Mother-to-be factors biculturalism into future of her first offspring
May 26, 2012, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
YUN Ja-young will be going home to South Korea to have her first child, but she promises she'll be back as soon as possible to resume living in the Minhang District.
Yun, 38, came to China as an exchange student studying architecture nearly 10 years ago.
Shanghai has become her second home.
"The baby will grow up here," she said proudly.
After completing her exchange program, she remained to work in Shanghai. Before settling down in Minhang, Yun lived in several places around the city. She struggled for one year trying to find a work in the Songjiang District, and spent another three years in Kunshan, a city in neighboring Jiangsu Province.
In Kunshan, she met her future husband, a man also from South Korea who was working there.
"I worked as a project manager there," Yun recalled. "But the days in Kunshan were much harder than in Shanghai because it was so rural there." In 2010, Yun and her husband moved to Hongqiao Town in Minhang. He works for a Chinese decoration company. Before her pregnancy, Yun was opening a fashion store in downtown.
It wasn't until she moved to Minhang that Yun said she finally didn't feel like a "foreigner" anymore.
"For the past few years, South Korean people have started to gather in the Hongqiao Town, where I'm living," she said. "So services here developed to meet their needs. We have South Korean restaurants, stores, supermarkets and almost everything. If you are sick, the hospital here has a clinic especially for South Koreans. People are friendly here and everything is convenient. It just feels like home."
Pusan, the biggest port on the Korea Peninsula, is Yun's hometown. She usually goes back about twice a year to visit her parents.
"It's funny, but sometimes I feel unaccustomed there," she said. "I have been living in China for so long."
A fluent Chinese speaker, Yun says she is leading a normal Chinese life. She uses Chinese instant message software QQ and Weixin. She once opened a fashion shop on Qipu Road - a hot spot among Shanghai locals. She eats at Chinese restaurants, watches Chinese movies and occasionally lunches with Chinese friends.
She is also taking Chinese lessons three times a week, trying to improve her language skills.
"I can now do some interpretation work for South Korean newcomers," said Yun. "I hope I can help as many people as possible."
Four months to go to the birth and Yun admits she feels both excited and nervous. She visits the hospital for pre-natal checkups, and doctors tell her she will have a healthy baby. "Next month I will learn the gender of the baby," she said. "I don't care if it's a boy or a girl. I just want a healthy, happy baby."
Once the child is a bit older, Yun said she plans to return to work.
"Shanghai is a city with high living costs, especially for education, which is even more expensive than in South Korea," she said. "I will still have to work hard to pay for school expenses."
Yun, 38, came to China as an exchange student studying architecture nearly 10 years ago.
Shanghai has become her second home.
"The baby will grow up here," she said proudly.
After completing her exchange program, she remained to work in Shanghai. Before settling down in Minhang, Yun lived in several places around the city. She struggled for one year trying to find a work in the Songjiang District, and spent another three years in Kunshan, a city in neighboring Jiangsu Province.
In Kunshan, she met her future husband, a man also from South Korea who was working there.
"I worked as a project manager there," Yun recalled. "But the days in Kunshan were much harder than in Shanghai because it was so rural there." In 2010, Yun and her husband moved to Hongqiao Town in Minhang. He works for a Chinese decoration company. Before her pregnancy, Yun was opening a fashion store in downtown.
It wasn't until she moved to Minhang that Yun said she finally didn't feel like a "foreigner" anymore.
"For the past few years, South Korean people have started to gather in the Hongqiao Town, where I'm living," she said. "So services here developed to meet their needs. We have South Korean restaurants, stores, supermarkets and almost everything. If you are sick, the hospital here has a clinic especially for South Koreans. People are friendly here and everything is convenient. It just feels like home."
Pusan, the biggest port on the Korea Peninsula, is Yun's hometown. She usually goes back about twice a year to visit her parents.
"It's funny, but sometimes I feel unaccustomed there," she said. "I have been living in China for so long."
A fluent Chinese speaker, Yun says she is leading a normal Chinese life. She uses Chinese instant message software QQ and Weixin. She once opened a fashion shop on Qipu Road - a hot spot among Shanghai locals. She eats at Chinese restaurants, watches Chinese movies and occasionally lunches with Chinese friends.
She is also taking Chinese lessons three times a week, trying to improve her language skills.
"I can now do some interpretation work for South Korean newcomers," said Yun. "I hope I can help as many people as possible."
Four months to go to the birth and Yun admits she feels both excited and nervous. She visits the hospital for pre-natal checkups, and doctors tell her she will have a healthy baby. "Next month I will learn the gender of the baby," she said. "I don't care if it's a boy or a girl. I just want a healthy, happy baby."
Once the child is a bit older, Yun said she plans to return to work.
"Shanghai is a city with high living costs, especially for education, which is even more expensive than in South Korea," she said. "I will still have to work hard to pay for school expenses."
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
