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Clara’s Diary: A Korean Student’s Philippine Experience

by yeojachingu on April 18, 2011 · 90 comments

in Books and Literature,Contest,Cultural Differences,Feature,Filipino-Korean

One of the perks of being in an inter-cultural relationship is that you get to intimately learn about your partner’s culture, even if you’re not in his/her homeland. As I have said over and over again, I did not have a single Korean friend before I met Yong Jin, for various reasons. Well, there’s Sam Oh, whom I dearly adoooore OMG ~~because she’s smart and funny and a great host NOT ‘coz she’s Korean~~ but we just got to work in a couple of projects and it’s not like we’re BFFs (though I wanted us to be).

Much has been said about what we Pinoys think of Koryans in general but have you ever wondered what they think of us? Wonder no more because I introduce to you one of my closest Korean friends, Ju Ha Young 주하영 … Her English name is Clara and she was one of the only two Korean friends of my boyfriend in DLSU (because he’s picky like that). She likes mangoes, tarsiers and the sunset in Manila Bay. More importantly, after only being here for three years, she has already written a book about her experiences in Pinas!!!

CLARA’S DIARY: A Korean Student’s Philippine Experience

And I shit with you not, it seriously is one of the funniest book/comics that I’ve read in a while. And I’m not just saying that because I got my self an autographed copy.

You see, 90% of the things that she has included in the book (straight out of her own diary), I have heard from Jimmy Kim. I swear I could hear his voice while I was reading the lines!!! I literally “Laughed Out Loud” while I was reading this book. No, I was even in tears while laughing.

And here are a few examples of the awesomeness that will pwn your face when you read the book… Excuse the quality. I painstakingly scanned these using our 7 year-old printer. Also, click on the images to make ‘em bigggaaarrr!!!

On South Korea

Kim Jong Il is not the real name of Rain.

Many Korean friends have that complaint and I can’t blame them one bit. It’s probably the result of our degrading educational system but students HAVE to be informed that North Koreans CANNOT go out of their country or even use the internet. I was really amazed that even some of my own Filipino friends who were from good universities would ask that question!

On Pregnant Women

“When you get pregnant with my baby, you will just stay home from the 3rd month onwards. No work, no going out, no stress. Just listen to classical music, eat anything you want and stay happy.” (Kim Yong Jin, 2010)

OMFGGGG!!!!!! I swear I died when I found out about this particular cultural difference. So I invited Jimmy, Clara and two other Korean friends to watch our taping for Go Negosyo, when Ate Gladys Reyes was still 3-4 months pregnant and holy shit they all freaked out! They were like… Why is she working??? Her tummy’s already so big!!! What if she gets a miscarriage! Let me reiterate that she was only 3-4 months pregnant then. Also, it’s probably true because I do not recall seeing preggerz walking around Seoul.

Only in Korea

Dear Clara, WTF. We use shampoo and conditioner!

So many people don’t know what the difference is between North and South Korea but man, I was totally taken aback when I learned that many Koreans, prior to studying or living here, had MANY misconceptions about the Philippines or they just didn’t know anything about it at all! Ha Young asked her friends back home about what they think of the Philippines and some (including the author herself AND my boyfriend) thought that our staple food are mangoes and bananas! Can you imagine their surprise when they saw Fort Bonifacio and Makati for the first time?

On Unlikable Filipino Characteristics

Admit it. You hate the “Filipino time”, too. You just became too accustomed to it.

If Filipinos who do not contribute to the society can complain about our country 24/7, of course tourists and foreigners from more developed nations who pay taxes and bring in money can and will have their own issues, too! Although this book does not tackle heavy shit like corruption, Clara shares her frustrations about the ineffective system in government offices, motherfuckin’ taxi drivers who take advantage of her being Korean and yes, our tardiness.

On Filipino Talent

This made me remember the time I got to play Sadako in a class presentation in college. I literally went out of a box TV. Performance level much?

Much as people like Kpop or whatever, Koreans actually look up to us in terms of singing and the arts. Just yesterday, Jimmy and I were watching ASAP and he kept asking me who the artistas were (particularly Sarah Geronimo) and was like “Wow! She’s good!” “Wow, they can dance ah!” “Wow, she should join 나는가수다!” “Wow wow wow!!!” Sometimes, it takes other people from other cultures to make us see the greatness in us.

And yes, this book is a perfect example of that. More than the fact that it’s hilarious and the illustrations were really cute, this 92-page book can actually make us Filipinos realize how blessed we are and how much potential we have. Clara has put so much heart into this piece of work and her honesty is what made it magical. You won’t see in-depth analysis of our society or hyphalluting words about cultural differences but it’s entertaining and has substance! Maybe it holds more meaning for me, being in a Filipino-Korean inter-cultural relationship but I can assure you that YOU WILL ENJOY THIS BOOK as much as my officemates did.

If you’re into this whole Korean wave, if you wanna know what Koreans generally think about us, or if you just want a good read, I really suggest you get a copy of Clara’s Diary: A Korean Student’s Philippine Experience. And you know what, all proceeds of the book will even go to her beneficiary, Kids of Bahay Pangarap! That’s what I call fierce!!! Also, I really hope this book gets published and distributed in Korea in Hangul so people like Ha Young and my boyfriend (before they went here) would have a better understanding of what it’s like to live here because fuck what everyone thinks, you know deep within your soul that the Philippines is actually a very kick-ass place.

Thank you so much, Ha Young for this book and for the inspiration. We’ll hang out and get drunk soon, okay? Hahaha!

Clara’s Diary, A Korean Student’s Philippine Experience
New Day Publishers
Php 250 at all major bookstores nationwide

Ha Young (mini skirt, permed hair) and I (white shorts, orange hair) with our Koryan friends watching the Korea vs. Greece World Cup game. This photo was front page on Manila Seoul.

Clockwise: Ha Young, Kring, Yong Jin, Seung Hwan, Hye Kyeong at the set of Go Negosyo.

And here we all are in a crack episode of Direk, titled… “Koreanovela”! Mwahahaha! Click on the image to watch.

CONTEST TIEMZZZ!!!

Hey Hey Hey!!! My Korean Boyfriend (the blog, not Jimmy Kim -___-) is giving away TWO (2) AUTOGRAPHED COPIES OF Clara’s Diary!!! All you have to do is leave a comment (of course about this entry first) then tell what are the great things about the Philippines that Koreans can and will love when they go here! Let’s break the misconceptions, guys!!! PINOY POWER!!!

Please make sure you leave your email address and I’ll be announcing the winners next week! Spread the loooove~

ps: Clara =/= the entire Korean population but yeah, her examples were pretty spot-on!

Please don’t forget to follow us on Twitter: Kring, My Korean Boyfriend, Jimmy Kim
And “like” us on Facebook: Kring Elenzano / The Krimmy Couple / C.N.A. Philippines
Subscribe to my YouTube account: FunnySexy

http://twitter.com/joon85 Park Hyung-Joon 박형준

Thanks for the recommendation, Kring! I bought and finished reading this on the same day I read your post (That’s how much I value your sophisticated literary tastes! Ha ha ha!). I really enjoyed this~~~! I think Ha-Young (Don’t want to use Clara since it reminds me of Mara) is really funny! Her observations are so spot-on with Filipino culture!

I think there’s also a deeper sense to the book behind all the humor, too. It makes one appreciate and love the Philippines even more. It also makes one think of all the things that can and should be improved.

Anyway, here’s my post on the book: http://joon25.wordpress.com/2011/04/19/claras-diary-see-the-philippines-thru-a-koreans-eyes/

When you see Ha-Young again, tell her this fan boy loves her~!!! <3 <3 <3 (^~^)
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

GO AHEAD! Please do~
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

Haha! Will be seeing her after the holy week and will tell her! Actually, so many other people seem to be fangirling her, too already!!! ^^ Quite proud and happy that people take the things that I feature here srsly and even listen to my recos! Thanks again!
Turtal

natawa naman ako dito )
lagi nalng akong nag jjudge ng korean sa utak ko — nacurious tuloy ako kung ano naman iniisip nila satin ))

————
[entry]

The Philippines has lots of things to offer!
mapa good man yan o bad, marami tayo nyan!
uunahin ko na syempre ang street foods, hinde na sila baguhan dito, pero may; pishbols, kwek-kwek, balot, penoy, chicharon, kalamares, at isaw sakanila? WALA! ))

pangalawa na siguro is ang kakaiba nating transportation na tinatawag na “Jeepney” oh sa madaling salita “Jeep” ) — wala tong katulad sa ano mang parte ng mundo. mura, maraming nagmumura, may mga manyakis na nanghihipo gamit ang siko, mga pawisin, at mga maaasim. total filipino experience! )

ukay-ukay , need I say more? ) — bargains galore to! — at sure kang one of a kind pa makukuha mo kasi may unique feature ang damit na mabibili mo dun. may kulang na butones, maling kulay, sirang tela ) .. AWESOME!

Tanawin! — syemay! pumunta sila ng banawe at tignan ang ating rice terraces at sa bohol para sa CHOCOLEYT HILLS BEYBEH, at di pahuhuli ang pnaka perpektong hugis na bulkan na si Mt. Mayon. odava

Mall of Asia – dito ka lang makakakita ng mall na maraming naka jeje cap : ANOTHER FILIPINO EXPERIENCE! )))

Filipino Food – champorado, champorado, arroz caldo, puto, palitaw, champorado, bibingka. adobo, isaw, ADIDAS (one-day old chicken), halo-halo, at nasabi ko na bang champorado? )

and last but not the least, the filipino people themselves , halo-halo tayo ng personalities, meron tayong chismosa, meron tayong plastic, meron tayong balimbing!, meron tayong feeling gwapo/maganda pero pangit naman, meron tayong mabilis manghusga, meron tayong mahihinhin pero manyakis pala, meron tayong mga napaka gwapo na tulad ko — AT MARAMI PANG IBA

kaya anong hinde nila magugustuhan sa pilipinas?

[/entry]

email : mturtal@gmail.com
Desiderata_pixie

ur a bonggacious advertiser miss kring=) thanks for this post, now i know that a great komiks is out there in the bookstore shelves..i admire this Clara chick coz she made it! not everyone can publish a book and have other people (non-relatives) buy it!! its talent…

I think the Filipino people is the greatest asset of the Philippines. It is it’s strength and weakness, either way, it represents the charm that is uniquely Filipino. Foreigners will definitely see the beautiful culture of the Philippines through us. Growing up, I was not so patriotic. I didn’t see the real potential of my country, probably because the elders or grown-up people around me won’t bother telling me how great my country is in reality. But I learned to love it on my own. Kahit di ako nakatira sa Boracay, alam ko nang maganda and dagat sa Pilipinas. Kahit sa picture ko lng nkkita ang Bohol, alam kong masarap kainin ang chocolate hills. khit minsan makulimlim, alam kong masarap mag-stargazing khit umaga pa lang…Pinas Eh!!
btw, i remember this ad by Dept.of Tourism nun, “when the Gods created the Philippine island,they liked it so much they decided to create 7000 more!” i hope the Koreans see there’s just so much in the Philippines to love, like the more than 7000 views of sunset=)

desiderata_pixie@yahoo.com
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

I like your humor and sarcasm…
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

Wow… that was well put-together! Thank you so much! Even your intro! That’s sooo Pinoy and so true!
http://twitter.com/_franceslim Frances

This
http://twitter.com/_franceslim Frances

This is just a very interesting read, not only because of the giveaway, though. I’ve never thought that Koreans have these experiences (misconceptions included) about the Filipinos because usually, when I encounter Koreans, they’ve already lived here for quite sometime now or better yet, they were already born here that they already speak in Tagalog! This book is just epic, makes it more interesting to follow Korean culture, not only KPop itself.

Anyhow, I agree with the author’s opinion on how some Filipinos are misinformed with how North Korea’s government handles their citizens.

There are three things Koreans can actually love here in the Philippines:

First is that Koreans might be surprised, if ever they decide to visit here, that Filipinos are very hospitable. That is such an overrated word to describe us but we’re only speaking of the truth here ^__^ Filipinos are very eager to serve their visitors, offering them food, telling stories and sharing what good places that they would love to visit.

Second, we are all such happy people! Don’t you agree? I mean who here in Asia, at the very least, who still has the courage to smile after a great chaos? Remember that during Ondoy, many of us watched news with the affected areas but that’s not the point… there are people there in those news who are endlessly smiling despite the fact that a storm just passed them, destroying their houses.

Last but not the very least is the fact that we have extraordinary street foods that they must try. Balot, kwek-kwek, isaw and the very-delicious-but-they-call-it-dirty ice cream! You name it! They can’t actually leave our country without trying these lol

A plus, of course, are the very refreshing views here in the Philippines! Baguio, Ilocos, Palawan, Bohol, etc

PS: I’m a big (silent) reader of your blog, Ms. Kring! Please keep up with sharing your interesting experiences and thoughts And, I never knew this book existed so thank you for sharing it!
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

Awww… Thank you so much! I’m just a girl with a lot of stories to tell! Just wanna share ‘em with you, guys! Please continue reading my blogs~ ^^
Critee_crits

i hope i will win because i heart comics and i heart anything about cultures ^^
i work as a guide in a museum and it is very interesting to know about people from other countries and what what they think of us.

what great thing about the philippines? we have it all. simple as that. nature, metropolis, art, dances, poverty, religion…we have everything there is to experience! (xcept snow of course hehehe)
http://twitter.com/funnysexy funnysexy

Though it has snowed in Baguio. XDDD Thanks for your entry and comment, though! See you around~
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Nrm_sia

Gosh, I didn’t know there’s a book about what a korean thinks about the philippines. I had been living outside the country for the last 11 yrs and got curious because my sister told me there is a lot of koreans living in the philippines that i search for the topic here in google. Clara’s book looks like a good read and doesn’t insult our culture or look down on it. I’ll definitely order it in amazon. Thanks for letting me know.
Nrm_sia

Aaawww… Amazon.com doesn’t sell her book. Sayang, I really wanted to read it…Comic style pa naman which makes it more fun to read…
dwyght ^^

i guess its way toooo late to win this book, but can you possibly help me get it signed by clara if i buy 1? my bestfriend is a korean and i just love and enjoy the friendship i have with her! ^^ i have been following your blog (i never do that, until i saw yours, kkkk) and i soooo love it. as you can see, this is the first time i am leaving a comment here, because i just dont know what to say… sana may superlike button na lang, hahaha!!! anyways, thank you…
Anonymous

Gowww. Let’s see what we can do. Please keep posted for some of the events that I might be a part of. Then lemme know if you can attend so I can give a heads up to Clara.
dwyght ^^

thank you! i have the book na, i bought the same day i posted the comment, hehe :p
Koreanwannabeako

Hi! Thanks for posting this. I just grabbed my copy yesterday!! And it was AWESOME! I love it to bits!
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