On Saturday, we successfully took on not one but two grocery stores in our quest for passport photos and other necessities.  In this way, we learned a hard lesson.  Future Korean residents, take note:  DO NOT GO SHOPPING ON SATURDAY.  EVER.

Shopping in Korea is already really overwhelming, even though it seems like something that should be easy.  First, we have to figure out how to get to the grocery store.  For example, our HomePlus (the Tesco all-purpose grocery store in our neighborhood) is only about a ten minute walk from our house….in theory.  However, because of the way the road interchanges are set up, we have to walk two blocks past the store, cross the highway, and double back.  This took a little figuring out on our first trip and almost resulted in our getting crushed by several Korean drivers.  We are convinced they get double points for Westerners.

Getting home is easy if we walk it, but it becomes more complicated if we have purchased so many things that we need to take a cab home.  Cab drivers are usually really nice, but sometimes they don’t understand our garbled attempts at Korean.  And they almost never speak or read English.  More advice for residents and visitors:  Have a Korean friend write the name of your home, the local grocery store, and a couple other important places down in Han’gul.  Then, in a moment of linguistic desperation, you can simply show your driver the piece of paper and point.  In our experience, this has been highly effective.

Now, as if transit weren’t intimidating enough, we have yet to tackle the store itself.  Korean box stores are explosions of noise, color, and motion.  Every day, the store’s jingle and other peppy advertising campaigns play on a nonstop loop.  You can sample the home plus jingle here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu3VTThqajk, but be warned; it is more contagious than avian flu. You will have it stuck in your head.  It does not matter that the words are in Korean.  You will make up your own to replay ad nauseum in  your jet-lagged brain.  Click with caution. 

And Saturdays!  Well, Saturdays, we learned this week, are free sample Saturdays.  And it’s like any kind of American free sampling you can imagine on steroids. And cocaine.  And PCP.  And Red Bull.  Salesclerks shove free samples of food, lotion, and anything else you can imagine in your face.  They recommend fabric softener sales and hawk vitamins, all at top volume Korean. And when you smile and shake your head to signify your lack of understanding, they continue to talk. 

This is a lot when you add it to the crowds of other people and consider the fact that we still have things we need to locate and purchase.  Because shopping is tough when you can’t rely on the English alphabet.

Exhibit A:  This seemingly innocent bottle of soy sauce, purchased at our local Home Plus this week: 

 

You may notice that the only English on this bottle is written in the bottom left hand corner.  It says “Natural Soy Sauce”.  However, in a country that has entire aisles devoted to soy sauce, there is still some room for debate.  Is this low sodium soy sauce?  The cheapy brand no one likes?  Shrimp flavored?  Who knows? You just have to take a deep breath and pick one.  Luckily, this one is relatively normal, run of the mill soy.  I have a feeling there will be some surprises, both pleasant and un, in our grocery forays.

So, now you know why I have to have a nap when we get back from Home Plus, why I will be bringing my mp3 player to the grocery store, and why Saturdays will find me eschewing retail establishments of all shapes and sizes.  Happy bargain hunting, friends!

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Busan, Korea