Touring Korea by Drama locations:

I know you’ve thought of it, but you didn’t want to say it: You want to secretly stalk some stars, or at least stand where they stood. (Or stand where they will stand in the future.) On the other hand, you don’t want to spend a ton of money. So what’s the best thing to do?

There are maps released by the Korean tourism board that actually lists dramas and their locations on a map. But I don’t like them. And you could go to the Korean Tourism website for some of them, but why not get a list? Besides, I know how crazy dedicated you are to the Korean drama fandom.That’s why you wish to stalk show your fandom to your favorite stars by “accidentally” showing up where they are. These are my top spots I wish to conquer. (Plus a wish at another shot at being on Running Man)

Cultural note: Koreans tend to navigate by landmark more than they do by address. Expect this.

Seoul Locations

Myeongdong Market
Address: You can usually ask and people will point it out. You can use the 2 line to get there easily.
If you go here regularly and early enough, you will often find shows taping here. Some famous shows have included Running Man (who uses it at least twice a year.), some news shows–and I also caught some trot stars here as well (I have photo proof.) TT I could have caught Yoo Jae Seok, but I was too slow. *cries in corner* Jae Seok, why are you a blur in your punishment underwear in my photo? NOOOOO. >.<;; (I even have pictures of the cameras... Man I was so slow to "get" it.)

Here, you can also get the best Hot chocolate in Seoul, Leondias and visit the nearby department stores where they often shoot dramas. (The famous plugs for designer items. Which you can often see featured in such dramas a Baby-faced Beauty) and see pictures of stars all over the place. (I got a picture of Hongki!)

You can also find the Safeway--which at the time I went was selling Pig Rabbit and also hair accessories. That Safeway gets filmed a whole, whole bunch. It's included in Running Man and most of the shops in Myeongdong have also gotten filmed as well.

Often reality shows and dating shows film here too. You can wave to beanies and boast once you figure out which show you were on. Only catch is that on weekends no one is up before 10:30, but often cameras are. =P Most filming, however, starts at 6:30-9:00 to reduce crowd problems or late at night. Occasionally in the afternoon, but that's rare because it's really difficult to crowd control for. (Try Saturdays and Sundays)

The various Open markets
Address: Most guide books list the local markets plus instructions to get there.
These are often featured in Running Man. There is one market with really awesome kuksoo, but filming isn't in these locations often. I still think you should go to one for the sheer experience. My hometown has a market where I grew up for 4 years, so I admit I have a really huge soft spot for open markets. I like to hit any open markets when going to a new place. In part to try to find the remnants of the memories of Eomma, and also because there is something raw and genuine about markets for me that feels like the heart of the city because most anyone will go to a Korean Open market--great for cheap dates, variety shows, etc. No one is immune. Plus it's not so slick as other places usually are.

Subway The 2 Line The 7 Line

Particularly at night, you can get some awesome shots of the Han River, go people watching while sitting down, try experiments in blending in, and visit various underground shopping centers, such as the one near the universities which has street food, and of course Gangnam... (Where I bought an awesome coat. ^^;; Before the song, for the record.) It's like a quick minimum 2-3 US dollar tour of Seoul. If you leave the stations then it goes up 2-3 dollars, but that's better than paying a hundred for the bus tours, plus allows you some freedom.

Building 63
Address: 50, 63-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul
Made famous in My Girl, but also featured a whole much of shows, it has a curse on me, since the first time I went I forgot my camera and the second time it was so foggy I couldn't see anything. TT Though there are a lot of night shots out of it from the famous glass elevators, you can't actualy go up at night, since it's closed. It has offices in the general building as well as an aquarium which you can also visit. (I bought an umbrella there). There is a bus that's free that gets you there and back from the subway. Ask your hotel to help with that. Skinship? Go here.

Namsam Tower
Address: 1-3 Yongsandong 2(i)-ga Yongsan-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Also cursed for me. I tried one time, but they don't allow cars to go up and there is a complicated procedure that I couldn't understand. I have a bunch of shots of it. Running Man, of course, also filmed here, early on with Joongki. Also featured in some dramas, but probably because it's not as eye-candy worthy, it's not shot as much as Building 63.

Coex Building
Address: 58, Teheran-ro 87-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Has a bigger aquarium, but if you can find it, also a Kimchi Museum with substandard Kimchi. Nearby there is also a Buddhist temple with a HUGE Buddha. (Bonggeunsa: 73 Samseong-dong Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea) Both are fun to visit, though the aquarium gets visited far more, the Buddhist temple is worth also visiting--just please don't talk at all while people are meditating--that's really rude. (Don't whisper either.)

MBC/ KBS
Address: MBC: 31, Yoido-Dong, Youngdungpo-gu/KBS: #18, Yoido-dong. Youngdeungpo-gu. City, Seoul
These two buildings are nearby each other. They get (understandably) filmed very, very often. On work days you can catch people wearing badges. Do some stalking? I'm joking. Really. Don't go stalking. But you can take pictures like I did. And it's not that far from Building 63 either.

SBS
Address: SBS Broadcasting Center, 920 Mok-dong, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul, 158-051, Korea
is located separate from KBS and MBC buildings.
Run after some Running Man Members?

Bugaksan
Address: Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul-si
If you want to mourn the character Jo Jeong Seok's character from The King 2 Hearts, you can go here. Sing the song. Also other dramas have filmed here. It has the wall, lit up and you can see views of Seoul. You can't take a car up, so be prepared to climb.

Lotte Hotel World
Address: 40-1 Jamsil-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul 138-220, South Korea
A bunch of dramas have filmed here merely because the interior is expensive to look at. It's also fairly expensive to stay at... so I wouldn't really stay here. (My brother had better places, but I couldn't remember them. He did anger staff at one hotel by hacking their internet connection line to give himself more power. --;; Dude, really?) You can see why it's film worthy from pics. If you want a hotel, most of the time in dramas, it's this one.

1st Coffee Shop Location:
How to Get There: Take Subway Line 2 to Hongik University, and go out of Exit 4 a Turn right at Seven Springs corner and pass the intersection. At the 3-way intersection, turn left. Walk about 100 meters on the road above the playground and walk towards the road on the right side. Walk about 500 meters until you find the coffee shop on the right. (From Korean Tourism Board)

Low on my list, but Bukchon Hanok Village...
Address: Gahoe-dong, Jae-dong, Samcheong-dong, Gye-dong, Wonseo-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul-s
Was featured in Personal Preference. I mostly want the blueprint though. =P

Sageuk Fans

Korean Folk Village
Address: 107 Bora-dong, Giheung-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
Either one. Again do some stalking uhh… hanging out and occasionally you’ll see them tape things. Especially if you hide and stay in the night when they film. Kekeke. There are also activities. Mostly in the Korean folk village, though, which take a while to get to. Just be sure to bring protection for arsenic poisoning and your silver chopsticks. (Though I’d take a handsome guard too) Also learn how to say “Seongohamnida” and offer your life at the drop of a hat.

Gyeongbok Palace/Changdeok Palace
Address: 161, Sajik-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Address: 99, Yulgok-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Both are close to each other. You will get to see more if you take a tour of the place because they take you to places where they actually film. And if they are filming that day, they’ll actually say and NOT take you there. (You know what to do then… pull a Moon/Sun from the first few episodes… No, joking. Really.)

I was really, really, really tempted to yell “Jeonha” in the center audience room. It took a whole bunch of restraint, not to yell it, especially since it echoes. OMG, I soooo wanted to say it. =P Maybe you have less restraint???

Note: Don’t go around calling it Changdeokgung. That’s like saying palace twice and you’ll look like an idiot, no matter what wikipedia says. Fujisan Mountain!

Outside Seoul (You have to plan ahead for these)

The Teddy Bear Museum on Cheju
Address: 31, Jungmungwangwang-ro110beon-gil, Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do
Which has become synonymous ever since Goong for a Honeymoon spot. For golf fans, the island also features large, expansive golf courses. If you want to spot some daily life, there are still also traditional Korean divers who dive for oysters on the Island. Cheju, as a whole, gets filmed a lot. But you really need to plan ahead to get here.

The Eastern Beaches (in general)
It’s not a lie you can get there within a day, but you do have to stay overnight. Can be romantic. But remember, if you want to have points to catch your drama guy, you must *run* and *chase* each other one the beach. You’ll get extra points if you try to splash each other. ^.~

Anything in Gangwon-do is worth it. That’s where you get the white beaches you see featured often. Sokcho, Gyeongpodae, Naksan are often featured.

Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon-do
Address: Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon-do
For My Sassy Girl Fans–you have to be pretty hard core, though. You can find the famous tree there and hope to meet your future husband from a time machine. Don’t get dreams of Tae Hyeon showing up, though, ’cause he’s MARRIED. (No matter how many times he looks through magazines at women and flirts with girls on 1 Night 2 Days)

Pusan, especially the markets.
Many stars come from Pusan. If you want to stalk the streets, you probably could find the Answer Me 1997 locations. Also hear the famous Saturi from that location. If you have lots of time, you can plan it on the way to Cheju. Also visit the beach–Running Man has often filmed at the beach.

And for Melodrama fans: Any islands that are not Cheju… such as Cheongsangdo for the Spring Waltz scenes, you can dream about having leukemia, brain cancer, a mysterious disease, cancer, playing some kind of music, especially a piano, and endless cost-saving hospital scenes from going to places like this. Just be sure to bring drama protection if you do go. ^.~ Bullet proof vest, impact absorbers from cars, decent clothing that aren’t turtlenecks, and genetic testing. What? Did I say something outlandish?

english.visitkorea.or.kr.–If you are looking for a specific location, this website will have it, often listing the drama with it.

In Korea, there is no goodbye on the phone.

You say “Hello” (여버세요/Yeobeoseyo) Speak and then as you’re hanging up (Keun oh), you either raise your voice or say, “The end” (roughly translated)

That’s why the whole putting down the phone and saying something at the last minute showed up in Nine.

I’ve pulled this a few times without realizing it until afterwards. In the US, at least, it means you’re angry. ^ ^;

Korean culture note: How communication works and Korean inflection

The thing about Korean communication that most foreign speakers get dead wrong is the inflection, which follows an emotional curve. Emotions dictate the tones, the pitch, the loudness, and the holding of vowel sounds. (Compare this to say, Japanese or Chinese (Mandarin, mostly) and you’ll find that culturally, this is very different.) Daniel Henney admitted that this was the hardest for him to conquer because in the US, men aren’t supposed to change, pitch, tone, loudness and hold vowels–it’s considered girly (from mostly Standard American English). My brother also refuses to do it, even though he knows it’s wrong. (This is one way to pick up someone is not native Korean)

This means that in order to prove anything, you have to have a better emotional base than the person in front of you. A book I read said that arguing in Korean can get ugly, whereas in English, it’s a lot cleaner. English tends to be far more logical and report that if you don’t get the precise word, then your meaning is off. Also, English tends to argue on logical points rather than emotional. Korean doesn’t do that.

Korean is also highly contextual. This means that the meaning of words are much more clear in context than they are in English, where the meaning of words tends to be more stable no matter the context. (Look up Imja as an example–from Faith.)

Combine these two and it’s obvious why you need Noonchi. You need a fair amount of intuition/perception to figure out the true emotional state of the other person. You also need it to figure out all of the other pitfalls, such as what the other person is really saying, what they mean, when to back off, when to press, etc. Noonchi is also not easy for foreigners, who are often pressed into respecting privacy rather than figuring out the other person. (Noonchi can also be scary for foreigners, which is why Koreans can seem blunt–because out of the blue this ajoomma might come to you and say something that’s true and stings because it wasn’t honey-coated) Noonchi can also seem to invade privacy quite a bit. (I turn off mine when I’m in the US, which makes me seem slow by US standards…)

Tact, however, does exist. (You can see this particularly in Lee Soon Sin, where Joon Ho has tact, but no noonchi, so confronts his ex-girlfriend without proof and starts a tirade.) This is mostly done through avoidance tactics. If you want to block knowledge, you change the subject at the best time where noonchi won’t flare up. This takes some skill, because you have to work hard to block. (Anyone watch Hwasin last week??) In Standard American English you usually let the person continue, but say less an less as a blocking. In Korea, you change the subject steadily. That said, Korean blunt is like carrying a sledgehammer.

Koreans are also more physical, but I think you would get that, especially if you watched the Super Junior Full House special where they get English lessons.

When my suitcase was open both my Korean father and the person I was staying with poked at my suitcase, but didn’t move anything. That never happened in the US. So that’s also what happens in Korean communication too.

So most communication can go like this:

Let’s get all of the emotions out in the air–you tell me what they are, I’ll sort which ones are your real ones, and then return to you using my noonchi what I’m feeling based on what you’re feeling and we’ll work it out. I’ll respect your boundaries, if you let me poke you a little.

Add on top of this respect levels where respect makes you colder. And age levels of respect (humbleness) And I would say this is a pretty good bisection of Korean communication. (I’m guessing that unless you’ve been really slow, you’ve at least picked up some of the respect level stuff–my friend half learning Korean picked it up even though she doesn’t know hangeul or any vocabulary….).

One book I read a while ago told a story like this.

An American Guy who didn’t know better bumped into another car. So he got out. The other guy grabbed him by the collar and started cussing him out. (You’ve seen this in dramas). The American then punched him. However, the other guy was really surprised at this, since Koreans are physical and like to fake threaten in the heat of the moment. So, the American ended up in jail for the night and having to call the agency because he’d done assault. Because in the US, you’d think it was self defense. In Korea, it’s not so.

Another minor story. After a long journey I’m not talking about, I saw these two ajeossi in a bus terminal. They greeted each other like they were angry. Calling each other jerks and then fake punching each other. Then they put their arms around each other. One called the other “Hyeong” and they laughed together. So I figure that part of dramas isn’t fake either.

Based on this, you can understand how the dialects work. Dialect is called either Saturi (Satoori)사투리 or Pangeop 방업.

Seoulmal (the dialect of Seoul) tends to sound like rising up a hill and then going a little down and sitting on the other side. The rising up will change on emotional curve. If you want to visualize it, it’s kinda like: Jack and Jill went up the hill to get a pail of water. Then Jack walked down, and Jill sat next to him on the other side. What? They were tired. (You never get to the bottom of the hill) You can best hear this in the Seoul version of “Annyeonghaseyo”)

Jeolla is like listening to someone roll up and down a rounded top and a rounded bottom. You usually can pick this up from phrases like keundi. (which is usually at the bottom of the hill) for Keunreonde. So up, rounded, down rounded, up rounded, down. The up is higher than Seoul which can sound flat in comparison. (They soften it quite a bit for dramas though. Even talkshows… Yoon Si Yoon softened his for Strong Heart, for example. There are smaller regional differences.) I always get the feeling of a kiddy rollercoaster smooth and relaxing a bit. Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrSN2U_0nyU

Kyeongsang is like hearing a rising spike. The famous elevator pitch. (It’s like those elevator rides… you rise to the top, anticipate the fall and are let down easy at the very end) If you imagine a sharp mountain with rounded valleys in between it sounds like that. The more upset or emotional you are, the higher your pitch, louder the sound, and inflection. You can occasionally pick it up from Hong Dong in Barefoot Friends who often slips into it when he’s emotional. Yeobeosiyo instead of yeobeoseyo. The ye ending for ne and also yu instead of yo. Also a lot of “no” endings. There is also a primer for it in Answer Me 1997 episode 0, though that’s the Pusan version, which is weaker than most of the surrounding area. (The diluted version.) Gary of Running Man occasionally uses it, but he often ends up in Seoulmal. Also famous for being noisy amoung Seoul saram. Men are said to be silent and women are said to be noisy… Some Seoul people think that it also sounds like Japanese, but it’s not even close because of that elevator pitch. Answer Me 1997 had the most natural examples since the actors were from mostly Pusan. Gyeongbuk Satoori: (part of Kyeongsang) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcqolxj5t8s (has subs) Compare to the usual drama version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Tq-mhKUyMw (on the guy) Jeolla is spoken by the woman.

Here is four dialects done very well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GR2auwH_fxQ

You can hear it is similar to you can hear the spikes.
I haven’t personally heard enough sample of Cheju or the other areas to get it. But if I did, then I could parse it pretty quickly.

Jeju I haven’t heard enough of. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crgIiPJga1c is an example, though faked. I also noticed that most sentences have a rise in pitch at the end in this example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcQHONkB0d0 which feels like an angle, versus a question which rises pretty much straight up. (Must be confusing, since most sentence ends go down). Also Jeju people tend to talk fast. Jeju saturi is probably the hardest for Seoulites to understand. Sounds like a foreign language sometimes. It’s harder to pin without a natural example of one native talking to another. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=db7a7v4zyq4 <– has a longer example, but the woman is clearly softening it for the non-speakers. (She also explains the cultural beliefs for why saturi from jeju is like that. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJpyXmDM8I0 <– a rap in Jeju satoori. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8eUyUlOnjA <– a kid speaking it Poor kid doing it in his underwear though. (You can hear the cadence. Over the hill and surf the wave.)

Gangwon, Chungbuk are harder to find dialect samples for.

This will be unbearingly long. Sorry.

I chose this topic after Hwasin, Nine, and Soon Sin all started to cover this topic.

References need to be gotten out of the way first. http://kluster.com.au/issue/seven/suk-kuhn-oh/
http://belectricground.com/2011/08/08/korean-language-and-culture-series-korean-names-part-4/ (read the previous parts too)

Huge credit to the second, a little credit to the first.

The second link covers the following:
- Conventional naming practices
- Hanja v. Hangeul names
- Generational names
- Japanese derived names
- Funny names (Why Pil Soon is funny, for example–meaning last daughter… also Soon is very feminine. From Hwasin.)
- And cultural names.

The first link is about Cheol Soo and Yeong Hee, which is referenced in the second link. (I haven’t found a translation) It’s pretty much like the Dick and Jane books for Americans. (Cheol Soo is also a very common male name)

So I’ll cover what this post didn’t cover.

- Generational names
- How to choose names
- Family fighting.
- Hanja eccentricities
- How to win naming your child what you want when the family disagrees with you.
- The naming dream.
- Naming superstitions (old ones)

First, a little history, (quick, since the series that was done covers the majority of it).

Korean names were originally three syllables (mostly) with no surnames. It wasn’t until the importation of Chinese culture with probably Buddhism that changed this and made for the yangban, surnames, which eventually leaked into the lower classes, albiet quite slowly. This is why in Three Kingdoms historical dramas, you often get three syllable names, but they aren’t really surnames. (And some people on dramawiki get confused about this.) For example, the name: Soseono (From Jumong) is one name. It does not contain a surname. It’s a bit difficult to find these names though.

After the Three Kingdoms era, and the coming in of Chinese, derived names, many names also became Chinese-derived, following Chinese naming conventions. This included the importation of books to tell you which generational name you should use.

That given before the 1990′s, most names, especially traditional ones followed this convention. So that all your cousins in the same generational line of the same sex (though sometimes also all the opposite sex) had the same name.

For example, my Korean cousin has the shared character “Yoon”. If I had other female cousins, they’d all have the first generational name of “Yoon” So that anyone after us will also know that our generation is “Yoon” Any sisters underneath my father would also have Yoon.

My brother, however, didn’t get “Yoon” since the Chinese character used for Yoon is girly, but it’s likely that his first character of his name meaning “Sky/Heaven” probably would have been the generational name.

There are cases where it comes second, such as in Nine’s characters of Jin Woo and Seon Woo.

This means in given names there is also a personal name to differentiate. “Seon” and “Jin” in this case are the personal part of their names. Meaning that the characters are named traditionally, which fits with the personality of their father.

Mine is “Mi” meaning “Pretty” or “Beauty” which isn’t used in male names, typically. (Unless with something explicitly male. Such as Mi Nam. Nam, meaning man in this case).

Sometimes the nickname will come from the personal name, not the generational name, but that’s only for people you’re really close to. (You don’t usually see this in K-dramas though)

Only difference against Chinese names that Korean names don’t follow, is that they don’t number the children typically.

However, in the 1990′s after backlash against the loss of culture, etc, many people wanted to use Korean-derived names only. This includes “Haneul” which is a Korean word for “Sky” and also just chose names they just liked because of the historical context (such as Choon Hyang)

So about choosing names and Family fighting over them.

Koreans are very, very particular about names. You can get a taste of this in My Sassy Girl, Choon Hyang (which I refuse to call otherwise ’cause the title matches My Sassy Girl movie on purpose) When Choon Hyang is fake pregnant in a stunt, the father spends hours trying to write hanja characters (Chinese characters) for the name and repeat them over and over. You can also see this in Bad Family.

Koreans choose the following criteria (most of the time):
- Sound –softer-sounding consonants are usually used. ㅂㅈㄷㄱㅅㅁㄴㅇㄹㅎ over: ㅃㅉㄸㄲㅆㅋㅌㅊㅍ Korean culture has a lot of emphasis on sound of the language. (You can look up bright and dark vowels as an example.) Harder consonants/vowel combinations are also considered more masculine, I believe, as well. “Cheol” in “Cheol Soo” “Cheon” etc.
- Spelling-Sometimes the same hanja character can be pronounced two different ways. So for example, ryeong, v. yong, meaning “dragon” can be spelled with the same character, but the hangeul is different. So these things are also weighed. (Alliteration… for example)
- Meaning- Meaning is fought over a whole lot within a family. It gives the hopes of the family for that individual. You can see this for Yoon Eun Hye. She has a name that says pretty much gracious and forgiving. Do you remember how she had that streak of bad dramas because she was paying off favors? There you go. Her name says it all.
- Alternate meanings. (Where the whole name combined means something else in Korean, though the hanja, etc mean something else.)
- Hanja spelling- This comes from my own family history and overlaps with the whole family fighting over names thing.
- And usually historical context. (For example, if someone famous in their family has the name, or someone terrible has the name)

My Korean father named me as soon as he saw me calling me “Bright Beauty”. However, since my grandfather from my mother’s side is also a Gimhae Kim and also my father’s paternal senior, was pissed off by this (from what I know of him–he was traditional and very, very stubborn…. but so are most of my family)

So when it came to naming my brother, Appa and my grandfather fought a whole bunch the entire pregnancy over the name. (Even though it’s a little useless). Because it’s a generational name, and sometimes you don’t have the generational naming book, other people will also join in fighting, because it affects THEIR children too. It’s not just yours you are naming. You are naming a generation.

So my grandfather and my father came to an agreement over what the sounds would be in Hangeul. Then agreed on the hanja meaning of the name of my brother, but then they endlessly fought over the SHORTENED hanja spelling. Not the actual spelling of the name in hanja, nor the meaning of the hanja, but they fought over how the hanja would be shortened so my brother could write it more easily since the second character of the name is a bear to write. Even if the shortened hanja was only there for sound purposes, Appa fought because his version of the hanja shortening was ONE stroke shorter than my grandfather and my grandfather was the one that finally won and that was the one that got associated with my brother’s name. Probably because he was still bitter that I got named without being consulted. (I wonder if he had an alternate for me) and because he was older than my father. (My father was still bitter over it 20 years later–yeah…).

You can see a whole lot about Korean naming in that little family history.

My brother ended up with a super powerful Korean name, and super masculine, which is in contrast to my own name. (Which is super feminine) Even in Chinese naming conventions, I was told by someone who lives in Hong Kong that is a super powerful name.

Oh and you win by being older and being more stubborn than anyone.

On to Korean name dreams.

I was named Bright Beauty for two reasons. One was because I was smiling and Appa saw me and instantly knew that was my name. The other was the naming dream he had. This is the belief that dreams tell when someone is pregnant. He dreamed of the “Bong Hwang” which is kinda a Korean Phoenix (It’s not the directional bird). (My brother was named after a dragon, which according to mythology, has a King connotation to it. The Azure Dragon–look it up… He was named after that. You can see the enormous pressure my family was trying to put on him.) Anyway, since I was born first, I think Appa was trying to emulate the “Bong Hwang” in my name. Also the Bong Hwang is associated with Princesses and Queens in Korea. =P Yeah, so you can see what the hopes of my family were in that whole thing.

Oh and Sook, Ja tell someone is in their 50′s and up usually. (And female)

Soon is usually overwhelmingly female in the second position, which is why “Kwang Soon” was the joke on Running Man. This is a bit more modern, though, from what I understand.

In the old, old days before modern medicine, the first 100 days you gave your child a “demon” name so that the child would not get “stolen” by the evil spirits. Which probably has two facets. One is so the child won’t cry, the other is so the child won’t die. The official name would be given at the 100 day birthday ceremony, which was deemed old enough to give a good name. (But considering my own family, isn’t it 100 additional days of arguing over what the name should be? kekeke) This was taken from a similar Chinese tradition, though. It’s not done anymore… (though Korean pregnancy myths probably outmatch Chinese ones… Koreans are so superstitious–I was told that multiple times by Koreans who grew up in Korea.)

I hope you’ll get more of the jokes on dramas with this. Also get that Koreans are really, really passionate about their names.

The three questions you’ll be asked in Korea besides your name if you’re Korean are:
“Where are you from?” 어디서 오셨어요?

“What is your age/What year were you born in?” 올해가 몇 년도에 태어 났어요?

“Which Kimchi are you?” 무슨김치 이에요?

The third one is usually if you are say, “Lee” and the other person is “Lee” and then they are trying to figure out you are related. This prevents you accidentally marrying your own clan.

Surnames have origin stories and with them are the break down of clans. So the largest clan, kimhae Kim (location first, surname second.) is not the same “kimchi” as “Uiseong”, “Gyeongju”, “Nagan”, “Andong”, “Gwangju”, “Yaseong” and “Hamchang” Kims.

This means if you meet someone of the same Kimchi, for a long, long time that also meant you could not marry them legally. (This changed in 1997, but with some restrictions. As long as they are not related within 3 generations and you register only on certain years (I think every three) It’s legal.) Before then, it was considered mild incest to do that.

You can sometimes figure out how related you are from the other person’s name AND how many generations away you are. Parents will break up their children from the same clan, especially the smaller clans. One of my Korean teachers said since his clan is small, he’d definitely break it up.

Gimhae Kim being large, doesn’t have the same restrictions within the clan. Though my parents and grandparents couldn’t get married… ^^;; Meaning I’m a result of a taboo. About everyone I know in Korea is related to a Kimhae Kim. So it’s kinda unavoidable at a certain point. 4 million people. The largest clan in Korea overall.

I always thought this was great Makjang material. But I guess it’s still too taboo to touch v. cousins. <– making a jab at 90 Days, Time to Love. Though paternal cousin marriage, historically has been more frowned on than maternal… (inside and outside of Korea)

And no, I’m not sure which Kimchi the North Korean dictator family is from. I’m hoping I’m not related. XD

That given, most naming is done through registers and there is quite a bit of evidence for people suddenly changing their surname if it suited them. So you wouldn’t be 100% sure without genetic survey.

i.e. Why you should avoid taking one.

Seeing one in Nine, inspired me.

- The meter does *not* run on distance traveled. It runs on time. The taxi driver gets lost–you pay more. You know that scene where the person is stuck in trafic and hops out? That’s because it’s not only costing time, but money. Yes, money for idling. Watch that meter.

- They will lie to you about tipping, especially if you’re a foreigner.
YOU DO NOT TIP THEM. (I know what the dramas say, it’s not true–the character is in a hurry, that’s not a tip)

- There are no regulations on taxi drivers or special licenses. Anyone can claim to be a taxi. Which means if you get scammed, you will not get that much help.

Also, the base fare is not regulated by anyone.

- The Publics transportation is cheaper and well connected. There are buses to the airport and to the hotel for cheap (less than 2,000 won), and there is the 2 lines that goes around the city, plus buses are cheap. You can tour the whole city (from the last payment) of 2,000 won. Only 2 dollars on the 2 line.

- It should not cost more than 3,000 won to go anywhere. If it does, argue and threaten with the police. (That’s 3 dollars US)

In another words, skip the taxi, take the subway or the bus, plus the upside is that you can see real people, rather than the people they see on television.

If you do take one “accidentally” take a picture of their license (which can be a lie, but at least you’ll get their picture) and of the license plate. (They are less likely to scam Koreans though… they do try.)