Living in Korea: Erika's Favourite Director
Erika really likes cinema, it's one of the main things that brought her here.
How did you first learn about Korea?
I've watched a lot of korean movies, then I watched a lot of dramas and finally I got into kpop!
So you like cinema?
I love it, my passion started with American movies when I was 14 years old. Then my interest switched to Korean movies and that's also why I came here, I would like to apply to a college here to study filmmaking once I finish my language program. My current program is at Donguk University, which is really famous for its filmmaking courses so hopefully I will stay there.
Do you have a favourite Korean director?
Yes, it's Bong Joon ho, the director of Snowpiercer and Parasite. My first Korean movie was Snowpiercer and I was really surprised when I realized it was from a Korean director, it made me want to know more about him and I ended up watching almost all his movies!
Where do you usually hang out in Seoul?
Like many I usually go to Hongdae when I'm with friends. But I like to go out in the mornings alone, I usually go to Gangnam or Insadong because I need to focus to write on my notebook, it can be random thoughts as well as poems. Gangnam is so big that it offers a lot of choices of various coffee shops. Insadong on the other hand, is the opposite. There the vibe is really different and is more traditional and calm.
Is there anything you would like to tell to people coming to Korea?
You should at least learn a bit of Korean, it will be really useful so you could learn just good manners or basic conversation. It's not that difficult and Korean don't speak English that well and they really care about good manners so you could impress them! For me being able to do that was a great help.
We would like to thank Asia, Linda and Erika for their time and welcoming spirit! We hope their will all manage to extend their stay and that their experience was valuable for you :)