Korea in the World: China
Many Korean university students venture out for a semester abroad, then return to share their experiences and catch up with family and friends. But when a Korean lives first as an exchange student, then as a graduate student and finally as an office employee for a total of five years in a country that is not his own, how does one come back and reflect?
Park “Dan” Kyungjun, who now lives in Mokpo and works as an a cappella instructor, joyfully shared his greatest memories, experiences and recommendations about his time living in Hangzhou, Xiamen and Guangzhou, China.
While studying at Hannam University in Korea, Dan went to Hangzhou, China in August of 2004 to study as an exchange student at Zhejiang University. Later he moved to Xiamen, where he began speaking more Chinese and joined a three-year program at Xiamen University to earn his masters degree. Those three years amounted to the longest amount of time Dan had ever spent in one place, and it was there that he established the most friends and learned his greatest lessons. Perhaps no experience so thrilled him as that of singing in an a cappella group and a choir in Xiamen. As a choir member with an accompanying orchestra, he participated in the World Choral Games, where his group competed and won. His a cappella group also participated in the Expo 2010 Shanghai China and appeared on television.
After eventually returning to Korea from Xiamen, he took time to reflect, relax and reenergize before venturing to a new Chinese metropolis, Guangzhou. There, Dan spent six months working as an employee at Go Young Corporation and concentrated more on work. In his free time, though, he attended a Korean church, both to worship and to stay in touch with a Korean community.
From his experiences in China, Dan learned more of what Korea already was and could become. “Korea is a small country, and we have few natural resources… We need to be a global human resource, so by traveling and going to other countries, Koreans can learn to understand other cultures. The more we study, the more we can help influence Korea to be better.”
What successes Dan experienced in China were only made possible by his willingness to be more daring. The resolution he made to speak up and try communicating in Chinese allowed him to reach his goals.
Dan mentioned that any Korean can learn about Chinese history, culture and language in Korea, but having first-hand experiences in China itself is how the real learning begins. “Getting to know native speakers and experiencing the culture by, for example, buying something or conducting bank business using Chinese, is the most important way of studying and learning. These actions can only be done in China.”
Dan encourages all Koreans to overcome any fears they have of traveling and living overseas. “The Chinese language was not the biggest obstacle for me living in China; it was having confidence. If you cannot speak, you have to search in a dictionary and let the native people see the word. But this confidence is not easy to improve. So, I asked many questions confidently, and I also served as the president of the class. Because of showing confidence in these ways, I overcame all other obstacles in China.”
Dan’s confidence and initiative in learning Chinese paid off. From June 14 to July 26 this summer, he served as the Beginner Chinese Language instructor for the Gwangju International Center’s Saturday classes.
Safety, studying, and self-motivation are the three major suggestions Dan offers for those interested in living in China. He mentions the saying “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” to Koreans wanting to live and thrive in China, or in any other country. “Learn about some country by following their customs and being like the native people, and make many native friends.”.
Confidence was the main virtue Dan pushed during his interview at the GIC. Developing, using and keeping this trait helped him enjoy and advance in great ways during his time as a Korean in China.
Imagine if you demonstrated Dan’s characteristic confidence so easily. What would your experience be like overseas? The question remains unanswered until you find out for yourself.