Chae, Daniel

Name: Daniel Chae
E-mail: 
Location of Study: South Korea
Program of Study: Korean
Sponsor(s): Liu Family

43 thoughts on “Chae, Daniel

  1. Two slang words that I learned during my first week in Korea is 헐 (her) and 빡세다 (bak se da). I learned that 헐 is used when someone is surprised. I asked a man and a women who seemed to be in there 20s and asked about the meaning of the word. They recognized the word and told me what it was and when it was used. I also asked an elderly couple about the meaning of 헐, but they did not know what the word meant. In my opinion, the word is mostly used by the younger generation to express their surprise during conversations.

    I first heard 빡세다 in class when the teacher described her class with that word. It translates into intense. I asked a couple of college students and they told me that 빡세다 is used to describe something that takes a lot of effort to do. I also asked two elderly Koreans about the word, but only one knew the meaning. I think both of the slang words are appropriate to be used in everyday conversations, although I think 헐 is used when people of the same age group converse.

  2. One holiday that is celebrated in Korea is Children’s Day (May 5th). On this day, children often receive gifts from their parents and do not have to go to school. In the 1900s, Koreans under the oppression of the Japanese government wanted to recognize and improve the social status of children. Led by Bang Jung Hwan (방정환), the Koreans eventually were able to officially celebrate Children’s Day on 1961. I found this information by asking my language teacher and doing some research on my own. I also asked a college student about Children’s Day, but all he knew was that 방정환 played a key role in coming up with the holiday. It seemed like he did not care so much about Children’s Day anymore because he was not a child. I think that an average Korean do not know the history behind Children’s Day, but knows its significance.

  3. I study near 신촌, and in this location, there is a local restaurant called 엉클스. This restaurant is a one of the few restaurants that is unique to신촌. At this restaurant they 떡볶이, rice cakes with spicy sauce. Although 떡볶이 is common in Korea, this place had three different levels of spiciness that customers can choose from. In addition, the restaurant also serves fried squid on top of the 떡볶이. Fried squid is also common in Korea but the restaurant did not cut the squid, which is quite uncommon. 떡볶이 is one of the most popular foods in Korea. People eat it as snack or a side dish. This food originated in Korea in the late 1900s, although no one knows why or how it came about. Today, 떡볶이 can be found in many of the streets in Korea, and the restaurant that is near my area of study made its 떡볶이 taste better by using other ingredients to distinguish its 떡볶이 from others’

  4. I interviewed a college student, a friend of my father, and an elderly man about their attitudes toward the United States. The college student told me that the first thing that comes to mind when he hears about the United States is sports. He said that American sports like basketball and baseball are on a different level. He enjoys watching Major League Baseball while watching professional Korean baseball. I also asked my father’s friend about what he thought about the United States. Although he did not have much to say, he did say that because America was such a large country, he thought that America’s actions have a significant impact in the politics and the economy. I asked an elderly man about his opinion about the United States, and he told me that it is such a large country that he did not want to live there. He told me that if he were to live in the United States, he felt like he would not be able to see his grandchildren and other family members as often as he could in Korea. After the interviews, I thought that living in the United States is very different from living in Korea even though both countries are both well off.