2 Months down!

Hey everyone, long time no talk. Entirely my fault - sorry for the delay since my last post. Here's some highlights from my past couple weeks:


Last weekend, I saw Alice in Wonderland (for the second time). But this time we watched it in 3D & it was very cool. I highly recommend it if you haven't been to a 3D movie.. The closest and best movie theater is about a 40 minute busride from my town. It's a CGV, which is a huge media company based in Seoul. They also have an English TV channel that I sometimes watch. They always play NCIS/CSI/Bones (i.e., forensic crime shows - they love them!). There is a closer movie theater in the local EMart complex, but the movies are unfortunately mostly in Korean.


I've discovered the magical world known as torrent downloading! I had heard about it before while in the States, but never tried it because of the slow connection speeds. The awesome technology here makes it so quick to download music and movie files. I've already nearly filled my hard drives now, I'm thinking about buying a new terabyte drive (1000 gigabytes!). These are also very cheap here. A terabyte drive will hold more than 1000 movies!


I had some more interesting new food last weekend. I was a little put off at first by the menu: ox stomach! But once you get past the chewy texture, the taste is surprisingly good! They say it's also a very healthy food - it must at least have some sort of minerals that I don't normally get. I went to this restaurant with a group of Koreans that I (again) met at the gym. The gym has turned out to be a great place for making new friends :)


Thursday morning of last week, I joined the Kindergarten classes on their monthly field trip - this month was a musical. It was the Korean version of 'Everybody Poops', and although it was entirely in Korean, I thoroughly enjoyed it! I had the fortune of sitting next to a fellow Korean teacher, so she was able to translate for me occasionally during the show. Here's the Readers' Digest version: The hero character (henceforth referred to as Good Poo) visits a racoon character, and they embark on a journey of discovery for how to defeat the 'evil poos' (played in the musical by bad poos of 3 kinds - with one carrying a devil's pitchfork, one a plunger, and one a toilet brush). Good Poo carries a magical rock that allows the Good Duo to travel searching for the 3 things that must be obtained to defeat the Evil Poos. They visit a variety of people and places - including the birthplace of all poos, a wise old frog, and a fun-loving skateboarding turtle. In the end, the 3 tokens turn out to be: 1) exercise, 2) vegetables, and 3) love. The Good Duo collects all 3 and unlocks the portal that sends the Evil Poos to their final resting place - that Big Toiletbowl in the Sky. So I saw a good show, learned a little more about Korean culture, and possibly learned something new about my GI health!






The Good Duo is here on the left, facing two of the Evil Poos.






Another new experience last weekend was finding a weather phenomenon worse than the pollen season in the Southeastern US. Until now, I didn't think I would ever come across another yellow coating that covers absolutely EVERYTHING outside. Well guess what they have here in Korea in the spring? It's called Yellow Dust (brought by 'the yellow winds'), and is said to be sand and pollution blown to the Korean peninsula from China. Many people wear face masks during storms like these, for great reason. Accompanying the Yellow Dust are winds that I have never experienced - it feels like being in a tornado. And not being able to see anything because of everything in the air makes it feel like you're in a whiteout. They advise people to stay indoors on days like this, for obvious health reasons. On a personal note, I had a sore throat and felt sick for over a week afterwards. I should really invest in a good facemask. Read more about Asian Dust here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_Dust.


The crazy weather hasn't been limited to only the disgusting dust, either. For weeks now, Mother Nature has played cruel temperature games with us. It has warmed up on several occasions to near T-shirt weather. But just when we're convinced that warmer weather is here to stay, a cold spell will snap again! Last Monday snowed hard all day long, but it only stayed for a few days before completely melting. It must have been right on the edge of freezing temperatures, because the snow was very wet and slushy. This weekend was rather chilly too. Hopefully warm temperatures will be coming soon..


On Saturday a group of us went to see the Korean show Nanta. Nanta is at the core a traditional drum performance, but it has also modernized the performance and added some comedy - it's very good. The show has toured all around the globe, and has even appeared on Broadway in the US. The show mostly takes place in a restaurant kitchen, and follows a day in the life of 5 characters. They have a lot of fun drumming on every imaginable surface and object - and the show even being largely unspoken, is very funny. I've definitely learned that comedy is universal. For more information on the show: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanta_(musical) or http://nanta.i-pmc.co.kr/en/about/nanta_01.asp.

We went for a special promo for Nanta too - it was a half price performance, plus they included a small brunch for us prior to the show. The brunch was quite unsatisfying though - I was expecting a giant spread like our American buffets, but all we got was some coffee and juice, a tiny sandwich, and a cupcake. But after the show, my buddy won a nice door prize - a Polaroid camera!


Also this past weekend, I went to my second FC Seoul soccer game. They play in the World Cup Stadium in Seoul, where the home team is obviously FC Seoul. They play other football clubs throughout the country - this last time the visiting team was Pohang. I've never been much of a soccer fan, but it's pretty huge here, apparently also in the entire world..! :) The fans get very into the games - lots of cheering. Here's a few pics:












Fireworks before (and all throughout) the game:












Wild crowd cheering, chanting, and waving flags:

Our team






Sunday I made the trip to the nearby Korean Folk Village. I had heard about it even prior to arriving, as it's very nearby in our city. Although, unlike most places, it isn't very easy accessible by public transit. So a taxi is a must-do, but taxis are also so very cheap around here. The village is very cool - it has recreations of all types of traditional houses - from slave quarters to yangban (the Korean aristocracy). My favorite part of the village was definitely the performances. They have all kinds of things ranging from music and dancing to tightrope and equestrian acrobatics.

Hoping all is well with you, and I'll update you again in the near future!


Take care,



Matt

End of Week 1

Well my first full week is over here in Korea & it went very well. I spent the week mostly observing other teachers to get a feel for it, and started doing practical teachings Thursday and Friday. Also on Friday, I had to fill in for a Korean teacher who was out for the day, and took two of her classes. It gave me an appreciation for doing this for 7-8 hours day after day! I hope that I can make it for a year!

I'm really glad I came a few days early. It was great to get partially aquainted with Korea, get over jet lag, see Seoul, meet new friends, etc. I first stayed over in Incheon near the airport (the Incheon Int'l Airport) for 2 nights. Here's 2 pictures of the place where I stayed in Incheon. Then I stayed in northern Seoul for 3 nights, at a Guest House near the Anguk substation. This is said to be one of the best places in Seoul for a first-time visitor. Anguk station is just next to several historical palaces. Here's also a picture of a palace nearby.

My school is a hagwon, which is a private English academy, where the students come in addition to their usual public school. There are many companies and branches throughout the country that support this demand. And there is quite the need for English teachers here in Korea. Our company is the Sogang Learning Program Institute, part of Sogang University. SLP has been operating here in Korea for several years now. Our location is in the province of Gyeonggi, city of Yongin, and the area of Dongbaek. We're about an hour busride south of Seoul. Our school is referred to as 'Dongbaek SLP'. The school is really nice & is very well managed and supported. Any mail for me should be sent to my name and the school's address, which is:

SLP Yongin Dongbaek

Wooham Bldg 7FL 2505-3

Dongbaek-dong, Kiheung-ku

Yongin, Gyeonggi-Do

South Korea 446-911

- This is not a solicitation to send things, because I really have no idea how $$ it would be to send mail here..

The director (principal) of our school is Mr. Yoon, who has been a great boss. The manager of the school is another great guy named Eddie. I found out this week that Eddie (Yoon) is the nephew of director Yoon.. Eddie picked me up in Seoul on Monday morning. Here's a picture from the pickup:

As for our school's demographics, there are 3 men here: Eddie, Mr. Yoon, and now myself! I've never been in quite a female-centered workplace. Everyone seemed excited to know that a male teacher was coming, since apparently they haven't had one in quite a while.

Here I am on the first day in the lobby of SLP:


I'll have a pretty nice schedule - teaching the elementary and middle school ages in the afternoon/evening shift from 1-8.

Before coming over here, I was warned about the Korean winters - and rightfully so! The winds come directly down from Siberia & are fierce! Seoul was definitely colder than Yongin though, so it's a bit better here. But it's also still rarely above 10C.. I have no desire to go outside when it's dark here & gets below 0 degrees!

I've really liked the Korean food. But I've also yet to find any food that I don't like, so that may not be saying much. Their barbeque (Galbi) is great, and they always have lots of really good veggies and extra sides with everything (and yes, which always includes some form of kimchi!). During my time here I've also had some really good Italian food, and even some Indian this past weekend.

It hasn't been all fun & games though - certain aspects of living in a foreign country have been a bit daunting. Not speaking the local language is of course a huge problem sometimes. Luckily, my phone has a Korean/English dictionary function that comes in rather handy at times. The first week I was here I didn't have a cell phone, which showed me how much I rely on one of those! My new number is: 010-5062-7672, and the country code for Korea is +82. I wouldn't say any of the culture shock has prevented me from doing or attempting to do anything though - I've just had mild confidence issues I guess you'd say. The little bit of Korean I have learned, I feel too timid at times to use it for fear of mis-pronouncing things. I've also had to build up some considerable courage before going into new places when by myself (mainly restaurants).. :P They say these things are just a normal part of the process.

I've been in several areas of Seoul now & it's huge! I've walked the streets, visited palaces and museums, and seen a bit of the nightlife. I've gotten pretty comfortable with the subway system. It's still difficult when I don't know exactly where I'm going, and still can't read Hangul either.. The overall transit system with the subways, trains, and buses is excellent. Here are a few pics from the streets of Seoul:

I had one really cool encounter while on the streets of Seoul, which was a nice welcoming experience. I was just walking around taking pictures, and was standing on a busy street corner. A large group of kids walked by & all said 'hello' and 'how are you' (in English), I replied, and they kept walking. They came back over & wanted to do a little interview - they were a high school class & wanted to ask me some questions. One girl was the spokesperson, while several of the other kids were taking pictures of me & recording videos. It was a little intimidating at first, but quite the experience to feel like a pseudo-celebrity :)

Before leaving GA, I found some good souvenirs to bring for people at the school. Stuff like Georgia pecans, Georgia Aquarium bookmarks & pencils, and a UGA Bulldog beanie. I also found some trinkets for American holidays (not really knowing what they do/don't celebrate - it turns out they do celebrate upcoming Valentine's Day). I brought stuff for St. Patty's Day, Mardi Gras, Easter bunnies, and some American flags & decorations for July.

That's all for now & I'll keep you updated.

Take care!

Matt