우리 공부합시다
Let's study!

Humans of Seoul is a blog I have been following before I started studying seriously! They focus on interviewing Koreans of all ages about various topics with both original Korean and English translations.

This is a perfect light resource to develop your reading skills. With a full range of ages, that means everyone can find a conversation to their depth or vocabulary level to practice with. Also, the range of topics means there will definitely be something to interest you and give you a perspective on Korean life and the people living there! From sports, books, hobbies, school, romance, work, parenting, childhood, health, and much more.

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A while ago, I went through all the different types of 방 or rooms in Korean and mentioned wanting to go more in-depth on Korean bathhouses; well, today is the day! A lot of 찜질방 are 24/7, with floor heating, sleeping rooms, sauna areas, full body scrubs, and much more to help you fully relax.

no little duckies included, but the towel wrap is accurate!

What is a Korean Bathhouse?

Bathhouses and the matching saunas have existed traditionally in Korea since the rise of Buddhism. But modern 찜질방, with multiple baths, relaxation area, and more, are more recent; rose in popularity in the 1990s. These are perfect places to unwind and relax after walking and climbing so many stairs around Korea!

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It’s been a while since I touched on Sino-Korean vocab! It’s something that’s always been there, but I’ve picked up on it more recently; many Korean electronics have a theme of using 전. Of course, this comes from Hanja influences with the Hanja 電 relating to electricity/electric words.

전기: electricity; “electric energy”
전기료: an electricity bill
전류: electric current
전압: voltage
전선: electric wire
송전: power transmission
양전기: positive electricity
전산: data processing
전자파: electromagnetic waves

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Along with K-pop and Korean dramas, Korean beauty is a huge draw for people interested in the country, language, and culture. Now, luckily enough for us, a lot of Korean makeup and skincare terms are just the English flipped into Korean! But I’ll run through a lot of things from products, skin types, makeup-specific verbs, and more, so let’s get into it.

Use Your Interest in Korean Beauty to Help You Learn!

Similar to English, there are many Korean people showing off their makeup and/or skincare on social media and YouTube. Take advantage of this! For everyone interested in Korean beauty, you can get double the benefit of learning about trending or new products in Korea, makeup techniques, styles to fit your look; and practicing your Korean! Many YouTubers have Korean subs, and some even have English subs, for you to read along as you listen and learn.

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In Korean, sometimes yes means no? Korea has a little quirk different from English when it comes to answering questions. The basics of it is that in Korean, you answer the statement and not the intention- I’ll quickly break it down now!

How to Answer Yes/No Questions

In Korean, your answer is dependent on the words in the question. No matter if someone asks you something like “you don’t like it?” or “you like it?”, you’ll reply with yes to both if they are correct.

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South Korean Rooms are more than just a PC 방 and 노래방! From entertainment to relaxation, they have a lot of options to hang out with friends or spend some quiet time alone. The name comes from attaching 방, which means room, to different hobbies or interests. Many of these places have private rooms for you to use, or shared common room(s) that everyone uses.

Why Are 방 So Popular?

A lot of rooms have really cheap hourly prices, with profit coming from you buying snacks or drinks. They are a popular option to get out and away from family because a lot of the population lives with family until marriage in houses that aren’t very soundproof. So being able to let out stress with gaming, singing, or just quietly reading is a big draw.

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