Inquiring ajosshi

On a rainy spring Sunday, we (I, my husband and our son) went to Jongmyo Shrine in Jongro. We went to the museum inside where one can find the vessels used for the Royal Ancestral ceremony. There’s an old caretaker who speaks English well enough for him to converse to English-speaking tourists. While my husband was inside and I was taking care of my son, the old man (ajosshi) approached and started asking questions. A “mixed” family, even in Seoul, is a spectacle to some people. There’s a preconception that Korean men marries Southeast Asian women because they couldn’t get a Korean wife. Either they are farmers or are first sons living with the parents.

I first answered the guy in Korean. Then he asked me if I could speak English. I said yes, so he started asking in English. The usual questions… where are you from? “Philippines”… where do you live? “changsin-dong”… how long have you been here? ” almost 5 years”… do you live with your parents? “no. they live in the province”… what does your husband do? “he works for a trading company”… how do you communicate? “in english”… you must have a hard time learning korean? “i do. i have never attended paid classes and we don’t speak korean at home”… you must have a hard time learning korean culture? “hmm, not really. my husband is a good teacher.”

After a while, my husband came out and the ajosshi talked to him and asked him the same questions in Korean. We said our goodbyes and left. Outside my husband was smirking. He said the ajosshi was a bit disappointed. I asked why, and he said the guy was expecting us to be the stereotypical Korean-SE Asian couple.