Adoptees of Korea: Stories is a series that tells the personal stories of Korean adoptees from around the world. All stories are written by the individual adoptee and reflect their own experiences.
Name: Kim Foucart (박절희)
Adopted to: Binche, Belgium in 1975
Current residence: Binche, Belgium
I can’t complain, I was adopted by loving parents who held my hand and still hold my hand. I had a very good childhood and adolescence in a small Belgian town, Binche, which is located in the province of Hainaut in Belgium. Binche is a city which has an old history of Traditions and Folklores: The Carnival of Binche and its famous Gille de Binche.
My parents introduced me very early to all this very rich Folklore which rocked practically all my life. In general, my integration took place naturally and my life was very good. However, I totally rejected my origins. It was in 2017, at 42, that I emerged from this denial. My mother gave me my adoption file and there, we will say, was the revelation of my second identity. An air bubble that opened to me. Discovery of the language, culture, and food of my country. It followed my return to native soil in 2018.
It was in 2018 that I made my return to Korea. I returned alone. What to say? Magic. Leaving the plane, the image that will remain in my mind is the fountain with “Incheon” above it. That’s it, I was there.
I wanted to go on an adventure and plan nothing, just find out. The day before my departure, I did not yet have accommodations. A couple of Belgian Korean adopted friends were already there and were staying at Koroot. Unfortunately, they left the next day, but we were able to enjoy a half day together where they introduced me to my first steps in Korea. I spent two days alone strolling the streets and marveling at everything in Seoul. I thought of moving elsewhere, but to finish, I stayed 2 weeks in Seoul. There was so much to see. In the days that followed, I saw two Belgian friends who were there.
After a few days, I changed accommodations and found myself at the Apple Backpackers in the Jongno-3-Ga district. Wouaaaaah. Right in the middle of the BBQ area and other restaurants. This neighborhood has become my favorite neighborhood.
Since then I returned a second time in 2019. This time, I left Seoul. I first went to Jumunjin and after, Jeonju, my hometown. This was a great moment of emotion. I had a meeting with the manager of the Guesthouse where I was staying. Explaining my adoption story to him, he took me to the Jeonju Children’s Administration. There we were received by a person who took out the first file concerning me.
Subsequently, he took me to the place where I had been found. The name of the person who found me was on the card. It was then that he began to question the people of the neighborhood. Apparently, this person was elderly and had died. From there a question arises, who really was this person?
Afterwards, I went to Busan and returned to Seoul. I am waiting to be able to return there after this pandemic.
For the moment, I have made two trips to Korea. I don’t have much experience yet to be able to give a correct opinion on life in Korea. I discovered my second country at my own pace. What immediately appealed to me in Korea was respect for public space. Everywhere was clean, even the toilets! The smell of food on the streets. Hearing Korean being spoken everywhere. But the most striking thing was the well-being of being surrounded by people who look like you, for me “the mirror effect”. A feeling of merging into the crowd and of no longer being the person of the minority. On the other hand, the status of women is still not at the top. Which for me is also one of the causes of Korean adoption.
To be adopted Korean is to have two cultures, that of “origin” and that of “adoptive”. For me, adoption is not a chance, the only chance we could have is to be adopted by loving and understanding parents.
Adoption is also an open wound that will never heal.
