my classroom

Here are some pictures of my English classroom, as well as the English play room upstairs. I have yet to see anyone actually use the play room, which consists of different shops and things. I was told by my two English teachers friends who visited me that my classrooms are really nice compared to the ones at their schools.

I just came home from a really nice night out with my friend Kelly. I did some shopping on my own downtown, which is always interesting. The stores here are different from home in that most of them are very small, don't have dressing rooms, and only have like 2 or 3 of each item. Luckily for me, I'm the size of most Koreans so pretty much everything here is just my size. While doing my shopping I came upon two really funny Konglish things, one being a girls clothing store called "Pooing" and the other being a handbag that had in big bold letters "MINUTEMEN. MEATPUPPETS. DESCENDENTS. ANGST." on it. I was so tempted to buy it just for the sheer ridiculousness of it, but I decided against it. After shopping, Kelly and I had some McDonalds for dinner and then went to a coffee shop downtown called The New Yorker. It has the best chai tea I've ever tasted (and those of you who know me know that's all I ever order at coffee shops) and American style magazines, so I was in heaven. It was great just to have a laid back night and talk to one of my girl friends. I think we're going to make it a regular thing.

Not much else new here. I was sick all week, so teaching kind of sucked. I'm feeling better today though and I'm going to join an awesome gym my friend found that is literally less than a block from my apartment. You miss a lot of cool stores and things here if you don't look up when you're walking around, because often times there are things on the second and third floors of buildings. It's a weird thing to get used to, always looking up when you're walking around the streets.

If you're interested, here's a Korean song I'm currently obsessed with. It's a rapper by the name of Outsider and I think I heard he's one of the fastest rappers in the world. Wait for the middle of the song...it's insane.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rk8d3yV4Sw

life is beautiful

"Are you kidding me? Is this really my life?"
That's a question I've been asking myself a lot lately, and especially this past weekend. This weekend I went to visit Seth in Busan, which is the second largest city in South Korea. Seth said that the name, Busan, comes from the Korean words for "port" and "mountain" (san), and that describes the city perfectly. It's a port city with beautiful beaches that are surrounded by mountains (like all of Korea is). Seth and I stayed at a hotel on Haeundae Beach, one of the most popular beaches in Korea I believe. Before coming to Korea, Seth worked at a job where he racked up a ton of hotel points, so we were able to stay at this place for free. And since he is a platinum member of the hotel chain, we also got upgraded to a state room that was absolutely gorgeous (the room would normally cost around $500+). We had an breathtaking view of the beach, and it had a living room and a bedroom and a Western-style bathroom. Saturday, after our free continental breakfast, we spent the whole afternoon on the beach, including having a tuna kimbap (my favorite) picnic. Unfortunately we both ended up getting really sunburned. Saturday night we went to the hotel dining room for a free happy hour of wine and other drinks (thank you platinum membership). Afterward, we went to Gwangalli beach, another famous beach in Busan. Gwangalli is famous partially for the bridge that was recently built there. At night the bridge is lit up which is very beautiful. Gwangalli actually reminded me a lot of being in Sydney. While walking along the beach we came across some sort of singing performance or competition going on. It was pretty entertaining, but the best part was the group of (probably drunk) Korean moms who were singing and dancing in a large group on the beach. It was unusual to see the women let loose like that...pretty hilarious.
Anyway, the weekend was really relaxing and a great break from daily life in Korea. I had a lot of time to think about things and life in general. My experience so far here has been pretty surreal. I'm amazed at how well things have gone for me, and I feel truly lucky for what I've been given. Coming here was the best decision I have ever made for myself. I find myself stopping often and just taking everything in, and thinking to myself that despite all of the awkward moments and weird things I've experienced, I would not want to be anywhere else in the world. I think I am going to learn a lot about myself this year (I already feel like I've learned a lot) and I know it is going to make me more grateful and appreciate the smaller things in life. I already have felt that change (i.e. being really excited to use an actual Western-style shower) and I can only imagine that feeling is going to grow over the next 9 months.
Sidenote: I've officially been at homestay for over one month now. Only about 9 more to go!


Our ballin' hotel room




some more of the hotel room(s)


hotel room view by night...


...and by day.






Haeundae beach


Very sunburned at this point...


Please do not wash your feet in the bathroom sink.


In front of the bridge at Gwangalli beach


Ajima dance party


Mmmm...yummy


I love this picture.


View from the bus on the ride back to Cheongju

This blog topic was inspired by a conversation I had with my host sister this evening. She asked me if students get hit in American schools and I told her no. I then asked her if she ever got hit in school. I had been warned that corporal punishment was pretty prevalent in schools, but I have yet to see any in my elementary school. My host sister told me that yes, she had been hit a number of times, and also endured some other forms of corporal punishment like wall sits and holding your hands up in the air for long periods of time. She said she not only experienced it at school but also from her tutors (one of whom is a man) and her mother when she was younger. This made me very sad. I have been able to reconcile most of the other cultural differences so far, but corporal punishment is something I can not agree with and honestly can't wrap my head around. Some of my other ETA friends have said that they have witnessed corporal punishment techniques in their schools already, but fortunately I have not. I'm not sure how I would handle it if I did. Luckily, my co-teachers already said they don't do that in their classrooms. I did a little research online about corporal punishment in Korea and most articles said that the majority of schools in the country use it. I even found a recent article about a high school boy who committed suicide after receiving harsh corporal punishment, and another about a student who killed a former teacher over a grudge he held about the punishment he had received. Check out this page of the Korea Times for more info:
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/search/gsearch_result.asp?cx=000419429707569707003%3A8uxvb9suvga&cof=FORID%3A10&q=corporal+punishment#918


In other news, I started my after school teachers class today. I have about 20 English teachers from around the city as my students. I am co-teaching with a Korean American guy who is only a few years older than me. Hes very friendly and did the Peace Corps for the past two years so I can tell we'll get along well. He invited me to join him on Thursday nights at a English conversation group he attends. He and a bunch of college students and young professionals meet and have discussions in English, and then go out for drinks afterwards. I'm really excited about going and hopefully making some Korean friends. A bonus is that I'll probably learn a little Korean as well. I also started teaching my advanced classes today. I only have about 8-10 students in each of those classes which is awesome. Today my students created their own robots and wrote a paragraph describing them. My regular classes are going really well this week too. I'm playing some fun games and the students are really getting into them. My co-teachers said they are impressed.

I've started taking Hanji classes with my host mother on Mondays. Hanji is a traditional Korean paper art form. Hanji is similar to paper mache, but also involves using a razor to cut out intricate designs to be placed on whatever it is that you're making. The last two classes I spent working on a small tray/dish thing, and this week I am starting to work on a framed Hanji picture. It's relaxing and the other women there are really nice. I think they enjoy practicing their English on me. I've also started riding my family's bike for 1-2 hours everyday down by the river near my house. It's the perfect way to get some alone time and just take a mental health break from everything else that is going on here.

Here are pictures of the Hanji tray I made. I use paste to glue two layers of black Hanji paper onto the tray. Next, I cut out the flower design by hand using a razor. Then I used bleach to make the paper turn brown and antique-y looking.

Rated R family outing

I went hiking again today, except this time I went with my host mom, sis, 2 girl cousins, 1 boy cousin (who has Downs Syndrome and is incredibly sweet...he keeps trying to talk to me, but unfortunately I don't understand anything he is saying), 2 aunts, and my insane grandmother. That's right...grandma went hiking with us. The hike was pretty difficult and pretty steep, but luckily the mountain wasn't that high. My extended host family is really entertaining to be around. My one aunt doesn't speak any English but instead repeats everything I say and then immediately starts laughing. The older of my cousins is incredibly smart and her English is really advanced so I spent most of my time talking to her. She asked for my email so I can only imagine what shes going to be emailing me about. However, no one compares to my host grandmother. Like I said, she is insane. She has the biggest and most infectious smile and is always yelling or laughing about something. The first ridiculous thing she did today was fart like 20 times, very loudly, throughout our hike. Instead of apologizing, she would just start cracking up. Then she chugged a beer during our hike. The funniest thing she did came when we stopped at a park on our way home. First of all, the park was pretty ridiculous in and of itself. I've told you before about the wooden totems of faces they have everywhere in Korea. Well this particular park not only had totems of faces, but also of giant penises. I'm assuming its some sort of fertility park because my mom said many women go there, and I don't think its to stare at the wooden penises. Anyway, when we saw our first phalic totem, my crazy grandmother ran up to it, started stroking it, and yelling "Namja!" (man) in Korean and laughing hysterically. I almost died. Not exactly the family outing I would have imagined.
Also, host mom says we are going back to the penis park at some point for a picnic. Can't wait.
Here are some pics from the afternoon.

Host family from let to right: cousin, sister, grandma, cousin, aunt, cousin, aunt, mom


One of these is not like the other


Host relatives at the top of the mountain


Beautiful view from the top


Host grandma stroking the totem. Dear Lord.




Giant penis totem

cultural ruminations

K-Pop:
Korean pop music is the current obsession of children and teenagers throughout South Korea. Mention any of the big singers or big groups and you will instantly make a number of girls (and boys) start screaming. (Side note: mentioning one of these groups in class is a sure fire way to get your students to love you) Korean pop music, or K-pop can be best compared to the 90's pop music craze that swept through American schools. Think: NSYNC, Britney, Backstreet Boys, etc. However, K-pop is 100x's more cutesy and the groups can reach up to like 20 members. Plus, all of the members look the same, so how these kids can tell them apart is beyond me. Some of the popular bands are Big Bang, 2NE1, 2PM, Girls Generation, WonderGirls, etc. I'll give these groups credit...as cheesy as they can be, the songs are ridiculously catchy. Check out some of my favorites below...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MgAxMO1KD0&feature=fvst
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6QA3m58DQw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxY6GcBgbeQ (this is one is completely racist but sooo catchy)

Couples T-Shirts:
Another (lame) trend in Korea is the infamous "couples t-shirts". Couples t-shirts are pretty self explanatory...they are seen when couples purchase the same exact t-shirts and wear them at the same time, while walking hand in hand. Some of the shirts are designed so that together they make one design. I guess its supposed to be cute but all I can think of is how that poor guy was coaxed into wearing that ridiculous matching outfit. No American guy I know would be caught dead wearing a couples t-shirt. Here are some examples I stole offline...

I've actually seen this one on people since I've been here.


"Weh-guk-ee":
"Weh-guk-ee" is the Korean term for foreigner. I find it funny that people call me "foreigner" way more often than they call me American. Its like your either Korean, or not Korean. I have little children scream "weh-guk-ee" at me at least 3 or 4 times a day. It usually occurs when I'm walking around town, but I've had a few experiences at school where kids poke their head into my classroom and say in surprised Korean, "Wuah! Weh-guk-ee!" (Wow! Foreigner!). Its actually kind of cute, and I love surprising them by letting them know I actually understand what they are saying.

Swine Flu:
Swine flu is a huuuuuge deal in this country. Don't even try joking about it, because everyone here takes it very seriously. I'm really surprised I haven't been quarantined yet since people are very wary of foreigners because they might carry H1N1. This past week one of my fifth grade students was diagnosed with swine flu, and the next day about 50% of the students came to school wearing masks. I also have to get my temperature checked every day when I come into school. A number of other ETAs had their school start dates postponed because of the flu. My school's upcoming picnic was canceled as well. I've tried explaining to a number of people that swine flu isn't as dangerous as people think it is because more people die from the regular flu each year, but all I get in return was a bunch of blank stares. I've been tempted every time I've been in an elevator with a bunch of Koreans to start coughing and sneezing and see how they react.

High School Students:
Korean high school students are studying machines. Korean students spend more time studying and going to class than you could ever imagine in order to improve their chances of getting into a good college. Most high school students go to school around 7 or 8 o'clock and don't come home until anywhere from 10pm-1am. My host mom has h.s. students that she tutors come to our apartment at 10:30, who are only just getting out of school. It is absolutely ridiculous. The reason for this is because there are only a few top colleges in the country, and millions of students vying for the same positions. Unlike in America, there are only 3 main top colleges known as SKY (Seoul National University, Korea University, and Yonsei University). During their senior year of high school, Korean high school students take a one-time-only entrance exam that quite possibly determines the rest of their future. The incredible weight this test has on their lives pushes students to make their lives revolve around studying and school work. I could go on and on about this topic, and maybe I will in a later post, but if you're interested check out this link... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_South_Korea . You can also check out this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/world/asia/27seoul.htm?_r=1 . In my teachers class this past week, I had my teachers read and discuss this article and they all said that it perfectly describes their experiences as high school students, particularly the last part that says “This school is a paradise for those who want to study and a hell for those who do not."

sang dang san seong

This afternoon I went hiking with my Cheongju friends Kelly, Kate and Cornelius at the mountain my host family took me to last weekend. This time I was able to bring a camera, and fortunately the weather was absolutely perfect. It felt like fall for the first time and it was beautiful and clear out. The fortress we hiked around is called Sang Dang San Seong and it was built to protect Cheongju from invaders in the last dynasty. All along the fortress are guard towers that are as beautiful as the scenery around the fortress. It was a pretty amazing afternoon.