Come August I was starting to worry that perhaps I had simply lost my love of exploring new countries. Not enjoying Korea was depressing me immensely. In every culture there are bound to be things you don't appreciate, but to not be able to move past this and take pleasure in the overall way of life? It was such an unsettling feeling, and many of my fellow expats didn't make me feel any better--they seemed to be loving Korea, some of them already intent on re-signing. So what was wrong? Had I just grown tired? Less adventurous? Less flexible and open minded?
I was presented with the opinion that people who don't like it here just aren't trying hard enough. After resisting not punching said people in the face, I took some time to think about if this statement contained any truth. Okay-- since we are here to save money, we don't go out every weekend, partying it up on the streets of Daegu, Busan and Seoul. We don't take the KTX to every corner of the country or fly to Jeju on the weekend. But to me, these should be the extras; it's the quality of every day life that makes up the largest percentage of your time. And for the first few months my quality of life was trying not to get hit by unskilled drivers, which made up 80% of the driving population, attempting new Korean food that I continued to not have a taste for, and freeze to death every time I stepped a foot outside. I think the only part of my new life that didn't have me running home with hardly a peek behind, screw the completion bonus, was my school situation and the fact that the actual teaching in Korea has been a billion and one times easier than my teaching experience in Thailand. Everyday quality of school life = peaceful and productive with just a hint of crazy.
Late August we took off to Malaysia for our summer holiday. I had never been so excited to exit a particular culture, but I was anxious how I would find Malaysia. What if I didn't like that adventure either? Thankfully, Malaysia proved to be the refreshment we needed. We spent our time in Kuala Lumpur and the Perhentian Islands. People didn't run their shoulders into us as we passed them on the street. They smiled. They might take a second glance at the foreigner, but the unrelenting, up close stare didn't happen once. Okay, it actually did happen once on the subway, but as soon as I caught the person's eye they looked away embarrassed--they didn't continue to stare as if it wasn't an incredibly rude habit.
The food was lovely, the weather literally a breath of fresh air. And with all the delicious meals, white sand beaches and gorgeous dives, my favorite take away from our trip was that I still love to travel and explore new cultures. Even the aspects of Malaysia I didn't do handsprings about I still found interesting and enjoyed having the experience. (For example, getting stuck--literally unable to move--in a human traffic jam in Little India. Not the highlight of our trip but definitely an interesting situation!)
It's such a relief to know that I have not become someone who never wants to leave the comforts of their own home and who still enjoys the wayward adventure, when it's the perfect experience, and more importantly, even when it's not. Korea hasn't beaten that out of me yet : P
