Korea is an amazing place. Aside from the four seasons, you would really like the lifestyle and technology here. But first things first!!! Before you will enjoy the vast richness that this country can offer, you must and you should learn their language first. Most of the Koreans only know how to speak and understand their own language. If you know how to speak English, scrap it out here because you can't use it. As a newbie here in South Korea, I am still struggling to learn how to communicate despite the series of language trainings and exams I took way back in the Philippines.
When I arrived here in Korea, I can only last up to 3 sentences conversation. But after two weeks, I can converse up to 5 to 6 sentences. I know I can still improve as time goes by, but here are my practical tips for those of you who are here in Korea and still learning to cope up with the language barrier.
1. Memorize some basic Korean words
There is no other easy way to start to communicate with Koreans but to memorize some basic and important words. Don't worry about the characters at this point, just read the romanized version of the word. It's good if you have dictionary. I brought with me two books and 3 pages hand outs that contains these basic words.
Memorize or just read through the words and you will find it helpful. Words like the following are important:
where: Odi
when: Onje
what: mou
how: otoke
bathroom: hwajingsil
market: sijang
here: yogi
eat: mogo
pain: appa
and many more....
So if you want to ask where is the bathroom, just use the word odi and hwajingil. So if you way, odi hwajingsil or hwajingsil odi, Koreans can understand that you are asking where is the bathroom. Just never mind if the sentence is correct. As long as you have the keywords, you can appear with sense to them. For example, if you don't know how to operate a machine or how to do a thing, just point it out and say "Otoke?". That means you are asking how to do this or how to make something work.
2. Carefully listen to the conversation
If you are here in Korea, you will hear their language everywhere. Eventhough you don't understand, just listen. You can pick up some words and learn how to pronounce them correctly. If two Koreans are conversing, open your ears and carefully listen and challenge yourself to interpret what they are talking about. Sometimes, you can learn new words from them.
3. Initiate a conversation with them
Koreans are willing to help you grasp their language. I think the most effective so far to learn it is to talk to them. It doesn't matter if you are making sense or not, just talk to them. Start with a few words you know from tip number one and two and you will get the hang of it. Try to expand your common sense.
Just like a kid, newbies like me find it really difficult to learn the Korean language. Communication is very important here, and the only way to break the communication barrier is to learn their language.
Kamsahamnida!!!
When I arrived here in Korea, I can only last up to 3 sentences conversation. But after two weeks, I can converse up to 5 to 6 sentences. I know I can still improve as time goes by, but here are my practical tips for those of you who are here in Korea and still learning to cope up with the language barrier.
1. Memorize some basic Korean words
There is no other easy way to start to communicate with Koreans but to memorize some basic and important words. Don't worry about the characters at this point, just read the romanized version of the word. It's good if you have dictionary. I brought with me two books and 3 pages hand outs that contains these basic words.
Memorize or just read through the words and you will find it helpful. Words like the following are important:
where: Odi
when: Onje
what: mou
how: otoke
bathroom: hwajingsil
market: sijang
here: yogi
eat: mogo
pain: appa
and many more....
So if you want to ask where is the bathroom, just use the word odi and hwajingil. So if you way, odi hwajingsil or hwajingsil odi, Koreans can understand that you are asking where is the bathroom. Just never mind if the sentence is correct. As long as you have the keywords, you can appear with sense to them. For example, if you don't know how to operate a machine or how to do a thing, just point it out and say "Otoke?". That means you are asking how to do this or how to make something work.
2. Carefully listen to the conversation
If you are here in Korea, you will hear their language everywhere. Eventhough you don't understand, just listen. You can pick up some words and learn how to pronounce them correctly. If two Koreans are conversing, open your ears and carefully listen and challenge yourself to interpret what they are talking about. Sometimes, you can learn new words from them.
3. Initiate a conversation with them
Koreans are willing to help you grasp their language. I think the most effective so far to learn it is to talk to them. It doesn't matter if you are making sense or not, just talk to them. Start with a few words you know from tip number one and two and you will get the hang of it. Try to expand your common sense.
Just like a kid, newbies like me find it really difficult to learn the Korean language. Communication is very important here, and the only way to break the communication barrier is to learn their language.
Kamsahamnida!!!
