Episode 124: The One With the Little Guests

This week, Jun and Daniel sit down for a very special, one-of-a-kind episode featuring four unprecedented guests: Daniel’s children! Ranging in age from 3 to 11, the kids have spent the last five years growing up in South Korea, and with the family’s impending move back to the United States, Daniel and Jun wanted to capture their unique perspectives as a family time capsule. If you’re interested in what third culture kids think about transitioning from Korean elementary schools to American ones, how playground politics are divided by language fluency, or the hilarious ways children interpret adult podcast conversations (hint: interest rates and elevators), this episode is a must-listen. The kids also share their earliest memories of moving to Korea during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic—including the two-week mandatory quarantine, daily cotton swabs, and the indoor arcade in their temporary housing. We even get a live, unscripted Pokémon card unboxing! As a reminder, we publish our episodes bi-weekly from Seoul, South Korea. We hope you enjoy listening to our conversation, and we're so excited to have you following us on this journey! [Chapters] 0:00 Intro: Daniel's Kids Take Over the Podcast 2:00 Meet Jeremy & Emily: Hobbies, Pets, & Podcast Impressions 7:00 Early Memories: The 2021 COVID Quarantine & The Arcade House 10:00 School Life: Playground Language Politics (Korean vs. English) 13:00 Speaking Korean: Accents, Fluency, & Code-Switching 17:00 Emily's Earliest Memory from America 20:00 Weekly Routines: The Best and Worst Days of the Week 22:00 Favorite Foods: McDonald's, Samgyeopsal, & Jjapagetti 24:00 Moving Back: Expectations of America (Loud Elevators & Extroverts) 27:00 Sensory Memories: The Sounds & Smells of Korea (Kimchi & 10 Won Bread) 29:00 Why We Want to Stay: Friends, K-Pop, & Cheap Snacks 30:00 Lightning Round: Favorite Korean Snacks & Seasons 33:00 A Live Pokémon Card Unboxing 35:00 Enter Josie & The Youngest: A Korean Interview 39:00 School Life (Josie's Edition): Teachers, Friends, & Smartwatches 46:00 Mosquito Bracelets & Local Library Lunches 48:00 Outro & Bloopers[cite: 12]