
Keisung Academy(also called Keisung High School, Henderson Hall(main building)
Also, Daegu has 4 independent private high schools like Keisung Academy(also called Keisung High School), Gyeongsin High School, Gyeong-il Girl's High School, Daegun Catholic High School.

 


Sae Maul Undong,,Korean New Village Movement

My Presentation on Korean Culture

Park Geun-hye Elected as Korea's 18th President in Male Dominated Society

There are a great number of female leaders around the world, but the win by Park Geun-hye on election night holds special meaning here in Korea.
Korean society has long been dominated by men.
And although the nation will be led by a female for the first time ever, experts say that there is still a long way to go.


[Interview : Kim Won-hong, Lead Researcher
Korean Women's Development Institute] "In the last few decades, especially compared to the '80s…Korean society has improved in gender equality issues. But there is still a lot of room for improvement."

In a recent report released by the OECD, Korea has the largest income gap between men and women among the 28 advanced nations surveyed.
Adding to that, the World Economic Forum ranked Korea in the bottom third for gender equality, at 108th out of 135 developed economies.

In the political world, only 48 of the 299 lawmakers in Korea's National Assembly are female.
The number is rising at a slow pace compared to other OECD countries.

Park's supporters are saying that Park will make way for greater opportunities for women in Korea.
Park is the daughter of late President Park Chung-hee, who was the first president to stabilize the livelihoods of the people following the Korean War, albeit at the price of human rights.
Many people hope that President-elect Park will help narrow the gender gap and bring about true change in the political arena.

Friday, December 7, 2012

SOUTH KOREA puts ban on admittingSOUTH KOREA: Foreign student ban on 11 institutions to admit international students

In its latest measure to crack down on sub-standard higher education institutions, South Korea's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has named 11 institutions that will be banned from admitting foreign students this year.

Another 19 institutions have been ordered to improve policies on and management of international students if they are to retain the right to apply for visas for students from overseas in future.

In total the ministry blacklisted 36 universities and two-year colleges for having inadequate standards in place regarding foreign students.

The ministry said some 83,840 overseas students attended Korean universities in 2010, four times more than in 2006. The number is expected to reach 100,000 this year.

Some 70% of international students are from China. Japan is a distant second, with just under 5% of international students in Korea. There are also large numbers of students from Mongolia and Vietnam.

The latest sanctions come in the wake of the ministry's four-month investigation into 347 institutions, including 200 universities.

The investigation was ordered by a higher education restructuring committee set up in June after a wave of student protests over tuition fees and the government's resolve to restructure the sector in advance of national elections this year.

The committee's remit was to certify institutions and among other things investigate how they manage international students, after widespread reports that foreign students were treated as 'cash cows' purely for the financial benefit of institutions, rather than being provided with a good education and college experience.

Some institutions have accepted an increasing number of international students without following proper admissions procedures, the investigation found. Some students were deemed 'unqualified', which in cases led to a high drop out rate among foreign students.

The government has said that some sub-standard institutions have also been allowing 'students' to bypass immigration rules. "There are students who first come to Korea with a student visa but stay here for work after it expires," said a ministry official on 29 December.

Some 17 out of a total of 35 first year students at one institution, Hanmin College, were allegedly illegal immigrants, according to the investigation.

Universities found to have participated in admissions scams or academic irregularities such as handing out 'undeserved' grades would also face a cut of up to 10% in their freshmen enrolment overall, the education ministry has said.

The government named Hansung University, Soonsil Unviersity, Sungshin Women's University in Seoul and eight institutions in the provinces, as those that will not be able to admit foreign students in 2012.

Of the 19 institutions given warnings, seven were told to improve their current practices and 12 were ordered to bring in government-approved consultants to make improvements.

The ministry also named 10 universities as having the best international programmes. They include the prestigious Seoul National University as well as Hanyang University, Yonsei University, Korea University and Sogang University.

Provincial universities have argued that government restructuring moves disadvantage them as they include so-called 'quality' mechanisms, including the hiring of qualified staff and graduates finding jobs, that are difficult to adhere to outside the big cities. The government included employment rates among its criteria for university performance.

A number of provincial universities have asked for government permission to relocate to cities in the wake of poor ratings under the government's ongoing investigation into university quality and management.

Monday, November 19, 2012

My Essay About, My Experience of Cultuaral Sharing With Koreans,한국인과의 교류 및 생활에서 느끼는 문화적 경험


Thousands of years ago Aristotle, one of the most greatest minds that human race has ever faced, said “The primary source of human knowledge is experience”. On the basis of this Aristotelian proposition if we ask a question to our selves that can a mere experience be of such a great significance in our lived? The answer is simple and straight, yes off course, But more important is how and why types of questions. To answer these questions I will refer to you some experiences that changed the whole course of human history. These experienced are of two types, individual and collective or some kinds of social experiences.
 
Magna Carta (1215) was one of the greatest and most impacting experiences for mankind. In western world it changed the life and afterwards it influenced the whole earth. Holocaust was another terrible but influential experience and its consequences are shaking the bases of humanity even now a day. Let me furnish some individual experiences here that made a great impact on us in any ways. These days we can feel race between different countries to settle themselves on moon and space. Man is conquering new planets every year and Mars is no more secret and mythical for the man of 21st century and our eyesight is increasing everyday. But have you ever poured down what became the basis of all this research and search about space and development of space crafts? What made it possible for man to float in such a huge universe and maintain its control while central gravitational point is still earth? Answer is “An experience” by Isaac Newton. Yes that experience of falling of an apple. On the basis of this experiment he was able to furnish the law of gravity and recognizing earth as center of gravity. If he could never have experienced fall of that apple may be moon was still a myth of beauty and far cry as it was once. If George Stephenson would have not experienced the power underlying the steam what was going to be condition of our mechanical development. Off course terrible. And please remember these were not experiments they were only the experiences on the basis of which later on experiments were carried out. So basis of all these experiments were experiences of these genius minds. Our experiences are basis of all this development and progress whether it is material or non material around us.
I am going to talk about an experience that may be not affected mankind or world but it had such a deep impact on my life that I am not the one who once I was. This is my experience of cultural exchange with Koreans. Before going deep in gaining and loss that I faced through this experience I would introduce myself as a learner of Korean language and culture but I always tried to leave an impact on whoever I met in my life during my stay in this 5000 years old country and off course civilization. I will try to make it as simple as much I can and will provide you an essence of my learning and summarize my experiences one by one.
 
When I came on this land of love, joy and happiness I already had a little knowledge about Korean life style, people and culture but I was not aware how far my thirsty soul was from this oasis with all its pleasures. As soon as I landed on the Incheon airport I experienced the efficiency and best management of the nation. Although my subject is about my experience of interaction with Koreans I don’t want to miss the most influential thing I face “The Korean weather”. Although it was end of February but it was freezing cold in Incheon where is the country’s biggest airport Incheon International Airport. And I confess the first feeling was inclination to go back to my country because I am an animal of mild weather. But soon I was so mesmerized by automatic doors, heated bus stops beautiful and stylish girls that I even forgot that I wanted to go back ten minuets before.
 
Let’s come back to my subject, my experience with Korean people. The first ever Koreans I met personally and talked were my Korean language school teachers. Before meeting these teachers I could never imagine such a great commitment and devotion from a teacher. Their attitude, preparation for lessons and specially patience was worth appreciating. They made the process of learning so interesting that we were learning without any strenuous and hard work. They supported me, taught me and sometimes even bore me. Yes bore me because sometimes I was not good in discipline but they handled me so well that if I think about that now I just smile. They taught grammars vocabulary Korean expressions and some times even necessary abuses so we could be prepared to enter the society. But the one thing that is worth mentioning is that I experienced very closely is continual of experiencing Koreans hard work, commitment, devotion and professionalism that can be seen through every section of their life.
 
Before entering in the Korean society in general I had some extra experience that helped me to prepare for my life in Korea and that is Korean buddy, a Korean student assigned by university to foreign students who help them in settling in university. This experience gave me understanding of what Korean youth feels, their problems, their foresight, their potential and being honest this program first time introduced me to real Korean society. Before this I was just
studying about Korea, Korean life, Koreans and Korean culture but first time now I had real experience .It helped me a lot. But there was a bad thing I learnt so many abusive words that I could easily fight verbally even to a native speaker. But as a whole it was one of greatest experience here in Korea.
My next step was entering university to study my major and because it was all in Korean language I was so afraid. In fact it was first time in my academic life that I was terrified of learning some thing new. There were so many questions, like will I able to understand a lecture in Korean? How will be my classmates and their behavior to me? How will be professors? But after one week of commencing my studies it was such a great fun that everything bad in my mind was vanished. And frankly speaking I can say I love my education here.
Above all this the most exciting thing is my entry in Korean social life or my general life. As a foreigner the most interesting for me is Korean Alcohol culture. These guys are in love with alcohol. You can not imagine life without alcohol. If someone wants to be frank with you he or she will invite you for drink. Despite all of greatness of this culture some people think this culture is one of reasons of high rate of rapes in Korea but if you ask me I will oppose. I never felt any thing like this. Their drinking style is fully mannered and cultured. Korean romance also inspired me. One may find so many couples even on campus and on side of roads kissing and hugging each other. May be for some one it is bad but if you ask me, I love it.And off course I am not going to tell you anything about my emotional life because it is personal and private. Next thing worth mentioning is dedication and support of these people for foreigners, if you ask someone about address you will get as much help as they can. If you luckily become guest of a Korean they feel it an honor to buy food for you. But even if you are frank to them they avoid inviting you to go inside their houses. There are some Korean greetings that annoyed me first but now as I understood I respect.Hand shaking and bending are most popular greeting styles after verbal greetings. They asked me about my age, marital status, did I eat meal and where are you going so much that I got crazy sometimes. They are so great in greetings that sometimes they will ask you, How was it? When you come back from toilet and I start laughing when I was greeted first time after getting back from toilet.But now I love this culture of greetings. New year, thanks giving day, national foundation day etc are major holidays. The one thing that annoyed me at first and is still annoying me is common bath. I will never understand philosophy behind this culture. Koreans are in love with music that’s why K-pop is getting popular around the world and music rooms can be seen around the country.
As a foreigner only once I was discriminated due to my nationality from an old person but it is not that common. Its very rare to discriminate someone on the basis of skin color or nationality or at least I should say openly. Women and men are thought to be equal and society is progressing fast towards a society where there will be no discrimination on the basis of sex. It’s a great society to live and Koreans are great people to be friend. Almost everyone hates Japan either openly or in heart and if you study the gloomy part of Korean history you can understand the reason.
I have hundreds of things to tell about Korea, Koreans and Korea to me and Koreans to me but because space is too short so I can not count everything but I have to say I love my life here and I love Korea and Koreans. May be Columbus was not that happy after discovering America that I am here in Korea. I should say “I love you Koreans”.