I am beyond busy! I don't think I quite knew what exactly I was getting myself into when I signed up for all of the stuff I did. The amount of classes does it, I think. I'm just going to type out my schedule...partially for you to understand exactly how crazy I am, but mostly for me to figure out how this happened.
Monday:
9:00 - 12:30 (Teaching)
12:30 - 1:00 (lunch)
1:00 - 2:20 (Hanging out with first grade teachers/lesson planning)
2:20 - 4:40 (Co-teaching 3 classes with Monica, the new foreign teacher)
4:40 - 5:10 (Walk to Guitar academy)
5:10 ~ 7:00 (Practice guitar)
7:00 - 7:45 (Walk to dance class)
8:00 - 9:00 Night Dance (Similar to Jazz dance/they call it club dancing)
Tuesday
9:00 - 12:30 (Teaching)
12:30 - 1:00 (lunch)
1:00 - 2:20 (Hanging out with 1st grade teachers/lesson planning)
3:30 - 4:10 (Teach a teachers' English class)
4:30 - 5:00 (Travel to Yonsei University)
5:10 - 6:00 (Korean language class)
6:15 - 6:30 (Wait for Carl and Ellen to finish their class/eat packed dinner)
6:30 - 7:30 (Take the bus to Lotte Cinema...get off and walk to guitar academy)
7:30 - 9:00 (Guitar practice)
9:00 ~ 9:45 (Walk to climbing gym)
9:45 - 11:00 (Climb)
Wednesday
9:00 - 12:30 (Teaching)
12:30 - 1:00 (lunch)
1:00 - 4:00 (Hanging out with 1st grade teachers/lesson planning/organizing my life)
4:00 - 5:00 (Take bus to Yonsei and hang out with Ellen)
5:10 - 6:00 (Korean language class)
6:00 - 6:30 (Wait for Ellen and Carl/eat packed dinner)
6:30 - 7:00 (Bus)
7:00 - 7:30 (Walk to dance class)
8:00 - 9:00 (Dance class)
9:15 - 10:45 (Guitar Practice)
Thursday
9:00 - 12:30 (Teaching)
12:30 - 1:00 (lunch)
1:00 - 2:20 (Hanging out with first grade teachers/lesson planning)
2:20 - 3:50 (Co-teaching 2 classes with Monica, the new foreign teacher)
4:00 - 4:40 (Teach a teachers' English class)
4:40 - 5:10 (Bus to Yonsei)
5:10 - 6:00 (Korean Language class)
6:15 - 6:30 (Wait for Carl and Ellen to finish their class/eat packed dinner)
6:30 - 7:30 (Take the bus to Lotte Cinema...get off and walk to guitar academy)
7:30 - 9:00 (Guitar practice)
9:00 ~ 9:45 (Walk to climbing gym)
9:45 - 11:00 (Climb)
Friday
9:00 - 12:30 (Teaching)
12:30 - 1:00 (lunch)
1:00 - ? (Hang out with the teachers)
7:15 - 7:50 (Walk to dance class)
8:00 - 9:00 (Dance class)
9:15 - 10:15 (English club discussion)
10:15 - ? (Hang out with English group)
I love walking, but it is definitely something I could do without if it would get me places faster. The problem with taking the bus is that it would get incredibly expensive. Two and from Yonsei for one day is ~$2.20. If I go to and from Yonsei and to and from my guitar lessons, that's $4.40/day, $22.00/week, $88/month. Too much! If I could get to Yonsei by walking, I would...it would take FOREVER though.
Anyway...that is my schedule. I partially did that so I could see if I could actually even fit in the climbing club. I think I may be able to. I'd hate to quit just like my friend said most foreigners do, but I don't have shoes or a harness and by the time I get there, I'm so exhausted because of everything else going on.
BTW...I moved up from beginner's level to intermediate as far as language classes go. I think intermediate suits me better, but I think I have a lot of catching up to do. When to study?
Anyway...I'm exhausted.
Peace out for now.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Feet Nibblin' Good! Mmm...
Intimidation. It has amazing power. I feel intimidated by a great many things, but I rarely allow that feeling to overwhelm to the point of not accomplishing something I want to accomplish. I'm afraid that this time it may get the best of me. I went to the climbing wall on Thursday night after I finished my guitar lesson, but I didn't climb because I don't have climbing shoes or a harness. I could have asked to borrow someone's, but once I was there, I realized that I was intimidated by that wall. There were people scaling it like professionals...and some of them are. ^_~ I told myself that I was going to stick with this for a month, and that, I'm going to do. I still have yet to buy shoes or a harness, but I'm sure I can at least borrow a harness. I'm not sure what will come of all this climbing jazz, but I know I will be angry at myself later if I allow the intimidation to control me now.
More to say about that later...
I was told on Wednesday by my co teacher that the boys (prepare yourselves for awkwardness) in my 6th grade classes have been talking about me...the way that 6th grade boys would talk about girls. Ugh...awkward and pretty much just gross. Anyway...enough of that.
Friday had a semi-stressful beginning. Some of my classes are starting to get noisier than I would like. I'm fine with some noise, but I just need to make sure it stays at a level I'm comfortable with. I'm frustrated because a number of the teachers in 6th grade said they would help me with anything I needed, yet they come to my class to sit down or sit at the back desk or to hang out at the back of the classroom without saying one word to the students. I have been told that some of my students cuss in my classes. My next step: Learn Korean cuss words and bust them since their homeroom teachers don't seem to be doing much about it. I shouted at one class, and I knew immediately after I did, I shouldn't have. It does no good, and it just hurts my throat.
Friday took a wonderful turn when I traveled to Seoul for the weekend. I got to see my dear friend Aimee Gerdes. I'm not sure if I explained how Aimee and I know each other or not. We met back in middle school during a band festival; our two middle schools plus one other joined to play as a mass group at the high school. I met Aimee at THAT festival. We re-discovered our friendship when we went to high school together, again when she attended Manchester College for 2 years (and I was her RA one of those years ^_~), and yet again when she recently came out to South Korea to teach music education at a Christian International School in Seoul. Goes to show just how randomly you may meet up with one of your friends post-schooling.^^
She and I hung out for a few hours before I had to make my way into inner-Itaewon (Aimee lives in Bongwadong, I believe) to Curry Town for a going away party for one of my friends, Maria. Maria is a volunteer at the House of Sharing. It was hard to see her go. I am in love with Curry Town though. It had been a while since I was able to go. There's just something about watching Bollywood music videos while eating spicy Indian food that I adore. Aimee and I met up afterward to head to Homo Hill (a known area for gay bars). Aimee doesn't like dancing, but we had fun just sitting, drinking, and talking. There was a hilarious guy named Craig who kept trying to get us to come into a dance club next to SoHo, the bar we were in. I forget the name of his friend, but he was an overweight, gay, Korean man who cracked me up. They were both so friendly.
Saturday, Aimee went to lunch with her landlord and some of the other girls she is living with from her int'l school. I stayed in and read over some of the material for tomorrow. Plus, it was pouring, and I had no desire to go outside. When Aimee got back we went to a Dr. Fish place, where fish eat the dead skin off of your feet. Sound gross?! Haha! There are large square tables that you can sit at and stick your feet into a square pool with fish who nibble at your feet while you drink coffee. The Turkish fish were small and more like a vibration on my feet while the Chinese fish were more like little woodpeckers pecking at my feet. They both tickeled, but the Chinese fish tickled a ton more. We hung out around Hongdae for a bit; I bought some nose rings (which I can't find now), and we grabbed a drink at some place I can't remember the name of but I remember the location. I've realized that the best way for me to go is to drink Korean Stout...black beer but cheap.^^ We headed back near Aimee's to grab a desk from a super nice couple, and we hung out for most of the night. We left for a bit to go eat at a small place down the road. Aimee freaked out about the squid in her soup...maybe after a few more months it won't phase her. It is strange when someone is weirded out by something that has become second nature to me: seeing squid, eating squid, eating whole fish with the heads on, watching children play ridiculously in the hallway (I just walk by these days), seeing alcohol in the office refrigerator at school, etc.
Sunday! Sunday was amazing! I almost blogged separately about Sunday! I gave my first full tour at the House of Sharing. There were only three volunteers, so Jyoung Ah came with me and added a few things here and there, but I was the leader.^^ I was incredibly intimidated by the thought of providing so many people with as much information as I had to tell them, especially considering the seriousness of the issue involving the "Comfort Women." The group was maybe the largest I have ever seen. We started advertising on Facebook, and it drew a huge crowd. Malcolm and I split it in half with each of us having a group of about 22 or so. The part I couldn't believe was how many compliments I got on the tour and how many offerings of appreciation. People were just so incredibly supportive even though I was just the person delivering the information. After I read a testimony of one of the elder ladies who has already passed away, a woman came up to me crying saying how much it touched her heart and expressing the emotions that come with hearing for the first time the details of the wretched life these women had to endure. She almost made me cry. It is hard for me to read it every time. Malcolm asked me that day if I was going to read it to the group and wished me luck when I confirmed that I would indeed. He knows how difficult it is for me to read it aloud and in general. Perhaps one day, I'll type up the testimony I keep mentioning to share a bit of my experiences as a volunteer at the House of Sharing with you, but even now as I think about it while writing this, I don't have the energy to post it at this time. After the museum tour, Aimee and I snuck in to sing karaoke with a Japanese group that was there at the same time as our HUGE group. It was a small group of guys and a few women. They had all flown in from Japan but some were Korean and some were Japanese; they are part of the Korean/Japanese Association. While the others went in to listen to 이옥선 (Lee Ok Seon) halmoni's testimony. I sat outside with Pae Chun Hee halmoni and a volunteer from Japan; she came over to translate between Korean and Japanese. She's studying Japanese in Japan these days, but she is originally from Seoul. I wish I could remember her name. She was so sweet. We had a short conversation in Korean. I feel like I can better carry a conversation in Korean these days!!^^ I still have a looooong way to go, but I definitely feel more confident than I did last year language-wise. I went back in for part of Lee Ok Seon halmoni's testimony; she always has something new to add. This day she was asked what her happiest time is since she experienced so many horrible times. Unfortunately, she said she has never had a happy time. I don't know if I entirely believe that, but of course she has had to live with the constant knowledge of what happened to her in those "comfort stations" by the Japanese soldiers.
I cannot express how grateful I am for the experience I have had at the House of Sharing. I have met so many wonderful people, I have learned so much valuable and important history, and I have been given the chance to be part of the living history of this movement.
More updates to come...
More to say about that later...
I was told on Wednesday by my co teacher that the boys (prepare yourselves for awkwardness) in my 6th grade classes have been talking about me...the way that 6th grade boys would talk about girls. Ugh...awkward and pretty much just gross. Anyway...enough of that.
Friday had a semi-stressful beginning. Some of my classes are starting to get noisier than I would like. I'm fine with some noise, but I just need to make sure it stays at a level I'm comfortable with. I'm frustrated because a number of the teachers in 6th grade said they would help me with anything I needed, yet they come to my class to sit down or sit at the back desk or to hang out at the back of the classroom without saying one word to the students. I have been told that some of my students cuss in my classes. My next step: Learn Korean cuss words and bust them since their homeroom teachers don't seem to be doing much about it. I shouted at one class, and I knew immediately after I did, I shouldn't have. It does no good, and it just hurts my throat.
Friday took a wonderful turn when I traveled to Seoul for the weekend. I got to see my dear friend Aimee Gerdes. I'm not sure if I explained how Aimee and I know each other or not. We met back in middle school during a band festival; our two middle schools plus one other joined to play as a mass group at the high school. I met Aimee at THAT festival. We re-discovered our friendship when we went to high school together, again when she attended Manchester College for 2 years (and I was her RA one of those years ^_~), and yet again when she recently came out to South Korea to teach music education at a Christian International School in Seoul. Goes to show just how randomly you may meet up with one of your friends post-schooling.^^
She and I hung out for a few hours before I had to make my way into inner-Itaewon (Aimee lives in Bongwadong, I believe) to Curry Town for a going away party for one of my friends, Maria. Maria is a volunteer at the House of Sharing. It was hard to see her go. I am in love with Curry Town though. It had been a while since I was able to go. There's just something about watching Bollywood music videos while eating spicy Indian food that I adore. Aimee and I met up afterward to head to Homo Hill (a known area for gay bars). Aimee doesn't like dancing, but we had fun just sitting, drinking, and talking. There was a hilarious guy named Craig who kept trying to get us to come into a dance club next to SoHo, the bar we were in. I forget the name of his friend, but he was an overweight, gay, Korean man who cracked me up. They were both so friendly.
Saturday, Aimee went to lunch with her landlord and some of the other girls she is living with from her int'l school. I stayed in and read over some of the material for tomorrow. Plus, it was pouring, and I had no desire to go outside. When Aimee got back we went to a Dr. Fish place, where fish eat the dead skin off of your feet. Sound gross?! Haha! There are large square tables that you can sit at and stick your feet into a square pool with fish who nibble at your feet while you drink coffee. The Turkish fish were small and more like a vibration on my feet while the Chinese fish were more like little woodpeckers pecking at my feet. They both tickeled, but the Chinese fish tickled a ton more. We hung out around Hongdae for a bit; I bought some nose rings (which I can't find now), and we grabbed a drink at some place I can't remember the name of but I remember the location. I've realized that the best way for me to go is to drink Korean Stout...black beer but cheap.^^ We headed back near Aimee's to grab a desk from a super nice couple, and we hung out for most of the night. We left for a bit to go eat at a small place down the road. Aimee freaked out about the squid in her soup...maybe after a few more months it won't phase her. It is strange when someone is weirded out by something that has become second nature to me: seeing squid, eating squid, eating whole fish with the heads on, watching children play ridiculously in the hallway (I just walk by these days), seeing alcohol in the office refrigerator at school, etc.
Sunday! Sunday was amazing! I almost blogged separately about Sunday! I gave my first full tour at the House of Sharing. There were only three volunteers, so Jyoung Ah came with me and added a few things here and there, but I was the leader.^^ I was incredibly intimidated by the thought of providing so many people with as much information as I had to tell them, especially considering the seriousness of the issue involving the "Comfort Women." The group was maybe the largest I have ever seen. We started advertising on Facebook, and it drew a huge crowd. Malcolm and I split it in half with each of us having a group of about 22 or so. The part I couldn't believe was how many compliments I got on the tour and how many offerings of appreciation. People were just so incredibly supportive even though I was just the person delivering the information. After I read a testimony of one of the elder ladies who has already passed away, a woman came up to me crying saying how much it touched her heart and expressing the emotions that come with hearing for the first time the details of the wretched life these women had to endure. She almost made me cry. It is hard for me to read it every time. Malcolm asked me that day if I was going to read it to the group and wished me luck when I confirmed that I would indeed. He knows how difficult it is for me to read it aloud and in general. Perhaps one day, I'll type up the testimony I keep mentioning to share a bit of my experiences as a volunteer at the House of Sharing with you, but even now as I think about it while writing this, I don't have the energy to post it at this time. After the museum tour, Aimee and I snuck in to sing karaoke with a Japanese group that was there at the same time as our HUGE group. It was a small group of guys and a few women. They had all flown in from Japan but some were Korean and some were Japanese; they are part of the Korean/Japanese Association. While the others went in to listen to 이옥선 (Lee Ok Seon) halmoni's testimony. I sat outside with Pae Chun Hee halmoni and a volunteer from Japan; she came over to translate between Korean and Japanese. She's studying Japanese in Japan these days, but she is originally from Seoul. I wish I could remember her name. She was so sweet. We had a short conversation in Korean. I feel like I can better carry a conversation in Korean these days!!^^ I still have a looooong way to go, but I definitely feel more confident than I did last year language-wise. I went back in for part of Lee Ok Seon halmoni's testimony; she always has something new to add. This day she was asked what her happiest time is since she experienced so many horrible times. Unfortunately, she said she has never had a happy time. I don't know if I entirely believe that, but of course she has had to live with the constant knowledge of what happened to her in those "comfort stations" by the Japanese soldiers.
I cannot express how grateful I am for the experience I have had at the House of Sharing. I have met so many wonderful people, I have learned so much valuable and important history, and I have been given the chance to be part of the living history of this movement.
More updates to come...
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Chusok - Tuesday September 16, 2008
I spent this past weekend in Gangneung with a Korean friend/my co teacher. I came home with her for Chusok. Chusok is the Korean form of Thanksgiving. They return to their homes, spend time with their families, give thanks for the harvest, and worship their ancestors. Hae-In's family is so nice. I especially love her mom!
We got in late on Friday night, but on Saturday Hae-In took me all around Gangneung. We went to a traditional house and a museum designed for a soldier and his mom (both were important during the Joseon dynasty). The mother is actually going to be the figure on the new 50,000 Won bill. As of now, the largest bill in Korea is only a 10,000 which equates to about $10. So I'm pretty excited about the 50,000s. We ate Shabu Shabu for dinner and then met up with some of Hae-In's friends whom she has known for years. They were all so friendly. We started at a bar with only four of us (Hae-In, Na-Bi, Hae-Seon, and me), then two more showed up (Byeong-Yun and Eun-Jeong), then we changed bars, then Hae In's boyfriend (Kyeong-Pae) showed up (first time I've ever gotten to meet him), then we changed bars again, then we went to karaoke, two more people came (one was Tae-Ho and I don't remember the name of the other guy), and then we finally ended up at the same coffee shop where we started the day. It was an amazing day!
Sunday was more of a relaxed day. We got up early and ate breakfast. It was so nice to be able to eat home-cooked Korean food again! I went with the family for Seong Myo, which is a bowing and food offering in order to worship their ancestors. Usually on Chusok, the man's parents' tombs or the man's family's tombs are visited. Hae-In told me that she doesn't remember a time when she visited her mother's parents' tombs. Sometimes families visit more than one set of tombs but only if they are in close vicinity. There are three "foods" needed in order to worship one's ancestors. Hae-In's father told me that there are Chinese characters representing those three things, JuKwaAw (maybe). I can't remember the last character...only what it stands for. Ju means alcohol (soju), Kwa stands for fruit (Kwa-Il), and the last character stands for dried squid. It was only a 10 minute hike up to the tombs, but Hae-In kept saying (Stomach hurts, difficult, stomach hurts). Haha! To be fair, she ended up not feeling well the rest of the day. After we went back to the apartment, her parents went hiking, and we hung out for most of the day just at the apt. We went to her aunt's apt for dinner. AMAZING! The food was A-M-azing! When we left there, we went to meet Hae-In's senior (just meaning that he's older than her...by like 8 years) and Ji-Hee. Ji-Hee is our friend who we go to dance classes with and we all went to movies together last year. She lives in Gangneung as well.
On Monday, we ate breakfast, hung out at the apt, ate lunch at the apt...Hae-In still wasn't feeling well. She felt bad that we weren't getting out and doing anything, but we had a pretty full weekend as it was. ^_~ We ended up meeting up with Hae-In's boyfriend to get coffee and hang out on the beach. He was getting ready to head back to Seoul. They barely seem like a "couple." They are very independent people which seems to be odd for Korea. Some of his friends think she is a bad girlfriend because she likes to travel instead of stay in Korea during his vacations, but he understands that she has a life outside of their relationship. Afterward, Hae-In and I met up with Eun-Jeong and Na-Bi and went to a different beach. It's a place where a drama was once filmed, and after it was filmed, the area built up and it's not nearly as peaceful as it once was. There is a giant hour glass that was inspired by the drama that fills up with sand everyday and after 365 days, it flips over and starts again. The four of us ate MakGukSu (cold spicy noodle soup) for dinner and then went with Eun-Jeong back to her place. She had to pack to head back to Seoul. I decided to go back tonight so Hae-In wouldn't feel like she would have to hurry home tomorrow. Hae-In, Na-Bi, and I went for coffee AGAIN at the Clarinet before my bus came.
Tuesday, I slept in for the first time this holiday! Then I bummed around until I got up the energy to walk to guitar lessons. I wandered around until it was time to meet Madeleine near the Pizza Hut in Tangaedong. I wanted to check out the indoor rock climbing place. Oh boy! It's hella hard! The people were so nice and they tried to show me what to do. After a while, I kind of got the hang of it. I think I'm going to stick with it for a while. The first time I tried it, I thought "NO WAY!" But Madeleine told me that a lot of foreigners come to the club once or twice and then quit. I don't want to be that person. It's amazingly hard, but I'm going to try to stick with it for a month and see how it goes.
Peace out.
We got in late on Friday night, but on Saturday Hae-In took me all around Gangneung. We went to a traditional house and a museum designed for a soldier and his mom (both were important during the Joseon dynasty). The mother is actually going to be the figure on the new 50,000 Won bill. As of now, the largest bill in Korea is only a 10,000 which equates to about $10. So I'm pretty excited about the 50,000s. We ate Shabu Shabu for dinner and then met up with some of Hae-In's friends whom she has known for years. They were all so friendly. We started at a bar with only four of us (Hae-In, Na-Bi, Hae-Seon, and me), then two more showed up (Byeong-Yun and Eun-Jeong), then we changed bars, then Hae In's boyfriend (Kyeong-Pae) showed up (first time I've ever gotten to meet him), then we changed bars again, then we went to karaoke, two more people came (one was Tae-Ho and I don't remember the name of the other guy), and then we finally ended up at the same coffee shop where we started the day. It was an amazing day!
Sunday was more of a relaxed day. We got up early and ate breakfast. It was so nice to be able to eat home-cooked Korean food again! I went with the family for Seong Myo, which is a bowing and food offering in order to worship their ancestors. Usually on Chusok, the man's parents' tombs or the man's family's tombs are visited. Hae-In told me that she doesn't remember a time when she visited her mother's parents' tombs. Sometimes families visit more than one set of tombs but only if they are in close vicinity. There are three "foods" needed in order to worship one's ancestors. Hae-In's father told me that there are Chinese characters representing those three things, JuKwaAw (maybe). I can't remember the last character...only what it stands for. Ju means alcohol (soju), Kwa stands for fruit (Kwa-Il), and the last character stands for dried squid. It was only a 10 minute hike up to the tombs, but Hae-In kept saying (Stomach hurts, difficult, stomach hurts). Haha! To be fair, she ended up not feeling well the rest of the day. After we went back to the apartment, her parents went hiking, and we hung out for most of the day just at the apt. We went to her aunt's apt for dinner. AMAZING! The food was A-M-azing! When we left there, we went to meet Hae-In's senior (just meaning that he's older than her...by like 8 years) and Ji-Hee. Ji-Hee is our friend who we go to dance classes with and we all went to movies together last year. She lives in Gangneung as well.
On Monday, we ate breakfast, hung out at the apt, ate lunch at the apt...Hae-In still wasn't feeling well. She felt bad that we weren't getting out and doing anything, but we had a pretty full weekend as it was. ^_~ We ended up meeting up with Hae-In's boyfriend to get coffee and hang out on the beach. He was getting ready to head back to Seoul. They barely seem like a "couple." They are very independent people which seems to be odd for Korea. Some of his friends think she is a bad girlfriend because she likes to travel instead of stay in Korea during his vacations, but he understands that she has a life outside of their relationship. Afterward, Hae-In and I met up with Eun-Jeong and Na-Bi and went to a different beach. It's a place where a drama was once filmed, and after it was filmed, the area built up and it's not nearly as peaceful as it once was. There is a giant hour glass that was inspired by the drama that fills up with sand everyday and after 365 days, it flips over and starts again. The four of us ate MakGukSu (cold spicy noodle soup) for dinner and then went with Eun-Jeong back to her place. She had to pack to head back to Seoul. I decided to go back tonight so Hae-In wouldn't feel like she would have to hurry home tomorrow. Hae-In, Na-Bi, and I went for coffee AGAIN at the Clarinet before my bus came.
Tuesday, I slept in for the first time this holiday! Then I bummed around until I got up the energy to walk to guitar lessons. I wandered around until it was time to meet Madeleine near the Pizza Hut in Tangaedong. I wanted to check out the indoor rock climbing place. Oh boy! It's hella hard! The people were so nice and they tried to show me what to do. After a while, I kind of got the hang of it. I think I'm going to stick with it for a while. The first time I tried it, I thought "NO WAY!" But Madeleine told me that a lot of foreigners come to the club once or twice and then quit. I don't want to be that person. It's amazingly hard, but I'm going to try to stick with it for a month and see how it goes.
Peace out.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Generosity - Friday September 12, 2008
Besides being obsessed with Bengali music, I am pretty darn happy.
Quick week update...for last week.
It's going to get harder and harder to keep my blog up to date. I don't feel like I'm involved in that much, but apparently I am busier than I realize at times. I leave at 8AM and find myself not spending more than a few minutes at home between the time I leave and the time I get home, usually 13 hours later.
Ugh...I'm getting worse and worse about updating and by the time I find time to update, I don't remember half of the stuff that happened.
Ok, let's start with the incredibly generosity I have experienced this past week! Ellen, this amazing woman that I met last year through her volunteering in the English Village cares for me as if I were her daughter. She is married to an incredible man named Carl. Carl is a professor at Yonsei University in Wonju; he teaches history and an English grammar class. The two of them have been married for less than a year now, but moved to Korea immediately after they were married. The economy in the states is so horrible for professors that they decided coming to Korea would be the best opportunity for Carl to get a professor position. Ellen isn't working at this time, but she is volunteering at the English Village in my school. Last year Hae In and I went over there for homemade pizza. Anyway, I saw Ellen for the first time on Thursday since this summer. I am hoping to join a Korean class at Yonsei University that Carl is a part of. I have been corresponding with both of them regarding the class since this summer. Ellen told me more about it and that registrating is next week. She told me that if I can't afford to pay the $200, she and Carl will pay for me. I was immediately overwhelmed with the kindness that this couple has and continues to show me. They are just so amazing! They really want me to take the class because it is something that I want to do in order to feel more a part of Korean culture. I think I should pay for the class, but just the fact that they offered means the world to me. Her request of me if they did pay for the class for me: Pay it forward.
The same day, my best teacher friend gave me a ton of food to take home with me. She knows that I love Korean food and it has been hard living on my own and not knowing how to make Korean food yet, so she gave me some kimchi and whatnot that was brought in by parents for Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving). When she told the mom who brought the kimchi in that it was going to me, the mom said that I could go ahead and keep the tupperware because I would probably need them in my new place.
The same teacher friend also paid for me to go to the movies with the other first grade teachers on Wednesday even though I am no longer an official member of the first grade office. We went to see Mama Mia together. I had already seen it, but seeing it with them in theatre was much better than streaming it on my computer at home. ^_~ Plus, it was really fun to watch the movie with 6 women. If you've seen the movie, maybe you understand what I mean.
I went out with my host family for dinner on Thursday night. I asked if I could invite Monica (the new afterschool TaLK English teacher) to go along. We all went to Sorento, a super delicious Italian restaurant near Lotte Cinema. They have a gorgonzola pizza with potato chips on top, and it quite possibly may be the best pizza ever...well at least that I've had in Korea! ^_~
I was so amazed and appreciative of the kindness I've been shown this week. I am so fortunate to have people like this in my life.
Quick week update...for last week.
It's going to get harder and harder to keep my blog up to date. I don't feel like I'm involved in that much, but apparently I am busier than I realize at times. I leave at 8AM and find myself not spending more than a few minutes at home between the time I leave and the time I get home, usually 13 hours later.
Ugh...I'm getting worse and worse about updating and by the time I find time to update, I don't remember half of the stuff that happened.
Ok, let's start with the incredibly generosity I have experienced this past week! Ellen, this amazing woman that I met last year through her volunteering in the English Village cares for me as if I were her daughter. She is married to an incredible man named Carl. Carl is a professor at Yonsei University in Wonju; he teaches history and an English grammar class. The two of them have been married for less than a year now, but moved to Korea immediately after they were married. The economy in the states is so horrible for professors that they decided coming to Korea would be the best opportunity for Carl to get a professor position. Ellen isn't working at this time, but she is volunteering at the English Village in my school. Last year Hae In and I went over there for homemade pizza. Anyway, I saw Ellen for the first time on Thursday since this summer. I am hoping to join a Korean class at Yonsei University that Carl is a part of. I have been corresponding with both of them regarding the class since this summer. Ellen told me more about it and that registrating is next week. She told me that if I can't afford to pay the $200, she and Carl will pay for me. I was immediately overwhelmed with the kindness that this couple has and continues to show me. They are just so amazing! They really want me to take the class because it is something that I want to do in order to feel more a part of Korean culture. I think I should pay for the class, but just the fact that they offered means the world to me. Her request of me if they did pay for the class for me: Pay it forward.
The same day, my best teacher friend gave me a ton of food to take home with me. She knows that I love Korean food and it has been hard living on my own and not knowing how to make Korean food yet, so she gave me some kimchi and whatnot that was brought in by parents for Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving). When she told the mom who brought the kimchi in that it was going to me, the mom said that I could go ahead and keep the tupperware because I would probably need them in my new place.
The same teacher friend also paid for me to go to the movies with the other first grade teachers on Wednesday even though I am no longer an official member of the first grade office. We went to see Mama Mia together. I had already seen it, but seeing it with them in theatre was much better than streaming it on my computer at home. ^_~ Plus, it was really fun to watch the movie with 6 women. If you've seen the movie, maybe you understand what I mean.
I went out with my host family for dinner on Thursday night. I asked if I could invite Monica (the new afterschool TaLK English teacher) to go along. We all went to Sorento, a super delicious Italian restaurant near Lotte Cinema. They have a gorgonzola pizza with potato chips on top, and it quite possibly may be the best pizza ever...well at least that I've had in Korea! ^_~
I was so amazed and appreciative of the kindness I've been shown this week. I am so fortunate to have people like this in my life.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Life Church - Sunday September 7, 2008
Today was incredible!
For over a year now, I have been trying to find a church that suits me. I may have found that today...
A little bit of back-story: A few foreign guys who also attend who created a bible study and go to church together. They do bible study every Tuesday and Thursday. They broke off from the church in Wonju and started going to this church called Life Church in Suwon (about an hour drive away) every other Sunday.
I decided to try out Bible study on Thursday, but I decided that it wasn't for me. I also went to church with a van full of people. In the van, we had Seul-Gi (the Korean 27 year old owner of the coffee shop where Bible study meets), Seul-Gi's mother and father, Tim (a married Korean man who spent half of his life in Malaysia), a Korean boy who ended up being one of my students (semi-awkward, but I got over it), the boy's mother, CJ (a 40-something South African man who used to be a youth pastor), a South African woman who is CJ's friend, Dovedon (a married 27 year old Mongolian man who is here working in a factory to send money back home to his family), Biliom (a 37 year old Bangladeshi man who is here working as a pathologist at a local hospital and putting himself through school while his wife and daughter are back home), and Brandon (a 23 year old Minnesota country boy).
We were a little late to the service because we had to turn around and pick up the boy and his mother when we were already 15 minutes outside of Wonju. We still made it for most of the praise portion which is my favorite part. I especially enjoyed this church's style of praise; we sang one verse in English and the next in Korean. It was a good way to practice my Korean reading. The message was about allowing our "inner-life" to become our "outer-life." In other words, allowing the breaking of our outer shells in order for the life to be shown that God wants for us.
I haven't written about my beliefs on this blog, and I believe it will remain that way. I consider my religious beliefs to be a very personal aspect of who I am. I am very open in speaking about them, but refuse to do so on such a public forum as this where judgment can spawn much faster than a conversation.
I can't tell yet for sure or not, but this church feels like a pretty good fit for me.
There was an amazing Sunday buffet for the congregation. We ate and mingled until it was time to head back to Wonju. On the ride home, something inspiring and eye opening occurred...I realized just how diverse of surroundings I was in. We realized this as we were playing a game in which the person who lost had to sing a song. Biliom sang a song in Bengali, CJ's friend sang a South African children's song, Brandon sang a Norwegian folk song, Dovedon sang a song in Russian, and the young Korean boy sang a WestLife, an Irish pop band from the UK, song. How incredible is that? If they had forced me to sing, I was going to sing a Kenyan praise song I learned back when I was in the village of Naramoru. Luckily they didn't make me sing though. ^_~
That reminds me! I met a woman from Kenya the other day. She was from Nairobi. I asked her if she knew of a small village named Naramoru and told her that I have a host family there. She said she knows of the place. I wanted to pack up and go back to Kenya immediately after that encounter. I miss it more than I could ever possibly describe and the eagerness to return grows exponentially every time I am reminded of its beauty.
Alas, I did not pack up, and I am not now in Kenya. I am, however, in Korea and learning how to deal with this new life of mine. I wouldn't have it any other way... even if I do occasionally curse certain aspects of life when chatting with any one of you.
I fell asleep ridiculously early this night and woke up at 9PM only to remain awake until 5AM.
Lesson for the day: Just because I came to Korea to learn about Korea doesn't mean that I can't learn about a zillion other cultures along the way. ^_~
For over a year now, I have been trying to find a church that suits me. I may have found that today...
A little bit of back-story: A few foreign guys who also attend who created a bible study and go to church together. They do bible study every Tuesday and Thursday. They broke off from the church in Wonju and started going to this church called Life Church in Suwon (about an hour drive away) every other Sunday.
I decided to try out Bible study on Thursday, but I decided that it wasn't for me. I also went to church with a van full of people. In the van, we had Seul-Gi (the Korean 27 year old owner of the coffee shop where Bible study meets), Seul-Gi's mother and father, Tim (a married Korean man who spent half of his life in Malaysia), a Korean boy who ended up being one of my students (semi-awkward, but I got over it), the boy's mother, CJ (a 40-something South African man who used to be a youth pastor), a South African woman who is CJ's friend, Dovedon (a married 27 year old Mongolian man who is here working in a factory to send money back home to his family), Biliom (a 37 year old Bangladeshi man who is here working as a pathologist at a local hospital and putting himself through school while his wife and daughter are back home), and Brandon (a 23 year old Minnesota country boy).
We were a little late to the service because we had to turn around and pick up the boy and his mother when we were already 15 minutes outside of Wonju. We still made it for most of the praise portion which is my favorite part. I especially enjoyed this church's style of praise; we sang one verse in English and the next in Korean. It was a good way to practice my Korean reading. The message was about allowing our "inner-life" to become our "outer-life." In other words, allowing the breaking of our outer shells in order for the life to be shown that God wants for us.
I haven't written about my beliefs on this blog, and I believe it will remain that way. I consider my religious beliefs to be a very personal aspect of who I am. I am very open in speaking about them, but refuse to do so on such a public forum as this where judgment can spawn much faster than a conversation.
I can't tell yet for sure or not, but this church feels like a pretty good fit for me.
There was an amazing Sunday buffet for the congregation. We ate and mingled until it was time to head back to Wonju. On the ride home, something inspiring and eye opening occurred...I realized just how diverse of surroundings I was in. We realized this as we were playing a game in which the person who lost had to sing a song. Biliom sang a song in Bengali, CJ's friend sang a South African children's song, Brandon sang a Norwegian folk song, Dovedon sang a song in Russian, and the young Korean boy sang a WestLife, an Irish pop band from the UK, song. How incredible is that? If they had forced me to sing, I was going to sing a Kenyan praise song I learned back when I was in the village of Naramoru. Luckily they didn't make me sing though. ^_~
That reminds me! I met a woman from Kenya the other day. She was from Nairobi. I asked her if she knew of a small village named Naramoru and told her that I have a host family there. She said she knows of the place. I wanted to pack up and go back to Kenya immediately after that encounter. I miss it more than I could ever possibly describe and the eagerness to return grows exponentially every time I am reminded of its beauty.
Alas, I did not pack up, and I am not now in Kenya. I am, however, in Korea and learning how to deal with this new life of mine. I wouldn't have it any other way... even if I do occasionally curse certain aspects of life when chatting with any one of you.
I fell asleep ridiculously early this night and woke up at 9PM only to remain awake until 5AM.
Lesson for the day: Just because I came to Korea to learn about Korea doesn't mean that I can't learn about a zillion other cultures along the way. ^_~
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Life *sigh* - Saturday September 6, 2008
The confusion that was my life is slowly starting to clear just as the river in the old part of my neighborhood did when people stopped polluting it.
My life in Korea for the second year around took an incredibly twisted approach to informing me that it was time for a change.
In regards to my school life, apart from living in the same city and teaching at the same school, things couldn't possibly be any more different than had I specifically planned for them to be. I am teaching the complete opposite side of the spectrum grade-wise, a brand new curriculum, there will be 10 new co-teachers, and I'll be teaching 5 more (soon to be even more) hours than last year...I feel as though there should be a partridge in a pear tree somewhere in this lineup.
Though I found all of this out just 4 days before I was to hop off the 100 foot tower into the 8 ounce glass of water in this three ring circus missing its ring leader, everything is going ok.
I think in being away from Korea for a month and a half, I temporarily strayed from the utterly flexible life that is necessary in order to live in any foreign country...and in my case, Korea. My school will never run smoothly. This is a given. I will not always get my way at the school. This has been proven. But what I am working to find my way back to currently, is my sense of survival. I will be fine no matter what I have to face. It is hard to see the needle in the haystack, especially when it is sticking you in the eye. The hay being the piles and piles of miscommunication and confusion that was dropped on my head and the key to sanity being the needle. Attitude. Every situation is about attitude. I can control every situation by the power I give it to affect me.
Ok...anyway...things are going well.
I'm almost completely settled into my apartment. I finally got my closet/wardrobe, so I was able to unpack my suitcases. It'll be nice not to live out of suitcases anymore. Although, now, I can't find anywhere to put my suitcases. There is no storage in my apartment whatsoever. I'll post pics on facebook one of these days when I get a free moment. I am one of those people who can't really feel settled in a place if I can still see suitcases and boxes lying around. I'm working on a method to remedy the situation.
I have internet now as well! This is why I can FINALLY update my blog. I will try hard to write in my blog a few times a week. At one point, it was every day. It can't be that way this year. I can almost guarantee I won't have time. I'm picking up extra classes to make a little bit more money this year for extra expenses now that I'm living on my own. Ex. Food, Internet, Heat, Water, Electricity, etc etc etc.
Living alone financially sucks, but I'm loving the independence!
Teaching the first week of sixth graders went well. I like them a lot more than I thought I would. However, in saying that, I also have to remember that this was the first week and we only did introductions. When I actually have to teach English, we'll see how well they behave. ^_~
Highlights of my week:
1. A student stayed after to help me clean up (we made nametags in class this week). As he was leaving, he said, "Take care, Stashi." Adorable!
2. A sixth grade teacher complimented me on my teaching style and told me that he learned many teaching methods by observing my class!^^
I went to the International Tattoo Festival on Friday with my co-teacher Hae In. Initially we were going to have to sit on the steps because we got standing room only tickets, but this man was nice enough to give us two extra tickets he had! The International Marching Band festival is only every other year, so I didn't get to see it last year. There were bands from Thailand, Canada, the US, Australia, and many from Korea. There was singing, dancing, marching, etc etc etc! At the end of the 3 hours show, Jewelry, a Korean girl group, performed! I learned a dance to one of their songs, "Baby One More Time," last year in Jazz Dance!
Random thought: As I lie here in bed, I feel like I am home. Not like home in Wonju...like home in South Bend. I hear the crickets and the occasional car drive by and I feel the comfort of my room and my bed next to the window and I feel..at home.
Anyway, after the festival, Hae In and I went to Jjoki Jjoki to meet up with the English club group. We have to meet there now because our Makoli bar moved to a different district. Sad!!! I don't care for Jjoki Jjoki, but we don't have many choices for as big of group as we are. I met many new Korean members and talked to them until we moved to a third round. Hae In and I took a pit stop at Kimbap Nara around midnight to get some food since neither of us had had dinner yet. We were out until 3 or so.
Backing up...last weekend, I went back to the Sharing House for the first time in a maybe two months. It was so awesome to be back. Lee Ok Sun halmoni talked to us for almost and hour and a half about her experiences in the comfort station. Malcolm gave the tour this time; I'm still trying to work myself up to being confident enough to give a full tour. I hung out with some of the other halmoni in the house for a while. We watched the discovery channel, I believe. One of the halmonis, we call the "Beautiful" halmoni because she always has makeup and a wig on. I think I confuse her; sometimes I speak Japanese to her and sometimes I speak Korean. She likes Japanese better because she lived there so long, but my Korean ability is quickly surpassing/has surpassed my ability to pull the long forgotten and unused Japanese words from my brain.
I have to stop there...tired...getting up early tomorrow. It's 4AM, so I guess I'm getting up early today. Bummer!
Write again soon!
Peace out!
-Title of this blog is in reference to a chapel talk from MC.
My life in Korea for the second year around took an incredibly twisted approach to informing me that it was time for a change.
In regards to my school life, apart from living in the same city and teaching at the same school, things couldn't possibly be any more different than had I specifically planned for them to be. I am teaching the complete opposite side of the spectrum grade-wise, a brand new curriculum, there will be 10 new co-teachers, and I'll be teaching 5 more (soon to be even more) hours than last year...I feel as though there should be a partridge in a pear tree somewhere in this lineup.
Though I found all of this out just 4 days before I was to hop off the 100 foot tower into the 8 ounce glass of water in this three ring circus missing its ring leader, everything is going ok.
I think in being away from Korea for a month and a half, I temporarily strayed from the utterly flexible life that is necessary in order to live in any foreign country...and in my case, Korea. My school will never run smoothly. This is a given. I will not always get my way at the school. This has been proven. But what I am working to find my way back to currently, is my sense of survival. I will be fine no matter what I have to face. It is hard to see the needle in the haystack, especially when it is sticking you in the eye. The hay being the piles and piles of miscommunication and confusion that was dropped on my head and the key to sanity being the needle. Attitude. Every situation is about attitude. I can control every situation by the power I give it to affect me.
Ok...anyway...things are going well.
I'm almost completely settled into my apartment. I finally got my closet/wardrobe, so I was able to unpack my suitcases. It'll be nice not to live out of suitcases anymore. Although, now, I can't find anywhere to put my suitcases. There is no storage in my apartment whatsoever. I'll post pics on facebook one of these days when I get a free moment. I am one of those people who can't really feel settled in a place if I can still see suitcases and boxes lying around. I'm working on a method to remedy the situation.
I have internet now as well! This is why I can FINALLY update my blog. I will try hard to write in my blog a few times a week. At one point, it was every day. It can't be that way this year. I can almost guarantee I won't have time. I'm picking up extra classes to make a little bit more money this year for extra expenses now that I'm living on my own. Ex. Food, Internet, Heat, Water, Electricity, etc etc etc.
Living alone financially sucks, but I'm loving the independence!
Teaching the first week of sixth graders went well. I like them a lot more than I thought I would. However, in saying that, I also have to remember that this was the first week and we only did introductions. When I actually have to teach English, we'll see how well they behave. ^_~
Highlights of my week:
1. A student stayed after to help me clean up (we made nametags in class this week). As he was leaving, he said, "Take care, Stashi." Adorable!
2. A sixth grade teacher complimented me on my teaching style and told me that he learned many teaching methods by observing my class!^^
I went to the International Tattoo Festival on Friday with my co-teacher Hae In. Initially we were going to have to sit on the steps because we got standing room only tickets, but this man was nice enough to give us two extra tickets he had! The International Marching Band festival is only every other year, so I didn't get to see it last year. There were bands from Thailand, Canada, the US, Australia, and many from Korea. There was singing, dancing, marching, etc etc etc! At the end of the 3 hours show, Jewelry, a Korean girl group, performed! I learned a dance to one of their songs, "Baby One More Time," last year in Jazz Dance!
Random thought: As I lie here in bed, I feel like I am home. Not like home in Wonju...like home in South Bend. I hear the crickets and the occasional car drive by and I feel the comfort of my room and my bed next to the window and I feel..at home.
Anyway, after the festival, Hae In and I went to Jjoki Jjoki to meet up with the English club group. We have to meet there now because our Makoli bar moved to a different district. Sad!!! I don't care for Jjoki Jjoki, but we don't have many choices for as big of group as we are. I met many new Korean members and talked to them until we moved to a third round. Hae In and I took a pit stop at Kimbap Nara around midnight to get some food since neither of us had had dinner yet. We were out until 3 or so.
Backing up...last weekend, I went back to the Sharing House for the first time in a maybe two months. It was so awesome to be back. Lee Ok Sun halmoni talked to us for almost and hour and a half about her experiences in the comfort station. Malcolm gave the tour this time; I'm still trying to work myself up to being confident enough to give a full tour. I hung out with some of the other halmoni in the house for a while. We watched the discovery channel, I believe. One of the halmonis, we call the "Beautiful" halmoni because she always has makeup and a wig on. I think I confuse her; sometimes I speak Japanese to her and sometimes I speak Korean. She likes Japanese better because she lived there so long, but my Korean ability is quickly surpassing/has surpassed my ability to pull the long forgotten and unused Japanese words from my brain.
I have to stop there...tired...getting up early tomorrow. It's 4AM, so I guess I'm getting up early today. Bummer!
Write again soon!
Peace out!
-Title of this blog is in reference to a chapel talk from MC.
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