tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59208100542968535752024-03-12T19:48:37.579-07:00Life, Love, and Learning in KoreaMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-59317168221658162232011-09-25T22:17:00.000-07:002011-09-27T17:40:00.273-07:00I Am An Addict<div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>WARNING: This blog entry isn’t about Korea. It only applies to people who use the Internet. If that is not you, you may press the "back" button or close your browser to leave this page. </strong><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><em><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">NOTE: If you’re stumbling upon my blog for the first time, (welcome!) please know that these thoughts are coming from a technologically savvy 20-something. These thoughts about Internet usage are often brought up by older generations who haven’t grown up as “digital natives”, but I want to note that these ideas are not limited to those older generations. </span></strong></em><br /><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong><span style="color:#ff0000;">Internet Addiction</span></strong>. It’s not a new concept. You’ve probably heard it mentioned in the newspaper or in a psychology textbook but never gave it much thought because you think, “that could never happen to me.” There’s even skepticism among psychologists and other medical professionals of if Internet addiction is a real medical problem. However, after doing some personal evaluating of my own, I think it’s fair to say that it exists, whether it’s legitimate enough to be considered a “real” addiction or disorder by professionals or not. In fact, I think a lot of people these days suffer from it in some way or another. I will admit here and now to you all, that I am one of those people. Yes ladies and gentleman, I am. <strong>My name is Melissa and I have an Internet addiction.</strong> Guess what? You probably do too.<br /><br />The information I use in this entry comes from a </span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brainside.html?src=busln"><span style="font-family:arial;">New York Times piece from 2010 on Internet addiction</span></a></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">, which I came across initially as a base for a discussion with my advanced-level English conversation class. After reading the article about the indicators of Internet dependence, I realized that some of my behaviors fit into that category. What shocked me the most was that some of the “symptoms” listed in the article were things I were aware of, but were what I considered to be simple lifestyle changes to accommodate the existence of technology. It wasn’t until I read this article that these behavior changes could be signs of an addiction, or at least a “dependence.” Therefore, I truly believe that many of us have some version of this and probably don’t know it. As for me, I am now on a self-proclaimed road to recovery. I hope you’ll all join me.<br /><br />According to the New York Times article, the signs of Internet addiction, or Internet dependence, are:<br />- Checking your e-mail before doing other things<br />- Frequently anticipating the next time you’ll be online<br />- You say “just a few more minutes” or “just a minute” when someone needs your attention when you’re online<br />- Lying or trying to hide how long you’ve been online<br />- Choosing to spend time online rather than going out with others<br />- Getting a lift from a depressed or nervous mood from going online<br />- Others in your life complain about how much time you spend online or using technology<br /><br /><strong>At first when I read these, I didn’t think they applied to me.</strong><br /><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">OK yes, I check my e-mail first thing in the morning, and every single time I return to my computer whether or not it’s been 5 minutes or 6 hours since my last visit. But that’s all. Right? The information in this article stuck in my mind and the following week or so, I found myself comparing and evaluating my actions. After some time, I realized, <em>damn, maybe I do have an Internet addiction</em>. You probably don’t think you do these things either, but these signs aren’t as flat out obvious as you think. For example, I don’t whine, “one more minuuuuuuute” when someone wants my attention. I do, however, say, “hang on a sec” while I finish writing e-mail or Facebook post or watching a video on youtube. If someone is calling me or waiting for me outside, or even waiting to talk to me in person, I feel obligated to finish whatever I’m doing on the internet before I can focus on them. 98% of the time, the things I am doing are not important or time sensitive. Is this true for you? It very well might be.<br /><br />I don’t blatantly lie about how much time I spend online, but I do catch myself shutting my computer and trying to look like I’m doing something else when Val or a friend suddenly enters my apartment. Also, if someone asks you how much time you spend on Facebook/e-mail/Twitter/blog-reading/surfing the net, would you give a true answer? Due to shame and fear of being judged, I probably wouldn’t. Also, do you quickly close Facebook or Twitter if someone is walking by you & your computer? One reason may be that you're at work and not supposed to be on Facebook, but if that's the case, why are you on there in the first place?<br /><br />I don’t sit in excitement for my next online log-in, but I do think about the next time I’ll be online when I’m out and about. I ask myself, “how will I write about this on Facebook?” or “I wonder how people will react to this stuff on Facebook or Twitter” or “I wonder how many new e-mails I have.” Do you think about these things too?<br /><br />Finally, I do feel a sense of relief once I’m online and “connected” to people. It would be easy for me to say that I like being online because I like being connected to people, but I have a phone. I have a voice. There are people all around me. I can easily connect with people without using the Internet. I even tried to make an excuse, saying that “well I use Facebook and check my e-mail so much because I’m so far away from my family that it is how I can communicate with them often.” My wise boyfriend pointed out that that is probably what everyone says. I’m sure when I’m back in the States and closer to my family and friends, my Internet usage won’t change.<br /><br />It is not easy to admit these things. Not at all. (In fact, as I write this I occassionally am asking myself, "do you really want to post this for everyone to see? What will people think of you?"). For someone who values her strong will, it is very defeating to admit these weaknesses, especially for a public audience. The reason I’m doing it is for you all. Yes, I am a martyr for my cause. I’m hoping that if you see someone who you know and like (I hope?) admitting to this problem and trying to fix it, that it won’t be so scary for you to do the same. You don’t have to blog it to the whole virtual universe, but maybe it will spark some action on your part. The nice part is that probably everyone around you has an Internet addiction or dependence in some degree. Some are worse than others but still, I think it’s safe to say that everyone is in the same boat here. So let's dock and get off so we can start enjoying the real world that's not on a screen!<br /><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">You might say, “How can I be addicted to the internet? It’s everywhere, it's unavoidable. It’s not like I seek it out, it’s just there. If I use the internet all the time it’s just because it’s a necessity these days.” You’re right, in a sense. In fact, only a few months before the New York Times article came out, the BBC released the results of a poll revealing that </span><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8548190.stm"><span style="font-family:arial;">4 in 5 people worldwide believe that internet access is a fundamental human right</span></a><span style="font-family:arial;">. Additionally, the article said that most governments regard the internet as part of basic infrastructure like roads, waste disposal, and water. Interesting, huh? It makes sense then that NYT article would liken an Internet addiction to an eating disorder, where someone has a consumption problem with a life necessity. You can’t live without food, so you can’t cut it completely from your life. In that way,<strong> it's</strong> <strong>basically impossible to completly disconnect yourself from the cyber world</strong>. Instead, the article says, someone who suffers from something like this must learn how to control and moderate usage</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><strong>.<br /></strong><br />That makes a whole lot of sense to me. With most people carrying around smart phones or tablets, internet access is all around us, especially here in Korea. It might seem like its unavoidable, but the truth is that <strong>you have a choice</strong>. There are ways to moderate your usage. Unfortunately, these days it takes an active effort to do so.<br /><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">So, how do you do it? I’m no expert, but here are some things that I’ve been doing to reduce my dependence. You should try it! It’s very liberating.<br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1.)<strong> I set a number of times per day that I check my e-mail, Facebook, blog replies, etc.</strong>(when I’m not at work sitting in front of computer). For example, on Saturday and Sundays I try to check my e-mail and Facebook only twice; once in the morning and once in the evening. After work on weekdays, I try to make it just one time. When I do log on, I try not to spend more than 10-15 minutes surfing. This has proven to be a lot more difficult than I expected. Last weekend I went an entire day without turning on my computer, but I found myself thinking about and wanting to go online, even while I was out and about with Val. Yikes!</span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2.) If you have a smart phone (which I don’t but Val does and this is his suggestion), <strong>turn off your notifications</strong> so your phone doesn’t beep every time you get an e-mail, Facebook response, or new tweet for someone you’re following. Your inbox and Facebook page are still at your disposable, you just have to make the effort to go there to look. You can easily do tip #1 with this method because you’re not being beckoned by your phone every 5 minutes. </span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3.) (numbers 1 & 2 will be much easier if you…) <strong>Post less on the internet</strong>. The less you post or comment on, the less notifications you have, the less you have to look at, thus the less time you will spend online. As much as you desire to tweet about the delicious sandwich you just ate or post on your Facebook status about how you’re at the grocery store with this person and this person at this location and OMG they have cabbage in stock!, hold your tongue and make the active choice not to. Chances are people don’t give a crap about that stuff anyway.<br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">4.) If you’re home alone and/or bored, <strong>have something else within easy reach to do instead of surfing the net.</strong> Recently I’ve pulled out the few books I have with me from the back of the TV stand and put them on my bedside table. When I’m home from work and want to relax, after my allotted 10-15 minutes on the computer, I SHUT IT OFF and PUT IT AWAY and pick up my book instead. It’s much easier to not be temped with “oh wait there’s one more thing I want to check on FB/search on Google, etc” when you have to move from the spot you’re sitting, take out your computer, turn it on, and open your browser. By the time you’ve done that you’ve probably forgotten about that super important thing was you just HAD to do before moving on with your life was anyway. This happens to me a lot….<br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">5.) This suggestion comes from the article. <strong>If you have a smart phone, leave it at home occasionally</strong>. My thoughts: easier said than done! A lot of people feel an emotional attachment to their phone, so I recommend starting small. Forgot something at the grocery store and gotta make a quick run back? Leave your phone at home. If there’s an emergency, there will be other people around with a cell phone who can help you. If that’s too much, leave your phone in your car while you go into the store. Meeting a friend for coffee? Leave your phone at home or, again, in the car. Eating dinner with your family? Turn it OFF and leave it in the other room. The world will not end if you do not answer that e-mail from work or respond to that Facebook status RIGHT NOW. Believe me, it won’t. Remember back in the day when we couldn’t check e-mail on our phones? The world didn’t end. You didn’t get fired. So relax. </span></div><br /><div align="left"><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6.) If these seem too daunting for you, if anything, simply make the polite effort to <strong>keep your phone away when you’re with friends</strong>. One of the things I hate the most is when friends have their cell phone on the table in front of them while we are at dinner, coffee, or just hanging out. If conversation lulls for more than 10 seconds, my friends’ heads are down, looking at their phone. Unless you’re waiting for an important phone call, this is downright rude. This rule does not change if you’re with your best friend or your brother or at a job interview or at a party. It’s rude, no matter the situation. It really surprises me how many people don’t seem to realize that.<br /><br />On that note, when the moment comes that your phone <em>does</em> ring or beep or vibrate or set off fireworks or whatever they do these days, <strong>excuse yourself before answering</strong>. Same thing applies if you suddenly have the urge to check something on the Internet from your phone. Basic manners, people!! Don’t forget them.<br /><br /></span></div><br /><div align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span></div><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5656551183245698994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 113px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 168px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglBeO2sHiswLJRwtDu9drkRGKPwj_TWBzRbvvKOEqSHCCZgBNQd1joWlhDc6gLD0svs0aInfLVGtYiGjxQCzTwH6UsMKokg5Nt8psWYpKQiZ0Eeh-4neNiGpTGfIt6fqICO4m-_K2Tq65L/s320/phone+w.+friend.jpg" border="0" /></span> <br /><p align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Mrs. Peacock would be ashamed. </span><br /></span></p><br /><p align="left"><span style="font-family:arial;">My journey of disconnecting from the Internet has been a short one so far (only a few weeks) but it has proven to be difficult. This proves all the more to me that an Internet dependence exists in my life. These days, people may believe that Internet addiction is just a part of life and it's not a problem because everyone has it. If everyone has a problem, is it a problem, or a social behavior? Oh the philosophical and <span style="color:#000000;">sociological questions that be. Either way, if Internet dependence is just a fact of life today, then that is very, very sad life we are living. If people don't start to recognize this problem, humans will live out the rest of our existence with our heads down, eyes on our phones and computers. So look up! Enjoy the beautiful world that is around you. Observe the faces, the architecture, the fly on the wall, the rice paddies flying by you on the train (OK maybe that just applies to me in Korea). Have</span> a short conversation with the stranger sitting next to you on the bus. Read a book. Read a magazine. Close your eyes and really listen to that music that's playing in your headphones or from your laptop speakers. There aren't hard things to do. It's what people did before smart phones and computers. Heck, its probably what YOU did about 6 years ago. The Internet will always be there, so join me in my effort to take the precious time we have and enjoy the world and the company around us right now. Here, I'll start. I'm ending this entry now. I will read it over, edit it, and then I will then press the "Publish Post" button and enter these thoughts into the cyber universe, open to any and all comments. I PROMISE not to incessently check for comments on this blog entry, or on the Facebook post I will make to share this blog. In fact, I will wait until I get home to post it, so I'm not tempted while I'm sitting in front of my work computer for the rest of the day. It will be really, really hard. But I promise I will do it. And when I promise you, Almighty Internet, I can't go on back it.<br /></span></p><span style="font-family:arial;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5656545775918612194" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 229px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPqcBPRnUacrUtmAsGQsAbdA-ZT4M-yb06-OQE4ER72hABuUHlHVhZpxOVopO0PYiPPJaw7tKkv2LkAiaVzhFHQ-vc_6yaEGLXncgsnkUpso-EXNxvyGZ8ElHPjpS2NTwt7cqxWEPcemfz/s320/internet-addiction.jpg" border="0" /></span>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-52914526528771647772011-09-19T20:03:00.000-07:002011-09-22T16:38:09.348-07:00Reflections<span style="font-family:arial;">T-minus 20 days until my Korean adventure is over, and only 2 weeks of teaching left. I’m starting to clean out my work desk and getting ready to pull out my suitcases and start packing. It’s really the end. I’m already contemplating in my head my response to the question I will inevitably encounter: “How was Korea?” It’s a really funny question because Korea became my home, my life. After a while, Korea just became the place I was living. Of course, it presented more challenges than a city in my home country, but those challenges just became a part of everyday life. I expect my answer to the question to be, “it was an experience.” Did I enjoy every minute of it? No. Was it challenging? You bet. Were there things I enjoyed? Of course. It will say this: It was a challenging year during which I faced a lot of questions, hardships, and tough situations. But when you think about it, so does everyone and that is what makes you the person you are. Good or bad, Korea has definitely helped shape the person I am. To quote my wise boyfriend, “life is full of things that make one strong even if they don’t want to.”<br /><br />Valery and I recently reflected on the past year. It began with me asking him if he thought he had changed since he came to Korea back in December ’09. He said he definitely had, and he knows I have too. I totally agree. The most noticeable change I’ve seen in myself is that I’m surer of myself now. After having lived in a place where you stick out like a sore thumb (in appearance and behavior) and are thus judged and stared at regularly, you simply cannot spend your energy worrying about what other people think of you. As a waygookin, no matter how much you try to fit in and please the people around you, they will still stare and judge. To be happy here, you really have to be OK with who you are and accept the differences. Val & I discussed this weekend how being the minority (in any sense) is an experience that everyone should have at least once in their life, even if it’s for a few days, because that is where true self assuredness comes from. If you can still be OK with who you are when you are judged, watched, excused from norm expectations because “that’s just how you are”, refused service, etc, that is an achievement. I’m not saying that I don’t care at all what other people think, because unless you’re a complete psychopath, you are aware of and tend to the emotions of other people. However, being OK with who you are even when the people around you judge you for it is not an easy feat. The only way you can have that experience, I think, is an in-your-face reality check.<br /><br />Also, I believe I am more tolerant now. Not to say that I was intolerant before, but I have such a deeper understanding of people who are different than me. I mean, WOW. If I had to choose which place was the most unlike America, I would choose Korea (or perhaps another Asian country…hard to say since I’ve only been here). I was never a fan of East and West categorizations (“in the Western world, people do/say/think _____”), but it is so clear to me know how different an Eastern (aka Asian) viewpoint is. I understand life and the world in such a different way now, and I appreciate my new perspective, because it is an important one.<br /><br />I’m not an expert at this. While my Anthropology degree gives me a slight academic lens to this whole thing, to me it’s the climate of the social interactions that determines how “different” I consider that country to be. You can use anthropological, economic, psychological, or sociological jargon to describe to someone why/how things are different, but any human being, educated or not, can sense the dynamic of a social situation. That is what I try to convey to my readers and my friends. I hope I have succeeded in doing that.<br /><br />My life here has exposed me to two different cultural perspectives: Korean and Cameroonian. I recently said to a friend how 75% of the time I feel like I’m in Korea, and the other 25% I feel like I’m in Cameroon. I feel like I understand the social dynamics of Cameroonian situations due to the significant time I’ve spent with many different Cameroonians in small groups, large gatherings, and one-on-one. Just like when Americans get together in Korea, we act like Americans and do things the American way and expect American social norms to be followed. So when Cameroonians get together, we might as well be in Cameroon. We are eating Cameroonian food, listening to Cameroonian music, discussing Cameroonian issues in a Cameroonian matter. There are expectations for how people are supposed to act in these settings, and I’ve learned them in an almost classroom-like manner. I come home from these events and have a discussion about it with my “teacher”, Val. I express my confusions and questions, and he gives me an explanation which I apply the next time around. I truly believe that when eventually make it to Cameroon, there won’t be much that will surprise me in terms of social interaction. In fact, one of Val’s friends said to him this weekend at a Cameroonian party (which I helped host with some of the Cameroonian girls) that he really likes and appreciates how comfortable I am around Cameroonians and how it truly feels like I am one of them. That comment means so, so much to me, especially since I am still “myself” when I’m around them. It’s proof that I’ve found a way to make changes in order to make our interactions natural for them, but still comfortable for me.<br /><br />I feel very enriched by everything I’ve encountered this year. I'll be interested to hear your observations about the changes you see in me when I get home.<br /><br /><br />On a COMPLETELY unrelated note, I have some reflections about divorce and children’s movies. A recent “victim” of a parental divorce, I am newly sensitive to this issue. Yesterday Val & I went to the movies to see “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”. (It was, by the way, our first movie-in-the-theater date ever!) If you don’t know about this movie, it features Jim Carrey as a divorced workaholic who ends up receiving penguins as a gift from his deceased father. His young children who live with their Mom don’t like him because he is boring and works too much, yada yada yada. Long story short, the penguins teach him about love and family (go figure?) and SPOILER ALERT he and his wife get back together at the end of the movie. The moment the divorced parents and young children situation was presented in the film, I knew that the parents would end up together again at the end. Then it occurred to me that all the children’s movies I could think of that have divorced parents (The <em>Parent Trap</em> and <em>Mrs. Doubtfire</em>, to name a few) all end with every child’s secret wish: their separated parents falling in love with each other again. I wonder… is this a positive message for kids? Not that divorce is a good thing, but you can’t ignore the fact that it’s becoming more and more prevalent in American society. Many kids are growing up with divorced parents. Can you think of a movie for children that present divorce in a less negative light? I can’t. These movies give false hope to kids about their parents falling for each other once again, and teach them that that the only way they can have a happy ending themselves is if their parents are together. Now, false hope is a theme for many adult movie-goers (because yeah, in real life that the smokin’ hot, sweet, flirtatious musician barista (baristo?) at your local Starbucks is going to be single/straight/not a huge player…NOT), but children can’t separate fact from fiction as easily as adults. The way we envy (but understand the fantasy of) the Hollywood romantic chance encounters with impossibly perfect people, children envy the kids in these movies. I really wonder if this is the right way to present divorce to kids. Then again, Hollywood sends lots of bad messages. This one was particularly interesting to me because it’s a children’s movie that deals with an issue that many children are dealing with currently. Kids don’t go to movies for the same reason we do. Adults often see movies to escape our messed up, problem-laden lives and enter into someone else’s perfect one where there is a guaranteed happy ending. Kids go to see movies to learn about life. It’s one thing to let a kid fantasize about their dog being able to talk or discovering they have superpowers, but another to let them believe that they can’t have a happy ending if their parents remain divorced.<br /><br />I’ll leave you with those unrelated reflections. I’m curious about your thoughts on these, readers.<br /><br />Keep your eyes out for a final entry or two in the next few weeks!<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:Arial;">Cheers!</span><br /><span style="font-family:Arial;">-Melissa</span>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-8688052196451353062011-09-04T22:50:00.000-07:002011-09-04T22:59:01.550-07:00"You want to go eat WHAT?"<p>Anyeong!</p>
<br /><p>The reality of me leaving Korea and going back home has gotten me thinking. My past few posts could make you think that I've resisted every aspect of Korean culture. I haven't. There are many sayings, gestures, etc. that have become so natural to me that it's hard to define them anymore. Just to prove to you, here's a list things that are so second nature that you might catch me doing or saying them when I return stateside next month. A lot of these became apparant to me during my vacation to Malaysia and Thailand, especially the restaurant-related things. Actually, you'll see that a lot of these are food related.</p>
<br /><ul>
<br /><li>Speaking Konglish (Korean + English). I tend to incorporate the very little Korean I do know into my normal conversations. For example: "Lunch was so <em>mashisoyo</em> [delicious] today!" "<em>Pali pali</em> [hurry], we don't want to be late." "Hey chingus! [friends]" "Milk <em>opseyo</em> [there is no milk]". OR, you might even catch me speaking English like Koreans do. Example: "That shirt costs much money." or, "Ugh, octopus is <em>not</em> delicious!</li>
<br /><li>Making an "X" with my arms (or sometimes index fingers) to indicate that I don't want something. For example, if I'm ordering food, I might say "I'll have the salad, but no olives." [*makes "X" with arms*]</li>
<br /><li>Slurping my food</li>
<br /><li>Instead of sucking noodles up from the plate, I might place them on a spoon by picking some up with my chopsticks and swirling them in a circulur motion (like preparing a soft-serve ice cream cone) while slowly lowering them towards the spoon so the noodles are in a neat pile. This is how Koreans eat noodles, especially if they are in soup. It's actually a good system because it gives the noodles a chance to cool off before you eat them. This is good when Koreans like their food piping hot and I would like to keep my taste buds THANK YOU VERY MUCH.</li>
<br /><li>Eating with chopsticks like a champion. </li>
<br /><li>Waving goodbye or hello with two hands, especially to friends.</li>
<br /><li>Happily eating shrimp or clams. These are the "safest", most normal, and most familiar seafood to me in a sea (pun intended) of octopus, prawn, squid, and jellyfish-laden food in Korea, so I am relieved if I can find a dish with only those in it. </li>
<br /><li>Really enjoying (and often craving) eating dried seaweed. Still can't stand it when it's wet and slimy in soup or vegetable salad, but it's really quite good when it's dry and seasoned with salt and olive oil. It comes in packages like this, and I sometimes eat it straight from the package as a snack. </li></ul>
<br /><p align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5648749339772152706" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 236px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 187px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7lwiOllQNPA9S7QVwEevBHblAyBcZ4u1YdGaOjoZliWFfrpycQEmiQbLoVliIrrzvh1_HUaCc5Agknn6hnjXXZ4hc6BGDtgJBr6fMC_Q65qdtXexzKaXNNBtM-huYt8usPKcWu5x2oaIV/s320/seasweed-small.jpg" border="0" /></p>
<br /><ul>
<br /><li>Wishing everyone a good meal before we eat. Koreans always say <em>Jalmukesumneda</em> before people start eating. It translates directly into "eat a lot", but the meaning is the same as <em>bon apetit</em>. I actually really enjoy this becuase it makes the meal more special, more ceremonial. Saying "enjoy your meal" turns people sitting at a table together into a community of people eating a meal together. This is probably something I'll make an active effort to continue even if I never return to Korea. </li>
<br /><li>Taking off my shoes whenever I go inside a home or restaurant.
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<br /></li>
<br /><li>Becoming complacent with mediocre Italian food (though I am determined to change this the minute my feet touch American soil!)
<br /></li>
<br /><li>Giving and taking things with both hands, or with one hand touching the elbow of the outstretched arm. This is the polite way to give or recieve something in Korea, especially money or a gift.
<br />
<br /></li>
<br /><li>Pouring everybody else's drinks at the table. In Korea, you're never supposed to fill your own glass (especially with alcohol). Or, if you are pouring my drink, I will pick up the cup from the table and hold it with both hands (or with one as I described above) as you pour.
<br /></li>
<br /><li>Looking for a button on the table at a restaurant to press for attention from the waiter or waiter. My friends & I call it the "yo-gi-oh button" because <em>yo-gi-oh</em> means "over here" in Korean. It's what you shout when you're ready to order at a restaurant. Most places have buttons, though, which you can press for immediate attention from the staff. </li>
<br /><li>Forgetting to ask for the check at a restaurant. Here, as soon as order the waiter or waitress will bring you the bill and set it on the corner of the table. Then you bring the check up to the cashier and on your way out. In Thailand and Malaysia we all found ourselves puzzled that we got up to leave and realized we didn't have the check. We were all used to not having to ask for it! </li>
<br /><li>Bowing my head and upper body when saying hello, goodbye, or thank you.
<br /></li></ul>
<br /><p>I'm sure there are more, but that's a good list to start with I think. I wonder what American tendencies I'm no longer doing... </p>
<br /><p>
<br />See you all very soon!
<br />Love, Mel</p>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-29973368891888632102011-09-02T01:07:00.000-07:002011-09-02T02:23:39.093-07:00Malaysia & Thailand Vacation<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" >
<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium; " >Time really flies. I can’t believe it’s September. I can’t believe I’m going home in five weeks. I can’t believe that in 2 weeks I will have been in Korea for an entire year.</span></div> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; " ></span><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >I promised a blog entry about my vacation to Malaysia and Thailand, so here it is. Oddly, I f</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >eel it was not Southeast Asia that I learned the most about.<span> </span>For me, this trip ended up being about Korea- what it means to me, what I appreciate about it, what I hate about it, what it has given me as a person and a traveler.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Firstly, here’s a map for reference.</span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsg1fC1rzAbe6PxDZeIzoSZSSJiu3NYO6LJ_OvF_LYxjNviyscbBEO2Tbyu11V-SVxbR2IUv1OTvKn3mhMjO-VwRfBuymG8ofQ33YlAtPPxP0SEYMZsqK7lJmNMY-FB4-qt1mam898npAK/s400/SE+asia+map.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647671596974485490" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 254px; " /><div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok are marked. Here's another map so you can see where Phuket is. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" >
<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPIZl4hAuUqz0k3Gdz9yU4grWOHZxiSWVurJCE927fpoNWVmXbwEEJTcQjOnVrewCcv8MM-GmikVh08vsx5pE_cL4MaUL64g8_0b916oSP2TlsaIafPFTmDuvio-YXwaPmOZ8-BHzVMd4/s320/map_of_thailand.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647672330558983474" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></div> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t32" coordsize="21600,21600" spt="32" oned="t" path="m0,0l21600,21600e" filled="f"> <v:path arrowok="t" fillok="f" connecttype="none"> <o:lock ext="edit" shapetype="t"> </v:shapetype><v:shape id="_x0000_s1029" type="#_x0000_t32" style="'position:absolute;" connectortype="straight" strokeweight="2.25pt"> <v:stroke endarrow="block"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><span style="mso-ignore:vglayout;position: absolute;z-index:4;margin-left:175px;margin-top:126px;width:34px;height:19px"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><img width="34" height="19" src="file://localhost/Users/melissawaldman/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0clip_image001.png" shapes="_x0000_s1029" /></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">Our first stop was Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. KL is considered a Muslim city, and it dawned on me on the airport shuttle-tran ride that that would actually influence our stay there because at the time, it was Ramadan. As we made our way to the airpor</span>t exit, I worried about that we wouldn’t be able to find anything to eat during the day. We arrived really late at night so as soon as we made it to our hostel we crashed.<span> </span>We ended up being fine.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><i>I could tell you about all the things we did when we were in KL- saw the Patronus Towers, went shopping, went to the top of the KL tower, but what I took away the most from KL was a sentiment.</i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">It wasn’t until the next morning that I discovered how diverse KL is. I think it came as a shock after having lived in Korea for nearly a year.<span> </span>Every face that passed you on the street was different.<span> </span>Every tongue you heard from the conversations of passer-bys was different. I was in heaven!! Such a feast for the eyes, the ears, and the soul. <span> </span>As we walked around I learned that the population of KL consists of three main groups: native Malays, Indians, and Mandarin Chinese.<span> </span>The cuisine reflected those three ethnicities which mix and match in this beautiful city. (That was why we didn’t have any trouble finding food during the day). Eating in KL and Thailand was a re-introduction to flavors.<span> </span>As you now know from pr</span>evious posts, Korean food consists of one flavor- hot chili pepper.<span> </span>Malay food, aside from being so diverse, was so <i>flavorful. </i>Garlic, ginger, basil, savory meat- where have you been?!?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">The thing that struck me the most about KL was how similar it felt to Cape Town.<span> </span>I kept saying how similar they were but I couldn’t quite put my finger on why.<span> </span>I don’t think it was anything tangible- the two cities do not look the same in terms of architecture or anything. <span> </span>“This place reminds me of Cape Town” was one of the first comments I m</span>ade about KL.<span> </span>I don’t know…there was something about flying down the highway in the airport taxi (on the other side of the road) staring at the palm-treed lined highway and feeling invincible and vulnerable at the same time. KL was the first stop on our trip, the beginning of a trip to foreign places. Beyond accommodation, we hadn’t made any solid itineraries, so anything could happen.<span> </span>The last time I felt that paradox of emotions was on the bus from the Cape Town airport when I first arrived.<span> </span>I felt so excited—a beginning of something unknown and exciting—yet also vulnerability.<span> </span>I didn’t know much about life in Cape Town, and now I didn’t know anything about life in KL.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Besides that, I think the striking diversity of KL made me think of Cape Town.<span> </span>Cape Town was the most diverse place I’d ever been to, and that was one of the things I loved about it.<span> </span>I think being in such a diverse place again reminded of that feeling again.<span> </span>Not to mention, when I calmed myself down enough to order a Savannah Dry (a South African hard cider that was my drink of choice in CT) at a nearby bar, that familiar subtle apple flavor mixed with the bitterness of beer brought back so many memories and emotions.<span> </span>People always talk about how smells can bring back memories and emotions.<span> </span>They never say anything about taste. Whenever I have the occasional craving to recreate my favorite childhood meal—<i>acini de pepi</i> pasta with butter and parmesan cheese accompanied by a glass of chocolate milk— memories and “feelings” of my childhood come flooding back. It’s really incredible, that brain of ours. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">Another part I loved about KL was the pleasantness of the population. Folks were smiling, or at least looked content, as they went about their daily lives. You have to understand that this is NOT how it is at all in Korea, which is probably why it felt so refreshing to me.<span> </span>In KL, when I met a stranger’s eyes on the street, they gave me a smile or a polite nod.<span> </span>In Korea, I receive an open-mouthed gape then a quick, embarrassed look away once I stare back at them long enough.<span> </span>In general, Koreans aren’t happy people (not a shocker if you examine their lives, cultural mentalities and expectations).<span> </span>I had forgotten what a difference it makes when people are actually content with their lives. They carry themselves differently-with more ease and a lightness of character. They do not have their faces glued to their Smartphone or Galaxy Tab or iPad. The woman working behind the desk at 7-11—cert</span>ainly not the most exciting or glamorous job—smiles at you and giggles when you make a face or joke to your friend. She says hello and smiles again when you go in a half-hour later, seemingly happy to see you again.<span> </span>When children see you they do not point; instead, they wave.<span> </span>AAAHHHHHHHHH (sign of relief).<span> </span>What a nice reminder.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">After a short 2.5 days in KL, we traveled to our second destination- Phuket, Thailand (pronounced poo-ket…don’t get any ideas). Despite the name, Phuket is, simply put, paradise.<span> </span>It’s where people go for an exotic tropic</span><span class="Apple-style-span">al vacation. I don’t blame them. Never have I seen water so blue.<span> </span>Phuket is definitely a tourist town. Normally, that would bother me, but this was the actually “vacation” part of our trip, so I didn’t mind.<span> </span>Everyone spoke English very well and there were tons of other tourists around (especially German and French). One of my favorite parts of Phuket (and one of the top experiences of the whole trip) was snorkeling.<span> </span>Our hostel helped book us a ferry trip to Ko Phi Phi Island, a famous group of islands about an hour boat ride away from main land Phuket.<span> </span>The ferry ride included snorkeling, views of al</span><span class="Apple-style-span">l the gorgeous islands of Ko Phi Phi (including Maya Bay where the famous Leonardo DiCaprio movie “The Beach” was filmed) and time to explore and shop on the main island. Shopping on the main island was fun, but the snorkeling was definitely the highlight of the day.<span> </span>I mentioned the color of the water before- it was unin</span>hibited, full out, no B.S. turquoise.<span> </span>I seriously didn’t know it was possible for water to look like that. It was in every sense of the word bright blue, as if there was a flood light under the surface shining light on it.<span> </span>I never expected to be surrounded by a turquoise oasis when I put my head into the water to snorkel.<span> </span>Purple and yellow-striped fish swam all around me.<span> </span>Beneath the fish was coral of every shape. If I was to paint what I saw on a canvas, I would use all bright and pastel colors.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">I was surprised the fish never touched me because there were so many that seemed to inches from my flailing limbs trying to simultaneously balance in the life jacket and avoid other passengers snorkeling around me. (Funny side note about that. Sending a ferry-full of passengers into the same small section for snorkeling is a recipe for swimming-traffic disaster. I had several head-on collisions into other snorkelers, who were, like me, swimming forward face and eyes down watching fish instead of paying attention to the legs and arms coming towards them at the surface.<span> </span>Everyone was in such wonder that we didn’t even apologize to one another, just turned our bodies and went on our ways. Thinking about it now it was probably very comical for the crew and passengers onboard to watch us all swim into each other</span><span class="Apple-style-span">.)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">Besides the congested traffic situation, it was really a wonderful experience. No really, wonderful.<span> </span>Full of wonder.<span> </span>I don’t think I’ve ever been in such awe of anything before.<span> </span>I was just as fascinated with the fish and coral as I was with the color of the water.<span> </span>At one point I turned around and swam away from the fish and instead into the clear, uninterrupted turquoise.<span> </span>If there was ever a time for music to accompany my life, this was probably it.<span> </span>In my head, Arial the Little Mermaid’s voice ahhh-ing to “Part of Your World” was in my head: “ahh ahh ahhh, ahh ahh ahh, ahh ah ah ah ah ahh ahh ahh </span>AAAHHHHHH!”<span> </span>(You know what I’m talking about right?).<span> </span>I was in such awe of the blue and so deep into my musical daydream that I didn’t even realize that someone from the ferry crew was blowing his whistle at me because I was swimming out of bounds. Oops.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">The nightlife in Phuket was really something else</span>-“wonderful” in a completely different way.<span> </span>Thailand has quite an active sex industry, and it’s not tucked away and hidden from tourists.<span> </span>In fact, I think a lot of people, men especially, come to Thailand for that reason. Both nights at Patong Beach we found ourselves at the strip of bars and clubs down the road from our hostel, where advertisers where constantly asking us if we wanted to attend a “Ping Pong Show” which has NOTHING to do with playing ping pong, I’ll tell you that. We also encountered many “ladyboys” – men who (very convincingly) dress like women or have had sex-change procedures.<span> </span>These “ladyboys” (the Thai word for them translates into English as that term) are considered a third gender in Thailand, which I find fascinating. There were everywhere.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">The strip of bars also featured girls dancing on </span><span class="Apple-style-span">ables in outdoor bars. Not drunk party girls dancing on tables, I mean hired scantily clad Thai girls dancing on tables (some of whom didn’t tlook like they could have been much older than my students).<span> </span>I wasn’t shocked to see hired girls dancing on tables, but I was shocked to see it outside for all to see.<span> </span>If I was shocked I can’t imagine how the other family tourists felt. While I was surprised to see the sex industry so blatantly open in a tourist area, I was previously aware of the sex industry in Thailand and how vital it is to their economy because of my HIV/AIDS research papers in college.<span> </span>I knew I was going to be exposed to it in some fashion when I was there.<span> </span>The vacationing families who were there with their 10-year old children clearly were not prepared for that.<span> </span>Parents walked a few paces in front of their children, wide-eyed and terrified while their children looked in awe and confusion </span>all around them.<span> </span>I was disappointed in these people- they should have done their research before they brought their children there.<span> </span>That is, unless they did do their research and had prepared an appropriate discussion to have with their children.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">In amongst all of this craziness we managed to find a really awesome bar where there was an awesome live band playing.<span> </span>There, we met a couple Australian guys who were in Phuket for their buddy’s bachelor party.<span> </span>Apparently, they w</span><span class="Apple-style-span">ere the only single ones out of the whole group of guys, so they were out. We jammed to the live band for a while and then we all went to a pool hall and played pool. They were genuinely nice guys so it was fun to hang out with them.<span> </span>We played a couple games of pool then went dancing at a club, where we found LOTS of tourist men with Thai women whom they had clearly bought for the night.<span> </span>Although the music and company were really great, I was really uncomfortable with all of that going on, so we </span>left.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >The next day, we left for our fancy beach resort at a different beach.<span> </span>The pictures speak for themselves there.<span> </span>It was AWESOME, especially the pool.<span> </span>We enjoyed our evening there a lot, especially watching the sunset from our private balcony. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjui8UvWJEYmIm_NuCqUjLFy31QFxVXCgAn8bXGCq5U_CjVlafPeDTeqxvqP01vBkgDppa7-Fxo1kjl7NdFvkmtv0aEDQIfS3XGNsEJJQxW46vzbO4FhNx6UnND4HdolWfCCFbibXHWgW52/s320/IMG_7569.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5647674279215611906" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" >The pool, from the pool (yes I brought my camera in)</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Before I go on, a word about Thai food.<span> </span>Every Thai dish (done well) is said to have all 4 flavors in one- sweet, spicy, sour, and salty.<span> </span>Sadly, a lot of Thai food did not agree with my stomach (I was actually out of commission for one day in Bangkok due to a bout of food poisoning. Mleh), however what I did eat I enjoyed a lot.<span> </span>As I mentioned earlier, it was so nice to well…. not eat Korean food.<span> </span>I can’t say I ever got used to Korean food or enjoy it at all. I certainly won’t miss it when I come home. Someone get me an actually delicious pasta dish please!!<span> </span>Despite my, erm, traveler’s problems, the food was one of the highlights of the entire trip.<span> </span>I looked forward to every meal.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >After our relaxing stay at the Karon beach resort, we were off to the airport again for Bangkok. My feelings about Bangkok are like my feelings for NYC- it was fun for a few days, but I could never live there.<span> </span>I honestly didn’t have a fantastic time in Bangkok. By the time we got there I was starting to feel ready to go back to Korea, where I know my way around and how things go, and to see Val. Our first day wasn’t great- we got lost and ended up doing a lot of walking on a very hot day. We did get to see the flower market, though, which I was happy about. The vendors for tuk-tuks (those little open three-tire cars), taxis, restaurants, souvenirs, EVERYTHING, were so aggressive.<span> </span>We were constantly declining offers for everything imaginable, and it got old quick. Not to mention, at the beginning of the day we (almost) got scammed by this guy who at first was being helpful and showing us things to do near our hostel, but then we realized it was a scam later on- the tuk tuk he got for us would supposedly take us to a few places then back to the area our hostel was in, but instead it would take us to a store where we are expected to buy things.<span> </span>We had read about scams like these in our guide book, so once we realized it we got out of it. That was not a pleasant experience, and not a positive introduction to Bangkok.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >The next day I was sick in bed the whole day.<span> </span>Our last day there, though, was definitely the best one.<span> </span>We went to Wat Pho, which houses an enormous gold reclining Buddha in addition to many other temples and Buddhist structures.<span> </span>It was really beautiful and I had a field day with my camera.<span> </span>At Wat Pho alone I took almost 200 pictures. Then we went to the Museum of Siam which was one of the coolest museums I’ve ever been to. If I ever go back to Bangkok again, I would want to go with someone who speaks Thai and knows their way around.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Despite those negative experiences, I still really did enjoy my trip. <span> </span>I got to do and see so much and check off yet another region of the world that I’ve been to. I also really liked spending time with my friends Blythe and Michelle.<span> </span>I think one of the best parts of the trip were all of the inside jokes we came out of it with.<span> </span>Those are sometimes the best part of vacations!<span> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >When we finally arrived back in Korea, Valery was at the airport with a sign that said “I miss you baby.” So sweet :)<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >I sort of missed Korea, which surprised me.<span> </span>Although as soon as I was back on Korean soil it was back to being stared at and being surrounded by grumpy people, it felt familiar. Huh. Who’da thought?<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >If you haven’t heard already, my flight back to the states is booked.<span> </span>October 10<sup>th</sup> I will be back on American soil.<span> </span>Here goes my last month of teaching…<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Love,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="left" style="text-align:left"><span class="Apple-style-span" ><span class="Apple-style-span">Mel</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <!--EndFragment--></div><span class="Apple-style-span" ></span>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-90572999535438020212011-07-05T21:01:00.000-07:002011-07-05T21:18:05.808-07:00There's Good Stuff Too!<span style="font-family:verdana;">After reading my post about cultural frustrations, it would be rather safe for you to assume that I hate Korea. In fact, in that moment I was posting (OK, ranting), I probably did hate Korea. However, it is important for you to remember that those moments of, as I said, "full-throttle frustration", are not my only emotions. I want to tell you (and I want to remind myself) of the things that make living in Korea pretty great. Bare with me, as posts of this nature are as much for me as they are for you. As I struggle with the decision of whether or not to re-sign my contract for another year in Korea, writing blog posts in lieu of pro-and-con lists seems to be the most sensible way for me to work out my feelings. Also, they are interesting for you (I hope). </span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:verdana;">Keeping with the format of the other post, let's do this in list form.<br /><br />1) <strong>Money</strong>. When you are earning as much as I am (or any other other foreign English teacher in this country), it is really easy to have fun and to also save money. In other words, life is comfortable, at least financially. Firstly, I get paid pretty big bucks and have great 'perks'. In addition to receiving a steady and decent salary, my apartment rent is paid for my by school, as is half of my medical insurance. That's right. My apartment is free.<br /><br />Secondly, living expenses are pretty low here. Utility bills are (almost) always under $30. If you're eating out, food is cheap. Eating Korean or Chinese food is rarely over $8 per meal. This includes a large portion of whatever you've ordered (which comes in a jiffy), and unlimited side dishes like kimchi and sweet yellow radishes. Most of the time, it's cheaper to eat out than to buy groceries for a weeks' worth of dinner ingredients. If you go out to a "nice" restaurant -- meaning Western style food-- your meal will never be over $25. Granted, the Western food isn't very good. Well, scratch that. It's not good at all. But still, when you have a craving, it's nice to know that you can still "enjoy" it without having to splurge.<br /><br />Looking good also doesn't hurt your wallet either. I got my hair done at the "expensive" salon in town and my haircut cost $15. When the ladies at work asked how much my new 'do costs, they were shocked that I had to pay 15 bucks for it. "Ohh, too expensive!" I just laughed and explained to them that in America, most haircuts at nice salons cost around $40. The salon at the American airbase in Songtan that we frequent has pedicures for $25, mani's for $10, and brow waxing for...wait for it.... $6. That is really the only beauty service that I can compare to the U.S. because it's the only one I do. If you've never seen salon prices in the U.S., allow me to explain. Take those numbers, mulitply them by 2 (or 3 for brow waxing). There you have average prices for those services. RIGHT?! Moreover, there are tons of markets around where you can buy cheap clothes, shoes, and accesories.<br /><br />Medical care is mad cheap too. You're only out 2 or 3 bucks if you need Ibuprofen, or any other medication at the pharmacy. I spoke with someone who had to stay the night at the hospital after a car accident while in Korea. The price for his entire ordeal? 100 USD. Geez, I was in the emergency room for 3 hours a few years ago and had to shell out $700. Now I <em>know</em> we're getting jipped!<br /><br />That being said, there are some things that are not cheap here. The must frustraing examples are: cocktails, bread, cheese or any other "Western" food product at the grocery store (Friggen' cream cheese costs $6 for a tiny tub), wireless internet, and sandwiches or any other baked good.<br /><br />2) I cannot list the awesome things about Kore without a mention of the thriving metropolis of <strong>Seoul</strong>. Just one short bus or subway ride will get me to one of the world's largest, most fascinating, and modern cities. There are so many cool things to do in Seoul. Whether or not you want a little piece of home or an experience that is completly new and cool, you can find it in Seoul. Often, the challenge is finding out what and where those experiences are--you gotta make a bit of an effort to find English sources. There are tons of English news sources and even expat magazines that provide that info, you just gotta know where to look to find them.<br /><br />I also gotta give a shout-out to my own city, <strong>Suwon</strong>. Despite living in the shadow of its bigger, cooler, more famous neighbor, Suwon does pretty well for itself. There are lots of cool experiences, especially when it comes to intenational food, to do in Suwon. Even more so than in Seoul, you need to know where to look because there isn't really any good English language sources for Suwon. Your best resource is other expats who have been in Suwon for a while. If you're living in Suwon, you'll likely learn about great places through Suwon vetrans, friends of friends, or a friend's co-worker's ex-colleague's boyfriend's Korean language class classmate's orienation roommate's co-teacher. Or something like that. As for me, I have been able to find some pretty great restaurants thanks to round-about suggestions like those. My friends and I frequent a tucked-away Indian restaurant that a friend of a friend discovered. Delicious, delicious food there. Apparantly there's also a great burger joint around my neighborhood that's been recommended to me by several people. A friend also recommended that <a href="http://lifelovelearninginkorea.blogspot.com/2011/05/long-weekend-of-festivals.html">Vietnamese shabu shabu </a>I wrote about in a previous entry.<br /><br />3) <strong>An international community</strong>. Thanks to the plummeting economies of the West, there is a bustling foreigner community in Korea of people who are to teach, study, or even work (usually at Samsung). In Suwon, the foreigner community is strong but few. As with finding stuff to do, finding people to do stuff with also requires a little bit of digging. I dug a bit and struck gold around December and have been rolling in it ever since. Thanks to many-an-outing to foreigner bars (there are a few in Suwon), chance encounters, friends of friends, and GEPIK orientation (which I blogged about <a href="http://lifelovelearninginkorea.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-friends-new-ideas.html">here</a>), etc, I'm meeting people from every corner the world. I have met people from South Africa,Germany, El Salvador, Sweden, Italy, Ethiopia, Guinea Bissau, Cameroon, England, Russia, Jordan, Canada, China, Columbia, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Nigeria, Guatemala, Australia, New Zealand... I could go on forever. I've always loved meeting and befriending people from all over the world, and I was surprised how well I could do that here. Since we're all in the same shoes-- being foreigners in a place that is not always foreigner-friendly-- we stick together and always welcome newcomers.<br /><br />4) <strong>My job</strong>. If you factor in how much I paid, my hours, and what is expected of me, this job is a dream come true. I know a lot of recent college graduates who would kill for a job like this. I try to remember that. In truth, I enjoy this job sometimes. I can't say that I love it. It has its moments, though. Some days are great. Most days are O.K. Some days are downright terrible. I don't want to do this job forever-- I know that. In this stage in my life, being able to live comfortably and save money at the same time is really great.<br /><br />I realize that this is a conflict a lot of people encounter in their lives: stay at a job that you don't enjoy but pays well, or leave it in hopes of finding something better. Which will usually mean not getting paid what you would like to be paid. Readers: have you been in a situation like this? What did you do? What was your decision-making process like?<br /><br />5) <strong>My friends</strong>. I don't need to explain much here. I have a number of really great friends here, and am always meeting new people. We have a great time together. It's our dinner dates, cocktail hours, weekend get-togethers, or extravagant weekend plans that get me through particularly frustrating days or weeks. I feel like I have a mini-family here, and they make life pretty great. Like I said, we're all in the same boat. It's comforting.<br /><br />6) <strong>The boif</strong>. For those of you who aren't hip and 'with-it', or who are not a 14-year old girl, 'boif' is a cute, juvenile abbreviation for boyfriend. Just trying to lighten the mood before I go all mushy-gushy on you.<br /><br />The main reason why Korea is pretty great to me is because Valery is here. He is the reason I came here in the first place, and it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. These 10 months we've spent FINALLY in the same place-- living together, traveling, trying new things, attending social events, becoming part of each other's friend groups-- has proved to me more than ever that he's "the-one" and that we have a real shot of doing this, like, forever. [Cue aaawwww's.] You know all that stuff I raved about how frustrating living in Korea can be? Well I forget all about that when he walks through the door and hugs me like he hasn't seen me in a year. (And remember I actually know what that feels like. It's like that every time, I swear.) If I've had an extra bad day, he's always a patient, supportive, and rational sounding board to my emotional rants. People search their whole lives for what we have, and we got it. And it is life's most wonderful gift. This time, I have a choice- I can stay if I want to. How can I even consider walking away, doing long distance for who knows how long?! So, you see my dilemma.<br /><br />Oh, and August will be 2.5 years that we've been together. Holy crap.<br /><br />Lastly, and probably most importantly: <strong>Experience</strong>. In these 10 months alone, I have felt myself becoming a stronger, more independent, more knowlegable, confident and well-rounded person. The experience of living abroad, teaching students, and navigating cultural barriers is the opportunity of a lifetime. I'm learning so much about myself here. I'm trying new things. I'm discovering new things in this country every day. I'm discovering what is and what is not important to me. I know this job is a stepping-stone to my bigger goals. The question is-- how long do you stay on a stepping stone? </span><br /><br /><p><span style="font-family:verdana;"></span></p><br /><p><span style="font-family:verdana;">I hope now you can see both sides of life in Korea. As with any foreign country, you have to take the good with the bad. The question is, can the good balance out the bad? I'd like to think so.<br /><br />Thanks for reading. </span></p>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-75969343809626206082011-06-25T21:18:00.000-07:002011-06-25T22:23:01.222-07:00La Vie, l'Amour, et l'Apprentissage en la CoréeBonjour!<br /><br />My blog is now bilingual! I recently decided to start a new project, just for fun. I will now be translating some of my blog entries into French and posting them on another blog. I actually set up this new blog last during my senior year of college for a French class which required me to blog in French as homework. The blog has been sitting untouched since my last homework assignment, but it will soon receive a makeover and some new content! <br /><br />Though I've been in Korea for 10 months, my love for French remains strong. My French skill, unfortunately, does not. Valery and I practice speaking occasionally, but in an attempt to keep up my (almost) fluency and ease, I thought it would be fun to practice this way. Translating my own work into French will not only allow me to practice my writing and improve my mastery of the language, but will also (hopefully) expand my writing and insight on this experience to a new audience. <br /><br />So, if you read/understand French, check out my translations at http://filleamericaneamefrancophone.blogspot.com/ (An American woman, a Francophone Soul). <br /><br />Bisous!<br /><br />-MelissaMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-77684736432332823922011-05-27T00:00:00.000-07:002011-06-23T21:09:02.568-07:00Can I get an 'Oy Vey'?!<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">As a traveler, no matter where you are or how much you love where you are, you are bound to go through the I HATE THIS PLACE phase. Whether that phase lasts an hour, a day, a week, a month, a few months depends on the person and the place. When I was in Cape Town, that phase lasted for about 5 minutes. I recently entered this phase in Korea and have been raging with full-throttle frustration since. I can't exactly say when it started, or whether or not there was an occurance that set it off, but I just know that I suddenly felt the little frustrating things about being a foreigner in Korea being not so little anymore. I started to become uncharactaristically cynical, judgemental and short-tempered. My co-workers, whom I typically enjoy spending time with, suddenly became objects of my mental judgements and annoyed reactions that I'd mutter under my breath. (One nice thing about living in Korea is that you can easily vocalize those little mean or rude things you are thinking because no one will understand you.) It took me a while to actually realize that I was in this phase, and unfortunately I still am. Don't worry, I'm OK. I'm lucky to have many, many friends here who know exactly what I'm going through and with whom I can rant and rave with complete confidence that they understand. For all of you out there who aren't <em>waygookin</em>s (foreigners), allow me to explain why I often think (and sometimes say), "KOREA WHY ARE YOU SO ANNOYINGGGG?!?!?! *%$#* $#^% @!$# *%#@"<br /><br />1) As a foreigner in Korea, it's safe to say that you are almost constantly on display. Living in one of the most homogenous countries in the world, Koreans are surprised and fascinated when they see foreigners-- especially people at the two extremes of the age spectrum. Children will often point at you and shout, "waygookin!", as if you were an animal at the zoo. Of course it's hard to get angry at children (especially since I'm convinced Korean kids have an extra 'cute' gene in them--they are SO ridiculously adorable). Adults, however, are not adorable. They have a similar habit as their children to make a point of noticing foreigners, but instead they "point" with their eyes. Their expressions often have a hint of accusation, as if to say, "what are you doing here? you don't belong here...this place is for <i>Koreans</i>." The worst is the older folks. I will say on their behalf, however, that the Korea they grew up in was virtually foreigner-less. Only in the past 3-5 years, the number of foreigners living in Korea has sky-rocketed. So, now in their old age, they sort of have a legit excuse to be a little surprised and curious. That being said, I wonder if back in those days they were taught manners. I'm tired of getting 'elevator eyes' (looking someone up and down, head-to-toe and up again) from, like, EVERY person who sees me. The vertical shifty eyes are quick, often not lingering, but they're there. (I mean, have you ever had someone look you up and down and NOT notice?) I can sense the process of thoughts in their heads: 'Huh? Oh! She's a foreigner. Wow, look at her. How interesting. Let me look at her outfit and make judgements about it. MY EYES!!! She's not wearing stockings under her knee-length skirt. Oh, and her neckline goes below her collarbone. SLUT. Oh, look at how she walks. She can walk pretty well for a foreigner. That's amazing.'<br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span">Ok ok, maybe I'm taking this a little too far. But with the level of utter dumbfoundedness (is that even a word? My web browser is telling me it's not, but I can't think of another word to use...) with which people look at me, I wouldn't be surprised if that's what they're thinking. I can feel their eyes every moment they're watching. People literally stop walking in order to watch me go by. Didn't they learn that it's rude to stare? I'm not a circus animal for them to gawk at. I'm a human being. Don't they understand that? I mean, I understand the curiosity, but it's one think to look, another to gawk. Now that its summertime, I have found some solace in my sunglasses. Without my eyes visible, I am often mistaken for a Korean at first since my dark hair and short height match most Korean women (though the size of my chest or backside do not). I notice when I'm riding my bike or walking down the street while wearing my sunglasses, I don't receive lingering stares. It's so very nice. </span><br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span">When Valery and I are together especially, we receive many stares. Hardcore stares. People will stare at us as we walk toward them. We glare right back at them to challenge them, telepathically saying "what are YOU looking at?!". Often times, staring as we walk by isn't enough. They will stop walking and turn around to continue watching us as we walk away. Ugh. Really?! </span><br /><br />This is something you sort of get used to after a few months here, but it doesn't really make it any more bearable. Most of the time, you tolerate it. Sometimes, like now for me, it infuriates you. I try not to think about it. I often find myself now avoiding eye contact with people. Which is so not me. BUT, staying true to form, I look for the positives in a negative situation. I've always thought of myself to be a confident person, but the demeaning looks I receive have done some damage to that. After a while I deciding I wasn't going to let that ruin me. So, I have adapted a new mindset. The idea is, people are going to stare at me regardless- I might as well do what I want. So now, no more itchy stockings after work. More experiments with different clothing styles (hats, layering, funky patterns, etc). More jamming to my iPod on the subway and bus. More tight-fitting jeans that show off my curves. I have to say, It is pretty liberating, so I guess it's blessing in disguise.<br /><br /><br /><span class="Apple-style-span">2) Stripper heels. I'm not sure why this bothers me so much, but Korean women wear HUGE high heels. Not just when they're going out for an evening outing. All the time, everyone. I find myself staring in disbelief at these 5, maybe even 6" heels on women whose jobs involve standing. Hairdressers, store clerks, etc. How do their feet not killing after 5 minutes in those shoes? The reason I call them stripper heels is because at home, the only women who wear heels that high are strippers (or women who want the same kind of attention as strippers get). Plus, when matched with mini-skirts (as they so often are) and Korean womens' beautiful, long legs, Korean women dressed like that look to me indecent. The worst part is that 80% of the women in these heels can't even walk properly in them. This was a sight I saw often at home, especially at night out in da clubs: women just shuffling their way from here to there, taking tiny steps because they can't straighten their knees all the way because their heels are too high. It's pathetic. Here's a little tip for choosing shoes: if you can't walk in them, don't wear them. Duuurrrr! Just today, when walking to the park, we passed a girl who was walking very awkwardly; it looked like she may have been injured somehow or maybe even slightly handicapped. On her feet were 3-inch stiletto-style heels. I couldn't believe it.</span></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span">Don't have much of a positive light to shine on this matter, except that it makes me feel better about myself when I'm comfortably walking around in my flats while the Koreans stumble along in their monster heels. Perhaps I'd feel differently if I was trying to catch the attention of a Korean male, but I'm not. So, that's that. </span><br /><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span">3) As much as I'd like to think of myself as wordly and adventurous, I really don't like most Korean food. The reason being, that the majority of Korean food is spicy or exotic (to me) seafood. Eel, octopus, and squid are ingredients in regular meals- even school lunches. Now, when I say spicy, I'm not talking about food with a little kick that puts the cherry on top of a delectable bite. No, I'm talking about EVERYTHING- vegetables, meat, fish, and soup, all absolutely drowning in chili pepper paste. You can't get away from it. Koreans really like to eat things that are "good for your health", which explains why they love the chili pepper. However, it is literally the only spice they use. Salty foods are "bad for your health", so at school lunch, there is rarely a salty item. My rule of thumb for any item I see on the menu is- if it's red, it's spicy. This means I am usually left to choking down the spicy food (as my nose starts running--and its rude to blow your nose at the table in Korea), or resorting to eating solely rice for my meal. This explains why I gained a good 5 pounds since I've been here-- I've just been eating a lot of white rice! Nowadays, my spicy tolerance has increased just a bit, so I can enjoy some of the spicy vegetables, especially if they are cold. A cold vegetable salad of cucumbers and scallions is my favorite. That, or very thinly sliced kimchi (so I can eat only a little at a time). Granted, I do have to accompany any bite of these with a heap of rice, but hey...at least I'm improving!</span><br /><br />On that note, we move on to point # 3.5.) Korea is a culture of food. So, it goes without saying, that as someone who doesn't like a lot of Korean food, it can be pretty frustrating. In Korea, when someone offers you food, you eat it. Even if it's not specifically offered to you, you eat it. Basically, if there is food in the same vicinity as you, you are expected to eat it. I went along with this at the beginning as much as I could. Even now, when I return to the office after a class and there is a rice cake (NOT delicious) on the desk for me, I kindly thank whoever put it there and put it in my purse "for later". The minute I get home, I throw it away or offer it to a student I see on my way out of work. Or there is ginger juice (yes, that exists. And it tastes and looks like dirt) on my desk. I take a sip and when no one is looking, I dump the rest in the water fountain and throw it away as if I finished it. For the sake of my taste buds and sometimes my health, however, I am put in an awkward situation where it's either eat something you don't want or refuse (and subsequently be considered rude). Now that I've started a mini-diet to shed the little "rice baby" that has been growing in me, this has become a bit more of a problem.<br /><br />Other teachers or parents will leave some food in the office for people to share. Often, it is something sweet and fatty like birthday cake, nasty and Korean like rice cakes, or even something I like to eat like kimbap or fruit. When the food arrives (or when someone notices it), they go and eat it. I sometimes choose not to eat it because, well, I don't feel like it. A normal sentiment in America, where people choosing not to eat something is a personal decision. But in Korea, OY! Exhibit A. When I arrived at school this morning, there were grapes in the office. I like grapes, in fact they are good for me while I diet, but I had just finished scarfing down my breakfast, so I didn't eat any. The following is NOT a dramatization.<br />Colleague 1, the minute I sit at my desk: "Melissa, are you busy?"<br />"No, not really."<br />"Have some grapes."<br />(in my head) THANK YOU I SEE THEM I'LL EAT THEM IF I WANT THEM.<br />"No, thanks."<br />"Why?"<br />"Um, well, I just had breakfast, so I don't feel like eating anything right now."<br />*Confused, a bit offended look on colleagues face.*<br /><br /><br />30 minutes later, colleague #2: "Melissa! Have some grapes!!!"<br />"No, thanks. I don't want any right now."<br />"Don't you like grapes?"<br />(in head) ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?<br />"I do, I'll just have some later."<br />*Same, confused, offended expression*<br /><br />You might be thinking, 'Melissa, just eat the damn grapes.' But this is a mild example, because it's often something I just don't enjoy eating. This happens on a regular basis, especially at meals. Exhibit B: Lunchtime. I always put kimchi (or any other spicy item) on my tray because if I don't people notice and ask me why I didn't take any kimchi (or other spicy item). I usually eat a bite or two, just so I don't feel <em>totally</em> bad about wasting it, but the rest of it I usually throw away. (And the environmental enthusiast in me squirms.) However, if someone notices that I'm not eating my kimchi, or spicy fish, or octopus, etc, they say, "Melissa, why aren't you eating your [kimchi]? Oh, maybe its too spicy for you. Foreigners don't like spicy food." So, now I represent ALL foreigners? Everyone. Everywhere. Did they already forget that the previous native English teacher, who was originally from Mexico, loved spicy food?! or, "Melissa, you don't like those (whole) little fishes on a pile on your plate? They are so delicious! It's such a great feeling when their little eyes bore into your soul while you pinch them with your chosticks. Try!" OK FINE I'LL EAT THE KIMCHI!!!<br /><br />OK, that may have been a dramatization.<br /><br />4) Koreans are shallow. I've mentioned this in previous posts, but the truth of this statement has become clearer and clearer the longer I've been here. So much in this society is based on looks and money. Did you know that when you send a resume to a company, you must send along your picture as well? I had to do the same thing when I applied to this job. Koreans base their search for a life parter on money. I didn't think this concept was so pervasive until after a few conversations with my co-workers. Nam teacher, the youngest one and the one who I'm closest with, is 29 and still single. Her love life often becomes the topic of conversation when we are out. I (half-jokingly) mentioned that I knew a very tall, handsome, sexy Korean man who dances (really, really good) salsa where I take lessons. The minute they heard 'dancer', though, they immediately said "Nooooo, no artists. Korean mothers do not like that. Samsung man. Yes! Samsung man is better! Very rich. No artists, not rich." Now, I know this is not just a Korean concept. But I consider these women my friends, and sometimes I forgot that they are Korean. These sensible, smart, modern women actually think like that? It reminded me how this way of thinking really does permeate into most people's perspectives. This part of Korean culture doesn't influence me as much as the previous ones, but it definitely adds to my frustration.<br /><br />I can understand and appreciate the social importance of the Korean identity, food, and good looks have in this country. However, it's totally differnt thing to <em>be</em> in it. This is a lesson I've learned while I've been here. As a passionate anthropology major, I always prided myself in being able to easily accept and understand other societies' paradigms. It never occured to me, though, how different it is to be <em>in</em> that society. From the outside, I understand a lot about why things are the way there are. Its just difficult to be part of it. It doesn't feel right. It pulls me away from my comfort zone, my beliefs, what makes me <em>me.</em> Does that make me stubborn, ignorant, unadaptable? Deep down, am I as unaccepting and close-minded as I believe many Americans to be? This is the intellectual and personal struggle I'm enduring at the moment. What does it mean to be an American, a person for that matter, living in another country? Is it really possible to stick to my beliefs all the while conforming with the ones around me in order to fit in and not offend people? Is my defiance against some Korean customs the action of a close-minded traveler or of a strong, individual?<br /><br /><br />I don't want this entire entry to be a downer or intellectual crunch time. So, here are some quick, interesting updates from my everyday life :)<br /><br />Val spent the month of June in Cameroon (hey that rhymes!), visiting his family. It was really hard being far away from him again, but at least this time it was just a month. He arrives back in Korea on Wednesday (the 29). I can't wait for him to be back! His presence always helps to sooth my frustrations. When he's around, everything is OK. Things are going great with us.<br /><br />Also, I booked my big vacation. Blythe, Michelle, and I are going to Malaysia and Thailand for 10 days in August. WOOOOO! We leave August 10th. We'll spend 2.5 days in Kuala Lampur (Malaysia), 3 days in Phuket (Thailand), and 5 days in Bangkok.<br /><br /><br />Many of you have been asking me about when I'm coming home, and/or if I'm staying another year here after my contract ends October 1st. This is a quite a difficult decision for me, seeing as life in Korea is clearly very frustrating at times, though my friends are awesome, and of course the love of my life is here and will be for another couple years. I will announce my decision as soon as I make it. If I do decide to renew my contract, I'll be in the states for the entire month of October, and then will return to Korea to start work again in November. If I don't renew, I'll definitely be stateside for some time. What comes next is still in the works--I've got some (exciting) ideas floating around in my head, but aren't really ready to share them yet. Again, as soon as I I know, you'll know!<br /><br />Thanks for reading, folks.<br /><br />Bisous,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-59885922987627549872011-05-09T02:38:00.000-07:002011-05-13T18:41:59.996-07:00A Long Weekend of Pancakes & FestivalsI love long weekends. And springtime. Andfestivals. And friends. Luckily for me, the past few days have encompassed all of these! This week I have Monday and Tuesday off (5/8 and 5/9) for Buddha's Birthday, plus I had last Thursday off for another public holiday, Children's Day. Luckily, the weather has been very accommodating to our plans for these extra days of playtime! <div>Thursday, Blythe hosted a Pancake Party, with the help of my enormous bag of pancake mix I purchased from Costco way back when. Everybody hadthe day off, so we gathered at Blythe's and ate our hearts out, played games, got to know some new people while I flipped the pancakes. It was a beautiful day, so once everyone had finished their pancakes, eggs, and fruit we all headed to Manseok Park near Blythe's apartment to enjoy the beautiful weather we had that day. The group of 20-ish waygookins (foreigners) made quite a spectacle walking through the park, but we found a grassy spot to lay down our blankets and bask in the beautiful sunshine. It was such a great day of new friends, relaxation, and sun. Good times!</div><div>
<br /></div><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><div style="text-align: center;"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkUGvUGOOQj5t6rwXjFAdXRL2AvfIiy0Da0IUlSJIBBII8g8wRrCR1IYbKRGFqTr1pcwK3yvZ-LLOpbIyv4N0QQTcc0W8aI8L16D4GSRL5M85IHYnaIuY4Oznctqm1i5zMtK92hfaGN05/s200/pancake+party+bed.jpg" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605439475005317442" /></div><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Pancake Party attendees all piled onto Blythe's bed. I'm way in the back corner.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">
<br /></span></div><div>Friday evening, Blythe, Michelle, and our new chingu (friend) Gina, who is Blythe's friend from Sacremento now teachingin Suwon also, decided to try out a new meal for dinner in nearby Hwaseo. After a recommendation from a friend, we decided we couldn't wait any longer to try these Vietnamese shabu-shabu spring rolls. Shabu-shabu is the mongolian stew with the very thinly sliced meat and veggies that you cook at the table in a delicious broth. At this restaurant, we made the shabu-shabu, then placed the cooked meat and veggies inrice paper and made our own spring rolls with ingredients like carrots, cucumbers, radish, sprouts, and lettuce. The waitress, recognizing our inexperience in making the spring rolls, showed us how to do it and even fed her example-roll to us! Needless to say, it was DELICIOUS. By far one of the best meals I've had in Korea so far/coolest things I've done in Korea. I will definitely be going back soon.</div><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta charset="utf-8"><div style="text-align: center;"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjUm9Du_vUxp6XX9UfWlIiTzw8-evZb1Ga1f7Ti5lMTgs5pBK-tn2k784jJvaI5S0-16y9JvedtVcGihk2EaVuYHwC5hbzNCaJ7qoIYXhnGnkJLbJSThdjEyt-zM5uviT2fe2i1h2qbi2h/s200/IMG_6449.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605440073250209250" /></div><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Vietnamese Spring Roll pre-rolled. Mashisoyo! =) </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">
<br /></span></div><div>That brings me to the Buddhist Lantern Festival andParade in Insadong on Saturday, also on the top of my list of coolest things I've done in Korea. The festival was held at the Jogyesa Temple, one of the many Buddhist Temples in Seoul. We walked along lantern-lined streets from the subway station to the temple. Once we arrived we saw that a roof had been created by lanterns that stretched across the entire grounds of the temple. The temple was decorated on the inside as well, and when you looked in you could see people praying. It started getting dark, so we went to stake out a spot for the parade. We were able to find an AWESOME spot to watch the incredible, hand-made lanterns parade by us. The parade itself was very festive, with musicians, colorful Korean traditional clothing, and people and lanterns by the thousands. What an incredible experience I was able to have there.</div><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><div style="text-align: center;"><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=UTF-8"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXNxGiEI86cuaxpU4_GKSBUBt1Z5mAYKNZ5Q-MJ1Fle9YK8eqGuxnQc3V46IL8TveNBIlbL5EpO-jBtWPf8uNd43jDcmrloKrv2Dz5QdyqTNPmDDJge8HxtT78E7h-__1JduuhLWCwlaEM/s200/IMG_6604.JPG" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605440999235131106" /> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Street lined with laterns</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">
<br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWiVC4ePdi3WIdCa_7YVNJGfYVmiTMLIwJznI2sePT6FoS37dr30dNfsxMeGFzMxxh58bBWXtuWCD7XGbCfKFNjxTFqVWCXpJrLYp_pxBLVPV9ALPxcJ6us2WSdYrXN2lxeuGS6wOMQ-d/s1600/IMG_6450.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAWiVC4ePdi3WIdCa_7YVNJGfYVmiTMLIwJznI2sePT6FoS37dr30dNfsxMeGFzMxxh58bBWXtuWCD7XGbCfKFNjxTFqVWCXpJrLYp_pxBLVPV9ALPxcJ6us2WSdYrXN2lxeuGS6wOMQ-d/s200/IMG_6450.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605440994455614066" style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Canopy of lanterns outside the temple</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span">
<br /></span></div><meta charset="utf-8"><div>My festival-ing continued the following day when Gina & I checked out the Street Arts Festival in Ansan, a city about 40 minutes of Suwon. Once again the weather accommodated our day outdoors, spreading sunshine across a clear blue sky. It was the official initiation of sandal and skirt (without leggings under) season for me! Gina & I perused the booths of hand-made jewelry and clothing and enjoyed a few clowning/miming/mask performances at the festival. We returned to Suwon in the early evening each with some new jewelry and unique dresses from Turkish vendors at the festival. Fantastic! Once we were back in Suwon, the day was not over for me as I went home to quickly change into pants and was en-route again, this time to Itaewon (the foreigner district of Seoul). I took the hour + 10min journey from Suwon (bus from my apartment to a subway stop in the outskirts of Seoul where I can catch Line 4, which goes straight towards Seoul, a transfer to line 6 to Itaewon) to meet Val & his friends at a bar after a Cameroonian Society meeting. After making my rounds and saying hi to the others there, Val and 5 of his friends and I decided to go dancing in Hongdae, a university area about 20 min away by subway. We ended up going to the same place I went for New Year's Eve, and it was just how I remembered it-- crowded and bad music. Oh well, it was fun to spend a night with my "boys". We got home around 2:00am and crashed. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Monday was spent at Suwon Station with Blythe and Michelle. We got lunch at our favorite Indian/Turkish food place, then took advantage of the rainy day and went to the movies. The only English movie that had showings around the time we were there was Source Code, an action movie starring Jake Gyllenhaal (hey, I spelled his name right the first time!). It was OK. The ending kind of sucked. After the movie we got coffee at a little cafe nearby- Cafe Soho. After warming up a bit I braved the rain to get to the bus stop and went home. Monday evening and all day Tuesday were spent at home, relaxing with Val. Aaaah. Now <i>that's</i> what vacation is all about. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>That's enough for you to digest for now. More to come!</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Love,</div><div>Mel</div><div>
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<br />UPDATE: Pics are now up on Facebook. For those of you who are not on Facebook, you can see the pics here: </div><div><meta charset="utf-8"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; ">http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.577878385216.2082511.29503208&l=12ad3ff53e</span></div>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-12607332802117573512011-04-19T23:47:00.000-07:002011-04-20T00:17:46.892-07:00The Adult in the Room<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >안영! (Anyeong = Hi!)</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >It was time for a makeover. You likey?<br /><br />The past few weeks have been super busy for me. Work has been wearing me out now that I’m teaching a conversation class in the morning (8:05-8:50) Mon-Thursday, and also teaching an advanced speaking class on Monday and advanced essay class on Thursdays after school. The students’ behavior has gotten a little worse now that their finally settled into the school year routine, plus midterms are coming up (already) in two weeks. The good news for me is, though, that while the students are preparing for midterms next week, I won’t be teaching them at all. Not even my extra classes. Then of course the following week will be exam week so I won’t be teaching then either. So, I have a 2 week break from teaching. I still have to come into work every day, but this will give me plenty of time to relax and to plan for the rest of the year. I’m also excited to have time to catch up on all my T.V. shows since the internet’s been down in my apartment. Gotta find out if Kasia makes it through next panel on Top Model. Will House and Cuddy (spelling?) get back together? What mystery did Castle and Beckett solve last week? What ridiculousness did the Walkers get themselves into this time? What kind of sick criminal did Stabler, Benson & co catch this time? Such questions have been burning in my brain for the past few weeks.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >Moving on to more important matters...</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >I think my teaching has improved. This week I have my open class, which means that the VP and other English teachers from the school come to my class and evaluate my teaching. I am nervous, but I did a test-run earlier this week and it went well. When I mentioned to my co-teachers that I was nervous, they all assured me that I shouldn’t be because my teaching and lessons are always great. It feels good to know that people who have actually studied to be teachers and have a lot of experience think that I can hold my own. I’m relieved about the timing of my open class also—it will be over with by my 2-week “break” so I won’t be fretting over it for all of that time. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >The more situations I encounter here the more I learn about the Korean teaching, student, and school culture. I don’t know why I’m still surprised by my students’ extremely low self-esteem level, but 2 weeks ago I had an interesting experience. After none (out of 40) of my 8th grade students raised their hand to answer a simple question (that I know they all knew the answer to already), Cho Teacher asked me over lunch not to ask students to raise their hands for answers. It is better, she said, to ask the class as a whole and have them shout out answers to me. When I inquired why, she said that the smarter students are very shy to raise their hand and answer correctly because if they do, they will get beat up in the hallway by the other students who are jealous. I mean, that happened when I was in middle school and high school but the teachers didn’t give in to that! Wouldn’t you think that the teachers would want to find a way to prevent the beatings instead of not wanting students to work to their highest potential in class? I was so frustrated and confused when she said that to me. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >In comparing the middle and high schools I attended and Korean schools, another big difference here is that there is no hallway monitoring. Teachers do not stand in the hallways to be sure that things like that don’t happen. So, as you can imagine, walking through the hallway is an adventure. Koreans in general do not watch where they are going. This fact is very clear anytime you walk on the street, in the subway station, etc. Getting bumped into or zig-zagging/dodging your way towards to subway or to the crosswalk are daily occurrences. So, as Koreans, Sannam Middle School students do not seem aware of anyone else besides the people they are talking to when they are in the hallway. It is very frustrating. This is terrifying when you’re carrying your laptop, full coffee mug, and papers in the hallway en route to your classroom and are dodging students who are sprinting, chasing each other down the hallway, playfully (or not so playfully) shoving each other, flying out of their classrooms into the hallway, shouting, running up and down the stairs, etc. I never felt so much like an “old” adult until I realized how much energy these “kids” have.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >I also never realized how much being the adult in the room (literally) has revealed my ability to be stern, aggressive, and sooo not doubtful of myself. If you doubt yourself often or have self-esteem issues, put yourself in front of 40 foreign teenagers in a classroom and be in charge. Your inner adult will really come through. Today in my class, while playing a game that involves a little bit of running, two 6th grade boys got into a fist fight. While running to their tables to dictate a sentence to teammates, Boy A shoved Boy B, who threw a punch in response. Soon Boy B was punching Boy A in the head and shoulders and Boy A was shoving him back in defense. Before I knew it I was grabbing Boy B by the waist (he was taller than me) and pulling him away from Boy A. He got away so I grabbed him again and shoved him hard towards his chair, yelling angrily and sternly (never heard myself so angry before) SIT DOWN IN YOUR SEAT RIGHT NOW. He paused as if he was going to, then lunged towards Boy A again. This time I grabbed his vest but it slipped out of my hands. I then wrapped both hands firmly around his wrist while (FINALLY) my co-teacher came over and the two of us managed to ‘herd’ the fight to the hallway where they calmed down and my co-t gave them a talking-to. That’s all she did, I would have liked a harsher punishment, especially since they completely ignored me (even when I was physically stopping them) and completely disrupted the class. Huff. Raging hormones. I never thought I’d see the day when I’d be the one to break up a fight of 2 teenage boys. Like I said—the role of “adult in the room” really gets to ya. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:arial;" >Outside of work, life is good. I’m meeting more and more new people with every outing and seeing new things. Last weekend we had beautiful spring weather (close to 70 degrees). Friday night I had dinner and drinks with Nam Teacher and Hyung Kyung (a new teacher at the school who co-teaches with me). Saturday, after Mexican food and Coldstone in Itaewon, I went to Myeongdong in Seoul with Michelle, Blythe, and new friends Gina and Jamie. Myeongdong is a popular shopping area near center Seoul where you can find stores like Forever 21 and H&M. The Forever 21 there was 4 stories. 4 stories of cheap, cute, stylish heaven. 3 hours shopping and less than $150 later, I walked out of there with 8 new work-appropriate spring wardrobe items. We then headed to H&M where I was able to find 2 pairs of jeans. Woooowoo! I hadn’t been shopping since I got here. It was such a fun girls’ afternoon.<br /><br />I'll stop there. More to come in the next 2 weeks when I'll be bored at work!<br /><br />Hope you are all doing well. I miss my homies. Don't forget to update me on your lives!<br /><br />Love,<br />Melissa<br /></span>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-922822906243175942011-04-01T01:34:00.000-07:002011-04-01T01:36:15.584-07:00New School Year<div><span class="Apple-style-span" >Wow, it's been exactly a month since I blogged last. As you might have guessed, my lack of blogging recently is due to school starting up again and my work schedule making me very busy! So I’ll cover all the basics to catch up my loyal blog readers (and random stumblers-upon).</span></div><p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >This year is incredibly busy. On average I teach 4 classes a day.<span> </span>This week I started the after-school classes (advanced speaking on Monday and advanced essay writing on Thursday) and starting next week, I will be teaching a conversation class every morning before classes start. Unlike last year, my 6<sup>th</sup> grade classes are divided by level.<span> </span>Hallelujah! This makes planning my lessons much more efficient and teaching them even more so. My higher-level students are wonderful and so attentive in class.<span> </span>They willingly participate and they laugh at my jokes.<span> </span>Finally! Just what I imagined teaching would be like. So, those classes are a treat. As for the lower-level classes, they are more like my classes last year- very talkative, un-attentive and frankly, rude.<span> </span>I am often frustrated after those classes, however since I know they are lower level I can adjust my lesson plans to their level.<span> </span>I think I am partially to blame for their un-attentiveness. <span> </span>Perhaps I need some more work on making more interactive, interesting lesson plans. I do what I can.<span> </span>After every class I evaluate how it went and try to modify my lesson plan.<span> </span>Already this week I’ve changed my lesson plan a lot!<span> </span>My 8<sup>th</sup> graders in class are somewhere in-between the two.<span> </span>They are more eager to interact with me as they come into class but as soon as class begins they are very shy to participate.<span> </span>Also, the 8<sup>th</sup> graders are not divided by level, so teaching those classes are difficult for me.<span> </span>With the regular teaching hours and the extra classes, my days fly by and I’m very tired by the end of it.<span> </span>Overall, I am enjoying this year more than last year.<span> </span>I like that I could establish my own classroom setting instead of stepping into someone else’s and trying to do my own thing. I think this has helped the students feel more comfortable with me.<span> </span>Most days, two 6<sup>th</sup> grade girls, Annie and Leah, come see me during lunch.<span> </span>Sometimes they want help with their homework, sometimes they want me to teach them French, other times they just want to chat. Sometimes they bring their friends to come hang in the English room with me.<span> </span>It feels nice to have fans hahaha. They are very sweet girls and I enjoy their visits!<span> </span>Now that I can read Korean, I’m also starting to actually remember students’ names when they tell me hahaha.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Next week I am teaching an April Fool’s Day lesson. I’m giving my students a fake test and telling them it’s super important for their grades. The test is totally bogus—multiple questions with no right answers, ridiculously hard questions, etc. <span> </span>At the bottom of the page it says “this test is a joke!”<span> </span>I’m telling them they must read the whole test before they start taking it, that way they’ll see that it’s a joke before they get too freaked out!<span> </span>The week I’m teaching them text message slang, then the next week I have to teach my open class. An open class is when other native teachers come watch me teach and evaluate me. I’m really nervous and need to start planning for it soon. I think it will be really nerve-wracking, but I chose my best class to be the one I teach for the open class.<span> </span>I’ll be glad when it’s over.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >A few weeks ago, I started taking salsa lessons at this salsa studio in Suwon called Turn.<span> </span>After meeting the owner of the studio, Rex, at The Big Chill (foreigner bar in Suwon I frequent) and spontaneously salsa dancing with him, I found out that they offer lessons on Wednesdays for only 7,000 won (7 bucks) a week. Glad to finally find a dance class opportunity in Suwon, I started going to the next week. Tonight will be my 4<sup>th</sup> week.<span> </span>The first two weeks I was in the beginner class, but by the 3<sup>rd</sup> week Rex told me that I should join his intermediate class, that happens simultaneously.<span> </span>Everyone at Turn is very friendly and most of the people who go there speak English (including Rex and the other teacher Anu Pmark who is from Thailand).<span> </span>I already feel like part of the Turn family even after just a couple of weeks!<span> </span>They also have free dance/practice nights every day.<span> </span>I usually try to go on Sundays.<span> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Weekends have been fun. My birthday was very special- it made me realize how many friends I have here.<span> </span>I had dinner with Val, Blythe, and Michelle, then met some friends at The Big Chill.<span> </span>The next day was the Saint Patrick’s Day Festival (organized by the Irish Association of Korea? Yup, that exists) in Seoul.<span> </span>I went with friends there and just hung out and listened to a U2 cover band and watched my friends day drink.<span> </span>The festival was OK, but I did get to meet some new people and then have a DELICIOUS Mediterranean dinner at Petra, the middle-eastern restaurant in Noksapyeong.<span> </span>Noksapyeong is one subway stop from Itaewon, the foreigner district in Seoul.<span> </span>I ordered the lamb couscous. YUMMY IN MA TUMMY.<span> </span>We went back to Noksaypeong the next weekend for Vietnamese food, which was delicious also. I ordered pho, a noodle, meat, and veggie soup in a deliciously spiced broth.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Yesterday I went to Madeline, a hair salon chain with locations all over the place, to get a major haircut.<span> </span>Even though my Korean is pretty much non-existent, I figured I would be able to communicate to them that I just wanted it cut—no style change or anything. I was wrong. When I got there the woman gave me a book with pictures of women’s hairstyles (all modeled on Korean women, of course) and wanted me to choose one.<span> </span>I tried to tell her charades-style that none of these would work on my hair since it’s naturally curly, but to no avail. So I eventually put my faith in her and let her choose one for me.<span> </span>She cut it uber short and I sort of look like Javier Bardem in No Country for Old Men. Ha. Oh well.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Well, that’s all there is to report, really. Thanks for reading!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" > </span></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:150%"><span class="Apple-style-span" >Cheers,<br />Melissa Teach-a</span></p> <!--EndFragment-->Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-8630298248757675412011-03-01T21:39:00.000-08:002011-03-01T22:26:58.585-08:00Marching into March<span style="font-family: arial;">Hello all,<br /><br />Welcome to March! Never has time flown this fast in my entire life. The title of this entry is meant to be a) clever and b) to express the attitude I am trying to hold as I enter yet another month here. The way I think about it, marching usually requires an element of pride, endurance, and perhaps some resistence too. In other words, I am trying to ease my way into March with a steady consistency and strength. The month March means a lot of things this year. First of all, </span><span style="font-family: arial;">in just over 2 weeks I will reach my 6-month point of being here. Also, March is when the new school year begins here in Korea, so as I get a rush of new students (and almost twice as many students this year, might I add), I am trying not to panic. </span><span style="font-family: arial;">Up until a week and a half ago I thought I was just going to be teaching the new 6th graders, but I was informed only through casual mention that I am also teaching half of the 8th grade classes. Um, what? Did anyone bother to tell me that during the 2.5 weeks I sat on my butt at work watching episode after episode of How I Met Your Mother, not feeling guilty because I had already planned 3 weeks of my 6th grade lessons?! So by the time I found out I had a grand total of one day to adjust my already made lesson plans to fit a 8th-grade level, which I'm obviously clueless of. Luckily, today, being the first day of the new school year, my teaching schedule still wasn't set so I have the next 3 days to plan before I start teaching on Monday. I've already planned 5 lessons but I think it would be pointless to continue, considering I need to gage the level of my students before I get too ahead of myself.<br /><br />Strangly, the last-minute nature of my co-workers and professional environment apparantly doesn't apply to planning for next year. I am already being asked whether or not I will be re-signing my contract to stay another year. Even though I know I have plenty of time to decide (my contract requires that I notify them within 60 days of my contract ending), I'm already starting to feel the pressure. So, in attempt to maintain my marching pace, I am utilising all of my will power to stay calm and recognize how much time I have to decide, and how much things can change within that time frame. It's really hard to look into the future and anticipate big decisions and stay calm at the same time.<br /><br />After a month of desk-warming and vacation days, the commencement of the school year also means all systems go until mid-July when the next vacation is. Add the 2 weeks of Summer Camp I'll be teaching, the thought of going full speed until August is scary. I really enjoyed my low-key February when I was sent home early 80% of the time, watched lots of TV episodes online, and could join my hagwon friends (my friend who work at private academies and usually work mid afternoon-late evening) at the bars on weeknights. But alas, that is not why I came here. Gotta suck it up for real life!<br /><br />Lastly, and on a lighter note, March is my birthday month! I can't really say that I'm 'marching' towards the 18th (dubbed "hangover day" by my twin sister & I because we always wanted our birthday to be on a holiday and our birthday conveniently falls the day after the Irish celebration never without green beer, shot-glass necklaces and anonymous kisses from/to people claiming the day as their own). As much as I've tried, I've never been one of those people who can play it cool on their birthday. I manage to slip the information to my friends or whoever I talk to whenever possible that my birthday is coming up. What can I say, I like my birthday. Call it childish or selfish, but I like people to know that its my birthday. As my Mom would say, "so sue me." Happy almost birthday to me!<br /><br />Speaking of my lovely February, Val and I embraced our overlapping vacations and took an impromptu trip to Busan, a city in the south of the country, right on the ocean. It's a famous vacation spot in the summertime because of its beaches and relaxed atmosphere. Due to teaching obligations we were only in Busan for 36 hours, but it was totally worth it. We took the KTX train there, the fastest, nicest, and newest train in Korea. I wish I could travel on trains more often. It was so comfortable and quiet. The train ride took about 2.5 hours. We arrived in Busan at 8pm Thursday and got a taxi to our hotel on Gwangalli beach. From our hotel room we could see the famous Gwangan bride, the longest bridge in Korea. It is lit up beautifully at night, as is the city of Busan. The minute I stepped off the train I felt more relaxed. The air in Busan just smells and feels cleaner. The buildings are shorter so you can see more of the sky and the mountains (during the day). Everyone seemed to be less in a hurry. In the 36 hours I was there, I saw signs for two art galleries, a music school, AND a dance school. I haven't seen ANY of that in Suwon. People stared less at me/us in Busan. I admit, my paradise perception of Busan may have been a little skewed by the fact that it was easily 10 degrees warmer down there (60-65 degrees, I would guess), we were on the beach and on vacation. But I remember the feeling I had when I stepped out of the train station when we first arrived- I could just feel that I could be happy here. Only hours into our short trip that composed of nothing more than gallavanting on the beach, having ice cream for lunch (a true Waldman vacation tradition), eating the best (and cheapest) Western style food I have ever had in Korea, and visiting the aquarium, I declared that I would seriously consider moving to Busan. We even asked a few foreigners we ran into if they lived there and how they liked it. I heard nothing but rave reviews. One girl's response to my inquiries about Busan life was, "what is there to complain about? You've got the beach and lots to do in the city." So you never know, maybe next year I'll find a job teaching in Busan instead of Suwon. For now, though, I've still got nearly 7 months in Suwon, and I do believe that is enough time to love this city too. Breathe. There's time.<br /><br />If you're curious, my pictures from Busan and other happenings here are up on my Facebook page. I've started bringing my camera pretty much everywhere I go in order to properly document my life here, for both your sake and mine!<br /><br />That's all for now.<br /><br />Bisous,<br />Melissa<br /></span>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-25476928504895357932011-02-16T21:07:00.001-08:002011-02-17T21:40:16.512-08:00My Lunch from the Sea<span style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;">If you know me at all, you are probably shocked and curious about what this blog title means. You see, I've never been much of a seafod person. I'd like to think that it is not because I don't have an open mind about food, but I just never grew up eating seafood. I didn't start eating/liking fish (minus those frozen fishsticks my Mom used to make for dinner when I was a kid) until maybe 6 years ago. I've never been inside a Red Lobster. I've never seen anyone in my family devour clams or oysters. So when I got to Korea and discovered everything from octopus to jellyfish in my food, I was at first nauseated. I remember my first experience with Korean food (not including the few trips to a Korean restaurant in Rochester) was on the plane. Flying on a Korean airline, I was served for dinner bibimbap- a vegetable and rice mix that I could definitely handle. However, it was the pile of sardines- whole sardines, eyes and all-- next to my food that caused my appetite to quickly disappear. As I tried not to look at the tiny fishy eyes that bore into my soul, I watched (attempting not to gawk) at the Korean women sitting next to me, contently devouring spoonfuls of bibimbap with the little fishies. I hardly ate a bite of my food as I realized how different things really were going to be here.<br /><br />So, with that preface, you'll see how far I've come. I proved to myself that I have officially become desensetized to seafood when I went out for lunch with the ladies from work yesterday. We went to a Japanese restaurant where we must have ordered the lunch special or something because as soon as we sat down, the food just started coming. It was a mild start with some kind of soup. I've learned to stop asking what I'm eating if I'm not sure because usually the answer causes me to put my chopsticks down and gag. So I had some kind of soup (it was white and chunky but didn't taste fishy), then an enormous plate raw fish slices that sat on top of enormous clam shells (around the size of my palm) arrived. Sashimi. A first for me. Considering I was starving and surrounded by Koreans who tend to judge you by how well you can handle spicy food and eat what I usually consider to be gross seafood, I was left with no choice. I put a piece of what I learned later to be tuna on the piece of dried seaweed, wrapped it, and took a bite. So, it wasn't terrible. Actually, I sort of liked it. As I mentally patted myself on the back and wrapped myself a few more, the waitress brought over a plate of fish. A whole fish. Eyes and tail and skin and all. It had been baked with spices and placed on the plate whole. The ladies started just pulling pieces off the fish with their chopsticks, eventually leaving the skeleton and innards exposed. I took a bite of the fish but thought the spices made it too salty and chose not to have anymore. I tried not to look at it too much as the bowl of clams came next. I actually have come to like clams after tasting them in a lunch Nam Teacher ordered for us last week. They aren't as rubbery as I thought they'd be and they actually have a distinctive taste. In other words, they don't taste like the beach smells. So as I happily pulled the clams out of the shells and ate them, I realized how far I had come. 6 months ago that would have totally grossed me out. The meal ended with fried shrimp with dipping sauce and rice, topped with seaweed, sesame seeds, kimchi, and fish eggs. AH. What do I do? The rice looked good. And the fish eggs were too small and fine to pick out with my chopsticks or even with my spoon. So before I thought about too hard I just mixed everything together and took a bite. Again, it wasn't so bad. I finished it. I'M SORRY NEMO!!!!!!!<br /><br />It wasn't until I was describing this meal to my sister afterwards that I realized that the meal had hardly any vegetables at all. For a girl who likes her veggies, I'm suprised I didn't notice it before. The only vegetables in the meal were the sprouts for the sashimi wraps, a beansprout soup at the end of the meal, and a few slices of cucumber topped with mashed sweet potato (YUM) that garnished the sashimi plate. Unless you count the seaweed, thats all. I can't believe I had a meal entirely of seafood. If I may say so myself, go me!<br /><br />Now don't worry my friends, you haven't lost me completely. Your beloved squeamish sister, friend, daughter, cousin, blogger (for all you strangers out there who are reading my blog. Are you there?) still marvels in wonder and a suppressed desire to hurl at the whole ocotpus on the styrophom plate covered in plastic wrap that she passes in the meat/fish section of the grocery store. I definitely need more time here before I can conquer THAT edible obstacle. By the way, I had to look up how to spell squeamish. Did anyone else know it's an 'ea' instead of an 'ui?" Who knew?</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;">EDIT 2/18- We went to the same restaurant for lunch today and I luckily had my camera with me! Pics are up on Facebook.<br /><br /><br /></span><span style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial;font-size:100%;">Thats all for now. Thanks for reading (and hopefully not throwing up). To my extra squeamish big sis Andrea, if you made it to the end of this blog entry with all of the contents in your stomach still there, then congratulations :-P.<br /></span></div>Melissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-84442420715400588152011-02-11T22:47:00.000-08:002011-02-15T17:11:41.229-08:00The Good, The Bad, and The KoreanNow that I've been here for nearly 5 months, the pros and cons of living in Korea are everyday matters. Many of these things are cultural, while others are just the realities of living in a foreign country. This blog entry is to help my readers understand what some of these are by categorizing these things into What I Miss and What I Don't Miss about home. So here goes, I imagine I'll continue to add things to this list, but for now, here's what I got:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What I Miss</span><br />- Speaking the language<br />- Non-smoking regulations at bars and restaurants and therefore not needing to shower and air out my clothes after any outing.<br />- Hearing a verbal "excuse me" after an accidental bumping on the street or subway<br />- Not needing to rely on public transportation<br />- An oven in my kitchen<br />- Being able to read labels on the food I buy<br />- My friends and family<br />- Available dance classes in my city<br />- Not getting stared at all the time<br />- Hearing something besides K-pop music. Anywhere. <br />- Bread. (whole wheat specifically)<br />- I didn't know this before, but not knowing how awesome How I Met Your Mother is. <br />- Milk, yogurt, or juice with an expiration date more than 5 days after you buy it at the store<br />- Heated bathrooms<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What I Don't Miss</span><br />- Taxes<br />- The job hunt<br />- Living sans salary<br />- Living in a fairly isolated city- now I'm an hour subway journey away from one of the most bustling cities in Asia<br />- Enduring an international long-distance relationship<br />- Struggles with chopstick usage<br />- Expensive groceries and utility bills<br />- Paying rent<br />- Unhelpful staff<br />- Paying at least $20 anytime I go out for dinner<br />- Being approached by ass-holey guys at bars who think they're God's gift to women. Korean men are generally very shy so they leave us alone and I can have my girls' nights in peace.<br />- Having to pay for every little thing at restaurants. Here, you always get free appetizers (if you're eating Korean food) and get unlimited refills of sidedishes.<br /><br /><br />Well, that's all for now. You might see this list pop up once in a while in later posts so keep your eyes out!<br /><br />Ta-ta for now!<br /><br />-MelissaMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-29464835065234296312011-02-06T16:27:00.000-08:002011-02-06T16:49:53.148-08:00Lunar New Year, etc.I wrote this entry yesterday, February 6th, but due to the recent loss of internet at my apartment (argh), I wasnt able to post until I got to work today, Feb 7. <br /><br />The Korean school system is officially makes zero sense. It’s Sunday night and after two weeks of “seat warming” at work (aka still having to go into work even though the students aren’t there), the students are finally returning to school tomorrow. They’ve been on vacation since December 30th and they are now coming back after the Lunar New Year, but only for 4 days. Starting on Friday, the students are on “spring vacation” until the beginning of March. When I asked why the students come back only for 4 days, I was told that it was for the 8th graders’ graduation ceremony. Why all the students have to come back for 4 whole days I don’t know, but the strangest part is why they have a separate vacation not even a week after they’ve gotten back from their long winter vacation. When I asked about that, it’s because the school year begins in March. This long winter vacation is like our summer break, I just feel bad for the kids that their long break is in the cold, dark, Korean winter and not in summer. These poor kids. Anyway, the kids are on break again in a few days and I hope I can take some more vacation days off and travel outside of Korea. <br /><br />So nothing to report about work. I spent most of my “seat warming” time watching ridiculous amounts of How I Met Your Mother and thoroughly enjoying it. <br /><br />The beginning of February brings a lot to celebrate and commemorate. Everyone was on vacation Wed-Fri for the Lunar New Year (on Feb 3rd), which is a big deal here in Korea. This year is the year of the rabbit, so there are rabbit decorations on storefronts, the TV, etc. In Korea, everyone gains another year at the Lunar New Year, so happy birthday to me! My Korean age is now 23. If you ask Korean their age, you should subtract 1 or 2 years from it to get their real age because they will give you their age that includes Lunar New Year birthdays. For example, all of my 6th graders say they are 14 years old, but they are actually 12 or 13. Val’s Korean age is 27 (since he turned 26 in January).<br /><br /> Also, today, February 6th, is my & Val’s 2 year anniversary. To celebrate, we booked two nights (Wed and Thurs) at a nice hotel in Seoul. We stayed at the Novotel Ambassador Hotel in Gagnam and enjoyed ourselves swimming in the indoor swimming pool, ordering room service, listening to live music in the lounge in the evening, and eating our hearts out at the enormous complimentary breakfast buffet. I was particularly giddy about the bathtub in the hotel room since I don’t have one in my apartment. I made sure to take full advantage of it and took two baths within the course of 45 hours. The hotel burned a bit of a hole in our pockets, but it was worth it. Considering what we had to go through to achieve this milestone in our relationship, it seemed an appropriate way to celebrate. Also, getting away from our apartment and taking time to focus on each other, not to mention living out our fantasy of being a wealthy couple taking a luxurious weekend off at a blingin’ hotel was oddly liberating. We found ourselves acting more like our inner kids rather than our inner bourgeoisie couple for much of the weekend, though, especially at the pool. While all the other adults were doing laps and the kids practicing their breaststrokes at their swimming lesson, we were doing flips and handstands and playing underwater tag. We bought one meal at one of the hotel restaurants and poked (nervous) fun at the outrageous prices for the tiny portions; though I was able devour an absolutely delectable piece of salmon for that outrageous price. After that meal, the rest of our afternoon and evening meals were in Itaewon, the foreigner district nearby, where we ate tacos, subs at Quizzno’s, and bought Pringles and cheap wine to have along with our room service meal we ordered on our last night. What can ya do? We’re just young professionals/students tryin to make a living, ya know? We slept, relaxed, and bathed in style but we ate on a student’s budget. It was perfect. <br /><br />The first week of February also brings the anniversary of a much more somber event. February 7th marks the 5 year anniversary of the death of a high school classmate and friend, Benny, who took his own life. I can’t believe it’s been 5 years already. Looking at my life the past 5 years, what I’ve done and what I’m doing right now, it just makes me sad to think about everything Benny missed out on. He was such a bright and unique spirit whose enthusiasm and smile were contagious. I hate to think about what he was never able to accomplish, and how much pain his death still brings to his family, friends, and classmates. That’s all I really have to say right now. I just thought it’d be wrong to not mention him during this time. <br /><br />Bringing the mood of this entry back up is the year and a half birthday of my beautiful niece, Natalie, on February 5th. I got to Skype with her (well, more like watch her play and run around in all her adorableness) before Val and I left for our anniversary celebration in Seoul and it made my day. Happy half birthday Natalie! While we’re on the subject of birthdays, I can’t leave out the birthdays of 2 of my college gals Lauren and Catherine, on Feb 5th and 6th, respectively. Happy Birfday!<br /><br />The rest of the weekend was pretty low key. Saturday afternoon I had a pancake party with Blythe and Michelle to celebrate us all turning one year older at Lunar New Year/I had a huge unopened bag of pancake mix/who needs an occasion for pancakes? We made chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes and drank mamosas and caught up with each other. Today, Sunday, I decided to attempt to make Ja Jang Myun, a dish that we love to go out and get at the Chinese restaurant down the road. A huge bowl of Ja Jang Myun (noodles with black bean sauce, veggies, and pork) usually costs 5,000 won (about 6 bucks) and it’s always a treat. Wanting to try something new and to have something special to eat on our actual anniversary, I looked up the recipe online and bought ingredients. The only thing I had trouble finding at the store was cornstarch, an ingredient listed on the recipe that came from an American recipe website. It didn’t occur to me that cornstarch might not be available here since unlike most food consumed in the U.S., Korean food does not consist of a lot of corn. The only starch available was potato starch, so I got that instead and it worked fine. There’s an example of a difference you don’t think about until you get to a foreign country. The Ja Jang Myun final product was OK. It definitely didn’t taste like the restaurant one, but it wasn’t bad for the first attempt. I was glad to have tried to made a new dish and now I have tons of leftovers which I froze for later. Yay!<br /><br />During my low-key weeks at work, I decided to start following through with my New Years Resolution of learning Korean. I can now read and write Hanguel (Korean), but right now it’s just like how I am with Hebrew. Thanks to years of Hebrew school, I can read Hebrew but I have no idea what I’m reading. So once I get the reading and writing down spat I’m going to start learning vocabulary. I’m getting better and better every day since I have lots of opportunities to practice. I proudly announced to my family that and I’m learning a new vocabulary word a day (to which my sister replied, “just like Natalie!”). Hey now. Korean is hard. I’m taking baby steps (no pun intended). So far, I know how to say,<br />• Hello, goodbye, yes, no<br />• thank you (kamshaminda/komapsomida/kumawo) –depends on who you’re talking to/the situation<br />• it does not exist, it’s not here (a very helpful phrase, actually) (opseyo)<br />• It’s OK (kincheneyo)- also very useful<br />• foreigner (waygook)<br />• old man (adjoshi) and old woman (ajouma) –respectful phrases that you use to address an old man or woman<br />• friend (chingu)<br />• boy, girl (namja, ohja)- so namja chingu is boyfriend, ohja chingu is girlfriend<br />• I would like (_________ juseyo)<br />• Station (yuk)<br />• Police station (kyon chal so) – this one I know because my apartment is near a police station and to get home in a taxi I tell the driver the name of the station)<br />• Teacher (sunsaenim)<br />• Middle school (cho hakyo)<br />• Bus (buseh)<br />• Taxi (taxshi)<br />* It's cold (choowohyo)- very useful also!<br />• I’m full (pebulo/pebuloyo)<br />• Eat well (chow moh kashamida), I ate well (chow moh kaysamida)- like “bon appetite”<br />• Earring (ki-gori)<br />• Relax (Iwah) – I learned this from yoga<br />• Forehead (Imahn)-also from yoga<br /><br />I’d say it’s a pretty impressive list. And it’s quite helpful to have some vocabulary now and I feel a little better being around by myself now that I can at least read the bus signs or write out names of places I need to go if I’m lost. And now that I understand the Korean language better, I can find I can also learn more words faster. So maybe soon I can beat Natalie’s rate of one word a day! <br /><br />Speaking of yoga (the last couple words on my list reminded me), my yoga teacher is SO sweet and bought me a bracelet. When I arrived at class last week she brought me a small, wrapped box and inside was a bracelet with wooden beads and a slight aroma. My yoga teacher, remember, who doesn’t speak English, managed to tell me that they are Indian beads and the perfume is “good for health”, a phrase I hear Koreans say a lot, especially women. Spicy food: “good for health”, eating live octopus (my friend Melodie did it once): “good for health”, fresh air “good for health”. Hah. Anyway, I was so humbled that my teacher bought me a gift. She is so sweet. I only have a few more sessions left with her but I think I’m going to sign up for another one. It was a bargain and I always feel great after. <br /><br />I finally have my camera back so soon I will upload pics from the past week onto Facebook so y’all can see them. Thinking of many of my family and friends in the Midwest and East Coast who are buried under feet of snow! That’s all, folks!<br /><br />Cheers,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-20247633439113305562011-01-24T20:21:00.000-08:002011-01-24T21:53:34.985-08:00Winter Vacation adventures! Palaces, Subway Station Offices, Costco, Indoor Rollercoasters, and Hummus!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL4jyXZ-8XGKNmnxRZC0BmfqMG2xZkjexGCw8voFPsf9z_DLFRzM4VaMCPhzr_jhqRHMEQMz5ezdelT1M_n5H6AunWW0Jv5QxIj95Oewx0AnxhKw9hqQxb-htzGClYA0Q4c-ebdDFDgtBj/s1600/in+the+car.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL4jyXZ-8XGKNmnxRZC0BmfqMG2xZkjexGCw8voFPsf9z_DLFRzM4VaMCPhzr_jhqRHMEQMz5ezdelT1M_n5H6AunWW0Jv5QxIj95Oewx0AnxhKw9hqQxb-htzGClYA0Q4c-ebdDFDgtBj/s200/in+the+car.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565996901067155826" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEV1bj8WT2H2-Gmc2ec4uaRXXnBzW3NmY75UKzscq5RcFoctKJLgnIO1QhEDupvcHdx8r_2Wfy7G9xL9-3R28xBX4V-nVkB5REthJveW6_gdHi0wVYDPNYYtdJx72cQtuycYsUAFjKV5U0/s1600/tea+house.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEV1bj8WT2H2-Gmc2ec4uaRXXnBzW3NmY75UKzscq5RcFoctKJLgnIO1QhEDupvcHdx8r_2Wfy7G9xL9-3R28xBX4V-nVkB5REthJveW6_gdHi0wVYDPNYYtdJx72cQtuycYsUAFjKV5U0/s200/tea+house.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565996899991987186" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOZEOivvhpSryzw2ii2qf16UDBWSxZBpNWGKqsxW3CyVYXcuTS2UAyc2MTexQpK-oLjT8OFklq6p5L1jJBf-xkcqNCB_Lo91c331vsvdTSIpZ_QTCvLeTtgTSpVVxVvfKvYcJ6DJmcuAd/s1600/at+the+palace2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgOZEOivvhpSryzw2ii2qf16UDBWSxZBpNWGKqsxW3CyVYXcuTS2UAyc2MTexQpK-oLjT8OFklq6p5L1jJBf-xkcqNCB_Lo91c331vsvdTSIpZ_QTCvLeTtgTSpVVxVvfKvYcJ6DJmcuAd/s200/at+the+palace2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565996895603349714" /></a><br />Greetings!<br /><br />First of all, photo credit goes to Blythe Wilson, who took pictures of our outings last week. They are of: us at a Korean palace, us crammed her co-teacher's car en route to Gagnam, and a traditional tea house in Insadong. Curious? Read on =)<br /><br />So, I am back at work after a wonderful yet busy week of vacation. For this vacation, I decided to stay in Korea instead of traveling somewhere else. I ended up only visiting Seoul, but there are so many parts of that city that are so different, it feels like going to different cities. I spent the majority of my break with Blythe and Michelle, who were both on vacation this week too. So here's what I did.<br /><br />Monday: went out for Indian food with Blythe, Michelle, and our friend Colin from GEPIK orientation. The food was a little too spicy for me (no surprise there), but I enjoyed the company and making fun of the Bollywood movie that was playing in the restaurant. It was on mute so we decided to make up the script and guess what they were saying, "Whose Line Is It Anyway" style. Seeing all of the beautiful saris and scenery really made me want to go to India. After the Indian food, we decided to check out what movies were playing at the CGV (movie theatre franchise, like a Regal Cinemas or Loews in Rochester). The only English move that was playing was Love & Other Drugs, that movie with Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway. The movie itself was OK, but I did enjoy the frequent shots of Jake Gyllenhaal's naked butt. Teehehehe. After the movie we went to a nearby bar for drinks. We were there for an hour or so, then headed out to get our beauty rest for our big plans on Tuesday!<br /><br /><br />Tuesday: Blythe's co-teacher Mrs. Jeon and her friend Jen took Michelle, Blythe, Valery (he played hookie for day to come along) and me to Gagnam to eat Mexican food at a restaurant called Dos Tacos. I ordered dos quesadillas, and it was SO good. I had missed real sour cream, because the "sour cream" they serve in Korea is sweet. So when they had real sour cream that was actually sour, I was a happy camper. After Dos Tacos we drove to Insadong, which is considered the more "traditional" part of Seoul. There, we went to see the palace of a famous Korean dynasty (I'm blogging from work and the pamphlet with all of the details are at home...I'll find out and edit soon!). At the palace, we saw the King and Queen's living areas, the place where the king would meet with diplomats, and the prince's quarters. It was very interesting and fun to go with Koreans who could tell us even more than the information that was provided. After seeing the palace, we walked to a street to shop and look around. There were lots of souvenir-y things there and I ended up buying a beautiful bag and cute coin purse. By this time we were all quite cold, and Michelle was craving some traditional Korean tea, so we found a tucked-away traditional tea house. It was beautiful but very small inside-- we joked that it looked like what the inside of a hobbit's house would look like! I ordered cinnamon tea with a dried persimmon inside. After tea we drove a little bit in search of a Japanese restaurant but all the ones we found were quite pricy, so we settled for galbi instead. Galbi is food that famous in Suwon...its marinated meat that you cook at the table,similar to samgyupsal. As we were walking to the restaurant, we noticed a lot of policeman and guards around. When I asked why, turns out we were right near the Korean president's residence! I couldn't see it but apparantely it was right up the road from where we were. Cool stuff! It was a busy busy day, but so much fun!<br /><br />When we returned to Suwon, Blythe and Michelle came over and hung out at my apartment, then we headed to Yongtong (neighborhood nearby) for a book club meeting. Blythe had found on Facebook a book club for foreigners "High-minded literary types" that meets once a week at a bar in Yongtong, so we decided to go check it out. It was the first meeting of the new year and there were only 3 others there, but we decided on a book to read. The book is called "The Dice Man". It sounds really interesting so I'm excited to read it and have intelligent conversations with new friends! <br /><br />Wednesday: Michelle, Blythe and I headed back to Gagnam to go to Costco. Yes, that's right. There is a Costco in Korea. For those of you who don't know what Costco is (like I didn't) it's a Sam's Club establishment. So basically its a huge warehouse that sells everything in bulk. We had quite an adventure getting there, since we didn't know exactly where it was. We had seen it from the car the day before en route to Dos Tacos but this time we were traveling by subway. When we arrived at the Suwon subway station, we went to the information desk and asked them how to get to the Costco in Gagnam. The guy behind the counter didn't really understand and recruited the help of another station worker who looked like a guard or something. After trying his very best to help us and not getting anywhere, he picked up our worn subway map we were all pouring over and said "follow me." We followed him through the station, through the doors marked "staff only", and into the station office! You should have seen the face of all people in the office (all men) when 3 white girls walked in! The officer who escorted us there said something to another at the computer, and suddenly all like 10 of the workers were hunched over the computer, searching online for subway stations nearest to Costco. I gotta say, one great thing about Korea is that if you need help, you will get it. People really go out of their way to help you. He could have just as easily brushed us off and said "sorry, can't help you" and walk away. But he didn't!<br /><br />Once we found out what stop we had to get off at, the help didn't end there. The guard who brought us there proceeded to escort us all the way the the platform and waited with us until the subway came. It was so sweet! He chatted with us in his broken English and reminded us constantly "third stop! one, two, three, get off train!" When the subway arrived we said goodbye and were on our way. The rest was a breeze because we already knew what exit to leave the station from and what bus to take from there to get to Costco. Finally, we arrived at Costco. Ahhhhhh! (soprano opera voice.) Blythe has a Costco membership from California that worked there too, so we were all set and ready to shop!<br /><br />The great thing about Korean Costco is that it sells lots of Western products. I felt like a kid in a candy shop, grabbing great products from home that I had been missing- cheese, Kashi cereal, bagels, whole wheat bread, buttermilk pancake mix, etc. After exploring Costco for about and hour, we checked out and grabbed a meal. In my excitement of buying everything, I had kind of disregarded the voices in my head reminding me that I had to carry everything home through the subway, so I was left with an extremely heavy bag that was pretty cumbersome to carry home. Blythe and Michelle helped by grabbing one handle and helping me carry it, and we eventually got home around 8:30pm. Blythe and I met later that night around 11 to go salsa dancing at this club/dance studio that's supposed to have salsa every night, but it was closed :(. Instead we went to a bar for a drink and then hit the sack. We had had an exhausting day, so it was nice to go home and crash!<br /><br />Thursday: I went to Seoul to teach my private in the afternoon since I had cancelled the previous Saturday, then had a low-key night. It was nice to have a day off!<br /><br />Friday: AWESOME. For Ajou University Language School's "cultural experience day", Val and his classmates got to spend the day at Lotte World, the largest indoor recreation park (aka amusement park) in the world, located in Seoul. BALLIN! Unfortunately, Michelle had to go back to work on Friday and Blythe wasn't feeling well, so they couldn't come along. Luckily, I had invited my friend Melodie (the same friend I met up with for New Year's) to come along. She met me there at noon and we met up with Val and his classmates. After greetings and introductions, we took on the bumper cars. I couldn't remember the last time I did bumper cars, but it was lots of fun! While we waited for our "magic passes" for the French Revolution, the big rollercoaster, to be valid (if we returned to the rollercoaster line, which had a 40 minute wait, with our "magic passes" between 3:30 and 4, we would get to go past the whole line and ride the coaster), we rode some more rides and got food. We (Melodie, Val, and 4 of his classmates-from Uzbekistan, China, Japan, and Jordan) waited in a ridiculously long line for the "hot air balloons" that went on a track on the ceiling around the entire building. By the time we got off it was 3:55 so we BOOKED IT to the rollercoaster so we didn't miss our magic pass slot. It was so cool to walk right past the huge line and get on the next car. The coaster was INSANE! The cool thing is that because the rollercoaster winds through the entire, 6- floor complex, you never see the whole thing all at once so you don't really know what it looks like. We were definitely in for a surprise with the twists and turns and tunnels of complete darkness. I think my favorite part was the sudden downward fall in a pitch-black tunnel that as soon as we got out the tunnel turned into a spiral thing where you're sideways. It was quite a ride and I screamed my head off. It was awesome. After the rollercoaster, we stumbled our way to ice rink on the bottom floor, where I was able to live out my fantasy of having an ice-skating date where you hold hands and fall down together. Except, I was the only one who fell. Val actually really enjoys ice skating so he was really excited. A lot of his classmates were there too so we all skated together for a while. A great ending to a fun day!<br /><br />Saturday: Yes, this entry is not over yet. If you've gotten this far, mazel tov! Saturday afternoon I met (suprise!) Blythe and Michelle for Chinese food at a restaurant near Blythe's apartment, which is in North Suwon. As we sat waiting for our food, a hoard of children came into the restaurant with their teachers and took over the restaurant. It wasn't long until I realized that they were Sannam Middle School students! They must have been students from one of the other camps that were going on during the vacation because some of the teachers were there too. I have no idea why they came all the way to North Suwon (about a 25 minutes away by bus), but I was shocked to see them all! None of them saw me, suprisingly, but I recognized one of my students from Winter Camp, caught his eye, and waved. He looked surprised and confused, hahaa. <br /><br />Sunday: The four of us braved the snow and went to Itaewon, the foreigner district of Seoul. There, we ate West African food (Val was happy!) and visited the foreign food market where I bought hummus (I was happy!). Then we helped Blythe find shoes. Most places don't sell anything over size 8 here since Koreans' feet are so small, but Itaewon is famous for having bigger sizes of things. Once she found some cute boots, we went to What The Book?, an English book store, to get our book for Book Club. Unfortunately they didn't have it in stock but I decided to order it. After browing around What the Book?, we found another Mexican food place and had REALLY good Mexican food. Again. Haha. What can I say, Blythe's from Cali. She eats a lot of Mexican food. But I don't mind at all. This place even had margaritas! We returned very tired and wet since the snow had really come down hard and they didn't clear the sidewalks or roads at ALL. I dug into the hummus as a late-night snack then we went to bed, very satisfied from a great week!<br /><br /><br />The students still are on vacation, so I'm just seat warming at work these days. As much as I'd rather be at home in my PJ's, at least I'm getting paid to blog, FB/Gchat with my friends, and watch episodes of How I Met Your Mother online. Life is good, ha. I also had to get a new phone this week since my other one accidently went through the wash. Oops. I got my new phone yesterday (Monday), so yeah. I did that ENTRE week sans cell phone. and it was HARD. I seriously don't know how we lived without cell phones before. <br /><br />That's enough to digest for now, I think. Believe it or not, I have more to blog about we'll wait for another time for that!<br /><br />Thanks for reading:)<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-84260577351219109542011-01-11T03:29:00.000-08:002011-01-11T04:39:58.143-08:00Welcome to 2011Hi Everyone,<br /><br />Well, it's 2011. And January. HOLY CRAP. How did all of this time pass by so quickly? I can't believe I'm approaching my 4th month in Korea. It feels like it's been hardly any time at all since I arrived while at the same time it feels like I've been here forever. <br /><br />I rang in the New Year with friends in Hongdae, a foreigner-friendly and very popular nightlife part of Seoul. To get there we first took the train from Suwon Station (a little more expensive but much faster), then once we arrived at Seoul Station we took the subway to the subway stop in Hongdae where I was supposed to meet my friend Melodie who I met at GEPIK Orientation. Michelle and Blythe came along too! Melodie brought along a few friends as well and as a group we ate at a Chinese restaurant near the club we were going to party at. The club was a suggestion from one of Melodie's friends who lives in Hongdae. After a mediocre dinner, to be honest, we headed to the club. As we walked around Hongdae I remarked that I had never seen so many foreigners in one place in Korea! I think it was mostly due to the fact that it was New Years Eve which isn't really a big deal in Korea (the Lunar New Year is the major celebration here), but also because we were in Hongdae. The club we went to was absolutely packed...I don't think I've ever been to a place that packed before. Despite the crowd, which was probably 60 or 70% foreigners, we stayed until about 2am. By then the club was so packed that there wasn't room to dance or even an empty corner where you can get some quiet or some space from the crowd. So we headed out after a long night of dancing to great music and after my very first New Year's kiss! :) Previous New Years celebrations for me were always when I was single (minus last year, when Val was in Korea) and were usually spent with small groups of friends, hence no opportunity to kiss a stranger or anybody for that matter. Not that that's something I'm in to. Aaanyway...<br /><br />Many of you received my New Years e-mail, where I reflected on the past year and expressed how thankful I was for the people in my life. I also made some New Years resolutions. This year, I resolve (?) to get more exercise, learn basic Korean, and to be more adventurous. I hope you made New Years Resolutions too!<br /><br />Last weekend I had my very first outing without Val. I was craving a girl's night so called up Blythe to ask if she wanted to go out for drinks. Turns out she was getting ready to go swing dancing in Seoul. When she asked if I wanted to join, I was delighted, but also nervous. I know the basic step for East Coast swing, but the kind of dancing Blythe likes is Lindy Hop style, which I've never done or really ever seen before. Plus, I had called her on my way back from teaching my private and there was no time to go back home and change before she was going to leave. So I went straight to Suwon Station where I met Blythe and did an impromptu shopping trip to find me a cute top to replace my T-shirt and hoodie that I was wearing. One store and the purchasing of a very cute top (50% off!) later, we jumped on the subway and headed to Seoul. <br /><br />When we arrived at the venue I felt like I had walked into a different world! Blythe and I were the only foreigners there. Koreans are so serious and frankly I hadn't seen Koreans actually having fun until I got here. The music was playing, same sort of stuff you'd here in America for swing dancing. So the place was full of Koreans, doing some GREAT dancing. Now, Lindy Hop is sort of an outgoing kind of dance...it encourages being goofy and stuff and I saw people free-styling everywhere. I danced with about 4 people, including an older man who was really fun! Most everyone there spoke English. I warned them all it was my first time, and I think I did OK though to be honest I found myself slipping into basic East Coast Swing. The place emptied out pretty early, around 11pm, so after about an hour of dancing we headed back to Suwon station for drinks. We had an awesome time at the bar talking to the bartenders and the other foreigners there. I even made a new friend, Kristen, from Toronto who lives in a neighboring city. We exchanged numbers and have plans to hang out. I got home at 4am and crashed! It was a great night. I told Blythe that after some more practice I would love be her swing dancing buddy and go with her on a regular basis. <br /><br />Yesterday (Monday) was Val's birthday and I went with him to tutor Ryan and Rachel. I used their oven to bake a cake for the occasion (since I don't have one in my apartment). When Val finished tutoring, Rachel, her mom Elisa (English name of course!) and their grandma helped me decorate the cake with frosting, strawberries, and tangerines. Finally their dad popped a bottle of sparkling juice and we all at the cake together. It was a lot of fun and I know it meant a lot to Val. Friday we invited his friends to join us at a bar at Ajou and I'm going to bake another cake to bring and share (going to bake it in Elisa's oven on Friday afternoon). Yay birthday celebrations!<br /><br />Sunday we are going hiking with some of Val's friends from the language school, then it's my week off! Winter Camp has gone pretty well, but I'm definitely ready for a vacation. Instead of taking 2 weeks off, I only took 5 days off so my next vacation I can take 15 days off and hopefully travel somewhere. The first week of Winter camp went pretty well. I definitely enjoy teaching 20 kids instead of 40 like in my regular classes. Most of the students are pretty good at English and enjoy English so that also helps! The first week we did the international theme which I think the students enjoyed. Throughout the week they created their own countries in groups, then on Friday "visited" each other's countries. This week doesn't have a theme. Yesterday I taught them phrases for talking about the time (quarter to, quarter after, 5 after, 10 to, half past, etc). Today we learned how to talk about music and we watched music videos and the students wrote down what they liked and didn't like based on the vocabulary we worked on earlier in the day. <br /><br />Tomorrow we are learning (or reviewing, for some of the students) comparatives and superlatives. The first half of the class is themed "Extreme Makeover" where they make comparisons of people or things that have gone under huge transformations such as plastic surgery, age, makeovers, etc. Then the second half of the class will be Olympics, where the students will compete in events such as a spelling bee, a race down the hallway, alphabet race, arm wrestling, and verb conjugation races. After each event students will compare the competitors, using the target vocabulary. Now, I can't take credit for creating those lessons...the Extreme Makeover and Olympics were complete lesson plans I found online! Thursday we are practicing the future tense and making those oragami fortune teller things that we used to play with in middle school. I'm going to have to review how to make them though so I can teach the students! Finally, on Friday we are going to have a little party and watch a movie. Any suggestions of good but appropriate movies I can show my students??<br /><br />Next Friday, since I'll be on vacation, I'm going to crash the Ajou University Language School's "cultural experience" at Lotte World. Lotte World is the biggest indoor recreation complex (aka indoor amusement park) in the world and it's located in Seoul. Val gets a free ticket and a bus ride there as a student of the language school, so I'm going to meet them there buy a ticket, and hang with Val and his friends for the day there! I'm pumped!<br /><br />I think that's all for now. I plan to get my camera fixed this week so I will hopefully have more pictures soon. Thanks for reading, folks! Wishing you all the best in 2011. Missing you!<br /><br />Lots of love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-52526320568099177412010-12-20T01:09:00.000-08:002010-12-20T01:48:23.573-08:00Firsts, and Other News.Yo. <br /><br />So, it’s been a while since I blogged. In the past weeks there haven’t been enough things blog-worthy to happen, but the accumulated amount I think is worth a blog entry on this fine week before Christmas. I’m in my 2nd to last week of teaching for year, because the school year ends on Wednesday the 29th. I, however, will be teaching “English Camp” for the first two weeks of January. English Camp isn’t really camp, its just more classes (these kids don’t catch a break! Instead of actually relaxing at home during their vacation they just go to extra classes during the afternoon. Poor things!) but the good news is that I have complete freedom for what I plan for it. English Camp, I am told, goes from 9:30am-12:30pm Monday through Friday. Now, they haven’t told me yet if it’s going to be two different groups of students (2 one-week sessions) or the same kids for both weeks. I guess it depends on how many students enroll, but of course they won’t know that until the Friday before I’m supposed to teach!! So lately at school I’ve been brainstorming and planning my Winter Camp lessons. I definitely want to do an international theme for one of the weeks, where the students learn about customs, food, clothing, and music from different parts of the world, all the while learning useful vocabulary and phrases for talking about all of those things. I really want to students to create something throughout the week so they have something to present and be proud of at the end of the week. For the international week, I think I’m going to have them create their own country, choosing customs, music, food, activities, laws, or even the design for their postage stamp (thanks for that great idea Lauren!). On the last day, students can visit each other’s countries and do the activities that the students create there. I got an idea online to make “passports” for each student so they can keep track of where they’ve “visited” (aka learned about). The passport will also have personal information about them so I can get to know my students a little better. <br /><br />If I have the same kids for a second week, I want to continue with the theme but switch to travel. The target language for the lessons will be airport and travel situational vocabulary and phrases, and also what to pack, what could go wrong, etc. For their final project I think I’m going to have them work on skits, incorporating all the situations we talked about throughout the week. If I have a different group the second week, I’ll either repeat the International theme or pick another one, maybe music. I have a weeks-worth lesson plan sketched out for a music theme. But where I’m stuck is figuring out what they can create during that week. The students are extremely shy so having them make up a song and perform it or something is out of the question. I thought maybe they could learn the lyrics to an English song and do something with that. Help? Ideas? Keep in mind these are middle school students with VERY low self-esteem and a very narrow area of interest. <br /><br />Other things:<br /><br />I had a first 2 weekends ago. It’s not Korean at all, or even Asian, but it’s still a first for me: I got my very first pedicure. My friend Blythe called me up last Sunday and asked me if I wanted to get pedicures with her. Now, I have always avoided pedicures for two reasons. 1) For a long time I was a dancer and my feet were guaranteed to look like crap all the time. Paying to get them all prettied up would be a waste of money and time because dancing barefoot 3 days a week would cause my feet to look NASTY after just a few weeks. 2) My feet are EXTREMELY ticklish. I always had this image in my head of what me getting a pedicure would look like and it always ended with me not being able to control my reactions and giving the pedicurist a healthy kick in the nose. SO when Blythe called me I was thrilled at the idea with spending a chilly Sunday afternoon in a warm salon with her reading fashion magazines and chatting about our love lives. Or whatever people do when they get pedicures. I admitted to Blythe my hesitations due to my extreme ticklish-ness, but it didn’t take much to convince me since I was really looking forward to some girl time. Blythe said she was ready to be amused and would be sure to bring her camera. Which she did. And what she documented thankfully wasn’t what I had imagined would happen, just a few moments of “OMG that tickles. Hold it in, HOLD IT IN!” and a general good time. It turns out it wasn’t a complete pedicure that we had expected with the wax and the lotion and the soaking, just some lotion and a really good paiyyynt job!(said in Little Rascals voice). Nevertheless it was fun to hang with Blythe and read fashion magazines and talk about our love lives and get to know each other a little more. After our pedies we shopped a little in the surrounding stores (I didn’t buy anything though), then went for coffee. Later we called up Val and met us near Ajou University for Japanese food. Yum! We ended up sitting there for 2 hours just talking, so we continued our conversation at a nearby cute, trendy café down the street where we proceeded to play a really intense game of Uno.<br /><br />What else…<br />I had another first. This one was actually Korean so it’s a little more exciting. Val and I joined some friends at a Nore bang (pronounced nor-ee-bahng) (singing room). They’re super popular here. Its basically a place where you and your friends can go into this huge room and do karaoke. But this was intense. There’s a huge TV and tamborines laying on the huge couch that lines 2 walls of a room that is probably close to the size of my entire apartment. They even had free ice cream! I sang Baby Got Back and some other ones. Classic. Good times! Looking forward to going back soon. <br /><br />After hearing that The Nutcracker was in town (well, in Seoul) ,on a whim I called the foreigner hotline Seoul Arts Center where it’s playing to see if there were any tickets still available. When the lady on the phone said there were, I just went for it and and bought tickets for Val & I for Dec. 30th. Our seats are really far away (on the 3rd floor, but 2nd row)but they were only 30,000 won (about 30 bucks) so I thought it would be worth it. It’s being performed by the Korea National Ballet. I haven’t seen the Nutcracker (or any professional ballet) since I was a very little girl, and Val’s never been the ballet, so I’m really looking forward to it. Yay! I’ll let you know how it is. <br /><br />I started taking yoga classes once a week. We’ve only had 2 classes so far but I really like it. It’s the perfect combination of stretching and exercise. Even though the teacher doesn’t speak a word of English, she’s very kind and always makes sure I have a mat near the front so she can gesture to me. There is one woman in the class who speaks English so she makes sure to sit next to me so she can occasionally translate. I’m really glad I’m getting at least SOME exercise, because before I wasn’t getting any at all aside from walking around. I feel really good about that.<br /><br />For Christmas, Val's friend Taylor invited us to a Christmas buffet at a Canadian-style bar and grill place in Seoul. The buffet's supposed to have turkey and ham and all that good stuff and I'm REALLY excited because there is NO turkey in this country and its my favorite meat. So that's what we'll be doing Christmas day. As for New Years, no plans yet but hoping to go out with friends. <br /><br />It's starting to get cold here. We had our first real snow (that stuck) last week, and since then it's been pretty darn cold. Apparently we get jet winds from Siberia and Mongolia and it's damn cold. I mean, I'm used to the cold but the winds here are frigid and strong. It's definitely winter. The good news is that Korea's winters are supposed to be fairly dry, so it won't be too snowy but still cold. What is cold without snow? Not fun. Despite that, I think I'm OK with a winter sans knee-high snow banks. I have to admit, though, not seeing snow until December was a shock. I'm pretty sure that's the longest I've gone without seeing snow, so I was happy when it started to fall. It was pretty! <br /><br />No more news on the North Korea stuff.<br /><br />Watched Strictly Ballroom on our movie channel this weekend. Score. <br /><br />One last thing. I watched Toy Story 3 last night, and I cried at the end. Legit cried. Like, had to wipe my eyes and blow my nose cried. Val thought I was being ridiculous but those of you who told me what tear-jerker it was you ain’t lyin! Man, those Pixar movies really get to me. <br /><br />Overall, I think I'm doing than I was before. As my Mom helped me realize, two of the things I felt I was missing in my life I now have. I wanted friends and a chance to exercise. Now that I have my awesome friends from the GEPIK orientation and the yoga class, my life is feeling a little more complete. I still would love to find a dance class, but I'll take what I can get. I might start a pilates class in January, or I'm considering taking up belly dancing, because that's whats available here. I think I'd be fun and REALLY good exercise. <br /><br />Ok, I’m going to go now, I think that’s enough to keep you busy for a while ☺. <br />Merry Christmas and happy belated Chanukah! By the way, I somehow remembered to pack a menorah and Chanukah candles when I left so I got to light the menorah every night. It was very special to share the rituals with Val (and to make him latkes!). I made latkes for us and then brought most of them to school, along with my homemade applesauce, to share with my colleagues. They were a hit and they devoured all of them… there weren’t even any left to bring back home! <br /><br />Ok, I’m really going now. Miss you all!<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-58418761157895704682010-11-28T19:42:00.000-08:002010-11-28T20:23:24.523-08:00New Friends, New IdeasGreetings!<br /><br />First of all, I have had a number of inquiries from worried family members and friends regarding the N. Korean attack on the South Korean island of Yeongpyong. No worries--I am safe, alive, and nowhere near that island. In terms of safety, the advice I was given was just to observe the Koreans around me. If they aren't freaking out, I probably shouldn't either. Then again, how do they really know. But this sort of thing "happens all the time" so if the Koreans don't believe it's serious then there's no reason for me to get all worked up. The Koreans are going on with business as usual, so I will too. I registered with the U.S. Embassy here when I arrived, and I recently signed up for their e-mail/text message alert system so I will receive a text and an e-mail if there are travel warnings being issued for South Korea. Until then, I'm keeping my eyes and ears peeled and continuing to ask questions. I think that's all I can do right now. <br /><br />Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of the past week I was at teacher training/orientation for GEPIK middle school and high school teachers. GEPIK is the Gyeonggi (pronounced geeyong-gee) English Program in Korea. It is basically the organization that recruits Native English teachers for the public schools in the Gyeonggi province. My employer is my school, but my contract is a standard GEPIK contract that all GEPIK teachers have no matter where they work. Soo anyway, GEPIK held this orientation this week in Anseong, a small city about an hour south of Suwon. I got a chance to meet a bunch of other English teachers in my area and go to lectures giving me great teaching and classroom management tips specifically for my situation. It's often hard to get advice from people from home about teaching because there are so many things that factor into teaching English in Korea that make it difficult and different than teaching American students. All of the lectures were geared specifically towards teaching Korean middle school and high school students in large classes with co-teachers and language and culture barriers, so they were super helpful. <br /><br />I really enjoyed mingling with other teachers too and swapping ideas about what has worked (and not worked) in our classrooms. Most of the teachers are about my age and the majority of them have been in Korea for less than 6 months so we're all in the boat. Besides finally being able to make some of my own friends, my favorite part of the week was probably the demo lesson presentations we had to do. The entire group of about 80 people were split into groups of 15 according to what area we worked and lived in. In my group, consisting of teachers teaching in Suwon and surrounding areas, we got put into pairs and assigned a lesson topic to teach. We had one night to make our lessons plans (only 15 minutes long) and the next morning we all "taught" each other. Now, since classrom management is one of the biggest challenges of our jobs, as the students we were instructed to act like our students! Challenging our "teachers" with off-topic (and incorrect) questions, creating distractions, and not listening to directions and therefore delaying the activities, we imitated our students' accents and often inappropriate questions and language. We were all sort of fooling around with it and it was fun! I also walked away from the demo lessons with 5 other lesson plan ideas (worksheets and activities included) to bring back to my class. <br /><br />My partner Michael and I did a lesson on American Holidays. We split our "class" into three groups and gave each group an information card about one of the following holidays: Halloween, Fourth of July, and Thanksgiving. After Michael and I did an example with Choesok (Korean Harvest holiday), the students were instructed to learn the information on the card. Then they had to go around and ask the other students about the other holidays and write it down on the charts we handed out. For the activity, we posted signs for each holiday on opposite sides of the room and the students were instructed to run to the sign that matched the vocabulary word we gave them, for example "jack-o-lantern", "pumpkin pie", "fireworks", or "independence". I think it was a success!<br /><br />Another fun part of the orientation was learning a traditional Korean mask dance called Tacheum. Thursday afternoon we got to choose an activity to do, choosing from tradition dancing, learning about K-Pop (Korean pop music), a craft activity, and Korean calligraphy. All of the activities sounded appealing but I knew I wanted to do one that would get me up and moving after a whole morning and afternoon of sitting in lectures and lessons. I of course enjoyed dancing it and learning about the history and story of the dance. The traditional Tacheum dance is actually a mix of drama and movement and the performances almost always followed the same story that ends in tradgedy. Our instructor described the dance as very "down to earth", meaning that it was really a people's dance. It was never performed for the King or anything. It was and remains very sacred to the Korean people.<br /><br />Last weekend I went to the Seoul Lamp Festival with Val, his/our friend Peter (the Korean-American who's originally from the town over from Sarah in NJ) and his friend, which I think many of you saw pictures of on FB. Unfortunately, at the festival I dropped my camera and the retractable lense got jammed, so the camera is temporarily out of service. I think it will be an easy fix because we took the lense part apart and nothing's broken, the lense is just jammed and needs to be re-aligned. If I discover the price of repairing it is close to the price of a new camera, well, Happy Chanukah to me! I'll probably buy a new camera. So sorry about that, you'll have to wait for more pictures for a while. <br /><br />This weekend, after I got home from the training, I met two of the girls from orientatin out for drinks and dancing. Michelle was my roommate at the training and she hails from Toronto. She's been in Korea for about 3 months. Blythe is from Sacramento and has only been here for 3 weeks! Michelle, Blythe, Val, and I met for drinks at a REALLY cool bar at Suwon station that looked like a Moroccan restaurant with colorful pillows on which we sit on the floor and a sheet of veil separating each table. The vibe was chill and the drinks were good. We stayed there for a while and then went out dancing. We had a great time shaking it and drinking our free drinks (you get a ticket for a free drink after paying the \10,000 cover (about 10 bucks). That's a little steep if you ask me but getting a free drink out of it, I can live with it. After dancing the night away, Val & I headed home around 3am. I already have plans in the making to meet some of the other GEPIK teachers in my area next weekend. YAY for finally havs ing friends. <br /><br />The rest of the weekend was fairly uneventful because I caught a nasty cold that pretty much put me out of commission for Sat and Sun. I spent the days Skyping with family and relaxing with Val and watching TV which I finally got set up. There are a number of English channels including movie channels and National Geographic Wild. Pretty sweet! I also found 2 channels that air reruns of one of my favorite shows ever that is no longer on and I can not find anywhere online: ALIAS! 10 points for my Korean TV channels. <br /><br />This week and next week I am not teaching regular classes due to my students preparing for and then taking their final exams. So I'll be sitting at my desk all day, every day so feel free to g-chat me anytime!<br /><br />Love to you all. I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving!<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-79628193785962202802010-11-17T05:16:00.000-08:002010-11-17T05:45:52.560-08:00You Guessed It! More Korean Culture<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKfw4eCYzlhjFHq91hukHPBfRqQ_TWUWAuMmr-Z6LT9kSQknB011qSJxWklMdr0aexGaQJ87EZ-kbyhf4Ewe68vZMvqHIrKdm1GQE8ZHkdiQtuHcXg2n5jioyzZEsIema0izh_XdfL_5O/s1600/nephelium_lappaceum_reveal.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtKfw4eCYzlhjFHq91hukHPBfRqQ_TWUWAuMmr-Z6LT9kSQknB011qSJxWklMdr0aexGaQJ87EZ-kbyhf4Ewe68vZMvqHIrKdm1GQE8ZHkdiQtuHcXg2n5jioyzZEsIema0izh_XdfL_5O/s320/nephelium_lappaceum_reveal.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540513994323659010" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhenVtwUymVNPDMQZ1nEq8fZ0eOIeGGQ5LpGry-twkZ3ES08Dh1k0xR5gUSZTIMte2rrUTGQbLcaK8caTLa7cA9gCDxuJpIakojFoWB0mFZ6f6iN4XBgn8MjlrlN26yJNOLhUAMgYggvGO7/s1600/Lychee_600.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 260px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhenVtwUymVNPDMQZ1nEq8fZ0eOIeGGQ5LpGry-twkZ3ES08Dh1k0xR5gUSZTIMte2rrUTGQbLcaK8caTLa7cA9gCDxuJpIakojFoWB0mFZ6f6iN4XBgn8MjlrlN26yJNOLhUAMgYggvGO7/s320/Lychee_600.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540513982448487058" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinKlBs5AWbCroRN8OQpwa6rvWtkk7_n81G6JNyxth_rEo4xSCH76QA5U09TSjYJdfTxI9SVMDSH3FX2LAVlL-Jcas49V9P5wf5lUooMTifpARJJX-mdE-2SEOvTQqZd3z5z4nh7rFF5l3c/s1600/toilet-squat.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 223px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinKlBs5AWbCroRN8OQpwa6rvWtkk7_n81G6JNyxth_rEo4xSCH76QA5U09TSjYJdfTxI9SVMDSH3FX2LAVlL-Jcas49V9P5wf5lUooMTifpARJJX-mdE-2SEOvTQqZd3z5z4nh7rFF5l3c/s320/toilet-squat.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540510851247367346" /></a><br />Hi again!<br /><br />OK, so you're probably thinking, "Ew, what the heck is this post about? Toilets and hairy food?" Well, yes it is. :) I've been making more observations about surprising and different things I am encountering here in Korea. So I'mma just go ahead and get to it.<br /><br />1. Koreans drive like maniacs. They're as bad (or perhaps worse) than New Yorkers. Whenever I get into a taxi I fear for my life. People zoom through intersections and drive REALLY close to other cars. People even drive through red lights on a regular basis. Waiting at a red light, it's not uncommon to see a car slow down, the driver look to see if there is anyone coming in the opposite traffic direction, and zoom through the red light, spastically honking their horn. It's INSANE. <br /><br />2. Regular toilets are a rare siting. Squatting toilets, as seen in the photo, are what you'll find about 70% of the time. These definitely get some getting used to. I'll be the first to admit that I avoid them at all costs, only using them if my bladder is about to burst and there is no toilet in the bathroom I'm in. And when I must use it, it's difficult. It takes some practice. If I don't pay attention, I end up peeing on my shoe, followed by me usually cursing and wiping my shoe furiously. Then I feel ridiculous. There is usually at least one regular toilet if you need to go ....erm... "number two," but otherwise you gotta use a squat toilet if the real one is occupied. Luckily at Sannam the teachers' bathroom has one regular toilet which I use whenever I can. Oh, by the way, the toilet seat is heated in the winter. So instead of that moment of wincing you have when you first sit down on the cold porcelain toilet seat, you sit and get a warm surprise. It's sort of nice. And in a school where the halls aren't heated (only the classrooms), you sort of want to stay there. Ok, enough bathroom talk. <br /><br />3. There is no Korean equivalent to "bless you". Koreans don't say anything after you sneeze. It might not sound so bizarre, but after being accustomed to hearing someone say something after you sneeze for your whole life, being in a silent office (because everyone is hard at work... most of the time) and sneezing and it remaining silent is REALLY strange. I'm still not used to it!<br /><br />5. In the winter, to keep warm outside people wear face masks. I was confused at first but I guess breathing warm air keeps you warm. It makes sense. I've gotten used to seeing people walking around looking like burglars or surgeons or gangsters but I was shocked when I first saw it. Even in the summer I saw people wearing them, which I don't understand really...<br /><br /><br />I swear I had so many I wanted to talk about but now as I sit down to blog I'm forgetting them! Oh well, I'll write about them later when I remember. In other news, I've been introduced to new, exotic fruits. A lychee and a hairy lychee (I'm sure you can figure out which is which) is a South East Asian fruit. The first time I encountered the lychee was at a dinner out with some fellow teachers from my school. It was a buffet dinner and upon seeing them I asked Nam Teacher, "What the heck is <span style="font-style:italic;">that</span>?!" She laughed and explained that it was a fruit from South East Asia. With her instruction, I peeled the lychee (a somewhat difficult task) and popped the soft, rubbery center into my mouth. It tasted citrus-y and sweet. I liked it so much I even went up to get more from the buffet. Tonight I went to another dinner out with teachers at another buffet-style restaurant and what was there?! My favorite new exotic fruit. I was excited. I also saw snails at the buffet which I didn't have the guts to try. Octopus tentacles are enough for me at this point. Ick!<br /><br />That's all, folks!<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-63682451223591845732010-11-17T04:28:00.000-08:002010-11-17T05:15:53.467-08:00Trip to the Buddhist Temple<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0byJ-orEIvlDF5ByFnA15JAN9qB5-EfaWXdwWE8kYdVEiCiIsWpVuYd378_eqICK_GEUEE52gszQ1bvGOlU1GJ2snGWSfmGSxpfvXOZMDrZqQNmKR5xi0ZENZLzODmx6WcVNqtwq3lo90/s1600/IMG_5521.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0byJ-orEIvlDF5ByFnA15JAN9qB5-EfaWXdwWE8kYdVEiCiIsWpVuYd378_eqICK_GEUEE52gszQ1bvGOlU1GJ2snGWSfmGSxpfvXOZMDrZqQNmKR5xi0ZENZLzODmx6WcVNqtwq3lo90/s320/IMG_5521.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540505957170466034" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixyoDq5coNKIQr80N75D4bJFVz1sbgy7-aPSZbCumj-iLD6toK_MgpnmzQV4SLKP6lR2ZXRlHSYJ8b63NuUK6s8xo_T8KU9TohAfbla_rc7_FsHhwIt7bFw4tvvwNzaNjVLyuCB8faFMyk/s1600/IMG_5523.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixyoDq5coNKIQr80N75D4bJFVz1sbgy7-aPSZbCumj-iLD6toK_MgpnmzQV4SLKP6lR2ZXRlHSYJ8b63NuUK6s8xo_T8KU9TohAfbla_rc7_FsHhwIt7bFw4tvvwNzaNjVLyuCB8faFMyk/s320/IMG_5523.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540505186024068562" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL08CPsHUQ4w3shfWlzewtxhPtvp4TM8GX7OlL3jMcBz8iGKAzAjpb0hEYdwIJxucMuWicr5YHE-8L9UaScfQzUMz-5cDRzGigkXgK6oyBhAwLlqVrtpsed7gV-VN4sd1RQNIqopJUhc2K/s1600/IMG_5519.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL08CPsHUQ4w3shfWlzewtxhPtvp4TM8GX7OlL3jMcBz8iGKAzAjpb0hEYdwIJxucMuWicr5YHE-8L9UaScfQzUMz-5cDRzGigkXgK6oyBhAwLlqVrtpsed7gV-VN4sd1RQNIqopJUhc2K/s320/IMG_5519.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540505171712380594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXBCe_qlF52A8aR1djrrDZ6nBVtAQhVpOLMSJ86dca_x_ovcgHkS0GpnkVXWpTkIJU_tmWdXCbmCd1zB1gu9L_qJ_5RyiMhTDQR_b0_jc_y8oak6thTzwGL38Sh63fLCcfdjlDs69khSq6/s1600/white-lotus-flower.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXBCe_qlF52A8aR1djrrDZ6nBVtAQhVpOLMSJ86dca_x_ovcgHkS0GpnkVXWpTkIJU_tmWdXCbmCd1zB1gu9L_qJ_5RyiMhTDQR_b0_jc_y8oak6thTzwGL38Sh63fLCcfdjlDs69khSq6/s320/white-lotus-flower.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5540505156315150018" /></a><br /><br /><br />Hi folks,<br /><br />I'm so glad to see your comments. There's no easy to way to reply to your comments (we aren't on Facebook, ya know), so I'll say here thank you so much for your comments and I'm so glad to hear from some old friends like BLANDINA! Girl, I was so happy to see your comment. So there's my mini shout-out and thank you to all of you who are commenting. I love them and I love hearing from all of you. <br /> <br />So here are me updates. Nothing new to report at school really. Just getting into the groove of things. Next week I'm going to teach about Thanksgiving since next Thursday is the day o' giving thanks. I'm really going to miss going to Grammy's with my fam and eating all the delicious food until I feel like my stomach is going to burst, but mostly I'm going to miss the company. They don't eat turkey here and they hardly have any bread products besides sugary cereals and white bread so it's not like I can even try to cook a Thanksgiving meal with turkey and stuffing, etc. Oh well. I hope you all enjoy this festive and delicious day. I'll definitely be thinking of home next Thursday!<br /><br />This past Sunday I got to do something really special. Rachel and Ryan's mom took us to the Buddhist Temple that she attends. The temple is in another town, about 25 minutes away, out in the open surrounded by mountains. When we first arrived we visited the Buddhist museum on site that had ancient relics and information ... that I couldn't read because they were either written in Korean or Chinese! Fortunately, Rachel and Ryan's mom served as a tour guide and with her good English guided Val and I around and explained what we were looking at. As she explained some things I started to remember some of the information I learned in my Buddhist Traditions class I took at Muhlenberg sophomore year. I remember it being a terrible class because the professor was not good at all, but I also remember the material being interesting. As we walked around the museum I remembered flashes of information and it was nice to be able to ask questions and have somewhat of an intellectual conversation with her. At museum I got to "write" on parchment using ancient printing, meaning there was a slate with raised Korean characters and a raised picture of a temple. We brushed ink onto the slate and placed the parchment on top, then we gently rubbed the paper against the inked slate with a clothed wood so the ink transferred onto the paper and created a design! I got to try twice (didn't go so well the first time... I smeared it everywhere) and bring them home. I also got to taste flower tea, which was just tea made from a flower (it looked like wild daisy to me) soaked in water. It was so earthy and delicious!<br /><br />After the museum we headed to the main area where the temples, statues, and ancient gong was. We got to peak into the temple which was very beautiful, surrounded by candles, statues of Buddha, and scented with incense. R & R's mom (I actually don't know her name!) explained that the statues of Buddha are not sacred and when people bow and pray they are not bowing and praying TO the statue. The statues are simply there to remind the believers of why there are there. I thought that was interesting. I sort of wanted to go into the temple and just sit but I chickened out about asking! There was another small temple where there were supposedly 1,000 Buddha statues. Crazy, right?!<br /><br />As we walked around the temple she pointed out the mediation area (outdoors but secluded by tall trees and bushes) and we studied the paintings on the outside of the temple depicting Buddha's life. As she explained the paintings much of what I learned in my Buddhist Traditions class came back to me and I could determine what the paintings were depicting! That felt really cool...I had no idea I learned so much in that class. We continued to walk around and admire the scenery and the colorful accents of the leaves that were turning orange. It was such a special experience for me and she was such a great tour guide. I hope maybe I can go back and learn more about it. I know there are often crossovers with Judaism and Buddhism (Jewdhism?) so I wasn't surprised about how connected I felt there. I remember feeling connected to Buddhist beliefs during my class at 'Berg but actually being at a place devoted to them touched me. <br /><br />One of the core Buddhist symbols is the Lotus flower. When Buddhists meditate they put their hands in the "lotus position" (pads of the middle finger and thumb touching) and there are symbols and metaphors of the lotus all over Buddhist art and scripture. The Lotus flower, if you don't know, is a white flower that grows out of mud and dirty water. The basic significance of the L is that we live in a world that is dark and dirtied with crime, greed, and deceit but by meditating and following Buddhist beliefs we can rise out of the "mud" and exist like a beautiful, pure flower. I liked the idea that you are not leaving that dirty world behind you, but you can exist purely and beautifully among it. Just like we can't escape all the terrible things in this world, but we can learn to not let it take over us and bring us down.<br /><br />As you can tell, I really enjoyed this experience and I could tell it was nice for Rachel, Ryan, and their mom to share this with us. I had been looking forward to the visit ever since she mentioned she wanted to take us there and I'm glad we got to do it on a beautiful fall day. After the temple we ate at McDonald's (the kid's choice) and then went home. What a great day! The picture of Lotus flower, I must admit, is a Google image. I didn't have my camera handy when we saw the one growing in the pond at the temple!<br /><br />Love to you all!<br /><br />Love, <br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-46016437409031422512010-11-07T04:21:00.001-08:002010-11-07T05:25:17.346-08:00International Day, Hiking<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoRe8D4CfB3aSjJE2lceF9MM82Q6fsZy9hTCZp_lvCAlgYskBaxK0Zm0a4HzlS3Nl9WdGu6QPVidSgetMi66PWmDsJv5Nl-JhzLZbDsJJGw4RgqDOV50qeAXhra2ITS0eDH-KUzeB1fwhb/s1600/mdKdFSI1jn4duz32QGkB9s0Io1_500.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 284px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoRe8D4CfB3aSjJE2lceF9MM82Q6fsZy9hTCZp_lvCAlgYskBaxK0Zm0a4HzlS3Nl9WdGu6QPVidSgetMi66PWmDsJv5Nl-JhzLZbDsJJGw4RgqDOV50qeAXhra2ITS0eDH-KUzeB1fwhb/s320/mdKdFSI1jn4duz32QGkB9s0Io1_500.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536782108938895810" /></a><br /><br />Hey folks!<br /><br />After receiving some bad news from home and having some stress at work, it's been a long week. So I'm just relaxing on a Sunday evening, listening to my new favorite online radio station called Radio Latina, a French radio station that plays latin-style songs in French, Spanish and English. All of the advertisements and talking is in French so it's like music to my ears! I miss French SO much so I love being able to listen to it whilst jamming to some great tunes. <br /><br />The week was difficult because I found out that one of high school classmates died last weekend. I was not close with him, but some of my closest guy friends from home were. He was like a brother to them. To add to everything, I also got a very sad note from one of my best friends explaining that her roommate was seriously injured in a freak accident and they are waiting to find out if her brain is injured since she's in a medically-induced coma. Needless to say, it has been really hard to be away from home this week because my friends are hurting and I can't give them the support I want to. So I was kind of distracted this week and was missing home, wishing I could be there to give support to my friends. It's been hard dealing with it by myself here, even though I have Val who has of course been wonderful and a shoulder for me to cry on. When you go through things like this you just crave the company who share your pain, you know what I mean? I know my friends are well-supported at home, but I wish I could do more than send an e-mail, talk on a short phone call, or send cyber-hugs. So that's what my Facebook status was referring to this week, if you're wondering. I'm OK, my friends aren't and I can't help them. It's the worst, feeling so helpless. <br /><br />Annnyways, the point of this blog was not to depress you. I actually have happy things to share. So let's get to them.<br /><br />On Thursday after work I joined Val at International Day at Ajou University (where he is taking his language classes). This was an all-day event where all of the international students set up booths representing their countries and served food and had activities. The festival was concluded with cultural performances by some of the students. Sadly I missed most of the food and activities since all of that closed at 5 and I didn't get there til 5:15 or so, but I did manage to get some Turkish ice cream and of course a Cameroonian pancake. There were SO many countries represented there, like Poland, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, France, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mongolia, China, Japan, Lithuania, Vietnam, the U.S., etc. It was awesome! I was in heaven, being in such an international community haha. During the performances I got to do things like watch a Mongolian play this awesome cello-like instrument, enjoy Polish girls firedancing, jump along to the music with the Germans who performed a drinking song/dance (what a surprise haha), and participate in a Turkish circle dance similar to the Hora. It was really fun but tiring since I had come straight from work! <br /><br />Friday I went with Val to his tutoring session with this ADORABLE little boy named Sang. He 11ish and he just sits there and smiles if he doesn't know the answer. I've come with Val a few times when he goes to teach him just cause I like to be with him whenever I can and watch him teach because he's so good at it. Sang's mom doesn't speak a word of English but she's very sweet (I can just tell!) and always prepares food for V & I when he teaches. On Mondays I often go with Val to teach Rachel & Ryan, the brother and sister I mentioned in an earlier, because they just live across the main road from me. Their mom speaks great English and their grandma is always there. The grandma doesn't speak any English but I guess she really likes me and always just watches V & I and smiles. I wish I could talk to her! I guess a few weeks ago V went without me and their grandma was like "where's sexy?" haha. Even when I'm exhausted after teaching my after-school class on Mondays I like going to see Rachel and Ryan and their mom & g-ma. When I do come I usually help Val teach or just sit and watch. They are Buddhist and their mom is studying Buddhism in English (to practice) and she offered to take me with her one time so she can share it with me. I was like YES I would love to, so I think we're going to do that soon. Rachel is going to be a student at Sannam starting in March (that's when they start new grades here) so I'm excited to have her there. Her English is SO good, WAY better than most of my current students, so she'll do great. <br /><br />After V and I went to Sang's on Friday, I took him to Outback (by his request) for our one year9-month anniversary. I finally got my salary so I insisted that I treat this time. I ordered steak and V ordered seafood pasta and we drank yummy wine. Our waiter was ADORABLE and tried to speak English to us. He was so sweet and sent us home with extra bread (Val's favorite thing of all time). We gave him a tip even though it's not customary to tip waiters here, and we also gave him a penny I had in my wallet as a souvenir. He was so excited he told us he was going to pin it onto his shirt (that's already packed with flare as part of his uniform). On our receipt he wrote "thank you and good luck! :)". Even Val admitted that he was adorable. Not in a I'm-attracted-to-him sort of way, but in a he-has-a-sweet-personality way. You know what I mean. The delicious food, casual atmosphere, memorable waiter, and special occasion made for perfect date night. To conclude the night we came back to my apartment and watched Toy Story on youtube (thanks, illegal internet movies!). <br /><br />Today we went on a hike with Taylor (mentioned him in a previous post also...he's Val's American friend from the language school) and Taylor's Korean girlfriend Jin. I hadn't met her before and she was really sweet and her English is excellent. There's a mountain in Suwon that we decided to climb...I don't even know what its called actually. Hmm. But we hiked for about 2 hours, and it was really nice. The foggy and overcast weather was ideal for hiking but not ideal for the view at the top, as we couldn't see much! It was very nice to do something different and physical this weekend instead of the normal just sitting around. The cartoon at the top of this post says it all about the hike-- that is not an exaggeration in the least. Hiking is a common weekend activity here and people take it very seriously. Everybody was wearing those matching hiking clothes, visors, nice hiking shoes, and using those sturdy plastic hiking sticks. No joke. EVERYBODY. We were totally underdressed in our sweatpants, oversized t-shirts, and dirty sneakers. It was so bizarre! Also, about halfway through the hike there was a resting area that had workout machines. You are probably thinking, who the heck works out during a hiking break?! That would be the Koreans. Now I know how they all stay so skinny. These outdoor work-out machines are common here, but I never thought I'd see one in a location like this. So as we were sitting and resting, the Koreans were on the machines working their shoulder rotations, doing sit-ups, and.....wait for it....hoola-hooping. It was the most bizarre thing. Here we were on the side of a mountain and there's man, dressed in fancy hiking clothes, hoola-hooping. I had to laugh. I took pictures, which I will be posting soon. You have to see it to believe it. <br /><br />The end of the hike was the coolest part. To get to the true, rocky peak of the mountain, we had to use a rope to assist us up the steep rocks. There were 3 ropes strongly fastened (I didn't even notice how) at the top of the "peak" and they extended all the way down to the base of that part. So to get up you scale up the rocks using the rope. It was pretty epic, though the view at the top was disappointing because of the fog. Nevertheless it was refreshing to do something new and see a new part of Korea. After hiking down the 4 of us got dinner at another one of those cook-at-the-table restaurants, but this time we had to take our shoes off at the door and sit on the floor. It was awesome and the food was delicious. We got pork and cow meat that was especially savory and tasty and I even tasted some mini jelly-fish tentacle thingys soaked in vinegar. They tasted like vinegar and felt like rubber. Yay new but odd sea creatures entering my stomach!<br /><br />And that brings us to now, sittin in my PJs on my bed and bloggin'. It's 10:15 so I gotta go to bed (yup, living the wild life!). Thanks for reading! Pictures soon.<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-51724329580937400982010-10-27T04:26:00.000-07:002010-10-27T05:04:17.926-07:00Getting into the RoutineHi Folks!<br /><br />So as promised, my blog posts have become less frequent now that work is in full-swing and I no longer have the sleeping schedule (or energy endurance) of my college days. Ah, I'm getting old. In addition to teaching my regular classes, I also teach a conversation class every morning from 8:05-8:50, an advanced speaking class on Mondays after school (3:30-5) and an advanced essay class on Wednesdays after school. I also will be attending an informal English Teacher's workshop most Thursdays, where the English teachers get together and just discuss topics freely to practice their English. It's nice and informal yet another thing I must prepare for and fit into my schedule. I'm still doing private tutoring on Saturday evenings in Seoul, and I will probably be taking up another tutoring session for Cho Teacher's middle school-aged daughter. I know it's busy but the money is good so I'm not complaining!<br /><br /><br />Generally, work is going well. The kiddies are still noisy. I am getting a little frustrated about the last-minute information I get. I find out 45 minutes before the day is over that I have to submit my entire lesson scheme for my AM Conversation class by the next morning. Also yesterday I found out 10 minutes before class started that I had to must teach in a different classroom (which has different seating arrangements and materials) because somebody needed the English room. My whole class was designed based on how the kids were sitting in their groups so I couldn't really do my lesson. And they inform me of my extra classes only a week before they must start, even though I've been asking when they were going to start. I asked starting on my first day and they didn't seem to know until the week before and suddenly I have 3 extra classes per week to plan for. Wha??! I'm really used to planning ahead so this last-minute stuff is hard to get used to. But I have to realize that that is the Korean way. Oy. I think people forget to tell me things because they forget I don't speak Korean. <br /><br />Although I have new phrases that I learned thanks to Cho Teacher and my co-teacher Nam Teacher: 'mashisoyo?' means, "is your meal delicous?' you respond "ney, (yes), mashisoyo." Now, 'mOshisoyo' means handsome, so I gotta be careful! I also have learned "ko-chi ipoyo" means 'the flowers are beautiful.' Cho Teacher and Nam Teacher also taught me how to say "it's cold" and "I want to go home", useful phrases for the coming months, but I forget them :/. Korean is hard! <br /><br />Since I've been so busy at work there hasn't been much else to report. This past weekend Val & I went to the big market near Hwaseong Fortress where he shopped for a leather jacket and I for stockings. It suddenly got COLD here. I mean, suddenly. Up until last weekend it's been beautiful and in the 70's every day. Monday was like 50 degrees and the forecast only goes down (literally) from there. It's supposed to stay in the mid-50's this whole week. All of a sudden I'm wearing sweaters, jackets, scarves! <br /><br />The past week I've been tending to Val's terrible migraines that have been acting up. He thinks it's related to the changing of seasons because we know it's nothing serious in his brain because he got a brain scan on Monday because it was so painful. So I've been massaging his feet and head, making warm soup, putting a cold washcloth on his face. Poor thing, when the migraines come he can't even stand up and he's writhing in pain in his bed. The massage and stretching has seemed to help (thanks for your tips, Maren!) but they still come. I never thought I'd say this but for this reason only I hope winter comes fast!<br /><br />Tomorrow (Thurs) is the Sannam Middle School School Festival, so there's no class. I'm not really sure what goes down on the school festival but I had to prepare a quiz for the students to give orally in the auditorium. But it should be nice to not have to teach. There's no school on Friday either because everyone's going to Everland, the big amusement park in Suwon. I'm excited! Except that its gonna be cold. <br /><br /><br />That's all for now I think<br /><br />Love,<br /> MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-87397945856506746792010-10-16T18:35:00.000-07:002010-10-16T20:26:18.041-07:00First Week of Teaching, More Korean Culture, and War.Hey Peeps!<br /><br />So, I survived my first week of teaching. In my 45-minute class, I first established some classroom rules, then I showed them where Rochester was on the map. When asked where I was from, I responded 'New York' and they all went "ooooooo New York!" because of course, they think I mean NYC. On my powerpoint I used a map of the US where the states where marked and labeled. I found pictures of popular city landmarks like the Hollywood sign, the Golden Gate bridge, and the Statue of Liberty and put them on the same slide with arrows to where they were located. Then I put a picture of a cartoon house where Rochester is with the city marked. I showed them how NY is not only a city but also a state, and I am from NY state. I showed them on the Powerpoint pictures of Rochester (the Erie Canal, the skyline, and snow). Then I showed on the Ppt 3 facts about me. I told them that 1) Korea was the first foreign country I had visited, 2) I had 3 sisters and 0 brothers and 3) I liked to dance. Obviously #1 is false so then I told them that one was not true and had them guess which one. The next slides showed them the answers: a slide with a picture of me dancing and other dance pictures like tap shoes and Jeanine from SYTYCD, a picture of my with Andrea, Al, and Maren at the post-Baccalaureate party at 'Berg, and finally pictures from Venice, Cape Town, Zambia, and Israel. Then I asked them to write down 3 things about themselves, 2 true and one false. I collected the papers and read them later, trying to guess which ones were false. <br /><br />The end of the lesson focused on the U.S. I asked them what they thought of when they thought of America. I heard responses like fat people, junk food, rich country, money, Obama, famous, baseball, New York City, the Statue of Liberty, tall buildings, etc. That was what I expecting to hear, so with visual aids on my slideshow I explained how many Koreans perceive America to be all like NYC or Beverly Hills, but in fact what makes America so wonderful and interesting is its diversity. I ended the class with that lesson, praying that they actually got the message because I thought it was really important to help change people's skewed perception of what the USA is like. It was a fun lesson for me to teach. Next week I am explaining to the students how each table is a team who can earn or lose points depending on their behavior or participation. The team with the most points at the end of each class gets candy and the class with the most cumulative points at the end of the semester earn a pizza party. It's nice that the students are still young enough that that sort of bribary....er....motivation still works!<br /><br /><br />The students talk. A lot. Even if I shout sternly "Be quiet!" or "stop talking!" they don't stop. What's worse is that the English room echos so even when 5 students are talking it sounds like 15. Now, corporal punishment is still around here in Korea. Meaning if a student misbehaves, he or she comes to the teacher's office after class and gets hit, usually with a hollow plastic tube or sometimes with bare hands. This was really shocking for me to witness at first, even though I was expecting it. Sometimes the students get punished in class by having to stay in a "plank" position (like the position you're in when you do push-ups) or have to kneel on the floor and face the wall. Since the students are used to physical punishment, yelling does not scare them. It makes sense, you know? That is why I created the points and teams system, since Koreans in general are very competitive and very proud, especially when it comes to education, so the students are sensitive to points, especially if I display each team's points on the board during class. I hope that will act as motivation for them to behave.<br /><br />Also, the English level of the students is MUCH lower than I expected. If you can imagine, I ..... literally ...... speak...... at..... this...... pace.......often.........repeating........myself.......or........saying.......something..........in another...........way.......,in a different...........way ....... and 80% of the students don't understand me. Sometimes the Korean co-teacher translates or says it in English to be sure they understand but I'm not really sure how I can get through anything if I have to talk at a baby snail's pace. Also, most of the students still don't understand basic grammar structures. For example, on their 3-things-about-me sheet I got things from 98% of the students "I like dog" or "I am boy" "I like play soccer" "I am Sannam Middle School" or "I love lamp." Just kidding on the last one :-P. But seriously, those are the kinds things I'm seeing from a very large percentage of students. So I have to modify my plans for the next few classes and incorporate a basic grammar lesson so they can at least know that. I decided to use next week to really drill that by having each team create a fun team name and then create a grammatically correct introduction for their team. I'm having them fill in the blanks of "Our team name is __________. We are going to win because we like ___(noun)__________. We are better than the other teams because we are ___(adjective)_____________. We are going to beat the other teams because we like ___verb______. I'm giving them a color-coded word bank to use when creating it. For review the next week I'll probably have them correct bad sentences and make it competitive somehow with teams. <br /><br />So, that's that. I also am in charge of teaching an essay class every Wednesday to advanced students and every other Saturday I teach a "Class with Foreign Teacher" class where I can teach whatever I want. This week in the Saturday class we played Trainwreck (ice breaker game) and the I taught them some line dances (The Electric Slide and The Cupid Shuffle) along with basic dance vocab like front and forwards, back and backwards, side and sideways, right, left, step, kick, heel, turn. Koreans don't like dancing, as I found out from warnings from my colleagues and me asking my students in class "does anyone else like to dance?" and seeing a total of 2 hands among my 500-something students. Greeeattt. I think I'll do different things each class, perhaps using an American movie to fuel a discussion about something or American culture. <br /><br />I also had this really cool idea to do a class about Baseball. You're probably shocked to hear this because you all know how much sports, baseball especially, bore me to death. However after one of Val's soccer games the Ajou University baseball team started practicing on the field and he asked me to explain the rules because he'd never really seen it before. I was like, uhhhhhh, hmm. Someone's asking <span style="font-style:italic;">me</span> to explain the rules of a sport?! So I told him the basics and realized that many phrases in the English language that are based on baseball that those who don't know the game probably don't understand. So I thought even for my regular classes I could do a class on baseball idioms in English because there are a ton! Covering all your bases, in the home stretch, getting to 1st, 2nd, or 3rd base, being way out in the outfield, he's up to bat. Can you think of others? I think it would be an interesting vocabulary and culture lesson for the students.<br /><br /><br />On another note, I am officially at war with a particular kind of Korean. They majorly annoy me and come to me uninvited and always overstay their welcome. And it has become my goal to murder as many of them as I come across. Yes, I am talking about the Korean mosquito. Somehow, these mosquitos, which are bigger than the ones in Rochester (not those little brown ones like in NY but those huge black ones) find their way into my apartment and feast on me while I get my beauty sleep. Many of you know that I have a really strong reaction to mosquito bites and even without scratching them they blow up to sometimes to be 7 or 8 inches in diameter. So I wake up looking like I have the mutated chicken pox and they bite me in the most inconvenient places, such as my toes, my face, and my top lip. Afterall, those are often the exposed skin when I'm sleeping. 2 weeks ago I had absolutely had it with the huge bites on my legs that burned that I went to the pharmacy and got some medicated cream and some pills. I don't take the pills because I don't know exactly what they are but the cream helps especially if I apply it right after the bite. I searched for repellent at HomePlus but couldn't find it but I know it's there because my neighbor has some and she got it there. Last night I was awake for almost 2 hours using myself as bait, turning the light on and off trying to catch the mosquitos buzzing around my ear and biting me. I ended up killing 2 but found 4 others this morning. Yep, that's 6 mosquitos in my tiny apartment in one night. I swear, they tell their mosquito friends "hey! come to this room! she tastes yummy!". Argh. So yeah, I'm going to HomePlus today and not leaving without that repellant. If i'm going to be at war with these suckers (literally!) I need to step up my game and get a proper weapon.<br /><br />Before I end this long-winded post, I thought of another Korean culture thing you might find entertaining. Koreans love little dogs. I have yet to see a dog bigger than a schnauzer. And people dress their little dogs in little outfits. I HATE when people do that! and I swear to you, a few weeks ago when V & I were walking to get some dinner at a local restaurant we saw a tiny dog, being walked by a 30-ish year old man, wearing a little jacket and SNEAKERS on its paws. Seriously. 4 Mini sneakers on its tiny little paws. Val & I couldn't help ourselves bursting into laughter and doing some major eye-rolling. That is a typical site here. It's like the Hollywood fashion trend of tiny dogs has become the trend in all of Korea. Oy. Those poor dogs. <br /><br />Thanks for reading!<br /><br />Love, <br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-13992021693718073682010-10-10T01:22:00.000-07:002010-10-10T03:04:18.136-07:00Biting Into the Second AppleAnyeong!<br /><br />First, my announcement that I would be starting to teach classes on Friday was a false alarm. There was a miscommunication and it turns out that the last day of midterms was Friday so my REAL first day of teaching will be tomorrow, Monday. It's for real this time, so I'll update you on that soon.<br /><br />There's probably only two or three of you who understand the title of this blog entry because it refers to a speech made by Quinton, our study abroad program director in Cape Town. During orientation, Quinton prepared us for living in a new country by explaining the 3 stages of culture shock with the metaphor of 3 apples. The first apple is sweet because it represents the "honeymoon phase" when everything is very exciting and new and you're just taking it all in. The second apple is a little sour because it represents the stage when you might start feeling homesick and frustrated with some of the cultural differences and ways of life in this new place. Finally, biting into the third apple is sweet once again because you start establishing a routine and feeling comfortable in this new place. You might have recently started making more friends, found something about the new place that excites you, or gained more confidence because you can finally find your way around, understand the public transportation system, or decorated your living space. <br /><br />So as my title suggests, I've begun biting into the second apple just a little. Although I'm still in the honeymoon phase of seeing Val again (I'm not sure if it's ever going to go away!), now that I've been here for 3 weeks I've gotten a healthy dose of Korean culture. However in this post I'm not going to whine about how I'm feeling a little homesick, frustrated that I often can't find food that I like or am not able to read the ingredients or health facts because everything is written in Korean, or that I feel very out-of-the-loop at work because nobody tells me anything and I get hardly any notice about things because somebody forgets to clue me in because I don't understand Korean, because, well, I just told you! Instead I thought I'd make this post a little more interesting for everyone and talk about some observations I've made about Korean culture that are contributing to the sour taste of apple numero dos. <br /><br />1) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Koreans are very judgmental</span>. They base A LOT on first impression alone, and I'm talking about VERY first impression because they put a ton of emphasis on how somebody looks. Koreans are extremely well dressed. Every single person you see is dressed very well in clothes that look high-quality and are tailored well. Women wear high heels with EVERY outfit, day or night, work or play, skirt or jeans. People at school have told me that all the students want to know if I am pretty. Val gets told by people that they like him solely because they find him handsome (can't blame them there). They even tell him that they like him better than his other friends because his friends aren't good looking. And I have been told multiple times that I am prettier than the previous English teacher at the school (which I think is ridiculous) so the students and other teachers are excited. Women are constantly fixing their make-up, dabbing their faces with those oil-absorbing sheets, etc. Many, many women carry designer bags. I'm talking Louis Vuitton, Coach, etc. And these are not knock-offs. In Korea if you look beautiful, you will be well-liked. Simple as that. <br /><br />2) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Foreigners, especially Americans, have celebrity status.</span> Now this might sound great, but it's actually quite uncomfortable. Besides getting gawked at all the time, people feel very shy around me especially when they find out that I'm from New York. Of course, most Koreans don't understand that New York is also a state and when I try to explain that I don't live in New York City they just think I'm saying that I live outside the city. I don't bother trying to explain it anymore because people nod their heads like they understand and then still manage to think that I'm from NYC. NYC is THE city in the U.S. that everyone knows and like many other country everyone here has a dream to go the NY. And because they see NY on the TV all the time they get intimidated because I'm a "New Yorker." V's Korean Mom (who I now call as my colleague Cho Teacher) said that she was nervous to speak to me because I'm a "New Yorker", said in a voice of awe. I'm like "come on, I'm just regular ol' girl" but that doesn't really work here. Koreans will believe anything an English-speaking foreigner will say, especially an American. So this showcases my previous paragraph because it's an example of how judgmental people are. They base a lot on very little and have no interest in changing their minds. Korea is one of if not the most homogenous countries in the world, so they are not used to meeting people with different backgrounds or ideas. Everybody at least in urban Korea has the same experience of starting school very young, going to college, entering the workforce. I have yet to see a homeless person or a crummy car. <br /><br />3) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Korean food is spicy. </span> Even when I ask if a dish is spicy they will say "No, not spicy", so I order it and it's still spicy. They love that hot pepper sauce!<br /><br />4) <span style="font-weight:bold;">Koreans don't watch where they are going. </span> Walking on the street people don't really move out of the way to let you walk, they will just keep walking and bump into you without an apology. Also, they won't look up while they are texting, talking with others, or just looking down so they will just ram into you. Now it's not that Koreans are rude, it's just how Korea is. The country is the size of Indiana but has a population of about 50 million. Needless to say, it's crowded so people are used to being bumped, etc. <br /><br />5. <span style="font-weight:bold;">Koreans will huck-a-lougie (sp?)</span>. LOUD ones. Like, the loud, unmistakable throaty inhale that sounds like an elongated hebrew "ch" and powerful, juicy spit. I can deal with a lot of cultural differences but this one might cross the line for me. I can hear it from my room form people passing by on the street 2 stories down. It's disgusting.<br /><br />Numbers 4 and 5 exemplify a major difference between Korean and American culture. As I found out when I read my "Living Abroad in South Korea" book, family life is the center of Korean society. For this reason, people don't feel the need to exert energy caring about strangers. In other words, they don't bother to hold the door for you, apologize when they bump into you, or spare their phlegmy projections because they don't care about you as a stranger. Everybody is just doing their own thing and down spare a thought for others. Sort of sounds like NYC, hah. It's an odd perception to us Americans who are used to (hopefully) apply basic politeness in their daily public encounters. It seems a little ironic to me, though since Koreans care so much about how they look in public. Haven't quite figured that one out yet. <br /><br />This having been said, I have found Koreans to be generally kind, welcoming people. I am enjoying getting to know my co-workers and look forward to continuing to meet my own friends. I have decided to take up Korean lessons somehow, whether it be privately with a bi-lingual Korean, borrowing Val's books and learning on my own, or signing up for a Korean class at a nearby YMCA. Not only do I expect learning Korean to be a fun thing to do and I will learn quickly since it's full immersion, but also being able to eventually communicate more clearly with Koreans will ease my stresses and help me be <span style="font-style:italic;">me</span> so I can make friends and not just be another alien, celebrity American to be shy around. <br /><br />So I'll leave that for y'all to ponder as your weekend wraps up. <br />I miss everybody and the beautiful yet often short-lived Rochester fall weather. Enjoy those colorful leaves for me, I don't see many trees here in the city! <br /><br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5920810054296853575.post-11654379980640578552010-09-26T17:27:00.000-07:002010-09-26T20:58:35.591-07:00Soccer, Seoul, and a Small World!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFww7FdJLJH5AH9G0cDLfvoI_ZXMNNZaPRVuEgqotia2BmTD_NCqtT6JzkfMeYoMZQEavTZwcE0FjfSaZrLO9BL22ElvwMEviyDEHuhBOqSCdsrqNF1THzIgmmlMy8xsxF-S1W4kstnCc_/s1600/IMG_4896.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFww7FdJLJH5AH9G0cDLfvoI_ZXMNNZaPRVuEgqotia2BmTD_NCqtT6JzkfMeYoMZQEavTZwcE0FjfSaZrLO9BL22ElvwMEviyDEHuhBOqSCdsrqNF1THzIgmmlMy8xsxF-S1W4kstnCc_/s320/IMG_4896.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521418168628183922" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8iA8wK0hf_RhR0K_fw6DppeIGDbdf2Jht4DkrBb9Qe1RlgNdAqqYacez3s61lVkpyweRr0sUoPdNBwEJxwmNOMgS64_PzW02c9sI5Vn7m2R4Y9x93RgMJh1qUDaIZEnKCDk6Cf99nL8GS/s1600/IMG_4860.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8iA8wK0hf_RhR0K_fw6DppeIGDbdf2Jht4DkrBb9Qe1RlgNdAqqYacez3s61lVkpyweRr0sUoPdNBwEJxwmNOMgS64_PzW02c9sI5Vn7m2R4Y9x93RgMJh1qUDaIZEnKCDk6Cf99nL8GS/s320/IMG_4860.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521418166027566834" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbQZugQ6TDtJsfqeoY89pZVXX7xgJcDjmLC3fkm3MF-EYTmw4CX45fwz8nrtRXoS6vR1Qjf0UJHx5LXvhwMdkrmtLQWNyst1jZYQ5EUyJ5h7UKf7jjUIAQJss2NLE-nwcNHMfjLHgkZ-jf/s1600/IMG_4854.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbQZugQ6TDtJsfqeoY89pZVXX7xgJcDjmLC3fkm3MF-EYTmw4CX45fwz8nrtRXoS6vR1Qjf0UJHx5LXvhwMdkrmtLQWNyst1jZYQ5EUyJ5h7UKf7jjUIAQJss2NLE-nwcNHMfjLHgkZ-jf/s320/IMG_4854.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521418161820554082" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUq1RYdgiOLj37TrdihCXQvBf_dvEfZx29K4lqpiIreoopIe0OqVHQ_4dnmvkML1sFPd0_-dzju-Ig7e922SHI-fnrCI1RVGCxWX7pihjW-P50aZrlnkNFALafrB4EmgoUsVkCM1coOvu/s1600/IMG_4837.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUq1RYdgiOLj37TrdihCXQvBf_dvEfZx29K4lqpiIreoopIe0OqVHQ_4dnmvkML1sFPd0_-dzju-Ig7e922SHI-fnrCI1RVGCxWX7pihjW-P50aZrlnkNFALafrB4EmgoUsVkCM1coOvu/s320/IMG_4837.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521418156680918962" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjItFTlwLBD1fWAHZMTCUP0k_Tk0Uprgfit6p4jzGd_vJrdwnvDrlhiU0h7l-8Ude5U9goi1BarRrSMBF5A9Fd92EL0k4Ho06_LaV3XG4LkFZMUHlghYFxvdh-F9JoxUGC3UDZGt7J2FrNO/s1600/IMG_4893.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjItFTlwLBD1fWAHZMTCUP0k_Tk0Uprgfit6p4jzGd_vJrdwnvDrlhiU0h7l-8Ude5U9goi1BarRrSMBF5A9Fd92EL0k4Ho06_LaV3XG4LkFZMUHlghYFxvdh-F9JoxUGC3UDZGt7J2FrNO/s320/IMG_4893.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5521418152926166722" /></a><br />Anyeong Hayseyo (Hello)!<br /><br />It's been a week since I arrived in Korea, and since stealing internet from an unsecured wireless network in my building, I have been able to talk to many of you via Skype, which has been SO nice. It makes me feel so good to see your faces and hear your voices. Oh, the wonders of technology! Those of you who I've talked to have been asking what I've been up to this week, so I thought I'd give an overview to you all who I haven't seen yet on Skype.<br /><br />One first impression of Korea that surprised me is that there is a decent amount of English around. Names of businesses (especially ones aimed towards younger people like clubs, lingerie or make-up stores, Western style restaurants, etc) are in English. Also, the bus stops and bus line maps have English spellings which is SUPER helpful for me right now who can't recognize Korean characters. Also, I am the same height as other adults here, which is a new thing for me, hahaha. Finally I don't feel unusually short!<br /><br />On Monday I laid low while Val was at school and when he got home we listened to music while I unpacked a little and talked about what we wanted to do during Chusuk, the holiday that Val was on break for. For dinner, we went to meet two of his students (who he is tutoring in English). "Rachel" and "Ryan" (they insist on going by their English names) are brother and sister, and Ryan's 11th birthday was last week so we took him and Rachel out for dinner at a place called Mister Pizza. Rachel is 13 and shy, but I tried to talk to her about music and Boys Over Flowers, the extremely popular Korean drama that I watched online during the summer. She liked watching it too so we talked about the characters and story...it was fun to be able to relate to her about something. Both Rachel and Ryan's English are excellent but they are shy about speaking!<br /><br />Tuesday we went to HomePlus, the huge shopping center, to buy stuff for the apartment like shampoo, soap, food, towels, laundry detergent, etc. I was able to find some Western products here like Frosted Flakes, Pringles, Haggen-Daaz ice cream, Opti-Free contact solution and Pantene Pro-V brand shampoo. HomePlus has absolutely everything I'll ever need right there. It's 3 stories of food, electronics, house and bathroom supplies, a photo center, even clothing. For dinner we met Val's buddy Taylor, an ESL teacher from the MidWest for dinner at Suwon Station, the main travel hub in Suwon. This is not only the Suwon subway station and bus terminal, but also a huge shopping center also equipped with bars and Western restaurants like Baskin Robbins, KFC, and Outback Steakhouse. We ate at Outback. In Korea. It felt sort of silly. There were signs all over about the "Down Under" and stuff...I wonder if the people there really even know what that means.<br /><br />Wednesday we traveled to Seoul with Val's friend from Korean class, Lina, who is from from Kazakhstan (next to Russia. I had to check the map because I didn't know!). She doesn't know much English but Val was our translator, speaking to her in Korean. We took the subway into Seoul, a 40 minute ride, then walked to Namsan Tower where we took the cable car and got great views of the entire city! The other highlight of the day was getting our portrait drawn at Namsan Tower. We sat for about 30 minutes while this man drew our portrait. It doesn't look exactly like us, but it's nice to have something that represents us that's now hanging in my apartment. Reactions to the portrait have been that Val looks like Usher, we both look Asian, and that the artist clearly spent more time on me than on Val. Hahaha. Oh well, I like it. It's nice. And the whole thing including the frame only cost us about $40. We returned to Suwon went out with some of Val's Cameroonian friends for a bit, then came home. It was a busy day!<br /><br />Thursday we traveled to Ansan, a city about an hour away, for a soccer match between Cameroonians and folks from Southern and Eastern Africa in the area. The match was organized by the Multicultural Family Center, and Africans living all over Korea came to participate in or watch the game. Val played and helped the Cameroonian team dominate (they won 7-1) by scoring the big goal and assisting on a few others. He is a really excellent soccer player and he blew his teammates and opponents away....they had no idea how good he was! During the game I was chatting with other Cameroonians who had come to watch the match and found out that one of them currently lives in Elmira, NY and went to Med School at the University of Rochester. I was like WHAT?! How crazy is that. Here I was in Korea, talking to a Cameoonian about East Avenue, Strong Hospital, and the Clothesline Festival. It was insaneeee. After returning to Suwon we met Val's Korean Mom who took us out to dinner...at Outback. I didn't have the heart to tell her we went there already so we went. She said that since I just arrived I probably wasn't used to Korean food yet so she wanted me to eat something familiar. I appreciated that. <br /><br />Friday, when I discovered my clandestine internet connection, I spent the morning when Val was at school Skyping with the fam and posting my previous blogpost. When Val got back we met his classmates for a delicious lunch. The only language they all speak is Korean, so I was totally out of the loop during lunch when they were all chatting. But I could tell by their expressions when I met them that they were delighted to meet me because apparently Val talks about me all the time in class. As we walked to lunch, one girl pried my & Val's hand apart and hooked her arm around mine and walked with me. She asked me in broken English if we could get coffee together sometime (she's from China), and I told her of course. She's sweet! It was during that lunch that I also met V's classmate Peter, a Korean-American who also studying here. He speaks English, obviously, so we talked a little and I found out that he's from Bergen County, NJ, the same place my girl Sarah is from. I asked him if he knew Sarah and later I asked Sarah if she knew him but they went to different high schools. Still, it's totally crazy. It's a small world after all.<br /><br />Saturday Val & I headed to the Ajou University soccer field where he plays with a group of Koreans (old and young) every Saturday morning. It was fun to meet his teammates and watch him play again. All of Val's teammates kept telling me that Val is their best player and he totally was. I don't know squat about soccer but even I could tell that the others were amateurs compared to him. We were there allllll morning and a lot of the afternoon but it was a beautiful day so I just got to sit back in the sunshine and watch my boyfriend kick butt. 'Twas fun! The team ordered pizza after the games, then Val & I went back to my apartment and napped. We ate our Outback leftovers for dinner, then abandoned our plans to go out and stayed in to watch a movie instead. Yesterday I attended church with Val. The first service was in Korean and I learned through Va'ls translation that the priest, a woman, gave me a personal welcome during the service, and even mentioned me in the closing prayer thanking God that "our beautiful Melissa is with us today." It felt very nice and I felt so welcome. The church prepared a delicious lunch and then Val and his Korean Mom lead an English service. Val stood in front of everyone and spoke about the weeks' Bible verse. Despite the fact that I don't connect at all with Christianity, it was pretty incredible to watch Val stand up there and talk about it. He made some really beautiful comments and points that I could definitely relate to, and his passion for his faith really shown through. It was a special moment that I got to witness that. <br /><br /><br />I start work on Friday. During the past week whenever there has been down time (usually when Val is napping), I've been brainstorming about teaching, exploring resources online (of which there are a TON for ESL teachers), and have even started my lesson plan for Friday. I think we're going to play Two Truths and a Lie :). I'm getting nervous but also excited. I think it is going to be fun and I already enjoy making lesson plans and things. I will of course report once I've started. This week Val goes back to school so I imagine I will spend the majority of the time prepping for the first few lessons and visiting the school. Wish me luck!!<br /><br />Love,<br />MelMelissa W.http://www.blogger.com/profile/12306303388135935333noreply@blogger.com6