the Last Airbender

I am officially looking forward to this movie, after initially being ticked off that M. Night Shyamalan was in charge of it and also sad that because it was going live action, the voices would be different. I wonder if the actors might seem kind of cheesy the first time around and improve in the later films like Harry Potter. The kid for Aang has little chubby cheeks, it's cute! Click the link to see some The Last Airbender trailers and probably some stuff from the original series. Hopefully this comes to Korea!

tragedy strikes!

One of my big hopes was just massacred and smeared across the floor, so I'm going to take a few minutes to properly mourn and then move on. 


I was really hoping to be able to move this summer into a smaller and newer apartment, in a location that is closer to the middle of Daejeon. It takes FOREVER for me to get anywhere, my apartment is ancient, it never got warm during the winter unless I holed up in 1 room, and I don't even know where to start to make it bug proof for the looming mosquito season. And with the 2 floor gas pipe problems, the busted water pipe, and the recent electric bill that went up 3 times it's normal with no reasonable explanation, I'm not looking forward to seeing what else will go wrong during the next year. 


After talking to my co-teacher, moving isn't an option. When it was confirmed they'd get a native English speaker, the school I guess got overexcited for the future and signed a 2 year contract with the ancient ruins I currently live in. This was so there'd be a home for future teachers. I'm not sure how thrilled those future teachers will be to live here, though. So this is the number one reason that's grounding me to my apartment for a second year, but my co-teacher discussed some other reasons. 


1. For the price, it is extremely difficult to find as much space without it being too expensive. I can appreciate their desire to give me as big a place as possible. Honestly. But I also would've been happier with someplace smaller, newer, and more bug proof. 
2. The vice and main principal "care about my daily life" and think it's better that I live close to the school so I don't have to use public transportation. To this I think, please let me decide that for myself. This location makes the rest of my life extremely difficult. I want to take Korean language classes next fall, and from here, the commute will take at least 1.5 hours. 
3. Key money is an issue. Basically you have to put down an enormous deposit, which my school did apparently, when you sign the contract. It can be hard to find an apartment that accepts monthly rent- an officetel (the type of apartment I was hoping to move into) would've been a good place to check. 
4. All the furniture the school got to fulfill the contract requirements. It'd be a hassle to move, but it wouldn't be the school's... 


I had a fleeting moment of anger after the conversation- not directed at anyone, just the anger that is immediately wiped out with that annoying sad and hopeless feeling. There's nothing that can be done about my living situation, and after hoping for so long that I could move, I'm just really sad about it now. The thought of trying to get my own apartment anyway crossed my mind, but obviously that's not realistic. Now I can just hope that my boyfriend will be able to move (he currently lives in a 1 room, tiny place that has nothing around it), so then there is still a way to live in a better location and escape the bugs and heat during the summer. 


buh. I'm sad about this. :(

homebound!

Lately, I look at my schedule and think, "there's not enough time to do everything!", which in a way is good because I don't feel bad anymore for the moments when I slack, but typically when I do have work I procrastinate... My co-teacher sent me 38 reading passages and I have to do the same 3 things for each one. 38 times. Buuuh. School has also started following me home as a student requested I use MSN to help her with vocabulary. I can't say that I mind it, but it takes a while to get through everything, and I think I froze her computer last night because I sent messages too quickly. 


In other news, I'm coming back July 30th and staying in VA until August 24th! I booked my flight last night; non-stop on Korean Air, 13 hours and some minutes on the plane. Without the layover, the flight is scaled back by 7 hours. Nice! 

the paradox that is me

There's a new development here! Using a little Korean softens the blow that I in fact am not fluent in the language to the people here. I can now correctly say "I don't speak Korean," which the Koreans accept with far more grace than when I said, "Korean language, no." Haha, I'm just like the students with "no eng-gu-lee-she." I was doing some shopping tonight and the store associates were trying to talk when I explained that I couldn't effectively communicate back. They kind of nodded and then asked where I was from (which I understood the first time! or the key words at least...), which I answered. I bought a shirt and got a service wash cloth adorned with teddy bears and the store's name. It's cute because it was free. I like to think I got it for free because I was a sweet foreigner who tried to speak Korean. 


And ironically, after telling them I can't speak Korean, all I did was do just that while shopping. Here's the funny thing that happens now. And it ALWAYS happens. I tell them I don't know the language and they're all: Okay... but... you have a Korean face... So while they can accept the fact that I can only speak English, they have trouble digesting the idea that I can look Korean yet not know the language. They also won't accept any answer other than, "Yes, I am Korean-American." If I say, "I'm American," they add "Korean" to it. Yeah okay, I can be that for you. 


Tomorrow a practicum teacher wants to interview me about being adopted because the class he's working with is reading an adoption story. I wonder how that goes... surely some Korean family reunion by the end or the girl coming back to her ethnic roots. I'm not sure how I feel about it. On one hand I'll answer anything anyone wants to know, it's not something I actively keep secret. The other side of it is that it does feel personal, and it's always a little awkward to explain to people my opinions of the grittier questions they tend to ask. 

thank you, payday

Yeah, thanks to getting a paycheck in my bank account, I got to pay off my bills, pay for an upcoming trip in July, and hesitate about sending money home this month. My won to American dollar converter isn't looking so good on the won side right now... 


Yesterday, one of my students had a seizure in class. It started out with what looked like a loud yawn, and then it totally wasn't. Fortunately (I guess) seeing one isn't new to me, so the foreigner didn't panic! And by the way, should you ever be with someone who has a seizure, it's better to just let them ride it out, don't try to move them, don't touch them, and stay calm (just from what I was told to do in the past- but staying calm is key). Also, don't be surprised if they're exhausted afterwards- the student slept afterwards, and the kids I worked with back in the states often wanted to do the same. 

lunch mess

While eating, I saw a hair in my rice. Not a big deal. I went to separate the hair rice from the rest of it and unearthed a freaking huge bug. The "hair" was the little bastard's leg. Now I'm cranky because I'm still hungry due to the fact that the one thing I could always count on at lunch turned out to be inedible. Today's soup? Mystery seafood swimming in mud water. The sides? Uncooked potato pieces and some fishy mess. 

Korea likes free stuff

a free black coffee attached to my lattes

It's getting more difficult to remember what things were surprising about Korean daily life the longer I'm here, so it's getting to be more of a challenge for me to think of things to note here for you back in the states... 

Here's a difference. Korea likes free stuff! Back in EPIK orientation, we were told that sometimes if you're a good customer to a store or a restaurant, you might start getting stuff for free or "service" as it's called in Konglish. My friends and I have been given food for free with the servers explaining that it's service when we don't understand where it came from. When I bought my electronic dictionary back in the fall, the store associates gave me tupperware as an extra gift. This may have been a fluke, but once when I went shopping in a department store, one of the shirts I got was actually just given to me instead of being rung up. 

the travel cup

Roketship has a cartoon that summarizes what I'm about to say perfectly: Stores like E-mart and Homeplus actually tape stuff to their products. Lately, if you're looking to buy a giant box of instant coffee packets, you could choose between some floral pattern ceramic dishes, a bento box, or a mug as your free thing. From buying cereal, I've gotten a bowl, a fork, and a travel cereal bottle. Awesome. Also something that's common in these stores is seeing freebies strapped to what you're buying so you get more for your money. Take yogurt for example. You might find a 4 pack of yogurt with an extra 2 cups stuck to it. The pictures are some semi-recent purchases that came with the free things. Forget coupons, just look for you're favorite products covered in tape!

Chinese lamb kebabs by Yuseong

Ah, lamb kebabs! I was never a fan of lamb at home. Occasionally my mom would make a lamb roast, and somehow, topped with rosemary and roasting in the oven, it made the house smell like doughnuts. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this place before, but now I have PICTURES! My friends and I were introduced to this place by a Korean man who helped us order our first meal in Daejeon. We went out with him once, and he took us to this magical restaurant that serves awesome, awesome baby sheep on skewers. It's a little dive place a couple of blocks from the Yuseong Spa subway- exit 8 I think, straight down the sidewalk until you eventually take a left into a small area with some places to eat and hofs (bars where you usually have to order food with your alcohol). There's a bar next door with a Marilyn Monroe statue to clue you in that it's the right area. The food here is amazing, and a great option for those days when you want something freaking delicious and not Korean. Plus, it's cheap: 7,000W per 10 skewers- make it a snack or a meal! 

The damage we did.

there is no love with Gummy

Seriously. There's a female Kpop artist who goes by the name Gummy, although her given name is Park Ji-Yeon (박지연). I guess she'd be considered older for a woman music celebrity, as she's about 29 right now in comparison to a lot of the girls in the Kpop groups not even being in their 20's yet. I think she has a beautiful voice, and her label has been working on a comeback for her with the following song. Apparently, when she first debuted back in 2003, she was overshadowed by other groups on her same label. So 7 years later, with 2NE1, Big Bang, and Se7en (thanks wikipedia), the label they're all signed under is bringing her back to the spotlight. Click the link to see Gummy's comeback single, There Is No Love and some other current Kpop music!

results of the speech contest

Alas, my student lost the speech contest. The middle school students were separated into 2 groups: A and B. A being those who haven't lived abroad, and B consisting of the ones who have. My student of course, was in B. 


Now. Why didn't he score higher? Because, as one of the people running the contest explained to me: had he used hand gestures and made eye contact with the audience, he would have earned more points. 


Just for the record, my student is blind. Needless to say, my co-teacher was livid, and vented in the car that they didn't understand people who are blind or have low vision. In this case, no- they didn't consider the reason why the student didn't use hand gestures or look more directly at the judges. 


I mean... seriously?


But otherwise, he did an excellent job.

the Lotus Lantern Festival

I spent this weekend in Seoul with 4 friends to see the big Lotus Lantern Festival for Buddha's upcoming birthday. I think this was the most fun I've had in Korea so far, and definitely the best trip to Seoul. Saturday we visited two palaces: Changdeokgung (창덕궁) and Deoksugung (덕수궁), and saw the opening parade in Insadong. On Sunday we wandered back to Insadong to check out the festival and stayed there for the big parade. Our train back to Daejeon was scheduled at 9:40, but just before heading for the platform, we realized that our tickets were actually for Daejeon to Seoul. Fortunately, the train 10 minutes later had plenty of seats, and it was only 2,000W a person to switch. Nice! 

For whatever reason, I currently can't upload photos in Blogger, so here's the slide show from Picasa and a link if you would rather head over yourself.

See the album on Picasa

a note on school contests

There's an English speech contest tomorrow that one of my students is participating in. I'm pretty sure he got a late start on writing and memorizing, and as of yesterday, he hadn't memorized the entire thing yet. So my co-teacher chewed him out to the point of tears, and I got to stay at school until 8 last night to help force it all into his brain. Buh. And today's even better. My co-teacher wants me to work with this kid all day on this 3 minute speech. Thrilling. Hoping hoping hoping that he'll get it together before 5 and we won't have to spend 8 hours together. Fearing that my co-teacher will make us stay until 8 again. He's obsessed with success and right now I hate it. BUH. Thank God for a 3 day weekend. :)

Teacher's Day in Korea

If you're following me on Google Buzz, I apologize for spamming it! 

Tomorrow is teacher's day. As I've said before, lately, I learn about special school events through students. No different this time, when a student was saying that his classmate was preparing for a performance that was meant for teachers. Eh? Walking into the auditorium, students were lined up to make a pathway and applauded as teachers filed in. It was interesting to say the least. A few students performed and then there was a special 4 person group from somewhere performing some music on a keyboard, cello, flute, and a Korean traditional instrument. A vocalist came out for a couple songs, and I recognized one; a song I played way back when I was in the elite-super-cool-atthetime instrumental ensemble in elementary school. I played the song on a recorder and the name I knew it by was "Korean Folk Song." haha, I felt so cool back then. I love the cello's sound. I wonder if there's any place in the city where I can get music lessons in an instrument... Teachers got little baskets with some carnations in them. A few students I think were competing to give me a basket. I don't remember really but just that a basket was forcibly thrust into my hands by someone in between the second that some other students realized it was me. 

Honestly, I don't know anything about Teacher's Day, but I'm just going to assume it's a day where they get honored. Last week we had Children's Day and Parent's Day- a combined Mother and Father's day. My co-teacher was surprised to hear that America has a day for each parent. He likes Korea's way better because you don't have to shop twice for gifts. Is there a Teacher's Day in the states? 

E-Mart is LEET

I don't live near an E-Mart, but after my last visit there I seriouslyseriously want to. Here's why.

Whipped cream. It costs at least 5 times more than it does in the states, but this would've been great to have on Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

 Two things here. 1: whipping cream. For a lot less than Reddi Whip, and I prefer to make it myself anyway. 

2: Sour. Freaking. Cream. Taco night is now complete.

Another way I can get away from Korean food! 

I'm so excited that these things can be found in Daejeon- especially sour cream! So, if you live near an E-mart and you haven't discovered these foods yet, go scour the store and see what treasures you can find! 

week recap through pictures

Wednesday afternoon, my co-teacher told me that the 9th graders were having a picnic at Daejeon's theme park, O-World. Ooookay. It was an awesome day! 


Before we left, we met in the auditorium to play volleyball. It was adapted for blind and low vision players. You have the net, but it's only a few inches above the floor. Instead of hitting the ball over, you have to hit it under. Points are scored by getting the ball into the green goals. Blind players line in front of the net to block. Players who have vision can wear black out goggles so they can be on the front. There are bells in the volley ball so you can hear where it is. I hadn't yet been to O-World, so I was looking forward to seeing the park. It's a small amusement park with a zoo and garden area (didn't see those). Here's the run down through pictures

These look like those quarter rides, but they're just meant for photos. My co-teacher is a perfect model here. 

This was the first ride we went on. I decided I really hate these rides. It's so uncomfortable I couldn't even scream. hahaha

A perfect example to remind us that we're not so different in a lot of ways.

They loved this ride. Except 2 of the 4 students in the boat are hiding.

The class! Sadly, I was behind the camera

The little kids overran the park all dressed in their matching uniforms and carrying their matching backpacks. Freaking ridiculous, freaking adorable. 

Just imagine piles of these little things in all different colors, all over the park.

My nature photo of that day. Flat out amazing color, and the sunlight made the darn tree glow. A shame I couldn't really capture that part.

Click play to see them all.

the glory of cheap accessories

Experiencing the low cost of just about everything in this country makes me want to know why life is so darn expensive in the states. I got a haircut last week, and the woman who cut it curled it with a flat iron. It looked really good. I can't figure out how to get it to look the same way, and just letting it dry results in half-cut curls going in stupid directions. The one thing I wasn't thrilled about was that she cut bangs. You know, the ones that are too short to pull back, but are too stupid long to leave down. So while I wait a couple months for them to grow out, I need some things to hold 'em back. Last night I went to an accessory store and picked up a mini-slew of headbands for 1,000W each. So cheap! They're cute, too! This store is pretty awesome because you can load up on trendy jewelry and hair stuff without spending a lot of money. I bought some earrings, too for 1,000W a pair. I freaking love the fact that I don't have to drop a load of cash for some extra fashion. 

practicum fresh meat

My school got a slew of practicum students this morning, so I guess that explains the decorated chopsticks that teachers got.  Picture later if I ever take one... they're wood with a design on the top and stuck in a Asian style print satin case. They're cute! Bottles of vitamin C juice (not my favorite thing, it tastes like liquid Flintstones chewables) also appeared on teacher desks with a little introductory note stuck on them. Sadly, I don't understand anything beyond "안녕하세요." I seriously need to get it together and start studying vocabulary. This is really pathetic. 

Still waiting to hear about re-signing. There's a slight comfort from the fact that no one else in Daejeon has re-signed yet. The prices of plane tickets home are uglyugly beasts.


Cute moments of the day: I went to the elementary 6th grade classroom to work with a student for a few moments. One of the other students poked my shoulder to get my attention and said "hi." This afternoon in the middle school first grade class, we weren't doing anything. 2 of the 3 students were there, one of those two is an adult participant. The actual middle schooler spent the class trying to talk to me and asking what things were in English. This is a big deal because her English level is low. At one point she was doing an old lady squat on the floor while talking. I think she ran out of things to say at one point because she stopped, looked at me, and said "I love you." The adult participant I think believes my name is Megan Virginia. He also seemed surprised that my family is American.

Daejeon's Breast Cancer "marathon"

I ran the 5k race this morning in 33 minutes! WOO! There was so much PINK. I liked it. Some more details about the race? There was a 10k that got a head start, we met at 8:30, started after  9:30, ran around Expo Park area. This means John and I were up at 6, out the door at 7 and in the area by 8:20. Buh. All this was done before 10:30 am. Nice!

from Facebook

All the runners got these medal things. Cute. ^^

camera works (LOVE the Canon Power Shot)

Mom, this one's for you since you're still griping about the camera. So I never read manuals or directions, be it technology, recipes (this has led to some disasters), or stuff I have to put together. This results in bookshelves being put together with pieces attached backwards, pie with twice the amount of sweetener (when using Splenda, note that you use half as much as you would sugar...), missing ingredients, missing pieces, or me having to take stuff apart multiple times until I can get it right. So of course, I tossed the camera manual somewhere in my apartment when I got that beloved box from home way back in December. This week, I just discovered a slew of settings on the point and shoot digital that my parents sent me. Who knew I could change the light settings, or that I had some control over aperture and shutter speed? I mean, WOW! This little beast can do some impressive things! So Mom, here are some recent photos; results from testing the features I just noticed the camera has. You and Dad chose well. THANKS HUGS&LOVE. And the pictures from the previous post were all taken with it, too. 

a staff lunch somewhere on a mountain somewhere in Daejeon

This is the raw beef, soaked in a chili sauce and served with slices
of pear and raw garlic. All on a bed of thinly sliced cucumber! 

I have a feeling this is going to end up being a pretty sizable post... mostly with pictures. So the mountain trip yesterday! There was no mandatory hiking! After eating, some of the teachers wanted to go "trekking" as one put it, but then a smaller group split off and took me with them because they wanted a short walk. I definitely didn't mind that. We ended up meeting with my co-teacher who wandered off alone, and we paper-rock-scissor battled our way up a stair case (kai-bai-bo as they say in Korean, correct romanization or not). They decided how many steps you could go up for each different way of winning, and then we played each round until there was one winning hand (like, one type beat everything else, so more than 1 person could win). Fun! haha- we ended up playing this again later when a teacher was talking about a snack, so then the loser had to buy it for everyone. 

Okay so lunch. Some new things here. First, raw beef. Drenched in a chili sauce, and still a little frozen. It was good! Not something I would go look for myself, but it was enjoyable and I'm not sick. My brain is so conditioned to have alarms go off at the sight of raw meat thanks to the way it's raised in the states and the consequences that have followed because of those methods. Granted, who knows, maybe beef in Korea is produced the same way. I haven't really been able to figure that out yet. The main feature of lunch was a soup called galbi tang (갈비 탕) where the "tang" sounds a little like "tongue." It's a simple soup with some beef ribs boiled into a broth, some scallions, and some sweet potato starch noodles. No lurking little sea monsters in the bottom. Nice. 


And then there was the rice. I've had rice like this maybe twice before, but I hadn't thought to photograph it yet. The first time I saw it served this way I was baffled. My mind was just about blown when I saw what the Koreans did with it, and then my brain evaporated when I realized there was more to be done. Now? Still a little strange and not my favorite thing, but far more normal to me. The wood encases a stone bowl which is heated super hot to the point of making the rice crackle. So what you do is after letting the rice sit closed for a couple of minutes, you scoop most of it into a bowl. Don't fight the rice that's stuck to the sides. Then you pour some water into the stone container and put the lid back on. Ignore it for the rest of the meal and eat the rice you took out. After you eat, go back to the stone container, mix the water and rice,which is now no longer stuck, and eat. The water gets a little thick and starchy from the rice, and to me, you get a little flavor from the rice that was toasted by the heat. I think part of this process is getting the burned rice off of the bowl, and not letting food go to waste. So again, not really my favorite thing to eat, but a good cultural experience. 


... aaaand three days later, here I am finishing up this post with: that day was awesome and it feels like it happened a month ago! Enjoy the pictures! 

Picture demonstration for the rice! This is what it's served in: the stone bowl in a wood case.

I had to sneak this photo in between my co-teacher telling me to let it sit for 2 minutes... Black rice gives it the purple color, and it's common to have a type of bean or another grain mixed in. I think it's a good idea, it gives some nutrition! Scoop what you can out and dump it into another bowl...


This is the rice water soup stuff you eat at the end of the meal. It tastes like rice water. Hot rice water. Definitely better than hot ham water, though.

Daejeon Citizens and promised awesome week

From what I understand, Daejeon Citizens is the name of the city soccer team. Last week, my friends' schools were handing out free tickets to an upcoming game. The stadium was packed with families who like us, got in for free. I liked it though because a big part of why I enjoy watching sports in person is the energy radiating off of the crowd. Plus we were surrounded by little children who liked to stare at my obviously western friends. One kid even started yelling "gogogo!" at the soccer players like we were. This was my first professional soccer match (professional anything really)- I can't effectively describe how much fun it was, but it was funfunFUN! We lost to Incheon (the city where the international airport is), so I will probably forever resent it just a little from now on. One of the friends I went to the game with was trying to start up some Konglish chants. Serious failures there, and from the chuckles from some surrounding Koreans I think we used the Konglish incorrectly. 


Saturday was the introduction of some nice weather we've been privileged to enjoy. Today it's breezy, edging on downright windy, but it's sunny and warmish, and I just want to go outside and be useless. In 30 minutes the middle and high school teachers are going to a mountain to eat and "drink... a little" as a teacher put it last week. I'm still doubting that we won't end up hiking even though when I asked, the teacher said no. Because seriously- sometimes no really means yes, though that mostly relates to Koreans pouring me alcohol when I say "no thank you." bwaha. I've got my camera, so I'll be getting some photographic records of the spelunking that goes on this afternoon. 


This week is going to be awesome because I get out early today and tomorrow, Wednesday is Children's Day, thus a holiday (also Cinco de Mayo, though I've never celebrated- but a good excuse to make tacos!), and this weekend there is talks of going to a ropes course in Daegu.