A Final Note on JeJu

Funny story from the ferry from Jeju Island....the group of foreigners I spent the weekend with booked a cheap group room, something like a 25 person room? I forget the number, but it certainly wasn't reserved solely for us. Koreans are very particular about certain customs, one of the main ones being that you take off your shoe before entering a room. Now, one of the girls forgot and stepped up into the room WITHOUT taking off her shoes, and a Korean woman practically screamed at her to take them off...and for the rest of the night, she glared at my friend whenever she dared peek around the corner where the woman was lying down. Anyway, the funny part is that all the REST of the Koreans left, too. The one even picked up her newspapers and went out. Maybe ten minutes later, a manager type stopped by the room and-- I swear-- the SAME thought went through all of our heads, "Yeah, he must be checking on the foreigners cuz he got a complaint that we were wearing SHOES in the room, so let's pretend we don't know what he wants and act all fake cheery," and in the same breath, in the same fake bright tone, over enunciating, we all went, "Ah-nyang-ha-se-yo!" and the man's face actually LIT up and, in very clear, though quick, English, said, "You speak Korean!" and we sort of shook our heads and he went away.

It's so funny how Koreans think if you know "hello" in their language, you must be able to speak Korean. No, we really just know how to say hello and how much is this and where is the bathroom. But thanks for the confidence.

^_^