MEANWHILE, at the Kang Household, My Korean Host Mom Jenny is Serving My Host Dad Steve and I Fish for Dinner...

Photo from http://trendsontrends.com/, a website about homecooked meals that actually makes me want to cook

MEANWHILE, at the Kang Household, my host mom Jenny is serving my host dad Steve and I fish for dinner. The two of them silently and spontaneously engage in a mild competition to outdo the other in being an awesome host parent to me.

ME: Wow, fish!

JENNY: Oh, you like fish?

ME: I love fish!

[In any other context, I would have just dug right in, but, wanting to maintain a semblance of civility, I gingerly start picking at the fish to remove the bones with my chopsticks and spoon. Clumsily but civil-like]

[Jenny, looking very pleased, goes back to the kitchen and comes back with a pair of scissors. She carefully begins to cut the delicate fish into tinier pieces. And, much to the amazement of her husband, starts removing the bones for me. By hand]

ME: Ohh, thank you, Jenny, but you don't have t-

JENNY: -No, it's okay! No problem, no problem!

STEVE: Wow, Jenny! My wife! My wife so kind! 

ME: I know!

STEVE: No, Jenny is...uh...more kind NOW. She - she doesn't do this thing before! Even to me! Woah, Jenny, so kind! My wife so kind! [He pats his wife appreciatively on the back]

[As Jenny laughs and looks sheepishly about, I begin to realize just how special my treatment is in their household. We continue to eat. And then, suddenly, Steve gets up from his chair, goes back to the kitchen and comes back with a cup of hot yuja cha for me]

STEVE: [in the sweetest tone] Here, Mimi. It is hot! 

JENNY: [Looking at Steve] Wow! Steve...My husband...[Addressing me] He never does (!)...to me! 

ME: ...he never does....this thing?

JENNY: Yeah, he never does...this thing. My husband is so kind, too! 

ME: [trying to continue eating amidst internal laugh attacks] Yes, both of you are amazing! Thank you so much! 

JENNY: [still looking amazed] He never does!

[Our hearty and prolonged laughter is only interrupted when I decided to continue eating, picking the fish eyes this time]

JENNY: OH OH...! You...eat? You eat fishy eye????????

ME: Yes! It's one of the best parts! [and, as if it would help melt their disbelief, I offer] My grandfather was a fisherman. We ate EVERY part of the fish - except the bones, of course

STEVE: Oh my gahh. Oh my gahh...We never do! [His shocked face slowly begins to register "impressed"] Good, good! Mimi, good! 

JENNY: Korean people, uh, Korean people...we NEVER eat fishy eyes!

Needless to say, this particular meal will likely stay in our minds for a long time to come.

Renewing ETA Profile (AKA Reflections on My Year(s) Teaching in Korea)

THE RENEWING ETA PROFILE HANDBOOK
Just this afternoon, our Program Coordinator sent out a giant email containing application forms for leadership positions next year within Fulbright Korea. Yes, we've just returned from our winter vacations, but it's that time of the grant year again! Included among the many attachments was the Renewing ETA Profile Handbook, containing the knowledge, experiences, and insights of, well, ETAs who are in their second or third year here. The aim of the handbook is to help first year ETAs decide whether to likewise renew or not.

Because I tarried in submitting my survey, my responses were not included in the handbook. However, I did save what I typed up, (thinking I would later post them up here), and want to share them with you here now with some modifications.

SURVEY: LOGISTICS STUFF

Current School Name and Location: Yeongdo Girls High School, Yeongdo-gu, Busan
Current School Demographics: All-Girls
Did you change school demographics after your first (or second) year(s)? No
Did you change placement locations? No
Do you currently live in a homestay or apartment? Homestay

SURVEY: SHORT RESPONSES PORTION

What factors were relevant to your decision to renew? 

I chose to renew based on a wonderful first-year experience. The families, friends, and communities I formed during my first few months of arriving in Busan went to extraordinary lengths, above and beyond their job descriptions, to make my stay here smooth, comfortable, and delightful!

Because being a "Fulbrighter in South Korea" was only supposed to be a one-year commitment for me before diving right into grad school, I did touch base with former professors and counselors to hear what they had to say. The response was a resounding: Yes! Go be young, and live your life now! Grad school won't be going anywhere! (or something to that effect). This, along with the fact that my family back in the U.S. were doing well further encouraged me to invest another year in growing in a different setting.

How has your current year been different from your first (or previous years) as an ETA? How has it been similar? 

I enjoyed every aspect of my first year enough to request renewal at the same city, and same school! The advantages of staying were numerous, including: being able to witness the evolution of my students from first graders to second- and, now, third-graders(!); forming deeper bonds with the students, co-teachers, and administrators at my school; strengthening ties with a slew of foreigners I met at a couple of English services in Busan; and becoming better acquainted with the beauty of the island I live in, and with the rhythm of life in Busan - a place I would find more and more reasons to love.

The only change I made was in choosing a different homestay with which to live. My first homestay family was a great blessing! However, I saw how hard my host mom worked around the home and, with her continued insistence in doing everything for me even as she was recovering from a back surgery, I chose to leave, not wishing to pose a greater burden on her and her family. I also considered the fact that, for the whole year, my two younger host sisters had slept on the living room floor just so I could have a private room in their household. My stay with this family showed me firsthand how one can be "burdened" by the kindness and generosity of others.

My second homestay is made up of educators (host mom is a middle school English teacher and host dad is a statistics professor) and so feels less like "family" and more like colleagues. However, the advantage of this living situation is that my host mom (having also lived in the U.S. for 11 years) can speak English well, giving us the opportunity to have long, drawn out meals where we talk about anything and everything under the sun.

Has your second/third year met your expectations? Please elaborate.

My greatest expectation was to form better and deeper relationships with folks I live, work, worship, and hang out with. This goal has been (more or less) realized. I am satisfied with the friendships I have formed and been able to maintain, but have been a bit disappointed because some of the original friendships that had made this particular placement so ideal for me at the beginning have dissolved into thin air.

I can relate to another Returning ETA, who wrote:

"While I don't regret my decision to renew because it has forced me to grow in many ways, if I knew how much would change (even when I was staying in the exact situation!) I probably wouldn't have renewed."  - Stacey

Other goals I had were to earn a black belt in Taekwondo (thwarted by the onset of chronic cough in winter); to continue working with North Korean Defectors at the Busan Hana Center (check); to step up my YDAC game (check); and to apply for fellowships and graduate schools (the last application having been sent while hospitalized during my recent trip back to the Philippines for winter vacation). No big deal...


What advice do you have for first-year ETAs deciding whether to renew?

In deciding to renew, it's important to remember that you are not the only variable in the equation. I speak from personal experience when I say that family back home who may be doing "well" now financially or health-wise, may not be in a matter of months. If you are privileged with the responsibilities of being the eldest child in a [single-parent] household like I am, you will do well to consider the state of affairs back home before extending your teaching contract.

Also keep in mind that your decision to stay [at the same homestay/school/city for whatever ideal situation] does not necessarily mean things will remain as they are. That is the nature of seasons, of relationships, and of the Korean education system.

If you stay, decide to be present. As teachers, we are in the business of investing in young lives with the hopes they will become future world changers. Knowing this, if you do decide to renew, be fully present and do as Mrs. Shim has always told us: "Love your students!"

Believe it or not, a huge part of loving your students (or anyone, really) well is in taking care of yourself. Stay healthy, maintain your joy despite what your circumstance may look like; maximize the hours you are not teaching (legend has it that the former ETA at my school wrote a novel during her "down time" and later published after her grant year); and remember that, despite how it may feel sometimes, you are now living in "the real world."

Oh, and if you decide NOT to renew, I definitely agree with another ETA's advice who said to:

"...make sure...you have something good waiting for you back home, in Korea, or elsewhere." - David

You can contact me by email if you have unanswered questions or other concerns: mcagaitan[at]gmail.com

Post-Dinner Evening Stroll in Yeongdo's Coastal Trail with Host Mom

CHUSEOK HOLIDAY BEGINS!

Today is the start of my 5-day Chuseok vacation! The days leading up to this break were filled with questions about what my plans were.

With great excitement, I told other teachers that my plans were: ...*drum-roll please*...

Absolutely Nothing! 

DEALING WITH THE GUILT OF HAVING FREE TIME

I am free! This past year, I have struggled mightily against the guilt of being free to just relax. Being free to pause in my tracks. Being free to not have a schedule. Being free to not have an agenda. Being free for self-care. This past year, I have struggled with this peculiar guilt and am still learning and implementing ways to safeguard my sanity, my health, my time, and my energy. 

THE EVENING STROLL

MY SATURDAY CONSISTED OF ME...

...waking up slow and getting up late, eating brunch while Skyping my sweet Mama in Washington, and then spending the rest of the day reading, napping, watching video clips, napping, pinning parts of my dream home on Pinterest, napping again, waking up for dinner with my Korean host mom, washing dishes, doing laundry, and then taking a walk together afterwards.  

The evening was beautiful - from the moment we stepped outside the apartment complex and saw the near-full moon to the very end, when we sat facing the twinkling lights of the Busan coastline and chatted in the near-dark. I made verbal observations about how much safer Korea is compared to the Philippines (or even compared to the U.S.). 

THE SAFE HAVEN THAT IS KOREA

Walking around at night, I don't feel like I have to constantly look behind my back, or remember my Arnis or Taekwondo, or keep a deathly-grip on my smartphone in case it is snatched. I feel safe here! This safety gives me more freedom to enjoy the walk, breathe in the scenes and the fresh air in one gulp, and just appreciate Connie's brisk walk and personality.

There was a small group out for a night picnic and actually grilling something delicious in the dark. The smoke and the aroma added a touch of warmth to the tingling coolness of the night air. Among many others, we passed by a young family, the father carrying a baby strapped across his torso, while his wife walked arm-in-arm beside him. The sight of this family warmed and gladdened my heart! At one point, Connie collided with what looked to be a disoriented wasp and ended up squashing it with her next step by accident. Very unfortunate fellow.

We returned to the apartment to find that my host dad had arrived, and was hanging our clothes up to dry in the balcony - quite an unusual sight in Korea, I think, especially among the older married folks! 

Living By the "Don't Compare" Mantra Outside of the Fulbright Family & Encouraging 2nd Host Mom to Stop Comparing Herself to 1st Host Mom

THE "DON'T COMPARE" MANTRA
What we always hear in Fulbright is "Don't Compare" - referring to ETAs who might be tempted to look at each others' differing living accommodations and teaching situations and become discouraged or resentful of the lot they've been given during their grant year. The message makes so much sense, is so often forgotten and just as often recalled that it can be heard reverberating in various forms throughout the year - in Facebook posts, social media captions, hashtags, blog posts, and during coffee dates, and sleepy conference heart-to-hearts.

Comparison comes naturally, which is why we should be all the more vigilant in keeping ourselves from being caught in its unhappy trap. I struggle against it, and so do others - among them the second host mom I am living with now, who, upon hearing about my first host mom's mad cooking skills, has been quick and unrelenting in criticizing what she produces in the kitchen and places on the table.

BATTLE OF THE HOST MOMS
My second host mom also works in education, so we both get home right about the same time. She is always apologizing to me for not having dinner prepared on time, or, if dinner is prepared, for not having delicious and nutritious enough dinner.

I have no idea what she is talking about.

Her cooking is delicious and nutritious! In keeping with a truly Korean cuisine, there are always at least five side dishes on the table besides soup and rice. She also never fails to serve fruit for dessert. In the U.S. "dessert" for me was this exciting event that involved cake or ice cream, brownies or walnut cookies. Or all of those combined. Though I miss this kind of rich, chocolately dessert, I much prefer the fruit desserts because there is never guilt from indulging. (Something to tuck away for my future family!).

I am not very verbal when giving praises, but since moving here I have learned to be more so. If the soup tastes like something I had been craving for but couldn't describe, I tell her. If she peeled the apples with what I consider unusual dexterity, I tell her. If the seafood she served on the table is cooked to perfection, I tell her! 

I don't want my host mom to compare herself to my first host mom. It hurts me to hear her say negative things about the food she cooks, and am trying my best to convince her that what she's provided for me is enough. More than enough. 

Lately, I have taken to hanging around her when she's in the kitchen. Just hanging around - looking for opportunities to affirm her - however random and small. This is the context of the video embedded above. I was so interested in the way she made kimbap! (Also recorded it for the sake of my mom back in the States, who is always asking for recipes of Korean dishes she sees on my Facebook posts!). 

In quick sum, don't compare, folks! You are enough. You are more than enough. 

Trip to Boseong-gun in South Jeolla Province with My 1st Homestay Family

TRAVELING FROM INCHEON TO BUSAN
After a relatively incident-free direct flight from Seattle to Seoul/Incheon, I arrived back in Busan very early Friday morning. The day was spent more or less sleeping after a sleepless night of waiting for the airport bus limousine to arrive at 10:30 p.m., tossing and turning on said bus for the whole five hours of travel back down to Busan, and then standing streetside at Nopo-dong for 30 minutes trying to hail a taxi in the rain.

To be fair, it was mostly Russel who stood streetside trying to hail a taxi in the rain while I sat dry with my luggage under an awning. Thirty minutes more of commute brought us to the home of my new homestay family, where I didn't even bother to unpack my toiletries before crashing on the newly-made bed they had prepared for me. 

WELCOME BACK TO KOREA! DINNER
Fast-forward to the evening and I am woken up and told by my new host mom, Connie, that she has invited a handful of folks from church and my former host family for dinner! What a thoughtful gesture!

FIRST HOST FAMILY STEALING ME FROM MY SECOND HOST FAMILY 
No, not really, but...

During dinner, my host family convinced me to go on a family trip with them. When? That very night. I was exhausted and disoriented, but this was the same trip my family had been wanting to take me on for what seemed like all of last year but it never materialized. So I said, Yes!, packed a change of clothes, toiletries, and a gift I had prepared for them from the States. My host sisters' excitement served as a kind of energy injection into my system.

TRAVELING FROM BUSAN TO BOSEONG
We traveled for three hours, arriving at my host dad's sister's house a few minutes shy of midnight. Her house was beautiful and comfortable and somewhere in Boseong County, a place famous for its green tea leaves. I slept soundly with Juhyeon and Seoyeon and woke up the next day to a full day of adventures! I will post more on this trip later but, for now, enjoy this video I created through SnapMovie (thanks for the new obsession Juhyeon!), offering a brief glimpse into our afternoon coming home that day. 

My Korean Host Mom's Kimbap: A Delicious Interruption to a Saturday Spent Stressfuly Forecasting the Future

I spent all of today forecasting the future (a.k.a. planning my activities for the next year, researching grad schools and law schools in the U.S. and around the world, looking up requirements for fellowships in order to attend said grad or law school, and considering other jobs after finishing up my second year teaching in South Korea). This activity has been absorbing much of my time lately. It helps keep my mind awake at school and my heart hopeful. It is at once liberating and exciting (in the sense that I am reminded of my youth and my privilege in being able to entertain so many different paths to take), and, at the same time, frustrating and just a bit crippling (in the sense that I, ultimately, don't have that much control over life). 

After several hours of feverish researching and planning and jotting down notes and hoping, I would pause, blinking back my eye fatigue, and sigh at the ridiculousness - and, perhaps, even vanity - of my life schemes. These seconds convict me - figurative gavels ringing loudly in my ears. 

I was so focused on forecasting my future that I had forsaken breakfast and lunch, not even noticing it was well into the afternoon until my host mom knocked on my door and hand delivered these plates to my room. 

"Mimi, handmade!" she said proudly. 

I received the plates gratefully, suddenly aware of my hunger, and sat eating each piece of kimbap with a dizzy satisfaction atop my bed. 

Room-delivered homemade kimbap. What kind of life is this?!

Host mom had arranged the kimbap so deliciously that I couldn't bear to just go straight to eating them!

Host mom's special recipe on watermelons

Sweet and sour deliciousness; refreshing taste and so perfect for the increasingly hot Busan weather!

Once satiated, I had time for a longer pause and braved asking myself the questions,

"What is driving you to these mad planning/scheming/forecasting sessions?" 

and

"Have you forgotten God's faithfulness over the years?"

Stop whatever you are doing and remember! Remember where you have been and where you plan to go; remember the One who promised to never leave you nor forsake you on this journey. Stop and just be still and know that He is God. You don't have to do things on your own, by your own strength, or even through your own merit. That is the beauty of leaning fully on Christ Jesus!

Returning ETA In Search of Her Next Homestay Family in South Korea

MUSEUM

Today, I had a coffee date with Connie, a sweet lady from my church, to talk about the possibility of her family hosting me during my second grant year in South Korea. I know Connie from the afternoon English service at Ttang Ggeut Church. When I had just first arrived in Yeongdo, she offered to give me rides to and from church, insisting that she was practically my neighbor. I gratefully obliged!

We had coffee together at this beautiful marine museum in Yeongdo. The place was not as busy, the conversation was easy, and the sky and the sea competed in blueness just on the other side of the clear glass windows. 

BARISTA

The only unpleasant thing was being momentarily startled and paralyzed upon seeing the bruised face of the barista who handed me my order. The slopes of her cheekbones were blue and green in hues, and I wrestled with what to say to her nearly the whole time I was sitting down, enjoying my macchiato and sharing a muffin with Connie. I stood up to grab refills of our table napkins and attempted to say something but, each time, the lady was curt, quickly moved away from me, and hid her face. 

Connie and I must have talked about our whole lives this afternoon. The talking was easy (or easier) because she is a middle school English teacher. She had also lived in the U.S. for about 10 years, raising three children there before moving back to Korea. 

COOKING

Connie was willing to host me for next year, but was unsure of whether I would further consider staying with her because, she said, she does not cook. 

With a look half embarrassed and half joking, she said she has heard all year about how amazing a cook my Korean host mom is, and that she was not able to compete with that. (I hadn't realized how much I bragged about my host mom's cooking to, well, everybody until today!). I tried my best to assure Connie that if I stayed with her, I would learn how to cook, and might even start cooking for her and her family! (heh, I know, right!). 

APARTMENT

We left the cafe at the museum, with me not having done or said anything to the lady, and headed to Connie's apartment complex for a quick tour. She was gracious enough to prepare a small snack for me while there. The place was older than my current host family's apartment, but comfortable - it smelled comfortable, and looked well-lived through.

ORCHID

I left knowing that I had many things to consider in the coming days. Before I made my exit, I wandered over to their small patio and saw a purple orchid growing vibrantly among other healthy green plants. This simple sight was enough to reassure me that whatever next year might bring, God will be there right alongside me. I breathed a silent grateful sigh and ushered myself out the door and back into Connie's car, heading to the address that had become home to me this past year.

Purple orchids, my favorite flower

Cake-Making: Celebrating My Host Parent's 20th Wedding Anniversary and Reflecting on Their Various Behind-the-Scenes Sacrifices for the Family

WHY DIDN'T I MAINTAIN MY KOREAN LANGUAGE LEARNING???

One of the major drawbacks of still not knowing Korean after one year in the country is finding out there are important events to be celebrated the night before they are to be celebrated.

Case in point: I was eating dinner last night when, reflecting upon the crazy school week ahead, I decided to tell my host mom that I would be working overtime at school at such and such night. She made many humming noises and fluttered to the big family calendar behind where I was eating, and immediately scrawled a bunch of important looking notes to herself in Korean.

Yummy, right? Scroll down below to see how Seo Yeon and I made this together *cough*!

THE KITCHEN CALENDAR: HOW I UNOFFICIALLY KNOW I AM PART OF THE KIM FAMILY

I went over to help her remember all of the particulars, and thought to ask her about the other notes she had scrawled there. 

Ah, this one is Seo Yeon's midterm exams. And those are Ju Hyeon's midterm exams. That day over there is Ju Hyeon's practice midterm exam, and that one is Seo Yeon's mock test. And these are the dates that I will help proctor my daughters' exams. 

Yes...yes, of course. Just...as I suspected.

What a string of depressing dates! But my host mom is not deterred. This calendar is crucial to how she runs her household, from the moment the girls wake up to the time they crawl back into the house from school (for Ju Hyeon) and from academy (for Seo Yeon). The girls work very hard at school and outside of school - yet behind them are Mom and Dad, without whom a single day for them would not be possible.

No joke. 

SUPER HOST MOM & EVERYTHING SHE DOES (NO, NOT EVEN)

Host Mom does everything for the girls - from being their supplemental human alarm clock at the start of their day and spoon-feeding them breakfast as they sit half-asleep on the dining table, to packing their backpacks with all of the day's essentials and combing, heat-protecting, and curling the ends of their hair and bangs as the girls shake themselves into their uniforms; from hurrying them out the door, tucking an umbrella in their backpacks (on rainy days) and pressing the "down" button on the elevator for them, to running back inside the house to quickly locate and deliver a forgotten something, such as a water bottle. 

And these are just the things I am able to observe as I, myself, drift between the bedroom, dining room, and bathroom also hurriedly getting ready for school. 

IT TAKES TENACITY. IT TAKES FAMILY

I am more than impressed by this sacrificial behind-the-scenes work. For me, this is what being family is all about. 

While gazing at the masterpiece of a calendar that was the family calendar, I noticed that the next day was marked by many even more important looking circles, squiggles, stars, and basically everything you could imagine fitting into a calendar day's box. 

DISCOVERING MY HOST PARENTS' WEDDING ANNIVERSARY BY ACCIDENT
Me: [Casually and clueless-ly] Mom, what is this?
Mom: [More humming] Mmm, Mom...mmm...Daddy together!

Me: Yes...Hmmm [I study her face for more context clues]
Mom: [Getting excited] Mom, Daddy, together mmm wedding!
Me: Oh...Oh! Oh wow! Tomorrow is your wedding anniversary?!?! [Feeling ashamed of myself]

Mom: Nae! 

Me: Wow, that's amazing! How long - err, how many years have you been married?

Mom: Mmm...20 years! 

I consulted my co-teacher as to what would be an appropriate gift to give my host parents for this very special day. She said that I was not required to do anything, but it would be nice to buy them a little present. The next day, I found myself wandering around Nampo with Seo Yeon, trying to locate a cake-making store the girls had spotted earlier in the year. 

SEO YEON AND I GO TO NAMPO TO MAKE A CAKE!

After some time, we found the cake store in Nampo!  

I was completely unprepared for what was to come. This is Seo Yeon obviously taking the lead as I resorted to documenting

Celebrating 20 Years of Love! 

Cute things that were super overpriced 

The store, complete with an area where you can sit down and get to decorating your cake with friends or family!

 

The clerk showed us how to make pretty icings for the cake

Not gonna lie, I was unimpressed by this bare-faced cake...

Seo Yeon and I looked at the cake for a good five minutes, imagining all of the different forms it could take, before diving in.

We decided to lace the cake first with pink icing, thinking a mistake at this step would be the least tragic

And then we added three pink roses on top! It was a major commitment that we argued about for quite some time before finally going with this arrangement. This is serious, people.

I'd like to think that Seo Yeon was not afraid that I would ruin the cake if I took over the icing...

Pretzels, our brilliant solution to the letters "LOVE" being too fat and heavy to stand up on their own

Seo Yeon writing our dedication message

She's so adorable! Oh, and, at this point, I am no longer ashamed of our cake :)

Ta-Da! I helped sprinkle those white and pink chocolate bits all over the place. I know, a work of art...

Basically Seo Yeon did everything that required touching any part of the cake, while I contributed by hovering over my host sister as she worked, and making suggestions as to the color scheme and the design the cake should have. When her masterpiece was finished, I took out my card to pay. Seo Yeon resisted this last move, arguing that she should pay for at least half since they were her parents.

She's getting too good at her English...

We went home with me carrying the cake box as if it contained the last tiny sprig of green plant on Wall-E's earth. Making it home with the cake intact was quite a feat, especially considering that Nampo is a circus around the afternoon and early evenings!

Who knew making a cake (even a technically ready-made one) would be so difficult! Just kidding. Like I said it, it was all Seo Yeon. We tried to sneak the cake into the house, but mom found out anyway.

[More pictures to come at a later post]

Dinner & Noraebang Date With Jana at Seomyeon & Going Past My Curfew

RE-MEETING JANA
I met Jana on my first month here in Yeongdo, but was just reconnected with her this April due to a storm of events. We met up at Seomyeon this evening - eating what looked to me like strips of grilled chicken on a bed of sweet and sour salad. It was tasty, as she had promised! Once I remember what this dish is called, I will add it to my list of "To Cooks."

After dinner, she led me through a maze of people on our way to what would turn out to be the swankiest noraebang (karaoke) place I have ever been to (which is not a lot, btw, considering this is only my second one here in Korea). But, she assured me that this place was, indeed, the most popular place to go to because, not only was it tastefully designed, they also served unlimited beverages and ice cream.

It was a bit difficult to sing and eat my cup of strawberry ice cream, but I managed. So did she, with her helping of chocolate ice cream. It was a fun night, but I definitely went past my curfew (still 9:30 p.m. for those who are curious). This curfew thing is not as bad as it sounds! I understand that my Korean host parents are only concerned about my safety, so I make sure to let them know where I am going, with whom, and what time I will be returning home. My host mom usually promptly replies with messages like these:

TEXT MESSAGES FROM MY HOST MOM

"Mimi and spend a great time and come home with care ~~^^ <3" or

"Mimi is a delicious dinner and have a great time~^^ <3"

"Mimi have an enjoyable dinner~~** <3" 

She always ends her messages to me with a heart! I love you, too, Host Mom ^^ <3!