Numbers

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I love numbers. So much. With pi day being about a week ago (3/14/15 9:26 am), I thought it necessary to write a post about how beautifully complex numbers are. Did you ever realize how perplexing numbers can be when you move overseas?

Take the number 1,234,567,000.89 for example!

In Turkey it is written like this: 1.234.567.000,89

And, even better, in Korea, like this: 12,3456,7000.89

This is an accounting major's nightmare. 

During my finance internship in Istanbul over Christmas break, I worked with import and export numbers to and from foreign vendors. When transferring numbers between spreadsheets, I had to make sure I changed the decimal points and commas used to accommodate for the changes in numbering systems between countries.

Here in Korea, I have different problems. Sometimes my accounting and management classes get confusing when the teacher writes numbers on the board, using commas every four digits instead of every three.

But it's not just the way numbers are written that is difficult. I grew up knowing the Chinese numbers (I learned from high school friends), and last summer I completed a finance internship in Thailand, where I learned the Thai numbers very well. Take a look at the some of the similarities between the three sets of numbers below:

                               1          2       3         4      5      6        7        8       9         10
Chinese Numbers: yī,        èr,     sān,     sì,    wǔ,  liù,     qī,      bā,     jiǔ,     shí

Thai Numbers:      nueng,  song, sam,   si,    ha,   hok,   chet,   paet,  kao,   sip

Korean Numbers:  il,         i,       sam,    sa,   o,     yuk,   chil,   pal,    gu,     sip

And to make things even more fascinating, Korea has two sets of numbers. The one above is called "Sino-Korean" numbers, and has a Chinese origin. The set below are "Native-Korean" numbers:

1        2     3    4     5          6            7         8            9        10

hana, dul, set, net, daseot, yeoseot, ilgob, yeodeol, ahop, yeol

Sino-Korean numbers are used for "reading":

• Floor numbers, "Floor 7"
• Room numbers, "Room 5410"
• Amounts of money, "800 won"
• "This is page 11."

Native-Korean numbers are used for "counting":

• "There are 11 pages."
• "I want 3 apples."
• "I am 22 years old."

Don't even try to think about which numbers you would use when you're "counting" the number of money bills you have, or when you're "reading" about a boy counting apples. Just when you have it straight, you'll be baffled again when they mix the Native-Korean and Sino-Korean numbers for telling time. I have been here a month, and I am still trying to learn the numbers and when to use each system!

I love it all so very much though! Numbers are absolutely wonderful. :)

Green Change

Flowers beginning to bud outside of my dorm, JinRi Gwan (Truth Hall). :)

If there is one Korean word I've said every day while being here, it's 추워! Translation: I'm coooold!

Yet today is an absolutely stunning day! At the moment, I am sitting outside on a bench outside my dorm, in the shade, without a coat on. I had a headache all day yesterday, I've sneezed four times in the last 24 hours, and the dorm maintenance decided to finally turn down the incredible amount of heat in our rooms.

The trees are budding!

In a nutshell: something is happening with the weather, and I like it. 

It is mid-March, Saint Patrick's Day, and I am sitting here in Korea feeling thankful for a hint of warm weather amidst the dreary winter we have been having. The trees are budding, the birds are chirping, a bee just flew by me, and the grass, although still brown, will begin turning green soon. On an American holiday like today, it seems only right to celebrate things becoming green!

I'm reminded of change again today, and how change can be such a good thing. Change is a chance for new beginnings, an encouragement for transformation to becoming something better, an opportunity to experience redemption from being lost and hopeless to found and loved.

My flower shoes make me smile. (A.K.A. My "Asian" shoes.)
I cannot wait to see flowers around campus!

"And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." 1 Peter 5:10

With change, all things are made new - the grass, the flowers, me, you.

Click to listen to "Beautiful Things" by Gungor :)

It is a good thing I learned how to say "I'm feeling warm" in Korean class yesterday. With this change in weather, I will have to start using a new daily phrase!

Entrance to the residence area, with my dorm pictured in the center. The grass will soon be green! :)

Nongshim Hall, the International Building: Holds the English Cafe (where I work), the International Office, English Language Classes, and Korean Language Classes for Foreigners (me!) The tents are set up for advertising campus clubs. I can't wait until this tree is covered in flowers and green leaves. I pass it almost daily. :)

There's No Place I'd Rather Be

There's no place I'd rather be,
There's no place I'd rather be,
There's no place I'd rather be,

Than here in your love, here in your love.

So set a fire down in my soul,

That I can't contain and I can't control,
I want more of You God, 
I want more of You God.

Set A Fire - Will Reagan & United Pursuit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcJ8s4dVaiQ

I was listening to this song today during my devotional time and discovered how powerful it really is. To say "There's no place I'd rather be" is a very strong statement and one that I think we say too often with too little sincerity.

"There's no place I'd rather be but hanging out with friends 'till dawn.. There's no place I'd rather be than home with family for the holidays.. There's no place I'd rather be than resting on the beaches of the Mediterranean."

But what if God wants us to be elsewhere, out of our comfort zone, into the unknown? What if he wants us to say: "There's no place I'd rather be than with YOU God, doing Your work, wherever that may be."

Often I wonder why He has put me in certain situations or specific places. My time here is Korea has been a constant battle of emotions that change almost every hour - I'M SO HAPPY I'M HERE, what am I doing in Korea, I'M IN ASIAAAAAA, I miss my family in Turkey, HANGING OUT OVERSEAS IS THE BEST, why can't I be in Greeley right now, THESE NEXT FOUR MONTHS ARE GONNA BE GREAT, why doesn't this place feel like home yet.

Four years ago I decided to study abroad in Korea and began telling people of my plans. Now that I'm here, it is almost unbelievable, and amazing. It's 신기하다 (sheen-gee-ha-da), as my new friend JiHye would say.

To me, JiHye is one of those people that you run into incidentally, have a brief conversation with, and automatically know that you are going to be wonderful friends in the future. I met her about a week after being here and have been blessed and encouraged by her often since.

She, as well has many other people, is the reason why I can look at my situation here and know without a doubt that this is where God wants me to be. I see the great influence that she has had on me in such a short amount of time, and the impact that I have had on her and it makes my heart cry out there's no place I'd rather be than here, God.

Of course, I don't always feel like saying that. Adjusting to a new country and new culture takes time. There are the hilarious joys - like having three Korean guys you just met who speak very little English take you to lunch off-campus and order you something unknown. (How I ended up in that situation is an entirely different story; sometimes you just have to roll with it..especially if you're hungry!) Then there are the excitements of seeing new sites and visiting new places with rich history and cultural ties, and getting there and back without a Korean.

But there are also the pains of mis-communication between two languages and cultures, the friends who left home to try to erase memories only to find more hardships here, and then the heart-tearing confusion of wanting to be in some place familiar and yet still wanting to experience a new place.

All I can say is this - I know I'm meant to be here. Though I don't always feel like it, I can look around and know that this is where I'm supposed to be right now. I am eager to see how I am going to fall in love with this country, and how it will become another place I can call home. Set a fire in my soul, God, and teach me how to say that there is no place I'd rather be but HERE in your love.

A Day in Seoul

Saturday, March 7th, 2015 at 8:41 am:

Hey Susanna, so what are we doing right now?

Going to Seoul.

How're we gonna get there?

We think we're going by a bus.

Do we know where the bus stop is?

No!

Do you know how much it costs?

Uhhhh...nope!

~~ Travel Guide: A Day in Seoul ~~

Morning Transportation Tips:

• If you Naver (Korean version of Google Maps) the bus station, it won't be too difficult to find, but I don't suggest trying to find it while you are running to catch a bus. 
• Even if you get to the bus station on time, it won't necessarily have the buses it advertised running that day.
• Trains are cheaper than buses anyway, so go to the train station if the bus station tells you the next bus is in an hour.
• "Standing" tickets for a train actually mean sitting on the floor in a very crowded train car between a very old Korean woman and a middle-aged Korean man who likes to stare at you.
• It takes 1 hr 30 mins and 7100 Korean Won to get from Jochiwon, Sejong City to Seoul by train.

Immediately After Arrival:

1.  Find a bathroom in the train station. Even if you don't need to use one, the soap is really cool. Instead of liquid soap, they have bars of soap on metal rods that you rub your hands on.
2. After exiting the station, notice the Seoul tower. If you don't see it, look up again. It can be found between the skyscrapers. Even if in the morning you hadn't planned on going there, you will probably end up visiting it if it is a beautiful day.
3. Eat lunch. When you leave your town early in the morning, you will arrive in Seoul in the afternoon and it will be time to eat. Obviously, eat lunch at a Japanese restaurant that sells Indian curry Korean style. If you're not a spicy-food lover, get "spice 0". If you are, get "spice 2 or 3". If you're crazy, get "spice 6". The restaurant can be found near Meong-Dong shopping street.

Afternoon Ideas:

• Take selfie videos everywhere you go. You only get to be a foreigner sometimes, so you might as well document your crazy touring around Seoul. (Yes, a video will be posted on Facebook shortly.)
• Visit the Tower. You don't need to go up the tower, because the base is beautiful enough, but I'm sure going up is even grander. You can walk up the mountain if you want, but taking the cable car up is worth your money. Walking down is nice - there is a perfect proposal spot on the way down too.
• Visit Gwanghwamun Square. There is a statue of Admiral Yi Sun-Shin and Sejong the Great, two of Korea's highest esteemed historical figures. Literally beneath their statues is a giant underground museum about them. Don't miss the small staircase behind the statue of Sejong leading down - I almost did!
• There is also a beautiful palace at the Square. Apparently, the palace closes at 5 in March. But its still beautiful to visit the outer courtyard if you get there late. The sun is setting around then and it is pleasant to walk in the courtyard imagining the rich history that took place there

Getting Home:

1. Get a subway card at a nearby convenience store. Even if you speak no Korean, most likely all you have to do it walk in and forward to the counter and the lady working will know exactly what you need. :)
2. Take a subway from Gwanhwamun to Jongno3-ga (line 5) and then transfer to Seoul Station (line 1). The subway stations are fairly self explanatory. One thing to be aware of is that you will swipe your subway card at the beginning, and at the end, but not during a transfer, so don't exit until you are at your final destination. (Different than in Istanbul.)
3. Get off at the Seoul Station if you plan on taking a train home. Considering the name "Seoul Station", probably other great things are there too, but all I know of there is the train. :)
4. There are many different kinds of trains; some fast, some slow, some that go where you're going and some that don't. If you say the type of train you want (most likely "Mugunghwa") and the place you're going ("Jochiwon"), the kind Korean lady working behind the counter will help you and give you a ticket in exchange for some Won.
5. If you buy "standing" tickets on the way home and there is more space in the "sit-on-the-floor-car" then don't choose to sit next to the heaters. Your back will become VERY hot, VERY quickly. Also, you will be staring at food the whole time since it is right next to the cafe counter.

When you arrive home, your legs will be sore, your camera battery will be dead, and your wallet will be empty, but your heart will be full! I hope you enjoy your day in Seoul! :) Plan or no plan, if you laugh, take pictures, eat food, and choose to explore and have fun, you'll have a blast! Susanna and I definitely did! :)

Becoming a Good Simple Notebook

"If you can learn to speak one language well, than you can certainly learn to speak one or more other languages."

Adapting to a new place that speaks another language is always quite the experience. When I moved to Turkey in 2009, I was 14 and I was moving from a town of 88,000 to a mega-city of 18 million. I remember being nervous about using public transport on my own for the first time and about attending a new school that was an hour away from where I lived. There were new smells in the city, new sounds that were loud and different, but most nerve-racking of all, there was a new language spoken and I didn't know it.

Language is such a unique thing. It is the strongest glue that holds one culture together, and yet the strongest barrier that keeps two cultures apart. I have had many experiences already in the week and a half in which I've been able to try and communicate with other people who don't speak English. Of course, I have failed many times and we couldn't understand each other, but a few times it has worked. Last week I went to an electronics store and tried to ask for an adapter. I acted out plugging in something to the wall and the man led me to the area that had extension chords, but no adapters. On Tuesday, I went into a different store again asking for the same thing, and this time using my broken Korean I said, "America. Korea." and he understood. I bought two.

It's the little language victories that keep me going as I adjust to a new place. Acting out an adapter and buying one. Ordering lunch in a foreign language on my own. Finding my Accounting class and being the only native English speaker in it. Discovering a campus Christian prayer room by following signs. Asking a lady on the road where a market nearby was and understanding her gestures - ("Big market where?") Asking for the price of different foods and then buying bananas from a street vendor.

As I progress in my Korean day by day, I must remind myself that I CAN learn Korean. I have learned English and Turkish and I know that if I continue to study and practice, I will be able to learn Korean as well. As everyone knows, "It is good to dream, but it is better to dream and work," "Faith is mighty, but faith with action is mightier," and also "Desiring is helpful, but desiring and work is INVINCIBLE." I will continue dreaming and desiring and having faith that someday I will speak Korean fluently, and I will continue working at it through study and practice. (And someday my dream of becoming a Good Simple Notebook may come true..!) Though my Korean speaking skills are fairly poor, I can only hope that it makes people SMILE and that it sounds as CUTE as these English translations do: