This isn't true. Yesterday I was just venting about the day ahead of me--Wednesdays beat me down, and this one definitely did. But Tuesdays and Thursdays--I like those kids a lot. I have one difficult class, but I know how to maintain it. It's my turf, I understand certain things.
Anyway, today I have a bunch of great kids. My favorite class is one where everybody gets really excited about role playing. They have so much fun getting up in front of class and acting out the story, which makes me really happy, because some of the other classes just get bored with it. There is one kid in this class who insists on saying "YES SIR CAPTAIN" every time I tell him to do anything. And when they need to, they work quietly, which is a blessing.
My two older classes on Tuesday and Thursday are fun too. Sometimes I can't control the last class, but it's because they fight all the time. And the one kid is bigger than me. The little kid provokes him, and then the big kid attacks him. So flat out, next time I'm just going to tell him that I'm not stopping the fight if the little kid says mean stuff. ^^; That's a terrible teacher move, but what am I supposed to do? My coworker was telling me, actually, that their little brothers are in our school too, and they are also friends, haha. Anyway I get the feeling that these two are the best of friends, and will be that way their whole lives. And that's something I like to see. That class is a lot of fun, when I can actually control them.
Anyway, I DO like some of my kids. I just dread Wednesdays. You got my residual fear and frustration yesterday. But there is another thing too.. I am realizing that I am the TEACHER. Which is really new to me. I like to hang out with kids--especially the older ones. I feel bad for making them do work that they find boring and irrelevant. Because I know how *I* would behave--I would ignore that teacher and roll my eyes and complete the work just to say "Look I am smarter than your stupid book." And I have students that do that. But I haven't figured out how to fix that yet. So really what it is, is that these bored students make me feel like a bad teacher. Because really, I don't CARE if they do their work or not, so long as they understand me when I talk to them. But they aren't paying tons of money to come here to hang out. Their parents want to see results, and that means paper book work. I want to see understanding, and that definitely does not come from the books. Anyway, I have a whole 11 more months to figure out how this works. And the perks of the situation are that I have a great boss, and I got PAID today, which is fan-freakin-tastic, because I haven't been paid anything since June 30.
Speaking of getting paid! Yesterday I had a bank-account-creating adventure! .. Well I guess it wasn't really an adventure. But I learned the word for bank (은행). Being able to read is probably one of the best things you can do for yourself before you come over here. If you can read, it's so much easier to teach yourself simple words. If you go to a place, you can remember what you get. If you can't understand how to pronounce something, you can write it. If you need to tell a taxi driver where to go, you can write it, instead of trying to get him to struggle through your accent.
OH! And speaking of Taxi drivers!! I had a LADY taxi driver yesterday! A Lady! I've never had a lady taxi driver! I just imagined that she was the queen of badass back at the taxi lair. She was just an older lady--not a grandmother yet, but her kids were grown up, probably my mom's age. She wore driving gloves and I bet she could sock some people pretty bad. I thought it was so cool. :D
And today is the last day of work before a FOUR DAY WEEKEND. Yes, PLEASE, folks. And even better... Stephanie is coming!! Woo!! I also met another religious studies major last night, which was great! He said he went to a temple stay that was actually an "international" temple, which means that there were American folks there, and so their English was impeccable--and they could explain the meaning of things. I am so excited to do that. .. Now I feel bad because I can't remember the guy's name. But I remember his face. It was nice, though. I met a lot of new folks last night. We went out to the other side of the city, where my coworker's sister lives. I recognized a few things from when I went to my Ghanaian friend's apartment (I think, but it was dark), so I think it was in that general direction. Older part of the city. More oomph on the streets. There are a lot of fun and interesting people over there, and I saw a lot of new faces. Including this guy from Brainerd! What? :D Another Minnesota face. People said that there were a lot of folks from Minneapolis here; haha, I said "You know, it is a bigger city than people give it credit for."
Had my first drink of Soju, but it was a little sip. Pretty.. yeah gross. But then again, from what people told me about Palm Wine, it can't be grosser than that. :D Cuz it's certainly not like drinking bacon.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
This world keeps spinning round and round--and I keep missing it.
"King Kevin Keeps a Kettle in his Kitchen."
"King Kevin Keeps a Koala in his Kitchen."
My explanation skills are weakening because I keep trying to simplify how I explain things. Use the simplest words to achieve the least levels of complexity. For someone that thrives off of the complex, this is difficult. It's a challenge, though. Fun and interesting. I tried to teach one glass a few grammatical things, but they just don't get it. And then they get angry with me. One particular girl just rolls her eyes and treats me like an idiot. And I want to say, "No dear, it's you that doesn't understand. But not for any good reason. Mostly because your curriculum thinks it's okay to teach you CONTRACTIONS asap." What?? Contractions? These kids are never going to learn where to put a verb. ^^; Sigh. And I can't change it.
I have a pair of difficult kids in my Wednesday classes. One for each class. One student I threw out of class last time--and not because he had mental disorder related anger problems. Sometimes I feel like I don't have any control in my own classroom. I feel helpless--mostly with the really bad ones. Because I'm used to reasoning with a bad kid. Explaining. But how do you explain to a kid that doesn't speak your language? And doesn't want to? And the last teacher who was here probably had NO good way to deal with it? Sigh. Impossible. You just kick him out and send him to the director. The director can watch the video. Lord.
I hope I still like kids when I come out of this year. ^^; I mean kids have always kind of frustrated me, but they were always so cute, too... and I guess I'm more of a baby person, but these kids... putain, man.
I am feeling pretty homesick. And the nice thing is, though, that I recognize it for what it is. I recognize that this is the time when that happens for me... I feel like I'm riding out a wave that I already knew was coming. And that is comforting. I'm drawing a lot. More importantly, though, I know that I am homesick for something that isn't really there anymore. So.. it makes it easier, because even if I said "I need to go home", I know I wouldn't be satisfied there either. So I just wait--make a new life here.
Anyway I really want to find some way to scan in my drawings. I don't know how to do it yet, but when I can I will certainly post them. I've also decided that I am going to do NANOWRIMO!! Yay!! For the first time in a couple years! I am so excited!! I already know the story that I am going to write.... :D
"King Kevin Keeps a Koala in his Kitchen."
My explanation skills are weakening because I keep trying to simplify how I explain things. Use the simplest words to achieve the least levels of complexity. For someone that thrives off of the complex, this is difficult. It's a challenge, though. Fun and interesting. I tried to teach one glass a few grammatical things, but they just don't get it. And then they get angry with me. One particular girl just rolls her eyes and treats me like an idiot. And I want to say, "No dear, it's you that doesn't understand. But not for any good reason. Mostly because your curriculum thinks it's okay to teach you CONTRACTIONS asap." What?? Contractions? These kids are never going to learn where to put a verb. ^^; Sigh. And I can't change it.
I have a pair of difficult kids in my Wednesday classes. One for each class. One student I threw out of class last time--and not because he had mental disorder related anger problems. Sometimes I feel like I don't have any control in my own classroom. I feel helpless--mostly with the really bad ones. Because I'm used to reasoning with a bad kid. Explaining. But how do you explain to a kid that doesn't speak your language? And doesn't want to? And the last teacher who was here probably had NO good way to deal with it? Sigh. Impossible. You just kick him out and send him to the director. The director can watch the video. Lord.
I hope I still like kids when I come out of this year. ^^; I mean kids have always kind of frustrated me, but they were always so cute, too... and I guess I'm more of a baby person, but these kids... putain, man.
I am feeling pretty homesick. And the nice thing is, though, that I recognize it for what it is. I recognize that this is the time when that happens for me... I feel like I'm riding out a wave that I already knew was coming. And that is comforting. I'm drawing a lot. More importantly, though, I know that I am homesick for something that isn't really there anymore. So.. it makes it easier, because even if I said "I need to go home", I know I wouldn't be satisfied there either. So I just wait--make a new life here.
Anyway I really want to find some way to scan in my drawings. I don't know how to do it yet, but when I can I will certainly post them. I've also decided that I am going to do NANOWRIMO!! Yay!! For the first time in a couple years! I am so excited!! I already know the story that I am going to write.... :D
Sunday, September 27, 2009
My Korean practice has gone out the window.
I tried harder to learn this language when I wasn't submerged in it. Maybe it's because I didn't realize just how seriously I would drown, lol.
I went shopping yesterday! I got new jeans. Except I tried on the 30 and the woman gave me the 29... sigh. So I'll have to loose some weight. Less Donkatsu for me, I guess, haha. I'm having a hard time getting quality food in my own home, though, which is frustrating. I don't understand how or what to cook. Tomato sauce costs 5-7 dollars in this country, and I'm not feeling it. Not yet, at least. I'm not desperate yet. I guess now would be a good time to attempt to go back to scratch... but, well. That would require a working range, and I don't exactly have one.
Shopping was a reward for my epic cleaning adventure yesterday. I did laundry. My washing machine went nuts again, and I had to turn off the water. But now I was ready for it, so I just put it on spin cycle and hung the things out to try. No mess, just annoyance. Now my freezer is the real problem here... because the whole time I was trying to scrape enormous amounts of ice out of my freezer. The thing had literally frozen solid. I had to unplug everything, take out the stalactites and stalagmites of nasty freezer water, and run hot water over it because I ran out of space in my sink for it all. Putain.
Then I had to deal with my bad shower drain--which actually was the most successful venture, even if it was the most disgusting. My shower hasn't flooded again since, but it looks like the hair trap in that drain just collects stuff quickly. So I'll have to do it again. Soon. Nnng.
I guess it's a good thing that my toilet and water heater work correctly. I don't know what I would do without a water heater, but still... the ratio of working appliances to malfunctioning ones is a little annoying. Especially because my range is so difficult. It is a dinosaur. It doesn't have grates over the burners, and you used to be able to buy grates, but this appears to currently be impossible, and the one I have is lopsided and wiggly. I have no clue what to do. I can barely cook an egg. So I use the microwave... to make ramen with dumplings and eggs.
However, I did go shopping. And I did get 3 pairs of earrings for 4 bucks. Holy bazookas. And new jeans. And a smaller purse, even though I'm not sure how much I like it... but well, it was 10 bucks, so who cares in the end? The jeans were just under 20. And I got a pair of leggings, which look quite nice.
The shopping center was underneith the old downtown area. I don't think I've ever been in an underground shopping mall before, but this was quite interesting--and a lot more like a market than a lot of things I have been to. There were fountain spots, and I am certain that I only explored half of this magnificent cavern of cheap stuff. Then I popped my head up for a minute, and I found a plant shop. I bought a delightful pink flower which I know I am going to like. I really want to learn how to cultivate some plants here, so that is what I'm doing... I had a couple ferns when I moved in, but they aren't doing so well... I need to get pots for them, I think, because I know they have enough water. The soil is not doing so well, though. I told a couple of my friends, being about 25% serious, that I wanted to turn my tiny little apartment into a jungle. It is always something that I've wanted to learn how to do... and currently I have quite a bit of time on my hands. Time that I have recently been spending watching enormous amounts of online tv. This is not a good idea. Lots of tv for me is always bad, because I don't live in the now. I live in the tv story. I don't pay attention to my life. It is irrelevant because I can pretend it doesn't exist while I watch the show. Does not bode well for me.
On Saturday I went to a traditional market that the church hosted. It was a lot of fun, and pretty interesting. They don't open the doors for the used materials until the afternoon, and everybody lined up and pushed hard for it. I was the only foreigner there, which got me a few interesting looks when I ended up at the front of the line. (Kim sent her daughter to stand there, and we joined her... haha, I felt a little bad about it.) I didn't buy anything though, even though I did find a couple of interesting looking books in English. I just enjoyed looking at everything, and Kim seemed to know everybody, so I got introduced more than a few times. And I do love the food man. Korean food is so tasty.
I didn't end up going back to the service on Sunday... I didn't want to get up early two days in a row, plus I wasn't feeling as comfortable there as I wanted to. Maybe later. Someone told me that there was another English speaking church near one of the universities. Maybe they will have a less "Satan is going to eat you if you're not careful" message. Or maybe that is rare here. I don't know. I could handle it if the pastor kept that to his sermons. But I can see it in his eyes when he talks to me. This possessiveness which says "I am the one who will save your soul." Well, honey, you don't know nothin about me.
Anyway I have had a pretty busy weekend, because I also went out on Friday and hung out in the PC-bang on Saturday night, haha. I played Starcraft for 3 hours with a bunch of boys, lol. Korea is full of these cafes where you can play video games for like a dollar an hour. I hadn't played Starcraft in years.. and it's funny, because on these enormous computers, it looks like such a dated game. It really is. But at least I knew how to play, lol--for the most part. They're fun guys.
It rained all day yesterday, or else I might have some pictures. I feel pretty embarrassed about how little I have been using my expensive new camera. But I am still getting used to life here, and I don't know what I'm doing half the time. The buildings here are all exactly the same. They have paintings on the outside of fruits, or some subdued yet pretty picture. Nothing is in your face. Everything is respectfully distant. Even drunk men seem quiet here. There was a man on the subway on Saturday who was talking to kids.. he was obviously a little off. His gums had peeled back from his enormous teeth, probably due to bad health. He was old, with a big grin and a hoarse voice. Reminded me of that Trinidad fellow that I met outside of Target. Kind old men just make me smile, even if they aren't quite right. It's hard to not understand what's going on around here. I want to know people's stories. Here I don't have the option. I feel like I should find as many foreigners as I can, and ask them all as many questions as I can. Find out as much as I can.
Too much online tv has made me a hermit. But Stephanie is coming this weekend! Chuseok! It's a big holiday. I get TWO DAYS off!! Woooooo!!
I went shopping yesterday! I got new jeans. Except I tried on the 30 and the woman gave me the 29... sigh. So I'll have to loose some weight. Less Donkatsu for me, I guess, haha. I'm having a hard time getting quality food in my own home, though, which is frustrating. I don't understand how or what to cook. Tomato sauce costs 5-7 dollars in this country, and I'm not feeling it. Not yet, at least. I'm not desperate yet. I guess now would be a good time to attempt to go back to scratch... but, well. That would require a working range, and I don't exactly have one.
Shopping was a reward for my epic cleaning adventure yesterday. I did laundry. My washing machine went nuts again, and I had to turn off the water. But now I was ready for it, so I just put it on spin cycle and hung the things out to try. No mess, just annoyance. Now my freezer is the real problem here... because the whole time I was trying to scrape enormous amounts of ice out of my freezer. The thing had literally frozen solid. I had to unplug everything, take out the stalactites and stalagmites of nasty freezer water, and run hot water over it because I ran out of space in my sink for it all. Putain.
Then I had to deal with my bad shower drain--which actually was the most successful venture, even if it was the most disgusting. My shower hasn't flooded again since, but it looks like the hair trap in that drain just collects stuff quickly. So I'll have to do it again. Soon. Nnng.
I guess it's a good thing that my toilet and water heater work correctly. I don't know what I would do without a water heater, but still... the ratio of working appliances to malfunctioning ones is a little annoying. Especially because my range is so difficult. It is a dinosaur. It doesn't have grates over the burners, and you used to be able to buy grates, but this appears to currently be impossible, and the one I have is lopsided and wiggly. I have no clue what to do. I can barely cook an egg. So I use the microwave... to make ramen with dumplings and eggs.
However, I did go shopping. And I did get 3 pairs of earrings for 4 bucks. Holy bazookas. And new jeans. And a smaller purse, even though I'm not sure how much I like it... but well, it was 10 bucks, so who cares in the end? The jeans were just under 20. And I got a pair of leggings, which look quite nice.
The shopping center was underneith the old downtown area. I don't think I've ever been in an underground shopping mall before, but this was quite interesting--and a lot more like a market than a lot of things I have been to. There were fountain spots, and I am certain that I only explored half of this magnificent cavern of cheap stuff. Then I popped my head up for a minute, and I found a plant shop. I bought a delightful pink flower which I know I am going to like. I really want to learn how to cultivate some plants here, so that is what I'm doing... I had a couple ferns when I moved in, but they aren't doing so well... I need to get pots for them, I think, because I know they have enough water. The soil is not doing so well, though. I told a couple of my friends, being about 25% serious, that I wanted to turn my tiny little apartment into a jungle. It is always something that I've wanted to learn how to do... and currently I have quite a bit of time on my hands. Time that I have recently been spending watching enormous amounts of online tv. This is not a good idea. Lots of tv for me is always bad, because I don't live in the now. I live in the tv story. I don't pay attention to my life. It is irrelevant because I can pretend it doesn't exist while I watch the show. Does not bode well for me.
On Saturday I went to a traditional market that the church hosted. It was a lot of fun, and pretty interesting. They don't open the doors for the used materials until the afternoon, and everybody lined up and pushed hard for it. I was the only foreigner there, which got me a few interesting looks when I ended up at the front of the line. (Kim sent her daughter to stand there, and we joined her... haha, I felt a little bad about it.) I didn't buy anything though, even though I did find a couple of interesting looking books in English. I just enjoyed looking at everything, and Kim seemed to know everybody, so I got introduced more than a few times. And I do love the food man. Korean food is so tasty.
I didn't end up going back to the service on Sunday... I didn't want to get up early two days in a row, plus I wasn't feeling as comfortable there as I wanted to. Maybe later. Someone told me that there was another English speaking church near one of the universities. Maybe they will have a less "Satan is going to eat you if you're not careful" message. Or maybe that is rare here. I don't know. I could handle it if the pastor kept that to his sermons. But I can see it in his eyes when he talks to me. This possessiveness which says "I am the one who will save your soul." Well, honey, you don't know nothin about me.
Anyway I have had a pretty busy weekend, because I also went out on Friday and hung out in the PC-bang on Saturday night, haha. I played Starcraft for 3 hours with a bunch of boys, lol. Korea is full of these cafes where you can play video games for like a dollar an hour. I hadn't played Starcraft in years.. and it's funny, because on these enormous computers, it looks like such a dated game. It really is. But at least I knew how to play, lol--for the most part. They're fun guys.
It rained all day yesterday, or else I might have some pictures. I feel pretty embarrassed about how little I have been using my expensive new camera. But I am still getting used to life here, and I don't know what I'm doing half the time. The buildings here are all exactly the same. They have paintings on the outside of fruits, or some subdued yet pretty picture. Nothing is in your face. Everything is respectfully distant. Even drunk men seem quiet here. There was a man on the subway on Saturday who was talking to kids.. he was obviously a little off. His gums had peeled back from his enormous teeth, probably due to bad health. He was old, with a big grin and a hoarse voice. Reminded me of that Trinidad fellow that I met outside of Target. Kind old men just make me smile, even if they aren't quite right. It's hard to not understand what's going on around here. I want to know people's stories. Here I don't have the option. I feel like I should find as many foreigners as I can, and ask them all as many questions as I can. Find out as much as I can.
Too much online tv has made me a hermit. But Stephanie is coming this weekend! Chuseok! It's a big holiday. I get TWO DAYS off!! Woooooo!!
Sunday, September 20, 2009
The life of a trotro!
So this weekend was a lot of fun! I went out on Friday with a couple coworkers--danced off my issues with work, haha, and met some folks. It takes a while to find a niche here, but then again, in comparison to Hamline cliques, I suppose that's probably a good thing. Finding your niche too early can guarantee that you're stuck there, for better or worse.
On Saturday I met with my Ghanaian friend--the man I met at Homeplus last week--who was still in the country. He was leaving on Saturday, so I went to hang out with him while he packed his things. He is a fascinating man! His business is to come to Korea, pick spare parts from scrap yards like Samsung, and then ship them back to Ghana. It's a tough business. Sometimes nothing good comes in. Sometimes things don't sell back home--and he said that things were selling very slowly.
But in the long run, it seems like there are a lot of trotros who start their lives here in Korea! I don't think he buys vans--he seemed more interested in trucks and 4x4s--but there are many other men like him. They stay in a company apartment for a few months, while they collect things for their containers, then ship their containers home. They haves someone meet the containers--a business partner, and then distribute their goods in various spare parts markets. There is a whole market in Accra devoted to spare parts! Of course, while I was there, I didn't go--because why would I need spare car parts? But next time I will probably meet up with him, and he will show me!
Anyway I find this to be a fascinating business. Taking other people's junk and turning it into a functioning car--the backbone of transportation in a country. These are the folks that make things spin around the world. It's amazing how things go back and forth. I love it.
Yesterday I went to church again, but the Sunday message irked me. I don't know if I will go back. Even still.. the church is a beautiful place and seems to be a good hub for English speakers doing various things. Though someone else told me that there was another English service over by one of the universities, and that I might have a better chance there.
After church I took a nice comfy afternoon nap, and then I went shopping. I didn't really plan the shopping too well--I just went to the place where I always go, and explored that area. But I know there are better, cheaper areas. Next weekend maybe. On this adventure, I ended up downtown, in "The Galleria" which was INSANELY expensive. I was wearing a tshirt and a long skirt. People stared at me, haha--"What is this dirty foreigner doing in here?" I didn't even explore all the floors before I knew I had to get out of there. So I wandered around the downtown area, took a few pictures, explored, and then ended up at Starbucks, haha, where I sat and drew for a little while. I haven't seen any Starbucks' yet, but this time I saw two literally facing each other from across an intersection. It's so weird. Why does Starbucks do that? I mean... you would think that you could diversify a little. Of course, it is REALLY expensive, and maybe that was part of it.
I am growing eager to go on some trips outside of Daejeon, but I don't know where! I have two days off for Chuseok, which is like the Korean thanksgiving. Stephanie is coming down, wooooo! But on Monday I will have enough time for a day trip, I think, so I am not sure what I will do! There are a few towns close to here that were the seat of ancient dynasties, which would probably make a good day trip. There are also mountains around here that need some serious climbing by Maggie-Cube. Anyway.. I'll leave you now with a few photos!
This is where I went last night! Downtown! Shiny and expensive, but very pretty!
And this is what I see when I get off the subway at 5pm! A glorious mountain sunset. Wowza.
And one more... this is the commercial area on my way to work! My school is at the very end of this strip. Hello colors!!
On Saturday I met with my Ghanaian friend--the man I met at Homeplus last week--who was still in the country. He was leaving on Saturday, so I went to hang out with him while he packed his things. He is a fascinating man! His business is to come to Korea, pick spare parts from scrap yards like Samsung, and then ship them back to Ghana. It's a tough business. Sometimes nothing good comes in. Sometimes things don't sell back home--and he said that things were selling very slowly.
But in the long run, it seems like there are a lot of trotros who start their lives here in Korea! I don't think he buys vans--he seemed more interested in trucks and 4x4s--but there are many other men like him. They stay in a company apartment for a few months, while they collect things for their containers, then ship their containers home. They haves someone meet the containers--a business partner, and then distribute their goods in various spare parts markets. There is a whole market in Accra devoted to spare parts! Of course, while I was there, I didn't go--because why would I need spare car parts? But next time I will probably meet up with him, and he will show me!
Anyway I find this to be a fascinating business. Taking other people's junk and turning it into a functioning car--the backbone of transportation in a country. These are the folks that make things spin around the world. It's amazing how things go back and forth. I love it.
Yesterday I went to church again, but the Sunday message irked me. I don't know if I will go back. Even still.. the church is a beautiful place and seems to be a good hub for English speakers doing various things. Though someone else told me that there was another English service over by one of the universities, and that I might have a better chance there.
After church I took a nice comfy afternoon nap, and then I went shopping. I didn't really plan the shopping too well--I just went to the place where I always go, and explored that area. But I know there are better, cheaper areas. Next weekend maybe. On this adventure, I ended up downtown, in "The Galleria" which was INSANELY expensive. I was wearing a tshirt and a long skirt. People stared at me, haha--"What is this dirty foreigner doing in here?" I didn't even explore all the floors before I knew I had to get out of there. So I wandered around the downtown area, took a few pictures, explored, and then ended up at Starbucks, haha, where I sat and drew for a little while. I haven't seen any Starbucks' yet, but this time I saw two literally facing each other from across an intersection. It's so weird. Why does Starbucks do that? I mean... you would think that you could diversify a little. Of course, it is REALLY expensive, and maybe that was part of it.
I am growing eager to go on some trips outside of Daejeon, but I don't know where! I have two days off for Chuseok, which is like the Korean thanksgiving. Stephanie is coming down, wooooo! But on Monday I will have enough time for a day trip, I think, so I am not sure what I will do! There are a few towns close to here that were the seat of ancient dynasties, which would probably make a good day trip. There are also mountains around here that need some serious climbing by Maggie-Cube. Anyway.. I'll leave you now with a few photos!
And here is a view of the other side of Daejeon, from the river, last week when I took a walk.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Wow. Teacherdom is exhausting.
And kids can be relentless. I don't mean Korean kids, either, ALL kids. Any kids. I am so glad that it's Friday. Wednesday and Thursday are hard days. Haha, but I do have a habit of writing down the cutest things that the kids do. One of the kids--who looks kind of like a jolly, chubby train conductor, always says "Yes Sir Captain!" When I tell him to do anything. It is seriously the cutest thing.
It seems like almost everyone who comes here has sleeping problems. I think it has to do with all the alcohol. Korea is a HUGE drinking culture. The men stay out all night drinking with business partners--cementing relationships through drunken ridiculousness. When they are sober, these things are not talked about, but it is a ritual that routinely breaks the passive aggressive nature of the Korean culture. It's like a safety valve. (Except that women don't participate, so I don't know what their valve is supposed to be.) It seems like most Americans here have absorbed this tendency to drink until dead almost every night. It... well, isn't very appealing to me. There's partying, and then there's running away.
Anyway on Thursday I went to visit with the young woman that I met at GS25 on Sunday. She is really nice, and her English is quite good, so we have a lot of interesting conversations. She took me to a Thursday market, which had just appeared on the road near her apartment building. It's interesting--there are all these huge apartment buildings, cookie cutter the same, marching off into the distance--but in between them there are old women with vegetables, clothes for under 5 dollars, and all kids of weird stuff--Africa style. These markets seem to move around and appear with little respect to time. Or maybe I just haven't figured out the time yet.
On Wednesday I discovered a stationary shop with stickers, and so I might find a way to start a sticker point system... I don't know. I don't like the idea of bribing the kids, because I don't know if I will be fair about it. Plus I want them to earn their stickers, man. Bad kids are not about to get stickers.
I have a kid in one of my classes who is difficult to deal with. I am pretty certain that he has a form of Asperger's. My first day with him, he was terrible. He almost threw a desk at another girl. But the girls were teasing him. And they keep teasing him. And I have NO idea how to explain to them that teasing this kid is going to set him off. I've not had problems with him again these next two times, but boy howdy... I have been walking on thin ice. I need to make friends with him, so that he trusts me enough to TELL me when he is angry, instead of flipping out. But I don't know how to get the other girls to stop saying nasty things to him in Korean. And the sad thing is that he's just an adorable kid--and he is a genius. I can have conversations in English with him that I can't have with kids in my highest classes. AND he is younger than everyone in the class. Sigh. Maybe it's not Asperger's... maybe he's just acting out from a crazy family. Maybe he needs the attention. I don't know. But for now, I need to get him to trust me, so that I won't have to walk on thin ice all the time.
Anyway, I am happy that I have made some friends. I met the other two coworkers at my school, and they are nice and interesting people. It's nice to have some boys to hang out with. It seems like everyone I meet is female. And it's not even an interest thing--it's just an "I need balance" thing.
It seems like almost everyone who comes here has sleeping problems. I think it has to do with all the alcohol. Korea is a HUGE drinking culture. The men stay out all night drinking with business partners--cementing relationships through drunken ridiculousness. When they are sober, these things are not talked about, but it is a ritual that routinely breaks the passive aggressive nature of the Korean culture. It's like a safety valve. (Except that women don't participate, so I don't know what their valve is supposed to be.) It seems like most Americans here have absorbed this tendency to drink until dead almost every night. It... well, isn't very appealing to me. There's partying, and then there's running away.
Anyway on Thursday I went to visit with the young woman that I met at GS25 on Sunday. She is really nice, and her English is quite good, so we have a lot of interesting conversations. She took me to a Thursday market, which had just appeared on the road near her apartment building. It's interesting--there are all these huge apartment buildings, cookie cutter the same, marching off into the distance--but in between them there are old women with vegetables, clothes for under 5 dollars, and all kids of weird stuff--Africa style. These markets seem to move around and appear with little respect to time. Or maybe I just haven't figured out the time yet.
On Wednesday I discovered a stationary shop with stickers, and so I might find a way to start a sticker point system... I don't know. I don't like the idea of bribing the kids, because I don't know if I will be fair about it. Plus I want them to earn their stickers, man. Bad kids are not about to get stickers.
I have a kid in one of my classes who is difficult to deal with. I am pretty certain that he has a form of Asperger's. My first day with him, he was terrible. He almost threw a desk at another girl. But the girls were teasing him. And they keep teasing him. And I have NO idea how to explain to them that teasing this kid is going to set him off. I've not had problems with him again these next two times, but boy howdy... I have been walking on thin ice. I need to make friends with him, so that he trusts me enough to TELL me when he is angry, instead of flipping out. But I don't know how to get the other girls to stop saying nasty things to him in Korean. And the sad thing is that he's just an adorable kid--and he is a genius. I can have conversations in English with him that I can't have with kids in my highest classes. AND he is younger than everyone in the class. Sigh. Maybe it's not Asperger's... maybe he's just acting out from a crazy family. Maybe he needs the attention. I don't know. But for now, I need to get him to trust me, so that I won't have to walk on thin ice all the time.
Anyway, I am happy that I have made some friends. I met the other two coworkers at my school, and they are nice and interesting people. It's nice to have some boys to hang out with. It seems like everyone I meet is female. And it's not even an interest thing--it's just an "I need balance" thing.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Some photos.
Some photos posted on Facebook, some of the ones I posted before, but others... like my walk to work and my apartment.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2034759&id=67700894&ref=mf
Please let me know if it gives you an error message. It should be public.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2034759&id=67700894&ref=mf
Please let me know if it gives you an error message. It should be public.
My kids were so cute yesterday!
Haha, yesterday my last class is like the biggest hoot. I love my last classes. They are quick enough with English that I can really have conversations with them, and hooo boy, yesterday they were SO talkative. We barely got ANYTHING done. I'm sure now that their regular teacher is gonna be mad, lol, but she's a cool lady so I hope she'll understand.
The two girls in the back decided that they were married--and then tried to explain to me that they had married their friends (girls), because they were just the best of best of friends. THEN, the one boy in the class, who has a fever of god knows what, and is hopped up on cough medicine, is like "Teeeeachaaaa--you marry?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Not yet. I'm too young."
"How old?"
"23" (Korean age is +1, plus I feel awkward that I'm so young. I really am one of the youngest here.)
"Ooooh... Teachaaa--you marry my Uncle."
"..WHAT?"
"Nooo! He good man! He handsome!"
Hahaha, no matter where I go, I can't escape marriage to other people's relatives. Putain! Then the girls started laughing so hard, and they were like "TEACHAAA! YOU BLUSHING!" I wanted to say, 'Of course I am! In America a teacher would get sued for such talk!' haha. But I didn't. I just rolled my eyes at them and moved on, haha. But they were SO CUTE.
And then they looked at my other classes, and my seating charts, and they said... pointed to the class before and said "You like this class?" "Yes." "Ahhh... you like this class," And then pointed to their class. "You LOVE this class!"
And it's true, haha. Silly middle schoolers. Wtf. You marry my uncle. Lol. I told him not to come to school sick like that again. It's weird how they are so scared of swine flu, and then send their kids to school with a fever. Like medicine will make it not contagious. If I get swine flu from that kid and then get kicked out of the country, I will be MAD. But maybe his uncle can marry me and I will be safe from swine-flu-deportation, haha.
Anyways I still need to get my medical check... I should ask my boss about that today. Last night I had dinner at a Korean place with the other two teachers from the second location. They are a good couple of guys--a lot of fun. They live right near me and they are open and fun. I clicked with them pretty well, I think. The food was good--ricey stew with tasty spicy kimchi and all the delicious Korean side dishes. I'm in love with those yellow pickled radishes. Or maybe they're not radishes? I dunno, they're sweet and sour. I loooove them. Anyway the food was good, it was only 4,000 won--less than 4 bucks. Delicious!
In my free time I've been writing a lot. It's quite nice. I have returned to one of the stories that I worked on a lot in the first couple years of college, and the end of high school. I've finally gotten the beginning squared away, and now I'm working on the mid introductory scenes... hard work, but rewarding when you finally get it. And I'm reading a lot of Dune. Woo.
The two girls in the back decided that they were married--and then tried to explain to me that they had married their friends (girls), because they were just the best of best of friends. THEN, the one boy in the class, who has a fever of god knows what, and is hopped up on cough medicine, is like "Teeeeachaaaa--you marry?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Not yet. I'm too young."
"How old?"
"23" (Korean age is +1, plus I feel awkward that I'm so young. I really am one of the youngest here.)
"Ooooh... Teachaaa--you marry my Uncle."
"..WHAT?"
"Nooo! He good man! He handsome!"
Hahaha, no matter where I go, I can't escape marriage to other people's relatives. Putain! Then the girls started laughing so hard, and they were like "TEACHAAA! YOU BLUSHING!" I wanted to say, 'Of course I am! In America a teacher would get sued for such talk!' haha. But I didn't. I just rolled my eyes at them and moved on, haha. But they were SO CUTE.
And then they looked at my other classes, and my seating charts, and they said... pointed to the class before and said "You like this class?" "Yes." "Ahhh... you like this class," And then pointed to their class. "You LOVE this class!"
And it's true, haha. Silly middle schoolers. Wtf. You marry my uncle. Lol. I told him not to come to school sick like that again. It's weird how they are so scared of swine flu, and then send their kids to school with a fever. Like medicine will make it not contagious. If I get swine flu from that kid and then get kicked out of the country, I will be MAD. But maybe his uncle can marry me and I will be safe from swine-flu-deportation, haha.
Anyways I still need to get my medical check... I should ask my boss about that today. Last night I had dinner at a Korean place with the other two teachers from the second location. They are a good couple of guys--a lot of fun. They live right near me and they are open and fun. I clicked with them pretty well, I think. The food was good--ricey stew with tasty spicy kimchi and all the delicious Korean side dishes. I'm in love with those yellow pickled radishes. Or maybe they're not radishes? I dunno, they're sweet and sour. I loooove them. Anyway the food was good, it was only 4,000 won--less than 4 bucks. Delicious!
In my free time I've been writing a lot. It's quite nice. I have returned to one of the stories that I worked on a lot in the first couple years of college, and the end of high school. I've finally gotten the beginning squared away, and now I'm working on the mid introductory scenes... hard work, but rewarding when you finally get it. And I'm reading a lot of Dune. Woo.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
I'm in love with Homeplus!
Today was a big day! One might say.. an Epic Day! I started it off by going to church with another teacher from my school. It's a Methodist church, so I thought--why not? I went to a Methodist school, I can go to a Methodist church. (Though Methodists don't do communion every Sunday, which I just think is weird.) This church had an English service, and that was great. Despite hearing "Your body is your enemy" and "Satan is coming for you", and having the letters of Paul quoted at me way too many times, it's a great way to meet other English speakers who aren't interested mostly in drinking. (Really, the only time I've met people has been at loud bars so far. You can't really converse that way.)
This church has a lot of stuff going on at it, and I met a lot of people while getting lunch. People who spoke remarkable English! Exchanged some phone numbers at the like. Ate some great lunch, though I was definitely not a fan of the soup. Haha, some soups appear to be the only Korean food that I don't love. I've disliked two things while being here; both soup. One was a cold salty soup that was just weird to me. Too much salt, I think. Anyway, this one had some texture in it that I just didn't like. I ate the tofu out and then pretended that I was full, lol--which I was, so it was okay.
My favorite part of the church, though, was a magnificent garden next door to the cafeteria. It was an indoor, basement garden completely with tiny little waterfalls. It was fan. tastic. I really want to visit it when there aren't after-church-rambunctious-children running around in it. They have a coffee shop, too, so I think it's a neat little hub for making friends and having conversations.
Anyway after church I came home, but headed out really quick. Today was my day to explore. So I tried my hand at Daejeon's brand new subway. Your ticket is a little blue token. I felt like I was riding a ride, haha, not public transport. It's less than a dollar to get everywhere on the line, and the line seems to go everywhere I would need to go. I wandered around Daejeon Government Complex, and visited the 'Prehistoric Site', which my guidebook implied was lame, but I enjoyed the view. (The historical value was pretty lame. But kind of neat.) Then... I started walking. And walking. And walking. I wandered around the National Arboretum, some shops, and then I ended up at the river. There was a great expanse of green space, and then a lazy river chugging its way along through Daejeon. In the distance were some brand new apartment buildings, a brand new blue bridge, and a few brightly colored parasols where men sat fishing. In the other direction was the older side of the city. It was farther away, so there was water and a big grassy expanse between me and the great view.
Daejeon is a very new city, despite the fact that historically it stretches back very far. Very few buildings seemed to have survived the Korean War, but in addition, everything here is so new that it is almost impossible that the ancient would have survived. The place where I live, Noeun-dong, was rice patties not five years ago--or so said Phil, a man who I ran into on the river bank. He was a Canadian fellow, who was out for a walk with his wife and little baby. He seemed pretty well connected, and he gave me the names of some people to contact and--better yet--where the English book stores were. Woot. Anyway, then him and his wife got into a tiff about whether or not the Algerian man who cooked couscous at a restaurant (YAY) was Algerian or French. (Because the French had Algeria 50 years ago? What?)
Then, after I left the riverbank, I stopped at a GS25 so that I could get a bite to eat. I love convenience stores and bread shops here--they are quite cheap and 100% delicious. So I stopped to get ice cream and something interesting. I met a girl there who spoke pretty good English, and we sat and talked. She had also just moved to Daejeon from Seoul, and she said that she was looking to make friends. She's a young mother of two, and her husband moved here for a job. She loves to cook, and so she said that she would have me over to her house and we could cook! I told her that was GREAT. So I made a friend! Woo!
So I was trying to find the subway station again, after I had wandered around for so long. My feet hurt pretty bad, but then... voila, I saw HOMEPLUS! I've seen little Homeplus satellite stores all over the place, but the big Homeplus... oo I was excited. So I went. Three floors of cooool stuff. Clothing, Groceries, and Housewares. I bought a notebook, and some wrapping paper to decorate with. (To cover the cracked plexiglass in my kitchen cupboards.)
The best part of Homeplus was, though, that I met a Ghanaian! I saw this gentleman just wandering around, and well... black people aren't very common here, so I approached him. And he was from Ghana! I got to shake hands AND SNAP! Oh man, it's been a long time since I've done that! He said he was here on business.. he buys scrap parts and used vehicles here and then sends them home. Haha, I told him that I thought of trotros every time I saw Korean minivans. (And it's true, because I do secretly think of them as future trotros. And they are--the city buses are the same busses that run the STC fleet, and the same ones that I sat on for 12 hours watching bad Nigerian movies on my way to Tamale.) Anyway he was really nice, but he isn't sure he is going to stay for another weekend, so I will probably not see him again. :(
That was my day! It was great! I loved it. :D Now my feet hurt a lot, but I am a happy camper. Whee!
This church has a lot of stuff going on at it, and I met a lot of people while getting lunch. People who spoke remarkable English! Exchanged some phone numbers at the like. Ate some great lunch, though I was definitely not a fan of the soup. Haha, some soups appear to be the only Korean food that I don't love. I've disliked two things while being here; both soup. One was a cold salty soup that was just weird to me. Too much salt, I think. Anyway, this one had some texture in it that I just didn't like. I ate the tofu out and then pretended that I was full, lol--which I was, so it was okay.
My favorite part of the church, though, was a magnificent garden next door to the cafeteria. It was an indoor, basement garden completely with tiny little waterfalls. It was fan. tastic. I really want to visit it when there aren't after-church-rambunctious-children running around in it. They have a coffee shop, too, so I think it's a neat little hub for making friends and having conversations.
Anyway after church I came home, but headed out really quick. Today was my day to explore. So I tried my hand at Daejeon's brand new subway. Your ticket is a little blue token. I felt like I was riding a ride, haha, not public transport. It's less than a dollar to get everywhere on the line, and the line seems to go everywhere I would need to go. I wandered around Daejeon Government Complex, and visited the 'Prehistoric Site', which my guidebook implied was lame, but I enjoyed the view. (The historical value was pretty lame. But kind of neat.) Then... I started walking. And walking. And walking. I wandered around the National Arboretum, some shops, and then I ended up at the river. There was a great expanse of green space, and then a lazy river chugging its way along through Daejeon. In the distance were some brand new apartment buildings, a brand new blue bridge, and a few brightly colored parasols where men sat fishing. In the other direction was the older side of the city. It was farther away, so there was water and a big grassy expanse between me and the great view.
Daejeon is a very new city, despite the fact that historically it stretches back very far. Very few buildings seemed to have survived the Korean War, but in addition, everything here is so new that it is almost impossible that the ancient would have survived. The place where I live, Noeun-dong, was rice patties not five years ago--or so said Phil, a man who I ran into on the river bank. He was a Canadian fellow, who was out for a walk with his wife and little baby. He seemed pretty well connected, and he gave me the names of some people to contact and--better yet--where the English book stores were. Woot. Anyway, then him and his wife got into a tiff about whether or not the Algerian man who cooked couscous at a restaurant (YAY) was Algerian or French. (Because the French had Algeria 50 years ago? What?)
Then, after I left the riverbank, I stopped at a GS25 so that I could get a bite to eat. I love convenience stores and bread shops here--they are quite cheap and 100% delicious. So I stopped to get ice cream and something interesting. I met a girl there who spoke pretty good English, and we sat and talked. She had also just moved to Daejeon from Seoul, and she said that she was looking to make friends. She's a young mother of two, and her husband moved here for a job. She loves to cook, and so she said that she would have me over to her house and we could cook! I told her that was GREAT. So I made a friend! Woo!
So I was trying to find the subway station again, after I had wandered around for so long. My feet hurt pretty bad, but then... voila, I saw HOMEPLUS! I've seen little Homeplus satellite stores all over the place, but the big Homeplus... oo I was excited. So I went. Three floors of cooool stuff. Clothing, Groceries, and Housewares. I bought a notebook, and some wrapping paper to decorate with. (To cover the cracked plexiglass in my kitchen cupboards.)
The best part of Homeplus was, though, that I met a Ghanaian! I saw this gentleman just wandering around, and well... black people aren't very common here, so I approached him. And he was from Ghana! I got to shake hands AND SNAP! Oh man, it's been a long time since I've done that! He said he was here on business.. he buys scrap parts and used vehicles here and then sends them home. Haha, I told him that I thought of trotros every time I saw Korean minivans. (And it's true, because I do secretly think of them as future trotros. And they are--the city buses are the same busses that run the STC fleet, and the same ones that I sat on for 12 hours watching bad Nigerian movies on my way to Tamale.) Anyway he was really nice, but he isn't sure he is going to stay for another weekend, so I will probably not see him again. :(
That was my day! It was great! I loved it. :D Now my feet hurt a lot, but I am a happy camper. Whee!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Pictures....
Okay so here are pictures from my excursion yesterday--minus the exploding washing machine. I am so glad it is Friday today, lol. The view from my window:
To the right....
In the center... (When I was really jetlagged, and up at 7am, the old ladies would come out and pick their gardens in the dawn light.)
To the left... Is that? A mountain? Yesserie, it is.
Down my street, from the top of the hill. My apartment building is one of those white faces. I think it's the farthest one.
A pagoda sitting in front of a nice apartment building on the corner of the main road.
These are the steps leading from the trail to the graveyard. These small steps are hidden, and I think they lead to a path that goes around back. The large steps on the left are the main steps.
Then... the grave yard. Buddhist graves have little roofs on the top, but Korean graves are mounds. They seem to have a lot more room in Korea for graves than they do in Japan!
A close up of the magnificent view... Behold! Daejeon! Then I walked down from the graveyard, following the hill, to the place over the main road's tunnel. It has been planted with trees, possibly even fruit trees, but I don't know if anyone is cultivating them. In this view you can almost see my house...
This is the hill over the tunnel.
And this is what you can see from the other side of the Tunnel! (I was pretty sure I wasn't supposed to be over there... haha, but I was sure I was on the right side of the bulldog sign, lol.)
To the right....
In the center... (When I was really jetlagged, and up at 7am, the old ladies would come out and pick their gardens in the dawn light.)
To the left... Is that? A mountain? Yesserie, it is.
Down my street, from the top of the hill. My apartment building is one of those white faces. I think it's the farthest one.
A pagoda sitting in front of a nice apartment building on the corner of the main road.
These are the steps leading from the trail to the graveyard. These small steps are hidden, and I think they lead to a path that goes around back. The large steps on the left are the main steps.
Then... the grave yard. Buddhist graves have little roofs on the top, but Korean graves are mounds. They seem to have a lot more room in Korea for graves than they do in Japan!
A close up of the magnificent view... Behold! Daejeon! Then I walked down from the graveyard, following the hill, to the place over the main road's tunnel. It has been planted with trees, possibly even fruit trees, but I don't know if anyone is cultivating them. In this view you can almost see my house...
This is the hill over the tunnel.
And this is what you can see from the other side of the Tunnel! (I was pretty sure I wasn't supposed to be over there... haha, but I was sure I was on the right side of the bulldog sign, lol.)
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
My plans to write an epic with-pictures blog entry were thwarted by a demon washing machine.
Now, sadly, I have only five minutes before I really need to get dressed and out the door. This morning I woke up at 10 and decided to go for a walk after I had my coffee--up to the place with the great view. I took some pictures so that I could show you all, but I thought I would be smart by turning on my wash. I would have my wash up to dry before I left for work.
When I got home the washer was on spin cycle, so I peeked in to see if it was almost done. It beeped at me, and then I thought nothing of it... and hit go again.
30 minutes later it is still filling with water--after the spin cycle. I'm horrified that it's going to flood. I turn the thing off. The water doesn't stop. I try EVERYTHING--even typing all the Korean words into my cell phone dictionary to figure out what they mean. There is NO button for "stop water." I call my coworker. No answer. Finally I call my boss. "Help, my washing machine won't stop bringing water!" I felt like Mickey Mouse in Fantasia, lol.
Anyway so she called the building manager. Building manager didn't answer. So she comes over. Turns off the water completely. Lol.
So that's why you won't have pictures today. Sorry! :P
When I got home the washer was on spin cycle, so I peeked in to see if it was almost done. It beeped at me, and then I thought nothing of it... and hit go again.
30 minutes later it is still filling with water--after the spin cycle. I'm horrified that it's going to flood. I turn the thing off. The water doesn't stop. I try EVERYTHING--even typing all the Korean words into my cell phone dictionary to figure out what they mean. There is NO button for "stop water." I call my coworker. No answer. Finally I call my boss. "Help, my washing machine won't stop bringing water!" I felt like Mickey Mouse in Fantasia, lol.
Anyway so she called the building manager. Building manager didn't answer. So she comes over. Turns off the water completely. Lol.
So that's why you won't have pictures today. Sorry! :P
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
P ≠ 9
Story!
After work I was trying to get back online, since my session on the internet had timed out. I typed it in and nothing happened. Bad password. Bad password. Bad password. Over and over and over again. I tried so many different combination of upper and lower case. So, so, so frustrated.
Then I turned the card over. It was the business card of the man that installed my internet. And he had written his phone number on the back. And it ended in 70PP. And I was like... "That's weird. You usually don't put random letters into phone numbers."
Then I realized that he meant 9. And VOILA! My password was accepted.
I feel like an ingenious code cracker.
Tomorrow's #1 priority mission: Find an atm that takes foreign cards. I tried two tonight and no luck.
I have four dollars and LOTS of frozen dumplings.
After work I was trying to get back online, since my session on the internet had timed out. I typed it in and nothing happened. Bad password. Bad password. Bad password. Over and over and over again. I tried so many different combination of upper and lower case. So, so, so frustrated.
Then I turned the card over. It was the business card of the man that installed my internet. And he had written his phone number on the back. And it ended in 70PP. And I was like... "That's weird. You usually don't put random letters into phone numbers."
Then I realized that he meant 9. And VOILA! My password was accepted.
I feel like an ingenious code cracker.
Tomorrow's #1 priority mission: Find an atm that takes foreign cards. I tried two tonight and no luck.
I have four dollars and LOTS of frozen dumplings.
Monday, September 7, 2009
I'm not exactly awake for the morning calm part.
When you work the hours of 2pm - 9pm, that makes sense.
I'm in my apartment! My internet is activated! I'm teaching six classes a day, and each day's schedule is different! I'm exploring and discovering fantastic new things.
Two days ago I went for a walk close to sun set, just to stretch my legs and explore my neighborhood a little bit. This town is really, really new. I can't imagine that it's more than five or ten years old. Maybe not even that. It is basically bisected by the main road. Everything on one side of the main road looks like it could be a downtown area--apartment buildings, 15 stories high, commercial buildings with endless advertisements. My hangul reading is exploding. I can almost read words in under a minute now, haha. Anyway, the weird part about this is that these buildings all look the same.
On the other side of the street is where I live. This area has more small apartment buildings, cuboids--just about as tall as they are thick--three or four stories. The roads are narrower and snake around. Also there are about three churches within the block. The universal sign for church is a glowing neon red cross. In the day time they all look different, but at night they all look the same. It's interesting--in the dark there are no denominations.
Anyway this sector isn't very wide, because there are some hills right next to me. My area is composed of small apartments and large single family homes (more on that later, it's really interesting) and then the foothills. I have the most amazing view. Out of my window you can see gardens and little farm plots, then huge apartment buildings in one direction, and mountains in the other. The view makes up for the fact that my whole apartment is about the size of my bedroom at home, haha. (But I do like small things. It's like living in Polly Pocket Ville.)
Two days ago I went exploring at sunset, to discover my first 'WOW' location. I was actually discretely following this old couple... they looked like they were out for a walk, not going anywhere in particular, so I figured that they would lead me up into the foothills. And they did! They surpassed me pretty quickly, but I ended up climbing up the side of this hill on a shadowy brick-paved path... newer, I think, but still beautiful. At the top was a set of very steep stairs, and then--open grass. There was a grave yard carved into the side of this hill. It was wide and open, with burial mounds and Buddhist-style stone-stick markers. It was remarkably spread out. I think maybe they are family plots for folks that are young still. However, at the top of this hill graveyard, I stopped and looked out--the entire west side of Daejeon was visible in a warm sunsetty glow. It was fan-TASTIC. Gorgeous. Normally the metaphor is "the city was laid out like a blanket..." or something more akin to fabric sitting over the ground. However, Daejeon is kind of a spikey city. At least for my area, it is clean, simple, and full of very straight vertical lines. The city doesn't lay on the ground but seems to grow out of it.
Exploring is a blast here. I always find interesting things. I can't wait to start traveling around Korea, either.
The final thing I have to say, before I go get lunch and go to work, is this: there is probably nothing more hilarious than trying to figure out computer problems when you have no common language. It took the internet man forever to figure out my computer. Eventually he just went down to his car and got his own laptop. Haha. :D
I'm in my apartment! My internet is activated! I'm teaching six classes a day, and each day's schedule is different! I'm exploring and discovering fantastic new things.
Two days ago I went for a walk close to sun set, just to stretch my legs and explore my neighborhood a little bit. This town is really, really new. I can't imagine that it's more than five or ten years old. Maybe not even that. It is basically bisected by the main road. Everything on one side of the main road looks like it could be a downtown area--apartment buildings, 15 stories high, commercial buildings with endless advertisements. My hangul reading is exploding. I can almost read words in under a minute now, haha. Anyway, the weird part about this is that these buildings all look the same.
On the other side of the street is where I live. This area has more small apartment buildings, cuboids--just about as tall as they are thick--three or four stories. The roads are narrower and snake around. Also there are about three churches within the block. The universal sign for church is a glowing neon red cross. In the day time they all look different, but at night they all look the same. It's interesting--in the dark there are no denominations.
Anyway this sector isn't very wide, because there are some hills right next to me. My area is composed of small apartments and large single family homes (more on that later, it's really interesting) and then the foothills. I have the most amazing view. Out of my window you can see gardens and little farm plots, then huge apartment buildings in one direction, and mountains in the other. The view makes up for the fact that my whole apartment is about the size of my bedroom at home, haha. (But I do like small things. It's like living in Polly Pocket Ville.)
Two days ago I went exploring at sunset, to discover my first 'WOW' location. I was actually discretely following this old couple... they looked like they were out for a walk, not going anywhere in particular, so I figured that they would lead me up into the foothills. And they did! They surpassed me pretty quickly, but I ended up climbing up the side of this hill on a shadowy brick-paved path... newer, I think, but still beautiful. At the top was a set of very steep stairs, and then--open grass. There was a grave yard carved into the side of this hill. It was wide and open, with burial mounds and Buddhist-style stone-stick markers. It was remarkably spread out. I think maybe they are family plots for folks that are young still. However, at the top of this hill graveyard, I stopped and looked out--the entire west side of Daejeon was visible in a warm sunsetty glow. It was fan-TASTIC. Gorgeous. Normally the metaphor is "the city was laid out like a blanket..." or something more akin to fabric sitting over the ground. However, Daejeon is kind of a spikey city. At least for my area, it is clean, simple, and full of very straight vertical lines. The city doesn't lay on the ground but seems to grow out of it.
Exploring is a blast here. I always find interesting things. I can't wait to start traveling around Korea, either.
The final thing I have to say, before I go get lunch and go to work, is this: there is probably nothing more hilarious than trying to figure out computer problems when you have no common language. It took the internet man forever to figure out my computer. Eventually he just went down to his car and got his own laptop. Haha. :D
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Also--
One thing that I just HAVE to write, that I forgot about in the previous post.
Ingenious Korean Inventions #1: Key activated circuit breaker
In this hotel room, in order to turn on the lights, air conditioning, fan, tv--everything--you need to plug the key into an adapter in the foyer. This means two things: that forgetful people NEVER waste energy, and that forgetful people NEVER lose their keys in their own room. For someone like me, who would forget her own head if she could, this is probably the best thing since sliced bread. I will never forget my keys when I leave, or lose it in my bed, or leave the air on while I'm gone for 8 hours. Woo!
Ingenious Korean Inventions #1: Key activated circuit breaker
In this hotel room, in order to turn on the lights, air conditioning, fan, tv--everything--you need to plug the key into an adapter in the foyer. This means two things: that forgetful people NEVER waste energy, and that forgetful people NEVER lose their keys in their own room. For someone like me, who would forget her own head if she could, this is probably the best thing since sliced bread. I will never forget my keys when I leave, or lose it in my bed, or leave the air on while I'm gone for 8 hours. Woo!
Annyeong haseyo!
WOW! .. Yeah I'm not really sure where to start.
You will notice that I am awake at 7:30am. At home it's 5.30 pm. This is strange because usually when you are jetlagged, you can't sleep when you wouldn't sleep normally. However, I am the queen of napping through the evening, so I can't figure out why I was wide awake this early. Who knows! It is a mystery of the universe.
Anyhow, yesterday I was up even earlier, 6:00am, which means that I had a pretty jam packed day. I started training yesterday, which basically consisted of my boss showing me where the teacher's guides are, and then letting me sit in on five classes. It wasn't until the two last classes, that had American teachers, that I really started to understand what my job would be like. It sounds stressful and confusing, and it kind of is, but this is the way I learn--I refer to it as the "if you throw her in the pool, she will learn to swim" method. Now I would never teach a child how to swim like that, mostly because that endangers their lives, but this is how I best learn new jobs. It just takes a big toll on you the first week or so.
I am surprised at how calm I am about things. I remember the first time I went abroad on my own--to London--I was nervous about this, and that, and all these different things. This time I am just at ease. I think it's because I'm older and better traveled, but also my bosses have put me at ease. They are great people, very kind.
I am staying at a hotel right now, because the teacher I am replacing is still in my apartment. He is leaving tonight, but my bosses said that they wanted to clean the apartment before I moved in. (Good plan!) I am really excited to have my own place--decorate everything, make myself at home. Of course, I do like the (free) broadband internet that the hotel offers... and the self-making bed and self-folding towels, haha. Anyway, though, I started to say that because wen I arrived, I pretty quickly realized that the power outlets in Korea are recessed, meaning that my converter plug wouldn't fit! It is big and square, and the outlets have round holes. (Pondering the situation, I decided that recessed outlets are silly and don't make any sense, but maybe it helps with tripping on a chord and breaking it.) I went to have lunch with my bosses, and I mentioned this problem to them, and Mr. Kim ran off and bought me an extender! I was so happy!
Okay so a note about food. FOOD IS AMAZING. Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park took me to a Japanese fusion restaurant for lunch yesterday. I had some kind of fried meat (pork or chicken) with sweet potatoes stuffed inside. Mr. Kim had the same thing only the stuffing was cheese! CHEESE! NO WAY MAN. I don't know if that is an anomaly in Korea--to have so much cheese in one meal--but I know where I will be eating if I am having a craving for a cheesy deliciousness. For dinner, we went to a restaurant where you cook your own vegetables and meat. I went with Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park and Rebecca, the other American teacher at my school. She is interesting and does well with the kids. I sat in on a class with her that was VERY rambunctious, but at least they were rambunctious and speaking English, haha.
The curriculum is simple, and I think it will be easy to learn. It's even all online, so I can check it out on my laptop! That is what I intend to be doing for the AHH million hours that I have before I need to go to work. Mr. Kim is coming to pick me up, because.. well, I don't actually know how to get from my hotel to my school. Hehe. Like I said, I'm being pretty laid back about things.
Anyway... overall I am doing well!! I am tired, but I am so excited about living here! The eye has plenty of things to feast on, from the distant mountains (!!!) to grandmothers sitting on the street selling their produce. Just from briefly walking on the street yesterday, I feel like this is going to be a fascinating fusion of old and new... where you can have a farmer sitting on the ground with beans for sale on top of a subway tunnel and next to the kind of clothing shop that would be at home on 5th Avenue.
This is going to be great, I can tell.
You will notice that I am awake at 7:30am. At home it's 5.30 pm. This is strange because usually when you are jetlagged, you can't sleep when you wouldn't sleep normally. However, I am the queen of napping through the evening, so I can't figure out why I was wide awake this early. Who knows! It is a mystery of the universe.
Anyhow, yesterday I was up even earlier, 6:00am, which means that I had a pretty jam packed day. I started training yesterday, which basically consisted of my boss showing me where the teacher's guides are, and then letting me sit in on five classes. It wasn't until the two last classes, that had American teachers, that I really started to understand what my job would be like. It sounds stressful and confusing, and it kind of is, but this is the way I learn--I refer to it as the "if you throw her in the pool, she will learn to swim" method. Now I would never teach a child how to swim like that, mostly because that endangers their lives, but this is how I best learn new jobs. It just takes a big toll on you the first week or so.
I am surprised at how calm I am about things. I remember the first time I went abroad on my own--to London--I was nervous about this, and that, and all these different things. This time I am just at ease. I think it's because I'm older and better traveled, but also my bosses have put me at ease. They are great people, very kind.
I am staying at a hotel right now, because the teacher I am replacing is still in my apartment. He is leaving tonight, but my bosses said that they wanted to clean the apartment before I moved in. (Good plan!) I am really excited to have my own place--decorate everything, make myself at home. Of course, I do like the (free) broadband internet that the hotel offers... and the self-making bed and self-folding towels, haha. Anyway, though, I started to say that because wen I arrived, I pretty quickly realized that the power outlets in Korea are recessed, meaning that my converter plug wouldn't fit! It is big and square, and the outlets have round holes. (Pondering the situation, I decided that recessed outlets are silly and don't make any sense, but maybe it helps with tripping on a chord and breaking it.) I went to have lunch with my bosses, and I mentioned this problem to them, and Mr. Kim ran off and bought me an extender! I was so happy!
Okay so a note about food. FOOD IS AMAZING. Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park took me to a Japanese fusion restaurant for lunch yesterday. I had some kind of fried meat (pork or chicken) with sweet potatoes stuffed inside. Mr. Kim had the same thing only the stuffing was cheese! CHEESE! NO WAY MAN. I don't know if that is an anomaly in Korea--to have so much cheese in one meal--but I know where I will be eating if I am having a craving for a cheesy deliciousness. For dinner, we went to a restaurant where you cook your own vegetables and meat. I went with Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park and Rebecca, the other American teacher at my school. She is interesting and does well with the kids. I sat in on a class with her that was VERY rambunctious, but at least they were rambunctious and speaking English, haha.
The curriculum is simple, and I think it will be easy to learn. It's even all online, so I can check it out on my laptop! That is what I intend to be doing for the AHH million hours that I have before I need to go to work. Mr. Kim is coming to pick me up, because.. well, I don't actually know how to get from my hotel to my school. Hehe. Like I said, I'm being pretty laid back about things.
Anyway... overall I am doing well!! I am tired, but I am so excited about living here! The eye has plenty of things to feast on, from the distant mountains (!!!) to grandmothers sitting on the street selling their produce. Just from briefly walking on the street yesterday, I feel like this is going to be a fascinating fusion of old and new... where you can have a farmer sitting on the ground with beans for sale on top of a subway tunnel and next to the kind of clothing shop that would be at home on 5th Avenue.
This is going to be great, I can tell.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
I'm here!
I'm here, I'm well, but oops! My converter plug isn't made for recessed outlets! So... I'm conserving laptop battery power. More later!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Well! Here we go again!
My flight is leaving in five hours! I should probably be sleeping. But instead I am attempting to save up my sleeping hours for on flight. I don't feel ready for all of this... but I guess you never are! It's a different kind of 'not ready' that I felt when I was about to leave for Ghana. I've been a traveler before, this time. I've lived abroad and I've been places where I am different just by virtue of being me.
Every night before I am leaving for a big trip, I put my suitcases in the foyer by the door. I like to try and get them down the stairs while I'm not half asleep. My red suitcase is sitting there now. It's the red suitcase that I bought from a market woman in Madina, the market in Ghana. I brought it back with me to hold all my Ghanaian things. Now it is mostly broken, but it is going to make one more trip and then I will probably throw it away entirely. That's what you get for buying a suitcase for 25$. But I guess you know after that how much they are *really* worth.
This isn't really a trip, though. I'm moving. I mean I can even legally get out of my cell phone contract. And on top of that, I don't really FEEL like I'm moving. I just kind of feel like "yep. Here we go." I guess after all that moving around, this is probably what I was hoping to achieve at some point. Just another "here we go." New places, new loves, new clothes, new food, new shoes. (Especially because I had to toss all of mine out because of the weight limit! It's alright. I didn't like them much anyway.) New apartment. New job. New language. New world. And it doesn't feel too overwhelming this time. It just feels like business as usual.
Of course, that might have something to do with the fact that I will be in transit for 36 hours! Well.. not really 36 hours. But once you add the 14 hour time difference, then it is. I leave at 6:50 am. I leave for the airport at 4:30am. Then I wait for the flight to San Fransisco. That's 4 hours. Then I have 5 hours in San Fransisco. (Playing Civ4, I will have you know.) Then 12 hours to Seoul. Then at Seoul I have to find my way to a bus to Daejeon. Then I have to sit on that bus for 3 hours. I will get there probably at 9:00pm on Wednesday evening. Putain! That's so long! Maybe that's why I'm not feeling like I will be there soon. Because I won't, really.
Though, as Frank says... "It will probably settle in when you're over the Pacific and all you can see is ocean."
Yeah. Probably.
Every night before I am leaving for a big trip, I put my suitcases in the foyer by the door. I like to try and get them down the stairs while I'm not half asleep. My red suitcase is sitting there now. It's the red suitcase that I bought from a market woman in Madina, the market in Ghana. I brought it back with me to hold all my Ghanaian things. Now it is mostly broken, but it is going to make one more trip and then I will probably throw it away entirely. That's what you get for buying a suitcase for 25$. But I guess you know after that how much they are *really* worth.
This isn't really a trip, though. I'm moving. I mean I can even legally get out of my cell phone contract. And on top of that, I don't really FEEL like I'm moving. I just kind of feel like "yep. Here we go." I guess after all that moving around, this is probably what I was hoping to achieve at some point. Just another "here we go." New places, new loves, new clothes, new food, new shoes. (Especially because I had to toss all of mine out because of the weight limit! It's alright. I didn't like them much anyway.) New apartment. New job. New language. New world. And it doesn't feel too overwhelming this time. It just feels like business as usual.
Of course, that might have something to do with the fact that I will be in transit for 36 hours! Well.. not really 36 hours. But once you add the 14 hour time difference, then it is. I leave at 6:50 am. I leave for the airport at 4:30am. Then I wait for the flight to San Fransisco. That's 4 hours. Then I have 5 hours in San Fransisco. (Playing Civ4, I will have you know.) Then 12 hours to Seoul. Then at Seoul I have to find my way to a bus to Daejeon. Then I have to sit on that bus for 3 hours. I will get there probably at 9:00pm on Wednesday evening. Putain! That's so long! Maybe that's why I'm not feeling like I will be there soon. Because I won't, really.
Though, as Frank says... "It will probably settle in when you're over the Pacific and all you can see is ocean."
Yeah. Probably.
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