Sam Teacher - Baby?

No, I am NOT pregnant!!!  Just throwing that out there in case you had ANY question in your mind....!!!

This week marks 10 months of us being in Korea.  And, for those 10 months, we have had the same students in class.  Sure, new students have come and some have left but for the most part, we have had the same students.  That's why I'm still amazed when the students ask if I'm married and their jaws nearly hits the floor after they learn the answer - for the 4th time.

This is usually how the conversation goes:

Student:  Teacher, how old are you?
Me:  I'm 24.
Student:  Boyfriend?
Me:  I'm married....to Zach Teacher.
Students:  Awwwww??!!!! (It's mass confusion by this time.)

Some students will go as far as to ask if we kiss, but I usually divert the conversation to something else.  The very next question is usually:

Student: Teacher, baby?!
Me:  No, I do not have a baby (and I put my arms in front of my chest and cross them - a sign of 'no').

Today, this 'baby' question confused my youngest students immensely!  First off, they know VERY little English.  They know, "My name is..." and "It's a .....".  Korea, as far as I can tell, is still pretty "old fashioned" about marriage and children.  Once you get married, you have kids.  The end.  So, my young students couldn't believe that Zach and I don't have a baby.  They just didn't believe me!  I finally had to draw a picture of me and a picture of Zach on the board.  Then I drew a baby and crossed it out.  Then one girl asked about moms and dads.  I told her they were in the United States.  One of the boys said, "baby in United States?"  They just didn't get it!  haha!

I'm sure this conversation will come up at least a couple more times before we leave and it will be just as confusing to them then as it is now.  :)

Some of our Korean counterparts also don't understand why we don't have children.  We tell them just as we tell everyone else who asks us, "We don't want kids now, but maybe in the future - maybe not."  Yes, I know, babies are wonderful gifts.  However, we want to be selfish for the moment (and maybe forever) and not bring kids into this world.  We are having too much fun!  --Just in case you were wondering!  :)

Eating Dog Meat

Reader Discretion Is Advised


So, we finally did it!  Zach and I finally ate dog meat for the first time.  We decided two days ago that we would go with some Korean friends so they could tell us all about it.  I'm not going to lie, I have wanted to try dog meat the entire ten months we've been here.

When I first heard about people eating dogs, I was repulsed.  But the more I thought about it, the more appealing it was.  We eat cattle, pigs, chicken, and a variety of other animals. Why not dog?  This dog was not raised as a pet but raised to be consumed.  So, why not?!

Koreans call dog meat 'gaegogi'.  It is mainly eaten in the summer months because it is thought to cool the body.  The guys we went with also said it is good for stamina.....  I guess we'll have to wait and see...  :)

I was really excited that I was going to try dog meat!  I kept telling myself to think of it as another animal.  I'm sure it can't be that bad.  A friend of ours tried it for the first time last week and he said it was ok but that it was chewy.  I knew I could handle it.

So, tonight we went!  Here are the pictures.

This is dog skin.  I was a little scared to try it, but it doesn't really have a taste. 

This is "premium" dog meat.  It apparently comes from the mid-section of the dog - from around the rib area. 

You eat it by putting it on lettuce and adding sauces and other garnishes. 

This is dog soup - not made with "premium" meat.

I ate two pieces of the "premium" meat on lettuce.  It was pretty good except that it was chewy.  When I tried the soup, my first thought was, "this tastes like turkey".  The more I ate though, the tougher it was for me to put in my mouth.  I tried not to think that I was eating dog, but not thinking about it didn't work so well. I ate what I could and left the rest.  I felt really bad about wasting it, but I just couldn't stomach it any more.

I'm glad I tried it even if I didn't particularly care for it!  Zach liked it and would probably eat it again if he had the chance.  Honestly, I would recommend it if you would like to try it....