Here is some insight to being a native English teacher in South Korea.
You can visit www.roketship.com to see some incredibly accurate depictions of the life of a foreigner in South Korea. In addition, below is a video of how Hitler is frustrated with his coteacher and the educational system here.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Monday, July 12, 2010
Foreigner vs. Koreans
Friday night was quite eventful. First, there was a gathering at Austin & Mesa's apartment which was really fun. Their apartment is HUGE and adorned with freaky mannequins, including one in the bathroom which can come as quite a shock your first time there. Good conversation, good company. The Usual left around 2am and headed to downtown. We went to Mix Lounge and were waiting for our other friends to come. They took quite a while but eventually made it. We went to the rooftop and were just talking and people watching when all of a sudden, a fight broke out between a stupid foreigner and an equally stupid Korean (and his friends). I don't know why it started, but I'm sure it was a stupid reason. I've never been in a situation like this before, so I wasn't able to foresee what I was gonna do next, which was step in between the two feuding groups and try to stop it. I was banking on the assumption that these guys would not hit a girl. Quite a risky move in Korea but I was thinking in American. I held back this little Korean guy who obviously had five too many plastic surgeries on his face (probably the result of instigating fist fights at bars). I kept telling him "aniyo! NO! stop!" etc. I was pretty successful. At one point I let him go because he was calm and was talking to the manager of Mix (who wasn't doing ANYTHING! except what is in his job description: looking pretty). Then the foreigner was going mad crazy and I got in front of him when he was in the process of lunging towards the stupid Korean who had begun to run his mouth. I held this foreigner by his two arms holding him back. He was about a foot taller than me so he was able to have a clear view of this stupid Korean. I was talking him out of it and he agreed with what I had to say but he said, "Can't you just let me get him one time. He's just right there..." and I was like, "NO! Just go home." Eventually the girl he was with made him leave but not without the trailing Koreans. Someone else attempted to stop them and eventually just left with them. We stayed on the rooftop for several minutes and then decided to leave as well only to find the Koreans and the foreigners (who were also trying to stop the fight) right outside. They were fine; eating, apologizing, talking. Then the stupid Korean had one of the foreigner's phone and would not give it back. This stupid Korean was just looking for a fight. Anyway, I tried to get the phone from the guy, but he's stupid. Then Sonia dug her nails into his hand and eventually got the phone. They were causing a scene and after we got the phone, we decided to just walk away and get away from it all, but these dumb Koreans wanted to follow. We go down the road and who do we see at the intersection? None other than the first foreigner who was going at it with the stupid Korean. I don't know what happened there cuz we decided to leave it completely or someone was gonna get deported. I got home around 630am that morning. It was horrible. The following night, we went back to Mix. No fight this time. Oh yeah, I also watched Eclipse. It was actually a good movie!!! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY better than Twilight and New Moon. Like WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY better! Jacob vs. Edward, it's just like foreigners vs. Koreans. OK, not really...just trying to relate my subjects together...
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
I love Korea, but…
...Let’s face it, nothing is perfect. This whole blog is mostly about what I enjoy about Korea, but let’s be real here; there are a ton of things that I dislike about this country. And here you go in no particular order, haha.
1. Spitting. Koreans spit EVERYWHERE, even inside buildings! It’s so disgusting! I always have to watch where I’m stepping so I don’t walk into a big loogie. The other day, I was peeing somewhere (in a bathroom!) and there was spit right next to the toilet. C’mon now. Couldn’t you have spat in the toilet? I even saw a student spit in school once. Inside the school. It’s horrible! My friend even got spat on, but it was most likely intentional by an old Korean man.
2. Mosquitoes. I hate them but they sure do love me and my tasty blood. I bought a product to soothe the itch and I bought another product to prevent bites. I currently have about 20 bites on my legs! This is not the most bites I’ve had at one time, but it’s still annoying regardless.
3. Humidity. Boy do I hate the humidity. I hate the sticky heat with a burning passion. If you’ve ever experienced high humidity, you know what I’m talking about. I seriously cannot breathe when I’m not in an air conditioned room. I feel like I’m in a sauna even though I’m outside. Korea needs an air conditioner.
4. Pollution. All types of pollution, including littering and air. The air quality is really bad here. I’d say it’s even worse than in America! The floors are covered with garbage EVERYWHERE. This is because there is a serious lack of trash cans in this country. They don’t believe in them or something. It is very rare to find a trash can, so what do you do? You just toss it at the base of a telephone pole or wherever you see existing trash piles. If you know me, you know I don’t litter, so I just keep my trash in my bag or hold it until I find a trash can. Needless to say, I hold it for a long time.
5. Beating around the bush. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but Koreans definitely beat around the bush. They won’t tell you straight up what they want to say. They might just tell you the opposite! This is very annoying because I don’t like to beat around the bush, so I hate it when they beat around the bush with me. Just spit it out already!!! Ok, well, don’t spit…just say it!
6. Sick days. There is no such thing. Why? Because Koreans don’t get sick, duh. They’re immune to all illnesses. So that sick student or sick coteacher of yours won’t stay home to get better. Oh no. They’ll come to school and cough and sneeze all over the place. They don’t cover their mouths. Why would they? Koreans don’t get sick. (However, I do get sick days :)! )
7. Ovens. I don’t have one. Most other homes don’t either. Koreans (and Asians, in general) don’t use ovens to cook whereas in America, ovens come standard. If I wanted one, I’d have to buy a freestanding one, which would take up half of my miniscule kitchen. I would really like to bake some cupcakes and cookies!! My students would love that! My students in America did!
8. Showers. I don’t have one of these either. Ok, I do, but it’s definitely unlike the one at home. Bathrooms are just one room with a sink, mirror, cabinet, toilet, and maybe a counter if you’re lucky. No designated shower. Instead, you have a showerhead in the corner of the bathroom. No tub, no nothing. You just shower in that corner, and inevitably get everything wet, including the toilet. a few times, I have forgotten to put the lid down, and it ends up getting wet. I don’t wipe it and then I go to pee and end up with a wet butt. It’s not pleasant.
9. Education. First, I will start with the treatment of the intellectually challenged. I have a few of them in my classes. At first, I thought everyone was equally abled, no learning disabled students. However, I’ve come to realize that these students are present in my classes. Instead of putting them in a special class, they integrate them with the fully able students. I don’t particularly have a problem with this, but when I try to give these students attention or help, my co-teachers are quick to tell me to not even bother with them. Seriously? I believe that they are still capable of learning given the right environment and attention. They just don’t care. They believe they are hopeless causes. Additionally, failing students are still given passing grades and they move onto the next grade. This is not helping the students at all. This totally demotivates the students to even put any effort into their studies. They’re gonna pass anyway. Who cares? Another thing that I’ve mentioned before is the hours that these kids stay in school or academy. It’s just a ridiculous amount of time for such young people. Let them have a childhood!
10. Lunch at school. The food is FABULOUS! I just wish I had time to enjoy it. Koreans eat as fast as Taeyang can make any woman’s panties drop. I think I eat a full lunch in about 10 minutes, and that is slow. My co-teachers and the other teachers at the school always finish before I do, even if they begin after me or have more food than me. My co-teacher even told me that she doesn’t chew her food. You basically breathe in your food. I think I chew about 5 times or less. Maybe that’s why I finish less. I need to chew less or not at all.
Ok, I think there are more things, but I will leave it at 10. It’s a nice, even number. Hope you enjoyed this! haha
1. Spitting. Koreans spit EVERYWHERE, even inside buildings! It’s so disgusting! I always have to watch where I’m stepping so I don’t walk into a big loogie. The other day, I was peeing somewhere (in a bathroom!) and there was spit right next to the toilet. C’mon now. Couldn’t you have spat in the toilet? I even saw a student spit in school once. Inside the school. It’s horrible! My friend even got spat on, but it was most likely intentional by an old Korean man.
2. Mosquitoes. I hate them but they sure do love me and my tasty blood. I bought a product to soothe the itch and I bought another product to prevent bites. I currently have about 20 bites on my legs! This is not the most bites I’ve had at one time, but it’s still annoying regardless.
3. Humidity. Boy do I hate the humidity. I hate the sticky heat with a burning passion. If you’ve ever experienced high humidity, you know what I’m talking about. I seriously cannot breathe when I’m not in an air conditioned room. I feel like I’m in a sauna even though I’m outside. Korea needs an air conditioner.
4. Pollution. All types of pollution, including littering and air. The air quality is really bad here. I’d say it’s even worse than in America! The floors are covered with garbage EVERYWHERE. This is because there is a serious lack of trash cans in this country. They don’t believe in them or something. It is very rare to find a trash can, so what do you do? You just toss it at the base of a telephone pole or wherever you see existing trash piles. If you know me, you know I don’t litter, so I just keep my trash in my bag or hold it until I find a trash can. Needless to say, I hold it for a long time.
5. Beating around the bush. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but Koreans definitely beat around the bush. They won’t tell you straight up what they want to say. They might just tell you the opposite! This is very annoying because I don’t like to beat around the bush, so I hate it when they beat around the bush with me. Just spit it out already!!! Ok, well, don’t spit…just say it!
6. Sick days. There is no such thing. Why? Because Koreans don’t get sick, duh. They’re immune to all illnesses. So that sick student or sick coteacher of yours won’t stay home to get better. Oh no. They’ll come to school and cough and sneeze all over the place. They don’t cover their mouths. Why would they? Koreans don’t get sick. (However, I do get sick days :)! )
7. Ovens. I don’t have one. Most other homes don’t either. Koreans (and Asians, in general) don’t use ovens to cook whereas in America, ovens come standard. If I wanted one, I’d have to buy a freestanding one, which would take up half of my miniscule kitchen. I would really like to bake some cupcakes and cookies!! My students would love that! My students in America did!
8. Showers. I don’t have one of these either. Ok, I do, but it’s definitely unlike the one at home. Bathrooms are just one room with a sink, mirror, cabinet, toilet, and maybe a counter if you’re lucky. No designated shower. Instead, you have a showerhead in the corner of the bathroom. No tub, no nothing. You just shower in that corner, and inevitably get everything wet, including the toilet. a few times, I have forgotten to put the lid down, and it ends up getting wet. I don’t wipe it and then I go to pee and end up with a wet butt. It’s not pleasant.
9. Education. First, I will start with the treatment of the intellectually challenged. I have a few of them in my classes. At first, I thought everyone was equally abled, no learning disabled students. However, I’ve come to realize that these students are present in my classes. Instead of putting them in a special class, they integrate them with the fully able students. I don’t particularly have a problem with this, but when I try to give these students attention or help, my co-teachers are quick to tell me to not even bother with them. Seriously? I believe that they are still capable of learning given the right environment and attention. They just don’t care. They believe they are hopeless causes. Additionally, failing students are still given passing grades and they move onto the next grade. This is not helping the students at all. This totally demotivates the students to even put any effort into their studies. They’re gonna pass anyway. Who cares? Another thing that I’ve mentioned before is the hours that these kids stay in school or academy. It’s just a ridiculous amount of time for such young people. Let them have a childhood!
10. Lunch at school. The food is FABULOUS! I just wish I had time to enjoy it. Koreans eat as fast as Taeyang can make any woman’s panties drop. I think I eat a full lunch in about 10 minutes, and that is slow. My co-teachers and the other teachers at the school always finish before I do, even if they begin after me or have more food than me. My co-teacher even told me that she doesn’t chew her food. You basically breathe in your food. I think I chew about 5 times or less. Maybe that’s why I finish less. I need to chew less or not at all.
Ok, I think there are more things, but I will leave it at 10. It’s a nice, even number. Hope you enjoyed this! haha
Monday, July 5, 2010
I've got more Seoul
This past weekend, I went to Seoul again with the usual: Okailey, Sonia, & Jarrod. The main reason for our trip was for the Usher concert! We were all very excited to go!! Anyways, Okailey & Sonia went early Saturday morning at 7am. Jarrod and I wanted to have a little bit more sleep, so we met at the bus station at 9. When we arrived, we tried to find the hotel we were staying at the the other had booked earlier that morning, but it was hopeless. We couldn't find it, so we gave up and met up with Mykie and Justyna. Their friend that they had met while living in Australia owns a pub in Seoul so we went there. It's a nice little underground place whose decor is influenced by everything Indian. We ordered in some Chinese food and watched a bit of a Bollywood film. Then we went out for a walk around the city.
This is us on the subway on our way to see Usher Usher!
Look at our differing styles! You can probably guess how we are!
Finally Okailey came to fetch us and we went to the hotel together. We got ready and went on our way to see Usher! I had done some research beforehand on how to get to this place and I was almost certain on how to get there. Okailey had searched as well, but we had differing directions. I don't know why, but we went with my directions. If you know me, you know how terrible I am with directions. Give me the choice of left or right and I will choose the wrong one 95% of the time. This was no exception. We ended up at the wrong venue. There were 2 other people there as well, so I didn't feel that horrible that I led us astray. So, after we realized it was the wrong place, we took a taxi to the REAL place. The taxi drove us all the way to the OTHER side, so we had to run about 2+km to the actual place.
We were late but we still got to see Usher and all his sexiness. He closed the show with "OMG" and I definitely had to stand up and dance. I didn't get many photos because I was enjoying the show and the photos I did get are blurry! I need to see Usher and the next show he plays in Los Angeles! Who's with me?? haha
After the show, we went to have some dinner, then Sonia and I went back to the hotel while the other two crazy kids went out for some clubbing! I went to sleep; I am an ajumma.
Then Sunday, we began with a nice brunch at a coffee shop down the street called One Tree Hill, just like the show! hahah We had pancakes and they were fairly delicious! Then Okailey went to Itaewon to get her hurr did and the rest of us went to M Plaza to do some shopping! I only bought a couple things and failed to buy anything for my mother. Then Jarrod and I went home around 5; the others stayed til 930 and got home around 130. They just couldn't leave Seoul. It is a completely different world compared to Gwangju. It is so lively; the energy there is just different. I enjoy it but it's nice to live in a calm, quiet area.
It was a good weekend to go to Seoul because this week is finals week for the students! I have never been so happy for finals! No classes to teach; no lessons to plan (unless I wanna plan in advance). Friday, I have to "teach". I'm just gonna show a movie. The following week, I'll probably do the same or have a fun lesson. Not sure which one yet. I'm gonna ask my co-teachers for their advice. Let's see if they're any help! :)
This is us on the subway on our way to see Usher Usher!
Look at our differing styles! You can probably guess how we are!
Finally Okailey came to fetch us and we went to the hotel together. We got ready and went on our way to see Usher! I had done some research beforehand on how to get to this place and I was almost certain on how to get there. Okailey had searched as well, but we had differing directions. I don't know why, but we went with my directions. If you know me, you know how terrible I am with directions. Give me the choice of left or right and I will choose the wrong one 95% of the time. This was no exception. We ended up at the wrong venue. There were 2 other people there as well, so I didn't feel that horrible that I led us astray. So, after we realized it was the wrong place, we took a taxi to the REAL place. The taxi drove us all the way to the OTHER side, so we had to run about 2+km to the actual place.
We were late but we still got to see Usher and all his sexiness. He closed the show with "OMG" and I definitely had to stand up and dance. I didn't get many photos because I was enjoying the show and the photos I did get are blurry! I need to see Usher and the next show he plays in Los Angeles! Who's with me?? haha
After the show, we went to have some dinner, then Sonia and I went back to the hotel while the other two crazy kids went out for some clubbing! I went to sleep; I am an ajumma.
Then Sunday, we began with a nice brunch at a coffee shop down the street called One Tree Hill, just like the show! hahah We had pancakes and they were fairly delicious! Then Okailey went to Itaewon to get her hurr did and the rest of us went to M Plaza to do some shopping! I only bought a couple things and failed to buy anything for my mother. Then Jarrod and I went home around 5; the others stayed til 930 and got home around 130. They just couldn't leave Seoul. It is a completely different world compared to Gwangju. It is so lively; the energy there is just different. I enjoy it but it's nice to live in a calm, quiet area.
It was a good weekend to go to Seoul because this week is finals week for the students! I have never been so happy for finals! No classes to teach; no lessons to plan (unless I wanna plan in advance). Friday, I have to "teach". I'm just gonna show a movie. The following week, I'll probably do the same or have a fun lesson. Not sure which one yet. I'm gonna ask my co-teachers for their advice. Let's see if they're any help! :)
Friday, July 2, 2010
One Hundred
As of yesterday, I have been in Korea for 100 days!!! I can't believe it! It's gone by so fast. I'm almost one-third of the way through with my contract. Now the question is whether or not I want to renew for a second year. I'm still undecided.
So, on my 100th day here, I had to teach only 2 classes and then I had Korean class afterwards. It was graduation day! But let me rewind to my test. My test was on Tuesday and I was the first to go. I wasn't too worried about it, but I was still nervous. During the test, I blanked out on several words. I just couldn't remember them for the life of me. I couldn't remember the word for SWIMMING. Then right after I left the classroom, I remembered it! I was kicking myself for it. Su-yong! DUH! I didn't do incredibly well, but I think I got at least 80%. So graduation day...first all the Korean classes gathered in the auditorium for a short closing ceremony and of course a group photo. Then we went back to our regular classrooms for a little graduation cermeony. Our teacher, Song Mi, called out our names and we went up to receive our certificate. It is a pretty official certificate in a folder and all. We had all pitched in a couple thousand won to get her a gift. We gave her a card, cake, and flowers. She was so shocked, it was great! Then she made a little speech and she's the sweetest little thing ever!
After that, a few of us went to get dinner and everyone else went to Tequilaz. After dinner, we headed over there and Song Mi was there! I didn't think she was going. She left early and she was saying bye to everyone. She is so adorable! She told me that I'm a really good student and that she loves me among other things. How cute is that?? When does your teacher ever tell you that they love you?? I love her!!! :)
My coteacher and I had planned to celebrate my 100th day, but since I had my Korean graduation, we postponed until the day after, my 101st day! We went to ddeok galbi street and ate none other than ddeok galbi! It was DELICIOUS!!! I'm not sure if I had eaten it before, so I consider this my first time. I want to eat it now.
So, on my 100th day here, I had to teach only 2 classes and then I had Korean class afterwards. It was graduation day! But let me rewind to my test. My test was on Tuesday and I was the first to go. I wasn't too worried about it, but I was still nervous. During the test, I blanked out on several words. I just couldn't remember them for the life of me. I couldn't remember the word for SWIMMING. Then right after I left the classroom, I remembered it! I was kicking myself for it. Su-yong! DUH! I didn't do incredibly well, but I think I got at least 80%. So graduation day...first all the Korean classes gathered in the auditorium for a short closing ceremony and of course a group photo. Then we went back to our regular classrooms for a little graduation cermeony. Our teacher, Song Mi, called out our names and we went up to receive our certificate. It is a pretty official certificate in a folder and all. We had all pitched in a couple thousand won to get her a gift. We gave her a card, cake, and flowers. She was so shocked, it was great! Then she made a little speech and she's the sweetest little thing ever!
After that, a few of us went to get dinner and everyone else went to Tequilaz. After dinner, we headed over there and Song Mi was there! I didn't think she was going. She left early and she was saying bye to everyone. She is so adorable! She told me that I'm a really good student and that she loves me among other things. How cute is that?? When does your teacher ever tell you that they love you?? I love her!!! :)
My coteacher and I had planned to celebrate my 100th day, but since I had my Korean graduation, we postponed until the day after, my 101st day! We went to ddeok galbi street and ate none other than ddeok galbi! It was DELICIOUS!!! I'm not sure if I had eaten it before, so I consider this my first time. I want to eat it now.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)