DMZ

On Sunday I visited the de-militarized zone between North and South Korea. It was interesting and definitely worth seeing. It is pathetic how little I know about Korea's history. I knew next to nothing about the Korean War until one of my friends here gave me a mini history lesson. Koreans here often ask me what Americans think of Korea. I tell them they think of North Korea's hatred for the U.S. and that they think Koreans eat dog. I knew a bit more than that about South Korea before coming here, but as far as history is concerned, I am ignorant.

The trip consisted of a stop at a ginseng festival with some quality photo ops, a traditional Korean lunch, visiting a tunnel, seeing into North Korea, and visiting the train station that runs into North Korea. The tunnel and museum was probably the most interesting part, but sadly cameras were not allowed in the tunnel. After the Korean War, North Korea built many tunnels into South Korea with the intention to invade Seoul. These tunnels have only been discovered within the last 30 years. The most recent and fourth tunnel was found in the 1990s. It is thought that there are many more tunnels in existance that have yet to be found. The tunnel was quite a hike, we walked down 500 meters into the ground. The walk down was not so bad, but the walk back up 500 meters at a 45 degree angle was a workout.

At the observation tower, we could see into North Korea. Unfortunately we could only take pictures behind a certain line, so I don't have any quality photos of North Korea. Also, it was kind of hazy so it was difficult to see the propaganda town North Korea has set up for tourists to see from the observation tower.

I have pictures which you can see here: DMZ pictures Just a note, my cousin Stacey sent me her daughter Lilli's flat Stanley. That is what I am holding up in most of the pictures. Our tour guide thought that I had an imaginary friend I was bringing with me on the trip.

Sorry

Sorry friends. I had all these ideas of grandeur for new blog posts. But then I went to tae kwon do and now I'm just too tired. Tae kwon do was kind of brutal tonight but still awesome. It's such a good workout and I had no idea. I actually have to start practicing outside of class because it's getting tougher. Ah well, it keeps me off the streets.

Blog updates and new pictures will be up soonish. A little preview for you: I went to the DMZ, the de-militarized border between North and South Korea, on Sunday. So most likely I will write about that. Also, Adam Sandler and homesickness might be another blog post. You'll just have to wait and see. (I know you're on the edge of your seats right now.) Good night.

This is my life

I don't live in Geumchon, but otherwise this pretty much sums up my life in South Korea from the kimchi, the insane sun visors, the random spellings of cities, to the fruit loop balls in bars. And what's funny too is the chorus, "kamsa hamnida and annyong haseyo" (thank you and hello) are the only Korean words I know. I love it.

School Stories

Teaching here is such a crazy thing.  This past week has provided me with some interesting anecdotes that I think make for good blog fodder.  Here they are.

On Friday one of the teachers gave me the book How to Stop Worrying and Start Living.  The book is in English but the description, summary, etc. is all in Korean.  I don't really know what to make of this gift.  Apparently I seem like a worrier to him?  Which is ironic because I am really quite the opposite.  And I kind of thought my trip to South Korea was my chance to "start living".  But I guess it's the thought that counts.  This teacher seems like a nice guy.  He's fairly young and speaks almost no English.  He and the gym teacher want to take me out for drinks and I will gladly go but it could prove very interesting as neither of them speak English.  

Last week I unveiled this "brilliant" lesson plan (well, all the teachers thought it was brilliant anyway, it was actually incredibly easy).  I cut up the lyrics to Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" into strips.  I went over all of the vocabulary in the song with the students.  We then watched the music video in class.  I then gave the strips of lyrics to the students and they had to put them in order while we listened to the song a few more times.  We then talked about what the song means and then we sang it as a class.  Ok, there is really nothing better than a class of 10th grade Korean boys singing "Uptown Girl".  So anyway, my students loved the lesson and the song.  It's catchy, easy to sing to, and fairly easy to understand.  My co-teachers liked the lesson plan too.  Everyone wanted to jump on the song bandwagon.  Peter, my co-teacher, asked if I would do the lesson for his class but do Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" instead because it's his favorite song. You can see the video in all its eighties glory here:

Oh it was possibly the most brutal class period I've ever experienced.  The students were able to put the lyrics in order right away because it was so slow.  They weren't interested in the song.  The high point (and embarrassing point) of the lesson was when we sang together and my students told me I had a good voice.  They even made me sing the song alone so they could listen to me sing.  At least Peter was loving the lesson.  He explained the background of the song to the kids and the meaning of each line.  

Today I went out to lunch with the principal, vice principal and a couple of the teachers.  My vp informed me as we were leaving that we were going to a seafood restaurant.  She told me we respect the principal's wishes and dine where he wants to dine.  Not so fortunate for me.  Luckily Peter went ahead and told the restaurant to make me bimibap (he may be the nicest man ever).  However, when they brought out the bimibap, there were tuna eggs on top (basically caviar).  What part of no seafood do they not understand?  My vp asked if that was okay, I just kind of stared at it, she got the hint and had it sent back.  Apparently my principal made some jokes about me being a picky eater (he doesn't speak English) and I probably looked like an incredibly rude, foolish American.  I'm just glad that everyone at school is starting to understand my vegetarianism.  I think they've finally realized that ham is indeed meat, seafood is also meat, and that I don't eat meat, will not eat meat, and to not offer me meat.  Ah, I'm training them well.  :)

Seoul Searching

I finally made it to Seoul this weekend.  Twice actually.  Even though Incheon is very close to Seoul, there is a great difference between Seoul and Incheon.  There are over 30,000 American troops stationed in South Korea.  Because of this, Seoul looks almost like any city in America with just a few more Asian people thrown in the mix.  I felt like I was back in the U.S. as soon as we stepped out of the cab.  

On Friday night we started out at a Canadian bar in Itaewon.  The bar was filled with foreigners.  It felt like a standard night out in the states.  We went to a few different bars.  At one place, I embraced my inner 21-year-old and danced on the bar.  All the foreigners were doing it, when in Korea, and all that.  Overall it was a good time even though our night was riddled with cab drivers who took us to the wrong destinations. 

Saturday we ventured back to Itaewon during the day to do a bit of shopping.  There were some decent stores and I bought myself a brightly colored Korean shirt.  Again, when in Korea...  We also grabbed some froyo at Coldstone.  See?  Just like America.  Shopping in Seoul seems much easier because everyone seems to speak at least some English.  In Incheon it's rare to come across anyone who will speak English.  

Photo Shoot at School and Tae Kwon Do

Today I had conversation club with about eight of my students, as I do every Monday.  Just as we were getting started, two of the teachers came in and said they needed to take pictures of the class.  My school will be celebrating its first year anniversary at the end of October and they want pictures of me (the first native English teacher at the school) with the students.  So instead of taking pictures of a normal class inside, they felt the need to shuffle us outside to take pictures in front of the school.  I was cracking up the entire time because we had to pretend we were talking and gesturing as if we were having a normal conversation.  Some of my students were very good at posing.  I was not so great (Tyra Banks would not be proud), but here are the pictures.  I think they are hilarious:

Photo Shoot at School

I started free tae kwon do lessons tonight.  We even get a free uniform which is pretty sweet.  I didn't really know what to expect except maybe some kicking and punching.  It was fairly intense and actually quite a workout.  We started off running around the studio for ten minutes while jumping over sticks that one of the instructors held out.  We then had to jump over people's legs which proved incredibly difficult for me.  I was once again reminded how incredibly unflexible I am. Once we are done with the class in two months we will be yellow belts.  I don't really know what that means, but it sounds impressive.  Tae kwon do lessons will be every Monday and Wednesday for the next two months.  The kicking and yelling combined is very cathartic.

Deok Jeok Do It

This past weekend was by far the best weekend I've had in Korea, possibly one of the best ever.  Well, that might be stretching it, but it was insanely fun.  We went to Deok Jeok Do for the weekend, because we had a three day weekend.  Deok Jeok Do is about a two hour ferry ride from Incheon.  There was a bit of drama at the start because a Korean official told Chrissy she couldn't board the ferry because she had a different ticket from everyone else.  We tried to reason with him but he just kept yelling at us and then pulled her away.  Finally we realized he was looking at her return ticket.  I don't know if it's the Korean language or what, but often it seems as if Korean men seem to yell a lot.  Luckily we figured that out because otherwise she wouldn't have made it to the island.  The ferry ride was smooth sailing, there were many beautiful islands we passed along the way.  There were food and drinks on the ferry which kept many entertained.  There were about 23 of us in our group, and another group of migooks went too, which probably made the group total close to 40 people.  A bunch of us newbies tagged along with some of the teachers who have been here for a few months.  It was nice of them to invite us.  

The weather was beautiful, probably in the upper 70s, low 80s, so we spent most of the weekend on the beach.  The beach had a very low tide during the day and to get to the water we had to walk through sand littered with crabs.  The beach was sandy with nice views of islands around Deok Jeok Do.  We spent most of Friday chilling on the beach.  Friday night we played some cards and had a bonfire on the beach.  Chrissy, Julie and I also did some night swimming in the sea.

Saturday was even better weather than Friday.  Jen, Chrissy, Ryan, Julie and I attempted to hike up one of the mountains (hills) on the island.  Our plans were quickly thwarted when we saw a large snake on the way to the hiking path.  Ryan counted himself out of the hiking expedition after that, and the four of us continued on.  We tried unsuccessfully to find the hiking paths.  An old woman who sounded like she was speaking out of a voicebox warned us about going up the mountain in shorts, and then tried to direct us to the path.  We then ran into some other Koreans who tried to tell us the path was the way we just came from.  We finally gave up and headed to the beach instead.  The weather was warm so Julie and I did a bit of swimming.  The tide was so low that we waded out forever and the water never reached past our legs.  The waster was cooler than Friday but still very nice.  Saturday night we again had a bonfire on the beach.  A bunch of us went night swimming and when we came back to the beach, someone had stolen Julie's pants.  Trying to solve the mystery of the disappearing pants took up the rest of my night.  We finally found them thanks to Chrissy and Ryan's bright idea to buy a flashlight.  

We stayed in a pension for two nights.  Basically it was a room with no furniture, a bathroom, and a balcony.  We slept on the floor with just blankets for cushion.  But for $10 a night, I'm not complaining.  I roomed with Jen, Julie, Chrissy, and Ryan.  We had a good time.  There was a small kitchen in the room which was helpful.  We brought our own food and with two meat-eaters, two seafood-eaters, and one vegetarian (me) it was helpful to have a kitchen.  Everyone was nice enough to cook for me and I basically ate eggs, fruit, and veggies for every meal.  Other rooms had gone to Costco (like Sam's Club) to get food so they had incredible amounts of food.  Our next door neighbors brought a five pound container of mayo, tuna, and bread and that's what they ate the whole weekend.  The mayo jokes lasted the whole weekend.  We fared much better with our food.  

On Sunday we had to catch a 12:30 pm ferry so we basically made breakfast and packed.  It was a great weekend (and inexpensive--only $100!).  Also, the group we went with was a lot of fun.  It was nice to get away from the city for awhile too.  Here are some pictures of the weekend:

Deok Jeok Do

I finally talked to my parents on Friday morning via Skype.  Have I mentioned that they are the greatest people in the world?  My dad didn't want to be on camera, so he kept scooting away.  My mom was dressed in Hawaiian jammies.  The dogs were barking in the background.  Typical.  My mom held Nelly up to say hello.  Sophie also made an appearance.  My mom was about to show me the Halloween decorations they put up but unfortunately I had to leave to catch the ferry to Deok Jeok Do.

On a sad note, I came back from the island and received an email from my parents.  My grandma Jo had a stroke on Thursday.  Apparently she is now blind in one eye and is a bit confused and suffering from dementia.  This was my biggest fear coming over here, that something would happen and I wouldn't be there.  Grandma Jo is one of my favorite people ever.  She is the matriarch of my dad's family.  I've always loved her for her sense of humor, her love for her family, her great personality and her quiet humility.  Before I left I went gambling with her and my grandpas.  On the bus ride she entertained me with stories of the family and people she gambles with.  She always has had a sense of style and at barely five feet tall I've always thought she was the cutest person ever.  If you're at all a praying type of person, please keep her in your prayers, or send good thoughts my family's way.  I know this is very difficult for them and I'm sad I can't be there.

Top 5 of the Week

Alright, let's keep a good thing going with the lists I've been doing in previous blog posts.  Once again I've been neglecting my blogging duties and for that I apologize.  Here are the top five most interesting things that happened this week in no particular order:

1.  I was felt up by a Korean woman.  Chrissy and I went shopping on Saturday and in order for a Korean saleswoman to illustrate the differences between Chrissy's and my bodies (like anyone needs to point it out because it's insanely obvious) she grabbed my chest.  

2.  After two hours of sitting in a cell phone store in Bupyeoung, revisiting the store because I thought the charger didn't work, then thinking the store screwed us over, I now have a cell phone that makes and receives calls and texts.  

3.  I taught an English class to the Korean teachers for the first time on Friday.  Six women showed up and they may be the cutest people ever.  At the end of class they asked what homework they should do.  I hadn't really planned anything, so they somehow assigned themselves 20 power point slides on places they've traveled for next week.  This may be my favorite class ever.

4.  The weather is beginning to feel more fallish.  I'm excited for this because it is much better than the nearly unbearable, immediate sweat-inducing heat that was prevalent when we first arrived.

5.  I have now been here for over a month.  I'm feeling pretty good about this.   In some respects this year is going to fly by considering a month just went by in a blink of an eye.  I've missed some important things at home already (Tammy's wedding--congratulations!) but it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.  I talked to my sis on skype the other day and it was the first time I've talked to anyone from home.  I've realized that not a lot changes at home in a year, so I have to remember that it will still be there when I get back.  

Right now I am suffering from a killer cold.  It seems like most of the native teachers I know have been sick in the last week or so.  I'm hoping it clears up soon (like tomorrow) because this weekend I am heading to Deok Jeok Do, an island off of Incheon.  We have Friday off of school for another Korean holiday (the creation of Korea).  There are about 20 of us going.  We're staying in pensions, five to a room.  In my room will be Chrissy, Jen, Julie, myself, and Ryan.  Poor Ryan has to live with four women all weekend.  I'm looking forward to some grilling, beaching, hiking and chilling.  It will be nice to get away from Incheon because I have not ventured outside of the city yet.