KoreanClass101.com Blog

노래방 Goodness gracious this is popular. If your first encounter with Korean culture wasn't with K-Pop or K-Dramas, then it might have been at the Korean karaoke bar. It's also been blogged about here, here, here, here, here, and here. Oh, and here too. And kind of here. The thing about this Korean-wide phenomenon is that it permeates and flows through each and every Korean like the force. Sure, not everyone goes all the time but if you're Korean, you've gone to the 노래방. Plenty of times. And here's a brief comparison of 노래방 outside of Korea. Something that I see that makes me smile are these practice rooms: 노래연습장. It's not quite enough to embarrass yourself with your friends - now you can practice your craft so that you'll... Show more

Really Simple Korean Conversations - Video #1 Featuring: Hyunwoo (Host of KoreanClass101.com), Kyeong-eun (Host of KoreanClass101.com), Emily (Listener & Blogger of KoreanClass101.com) and Matthew (Listener & Blogger of KoreanClass101.com). Script by Emily.

안녕하세요~ 오랜간만이에요~~ Hi guys! It has been a very long time, but I am back, and I have an entirely new purpose for writing.^^ Each week I am going to introduce a new interesting phrase, slang, idiom, or abbreviation that I hope you will find helpful! This week, I want to introduce the phrase 쥐가 나다. Know what it means? No, it doesn't really have anything to do with a mouse, even though that is exactly what it says.. It actually means "to get a cramp." So, if you are, let's say, running down the street and get a cramp in your leg, you can say 쥐가 났어요 (polite) or 쥐 났어 (informal). But, do not get this confused with the verb 저리다 (like I did). That means "to fall asleep" or "to become numb." So, if you are sitting on your knees for... Show more

A few exciting things have been happening for me on the music fandom front, and there's quite a few things that I'm looking forward to in the next week or so as well. FT Island came out with a new MV, 나쁜 여자야, from their latest mini-album Jump Up. It's a little weird without 오완빈, and a little strange to see and hear 송승현 in his place, but the new guy fits in quite well and FT Island's sound hasn't suffered from the member change. If anything, their music sounds a little more mature than it did before, which is never a bad thing. Epik High's Tablo released a book last year in November, 당신의 조각들, which was a collection of short stories he'd written in 1998-2001. Originally in English, these stories were translated and published in... Show more

반찬- Side dishes. It's all about presentation. I should mention that rice is like the daddy mac and kimchi is the mac daddy (that reference just happened. you heard it here first). Where one is the other is, too. They are expected at all main dishes (save noodle-based dishes like 짜장면 or 비빕국수). I mentioned rice before but I'm afraid that I missed a crucial cultural point. Rice is just about the only "side dish" that really should be finished. It's not overtly rude to leave some rice in one's bowl, but make it a point to finish your meal off by making that rice bowl empty. If you find yourself getting full fast, put the brakes on the 잡채 and finish your rice. If you're feeling particularly hungry or if your eyes perk up at the... Show more