if it quirks..

They say that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”.  Or does it all boil down to cultural standards for beauty?  In this story, the skin you’re in is a blemish in the eye of the beholder- literally.

ESOL teachers are the people who see the world through rose-tinted glasses.  We imagine that going to a far-flung place, experiencing the culture, learning from the people, eating the food and traveling all over make us enlightened and culturally savvy.

What you don’t expect is some obscure backlash; maybe you imagine some, but it never happens the way you think it will in your head.  Cultural shock is no joke for global travelers, especially ESOL teachers.  For the most part, your experience is positive, but there’s always an asinine moment or two that can make you pine for home.

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Freshly graduated. Twenty-one-years-old.  A deep appreciation (slightly obsessive) for Asian culture, in particular, Korean culture.  What else was I supposed to do after graduation?  Teach ESOL in South Korea, of course! 

One of the first things you note about people in South Korea is that sameness and continuity are ingrained in the people.  This is neither bad nor good, it simply is a fact.  It is hard not to notice how people have very similar physical characteristics – barring face shape and other minute details. 

Hair color, eye shape, general skin tone and overall body shape and size.  These qualities are, for the most part, shared across the board. 

What do they prize though in beauty standards? 

First of all, I couldn’t go anywhere without hearing someone compliment me on how small my face was and how big my eyes were.  It was not uncommon for people, Korean women in particular, to have surgeries to make their faces smaller or their eyes larger. 

Second, clean, unblemished, milky skin is the beauty standard hands down.  People bleach their skin, wear all manner of creams and powders, bust out umbrellas in full-sunlight and will go fully covered to the beach.  Tanned skin is undesirable as it is a sign of working in the fields or causes wrinkles.  I don’t know all the reasons, but I do know that pale, unblemished, smooth skin is the standard of beauty in South Korea.  People do their utmost to keep their skin super clean and perfect looking – absolute porcelain. 

Enter the little American with freckles everywhere.  My arms and face are particularly freckled.  Otherwise, I’m pretty white.  However, no one ever commented on my freckles when I was in Korea. 

One day, I arrived at my rural Korean grade school to teach English in the countryside.  At this point, it was all still so romantic to me.

I happened to be wearing no sweater and my arms were uncovered.  Upon entering the classroom, I noted that today was second graders.  “Oh, so sweet, so fun, so cute,” I thought to myself.

They were having some free time before class started – just playing here and there.

My co-teacher and I were standing at the front chatting when a small boy approached.

“Ugh, they are so cute!” Thought I again, beaming at this small child.

He came forward, shyly to me and the other teacher.  He addressed me in the best English he could muster, gesturing to my be-speckled arm.

“Teacher, what is?”

I said, “These?  They are freckles.”  I pointed proudly to them, because to be honest, I always got compliments on my freckles.  I was expecting him to nod in wonder or something.

He did nod.  Then he looked up at me still pointing to my arm and said, “Teacher, UGLY.”

Then, he skipped away smirking.

I was in shock.  My co-teacher was chuckling at his cheek because to her he was a silly child just making a joke to get close to the English teacher.  But I was a little taken aback by it all.  I had never considered my freckles to be ugly.  Now, I was in a place where my skin and the little melanin spots it produced was considered hideous.

What a revelation.

My freckles are blemishes to these people.  I never imagined it would happen to me, but someone told me my skin was ugly.

I was an adult, but it still stung a bit.  That might have been the first time that I was awake to the idea that cultural shock is not always positive.  That day the rose-tinted glasses came off.