Watch Out, Jet Li!

Saturday was a big day...my black belt test in taekwondo!

The group from my dojang after the test was over. That's my teacher in the suit (he's short but lethal).

For those of you who were unaware that I was so advanced in taekwondo, the reason you're confused is because I'm not--I've actually only been doing tkd here for 8 months or so. Back home it takes around 3 years to get a black belt, but in Korea, birthplace of taekwondo, it only takes 1 year.

It was a little hard to get used to the Korean system at first. A lot of people don't like it because they feel it cheapens the process of getting your black belt. Although a black belt here definitely doesn't mean the same thing as it does in the U.S., I've learned to appreciate the Korean system for what it is. It's just another way of approaching tkd. They don't think that you're an amazing martial artist just because you have a black belt; they save that kind of appreciation for third-degree black belts and up, which takes at least 3-4 years. Getting your first-degree black belt just means that you're committed to learning tkd.

I was in a club during college for a semester or so and managed to get my orange belt, but then I quit--it felt too much like gym class for me, and everyone took themselves so seriously. I wanted to have fun, not get chewed out by a drill sargeant for forgetting to take off my ring. That's why I really like tkd here--at least at my dojang, people go to have fun and socialize. The main reason I go is to exercise and to challenge myself. I'm not athletic at all, and it's a big challenge for me to go four nights a week and look like a fool. And as it turns out, looking like a fool is starting to pay off--I may not be a real black belt yet, but Joel says I'm at least a solid blue belt (one belt away from red, which is followed by black). He has pretty high standards, so that means I'm not completely pathetic any more. (And trust me, I was quite pathetic!)

So here's how testing in Korea works. You test at your dojang once a month for your colored belts. Once every three months, there's a black belt test. All the schools get together and everyone tests together. The actual test is basically the same as color-belt tests back home, but it's intimidating when you're not used to it, and I really had to psyche myself up to go. As it turns out, the test was literally 5 minutes long. You do some kicks, two forms chosen at random (out of eight total), and about 30 seconds of sparring.

Here's my group during the test. I'm the second from the left in the second row from the front.

The test was at a high school about an hour away. I think they're doing some kind of experiment in the gym--what happens when you don't clean a high school gymnasium. Ever. It was extremely dirty and smelly. But the mats where we had the test were clean at least! I don't think anyone else was too pleased with it, either. It was the first time they had the test there, which is why it started about 2 hours late--no one could find it! (Let's not get into why the organizers didn't send out directions or why none of the teachers bothered to figure out where it was before they left--that's just not the Korean way, OK?)

The highlight of the day was winning the special foreigner award. Just kidding--sort of. They gave out an award to the best person in each level, and I'm the one who got it for my level. So it's not actually an award specifically for being foreign, but I'm pretty sure that's the reason why I got it. We were all pretty much equal in my group, so I don't feel too badly about it, though.

My teacher, me, and Joel. Look at that fancy medal! See? Sometimes it pays to be foreign.

Even though the test was kind of a joke, I'm glad I went through with it. It was really hard to take the plunge when I didn't know what the test would entail (spin hook kicks? breaking concrete bricks?), and there were a couple of times where I came close to quitting. (It doesn't help that classes are from 10-11 p.m. I'm so not a night person--that's my time to unwind, not get wound up!) But I actually stuck with it, and now it's over, and I did it!