I Live In Korea

1. For rated R movies you have to be 18 to see them, even if you are with your parents. Thank god for the internet.

2. Spitting in public is perfectly acceptable, even “hocking a loogie.” If I go a few hours walking around the city and don’t hear someone coughing up serious phlegm and spitting it right on the ground in front of him, it means there just haven’t been any people around.

3. You should never pour beer for yourself when you are in the company of others. You should let someone pour it for you.

4. You should never pour/receive beer from an elder by holding the cup/bottle with one hand. Two hands is a must or else it is a sign of disrespect.

5. ALL Koreans lie about their age. You turn 1 when you are born, and then 2 at the first day of the New Year. So, if you are born on December 25th, you are one years old, on January 1st, just a few days later, you are 2. Then you resume the normally scheduled birthday pattern, celebrating it on the 25th of December each year. So you are 2 years old before you are even 2 weeks old. Interesting.

6. When you go to a movie there’s assigned seating. This means you won’t walk into a crowded theater and spend time looking for seats and asking “is anyone sitting here?” This is great, I love it. Also at the movies, you are supposed to throw out your own trash. No leaving stuff behind for the theater staff.

7. You pay for garbage bags. Yes, you essentially pay to throw out your garbage. Sounds crazy, but think about how much less waste there would be in the world if everyone did this? I personally can say I consume a lot less trash now because of it.

8. It’s acceptable to bump into people if you are trying to get by. On the train, in school, on the Subway, in the supermarket, in the hallway, in the bathroom, anywhere. There would be a lot less people around if this happened in NYC.

9. Sticking your chopsticks into a bowl of rice and leaving them upright, is like the equivalent of pouring out liquor for someone who died. It should not be done.

10. No tipping. None. Never. To do so is almost a slap in the face and implies “I have money and am better than you.” I've been in a bar before and was due back $0.40 for my drink. I was more eager to go dominate my darts game than wait for my change so I left the bar area. Sure enough, the bartender came from behind the bar and chased me down to give me the change. Seriously, just keep the change.