My first interview

My first interview

Interviewer: Boshi Chen

Interviewee: ES

Preparation:

My preparation of this interview is for getting to know the questions we made in class, so before doing this interview, I have prepared a list of that, printed it in a piece of paper. Since my interviewees are from South Korea, I searched some information about Korea.

China and South Korea are Asian countries, there are some traditions similar, and that is easier for me. We met in the second floor of library on Thursday, March 1. We talked a lot, and I record most of them.

Country (South Korea):

South Korea (About this sound listen), officially the Republic of Korea (Korean: Daehan Minguk About this sound listen), is a sovereign state in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula.[6] It is described in a 1948 U.N. resolution as the only lawful government in Korea.[7] The name "Korea" is derived from Goryeo, a dynasty which ruled in the Middle Ages.

Its neighbors are China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea to the south. South Korea lies in the North Temperate Zone with a predominantly mountainous terrain. It covers a total area of 99,392 square kilometers [8] and has a population of almost 50 million. The capital and largest city is Seoul, with a population of 9,794,304.

Transcript:

B: Hi, ES, how are you doing?

E: I am good, so how is your class going?

B: oh, it is pretty good, as we planned; I got several of questions to ask. Since we are talked about this interview, so we just start, ready?

E: yes, for sure.

B: good! Here is the list of questions I am going to ask. So here we go, question one which country`s food do you like the most?

E: It definitely my local food, you must know how I feel about non-Asian food. (lol)

B: oh, that is truth; we just could not adapt American cooking sometimes. So what foods are most popular?

E: we eat rice as our main food, but I think the best known food is Kimchi; it is just very common, not that popular, we also have noodles and soups and seafood. Oh! We have street foods, the street vendor is the best places to grab a quick snack or spent the night and drink with friends.

B: oh, I see, we also have street foods! The main style is BBQ. (lol)

E: really??!!

B: let’s moving on, what religious holidays or other cultural events do you or others celebrate?

E: I guess you know what I know; we are pretty similar with cultural events. Such as Dragon boat Festival and Tomb-sweeping.

B: Next one, Do you have any daily rituals in regards to your religious beliefs?

E: I don’t have any daily rituals, but people around me, some of they do have. Buddhists, Christians, are kind of dominant in my country.

B: huh, that’s what my country got. Really similar cultural background, is it?

E: (laugh)

B: you know what ES, in my country, the typical greeting is shaking hands, how about your culture?

E: we do the same thing, pretty much, we do bowing a lot, as well. Besides, The most basic and frequently used greeting is an-nyung-ha-se-yo (she spells it to me).  An-nyung-ha-se-yo means hello. 

B: So what different modes of transportation are used in your country?

E: Bus, bicycle, subway, car, plane some things like that, I guess. Like the world people do. Lol.

B: well, let’s getting serious, lol, what kind of government is in charge of your home country?

E: South Korea has a republic government. You can find that the government is based on the Constitution of the Republic of Korea which was written in 1948. As in the US, they too have the three branch system. Basically, those I know about this part.

B: so at what age did you start to learn English? And what was the most difficult thing about learning English?

E: well, I began learn English when I was at middle school, for now, the most difficult thing is speaking, Asian people are shy, I am not good at talking with people first. So I may don’t have problem to write or read, but I do have problem to listen and talk.

B: yeah, I have the same problem with you; hope we will overcome this as soon as possible. Then what are some places of interests in your country that everyone should visit if they were to go there?

E: Haha, my hometown! Seoul! It is Korea's capital and most populous city, It offers many activities for everyone, including museums and palaces, parks and mountains, and amusement parks and night clubs. If you were going to Korea, I would like be your guide.

B: oh, thanks, I would like to go, and I wish I could to someday! And what sports do you play or are popular in your country?

E: actually, I am not a big fan of sport, but I think skate and skiing are very popular, some boys also like basketball.

B: good, that is good for you, and good to hear that, why did you decide to come to SCSU instead of studying or working in your country?

E: Our schools have the exchange program with SCSU, and I was one of them, when I came here, I feel so excited with everything, so I decided transfer to here.

B: then did you find what the differences between your country and here are?

E: yeah, like half of us will live with our parent after we are married. And we are very respectful to the old. People in U.S. are more equal.

B: I totally agree with u about this part. Ok, I have done for all the questions! Thank you so much, ES.

E: you are welcome!

Interview:

This interview was made in the library on Thursday, Mar 1. The interviewee is named ES (you told us don’t write name), she is an international student, from Korea. The all the conversation went very well. In this report, I prepared 9 core questions to ask, aiming to know more about South Korea.

At the beginning of our talking, we greeted, and talked about our class and recent life. We knew each other, so we go to the core questions very fast. The whole conversation she looks very comfortable about my asking, so we had a happy talking.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Korea