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Getting around in Korea without Korean | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Cultural Experiences in Foreign Languages |  | |
| Aritaurus Tetraglot Senior Member Canada Joined 6574 days ago 197 posts - 204 votes  Speaks: Cantonese, English*, Japanese, Mandarin Studies: Spanish | Message 1 of 3 23 July 2007 at 4:29pm | IP Logged | |||||
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I'm planning to go to Busan from Fukuoka in January and I have absolutely no knowledge of the Korean language. If I go about using only English to communicate with shop keepers and servers , will I have any problems ? I've heard that most people in Korea have taken English since it is part of their curriculum. How useful will Mandarin and Japanese be in Busan particularly ? I have pretty good background in Mandarin and I can get around in most travel situations with Japanese. I've also heard about some store keepers that may even know a bit of Cantonese. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| jstele Bilingual Senior Member United States Joined 6655 days ago 186 posts - 194 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Korean* | Message 2 of 3 24 July 2007 at 9:44am | IP Logged | |||||
Yes, you will have problems. Some people may think you are Japanese and have ill feelings toward you. Some people may recognize that you are not Japanese and be offended that you would use Japanese in Korea to communicate. Most shopkeepers are adults in their 30's and beyond, so they would not have been affected by the English wave.
In tourist heavy areas, there might be someone who could speak Japanese, or even Mandarin. If you had to choose a foreign language to use, use English. Anyways, you should study a few Korean phrases before you go. 1 person has voted this message useful |
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