Within a week of arriving in Korea, I got a smartphone. I was actually pretty lucky to get a
hold of one so soon since I don’t officially have an Alien Registration Card
(nor will I until October.) Signing a phone contract requires Korean identification but I
was fortunate enough to be able to just take over the contract of another
teacher who was on his way out. My
first few days here I learned that using a basic phone, even in a
technologically savvy country such as Korea, can be incredibly archaic. I was also highly persuaded to get a
smartphone for another reason. Everyone
here communicates on an app called KakaoTalk. Through this app, texting and phone calls are free, anywhere
around the world, to another Kakao user.
And if you have a smartphone with unlimited data, this also means
communicating any time. And my
coworkers often communicate and coordinate through group Kakao messages. Definitely glad I went the smartphone
route, mainly because I want to fit in with the thousands of Koreans playing on
their phones on the subway.
However, shortly upon receiving my iPhone, I realized the speakers didn’t
work. No ringtone, no alarm, no
music. Even though my phone is
almost always on silent anyways, I do use my phone as an alarm. Luckily it was still under one-year warranty and I had heard of a place to take defective phones. Phone contract in hand, I got
directions to the service center and went by cab since it was close by and would inconveniently involve two subway transfers. In the area, I had a bit of trouble locating the service
center, and actually walked right by it, partly because I didn’t know what I was
looking for. A friendly Korean man
helped me out through a map on his own smartphone and pointed me in the right
direction. I took a number to wait
for iPhone repair but, within 2 minutes and to my surprise, I was called to the
counter. I could not communicate
much with the customer service technician but he easily acknowledged my
problem. Seeing that my phone was
under warranty, he simply pulled out a new one from the back and I was on my
merry way. I don’t think customer
service has ever been this convenient at any point in my life in America. Plus one Korea! Now I just need a new screen protector, essentially a thin peace of sticky plastic, which for some reason unbeknownst to me, is overpriced here.
(To make my experience even better, on my way back from the service
center I found an incredibly cheap produce stand! I got 7 small eggplants, 10
oranges, and more cherry tomatoes than I know what to do with for 6,000 Won. Suspiciously cheap actually…but the
prices were clearly labeled. There
was some kind of misunderstanding at the register and I tried to clarify prices
but they agreed, 6,000 Won, and along I went with two bags of cheap produce! No
complaints here…)
Allie
ReplyDeleteLoved the blog about the phone and also the veggie shopping. You are really immersing yourself in another culture. So happy to read about your adventures..you have a hilarious way of telling a story that engages the reader! Maybe you can get some of those bad boys in your classes to blog as a way to improve their writing! Can't wait to hear more!