I commited my first cultural sin when I stepped into my apartment, just hours after arriving in Korea. When I saw my Korean companion's aghast expression, I knew I'd done something very wrong. My shoes; I'd forgotten to take them off. Oops, OK, no big deal, right? Well, when I went to school Monday morning, I was faced with another cultural no-no. I didn't have inside shoes for school. Everyone -- students and teachers -- comes to school in one pair of shoes and exchange them at the door for another, cleaner pair. I was saved by a special pair of shoes the school keeps for just such occasions and I introduced myself to the principal and vice principal in what looked like clunky, blue Adidas slip-ons.
At first I tried to bring a second pair of shoes to change into, but it wouldn't do--they weren't the right kind of shoes. Maybe people asked me about my first week's "inside shoes" because they were flaming red heels, but mostly it was because they weren't the boring, black slip-on sandals. So I broke down and bought what you see above. I've always held a grudge against this style of shoe, especially worn with white socks. Why did Asians do that at Biola?! But it's just how Asians roll; it's not a faux pas here. Plus, I heard it's rude to show your bare feet -- which I also did my first day at school. The real irony came when I ran out of other socks one day and had to wear white ones with my inside shoes. When in Korea...do as Koreans do.
Above is a picture of my own special compartment for my outside and inside shoes. Below is the threshold of a socially cool person.
No comments:
Post a Comment