things that make my apartment so Korean

The following are some pictures of things that make my apartment feel very “Korean” and some explanations for why things are that way. However, if anyone would like to correct me, explain something better, or tell me that I’m making generalizations, I’m totally open to comments! J

When you enter a Korean apartment, you absolutely have to take off your shoes and leave them by the front door. People do this to keep the floors in their apartments really clean, especially because some people eat their meals and sleep on the floor. So, you take off your shoes and slip on these little house shoes. They’re really comfy and actually do help keep the place cleaner!

It's a similar concept for bathroom shoes: you slip these on whenever you go into the bathroom. The reason for this is that many Korean bathrooms aren’t sectioned off at all, meaning that the shower head is on the wall but there’s no curtain or shower door to keep the water from getting on the floor and everything else. So you wear these shoes so your feet don’t get wet, and also to keep your feet from touching the bathroom floor!

I have no explanation for this, but these stickers are on the wall in my bathroom. The top one says "bathroom panda", and the next three say "Uhm...", "Love me?", "Like you..."

Again, no explanation, but the trash can that came with my apartment says “Red Rabbit: True love is so rare and precious. But a good friendship is even more so. You are my most valuable treasure!” TOO MUCH ADORABLE.

Korean people are accustomed to sleeping on the floor, so the “extra bed” in my spare bedroom is simply a mat on the floor with a comforter and pillow. (Again, anyone want to come visit?)

The first time I did a load of laundry here, I thought the washer was broken! When the load finished, there was water all over the floor! I asked my coworker about it, and he explained that the water is supposed to drain out at the end of the load. In America, the water from the washer is drained through pipes that run through the walls, but in Korea, the water just drains onto the through an open tube and runs into a drain in the floor on my porch. I’m just glad I learned this before calling in a repair person!

Speaking of doing laundry, I don’t have a dryer in my apartment, so I hang-dry my clothes on a drying rack!

And finally, I have to drink bottled water here because the tap water isn’t safe to drink. Even Korean people either drink bottled water or drink from hot/cold water dispenser machines that they have installed in their homes. But have no fear, Korea is very serious about recycling, so those bottles aren’t ending up in a landfill!

So, to my Korean friends: are these observations correct? If you have lived in America, did you notice any other differences when you lived in American apartments?