Dobongson Mountain and a Jinjibong

Wow! This weekend was interesting and exciting! On Saturday we woke up really early to go on a big hike in Dobongson. Katelan’s brother is visiting for two weeks so a bunch of us got together to go on this long, treacherous hike. It took us about 5 ½ hours to get up and back down. It definitely kicked my ass, but it was totally worth it! We got to see a temple on the way up and some old rocks that hand Korean engraved into them. I had no idea what they said, but I could still appreciate it. The climb was pretty steep and I felt like an idiot whenever I would get past by old women with all of their climbing gear. It was nuts! I was so impressed by how many elderly people where making the trek. We also saw some Koreans rock climbing some unimaginable parts of the mountain. I have no clue how they were able to do that! They must be crazy! To get to the top we had to pull ourselves up a rope and shimmy our way through some nooks and crannies of the mountain, which was so much fun. I felt like a bad ass. A few hours in we stopped to have a lunch break and talk about how badly we wanted candy bars. Funny how all we want is chocolate when we are kicking our butts on a long hike. Once we finally made it to the top it was absolutely breathtaking! We were standing in a small area of the rock that overlooked all of Seoul on one side and beautiful, mountainous, green Korean on the other. I was in awe! We felt like we were on top of the world! The mountains and trees where more beautiful than I imagined, we felt so accomplished for actually making it to the top. All of us were snapping pictures left and right but I stepped aside for a few minutes so I could take it all in. I had a few moments to myself where I was just drinking it in, appreciating that very moment, happy to there and alive. I thought about how lucky I am to be doing such amazing things in life and in Korea, loving and living for Tanya. Wish she were here… Looking at the pictures from the top of the mountain, they don't do justice on how truly beautiful the scene was. My body was dying from expending so much energy to get to the top, but I'm proud and happy I made it!

We made our way down, went to lunch, and headed into Seoul to get a hotel where we could get ready for Katie’s birthday. Once we arrived at the hotel we wanted to stay at, the five of us girls went into ask for a hotel while the boys waited outside. We were hoping to pay less for one hotel room, instead of telling the hotel how many people would really be staying and end up having to pay more… but that didn't really matter cause the jerk lied and told us that there was no vacancy! We could see the no vacancy sign behind the desk so clearly there WAS vacancy, or else the sign out have been out for people to see! I was so offended! I mean, I'm not surprised that they didn't want a group of white people staying in their hotel, but they didn't have to lie or be rude about it! We pushed for a few seconds, asking why the vacancy sign wasn't out or how if something was going on in town that made it possible for the biggest hotel in the area to be out of rooms, but he just kept his head down and repeated “no vacancy”. He couldn't even look us in the face to tell us. Rude! I wanted the boys to go try, but we decided not to waste our time and look for another hotel. The one we found was too expensive and we would have to get three rooms, so we had to brainstorm and come up with another idea. A jinjibong!! I’ve only heard about these and never thought I would go to one, but at this point it was the only option and it sounded like an adventure, so I was game. A jinjibong is sort of like a big bathhouse where men have their own area and women have another. It's a giant room of showers and huge baths. Katelan, Tia, Amy, Katie and I were a little hesitant at first, nervous to get naked with each other, but eventually we just embraced the experience and went for it. We were all giggling and laughing the entire time! We just kept talking about how it was such an interesting experience and if this isn’t bonding, then what is?!?? The jinjibong wasn't very full, which was nice, but I did see two women sitting washing each other’s back and pouring water on each other. It was almost sweet. It was interesting to be a group of white girls among a handful of middle-aged, larger Korean women. I was surprised that they didn't stare at us more. For the most part, they were very kind and smiled at us in passing, one lady even tried to speak English to us in the big bathtub. All I can say is that it was quite the experience. We did our make up and hair there. They had a nice little set up, with a bunch of mirrors, blow dryers and food and drinks to purchase. Only 8,000 won for a memory of a lifetime and a nice, convenient place to get ready for the night!

We decided to go out in Hongdae to celebrate Katie’s birthday. We met up with Andy and his girlfriend, and the other boys, John and Matt, for a night out dancing. We bought bracelets for access to three different bars and had a great night. Until… I realized that the girls left to go back to Dongtan without me! I didn't have a purse with me since I couldn't fit it into my backpack during the hike, so I gave my phone and wallet to Katelan for the night, so I was left with nothing. I was with Chase, Alex and Kim- thank god! So I had to bum some cash from Alex and take a train, subway, and cab all alone to get home from Seoul. But to top it off, my backpack of keys, expensive make up, jewelry, clothes and new hiking boots was stolen at the bar! Lets just say I wasn't very happy! When I finally got home about 3 hours after the girls at 7:30am, I went pounding on Tia’s door. They were all sleeping in Katie’s room and heard the pounding, so they let me in and Tia and I slept on the floor for the night. Not fun!! We spent all day today going back to Seoul to try to find my stuff, but no luck! Agggggg, just my luck!!! Welp, at least I have my phone, wallet, and camera still!!

Mmmk, time to head out for Katie’s birthday dinner…write again soon.

My new babies/ Korean tutors

Yay, its Friday! I'm so excited! This weekend is going to be so much fun! Tonight we are staying in so we can be well rested for our big hike tomorrow and Katie’s big birthday celebration tomorrow night!! We are going on a hike that I hear is near impossible, but it has old temples along the way and a gorgeous view of all of Seoul once you make it to the top. Afterwards we are going clubbing for Katie’s birthday. We are going to be exhausted! I have a feeling that we will be up for more than 24 hours..

This week was pretty good, flew by like usual. After being really stressed out last week and feeling like I had no time to do the endless amount of projects and preparation they wanted us to do AND be in the classroom all day, I talked to Jade about not taking Ta-Leah’s class anymore and doing a lighter load, or having the new boy, Josh, take over some classes for all of the LCI teachers. Sue gave us the amazing news that next week, Josh will be teaching Manners and Etiquette, Science and going to P.E with the morning classes! Awww I gave her a big hug and almost teared up because I was so relieved that we would have more time to prepare for our special and afternoon kindergarten classes cause lately I haven’t been a fun teacher because I haven’t had time to plan something interesting for those classes. I cant wait until next week and I can have some more time to just breathe!!

Oh, and we have a new boy! All of us have been counting down the day that he gets here because we are so eager to see who we will be spending the next year of our life with! His name is Josh, he is 22 and from a small town in Georgia. He is extremely friendly and upbeat. He used to work at Starbucks and definitely fits the profile. He is outgoing, energetic and seems to be happy all of the time. I really like him, he seems very genuine and just a nice person. I have a hard time keeping up with his energy level, especially when I just get to work, but I think he’s great guy. It’s always weird for me to think about how this person is a complete stranger, but in a year he could be one of my best friends. So far I can already tell I will be really sad when Andy leaves us, we’ll have to just wait and see how Josh goes…

This week in my special classes has been absolutely nuts! With Josh here my special teacher has been with him helping him out. I thought my classes were chaos before, ohhh no! I used to only have to calm them down and handle the screaming, pulling and pushing for the first 5 minutes, now I have the entire period to struggle to get them to settle down. The kids don't listen to anything I say regardless of my tone. Instead they treat me like a jungle gym, run around the classroom and climb on the shelves, even run on top of the tables! The girls like to latch onto my legs until the point where I cant walk. Its really cute to see how much they love me when I walk into the classroom, but after a minute, I’ve felt enough love and just want them to let go. Haha. I’ve begun to just give up and spare my energy by just putting Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I figured since I’ve been teaching them about feelings and emotions that this movie was appropriate and educational. Maybe not, but I enjoyed the silence. Its definitely been one of those weeks where I am telling myself that I NEVER want to have kids!

In my morning classes have been acting just as wild lately. When Taleah was their teacher, they were so quiet, calm and well-behaved. Now I cant get them to chill out! They do a much better job of listening when I count to 5 or turn off the lights, but at times it can be overwhelming with these kids. Since they are older and understand me better, I tend to just let lose with them and play around, dance, and act silly with them. They love it when I play Mellow Yellow for them and allow them to get up and dance for a few minutes. This usually leads to them attempting to pull up my shirt and poke me in the butt (some sort of Korean thing that they have been doing for years where the students think its okay to poke their teacher in their butts. Apparently it's them telling you that they like you, and think it’s hysterical! I absolutely hate it!). Will, Sue’s son, tries to lift up my shirt all of the time. I don't really understand why the students think this is okay, I would never do that to my teacher in Elementary school, but no matter how much I tell them not to, they still think its funny and continue to try. For the most part, though, these kids are pretty great and I am beginning to really love them. I didn't feel much of a connection at first, but slowly I have been falling in love and finding myself look at a few of them adoringly. Of course there are the few that drive me nuts though!

I have been getting much more motivated to learn Korean this week. I’ve been keeping a notebook to words I want to learn and practicing my new words with my students. The other day I was letting my student play a matching game while I sat with my favorite student, Christina, as she taught me the days of the week. Christina is 6 years old and probably the daintiest little thing I’ve ever seen! She is so small, sweet, and adorable. She is always singing or humming, making cute/funny faces and in her own little world! She is quite the space cadet, who can slow class down, but she is super smart and too darn cute for me to get mad at. She reminds me a lot of Tanya, maybe tha’s why I love her so much. I think she is my new Kevin. I would steal her and take her back to keep her if I could. Christina and I were sitting at the end of the desk having our own little tutoring session. She was saying the numbers 1-15 and having me repeat her. At one point she paused and said “okay, what's next!?” in a really cute tone, like she was excited to play teacher. I laughed so hard and just tickled her for being so clever with me (and I didn't know the answer so I thought I would distract her ;-) It was definitely one of those precious memories in my life! I was sitting with Christina in the playroom today, letting her play with my hair and making faces at each other, and I thought to myself that I hope I have a daughter that is just like her someday! I never will, she is really quiet and doesn't play with the other kids much, which isn’t like me, but I can dream. So, the Korean is going smoothly, its almost impossible for me to learn new words, so I know its going to be a struggle, but I'm feeling really motivated at this point. I can’t wait until I can be in the teacher’s room and hear the Korean teacher’s talking crap about me, or be on the subway and respond to someone who has said something rude to me that they knew I couldn't understand! Lynn and I are going to start having weekly tutoring sessions with the material they give to the Korean kindergarteners next week. I'm so excited to start learning faster, and to spend more time with Lynn. She is the best!

Well that was this week. I have to go now so I can rest for the big hike and Katie’s birthday tomorrow!

Boyz II Men Concert and Cherry Blossom Fesitval

The lovely Cherry Blossom Festival








Up close and personal at the concert!








.. aaaawww the Boyz II Men concert was amazing!! We’ve been talking about it for weeks, I can’t believe it finally came so quickly- and that we actually were able to get tickets! We were having trouble get tickets because we didn't have our Alien cards yet, then when we finally got them, they wanted a domestic credit card when we only have check card, thennn when we asked Jade to put it on her credit card for us, it was too close to the concert to get the tickets online. So we took the risk and went to the Olympic Stadium, where the concert was held, two hours early. The cheapest tickets were sold out, but we were able to get the 100,000 won tickets. We sat on the curb and laughed and hung out while we waited for the concert to start then grabbed a few beers and went to our seats. I thought we would see a lot more white people, but I'm pretty sure that we were the only ones. It was pretty fun. We kept screaming “Philladelphia” really loud when there was a quiet part of the song, pretending we were from Philly. We were hoping that the boys would meet us since we were the only Americans there. About half way through the concert I decided that I wanted to try to sneak into the front row, so I recruited Katelan to get rebellious with me and we were on our way! I usually just hold my ticket up and act like I'm going to the right spot. It worked! Nobody stopped to question us, so we just found some empty seats and ended up getting some sweet seats in the 5th row. During “I’ll Make Love to You” we ran up to the front and pushed our way to the front row of the crowd. It was perfect! The boys were passing out roses so I got aggressive and got a rose!! One of the boys was bending down giving the girl next to me a kiss on the hand. I was able to get some awesome pictures of the boys singing and up-close, all sweaty. It was a blast!! And I can still say that I have never been to a concert without getting front row. ;-) Next up – trying to get backstage! Katelan and I left the concert one song early so we could beat the crowd and head for backstage. We felt pretty sneaky and 007 running between places to hide. It was almost impossible not giggle. Eventually we reached the End of the Road, if you will ;-) where there was a rope and security men stopping us from going back where the bands where staying. Katelan made up a story about how we knew the band and our friend was backstage and we needed to go pick her up but they didn't speak English so they called someone to come talk to us and help us out- the members of Four Men, the really popular Korean boy band that opened for Boyz II Men, came out to ask us what we needed. We fed them some more lies about this friend of ours, but they still wouldn't let us back stage. We didn't like this, so with our liquid courage we decided to run past security to hunt for the boys ourselves. Somehow we ended up behind the stage where the band and staff where taking apart the stage. Here we caught a glimpse of the cuter Boy- Shawn, we waved and kept rushing to hide from security, assuming they were looking for us. We finally gave up and met back up with Katie and Tia to head back home. Mission unaccomplished, but I’d still say it was a successful evening. Definitely a good time!!!

Before the concert a big group of us went to the Cherry Blossom Festival in Seoul for the day. There were 5 kilometers of Cherry Blossom trees on one strip, it was so beautiful! I look about 100 pictures that all pretty much look the same. Katie, Tia and I have been talking a lot about getting tattoos while we are here but I haven’t thought of something that would be meaningful enough for me to get it permanently on my body, and I definitely don't need anymore words, I have enough of that. After seeing the gorgeous Cherry Blossom trees, I’ve been seriously considering getting a Cherry Blossom tree tattoo with each blossom representing my 7 best friends from college with one falling, which would represent Tanya. I think this tattoo will capture my experience here in Korea while being meaningful in other ways as well. We’ll see if I end up getting it. Back to the festival… we all just walked around observing the scene and taking it all in. It was fun to be walking around and surrounded by Koreans, I always love when I really FEEL like I am in a foreign country, this was definitely one of those days. Along the walk were a lot of venders selling artwork and even painters painting unbelievably stunning portraits as we walked by. I felt like I was in Piazza Navona, Rome, all over again. The weather was beautiful and the company was great. It was our first real cultural thing here and it just made me look forward and excited about more in the near future! Can’t wait to start planning Jeju Island, a weekend rock climbing, and Mudfest!!!!

Kids can say and do the funniest things. They can be so entertaining! This is exactly why everyone should have kids- to make sure they laugh and come wholesome entertainment every day. When I am in the classroom I always have a good laugh because of the random, silly things the students do or say. I never thought I could love kids so much. But other times I swear I will never have kid because my students are just so hard to handle! They’re loud and don't listen to me when I try to get them to be quiet and sit down. Today was absolutely nuts trying to get my kids to clean up and get ready to go home. I was helping one of my slower student finish the project before leaving, so for a brief minute I let my kids loose running and shouting in the classroom when suddenly I had three criers. Amy was baalllling about god-knows-what, and Tommy and Will crashed headfirst into each other! I felt so horrible and just took turns holding, rubbing and consoling each of them. When I was finally able to get them to stop crying and out the door, I went straight to the teachers room. Unfortunately Will is my boss’s son so he came to the teacher room too and they put a Band-Aid on his face. When I saw him with the Band-Aid I started crying because I felt to bad! I was rushing around trying to hurry and get things ready for my next classes, trying to calm down from the stress of the previous class, scared that Sue would be mad that I let the kids run in my class, and felt so horrible that it was my fault her son was hurt. Man oh man, how the hell do people have multiple kids!??!!?? Never!

I’ve been talking to Colin quite a bit, its pretty easy when the time difference in Australia is only a half-hour ahead, and he was making comments about how I don't have any pictures showing what the city looks like or anything other than my friends and students. Pretty much saying that he is interested to see what it looks like in Korea and I’m doing a crappy job of taking pictures of things I see. I just want to mention that the reason why I don't take pictures of the city I live in, Dongtan, is because its not that cool. The city is new and doesn't have a lot to see or do like most of Korea’s older cities. I don't find a bunch of really tall condo buildings picture-worthy, so you probably wont see many pictures of the city I live in online. I might take some pictures of the grocery store or the city when I go up to Seoul from now on… Also, now that the weather is FIIIINALLY getting warmer, we will be out doing things more often and I will be able to take more interesting pictures. I’ve just figured that I am here for 13 months, there is plenty of time for the scenic pictures.

Anywho… not much else going on here. I promised myself that after I finished my TEFL that I would start getting serious about learning Korean so I decided to get started on that. I started teaching myself the Korean alphabet for a while the other day. Its going to take me a long time to learn how to read Korean because I'm going to get all of the symbols mixed up, but I know that reading is crucial and the first step. For now I am just doing a little at a time and treating myself like one of my students, like going back to kindergarten to learn the very basics of the language. I have a notebook that I keep with me all of the time so I can write down words that I think of that would be helpful to know, then later I go back to look up and learn the word. So far this week I have: read, small, big, and ‘see you tomorrow’. Doesn't sound like much, but its HARD and I'm pretty proud of myself ☺ Hopefully once I get the alphabet and reading down my progress will speed up. I think the hardest part is going to be finding the time to study. Lately I have only had time to go to work, go to the gym, make dinner and go to bed early. I’ve been trying really hard to go to sleep really early so I can wake up at 6 so I can get on Skype to talk to people from home. The time difference makes it really hard to keep in touch with friends from home! By the time I get home from my day, its 4 am at home, so I have to get my butt up about 2 and a half hours early to talk to friends at home. Its pretty challenging to get myself out of bed that early, but I always leave for work in such a good mood when I have just chatted with someone.

Welp, thats me...

A trip to Hongdae

I had to make the trek up to Hongdae to pick up my keys from Zen Bar. I snuck out of work a little early so I could rush to the bus stop, I wasn't looking forward to spending hours of my life just to spend 30 seconds picking up keys, I left as early as possible so I wouldn't get back to Dongtan so late. The bus ride up was fine, only taking me 30 minutes to get into Gagnam, but from there it was quite the adventure. I walked for a bit to find Gagnam station and find the correct subway to get me to Hongdae. After 20 minutes of wondering through the trail of cell phone kiosks and clothing shops, I finally was able to locate the right subway. I felt like such a tourist when I had to pull out my Seoul subway map to read and re-read the names of the subway stops I was trying to locate. Sometimes Korea words all blend and sound exactly the same. I had a 40-minute subway ride ahead of me so I was pretty distraught when I saw how crowded the subway was. It was ridiculous! I had to push and shove my way just to get on the damn thing. Then, after being pushed around and glared at a hundred times, I was able to sandwich myself into the crowd. There were so many people on the subway that I had someone pressed up against both of my shoulders, chest, and back. I couldn't move an inch if I tried. I usually would get irritated in this situation, but I kept thinking about how annoying it must have been for them to have an American taking up their precious space, so I remained as respectful as possible. It was funny to watch the stream of people sway back and forth as one when the subway would move aggressively. Those were probably the longest 40 minutes of my life. Hongdae was 15 stops away with each stop feeling like it took an eternity.

I felt like I was going to pass out from the body heat and hunger I had been feeling for the whole ride. I couldn't have been happier when my stop finally came! But then the real work began. I realized that I had no idea where to go once I got off the subway… only my vague memories of what street was leading in the right direction. I’ve been to Hongdae a few times, so I wasn't worried on my way here, but once I arrived I realized that just like the Koreans who live here, the streets all look the same. Bright lights, big signs, and random clothing shops and restaurants. I stopped at a Family Mart to ask for direction but she had no idea what I was saying so I called my Korean friend Lynn to have her translate for me (I love Lynn ☺). I was told the correct direction and began to wonder around looking for Zen Bar. I wondered through interesting allies with funky graffiti painted on them, adorable vintage shops, delicious-looking restaurants, and dark scary alleys that began to freak me out. For the most part, I was enjoying the stroll with wide, curious eyes, but after about 30 minutes of not being able to find the bar, I was getting frustrated. I wondered past a Starbucks and had a moment flash where I felt saved, but a second later I remembered that just because there is a Starbucks doesn't mean they can speak English and help me find my way. Its moments like this when I can’t wait to get back to my apartment and practice learning Korean! I stopped to attempt to ask for directions again and moments later I found Zen Bar!!! Yay!! I said my name and the bartender handed me my keys!!! I couldn't have been more relieved or excited to have this search end! I hate being lost, especially at night alone in a foreign country. Thank goodness Korea is one of the safest countries in the world!

I decided to reward myself for all of my hard hunting with some Quiznos! I’ve seen them in Seoul before, but I knew they were pricey so I’ve never had it, but today I decided that I earned it. I relaxed for while before I made my way back to the horrible subway ride to Gagnman, which wasn't as crowded this time ☺. Got lost in Gagnam station trying to find out which exit I was supposed to take, so I just tried one after the other until I found a familiar street, waited for the bus, and came back to Dongtan! After 5 hours of crowded spaces, being stared at and walking until my feet hurt in my most comfortable shoes, I finally made it home with keys and USB! As annoying as this trip was, I have to say that I enjoyed my time alone and seeing parts of the city I would have never seen otherwise. I only wish I had my camera with me so I could take pictures of all of the Korean side streets and graffiti covered walls!

Life as I know it

I'm officially the teacher for Taleah’s class now. I’m still nervous trying to be a really fun teacher for them and I'm a bit overwhelmed with all of the extra work these kids are. I have to be much more energetic when I’m teaching and small tasks such as checking homework or writing the weekly comment cards takes much more time and effort! I’ve been getting a little flustered because everything takes twice as long! I need so much more patience and have to plan ahead even more than before. Taleah spoke Korean so she could communicate with them or answer questions that they didn't know how to ask in English and now they come up to me, constantly talking to me in Korean and expect me to know what they are talking about. I get especially frustrated when it is time to clean up and go home but they all take so long to do everything so I am rushing around trying to make sure they cleaned their mess, have all of their stuff, putting their jackets on for them and I'm still late getting them to the bus. I feel like there is just so much to do with so little time! I feel like John and Kate Plus 8, minus John. Will all of the chaos of eight kids I’ve been really hating this job. It’s just not as rewarding as it was when I only had four students that I had more time to get to know. I really loved those students and enjoyed coming to work in the morning to see them and joke and play with them, now it feels much more like a job. I don't feel very connected with these students, maybe because they loved Taleah so much or because its only been a few days and I haven’t had the chance to play with them, but all I know now is that my favorite part is helping them put on their jackets for them to go home. Sad huh?

Other than class…life in Korea has been pretty good. Andy’s girlfriend will be coming soon and we are all excited to meet her! She’ll be here for 18 days so we keep teasing Andy that we will forget about him by the time she leaves ‘cause we know we won’t be seeing much of him while she is here. Oooo and Boyz II Men are coming to Seoul on the 17th and we are stoked! There are so many amazing concerts we are going to miss while we are here and the likelihood that one of our favorite artists will come to Korea is slim, so we are pretty happy that we found a concert that we could go to! Maybe it will make me feel a little better about missing Dave Matthews, John Mayer, Sublime, and Tom Petty…but I highly doubt it!

This weekend we went out for our friend John’s birthday in Suwon. He is a member of Katelan’s Pyongtaek family, and with the Dongtan family we had a pretty great group of people. John wanted to go to the Suwon versus Seongnam soccer game before a night out in Suwon. Everyone was pretty pumped to go to a soccer game in Korea to do something a little different than just drink. It was my first professional game since Roma and it was quite a few others first real game. It felt really good to do something more cultural and to see all of the Koreans getting so intense and into the game. We vowed to come back for an even bigger game soon and sit in the section with all of the crazy fans. Most of the group was drinking during the game to ‘pre-game’ the bars, but Katelan and I decided to limit ourselves to two beers so we could save our won for the Boyz II Men concert. Things aren’t necessarily expensive here, but it’s so easy to spend, spend, spend.

There was a good-sized group with us out in Suwon so it was complicated to keep everyone together and make sure nobody was left behind. Matt, John’s best friend, did an amazing job of playing coordinator! They are from Georgia and are just the nicest, most thoughtful guys I have ever met! It was only natural that Matt was the one making sure everyone was together and having a good time. I was impressed with his dedication so I bought him a beer. There’s no way I could have had the patience to make sure 25 people were all in the right place and having fun, if someone got lost, I’d just let them figure it out. I mean, we were on only one strip so it wouldn't have been hard to find everyone… anyways, the night was definitely a success! I think it is safe to say that absolutely everyone had a great time. I don't feel like going into every detail of the night, so I thought I would just share some highlights: finding a volleyball at the game and playing with it all night without losing it (pretty impressive for a group of 25 drinking kids), seeing a Korean celebrating his 21 birthday by being taped to a pole and having his friends kick and hit him, going to the batting cages and watching John get hit with a pitch, and watching John tackle all of the boys and have a sword fight with fake sunflowers. All of the above items are extremely random, hence the night being so much fun! But maybe you had to be there…
The following day, Katelan and I woke up and headed to Pyongtaek to see a movie. My first movie in a foreign theater, but once we got there we realized that the movie we wanted to see wasn't playing. Instead, we just made a day of it and shopped around Pyongtaek for a few hours with Chase. We took Chase to a boys clothing store and helped him pick out new clothes for a new, Korean style he wants to adopt (because they dress so well!). Shopping with Chase made me miss my brother a lot! I miss being at home and shopping with my brother to help him pick out new shoes or new clothes, I always enjoyed our time spent together that way. I was trying not to spend money so I didn't buy anything, but I did buy a pair of hiking boots that I am thrilled about! I plan on going on as much hikes as possible while I am here so I can see what Korea is all about, visit some old temples, and of course get some exercise! Hopefully I will be able to wear my new shoes soon! For dinner, Chase took us to a burger joint that supposedly has the most amazing burgers around. He wasn't lying! The small restaurant was called Bearly Burger and played old school Elvis songs. My mom loves Elvis, so I started to miss her a bit too, but then my burger came! Katelan and I split it ‘cause we knew we couldn't handle the whole thing alone, but daang it was amazing! So delicious, I can’t wait for my next one! And the best part is, they gave us large cups (that you NEVER find in Korea) and a big pitcher of lemon water. I thought I died and went to America. YuuuuME!

As Katelan, Chase and I wondered around Pyongtaek, we started talking and Chase told me that Kevin and Daniel (the WSU guys that Tia, Katie and I replaced) are considering coming back to Korea in September! I was shocked! I guess being back home is boring and they aren’t having any fun, so they want to leave again. When I heard about this, it made me not want to come back home either. Not that I don't love love looove all of my friends and family, but its nice to be in a place where there is a lot to do and places to travel on vacation. Daniel and Kevin are from Tacoma, so I'm sure I would be feeling the same way they do if I came home. Well, I plan on coming home for a least a month after I am done with my contract in Korea, but Katelan, Chase and I are pretty serious about the idea of moving to Australia in April 2011. We’re trying to recruit Kara, Addy, and a few other people (Ariel, Whit, Lucia, Alyssa – hint hint). I think Australia would be absolutely amazing! Living on the beaches of paradise and not taking life seriously for a few months sounds like the way I want to live. I think we are going to buy one-way plane tickets in the next few months to make sure it actually happens. I'm in debt and broke right now, but if I am good with my money while I am here and use the money I receive at the end of my contract, I think I’ll be good to go! Awww cant wait!!! Not sure what my plan will be for after that, maybe another year of teaching in Seoul, maybe backpack through South America, I’ll just have to wait and see where life takes me. Man it feels good to have no real idea about what my life will become…

New set of students, Insadong and Easter

Another week has flown by. It’s insane to me how quickly time flies. I’ve been here for two months now but it feels like I arrived yesterday. I am so busy during the week, I guess it just makes the days go by much faster. This week we received our first set of bills, which means I have officially set my budget. I am paying off a lot of debt while I am here and hopefully saving up for my next new adventure, so money is tight and I have to be careful not to spend too much money out in Seoul or shopping. It’s going to be hard to resist the urge to shop since everything is so cute and cheap, but I think I’ll be able to handle it. We got paid today and FINALLY have a bank account as of yesterday! I already feel settled in here, but this made it a official. It feels good. Ooh and this week I finally finished my TEFL!!!! I’ve been working on it for the past 6 months and have spent endless hours working on it so it felt amazing to finish it. I love that feeling of accomplishment when you finish something you’ve worked so hard on! I have no idea if I will be teaching English again, but at least I have the option and will get paid more now if I do.

This week was my last week with Kevin :-( and I found out that they didn't like that my class was only going to have 3 students in it, so they decided to split my kids into new classes. I was really sad to lose Kevin, and now I am losing my entire class… makes me so sad! I felt connected with Jessica, Sarah, Sally and Kevin, and now I have to start all over again. These kids make going to work worth it- I am going to miss them so much! ! For my last day with them I wanted to do something special, so I asked my boss, Sue, if I could have a little party for them. She approved so I went to the store to pick up some balloons, a big chocolate cake, and a bunch of little presents. I gave them candy, pens, stickers, little notebooks that are really popular with all the little kids, and some other random nick-knacks. I invited my partner teacher to come and eat and play with us. It was a lot of fun, the kids were really excited! The only thing I forgot was my camera. I was so mad when I realized I forgot it at home cause I really wanted pictures with my student on my last day with them. All day the other teachers were asking me how I was doing because everyone knew how much I loved that class and how sad I was to be losing them. I was sure I was going to cry, but I never did.

Taleah’s contract is up in two weeks so I am going to take over her class. She has a class of eight 6-year-olds, which is going to be a lot to handle. They don't speak English like my class did so it’s going to be much more challenging to teach them. I’ve been observing Taleah’s class all week and taking notes on how she does everything so the kids wont have a hard transition. She is the best teacher at LCI, so I have some big shoes to fill. She is always extremely energetic and fun in class, I don't know how I will be able to muster up the energy to be that perky in the morning! Aggg, I’m not looking forward to this! The eight kids are super adorable, which is nice, but I don't think I’ll ever feel as close to them as I did with my original class. I'm really bummed about having to start all over again and change classrooms after the zillions of hours I put into decorating my classroom. The new boy who is coming in a few weeks will be so lucky to come and have his classroom all set up for him when he arrives! The only thing I am enjoying with all of this is that I get to just sit and chill all morning and not have to worry about putting together a lesson plan. Feels good to just relax in the morning rather than running around and being stressed out. Sometimes I’ll be sitting with the kids and feel like am living someone else’s life. I haven’t spent a lot of times with kids before I came here, it’s weird to think that this is my full-time job now. I used to be so uncomfortable around kids because I have never spent much time with them - Joe used to laugh and make fun of how nervous I would get to talk to his little brother or kids at Chucky Cheese’s. Now I am with them all day everyday and find myself missing them on the weekends. But yet again, I am sitting in Taleah’s class, nervous to be their teacher. For the third time in 2 months, I have another group of children to get used to. Hopefully we warm up to each other quickly- at least I know that these will be my students for the next 11 months. I have a feeling that this group is going to be much more challenging than my last. I assume they know things and talk to them like I would my other students, but these kids have a much smaller English vocabulary. For example, they had to identify simple patterns and they just sat there staring at me. I quickly realized that they were blankly staring at me because they didn't know the word “pattern”. I have a feeling I am going to have a lot more moments like this one!


Other than that, everything has been pretty great here. Tia, Katie and I have been getting a long really great and enjoying each other’s company. Amy has been hanging out a lot more, which is awesome. She is a really fun, laid-back girl so we all really like having her around. And of course, Andy is the man of the family. Andy is freakin’ hilarious! Always making me laugh and cracking the funniest jokes. He’s a bit obnoxious- but not in an annoying way. He’s always goofing off and saying ridiculous things. Everyone pretty much votes him the life of the party. I love having him around all of the time, not just because he is funny and so nice, but because he switches up the dynamic of the group. I'm with girls constantly, its really nice to have a boy in the group to smooth things out and ease the drama, cause girls can be really dramatic about the dumbest things sometimes. He always just says something witty to remind everyone to stop getting so upset about the small things that happen at work. It’s only been a month with the guy and I can already tell I'm going to be really sad when we have to say goodbye to him next year!

This weekend we decided to stay in on Friday night because we were so exhausted from the workweek and had plans to go shopping up in Insadong all day Saturday. It was our first time going up to Seoul to spend the day, but we didn't really see a whole lot. Someday I really want to go up there and stay all weekend to get to know the city. Tia, Katie, Katelan, Sean, Chris, Chase, and I went to Insadong to shop for traditional Korean items and souvenirs. Insadong is a big market full of little shops and stands of Korean artisans selling their handmade pottery, clothes and jewelry. This month is my best friends Ariel and Whitney’s birthday so I wanted to go to Insadong to buy them traditional Korean items. It was a lot of fun to walk through the crowds of people, seeing the beautiful things the artisans were selling and bartering with them. It was Katie’s first time bartering, so she was a little nervous, but it was fun to watch her learn how to effectively barter and the excitement she felt when she could get the item for the price she wanted. I ended up spending a lot more than I planned, but Ariel and Whitney are worth it ;-) I'm definitely going to come back here to buy things for my family before I go back to the U.S.

Yesterday was Easter, so a big group of us went to Pyongtaek to make brunch at Katelan and Chase’s apartment. All of us pitched in for a ton of food and Sean single handedly made eggs, French toast, and bacon for our whole group of about fifteen. Oooh and Kim had a friend who is in the military and lives on the base so she was able to get Doritos and Cheetos! So exciting! Yum. We all just hung out, talked, played games and some basketball outside. It was nice Easter Sunday, definitely continuing my streak of fun Easter’s for the past few years. Last year in Pullman with my WSU family and the year before that I was in Athens with Tanya, now Korea. Wonder where I’ll be for Easter next year?? Maybe visiting Cambodia, Japan or Europe??

Mmk, back to work. Another day, another Won