Tamara Failor ETA :: 2004-2005 Suncheon Maesan Girls’ High School
S
everal months into my Fulbright year, I faced a cohort of new students. My getting-to-know-you Q&A generated the standards: “Do you like Korea?” “Do you like kimchi?” Some questions were impressively thoughtout: “Did you lose weight or gain weight after you came to Korea?” The questioning moved pretty quickly to the political: “What do you think about Bush?” “What do you think about Ohno?” I knew very little about Ohno, so I asked my students to explain. The one who posed the question was stymied, so a peer stepped in: Ohno was a speedskater who “overreacted,” causing an undeserved penalty which cost Korea the gold medal. This was followed with the inevitable, “What do you think about Japan?” Dokdo (disputed islands in the East Sea) was in the headlines, and they knew I’d visited Japan over winter break. I hemmed and hawed; the bell rang. “Bye!” I said brightly, my relief only slightly exaggerated as I stepped quickly out, the laughter rising as the door closed behind me. During Fulbright Orientation we’d watched footage of a Korean soccer player celebrating a goal by skidding across the grass with speedskating motions, before being tackled by his ecstatic teammates. This was part of an orientation meant to prepare us for a year in a country which now seemed increasingly nationalistic, and torn between resentment and appreciation for the U.S., its supposed liberator and undeniably crucial economic and political ally.
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| Fulbright ETA Program 20 years in Korea
