getting a korean driver's license from scratch.

i passed my driver's license test!


after talking about it for months ... actually almost a year, i finally have my drivers license. the process felt painfully ... what's the word ... complicated? it's not actually complicated but it feels really annoying.... maybe it's because there are so many people, long lines, going up and down the stairs to register for something and doing more up and down the stairs actions to actually do what you registered for done.


to get a korean driver's license from scratch, you basically have to do 4 things.
1. watch a driver's education video
2. take the theory test (on a computer)
3. take a "functions" test (this tests you on turning on the engine, changing gears, using headlights, blinkers etc.)
4. actual road test


they say it's going to get harder to get your license starting december 22, 2016 so i don't know if this post will be helpful from that point on.... but i still want to share my experience in case it is helpful.

review: the banchan

    although my korean husband is very korean in most of his way, he doesn't usually have 반찬 투정 (banchan too-jung), which means he doesn't complain about what kind of food i prepare (or don't prepare in my case).
    growing up, i've seen my dad complain about the lack or the kind of banchan (side dishes) my mom would prepare and i've seen other korean people and children be very picky about what they eat. i'm sure this is normal in most family situations, but in a proper korean meal, usually you get a bowl of rice, a gross assortment or side dishes, and soup. maybe something that looks like this:

  

birthday soup: 미역국.seaweed soup

    because my korean husband and his family are so korean, he follows the lunar calendar to mark the celebration date of his birth. this means his birthday changes every year. last year it was actually on the same day as mine and i thought it was so great at first. but no, sharing your birthday means not being able to be mrs. bossy pants.
    this year, today (oct. 8) my hubby doesn't get any wonderful birthday surprises or anything because i'm sick. but with the heart of gold that i have, i dragged my butt out of my nest of fluffy pillows, cozy blankets, and two hot packs (aka jimmy and kevin), and decided that the least i could do was to make him some birthday soup also known as mi-yuk gook 미역국.
 

what is the gyopo wife?

    although i, myself, am a gyopo or kyopo or 교포, i had never heard of the term until i had reached seoul in june of 2010. from what i have come to understand, gyopos are ethnic koreans but hold the nationality of a different country.
    for myself, i was born in the small town of london (not that london), ontario, canada, but grew up with questions like "what are you?" or "are you chinese? japanese?" (probably because korea wasn't as well known when i was younger) as i was growing up.