Thanksgiving, Finals, and Airstrikes

Hello everyone!
The holiday season is underway! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and I'm not sure what I'll be doing for that...maybe skyping with the fam and watching them eat turkey via webcam.

We're on the last leg of the semester now, as students have a week before the final exams. What puzzles me are the three weeks of classes we have after the exam. I'm not sure how I will keep my students motivated and interested, but I'm sure there will be a Christmas lesson and New Year's resolution lesson in their somewhere. Now I'm just going through the daily grind of teaching, and I can tell all the teachers are ready for the semester to end.

I also wanted to make a quick response to the airstrike that happened on a small island off of the west coast of Korea. Many friends and family have sent messages voicing concern and curiosity, and I just want everyone to know that things are fine here. Everyone is going about their business as usual (what else can they do), and the vibes I'm picking up are not of great worry. If you can recall, I was here this spring when the North sunk a Southern navy vessel. I saw on our American news outlets the hype that the event was getting. In all actuality, the only real effect we felt here was the South Korean Won's value dipping down a bit, which was annoying for us westerners transferring money home. So I'm thinking the same predictable outcome will happen with this event...threats from both sides, finger pointing, and eventually back to normal (that's how it's been here for over 50 years). So don't let the CNN's and FOX News people freak you out. I'm perfectly fine, but appreciate your concern.

I will also post the rock concert video on the blog soon. Thanks for waiting.

Video from the Donghak Festival

This video was taken in the 'English Zone' of the daytime activities. Students competed in various games, and this one is the singing contest. They try to memorize classic songs like 'Old McDonald' and 'Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes'. If they make a mistake, one of our English teachers gets to bop them in the head with a toy mallet. Pretty funny.


The games were played in the morning, and the afternoon consisted of sports challenges. Each class competed in a tug-of-war match. Every class chose a kind of uniform to wear for the festival, and in this case, the class chose teddy bear onesie pajama's.



This is the championship round of tug-of-war for the 9th graders. The gym teacher refereeing the match (also our lead singer in the band) made a bet with me on the two final teams. He chose the dinosaur uniforms and I chose the pink sweatshirt team. The dinosaurs ended up winning, and they wouldn't let me forget it. Also notice how the gym teacher points the gun at the kids to get their attention (hilarious).



This is a quick preview of the stage they were setting up prior to the start of the talent show. Pretty nice for a middle school carnival.

Rock Debut

I realize this is not the concert video, but right before it. I will post the actual concert soon, along with some other videos of the festivals daytime activities.

Rocktober!

It's been a long, drawn out, continuous rehearsal for the Donghak Middle School Teacher rock band. Koreans are perfectionists when it comes to performing something in front of a large group of people. I personally think we practice too much. After all, it's only two pop-rock songs we're playing. But alas, the practices have intensified with only a few days leading up to the schools bi-annual two-day festival celebration.

Monday evening I went back to school for the second time that day for our 9pm-12am practice. My band mates teach class after regular school hours, so in the meantime I went home and relaxed. The temperature was frigid outside that night, as it seemingly turned winter in the spand of a day. My students were pouring out of the school like a big group at a restaurant, where the last person gets stuck with the bill. As they were giddily leaving, a 7th grade girl student came up to me and said, "Teacher! Look in my backpack!" Inside wrapped in a blanket was the smallest kitten I'd ever seen. I thought it was a toy at first. "Who's cat is this?" "Is it yours?" I asked pointing at the girl. "No, not mine teacher." I asked all the other girls standing around the kitten, but it was no ones. "Outside cat, teacher," they explained. The bastard kitten of an alley cat! I had several concerns regarding the situation. "Girls, it might have a disease..." I explained. "Oh no, teacher. No germ," they replied. Then I mentioned parents finding out about a stray cat and they quickly realized their dilemma. They held the cat out towards me..."Teacher, please you take it!" It was hard to resist, but like my mom, I'm just not much of a cat person.

There are seven classes in each grade, and each one chooses a class 'uniform' for the today's festival. There are some pretty funny one's. For example, the onesie pajama in the style of a dinosaur or teddy bear, with the animals head coming up over you like a sweatshirt hood. Another class is wearing hospital gowns. The energy in the school resembles an ant colony. I can't wait.

I'll start the morning off playing a speed English game, where the students try to get me to guess a word (like catchphrase, except I'm the only one guessing). I'll then be an American Idol style judge for the English singing contest, critiquing the students lyrical knowledge. They better hope I'm more like Ellen Degeneres today, and not Simon. The afternoon is a sporting event outside, so I'll get some needed sunshine. The night time is the main event. We practiced in a studio the night before, and the manager let us borrow their amazing keyboard for tonight's performance. So pumped. We have a pretty cool intro rendition of 'Crazy Train' that we practiced last night. Hopefully I'll be able to get some pictures or video of the festivities. Be back shortly.

Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving)

Korea has two very important holidays they celebrate annually; the Lunar New Year (AKA the Chinese New Year), and Chuseok (a holiday only found in Korea). In layman's terms, it has many aspects that are similar to our Thanksgiving, with a an added emphasis on paying homage to one's ancestors. Korea basically shuts down for three days, and transportation throughout the country is difficult and time consuming (as most people around Seoul return to their home village elsewhere in the country).

The third and final person to visit me during the length of my year contract was Pat Stahl, an old schoolyard chum all the way back from kindergarten. We took full advantage of the 10 days I had off from school, and took a similar trip to the one I went on this summer with BD. However, similarity in location doesn't mean it was similar in the experiences we had.

While BD was referred to by the Koreans as Wayne Rooney (a somewhat accurate comparison), Pat was dubbed as William Dafoe and Macualay Culkin (actual spelling). So for the first few day of vacation, Patrick AKA Dafoe AKA Macualay Culkin (whichever you prefer) and I ventured into Seoul. We had a few Korean friends escorting us and acting as our tour guides, so it was nice for me to put my brain back into cruise control and just follow orders. Within moments of entering the Insa-dong area of Seoul, we were interviewed by a camera crew for the G20 Summit being held in Seoul this year. With my vast experience in the world of video production, I completed my interview seamlessly, and will keep you posted if I make it onto the G20 website. Pat, with his business background, struggled as the camera people asked him basic background questions. But who knows, we might see Pat's face on the G20 website sounding like this...
Camera Person to Pat: Say where you're from...
Pat: Say where I'm from? Why?
Camera Person to Pat: (eyes rolling) How about what is your name?
Pat: My name?...Pat!
END OF INTERVIEW

The next day we took a train down to Busan (my 3rd time in this lovely seaside metropolis). We shared a small room in a dilapidated motel, but weren't too worried about it. We spent most of our day in Busan on their most famous beach; Haeundae (where I stayed with my mom and brother before). The weather was terrific for us, but apparently too cold for the Koreans, but nonetheless we enjoyed Papa John's and beer under blue sky's all day long.

The following three nights were spent in underrated (and one of my favorite cities) Fukuoka, Japan. This time around, we stayed at a great hostel where guests sleep on tatami mats on the ground. I've gotta tell ya, one of the best sleeps I've ever had. The only downside is waking up in the morning and seeing a spider laying next to you on the ground. For any of you that know me well enough, you know I have a phobia for the arachnid. I spent two or three minutes trying to smash the spider with a kleenex while being half asleep and having several other guests trying to sleep in the same room.

Pat and I were lucky enough to reunite with some people I met the first time going to Fukuoka. BD and I ran into them at a bar, and they took us for singing at a karaoke place. They're a group of Japanese language teachers looking to take their professions abroad to the U.S. or U.K. So they are always anxious to practice their English. We went to a great restaurant the first night we met them, then one of them volunteered to drive us to Kumamoto Castle in southern Kyushu (southern island of Japan). The castle was very impressive, and the architecture is definitely unique to Japan. Overall, did a lot of exploring and hanging with locals. Another great time in Fukuoka.

We spent the better part of day traveling from Fukuoka, all the way back to Suwon. The hydrofoil was a really rough ride because of the waves, and a good amount of the passengers were throwing up the whole time due to sea sickness. Meanwhile, Pat slept the whole time and I watched the ailed people with curiosity while snacking on delicious chips and listening to my new ipod (I'd never seen sea sickness before). After a few train rides on the KTX (Korea's fast train, a lovely and smooth ride), we were back home.

The last few days were spent at a much more relaxed pace, and hung out with more locals while exploring Suwon. My oldest Korean friend, Mr. Yoon, an English teacher at a private school specializing in test taking (similar to the ACT), invited Pat and I to dinner at his house (apartment). This is very unusual for Koreans to do, especially with foreigners. Luckily, I was familiar with the drill, and brought a months supply of toilet paper as a gift (customary to bring goods of necessity). We ate a ton of food he had leftover from the Chuseok Holiday. Wonderful.

Pat AKA William Dafoe AKA Macauley Culkin made a great impression on everyone he met, especially already having experience living in Asia (HK). It was a great week, but as always, reality awaits. This month I'll have a team teaching class, where teachers from other schools will come and evaluate me (not fun). After that, the school has a three day 'festival' that showcases the students at teachers. One thing of interest is the talent show, and I was recruited by a few of the younger teachers to form a band. I'm the keyboard player for a couple of really crappy Korean Songs, but it's an interesting experience. That's all for now. Stay tuned...

New Semester Brings Typhoon

Hello to all my followers out there.
Sorry for the lack of an update, but as you all know, we often find that the routine is uneventful. However there have been a few interesting happenings in my life since BD (Wayne Rooney) left Korea just over a month ago.

As far as the weather goes, Korea is starting to let up on it's almost unbearable humidity, and starting to feel a little more like fall. The transition in weather has brought a continuous downpour of rain. For weeks at a time, it will rain on and off all day. There was definitely a time when the sun didn't show for days. The rain brought some cooler temperatures, and also typhoons (hurricanes). We English teachers can find ourselves in a bubble of ignorance when it comes to current events in Korea (unless it has anything to do with North Korea). Little did I realize that a major hurricane made it's way to Suwon in the early morning on a Wednesday a week ago. I awoke around 4AM to the harsh vibrations of the windstorm. There's a big willow tree visible from my bedroom window, and I could see it's branches being thrown around in every direction. My apartment, along with most people's, survived unscathed. There were quite a few broken windows and lots of debris, but nothing more.

In other news, my school has a bi-yearly festival in October. It is a two day event, and apparently it's a pretty big deal. Included in this event is a sort of variety show where students and teachers are encouraged to showcase their talent. The younger teachers at my school formed a makeshift band to perform at the variety show, and through the grapevine found out I played piano as a child. And just like that, my childhood dreams will be realized...I'm going to be a rockstar. There are a few Korean songs I have to learn, and we'll begin practicing together as a band starting this week. Hopefully our egos and musical styles don't get in the way of making some killer tunes. I can already see a Beatles-like situation brewing.

Lastly, I'll be enjoying my last extended holiday until Christmas next week. The holiday is known as Choseok in Korea and is similar to our Thanksgiving, although considered much more important. All the Koreans travel back to their hometowns to congregate with extended family. Most Koreans I talk to make it sound more like a pain in the ass than a holiday, complete with stressful dish preparation, bumper to bumper traffic throughout the whole country, and awkward moments with relatives. Not bad! My childhood friend Pat Stahl will be visiting during this week, and we'll be doing a similar travel path that my friend BD and I took this summer. Should be another wild and fun time! Hope all is well back home! I can't believe I've been here for over 6 months!

Tom Hanks and Wayne Rooney's Whacky Adventures

A strange a title for a post...but perception is reality, and many Koreans think that Brian Daniele (who came to visit me for two weeks over summer vacation) looks exactly like Wayne Rooney. This is a much more accurate comparison than a few Koreans telling me I look like Tom Hanks (which makes me assume that they can't tell white people apart). Anyways, I will share some highlights of the trip we took as our alter-ego's, Wayne Rooney and Tom Hanks.

First, Wayne Rooney and Tom Hanks went sightseeing around Seoul. Rooney visited the DMZ Tour, and visited the UNESCO Suwon Fortress in my city. The fortress includes the walls that went around the original city (which is completely swallowed up by the urban sprawl and development that happened over the years.

Next, Hanks and Rooney took a trip to the Hawaii of Korea, AKA Jeju Island. Koreans love the game 'rock,paper, scissors.' We all know this game. We're all familiar with it. It's a petty, meaningless game. However, Koreans use this game to decide the outcome of different situations (anywhere from who pays the bill to who has to stay at work later). Our entire plane played a huge tournament of rock, paper, scissors. Most Koreans were surprised that Tom Hanks had the skill and/or luck to beat an entire plane full of Koreans in their own game. My prize was a Korean comic book.

We stayed in Jeju for three nights. The island is one huge volcano. In the middle of the island is it's peak. The peak is the tallest point in South Korea, so naturally we had to climb it. Once we reached the top, it plateaued into wide rolling hills of grass. Quite a sight to see. There are plenty of things to do on Jeju, and it was a shame we didn't have more time there. The island itself is stunningly beautiful.

Hanks and Rooney stopped over in Busan for a night before continuing on to Japan. We visited the beach, and were introduced to Korean-style beach wear; large t-shirts, and no one was morbidly obese. It was confirmed from what we saw that Koreans are afraid of the sun. The beach experience for Westerners is to be outside in the sun and relax. Koreans try to make the experience as much as like being inside as they can. They hide under umbrellas, cover their bodies with clothes, and eat fried chicken. That's right, fried chicken! Probably the most ingenious concept for being at a beach. A man dressed up in a wonder woman suit (no joke) comes around with boxes of fried chicken, already with the array of sauces and a few cans of coke. Of course we had to indulge. We didn't even have to leave the safety and comfort of our umbrella to eat some delicious fried chicken.

The next day we left for Fukuoka, Japan. I can't say enough great things about Japan. I absolutely loved it. This was my first time being out of Korea in nearly five months, so I was apprehensive when I noticed how aesthetically different it was from Korea (not to mention major societal and cultural differences I learned about later). The streets are immaculately clean (although I never found a public garbage can while we were there). Fukuoka is a major city, and the largest in Western Japan. It was also named the 14th most livable city as of this year. I don't doubt it, as the city has many nice parks, and a significant amount of people get around on bicycles.

Japan's version of Miller or Budweiser is called 'Asahi.' The brewery is located in Fukuoka, and BD and I wanted to go on the tour. Our hotel called Asahi to set up a tour time. Asahi told us there was only one more English tour left that day, so we rushed across the city in less than 30 minutes to make the...Korean Tour?! We were surprised that no one was speaking English, but only Korean. They were even more surprised that one of the two white boys in the group could speak a little of their language. A fun time indeed. The greatest part of Japan was all the people we met. We had people take us to a sushi restaurant, a different group took us to KARAOKE, and even another man bought us souvenirs and food during lunch. These were all people we met randomly in a restaurant or out on the street. They were very curious towards us, and not at all shy (even with a limited English vocabulary).

All in all a fantastic time that exceeded high expectations for summer vacation. Tomorrow I'll have my first day of classes of my 2nd semester at Donghak Middle School. It's pretty amazing that I've been here five months and am practically half-way through my contract. I won't have much time to rest...Korean Thanksgiving is coming in September (a week long holiday) and my friend Mr. Pat Stahl will be joining in on the festivities. Stay tuned.

Summer Vacation

School finished a few weeks ago, and now I find myself in the vacation period. Unlike their Western counterparts, Koreans do not get an extended vacation for the summer (hence neither do the teachers). Most students continue studying for what is the climax of their current lives; the placement exam. Students go to school in their neighborhoods up until high school. The last year of middle school is characterized by intense studying to get placed into the best high schools, proceeded by studying hard to get into the best universities...which is directly correlated with how much money and success they can expect to find once they graduate. It's the same idea in the U.S., but with much more strict boundaries (they follow this idea precisely).

So I am teaching what is called "Summer Camp," for a few weeks. I teach for a few hours in the morning to a small group of students that chose to take the English Conversation Course. In the afternoon after lunch, I attend a Korean Language Course (provided by my school district for foreign teachers). It's not a bad routine, and is almost as good as the real thing (summer vacation).

Last weekend I traveled to the coast for the annual Boryeong Mud Festival. It's a popular event where the city brings in tons of mud to the beach, and foreigners and Koreans gather to get muddy. It's basically a giant mud fight. Unfortunately, the weather was not in our favor when we arrived (heavy rain), but I guess it doesn't matter much if you plan on covering your body in mud.

We arrived in the morning, and hid under a food tent for a few hours waiting for the rain to subside. After we realized that it would rain all day, we meandered over to the pit. I was excited as ever to completely cover myself, and dove right in. What I didn't realize at the time was that there was a large group of U.S. Military personnel also in the mud pit, and lets just say they don't like to play fair. After getting pelted a few times in the head with mud/sand balls, I decided I had enough. I played in the mud obstacle course for a while, then decided I was mudded out (we were toying with all kinds of mud adjectives that day).

Now with only a few days left of summer camp to go, I'm ready for the real summer vacation. I'll have two weeks off, and my good friend BD will arrive here on Sunday. We'll fly down to Jeju Island for a few days (the honeymoon capital of Korea, although I don't think BD knows that), and then take a ferry to Japan. Should be full of fun and revelry. Hope all is well back home (and not as unbearably humid as it is here).

The "Rainy Season" and heat of summer in Suwon

Local Koreans call it the rainy season. "Beware of the monsoon season, John," they say. "It will be miserable." Half way through "monsoon season," and only a few days of what we 'Mericans would call a shower or two. What is unpleasant, though, is the mugginess. I thought the Midwest was humid in summer. You ain't seen nothin' yet, folks.

The heat, along with it being the end of the semester, are taking a toll on the students. They're more restless than usual, and attention spans have never been shorter. I think everyone (principal all the way down to the students) are ready for summer vacation. For the first few weeks of 'vacation,' I'll be teaching summer camp. This is a two hour class every morning, and I have permission to teach whatever I want. I've decided the first week will be a video production workshop (KHOP and MUTV compressed into a week), where the students will make the next Korean Tourism video to attract foreigners to visit the country. I thought I might as well mix some of my interests in with this camp...

As we all know, U.S.A. is out of the World Cup. The defeat happened only hours after Korea was eliminated in the group of 16 by Uruguay. Koreans were pretty upset, but it was an awesome few weeks to be in a country that lives and dies with their soccer team.

A side note: Foreigners are coming out of the woodwork lately in my neighborhood! In every adjacent apartment complex to my own, there is now an English teacher. It's been interesting showing around the newbies, as I can clearly recall my first days in Korea only several months ago.

Check out this interesting article, dubbed 'Chinese companies rent white foreigners'. I told you we are a huge novelty in this part of the world!
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/BUSINESS/06/29/china.rent.white.people/index.html?fbid=XPwxv9xtq3a

PICTURES:
Starbucks sign in Seoul. It's the only Starbucks in Korea that is allowed to have the sign written in Korea, therefore the only Starbucks in the world to be written in Korean.

My co-workers boyfriend and I. They were kind enough to show me around some areas of Seoul.

Only every four years...

I'm not sure if any of you back home have caught the World Cup Fever, but it's an epidemic on major proportions here in Korea. As many of you know, the first game was just a few days ago. There has been plenty of marketing on television and in stores here to get the fans ready for the first match. The South Korean national team fans call themselves the 'Red Devils,' based off of the British Premier League team, Manchester United. The Korean fans dress up in all red, wear little red devil horns, and shout 'Tay ha min goo!' (For greater Korea...interestingly enough, North Korea somehow made it into this years World Cup). The first Korean match was yesterday, and they drew none other than Greece. Impeccable timing for me (not that I'm a big soccer fan), but I've got to root for the fatherland. The result was a one-sided game in which Korea dominated for most of the game. We watched it in a bar, and the energy and atmosphere of the Koreans was unlike any sports experience I've had before. After the game, it was a big party on the street (everyone is singing, honking their car horns, and overall joviality).

Today is officially my three month anniversary in Korea (can I have anniversary's this early?)! I've got three weeks until final exams, and the semester draws to a close. I'll have a week or two of 'summer camp', which is basically extending normal classes. Then, as mentioned before, I'll have a few weeks of summer vacation where I can travel with my friend, Mr. Daniele. Hope all is well back home. Go USA!! Maybe we'll make some noise this year in the World Cup...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jj9x4AyQ-is
This Joe guy is cuckoo for Kim Jung...

H.A.G.S.!

...or Have A Great Summer, as many of us remember from the days of signing yearbooks in our pre-college lives. For Americans, this would be the time of year when students say goodbye to school and welcome the long stretch of summer vacation. However, there is no concept of summer vacation in Korea. The train just keeps on-a-rollin'.

My family departed these lands just a short week ago. We covered quite a bit of ground during their stay, and it was eventful to say the least. It's an interesting dynamic playing tour guide when you don't know exactly what you're doing. I'm still very much in the acclimating stages of my adventure in Korea, but was able to maneuver the family around for the most part. After our time in Seoul and Suwon, we journeyed south to the more beautiful countryside of southern South Korea. We stayed a night in a luxurious ***** hotel right on the famous beach at Busan, with the help of one of my co-teachers connections. After enjoying the high life, we left for Gyeongju, which is a small city north of Busan. Located there are several ancient sites from Korea's storied past. Many of them are Buddhist related (temples and such), and they are situated up in some nice mountains. So we had a view in both Busan and Gyeongju. One of the teachers from my school is from Gyeongju, so she and her sons met us for a buffet dinner while we were there. The kids were great, and one of them is taking a trip to the U.S. for an English summer camp, so I imagine the mother wanted her son to get some English practice in before leaving.

The trip with the family went by fast, and was very fun. Now it's status quo for me until August, when I'll have some vacation time and my friend and Marquette Alumn/Superfan Brian Danielle will visit. I've got a nice holiday this Wednesday because of national elections. Their campaigning techniques are pretty strange. Instead of going door-to-door, campaigners gather on street corners, blare loud music, and dance/bow for cars and people passing by. There's not much dignity involved.

As for the current political situation, don't worry fam and friends. The Korea's are not happy with each other, but there isn't any imminent danger I face, and the U.S. Embassy sent out an email to all American Citizens in Korea stressing that we are ok right now. The only thing I'm worrying about right now is where I can get some decent Mexican Food. Fortunately T Bell is on it's way to Seoul. Booyah.

Enjoy

Family means more fun!

It may be a little early to be playing tour guide in Korea, but I'm always up for a new challenge. My mom and brother arrived hassle-free Thursday evening. They've handled the culture shock quite well, even though they may still be a bit jet lagged. We've been a sight to see in my neighborhood...Koreans aren't used to seeing a family of foreigners in my area.

We have quite a busy itinerary for the ten days the family is here. We had a few Korean meals, which were met with warm praise from mom and chris. On Saturday we visited the DMZ. The tour was through the U.S.O., so we were able to see some things that other tour company's weren't allowed to provide (this wasn't free of course). Our first stop on the tour was at a United States Army base right next to the DMZ. Here, a few soldiers briefed us on the history of the DMZ, and went over the locations we would see. The first location was probably the most interesting. We visited the meeting room for where the North and South go for diplomatic negotiations. The small building is literally located half on the North's side, and half on the South's. It was fun to say we stepped foot in North Korea, and we actually got to see North Korean Soldiers watching us about 20 yards away. They had binoculars on us and everything...
We went to an observation post where we were surrounded on three sides by North Korea, and could see the 'propoganda village' that North Korea built right across the border. Essentially it's a fake town that the North built to try and attract South Koreans to defect and join the North. In the village is a HUGE North Korean flag (literally almost the length of a football field). This is in response to the South's big flag they put on their side of the border. It's probably the most immature quarreling between two countries I've ever seen. But the North's flag is so big that the wind wasn't strong enough to get the thing moving when we were there....after that, we visited a tunnel the North Koreans dug to try and sneak soldiers into the south. It's pretty creepy, and it's very far underground.

Today we visited the Palace Grounds in Seoul. A lot of the complex is still being restored because of constant invasion from outside (Japan twice, North Korea). However, the buildings are still very impressive, and like nothing I have ever seen before. Their was definitely a very powerful civilization here many years ago. Enjoy the pictures!

The fam will be visiting the school tomorrow with me...they will be instant hits I'm sure. We'll head to Everland with the 9th graders on Wednesday (they have a field trip this week). Check out the Everland theme park at www.everland.com. Then we will head down south for the weekend to Busan and Gyeongju. More updates next week.

Photos:
Mom in front of a big palace structure.

A few North Korean soldiers watching our tour group as we visit the negotiation building right on the border of north and south.

Chris and I in the negotiation room. We are accompanied by a South Korean border guard. I'm actually standing in North Korea and Chris is in South Korea. The U.N. Flag marks the border.

May Means More Holidays

Yes family and friends, May can be a wonderful time of the year just when taking into consideration the change of weather (especially for everyone in MN and WI). But in Korea there's an added bonus; national holidays. Aside from Parent's Day (Mother's Day and Father's Day combined), Teacher's Day, and Children's Day (yes, we get all of these days off at work), Buddha's Birthday also happens in May this year. Happy Birthday Buddha, and welcome to Korea, Mom and Chris! They will be here over Buddha's Birthday, and we'll be visiting some ancient Buddhist Temples and Statues during the celebration.

Parent's Day was this week, so my students were busy making English Letters/Cards for their parents. There were plenty of impressive handmade cards, and I managed to persuade a few classes to sing me the Parent's Day Song. Glorious. It was nice to do a hands-on activity in class because not all the students are able to understand me when I speak in class. They definitely go into the card construction.

In other happenings, last weekend I visited Suwon's old town and fortress. The fortress and its walls surround the old area of Suwon, and are impressive enough to be listed as a UNESCO site. On one side of the fortress is a mountain, and at the top you can find some impressive views of the surrounding area. The picture in the previous post is at what remains of the Palace. I think the ceremonial guards were surprised to see someone taller than them when we took this picture (they're some big dudes).

I did some other sightseeing on Children's Day at nearby Kyung Hee University. Word on the street is Kyung Hee is one of the top 3 universities in Korea, and the campus definitely made it seem so. Kyung Hee is completely obsessed with making its campus look like a replica of Ancient Rome. Most of the campus buildings had giant marble columns, there are statues of 'The Thinker' everywhere, giant obelisks, and latin written on almost everything. Very strange, but the campus is worth the walk around. It's one of the few places in Suwon with a lot of green space and nature.

Nothing else to report as of now. I've got another full week of school, and as I mentioned, the family is coming to visit. I'll be making final preparations for their arrival for the next few days. Thanks for following...

Pictures
Long before the Egyptians built their pyramids, the Koreans at Kyung Hee created the Ancient obelisk.

The Ancient Roman-Korean Ampitheatre

Different Teaching Shindigs

The past week has been a walk in the park. The organization that manages all of the Native English Teachers in our province puts on a new teacher orientation every semester. So a month after I started teaching, they decided they would like to train me on how to be a teacher.

The orientation is set at retreat on the side of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. We new teachers stayed there from Wednesday to Friday morning. The facilities are quite nice, complete with driving range, basketball courts, and even a piano I managed to find on the first day. The toilets are hands down the best I have ever experienced in my short life. I imagined it must be a lot like how The Jetson's live, but I won't go into further detail (it basically felt like I was controlling a spaceship). We had some (what I thought was) relevant and helpful training, and some classes that were more a waste of time. However, I did get to meet quite a few new teachers, and maybe made some friends for the future.

By the time we left the retreat on Friday morning, I was more than a little tired. In a way, I was glad to leave the surreal surroundings of westerners and western food. It was so much unlike reality here that it took me a day or two to get back into the mindset I had before. So, teacher shindig #1 complete.

The weekend weather was gorgeous. It made me feel ambitious enough to go shopping in the foreigner district of Seoul called Itaewon. Many people referred me to this location because there are supposedly many stores there that cater to the larger male specimen in Korea, such as I find myself categorized in. These clothes are in Itaewon because of the large U.S. Military presence there, so many stores are there to provide for them. I had this rare urge to buy some new clothes. Mind you, I'm not a big fan of shopping, and there's nothing I hate more than wandering aimlessly for clothes. However, I felt like making some adaptation to the Korean way, even if that meant buying a somewhat metro outfit. I knew I could still retain my American identity (maybe take some jeans and cut them at the knees when it gets warmer), but I needed that truly Korean outfit for when I went out with teachers or Korean friends. Long story short, the selection was few, and the items expensive. I tried on a pair of size '34' pants in one of the changing rooms (a curtain on a track in the middle of the room, so literally just a small circle to change in while people are walking by you shopping), and I unfortunately busted right out of those pants when I buttoned them (button projectile). So the shopping experience was a failure. Sorry Koreans, you'll just have to accept me for who I am.

This week is the mid-term exam, so the teachers all go out and have dinner together. We went to a very nice traditional Korean Restaurant where everyone sits on the ground. The main course was duck (I'm not sure if I've ever had this before, but tastes a lot like turkey). After explaining to some of the other teachers how we discipline students in the U.S., I made my way to where the principal was seated to offer him a drink (following custom of course, not out of our close personal relationship). There are many delicate rules to follow in this short procedure, and I didn't want to mess up. Just a few rules to mention; younger person uses both hands to pour drink, receive drink, doesn't look superior in the eye, turns away from superior when drinking, etc. I may have poured the principal too much maekoli (Korean rice wine), but he had already been drinking for a while, so I don't think he noticed. After the dinner, I went with the younger teachers (there seems to be a clique of them) to a noraebong (singing room) and bar. They were a lot of fun, and hopefully I'll continue to hang out with them in the future. If only I found that perfect metro Korean outfit, and I'd be the coolest guy at the school.

I learned a fun Korean phrase last week from one of my co-teachers..."Goat sem chewee," which roughly translates to 'the winter winds are jealous of the spring flowers.' Sounds more like poetry then an everyday conversation starter, but it is a saying here for acknowledging the winter weather dragging on into the spring. I've had fun saying that to pretty much any Korean I meet, and they usually are surprised a foreigner knows this saying. They're then usually more surprised that I can't understand Korean (he can't say 'hello' but he knows goat sem chewee?).

This segways perfectly into my past weekends activities. The Cherry Blossom Tree is a staple symbol of spring in South Korea. For two weeks of the year, the tree blossoms these really cool white flowers. Not really sure what happens after that, but this two week period is generally considered the beginning of spring. It came later this year, but Seoul has a large festival every year to mark the occasion. There's a large park right on the Han River, and the cherry blossom trees are everywhere. My three buddies and I hung around the park for most of the day. There was plenty of good people watching, as the sappy romantic Korean couples were out in considerable numbers. There were also plenty of performers (circus acts, live bands, ballet, you name it) out giving a free show. Afterwards, we headed to Hongdae district, which is a really cool area for nightlife in Seoul. There's a huge university located there, and the feel is very much like a dinkytown or uptown. Lots of friendly Koreans and English Teachers, and no army people (Hongdae is a designated neighborhood they aren't allowed to go to).

I finally got a cell phone last week, and it has definitely made things easier, at least in coordinating meeting up with friends. It was interesting not having one for a while, and sometimes I didn't mind it. I've got internet in the apartment now, so I should be available at more times to Skype (not just during school ours).

It'll be a short week of teaching for me this week. I have my school district (GEPIK) new teacher orientation from Wednesday to Friday. I have heard from the veteran teachers that it is a good opportunity to make some friends, and some of the things they teach us I'm sure will be helpful. Enjoy the pictures and see you next time.

Pictures:
A little girl climbed this tree so she could see over the crowd that encircled one of the street performers. So resourceful.

Me and the blossoms. Just complete bliss.

This is actually a 'Female' only parking spot. You see, the Koreans don't give much thought to if they are politically correct or not, and they have special parking spots for women drivers. The parking spot is a full meter longer than a normal spot, and much easier to parallel park...I guess women drivers here aren't so good...which is so weird because back home it's not like that at all.

Soccer Game and a new Co-teacher

Monday morning in South Korea, and another week at school is on the plate. This past weekend I spent mostly in Suwon, which was nice and more relaxing. On Friday night, I joined a huge contingent of foreigners at a Korean (K-League) Soccer game. When Korea hosted the World Cup, one of the stadiums they built is in Suwon. It is now home to the Samsung Bluewings. Samsung basically constructed and owns Suwon (their HQ is here), hense the team name. The game itself was not anywhere near full capacity, but nevertheless, it was my first pro soccer game. The section behind the home teams goal was completely full of pretty loud and rowdy fans, so that was entertaining enough.

Sunday I made my way up to Seoul for our frisbee league. The weather was really nice that day, and after our teams victory (3-0 baby), we went to the customary burger restaurant down the street from the park (the park is right on the Han River, so it is very scenic). I figured out a way to take a bus right from outside my apartment to downtown Seoul. Very convenient, and much faster than taking the subway from Seoul out to Suwon.

In other news, one of my four co-teachers is on maternity leave for the next four months. I just taught my first class today with her replacement. My old co-teacher and the replacement are in all of my 7th grade classes (probably the most difficult to keep order). I thought my old co-teacher lacked skills in crowd control, but this new teacher is letting murder get away right in front of her. It will be interesting to see if she adjusts soon, as a lenient co-teacher can make class a nightmare for us native english teachers. I guess my only other option would be to go find one of those Indiana Jones whiplashes on eBay, and lay down the law myself. If only that were a possibility...

Hope everyone is doing well. My mom and brother should be coming to visit me in about one month. This week I should be getting a cell phone and internet at my apartment. I'm almost completely acclimated!

Spring has not sprung

Annyeonghaseyo from Korea (if you plan on visiting me, you might want to remember this one word, meaning 'hello'). Today I have officially been an alien in Korea for four weeks. What a feeling and accomplishment. At this point, I'm pretty much in my weekly routine at school, although it is very much an on-the-job-training position.

As you noticed in this installments title, spring has only shown glimpses of existence here. This past weekend I joined a rowdy bunch of Badgers (Univ of Madison has a lot of teachers in my school district) on an excursion to Songnisan National Park, which is about 2-3 hours south of Seoul. It was a nice opportunity to see the contrasting rural life in Korea (something that one would doubt exists from where I live in the concrete jungle). There were beautiful mountains all around, a large Buddha statue, and our campground was free of charge (we came before the camping season started apparently). We learned why this was maybe not the most ideal time to go camping. I've never been so cold that I couldn't sleep, but I guess there's a first for everything. However, we did survive, and, smelling heavily of bonfire smoke, we made our way back home the next day. It never felt so good to crawl into my own bed.

In other news, I have met a few new people this week. By chance, I walk by a small neighborhood hair salon/coffee shop everyday when I come home from work. I hardly noticed it at first, until I noticed the Korean babe who was consistently standing behind the counter. Everytime I walk by, there is definitely some sustained eye contact. So naturally I was intrigued. I slowly mustered up the courage to smile at her, and once this was successful, I upgraded to the wave. One thing must lead to another, and I couldn't think of another gesture that follows the wave, so I decided that I had to go buy a cup of coffee from her. After chickening out a few times, I had to psyche myself up, like a pro athlete before the big game, and I finally made it to checkpoint Charlie. I quickly came to realize that she spoke very little English, and that the older woman in the shop was her mother. However, they were both very nice and we attempted to communicate for a short while. I learned that she teaches at a university nearby during the day, and very little else. But how exhilirating! Enough about my cliched romance...
Anyways, I also met another white person in my neighborhood. She also teaches at a middle school, and is on her second year. She is also quite a bit older than me, but at least I have a few tsentsai's in the neighborhood to give me advice and grab some dinner from time to time.

Above pic: The oldest remaining wooden temple in Korea. It's about 600 years old. I guess most of the major ones burned down either by natural causes or some occupying country destroying them.

Below pic: A large golden Buddha statue in the temple complex in the foreground of the surrounding mountains.

Getting Into a Routine

I apologize for the lack of new content on the blog. I'm coming up on three weeks in Korea on Tuesday, and I'm already pretty well acclimated. I don't randomly wake up at 3am anymore (because of the time change), and I'm pretty comfortable with getting around to the essential destinations (grocery store, subway station, downtown Seoul).

This past week was interesting in regards to teaching. I taught the same introductory lesson to all 22 of my classes. It was a fun lesson that involved a game and lots of student interaction, but I was happy to be moving on. I decided I would make two different lessons per week. The 7th graders have one (on after-school clubs), and the 8th and 9th graders (giving directions), another. I decided to ask the students to give themselves English names (like when I was Juan in our Spanish Classes growing up). Some of the students came up with some pretty funny names. My favorites were Beyonce, Ohno, Malaria(?), and Obama.

On the social side of things, my co-teachers took me out for my welcome dinner on Wednesday. I was expecting a traditional Korean Restaurant, but was surprised when we went to VIPS (it's like a Korean Applebee's). I guess they thought I missed my homelands food already. We had forks (not chopsticks), $30 steak, and a buffet that even 'The Biggest Loser' couldn't resist (pizza, cheescake, pancakes, oh my). Afterwards we went to a Norabong. "What is a Norabong?" you ask. It's karaoke on a more personal level. You get a private room that looks like a mock living room, and you sing some karaoke. My female, middle-aged co-teachers loved it. Who would have thought...drinking, singing, and dancing on a school night? My one co-teacher, Youngei, was using the fire extinguisher as a prop by the end of the night (acting like it was a video camera and filming us singing). Definitely a fun bonding experience. I liked the Norabong enough to go with some other Americans on Friday. I've got the singing fever!

I've met many other teachers through mutual friends. A group of teachers I went out with Saturday in Seoul I met through various college and high school friends. It helps when many teachers here went to Madison (about an hour from good old smelly Milwaukee). So plenty of Minnesotans and Sconnies. On Saturday we explored a few neighborhoods in Seoul. We ended up in Itaewon later in the evening. The Itaewon District of Seoul is infamous for being the foreigner ghetto. There's a huge U.S. Military base nearby, and it has influenced the area greatly. I felt like I was back in the U.S. when I walked down the street. Everything is in English, and they even have a Taco Bell 'coming soon' (a scarce thing to find in the East). All in all, a good weekend. I'm exhausted now as I prepare for the week of work ahead. I'll begin teaching after school classes this week (Monday my intermediate class and Friday my Advanced class). I'll get paid well for that, and I'm excited to have a group of highly motivated students put together in one class. More later this week. Thanks for tuning in.

Top picture: One of the many interesting stops we made in the Itaewon neighborhood of Seoul...a Russian Night Club
Bottom picture: A view of my hood. This busy street is where most of the shops and restaurants are

Teaching: Lesson 1

Over a week since I first arrived, and I finally got some time in the classroom. My health report came back alright, and my school decided it was time to throw me out to the wolves that are my students. My introduction lesson involved a game and candy, which my students didn't seem to have a hard time enjoying. My first class was a group of 9th graders, and it went extremely well. My next class, 7th graders, was a nightmare. They comprehend similar amounts of English to the 9th graders, but have much more energy and a much shorter attention span. My co-teacher actually took a few students aside and gave them a tongue lashing. After class they stayed behind and cleaned the room. When they finished, they formally apologized to me and bowed. That's respect, baby. I took the ringleader aside after class and just about wanted to smack him. He made me realize what a bastard I must have been for my teachers, growing up.

Walking down my street, I randomly ran into another foreigner. Tom happens to be from Canada, and has been in Korea for 10 years. He did not mind showing me around, and networked me to a few of his Korean friends, Mr. Yoon and Mr. Kim. Mr. Yoon works as a private school English tutor and likes to drink. Mr. Kim is the owner of our neighborhood sushi restaurant, and allowed me to gorge on as much sushi that I could eat.

The 'English Lab' is split into two different classrooms. The one with desks and monitors is the classroom I've been using for teaching. I haven't used the 'Reading Room'yet,(the one with progressive circular windows).

First Weekend in Retrospect

It's Sunday evening now, and The Bourne Ultimatum is on TV (the first decent program yet). It's pretty remarkable I can get western tv channels in my apartment. Unfortunately I'm not allowed to sign up for internet yet, as I still lack many basic rights without my Alien Registration Card (ARC). On the plus side, I'll be getting the ARC this week and my neighbors wi-fi is as strong as ever. On Friday night I went to the neighboring city with a teacher I met at a workshop earlier this week, and had a fun time picking all the veteran teachers' brain's for knowledge. There was plenty to be had.
Saturday I successfully traveled by the Seoul Subway system to another neighboring city named Ansan (I'm not really sure where cities start and end here, they just seem to continue on forever). There, I joined my next door neighbor from childhood, Chris Kamrath, who is here on his second year. His friends were all very accommodating. It's the time of year when there are many teachers coming and going, and Chris' friend was leaving in a week. To celebrate, his friend organized a very well put together bike tour around the city, complete with checkpoints, challenges (usually involving drink), and fun. Imagine seeing 30 Asians bike through your neighborhood (it probably was much weirder for the Koreans seeing all of us). All in all, good exercise and a good opportunity to meet new people from all over the area. I did some shopping this afternoon at Home Plus, which is basically a Target/Macy's combined with a grocery store. It's a scary place for a white man to be on a weekend. Very busy, even considering the high density of the population in my province.

Below is a video of the apartment. Sorry for the poor quality, I had to compress the file to be able to upload it.

First Impressions

The first several hours I've been in Korea have been stimulating to say the least. Our plane arrived in a snowstorm, and it took about 1 1/2 hours to get to my school. I was met by a few of my co-teachers. They in turn took me to my apartment, where I dropped off my plethora of luggage. The apartment itself is actually quite nice for one person. I've got my very own kitchen, bathroom, office, and large living room/bedroom. Plus I'm able to steal wi-fi off of the neighbors! I didn't have much time to get settled in, as my co-teachers insisted we go out for a bite to eat. I was the only one who ate, but it was something familiar; a ham and cheese sandwich. I also am fortunate to have a Dunkin' Donuts, Baskin Robbins, and McDonald's close by. Such immersion. My exhaustion soon gave in, and we left for a convenience store so I had supplies to survive the night (bottled water, toilet paper, coffee). I later found out the teacher before me left a years supply of TP at the apartment.
(Above Picture) The Incheon Bridge was completed Oct. 2009, connecting the island airport to the mainland. It's over 13 miles long and cost over 1 billion dollars to construct. Cool!

It's been on the go ever since I landed. I slept for about 6 hours, and then got in my suit and tie to go to school this morning. I was introduced to many different teachers (I don't think I remember any of their names). I was not on my guard when I walked the halls during passing time when a mob of kids surrounded me (I'm talking like 100 screaming 14 year olds). Some gave me high fives, others yelled various greetings, but most looked at me slack-jawed as if I was Godzilla himself. Frankly, I'm a little terrified to walk out there again. I'll be at a workshop with other English Teachers this afternoon, and will slowly throughout the next few weeks acclimate myself to my surroundings. Much more to come.

It's complicated

Hello friends and fam,
A few of you might know this already, but there was a major disruption in my travel plans for Korea this week. A little over 12 hours before my flight I was told I had some issues with my visa (we'll just put it that way for simplicity), and here I am in the good ol' US of A for around another week. Imagine the biggest sporting event you were a participant of in high school. Now imagine just seconds before the referee blows the whistle, the ref tells you, specifically, that you can't play. Aww too bad, soo sad. Not to worry though, it looks like everything will just happen a week later. The only downside is I'll be living out of my luggage until then, and nearly all my clothes are compressed down into nothing (those vaccuum air-dry bags work wonders on saving valuable space). I'll let everyone know my updated departure date. Now that I have another week of America, anyone have suggestions as to how I can live as an American to the fullest for my final days here?

The Inaugural Post

The mood is a delicate balance of excitement and near paralyzing anxiety. After a nearly six month process, I finally find myself only days away from my uprooting adventure to South Korea. It is almost surreal being at this point after waiting for what seemed like eternity for a final verdict on my application. What I do know is that I've gotten the green flag to go. I'll have much more interesting and entertaining posts once I'm on location in Korea. Things to know...
Departing: Monday, March 8th
Skype Name: Jayd22j
Position: English language instructor, Gyeonngi Education Program in Korea (GEPIK), Korean Ministry of Education
Here's my school's website: http://donghak.ms.kr

I'll have more for you soon...