5 Things I Regret After Teaching English in South Korea

I think it’s extremely cliche for people to claim they live life with zero regrets. I also think it’s completely inaccurate. Sure, in hindsight, we can appreciate some of the negative things that happen to us in life. But it’s completely normal to have regrets in life too.

Today, I wanted to share a few things I regret about my time in South Korea. None of these are life altering by any means. Even so, there are a some things I would have changed about my last year here in South Korea.

I should disclose that I am completely aware all of the following regrets are 100% my own fault. While it might sound like I’m complaining, it’s coming from a place of ownership to the fact I was an idiot in these situations. I’m not looking for sympathy in any way, shape, or form. However, I’m curious to see if anyone else has similar regrets to mine.

1. I didn’t learn Korean

What a mistake. At the start of the year, I had high hopes about learning a bit of Korean. Sadly, I barely put in any effort, and the efforts I did put in were pretty pathetic. I don’t have a knack for learning new languages like some people {cough, cough Dad}. Additionally, I lived too far out of the city to attend the weekly Korean lessons with the other EPIK teachers.

Ultimately it was my own fault for not putting in the effort. Therefore, I spent a majority of the year feeling real embarrassed speaking to locals around the country. If you plan on moving to Korea, I highly suggest you make an effort to learn the language. I promise you, it will pay off. I’m super jealous of my friends that can understand, and speak, Korean. And what’s worse, they all started off where I did at the beginning of the year.

2. I wish I became a K-POP fan sooner

There is an entire world dedicated to pop music here in Korea, and I got on the bandwagon way too late. While I am eternally grateful to have been introduced to K-POP this year, I’m upset I didn’t make the leap earlier. Since I have been residing in the motherland of K-POP, I feel like there were missed opportunities I didn’t take advantage of this year. Concerts, award shows, fan signings, etc. are so much more accessible in Korea than anywhere else in the world.

Now I have to return to the US where K-POP is only just blowing up on the scene. I won’t hear my favorite songs playing the department stores anymore, I won’t see cardboard cut outs of BTS on the street, and artists rarely tour my area of the world. Come on, Rachel.

3. I put too much effort into my summer camp planning

When I first heard about the prospect of running a week long summer camp on my own, I panicked. With my lack of teaching experience, I couldn’t believe someone trusted me to plan, create, and run an entire camp for tiny humans.

Therefore, I took it extremely seriously. I spent weeks in cafes planning, drafting, organizing, creating power-points, buying supplies, crafting, etc. Then when it came time to proceed with the camp, I realized how laid back the atmosphere was. In fact, half of the students rarely showed up. At one point, I was stuck in a class room with a single student. Needless to say, we watched a movie and crafted for an hour. What else were we supposed to do?

All of my efforts felt as though they had gone to waste. My points system was pointless {ha ha}, there were never enough students to keep consistent teams of any kind, and I always had way too much content then necessary. I quickly realized it could be achieved in a fraction of the time, and therefore when it came to winter camp, I prepared it less than a week in advance. The camp still went splendidly, and I got to save my time and energy.

4. I bought too many clothes

This regret can be applicable to any year, any location, and any amount. Simply put, I purchased way too many clothes this year. Korean style is actually a lot more basic than I anticipated. I could have gotten away with buying a few staple items in black or white and ran with it. Instead I wasted money on cheap, poorly made Korean branded clothing for literally no other reason than it was from Korea.

I think of all the clothing items I bought, I’m keeping two of them to send back home to America. One of them is a light jacket that I wore quite often, and will work for the mild seasons in California. The other is a classic Korean sweater that has bread loaves printed on it and reads ” Honey Bread Baguette is a very popular and weil-lenown Franch bread”. There are no typos in that sentence; that’s literally how it’s printed. God, I love Korea.

As I went to donate my bags of clothing the other afternoon in preparation to move, I realized how silly I had been to buy new clothes here. That money could have gone towards a trip to Southeast Asia, or the upcoming BTS concert I’m attending. Either way, it’s best to keep the shopping to a minimum in Korea.

5. I wish I purchased a water filter

I think this is my biggest regret about living in South Korea, for many reasons. It isn’t suggested to drink the tap water in South Korea. While it certainly won’t kill you, it’s not the cleanest. Most people purchase water filters of some kind for their home, as it’s the most efficient and economical way to drink water.

Instead I was lazy, and cheap. Now I’ve become a terrible contributor to the already huge problem we have with plastic in this world. Instead of buying a water filter, I would buy huge bottles of water that would last me quite a while in my home. At school I could use the water filter and fill up my bottle to bring home, but even so, I ended up recycling way too many plastic bottles. And it made me feel shitty. I’m disappointed in myself that I didn’t just spend a little extra money early on, and purchase a filter.

If you plan to move to Korea, or have recently done so, I urge you to buy a water filter. They aren’t actually that expensive, and completely worth it. You’ll save a bunch of money, as well as the planet. So it’s a win, win in my opinion.