A New World
     Seeing Kingman with a fresh view

by Hanjoon Park and Carl Alin

When I first arrived in America, everything looked big. The people were like huge mountains. A small McDonald’s coke was also very big to me. After I found out that Kingman’s population is way less than our village, I was frustrated, sad, and shocked. After I got out of the small airport in Wichita and took a ride, there were no buildings, just farms. I was worried I would have to work on a farm. I, who went to a junior high school with 1,500 people didn’t like a school with only 300. But exactly one week later I regretted what I thought before.  Kind people. In Korea, it isn’t common for people on the street to smile brightly and say hello to a stranger, except to flirt.  When the girls here smiled at me I, thought they liked me. When people say hi to me first it makes me feel good.  American schools have lots of activities, no school uniforms,and kind students. I like that I get to choose which classes I take.  On the contrary, I don’t feel like this school is small anymore. I have grown to like it.  When I went to downtown Kingman with lots of historical buildings, I felt inspired, which I don’t feel in Korean cities. Kingman theatre was especially interesting. I like how the parks are clean and fresh, and the homes are nice and simple.  Even though I’ve only lived in Kingman for one month, it is a very attractive and beautiful town. I hope I can make good memories in Kingman for the rest of my time here.

My name is Carl and I come from Sweden. When I first came to Kingman I was met by very nice people, but during the first days of my new life here I felt culture shock because of the size of this small town. However, now that I’ve been here for almost a month, life seems easy. It’s actually not that different from Stockholm, the capital of Sweden and my hometown, although there are some differences here compared with Sweden.  To start with, in Sweden you normally end primary school when you are 16. Our high school is called “Gymnasium,” the same word as Americans use for sports center. We attend high school for three years. However, high school is not an obligation in Sweden, although everyone who wants to go to high school can.  Next step of education is college/university. The years you spend studying at college depends on what major you have chosen. The modern language of Sweden is Swedish. Our language is a descendant of old Norse, the common language of the Germanic people living in Scandinavia during the Viking Era. The most common Swedish surname is Johansson (approximately 3.2% of the population). The most common names in Sweden are originally patronymic, which means that the son of e.g. Carl received the surname Carlsson (Carl’s son).  If you have any other specifi c questions about Sweden, don’t hesitate to ask me at anytime. I’d love to answer your questions.