Today, we planned to go to a jimjilbang! It’s a public bath/sauna place. Eek! Nakedness galore! The boys and girls split up to go to our respective showering/locker areas. The girls opted out of the shower because we didn’t want to be naked with each other - too awkward. We then headed upstairs to check out what was there. The sexes have now mixed together; there was a food court, a PC bang, a kid’s play area, hot saunas, cold saunas, hot bricks, a TV, sleeping caves, a gym... It had everything you would need in a day and night. We went into the different hot saunas which had varying temperatures from hot to VERY hot! The not-so-hot ones were very relaxing. Some of them had rocks in there too, which proved to be too hot for skin contact. Some of them were so hot I couldn’t breathe. After I had spent time in a hot sauna, I would go into the icy sauna to cool down and dry my sweat! My mission for the day was to get a massage and I succeeded. Maggie and I went downstairs to the locker room area and there was a massage room. We waited for one lady to finish her FULL BODY massage – FULL..that means back AND front. Yes, front. Very awkward. She took forever to finish and it was my turn. I got my back done; it was painful; it was ticklish; it was wonderful! Maggie got a massage and it looked pretty good, and cheap! Only 10,000 won! Mine was 20,000 won, also cheap! I definitely wanna go back for some more massages! I wasn’t sure what to be expect from the jimjilbang, but it was a great experience and I’m sure I’ll be going many more times while I’m in Korea.
After the jimjilbang, we went to get some duck for dinner. It was more delicious than the first time Jarrod, Sonia, and I went to this restaurant. Mmm yum. Then we went to get some coffee at Rodem Tree Cafe. I had a green tea latte and it was VERY green. It was super delicioso. The café was on the second floor and I saw across into the other building that there was Fun Café. Then we realized later that it was a board game café! I’ve been wanting to go for weeks, but could never find one, but now we know where it is! Yes! Definitely gotta go and Scrabble it up!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Friday, May 7, 2010
Cinco de Mayo, Children's Day, Boo-hoo, and Telecommunication
On Tuesday, I had Korean class and afterwards, we went to a place called Tequilaz because they were having a Cinco de Mayo event (even though it was really Cuatro de Mayo). I really wanted some nachos, but I think they ran out or something. I did have some chips and salsa though, so that was a nice change from kimchi and rice. We had some beers and chatted. Then some of us headed over to Pump to have some more beer and chat. Why did we go out on a school day, you ask? Well, it’s because we had Cinco de Mayo off! No work that day! Not because it was Cinco de Mayo but because it was Children’s Day! The Koreans celebrate their kids! I reckon they have this day because during the other 364 days of the year, they don’t really see/care/spend time with their children. =/ At least they made a holiday for it.
On Wednesday, we met up at the Lotte Outlets next to the World Cup Stadium and bought some foodss for a picnic at the park. We were all starving and Laurence was leading the way to the park. The longest route possible. I don’t think he ever learned that the fastest way from point A to point B is a straight line. We eventually reached our destination and had our food. Of course, I had my kimbab. So yumz! There were so many cute kids at the park, running around, flying kites. Very adorable to see the families spending time together. After the park, we went to the Pungam Reservoir and walked around a little bit. It’s really pretty; I need to go back to explore the area some more. Then some of us went back to the Lotte Outlets for shopping and the others went to get coffee. We actually got some coffee at the Lotte Outlets too. They have everything in that place. After that, we parted ways and went home! I don’t like it when I make my own dinner. It’s just not as good as having someone else make it for me.
My first class on today went well. I’ve been doing a Jeopardy review game with my 3rd graders because their midterms are next week Monday-Wednesday. During my second class, one girl from the team in the back had chosen a Fill-in-the-Blank question: “What kind of sports do you like to ____?” She answered “play ping pong”. I said no and gave her another chance. “ping pong”. =/ I gave her another chance but she was silent. I started my 10 second countdown and the rest of the class began to join me, loudly. I could see that the girl’s face was turning beet red and when we reached 0, I asked if she had an answer and I could see her just hang her head low. She started to cry!!! I was like, “Oh no!!! Don’t worry!! It’s ok!!” My heart sank; I felt so horrible and I didn’t want her to not like English. When their second turn came around, she was still putting in the effort, so I felt better that she hadn’t given up. After class ended, I talked to her and I was like, “It’s OK, you did good today!” and she waved her hands in a “no” sort of way, like a “I’m fine” and she said, “Thank you, thank you” and she had a smile on her face, so I felt way better at this point. Eek! My first crier!
After school, I went to get a phone with my co-teachers. I finally succeeded in reeling in one! A prepaid one, thankfully. I was afraid I’d have to settle for a one-year contract. That night, I was scheduled to meet with the remainder of the group who didn’t go to the Seoul DJ Festival this weekend. However, my co-teachers asked me if I had any plans for that night and I said yes and I asked why. They said because they wanted to invite me to have dinner with them. I ended up not going to meet my friends and went to have dinner with my coteachers because I needed some bonding time with them. Also because they had helped me with my phone, so I didn’t want to abandon them. It would be rude. So we had Italian food – I had me some CHEESE! It was satisfying. I ended up paying for the dinner because I wanted to treat them out for all their help. It was quite expensive, but compared to home, it wasn’t that bad. After dinner, I went to meet with my friend at Ethnic Café in downtown to have some drinks. We always seem to frequent the same places over and over again. I wanted to venture out and we did that night. We decided to go UP. We tend to go to the ground level places, or even underground, so this time, we looked up to see where our next place would be. I saw Model Bar and wanted to go, but we ended up a few floors higher at Sky Bar? I don’t remember what it’s called. It was ok – I was hoping for a good view, but they blocked it with some sort of ugly balcony and short palm trees. Boo. Hopefully our next discovery is better!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Girls' Generation - Run Devil Run
Here is a music video for another popular song at the moment in Korea.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Seoul Fun
I went to Seoul last weekend with Maggie and Laurence. It was a great trip, but very tiring. We left right after school on Friday, but I was a bit late because the HOTET was talking to me after my after-school class ended. I was like, “C’mon lady, I need to catch a bus to get to the bus!” I ended up taking a taxi because I spent about 10 minutes waiting for the bus and I had no time to waste. I got to the bus terminal and thank goodness Maggie & Laurence were still there! We ended getting a bus that was to leave an hour later and had some dinner beforehand. We got to Seoul around 10 or 11pm. We met up with our friend Alex and checked into the hostel. I had to book a hostel on my own that same day because I didn’t decide to go to Seoul until the previous night, so less than 24 hours. My hostel was in the boonies – none of the taxi drivers knew how to get there. It was such a pain to get there. The next night, I got to stay in the hostel with everyone else thankfully. The first night we were there was actually “Club Night”, which occurs the last Friday of every month.
We didn’t go to any clubs though; we ate a VERY late dinner at a Japanese restaurant and had a few beers. We finished our “dinner” at 2am. There were TONS of people! It was definitely a different atmosphere than in Gwangju. People were belligerently drunk and crazy. After walking around, drinking beers, and exercising in the outdoor gyms, we retired to our respective hostels with plans to meet at 1030am the following day. I woke up at 6, 7, 8am and then decided to get up. I showered, had breakfast, talked to the other guests at the hostel. I met a couple people from Hawaii; they didn’t know each other but they lived near each other. Such a small world. I had planned to meet up with my orientation roommate, Shirlen. I left the hostel early in case I were to get lost. Of course, I did. I had also texted Shirlen the night before to tell her to change our meeting time from 10 to 1030am. She never texted back. I got to the subway station and she was there. I asked her if she had gotten my text and she said no. Then I pulled out my paper and asked if the number I had written was hers and she said nope! I realized that I had texted my co-teacher! haha, oh dear. We caught up a bit and then waited for Maggie, Laurence, and Alex. That took forever, but they eventually got there and we met up Canadia at City Hall. Boy, did I miss that fool. He’s so awkward, it’s great! On our way to find a place to eat, we came across a Changing of the Guards Ceremony at some palace. We stayed to watch that, which was really great. The clothing they wear is just beautifully made with silk. They also play some drums during the procession.
After we watched that, we went to eat and then after that, we went to Gyeongbuk Palace, the biggest palace in Seoul, I believe. It’s a gorgeous site but all the palaces/temples but it looks like a temple that I had seen in the Damyang area. It was still a worthy place to visit though.
After we walked through the palace, Alex and Maggie left us to go shopping and meet with other people and the rest of us went to get some coffee/tea/dessert in the Insadong area. We also came across a little marketplace – I love markets. Anyhoo, the coffee/tea/dessert place was decorated so cutely as is every place in Korea. It had an earthy feel to it with plants all over – my kind of place! After that, we went to meet up with the rest of the people at the shopping area. There’s the huge Forever 21 there! Browsed a bit, but didn’t buy anything, everyone else did though!
When we found the rest of the group, we headed to Seoul Tower, where you get a view of the city. It was wonderful. We had dinner up the tower as well. Then we headed back to the hostel to get ready for a night out on the town. We planned to go to a club and when we arrived, they told us we couldn’t go in. I don’t know why, but we headed to a different club afterwards and we got in! It was a hip-hop club. Omigosh, it was the most packed club I have ever been in. You cannot move, not even an inch. How do you dance? You can’t. We headed upstairs which was empty…because it was the VIP area. We weren’t VIP but we ended up being invited to sit with a group there and that’s what we did. We got free beers and space. Then one of the guys was being creepy, so we had to go back down to the dance floor and be squished. However, it wasn’t sweaty like the clubs back in LA. They have some really good fans or air conditioner so I don’t even think I broke a sweat. We stayed for about an hour and left for home. The next day was Sunday – time to head home! Maggie went home early and Laurence, Alex, and I went to Itaewon, which is where all the foreign restaurants and shops are. When we got there, a clown made a balloon animal for Alex. It was kinda surreal; he just came up to us and made the animal. He was a funny clown, not a scary clown, so that was good. We went to a book store and I bought 4 books, mostly classics. We went to some markets carrying foreign foods and I bought 2 bottles of sauce – Thai chili and hoisin sauce. I just had to because I need those sitting in my kitchen just in case I ever need them. After Itaewon, we wanted to eat an early dinner at Loving Hut. Laurence had some directions he found on a blog (i.e., not very good directions…) so it took us a while to find the place. He had to stop in a PC Bang to find some more directions and we were only about a 2 minute walk from the place. The food was masshisoyo! Delicious! Especially the California Roll. So good. Their lemonades were also tasty; there were 3 different flavors: Citron, Lime, and Rose. The night before, Laurence had asked me what time I wanted to go home and I said no later than 5 because the bus takes about 3.5-4 hours to get home. He agreed and said that he wanted to go home at 4. We didn’t end up getting on the bus til 810pm. We left Loving Hut around 630pm and we couldn’t find the bus station, even though we were there. We just had to walk 100 more feet to reach it. But we eventually found it and had to wait an hour for our bus to depart. I got home around midnight and I had to teach the next day. I wasn’t tired that Monday though, so it was good. I also wasn’t feeling blue as I usually do on Mondays. It was a good weekend.
We didn’t go to any clubs though; we ate a VERY late dinner at a Japanese restaurant and had a few beers. We finished our “dinner” at 2am. There were TONS of people! It was definitely a different atmosphere than in Gwangju. People were belligerently drunk and crazy. After walking around, drinking beers, and exercising in the outdoor gyms, we retired to our respective hostels with plans to meet at 1030am the following day. I woke up at 6, 7, 8am and then decided to get up. I showered, had breakfast, talked to the other guests at the hostel. I met a couple people from Hawaii; they didn’t know each other but they lived near each other. Such a small world. I had planned to meet up with my orientation roommate, Shirlen. I left the hostel early in case I were to get lost. Of course, I did. I had also texted Shirlen the night before to tell her to change our meeting time from 10 to 1030am. She never texted back. I got to the subway station and she was there. I asked her if she had gotten my text and she said no. Then I pulled out my paper and asked if the number I had written was hers and she said nope! I realized that I had texted my co-teacher! haha, oh dear. We caught up a bit and then waited for Maggie, Laurence, and Alex. That took forever, but they eventually got there and we met up Canadia at City Hall. Boy, did I miss that fool. He’s so awkward, it’s great! On our way to find a place to eat, we came across a Changing of the Guards Ceremony at some palace. We stayed to watch that, which was really great. The clothing they wear is just beautifully made with silk. They also play some drums during the procession.
After we watched that, we went to eat and then after that, we went to Gyeongbuk Palace, the biggest palace in Seoul, I believe. It’s a gorgeous site but all the palaces/temples but it looks like a temple that I had seen in the Damyang area. It was still a worthy place to visit though.
After we walked through the palace, Alex and Maggie left us to go shopping and meet with other people and the rest of us went to get some coffee/tea/dessert in the Insadong area. We also came across a little marketplace – I love markets. Anyhoo, the coffee/tea/dessert place was decorated so cutely as is every place in Korea. It had an earthy feel to it with plants all over – my kind of place! After that, we went to meet up with the rest of the people at the shopping area. There’s the huge Forever 21 there! Browsed a bit, but didn’t buy anything, everyone else did though!
When we found the rest of the group, we headed to Seoul Tower, where you get a view of the city. It was wonderful. We had dinner up the tower as well. Then we headed back to the hostel to get ready for a night out on the town. We planned to go to a club and when we arrived, they told us we couldn’t go in. I don’t know why, but we headed to a different club afterwards and we got in! It was a hip-hop club. Omigosh, it was the most packed club I have ever been in. You cannot move, not even an inch. How do you dance? You can’t. We headed upstairs which was empty…because it was the VIP area. We weren’t VIP but we ended up being invited to sit with a group there and that’s what we did. We got free beers and space. Then one of the guys was being creepy, so we had to go back down to the dance floor and be squished. However, it wasn’t sweaty like the clubs back in LA. They have some really good fans or air conditioner so I don’t even think I broke a sweat. We stayed for about an hour and left for home. The next day was Sunday – time to head home! Maggie went home early and Laurence, Alex, and I went to Itaewon, which is where all the foreign restaurants and shops are. When we got there, a clown made a balloon animal for Alex. It was kinda surreal; he just came up to us and made the animal. He was a funny clown, not a scary clown, so that was good. We went to a book store and I bought 4 books, mostly classics. We went to some markets carrying foreign foods and I bought 2 bottles of sauce – Thai chili and hoisin sauce. I just had to because I need those sitting in my kitchen just in case I ever need them. After Itaewon, we wanted to eat an early dinner at Loving Hut. Laurence had some directions he found on a blog (i.e., not very good directions…) so it took us a while to find the place. He had to stop in a PC Bang to find some more directions and we were only about a 2 minute walk from the place. The food was masshisoyo! Delicious! Especially the California Roll. So good. Their lemonades were also tasty; there were 3 different flavors: Citron, Lime, and Rose. The night before, Laurence had asked me what time I wanted to go home and I said no later than 5 because the bus takes about 3.5-4 hours to get home. He agreed and said that he wanted to go home at 4. We didn’t end up getting on the bus til 810pm. We left Loving Hut around 630pm and we couldn’t find the bus station, even though we were there. We just had to walk 100 more feet to reach it. But we eventually found it and had to wait an hour for our bus to depart. I got home around midnight and I had to teach the next day. I wasn’t tired that Monday though, so it was good. I also wasn’t feeling blue as I usually do on Mondays. It was a good weekend.
Friday, April 30, 2010
TGIFriday
On Wednesday, we had an open demonstration on co-teaching. Basically, this means that a group of us English teachers go watch another fellow English teacher teach a class with her co-teacher. Then, there is a panel that critiques them. Then everyone fills out an evaluation. What the heck. This is supposed to teach us how to co-teach, but it just makes me feel weird. There’s a rumor going around that EVERYONE has to do this. I am MORTIFIED. I don’t want to do that! My classes definitely do not go as well as the demonstration I saw today. I’m gonna get ripped to shreds! I hope I don’t have to do it!
On the other hand, I’m doing fairly well in my Korean class, which I’m happy about. My teacher always praises me and it makes me feel weird….like, I want her to stop it. Haha, but it feels good that I’m doing well. Last night, she said in Korean, “Christina, you’re so smart!” and I just looked at her blankly because I didn’t know what she was saying. Imagine that! Someone telling you you’re SMART and you’re looking at them with a blank expression not knowing what the heck she is saying to you. Not very smart. Hahah
Today, after my first period (which is the class with the boys who always talk to me at my desk), the boys stayed after class to talk to me and one asked, “What is your blood type?” and I said, “I don’t know.” And he looked at me in disbelief! Like, “Are you crazy? How can you not know??” Then I explained that in America, not everyone knows their blood type, it’s not really important to know off the top of your head. He’s like “Ohh, OK, sorry.” Then I asked them all what their blood types are and there were 3 As and a B. I asked, what does A mean? And this one guy that works at the school, I’m not really sure of his position, but I think he’s important, he said, “Silent.” And I said, “What? This guy is NOT silent!” and his friends laughed. After class, the boy also said, “Learn English fun today” and I said, “Learning English was fun today?” and he said, “yeah, fun. F-U-N.” I’m having such a great day today. Looking forward to the weekend. I’m going to Seoul :)
On the other hand, I’m doing fairly well in my Korean class, which I’m happy about. My teacher always praises me and it makes me feel weird….like, I want her to stop it. Haha, but it feels good that I’m doing well. Last night, she said in Korean, “Christina, you’re so smart!” and I just looked at her blankly because I didn’t know what she was saying. Imagine that! Someone telling you you’re SMART and you’re looking at them with a blank expression not knowing what the heck she is saying to you. Not very smart. Hahah
Today, after my first period (which is the class with the boys who always talk to me at my desk), the boys stayed after class to talk to me and one asked, “What is your blood type?” and I said, “I don’t know.” And he looked at me in disbelief! Like, “Are you crazy? How can you not know??” Then I explained that in America, not everyone knows their blood type, it’s not really important to know off the top of your head. He’s like “Ohh, OK, sorry.” Then I asked them all what their blood types are and there were 3 As and a B. I asked, what does A mean? And this one guy that works at the school, I’m not really sure of his position, but I think he’s important, he said, “Silent.” And I said, “What? This guy is NOT silent!” and his friends laughed. After class, the boy also said, “Learn English fun today” and I said, “Learning English was fun today?” and he said, “yeah, fun. F-U-N.” I’m having such a great day today. Looking forward to the weekend. I’m going to Seoul :)
Monday, April 26, 2010
Sports Day, Picnic Day, & Hiking Day
Wow, it’s already Monday again – the end of Monday. Yeay! I didn’t have the Monday Blues this time, though I was pretty lethargic today. Let me catch you up on another week of activities. I don’t think there’s much, so this post won’t be as long as the other, don’t you worry your little head.
One day, a couple of girl students came up to my desk and was like, “My teacher….likes you. She talks about you a lot” and I said, “who?” and they pointed, but I didn’t see anybody. They dragged me out of my seat and pulled me to a teacher who I have never seen before. I stood behind her and she didn’t realize I was there. The students said to her, “Sonsengnim!” Teacher! And she turned around and she saw me and instantly crouched down on the floor and put her finger to her mouth to shush her students. She was SO embarrassed and shy. She just kept shushing them and shaking her head. We all just laughed as she got up and ran away. The students told me that their teacher wants to talk to me, but she’s shy and afraid. I thought it was so funny. I still haven’t talked to her, but I hope to one day at lunch.
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Thursday after school was Sports Day for teachers – it was actually quite fun. It only lasted an hour, but I wish we had done more. The teachers broke up into 3 teams. We played “who can throw the Frisbee the farthest?”. Three people from each team participated and I was one of the 3 for my team. I didn’t win, but I did throw it pretty far! We also played “Let’s all run through the jump rope while it’s swinging.” My team also lost. Then we played, “Let’s try to make as many baskets as we can!” I think our team won that one! I made 2 of 3 baskets! The last game we played was “Rock, paper, scissors” with money!” We all stood in a circle and played the person next to us. Whoever lost had to pay the other person their money, 500 won. I won the first round, but lost the second. My co-teacher actually won the whole thing. She got a whopping 26,000 won. That’s pretty good for Rock, paper, scissors! It was a fun day; I can’t wait for Sports Day for the kids next month!
My Korean class on Thursday was good, but Okailey and I were scolded in Korean for being bad students! We had a break for 10 minutes and Okailey wanted a sandwich so we went to the nearby coffee shop to order one. They took FOREVER to make it and we were 10 minutes late to class. They didn’t continue the class without us, it seemed, so they were waiting on us. I felt bad! But I redeemed myself later on in the class when I used my Korean skills with the teacher. She was impressed and called me a good student this time! After class, I wanted to walk around the Chonnam area around the university because I didn’t have school the next day, Friday because I had Picnic Day! But anyways, we walked around a little bit and went into a few stores to see what clothing they had. We had gone shopping about a couple weeks ago as well, and our experiences were very similar. They didn’t let us try on the clothes! We were like, what the heck? How am I gonna know whether or not this looks good on me? I guess in Korea, you just have to know. It’s ridiculous. We got the impression that we couldn’t try on the clothes because they’re racists, but Okailey’s co-teacher told her that it’s because Koreans wear tons of make-up and they don’t want it to get on their clothes. However, if you want to try something on that is FULL-priced (which we don’t), then it’s OK. How does that even make sense? Wouldn’t you want the make-up to get on the cheaper clothing rather than ruining the expensive clothing? Crazy Koreans. We didn’t wander around for too long because we had to catch the bus back home.
So Friday, I had my first Picnic Day, which is the equivalent of a field trip in the states. I went to Damyang Bamboo Forest, which was right up my alley. I love nature and Korea has plenty of it. We walked through the forest and a lot of the students said hi to me and even wanted to take a picture with me! This time, no Okailey, however, one of my students did ask where she was. haha During lunch, a lot of the students offered me their food to try, and I obliged without a problem! The food is so delicious! One of the students whose English is pretty advanced was talking to me and she told me that she really wants to visit America because of the food. She really wants to eat New York steak and all the other yummy food she’s heard of. She doesn’t think Korea has good food, but I told her I disagree and she said that that’s good for me. I don’t know how you could live in a country your entire life and not like the food. That would be a miserable life! She also invited me to join them in games and I said, SURE, of course!
The first game was a version of Duck, duck, goose, which didn’t last long because a couple people slipped and fell into a wet puddle of mud. Thank goodness I wasn’t one of them. After that, we played ONE round of the numbers game – the one where someone calls out a number and you have to scramble to get that number of people in your group. After that, we played this snakey game. There were 3 groups of 8 and you are in a snake-like formation…in a line. This game made me SO uncomfortable. You have to hold onto whoever’s in front of you. At first, I was holding onto the person’s waist, which was already awkward for me. Then they told me that I had to hug them. Imagine being in a line of students, hugging one students from behind, and another hugging you from behind, and other students hugging each other and then running around trying to catch the tail of another snake. It. was. so. weird. My team lost practically ALL the games, so we had to spell our names with our butts. That was weird too. Wiggling your booty around and a group of students just watching your ass. Seriously. I had a great time hanging out with the students though. I don’t even feel like their teacher; I feel like I’m their friend or equal. My co-teachers and I left the bamboo forest and they asked if I wanted to go to other “touristy” areas in the Damyang area and even though all of us were tired, I said yes. I hope they didn’t mind. haha They brought me to this place, which I assume to be a home but no one lives there currently, I think? My co-teachers didn’t know much about this place except that it’s the place where a famous poem was written. It was written there and it was written about this place. It was really nice. It was surrounded by trees and a nearby a river. I saw a lady hugging a tree and I felt a connection with her because I am also a tree hugger. After this place, we went to have traditional Korean tea. It was interesting. The teapot was super duper tiny and the first pot is made by the waitress and the subsequent pots are made by you – you had to watch how it was done the first time. It wasn’t difficult, but it was cool to me! They also have a pumpkin cake thingy, which is rather delicious! There’s green or yellow bean (?) in it, which it makes it nasty. The cake looks spongy but it’s chewy. I also bought a pair of earrings at the shop there. They were 10,000 won. I couldn’t resist! It was my first payday, so I decided to spend a little bit of it. After tea, we went home. Yeay! I was EXHAUSTED. I got home and immediately took a nap. I think I’ve taken more naps since I’ve been in Korea than I’ve ever taken in all my years in America. This place tires you out. I had to meet my friends downtown at a certain time. I woke up and made myself some dinner. If I took the bus, I would’ve been late, so I decided to take the subway for the first time BY MYSELF. I made it! It’s not that hard though seeing as that there’s only one line. You’d have to be a complete moron to get lost. So no, I’m not a COMPLETE moron. We met up and they wanted to eat dinner. Boo, I just ate! I sat at the table and watched them stuff their faces with delicious looking food. I would’ve scarfed something down, but I was really not hungry. After that, we headed to German Bar, Soul Train, Bubble Bar for a whole 5 minutes, then back to Soul Train. Had a cocktail and went home.
Saturday was SHOPPING day for the girls! We needed to use our paychecks to buy clothing. We don’t feel as if we brought enough clothes! We gotta buy more, we gotta! I had gone in thinking that I was gonna spend tons of money. It didn’t matter how much it was, I was gonna buy it if I liked it/if it fit me. No, that’s not how I shopped that day. I was the same ol’ cheapskate Christina. I couldn’t bring myself to spend so much on a single article of clothing. I just couldn’t do it. I ended up spending just a little under 50,000 won on 3 dresses, tights, 2 headbands, and a belt. Pretty good, no? I will always be a bargain shopper, no matter how much money I make. After shopping for a good 7 hours, it was time to meet up with the rest of the group. Four of us had already had dinner beforehand, so the rest of them had dinner and the four of us had coffee and dessert. It was this thick, sweet bread with fruits and whipped cream on top. It was tasty delicious. After that, we went to German Bar again, sang some songs, had a beer or two, was tired, and went home.
Of course, there were plans for Sunday – HIKING. I was hesistant to agree to go because I felt so tired that I didn’t know if I would be able to make it the next day. We had a late start though, so I was able to pull myself out of bed to climb Mudeungsan! It was a tough tough hike; I think the toughest hike I’ve ever done. It took us about 3 hours to get to the top and an hour to get down. The mountain is gorgeous and we didn’t even get to see most of it, I think. We picked the longest trail, which I believe was also the steepest. It was an amazing sight and I’m sure I’ll do it again. I wasn’t even that sore the next day. I had minor pain; nothing as intense as I imagined it would be.
One day, a couple of girl students came up to my desk and was like, “My teacher….likes you. She talks about you a lot” and I said, “who?” and they pointed, but I didn’t see anybody. They dragged me out of my seat and pulled me to a teacher who I have never seen before. I stood behind her and she didn’t realize I was there. The students said to her, “Sonsengnim!” Teacher! And she turned around and she saw me and instantly crouched down on the floor and put her finger to her mouth to shush her students. She was SO embarrassed and shy. She just kept shushing them and shaking her head. We all just laughed as she got up and ran away. The students told me that their teacher wants to talk to me, but she’s shy and afraid. I thought it was so funny. I still haven’t talked to her, but I hope to one day at lunch.
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Thursday after school was Sports Day for teachers – it was actually quite fun. It only lasted an hour, but I wish we had done more. The teachers broke up into 3 teams. We played “who can throw the Frisbee the farthest?”. Three people from each team participated and I was one of the 3 for my team. I didn’t win, but I did throw it pretty far! We also played “Let’s all run through the jump rope while it’s swinging.” My team also lost. Then we played, “Let’s try to make as many baskets as we can!” I think our team won that one! I made 2 of 3 baskets! The last game we played was “Rock, paper, scissors” with money!” We all stood in a circle and played the person next to us. Whoever lost had to pay the other person their money, 500 won. I won the first round, but lost the second. My co-teacher actually won the whole thing. She got a whopping 26,000 won. That’s pretty good for Rock, paper, scissors! It was a fun day; I can’t wait for Sports Day for the kids next month!
My Korean class on Thursday was good, but Okailey and I were scolded in Korean for being bad students! We had a break for 10 minutes and Okailey wanted a sandwich so we went to the nearby coffee shop to order one. They took FOREVER to make it and we were 10 minutes late to class. They didn’t continue the class without us, it seemed, so they were waiting on us. I felt bad! But I redeemed myself later on in the class when I used my Korean skills with the teacher. She was impressed and called me a good student this time! After class, I wanted to walk around the Chonnam area around the university because I didn’t have school the next day, Friday because I had Picnic Day! But anyways, we walked around a little bit and went into a few stores to see what clothing they had. We had gone shopping about a couple weeks ago as well, and our experiences were very similar. They didn’t let us try on the clothes! We were like, what the heck? How am I gonna know whether or not this looks good on me? I guess in Korea, you just have to know. It’s ridiculous. We got the impression that we couldn’t try on the clothes because they’re racists, but Okailey’s co-teacher told her that it’s because Koreans wear tons of make-up and they don’t want it to get on their clothes. However, if you want to try something on that is FULL-priced (which we don’t), then it’s OK. How does that even make sense? Wouldn’t you want the make-up to get on the cheaper clothing rather than ruining the expensive clothing? Crazy Koreans. We didn’t wander around for too long because we had to catch the bus back home.
So Friday, I had my first Picnic Day, which is the equivalent of a field trip in the states. I went to Damyang Bamboo Forest, which was right up my alley. I love nature and Korea has plenty of it. We walked through the forest and a lot of the students said hi to me and even wanted to take a picture with me! This time, no Okailey, however, one of my students did ask where she was. haha During lunch, a lot of the students offered me their food to try, and I obliged without a problem! The food is so delicious! One of the students whose English is pretty advanced was talking to me and she told me that she really wants to visit America because of the food. She really wants to eat New York steak and all the other yummy food she’s heard of. She doesn’t think Korea has good food, but I told her I disagree and she said that that’s good for me. I don’t know how you could live in a country your entire life and not like the food. That would be a miserable life! She also invited me to join them in games and I said, SURE, of course!
The first game was a version of Duck, duck, goose, which didn’t last long because a couple people slipped and fell into a wet puddle of mud. Thank goodness I wasn’t one of them. After that, we played ONE round of the numbers game – the one where someone calls out a number and you have to scramble to get that number of people in your group. After that, we played this snakey game. There were 3 groups of 8 and you are in a snake-like formation…in a line. This game made me SO uncomfortable. You have to hold onto whoever’s in front of you. At first, I was holding onto the person’s waist, which was already awkward for me. Then they told me that I had to hug them. Imagine being in a line of students, hugging one students from behind, and another hugging you from behind, and other students hugging each other and then running around trying to catch the tail of another snake. It. was. so. weird. My team lost practically ALL the games, so we had to spell our names with our butts. That was weird too. Wiggling your booty around and a group of students just watching your ass. Seriously. I had a great time hanging out with the students though. I don’t even feel like their teacher; I feel like I’m their friend or equal. My co-teachers and I left the bamboo forest and they asked if I wanted to go to other “touristy” areas in the Damyang area and even though all of us were tired, I said yes. I hope they didn’t mind. haha They brought me to this place, which I assume to be a home but no one lives there currently, I think? My co-teachers didn’t know much about this place except that it’s the place where a famous poem was written. It was written there and it was written about this place. It was really nice. It was surrounded by trees and a nearby a river. I saw a lady hugging a tree and I felt a connection with her because I am also a tree hugger. After this place, we went to have traditional Korean tea. It was interesting. The teapot was super duper tiny and the first pot is made by the waitress and the subsequent pots are made by you – you had to watch how it was done the first time. It wasn’t difficult, but it was cool to me! They also have a pumpkin cake thingy, which is rather delicious! There’s green or yellow bean (?) in it, which it makes it nasty. The cake looks spongy but it’s chewy. I also bought a pair of earrings at the shop there. They were 10,000 won. I couldn’t resist! It was my first payday, so I decided to spend a little bit of it. After tea, we went home. Yeay! I was EXHAUSTED. I got home and immediately took a nap. I think I’ve taken more naps since I’ve been in Korea than I’ve ever taken in all my years in America. This place tires you out. I had to meet my friends downtown at a certain time. I woke up and made myself some dinner. If I took the bus, I would’ve been late, so I decided to take the subway for the first time BY MYSELF. I made it! It’s not that hard though seeing as that there’s only one line. You’d have to be a complete moron to get lost. So no, I’m not a COMPLETE moron. We met up and they wanted to eat dinner. Boo, I just ate! I sat at the table and watched them stuff their faces with delicious looking food. I would’ve scarfed something down, but I was really not hungry. After that, we headed to German Bar, Soul Train, Bubble Bar for a whole 5 minutes, then back to Soul Train. Had a cocktail and went home.
Saturday was SHOPPING day for the girls! We needed to use our paychecks to buy clothing. We don’t feel as if we brought enough clothes! We gotta buy more, we gotta! I had gone in thinking that I was gonna spend tons of money. It didn’t matter how much it was, I was gonna buy it if I liked it/if it fit me. No, that’s not how I shopped that day. I was the same ol’ cheapskate Christina. I couldn’t bring myself to spend so much on a single article of clothing. I just couldn’t do it. I ended up spending just a little under 50,000 won on 3 dresses, tights, 2 headbands, and a belt. Pretty good, no? I will always be a bargain shopper, no matter how much money I make. After shopping for a good 7 hours, it was time to meet up with the rest of the group. Four of us had already had dinner beforehand, so the rest of them had dinner and the four of us had coffee and dessert. It was this thick, sweet bread with fruits and whipped cream on top. It was tasty delicious. After that, we went to German Bar again, sang some songs, had a beer or two, was tired, and went home.
Of course, there were plans for Sunday – HIKING. I was hesistant to agree to go because I felt so tired that I didn’t know if I would be able to make it the next day. We had a late start though, so I was able to pull myself out of bed to climb Mudeungsan! It was a tough tough hike; I think the toughest hike I’ve ever done. It took us about 3 hours to get to the top and an hour to get down. The mountain is gorgeous and we didn’t even get to see most of it, I think. We picked the longest trail, which I believe was also the steepest. It was an amazing sight and I’m sure I’ll do it again. I wasn’t even that sore the next day. I had minor pain; nothing as intense as I imagined it would be.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Epik High & Girls Generation
This song is so catchy! Maybe cuz the chorus is in English. Enjoy!
Here's another one! Girls Generation!
Here's another one! Girls Generation!
Randomosity
I have a post to post, but I haven't finished typing it yet, so I'm gonna do a random post of all the random random random things, random thoughts that I have here and there that I haven't written about in previous posts. Here they are!
1. I've been here for over a MONTH already! A month and 4 days to be exact! So exciting! It doesn't feel like it's been that long, which I think is a good thing. Time is going to fly by like no other.
2. Seeing as that I've been here for over a month, it amazes me that I have still managed to avoid the squat toilets. I am VERY happy about this also. Every time I go into a public bathroom, my heart stops right as I open the stall door because I don't know what to expect on the other side. I am thankful for Western style toilets every time my eyes see one.
3. Couples here really like to wear matching clothes. Every day is like a Sadie Hawkin's Dance or something. I don't only mean matching colors, I mean matching patterns, matching outfits, the whole nine. The guys are so skinny here, they're probably actually wearing the same women's shirt purchased from the same store. It's really bizarre. If you ever lose track of your boyfriend, you can always say, "Have you seen a guy wearing this exact outfit?"
4. The teacher's go to class AFTER the bell has rung. They don't go there just in time for the bell to ring, they get up from their desks after the fact. I find that very strange, but it's cool because it makes the class shorter. Sometimes, it may take upwards to 5 minutes to get to class. It's quite strange. Koreans like to do things at the last minute, which can sometimes be annoying/frustrating. Oh, speaking of teacher's, I don't know if I've talked about this yet, but all the teacher's carry some sort of stick to hit the students with. It's very different than in America, but I guess it works for them. Sometimes, I am tempted to use the stick too. haha
5. The school lunches are REALLY good. I know, I still haven't taken a photo of it yet, but I will today....I will TRY to today.
6. The buses here are really small; they're definitely not like the LA MTA buses. They have rows of 2 seats on each side in the back, but in the front, there are only single seats, which means a lot of the time, you have to stand. I don't like standing in crowded buses. Everyone pushes you and the handles you hold onto aren't stable. It's just a disaster waiting to happen. There are also bus cards that you can purchase for 6000 won. The bus fare is 1000 won and if you buy this bus card (and recharge it with money),the fare is deducted from your card, 950 won. You save 50 won, which doesn't sound like much, but in the long run, you save money because when you transfer buses within the hour, it's FREE! I was excited about that! hahah
Wow, this post must be really boring for you guys. hahah
Alright, I'm gonna end your misery and I will post later about how my week went. :)
1. I've been here for over a MONTH already! A month and 4 days to be exact! So exciting! It doesn't feel like it's been that long, which I think is a good thing. Time is going to fly by like no other.
2. Seeing as that I've been here for over a month, it amazes me that I have still managed to avoid the squat toilets. I am VERY happy about this also. Every time I go into a public bathroom, my heart stops right as I open the stall door because I don't know what to expect on the other side. I am thankful for Western style toilets every time my eyes see one.
3. Couples here really like to wear matching clothes. Every day is like a Sadie Hawkin's Dance or something. I don't only mean matching colors, I mean matching patterns, matching outfits, the whole nine. The guys are so skinny here, they're probably actually wearing the same women's shirt purchased from the same store. It's really bizarre. If you ever lose track of your boyfriend, you can always say, "Have you seen a guy wearing this exact outfit?"
4. The teacher's go to class AFTER the bell has rung. They don't go there just in time for the bell to ring, they get up from their desks after the fact. I find that very strange, but it's cool because it makes the class shorter. Sometimes, it may take upwards to 5 minutes to get to class. It's quite strange. Koreans like to do things at the last minute, which can sometimes be annoying/frustrating. Oh, speaking of teacher's, I don't know if I've talked about this yet, but all the teacher's carry some sort of stick to hit the students with. It's very different than in America, but I guess it works for them. Sometimes, I am tempted to use the stick too. haha
5. The school lunches are REALLY good. I know, I still haven't taken a photo of it yet, but I will today....I will TRY to today.
6. The buses here are really small; they're definitely not like the LA MTA buses. They have rows of 2 seats on each side in the back, but in the front, there are only single seats, which means a lot of the time, you have to stand. I don't like standing in crowded buses. Everyone pushes you and the handles you hold onto aren't stable. It's just a disaster waiting to happen. There are also bus cards that you can purchase for 6000 won. The bus fare is 1000 won and if you buy this bus card (and recharge it with money),the fare is deducted from your card, 950 won. You save 50 won, which doesn't sound like much, but in the long run, you save money because when you transfer buses within the hour, it's FREE! I was excited about that! hahah
Wow, this post must be really boring for you guys. hahah
Alright, I'm gonna end your misery and I will post later about how my week went. :)
Thursday, April 22, 2010
This is the sound of settling..
I feel pretty settled into my new home now. I sleep like a baby throughout the night, and I wake up ready for the day. I may even feel BETTER here than I did back home. I made a great decision to come here. So let's do a little backtracking so I can inform you of my Tuesday.
Tuesday was a packed day, per usual, with work and then Korean class at night. Okailey had missed the first two classes and she was determined not to miss a third, so she met up with me at my school so we could head to the university together. I had gone home to change and get my books and I went back to school to find her sitting on a rock waiting for me. A lot of my students were hanging out at the school gates and said hi to me. I yelled out "Okailey!" and we TRIED to walk to the bus stop but was stopped by a wall of students. They were taking our their camera phones and their cameras saying that they wanted to take photos of Okailey and me. I was like, "WTH, they never want to take pictures of JUST me!" Now that Okailey came around, they're whipping out their cameras that I didn't even know they carried around with them. They wanted us to put our arms around each other for their photos. We posed for a few and then left laughing. It was crazy - English teachers are celebrities. I now know how it feels like to be semi-famous, a D-list celeb. We got to the bus stop and a couple students were there as well. One of my favorites - she ALWAYS says hi to me and she's just soo adorable. We chatted a little bit and the bus finally came and Okailey and I hopped on, ready to escape our fans. We got to school, got some grub, got to class, went through about 35 pages of the book, and then went home. Not too exciting, huh? haha Where are our students when we need them?
So yesterday (Wednesday), I was waiting for my after school class, my favorite class of the day, and the coordinator for the Gwangju teachers came to my desk. Rarity and unexpected. He had come to observe me teach my after school class. Oh, OK...but it was cancelled due to some sort of science test? I don't really know, but I was a bit disappointed because I was looking forward to the class. I ended up just talking with the coordinator and then following the other Korean VIPs around the school for a tour - it's all about face here, remember? I heard a certain VIP at my school was angry that my after school class was cancelled because these people came to observe and it wasn't going on. I guess it doesn't give a good impression of the school, but it's not our fault. It's no one's fault.
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But anywayssss, at night, a small group of the Gwangju teachers went out...YES, on a SCHOOL NIGHT! It was a surprise graduation celebration for Sonia. She was supposed to have her graduation back home in South Africa, but obviously, she is unable to attend because she's in Korea. Jarrod made her a fake diploma and everything. We had dinner and I ordered some sort of spicy udon with seafood and vegetables. Omigosh, was that thing SPICY! It's the spiciest thing I've had since I've been here. I was expecting to eat more spicy food, but it has been pretty mild until this dish. I was on the verge of tears. One bite and I felt it all in my mouth, but I finished it! After that, we went to a hookah bar place, more like a dungeon. It was so nice. Each party gets their own little cave. There is also seating around this elongated pond thingy in the middle of the place with candles sitting on mounds of wax. It was dimly lit with a chandelier and other draperies. It was gorgeously decorated. In fact, almost every place here looks gorgeous. The next place we went to was across the way. It was a coffee shop called Coffee Story. This place, as Jarrod describes it, is reminiscent of Moulin Rouge. I can see where he gets that, but this place is a bit too pink and not enough red. The first thing I thought of when I walked in was, "This place is so...POSH!" It really is. I didn't get any photos of it, but I will the next time we go, which I'm sure we will. We had some ice cream with corn flakes and pineapple and pocky and wafers. Yes, I used a lot of ands in that sentence. The ice cream was yummylicious, normal ice cream, but it satisfied me nonetheless. I got home, read a chapter of "The Kite Runner" and then went to sleep at 1130-ish.
Today I have my first Sports Day for teachers. I wonder what's in store..
and tomorrow is Picnic Day (i.e., Field Trip!). I'm going to Damyang Bamboo Forest. I am so excited, and I just can't hide it. I know, I know, I know, and I think I like it.
Edit: I noticed that I didn't have a post about my field trip, so here are some pictures! We went to the Damyang Bamboo Forest! It was a beautiful place. I love anywhere where there is plenty of green around me! :) The kids were so cute! A lot of them wanted to take photos with me! Yeay!!
Tuesday was a packed day, per usual, with work and then Korean class at night. Okailey had missed the first two classes and she was determined not to miss a third, so she met up with me at my school so we could head to the university together. I had gone home to change and get my books and I went back to school to find her sitting on a rock waiting for me. A lot of my students were hanging out at the school gates and said hi to me. I yelled out "Okailey!" and we TRIED to walk to the bus stop but was stopped by a wall of students. They were taking our their camera phones and their cameras saying that they wanted to take photos of Okailey and me. I was like, "WTH, they never want to take pictures of JUST me!" Now that Okailey came around, they're whipping out their cameras that I didn't even know they carried around with them. They wanted us to put our arms around each other for their photos. We posed for a few and then left laughing. It was crazy - English teachers are celebrities. I now know how it feels like to be semi-famous, a D-list celeb. We got to the bus stop and a couple students were there as well. One of my favorites - she ALWAYS says hi to me and she's just soo adorable. We chatted a little bit and the bus finally came and Okailey and I hopped on, ready to escape our fans. We got to school, got some grub, got to class, went through about 35 pages of the book, and then went home. Not too exciting, huh? haha Where are our students when we need them?
So yesterday (Wednesday), I was waiting for my after school class, my favorite class of the day, and the coordinator for the Gwangju teachers came to my desk. Rarity and unexpected. He had come to observe me teach my after school class. Oh, OK...but it was cancelled due to some sort of science test? I don't really know, but I was a bit disappointed because I was looking forward to the class. I ended up just talking with the coordinator and then following the other Korean VIPs around the school for a tour - it's all about face here, remember? I heard a certain VIP at my school was angry that my after school class was cancelled because these people came to observe and it wasn't going on. I guess it doesn't give a good impression of the school, but it's not our fault. It's no one's fault.
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But anywayssss, at night, a small group of the Gwangju teachers went out...YES, on a SCHOOL NIGHT! It was a surprise graduation celebration for Sonia. She was supposed to have her graduation back home in South Africa, but obviously, she is unable to attend because she's in Korea. Jarrod made her a fake diploma and everything. We had dinner and I ordered some sort of spicy udon with seafood and vegetables. Omigosh, was that thing SPICY! It's the spiciest thing I've had since I've been here. I was expecting to eat more spicy food, but it has been pretty mild until this dish. I was on the verge of tears. One bite and I felt it all in my mouth, but I finished it! After that, we went to a hookah bar place, more like a dungeon. It was so nice. Each party gets their own little cave. There is also seating around this elongated pond thingy in the middle of the place with candles sitting on mounds of wax. It was dimly lit with a chandelier and other draperies. It was gorgeously decorated. In fact, almost every place here looks gorgeous. The next place we went to was across the way. It was a coffee shop called Coffee Story. This place, as Jarrod describes it, is reminiscent of Moulin Rouge. I can see where he gets that, but this place is a bit too pink and not enough red. The first thing I thought of when I walked in was, "This place is so...POSH!" It really is. I didn't get any photos of it, but I will the next time we go, which I'm sure we will. We had some ice cream with corn flakes and pineapple and pocky and wafers. Yes, I used a lot of ands in that sentence. The ice cream was yummylicious, normal ice cream, but it satisfied me nonetheless. I got home, read a chapter of "The Kite Runner" and then went to sleep at 1130-ish.
Today I have my first Sports Day for teachers. I wonder what's in store..
and tomorrow is Picnic Day (i.e., Field Trip!). I'm going to Damyang Bamboo Forest. I am so excited, and I just can't hide it. I know, I know, I know, and I think I like it.
Edit: I noticed that I didn't have a post about my field trip, so here are some pictures! We went to the Damyang Bamboo Forest! It was a beautiful place. I love anywhere where there is plenty of green around me! :) The kids were so cute! A lot of them wanted to take photos with me! Yeay!!
Traditional Korean Dance
Watch this video to see how Koreans dance. Maybe you can pick up a couple moves! :)
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http://promotion.auction.co.kr/promotion/MD/eventview.aspx?txtMD=02D0F48064
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