한국어가능

I work for a random company, doing random stuff for my company that usually involves countries outside of Korea. Occassionally I have to go with some of my coworkers to random expos in Korea in the event that people from countries other than Korea visit our booth. Those kind of visitors are few and far between so must of the time I have to deal with locals.

I'm pretty okay at speaking Korean. I can explain the products my company produces. I can give prices. The color of my skin however makes local people very neverous and afraid to talk to me. Some people will hem and haw for a bit before asking me in halting English, "How much?" I give these people an A for effort. I usually respond to them in Korean which causes them much relief, but leads to me inevitably having to explain how it is possible for me to speak Korean. There are also people who will wait for one of my coworkers to become available even if I speak to that customer first in Korean, because I couldn't possibly know more Korean than, "Do you need any help?"

Several expos ago I wrote up some post-expo report for the boss and as I handed him the report he asked me how it went. I told him how a lot of people were nervous about talking to me, and then joking added, "I should probably wear a button that says 'I can speak Korean!' or something like that."

Remember that adage, "Be careful what you wish for?" My boss thought it was an awesome idea, and shortly thereafter, a button appeared proclaiming, "한국어가능," which I now must wear anytime I go to an expo in Korea. The button has done little to improve my expo experience. Now instead of people freezing in fear they elbow their friends in the ribs and point at my button and laugh, or try and quiz me to see if the button rings true, or they merely don't see the button and freeze in fear like the old days.

Such is the life of a random foreign employee working for a random Korean company.