Year in Review (Yes, One of Those =p)

In 2010, my New Year's Resolution was to move to Korea. Mission accomplished.

I spent New Year's Eve this year with Stella and Jessica, which was eighty thousand times better than my original plan of pizza and cleaning my apartment (which still hasn't happened). Stella pointed out that New Year's is a projection of your entire year, so for me, 2011 will involve losing at Pop-o-matic Trouble, The Game by Milton Bradley ;), seeing Calvin, knitting, spending way too much money (*ahem* 70만원) on clothes and shoes, and laughing way too much. And eating Indian food. Of course :)

So, in review - moved to Korea at the end of January (i.e., Happy Birthday, Mom! Your daughter is moving to the other side of the planet!). As I have overcome a lot of culture shock, I don't really remember what initially traumatized me. Lots of getting lost was involved. Met Lisa, and friendship was immediately formed. We may or may not have become absolutely insane when we went shopping together and realized that we had way too much in common.

Early spring didn't raelly bring warm weather, but it did bring Beck! I hadn't seen her in years, and we had a night I will probably never remember (well, what parts of it I *can* remember). Beck introduced me to Tim, who became my every-weekend buddy in spring and summer....and who introduced me to the fun of Korean department stores. And Coach. And to the idea that I really don't have to take crap from people if I don't want to. And to Park, which was ehhhh, but Park introduced me to Calvin (이선구) who ended up becoming one of my favorite Korean friends - even though he is the busiest person on the planet (sorry, Obama, you have nothing on this kid).

Tim then introduced me to Siobhain, who introduced me to Siobhain, a fellow knitter, who introduced me to Cait, Caroline, and Riah....and to Dongdaemun. When the tragedy of TIM LEAVING FOR AMERICA occurred, Sio helped me fill my sorrow with yarn. Lots of yarn. At first, I was really good about being responsible and buying only what I could knit.....but now I have a giant container of it on the floor of my laundry room.

Fall brought much closeness to Siobhain, Cait, Caroline, and Riah. I don't think I was what they expected and vice versa, but they are now my family here. Thanks to our awesome common interest my knitting leveled from Giga to Eagle (yay for CDI level references).

Winter brought the end of Lisa, my BEST FRIEND IN KOREA (^^^) :( However, I'm not too sad because it's really obvious that she will be back.

This year's resolution? Don't get caught up in boy drama. And knit a positive amount of yarn (in other words, have less yarn in my collection than I do now). And, you know, lose weight, stay in touch with family better, learn Korean, blah blah blah ;)

메리 크리스마스!! :D

A few questions I'm being asked by the folks at home:

1. Do Koreans celebrate Christmas?
Yes. Kinda. Not like we do. Back home, if you aren't religious, it is still a family holiday (however you define family). Here, it's acknowledged, but not quite with the fanfare that westerners give it.

2.....So, what do they do?
Stores were open. There were no big Christmas sales (at least, not in Gangnam). Kids still had to go to academies. The religious families do go to church on Christmas, but the non-religious ones treat it like a normal day. Definitely more attention was given to Chuseok (which is as it should be). I asked my kids about presents to and from their parents - they were kinda eehhh about it. Definitely not as excited as a kid the same age in America would be. Most of them looked at me strangely when I asked them what they got their parents, but a few had answers. If it's not spent with family, Christmas is a pretty big couples holiday, too.

3. Any special foods?
Kimchi. I'm sure =p

There was some homesickness for me. Especially when I was on the bus on the way to Gangnam to meet up with Sio, Cait, Care, and Riah (not that the expected company was giving me reasons to miss home - just that I'd just talked to Mom and it was so weird not to spend today with her). It also didn't help that I've been sick. I have no clue what I have, except that it started with a sore throat and turned into lots of snot. No fever. I took Korean mystery cold medicine again, which took care of it (and made my heart race....love those side effects).

I finished my Slytherin gloves on the bus! The roads were extra crowded, so our driver felt the need to push the scooter-driver impersonation even further (the result: I took the Tilt-a-Whirl to Gangnam); however, that didn't stop me from finishing my gloves - an activity that involves a darning needle - nor the woman beside me from applying eyeliner. She and I were such pros in our respective tasks ;p

As American tradition requires the family-less to order Chinese on Christmas, we decided that the Korean equivalent was Indian (that and....we just love Indian food). Taj was wonderful, as usual. Gangnam was packed, but Taj was thankfully not. They seated us in one of the private rooms and we ordered possibly everything on the menu.

Then we went to Dr. Fish and had the most political cake ever consumed. I wish our consumption of it had been recorded because I'm sure one day I will have to teach a lesson on current foreign relations, and our divided segments with appropriate country names were fantastic symbols. I was North Korea (why am I always North Korea?) and I kept flinging cranberry bombs (and missing horribly) into Riah's South Korean section. We didn't take down the chocolate barrier between us (as we ate into the cake, we just continued to re-fortify it - although Riah did dig a few secret tunnels to keep getting at my icecream). My section also got narrower and narrower. Siobhain/China pretended to be on my side but was really just intersted in what Cait/America was giving her. Someone did give me cranberries, but I just used them to create more bombs to send over to Riah's section.

The entire time, we were being stared at by this Korean guy (who looked like he was trying to be the next K-Pop sensation but with terrible teeth). Normally, this would be attributed to the fact that.....we just fail at being in public, but this guy started staring before we really got into the Us. I responded by waving at him. He waved back. And they continued to stare. His girlfriend spent the entire time putting on makeup. I'm not sure how it is possible, but I think Korean girls wear more makeup than they have skin.

The night ended with me catching the 6800 and then, as usual, getting off at the wrong stop. Yes, I did cry - but then I found a cab and, instead of telling him my address, just told him "energy building" (it's the same in both languages). He figured out that I didn't really want to go to the energy building, but to the apartments behind it, and took me right to my door. I was much closer than I was the last time I got lost - and had I kept walking (instead of hailing that cab), I would have made it home after a few blocks. But, now I know where I should get off the 6800 (just like after last time I know where I should get off the 5500).

It's 3:30 am. I should possibly sleep.

But Not Quite Ready to Leave....

As promised, I am going to write a list of the things I will miss about Korea. Which, actually, as this has only been 3 months, maybe I should call it, "The Top 12 Great First Impressions Provided by Korea"?

1. My students
I know, gag me with a spoon, but I love how competitive they are. I have one class who treats the critical thinking project like they are guarding state secrets. They get so competitive - even going out of their way during the post-presentation discussion to argue why theirs is the best. I also like talking with my older, more fluent students - they understand some of the cultural differences, so we're able to talk more about abstract concepts, and it's so amazing how smart they are.

2. The food
Just when I think everything is how-would-you-like-your-bulgogi-and-rice-and-red-pepper-paste-arranged, I eat something that's absolutely fantastic that...just can't happen in the states. Like my mistaken-not-really-bulgogi-dapbap. And kimbap. And kimchi mandu. I feel that in America, they'd find some way to deep fry both and just ruin them..

3. The foreigners
Now before you, "What?!" this one, let me explain.. Korea is a place where you form connections with people just because they happen to speak English, and I've found that I've become really good friends with people who I wouldn't have hung out with at home. That sounds a bit backhanded, so I'm going to clarify that I am so excited that being this minority has given me the chance to meet all of them. I've definitely learned a lot about myself and branched out with the person that I am (stop me before this gets too Hallmark).

4. Lotte
Yeah, had to do a u-turn after that last one =p. I love just wandering around Lotte and people watching. It's a lot like being at Target, but different - mostly because I don't spend the insane amount of money (because I'm not a Korean size in anything =p). I love the combinations of things they put together as sales, too - like the cream cheese and chapstick bundle from last week. It's such a neat combination of eastern and western cultures, too - like even though it is the Korean version of a Super Target, there's still a bit of that at-the-marketplace culture, with the workers trying to get you to buy something, or show you something, or help you choose an item.

5. The fashion
Again, a shallow idea that runs a bit deeper. I love the way Koreans - both men and women - dress. There's something about it that is insanely fashionable, but still tasteful - a concept that I think we're lacking in the US. I love that I haven't had to tell a preteen male to pull up his pants - something that I had to say at least twenty times a day while teaching in America. I love that the girls don't put their developing cleavage on display. I love that everyone dresses constantly to make an impression - there's no way a site like "People of E-Mart" could exist. But, they do all of this without sacrificing the art of looking good. America's Next Top Model is starting to scrape the bottom with it's overseas trips (Hawaii, anyone?) - Seoul would be such a fantastic destination. But, then we'd have Tyra Banks here. Not sure how I'd feel about that one...

6. The efficiency
I was talking about my students with this one - Koreans just make everything easy. Sometimes, I feel like America goes out of it's way to make things complicated just because they can. In class, I referenced the sloped conveyer-belt-people-mover at the back of Lotte so that you can take your cart upstairs without having to push it up some ramp. I'm sure that those exist in America, but not in any stores I visited. I'm sure after I post this, I'll think of some fantastic example - so think of the Lotte one as a place-holder =p

7. The Korean boys
I don't think an explanation is necessary =p

8. Indecision corner and restaurant alley
Every night when we go out to dinner, we always head to the same spot, then stand in a circle and do the, "Okay, where are we going to eat tonight?" Eventually, Aaron will look at one of us and say, "______, it's your special day - where do you want to eat?" and we all echo with, "Yeah, it's your special day..". We always end up at one of the same four places, and I always order the same thing, but for some reason, it doesn't seem repetitive (at least not to me).

9. Kimchi at pork-bone-soup and that one place I went that Aaron knows the name of
My first week in Korea, the coworkers took me to this place that served only pork bone soup - literally, soup with a big pork bone in it. I wasn't a big fan - it was kinda oily, and I had a hard time picking the meat pieces off of the bone. However, that place had some of the *best* kimchi I've ever had, and have since been on a hunt to find some that I like just as much but at a restaurant that served....not pork bone soup. I found it! But I have no clue what the place is called! I went there at like 3 in the morning with the owners of Underground (who, by the way, are completely awesome and the sweetest people on the planet) and was served....I have no clue what it was, but it was good. And, looking back, I really should've eaten more kimchi..

10. Pickled radishes!
Thinking about kimchi reminded me of this one. For those in America, when you go to a Korean restaurant, they usually bring you out these side dishes/appetizers of various simple foods. My *favorite* are the yellow pickled radishes. I have been known to eat all of them before my dining companions could have their turn.

11. The crazy drivers!
"Crazy" is probably not the right word. South Korea is a pretty crowded country - especially in the cities (where everyone lives). In America, we have pretty bad stereotypes for Asian drivers, but there's no way Americans would be able to perform the maneuvers that these Koreans do on a daily basis. I have a game on my iPhone called "Unblock" (the idea is that you have to shift around the blocks so that you can create a path), which is what the parking around the library reminds me of - yet there are never any dings or scrapes, which is what would happen if Americans tried the same thing. Traffic laws are also a bit different here - Koreans are more into the U-turns than Americans (which is so fun to watch at intersections - a bunch of cars just turning around in unison). Red lights seem to be more of a suggestion than a law - especially for busses, taxis, and scooters. The horns on cars are also less obnoxious - not the loud blast like in America, but a softer tone.

This one is getting two paragraphs =p. I appreciate the drivers because of something I mentioned waaaaaaaaay long ago - Koreans have insane road rage, but they also have something that Americans don't: the ability to forget. They'll honk like crazy at each other, but it ends there. There's no worry that one will follow you 20 blocks out of their way just to get out of the car and yell at you (or worse) because of something you did to make them mad 15 minutes ago.

12. Subway shopping
Many subway stations here are set up like little shopping centers once you exit the turnstyle. The rule of thumb to shopping in Korea is don't go to stores (with my Lotte addiction, we know I don't follow this rule =p). Street vendors and subway shops have much less overhead so they're able to keep their prices down. I bought a scarf for 5000 KRW (like $5), and want to go back for more *^^*. Still have yet to start buying clothes here - I'm kind of afraid to start...

Bonus! 13. Dr. Fish!
I know you can find the doctor fish in other countries, but since this is the first place in which I visited them, I view the experience as something Korean. I want to go back! Also, the last time I went (when Laura arrived), I totally braved the "big-fish" tank and decided I like them much better :)

When talking about this entry to a friend of mine, his first reaction was, "You're planning on leaving already?!" Want to clarify that one: No! As I said, this is probably just the top 12 good first impressions that Korea gave me. I'm sure a year from now, the things on this list will change (and you all will be subjected to another list entry!).

Welcome to Suji - A Brief Look at the First Two Weeks..

Not having internet makes updating this a pain. It took longer than I expected to move into my new place, which happened finally on Wednesday, and I've been too busy learning CDI structure and setting up my crib to ask the school about helping me to set up my own internet account. I'm kind of using February as my irresponsibility month, which I think is perfectly acceptable and I will freely pass on the torch of not-having-to-do-anything-but-live-in-Korea to the newcomers next month.

As I spend a good portion of my teaching encouraging students to identify a topic and main idea, I feel the need to include that here: My first two weeks in Suji have been a wonderful, and relieving, adventure full of good food, fantastic friends, and fun students. Be sure to underline the topic, main idea, major supporting details, and the minor details within each paragraph - also don't forget to circle transitions!

Each night, a good chunk of the staff (and with an 8-person staff, it's still a pretty small chunk) go out to dinner together, and this month will bring the departure of two of the key players of our nightly dinner rituals. These are the guys who've introduced me to such foods as chicken galbi (totally unsure of that spelling), pork bone soup (not my favorite at all, but worth the ehhhhh for that place's _fantastic_ kimchi!), bulgogi dobap, bibimbap in the stone bowl, the Korean version of fried chicken (which is quite similar to the American version), dopoki, and donkasu (again, totally not sure of the spelling of the last two...but I think the fact that I remembered them (!!!!!) should be celebrated as my coworkers have been incredibly patient with having to always reexplain what I'm eating!). Eating out here is so cheap - I think my most expensive Korean meal has been the equivalent of $5. Well, let me be a bit more specific: Korean food is cheap; American food is insanely expensive. Coffee shops are a good 20% more expensive than in America, and American restaurants are insane! Lisa - my HI - and I went to On the Border on a Mexican food craving, and things were about twice as much as they were at the OtB's in the States - plus they tack on this foreign tax..

Although, Suji is kind of the shaft when it comes to apartments, I totally lucked out with coworkers. They're all freaking awesome and, the best part, like to do things together (though, apparently this is new). Friday night, most of us gathered at Jen's and post-dinner snacked. It was a nice contrast to the staff breakroom. Somehow, I became the expert on how to prepare whipped cream (yeah, those of you who know me see the irony in this ;)), but it turned out, so I think I'll continue to let everyone assume that I know what I'm talking about when it comes to preparing milk products. Aaron brought these fantastic cookies and I'm refusing to ask him what they're called lest I purchase a giant package everyday.

Last weekend, two coworkers rescued me from purgatory in Suji and took me to Seoul. Saturday, Lisa and I had a girl's day at COEX mall as I decided that I really needed a handbag (do not ask why I didn't pack mine - I'm still confused as to what I was thinking when I was packing my suitcase). We searched all over the mall and eventually found one when we stopped at E-Mart on the way home. The day wasn't a total loss, though - there were lots of cute guys AND we found an On the Border. Expensive as all get out, but we found reasonable combo meals. I miss Mexican food soooooo much. On the subway back to Suji, we randomly got into a car that also contained one of my training buddies! It was so weird - out of all the subways in Seoul... Sunday, I was much more traditional with my Korean experience - Ben took me to a few street shopping districts near the Women's University in Seoul. I took pictures, which I promise to upload!! (Yes, I know I haven't been good on that promise..) That was the day I officially discovered street food, much to my mother's chagrin. When I am more confident in my Korean, I want to go back and look through the stalls for gloves and scarves.

To fund these shopping habits (including a very bad Lotte Mart hat addiction), I get to spend 6 hours a day with students who were *nothing* like I expected. I'm going to go ahead and break down stereotypes: Korean students are just as lazy as American kids, and many misbehave just as much, too. However, unlike Americans, they haven't really discovered the opposite gender...actually, the female students are usually my favorites (it was so opposite in America). They are the ones who usually find the right answer and participate the most. I often make reference to my "Birdie girls" - two classes of elementary students in what CDI labels the "Birdie" level (the easiest way to put this is to say that they are in the middle of the highest tier). They are the ones who have fun with the class and like to talk to me over break. One of my Birdie classes has decided that it's their job to teach me Korean so that I can read restaurant menus - they taught me the spelling for "bibimbap" and next week will teach me "bulgogi dobap". The middle school boys are one of two personalities: either they don't talk _at all_ or they do everything they can to cause mischief. One boy reminds me so much of the type of student I'd find in America that I sometimes forget that he is Korean. The elementary boys are more fun - they like to shout out answers and play hangman.

It freaking snowed last weekend and now I have to put forth a lot of effort at thinking about not falling. I tempted fate the other day when I slid (on purpose) across the basketball court that I cross on the way home from my apartment, as afterward I slid on accident and almost fell (and possibly would've brought Lisa down with me - I told her that if I fall, she's falling, too).

Must prep. Am an idiot and forgot to print out the teacher guide - I never use it except for the answer key to the exercises. I'm such a bad English major - I don't even know the correct answers to exercises made for middle schoolers!!

"Eat My Foot, Fish!"

Day one of training brought together sixteen of us! I had no clue there were this many CDI teachers in the hotel - I guess we're all just really good at hiding from each other. Training was short - just an introduction to how the rest of training will go, and the taking of The Big Scary Test. Totally passed - despite my panic attack when I realized that I hadn't studied *anything* about the history. Definitely don't blow off that part! The reading portion made me realize why my students hate the FCAT so much - the questions do seem "trick" and you're constantly second guessing yourself. My test looked like a weather map when I was done with all of the circles and arrows all over the place.

That first day is also the day trainees go to the health center for screening. Whomever told me that they didn't have to give blood - well, that has definitely changed! They have an awesome system at the center: there are color coded lines on the floor, and you follow one of the lines to your respective part of the hospital. It made getting lost insanely hard (I still managed to do it, but just once...you know, as opposed to each time I had to go to a different station). I won't call him out too much in this blog, but if you're in my training group - all I've got to say is, Brian with his sample cup. ;)

Typed like a madwoman to get to this part. We all went out to lunch (more like "linner" as it was so late) with each other afterwards. A native Korean in our group took us to this Bibimbap place. I think the waiter was insanely relieved to know that a few in the group did speak Korean (I've given up for now - I'm way too overwhelmed with all of the newness). The food here keeps getting better. Not only do they really showcase the flavors to their best advantage, but also the presentation is so nice. The mushroom and bulgogi dish that I got came in this bowl where all of the different vegetables were arranged like a color wheel with the meat in this neat little circle in the center. Didn't get a picture - at that point, I wasn't comfortable enough with the group to admit that I am definitely *that person* who wants to photograph everything ;)

Afterward, eight of us went to see Dr. Fish. If you're also stalking my gallery, this is where I brought out the camera. The coffee was just as overpriced as in America, but "the rest" ;) was just 2000 won (equivalent of $2). After coffee and a long wait, we were taken up to this platform, washed our feet, and then stuck them into the best foot spa EVER. Well, I make that sound much less eventful than it actually was: after washing their feet, the guys stuck theirs right in - the girls, however, sat for a bit in this awkward position with our feet poised above the water as if we were never going to see our feet again.

Imagine those old gangster movies in which a body is dangled above a piranha tank - the fish swarm around, gnashing at each other as they wait for their meal. Well, replace those scary piranha with a bunch of fish that looked like minnows' relatives, and that's about what it was like. Yes, we were afraid of minnows - I'll say it =p. After sticking in our feet with some awesome facial expressions (totally captured Lydia's and Steve's on camera), these tiny doctor fish swarm around and chow down on all of the dead skin. They were like monsters - and definitely couldn't get enough of our nasty heel crusts. I experienced both tanks and definitely liked the one with a ton of tiny fish better than the one with the bigger fish - the tickling sensation was more pleasant than "ahhh!!". Anna, you will be glad to know that afterwards, we did wash our feet again and treat them with an anti-bacterial rub. For the rest of the night, we were all so incredibly aware of our feet. Totally doing this again :)

I've Survived....So Far..

Hello from Seoul, South Korea! Unlike previously feared, I am not the only person in training. To borrow words from a fellow trainee, we are the most mismatched, eclectic group of people, but somehow it works. My hotel roommate is from Canada, and we've bonded over Degrassi and their awesome healthcare system. The two boys are both from the northeast and have bonded over the supporting opposing baseball teams. My only experience with northeastern baseball is the episode of Sex and the City in which Carrie dated the "new Yankee". But I think I'll keep that contribution to myself.

We'll get the obvious out of the way: Seoul is GIGANTIC. It is also insanely quiet and very clean for a city of this size - which I'm sure is due not only to the diligent street workers, but also the general politeness of the people...I bet Koreans just don't litter. I still haven't figured out the whole politeness/insane road rage connection with Koreans, but am sure it must relate to the whole big-city life. I think what makes traffic work in Korea is that after they get cut off by someone, or almost rear end another, they move on and don't hold a grudge. This would never happen in America - we're famous for following people back to their houses and letting them know just how much we don't appreciate their changing lanes without signaling. If Americans drove like Koreans, there would be many many more vehicular homicides.

One of my training buddies became an exploring buddy when we ventured out twice to get the lay of the land (and by "the land", we mean "the block around the hotel"). We got lost twice - the first time, I tried asking directions using my Pimselur-gained Korean, but I think all that resulted from that conversation was both of us understanding that the hotel was not at that particular restaurant, and that I speak awful Korean. There are American-restaurants EVERYWHERE. Despite being in a foreign country and feeling obligated to experience the food that this culture offers, I am kind of curious as to what they consider "American" food and kind of want to try it. I bet they are much closer than we are at our attempts at ethnic food. I did watch a commercial for a local Outback and saw that their shrimp were completely shell-intact. I'm kind of wary of that - do you cut off the heads and peel off the shell, or do you eat it whole? My only experience in a restaurant here tells me that Koreans have no problem explaining how the food works. Exploring buddy and I went to this Vietnamese place and needed a bit of instruction as to what to do with all of the various spices and sauces served with our Pho. The waiter flat out told me not to put the spicy peppers into my soup, which I totally appreciated. I did try a bit of the red pepper sauce and made a totally fantastic face. Thank goodness for rice noodles.

Posted some new stuff in my gallery - will make a post later explaining some of the shots (although, some do a good job of that on their own)..