Getting a driver's license in Korea

Last week I got my very own Korean driver's license - yay! So excited. :D

Thanks to a new Canadian friend I met a couple of months ago, I was introduced to this place called Multicultural Family Support Center. I didn't even know there was such a place in Jeonju. But it's really great. The people there are really nice and helpful, and they offer several different types of classes, like language, music, arts and crafts classes etc., and most of them are free. They even offer a driver's license class to help you get a driver's license.

Of course getting a driver's license can't be entirely free. But the class they offered was free, meaning we got free books and free lessons for about a month to help us pass the written exam. They also provided us with all the information and all the documents we needed, which made everything so easy. Of course you can easily get a driver's license on your own if you look up all the information online, but it was just so much easier and more comfortable this way. :)

THEE TYPES OF EXAMS:

1. WRITTEN EXAM

So the first thing you need to do is pass the written exam. Luckily the written exam is available in several different languages, so you can take it in English, Russian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese etc. I originally wanted to take it in Korean, because I also wanted to learn all the vocabulary at the same time. But I ended up not having enough time for that, since my family was visiting me for about 3 weeks. So I just took it in English. The book (which we got for free from the center, but otherwise costs about 10dollars) contains all 700 questions and answers. Out of these you get 40 on the exam:

22 questions with 1 correct answer (22x 2points = 44points)
17 questions with 2 correct answers (17x 3points = 51points)
1 video question (1x 5points = 5points)
You then need at least 60 points out of 100 to pass the exam.

 

It took me about 3~4 days to study. What I did was, I just tried answering all the question to see how many I already knew. Luckily most of the questions are pretty logical, so you can solve them correctly if you just think about it a bit. I marked all the questions that I got wrong and after finishing all the 700 questions I went back to the ones I got wrong the first time, which was around 125. I tried solving those again and still ended up with around 40 of them wrong. Then I just wrote the questions and answers of those 40 down on a piece of paper and just learned those. This method seems to work, 'cause I ended up getting 100 points on my written exam. :)

Actually before taking the written exam, you need to get your eyes checked at a hospital. It takes less than 5 minutes and costs less than 10 dollars.

After you're done with that, you go to a driving school.

There you first need to take 5 hours of traffic safety education class. I didn't realized I was supposed to listen to the whole 5 hours on the same day and didn't bring any food with me. Luckily the driving school provided us with big bowls of ramyeon (Korean cup noodles) during a break time. :) Well I must say the driving school I went to was really nice. They also gave us ramyeon before the exam. :) The instructors there were all really nice too and even though the school was located quite far from where I live, they had a shuttle bus pick us up every morning. :)

2. DRIVING COURSE EXAM

After that it's time for a driving course test. You only spend 2 hours of driving on the school's driving course. After that you immediately get a driving course test. Which is super easy. You have to sit in a car by yourself and do exactly as the computer tells you. For example:

-turn on the engine within the next 10 seconds
-turn on the left blinker within the next 5 seconds
-turn on the wipers within the next 5 seconds
And so on. Really super easy. I don't even know how anyone can fail that test.

3.ON-ROAD DRIVING EXAM

Finally it's time to get on a road. I was really excited, although at the same time a bit scared. I wasn't sure if I was ready to get on the road, after only 2 hours of practice on the driving course. But I trusted my instructor. There are 4 possible courses you can get on the final exam and you only get to practice driving on those 4 courses. 

The minimum is 6 hours of practice driving before taking the exam. I had 2 hours of Monday, 2 hours on Tuesday and 2 hours on Wednesday morning. And I already had an exam on Wednesday afternoon. I really wasn't too confident, because 6 hours just doesn't seem enough. But I guess it's enough for those 4 courses.

There's a special instructor for the exam. And the whole exam and scores are recorded on this special tablet. When you're ready, you click where it says 'course' and the computer picks a random course for you. I got course B.

There are 4 available courses at that driving school. A, B and E are kind of similar. But the last U-turn on the E course is different, 'cause there's no special green traffic signal to turn left. I didn't like this course and was hoping to get course C. Surprisingly everyone else seemed to hate course C. I guess 'cause it's different. But I liked that there was only one U-turn on that course. I really don't like U-turns.

Anyway I got a B course. You start with 100 points and then keep getting minus points for when you make mistakes. You need at lest 70 points to pass. I passed with 84 points - yay! :D

Since all is done thought a computer, the results are sent to the police station right away and my driver's license was waiting for me at the driving school the next day already.

Here it is - yay. ^^

However, I am still not confident enough to drive on the road by myself yet. I will practice for a while with my husband, before I start driving on my own. But first, he needs to teach me how to park. :D I don't think I can go anywhere before I know how to park. :D

So basically, getting a driver's license in Korea is super easy. But that also kind of worries me. I mean, 6 hours of practice driving is just not enough, is it? No wonder so many Koreans drive like complete maniacs (I don't mean to be rude, but it's kind of true). I know that back in my country, people get around 20 practice hours on average, which also includes driving at night, on the highway etc. Nothing like that here, just 4 set courses. 

Korea is going to make some changes about getting a driver's license at the end of December 2016. Which is also one of the reasons the center encouraged us to pass the exam as soon as possible. I really hope they make it a bit more difficult.

It was also not very expensive. I paid around 400 dollars at the driving school. Another 7 for written exam, 7 for medical check up. And I think about 20 dollars for getting my driver's license issued. So still less than 450 dollars all together. Compared to Europe, that's really not expensive, right?. Unless you fail. Then it can get expensive. Because every time you fail the final exam you need to pay 55 dollars to retake it. Or you can buy more practice hours, if you feel that 6 hours are not enough. Then you pay 30 dollars per extra hour, but of course the cost may be different depending on your driving school.

Anyway, congratulations to me ;) Oh and speaking of congratulations: the center organized this small "party" at the end of class and gave us all small presents for passing the exam. I actually got 2 presents. I got an extra one for being the only one who passed the written exam with 100 points :D

I got a cute tumbler and a purple shopping bag. :) Big thanks to the Multicultural Family Support Center in Jeonju. :)

Pororo and kimchi

Happy New Year everyone~ or as Koreans say: 새해 복 많이 받으세요~ Saehae bok manhi badeuseyo, which literally means: a lot of luck/fortune in the new year.

I just realized that my last post was from the hospital, so I hope I didn't make anyone worried. I am still alive and I'm still in Korea. My health is still not at its best, but I am working on improving that. In fact, this is my New Year's resolution for 2016. Starting February I will try out a new diet. I don't mean the kind of diet to lose weight, but to eat healthier by eliminating unhealthy stuff and replacing them with healthier food. And that is why I need a  month to do some research and make a plan.

But I am not going to bore you with all this. Instead, I wanted to share with you something really cute about kimchi that I saw on TV a couple of days ago. I am sure you all know kimchi or have at least heard about it before. (But just in case you haven't: kimchi is a Korean fermented side dish made of vegetables - most commonly cabbage - and seasoning.) I think a post on how to make kimchi would be awesome, but I'll wait with that 'till next year when I go make it together with my boyfriend's mom and aunt. This time it's about Pororo and the health benefits of kimchi.

Korean TV, same as in most countries, has tons of programs, but mostly nothing to watch. Therefore, sometimes I end up watching some kids' programs, such as Secret Juju, Pororo, Larva or Black rubber shoes, which are probably my favorite Korean animations. Out of this Pororo is probably the most famous and the most popular among children. There are tons of Pororo merchandise to choose from and even our last Christmas cake was a Pororo cake.

Our Pororo Christmas cake

Pororo is this cute penguin wearing glasses that has many good friends. One of his friends, called Loopy, also happens to be a good cook and in this special program of Pororo, she tells us, how kimchi is really good for digestion. And kimchi really is good for digestion, because it is a great source of probiotics. I guess this is why Koreans try to teach their children from a very young age to eat kimchi. Kimchi comes as a side dish to pretty much every meal, but it can be a bit too spicy for children. However, it can also be added as an ingredient to other dishes, for example kimchi or chamchi jjigae (kimchi or tuna stew), bokkeumbap (fried rice), buchimgae (Korean style pancake) and many more and this way it doesn't taste too spicy. Kimchi buchimgae (kimchi pancake) is the one that also appears in the Pororo animation.

Let's just get right to it. I'll attach a link to both the English and the Korean version of it. Some of you might be learning Korean, so this could be a good practice for you. My mom and my sister were so excited about Korea when they visited in summer, that they both started learning the language as soon as they got back home. And to help them with their study I will include a transcript of the Korean version at the bottom of this post. Just ignore it, if you're not interested. ^^

English version

Korean version

Isn't this cute? So next time you can't make eunga (poo ^^) in the toilet, try eating some kimchi. ^^ Korea has so much delicious food, that something like this can easily happen. I remember this one time I went to Mr.Pizza with some friends and I ate way too much. I ended up tossing and turning all night, because I was so full. Just like Crong :D

My sister loved kimchi. And even though I've written about this before, she obviously forgot that Koreans usually share food. Especially side dishes. That means that the kimchi in the middle of the table is for everyone. Instead, my sister pulled the plate with kimchi to herself, thinking it came along with her bibimbap and ate the whole thing herself. Well to her defense, the lady working there really brought it to the table at the same time as her bibimbap. Anyway, it was kind of funny. ^^

Here's my sister with all the kimchi right in front of her, before she pulled it even closer :)

I think that's it for now. I wish you all a very healthy New Year. Try some delicious kimchi or at least eat some other types of veggies or some delicious fruit that is good for you~ ^^

**********

Transcript of the Korean version as promised:

뽀로로와 크롱이 에디의 집에 놀러 왔어요. Pororo and Crong came to hang out at Eddy's house.
짠! Ta-da.
이게 뭐야? What's this?
잘 봐~ Watch closely.
와! 피자잖아! It's a pizza!
우와~ 맛있어! wow, it's delicious!
뭐? 피자로봇을 빌려달라고? What? You want to borrow the pizza robot?
좋아! 대신 망가뜨리면 안돼. Okay. But don't break it.
어느덧 저녁이 됐어요. Just like that, it's now evening.
크롱. 하루 종일 피자만 먹으면 어떡해~ Crong, you've been eating pizza all day!
으휴.. Oh dear.
저런...응가가 나오지 않았어요. Oh my. There's nothing in the toilet.
어어...이게 무슨 소리지? Oh... what's that sound?
크롱, 잠 좀 자자! 제발! Crong, let me get some sleep! Please!
아침이 밝았어요. Morning has dawned.
얘들아 안녕? 응? Hi guys! Uh?
그런데 크롱이 아직도 응가를 누지 못했나 봐요. But it looks like Crong still hasn't been able to go to the bathroom.
무슨일 있었어? What's wrong?
어제 한 숨도 못 잤어. 크롱이 밤새 응가도 못 누고 끙끙대는 바람에.. I couldn't sleep a wink last night. Because Crong couldn't go to the bathroom all night.
정말? 괜찮아 크롱? Really? Are you okay, Crong?
아하~ 기름진 음식만 잔뜩 먹어서 변비에 걸렸구나? Ah, he's constipated because he ate too much greasy food.
어떡하지? What should we do?
김치를 먹으면 좋은데.. It would be good to eat some kimchi.
피자 말곤 딴 건 쳐다도 안 본다니까.. He won't eat anything except for pizza...
아! 내게 좋은 방법이 있지! Oh. I have a good idea.
요리조리 요리공주~ 루피~ 맛있는 요리, 영양 많은 조리! 요리조리 요리공주 루피~ Yummy yummy cooking princess Loopy.
오늘은 무슨 요리일까요? What is today's dish?
짜잔~ 이걸 먹어봐 크롱..... Ta'da~ try this, Crong!
어디.. Let's see.
오홋! 김치 맛이 나는 것 같은데~ Oh~ it kind of tastes like kimchi.
그건 바로, 김치부침개야. That's a kimchi pancake.
아! 크롱이 응가가 마렵나봐요~! Oh, it looks like Crong needs to go to the bathroom.
드디어 응가가 나왔군요! Finally something has come out.
잘됐어! You did it!
당장 로봇을 돌려주자고? You want to return the robot right away?
크롱과 친구들은 피자로봇을 가지고 에디의 집에 갔습니다. Crong and friends are took the pizza robot back to Eddy's house.
그러게 적당히 먹었어야지. You should have eaten in moderation.
당분간은 김치부침개를 먹게 하려고..  For now we're going to give him kimchi pancakes.
그래? 아! 그럼 이렇게 하는 건 어때? Really? Oh. Then what if we do this?
피자 로봇이 김치부침개 로봇으로 바뀌었네요. The pizza robot has been transformed into a kimchi pancake robot.
맛있겠다! It looks delicious!
먹어볼까? Let's try it.
크롱! 너 거기 서! Crong! Stop right there.
크롱이 김치부침개를 정말 좋아하는군요! It seem lpoks like Crong really likes kimchi pancakes.