American Pearl in Korea
Studied abroad in Seoul, South Korea at Korea University with the help from a Gilman Scholarship! If you have questions about Korea, or anything, please ask!
Now a personal blog with smatterings from Korea.
Eat, Travel, Oppress: Travel Discourse and Imperialist Nostalgia - Shameless Magazine - your daily dose of fresh feminism for girls and trans youth
The self-obsessed language through which travel and travelling is typically talked about in our culture is rooted in an imperialist mode of thinking that sustains itself through othering poor people of colour. In fact, the ways of talking about travel have made it so that travellers going on vacations for fun, or trips to help others, do so in manners and behaviours that are strikingly similar to the trips that European colonizers took centuries ago when they first came to “civilize” the rest of the world.
In this light, travel discourse is directly perpetuating colonial ways of thinking: it markets travelling as an apolitical, carefree, schism-free and fluffy experience, unaccountable to historical and present violence caused by ongoing colonization. It ignores the reality that the actions of global powers are the main causes of the poverty and oppression in travel destination countries. We need new ways of talking about travel that does not equate gaining personal fulfillment at the expense of poor people, Indigenous people and people of colour.
(Source: stabra, via lostintrafficlights)
Why people study about foreign nations when interested in history and politics.
It’s because they don’t have the same personal investment of their own nation. Sure they find it fascinating and they start understand human beings better but if they did the same research about their own govt., history, politics, social issues just in their county they would be appalled. We each live deeply in our own ignorance that allows home to be a haven. To learn about our own issues is to invest yourself in solving the problem and to be disillusioned. To fight for the betterment of your home is to fight not to lose hope.
When learning about other countries we can acknowledge others atrocities and know that we had no impact on these events. We are outside it. We need give no apology. We can also choose to ignore any issues of our home abroad because we can’t do anything about nor are we wanted to.
This is all different when it’s about your passport nation. We all hold an invisible duty, a lasso of obligation we all pretend isn’t there and try to live with blinders on to the issues we should be fixing. >
Anonymous:
I agree with you,but i hate the word oppa. And every time i heard the word Oppa on a drama or someone,it makes me mad. I dont know why,i find that word so annoying.
I have no problem with the word oppa when used culturally correctly, is appropriate, and non-creepy.
There are relationships when it’s totally cool to use oppa but you guys have got to talk it out. I once called a friend oppa as a joke (I told him I was going to do it like 30 sec before too) and he flipped out because it was so weird. He didn’t like it bc we didn’t have a strict Korean relationship he liked being called his name not having to pay for me food and etc. My friends bro had me call him oppa since I was like a little sister figure to him but I also had to follow strict cultural rules with their family. It’s all situational. Most guys would not be happy to be called oppa by some random foreigner unless they’re creepy.
I could go on about these creepers. I could also rant on about how Koreans are fully aware and wary of the creepy foreigners who like kpop but you’re ask didn’t really require this much text and the last time I mentioned kpop I got a lot hate.
PS- most girls in dramas who say it tend to be the annoying spoiled character (just something I’ve noticed)
I hate the misuse of oppa.
A normal Korean guy will not want you to call him oppa.
It’s shows that you’re really close to each other. It’s normally a conversation you have with another or someone tells you to call them oppa.
It’s not a substitute for their name. Their name is not oppa.
Especially if you’re foreign Korean guys don’t want you calling them oppa randomly (without a connection).
Now that I wrote and decided to make this purely Korea; I want it back to a mix of personal but mostly Korea.
I cannot make my mind up. Ugh.
It’s so weird to see anti-Korea stuff on the Korea tag. It’s even weirder because the poster translates it to Japanese at the bottom.
I know there are TONS of issues between the two countries. I know a lot of it’s propaganda but it’s proves to me that my time in Korea was sunshine I may have had ‘not so great times’, but for me my time in Korea might as well have been a platinum record.
I didn’t hear about almost any issues that Korea has. I got to hear briefly about womens pay, womens role, adoption, and mail order brides. That’s essentially it. I lived next to a home or school for special needs kids for 5 months and I never asked or heard about a general opinion towards it. It makes me wonder if I should have tried to delve deeper into Korean society and history. I literally just know about youth culture and not even as well as others because I didn’t go clubbing and my Korean friends didn’t drink as much as other Koreans.
I’m not saying the propaganda is truth I’m just pointing out that I don’t know much. I’m inspired to learn more and start looking at some history books.
Anonymous:
Have you been in a korean sauna?
I have. I love it. I would support someone who wanted to make a Korean style bathhouse in my area. I’m in love with them.
Anonymous:
The food you like the best and the less? (from Korea)
This is really hard. The best, for me would probably be something with octopus in it, but lately I’m craving kimchichigae. The worst is probably kimchi. I really don’t like cabbage kimchi by it’self.
mermaids don’t have thigh gaps but they can still lure men to their deaths
(via dahkilah)
