Snow makes everything better

Dear snow,
You are welcome here in Gunsan anytime!

Well, last week we had our first legit snowfall. It was wonderful. I don't know what it is..maybe I just really love the first snow every year, maybe snow makes it look a little bit more like home, maybe it's that snow muffles the sound of screeching brakes and honking taxi drivers, OR maybe it's that the snow disguises the multiple pools of spit on the sidewalk that I seem to walk through every morning, but I LOVE that it snowed this week. Of course it's gone now, but it was so wonderful while it lasted. Here are a few pics. *SNOW!!!!!
* So it begins..this is one of the entrances to the market..I live in the depths
of this market *We still ride our scooters in snow storms in Korea * And this is what I woke up to!

Anyhow, I realize I am super late on this blog. BUT it's because I've been one busy bee these past few days. I've been cleaning, Christmas shopping, grocery shopping, and trying to get ahead because ERIKA will be in Gunsan in exactly 2 hours and 20 minutes! Also, last week was painfully uneventful, there were a few high points..of course the snow was the biggest highlight.

As for the other high points, here it goes. It turns out my students in my morning class have taken pity on my in this cold weather and have been giving me rides back to my apartment, so I don't have to walk through the snow. Speaking of that class, last week we said a temporary "goodbye" to Mrs. Ko. She is studying English in Tacoma, Washington for 6 weeks. I am so excited for her, and of course I begged her to take me with her, but she wasn't having it.

Also, early last week, my Chinese student came back and brought me some Chinese snacks. I tried the "gummy bear" type things but have yet to try the stuff that looks like a solid square of diarrhea. Also, the same Chinese student invited me over for lunch on Sunday. So, this Sunday, I went and had a Chinese lunch with 3 Chinese college students. I couldn't believe it..2 of them lived in a 1 room apartment that was probably a little smaller than my one-roomer. I don't know how they do it...I mean I'm stressin' a little with sharing this apartment with my sister for 6 days. Anyway, the food was delicious. We had beef with onions in some sort of sweet sauce and eggs with tomatoes (both apparently, Chinese dishes), a fruit salad, and this ham sandwich sort of thing. It was all really really good and I loved spending time with them...although it was difficult since their not really fluent in English. Our conversation was pretty much centered limited to topics such as Twilight, Harry Potter, Avatar, Britney Spears, and hamburgers.

Well, as you may know, South Korea has been a huge part of the news lately. And although some people say, this is how it's always been, I think they are mistaken. Last week the whole country held an Emergency drill. We were told to stay home or if walking, to get into the nearest building and stay there for the next 15 minutes. I was home, but I went and looked out the window of my complex and saw that their were still people walking around and school kids still walking in masses and taking up the WHOLE sidewalk. However, I heard later that many people did participate in the drill. It's really interesting being in a country that holds these kinds of drills.

So, last Thursday, I got an email from the U.S. Embassy saying that S. Korea would be holding these live-fire military drills on the island that was bombed last month. Pretty much the email said "Don't be scared little American, just keep yourself informed, and STOP emailing us to ask us if you should evacuate...we will let you know if the situation changes." The drills took place on Monday, and if you watch the news at all, it was one of the tensest moments I think this country has seen in a while. North Korea said they would deliver a "catastrophic" attack if the drills took place, Russia and China strongly encouraged South Korea to not hold the drills, and the U.N. decided they would get together and try to solve this thing once and for all (shockingly, that didn't work.)

Nonetheless, gutsy South Korea held those drills like nobodies business. Of course it would have been too predictable for North Korea to attack right then, but still people have been on their toes ever since the drills took place on Monday. All day on Monday, I carried my evacuation bag with me.

Yes, North Korea being a bully has been going on for awhile, but South Korea has never been so aggressive either...they are definitely at their tipping point. And it's almost like they are daring North Korea to try one more stunt so they could respond full force.

SO, please pray for this situation, for the safety of the people of South Korea, and for the freedom and release of oppression of the North Koreans. It's most definitely a very interesting time to be living in South Korea.

I'm sorry this blog wasn't as good as previous ones. I promise more laughs for this upcoming week's blog. Oh and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

YIKES....BIKES!

Dear Mr. Kim,
Seriously, you are one crazy dude. Next time you cycle next to me, I'm taking your pic.

Here I am sitting in the teachers lounge because it's cold and rainy and I just didn't feel like walking anywhere. I guess this is a major downside for working a split shift and living 2 miles away with no vehicle. However, I'm using the school's electricity and heat and therefore saving bundles on my utilities, right? right.

So these past several days have been a bit of a challenge..don't get me wrong, this week was another eventful and humorous week, but I really think I'm starting to get homesick. It's probably the holidays, birthday, and the fact that for the past however many years of my life, I've had AT LEAST a two week break from school and I could hang out with family and friends pretty much every single day.

Skype really has been wonderful, many times I hear people say, "I don't know how they did it back in the day without cell phones and internet." But I've been beginning to think of the internet and skype as a bit of a tease. It's frustrating when the connection is bad and the conversation is delayed a solid 5 seconds. I mean you skype or talk on the amazing magic jack (thanks MRS. BIVINS) for an hour or so with a group of your friends and it's great while you're talking. But then you hang up the phone or shut off the computer and you're sitting alone in a tiny one room apartment listening to your dwarf hamster obnoxiously drink from her water bottle. And then you begin to think, "I won't really see them for at least another 8 1/2 months." "Will we still talk this regularly in 7 months?"Is the phrase 'out of sight, out of mind' really true?" "When I do see them again, they will have experienced so much without me and vice versa, will we still connect?"

I could go on, but I feel like it would depress you. Needless to say, I miss a lot of people! And although, I just called skype a "tease" it's still pretty great to be able to see and talk to my friends and family. Most of the time after skyping my homesickness is like a 3 instead of a 7.

ANYWAYS, you're probably thinking to yourself, what's this about "bikes." WELL..Tuesday felt like the days when something always out of the ordinary happened on my walk to work. I was walking right past the food garbage place and I look over to my left and about 8 inches from my face was the man on the bicycle who is 100% positive that I'm 18! YES, SAME GUY! I jumped back, startled, and the same thing happened..he rode in line with my walking and asked me my age, and when I told him, he told me I was wrong and that I was 18. So, I asked him how old he was, he's 59. Then he asked me where I was from. I told him I was from Chicago..like I do everyone else who would be confused by the word "Dixon." Then he started spouting out American cities he knew, " San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Seattle, California." After he finished his list, he patted me on the back and rode away. I decided to call him Mr. Kim, until I find out his real name..because let's face it there is a 75% chance his name really is Mr. Kim.

A little while later, I saw a nasty accident that involved a school bus and a bicycle. Thank the Lord I didn't walk any earlier than I did. It was just a messed up bicycle and the school bus driver that was still on the scene.

Then I was half a block away from my school and I was about to cross the street and I had to tap into my goalie/catlike reflexes to stop myself from getting hit by yet another man on a bicycle.

So, that walk was a bit treacherous, and I hope it's not a foreshadow into these winter months. Speaking of winter months, early last week it snowed! It was so beautiful and I raced home (and by that I mean I briskly walked) to try to get a picture but it had all melted by the time I got to my camera. I hear the Midwest got hit hard yesterday with a snow storm, SO JEALOUS!

So I think I disappointed a few of my students last week. Last Friday I was on cloud nine when they all called me an "English genius," but I definitely don't deserve that title anymore. On Wednesday we played pictionary and the 12 year olds are absolutely repulsed if they are intermixed with boys and girls and there was only one boy. So, I decided I would be on Jay's team. We would work well together, I thought, he was the one who called me an "English genius." Sparing the bloody details, we got totally annihilated by those little girls...and to add to the humiliation, I was the one who made the pictionary words. Jay just looked at me and said in a disappointed tone, "teacha."

However, I'm pretty sure my adult students still think of me as an "English Genius." Again, they were full of advice for me this week. Sometimes right before class ends, they feel the need to give me advice about my life since I am so young and they are so...experienced. This week they told me that I need to marry rich and if that means waiting a really long time, than so be it (they didn't say "so be it," ...but that would have been awesome!). So, thanks for the advice Mrs. Ko and Mrs. Nam, I'll really keep it close to my heart ;) Mrs. Nam, not only did her results show that she is the most daring person in our class but she also went on and on about how handsome Clint Eastwood is and how if she could spend the day with someone famous, it would definitely be him. Watch out Mr. Nam.

So, I ended the work week by going to see Chronicles of Narnia at the theater with a hot date. You guessed it, Mr. Oh. He was quite the gentleman. He paid for me and opened doors for me. However, I'm pretty sure he could have got us kicked out, because every once in awhile I would hear him snapping pictures of the screen. Mr. Oh is an avid photographer..almost in a stalkerish kind of way. I'm pretty sure he took about 30 pictures of the movie.

The weekend was relaxing, I hardly did anything, but I still feel so tired! And if I read one more facebook status about how people are so happy they are home on a 4-5 week Christmas vacation, I might chuck Lily out the window in a jealous rage!

But seriously, if you are one of the lucky few that is home on an enormously long Christmas break I leave you with the words of Billy Madison, "Cherish it, CHERISH IT!"

Twenty-Three...a good age and a good basketball player

Dear citizens of Korea,
Stop moving to Seoul...being squished into a subway, paying an arm and a leg for a taxi because you sit in traffic jams for the majority of the time, and sweating like a Norwegian man while shopping because of the body heat from the ever growing crowd that follows is simply NOT worth it.

Look at this, it's Monday night and I am sitting down to blog. The dishes haven't been touched, my clothes are still all over the place, and Lily is practically swimming in her own feces, but by golly, this blog is being written ON TIME!

Well well well..you are now reading the writings of a very wise 23 year old. That's right, it was my birthday on Saturday the 4th. Turning 23 is exciting, and I'm not saying that because after a year of not being able to, I can switch the numbers and say I'm "32"...maybe it was my obscure imagination when I was younger but I remember being so excited when I turned 12 because I would switch the numbers and say I'm 21, or 31, or 41, and so on and so forth..you're probably like.."what the hay?" I don't know..I think I was out there as a child..the amount of imaginary situations I put myself in is just embarrassing.

Back to the birthday bonanza..Well, the celebrations started on Thursday. Yogita and Jemal took me to lunch on Thursday afternoon for a little lobster linguine. It was this cute little Italian place. It kind of looked like your blind great grandmother's house inside, but the food was amazing! They are great company and I am so blessed to have them as coworkers and friends.

Quick side story: Thursday afternoon, my 5 o'clock class was hilarious. This class is all 12 year olds. They are becoming my favorite class. They are goofy, smart, and pick up on American sarcasm pretty easily. So, this boy Dan brought this snack to class. It was raw ramen noodles and he put this spicy packet all over it and I mean SPICY! I tried a little, but being a weak Westerner, I couldn't take it, so I did the sensible thing and stopped eating it. However, all the other students did the UN-sensible thing and kept shoving the spiciness in their mouths. The room filled with the smell of spicy food and the students (except Dan) starting breaking into a sweat, then the sucking in of air through the teeth started (all but Dan), then the panting started (minus Dan), then as they were answering the questions I could hear a lisp and see that their tongues were getting bigger and bigger (but not Dan)..then mid-English exercise, I say, "Just go get water" and they all jump from their seats and rush out the door..but there sat Dan licking the last of the spice from the packet. He finished while I just stared at him, and he said with pumping fists, "Teacha, I am champion." And I said, "Yes, Dan, you ARE champion."

So anyway, Friday came along and it was such a special day. I told my adult students like a month ago when my birthday was and they made it a point that we celebrate it even if we had to celebrate a day before the actual day. So, Friday my adult students from the morning class took me for some Chinese food, which was fitting because I just got a new student in that class who is Chinese. Her name is Xian Jio or something like that, she's my age and she knows Korean fluently and is working on her English and Japanese. So in the car, we were trying to learn Chinese..."Nee How" is hello..and that's all I remember. The car ride was interesting with Korean and broken English being spoken mainly with a little Chinese thrown in here and there. It was one of those moments that made me say, "Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."

After lunch we went on a drive to the outskirts of Gunsan. We mainly drove around the industrial part of Gunsan that is situated right on the Yellow Sea. I read about it before I came here, so my students showed me the ferry that crosses the Yellow Sea to go to China. Again, another of those moments, "I'm just a ferry ride away from China. NBD." Then we crossed this new road that was built on this thin piece of land that goes to the islands near Gunsan. It was awesome to be surrounded by the Yellow Sea. It was a really windy day, so the swells were HUMONGO! I couldn't capture it on my camera, but I know I'll never forget it. I feel like those swells gave me a little glimpse into the power of God.

So my students brought me back, it's always a good day when I don't have to walk to work. Yogita surprised me with a gift of a hat, scarf, gloves, and nail polish..all matching. She's a gem. Later, the teachers got me a birthday cheesecake and sang happy birthday in Korean. My adult students in the evening class brought me pizza AND more cake and one of them brought me a "the king" bobblehead from Burger King. They also sang Happy Birthday to me! I was stuffed full of cake, pizza, and birthday wishes. I felt like one special teacher!

So, Saturday came along and thus the second Saturday in a row I've gotten up before 6:30 a.m. A group of us from my church went to Suwon, a suburb of Seoul to see this traditional Korean village. It was pretty neat. One of the men we went with grew up somewhere much like the village we walked through. It really is incredible to see the changes that have happened to this country in the last 70 years. And in fact, the man said that much of North Korea today looks like these traditional villages. I compare it with colonial America..if you've been to Jamestown in Virginia (or is it Maryland?) than you could combine what that looks like with an African village you've seen on TV or in magazines. The people who work there are all dressed in traditional Korean dress. We saw a traditional Korean dance and an abnormally flexible 60+ man do acrobats on a tightrope. Pretty entertaining stuff to say the least.

After our adventure into Korea's past, we dove right into modern day Korea and took the subway into Seoul..thus my introduction of my Seoul frustrations. We tried to get to the Seoul Palace before it closed but we were 20 minutes late. Bummer..but that's ok, we still stood outside the walls and went into the museum for a little while. Finally after our day of sightseeing and travels, we made it back to the Seoul bus terminal where the group bought me a Krispy Kreme snowman birthday donut! Then we got onto our bus and made the journey back to good ole Gunsan. The more I'm away from her, the more I appreciate this little "hidden treasure" called Gunsan, South Korea :)

Well, to all you Norther Illinoisians, I hope you are enjoying the snow...it's tradition that it snows on my birthday..unfortunately that tradition did not follow me to Korea. So go outside for me, make a snowman, snow angel, build a snow fort and throw snowballs at your siblings, neighbors, or complete strangers...enjoy the snow, don't hate on it.

*blowing out the candles on my 2nd birthday cake of the day..notice my
illustration of a camel from a previous class that day..that's art.
*Who has the best students? This birthday girl
*A little pregame stretch before the big show
*Some Chinese for lunch with adult a.m. class

*Traditional village group
*My birthday donut
* A little birthday dance :)

"Oh"

Dear Mr. Oh,
You're the best Sunday morning date out there...except when you "forget" your wallet.

Eh, well, so much for Thanksgiving resolutions. I had every intention of writing this blog 2 days ago, but as usual, I have no real excuse.

So, I'm sure you are all on the edge of your seats waiting to hear how my Thanksgiving went. Right? Right. But first I have to tell you about a man named Oh...Mr. Oh.


I met Mr. Oh for the first time when we took my dad to the bus station a week after I arrived. Mr. Oh is the driver of the church I go to, so he offered to give us a ride to the station. After we sent my dad off, he drove me around Gunsan for awhile, telling me of his past "love"...Miss Penny. The story is too long to tell, but basically Ms. Penny was a woman who Mr. Oh loved once upon a time. She was an American working for a short time in Gunsan, and he was a Korean man looking for love. And love he found with this beautiful blond American. However, he did not speak English at the time and nor did she speak Korean, but according to Mr. Oh they were supposed to be married. Well, long story short, Mr. Oh was under the impression they would somehow connect in the next year and get married, BUT Miss Penny left no phone number, address, or....last name. She boarded a plane, America bound, and never was heard from again...well, at least by Mr. Oh. I have a good feeling there was a major language and cultural barrier..poor girl, she probably didn't even know what was happening...or maybe she did.

Mr. Oh finally gave up on Miss Penny and gave into his mother's wish to have an arranged marriage with a Korean woman. He has been happily married for many many years..I think he is somewhere in his 80's, but then again, you know how I am with age these days.

SO, that's Mr. Oh. He picks me up every Sunday morning for church. But before church we always go for breakfast. He is one hilarious man. He learned English from Sesame Street. He loves the airforce. He LOVES America. He loves his "girlfriend" ( his wife). He loves classical music..especially in Italian. He loves speaking English. He loves God. And he LOVES Dunkin Donuts. So, every Sunday morning since I've arrived, we have a Sunday morning "date" at Dunkin Donuts. We order the same thing and he chatters away in a broken English while I sleepily nod but only understanding about 40% of what he is said. Nonetheless, I've grown to really love and look forward to our Sunday morning dates.

Thanksgiving morning was a little bit of a sad morning. No Macy's Day Parade. No waking up and helping/snacking on Thanksgiving dinner. No movie with the Gabriel girls to look forward to. BUT my church was having a Thanksgiving lunch. I still had to work, but I have a lunch break everyday from 11 a.m.-3:00 pm.

On Thanksgiving, Mr. Oh came to pick me up after my class let out. The Thanksgiving service was to begin at 11 a.m. I finished class a little early and got to the van at about 10:55. (Note: Mr. Oh is ALWAYS early..very early...like 2o-30 min early) So, as soon as I got into the van, Mr. Oh took off. I've never seen anyone drive like he drove...and there were children in the back, but the crazy driving didn't seem to phase them, they are Korean after all. I counted. We barely missed squashing 5 people. We straight up ran 7 red lights. Average speed was probably 70 mph (maybe an exaggeration, it seemed REALLY fast sitting in the front seat.) And we turned a 15 minute drive into a 7 minute one. All the while, Mr. Oh would shout randomly, "Watch yo back!"

We arrived fashionably late and obviously, I survived.

One of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving was hearing what one man was thankful for. Pastor Li is a Korean man that comes to the church every week. On Thanksgiving he said how thankful he was for freedom..especially freedom to worship. He told us a story from his childhood. He lived through the times when North Korea ruled South Korea. He said it was a very difficult for South Koreans. North Korea would not allow anyone to go to church for 2 years. But one infamous day, a white man gave Pastor Li (boy) a piece of chocolate. This man was General MacArthur--The American general who drove out North Korea and fought for and achieved the freedom of South Korea. Here's a man who knows what it's like to live without freedom, and therefore can truly appreciate it. I think a majority of my generation could learn a lesson or two from Pastor Li on what it means to be thankful for freedom. He also is a Vietnam Vet.

So, I got back to class and immediately regretted all that turkey. I fought Turkey Coma all day, but I somehow managed.

Saturday was a long day. I woke up at 5 a.m. and a group of ladies from the church went to Seoul to do some holiday shopping. We went to a huge market and I got lots of "asian" looking gifts for Christmas. I still have so much more to do though :( But anyways, here are my thoughts on Seoul:

*It looks just like NYC or any other big city in the United States
*No one stares or is impressed that you have white skin and can speak English very well
*Everyone speaks English..you look like a fool if you try to use the little bit of Korean you know
* It's no Gunsan where the ajuma's (grandmas) roam free and rule the streets
*their markets can't hold a candle to my Myeung San Shi Jang Market

Lastly, you've probably seen more news on this North Korea situation. From the looks of things, it seems like tensions are still high but it feels like South Korea is moving forward. However, if North Korea does something else along these lines, I don't think South Korea is just going to lay down and take it.

On Sunday night, I had a wonderful night. I had popcorn and hot chocolate for dinner and watched a movie. It was really relaxing. Before I went to bed, I remembered to put some documents in my "emergency evacuation" bag and watched CNN just to check up on the situation. Of course the last words I heard were, "and tensions are still very high." At 2 a.m. I woke up to the biggest explosion I had ever heard. I mean my apartment shook and my windows rattled, I woke up in a panic. Immediately I turned my TV on...fuzzy. I tried my internet..no connection. I thought, "this is really happening. Well, I think I'm safe in my market. Should I call the pastor? Should I call my coworkers? Should I somehow make a dash for the Airforce base? Why did I only put capris, a tshirt, and a toothbrust in my evacuation bag? What good is a toothbrush without toothpaste? What about Lily?" (actually I didn't even give Lily a second a thought..what..she bites me;) ) And then I heard something that sounded more like thunder and saw what looked more like lightening. And after a few minutes, I came to the conclusion that it was a thunderstorm and not a North Korean attack. (HUGE sigh of relief...especially from Lily)

Well, that wraps another blog. It's been a good week this week, especially since a little baby boy named Abram Isaiah Garcia came into the world a few days ago! If you have time and you're around, you should make something meaty and cheesy and bring it over to the Garcia house :) Have a great week and weekend everyone!

Korea is where it's at

Dear North Korea,
This is not ok.

Hello all! It's actually Thanksgiving (which is not celebrated in Korea) right now and in 2 minutes it will officially be Thanksgiving Day in America :) However, I will talk about today and my Thanksgiving in my next blog because I realize I have fallen behind, and I need to have material for when I write my next blog on Mondayish. My Thanksgiving resolution is to be more consistent with the blog :)

So, anyways, this past week and a half was not really that eventful, until Monday afternoon. And if you haven't been hiding under a rock, than you would know about the current situation with North Korea...if you HAVE been hiding under rock which is probably most of my college friends and others my age here is a link to the story.

There is MUCH speculation as to why North Korea did what they did, but reality: no one knows why North Korea does what they do. I think right now is most important for the South Korean president and our President to sit down with China's leaders and figure this thing out before it's too late.

Nonetheless, mother, I am perfectly safe. And although the news is really giving this a lot of attention, the U.S. Airforce base in my city seems to be going about business as usual. So, it doesn't seem it's so extreme that I will have to evacuate or anything. However, I did pack a little "necessity" bag if something does go down.

My adult students reactions were the worst. One lady started to cry. She said one of the Korean marines was from our city of Gunsan and that he was only a few days from getting out of the service. So, the mood is definitely a somber one.

O.k. enough about this...on a lighter note, this past week was a pretty good one. My students are good, my adult students remain my favorite with my high school students coming in at close second. I've noticed the more comfortable my adult students get with me, the more they go on and on about things. They tend to talk in circles, and this week I asked one of them a question and then all of a sudden my brain totally left the situation. As she was talking these were my thoughts: "man, it was a cold walk today. I can't believe that dog followed me for two blocks. I miss Cami. Remember how different she looked when she got a haircut? I need a haircut. I wonder if Koreans know how to cut Americans hair. More importantly, I wonder if they know how to cut curly hair. Maybe I'll see if Erika can trim it when she comes. Oh man, I can't wait for Erika to come. What should we do? I need to look into things to do in Seoul. right? right? right? right?" Then I quickly realized my student was asking me if she was right? So it's taking a great deal of focus these days to keep with them. But they really are improving, and it's great to see them talking SO much English.

On Fridays we have game day here at my Hagwon and we play games like Up Words and another English game called Word Up. Up Words is like Scrabble. One of my elementary school students spelled the word UAE this week. Of course I said, "that's not a word, you weakling." (I didn't really say "weakling") And then he was like, "um yeah, it's a country." And I was like, " No it's not." But then I vaguely remembered that in my last semester of college I remember learning about United Arab Emirates in my geography class. And although it was an abbreviation and I shouldn't have given it to him, I did anyway to applaud his thinking. Seriously, the kids 12, I learned about that country when I was 22. Korean education, ridiculous.

Also same day, one of the games had multiple choice questions. The question was, "Which is not delicious?" a) a banana cake b.) a chocolate cookie c.) a spider sandwich The student thought about for a minute and said the answer was probably "a" but that it really depends on the person...a Korean would say that.

Speaking of gross food. Last Friday my morning class of adult students took me to this bird lookout and then out to lunch. At this lookout, they had these silkworms cooking in a pot and a lady selling them. In my old "western" way of thinking, I would have thought those worms were snacks for the birds, but in my brand new "Asian" thinking, I knew those worms were snack for us humans. So, my students bought some and told me I needed to eat one because I needed an adventure while I am in Korea. So, I did as Koreans do and chewed that worm right up. It tasted like......a worm. And it may have upset my stomach a tad, but it had to be done and a memory was made. Here's a pic of the worm:
And the last story of the week that was pretty funny, yet embarrassing happened early last week. In my building there are 5 floors. Our school is on the 4th floor. I take the elevator every morning with pretty much the same people. Twice the doors have shut on me when I've attempted to catch it at the last minute. But last Tuesday, I was on the other side.

There were about 5 of us in this small elevator and I was closest to the buttons because I get off first. So as the doors were closing this older lady made a surprisingly quick dash towards the elevator. Like clockwork, the doors shut on her too...they literally shut on her. So, with my catlike reflexes I push the button to open the doors and let her on, but while I was holding the button down, the doors still remained shut, her tiny Korean shoulders squished in between these two elevators. The elevator got really quiet and all eyes were on me..especially the eyes of the woman stuck in the door. And after the longest 5 seconds of my life, I realized I was pushing the button that closes the doors. So embarrassing, yet the look on her face and the fact that she didn't say anything, not even a sound, while she was stuck was pretty hilarious.

Well, I never think I'm going to write as much as I do. So, if you didn't get to the bottom of this post in one sitting, don't feel bad. I probably wouldn't either. Happy Thanksgiving everyone..eat tons and tons of turkey for me! Oh yeah, and special shout out to my "secret" followers, you know who you are....Phil.

Mawiage is what bwings us togetha today

Dear Lily,
If you try and bite me one more time, don't think I won't hand you over to those nutty Koreans who will scarf down anything that's put in front of 'em.

Well, I know..It's Wednesday, so I'm a few days late. Really, there is no excuse except according to Wikipedia I am currently entering the "Negotiation Phase" of culture shock. Straight from one of the best sources in existence: "In addition, they would feel sick and laziness" -Wikipedia. My English is worsening since I've been here, but isn't it supposed to just be "lazy." That's ok, Wikipedia rules regardless. Anyhow, yeah, I've been slacking on the blog.

Truth is, I don't think I can top last week's blog. And people are becoming accustomed to the white girl who strolls by them everyday 3x a day. Nonetheless, I still had a few humorous/interesting situations last week. My students still crack me up, I don't think listening to their English and the way they say things will ever get old.

In my morning class, I teach an age range of about 48-60. I'm just guessing..they are probably older, I am notorious here for guessing someone's age incorrectly..for example, a couple of weeks ago, I met a girl and I said "are you in elementary school?" Her response: "I'm 19." GRANTED...that is 18 in America, but still...big mistake. Anyhow, I digress....So, we were talking about things we have never done and what we would like to do. They usually talk to each other and I listen and pipe in to correct their English. So, Mrs. Nam asked Mrs. Ko if she had ever ridden on a motorcycle. Now, Mrs. Ko is one of my best students. She is very good at English and she thinks hard about how to respond and usually does so with almost perfect grammar and pronunciation. So, Mrs. Ko responds. "No." Mrs. Nam: "Would you like to?" Mrs. Ko, "yes....someday I would like to ride on a motorcycle along the water with a man.....a strong man....with long hair....and no shirt...and I would like to be hugging him." My response: "Mrs. Ko, are you describing your husband?" Then we all laughed for a bit while I pictured Mrs. Ko clinging to Fabio while driving on a motorcycle down the coast of California.

I don't think I mentioned this, but I picked up a second class the week before last. It's this group of nine 12 year olds who are sooooo sweet. They are actually pretty hilarious. They picked English names and one of the boys wants to be called Harry Potter. Sometimes when I call on him, he'll say lines from the movie before he answers. Anyways, they are great. So, one day I walk into the classroom and I see them all scurry to their seats. I was like, "hey guys, how are y...." then I saw it..all over the board was the word, F*&K..but without the strategically placed symbols. I looked back at their sweet angelic faces and they say, "We are good teacha, how are you?" Nothing phased them. Although I chuckled on the inside at their sweet faces with that nasty word all over the place, I sternly said, "this (pointing to the board) is very bad. Do not write it again." They agreed, and no problems yet. I mean don't you remember being 12 and learning a swear word in another language? I totally do.

Speaking of my younger students. Sometimes in class, when they are being wild, I say, "man you guys are crazy today." And I've noticed they all gasp a little and then laugh kind of nervously. So I asked someone this weekend if they noticed that in their classroom and the teacher who had been here for 2 1/2 years told me that when you say the word "crazy" the translation of that word means that the person is actually mentally crazy and dangerous and it's pretty offensive. SO, although a few students definitely are qualified to have the title "crazy," I've been trying to keep it out of my vocab, which is proving to be more of a challenge than I thought.

So yet another week of teaching ended. On Satuday I was able to attend a Korean wedding. One of my coworkers asked me if I wanted to go with her, so I decided it sounded like a great opportunity. And that it was. It was really interesting to see. First of all Koreans think anyone who marries under the age of 26 is out of their mind...boy would they be in for a culture shock if they came to little Dixon, Illinois. So, the bride was 31 and the groom was 36...BUT again, when I saw them I thought neither of them looked over the age of 21. Seriously, they age soooo well.

It was held at a hotel. At the wedding ceremony people sat at tables and there wasn't any bridesmaids or groomsmen..or even priest for that matter. Well, I don't think he was a priest..I think he was more of an MC..he stood over to the side. Anyway, the mothers came down the aisle first wearing their traditional Korean style dress. I think the dress is sooooo cute. Then the groom came down the aisle, walking almost at literal lighting speed. Then the bride was walked down the aisle by her father to some Celine Dion song.

The overall feel of the wedding was not very serious. People were talking, kids were running around, young people were flirting it up in the corners of the room...it was like a ceremony and reception all mashed up into one fairly quick event. But a few parts did make me a little teary eyed...like when her father gave a speech and the bride cried. But apparently weddings in Korea are famous for their complete randomness. Someone I was talking to said that the last wedding they went to a Korean man dressed up as Santa Clause came skipping down the aisle in the middle of the ceremony throwing candy to everyone...this wedding wasn't quite that random, but I thought there were some definite highlights: -the groom sang to the bride but forgot the words midsong. -at random times, this bubble machine would spew bubbles everywhere. AND -the groom's friends gave them a special present in the middle of the ceremony..a choreographed hip hop boy/girl dance...3 girls and 3 guys performed this HIGHLY inappropriate dance RIGHT in front of the grandparents table where there was alot of bootyshakin and poppin'. I actually recorded some of it, but blogspot never lets me upload videos. The face of the parents and grandparents was priceless.

After the ceremony we went upstairs to eat some food. It was this HUGE buffet, full of Korean, Japanese, and Chinese food. Lots of raw fish, kimchi, meat and rice. I stuck with what I knew wouldn't give me parasites, and I actually ate some onion rings..well what I thought were onion rings. By the third onion ring, I figured out it was squid, not onions that I was eating. Go figure. That's ok, I'm not against squid. So, the day was really fun and I cherished being the only foreigner at the wedding. The bride and groom even thanked me for coming..in English :)

Here are a few pics of the big day:
Truth: the Korean wedding crowd is not all that different from the American wedding crowd... their thoughts: "The wedding ceremony is nice. Man, they are taking FOREVER to take their pictures. Finally, now let's get our EAT on!"

Hope everyone is doing very very well and keeping warm...winter is a comin'!

Bikes, Masks, Dogs, and Champions

Dear extremely naughty 7 year old Korean boy,
You are testing my very last nerve; I'm about to bust a cap...it's a good thing you are so darn cute.

Well hello there my faithful readers, you are about to dive into a reading on my wacky weekly adventures. I think if I didn't blog, these crazy situations would become the norm...I hope that never happens..If they do become what's "normal," life back in the states will probably seem like such a drag. Anyways, let me do my best at explaining this week in a few short stories...

Right off the bat, on my Monday morning walk to work, I had a situation. I was walking, headphones in, music blasting, gettin' my walk on when I see out of the corner of my eye a bicyclist coming up behind me. This is normal, usually they just ring their little bell, I step to the side and the 85 year old pulls a wheelie and zips right past me..well after a few short seconds, I notice he is riding at the same pace as my walking..and I feel his stares...So, while I continue walking and he continues riding right next to me, I pull out my left ear bud and say, "Yes?" He says, "How old you?" I thought about not answering him for a second, but then decided this 60 year old man was harmless AND this would make for a good blog story..so i say, "I'm 22." He says, "No, you 18. (then starts spouting Korean for about 30 seconds)." And I say, "Uh, no, I'm 22. Do I look 18?" and he says, "No, you 18. (spouts more Korean)." Then he just rode off into the distance, probably to interrogate the next foreigner about her age.

The SAME night..I was riding home on my bus, again listening to my music..enjoying the 5 minute bus ride that is a 35 minute walk. However, I must have been "hacking" up a storm because this adorable little old lady, walks over to me and says, here, and motions to her mouth. I noticed it was a mask..like a surgical mask..like the masks everyone wore when Swine Flu reared it's ugly head last year...immediately I said, "Im so sorry." She just smiled and sat back in her seat..thankfully my stop was the next stop so I didn't have to break out the mask then and there...and just so you know..the mask was in a sealed package and is actually kinda comfortable. Here's a pic :)


I have a funny notion that she had been riding the bus with me all week and she bought this mask with me in mind..what a sweet way to say, "honey child, you best cover up that mouth and not spread them foreign germs round."

So, classes are going pretty well..but there is this ONE class who I just cant seem to get a handle on..it's actually this ONE student..his name is Subin..he is as cute as can be, but he is as naughty as they come..whoever says Korean children are way more well behaved than American children need to spend 10 minutes with Subin and they will think differently. So, I gave a test this week and I warned them and tried to prepare them all..and everyone did so well..actually they all got A's..well, except Subin..who particularly enjoys taking apart his chair and whistling through the lessons everyday. He did not do so hot..so when he saw all his friends got A's and he didn't even pass, he thought the solution to this problem was to shred his test to tiny pieces and throw them in the air making one loud grunt sound. I was fuming. I was a bit speechless. I was like, "why didn't I take education classes." As firmly as possible I grabbed the piece of chair he was currently taking apart and said, NO!" He didn't really respond..but the little girl across the room says, "Teacha, you strong." I said, "Thanks Sara." and she says, "Teacha, you are Champion." And it kinda made my day..my thoughts were, "Yeah, I am champion, all these kids just passed with A's and even spelled the word veterinarian correctly for pete sake!" Subin and I settled things after class and he picked up every single piece and put it in the trash. He is definitely still a struggle, and I'm sure I'll have more stories from him in the near future.

O.k. last story. This one I couldn't hold in..I just busted up laughing in front of my small adult class. So, this class is an hour long. It's pretty much just a conversation class. My students are from 22 to 31 years old. They are a great class. So, this week we were asking questions like, "Have you ever" So this is exactly how the conversation went:
girl to guy: "Have you ever had a pet?"
guy: "Yes, I had a pet dog"
girl: "When was the last time you had a pet dog."
guy: "The last time I had a pet dog was 13 years ago."
girl: "Why don't you have it now?"
guy: "We ate it."

My jaw immediately dropped, "NO WAY!" And he says, "Yes, of course." And after the initial shock wore off, we all started laughing. But it was true...so true. Different cultures.

So, thus ended my week of happenings. My weekend was pretty wonderful. Saturday, Elizabeth and I spent the whole day on the US airforce base here in Gunsan. We met a couple friends from church to play racquetball and basketball. We went and ate at a restaurant on base where I ate a burger and fries...so so so wonderful, so American..I really hadn't had beef in a month and a half. It was just great being surrounded by other Americans. Understanding their language, their culture, hearing the words "Excuse me," was all just music to my ears. Also, our friend Jon was able to show us inside one of the hangers (maybe it's not called a hanger?) and we got to see an F16..it was pretty awesome..seeing a plane that if war were to break out would be way up their fighting for me. And we topped off the day with watching the movie "Stardust." The company was great, the food was amazing, and the feel of being somewhere familiar was just fantastic.

Well..I hope you are healthy and full of joy today :) God Bless America!

"Them are ma secrets."

Dear old lady at the fruit stand behind my apartment,
Thank you for being so amazing and saying goodnight to me every night that I walk by you. And thank you for the free fruit you gave me last week, you pretty much make me love Korea more and more each day.

This is going to be a short one folks..mostly because my week wasn't extremely eventful due to being so sick and taking the bus to work everyday instead of experiencing daily adventures of "the streets" on my walk. Here goes nothin:

So, I woke up Monday morning to weather that dropped at least 20 degrees overnight and sinuses that were so plugged I felt like I was drowning when I was in the shower. So this sickness still continues on as I am writing this, however on our way home from church we stopped at this pharmacy and this Korean got me some powder that I have to put on my tongue like 5 to 6 times a day and supposedly it will help me with this wicked cough...some Korean remedy or something...im hoping this will clear it up, if not, then I will be experiencing my first trip to the doctor's office..and im guessing it will be a blogworthy experience.

Nonetheless, this week still had it's interesting moments. Such as on Tuesday, I was walking to work, in my usual state with my headphones in, gettin' pumped to teach English when I was stopped by three Korean women. This is how our conversation went:
them: "hello, you speakee Korean?"
me: "No, sorry."
them: "ooooooo...you christian?"
me: "yes."
them: "you believe heaven immortal?"
me: "Im not sure I understand, but I AM going to heaven."
them: "Mother God, tea time"
me: "Mother god tea time? What?"
*then I was saved by the little green walking man on the sign..
me: "Sorry, I have to go to work, have a good day."
Yet another interesting situation I would only experience by walking to work on a daily basis.

Something else, one of the nights last week, I was eating my dinner after work and watching a Korean basketball game on TV. I noticed both teams had one tall black guy, I'm pretty sure there are rules of only having one foreigner allowed to play at a time. Anyways, at the end of the game they were interviewing the black guy via an interpreter..he spoke English and definitely sounded like he was from Gary, Indiana or something..the situation just spewed awkwardness and then the interviewer asks what the player will do when he matches up against players that are taller than him and this is how the black guy responds, "Them are ma secrets, I ain't gunna tell no body." That was followed by a really confused look on the interpreters face and nervous laughter from everyone else..it was pretty hilarious..lily and I had a few good laughs.

So, midweek I asked my Korean adult students what I should do about my cough and they said to do my laundry, turn on my heat, and lay all the wet clothes all over my floor so the heat from the floor will cause some kind of dehumidifier effect. So, I finally did laundry for the first time...now you may be thinking to yourself, "Hasn't she been there a month, how on earth did she have enough 'unmentionables' to survive her." The answer is NOT that i turned them inside out to conserve water and keep my water bill down, it is simply that I packed a whole heap of delicates..anyways, I did just that and I slept like an elementary school student after their first lock in..it was wonderful...i would have taken a picture but i think you know why i didn't.

I got a cell phone this week..finally, that was a hassle, like i said in the beginning got some free fruit, and lastly, Lily and I had a little incident. While I was skyping with my friend Aaron, I was attempting to take her out so she could say hello to him too, when I suddenly remembered I hadn't really fed her that morning..The "suddenly remembered" happened when Lily had sunk her little teeth into my hand..yep, she bit me. But by the end of our skyping conversation, I fed her, put on a glove and manhandled her right out of her cage. We aren't fighting anymore and I think I've partially gained her trust back by giving her many sunflower seeds. And I cleaned her cage yesterday for her, so she is one happy little dwarf hamster.

And to close out the week, a group of teachers and several guys from the airforce base went to this place called Naejangsan National Park...the leaves were turning colors and the mountains were so beautiful! We played some frisbee, hiked a little, ate, and just enjoyed Korea's great outdoors..Here are some pics from the day..they were taken by Jon Casebolt and if you wish to purchase one, please send us BOTH your credit card information and bank account password ;)I'll post more pictures from this day on facebook later this week. Goodnight everyone and don't forget to vote on Tuesday!

Honeymoon's over

Dear stray dogs,

Please stop running across the road and getting hit by cars, I can't bear to watch anymore.

Hello everyone, be prepared for a random blog post. I really have no focus right now.

Reality check: You are living and working in South Korea. The excitement has died down, coming home to an empty apartment is getting slightly lonely and you still cant read or understand the language...the honeymoon is officially over.

Although this week was a bit of a challenge, I'm glad to be facing some problems; it makes life seem a bit more real. I can't even believe I've been here for one month after Monday. Anyhow, it all started this Monday....

I woke up with a really really sore throat. Skyped with my mom for a bit when she told me she had to put our faithful feline of 15 years to sleep on Friday. I said my goodbyes before hand and this was definitely expected, but it was still a little hard nonetheless. Then before I signed off I had my mom bring the computer over to our severely overweight but very loyal dog, Cami. She was so cute and I think she recognized my voice but my mom was the one who suffered the consequence of hair on every inch of clothing..niiiiiice. Thus my first pang of homesickness. Anyhow, the day continued with a walk to work where everyone was STILL STARING, the kids were really bad and said some uncalled for things in Korean, and coming home to an empty apartment is just a recipe to wallow in the day's low points.

Tuesday was a new day, Thank the Lord. Still had it's share of challenges, but I decided to be one of those people who I really don't care for. I've become the person who walks to work with headphones in and enters their own world. I've always thought those people to be rude, and I still think a majority of those people are a bit rude..I mean who doesn't love those daily walkers who give a friendly nod to passerbyers (at least in their neighborhood) ? But anyhow, I think I have a solid excuse for my morning and afternoon actions..I just need that time to listen to English and to get in the "I will teach these little buggers English whether they like it or not" zone.

Wednesday was a bit better, and Thursday the week completely turned around... my sore throat went away, I had a great lunch break with a wonderful family I met here and I even got myself a roommate. Her name is Lily. She is a bit of a "night owl." Her favorite food is sunflower seeds. She loves to roll around on the floor. And she is the cutest dwarf hamster you've ever seen :) Here's a couple pics:

It's been nice having her around. The other morning I rolled out of bed to see her standing on her two feet looking right back at me. It's nice to have another living creature living in the apartment with me..well, besides whatever is growing inside my garbage..jk..sort of.

And the weekend has been a fun and relaxing weekend so there's been much improvement since Monday, so don't worry mom :)

Ok now it's time for Double Take Time...things that made me do a double take this week:
*An old man in a motorized wheelchair cruisin' down the highway..fast enough that I didn't have time to get my camera and snap a picture
*speaking of wheelchairs..Another old man pushing his wife in a wheelchair on the busy highway going with traffic...apparently the sidewalk is not risky enough for these people.
*Numerous bikers that decide to bike in the road and AGAINST traffic
*of course I experience weekly amazement when I see an 80 year old azooma (respectful way to say old lady) doing the asian squat when waiting for the bus
*and lastly, a little boy in my class was acting up and being really loud and I think I saw one of the little girls give him the middle finger..i didn't say anything to her because 1) I don't think she understands, she's 10 and is that a universal sign? and 2) I was thinking, "my thoughts exactly."

Although the honeymoon stage has seemed to pass, I'm still looking forward to this next week. I think facing reality will help in my journey of figuring out if teaching is for me. Have a wonderful day and enjoy the Fall season..especially the Midwest. Go Packers!

Give a Little Take a Little

Dear United States and South Korea,
You both are similar in many ways, but you could learn alot from each other.

On my walk to work everyday, I seem to always see a building that makes me say, "Did they build that overnight?" It's about a 2 mile walk, so there is much to see and since I'm beginning to settle in, I'm able to start enjoying my surroundings. However, some things I don't think will ever change. I mean, come on group of trash picker uppers, I walk pass you EVERY morning but you still stare and don't smile. We'll work on that. Anyhow, all this to say, on my walks, as I observe people and places and reflect on Korea as a country and a people, I see so much that South Korea could teach the United States and vice versa. Thus the following:

United States you could learn:

*respect for older citizens (but don't get too high and mighty on us)
-I saw a young boy bump into an older lady and he immediately apologized and bowed to her.
But she didn't even acknowledge him. A little "hey, you cute little boy, that's ok, thanks for
bowing though" would have been nice. Overall, though, I love the way Koreans treat their
elders.
-Also, although I love the respect, sometimes I think I'm risking my life to respect the older ladies on my walk. For example, today as I was walking, three older ladies were walking towards me. They were taking up the whole sidewalk and no one did the "get behind the person your walking with" move to let me walk past them. Instead, I seriously risked my life stepping off the sidewalk to avoid a human pileup. (I'm over exaggerating mom, there really were no cars coming).

*Oldest person always getting the bill for everyone at the table
-thank goodness I'm pretty much younger than everyone I meet AND in South Korea everyone is 1 years old when they are born..so I am 22 but 23 in Korea...but of course I always go with my native age...it pays.

*gift-giving to the max...I am not only talking about when Koreans go to someone else's house, they pretty much always bring a gift, but I'm talking about everyday things.
-Like second day of class one of my students brought me this delicious box of rice cookies, then today one of my adult students brought me a towel...kinda random, but thoughtful
-Also, there is this little girl who EVERY SINGLE day will come into the teacher's lounge and offer us her snacks, so to be polite, all the teachers take one of her snacks and then she makes the rounds again to offer second helpings. Many times we try to refuse but she just stands there as cute as can be. If we haven't taken seconds after about 10 seconds she grabs a snack and shoves it in our mouths...now that's what i call a giving person (Maybe not that extreme, America, but you catch my drift.)

*sharing and caring...
(Side story) When I was younger, I remember my dad telling us once that he wanted to make a huge SIGN to put in our yard that read "The Andersons are a sharing, caring, loving family." WHAT? a sign? yes, a big sign, much like the oversized political signs that reside in our yard every year around this time.
-anyhow, Koreans share everything..and I mean everything as in there is no personal space or privacy anywhere.
-they also share food..at Korean restaurants, no one really has their own plate, just multiple side dishes that everyone shares
-this sharing thing is really good for me, i've never been the best sharer.

Now, South Korea you could also learn something from the United States such as:

*beds that DON'T feel like you're sleeping on a kitchen counter.
*Dryers...you'll be amazed at how nice your clothes feel after coming out of a hot dryer.
*macaroni and cheese
*Manners to strangers..."but, Natalee, I thought you said Koreans were some of the most considerate people?" Yes, I did say that, HOWEVER when it comes to standing, walking, driving a cart in the store, they will run directly into me and just keep on keeping on.

Well, that's just a few observations..I have several funny stories from the week, so here it is:

Some people love trying to speak English to me. So, one day this week, while I was walking to work, this man was in his car at a red light and he rolls down his window and shouts, "HELLO!" I turn and it's no one I know, but I still give a friendly wave. Then he shouts again, "I SPEAKEEE English!" And I actually laughed out loud and gave him a thumbs up and kept walking. I love their vigor for English, even if they don't get the saying exactly right..For example, yesterday my adult students and I went on a hike around a lake and towards the end it was getting pretty hilly. While we were walking I kept hearing them say, "I'm killing." I thought about it and came to the realization that they meant to say, "I'm dying!" But I love when they try to use idioms or phrases. LIKE, a couple days ago, I was saying goodbye to one of the adult students at the school and she says, "Catch you on the flip side." haha..that made me giggle.

Anyhow, I'm enjoying those little situations, but in the next few weeks, I hope to go on some adventures throughout other parts of South Korea. I promise I will put up a tour video of my apartment very very soon.

Alternate Reality

Dear South Korea,

Thank you for making my trip here two weeks ago a simple thing. Really, maybe it was too easy to get into the country? Anyway, I look forward to our adventures together this next year.

SO, here I am sitting in my one room apartment, watching Eagle Eye on TV (apparently Saturdays are English movie day in Korea :) ), and about to attempt to explain how I feel about my first two weeks in Korea.

Well, the best way I can describe what I think could be called "culture shock" is that I feel like I'm watching my life from above. It's weird and it's been extremely overwhelming not knowing the language, not knowing how to read the signs. Initially I struggled because I didn't know how to do the basic things like turn on the light, make a phone call, flush a toilet, turn on my microwave or actually know what I was buying at the grocery store. But as I said that's all improving.

So, let me give you a quick run down on what I have been up to. First, dad and I got here on Monday morning at 5 a.m. and we checked into a hotel and slept all day and tried to sleep all night. The next day we got on a bus and drove about 3 1/2 hours south to Gunsan. This day was packed full of getting all the luggage into the apartment, meeting the teachers at the school, meeting some students, job shadowing, going over the manuel, yatta yatta yatta..but this day was a struggle because of the jet lag and question in my head, "WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING HERE?" Anyway, progressively, the days got better, I spent the first week job shadowing, talking to the manager of the school, unpacking, and sleeping as much as possible.
On Saturday, I met up with a girl my dad met at a church service here in Gunsan and myself, her, her roomate and her roomie's b/f had pancakes and then went to Wolmpyong Park about 3 blocks from my apt. I'm sure I'll go again and take some pics.

That Saturday morning my dad left and so began my first time living alone. The first night was a little hard, but when I'm laying down, I just think of how it's really no different than sleeping in the dorm at school..I am surrounded by other apartments. The only difference is that no one speaks English around me, but I'm confident that if a crisis were to happen I could communicate with my neighbors through hand gestures and pointing, I am 1/4 Italian after all ;)

Sunday I went to church at Haven Baptist, a church that is located right outside the US airforce base in Gunsan. It was nice and they were all so welcoming. And so began my first real week here as an English teacher. Monday was a good first day. My first class is at 10 a.m. I have 3 adult students who are probably in their 40's or 50's. They are a wonderful class and are passionate about learning English. Then I have a 5 hour break where I this week I either ran errands or just came back to the apt. Then at 4 I have a class of 7 wild elementary aged kids (they will really test my patience), at 4:30 I have another (but less wild) group of 4 elementary aged kids, at 5 a group of 4 teens, half hour break at 5:30, class of 2 30 year olds from 6 to 7, and then finish it off with a class of 4 15ish year olds from 7 to 8. Not too bad of hours. I am sure I will go into more detail about these classes in the future posts.

I feel like I could go on and on about the differences I see in culture, the interesting things I've noticed about the people, etc, but I'm going to try to keep this short and will hopefully cover some of those things later on. So, I just want to update you on the interesting food I've eaten and I want to tell you about Tuesday last week...interesting day.

ok..FOOD..well, ironically, the very first meal I ate in Korea was Italian. My dad and I had slept all day at the hotel and I was feeling overwhelmed and I just wanted something familiar. So, I had this DELICIOUS chicken carbonara. As for Korean food, we had this seafood pancake looking thing, something called samgyeopsal which we cooked the meat in front of us and then made sort of an lettuce wrap with your choice of sides, other good dishes I've consumed are things called jjamppong, ja jyang myeon, and other things I simply cannot pronounce. I will keep you updated though. The food is good. I'm not a fan of Kimchi, but apparently that's ok because there is some sort of Kimchi crisis going on here in Korea.

Tuesday was such an interesting day. First of all, on my walk to work, a solid 35 minute walk, I stepped in a heaping pile of gum which got in my sandel and on the bottom of my foot. So, the day started a little rough, but I decided to live on the wild side and walk on the other sidewalk..it was there that I discovered two things that I am sure will brighten my day everyday--puppy world and a hair salon with a cute little dog with pink highlighted ears outside it's doors. So, after seeing the puppies and petting the dog I've named Jacksie jr, I forgot about the mess the gum had caused. After class, my adult class invited me to go to lunch with them and their former teacher, so I did. We apparently went to a very famous Chinese place (Korean style) that served the best jjamppong around, however it's kind of spicy, and after just teaching my adult students different ways to say I like or dislike something, they knew I did not really like spicy food so they ordered me ja jyeon myeong..a Chinese noodle dish with a black bean sauce, which I think was one of my favorite foods so far. After that, they took us on a little drive to the Gunsan countryside where rice fields are plentiful and Cosmos flowers are all along the road. After making a stop to say hi to Mr. Che's son who runs a rice tractor business, we ended up pulling off on the side of the road to take some pictures. The road was a bit busy, but these students were set on taking pictures with their former teacher and the beautiful autumn flowers. Anyhow, we ended our adventure at a coffee shop at Eunpa Park. I had some Green tea ice cream which was just scrumptious.

So, what I thought was only lunch turned into quite an afternoon adventure. To end this eventful day, I was in the middle of teaching my 7 oclock class when all the lights in the building went off..my initial thought was, "North Korea! I knew this was going to happen," after a minute though, the lights were back on and I was relieved that maybe I overreacted ;)

Now, I know you probably did not make it to the end of this post, but in case you did, thanks for reading and I am going to try to post once a week or at times when I just feel like it is blog worthy. I hope everything back in the states is going well and hopefully next time I blog I will feel less like I am experiencing an alternate reality. Pictures of the apt to follow...

Hello World

Dear World,

Here I am starting my very first blog. I have blogged before now, but it was for a class, and that totally does not count. I'm excited for this, but I feel the need to be original, wise, concise, witty, humorous, entertaining, descriptive, and all with proper grammar since I'm sure my mother will catch every misused comma or the misuse of "their, there, and they're."

Well family, friends, and strangers, I'm going to South Korea for a year to teach English in a small coastal city called Gunsan. When I say small, I mean population: 300,000 people. Currently, I'm still in the process of obtaining a work visa, but they say I should be cleared to fly East at the end of the month. Yes, it seems almost too soon, but when you consider I've been looking into this since Christmas '09, it's about time.

So, the most popular question I've been asked other than "Do you even know Korean?" is "How did you even get this idea?" Well, it's been quite the process, but buckle up because you're getting the short version.

It all started when I lived in D.C. and studied at the Washington Journalism Center. It's there through a series of long interning days and even longer class days that I realized that Journalism just might not be the right thing for me after all (Not to say it won't be in the future). So, I went into my Senior year wanting to change my major (every Senior's nightmare), but deciding that Communications is very broad and will benefit me in any job that I will eventually take. So around Christmas I started putting this into google "How to travel and get paid for it," or "I don't want to do what I'm majoring in, how do I get a job?" or simply, "WHAT SHOULD I DO WITH MY LIFE." Surprisingly, teaching English in Asia came up every single time :) Anyhow, I decided to step away from Google and do my own research. So, I talked to my professor who taught over there, my BFF's (Abby) brother and his wife who also taught in Korea, and I even was SO fortunate to meet this wonderful Korean girl through church. After talking and researching and getting much needed advice from an angel, Abby's sister in-law, I decided this was an awesome and pretty much perfect opportunity for me.

"Make money, save money, travel, teach English, paid housing, paid airfare, and all you need is a Bachelor's degree and English as your native language...and you don't even need to know Korean" This is what I heard from basically every website, so I decided why not? I love love love teaching at AWANA or any other children's activity, and teaching may be a direction I want to take my life, so I began taking the steps toward actually making this happen. After getting a Criminal Background Check (all's clear), transcripts, pictures of myself, and other various documents, I was able to apply with a recruiting agency. I got myself a wonderful recruiter through Footprints recruiting named Luna. Luna was great, she sent me job opportunities out the wazoo.

Then, summer '10 happened (Pics to follow). Wow. Life with my wonderful family, friends, and "this place to come home to" Dixon, Illinois on top of an INCREDIBLE three weeks counseling at Broken Arrow Bible Ranch in Gallup, New Mexico, was enough to make myself say, "Natalee, what the hay are you doing thinking about moving to the other side of the world?!?!" While I was in New Mexico, I got a little bitter towards Teach for America since they rejected me. Seemingly, life would have been perfect if I taught for 2 years in Gallup and could be apart of BABR year round. Then it came to me: If I was supposed to get the position with TFA and live in Gallup then it would have been amazing, but I didn't, so that must mean there is something even better for me out there.

So, after spending a week in Oregon with Grandma Jeannie and Duke, I flew back home to face reality. Psych! My friends and I decided to plan one more road trip to the East Coast hitting Niagara Falls, Maine, Boston, NYC, and all the states in between in just 5 very short days (Pics to follow). Ok, so NOW I was ready to face reality and after getting home from that whirlwind of a trip, going to Korea truly felt like the right thing to do.


Finally, after interviewing and turning down several jobs in South Korea, Luna found me this job in Gunsan that, for now, seems to be a good fit. I just don't feel prepared to face the hustle and bustle of Seoul quite yet. So, if all goes according to plan, I'll have my visa number next week, a scheduled interview with the Korean Consulate in Chicago, and in a few short weeks, I'll board the longest flight of my life and face the biggest time change EVER and open up a new chapter of life where I will experience a year of many many firsts.