I only have a few things to say about these two little adventures out... Korea Club Nite #3 was a mistake! It took place in Itaewon, which I loathe. It's so dirty there and this is my own personal opinion, it's the armpit of Seoul. Itaewon only has a couple of redeeming qualities (1. I can find shoes and clothes that fit me there and 2. there's a market not far from there that you can buy American food and stuff-Lays BBQ potato chips and People magazine-expensive but completely worth it!). The people that come out at nite are ughhhhhhhhh. I will never go back, after dark, again.
Korean Club Nite #4 was another trip to the booking club and this is significant, only for the fact that Amanda, one of the other foreign teachers I work with (and she's from TN), and I went to the booking club (same one we've been to previously) on our own, without a Korean chaperone. We're either incredibly stupid or we've adjusted well. It's probably more that we were incredibly stupid, but hey, we made it out alive and made some new Korean friends (girls, at that). It's probably not too often that girls leave the booking club having gotten other girls numbers...? They only wanted us for language exchange. Either way the nite was a success!
Wednesday, 15 April 2009
When all else fails, you just have to come to terms with the fact that "It's Korea".
During my, almost, 3 months of living here in Korea, I've been educated on the severely different culture that I've jumped into. I've mentioned previously that I received a promotion, at work. I was apprehensive and uncomfortable with receiving the promotion, but I wasn't exactly asked if I wanted the job, I was just told I was the "head teacher". I was completely unaware of what I was to be doing and what my new position entailed, but was finally given the opportunity, a couple of weeks ago, to observe at another school-one of our flagship schools and meet with a teacher, there as well, who was able to give me some insight as to what my new position entailed and who gave me some information regarding how the school should be run and what my role, in that, was. I was so excited! I finally had information and ideas of what I was supposed to be doing and I couldn't wait to tell my director, Helen, about the suggestions that were made and ideas that were given that could make our school run more efficiently and make me, as well, as the other teachers better educators and administrators. I met with Helen on a Friday and after, I felt great about our meeting. On Monday, I was at school, bright and early, ready to start making some changes (it's amazing, how even small changes make the biggest differences); only to be told that changes were not going to be made and that she appreciated my suggestions but that she wasn't going to implement them until next year. I was so disappointed. It's so hard having knowledge of something and not be able to sufficiently use it. I mean, I observed a close to perfectly run school, and granted the one that I teach at is new (only 2 months old), there were definite changes that could be made and make us that much better. On top of that, Helen told me that they no longer needed a "head teacher". I don't think I've ever received a demotion before, but I can tell you that it usually helps to not have wanted the job (promotion) in the first place, so the feeling of having something taken away from isn't as bad when you approach it from that angle. With that said, I still encountered the same emotions that someone, who did want their new job, would face. I was shocked and felt like I'd done something wrong-like I wasn't good at my job (which I know I am) or that I'd let her or someone else down. I felt embarrassed and then I thought, why am I feeling embarrassed, I didn't do anything wrong. Helen told me that she wanted all of the teachers to be considered equal and that since we were a new school she didn't think we needed a head teacher, at this time, but that if I stayed in Korea, for another year, that I would be "head teacher". Still, though, I felt a mix of emotions, that even the most secure and self-confident person can't avoid. My dad gave me some great advice though and it really helped me change see things differently. Also, I have a great friend, who actually just left Korea and completely gets what I'm going through. She talked me through some of my emotions and reassured me that I was doing my job well and also told me something that basically sums up any situation, experience or problem that may occur here-"It's Korea". There's no real rhyme or reason why they seem to do some of the things that they do here or why they handle situations like thay do- it's Korea! Honestly, I'm completely relieved about my demotion. I never wanted to be head teacher and I certainly didn't want the crazy work hours that came with it. So things are back to normal around here. I work from 9-5, and don't feel the least bit guilty when I leave at 5pm.
Korean Club Nite #2
It's been a few weeks since I last posted...a lot has been going on...and then again, not so much. A few weeks ago, my director, Helen and I took two of the other foreign teachers we work with, Tammy and Amanda, to the Korean Booking Club. I've mentioned my adventure there previously, so I won't go into complete detail as to why this is such an interesting experience, for those of us who have never entered a Korean Booking Club before. Needless to say, the other girls were intrigued and weirded out by the entire concept. I don't care who you are (Korean or American), no body really likes being grabbed and dragged from their table to be taken to a random male-stranger's table to be shown off; and auctioned off (that's kind of how it feels). The girls were not quite sure what to expect but at least they had me explaining to them what was going to happen and not a Korean, who wasn't exactly explaining the concept very well. We arrived at the same club Helen and Bonnie had taken me to several weeks ago and they were completely in awe. Like me they'd never seen anything quite like it and while they weren't too keen on the idea of being taken to table/room after table/room, they really enjoyed themselves. I was looking forward to the booking club because I hadn't really enjoyed the entertainment the previous time I had gone. This time, I knew what to expect but had seen a glimpse of the what the entertainment had been like during our previous trip, so I was there for the boy bands and other groups who were gracing the stage. The entertainment was worth the entire trip! I'd love to share more details but it may be a little risque (some of my kids read this blog, so if you want details, you'll have to email me). All in all Korean Club Nite #2 was a complete success and the girls loved it!
Thursday, 19 March 2009
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!
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!
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
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!
Tuesday, 24 February 2009
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!
Thursday, 19 February 2009
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....!
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....!
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