I often get asked why I'm interested in Korea and why I want

to learn the Korean language. It's not because of K-pop or k-drama etc. Here's my story:

Since I was a little girl I've always had some interest in East Asian culture. My mother's friends were Chinese or from Singapore and I grew up watching a lot of Japanese anime. When I was 8/9 years old my school had a prize cabinet and if you did really well on a test you get to choose a prize. In this cabinet there was a doll and a bag that I really wanted. The character was Pucca and at the time I didn't know she was Korean, but I fell in love and I really wanted it. I studied really hard for the test and eventually did really well so I managed to win the doll and bag that I wanted! I went home so happy. I noticed the label of the doll and bag was in a foreign language (Korean) so I asked my parents and they told me. Since then I've always had some interest in Korea. I read the history, watched movies and documentaries about the culture etc. Finally I had the chance to visit Korea, luckily twice and I absolutely fell in love. Even tho I didn't go in my childhood it felt like a nostalgic feeling for me while i was there. Today, I still have the doll 😁👍