Learning TKD in Korea

I have been living in Korea for the last couple of years. While I have been here I have learned TKD. I have been going to one of the bigger TKD schools in my city (about 200 students). Sometimes in the kids classes (almost all classes here are kids classes) or when I can in the 'mother's and father's' class.

It must admit it has been an interesting experience.

Here's one thing I found amazing. In the city where I live there are quarterly ITF poom/dan tests. The number of people there taking tests you may ask. About 700 or 800. Of course the majority are elementary or middle schools kids going for their poom tests, but there were also a couple of hundred adults (mainly high school and university students) doing their black belt tests.

It just seemed such a huge number of people, even considering there are at least 2 or 3 TKD schools in each dong(an area in the city similar to a suburb but often smaller), in the city

I could go on for quite a while about my experiences learning TKD here, but more another time

Samantha

hi, i have a good friend who is a black belt in TKD and he is Korean and he learnt in korea, he moved to australia this year.

he doesnt practice TKD anymore because the "Dojangs in australia **** " lol (according 2 him and i agree).

and Sammi are u a black belt?? and did u do TKD b4 Korea???

Yes, I am a black belt and I only started learning TKD since I came to Korea nearly 3 years ago (been doing TKD for about 2 and a half years).

At the dojang I just left, the classes are pretty full on most of the time. I was a bit of a dojang celebrity being a foreigner and a female at that.

Often Fridays there would games and one of the sabeomnims would set up 2 teams 'Heo Sabeomnim', and 'Samantha' or as he would say 'Sa man da'.

With the same sabeomnim, when it came to sparring practice days, he would get me to spar against him, or set it up as a challenge for some of the older kids to spar against me,at about 172cm (and I look taller) I am pretty intimidating even to some of the 15+ year old boys.