Swimming Pool 101

Alrighty guys. Gonna make a quick post that I've been meaning to put up since last week.

This past week flew by since I started a new schedule at the hakwon for a short 6 week winter break program. It basically takes up my Tuesday and Thursday mornings, but still gives me time to make the 8:00-8:50 swimming schedule at the YMCA. Swim, shower, home, change, work til 9. Wednesday (work at 12:30, finish at 8:00, go tutor for 3 hours, go home and sleep) gets sandwiched by 8:00-9:00 Tuesday Thursdays. Don't get me wrong, it's worth the pocket money, but goodness I'm beat by Friday night.

So about that swimming pool.

First of all, swimming pool memberships are locked into time slots prepaid by the month. Basically these time slots are the times that are not being used by various other classes and programs. Generally, it's at the crack of dawn, lunch time, and again around 7 or 8. Most pools work this way.

Getting into the pool is quite different from what the American would be used to... i.e. getting publicly naked first. It's a fusion of pool and Korean sauna. Get your key, go to the locker room, strip down (essential to going to the showers as you will be stopped along the way by some ajumma before you have time to reach the shower floor in your bathing suit), go down stairs to the shower room, shower down with soap (rinsing is frowned upon), put your bathing suit on, and go straight from the shower room to the pool (you have to go through it to reach the pool).

I first experienced that when I was going to Korea University and I took a swimming class to finish off my credits while helping out with exercise at the same time. I lived right next door, so I saw no difference between rinsing down before and leaving my house with my bathing suit on under exercise clothes and making a B line for the pool--cause who wants to flaunt themselves to the local grandma population and fellow classmates? I was stopped many a time, but pulled the "I don't know, I'm a foreigner card" and they stopped bothering me. Bad Tessa, bad.

But as time goes on, you get used to the whole naked thing and just do it for the sake of efficiency and oddly enough avoiding interaction. That was the extent of my knowledge until I got to the YMCA for free swim...

It turns out there's an unspoken social dynamic in the 8:00 swim population.

You see, there's 6 lanes, two for each level: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. In the first week, I went with the intermediate level. And kept getting hit on the head by swimmers in the lane (there are usually about 5 people or more in each lane, just swimming laps). They were also really slow. I'm no competitive swimmer, but this was too much. Apparently "beginner" means "I can be in water by myself and not die" and intermediate means "I can reach the other side and come back without stopping midway." I couldn't get my heart rate up with this group taking up the lane, so I got some guts and went over to the advanced level.

I got fussed at by this woman for being too slow. As it turns out one of the advanced lanes (which had the least amount of people, the reason why I went there) is for this clique of swimmers that like to have leisurely laps and then suddenly sprint with butterflies and stuff. The next lane moved at my pace, or a little faster which pushes me to swim harder. Fine with me. But I had to be shamed first to get in. I always felt the disapproving eyes of that woman ever since--and you know she comes every day, as you will notice with most of the swimmers.

Though there are jolly and light hearted old women in the swimming "community" you can't help but feel the burn of those who seem to somehow be sitting at the top of the hierarchy. Going back to the shower, there are a lot of old women striking up conversation (some people try to talk in the pool but I promptly cut conversation with the point that I need to exercise. If I stop, it's cause I absolutely should breath before I go again if I don't want to drown.) but there are many whose lives revolve around making others follow rules.

Last week I had a bad day. I woke up a little late, and rushed to the pool. Started my laps. I made a lazy stretch with my arm as I was swimming and just slammed my middle and ring fingers into the plastic lane ropes. It's still bruised. But that put me off for the swim, thinking about whether it was worth it to stop and go ice it. I didn't. Somewhere along the way in deep thought, I realized my ear plug fell out (I've got sensitive ears). I stood up and looked around. It would be impossible to find the sky blue silicone plug in the turquoise water. As I was being hit by swimmers going past on both sides, the mean lady asked me if I lost something. Disheartened, I pointed to my remaining plug and said that it fell out. To get out of the way, I popped it back in my ear and I kept moving. For about 2 laps, I was thinking about where to get it and whether internet shopping would be worth the 2.50 shipping fee for something that only costs 7 dollars... but where would I find swimming gear nearby? etc etc etc. Back to the end of the lane, the woman was waiting for me with my ear plug in hand, and gave it back to me smiling.

At that point, I felt so relieved but also in a state of surprise and near confusion about my relationship with this woman. I realized then that she wasn't there to chastise me so much as to look after me. Though she has yet to compliment my swimming, she has accepted me as a "usual" member. There's a term for relationships between Koreans--jung. It's not quite love, but a bond that people have as humans to look out and care for one another. Ah, it's not social responsibility either. You have to feel it and then you know.

That morning, I realized that there's more kindness in that cold pool than I thought, and as cliche as it seems that bad days can and do get better.

That's as well as I can conclude this story, since I have to rush off to work. I spent the morning finding a laundromat that would clean my Uggs after I spilt board marker ink on them. They're now in the "hospital" for 3 weeks... Let's hope that bad thing will turn out nicely, too. Pleeeaaase?

Out of Retirement

It's been over four years since I came to Seoul. I honestly have no idea where most of the time went, but a lot has changed.

Looking at my old post, you could see that I was still into the k-pop scene, if at least interested. I can't say as much now. I honestly have no idea what's popular except for what I see on commercials, posters, and the occasional glance at the top 10 on Bugs (one of the main music streaming sites in Korea). Instead, I've been working and focusing on being a grown up in this giant metropolis. It's been more about cutthroat competition in the job market and education for me for the past few years.

Of course, that doesn't mean I haven't found time to go have a bit of fun here and there and meet up with my friends, who are now essentially only locals, as virtually all of my previous friends from study abroad have long gone home (except for those who have returned to teach). One day it occurred to me that I was the only foreigner in most of my circles of friends, and when people asked me about my foreign friends, I would have a really hard time thinking of more than five.

At that point, I knew something seemed different for my case as a foreigner in Korea. I have not reached the legacy of many of my mentors who have spent the past two decades in Korea, settling down with families and becoming fluent with the current events and language. I am certainly no longer the wide-eyed exchange student that I was a few years ago, either. During my time as a full time student, I had distanced myself from the "foreign community," mostly exchange students, short term English teachers, and military that come and go with such rotation that it just becomes emotionally draining to stay in that cycle (not to mention expensive to follow the Itaewon foodies). Somehow, I became that remaining 5% of long(er) term expats trying to make their way.

Though there are many expats in Seoul, Koreans are fascinated that I graduated from Korea University, worked in Korean companies, and prefer to speak with them in Korean rather than bothering with English (not to say that I'm fluent, but let's just say proficient. My grammar is still laughable and I definitely need to ask for a vocabulary next Christmas). I realized that my situation is far different from most here, and even I am still trying to place myself in this fast-changing society.

So before this becomes too much of an autobiography, I just wanted to let everyone know I'm back, after quite enough nudges to start recording my ramblings. I'll be keeping this blog as a commentary on my experiences, perspectives, and relationships here.

Let's do this.