Amazing discoveries

This past weekend was fairly busy.  The differences between living in Paju and Seongnam is pretty big.  The things that I have at my finger tips here is amazing compared to having to travel an 1+ one way to do anything during the weekend.

So, this blog is geared more towards those that are living in/around Seoul and want to know about some fun things I discovered this past weekend.

On Saturday I had a meeting about tutoring North Koreans.  There is a tutoring program which is ran through the North Korean Defectors' Freedom Association.  They meet on Saturday's from 12:30-3 in Daecheong, Seoul.  There is an assortment of ages, all the way from Kindergarten students to adults. While not all of them came directly from N. Korea (for example, the kindergarten students are the children of defectors) they all share the common need of needing tutoring so they can survive in this world.

So, if you're near this area I highly recommend this.  This is, of course, a volunteer position.  It's a good way to become involved in the community and to give back.  This organization has made it into the Korean newspaper and you can read more about it here.

Another discovery this weekend was a place called "Once in a blue moon."   This was an amazing discovery as it's so hard to actually find live music in Korea.  This place is located in Apgujeong (Exit 6 if you're taking the metro) and has performances between 7:30-12:40.  The admission is free but you're paying for it through drinks.  I believe a Cass beer was 16,000\ and it only went up from there.  I ordered an orange juice--just the juice and my drink was 15,000\.  I wasn't there for the food but I can only assume that would also be pricey--the atmosphere and the music (at least when I went) was definitely worth the cost of my drink though.

The last place I am going to talk about is Butterfinger Pancakes.  The one I went to was in Gangnam (which is about 40 minutes away) but apparently there is one near me.  I refuse to learn where as I am afraid of always going there once I find out!

This place is absolutely amazing and puts I-Hop to shame.  I ordered a mozzarella and cream cheese pancake.  I was a little uncertain about the combination but it was absolutely delicious!  I also ordered.....

A rootbeer float!

That's right.  A rootbeer float.  In Korea!  

Needless to say, I was beyond full when I left that place and managed to sleep off the food that afternoon. :)  

So yes, three amazing discoveries this weekend in the Bundang area.  I love living here.  This weekend I will go rafting with my school.  In the rain.  I can't say that I am excited about being rained on (at all) but I am glad it'll rain! We're also supposed to get thunderstorms! I keep being assured that they aren't planning on cancelling the trip even with the rain so I suppose I should just prepare myself to be drenched as there is a 100% chance of it raining the entire day (and night).  

Summer Camps

It's now the middle of June (when did that happen?!) which means that summer is upon us.  In less than one month from now I will be teaching summer camp.

Last year, summer camp was pretty easy to plan because 1.) We didn't have a budget and 2) The co-teacher wanted everything to be super educational.

This year, not only do we have a budget but I also have to come up with fun themes to do.

So, I have decided for the older kids (4th-5th grade) to do a "Korea's got Talent" type of theme (kind of) and have the students performing most of the week.  They will make music videos, short dramas, fashion shows, and an "Iron Chef" segment, and then randomly thrown in there on the first day--science experiments.  They will also make their own 'commercials' and if they're anything as humorous as the commercials on the TV here I will be entertained greatly.

This is going to take a LOT of planning and organization but if I am able to pull it off it will be a pretty fun camp.  And I will have some fun videos to show as well.

Then, the next week I will have 2nd and 3rd grade students.  This won't be nearly as advanced as I have to make it fairly easy for their level of English.  I haven't planned entirely yet but I believe it will be something along the theme of "On the farm."   They can learn animals, foods, and general farm stuff.  Like I said, I haven't really thought to much about this one yet.

I have also been busy with other lesson plans as we're pretty much finished with the text book for the semester and won't start the next segment until mid-August. I have to admit that almost every moment of the entire day is busy with lesson planning.  Despite being drained by the end of the day though, I don't really mind.

A lot harder...

It's a lot harder to update my blog this year.  Last year I would usually write it when I was at school but for some reason this website doesn't work on the school computer.  Which means I have to write it when I am at home--and clearly that's not working out too well.

Once again I have nothing to write about.  One of these days soon I will post a video of my apartment.  First, I have to catch up on laundry so I won't have clothes drying everywhere in the video.  I feel as though this is a never ending battle though as the washer is so small that I am constantly doing laundry.  Especially since it's so hot and humid (and I walk so much) that I wear at least 2 outfits a day if not more.

It'll happen soon though.  I make a goal to have it done within the week...

Day off

It's Memorial day here in Korea which means I get the day off from school.  This couldn't have come at a better time as I definitely could use a day to regroup and recharge.

I don't have anything exciting planned for the day (possibly a picnic tonight with some people) and I really like that.  I think I am going to hard boil some eggs so they don't go to waste and maybe cook something now that I have the time.  You know, general lazy day things... I might go on a hike later.

The trip I took two weekends ago was a lot of fun.  Not much to tell--I just took a lot of pictures and walked everywhere.  The rafting part was cancelled so that never happened.  But!  I was given the option to go on another trip with them so I could go rafting.  It's the bungee jumping/rafting trip.  I am still on the fence about bungee jumping (it's pretty popular here), so we'll see.

This past weekend was relaxing as well. Saturday I watched Godfather with a friend and then came back to my apartment and cleaned.  Deep cleaned as this place is still pretty gross from before I moved in.  I made a lot of progress but I'll have to do more later.  Sunday I went to a picnic on the Han river with a bunch of people where we flew kites and talked and listened to music.  Then, a few of us went to an open mic night at a place near here.

Like I said, nothing much to tell here.  Life has been normal and I haven't been doing anything terribly exciting.  But I have kept myself very busy which is why I am glad for this day off. 

This weekend...

Now that my open class is out of the way I can start thinking about what I will be doing on my long weekend ahead.  I am taking a trip with "Adventure Korea", this amazing tour group in Korea.  I am heading back to the place that I fell in love with last year (you can read about it here.)

Instead of describing what I will do be doing, I am going to take the description directly from Adventure Korea's homepage.  I highly recommend them if you're in Korea and want to explore areas that are harder to get to as a foreigner.

Summer is just around the corner, so it’s a really good time to hit the beach, before the crowds. We are offering you a great experience in sea rafting, deep sea fishing, cycling on some beautiful islands, as well as the famous Pumba Festival.

Sea rafting is a lot of fun and a great way to build up friendships with the people in your raft, and the Pumba Festival is a really laid back, entertaining while being an entertainer, type of festival.

On Saturday we will leave the big city and drive directly to the Pumba Festival (not from the Lion King). After the long-ish commute we will have the opportunity to travel back in time, and dress up like a pumba. These people would wear ragged clothes and often had dirty faces, but now-a-days they’re more like entertainers that often appear at market places, theatres and festivals. They would stroll around market places or villages seeking food, money or anything they could get. Pumba does not have a specific meaning but is a language mechanism for keeping rhythm. It was the word repeated in the songs of these street singers. These days, the word pumba generally refers to gakseori (a Korean tramp).

When we arrive, you’ll be given a costume to wear and your face will be painted, so you can really look and act the part. Then watch the pros as they mesmerize the audience with their acrobatic and musical skills. You will get the chance to join in the fun, and try your hand at various traditional Korean activities, as well as sample foods at the old market place. There are stalls selling yeot (Korean malt candy) cut with giant scissors that are also used to keep the pumba beat, taverns where you can sample makkolli, fortuneteller shops, rice cake shops where you can hear the echoes of rice pounding and rice cake songs, as well as a ceramics shop where you can make your own teacups and dishes. You will also find medicinal sales men who attract customers with their raucous sales pitch.

This is also a very good time to feel like a celebrity. The unique National Eumseong Pumba Festival, is one of the most photographed festivals in Korea. Many people from all over the country come to take pictures of the pumbas. So put on your best painted face and get posing. In the past our AK members have made the cover of the local magazine. It’s a lot of fun, and you get to pretend to be someone else for the day.

No wonder this festival is filled with energetic and exciting performances as well as endless laughter from the audience. Is there a better time to dress up as a beggar than now?

After the festival we will make our way to Seonyudo Island. This group of three islands, joined together by small bridges, are a great place to spend a weekend. The ferry over to the islands takes only 40 minutes and once there we will check into our hotel.

After we have checked in we will hike up Seonyubong Peak to watch the sunset, then hit the beach for some clam digging before dinner together.

On Sunday after breakfast, we will rent bikes and you can explore the three islands at your leisure, well, at least until 3pm. Make sure to grab some lunch from one of the restaurants, if you choose to try your hand at the deep sea fishing experience you will be out on the open water with no convenience store in sight!

When out on the local boats you will have the chance to haul in nets and various types of marine life, you can cut the live creatures up on the boat and enjoy sashimi, or bring it back with you. Deep sea fishing optional(35,000won extra), there will be a limited number of places on the boats, so let us know when you sign up if this is something you’d like to experience, and we will do our best to make it happen.

Around 6:30 when everyone has returned the bikes and have gotten off the boats again, we will have dinner together, if the fisher people caught a lot of fish we can have sashimi with our dinner.

Then free time until Monday.

We’ll have a quick breakfast together before we head off to explore more of the islands again, then we’ll return our bikes and make our way back to the mainland. Once back we’ll head to Boryeong where we will have lunch together before hitting the sea again, but this time on rafts. What better way to end a long weekend than splashing about with your new friends, dodging a few large rocks in the ocean, then playing games and racing the other rafts back to shore.

Once out of the water, we will board the bus again and head back to Seoul. This fun and action packed trip offers a bit of culture as well as some fun outdoor activities, so why not sign up now and get out of Seoul for the long weekend.

First weekend back in Korea

I decided to start my first weekend off well by being busy both days.  On Saturday, bright and early I headed towards Gyeongbokgung Palace to meet my friend Kevin.  He is new in Seoul so I thought it would be fun to see the changing of the guards there. 

While I was on the subway I made the mistake of making eye contact with a strange looking adjushi (respectful way to say older Korean man in Korean).  The next thing I know, he's standing in front of me and offering me some candy and gum.  Children, never take candy from strangers--and here's a story why.

I was confused and didn't know the proper Korean etiquette.  Did he want me to open the candy for him? Was he giving it to me? Looking around I could see sympathetic looks on the faces around me but clearly no one was going to offer assistance. 

The person sitting next to me exited the subway so the adjushi sat down next to me.  In broken English he started to talk to me.  I wasn't really in the mood to talk to him but at the same time I didn't want to be rude.  He kept asking me for my phone number and I kept telling him that I do not have a phone--unfortunately I had my i-pod touch out that looks like an i-phone.

As we continued talking he kept giving me more gifts.  First it was a red beaded bracelet.  Then it was a huge wooden cross necklace.  Finally I came to my stop.  As I told him that this was my stop he said, "Me too." And proceeded to grab my hand so I couldn't get away.  It was beginning to look like I wasn't going to be able to get rid of this man so easily.

As I walked up to the palace gates I could see Kevin.  As soon as he saw me hand-in-hand with this man he broke into a grin--I am sure we made quite the sight.  As it was every single Korean we passed stopped and stared at us. 

Meet Mr. Lee:

We walked around the palace for a while while Mr. Lee kept asking when we were going to leave.  He wanted us to go to Insadong, a traditional shopping area of Seoul.  The more we walked the further behind he trailed.  Kevin and I kept telling him that we weren't going to Insadong and whenever we would say where we were going instead, he would respond with, "Me, too."

Clearly it would not be easy to get rid of him.

At the end of the palace tour we went inside of the cafe to buy some water since the day was quickly turning to scorching hot.  Once inside, Mr. Lee went over and was doing something.  Kevin turned to me and said, "I wouldn't judge you if you left right now without him."  Even though I felt really bad and guilty about it that's exactly what we did--clearly there was no other way to get rid of him and I really didn't want to deal with him following me home when it was time.  As so that's exactly what we did--we lost ourselves in the crowd.

After the palace we eventually wandered over to the "Friendship Fair" in Seoul Plaza.  I never made it last year and I heard good things about it so we decided to head over.  If you're ever in Seoul when this is taking place I highly recommend it.

The friendship fair is an event that showcases countries around the world.  There are cultural booths, traditional costumes and food and places to see traditional dance.  It was very interesting and the food was delicious.  I managed to get a video of the traditional dance for Kazakhstan and Russia (of course :) which I found to be very fun to watch. 

On Sunday I met up with some more friends and we headed to an Italian lunch.  The food was absolutely amazing.  I was also able to meet some new people--two Austrians (studying here for the semester) and a Californian.  After the lunch the group headed over to the friendship fair to walk around for a bit.


All in all it was a brilliant weekend spent with amazing people.  Not a bad way to start off my second year in the country.  Next weekend promises to be just as fun.

Reading Korean

I am finally getting around to something that I probably should have done a year ago; read Korean.  Apparently it will make my life a million times easier...although I don't generally have problems getting around in the first place.  At the very least, perhaps it will make riding a bus a little easier as there are zero English words on the schedule.

So, today I started learning.  I have learned 8 letters so far and have been able to read the practice words without a problem. 

I think the reason why I have been putting it off for so long is because when I attempted to learn it with the Rosetta Stone it made absolutely no sense.  I found a free website online though and it makes 100% sense and is actually fairly easy to learn.