Dazzled By Korean #4
Ramblings on my love for challenges in this language.
Why can’t I let this language go? I took a test and got the best result possible yet I want to learn more and I had so much fun taking it for the kick of it.
This is what I was thinking a few weeks back when I wrote a first draft for this.
Almost a year ago, as I was settling down in Korea, I began a short-lived series about my love for the Korean language, its intricacies, the culture attached to it, and Korea itself.
Since then, I jotted down a few things here and there to bundle them into a few pieces that never saw the light of day. And here we are today. Exactly a year later (to the day!) since the last edition, as I’m reflecting once more on my love for this incredible language.
How did this come about? Let me take you back to my Korean origin.
Le Centre Culturel Coréen de Paris
My first interaction with Korean was through two Korean girls I met in 2008 in the South of France during an international volunteering camp. I knew nothing about Korea—I’m not even sure I knew it was divided into two countries.
I loved the sound of it and learned a few words such as 안녕, 잘 자, 가자, 마티아스 (Hi, Good night, let’s go, Mathias). When they left, one gave me a cardboard with a “secret word Korean” and the Hangeul alphabet. I spent two hours and was able to decipher one single word: 굳바이, gudbai, more commonly known as Goodbye.
I was hooked.
I began watching dramas and fell in love with the sound of the language more. But I still didn’t dive into it until the next summer when a friend told me of the Korean Cultural Center of Paris giving evening classes for 30 euros ($35 or so) per semester.
I wanted in but didn’t want to start from scratch so I aimed for the one and only “false beginner” class. I lined up early (registration was only in-person back in 2009 👴), but too many people arrived even earlier. When my turn came, only beginner and intermediate classes were left.
I chose the intermediate and struggled for most of the semester. I also caught up before the end of it because of how much time I spent learning outside of the class.
The following summer, in 2010, I went to Korea for the first time and never looked back.
Since then, Korean’s been a real part of my life. I’ve spent more time with it during some periods and less during others but it’s always been there.
And it became an integral part of me in 2023 as I lived in Korea.
A new beginning where it started
My evening classes in Korean were also where I truly started believing in my ability to learn foreign languages.
Back then, I had already reached a high level of English but my Japanese was only slowly improving. Or so it felt at least. My Korean skills skyrocketed in a year, so much so I reached Korea the next summer able to have conversations with native speakers—although rather simple.
When I grabbed my phone a month ago, on April 2nd to check—out of curiosity—whether The Cultural Center had some advanced lessons, I didn’t expect to see registration for two classes was coming up less than a week later:1
Business Korean 1
Translation and Interpretation Class (Korean-French)
I checked the content for the first and estimated it’d likely be below my level.2 The second, however, first required at least a 3B grade from an online test evaluation.
I took it on a whim and got a 4B, the highest grade.
Now, just in case some may think I’m bragging, I’m not. I started learning Korean almost 15 years ago now. I’ve lived in Korea for a year, hung out with many Koreans, and even had 3 quite long relationships with Koreans. My level should even be higher than it currently is, if you ask me.
Still, this test reminded me of my love for challenges in Korean.
So I applied to that 2-month class about translating and interpreting Korean… and got in! Classes will start in a few hours.3 I’m willing to bet this class will be nowhere near a professional level, but it’s a fun challenge and I’m psyched to take it.
A conclusion?
As I’ve done hundreds of times, I’ve rambled but, if you’ve read through it all, you may have felt something: my deep love for the Korean language.
In a way, this series was and is all about sharing my love for this strange yet beautiful language and country. I don’t live there anymore but I’m now reviving this series to keep my connection with that country too.
Hell, I want to have a “Dazzled By” series just to ramble about any of my languages whenever they do just that. But that’s a story for another day.
아이구, 신기하다. 이걸 써서 너무 행복하다.
PS: This is the first of my relaunching this series so I’m opening it to everybody right away, but the next ones will be shared with paid subscribers a week in advance. If you’re not one already, consider becoming a paid subscriber to support me and get early access!
Cheers for reading!
Mathias
At a related center named the King Sejong Institute.
Although a bit of politeness training clearly wouldn’t hurt
3.5 as I’m finishing this 😊