Goodbye... :(

Today I said goodbye to all my students.....Tomorrow marks the beginning of a new semester, so I will have all new students. Basically, Beth and I swap classes. I will see a few familiar faces in class because students sometimes get switched around. Students are moved around at the end of the semester based on their Final Test scores. It was really sad to leave some of my students today. I've grown quite attached to some of my classes in particular, especially my middle school boys class. They were so much fun and worked so well together. They always kept class interesting. :)

After work today, Darren gave all the teachers our new schedules and new class lists. All of us stayed after to look at what students we would have and see which students were switched around. At the end of school today, I had only two classes left, and I was in kind of a "blah" mood. I was on break, listening to my iPod when Jessica Teacher came into the office. She's the new Korean teacher, and she's so awesome. I'm so glad we're desk buddies. :) Anyway, she asked me what was wrong, and I just told her I was in kind of a weird mood, but that I was okay. She said, "Can I show you something?" She pulled out a stack of surveys some students had just taken. (The students took surveys today at the beginning of every class. The surveys were evaluating each teacher and Darren.) Jessica had just given the survey to my favorite class, the middle school boys. She said, "I want to show you what they wrote about you." All the students had given me really high scores, and one of the students put all 5's (the best score) and even bubbled out in the margin to give me a 6 on something. :) That was exactly what I needed to snap out of my weird mood. My next class after break was THAT one, so it was really great to see the surveys beforehand.

Sometimes it's hard to tell how students feel about your class or how you teach. I knew that was MY favorite class, but I didn't know if they felt the same way...It was nice to see that they did. :)

I'm looking forward to tomorrow and hoping for the best!! I know the students are awesome, so I'm not worried. It'll take some time, but I'll get adjusted to my new students and learn a million new names. :)

First Paycheck...Finally!

Yesterday was very successful. I took a taxi in the morning to the Immigration Office to pick up my Alien Registration Card. Pick-up was easy; I was only inside for about ten minutes. I took a taxi back home and met up with Darren. He took me to the bank and helped me set up a bank account. We were in the bank for about 20 minutes, and I walked out with my very own bank card WITH MY NAME ON IT!! I don't know how they were able to do that so quickly, but the card had my name printed on it right then. Also, T-money is linked through my card, as well. T-money is the money card used for taking the subway, bus, or taxi. Normally you have to reload your card every now and then to maintain a decent balance to travel. Now, it's linked directly to my bank account so I don't ever have to worry about reloading. :)

When we got back to the office, Darren showed me how to access my bank account online. It is easy internet banking that I'm used to at home, so that's a good thing. Then, he called the Director of the school and asked him to transfer my first paycheck into my bank account. I had money in my account by nighttime. :)

I'm so relieved to FINALLY have my ARC!! I couldn't set up a bank account or sign up for any trips through companies without it. Now....my opportunities are endless! :)

Costco.

I rode the subway to church this morning. It takes about an hour, which isn't too bad. I met Shannon and Reuel in Gangnam for lunch. Dos Tacos. Mexican food in Korea. :) Church was great! I got to hear Pastor Doug speak for my first time, since last Sunday we had a guest speaker. He was hilarious. New Harvest is promoting small groups this year, so they are pushing for everyone to get involved in a community. Pastor Doug talked about the 35 SMALL GROUPS that are available-wow! I found out today that our congregation attendance is about 1200 people. It's so incredible to me to see God moving in South Korea!!

I'm going to sign up for an all-women's small group. We will be focusing on our unique roles as Christian women, how to walk in purity, and seek out God's purpose for our lives. I think it will be really good for me to be a part of a small group of girls, where we can support and encourage one another. Small groups will officially be starting in September.

After church, Shannon, Reuel, and I went to Costco. It's just like the Costco and Sam's Club in the States. Shannon and I are going to get a membership together, because they have really essential things that we can't find in the local markets. Also, it's just plain cheaper. I didn't buy anything today, but Shannon found Cheese. Real, sharp cheddar cheese. Yum. They also have fresh fruit, which is much better than you'll find at a local market. The membership only costs $35, so Shannon and I will split that.

I'm going running later tonight when it cools off a little bit. Since Monsoon season ended, it has been nothing but beautiful here. It's pretty hot, but without that Florida humidity that I'm not missing! Tomorrow morning, I'm going to the immigration office to FINALLY pick up my Alien Registration Card!! I can't wait! Darren is going to help me set up a bank account tomorrow, too, and transfer in my first paycheck. WOOHOO!! That will be a huge relief to me.

Namhan River :)

Today was one of the best days I've had in South Korea so far! I went whitewater rafting down Namhan River with a group of my church friends. :) We met in Gangnam, right outside the church, New Harvest. It takes an hour to get to church from my house in Suwon, so I slept over with Shannon on Friday night. Reuel, Shannon, and I had signed up for the rafting trip together, so we all met this morning to take the bus to church.

We met at 9am and loaded up on a charter bus. There were about 40 people total, I think. Our main pastor, Pastor Doug, and our worship pastor, Pastor Bobby, came along for the trip. We drove for about two hours until we got to the rafting place. It was up in the mountains, and it was BEAUTIFUL! We ate lunch, buffet-style, at the rafting place. They served SPICY soup, SPICY kimchi, SPICY pork, and SPICY veggies. The whole meal was just plain SPICY!! It was delicious though. :)

After lunch, we changed for rafting, got back on the bus, and drove for about ten minutes to get all our gear. They split us into boat groups (GROUP B REPRESENT!), and we went on our way. Pastor Doug, Shannon, Reuel, and I were all in a raft together, along with a French guy, a Canadian guy, a South African guy, and a few Korean girls. We were a big mix of different people, but it was the best boat group. Our guide only spoke Korean, except for the occasional "one, two!" which told us to paddle. Other than that, he wanted us to call out the numbers in Korean. :)

We went down the river and stopped about five times along the way to swim. At one point, we stopped and climbed a big rock, AND JUMPED OFF!! It was the craziest feeling! It really wasn't very high up, but when I was falling, I had time to wonder if the water was going to be there when I landed....

Early-on in the ride down the river, we realized we were really in for some crazy adventures. Our raft guide dumped three people out of the boat, including Shannon, on this really crazy rapid! Then, somewhere about halfway through the trip, the guide decided to start shoving people out of the boat. He got into a wrestling match at one point with one of the Korean girls, so that was pretty hilarious to watch. Near the end, the guide told us to put all our paddles at one end of the boat. We passed our paddles up, and they stacked them together. Then, the guide told us to all slide to the back of the boat and grab the lifejacket of the person in front of us. I was all the way at the back and could feel the guide holding my lifejacket. We had no idea what he was going to do.....All of a sudden, he yanked my lifejacket really hard, and I fell out of the boat, pulling everyone along with me. It. was. awesome.

We finished rafting, changed, and took the bus back home. We got stuck in Saturday night, downtown traffic, so it took forever to get back to the church! A group of people asked to be let off the bus early so they could grab some food at a Mexican restaurant close-by. It didn't make sense for them to sit in traffic for half an hour back to the church, and then turn around and fight the traffic back the other way. After we let them off, there were a lot of empty seats. We spread out and took a few seats each. :) The rest of the trip, I just had really good conversations with people that I met today. Finding this church has been such a blessing, and I never imagined I would find a home here in South Korea. Little did I know that God had bigger plans for me. I know good things are going to be happening at New Harvest, and I can't wait to get more involved with the other activities and small groups they have.

Saturday=Success!

"Eskimo! Eskimo!"

Last night, I Googled "Korean Country Music" so I could find out for myself what it sounded like. Just as I expected, it didn't sound ANYTHING like the American country music that I'm used to. I went into the office today and told Darren that I had looked it up. On my break, I told him that Korean country music sounds like bluegrass music to me, which I don't really prefer. He started laughing, and said, "Blue...grass?" I tried to describe what bluegrass music was like and what kind of instruments there were, but he was still confused. He got on the computer and went to Google. This is what he typed: "blue glasses." No WONDER he was confused!! I corrected him and typed in "bluegrass music" and played a short clip from YouTube for him. He found a short clip of a Korean country singer, and I listened to that. He asked me what American country music sounds like, so I got my iPod and played two songs for him: Jason Aldean's "She's Country" and Craig Morgan's "Bonfire." He really liked them a lot! He told me that American country music sounds like Korean rock. Well, now we know :)

In my second to last class, we were talking about weather. I had the students brainstorm as many weather-related words they could think of to get our lesson started. While I was writing their responses on the board, I heard a loud bang! behind me. I turned around and one of my students, Brian, had slammed his book down on his desk. I asked him what he was doing, and he replied, "Eskimo! Eskimo!" and was swatting the air. Another student said, "He kill bug." And Brian still kept saying, "Eskimo!" I finally realized he was trying to say "mosquito!" but had gotten his words mixed up. Definitely one of the funnier moments of the day. :)

Korean Country Music??

One of the Korean teachers left on Friday to go work as a full-time yoga instructor. Her replacement came today. Her name is Jessica, and she's super sweet. Some of the desks were switched around in the office, so I sit next to Jessica. I was able to talk to her for a few minutes between classes, and she speaks English really well!! She's been teaching for 2 years now, only at private schools. She lives about 40 minutes away so the commute is pretty rough. She asked about me, where I'm from, and what I think of Korea. Jessica's personality is polar opposite of the teacher she replaced, so I'm really looking forward to getting to know her more :)

On my break today, I was talking to Darren about country music. The first day I arrived in Korea, we discovered we both have a deep appreciation for country music. I thought that was really funny and always wondered how he had been introduced to country music in the first place. So, on my break, I asked him who his favorite country singer is. And he said, "American or Korean?" Korean?! I had NO IDEA there were Korean country singers!! So I asked him what the songs were about. He didn't understand, so I told him that American country songs are about pride in the U.S.A., girls, alcohol, and pick-up trucks. He said, "Pick-up trucks?" (They don't have those here. And SUVs are few and far between. They pretty much just drive sedans.) Darren said Korean country music was about love and freedom. :)

I'm going to Google Korean Country Singers and see what results I get. I'm interested to see if it sounds anything like American country music. Darren said it sounds acoustic, and "maybe it sounds the same." :) I'll have to see for myself. All this time I've thought that he just listened to American country music. I was just ignorant to the fact that they would even have that genre of music here....

SURPRISE!!

When I met Shannon this weekend, she had a present for me. It was a manilla envelope and a ten-pack of 5 Gum. Who was it from, you ask? MY FAMILY!! The manilla envelope had letters from my parents and my sisters, and the gum was from my big sis. :) It was such a sweet surprise!! My parents/sister ended up contacting Shannon before she left town to come to Korea. Shannon was generous enough to save some suitcase space for my presents and bring them to me. I teared up a little bit reading my letters. They are now hanging up on my bulletin board so I can see them every day. It will be a constant reminder that I'm loved :) Thanks, family! You guys are the best! :)

New Harvest :)

On Friday night after work, I caught the subway and met Shannon at her stop. SHE'S FINALLY IN KOREA WITH ME!! We stopped for some chicken wings and went to the hotel where she's staying.  It was CRAZY GOOD to see Shannon and catch up :)

On Saturday, we went to Seoul. Our first stop was an ancient village, Namsangol Hanok Village. It had five different styles of old-fashioned Korean houses; they were set-up like the traditional houses would've been in that time.  We walked all around and took pictures. Then, we grabbed some lunch at Paris Baguette, which is maybe Shannon's new favorite restaurant? :)

After lunch, we walked really far and for a really long time to the Cable Car. It goes up the mountain to Seoul Tower. (Seoul Tower then takes you hundreds MORE feet straight up the mountain.) Shannon and I didn't take the tower up because there was already the most beautiful view!! After we got off the cable car at the top, we could see a 360-view of Seoul below us. It was amazing. On top of the mountain there were tents set up with local people selling things. There was also a gift shop at the top with mugs and t-shirts and pretty much any random tourist-y item you could want :) We also saw these warrior-looking men who were mock fighting in the courtyard. They were wearing red robes and had long daggers and shields. They were calling out things and fighting each other until one of them would collapse on the ground. Everyone clapped when someone was "defeated." I'm not quite sure who they were representing, but it was pretty cool. I think I might've gotten some pretty good action shots on my camera. :)

From there, we took the cable car back down the mountain and went to an open market in Insa-dong. They had tents set up on the sides of the streets, and people were selling all kinds of goodies. We've heard it's pretty popular to go there, so we wanted to see for ourselves. There was so much to look at!! From purses to clothing to keychains to American $2 bills!! Anything you could ever want :) We FINALLY headed home after a long day. We stopped at Lotte Mart and grabbed some dinner in their cafeteria and headed back to Shannon's hotel.

This morning, we got up and met one of Shannon's co-teachers, Reuel. She had invited Shannon to go to church with her, and we were DEFINITELY interested!! Shannon and I wanted to find a church together, and find somewhere that we fit in. We were searching for a community, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to start our search.  The three of us went to Dos Tacos and had really delicious Mexican food!! We finished early, so Reuel showed us a fun bookstore close-by. Then, we went to the church. It's called New Harvest. It's in Gangnam, which is quite a trek, but really worth it!! It took us about 40 minutes by bus. New Harvest's mission is "to reach every English speaking foreigner and native, and make them disciples of Christ who radically impact Gangnam, Korea, and the World." Right when we stepped inside, I knew this would be my new church home. They had contemporary music (which is my preference) and the speaker was fantastic!! About 30% of the congregation was foreigners, but mostly Korean Americans or Koreans. I didn't have very high expectations because I came from such an incredible community back in Orlando. I definitely felt like I fit right in. The search is over. :) Shannon and I talked the whole way home on the bus about how excited we were that we had found a community so quickly!! We expected to do some church-hopping until we found the right fit, but this was perfect. After the service, Reuel, Shannon, and I signed up for whitewater rafting this coming Saturday!! It's only $40, which covers, transportation, whitewater rafting, and lunch. What a deal! So, we are really looking forward to this weekend!

After church, I collected my things from Shannon's hotel, and we headed over to my part of town, Suwon. She wanted to see where I lived, and I wanted to show her around. She saw my apartment, and then we walked into town. I showed her the school where I work, and some "hot spots" that I normally frequent. We went to the Porridge Place because I was DYING for her to try it! We got it to-go and walked to the Reservoir where I run. We sat in the park and ate our dinner (which Shannon loved!) and then walked around the lake. It was such a nice night. We walked all the way back to my place, and she headed home. I'd say that's a pretty awesome weekend if you ask me! Welcome to Korea, Shannon! :)

Shannon is here! :)

My friend, Shannon, arrived in South Korea today around 4pm. She will be teaching at a hagwon not far from me. She and I live six subway stops away from each other, so we are pretty close! It will only take about 20 minutes :) I just got home from work and was able to message her on Skype. We were going to talk face-to-face, but she was exhausted from all her traveling. That's understandable! We are planning on meeting up tomorrow night after work and spending the whole weekend together! I'm not quite sure what's in store yet, but I'm most excited just to see her face :)

Beth is leaving at the end of September, so she went through all her clothes and decided what she wanted to keep and what she wanted to get rid of. She called me up this afternoon and asked if I wanted to look through any of the clothes she didn't want anymore. I obviously said yes and headed over to her place. There was a huge pile clothes and shoes in the middle of her floor. I sorted through what I wanted and basically took the whole pile. I came out with a whole new Fall/Winter wardrobe and 3 pairs of boots for when it snows!! I'm all set! :)

Part of my job is supplement time where I help write curriculum for the upcoming semesters. We keep the same format for the books, but update the information. It's easy and fun. :) When I first arrived in Korea, we were on the Songs portion of the curriculum. (That's when my kids were singing "Party in the USA" and "Livin' On a Prayer.") Well, I just got to that portion of the curriculum in my supplement time and got to update it for next semester! I was very disappointed when I did the lesson last month because there were no country songs on the list...Have no fear! I added country songs to next semester's curriculum! I feel like we are depriving our students by not introducing them to such an incredible genre. And for those who doubt, I urge you to Google "top 100 songs in 2011." You may be surprised to find that in the first 50, there are TWELVE country songs. Just sayin... ;)

Kraft Mac n' Cheese

It has been pretty easy adjusting to our new schedule at school. I get to stay up really late (which I prefer) and sleep in a little bit in the mornings. I have the whole morning to get ready, go to the market if I need to, go running, and just relax :)

My friend, Shannon, arrives tomorrow!! I can't believe she's finally going to be living life with me in Korea! :) She's teaching at a school that is six subway stops away from me, so we are really close to each other. We've already talked about what we want to do on our weekends, and where we want to ski at Christmastime. If you remember to, pray for a safe journey for Shannon :)

Today we finished up the last day of Interviews. Each student came up to the front of the room and asked me two questions (or more, depending on time). I had some pretty creative ones today. Here are some of my favorites:

-Do you think your face is pretty?
-What is your husband's name?
-Why do you like comic books? (I never said anything about liking comic books. I think she was trying to ask me IF I liked comic books!)
-Will you tell Darren to get rid of Room 5 if I give you money? (Room 5 is the "in-trouble room." I thought this one was pretty creative. Paying off the teacher to get rid of Room 5...well done.)
-What would you do if you had 21 kids?

I think the students enjoyed getting to ask the teacher some questions. It gave them a chance to get to know me a little bit more since I'm still fairly new. It was fun for me to see how creative they were and hear what they came up with.

Last night I had the most delicious dinner. You know what I had? Kraft Mac n' Cheese!! This may seem like such a minor thing, but it was pretty awesome for me :) It was a little slice of home. It was just what I needed. :)

Pizza and Ice Cream :)

I had an amazing 3-day weekend :) On Saturday, I was very productive and got all my laundry and cleaning finished, which was a huge task that I've been putting off for quite some time now. On Sunday, I met up with Beth, Dara, Pex, and two new Korean friends, Cham-Chee and Anchovie. (They're just nicknames, of course!) We all met in Seoul around 1:30pm and took a taxi to the docks. We bought round-trip tickets for the ferry, and our adventure began :)

We took the ferry to a small island, Seopori Beach. The ferry ride was pretty long-it took about an hour to get to the island. The ferry was really nice! I'm not quite sure what I was expecting, but I was pleasantly surprised. There were really comfortable seats with lots of leg room, flat screen tvs hanging on the walls, and a small snack bar in the center. When we got to the island, it was like something from a movie. It looked exactly like typical "fishing villages" look like in movies. We docked, and a taxi drove us to our accommodation. The taxi took us about 20 minutes up the mountain to a small pension. (Accommodation and pension are just names for the places that you stay.) Our pension was SO ADORABLE!! It was a group of small rooms, all connected, that were up on risers. We got two rooms, one for the boys, one for the girls.

The pension was very traditional: The rooms were small, only one window. Each person got a mattress for the floor and a pillow. The bathrooms had normal toilets and sinks, but if you wanted to shower (which we didn't!), you had to fill up a bucket of FREEZING COLD water and dump it over your body. No thanks!! Near the front there were a few traditional tables set up on risers as well. The woman who owned the pension was super sweet and made us side dishes for our meals :)

Once we got settled in, we walked down to the beach and took some pictures. We weren't in our bathing suits, so we just put our feet in. We walked to a market nearby and bought pork, coal, and lettuce to make our own barbecue back at the pension. The woman made us sides of white rice, kimchi, and a cooked kimchi dish that was DELICIOUS!! The boys were in charge of cooking and playing with the fire, and the girls were in charge of taking pictures :) After we ate, we wandered around to find some raw seafood that the others really liked. I had never had it before, but I was willing to give it a try. We stopped at a restaurant near our house and ordered clams and scallops. They brought them to the table raw, and we cooked them over the fire at our table. I tried one bite, and knew that scallops and clams were not for me!! I'm not a seafood person to begin with, but I was willing to try it. Now I know... :)

After that, we wandered back out to the beach where we took an insane amount of pictures. We had purchased fireworks and sparklers earlier, so we set those off on the beach. There were a few mishaps and some people with bad aim (cough cough), but all-in-all it was tons of fun!! There was a group of people standing around a campfire, and we really wanted to get in on that. Pex told us that they would probably invite us over if we talked to them a little bit. After our fireworks fiasco, we became fast friends. They invited us over, and we enjoyed the warmth of their campfire :) The night was really cool, and we were all pretty cold, so it was nice to warm up for a bit.

After that, we walked out towards the ocean. I experienced something that I've never experienced before. The tide was out, but when I say "out," I mean, it was nowhere to be found!! Where there was ocean just a few hours earlier, there was now only wet sand and shells. As far as we could see, there was no water. I never knew that the tide could go out that far!! Beth said that in New England where she's from, the tide goes out for miles, and you can't see the ocean. So crazy!!

The next day, we had to catch the ferry back at 9:50am...so we had to rise-and-shine pretty early!! We got to bed around 2:30am, so it wasn't too terrible, but we were still pretty exhausted. We took a taxi back to the docks and caught the ferry home. All six of us passed out the second we boarded. We took buses back to where we originally met. Everyone parted ways and headed home. Dara, Beth, and I were all going home the same way, so the three of us stayed together. We were walking to the busstop when we saw a sign: "Final Sale." It was an accessories shop that was going out of business, so most of their inventory was on sale. We obviously had to check it out. I ended up with two necklaces and a new pair of flip flops :)

Dara, Beth, and I caught the bus back home. We hadn't eaten all day, and by this time it was almost 4pm. We all bought pizzas and Baskin Robbins ice cream and went home. It was so nice to come home and sit in my bed and just relax and eat :) I'm really tired from our weekend, but it was awesome!!

Tomorrow we start back on our "normal" schedule again, working 2:30pm to 9:45pm. I won't have a problem sleeping in tomorrow, so I'm sure I'll adjust to the schedule just fine :)

Thank you, Nannie :)

Finals testing was a success!! All the students finished Summer Session strong and seemed at ease on Friday night. Report cards are due this Friday, so I'm going to have to get really motivated next week and get those finished. I have over 100 students, so it's taken quite awhile to record comments for each one. I'm halfway through though, so hopefully I'll get the report cards knocked out in no time :)

I am in the middle of another 3-day weekend. Monday is a Korean holiday, so we don't have school. There are 23 days documented on the Korean calendar as "holidays" which is WAY more than we have in the States!! Well, way more holidays that are "officially celebrated" as days off from school. I'm definitely going to appreciate random breaks here and there throughout the year!! This 3-day weekend also signifies the start of a new schedule once again. We changed schedules for summer session to accommodate our students and their academies. Now, we are back to our normal schedule again, working 2:30pm-9:45pm.

This morning, my very first package arrived!! It was from my Nannie in South Carolina! After reading my blog, she filled a package with all the essentials: 6 boxes of Kraft Mac n' Cheese, 3 packs of gum, and a miniature stuffed bunny :) Perfect!! It was the perfect way to start my Saturday morning. Thank you, Nannie!!

I also cooked at home for my first time since I've been here!! After realizing that my gas stove has been working this whole time (thank you, Darren!), I made "cham-chee rah-myeon" for lunch. It was DELICIOUS!! It's become one of my favorite meals here in Korea, and now I can make it myself any time I'm craving it :) I had every intention of making some mac n' cheese, but unfortunately, I didn't have milk OR butter. But, it gives me something to look forward to tomorrow!!

I took advantage of this long weekend and had a big cleaning day today. I did the laundry, washed my dishes, cleaned the bathroom...and my favorite thing? I ORGANIZED!! I was already bored of the setup in my house, so I decided to re-arrange everything. There's a huge dresser that's been sitting on my back porch since I arrived. It's GINORMOUS, but I didn't see any use for it at the time. I dragged that inside (which wasn't an easy feat!) and moved all my clothes from four different places into the big dresser. I was able to clear out a bunch of clutter and make so much more room!! I have a lot of space in the middle of my house, and it actually looks bigger :)

Blonde Moment...

Finals Day One was a success!! Our secondary students (3rd-5th) had their first day of finals today. They had Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking tests. My first class started with the Listening portion of their test. I put the CD in...and an Australian man was giving them the test!! The students couldn't understand ANYTHING he was saying, and I coud barely decipher the man, too. I paused the CD and went to find Darren. I tried to explain the situation, but he thought it was okay. We went into the classroom, and I played the CD for him. He was shocked! (Darren has told me before that he and the students can't hear a difference in accents from America or other countries.) I think this Australian guy was a different story though because all of his words were sort of muffled together. Darren took the CD out of the machine and asked me to give the students the test orally. So, I ended up having to read their Listening portion of the test for them...and again five more times for my other classes. It was an unexpected role for me, but a much-needed one. The students were a lot more comfortable, and felt better being able to understand the person speaking :)

I have been unable to get my gas stove to work in my house. I was told how to turn the gas on and off, and how to turn the knobs, but every time I tried, nothing happened. I just couldn't get it to work...I even showed my parents on Skype to see if maybe I was doing something wrong. My dad thought it was probably out of gas. This morning, I asked Darren if he could come by my house sometime soon and see what was wrong with my gas stove. Not only is he our boss, he's the official handyman for Beth and me :) Darren told me he would try to figure out what was wrong.

He texted me around 9pm tonight and told me he could come by my house and look at the stove after he left the school. He came over...and turned the knobs, AND IT WORKED!! The flame came right up when he turned it on. I was so confused because I hadn't even turned on the gas yet...Turns out, this whole time, I've had the on/off switch backwards. So, for a whole month now, I've had the gas ON in my house. Every time I tried to turn on the stove, I would turn OFF the gas by accident, turn the knobs, and nothing would happen. Darren just cracked up laughing. I felt dumb. I kept apologizing over and over, but he didn't seem to mind. He just thought it was funny. I have to say, this was not one of my prouder moments.... :)

Interview :)

Our middle school students have finished with their presentations and have moved on to interviewing. The purpose of their presentations was to give them practice with speaking in front of a group. We practiced how to address a room full of people, how to stand up straight, how to look at the crowd every now and again, and how to hold our papers away from our faces when we're speaking. All of these are valuable tools for any student. :)

This week, we are teaching the students how to interview someone. For homework, the students have to write a series of questions. They can be on anything at all. In class, they have to come up to the front of the classroom and ask ME their questions :) I told the students that I will answer any questions they ask. The only question I won't answer is, "Who is your favorite student in this class?" We just completed Day Two of interviews, and they have been quite fun!! Here are some examples of questions I was asked:

"How much is your weight?"
"How old are you?"
"Who do you like more, your mom or your dad?"
"Are you scared of ghosts?"
"Does your mother work outside the home?" (I responded, "yes," and there were gasps all around the room. The majority of women here are housewives.)
"If you die tomorrow, what you do today?"

This interaction was one of my personal favorites:

Student: "Jemmy Teachuh. If Neal ask you to marry him, you would say yes?"
*the whole class starts laughing*
Me: "No, I'm afraid not."
Student turns to Neal and says, "Sorry. She say no." Gotta love fourth graders!! :)

And this one:

Student: "Why you are called Jamie?"
Me: "Why are YOU called Jamie?" (correcting his grammar)
Student: "Huh? No Teachuh. I'm called Sam."

And finally:

Student: "Do you have religious?"
Me: "What do you mean? Do I have a religion?"
Student: "Yes, do you have religious?"
Me: "Back in America, I go to church. Is that what you are asking?"
Student: "Yes!!"
Me: "Do YOU go to church?"
Student: "Yes. I am....a....(trying to think of what church she goes to)...uh, I don't know. Some Korean name."
Me: "You go to a Korean church?"
Student: "haha yes. Um...let me see. You know Jesus?"
Me: "Yes."
Student: "Yes. I know Him, too."
Me: "Ah! Very good." :)

So far, the interviewing has been a success! We've had some pretty hilarious moments so far. Wednesday and Thursday we are testing...AGAIN!! We just finished midterm testing two weeks ago, and we already have more testing tomorrow and Thursday!! These poor kids...Say a little prayer tonight for them please :)

Itaewon :)

This morning, Beth and I went running. Beth showed me the trail that she runs every day. It's a total of 11km, so obviously my out-of-shape-self didn't run NEARLY that long!! I've been wanting to find somewhere to run in the area, but haven't been able to find anywhere decent. She showed me today that she runs to a Reservoir/Park in the area, runs around the lake twice, and then runs back home.

The reservoir is absolutely beautiful!! There's a large lake in the middle (man-made), with trees surrounding it. There's a trail that runs all the way around it. Surrounding the reservoir are rice fields. I wish I brought my camera because the view was amazing!! When I looked past the rice fields, I could see the whole city. One day when I'm not out there running the trail, I'm going to bring my camera and a book and just spend some time relaxing and taking in all the beauty. I'm really glad I finally have a great place to run! While I can't run 11km right now, it will give me something to build up to :)

After we ran, Beth and I walked to Dunkin' Donuts for smoothies. So delicious. Beth got Strawberry Kiwi, and I got Peach Pitanga. It was the perfect (healthy!) end to our run. We went back home, showered, and relaxed for awhile.

At 3pm, we met downstairs and took the subway to Itaewon. Itaewon is near the Air Force Base, so there are tons of foreigners walking around. There are American restaurants and shops, and lots of people speaking English!! It sounds awful, but it was really refreshing hearing people speak English all around me. I saw all different races of people, too, which is not typical for where we live in Suwon. Hearing all the English made me miss home a little bit, but I'm still glad to be here :)

Beth wanted to get a massage, so I walked to a coffee shop while I waited. I sat inside for awhile and then wandered down the street to see some more shops. Itaewon had a completely different feel than the other places I've visited in Korea. It was so "Westernized" that it almost didn't feel like I was in Korea at all. A sad fact: The most crime that happens in Korea happens in Itaewon. Why? Because that's where the majority of foreigners are located...so unfortunate.

After her massage, Beth and I went to a small restaurant for dinner. Beth claimed that it served "the best sandwich in the world!" I just HAD to see for myself :) It was this small restaurant that could easily be overlooked if someone wasn't searching for it. You walk downstairs, almost underground, to get to the restaurant. Once inside, there are couches and tables everywhere, and fresh flowers. There are decorations all over the walls and soft music playing in the background. It was a hole-in-the-wall restaurant, but so cozy and comfortable. We ordered the sandwiches that Beth was raving about: Chicken and Avocado. Ok, this is an understatement when I say, Beth was right!! So good!! The sandwich was toasted (which is something that Koreans don't do), there was fresh chicken with creamy sauce (which Koreans don't normally have), lettuce, avocado, peppers, fresh fruit, spinach leaves-DELICIOUS!! And you get a small salad on the side with a vinegar dressing (which Koreans don't normally use). Salads are just really hard to come by in Korea, so it was a treat!

After dinner, we went to the Foreign Food Market. This is the only one in all of South Korea. At this market, they sell food that foreigners may be looking for. They have different sections: Indian food, Spanish-y food, and then.....AMERICAN FOOD!! They had Cheetohs, Clasico Alfredo Sauce (my favorite!!), Skippy peanut butter (no Jif...), Fritos, Ranch dressing, salsa, Oreos, and REAL CHEESE!! Koreans hate cheese, so if any food ever comes with cheese, it's gross, fake cheese that doesn't taste good anyway. Beth and I were having the time of our lives. We went down each aisle saying, "oh my gosh!! look what they have!! I love that!!" :) We refrained from buying the whole store, but couldn't resist purchasing a few things...I settled for a bag of Pepperidge Farm Soft Baked cookies, dark chocolate of course, and Nature Valley granola bars. Mmmmmm!!

After that, we stumbled upon Coldstone and just couldn't resist. We just HAD to have ice cream to wash down those delicious sandwiches :) I ordered Chocolate Devotion: chocolate ice cream, chocolate chips, fudge, crumbled brownies, and chocolate syrup. So yummy!!

It was 8pm at that point, so we decided to head back to the subway station. In total, with all three subway changes, it takes about 45 minutes to get back home. All in all, this was a very successful weekend :) I can't believe I have to go back to work tomorrow-I feel like the weekend just began!

Yeongtong :)

Today, Beth, Clodagh, Dara, and I decided to go to Yeongtong, which is one city over from us. Clodagh and Dara are also English teachers here. They're sisters, and they're from Ireland. They've been teaching over here now for ten months.

We took the subway to Suwon Station, and then caught a bus to Yeongtong. We've heard that Yeongtong is really popular, so we wanted to see it for ourselves. We walked around for awhile, looking in some of the shops. After going up and down each block, we were all pretty disappointed. We've heard such great things about Yeongtong, but it didn't seem like anything special to us. It had all the same restaurants and shops as Suwon, and had the same feel as well. I imagine we're just spoiled to live in such a great part of town, that we didn't see Yeongtong as anything different from what we're used to :) We still had a great time walking around. It was really good to get out of the house and enjoy some great weather!!

We went back to Suwon Station and looked at the movie theater to see if we might want to watch something. The only movies out right now are a few Korean movies (with no English subtitles) and Harry Potter. We decided to take the subway home and find some dinner. We got off the subway, and the girls asked if we could all stop at a church close-by and light a candle for their grandmother. She's been sick, and they wanted to say a prayer for her. We went into the church on the corner, but we didn't see anyone. We weren't able to light a candle, but we all sat in the pews for a few minutes and prayed in the silence. It was really peaceful to be in the church. All the lights were off, except for the running lights in the floor. I enjoyed the prayer time, and I think it was just what Clodagh and Dara needed as well.

We left and went to a galbi place nearby. The galbi places bring you whatever meat you want (beef, pork, or chicken), and you cook it at your table. They bring you sides, too, and lettuce to wrap the meat in. It was really good :) We finished up at around 7:30pm, and decided to just head home. It was an early night, but it was nice to come home and relax.

Tomorrow, Beth is going to show me the trail that she runs every morning. I've been wanting to run with her for awhile now, but haven't had the chance. Hopefully the distance won't be too long for my abilities, and I'll be able to get back in shape :) A hurricane is supposed to come here on Monday, so the weather is going to get pretty bad tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully we'll get our run in before then.

"Is popcorn a vegetable?"

Today, Beth (my co-teacher) and I had an interesting discussion:

She came into the office today and asked me, "Is popcorn a vegetable?" I immediately laughed and said no, and kept working. She asked me, "Why not?" She explained that one of her students had just asked her, and she didn't know the answer. Beth said that because it comes from corn and corn is a vegetable, popcorn might be considered a vegetable. I told her that ketchup comes from tomatoes, but that doesn't make ketchup a vegetable. But then I remembered that tomatoes are actually considered fruits...

Then, Beth asked me where popcorn would go on the Food Pyramid. She said she thought it would go in the vegetable category. I told her that I would put it with grains. Popcorn doesn't start off being corn; it starts off as a seed. The seed is either grown into corn on the stalk, or it's exploded into little popcorns in the microwave...

We went back and forth about this for awhile, and never came to any resolution. When I got home from work, I decided to Google it to find out the real answer. Unfortunately, my Google here is "Google: South Korea" so all of my results came up in Korean. Shocking, right? Some webpages have the option to be translated from Korean to English, but the majority of them are unable to be translated. I gave up after about fifteen minutes of searching.

So, here I sit, wondering..."Is popcorn a vegetable?"

"I feel loved."

Today, the middle school students learned about emotions and feelings. The purpose of this lesson was to expand their vocabulary a little bit, and teach them better ways to express themselves. I started off by asking them what words they knew when referring to emotions and feelings. We ended up with a pretty basic list: happy, sad, angry...I gave them a few scenarios and asked them how they would feel if they were in that situation. I was hoping to probe more words out of them. We were pretty successful. We added a few complex words to our list: jealous, worried, afraid, embarrassed. I wanted to begin the lesson by creating a word list to help them with their presentation assignment for the day. I asked each student to choose an emotion or feeling, and write a letter to a friend, telling them how they felt. I read my example to the class: my emotion/feeling was PROUD.

"Dear Aleah,

I'm so PROUD of you for getting a teaching job in America! That's great! I know how hard you have worked, and how much you wanted this job. You deserve it! I've been telling all my friends about your new job. I wish you the best of luck this school year. I just wanted to tell you how PROUD I am of you.

Your friend,
Jamie"

(By the way, this is a true story. One of my best friends in Orlando just got her first teaching job. Shout-out to Aleah!!) :)

I gave the students 20 minutes to write their letters. I encouraged them to come up with a different emotion or feeling, and not just choose a word from the board. I walked around the room and helped students with their grammar or helped them come up with a word they were trying to think of. There was one particular student who was really struggling with his letter. He had written a few lines and knew what he wanted to say, but he didn't know what emotion or feeling it was. I asked him who he was writing his letter to, but he didn't say. He just said he didn't need help. He was taking this assignment very seriously, and I could tell he wanted to do well. I moved on to other students, but told him to ask for help if he needed it.

Presentation time rolled around, and the students ended up really surprising me! I told them they could use their Korean/English dictionaries to assist them in their writing, but I didn't expect such a great outcome. One student talked about feeling BRAVE when he had to go the hospital. Another student talked about being DISAPPOINTED when his team lost the championship game. Finally, it came time for the struggling student to present. He was the last presentation of the day, and I didn't know what to expect. (I ended up bringing his paper home with me so I could copy down exactly what he wrote.) This is what he said to the class:

"Dear Jemmy Teacher, (that's me!)

You have teach us many things. You have teach us English very well. You speak English very well. You come to school every day and even sometimes in rain. You care so much about people and about student. I feel an emotion. I feel loved. Thank you.

Your student,
Kim Chung-Ho"

I was SHOCKED!! and flattered and proud! :) He ended up not wanting my help because he didn't want me to know he was writing the letter to me. I thanked him for the sweet letter. Overall, this lesson was a success! I think the students expanded their vocabulary a little more and seemed to enjoy it. And I felt very appreciated, too. That letter was very unexpected. :)

"All-oh-way"

Today was the first day back from summer vacation. There were so many students who were still gone, that our classes were about half their normal sizes. One of my classes, a class of 3, didn't show up at all, so I had a free period :)

I started off my day with my one-on-one class with Clinton, the Director's son. We normally go to a restaurant and chat, but because of the weather, we stayed at the school today. We found an empty classroom and started our "class." The purpose of this class is to give Clinton a chance to practice his English in a more laid-back, realistic setting. We just talk about whatever comes up in conversation, with no real curriculum to follow. I correct him every now and then as he is speaking, and I respond to what he says. It demonstrates a realistic conversation and gives him the chance to practice phrases and grammar.

Somehow we got onto the topic of our favorite foods and drinks. Clinton told me that his favorite drink was juice, so I asked him what kind of juice he liked the best. He struggled to come up with what kind it was. He couldn't explain what fruit the juice was made of. He told me it was green and felt slimy, but it tasted really sweet. I guessed all the green fruits I could think of which were grapes, apples, honeydew, kiwi, and pears. He kept shaking his head and tried to describe it. We ended up cracking up about this "fruit" for a good ten minutes before we finally gave up. We moved onto other topics, and before we knew it, our class time was up.

We wandered into the lobby, and I asked Darren what fruit Clinton was describing. He told me, "It's just like America. All-oh-way. You know?" I told Darren that "all-oh-way" wasn't anything American. We went back and forth, trying to convince each other, but it was pointless. Finally, Clinton pulled up a photo on the computer, and guess what it was?? Aloe. ("All-oh-way" is how it looks like it should be spoken because of the Korean vowel sounds...) Geez. Well I told Darren that aloe is definitely not a fruit, and I've never heard of aloe juice. I told him that we break off pieces of the aloe plant for burns and put it on our skin for healing. Darren's response: "Yes, yes, same. But we drink, too." :)

Paparazzi!!

It was another rainy day, so I stayed at home and worked on lesson plans for the week. It's a 3-day week because of vacation, so it didn't take me very long to finish. There was a short break in the rain around 4:30pm, so I decided to venture into the city to find some dinner. I could tell from the clouds that it was going to downpour again soon, so I decided to get something to-go (or "poh-jung").

On my brisk walk there, I pondered my options and tried to figure out what I felt like eating. After much deliberation, I decided on porridge. It's one of my personal favorites!! I thought that hot porridge and a movie sounded like a good plan for the night :)

At all Korean restaurants, they make everything right when you order it so it's fresh every time. The porridge takes about 7-8 minutes to make, so I paid and wandered outside until my order was ready. I was waiting on a bench, when a lady and her daughter came along and sat down next to me. The daughter was around 7 or 8, and she was talking to her mom, whispering. After about a minute, she looked over and asked me in fairly good English, "Can I take picture of you?" I smiled and agreed to it, not sure what else I should say. The girl squeezed next to me, obviously wanting to be in it, and her mom snapped the picture. They thanked me and kept talking. Not even 30 seconds later, these two teenaged girls came over, who were waiting at the bus stop nearby. They ALSO asked me if I could take a picture with them. I agreed to it again, and they were so excited!! They asked the guy they were with to take the picture, and he snapped a few. They thanked me and walked off. About that time, I went back into the porridge shop, and my order was ready. I took my food and headed home.

Not to sound conceited, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised about the picture-taking. Beth warned me about that before I came over here. She told me that people will randomly snap your picture while you're out sometimes, but I'd never experienced that until now. I'm constantly being stared at by everyone around me because I look so different. With my tan skin, my curly hair, and my height, I don't exactly blend in...I've gotten used to the stares, especially from women, but it hasn't bothered me. I know it's just part of the culture here. I think it was kind of a reverse of roles almost. As the foreigner, you'd think I would be the one asking for pictures, not the other way around. Oh well...I felt flattered that they wanted my picture, and enjoyed the paparazzi while it lasted :)

Mumble Vans...

I Skyped with more friends today which was so wonderful :) Since I'm on a small vacation, I lined up a whole bunch of Skype dates with people back-to-back. It's been so good hearing stories from back home and catching up with people. Isn't technology wonderful? :)

There are these vans, that I have nicknamed "mumble vans," that roll up and down the street every day. There's a speaker on top of the van, and the driver speaks into a microphone, and the sound projects all the way down the street. These "mumble vans" sell an assortment of things, from food to clothing to linens. They got their nickname because I can hear them coming from a mile away. It's faint at first, gets louder as he passes by, and then fades away again as he drives down the road. It sounds like a man just mumbling into a microphone as he is listing off everything he's selling. I've never actually seen anyone purchase anything from these people. They roll up and down my neighborhood, and Tommy told me he's seen some in his neighborhood, too. Very interesting...

I used up the last of my milk today, so I just ran to the market on the corner to buy more. I didn't feel like going this late at night, but the market is open until around midnight, but they don't open again until about 10am. (I'll need milk for my cereal in the morning, so I convinced myself to go.) At markets and grocery stores here, you aren't offered any bags at the checkout counter. On rare occasions, I've seen people ask for bags, but the majority of people bring their own reusable bags to the store. I just recently purchased a big pink Hello Kitty bag with a shoulder strap and a zipper to keep all my groceries from falling out. It has definitely come in handy for my larger shopping trips. Well, I went to the market for milk, went through the checkout line, and paid, and asked the lady for a bag. I had my purse with me, and was going to carry the milk in there, but wanted a plastic bag to wrap around the containers so they wouldn't spill or get messy. The lady was all out of bags, so I had to walk home with two containers of milk. Just as I was leaving the market, I lost my grip on one of the milks and I dropped it, right outside the store. It busted open and milk went everywhere. The man who was working at the fruit stand right outside immediately ran into the store, grabbed another milk, and just handed it to me. I kept apologizing over and over, but he just sent me on my way, without asking me to pay for the milk, and just cleaned up my mess. I don't know if that normally happens if you drop something at a store here, or if it was just because I'm a foreigner. Either way, I really appreciated it. They obviously know that mistakes can happen, and it was just nice to be taken care of so well at a store.