This was a productive past couple of days.
Sunday was Yeosu's first ever yard sale! At the high point there were about 25 people just chillin outside Joey and Geoff's apartment trading stuff and talking. It was a great way for all of us newbies to meet everyone...even though most of them are leaving in a few months. I met some of the other new people and bought some new things. I walked away from the yard sale with a new little table, a mirror, and a sweet blender. At first I wasn't gonna buy the blender but Jack and everyone convinced me. For 15,000 won it was a great deal. I had a pretty great smoothie for breakfast this morning. I also found coffee milk in the little market across the street. Thats something I never expected to see here.
Last night was an early night. I was too tired from Saturday night's shenanigans at LSG. I didn't even finish my lesson plan. That had to be done today. This week's lesson is a listening exercise. I made a little worksheet with the lyrics from OAR's Shattered. I play the song a few times and the kids have to listen and fill in the blanks. My 7th period class (1st years) wanted to sing the song at the end. It was wicked funny.
For dinner I went to Miss Roll for sushi. They have some pretty good combos, a 5 piece roll with 2 individual sushi pieces, and a big cup udon noodle soup for 6,800 won. About $5.50 USD. Miss Roll is right around the block from my apartment, but instead of going home I decided to walk around Yeosu-dong (my neighborhood) and see what was around. There were some interesting shops and restaurants...some pretty good inexpensive kimbap places. I found the store that Joey was telling me about that sells all sorts of stuff. I bought an electric kettle to boil water with. The stove takes too long and I feel like I'll be paying a lot more for gas than for the electricity. On my way home I found an ajumma's stand on the side of the road. Ajumma is the word for older married woman, but its what you call any woman middle aged and over. They set up shop on the streets and sell some locally grown produce. The price is comparable to what you'd get in the market, but you're helping local farmers. The only problem is that they want you to buy the whole bunch of whatever it is you want. There was a bowl with 3 or 4 bunches of grapes. When I asked how much, she gave me the price for the whole bowl. After some pointing and blank silence we both agreed that I just wanted 1 bunch and I would pay 1,000 won for it. A buck for a bunch of grapes? Sounds like a deal. The grapes here taste more like concord grapes that Welch's bottles. The skins are kind of thick and they have seeds, but they taste wicked good.
Grapes and cornflakes for breakfast tomorrow.
sweet.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
And it starts...
Culture shock is setting in. I've been here for a week and don't get me wrong, I love it here, but the novelty is starting to wear off. There are things from home that I'm starting to miss more and more with each day. The people and the food. I know I'll always miss my friends and family, but it doesn't help that I can't get a cell phone for a week or two. My alien registration card comes in on Thursday. Once I get that I can get a phone...money permitting. Then I'll at least be connected and in the loop with the other people here. Another major thing is the food. As part of my introductory "about me" presentation for my classes, I talked about RI food. The dirty things I'd do for chowder, cakes, and a Del's. I love the spicy rice-y Korean food, but there ain't no cheesesteaks here. On the up side, I think all this healthy Korean food is having positive effects on my love handles.
Enough of the whining. There are a lot of good things I've experienced this week.
First off, the students are hilarious. There are a few of them who can say "Hi, how are you, long time no see" and they think they're such hot shit for it. When I had them ask me questions sure enough the first thing asked was whether or not I had a girlfriend. Some other odd questions were my height and if I had 6 pack abs. At first these questions seemed very intrusive and way too personal. I later learned that Koreans just want to know all the details about you for concern, and to see where you fit into their social hierarchy.
Some of the students are downright punks. I was in the middle of a lesson when I heard a very high pitched sound, bordering on inaudible. Looking up, I paused and asked what that sound was (knowing full well what it was). The students were shocked that I could hear it. They set their ringtones to these absurdly high pitched screeches because the older teachers can't that high of a frequency. What little shits. During my 8th period class, one of my first graders flipped another student off. He was mortified when he noticed I saw that. I was told by the other foreign teachers that they make their bad students do push ups or stand up in front of the class when they're out of line. I know that sounds cruel but its way better than telling the Korean English teachers who carry bamboo sticks around with them.
One thing I'm extremely happy for is that my school is super on top of their game. My co teacher took me to apply for my alien registration card on thursday, which is awesome seeing as how I need it for pretty much everything. They put in for my flight money and 300,000 won signing bonus to be deposited into my bank account. Thats 1,220,352 won! I desparately need that money. I came with 600,000 won but I'm hovering somewhere around 100,000 now. This week has been full of swine flu tests, buying things for my apartment, and going away parties. The money gets deposited on Monday. That should definitely be more than enough to hold me over till payday. Lastly, once my alien card comes in, I can get my health card. Once I have those, I'm officially done with the legality of moving to Korea!
Enough of the whining. There are a lot of good things I've experienced this week.
First off, the students are hilarious. There are a few of them who can say "Hi, how are you, long time no see" and they think they're such hot shit for it. When I had them ask me questions sure enough the first thing asked was whether or not I had a girlfriend. Some other odd questions were my height and if I had 6 pack abs. At first these questions seemed very intrusive and way too personal. I later learned that Koreans just want to know all the details about you for concern, and to see where you fit into their social hierarchy.
Some of the students are downright punks. I was in the middle of a lesson when I heard a very high pitched sound, bordering on inaudible. Looking up, I paused and asked what that sound was (knowing full well what it was). The students were shocked that I could hear it. They set their ringtones to these absurdly high pitched screeches because the older teachers can't that high of a frequency. What little shits. During my 8th period class, one of my first graders flipped another student off. He was mortified when he noticed I saw that. I was told by the other foreign teachers that they make their bad students do push ups or stand up in front of the class when they're out of line. I know that sounds cruel but its way better than telling the Korean English teachers who carry bamboo sticks around with them.
One thing I'm extremely happy for is that my school is super on top of their game. My co teacher took me to apply for my alien registration card on thursday, which is awesome seeing as how I need it for pretty much everything. They put in for my flight money and 300,000 won signing bonus to be deposited into my bank account. Thats 1,220,352 won! I desparately need that money. I came with 600,000 won but I'm hovering somewhere around 100,000 now. This week has been full of swine flu tests, buying things for my apartment, and going away parties. The money gets deposited on Monday. That should definitely be more than enough to hold me over till payday. Lastly, once my alien card comes in, I can get my health card. Once I have those, I'm officially done with the legality of moving to Korea!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Did I really just eat that?
Yep...I did. Good thing smothering anything in red bean paste and wrapping it in lettuce can cover the gruesome truth. Before I get into the gory details (and yes I do mean gory) lets get some background information straight. As you can tell from my last post, when I eat food, TEXTURE MATTERS, and nothing makes me want to bow down to the porcelain goddess more than the feeling of chewing fat. I used to sit at the kitchen table for hours because I wouldn't even touch the food on my plate that had a little bit of fat or gristle on it. As I said before: boneless, skinnless, trimmed...they don't exist here. People eat it all and they like it.
Today I went out to dinner with all the Korean English teachers because one of them is going to a 4 month conference. The dinner menu? Samgyeopsal. Samgyeopsal literally translates to three layered meat. This is because you're basically eating uncured bacon. Just a big slab of pork belly, mostly fat, a grill, and a lettuce leaf to wrap it in. Tastes delicious with all the sauce and stuff you put on it, but at the end of the day you're still eating a hunk of pork fat. Served as side dishes were galbi, a Korean short rib complete with bones and fat, some raw sea creature that tasted a whole lot like iodine and had the texture of an overcooked clam, and strips of raw marinated beef. The raw beef was definitely the saving grace of this meal. Oh, and one more tasty treat went along with this. A piping hot soup. What was in this mystery cauldron? CHUNKS OF CONGEALED COW'S BLOOD. Really? Yup, really. Cow's blood. Oh and did I mention that its seen as being incredibly rude if you refuse a dish or piece of food that your dinner friends put on your plate or ask you to please try? Yeah, no way out of eating cow's blood. To top it all off, half of the teachers were male, so soju was definitely involved. Try washing your pork fat, mystery clam, and beef blood with a nice cup of straight up plain Burnett's vodka. I better get a pat on the back from Anthony Bourdain.
I'd say that other than what I just mentioned the rest of the dinner was good. Soybean soup, a really spicy salad, pumpkin, and 6 different kinds of kimchi. I just can't get over the texture.
School today was great. These kids are learning the Rhode Island version of English and American culture. The lesson plan today? Wicked. I worked in a slide to my powerpoint presentation about the proper way to say wicked. My favorite part had to be when I was asking my second graders (8th grade) if they knew the names of any US states. One of them shouted out "New Jersey". Without even noticing I made a face of disgust and said in a tone of disbelief "you really know about New Jersey?". The whole class started laughing hysterically and I had to tell them exacly why New Jersey is so dirty.
Today I went out to dinner with all the Korean English teachers because one of them is going to a 4 month conference. The dinner menu? Samgyeopsal. Samgyeopsal literally translates to three layered meat. This is because you're basically eating uncured bacon. Just a big slab of pork belly, mostly fat, a grill, and a lettuce leaf to wrap it in. Tastes delicious with all the sauce and stuff you put on it, but at the end of the day you're still eating a hunk of pork fat. Served as side dishes were galbi, a Korean short rib complete with bones and fat, some raw sea creature that tasted a whole lot like iodine and had the texture of an overcooked clam, and strips of raw marinated beef. The raw beef was definitely the saving grace of this meal. Oh, and one more tasty treat went along with this. A piping hot soup. What was in this mystery cauldron? CHUNKS OF CONGEALED COW'S BLOOD. Really? Yup, really. Cow's blood. Oh and did I mention that its seen as being incredibly rude if you refuse a dish or piece of food that your dinner friends put on your plate or ask you to please try? Yeah, no way out of eating cow's blood. To top it all off, half of the teachers were male, so soju was definitely involved. Try washing your pork fat, mystery clam, and beef blood with a nice cup of straight up plain Burnett's vodka. I better get a pat on the back from Anthony Bourdain.
I'd say that other than what I just mentioned the rest of the dinner was good. Soybean soup, a really spicy salad, pumpkin, and 6 different kinds of kimchi. I just can't get over the texture.
School today was great. These kids are learning the Rhode Island version of English and American culture. The lesson plan today? Wicked. I worked in a slide to my powerpoint presentation about the proper way to say wicked. My favorite part had to be when I was asking my second graders (8th grade) if they knew the names of any US states. One of them shouted out "New Jersey". Without even noticing I made a face of disgust and said in a tone of disbelief "you really know about New Jersey?". The whole class started laughing hysterically and I had to tell them exacly why New Jersey is so dirty.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
No rest for the weary.
Ever since I met the other teachers here, I've been going more or less nonstop. We're in the middle of a big turnover time so there are a lot of teachers leaving. That really sucks. A lot of the wicked cool people I met here have less than a month left. Tonight was Carlos' last night. A bunch of us went to dinner at Chicken Palace for his farewell meal. I can't even wrap my head around being here for 3 years, traveling all across Asia, and then having to go home. At least there will be a steady stream of new people, so there is a good side to people leaving. After dinner we went to the Mini Stop for drinks. Its a strange but wonderful thing how you can just pull tables out of the Mini Stop and have a drink on the sidewalk. I think one of my students was the cashier that sold me my beer. Oops.
On a lighter note, the food was great. We had chicken that they bbq right at the table for you with a bunch of veggies in a sweet and spicy sauce. You eat it rolled up in a lettuce leaf, and of course there are a ton of little side dishes. As much as I love the flavors of Korean cuisine, I'm not used to the cuts of meat. Its no boneless skinless neatly trimmed chicken breasts like back home. The meat here is more...rustic. The flavor is some of the best I've had, but the texture...thats a different story. I was always the kid who needed to trim every morsel of fat off of every piece of meat. Eating strangely chopped chicken bits still on the bones with skin and cartilage is a little out of my comfort zone. Whatever the meals lack in texture appeal for me they make up ten fold in flavor.
School today was better than yesterday. I started my 8th period class which runs from 4:15-5pm. I was told that I can just do the same lesson that I give during the day to the class, but I don't want to teach the kids the same thing twice. Their english may be poor but they're not stupid. Only two more days of my "I'm from Rhode Island, we drink coffee milk, I like to go swimming at the beach" presentation. Then I can get into real teaching. I think thats why I liked 8th period so much. I got to actually teach. We did an exercise about when two things have something in common. At first the kids looked at me like I was crazy but the quickly got the hang of it. My period 8 class is a lot smaller than my normal classes which is nice. About 24 as opposed to 35.
Tomorrow during my breaks Mrs. Lee and I have to go to the hospital to get my health check form and then to the Immigration Office to get my alien registration card. Finally haha. Then I won't have to carry my passport around with me everywhere. One of the Korean English teachers is leaving to go to some 6 month training workshop so tomorrow all of the teachers are getting together for dinner. From what Carlos, Brad, and everyone else told me, one thing is for certain. Many shots of soju with the male teachers. I don't even know how I'm going to survive. Its not polite to refuse a drink when a superior offers. Even if you are already too drunk. Maybe I'll just blame jet lag. After all, all the teachers keep saying I look tired...but they think its because I have swine flu.
I do Not have swine flu and I have 3 medical tests to back it up.
On a lighter note, the food was great. We had chicken that they bbq right at the table for you with a bunch of veggies in a sweet and spicy sauce. You eat it rolled up in a lettuce leaf, and of course there are a ton of little side dishes. As much as I love the flavors of Korean cuisine, I'm not used to the cuts of meat. Its no boneless skinless neatly trimmed chicken breasts like back home. The meat here is more...rustic. The flavor is some of the best I've had, but the texture...thats a different story. I was always the kid who needed to trim every morsel of fat off of every piece of meat. Eating strangely chopped chicken bits still on the bones with skin and cartilage is a little out of my comfort zone. Whatever the meals lack in texture appeal for me they make up ten fold in flavor.
School today was better than yesterday. I started my 8th period class which runs from 4:15-5pm. I was told that I can just do the same lesson that I give during the day to the class, but I don't want to teach the kids the same thing twice. Their english may be poor but they're not stupid. Only two more days of my "I'm from Rhode Island, we drink coffee milk, I like to go swimming at the beach" presentation. Then I can get into real teaching. I think thats why I liked 8th period so much. I got to actually teach. We did an exercise about when two things have something in common. At first the kids looked at me like I was crazy but the quickly got the hang of it. My period 8 class is a lot smaller than my normal classes which is nice. About 24 as opposed to 35.
Tomorrow during my breaks Mrs. Lee and I have to go to the hospital to get my health check form and then to the Immigration Office to get my alien registration card. Finally haha. Then I won't have to carry my passport around with me everywhere. One of the Korean English teachers is leaving to go to some 6 month training workshop so tomorrow all of the teachers are getting together for dinner. From what Carlos, Brad, and everyone else told me, one thing is for certain. Many shots of soju with the male teachers. I don't even know how I'm going to survive. Its not polite to refuse a drink when a superior offers. Even if you are already too drunk. Maybe I'll just blame jet lag. After all, all the teachers keep saying I look tired...but they think its because I have swine flu.
I do Not have swine flu and I have 3 medical tests to back it up.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Day 1:
Success.
My first day of teaching went well. Aside from being wicked tired because I kept waking up last night, today was fine. I caught a cab with Adam to work. The drive to shinae (downtown) was pretty nice. Jonggo middle school is at the top of a huge steep hill that overlooks the whole downtown area. At the bottom of the hill is the Jinnamgwan, the largest wooden structure in Korea. The Jinnamgwan was the headquarters of Admiral Yi Sun-sin who was integral in fighting off the Japanese between 1592-1598. Yi's success was largely due to his invention of the Geobukseon or turtle ship. These ships were heavily fortified and had a completely covered deck to deflect cannon fire and they had iron spikes to prevent enemy boarding. Even the name of my school is historically signifigant. Jonggo means drum ringer or bell ringer. The hill is called Jonggo because during the attempted Japanese invasions alarms were sounded on the mountain to alert the people of Yeosu. I think its awesome that I work in a place that has so much history right there.
Class is 45 minutes long and a lot of that time is taken up by how slow I have to talk so that the students can understand me. Today I basically just made a powerpoint presentation about myself and where I'm from. When I asked about lesson plans I was told to just use the same lesson for every class that week. Regardless of the grade level. That sounds easy enough. I have 4 classes per day and the rest is free time aka facebook and internet time. Some of the other teachers told me to pick a hobby or two so I don't die of boredom. I met my principal and vice principal who said I made a very good impression. Whenever I was introduced to someone I just said manaso pangapsumnida (nice to meet you) and they ate it up. A little Korean goes a long way.
The school lunches are also phenomenal. We had bi bim bap with soup and kimchi. Then yogurt and kiwi for dessert. Really good and really healthy. I could definitely get used to Korean food.
After work Mrs. Lee took me to get my physical examination and to get my pictures taken. On thursday after lunch (we both have two periods free) we're going to pick up the test results so that after school we can get my alien registration card. Once I have that I can get a phone and my health card. I can't wait to get a phone so I can have a little more of a social life and be a little more in the loop.
My first day of teaching went well. Aside from being wicked tired because I kept waking up last night, today was fine. I caught a cab with Adam to work. The drive to shinae (downtown) was pretty nice. Jonggo middle school is at the top of a huge steep hill that overlooks the whole downtown area. At the bottom of the hill is the Jinnamgwan, the largest wooden structure in Korea. The Jinnamgwan was the headquarters of Admiral Yi Sun-sin who was integral in fighting off the Japanese between 1592-1598. Yi's success was largely due to his invention of the Geobukseon or turtle ship. These ships were heavily fortified and had a completely covered deck to deflect cannon fire and they had iron spikes to prevent enemy boarding. Even the name of my school is historically signifigant. Jonggo means drum ringer or bell ringer. The hill is called Jonggo because during the attempted Japanese invasions alarms were sounded on the mountain to alert the people of Yeosu. I think its awesome that I work in a place that has so much history right there.
Class is 45 minutes long and a lot of that time is taken up by how slow I have to talk so that the students can understand me. Today I basically just made a powerpoint presentation about myself and where I'm from. When I asked about lesson plans I was told to just use the same lesson for every class that week. Regardless of the grade level. That sounds easy enough. I have 4 classes per day and the rest is free time aka facebook and internet time. Some of the other teachers told me to pick a hobby or two so I don't die of boredom. I met my principal and vice principal who said I made a very good impression. Whenever I was introduced to someone I just said manaso pangapsumnida (nice to meet you) and they ate it up. A little Korean goes a long way.
The school lunches are also phenomenal. We had bi bim bap with soup and kimchi. Then yogurt and kiwi for dessert. Really good and really healthy. I could definitely get used to Korean food.
After work Mrs. Lee took me to get my physical examination and to get my pictures taken. On thursday after lunch (we both have two periods free) we're going to pick up the test results so that after school we can get my alien registration card. Once I have that I can get a phone and my health card. I can't wait to get a phone so I can have a little more of a social life and be a little more in the loop.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Cured!
Except I was never sick in the first place.
Koreans have it in their heads that since I'm American, I MUST have swine flu. That's basic Klogic for you. Korean logic. Another example, Kimchi every day will keep you from ever getting sick. Anything that makes absolutely no sense to a westerner but somehow is justified to a Korean is Klogic.
Today was a great day. I got lunch with a teacher Terry who has been here for about 8 months. We had mandu (more on that later) and some soup stuff. We then went to Dolasn-do to look around. I took a bunch of pictures of the bridge and coastline because...well...I think they're beautifu.
When I got back to my apartment my co-teacher picked me up for my health exam. Part 2. I paid 29,000 won (a little less than $24 USD) to have my throat swabbed. All in the name of swine flu. They also told me that it was possible for me to have the H1N1 flu but be asymptomatic. I'M HEALTHY. JUST ACCEPT IT. Apparantly I need to take another medical exam to get my alien registration card. Whatever. Just get it done. Without that card I can't get a cell phone or my health card.
Dinner tonight was mandu with Carlos and Brad. Mandu is the new love of my life. small meat and vegetable filled dumplings steamed or fried. Dipped in soy sauce and served with yellow pickled raddish. I could eat a million at a time. I went out with some other people to Fish and Grill to get soju drinks. They were sugary concotions of fruit and the lethal soju. Equivalent to sangria night but not as strong. We ordered them with an extra bottle of soju to fortify them with.
I left a little early so I could finish making a powerpoint about myself for school tomorrow. I'm finally off quarantine and can teach. I'm pretty nervous about how this whole ordeal is gonna go, but i'm more excited than anything. From what I hear the schools are a lot more laid back and as long as you put in a little effort you should be fine.
Time for bed, its a school night.
Koreans have it in their heads that since I'm American, I MUST have swine flu. That's basic Klogic for you. Korean logic. Another example, Kimchi every day will keep you from ever getting sick. Anything that makes absolutely no sense to a westerner but somehow is justified to a Korean is Klogic.
Today was a great day. I got lunch with a teacher Terry who has been here for about 8 months. We had mandu (more on that later) and some soup stuff. We then went to Dolasn-do to look around. I took a bunch of pictures of the bridge and coastline because...well...I think they're beautifu.
When I got back to my apartment my co-teacher picked me up for my health exam. Part 2. I paid 29,000 won (a little less than $24 USD) to have my throat swabbed. All in the name of swine flu. They also told me that it was possible for me to have the H1N1 flu but be asymptomatic. I'M HEALTHY. JUST ACCEPT IT. Apparantly I need to take another medical exam to get my alien registration card. Whatever. Just get it done. Without that card I can't get a cell phone or my health card.
Dinner tonight was mandu with Carlos and Brad. Mandu is the new love of my life. small meat and vegetable filled dumplings steamed or fried. Dipped in soy sauce and served with yellow pickled raddish. I could eat a million at a time. I went out with some other people to Fish and Grill to get soju drinks. They were sugary concotions of fruit and the lethal soju. Equivalent to sangria night but not as strong. We ordered them with an extra bottle of soju to fortify them with.
I left a little early so I could finish making a powerpoint about myself for school tomorrow. I'm finally off quarantine and can teach. I'm pretty nervous about how this whole ordeal is gonna go, but i'm more excited than anything. From what I hear the schools are a lot more laid back and as long as you put in a little effort you should be fine.
Time for bed, its a school night.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Dear soju,
We are going to be very good friends.
Any drink that comes in a .5L bottle for just over a dollar US is bad news.
The internet is finally on at my apartment, i just had to find the password. Luckily Brad, teacher lives in the apartment above mine and can read/speak Korean so he helped me. I'm going to miss the PC-bang tho. It was a nice place and the kid working there was very friendly. As soon as I was seated at my computer he'd offer me a drink. Koreans are very hospitable.
Adam, the teacher at the high school connected to my middle school was gonna show me around and get some lunch...but I got lost. We were supposed to meet at baskin robbins and go from there, but my taxi driver took me to the one in Yeochon instead of Yeosu. They're about 5 minutes apart. This was a good opportunity, however, to get comfortable with the taxi scene here. After my second ride I feel a lot more comfortable calling a cab.
Later on came the beach with all the other foreigners. It was pretty fun. Your basic beers and sand. Although here you can get liters of beer.
For dinner a bunch of us got smoked duck and ate it on the rooftop of someone's apartment. Probably one of the best meals I've ever had. You take a big lettuce leaf, put some scallions on it, dip some duck in mustard and chili sauce, put that on the lettuce, roll it up and cram it in your mouth. Delicious. Plus sitting on mats on a rooftop chilling and drinking with people, listening to their Korea stories made it better. Everyone travels so much here. Brad was saying how he never really wanted to be a teacher and that he still doesn't like it all that much, but coming here is a great way to see the rest of the world. Thats what I'm most excited about too.
After dinner we went to Elle Lui which is a foreigner bar in Yeochon. Thats where my night gets hazy. Tequila shots and soju. Bad life choices. After the bar, we went to noraebang aka karaoke. Noraebang here is some serious business. Great times had by all. Norae means karaoke and bang is room. Its basically a small room with a big tv, some mics and some tamberines. It was intense.
Today was rough. I woke up next to a bottle of pocari sweat and a map of Yeosu. Don't really know. My power converters broke so I had to venture to E-Mart to get new ones so I can plug in my computer. E-Mart is a great place. Its a 4 story super Walmart basically. I got some quality glass mugs with animals on them. They say "Hello I'm Cattle" and "Hello I'm Horse" with pictures of the respective animals.
All of the food is nuts there too. Lots of bight flashy packages. I was able to find some M&Ms as well as other western food, but they're pretty expensive. Its still weird to me that I can walk around the store and get stared at for being white. I also like the fact that I can walk around saying whatever I want because nobody can understand me.
I don't know whats up for later but I definitely need a nap now.
Any drink that comes in a .5L bottle for just over a dollar US is bad news.
The internet is finally on at my apartment, i just had to find the password. Luckily Brad, teacher lives in the apartment above mine and can read/speak Korean so he helped me. I'm going to miss the PC-bang tho. It was a nice place and the kid working there was very friendly. As soon as I was seated at my computer he'd offer me a drink. Koreans are very hospitable.
Adam, the teacher at the high school connected to my middle school was gonna show me around and get some lunch...but I got lost. We were supposed to meet at baskin robbins and go from there, but my taxi driver took me to the one in Yeochon instead of Yeosu. They're about 5 minutes apart. This was a good opportunity, however, to get comfortable with the taxi scene here. After my second ride I feel a lot more comfortable calling a cab.
Later on came the beach with all the other foreigners. It was pretty fun. Your basic beers and sand. Although here you can get liters of beer.
For dinner a bunch of us got smoked duck and ate it on the rooftop of someone's apartment. Probably one of the best meals I've ever had. You take a big lettuce leaf, put some scallions on it, dip some duck in mustard and chili sauce, put that on the lettuce, roll it up and cram it in your mouth. Delicious. Plus sitting on mats on a rooftop chilling and drinking with people, listening to their Korea stories made it better. Everyone travels so much here. Brad was saying how he never really wanted to be a teacher and that he still doesn't like it all that much, but coming here is a great way to see the rest of the world. Thats what I'm most excited about too.
After dinner we went to Elle Lui which is a foreigner bar in Yeochon. Thats where my night gets hazy. Tequila shots and soju. Bad life choices. After the bar, we went to noraebang aka karaoke. Noraebang here is some serious business. Great times had by all. Norae means karaoke and bang is room. Its basically a small room with a big tv, some mics and some tamberines. It was intense.
Today was rough. I woke up next to a bottle of pocari sweat and a map of Yeosu. Don't really know. My power converters broke so I had to venture to E-Mart to get new ones so I can plug in my computer. E-Mart is a great place. Its a 4 story super Walmart basically. I got some quality glass mugs with animals on them. They say "Hello I'm Cattle" and "Hello I'm Horse" with pictures of the respective animals.
All of the food is nuts there too. Lots of bight flashy packages. I was able to find some M&Ms as well as other western food, but they're pretty expensive. Its still weird to me that I can walk around the store and get stared at for being white. I also like the fact that I can walk around saying whatever I want because nobody can understand me.I don't know whats up for later but I definitely need a nap now.
Friday, August 21, 2009
kamsa hamnida
I don't think I've ever been this tired. the 12 hr flight to Incheon was killer. The food however was bomb. Bi-Bim-Bap for dinner. Basically veggies that you mix in with some rice and add chili paste to taste. And breakfast (served at 2am...thanks asiana airlines) was rice and kimchi.
Enough about airline food.
I'M HERE!!!!!
This is awesome. I'm in a city where 90% of the people don't speak any english whatsoever and I am part of a 200 person minority. My only means of communication are pointing, hand gestures and body language. Just figuring out how to get on this computer at the PC-bang (internet cafe) was an ordeal. I have such a respect for bilingual people.
I feel like I haven't been here long enough for culture shock, although I am going through "Holy shit I can't read any of these signs or order food for myself" shock as well as "people stare at me as I walk down the street" shock. To be honest, I think I'm just too tired for culture shock right now. I got minimal sleep on my red eye to Incheon. What sleep I did get didn't last long and wasn't very restful. You can only sleep so well sitting in a coach airplane seat. I would love nothing more to pass out in my sauna of an apartment (its about 300 degrees with 9,000% humidity) but I want to try to suck it up so that I can at least try to get on a normal sleep cycle. Its 5:22 here now, 4:22am this morning back home.
Korea is like nothing I've ever experienced before. Yeosu is a city built on mountains and hills that overlook the water. My co-teacher brought me to the school today and showed me the view of the Dolsan Bridge. I almost peed. Then we did the tour de Yeosu. We went EVERYWHERE. I opened a bank account, went to E-mart to do grocery shopping, went to smart step to get slippers for school, went to the doctor to get certified that I don't have swine flu, and then lunch.
Lunch.
lunch consisted of tempura shrimp and sushi. With All the fixins. Kimchi, white kimchi, raddishes, seasoned raddishes, little onion things, soy beans (edamame style), miso soup (although not called miso soup), and kimbap aka rice wrapped with seaweed. On top of that, it came with about 20 pieces of sushi. I was in heaven. Sitting on the floor eating sushi with metal chopsticks.
After that I went back to my apartment to unpack. I have a pretty sick little place. HUGE TV, AC, deck thing where I do my laundry, kitchen. its real nice. I decided that I was dying of thirst so i went to the mini-stop on the corner to get a drink. Oh did I mention, they have an awesome booze selection at mini-stop. And if I don't care for that then I can just go to the bar that is RIGHT NEXT DOOR TO MY APARTMENT. Hell yes. No booz for jet lag tho. I got some electrolyte drink called Capari Sweat....or something like that. There is definitely sweat in the name.
I can't get my internet to work so I had to search my neighborhood for a PC-bang. This place is real intense. Korean gaming kids EVERYWHERE. I guess its a pay by the minute thing. After it took about 10 minutes for the guy that works here and I to understand what we were trying to convey...it was pretty easy. I get a card and put in the password on the card. The computer keeps track and I get charged when I leave. I'm pretty much in the middle of a Korean techno rave. All I can hear are the sounds of video games, techno, and all i can see are the blacklights and flashing lights.
Alright, time to mozy back to my apartment and rehydrate before I pass out.
Enough about airline food.
I'M HERE!!!!!
This is awesome. I'm in a city where 90% of the people don't speak any english whatsoever and I am part of a 200 person minority. My only means of communication are pointing, hand gestures and body language. Just figuring out how to get on this computer at the PC-bang (internet cafe) was an ordeal. I have such a respect for bilingual people.
I feel like I haven't been here long enough for culture shock, although I am going through "Holy shit I can't read any of these signs or order food for myself" shock as well as "people stare at me as I walk down the street" shock. To be honest, I think I'm just too tired for culture shock right now. I got minimal sleep on my red eye to Incheon. What sleep I did get didn't last long and wasn't very restful. You can only sleep so well sitting in a coach airplane seat. I would love nothing more to pass out in my sauna of an apartment (its about 300 degrees with 9,000% humidity) but I want to try to suck it up so that I can at least try to get on a normal sleep cycle. Its 5:22 here now, 4:22am this morning back home.
Korea is like nothing I've ever experienced before. Yeosu is a city built on mountains and hills that overlook the water. My co-teacher brought me to the school today and showed me the view of the Dolsan Bridge. I almost peed. Then we did the tour de Yeosu. We went EVERYWHERE. I opened a bank account, went to E-mart to do grocery shopping, went to smart step to get slippers for school, went to the doctor to get certified that I don't have swine flu, and then lunch.
Lunch.
lunch consisted of tempura shrimp and sushi. With All the fixins. Kimchi, white kimchi, raddishes, seasoned raddishes, little onion things, soy beans (edamame style), miso soup (although not called miso soup), and kimbap aka rice wrapped with seaweed. On top of that, it came with about 20 pieces of sushi. I was in heaven. Sitting on the floor eating sushi with metal chopsticks.
After that I went back to my apartment to unpack. I have a pretty sick little place. HUGE TV, AC, deck thing where I do my laundry, kitchen. its real nice. I decided that I was dying of thirst so i went to the mini-stop on the corner to get a drink. Oh did I mention, they have an awesome booze selection at mini-stop. And if I don't care for that then I can just go to the bar that is RIGHT NEXT DOOR TO MY APARTMENT. Hell yes. No booz for jet lag tho. I got some electrolyte drink called Capari Sweat....or something like that. There is definitely sweat in the name.
I can't get my internet to work so I had to search my neighborhood for a PC-bang. This place is real intense. Korean gaming kids EVERYWHERE. I guess its a pay by the minute thing. After it took about 10 minutes for the guy that works here and I to understand what we were trying to convey...it was pretty easy. I get a card and put in the password on the card. The computer keeps track and I get charged when I leave. I'm pretty much in the middle of a Korean techno rave. All I can hear are the sounds of video games, techno, and all i can see are the blacklights and flashing lights.
Alright, time to mozy back to my apartment and rehydrate before I pass out.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
ready for takeoff.
Its go time.
For real.
I'm all packed and ready to go. We're probably going to leave for Boston within the next half hour. This is insane. Goodbye USA. The next day or so will consist of this:
Oh, and I think my bags are overweight. Hello heavy baggage fee.
Next post...from Korea
Unless I find wireless in LA
For real.
I'm all packed and ready to go. We're probably going to leave for Boston within the next half hour. This is insane. Goodbye USA. The next day or so will consist of this:
- Going to Newton to pick up my visa
- Be at Logan Airport by 4
- Takeoff at 6 for LAX
- Land in LA at 9:35 (12:35am eastern time)
- Take off at 12:20 (3:20am) for Incheon
- Land in Incheon at 5am on Friday, August 21st.
- Get driven to Kimpo Airport
- Fly to Yeosu
- Start my new life.
Oh, and I think my bags are overweight. Hello heavy baggage fee.
Next post...from Korea
Unless I find wireless in LA
Monday, August 17, 2009
its been a while
Long time, no post.
I've been wicked busy with my final preparations because I LEAVE IN 2 DAYS!!!
I think I'm actually in pretty good shape to leave. While my stuff isn't packed, I do have luggage and the things I want to bring are all together in one area of my room. Tomorrow I'm going to Syms to pick up my suit, and on the way I think I'll stop at the mall and pick up a few last minute things. But other than that, I'm all set.
Finally an end to the visa saga. At about 11:30 I'm going up to the Korean consulate to get this taken care of once and for all. My appointment is at 2pm, but they want me there a half hour earlier. Fine by me. Everything is ready, all my documents, transcripts...etc. This should be pretty easy. I just want this whole ordeal to be over with.
I've been wicked busy with my final preparations because I LEAVE IN 2 DAYS!!!
I think I'm actually in pretty good shape to leave. While my stuff isn't packed, I do have luggage and the things I want to bring are all together in one area of my room. Tomorrow I'm going to Syms to pick up my suit, and on the way I think I'll stop at the mall and pick up a few last minute things. But other than that, I'm all set.
Finally an end to the visa saga. At about 11:30 I'm going up to the Korean consulate to get this taken care of once and for all. My appointment is at 2pm, but they want me there a half hour earlier. Fine by me. Everything is ready, all my documents, transcripts...etc. This should be pretty easy. I just want this whole ordeal to be over with.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
cutting it close.
It wouldn't be me if I wasn't cutting it close.
I was all set to go to the Korean Consulate today. I even got up early so I could afford myself time to be late. Nobody informed me that I needed an appointment. When I called, they informed me that the earliest they could fit me in was on the 17th. That's 2 days before I leave. Whats worse is that they want me to pick up my visa on the 19th. At 4pm. I need to be at the airport at 4pm. Looks like I'm going to have to beg and plead for them to let me pick it up earlier that day. Whatever, this whole process has been relatively easy so I'm ok with this taking a little longer.
More news about my apartment! The furnishings sound alright, twin bed (good thing I was an RA), coffee table, desk, nightstand...etc. But apparantly the TV is real decent and the best part of the apartment. Sounds good to me....what do I even watch on Korean TV anyways? They better have food network.
I was also informed that there will be 2 ragers the weekend that I get to Yeosu. Way to start things off right. Hopefully jet lag doesn't get the best of me. I was also informed that the parties there don't start till around midnight and usually go till 6am.
I think I'll be just fine.
I was all set to go to the Korean Consulate today. I even got up early so I could afford myself time to be late. Nobody informed me that I needed an appointment. When I called, they informed me that the earliest they could fit me in was on the 17th. That's 2 days before I leave. Whats worse is that they want me to pick up my visa on the 19th. At 4pm. I need to be at the airport at 4pm. Looks like I'm going to have to beg and plead for them to let me pick it up earlier that day. Whatever, this whole process has been relatively easy so I'm ok with this taking a little longer.
More news about my apartment! The furnishings sound alright, twin bed (good thing I was an RA), coffee table, desk, nightstand...etc. But apparantly the TV is real decent and the best part of the apartment. Sounds good to me....what do I even watch on Korean TV anyways? They better have food network.
I was also informed that there will be 2 ragers the weekend that I get to Yeosu. Way to start things off right. Hopefully jet lag doesn't get the best of me. I was also informed that the parties there don't start till around midnight and usually go till 6am.
I think I'll be just fine.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Leave it to Rhode Island
to be the only state in the country to celebrate VJ day. Excuse me, that's not politically correct anymore...Victory Day. I need to get another copy of my official transcript but Green Hall is closed due to...yup, Victory Day. FML.
I'm really going to be getting down to the wire here. It takes up to 5 days to get the visa processed. If I go tomorrow, 5 business days would bring me to next Tuesday. The day before I leave. Great. Hopefully the consulate brings their A game and gets this done quick.
In other news, I LEAVE IN 9 DAYS! I can't even believe it. This is so unreal. Not to mention that I have a ton of stuff to do. Well not really, I just have to pack. I also need to go to the doctor's and get a new epi-pen. That would be a real drag if in Korea I end up needing one and mine is expired.
The teacher that I'm taking over for messaged me back with some more info about the school and apartment.
"the apt is a bachelor, nice small but big enough to be comfortable.. it is located ina great area, only blocks away from everything ull ever need, although it is far from the school, but there is a bus stop right outside that takes u to school... and if not u can buy a scooter very cheap
the school is on the side of a mountain, beautiful views all around it.. u walk down the mountain from the school two minutes and ur in the main downtown area of the city..."
Sounds awesome. I can't wait.
I'm really going to be getting down to the wire here. It takes up to 5 days to get the visa processed. If I go tomorrow, 5 business days would bring me to next Tuesday. The day before I leave. Great. Hopefully the consulate brings their A game and gets this done quick.
In other news, I LEAVE IN 9 DAYS! I can't even believe it. This is so unreal. Not to mention that I have a ton of stuff to do. Well not really, I just have to pack. I also need to go to the doctor's and get a new epi-pen. That would be a real drag if in Korea I end up needing one and mine is expired.
The teacher that I'm taking over for messaged me back with some more info about the school and apartment.
"the apt is a bachelor, nice small but big enough to be comfortable.. it is located ina great area, only blocks away from everything ull ever need, although it is far from the school, but there is a bus stop right outside that takes u to school... and if not u can buy a scooter very cheap
the school is on the side of a mountain, beautiful views all around it.. u walk down the mountain from the school two minutes and ur in the main downtown area of the city..."
Sounds awesome. I can't wait.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Its about time.
My visa number FINALLY came. So I guess that means that I'll be going to Boston on Monday. I have to email Carrie before I go to make sure I have everything in order. I need to bring copies of my BCI check and my degree....and copies of the apostilles. I made copies but they're pretty terrible, and the copy of my degree is only half of the document (it was too big to copy the whole thing). At least the notary stamp is visible. I hope that passes. I don't want to have to go through the whole notarization and apostille process again.
Other than that I have less than two weeks until departure! 12 days to be exact, and still so much to do. I need to get some luggage, teaching clothes, and just a whole ton of stuff in general. Not to mention the fact that I need to pack a years worth of clothes into two suitcases. This includes my winter jacket and things to put in my apartment. I'm screwed.
This also marks the start of cram time for learning Korean. I have a lot of work to do!
Other than that I have less than two weeks until departure! 12 days to be exact, and still so much to do. I need to get some luggage, teaching clothes, and just a whole ton of stuff in general. Not to mention the fact that I need to pack a years worth of clothes into two suitcases. This includes my winter jacket and things to put in my apartment. I'm screwed.
This also marks the start of cram time for learning Korean. I have a lot of work to do!
Monday, August 3, 2009
Mr. Sammarco and Ms. Lee
Taking middle school English by storm.
I got an email from my Korean co-teacher, Ms. Lee. Perfect timing too. I was thinking of getting the school's email address from their website (its one of the few things actually in English) and emailing them, but Ms. Lee beat me to it. She seems really nice...from the email at least, and envious of my chance to go abroad.
That got me thinking. I am really lucky to be doing this, and I'm very thankful for the opportunity I have. Not many people can decide to up and move across the world to a strange land where the culture and language are so different. I'm a lot more scared about moving than I let on, but I also see the adventure in it, which far outweighs the fear.
Anyways...my co-teacher told me that I'd be living in the apartment that my predecessor currently lives in. She said that as far as apartments go it is a little better than the rest. The only downfall is that it isn't located within walking distance of my school. Its about a 10 minute drive. Good thing I got my International Driving Permit! The high school English teacher said he lives near where I'll be living and that he usually just takes a taxi. He also said that he'd be willing to share a cab.
As for my visa, my co-teacher said she submitted my documents on Thursday and that they should be back within a week. I hope it comes sooner rather than later.
I got an email from my Korean co-teacher, Ms. Lee. Perfect timing too. I was thinking of getting the school's email address from their website (its one of the few things actually in English) and emailing them, but Ms. Lee beat me to it. She seems really nice...from the email at least, and envious of my chance to go abroad.
That got me thinking. I am really lucky to be doing this, and I'm very thankful for the opportunity I have. Not many people can decide to up and move across the world to a strange land where the culture and language are so different. I'm a lot more scared about moving than I let on, but I also see the adventure in it, which far outweighs the fear.
Anyways...my co-teacher told me that I'd be living in the apartment that my predecessor currently lives in. She said that as far as apartments go it is a little better than the rest. The only downfall is that it isn't located within walking distance of my school. Its about a 10 minute drive. Good thing I got my International Driving Permit! The high school English teacher said he lives near where I'll be living and that he usually just takes a taxi. He also said that he'd be willing to share a cab.
As for my visa, my co-teacher said she submitted my documents on Thursday and that they should be back within a week. I hope it comes sooner rather than later.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
dear visa number...
Where are you?
I have less than 20 days until take off and still no visa number. I'd better get it soon. From what I understand, if you have problems getting your visa stuff you can go to Japan to get it taken care of there. I'm not sure about this one. Half of me thinks it would be great to spend a day or two in Japan taking care of it, but the other (smarter) half thinks it would be better to just do it here hassle free. I only have 12 business days to get this done. Factor in work, moving, taking care of other things.....so little time!
Today I went to AAA to get my International Driving Permit. I don't really plan on driving that much (if at all) while in Korea, but it was suggested I get the permit just so I have an extra form of ID. It would be cool to get a little motorbike or something to ride.
I got another facebook message from a Yeosu teacher today! Apparently my middle school is connected and jointly run with a high school. The high school teacher messaged me saying "werd up". I like that these people are going out of their way to help me out.
Here is where I'm getting WAY ahead of myself. I have an insatiable urge to travel the world...even before traveling for the first time. I'm already looking into going to Thailand and Cambodia for a week when I have school vacation. Angkor Wat is pretty much on the top of my list of things to see while in Asia. I also read an article about why you should to your TEFL training in Thailand. Its the cheapest place in Asia to take a reputable course. What's better is that the tropical paradise of Phuket (pronounced Poo-ket with the P having undertones of B, not Ph as an F) has THE cheapest TEFL program. While a TEFL certification won't make me much more money in the short term, it will open up the opportunity to take better jobs in more exotic places, if I decide I like the teaching English gig. Exotic places brings me to my next life goal: living on every continent (except Antarctica). With a TEFL this is pretty conceivable. North America is a given, Asia is taken care of, for Europe I'd like to teach in Italy or Greece. For Africa I'd go to Morocco or Egypt, and for South America I'd try for either Peru or Brazil. Australia/New Zealand would be a little tougher seeing as how they speak English. I guess for there I'd try to get a year long job on a vineyard or farm or something.
When I think about all the places I'd want to go I find myself thinking about the ancient wonders in the area. Machu Picchu in Peru, Ancient Rome, the Parthenon, the Pyramids...such history there. I want to see it all.
This is all at least a year in the future. Right now I need to focus on the task at hand, getting myself ready for Korea. One step at a time.
I have less than 20 days until take off and still no visa number. I'd better get it soon. From what I understand, if you have problems getting your visa stuff you can go to Japan to get it taken care of there. I'm not sure about this one. Half of me thinks it would be great to spend a day or two in Japan taking care of it, but the other (smarter) half thinks it would be better to just do it here hassle free. I only have 12 business days to get this done. Factor in work, moving, taking care of other things.....so little time!
Today I went to AAA to get my International Driving Permit. I don't really plan on driving that much (if at all) while in Korea, but it was suggested I get the permit just so I have an extra form of ID. It would be cool to get a little motorbike or something to ride.
I got another facebook message from a Yeosu teacher today! Apparently my middle school is connected and jointly run with a high school. The high school teacher messaged me saying "werd up". I like that these people are going out of their way to help me out.
Here is where I'm getting WAY ahead of myself. I have an insatiable urge to travel the world...even before traveling for the first time. I'm already looking into going to Thailand and Cambodia for a week when I have school vacation. Angkor Wat is pretty much on the top of my list of things to see while in Asia. I also read an article about why you should to your TEFL training in Thailand. Its the cheapest place in Asia to take a reputable course. What's better is that the tropical paradise of Phuket (pronounced Poo-ket with the P having undertones of B, not Ph as an F) has THE cheapest TEFL program. While a TEFL certification won't make me much more money in the short term, it will open up the opportunity to take better jobs in more exotic places, if I decide I like the teaching English gig. Exotic places brings me to my next life goal: living on every continent (except Antarctica). With a TEFL this is pretty conceivable. North America is a given, Asia is taken care of, for Europe I'd like to teach in Italy or Greece. For Africa I'd go to Morocco or Egypt, and for South America I'd try for either Peru or Brazil. Australia/New Zealand would be a little tougher seeing as how they speak English. I guess for there I'd try to get a year long job on a vineyard or farm or something.
When I think about all the places I'd want to go I find myself thinking about the ancient wonders in the area. Machu Picchu in Peru, Ancient Rome, the Parthenon, the Pyramids...such history there. I want to see it all.
This is all at least a year in the future. Right now I need to focus on the task at hand, getting myself ready for Korea. One step at a time.
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