How old are you?

This week my 3rd grade students are learning about birthdays and age.  As a review at the end of the lesson I asked a few students how old they were.  "I am 10 years old."  Then, the students asked me how old I was.  "I am 26 years old."

"ooooooooooh." They all responded, the girls squealing and the boys laughing.  I assumed it was because they thought I was "old."  One of the students said something to my co-teacher in Korean and she translated for me.
"It's time for you to get married!!"

Seriously mom, I know you want me to get married...but bribing cute Korean children to remind me is a little much, don't you think? ;)

New friend; new name.

Today, I made a new Korean friend.  Her parents are the owners of a coffee shop I like to go to quite a bit. She came over and introduced herself and said that her mom thought we would get along. We do have a lot in common and she seems like a very sweet girl.  We are planning on getting dinner later this week or next. It will be nice to start making some Korean friends here! :)

While talking she asked if I had a Korean name yet. When I told her that I did not she gave one to me. My new name is "HaYan" which means "white and pure." :)  I like it. 

North Korea, English Village and shopping, oh my!

If you squint real hard through the fog you can see North Korea in the distance. 

This is common food they eat in North Korea. It was made by a refugee now living in South Korea. It's basically the same that you can find here (bread filled with bean paste) only it's not as sweet.  They don't use any sugar and the bread has a weird texture to it because of their lack of ingredients they have available. 

"English Village."  This is a "village" that kids will come and learn English. The village is made to copy that of a city in England. It's actually a great idea and was thought up because so many parents sent their kids to live overseas to learn English. This is a much more affordable option.  

This was in a green house in the English village. There is no significance and you could really see this anywhere but I really liked it.  

Kids blowing bubbles in the English village.

Saturday was spent at the DMZ (kind of--more of an observatory that over looks N. Korea across a river), an English village, and shopping with my co-teacher and another teacher at my school.  While I know N. Korea is close to where I live, I never realized just how close! We got in the car Saturday morning and then about a half hour drive later we were there! Canada is farther away from Ypsi then N. Korea is from Paju.

The day was very foggy still in the mountain so it was difficult to see N. Korea but they showed a video of the view and gave a brief history. It was very interesting to see and learn about.  We also tried some food that is common to eat in N. Korea (when they have food) and saw what a typical classroom and house would look like.

Afterwards we went to the English Village and wandered around a little bit there. That was fun and while I have never been in England I felt as though they did a good job with making it feel like I was in an English town.

Then we went shopping. I have to admit that I had fun there and bought many things for the spring and summer.  $700 worth of clothing for only a little over $200! Sweet.  My only impractical purchase was actually bought the day before--a pair of tennis shoes.  I will probably very rarely actually wear these shoes, esp. now that spring has arrived but I didn't have practical shoes to wear for my day out. So now I own a pair of shoes that I can't wear with my dresses and skirts that I bought. Since I only own one pair of jeans in this country I will probably never wear those shoes.  Maybe this gives me even more incentive to join the gym...I keep trying to convince myself that I want to.

Overall it was a very fun but tiring day. 

Green Paju

I love the big tree in the school yard. You can just see how old it is by looking at it. This is also a nice view of the community garden across the street. 

The trail where I like to walk near the river. If you follow it far enough it leads to the foothills of nearby mountains. :) 

"Green Paju."  This is one of the community gardens in Paju. This garden is absolutely massive and many people go throughout the day to work on their own plot of land. It's such a great idea.  Every day it looks different. I love looking out the window and seeing the changes.  It will be exciting to see how it looks in the summer and then during harvesting time.  Apparently some of the male teachers at the school have a plot of land and they are planning on having a BBQ with the produce! They said they would provide the vegetables and the women will chip in and provide the meat! That would be fun if it happens.  The teachers in Korea are all about the sense of community--they say that the other teachers are like family. I believe this as we see more of each other at the school than they would their own family at times.

Ally, every time I look out the window I think of you! You and Eliot would absolutely love working in this garden. :)

*awkward*

I was walking down the street this evening towards the store on the corner, deep in my own thoughts as to what the owners of the store must think of me.  It's either a man or (presumably) his wife behind the counter whenever I go in.  I always buy water, a coffee favored milk, and sometimes a twix.  I started thinking about the strange people and combinations I used to wait on when I worked in the coffee shop in the states. I was almost upon the man before I even noticed him standing there by the side of the road. 


Oh hey, that man looks like he's...I thought, and before I could even finish the thought I realized that yes.  Indeed, that man was urinating by the side of the road, into the street.  


Awkwardly I passed by him, all thoughts of what the shop owners must think of my odd purchase completely gone.  My strange combination seemed relatively normal after that encounter. 

Kids Smell

Today, my after school 3rd grade class didn't leave when it was time to go home. I had to kick them out after 15 minutes because there was work that I needed to do.

I'll take it as a sign that today was a successful class. 

(It may have been because I caved and bought candy as a bribing tool.  "If you behave during class you will get candy."  It made it easier to have fun.)