Kimchi

The semester has ended and the count down is on! Six days and I'm on a plane! Before I take a time-out from Korea though I have a few more things to share...

While North Americans are preparing their turkeys, anticipating football games, and scoping out their game-plan for "Black Friday", Koreans (more accurately, Korean women) are getting ready for one of the most important tasks in preparation for winter, 김치를 담그다 or kimchi making!

Just about every family makes their own kimchi, using their own "secret" recipe. They may make it several times a year, but the main time is late November to early December. It happens at this time of year mainly for historical reasons. Years ago, before refrigerators, kimchi would be made in mid to late December when the temperatures reached freezing so that they could safely store and enjoy the kimchi throughout the winter months when fresh vegetables couldn't be found. Traditionally it was kept in huge clay pots stored underground, but of course things have changed. Kimchi is now usually stored in a special kimchi refrigerator (trust me, it starts to smell after a certain age) and it can be made earlier, when the weather is a bit warmer. Though the time and storage have changed, I believe the rest of the process is about the same. Women of a family gather or women and their friends gather and take on anywhere from 50 -100+ cabbages in a day, and we aren't talking little heads of cabbage, these are napa cabbages, which are considerably bigger. To put it in perspective, they quarter them to make them manageable for the kimchi making process.  I've been lucky enough to partake in this tradition a few times, so here's how it's done...

It's actually a three day process. I've only taken part in the third day, but from what I understand, this is what happens... The first day you clean and quarter the cabbage then set it to soak in salt water so that it pickles. The second day you set the cabbage to drain. Then comes the third day...

On the third day you...

1. Make the red pepper paste. The basic recipe includes: red pepper, garlic, ginger, fish sauce, salt, rice paste, carrot, onion, leek, etc.

Most of the ingredients

Mix them all together

Keep mixing!

2. Put your gloves on and spread the paste on each individual leaf. Yes, every single leaf gets individual love and care :)

Applying the red pepper paste.

3. Wrap up the cabbage and put it in a container. Wait a day or two for it to ferment and enjoy! Of course, eat some while you're making it also. In my opinion, fresh kimchi is the best.

Finished kimchi

My Korean cooking, with fresh kimchi...

That's all I've really got. Here are a couple articles if you have a few minutes to procrastinate. See most of you very soon!

South Korean College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT)..the entire country pauses...

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/10/world/asia/south-korea-exams/index.html

Canada gives asylum to gay Korean

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/10/world/asia/south-korea-exams/index.html

Korean Autumn

The last few months have flown by and I've been terrible at blogging and keeping in touch in general, so I'm going to take this opportunity to catch you up on what I've been doing.

In September was the "Korean thanksgiving" Chuseok. I celebrated with my neighbors/Korean family, the Hongs. I helped out with the entire two day process of making food, honoring the ancestors, and eating too much. It was great, but unfortunately I don't have any pictures. However, a few weeks later when we had another long holiday weekend, I went with Mrs. Hong and stayed with their daughters in Seoul. It was a lovely weekend. We ate at their uncle's tuna sashimi restaurant, went to Everland (a theme park), and went to the top of Namsan tower, which I amazingly had never done before.

Honu, the cutest little devil^^

The women of the Hong family.

 The fall (and second) semester of the Korean school year is a fun, but busy time. There are a handful of holidays, field trips, school festivals, and usually some special cooking days related to the harvest season. For me this entailed the district English festival and our school's festival. Thankfully didn't have to do anything for the English festival this year except provide moral support, but the school festival was a bit different. Last year I helped the kids finish up their production of the musical "Scrooge". Unfortunately it didn't go so well, so this year I wanted to do better. I asked months in advance  if I would have to prepare something with the "English drama" class and for months and months they said no. Well, about a month before the festival they said I should prepare something. Luckily, I got to do it with a Korean teacher. We chose "The Country and the City Mouse", adapted it for a bigger cast, and were blessed with some fabulous "mice" who were able to memorize their lines in a week! In the end it came out about as well as I think an English play for a non-English speaking audience can be expected to.

A building in the city and "a man" 

The mice

The next thing that came up was Halloween! As the foreign teacher, I'm taking every opportunity to teach my culture and relive my childhood, so we definitely celebrated. In each of my classes on that day we learned a bit about Halloween, made masks, and played some games. The kids had fun and are still trying their luck with the phrase "trick-or-treat" :)

Mummy wrap 3rd grade 

Mummy Wrap 1st grade 

First graders with their masks

We had a party for ourselves as well!

In the past couple weeks things have been pretty quiet. I did one hiking trip with a friend to a mountain called Naejangsan. It was a rainy weekend and unfortunately most of the leaves had fallen, but there were still throngs of people. It was supposed to be the peak leaf viewing time for this area, so it was a festive event. The base of the park was full of food tents and entertainment and the mountain itself was overcrowded with Koreans in their very professional hiking gear. It may not have been the peaceful time in nature we had hoped for, but it was a a good experience and still nice to get out. The picture at the top of this post is from that day. 

I think that's about all I've got for you at the moment. I may squeeze in one more post before the snow flies, but we'll see. If not though, hopefully I'll see you in the good ol' US of A! I've got my ticket booked for Dec. 23 - Jan. 25th, so just counting down the days :) 

If you want to see some more photos and some videos, follow the link on the right side of this page.

Happy Thanksgiving! 

This is India...

As most of you know, I spent the last month in "Incredible India"! and an incredible experience it was, but not in the amazing, marvelous, take your breath away sense, rather, it was astonishing, dizzying, and unbelievable. How it is all held together, I still don't know and I wonder if anyone does. India is a place full of color, diversity, men, scents, tastes, men, motorbikes, cows, men, buses, pigs, cars, women, children, and huuuge extremes. It keeps you on your toes, holds your attention, and demands all the energy you have. If you slack off, you risk losing your place, space, direction, money, or anything else... as the locals say, "It's India, anything can happen."; and that can be bad or very very good. It was the most challenging trip I've ever been on, chalked full of lessons, opportunities, and experiences I will ponder and hold onto for a lifetime. There is far more than can be said in this little blog, but I'll give you a brief recap and leave the rest to the photos (follow the link on the right). 

I arrived on July 23 and was met at the airport by my good friend Kishan (met in the CZ) and his friend Mayank. Within an hour or so we were at a posh party in the center of Delhi (it was Kishan's last night in Delhi before he moved to his new university). In the early hours of the morning we got some food, a brief nap, and then headed out to the foothills of the Himalayas to meet up with Jacqui (my good friend from time in CZ and SK) and her sister Angela in a city called Rishakesh (where the Beatles went to meditate). It would have been a great place, but there was a pilgrimage in full swing and the pilgrims were rudely mesmerized by foreign women. After two days of harassment we fled to the mountains, where Kishan and Mayank left us. After a few days of chilling in the rain clouds we headed back to Delhi where Esther (a friend from SK) joined me and Jacqui and Angela departed for home after several months of travel. 

When Esther arrived, I was fairly useless to her and hating India. I had been sick with one thing or another for about the first two weeks...passing out, throwing up, and everything in between. She was patient though and as my health improved, so did my attitude. We first headed east to the holy Hindu city of Varanasi and then on to Bodh Gaya, the place where Buddha obtained enlightenment. Our original plan was to head to the Himalayas, but on our return to Delhi we found that the monsoon was in full swing and the lower mountains were flooding and having landslides. Rather than risk it, we visited the government tourist office (I'm fairly sure it was the real one and not one of the many fakes...) and made a plan to head west into Rajasthan.

Rajasthan is an amazing and impressive place bordered by Pakistan, full of ancient sites, mountains, parks where tigers still live, holy sites, and the Thar desert. We spent our time in the Thar desert, visiting Jaipur (the capital), Jodhpur (with a beautiful fort), and the pleasant town Jaisalemer, known to tourists for the opportunity to camel trek. We spent about seven days between these cities and did do some camel riding for one evening. The highlight of it all, and possibly the whole trip, was sleeping in the desert under the stars. It was truly stunning...after this we took two overnight trains to get to Mumbai, whose major center seemed a world away from everywhere else we'd been. For better or worse, we didn't see much, but spent most of the four days just walking around and enjoying all of the good restaurants and cafes. A long way from the pollution, mud, begging children, and nagging touts of our introduction to India near New Delhi railway station, we finished our trip with a celebratory (and expensive) coffee at the famous Taj Mahal hotel (where the Queen, celebrities, Presidents, etc. stay), in a 19th century British tea room; the two economic ends of India have absolutely nothing in common except their nationality and that they reside in the same location.  

At times it seemed like the month would never end and I have to be honest, tainted by the sickness, I seriously contemplated going home early, but I'm glad I stayed. Though I barely scratched the surface of all that India holds, I got a grasp of the diversity, immensity, and incredible atmosphere of the place and learned more than I have in a very long time. Though there are so many places I haven't been, I feel very confident saying, there's no where that's quite like India and in the end, I would go back again. Enjoy the photos, they say much more than I could ever. 

40 Days and 40 Nights

Today was about the second or third time I saw blue sky in the last month. When the monsoon began in mid-June, the sun was banished, dry shoes became a thing of the past, and our best friend became our umbrella.If you are in certain areas of Seoul when a big shower hits the water will come up to your ankles as it patiently waits for it's turn to enter the sewer and no matter where you, your umbrella will do little to keep you dry. Those are only the major showers though, most of the time it was just a steady flow of rain. Some areas had some flooding, but here in Jeonju, among the mountains, we've been quite alright; though there was a time my co-teachers and I contemplated building an ark, but then we realized there is a church shaped like one across town, so if needed, we could just go there. However, as the rains subsides, there isn't much to celebrate: the "dog days" officially began on Thursday.

The dog days are "the hottest days" of the year. The first one, on July 14, is Chobok. The second, Chungbok is ten days later, and ten days after it, follows Molbok, which is the third. On Chobok, it is Korean custom to eat either dog soup or a spicy chicken soup (dakdorae tang) to help you prepare for and maintain your health during the hot weeks of August. Luckily, I was invited to the Hongs' and Mrs. Hong and I made dakdorae tang! We rubbed the chicken, onions, and potatoes with red pepper paste and more red pepper then added welsh onion, kimchi, and water and let it cook for about an hour. While it cooked we made some salad, cucumber kimchi, and got the soju and other side dishes ready. When it was perfectly done we had a feast under the fan, as we sweated the sweet spiciness in the heat. It was fantastic! Now there's not much to do, but wait as the last of the clouds are blown out and the heat, humidity, and cicadas of August settle in.

Outside of the weather, July has passed in a flurry of filling out applications, obtaining visas, and planning, planning, planning. School ended about a week ago and next week is summer camp. I've planned and (almost) fully prepared, a Harry Potter camp! Even though I have minimal knowledge of the wizard world, it was fun to plan and I think it's going to be a hit. We'll make wands, cast spells, stir up some potions, play some Hogwarts inspired games, and watch a movie. Then, at the end of the week, I'm off for the adventure of a life time! to India for a month :) I'll write more when I return. Take care and stay cool!

Hot hot heat

Welcome to summer!

It rolled in here without any warning and is here to stay. I've heard Korean summer goes something like this...right now it's the rainy season, so will rain for 3-4 days, be nice for 3-4 day, rain, etc. until sometime in July when the sticky, humid heat will set in, after which it will be typhoon season, and finally we'll reach the respite of autumn. It sounds like some crazy weather, but really it's just nice to wear dresses and flip flops and get a bit of a tan, however scandalous that might be...

So for this post, I'd just like to wrap up a few odds and ends...

First, I want to add an addendum to my earlier blog on the drinking culture here. I received some responses about it and just want to clarify...while there is a distinct culture here and there can be social pressure, especially in work cultures, not everyone is just drinking all the time, most drinking is "healthy" and responsible, and there are a good amount of people who don't drink and it's ok for them. I actually have a handful of friends who don't drink for various reasons and they are A-OK! Now that that's settled...

I just had a visitor! My lovely sister, Chelsee! She was here for about two weeks and it was soooo very good to see her. With the help of my friends the Hong's, I really had a chance to experience Korea and had a pretty good time. We saw my city, the sea, the mountains, a couple cities on the coast, the DMZ, and, of course, spent a few days in Seoul. We also tried lots of Korean food, got a chance to see some traditional music, visited my school, and met up with my friends. Outside of the fact that she got a little sick on the last evening, it was a good time. The best part though was just spending time with her. When she left it made me a bit home sick, but that's not necessarily a bad thing and it always comes and goes. For those of you who have Facebook, you can check some pictures there.

Lastly, a month or so ago, I went our bi-annual "culture experience trip", which is part of the program I work through. We went to Jeju Island of the southern coast of the Korean peninsula. It's more-or-less the Hawaii of Korea. I was a little skeptical about how amazing it would be, but I was impressed and pleasantly surprised. I'll just leave you with some pictures of that to give you an idea of what it's like.

Keep it cool!

Children's Day

Today, May 5, is Children's Day in Korea. The schools are closed and children are running the streets being indulged with candy, new toys, trips to amusement parks, parks, movies, and anything else that fills their fanciful minds. As a teacher enjoying the day off because of this holiday, I feel I should write something about these wonderful little monsters and their lives. 

Before I came to Korea I had never worked with children, however, I've spent the last nine months teaching, eating lunch with, and playing with them. I now feel I know a thing or two about them and in addition, they have taught me an incredible amount about Korea, myself, and so many other things. I'd like to take a few minutes to share a bit about Korean kids' lives and then share a few of my favorite or more interesting moments since I've been teaching here. 

English teacher's in Korea always end up discussing Korean children's lives and comparing them to the lives of children in our home countries. Usually the conversation revolves around the role of education and extra-curricular activities in children's lives and how this structures them. For example, in the USA, most children go to school from 8-4ish, have some extra-curricular activity or a part-time job, and sleep between 8-11pm depending on their age. On the whole, I believe it's safe to say that American's value a well-rounded life of school, sports, music, art, work, etc. Korea is quite a bit different. 

A typical Korean child's day can look something like this:

Jee-hoon's Day, age 14, first year middle-school

6:00 - wake up, eat breakfast, often study

8:00 - go to school

4:00 - finish school and go to hagwon (private academy) for math

6:30 - finish and have a snack/dinner

7:00 - go to second hagwon for English

10:00 - go home, do homework 

11:00 - play games

12:00 - go to bed

Now this is not every Korean child's day, but it is fairly typical and high-lights the main differences. Korean education is very heavy on academics and testing and, past elementary school, has very little focus on music, the arts, or sports, unless you go to a special school that emphasizes those. Korean children also have a very long day. They wake up early, they stay up late, and in the middle they spend 90% of their time studying. Usually the late night hagwons pertain to kids that are in middle-school and above, but I do know of students as young as nine who have lessons at 9pm. I don't know about you, but that's when I went to bed. To add to this, they also often either have school or go to hagwons on Saturdays. 

Then there is testing...Testing begins early and the importance of it only increases as children get older. Elementary school is similar for all (I believe), but when children are in sixth grade they take a test and often have interviews in order to be placed in level appropriate middle-schools. The climax of the testing experience is the test for university placement, which is something like a national event. As the test nears special "good luck" food" (sticky rice cakes, so the knowledge sticks to you) is sold and on the day of the test the streets are quieter and there is an air of tension in the air. It's almost as if the country is holding their breath, crossing their fingers, holding their thumbs, or whatever they feel they must do for it to be a success. Last year, the test's usual date fell during the G20 conference that was held in Seoul. In order to avoid any possible distractions because of the special arrangements and to enable the students to attend, the test was rescheduled. 

The children I work with don't seem to have such stressful lives, which can probably be attributed to their age (elementary) and the rural location. I only have a handful of students that are able to attend hagwon. This means their lives are a bit less stressful now, but the reality is, is that it will probably hinder their future possibilities. While all of the studying often seems like madness to an outsider's point of view, there is a is a logical explanation. South Korea has a population of  roughly 50,000,000 people and, according to Wikipedia, is about the size of half the size of Minnesota. This creates a highly saturated and competitive job market. To "get a good job and get ahead" students need to have the best test scores, go to the best schools, speak the best English, etc. Is it good? Is it bad? Is one system better than the other? It's hard to say and worth debate, but then again, every time I find myself discussing it the conversation comes back to the point that I am part of the system...is it wrong? am I helping? am I being a hypocritical? I don't know, but it's paying the bills...

Here are a couple links to show you more about Korean children.

PBS Video clip (thanks to Brandon Walters for sending this to me!) 

Korean English Newspaper Article (Joongnang Daily)

And now something more up lifting, some memorable moments with the little ones:

3rd grade Student: (through translation) "Teacher, on pizza their is Imsil cheese. (the most famous cheese in Korea) How do you make pizza in the USA without Imsil cheese?"

Kindergarten Student: "Teacher, why are your eyes blue?"

Sometimes we play soccer: 

Student 1: "Teacher, me Ronaldo."

Student 2: "Teacher, me Park, Ji Sung." 

Me: Ok, ok (laughing) can I see the ball?

They pass it and I juggle a little bit.

Students: "O wow teacher! Good good! In USA play soccer?"

Me: "Yes, in USA girls play soccer."

Students: "OOOOoooooo...."

(They do in SK too, but not widely. They have a good national team though. Special academies...?)

Teaching 1st and 2nd grade by myself:

Me: "Ok kids let's go over there and play a game." (Mostly I just gesture over there, make a circle, and say "game!").  I go to turn the light on in the adjoining room. When I turn back around I see one kid show his chest, the next moon all of us, and the third kid whips it out! I was baffled. I didn't know if I was shocked or just wanted to laugh. I just went and got a Korean teacher.

Student: "Teacher. Candy." and hands me a sucker. 

Student: "Merry Christmas teacher, I love you!" and hands me a card.

One day I played a game with my third graders. The winners got candy. Instead of just eating it, they each broke their candy in half and shared it with the other team. 

Student: (in Korean) "Teacher, speak Korean." 

Me: No

Student: Yes, just hello.

Me: No

Student: Please....

Me: Anyeonghasseyo (hello in Korean)

Students: just laughing...teacher...ha hahahaha

Shot shot shot shot...shot shooooot, everybody!

The intention to write every two weeks has turned into every month and I think it's enough. Frankly, my life's not too exciting and there's only so much I can tell you about Korea.

What's new on this side of the world?

• The nuclear rain is falling. Is there radiation here? I'm not positive. I've been told traces have been detected, but nothing that would harm people. Regardless, Koreans are very nervous about the situation. They have even gone so far as to cancel some classes, skip after-school classes, or just stay home.
• It is spring! The cherry blossoms have bloomed, coats can be left at home, sandals can be worn, and snow will not be seen or talked about for months! The first sign of spring I saw was on top of a large hill with Mr. Hong. We went for a hike and happened upon some azaleas. So what did we do? We ate them. Apparently the first azaleas to bloom are good to eat, however, the second ones are not. Consider yourself warned. What did it taste like? A little leafy, a little sweet, a little purple, or was it pink? Hm...I guess it tasted just how you might imagine a flower to taste. (...and no, I don't have any pictures of the cherry blossoms, sorry.)
• The buses are on strike. Only in Jeonju. Are they on strike still or again, it's hard to tell. They have been on some kind of strike here since last December.It seemed for while they were in full swing, but then today they disappeared again. I haven't found an English source that explains the whole drama of the situation, but I know it has resulted in daily marches, blockaded streets, buses held hostage,  camp outs at the bus stations, a serious lack of transportation, and way too much cab fare out of my pocket. Thank god it's warm enough now to ride my bike. 

Now, to the title of this blog, shots! 

(Title credit goes to: LMFAO ft.Lil Jon.) 

Gunbae! or Cheers!

Let's discuss Korean drinking culture. I don't want to talk about parties, clubbing, college students gone wild. I want to share with you a distinct culture that exists here. To begin, for the sake of simplification, we can generalize and say that in Western culture drinking is a social activity that is a choice. Adults tend to drink moderately now and again. When they drink to the point of passing out it is highly frowned upon. Young people can get away with wasted nights, drinking games, etc. ,but this should be abandoned when you join the "real adult world". Drinking culture in Korea is a little different...

In Korea, you drink. That is not to say that there are not people who don't drink, there definitely are, but they have to battle with a certain amount of social pressure. I have sat through a couple lectures on Korean culture and in both of them the speakers advised us, many of whom could not drink legally in the USA, to drink a little bit or at least pretend to, instead of saying no. Why is this? Drinking with someone is a way to show respect to and bond with them. This goes for friends, strangers, coworkers, basically anyone (not children, the drinking age is 18). So, if you decline it can be seen as a sign of disrespect. Likewise, if you bow out early it can also be seen as a sign of disrespect. As an English teacher in Korea, this is mostly noticed and felt at the teachers' dinners. 

I had my first teachers' dinner when I had been at my school for two to three months. We went out for sushi. Ten minutes into dinner the drinking began. Soju was opened, shots were poured, and endless rounds of toasts began. As the new person, everyone wanted to share a shot with me and ,wanting to make a good impression, I tried my damnedest to keep up. Well, I did, all the way through dinner, the norae bong (karaoke), and the after-bar. The next morning, after some quality time with my toilette, I drug myself to school. Were my coworkers hung over? Of course not, but they greeted me with warm smiles and thankfully, some pizza! Not to say that the environment was bad before, but it was definitely warmer after that evening. This is only one experience, but many of my friends have had similar teachers' dinners with similar results. There are tactful ways to get around drinking and I have since employed them. The first is to just take a sip of the shot. As long as you have some alcohol in your glass, you are safe from having it refilled. The second is act like you take the shot and then spit it into your water glass. The third of course, is to just say you don't drink. Sometimes this is not problem, sometimes it is. I heard of principal, who would not pay for a teacher's dinner (a Korean) because she wouldn't drink with everyone. This is extreme, but it is true. 

There is another side to this culture, drunk middle-aged men (ajashis). Walk down almost any street after ten at night and you are bound to see drunk ajashis stumbling to a bar, a taxi, their home, etc. You are also bound, at some point in your time here, to see them passed out cold on the street, the curb, the bus stop, in a cafe, anywhere really. (I say ajashis because the fact is, is that it is rarely or dare I say never women.) In the US this would be considered alcoholism and frowned upon. Here it's socially acceptable or at least tolerated. There has actually been a controversy lately about a blog called "Black Out Korea". The website posted pictures of random Koreans passed out in various locations. Many Koreans were upset at the foreign community for posting this and a debate ensued. It's still going on. Unfortunately you can no longer view the blog, but then again, I'm sure all of you can imagine what a man passed out on the curb looks like. 

To wrap this up, here is a list of the main Korean alcohols and etiquette that should be observed:

Alcohols:

• Soju - usually made from rice. A clear alcohol that tastes similar to vodka. (19%).
• Makgeolli - rice wine. It looks milky and is a bit sweet, yet bitter. Easy to drink, but strong.
• Mekju - Korean beer. There are three brands: Hite, Cass, and Max. It makes Miller, Budweiser, and Coors taste pretty good. 

Etiquette:

• Never pour your own drink.
• Pour and receive alcohol with two hands or with your free hand touching your forearm or stomach.
• When you cheers, make sure your glass is lower than anyone that is older than you.
• Turn away and drink when you are drinking with someone that is older than you.
• Never leave an empty glass on the table. When it's empty immediately refill it. 
• Always have food with alcohol. Even if you just ate a huge meal, order more. You should never just drink. Koreans won't and the majority of bars won't appreciate it.
• The oldest person usually pays the entire bill. This goes for drinking and eating out. 

Winter Passed

I've failed at writing every two-three weeks. It has been for a multitude of reasons, but mostly because I haven't made the time. I am still out here though! What have I been up to...? 

February passed in an enjoyable, monotonous blur of train rides, Seoul explorations, cloudy days, reading, late nights out, and well-intentioned efforts to lesson plan. I didn't have school in February! I am mostly thankful for this because my classroom, while well-equipped, is in the old part of the school, and has no heat, brrr! March came pretty quickly though and it was back to knowing what day of the week it is.

At the beginning of the month, I said "see you later" to my good friend Jacqui. Some of you may remember that she is the one who inspired me to come here, so it was a sad day in some ways, but, it was more than time for her to move on. She's now traveling all over SE Asia, having an amazing adventure! After her departure, school resumed and now is in full swing. 

The first couple weeks were very Korean: unorganized, surprising, frustrating. After spending a short time in Korea, you quickly learn that things aren't planned that well or at least not in advance, last minute changes are the norm, and communication, especially to the foreigner, is not a high priority. Throw in the language barrier and you'll be guaranteed that things are always interesting. I showed up to school on March 7, as I was told to a month earlier, just to find out that after-school classes (my class) didn't start until March 14. It wasn't necessarily bad news, another free week, but it was a bit annoying. When my classes actually started, the first two weeks were a mass of confusion. I had one version of my class schedule, my students had another and, the reality was, was that there was no official version.Things are going pretty smoothly now, but I still haven't seen my fifth graders. Despite the fact that me and my mentor teacher have both talked to their teachers, they still don't seem to know when to show up. Or, it is possible, that they have decided they don't want to study English this semester, hm..? 

Though it was all a bit irritating at the time, it wasn't unexpected and it's not the first time something like this has happened. Things like this happen often in SK. I have many friends with similar stories: classes canceled with no notice, classes added with only two minutes notice, fire drills and you are left sitting in the school, pizza in the teachers lounge and you miss out, late pay, school holiday and no one tells you, a school function you are expected to attend with only a day or an hour's notice, the list could go on and on. Living surrounded by any foreign language leads to communication challenges, but living as a foreigner in Korea definitely teaches you to roll with the punches, go with the flow, and think on your feet. It's a pain sometimes, but when it's too much or you just get really "lost", you can always play the stupid foreigner card. Can't say I haven't done it :)

Well that's your dose of Korean culture for today. The last thing I have to say is that I've figured out what I'll be doing with the next year of my life. I applied to graduate schools last fall and the results weren't very positive, plus I am really enjoying life here, sooooooo... I will be staying in Korea for another year! My current gig is only part time and my contract ends in July, so this spring will be devoted to finding a new job. I've just started a course to obtain my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certificate and will move to/near Seoul at the end of the summer. Jobs teaching English are abundant in Korea, so I'm not worried about finding a job, it's more about what kind of job I will end up with: private, public, kindergarten, elementary, secondary, adults, etc. ...and to the question that many of you are probably wondering, will I be home for a visit this year? I don't know, we'll see...

I hope you all are well and enjoying the warming temperatures! I saw and tasted (yes, literally) the first blossoms of spring yesterday while I was hiking with Mr. Hong (apparently the first azaleas in Korea are edible and fairly tasty), spring is here!  

2011 - The Year of the Rabbit

새해 복 많이 받으세요 (saehae bok manhi baduseyo)! or Happy New Year! 
(It directly translates to something like "I hope you receive many good blessings/a lot of good luck this New Year!") 


February 3 was the Lunar New Year (설날), the biggest Korean holiday, and I was lucky enough to spend it traditionally with my "adoptive" Korean family. As some of you may know, an older couple in my neighborhood has taken me in as their own. One day last fall, when I was walking home from school, I heard an old man yelling down the street. Realizing he was yelling at me, I stopped and went back. To my great surprise, he started speaking in broken English. He explained that he had learned English in his army days, had forgotten a lot, but studied and wanted to practice. Thrilled that I had found a way to talk to the older generation of this rapidly changing country, I agreed to visit him the next week and have been visiting the Hongs' every week since. Generously, they invited me to their family celebration. 

Mr. Hong

Mrs. Hong

 The holiday began on the second with food preparation. I helped out for a few hours, during which we made several platters of "jeon" or Korean pancakes. They are made by taking various vegetables and meat, coating them in flour, dipping them in egg, and then pan-frying them. By we, I mean all of the women; men wouldn't think of coming into the kitchen. So, for about three hours, I sat on the floor with four Korean women, communicating with what little language we could muster, cooking, tasting, laughing. I wish I would have had my camera that day. 


On the third, I arrived at the Hongs' at 8:30. The day began with ceremonies. The traditional ceremony is usually only conducted by the men of the family, however, this year Mr. Hong and his brothers had their sister participate because it is her last year celebrating with the family. Next month she will get married and from then on she'll go to her husband's family for the New Year celebration. During the traditional ceremony the family remembers and honors their parents. They set up a table with their parent's pictures and an entire meal laid out for them. The ceremony itself involves burning incense, pouring wine, symbolically feeding the parents, and bowing. At the end, all of the food is put away to be eaten later. Since the Hongs are Catholic, they followed the traditional ceremony with a small Catholic service. (It should be noted that, just as in Western culture, every family has different traditions and rituals, but this is a general idea.) After the service we had breakfast: soup, rice, side dishes, kimchi, etc. 

The table for the ceremony.

After breakfast was many Korean children's favorite part of the holiday: receiving money. All the parents in the family sat on one side of the room and the children stood on the other. All together, they wished their parents a "Happy New Year" and did a full bow (nose to the ground), after which they received money from each person. I was very happy to be an observer of this part of the day, but the Hongs had a different idea. After the children all bowed, it was my turn. I protested and insisted otherwise. I don't mind bowing, it's a humbling, some say demeaning, motion, but I didn't want their money. All of my efforts were useless though. So, along with the toddler in the family, I gave my wishes, bowed, and graciously accepted their gifts. With this portion of the morning complete, we jumped in the car, and headed to the mountain. 

OK, to be honest, we didn't happily jump in the car and breeze our way to the mountain. Just like in any family, many people didn't want to go. It's the same tradition year after year that some people love, some tolerate, and others want to throw out the window - like always saying the same prayer, singing a certain song, playing the same game, or whatever is your family always does, every holiday with groans and moans along the way. Regardless, everyone climbed in the cars and we made our way. What were we doing at the mountain? Honoring the family's ancestors. The vast majority of Koreans are buried in family cemeteries that are always in mountains or hills. Why mountains? Mr. Hong's son explained to me that they are buried there because mountains have a strong and positive energy, full of protection and security. Once at the mountain, we walked to the family cemetery, the men bowed at each grave, the women mostly observed, and the kids played. The daughters of the family bowed, but the women who married into the family never bowed to their husband's deceased family members, neither at home or at the mountain. After the ceremony was complete we returned home for lunch!

For lunch we had the traditional rice cake soup along with side dishes and several types f kimchi. After the meal we relaxed and ate dessert. Eventually the drinking began. The soju and beer were brought out along with meat and the jeon we made the day before. Shots were poured and conversation ensued. I actually didn't stay very long for this part, but it was a good and interesting day. I was very happy to experience a traditional Korean holiday and honored to be surround by such kind and generous people. 

Welcome to the year of the rabbit! If you are curious about your Chinese astrology, here are a couple of sites to explore (one, two). 

건배! (gun bae) Cheers!

On the Streets!

I am now on winter break! It's like being in college all over again except better because I get an even longer break, about six weeks. It's a bit crazy, buuuuut I can't complain. The month started off with winter camp. It was a fun couple of weeks. We had a good turn out, about twenty kids, and we all learned and had fun. If you are curious, there are some pictures on Facebook. Now I'm  just enjoying the time off and trying to keep myself busy. One way I'm doing that is by writing this blog. So, today I'm going to educate you about the Korean streets! No, I don't mean the streets as in "the hood" or "the hard knock life", I'm talking about food! and a few other surprises you can find as you walk to the store or the bus or pc bong (internate cafe) or the mart or the noraebong (singing room aka karaoke) or...

First of all, there is a lot of interesting food. The most let's say "exotic" thing you can find is "beundegi". What is it? Silk worms! They are usually steamed and have a distinct smell that you can't misplace or escape. I have tried them and they are ok...but, I probably never need to taste them again. However, a good majority of Koreans love them and pop em' like peanuts. 

Moving on to better tasting things...my favorite street foods are "bungeoppang" and "hodo pang" or, respectively, red bean filled carp bread and walnut cakes. They are both types of cakes that are cooked in machines similar to waffle irons by people in small stands on the street. For one dollar you can get three fish or for two dollars you can get about ten walnut cakes. They are the perfect snack when you are walking on a cold day. At the fish stands, you can also get fish cake (the actual processed seafood cake) and a drink of warm broth that is also very when you are waiting for the bus on these cold days.

 

Bungeoppang Stand                               Fish cakes and an adjumma making bungeoppang

Bungeoppang!

Two other favorites of mine are roasted sweet potatoes and "ddeokbokki". A favorite snack or dessert of many Koreans are grilled or roasted sweet potatoes and you can sometimes buy them on the street as a healthy alternative. Probably one of the most famous Korean street foods though, is "ddeokbokki". It's usually made of a mix of red pepper paste, rice cake, fish cake, and onion. It's spicy and o so good. 

Ddeokbokki

Then there are, of course, the many kinds of sausages and fried foods that show up in all cultures. I haven't explored these too thoroughly, but you can get a gist of them from the pictures. 

Bigger than just food, there are also what are known as "pojangmacha". These glorious orange wonders only appear at night. During the day they are stripped down and set aside. Basically they are bar tents. Usually run by a bad ass adjumma, they serve various kinds of food, snacks, beer, and of course, soju. Relatively cheap, people go here to unwind after a long day at work. Below are some pictures of the last time I went.

Outside of the tent...and inside everyone is preparing food. 

         We had soju and the best omelet in the world! 

While there are many other interesting things to discover as you walk around any Korean city, there is one more I have to mention, the "kudu byung hwan" or the shoe hospital! These little shacks are scattered through out the city and, just as you might imagine, they fix shoes. One day my heel on my high-heels broke, so I stopped in and ten minutes later, for the whopping price of three dollars, I walked away with a virtually brand new pair of shoes.

 The shoe hospital

As you can see, there are many wonderful and interesting things on the streets of Korea, however, there are two major draw backs: a sever lack of garbage cans and the entire absence of salt, sand, or anything else to get ride of the ice rink most of the side streets and sidewalks have become. You adapt though and carry your garbage (or litter - not my choice) and walk more carefully. Well, all of this has made me hungry, I'm going to go find some walnut cakes... see you next time!