Neon nights in Korea

I had my first drink of alcohol after graduating high school in Korea. For the occasion, I chose a Japanese highball, a unique concoction that mirrors the sweetness of apples laced with a bold cinnamon aftertaste.

It was fire, literally. I reached for the irresistible red “ORDER” button for another, but my mom’s hand blocked my greedy index finger.

“Take it easy,” she warned.

Ever since I was in middle school, my parents advised me to have my first drink with them rather than my friends. This made me a late alcohol bloomer compared to my peers: at that point, most of my friends already had fake IDs, snuck into bars or had someone buy them alcohol. My parents, on the other hand, were adamant that I “test my limits” in a safe, controlled environment.

Following my first drink (and many more after), however, I discovered my surprisingly high alcohol tolerance and became increasingly intrigued by Korean nightlife, which is characterized by flurries of bright colors, a great deal of K-pop and hordes of burnt cigarette butts scattered across the sidewalk. 

Now, having finished a year at the University of Michigan, I can’t help but compare U-M student life to general nightlife back home in Korea. And I figured there is no better time than the summertime to find out. 

Freshmen at Korean universities are notorious for partying. Following grueling years of studying for the 수능 (suneung), a high-stakes college entrance exam that students sued the government for last year after a teacher ended the exam 90 seconds early, students celebrate by unleashing their inner party animal. The top universities in Korea, namely Seoul National University, Korea University and Yonsei University (usually referred to with the “SKY” acronym similar to the “HYPSM” acronym for Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford and MIT) traditionally host large student festivals, famously featuring bright school colors, lots of noise and lots of alcohol. These festivals are typically hosted in May — the middle of the semester, with many 포차 (pocha), or street food carts. Though universities themselves obviously do not provide alcohol to students, most either drink beforehand or bring in alcohol from these carts or convenience stores. 

The “work hard, play hard” mentality surely transcends culture.

These festivals are equivalent to football games at the University. They bleed with school colors other than maize and blue, are electrified with chants but for K-pop stars instead of touchdowns and are swamped with empty paper cups of soju instead of fireball shooters.

I’ve fortunately been able to avoid the marathon of an exam that is the suneung, but have unfortunately never been to one of these festivals. Still, Korean university student or not, everybody has a gist of what goes down at these festivals.

So, to really capture the essence of going out and nightlife in Korea, I spoke with Yooran Lee, a third-year business student at Yonsei University. In an interview with The Michigan Daily, she reflected on her going out experiences near the heart of Seoul and her thoughts on some of the cultural differences between university life in Korea and the United States.

A traditional night out for Lee, despite having gone out for a few years now, is a recent development. When she graduated from highschool, the social atmosphere was very different. 

“My freshman year we had COVID, so there honestly wasn’t much I could do,” Lee said. “Most of the time I was at home, enrolling and attending my online classes.”

Surprised, I slowly nodded, almost having forgotten what life was like almost five years ago. When Korea encountered its first cases of COVID-19, heavy mask and indoor mandates were enforced across the peninsula.

“But when I eventually did go out with my friends, we would maybe enjoy a first round of Korean barbeque, go drinking at a different place to drink for a second round then finish off with karaoke,” she said. 

Going out in rounds is common in Korea. You enjoy a meal with friends and clink a couple drinks together before going bar hopping for the rest of the night. Every new bar merely adds a new tally to the rounds.

After telling her I was an international student at the University of Michigan, we discussed some of the differences between nightlife in Korea and America.

“One thing I was always interested in about universities in America is house parties,” she said. “In Korea, you might go out to a restaurant or bar with friends to hang out, but never to someone’s house, let alone a stranger’s home.” 

Though going through rounds is somewhat similar to frat hopping at the University on a Thursday or Saturday night, the party culture and environment still have their differences. Most times, going out in Korea is a “friends-only” ordeal: you dine, you drink, you go home — no contact with good-looking strangers. 

I totally understood what Lee meant. Many places in Korea had private rooms or separated tables, each with a tablet that you would order everything from — no need to talk to a bartender or a waiter. Lights were also dim and music was loud, so there was no real need or opportunity to talk to anyone else but your table unless you intentionally sat at another table. Before I came to the University, that was basically all I knew.

But once I decided to attend my first street party my world turned upside down.

In my first semester, a couple of friends and I journeyed down to Greenwood Avenue, not knowing what to expect. And before arriving, unfamiliar signs of a street party presented themselves: battered shoes hanging from power lines, glimpses into introductory conversations between strangers, and of course, the smell of weed. This was truly unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. I ended that night with a couple great new friends and a fun item checked off my bucket list: joining a stampede of students in a wild goose chase with the police.

If I were to make a comparison, I suppose Korean clubs would most closely resemble my Greenwood experience. But still, this comparison isn’t a great one. Because for one, clubs in Korea are relatively controlled indoor environments: you have designated places to relax, dance to music and get drinks. But Greenwood felt like an anarchy. I see a guy in a tree smoking weed? That’s cool, but weed is totally illegal in Korea. Friends hanging out and drinking on roofs of strangers’ houses? That’s pretty awesome, but also illegal in Korea. A drunk pair of strangers making out? Well, that’s not illegal, but I definitely shouldn’t have turned that direction. Clearly, Korean clubs can never replicate the same experience of enjoying a red solo cup in some dude’s basement. 

But importantly, one of the key differences between Korea and America and their regulation of alcohol is the drinking age. In Korea, it is 18 and in America, 21. Lee questioned if America’s higher age to drink is necessary, or even beneficial.

“Well, I don’t see why America has the legal age at 21,” Lee said. “I think it’s fine to allow college students, who are basically adults at that point, to be free with how they choose to treat their relationship with alcohol. But at the same time, in Korea, alcohol is super cheap and accessible. It always amuses me to see soju costing over $10 in America, it’s insane really.”

Personally, I agreed that 18 was a suitable age to work with. Either way, in Korea or not, there will be people who will elude the law  — my friends in Korea had fake IDs and my friends in America had fake IDs. Personally, I had no problem with waiting until I was 18, but I’m sure the higher drinking age in America has only made people more rebellious.

What’s more, cheap is an understatement. This year, the cost of a 360ml (about 12 fl oz) 처음처럼 (chum churum) bottle, a popular liquor, is expected to drop to 1,115 KRW, or about 80 cents based on current exchange rates. Other liquors float at a similar price. America certainly doesn’t share those prices, but I find that the consequences of purchasing alcohol, expensive or not, are the same. We all pay to drink and have fun, but just at different prices. Lee commented on what she does to capitalize on such prices.

“With cheap and accessible alcohol, I suppose, my friends and I often play various Korean drinking games,” she said.

Drinking together with friends, family and work colleagues is a staple of Korean culture. Korean drinking games are often a part of nightly antics, with popular Korean drinking games such as the “I am ground” self-introduction game, 눈치게임 (sensing game) and 병뚜껑 게임 (flicking the bottle cap game). Some of these games aren’t your typical games like beer pong or riding the bus, as many are heavily rhythm- or numbers-based, but they still definitely add a fun competitive spirit to last the night. During these games, I always found that the reactions at someone else’s misfortune are intensified in America. Lose a game, and you’re surrounded by chants of “chug!” In Korea, people really try to have their fun worth its price. 

After my interview with Lee, I was left to reflect on my own experiences out in Korea and at the University. Korea can be a jack of all trades: you can enjoy a lax night out with friends, go crazy at the club jumping to K-pop or go bar hopping for five rounds with a reasonable price right after. But at the same time, the University has football games, tailgates and parties that simply do not exist in Korea. 

But honestly, I’m fine with being left to pick my poison between enjoying a night out in America or Korea, so long as it’s not alcohol poisoning.

Statement Columnist Philip (Sooyoung) Ham can be reached at philham@umich.edu.

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