'Too Different to Be Chinese, Not Good Enough to Be Korean'
“South Koreans treat us like foreigners. Worse, they treat us like dogs!” shouted Li Zhangyan, a retired 67-year old Joseonjok. Together with other ethnic Korean men, Li had drunk a few too many shots of soybean-paste liquor—a local specialty. It made him welcoming to strangers like me, but also
Mexico's Response to Korea's World Cup Victory: Gratitude, With a Dose of Racism
On June 27, South Korea scored a victory against the defending World Cup champions Germany. South Koreans were elated, but the real beneficiaries were Mexicans. The unexpected outcome of the match put Mexico through to the Round of 16 at the 2018 World Cup currently ongoing in Russia, and
Pojangmacha: Tent Nostalgia
In Seoul’s central Jongno District lies one of the city’s last pojangmacha alleys. Every day around late afternoon, hired workers take apart around two dozen wheeled carts lining both sides of the alley. Tents are thrown over steel frames; five-gallon oil containers filled to the brim with
"Don't Speak in Korean": When Koreans Travel to North Korea
Only a few minutes after arriving in Dandong, a Chinese city that borders North Korea, my assumptions about travel to North Korea were abruptly shattered. I was told by a Chinese employee of the tour company that it would not be wise to, while in North Korea, speak Korean or