Before journeying here, I was told that punctuality was extremely important to Koreans. “You must never be late!” they said. I took this to heart. But I took it to mean that everyone is expected to be on time. This is not the case. What they meant- what they forgot to add to that warning- was that “a foreigner’s punctuality is very important to Koreans.” They don’t care one bit about whether the Korean teachers are on time.
I was late twice in my first month; once because I got lost, and once because I was crying uncontrollably at the thought of going to that place again, and decided it was better to be late and composed, than a sobbing mess when I arrived. (It didn’t work, as I started crying again after I got there.) I was severely reprimanded, treated like a pariah all day, and tons of work was added to my day.
I haven’t been late since. However, every day I arrive to work 5-10 minutes early, only to have to wait in the cold for 10 minutes or more until the Korean teachers (with the keys) finally show up. (I am not trusted with a key.)
Every day, the others come between 5-15 minutes late. The teacher at the academy next door hates to see me standing in the unheated hallway, so she insists that I come into her school to wait. It’s the warmest I am all day. (See: Heating, and Other Things I Miss at Work) And she always makes me a cup of delicious tea while I wait. Maybe I should work there. ;)
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