So, it's been a while. In short (like tiny short), being an HI is super time consuming this term, I've been knitting a lot, and....I'm just bad at communicating with America.
But I learned a huge lesson today. Went yarn shopping with Jenny and Julie. Meant to buy nothing, but bought...not quite everything, but enough to make a cardigan, hat, and scarf. The way home involved the bus stop that is pretty much the bane oft existence. M4101 came, I ran for it, AND MY iPHONE FELL OUT OF MY POCKET AND UNDER THE BUS. Adrenaline kicked in, and it was pretty much the most traumatic thing that has happened in my life. I crouched in front of it and debated the merits of crawling under the bus to get it (DON'T WORRY MOM AND DAD, I DIDN'T). The logic was helped by the fact that I'd already finished the episode of Project Runway stored in my videos. The bus pulls out, and I wave my arms like the foreign idiot I am so the next bus (which was the only other bus I could taken home) doesn't roll over it. The driver looks at me in total confusion, assumes I am crazy, and chooses to just go around me as even though he doesn't want me on his bus, he still doesn't want to deal with all the insurance involved if he did run me over.
At this point I'd like to reassure my parents that although it was a busy street, it was the bus lane, and there was only one bus there. I wasn't in any danger ever - im just exaggerating for dramatic effect.
Okay, remember the part where bus number two was the other bus I could've taken home? Well, I missed it. I we t back to the standing area, still full of adrenaline. At this point, the adrenaline really has nowhere to go, so I start shaking. Now tue people who witnessed my phone rescue - who didn't actually see what I was doing (they just saw me jump in front of a bus, wave frantically, and then squat down in front of it) - now think that I am severely deranged.
This perception ends up working in my favor when M4101 number 2 pulls up. No one wants to get in the way of the crazy girl (even a few ajummas let me go in front of them). I am the LAST PERSON able to get on the bus (as mentioned in previous entries, M busses are luxury and don't let you sit down (no, the reason is not because they go on the highway, as plenty of other busses go onthe highway and let people stand in every cranny, including the steps RIGHT NEXT TO THE DOORS).
Said last seat is ALL THE WAY IN THE BACK. Remember, I'm holding a lot of yarn. I proceed to hit every single ajumma and ajoshi in the head with it as I walk by. Fortunately, I'd given the complimentary needles to Julie, so no one got stabbed.
Moral of the story? Kangaroo pouch pockets are terrible places for phones.
Showing posts with label seoul. Show all posts
Showing posts with label seoul. Show all posts
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Winning at Public Transportation
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Oops...Did You Just Hear That?
If you're a foreigner in Korea, you're an eavesdropper. Don't be ashamed - we all do it. We're not used to living in a place where most of the conversation is in a foreign language (and, even if you do understand Korean, most of it is so fast or riddled with so much slang, that it's often hard to follow), so when you hear it, your ears naturally perk up, and you listen along.
Another thing about being a foreigner in Korea is that you also get used to not being understood by the people around you - which means you can have some pretty interesting conversations in crowds.
And sometimes there's an indescribable mix of these two phenomenons.
The scene: Siobhain, Cait, Caroline, and I are at On The Border. Being that it is a very western restaurant, the Korean/foreigner mix was pretty even. Fortunately, the four of us were in a corner. We'd been yarn shopping all day (because that's what we do), and were ordering our various courses slowly to give us time to sit there and knit (yes, we did sit at On The Border on a Saturday night and knit; haters gonna hate). The table next to us had a much faster occupation flow. When we originally sat, there was a couple sharing some queso. They were replaced by a group of Korean university students...
Then, the stars of our show walked in. Three caucasian males who weren't bad looking; however, upon closer inspection, we realized that they were orthodox Mormon (name tag and all - not sure "orthodox" is the right word..). One of us - who shall remain nameless - suggested we order a round of drinks for them. That idea was quickly vetoed (nope, definitely not by me) because we were sitting right next to them and it would seem a bit obvious. Being that we were two groups of foreigners, we of course tried to listen in onto their conversation. However, they weren't speaking English. Cait guessed Russian, and we left it at that. And, of course, we continued to eavesdrop for the occasional hint of English because, let's face it, we were curious.
(At this point I should mention two things: one, foreigners in Korea are especially curious about other foreigners who do something other than teach or serve in the military; two, although foreigners love to eavesdrop, we tend to have this mental block that keeps us from realizing that others are probably doing it to us, too.)
Sometime later, the guys all start speaking English. Very unaccented English. At this new tidbit to pique our curiosity, we of course started to listen closer. One of us (okay, me) was caught when, like an idiot, there was eye contact made during some intense information gathering.
Finally, the three men got up to leave. One of them was INSANELY CLOSE to my chair, and I kept looking over at him....well, partially because of the above mentioned curiosity....and partially because he was REALLY CLOSE TO MY YARN STASH AND OMG I'M LIKE A PROTECTIVE MOTHER BEAR. He looks over at us and says,
"How's the sewing going? Sorry if we confused you. We were practicing our Russian."
Our only response? "It's not sewing - it's knitting!" and a whole lot of laughter after they left (but, as things had proved that night, probably not when they were out of earshot).
Another thing about being a foreigner in Korea is that you also get used to not being understood by the people around you - which means you can have some pretty interesting conversations in crowds.
And sometimes there's an indescribable mix of these two phenomenons.
The scene: Siobhain, Cait, Caroline, and I are at On The Border. Being that it is a very western restaurant, the Korean/foreigner mix was pretty even. Fortunately, the four of us were in a corner. We'd been yarn shopping all day (because that's what we do), and were ordering our various courses slowly to give us time to sit there and knit (yes, we did sit at On The Border on a Saturday night and knit; haters gonna hate). The table next to us had a much faster occupation flow. When we originally sat, there was a couple sharing some queso. They were replaced by a group of Korean university students...
Then, the stars of our show walked in. Three caucasian males who weren't bad looking; however, upon closer inspection, we realized that they were orthodox Mormon (name tag and all - not sure "orthodox" is the right word..). One of us - who shall remain nameless - suggested we order a round of drinks for them. That idea was quickly vetoed (nope, definitely not by me) because we were sitting right next to them and it would seem a bit obvious. Being that we were two groups of foreigners, we of course tried to listen in onto their conversation. However, they weren't speaking English. Cait guessed Russian, and we left it at that. And, of course, we continued to eavesdrop for the occasional hint of English because, let's face it, we were curious.
(At this point I should mention two things: one, foreigners in Korea are especially curious about other foreigners who do something other than teach or serve in the military; two, although foreigners love to eavesdrop, we tend to have this mental block that keeps us from realizing that others are probably doing it to us, too.)
Sometime later, the guys all start speaking English. Very unaccented English. At this new tidbit to pique our curiosity, we of course started to listen closer. One of us (okay, me) was caught when, like an idiot, there was eye contact made during some intense information gathering.
Finally, the three men got up to leave. One of them was INSANELY CLOSE to my chair, and I kept looking over at him....well, partially because of the above mentioned curiosity....and partially because he was REALLY CLOSE TO MY YARN STASH AND OMG I'M LIKE A PROTECTIVE MOTHER BEAR. He looks over at us and says,
"How's the sewing going? Sorry if we confused you. We were practicing our Russian."
Our only response? "It's not sewing - it's knitting!" and a whole lot of laughter after they left (but, as things had proved that night, probably not when they were out of earshot).
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Jjimjilbangs!!!
First, let's have a bit of a vocab/context lesson. A jjimjilbang is pretty much a bath house/sauna. Public bathing is a big thing in the Asian culture, and, thanks to globalization, it's become pretty modernized with mixes of different things from different countries. Yes, Mom, everyone is naked. But, yes, they do separate the genders in every part that involves nakedness.
Siobhain took me to the Dragon Hill Spa in Yongsan (when you come out of the station, go down the stairs and take a right). I was a bit apprehensive. I'm not 100% excited about being naked in front of other people (even if they're just other women in a completely non-sexual way) and I was so afraid that I'd commit a giant faux pas. I had nothing to worry about. My skin feels amazing and it's the most fun I've ever had bathing (not creepy at all). I want to do it again!! =p
Not sure if the rest are like Dragon Hill, but here's a basic run down of how things worked (which I'm putting here because I googled a *ton* of questions I had and didn't find specific enough answers)..
Before You Leave
Being a capitalist society, of course everything you could possibly need at the bath house is on sale there. And as it's a Korean place, it's not completely overpriced. However, if you don't want to spend the extra money for sample-size stuff, pack what you would normally need in the shower: shampoo, conditioner, soap, toothbrush, deoderant.. But, also because this is kind of a special experience, I'd also say bring those special bath things - that great exfoliant, deep conditioner, face stuff, etc. Don't worry about stuff like a hair dryer and a change of clothes for the coed area. Dragon Hill provided these really comfortable shorts and shirts for when we wanted to take a break from the bath-part to get lunch or hang out in the coed area. One of the things I was concerned about was fit - but, they pretty much size you up visually and give you what will fit you. They're good length shorts, too, and pretty sturdy clothes, so you don't have to worry about things showing.
Entrance
When you walk in, you pay a basic fee that covers entrance, two towels, clothes for the coed area, and locker rental. At DH, the number on our key corresponded to two lockers: one where we put our shoes, and one in the actual locker room where we put our clothes/bag/etc. Make sure you follow the signs and don't walk into the *wrong* room (although, the are very clearly marked in varying humorous forms of English :)).
Before You Take the Plunge
When you walk into your gender-designated area, there will be a person selling bath-related things (and you'll also see a whole lot of naked people =p). At Dragon Hill, instead of giving money for anything once in the bath house, we scanned our key (all of this tallied up for a final bill that we paid when we left). Go to your assigned locker, strip, and grab your bath stuff. Unless you have long hair and want to turban it up, leave both towels there. You won't really want/need to dry off until you're ready to leave. Then, and this is really important, go straight to the shower/bathing area. Although it isn't posted, it's pretty much understood that the first thing you do there is give yourself a good scrub down. Either pick a standing stall shower, or a seat by a faucet (which I really liked), put your stuff down, and go grab a bucket. There's no worry about conservation of water here, so take your sweet time and get really clean. You'll see all kinds of Koreans scrubbing each other's backs...the best were the moms who would go to town on their daughters' backs and necks (oh the faces of agony!) You can leave your stuff there while you enjoy the various other facilities. However, if it's crowded, other people may use your faucet/stall, but they're pretty good about not going through and using your stuff.
If you have long hair, tie it up before you go into the pools and saunas. Despite all of the unsanitary things that happen in Korea (you'll understand when you see your first bathroom), they are really big on keeping hair out of pools.
Things to Remember
They're gonna stare. But not in the bad way. Be honest, if you're not Asian, you're probably going to look back too - out of curiosity. They weren't mean get-out-of-our-place-waygook stares, but more in the range of curiosity. My advice? Get over it. Koreans stare at foreigners even when we have clothes on, so this isn't really all that much different.
Tattoos are okay. My back is covered, and I wasn't told that I needed to cover up or anything. They will do that in parts of Japan, but not here. I did get extra stares, but not really anything that I noticed.
Try out everything. Asians are really into that mix of hot and cold. It was painful at first, but it felt good later. Actually, this really funny ajjuma saw that I was a bit apprehensive about going from the hot pool to the cold pool, and she playfully flicked water in my direction (not a full on splash - definitely not anything that would be rude).
Hang on, note about ajjumas: this group of women rule Korea, and rightfully so. They've been through a lot, and they had to respect the mess out of the elderly when they were kids, so now it's their turn. I've found that when you're open to letting them have the right-of-way in any walks of life, they're really appreciative. I usually give up my seat to anyone above the middle-aged mark on the bus or subway, and, a few times, they've held the seat next to them for me when it becomes vacant. I've also let some ahead of me in line, and they've pulled me right up to the front with them. I think when they see foreigners, they're afraid because they don't know if we realize that they come first, so the hackles go up and they get extra assertive. But, once we show that we realize that they are to be respected, their defenses soften and they see us as a person, not as a rude outsider (this is a bad rep that Westerners have: that we have this whole me-first attitude regardless of age and gender).
Back to the awesomeness of jjimjilbangs..
Go with a friend. Even though I'm of the Get-Over-It school of thought (thanks, Mom), the whole public nakedness thing does help when you're with someone.
Wash off again when you are done!!
Siobhain took me to the Dragon Hill Spa in Yongsan (when you come out of the station, go down the stairs and take a right). I was a bit apprehensive. I'm not 100% excited about being naked in front of other people (even if they're just other women in a completely non-sexual way) and I was so afraid that I'd commit a giant faux pas. I had nothing to worry about. My skin feels amazing and it's the most fun I've ever had bathing (not creepy at all). I want to do it again!! =p
Not sure if the rest are like Dragon Hill, but here's a basic run down of how things worked (which I'm putting here because I googled a *ton* of questions I had and didn't find specific enough answers)..
Before You Leave
Being a capitalist society, of course everything you could possibly need at the bath house is on sale there. And as it's a Korean place, it's not completely overpriced. However, if you don't want to spend the extra money for sample-size stuff, pack what you would normally need in the shower: shampoo, conditioner, soap, toothbrush, deoderant.. But, also because this is kind of a special experience, I'd also say bring those special bath things - that great exfoliant, deep conditioner, face stuff, etc. Don't worry about stuff like a hair dryer and a change of clothes for the coed area. Dragon Hill provided these really comfortable shorts and shirts for when we wanted to take a break from the bath-part to get lunch or hang out in the coed area. One of the things I was concerned about was fit - but, they pretty much size you up visually and give you what will fit you. They're good length shorts, too, and pretty sturdy clothes, so you don't have to worry about things showing.
Entrance
When you walk in, you pay a basic fee that covers entrance, two towels, clothes for the coed area, and locker rental. At DH, the number on our key corresponded to two lockers: one where we put our shoes, and one in the actual locker room where we put our clothes/bag/etc. Make sure you follow the signs and don't walk into the *wrong* room (although, the are very clearly marked in varying humorous forms of English :)).
Before You Take the Plunge
When you walk into your gender-designated area, there will be a person selling bath-related things (and you'll also see a whole lot of naked people =p). At Dragon Hill, instead of giving money for anything once in the bath house, we scanned our key (all of this tallied up for a final bill that we paid when we left). Go to your assigned locker, strip, and grab your bath stuff. Unless you have long hair and want to turban it up, leave both towels there. You won't really want/need to dry off until you're ready to leave. Then, and this is really important, go straight to the shower/bathing area. Although it isn't posted, it's pretty much understood that the first thing you do there is give yourself a good scrub down. Either pick a standing stall shower, or a seat by a faucet (which I really liked), put your stuff down, and go grab a bucket. There's no worry about conservation of water here, so take your sweet time and get really clean. You'll see all kinds of Koreans scrubbing each other's backs...the best were the moms who would go to town on their daughters' backs and necks (oh the faces of agony!) You can leave your stuff there while you enjoy the various other facilities. However, if it's crowded, other people may use your faucet/stall, but they're pretty good about not going through and using your stuff.
If you have long hair, tie it up before you go into the pools and saunas. Despite all of the unsanitary things that happen in Korea (you'll understand when you see your first bathroom), they are really big on keeping hair out of pools.
Things to Remember
They're gonna stare. But not in the bad way. Be honest, if you're not Asian, you're probably going to look back too - out of curiosity. They weren't mean get-out-of-our-place-waygook stares, but more in the range of curiosity. My advice? Get over it. Koreans stare at foreigners even when we have clothes on, so this isn't really all that much different.
Tattoos are okay. My back is covered, and I wasn't told that I needed to cover up or anything. They will do that in parts of Japan, but not here. I did get extra stares, but not really anything that I noticed.
Try out everything. Asians are really into that mix of hot and cold. It was painful at first, but it felt good later. Actually, this really funny ajjuma saw that I was a bit apprehensive about going from the hot pool to the cold pool, and she playfully flicked water in my direction (not a full on splash - definitely not anything that would be rude).
Hang on, note about ajjumas: this group of women rule Korea, and rightfully so. They've been through a lot, and they had to respect the mess out of the elderly when they were kids, so now it's their turn. I've found that when you're open to letting them have the right-of-way in any walks of life, they're really appreciative. I usually give up my seat to anyone above the middle-aged mark on the bus or subway, and, a few times, they've held the seat next to them for me when it becomes vacant. I've also let some ahead of me in line, and they've pulled me right up to the front with them. I think when they see foreigners, they're afraid because they don't know if we realize that they come first, so the hackles go up and they get extra assertive. But, once we show that we realize that they are to be respected, their defenses soften and they see us as a person, not as a rude outsider (this is a bad rep that Westerners have: that we have this whole me-first attitude regardless of age and gender).
Back to the awesomeness of jjimjilbangs..
Go with a friend. Even though I'm of the Get-Over-It school of thought (thanks, Mom), the whole public nakedness thing does help when you're with someone.
Wash off again when you are done!!
Summer ---> Fall
The last time I wrote, it was so hot that I wanted to die. I should be used to this, being from Florida and all....but it still totally kills me. Now, it's actually cool enough that at night, I kinda wish I had a jacket. My Septembers aren't like this - Septembers for me are usually just as godawul as Augusts, so I'm kinda liking this change.
I say this now, but snow will still happen.
Last time we talked, I was in the middle of intensives. The only thing that got me through was the knowledge of that extra money I'd be bringing home thanks to the extra hours. Unfortunately, we went from those extra hours back into our old schedule for just a bit, and then into a completely new schedule (for those who aren't in this special The Know group, the first two weeks of any term always involve more work). However, our hagwon caved and *actually* gave us a vacation - we got the 3 days for Chuseok (read the freaking Wikipedia page **). Yes, we do have to work the Saturday before and after, but that three days straight was pretty nice :)
Spent my Chuseok mostly with Siobhain, who pretty much is my Korean family :) We spent a lot of time knitting (because it's us), and going to cafes. Sio also introduced me to jjimjilbangs and.......I'm in love. Going to write a separate entry on this that is going to be so awesome and epic and helpful that I think Aclipse should totally feature it in their teacher blog section (hint hint =p)
My knitting has come leaps and bounds here. I don't think I've done anything that hasn't required some sort of pattern or challenge. Right now, I'm doing this cowl for one of my coworkers and a few other smaller projects, but I've worked up the nerve to start lace work and I'm making a shawl for mom that I'm *hoping* will turn out really nice (or, at least nice enough for her to think that I'm a total yarn genius). Gloves have proved to be a giant pain in the rear - I now understand why there are so many fingerless glove and mitten patterns on Ravelry and much fewer fingered glove patterns. For the 1% who are reading this and haven't gone "What is all this knitting nonsense", yes, yarn is available in South Korea - you just have to know where to look.
Finally caved and went to Itaewon (the foreigner-gathering place). I think there are two types of foreigners in Korea: the type that thrive for places like Itaewon because they can't handle all the unfamiliarity, and the type who avoid Itaewon because they think they're "better" than that. I'm definitely in the second group. Yes, there is a lot of ethnic food there, but there's a lot of ethnic food everywhere in Seoul...and for much cheaper, too. It's the only place in Korea that's really loud from people and not just city noises. Plus, as one of my friends has pointed out, it's also one of the few places in which strangers will actually know what we're talking about.
I've also made peace with the M-4101. I discovered the Jonggak/Jongro/YMCA bus stop. It's the second stop on the route (once into Seoul) and pretty close to a few subway stations. I found the line one station, and I have a sneaking suspicion that if I turn the other way, I'll hit the City Hall station which is connected to line 2. It's saved me about an hour of my trip into Seoul (arg..traffic between Jonggak all the way to the Myeongdong/Euljiro-il-ga (or ip-gu if you're talking to Calvin) makes me want to stab puppies). On this, I realized that I can get *back on* the bus here, and not have to deal with the whole ajjuma shove-fest to get the last seat.
** For the condensed version, Chuseok is pretty much the "Korean Thanksgiving", except instead of eating turkey and watching football, they give thanks/praise/etc to their ancestors and eat songpyeon (tiny rice cakes full of surprise goodness)...and, apparently, according to that Wiki page, play tug-of-war...
I say this now, but snow will still happen.
Last time we talked, I was in the middle of intensives. The only thing that got me through was the knowledge of that extra money I'd be bringing home thanks to the extra hours. Unfortunately, we went from those extra hours back into our old schedule for just a bit, and then into a completely new schedule (for those who aren't in this special The Know group, the first two weeks of any term always involve more work). However, our hagwon caved and *actually* gave us a vacation - we got the 3 days for Chuseok (read the freaking Wikipedia page **). Yes, we do have to work the Saturday before and after, but that three days straight was pretty nice :)
Spent my Chuseok mostly with Siobhain, who pretty much is my Korean family :) We spent a lot of time knitting (because it's us), and going to cafes. Sio also introduced me to jjimjilbangs and.......I'm in love. Going to write a separate entry on this that is going to be so awesome and epic and helpful that I think Aclipse should totally feature it in their teacher blog section (hint hint =p)
My knitting has come leaps and bounds here. I don't think I've done anything that hasn't required some sort of pattern or challenge. Right now, I'm doing this cowl for one of my coworkers and a few other smaller projects, but I've worked up the nerve to start lace work and I'm making a shawl for mom that I'm *hoping* will turn out really nice (or, at least nice enough for her to think that I'm a total yarn genius). Gloves have proved to be a giant pain in the rear - I now understand why there are so many fingerless glove and mitten patterns on Ravelry and much fewer fingered glove patterns. For the 1% who are reading this and haven't gone "What is all this knitting nonsense", yes, yarn is available in South Korea - you just have to know where to look.
Finally caved and went to Itaewon (the foreigner-gathering place). I think there are two types of foreigners in Korea: the type that thrive for places like Itaewon because they can't handle all the unfamiliarity, and the type who avoid Itaewon because they think they're "better" than that. I'm definitely in the second group. Yes, there is a lot of ethnic food there, but there's a lot of ethnic food everywhere in Seoul...and for much cheaper, too. It's the only place in Korea that's really loud from people and not just city noises. Plus, as one of my friends has pointed out, it's also one of the few places in which strangers will actually know what we're talking about.
I've also made peace with the M-4101. I discovered the Jonggak/Jongro/YMCA bus stop. It's the second stop on the route (once into Seoul) and pretty close to a few subway stations. I found the line one station, and I have a sneaking suspicion that if I turn the other way, I'll hit the City Hall station which is connected to line 2. It's saved me about an hour of my trip into Seoul (arg..traffic between Jonggak all the way to the Myeongdong/Euljiro-il-ga (or ip-gu if you're talking to Calvin) makes me want to stab puppies). On this, I realized that I can get *back on* the bus here, and not have to deal with the whole ajjuma shove-fest to get the last seat.
** For the condensed version, Chuseok is pretty much the "Korean Thanksgiving", except instead of eating turkey and watching football, they give thanks/praise/etc to their ancestors and eat songpyeon (tiny rice cakes full of surprise goodness)...and, apparently, according to that Wiki page, play tug-of-war...
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Loss and Gain (or, The Final Shopping Trip and Yarn+Hello Kitty)
Last weekend brought one of the worst things since coming to Korea. Tim, one of my closest friends here, moved back to America for grad school. It was like a giant fist with the words "HAHA TEMPORARY!!" flew through the air and smashed me right in the liver. I (metaphorically) doubled over in pain, gagging like crazy, and when I looked up, he was already back in America. Tim's Last Weekend was awesomeness that involved a "surprise" birthday party (that he asked for and made the guest list for and requested the location for) and then a final day of shopping (don't worry concerned parties (again, parents), I avoided The Gap and went to Uniqlo, which has Target prices).
Like the passing of the Olympic torch, Tim ended his time by passing me his Shinsegae point card.
Tim filled a pretty big void in my life that I thought I'd left behind in America when I said bye to Joey and Chase (who, thank goodness, have stepped in with some fantastic Skype conversations the last few weeks...even though Joey really needs to get a microphone ASAP): the platonic male friendship in which no topic is taboo with an understood wavelength that just automatically synchs, so that there's no need to explain what we're not looking at when we talk about it (or, well him ;)), or to provide context for a thought that comes out of nowhere.
This weekend, I had all intentions of staying in bed. One, I'm allowing myself a weekend of wallowing in minus-Tim depression..and, two, Intensives are kicking my butt and I'm quite sleep deprived. However, it was Siobhain's birthday, and she really wanted to go yarn shopping...so I crawled out of Suji and arrived in Seoul 3 hours late. The idea was that I'd miss Dongdaemun so I wouldn't be seduced by things that I didn't need, but then we ended up at Banul and I saw this yarn and....just couldn't help myself *^^*
Now to figure out what to make with it. I have 3 balls - they're each different dye lots, but they're pretty similar.
The original plan involved seeing Inception - which Cait and I had already seen, but could totally handle seeing again - but the only showings by that time started at 10:00 pm. As only one of us lives a decently-priced cab ride home away, we decided to forego that, and go to the Hello Kitty cafe in Sinchon. In case you haven't noticed from lack of pictures on this blog, I kinda need to charge my camera (for a few months now *^^*), so I didn't have it on me and OH MY GOSH DID I REGRET IT (which only means I have to go back). It was just the right amount of cuteness AND the coffee was decently priced for a novelty cafe! We got Sio a cute Hello Kitty cake with candles. When Cait and Caroline add their photos on facebook, I'm going to tag myself in them ;p
So..when this intensive nightmare is over, I think I'm going to go through my yarn and tag it all...plus make a list of patterns on ravelry since I'm constantly haunting that site..
Like the passing of the Olympic torch, Tim ended his time by passing me his Shinsegae point card.
Tim filled a pretty big void in my life that I thought I'd left behind in America when I said bye to Joey and Chase (who, thank goodness, have stepped in with some fantastic Skype conversations the last few weeks...even though Joey really needs to get a microphone ASAP): the platonic male friendship in which no topic is taboo with an understood wavelength that just automatically synchs, so that there's no need to explain what we're not looking at when we talk about it (or, well him ;)), or to provide context for a thought that comes out of nowhere.
This weekend, I had all intentions of staying in bed. One, I'm allowing myself a weekend of wallowing in minus-Tim depression..and, two, Intensives are kicking my butt and I'm quite sleep deprived. However, it was Siobhain's birthday, and she really wanted to go yarn shopping...so I crawled out of Suji and arrived in Seoul 3 hours late. The idea was that I'd miss Dongdaemun so I wouldn't be seduced by things that I didn't need, but then we ended up at Banul and I saw this yarn and....just couldn't help myself *^^*
Now to figure out what to make with it. I have 3 balls - they're each different dye lots, but they're pretty similar.
The original plan involved seeing Inception - which Cait and I had already seen, but could totally handle seeing again - but the only showings by that time started at 10:00 pm. As only one of us lives a decently-priced cab ride home away, we decided to forego that, and go to the Hello Kitty cafe in Sinchon. In case you haven't noticed from lack of pictures on this blog, I kinda need to charge my camera (for a few months now *^^*), so I didn't have it on me and OH MY GOSH DID I REGRET IT (which only means I have to go back). It was just the right amount of cuteness AND the coffee was decently priced for a novelty cafe! We got Sio a cute Hello Kitty cake with candles. When Cait and Caroline add their photos on facebook, I'm going to tag myself in them ;p
So..when this intensive nightmare is over, I think I'm going to go through my yarn and tag it all...plus make a list of patterns on ravelry since I'm constantly haunting that site..
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Public Transportation
Living in Korea has become a culture shock for a number of different reasons. The obvious aside, this is the first time in my adult (or at least old enough to be allowed to go out on my own) that I've lived in such a big city (yes, I know that I don't actually live in Seoul, but it's close enough). This is also the first time that I've lived anywhere in which public transportation is the preferable option. For my first several months here, I only used the subway. I couldn't really read hangul and I didn't know enough about where I was going to want to chance getting off at the wrong stop and then just getting lost.
Then came the weekend we went to Busan. I had a choice - I could get up at 5am and take the subway, or I could sleep until 7 and take the M4101. Guess which one won? The M4101 was actually a good "first step" bus because it has this convenient light-up sign that shows where you are on the route and a marquee sign that alternates between Korean and English (which, as I've discovered as time's gone on, is usually malfunctioning). A few weeks later, we had to take the 8201 to Gangnam, and I realized that I totally recognized the whole area and totally could do this By Myself. I stopped taking the subway and was bus-only.
Until the battle started. The M4101 is convenient, but not without a price. The M busses don't allow you to stand, so once all the seats are filled, that's it. And everyone who lives in Suji wants to be on the M4101 when coming back from north-eastern Seoul. It got to the point in which I would dread coming into the city because I just wasn't looking forward to the ride home (as Tim knows, that dread wasn't enough to stop me from our almost weekly meetings in Myeong-dong =p). I'm also not a general fan of the whole pre-boarding zoo. Koreans, who are polite people, become pushy and impatient when a bus or subway shows up. They crowd to the beginning of the line, and act as if the world is melting behind them and their only escape is that bus.
So, getting to the thought behind this entry (yay long preludes), tonight wound up with me on the opposite side of Seoul than I originally intended (I was supposed to meet a friend for TACO BELL which just opened in Korea, but he totally stood me up - otherwise, this entry would've been about how Taco Bell is just one of those American things that's impossible to explain to non-meeguks). I had a choice: line 2 to Gangnam and 8201 home, or just keep taking the train back to Suji. Being that it's been a while since I've spent quality time with the Bundang line (last time was either Aaron's Last Weekend or the time I was refused entry to the M4101 and had the convo with Tim about how I felt like Rosa Parks), I decided to take the train home. Man, it takes longer, but it is so much nicer! None of that traffic nonsense! It's so much quieter! The walk home is a pain, but it also made me feel less guilty about the....things I've eaten and probably shouldn't have *^^*.
With today not involving meeting Edward (oh he gets a name on the blog!) in Itaewon (omg, yes, my first visit to Itaewon - which I've successfully avoided for the entire 5 and a half months I've been here - resulted in me getting stood up! Jerkface...), Tim came to my social rescue and invited me to crash his dinner party with our mutual friend, Siobhain (yes, Macbook spell-check, she *does* spell her name with 2 i's), who has introduced me to the knitting world of foreigners in Seoul. She also sold me some of her stash yarn, which is pretty sweet seeing as my supply is running a bit low.. She lives near the Sports Complex, which is an insanely beautiful area! I'm adding that to one of the places I'd like to live while I'm still in Korea.
Then came the weekend we went to Busan. I had a choice - I could get up at 5am and take the subway, or I could sleep until 7 and take the M4101. Guess which one won? The M4101 was actually a good "first step" bus because it has this convenient light-up sign that shows where you are on the route and a marquee sign that alternates between Korean and English (which, as I've discovered as time's gone on, is usually malfunctioning). A few weeks later, we had to take the 8201 to Gangnam, and I realized that I totally recognized the whole area and totally could do this By Myself. I stopped taking the subway and was bus-only.
Until the battle started. The M4101 is convenient, but not without a price. The M busses don't allow you to stand, so once all the seats are filled, that's it. And everyone who lives in Suji wants to be on the M4101 when coming back from north-eastern Seoul. It got to the point in which I would dread coming into the city because I just wasn't looking forward to the ride home (as Tim knows, that dread wasn't enough to stop me from our almost weekly meetings in Myeong-dong =p). I'm also not a general fan of the whole pre-boarding zoo. Koreans, who are polite people, become pushy and impatient when a bus or subway shows up. They crowd to the beginning of the line, and act as if the world is melting behind them and their only escape is that bus.
So, getting to the thought behind this entry (yay long preludes), tonight wound up with me on the opposite side of Seoul than I originally intended (I was supposed to meet a friend for TACO BELL which just opened in Korea, but he totally stood me up - otherwise, this entry would've been about how Taco Bell is just one of those American things that's impossible to explain to non-meeguks). I had a choice: line 2 to Gangnam and 8201 home, or just keep taking the train back to Suji. Being that it's been a while since I've spent quality time with the Bundang line (last time was either Aaron's Last Weekend or the time I was refused entry to the M4101 and had the convo with Tim about how I felt like Rosa Parks), I decided to take the train home. Man, it takes longer, but it is so much nicer! None of that traffic nonsense! It's so much quieter! The walk home is a pain, but it also made me feel less guilty about the....things I've eaten and probably shouldn't have *^^*.
With today not involving meeting Edward (oh he gets a name on the blog!) in Itaewon (omg, yes, my first visit to Itaewon - which I've successfully avoided for the entire 5 and a half months I've been here - resulted in me getting stood up! Jerkface...), Tim came to my social rescue and invited me to crash his dinner party with our mutual friend, Siobhain (yes, Macbook spell-check, she *does* spell her name with 2 i's), who has introduced me to the knitting world of foreigners in Seoul. She also sold me some of her stash yarn, which is pretty sweet seeing as my supply is running a bit low.. She lives near the Sports Complex, which is an insanely beautiful area! I'm adding that to one of the places I'd like to live while I'm still in Korea.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
친구 - it's been ages =p
Yeah, I never post anymore...
New term has started. Even though I was hired to teach the higher-levels, I have a ton of lower levels again. However, I'm different from many of the teachers - I like the lower-level ones. Prepping is easier, and they are so cute! And usually say things that make me laugh so hard :) My "token child" this term is a self-proclaimed dancer. So far, all of the sentences he has to construct during "Let's Talk About You" have been about dancing. My favorite was the "is different' from": "Teacher's dancing is different from my dancing" (then he stood up and did the hula). I'm also teaching the Level 2 (higher level) IBT prep class, which isn't as painful as I thought (I'm owing all of that to the kids and their insanely awesome personalities - not sure how much actual work we'll get done.....), and 2 Alba Listening classes (higher level). The Alba kids are quiet as ghosts - probably because all of the outgoing ones are in the IBT class. My branch does higher levels on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and why they are offering the Level 2 IBT electives on the SAME days as the regular reading and listening classes is beyond me. I'm hoping that it's just first-day shyness and that they'll open up a bit more in the coming weeks. Didn't help that our Critical Thinking Project totally blew (sorry CDI, but the Track B Lesson 1 CTP STTIINNNKKKSSS - but, don't worry, in true good-teacher fashion, in class I pretended it was the coolest thing on the planet).
Went on another total shopping spree today with my "man-friend" Tim. Spent way too much money; however, I have like 4.5 million won saved so far. Intensives are coming up, and that little egg is going toward The Future. But I digress - let's talk more about the shopping because, face it, it's a lot more fun =p. Went to The Gap (partially because I am frightened that I still don't fit in Korean-store clothes....and partially because I am currently coveting some of their summer line) and I bought replacements for 2 shirts I purchased a month ago that are now too big. God, I love it. Put an asterisk here - I'm coming back to this idea*. I know that I probably could've taken out my shiny new sewing kit (<3 u, Lotte Mart!!) and taken them in, but I think I'm going to cut them up and do a t-shirt deconstruction project. Man I wish I'd brought my copy of Generation T: 108 Things To Do With A T-Shirt; however (don't you love these contrast transitions???), I did find this cute shrug pattern which may prove promising :).
Okay, back to that asterisk I know you _all_ placed. If you're reading this because you followed my blog here from Aclipse and/or found through a search engine because you are coming to Korea soon and are like me and wanted to read about everyone's experiences (INHALE), here's something you need to know: be prepared for your weight to fluctuate. I don't own a scale, but I know I've lost like 2 pants sizes here. Now, that may not prove true for everyone - I was like insanely overweight when I got here, so, really, it didn't take much for all of it to fall of. BUT (circle!!) I will guarantee that _all_ of your clothes will stretch with washing because Korea doesn't have dryers. (You get a drying rack - really makes you appreciate how easy it was to do your laundry back home.) I am probably not really a medium, but I buy most of my clothes from American stores here (yes, like The Gap) in a medium because they stretch out. Hence why I had to buy 2 new shirts (still, looking forward to turning the old ones into shrugs...especially seeing that this country isn't a giant fan of the tank top).
Also, I will buy dinner for the person who comes over to my apartment to tell me *where* I can put more clothing storage.
Related, Jessi, I owe you dinner (this is from like a month ago, but I'm just now confirming). Keep a tally and you can cash in when I come back :)
I realize that this whole entry has been about shopping and clothes. I'm not sure if it's me growing up, or this country, but I have become so vain! Before, washing my face was like a 30 second process - now, I'm running out of room in my bathroom for all of my facial products!!! Not entirely sure it's made my skin clear up, but I *can* see a difference in the clogged pores on my nose. Future expats (if you're still reading), don't worry about bringing a ton of products to Korea. You can't walk down the street without running into 5 or 6. Million. Plus, on weekends, they are constantly trying to lure you into their stores with free stuff - take advantage of the competition and score it all! If I need like 3 things, I will go into three different stores just so I can get the 3 different free gifts :)
Family who are reading this: don't worry, I'm not spending all of my money. I barely scratched the surface of my savings, and it was fun. I promise I only do this like once a month (if that) AND my shopping partner is moving back to America in August.
New term has started. Even though I was hired to teach the higher-levels, I have a ton of lower levels again. However, I'm different from many of the teachers - I like the lower-level ones. Prepping is easier, and they are so cute! And usually say things that make me laugh so hard :) My "token child" this term is a self-proclaimed dancer. So far, all of the sentences he has to construct during "Let's Talk About You" have been about dancing. My favorite was the "is different' from": "Teacher's dancing is different from my dancing" (then he stood up and did the hula). I'm also teaching the Level 2 (higher level) IBT prep class, which isn't as painful as I thought (I'm owing all of that to the kids and their insanely awesome personalities - not sure how much actual work we'll get done.....), and 2 Alba Listening classes (higher level). The Alba kids are quiet as ghosts - probably because all of the outgoing ones are in the IBT class. My branch does higher levels on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and why they are offering the Level 2 IBT electives on the SAME days as the regular reading and listening classes is beyond me. I'm hoping that it's just first-day shyness and that they'll open up a bit more in the coming weeks. Didn't help that our Critical Thinking Project totally blew (sorry CDI, but the Track B Lesson 1 CTP STTIINNNKKKSSS - but, don't worry, in true good-teacher fashion, in class I pretended it was the coolest thing on the planet).
Went on another total shopping spree today with my "man-friend" Tim. Spent way too much money; however, I have like 4.5 million won saved so far. Intensives are coming up, and that little egg is going toward The Future. But I digress - let's talk more about the shopping because, face it, it's a lot more fun =p. Went to The Gap (partially because I am frightened that I still don't fit in Korean-store clothes....and partially because I am currently coveting some of their summer line) and I bought replacements for 2 shirts I purchased a month ago that are now too big. God, I love it. Put an asterisk here - I'm coming back to this idea*. I know that I probably could've taken out my shiny new sewing kit (<3 u, Lotte Mart!!) and taken them in, but I think I'm going to cut them up and do a t-shirt deconstruction project. Man I wish I'd brought my copy of Generation T: 108 Things To Do With A T-Shirt; however (don't you love these contrast transitions???), I did find this cute shrug pattern which may prove promising :).
Okay, back to that asterisk I know you _all_ placed. If you're reading this because you followed my blog here from Aclipse and/or found through a search engine because you are coming to Korea soon and are like me and wanted to read about everyone's experiences (INHALE), here's something you need to know: be prepared for your weight to fluctuate. I don't own a scale, but I know I've lost like 2 pants sizes here. Now, that may not prove true for everyone - I was like insanely overweight when I got here, so, really, it didn't take much for all of it to fall of. BUT (circle!!) I will guarantee that _all_ of your clothes will stretch with washing because Korea doesn't have dryers. (You get a drying rack - really makes you appreciate how easy it was to do your laundry back home.) I am probably not really a medium, but I buy most of my clothes from American stores here (yes, like The Gap) in a medium because they stretch out. Hence why I had to buy 2 new shirts (still, looking forward to turning the old ones into shrugs...especially seeing that this country isn't a giant fan of the tank top).
Also, I will buy dinner for the person who comes over to my apartment to tell me *where* I can put more clothing storage.
Related, Jessi, I owe you dinner (this is from like a month ago, but I'm just now confirming). Keep a tally and you can cash in when I come back :)
I realize that this whole entry has been about shopping and clothes. I'm not sure if it's me growing up, or this country, but I have become so vain! Before, washing my face was like a 30 second process - now, I'm running out of room in my bathroom for all of my facial products!!! Not entirely sure it's made my skin clear up, but I *can* see a difference in the clogged pores on my nose. Future expats (if you're still reading), don't worry about bringing a ton of products to Korea. You can't walk down the street without running into 5 or 6. Million. Plus, on weekends, they are constantly trying to lure you into their stores with free stuff - take advantage of the competition and score it all! If I need like 3 things, I will go into three different stores just so I can get the 3 different free gifts :)
Family who are reading this: don't worry, I'm not spending all of my money. I barely scratched the surface of my savings, and it was fun. I promise I only do this like once a month (if that) AND my shopping partner is moving back to America in August.
Friday, February 26, 2010
No Longer a "Lost Girl!"
I'm too excited to build up to this: I went to the Coatel and back all by myself!!! People who are confused by this excitement should know that I am *terrible* about finding my way around - and I've been especially self conscious since being in Korea. It took me a bit to find the subway station near Suji - I got to the building okay, but had a hard time locating the entrance. Still not sure I could do it again without having to look around first; however, the station map itself is really easy to follow. I'm especially grateful that the signs indicate not only the station name, but which station is next (and which one the train is coming from).
I'm so glad I struck out on my own - I had so much fun with Anna, Christi, and the rest of the small percentage of that GINORMO training group! I've decided that it should be a rite of passage for training groups to go to Dr. Fish - yes, that means I even found *that* (shocking, I know - I had help from Anna :)). It's a great bonding experience, plus it's so much fun. Didn't eat a fish this time =p But I did experience the "other pond" - I like that the fish are bigger, but they didn't attack my heels the way the smaller ones did. If I had to go back, I think I'd return to the pool with the smaller fish since they seem to be able to read my mind and tell where I most want them to attack.
We also went back to that bibimbap cafe - after eating in Suji for a month, I've decided that place is expensive! We can get good bibimbap here for like 4000 KRW, whereas my mushroom bulgogi bibimbap was 8500 at the place in Seoul. So glad I wasn't placed there - everything is so much more expensive.
This week flew for me, but I can imagine that it crawled for everyone at the Coatel. So glad that Anna and Christi made it through :). I'm not sure if training really is that stressful, or if we build it up too much in our minds. If it's the latter, then do we do that to ourselves, or is it something we've inherited from those who have already been through training? Did I make Anna and Christi's week harder because I went on about how awful training was? I also noticed that males and females attack training differently. We get all stressed out and blow things up (see above ;)), whereas guys take it in stride - or, if they do stress, they stress much more hardcore than we do. I just remember the males at our training acting like it was no big deal, and not even seeming to prep. The guys we have here were confused as to how people didn't sleep that week. Maybe they are right - maybe training isn't that big of a deal (well, not that you shouldn't blow it off, but that you shouldn't make too big of a deal of it all).
The whole "If I knew then what I knew now" concept is quite dizzying. As stated in previous entries, this is a *really* easy teaching job. This semester will be especially awesome for me - I have mostly English Chip and Bridge (odd because I was told upon hiring that I'd be teaching more higher level classes). I'm excited about my Alba+ class because the topics seem to be more open for discussion than what was presented in Alba (sidenote: can anyone explain to me how "Albatross" fits in with the golf terms?).
I'm so glad I struck out on my own - I had so much fun with Anna, Christi, and the rest of the small percentage of that GINORMO training group! I've decided that it should be a rite of passage for training groups to go to Dr. Fish - yes, that means I even found *that* (shocking, I know - I had help from Anna :)). It's a great bonding experience, plus it's so much fun. Didn't eat a fish this time =p But I did experience the "other pond" - I like that the fish are bigger, but they didn't attack my heels the way the smaller ones did. If I had to go back, I think I'd return to the pool with the smaller fish since they seem to be able to read my mind and tell where I most want them to attack.
We also went back to that bibimbap cafe - after eating in Suji for a month, I've decided that place is expensive! We can get good bibimbap here for like 4000 KRW, whereas my mushroom bulgogi bibimbap was 8500 at the place in Seoul. So glad I wasn't placed there - everything is so much more expensive.
This week flew for me, but I can imagine that it crawled for everyone at the Coatel. So glad that Anna and Christi made it through :). I'm not sure if training really is that stressful, or if we build it up too much in our minds. If it's the latter, then do we do that to ourselves, or is it something we've inherited from those who have already been through training? Did I make Anna and Christi's week harder because I went on about how awful training was? I also noticed that males and females attack training differently. We get all stressed out and blow things up (see above ;)), whereas guys take it in stride - or, if they do stress, they stress much more hardcore than we do. I just remember the males at our training acting like it was no big deal, and not even seeming to prep. The guys we have here were confused as to how people didn't sleep that week. Maybe they are right - maybe training isn't that big of a deal (well, not that you shouldn't blow it off, but that you shouldn't make too big of a deal of it all).
The whole "If I knew then what I knew now" concept is quite dizzying. As stated in previous entries, this is a *really* easy teaching job. This semester will be especially awesome for me - I have mostly English Chip and Bridge (odd because I was told upon hiring that I'd be teaching more higher level classes). I'm excited about my Alba+ class because the topics seem to be more open for discussion than what was presented in Alba (sidenote: can anyone explain to me how "Albatross" fits in with the golf terms?).
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Goodbye Training....
I should probably write entries as things happen, or at least make a list of what to write about later, because time goes by and I completely forget about what That Moment was like.
I did have my first experience of American food in Korea. Near the training center was a McDonalds, and I went with one guy (Andrew, actually - he seems to feature in the adventure that was training). I was really curious as to how they serve American food, as I know that we tend to botch dishes from other cultures (New York style Chinese - that's all I have to say ;)). I had a bulgogi burger, which was a lot like moist pork. Definitely something that is missing from the Mickey's menu in America. It smelled just as bad as American McDonald's though. The other days, I stuck to the kimbop and dumplings place a few blocks down.
The rest of training was a blur. Tuesday night was definitely the worst (well, not counting my breakdown on Thursday night, but thanks to people named Andrew and Ed, it didn't end in tragedy (tragedy in this case being failing training and having to move back to America - yes, I know there are worse things)). Wednesday night, we went through this huge moment of "Screw it," and went to Lotte Mart for Korean bbq supplies. That was the first night I've actually made it to dinner - usually, I was either too busy or done with food for the day. I think all training groups go through that - the first night of complete anxiety because we have no clue what to prep, and then the second night of going, "Eh, we got this".
Fortunately, a group of April teachers cornered their trainer who admitted that unless Chungdahm had a Talk with you, you were in good shape to pass - bar any instances of showing up to final mock day inebriated, or just saying, "Yeah, I didn't prep this - let's talk about bunnies". I imagine that this moment involved a dark corner and boards with nails driven through - if I'm wrong, please don't correct me.
For those who are coming to Chungdahm later this year: the last day just involves being tested on a few class schedules they give you on the last day, and mock teaching the lessons you've been mock teaching all week. Pretty much, I think they're just looking to see if you've learned anything. I'll reassure you now, if you make a huge mistake (like if you do something like not prep the in-class quiz for answer justification.........no, that wasn't me at all ;)) but pretty much show that you have improved from your worst moments earlier in the week, you've got it. The fine-tuning is something that'll happen at your actual school - I've already been over with my Head Instructor the things I need to work on, and from what I've gotten from my coworkers, everyone pretty much sucks their first week, but it's easy to pick up on the stuff and improve.
The actual contract signing was very anti-climactic. My Chungdahm recruiter (who is different from my Aclipse recruiter) sat me down and asked how I thought training went. I was pretty honest (I even said that I wish Aclipse knew more about the training materials so I was better prepared - a small shoutout to Sean :)). Pretty much, I signed the same contract that they issued a month ago, and was told that my taxi would be there in 40 mins. We were all busy signing contracts during that last hour, so there was really no big goodbye.... I was actually the first one to realize it was time to leave..
Long cab ride later, and.....Suji.
Unlike previous promises of annotated picture posts, my day one in Suji post will actually come soon..
I did have my first experience of American food in Korea. Near the training center was a McDonalds, and I went with one guy (Andrew, actually - he seems to feature in the adventure that was training). I was really curious as to how they serve American food, as I know that we tend to botch dishes from other cultures (New York style Chinese - that's all I have to say ;)). I had a bulgogi burger, which was a lot like moist pork. Definitely something that is missing from the Mickey's menu in America. It smelled just as bad as American McDonald's though. The other days, I stuck to the kimbop and dumplings place a few blocks down.
The rest of training was a blur. Tuesday night was definitely the worst (well, not counting my breakdown on Thursday night, but thanks to people named Andrew and Ed, it didn't end in tragedy (tragedy in this case being failing training and having to move back to America - yes, I know there are worse things)). Wednesday night, we went through this huge moment of "Screw it," and went to Lotte Mart for Korean bbq supplies. That was the first night I've actually made it to dinner - usually, I was either too busy or done with food for the day. I think all training groups go through that - the first night of complete anxiety because we have no clue what to prep, and then the second night of going, "Eh, we got this".
Fortunately, a group of April teachers cornered their trainer who admitted that unless Chungdahm had a Talk with you, you were in good shape to pass - bar any instances of showing up to final mock day inebriated, or just saying, "Yeah, I didn't prep this - let's talk about bunnies". I imagine that this moment involved a dark corner and boards with nails driven through - if I'm wrong, please don't correct me.
For those who are coming to Chungdahm later this year: the last day just involves being tested on a few class schedules they give you on the last day, and mock teaching the lessons you've been mock teaching all week. Pretty much, I think they're just looking to see if you've learned anything. I'll reassure you now, if you make a huge mistake (like if you do something like not prep the in-class quiz for answer justification.........no, that wasn't me at all ;)) but pretty much show that you have improved from your worst moments earlier in the week, you've got it. The fine-tuning is something that'll happen at your actual school - I've already been over with my Head Instructor the things I need to work on, and from what I've gotten from my coworkers, everyone pretty much sucks their first week, but it's easy to pick up on the stuff and improve.
The actual contract signing was very anti-climactic. My Chungdahm recruiter (who is different from my Aclipse recruiter) sat me down and asked how I thought training went. I was pretty honest (I even said that I wish Aclipse knew more about the training materials so I was better prepared - a small shoutout to Sean :)). Pretty much, I signed the same contract that they issued a month ago, and was told that my taxi would be there in 40 mins. We were all busy signing contracts during that last hour, so there was really no big goodbye.... I was actually the first one to realize it was time to leave..
Long cab ride later, and.....Suji.
Unlike previous promises of annotated picture posts, my day one in Suji post will actually come soon..
Monday, January 25, 2010
"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 :)
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 :)
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Fashion / Hello From Home
Everyone who advised to bring trendy clothes were so right: Korean ladies are so freaking chic. Walking around here is like being treated to a constant fashion plate - with as efficient as these people are, I'm so not surprised that the girls get up an hour early to be sure they look slammin' on the streets. Their hair is always perfect, and Korean ladies have the most beautiful shoes. The guys are pretty trendy, too - especially with their haircuts. Totally puts a shame to the way American guys style their hair: either clippers, or totally forget to use the scissors/soap period..
Someone on the Aclipse forum made a pretty snooty comment about how Korean women don't wear purple. Being the snot that I am, I'm keeping tally, and have officially reached the double digits. These women totally rock the purple - which they should, with their pretty white skin and dark hair. Wearing purple today to Training, Day 1 just to savor the moment.
I've been digging to the bottom of my suitcase each day to find my trendiest looking clothing so I "fit in" as well as I can with my short haircut and completely un-Asian features. Saturday was this cute little red dress with black leggings and boots; yesterday, I completely rebelled against the whole dark-clothing thing and wore blue jeans and a white sweater. At one point last night, I stood up and one of the rocks from my windowsill back home fell out of my shirt. It was awesome - like a little "Hello!" from home, or a bit of good luck for today's tests. The rock is now sitting on my bedside table, and I think it's going to spend training in my pocket.
Someone on the Aclipse forum made a pretty snooty comment about how Korean women don't wear purple. Being the snot that I am, I'm keeping tally, and have officially reached the double digits. These women totally rock the purple - which they should, with their pretty white skin and dark hair. Wearing purple today to Training, Day 1 just to savor the moment.
I've been digging to the bottom of my suitcase each day to find my trendiest looking clothing so I "fit in" as well as I can with my short haircut and completely un-Asian features. Saturday was this cute little red dress with black leggings and boots; yesterday, I completely rebelled against the whole dark-clothing thing and wore blue jeans and a white sweater. At one point last night, I stood up and one of the rocks from my windowsill back home fell out of my shirt. It was awesome - like a little "Hello!" from home, or a bit of good luck for today's tests. The rock is now sitting on my bedside table, and I think it's going to spend training in my pocket.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
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)..
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)..
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