Way Back When Wednesday - Getting Glasses in Korea

I started noticing Derek needed glasses just a little while after we were married and living in Provo, UT.  We couldn't sit in the back half of movie theaters, he was always squinting at menus in fast food restaurants, and he always asked me what the next street sign said.  His eyes aren't BAD by any means, just not that good.

So we priced around and found that Costco had the cheapest options.  We went, and they were pretty cheap.  I think the total cost for the eye exam, lenses, and frames was around $150-$200.  The only problem was, one lens wasn't quite right.  His right eye was always straining to compensate causing all kinds of discomfort.  He would tell me that if he wore his glasses for too long, his right eyeball (not the eyelid like one would expect, the actual eyeball) would get twitchy.  And therefore, he didn't wear them all that often. 

He continued to squint for the next two years or so.  Then we went to Korea and found their health care to be really inexpensive.  We talked about getting glasses for him a few times, but put it off for various reasons.  Mostly because doing most anything out of the ordinary was a lot of extra effort and often embarrasment. 

But finally, on our last weekend in Korea, we thought we'd go see how much it cost and how long it would take for the glasses to be made.  We walked down the Shi-ne (main street) until we got to a large-ish glasses shop called, Davici.  They had a cute jingle in which they totally butchered the pronunciation, "Bi-chi, Bi-chi, Da-bi-chi!..." and so on. 

We walked in and tried to blend in with the other shoppers as much as possible.  But being a white person in Korea makes that a little difficult to say the least, and in less than 2 minutes, a friendly salesperson came over to help us. 

This is where the interesting part starts.  We, or I should really say I, don't speak Korean.  Derek does pretty well, but often, Koreans don't know how to communicate well with someone who is only fairly proficient in their language.  Anyways, the friendly salesperson came over and asked if we needed help.  Derek told him yes, he did.  He needed new glasses.  One lens was good and the other was not good (I'm trying to translate exactly what Derek said so you can see how interesting it is to talk to Koreans).

The man told him to go over to one of the cubicle-like things to have his eyes checked.  I fully expected to see those huge circular-shaped things that optomitrists pull in front of your face and adjust to get your prescription, but not in Korea.  Or at least not in this particular glasses shop in Sokcho.

The salesperson sat him down in a chair and then asked him to read a chart just like they do in America, covering one eye then the other.  I was a little worried about a salesperson doing the eye exam, but then I remembered that EVERYTHING is different in Korea.  Maybe their optometrists operate that way.  Then instead of the big circular things, he put a pair of glasses on him.  Then he added extra lenses to them, all the while asking Derek to read the chart.

Once Derek indicated that he could read the chart clearly, the salesperson told him to walk around the store and see how they felt.  So now, imagine an already conspicuous white guy walking around with these huge, thick glasses with a bunch of tabs for each lens the doctor put in there sticking out.  It was pretty funny.  I was laughing pretty hard.  He tried to not get noticed, but that was hard for him in Korea. 

I started saying "wae-gae-in! wae-gae-in! (korean for alien)"  The doctor laughed and said, "E.T., E.T!"  Derek wasn't too impressed with our jokes.

After the salesperson finalized the prescription for his glasses, it was time to pick out the frames.  We looked around and quite a few that were hideous, a few that would have sufficed, and one or two that were perfect!  The trend for Koreans right now is to wear thick plastic frames in black, red, or even purple.  They kind of look like American glasses from the 60s.  We found a perfect pair that were thin, black, half-wire frames for, I think, the equivalent of $30 or $40.

We were so happy to find frames so cheap!  We asked what the total would be for everything including the exam and lenses.  The salesperson us told us that with those frames, it would be 70,000 won.  That's only ~$70!  What a deal especially if they turned out well! 

Then we got a little worried about when they would be done.  In America, it can take up to a week sometimes!  It was late on a Saturday evening, probably around 6pm.  Come to think of it, that was another difference in Korea.  Shops, all kinds, are open until 10pm or later!  Derek asked him if we could get them before Monday evening (We were leaving to go back to America via Seoul Monday night). 

The guy told him that of course that was possible.  They would be ready by 7pm that same evening!  We were shocked!   Really inexpensive glasses AND same-day service?!  How did we get so lucky!!  The salesperson told us to go wait in their little ice cream cafe.  Oh yeah, I forgot that part.  Davici had a cafe where they served ice cream to their waiting customers free of charge!

After he handed the information to the glasses-making technicians, We picked out our flavor of ice cream.  I chose chocolate and Derek chose strawberry.  The ice cream was stored in plain, little, disposable containers in a chest freezer.  I thought that we would just eat it out of the container, but no, not in Korea!  The sales person dumped the ice cream into a machine that squeezed it out in pretty pile in glass dishes!  Talk about service.  Koreans almost go overboard with it.

We waited for the exact amount of time they said, and his glasses were done!  They fitted them on his face, and they work perfectly!  He can see clearly and now wears them all the time!  Thanks Davici for your wonderful service!