I've been lazy, and haven't been posting like I should. It's hard to keep everyone up to date, if I'm not writing... Well, where to begin...? Over the last few weeks, I've diligently been on the hunt for limes and tequila, found that the public restrooms, in Seoul, are at best, outdated, and basically, just been running around the city (literally running) and thoroughly enjoying my life here...oh, I almost forgot, and I received a promotion.
A few weeks ago, I started my hunt for limes and lime juice, all because of a bad margarita. My search for citrus was heightened when the guy I'm dating, Kirin, informed me that he'd never had tequila before. Naturally, I took it upon myself to find limes and tequila, as to fully educate him...I have thus far, only been successful in finding limes, and finding those was a feat in and of itself. On the other side of Seoul, near Itaewon, there is a small market, that ironically enough is named Hanam Market (ironic because I live in a city called Hanam City and I had to travel and hour plus to get to this market). The market is not easily distinguishable and is actually in the basement of a Volvo dealership. Upon arriving in Itaewon, where our (my friend Amanda, from TN and me) search began we had difficulty communicating with some of the locals. We ended up in a cab, with a cab driver who spoke zero English and was ready to boot us out of the car as soon as he realized we couldn't speak Korean. I tried to tell him Hanam Market, but he seemed confused and didn't know what we were talking about. I had been told that the market was near the Volvo dealership, so I wrote down Volvo and he immediatley knew what I was talking about. We arrived to find the Hanam Market in the basement of the Volvo dealership; it's only distinguishing feature being a weathered awning that resembled something like Hanam Market. As we decended to the the market I felt like we were about to enter some kind of black market, where goods and services were exchanged illegally and that maybe my pursuit of limes wasn't a good idea. At the bottom, though, it was completely normal (me and my imagination...lol). There was one corner of the market that has a huge amount of American items-everything from Crest toothpaste to Swanson broth. Another corner contained a deli counter, with fresh cheese (a luxery in this part of the world) and then a regular grocery, with the prize we had been seeking....LIMES!!! I found limes, in Seoul, and was so proud of myself! Of course, you really have to want the limes, because they aren't cheap...I purchased 4 limes total and it cost me almost 10,000 won (approximately $10, give or take a few bucks). So, now I've had limes for about 2 or 3 weeks and I can't locate any tequila. They have some tequila here, but to properly have a good tequila experience, you want to take good tequila. My new mission is to find Patron. I'm having a hard time...I've been given a few leads and come close, but everytime, I come home empty handed. I know it's here, I just can't seem to get my hands on a bottle...
New experiences in Seoul...well, here in Seoul, they apparently haven't joined the 21st century and upgraded all of their commodes to normal commodes. There are still (many) restrooms, here, that are basically just a porcelan pot in the floor (yes, that means squatting). Yours Truly had the unfortunate experience of having to use one, recently. Obviously, I was a woman in need, otherwise I would have waited...but that was not the case. While my personal needs were met and the experience was a success (you know what I mean) unfortunately, the subway card I had in my back pocket did not fair as well. After I'd stood up and flushed the pot in the floor, I noticed my subway card swirling to its fate. Under no circumstances was I reaching in and grabbing the card-ewwwww! I was not happy...I'd literally lost 15,000 won down the drain! Ughhhh!!! So after a few choice words I recovered and have vowed to never again utilize the public restrooms of Seoul.
Over the last few weeks, my life has settled down and I've become very comfortable here in Seoul. The school year, here is in full swing, and every day the children are learning more and more English. It's really amazing how quickly they learn and how great it is for them to finally understand the words that I am saying to them! And while I love my job, I find that running is a really great stress release and I can gather my thoughts and process my feelings of homesickness and (sometimes) lonliness and escape the busyness of this city. I have literally been running all of the place. From my house to the nearest subway station it's anywhere from 7-10 miles and Olympic Park is around 3.5 miles around. Both are great runs and not only do I feel better emotionally and mentally but also physically. It can be very taxing living in a different country with such a blatant language barrier between you and your next door neighbor or even the grocery store clerk.
This past Monday I was surprised with a promotion! I am now "head teacher"! I'm excited but unsure about the position. I'm not sure, really, what my responsibilities now entail, and so I have feelings of apprension and hoping that I can live up to the expectations that have placed upon me. I excited about the challenge and really feel like this is just the beginning of a really great year!

School Days

School has officially begun and the days have become crazy! Perhaps I should rename the title of this posting "School Daze" as the days seem to be flying by and I'm left here in a daze of exhaustion...!? Honestly, it's a much welcomed change. For about a month I was sitting around my school with nothing to do-ok, that's not entirely true, I was planning lessons, but for the most part, I was updating my facebook...a lot. So now, here I am, surrounded by children, who can't really speak English and attempting to teach a lesson, entirely in English, in hopes that they might grasp one tiny morsel of the concept being presented. I can only hope. It's only day two and already problems have come about. Not bad problems, just housekeeping problems. The school keeps a pretty tight schedule for the school day, but the children have not adjusted, so the school has decided to make the remainder of the week half days. This is better for the children as they are usually exhausted by 11:30 a.m. (School starts at 9:30 a.m.). The new teachers that have arrived are nice and seem to be adjusting well. (I can't remember if I've mentioned this previously...?) One of the teachers is actually from Tennessee-Clarksville. She and I get along pretty well. There is a teacher from Washington, a couple from Colorado, and another woman from Canada. They've been taking the last two days in stride...I'm the only one who has extensive experience with children and honestly I'm so thankful for it! It's nice to be with kids again, but it also makes me miss all of my kids desperately. All is well here in Seoul, though. Spring is just around the corner and I can't wait!

Greetings from South Korea! I am no longer the only American (more specifically, the only English speaker) in Hanam City! Five new teachers arrived over the weekend! Ever since Saturday evening I've been entertaining new teachers and taking them all over (well all over to the places I know about and am familiar with) Seoul. I'm exhausted. School is starting, officially, in a less than a week and on top of finalizing lesson plans and making sure that I have all of the materials that I might need, I'm trying to be as much of a help, as I can be, to the new teachers. This week, the students have been coming in for "demonstration week". It's basically orientation, but for a week. The children are really cute and very eager to learn. I have a class full of 7 year olds (really they're 5, but Korean age is completely different from American ages). This weeks classes have been fun, but I think my lessons for this week were a little ambitious. The children can speak some English and they can write their names, but for the most part they do not understand a word that I say. I've been going through lesson plans, making sure that I've created the lesson in such a way that the basic conceptual ideas are being discussed with the least amount of words. It's really hard to sum up, certain concepts, with a short 5 or 6 word sentence. Other than a few minor anxieties, which I've been able to keep under control by running, every evening, around Seoul, things are going well here. With that said, though, the novelty of being here has subsided and I am starting to miss my life in Nashville. I took some of the new teachers out with me last nite, to celebrate Mardi Gras, and while it was nice to be out, it wasn't the same as being out with Carrie or Danielle (they are after all irreplacable). And I miss the kids! I miss the chaos that comes with having kids with me all of the time. I realize that will change soon enough, as school starts next week, but still, It's not the same as being with my little dudes. Things are good though and I'm just settling into life here. Spring is on the way and I can't wait to see what the next week, month, few months have to offer!

Olympic Park and the Upcoming Week

Perhaps I'm the only one who really feels this way but, sometimes you just need to get outside and run. I have a love/hate relationship with running... I love how it makes my body feel but I hate pushing myself; and maybe I'd enjoy it more if I didn't set such unreasonably high expectations for myself...who knows, but earlier this week I had the urge, and uncontrollable urge to just run-run until I couldn't run anymore. After work on Wednesday I hopped on the bus and headed straight for Olympic Park. It really is a runner's dream...I'm not exactly sure about the mileage but it's flat and it's long and there are uphill trails. I arrived at the park around 6pm on Wednesday evening and just started running (I was channelling Sandy Cornelius) and then after I'd run the perimeter of the park I just kept running; to the next subway station and then on to my friends house, past that subway station, for Bible study. It was amazing and it allowed me to see a side of Seoul that I had yet to encounter. When you're traveling the city by bus or by car it is so easy to ignore your surroundings, but running through the city allowed me to embrace the city and stumble upon places and building I hadn't noticed. It's only been a couple of days but I'm looking forward to getting off of work to run and I'm also looking forward to checking out some of the other great areas, this city has to offer, for runners (or those of us attempting to be runners).
It's Friday, here in Seoul, and tonite the first of the remaining 5 teachers will be arriving. I'm excited to finally have some other English speakers around (in my building) but I'm not looking forward to playing tour guide. I'm settled, I have friends and plans and I hate running errands; especially in Seoul, where you can never find a seat on the bus or metro (because it's always so freakin' busy) and you have to stand in line for everything and then whatever you buy you have to carry back with you-I will never again complain about going to Kroger or Target and having to grocery shop and then have to unload from the car-there is perspective everywhere-I'm experiencing it on a daily basis. I mean, I've already run my errands for the week; I've already fought through the masses of Koreans, who would very easily push you in front of an oncoming bus just so they could be first in line to get on the bus (it's very much like being in 1st grade and fighting over who's going to be line leader to go to recess). It's exhausting. However, I am completely aware that I've been here for 3 weeks and that if the situation was reversed I'd be forever grateful to the person that showed me around and helped me get settled; so with that said, my attitude is that of a servant's heart and I am looking forward (kind of) to helping out the newbies and getting to know them...on Sunday (they arrive Saturday sometime)-Saturday nite I have date number 2 with the nice Korean boy I went out with last week....!

Lemon Margaritas...?

I've been here for ove 3 weeks and quickly approaching a month! I can't believe I've been in S. Korea for almost a month-time has really flown! Everyday life for me is improving daily and I'm really starting to find my way. This last week has proven very interesting and I can honestly say that I feel pretty comfortable here. This past week I was in desperate need for chips and salsa. Anyone who knows me knows that I love Mexican food and honestly if I could have chips and queso/salsa I'm a happy girl-it's not unusual for me to go to SATCO or even grab some togo from Las Palmas (Carrie-you and I have spent many a nite staying in with take out from both of those places-good times!). I started asking around and I found out that there is an On the Border, at Coex Mall, one of the larger malls, close to my side of town. At first I couldn't find it and thought that maybe Mexican food in S. Korea was really, just a myth, but as I turned the corner of the mall coridor and found the marque displaying a sombrero and the name, I knew all would be well... Obviously I don't consider On the Border to be true Mexican; I mean it's decent Tex-Mex at best, but beggars can't be choosers and they had chips and salsa and I had tacos and best of all they had Margaritas (again I say-Carrie, we have spent many a Sundays hosting "Margarita Sundays"-good times!). As I eagerly await my margarita, a pleasure I haven't partaken of in several weeks, imagine my surprise when upon taking my first glorious drink that it wasn't lime, but rather lemon...? I know this may not seem like a big deal to most, but margaritas are lime (sweet and sour-mainly lime, triple sec, and tequila). I've had fruity margaritas before but lemon was quite different and honestly not my favorite. So this week was pretty good, one of my cravings for food, from home, was satisfied. I've heard there are, in fact, a couple of other Mexican restaraunts around... I'll find them...

Valentine's Weekend

In America women are all too familiar with men that won't approach or even call when they say they will, hell, sometimes men don't even pay for dates anymore...In Korea, though, chivalry is alive and well! Laugh all you want, say what you will, but I went on a date with a (tall) Korean man on Saturday evening. I had completely forgotten that it was Valentine's Day, when I'd accepted the invitation the evening before, but hey, why not? He took me to a traditional Korean restaurant and I enjoyed Korean food, for the first time (it's pretty good!). He speaks English and we had dinner and talked for over 2 hours. We went for a drink afterward and then to what is called a "dvd bong". A dvd bong is a place where you can watch movies. Instead of renting movies and taking them home with you, you choose a movie and then watch it in a private screening room at the dvd bong. Apparently, going to the dvd bong, in Korea; on your first date, is very scandoulous. Honestly, it was the most innocent date I'd been on in ages. He was a perfect gentleman and I had a wonderful time! It was far different than any date I've been on in the States.
On Sunday, I was finally able to make it to the foreigner church. It's about an hour away, but there isn't one much closer, so it works. The church has a presbyterian background and it welcomes people from all nationalities and countries to worship. The same girls I had joined for Bible study last week also attend here. The church's name is Youngnak-IWE (International Worship in English). Pastor Bill Majors is the head pastor and I was finally able to meet him, after exchanging several emails. Interestingly enough, his daughter is at Vandy, studying elementary education. The service was very contemporary and I enjoyed it. There are only about 150 members of IWE, so it's a little bit smaller than what I'm used to but it was still very enjoyable. After, I joined the girls from my Bible study and few others for dinner. We went to traditional Korean restaurant and ate really spicy food-it was delicious! Overall, the weekend was great! I feel like I'm making friends and I'm starting to adjust and acclimate, to being, here well.

An American Girls Guide to Korean Club Nite:

Going to the Korean club can be exciting event...American women beware, though, if you're unfamiliar with men that actually take initiative or who won't go out of their way for you, this will be an experience you'll never forget!
When we arrived at the club, on Friday evening, I wasn't sure what to expect. My Korean friends kept trying to prep me for something but I couldn't understand what it was they were getting at. They kept referring to going to a guys table and needing to come back to our table when I was finished. They kept stressing this and I kept thinking and trying to tell them that I was all too familiar with how clubs work. But what they were trying to tell me didn't even come close to preparing me for the nite that was to come. After enjoying the new movie "He's Just Not That Into You", Helen, Bonnie and myself made our way to a Korean club. They had given me the option of going to the more American style club in Itaewon, but I thought, how bad could the Korean club be...? I was thinking techno type music and bad karaoke... It was that and so much more! When we arrived at this particular club, I was just trying to take it all in without gawking. We were seated on the upper level, of the club, where I had a birds-eye view of everthing. From where we sat I could see the stage in front of us, the dance floor immediately in front of the stage and then the rest of the floor was covered with tables. Above us was a beautiful domed ceiling, it looked like we were at a ballroom in a hotel and I felt like I was at prom! On the stage was the house band, singing and dancing in Korean and putting on the cutest show. People were dancing, we had great service at our table (fruit and Cass beer-the local stuff) and then all of the sudden I'm being pulled from my seat... Not to dance, but what Helen and Bonnie had been attempting to prepare me for. The servers or attendants at the club scout out potential interested girls for men at tables and in private rooms. The attendants grab you, drag you to a table or room and then deposit you there so that you can sit and talk to a man or men. Helen, thankfully, came with me, but it was a very weird experience. I was taken at least 3 different times to 3 differnt rooms before we settled in one room with 3 nice gentlemen. Before settling I found the entire act completely disturbing, archaic even. I mean to drag a woman to meet with men, who had sent after her, all because they wouldn't come and introduce themselves in person and to really not give the woman any explanation as to where she was going and who these men were; it was very weird and if that attendant had grabbed me one more time, he would have regretted it. But this is Korea and I was told, that this was Korean culutre and this was how it was done. Korean clubs are not only for meeting men. Had we been able to leave out table we would have been dancing and I doubt we would have been wisked away. I never felt unsafe, but maybe a little unsettled, I mean, to be grabbed and dragged to a room or a table with men I didn't know is a little peculiar. All in all, I had a wonderful time and met some very nice people.