My New Favorite Korean Learning Guide

Okay....unless you've been living under a rock and don't follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you know that I'm studying Korean. This time last year, everyone was scratching their heads trying to understand why I would even try to learn a language where I had no real reason to (as opposed to say Japanese - or enhancing my passable Spanish skills). Fast forward to 2010 and now I do business with Korean entertainment firms - so apparently it wasn't such a bad idea for me to learn the language! Haha! ^_^

Anyway, the Korean learning curve has been a rocky one. At first my work schedule made it tiresome for me to make time for tutoring lessons or to study when I got home. Then my first tutor moved home to South Korea before returning to the States to go to school at the University of Minnesota. Then my 2nd tutor got too busy with classes at Columbia University's Business School to meet up with me anymore. And finally the third one was somewhat of a bust as we only met twice and he's going back to South Korea in May.

Finally I realized that much like learning to run my own business, if I wanted to learn to speak Korean, I was going to have to take it upon myself. So, I stumbled upon (no not through using Stumbleupon.com) a website that was developed by a (I'm assuming former) guy who used to work with KoreanClass101.com. If you're familiar with KC101 then you probably either really love it or are ambivilant to it. I'm ambivilant to the website but do like the iPhone apps!

Well the new website I found is called "www.TalkToMeInKorean.com" and is entirely different than KC101. First all the lessons are accessible without needing a membership and each one comes with a pdf and podcast that clearly outline what is being learned and how to apply it to regular conversation. And even better, they have these workbooks which help you to quiz yourself on how much you learned from the step by step lessons. I highly recommend this site if you're trying to ease into Korean. :)

And...in addition to that, I've also been spending a lot of time watching Korean TV to help my listening comprehension skills. My last tutor gave me a great site - bada.us which offers streams of all the popular Korean TV shows and movie trailers. I'm partial to the modern day dramas or "novellas" as I like to call them - for those of us familiar with the Spanish versions of soap operas. I'm partial to 검사 프린세스 ( which in Korean means "Kamsa Princess" or "Prosecuting Attorney Princess") which is the story of a well to do woman who (through her father's connections I'm guessing) lands a job working for the State as a prosecutor. Originally she's bratty and doesn't take her job seriously but as the show continues, she begins to mature. But the predictable soap opera-ish plot line is that she has a choice between two men - the silent/stern but well meaning co-worker who she has a crush on (who is a hottie) and her childhood friend who likes her but she doesn't like "in that way".

Anyway...I definitely recommend bada.us (especially since there are no subtitles like on CrunchyRoll.com) and TalkToMeInKorean.com because it clearly explains everything!

감사합니다!!!