Where, oh where are we tonight??

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally....


This afternoon, Erin and I decided to walk to our favorite furniture store and pick out the couches to be delivered on Saturday. We were armed with a business card and a friend had drawn us a map. It would be a quick 15 minute walk. (If you know me, you know I can get turned around on a straight road.) Two hours (plus) later, we found Joseph's furniture store. Needless to say, we had not taken the most direct route. We did alot of asking on the way to Joseph's, since we were seeking directional wisdom. Folks were very helpful and would point or would say "next building". (It took us another 45 minutes after someone told us "next building".) Tonight was a the perfect opportunity to dive into the scant bit of Korean we know.

Where we live is out away from most other Americans, so we have opportunities to practice our Korean. Since I know just enough to be dangerous, it is quite comical. The kids will come up and say "Hello, how are you!" and start giggling. They are practicing their English, so we let them. (I keep praying that one of these encounters will turn up a friend for Erin to hang out with.) They say "Hello, how are you!" and "Fine, thank you." like I say "An-nyong ha-seyo." We are practicing the same phrases.

I do not know much Korean, so I was not really using it. Most of the adults here do not know much English, so they do not use it - neither of us want to make a mistake. Sooooo, something had to give, and I did (tonight's travels left me no choice). Besides Erin has been telling me that I needed to speak in Korean, and although she only knows about six words, she is saying those six words to everyone she meets. Even though my Korean is soooo lame, they are patient with me. The funniest part is when I know how to ask a question, but cannot understand the answer they are giving me. I shall be a charades champion when I return to the States.

One good thing is I can read Korean characters. I may not always know what in the world I am reading, but by knowing the Hangul (Korean Alphabet) I can always look it up in my Korean dictionary.

**Read previous posts to see how effective I am with a Korean dictionary.**