Here is another video about everyday life in Busan, South Korea. As I've said in my previous post, we eat out more than we cook at home. Here is another example of ordering food. This time, it's in the food court of HomePlus. HomePlus is a grocery store similar to Walmart.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Ordering McDonald's for Delivery
As part of my new idea to write about our everyday lives, we made a short video about ordering McDonald's for delivery here in Korea. Lately, we have been ordering McDonald's at least twice per month - we eat out more than we cook. We're not proud of that fact, but it's just how it is. So, this is a perfect example of our daily life in Korea.
Daily Life in Busan, South Korea
A friend of mine mentioned in an e-mail that I haven't written in a while. It's true. I felt like I didn't have anything interesting to write about. However, her e-mail got me thinking. Though I live a normal life such as going to work, hanging out with friends, occasionally going to the gym, etc., it's still different enough because I am living in another country. So, I have decided that I am occasionally going to post about the most basic things in our lives like grocery shopping, getting on the metro, ordering food, etc. So, be on the lookout! :)
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Christmas 2013 in Pictures
Merry Christmas! 메리 크리스마스!
2013 was the strangest, least Christmas-like Christmas we've had together. Neither one of us really got in the mood. It was the first time in probably five or six years that I didn't send out Christmas cards. We did have three friends come to our apartment on Christmas Eve to celebrate with snacks, drinks, and games. We also had an impromptu lunch with two friends on Christmas Day. Both events were really nice, but it just didn't seem like Christmas. What's really shocking to me is the fact that I only took four pictures. So, I will share those pictures with you. Enjoy! They are pretty random, but it fully describes our Christmas. Haha!
2013 was the strangest, least Christmas-like Christmas we've had together. Neither one of us really got in the mood. It was the first time in probably five or six years that I didn't send out Christmas cards. We did have three friends come to our apartment on Christmas Eve to celebrate with snacks, drinks, and games. We also had an impromptu lunch with two friends on Christmas Day. Both events were really nice, but it just didn't seem like Christmas. What's really shocking to me is the fact that I only took four pictures. So, I will share those pictures with you. Enjoy! They are pretty random, but it fully describes our Christmas. Haha!
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| Christmas socks I bought to get us in the Christmas mood. |
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| I tried to get a better picture of our socks.... |
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| Waiting to meet our friends for lunch. People across the street were giving free hugs so I got a Christmas hug. |
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| After lunch, we went to a cupcake cafe. |
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
English Newspapers and Learning
One of my favorite activities to do with my students involves newspapers. Last month, I had my father save 20 newspapers and ship them to me. Shout-out to the Dubois County Herald.
At the beginning of the class, we go through and talk about the different sections of the newspaper. With the younger students, I ask them simple questions about the date, weather, page numbers, etc. Then, I have them go through and cut out pictures or words that describe them. They like to cut out individual letters to spell out their name. They then glue everything to a paper that says All About Me.
I had a few extra newspapers, so some of my 6th graders asked if they could take them home. I didn't mind. Today, one of my students came in and wanted to show off her fingernails. She had used parts of the newspaper to create fingernail art. I had never seen this done before, but apparently it's actually a "thing". Who knew?! Anyway, I thought it was pretty cool!
I'm just glad English could bring a little excitement into their lives!
At the beginning of the class, we go through and talk about the different sections of the newspaper. With the younger students, I ask them simple questions about the date, weather, page numbers, etc. Then, I have them go through and cut out pictures or words that describe them. They like to cut out individual letters to spell out their name. They then glue everything to a paper that says All About Me.
I had a few extra newspapers, so some of my 6th graders asked if they could take them home. I didn't mind. Today, one of my students came in and wanted to show off her fingernails. She had used parts of the newspaper to create fingernail art. I had never seen this done before, but apparently it's actually a "thing". Who knew?! Anyway, I thought it was pretty cool!
I'm just glad English could bring a little excitement into their lives!
Thursday, October 31, 2013
How Lucky Are We?!
If you are reading this post, you probably speak English. I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that 98% of my readers are native English speakers. With that being said, you too are very lucky!
This week alone, on two separate occasions, two of my co-teachers told me how fortunate I am that I speak English. This isn't the first time I've thought about how fortunate I was because I spoke English; I've discussed it several times with multiple friends.
**I want to state that I am in no way an expert in anything that I'm about to say. I am writing either from experience or what I've heard others say.**
Being an English teacher in South Korea, I am hit with the realization everyday that I am lucky to have been born in an English-speaking home. I am in Korea because many, many people want to learn my language. Okay, maybe they don't want to learn, but they feel it's necessary in order to get a good job and have a better life.
In the two minutes of research I did online, English is listed as either the #2 or #3 most spoken language in the world. Chinese or Mandarin is #1. So, why aren't the masses learning Chinese/Mandarin? I either read or heard an opinion on this: Chinese/Mandarin is still thought of as third-world or poor. English is thought of as rich and moving forward. World business is conducted in English. If someone from France and someone from Japan meet for business, they will most likely speak English to each other if they don't know each other's language. How lucky for us native English speakers!
As my co-teacher was saying, I am lucky because I speak English. I have an opportunity to travel and work in a foreign country just because I speak a desired language. She said she was truly envious of me. Come to think about it, it is easy for people who speak English to travel. Take away all outside influences like money, time off, etc. and just look at the language aspect. If a sign is going to have two languages printed on it, the languages will be the home-country's language and probably English. As a native English speaker, it's (relatively) easy to travel without having to learn another language. (I'm not saying that we shouldn't at least try to learn a few basic words in the language of the country we're going to.)
Every Friday I teach a teachers' class. They want me to teach them practical English that they can use when traveling like phrases for ordering food, exchanging money, asking for directions, etc. My class of two or three students is higher level and already know most of the basics. So, for tomorrow's class, I am going to play them the following TED Talks video. It's only 4 minutes, 32 seconds, but I would like for them to discuss the video and if they agree or disagree. Maybe what Jay Walker says in the video isn't completely accurate; maybe it is. I'm not too concerned about accuracy. I just want to hear what my students think of topic and why they think English is an important language to learn. To view the video I am talking about, please click on the following link: TED Talks: The World's English Mania.
I would really like to hear your opinion on this subject. Why do you think it is so important to learn English? Do you feel lucky because you speak English?
This week alone, on two separate occasions, two of my co-teachers told me how fortunate I am that I speak English. This isn't the first time I've thought about how fortunate I was because I spoke English; I've discussed it several times with multiple friends.
**I want to state that I am in no way an expert in anything that I'm about to say. I am writing either from experience or what I've heard others say.**
Being an English teacher in South Korea, I am hit with the realization everyday that I am lucky to have been born in an English-speaking home. I am in Korea because many, many people want to learn my language. Okay, maybe they don't want to learn, but they feel it's necessary in order to get a good job and have a better life.
In the two minutes of research I did online, English is listed as either the #2 or #3 most spoken language in the world. Chinese or Mandarin is #1. So, why aren't the masses learning Chinese/Mandarin? I either read or heard an opinion on this: Chinese/Mandarin is still thought of as third-world or poor. English is thought of as rich and moving forward. World business is conducted in English. If someone from France and someone from Japan meet for business, they will most likely speak English to each other if they don't know each other's language. How lucky for us native English speakers!
As my co-teacher was saying, I am lucky because I speak English. I have an opportunity to travel and work in a foreign country just because I speak a desired language. She said she was truly envious of me. Come to think about it, it is easy for people who speak English to travel. Take away all outside influences like money, time off, etc. and just look at the language aspect. If a sign is going to have two languages printed on it, the languages will be the home-country's language and probably English. As a native English speaker, it's (relatively) easy to travel without having to learn another language. (I'm not saying that we shouldn't at least try to learn a few basic words in the language of the country we're going to.)
Every Friday I teach a teachers' class. They want me to teach them practical English that they can use when traveling like phrases for ordering food, exchanging money, asking for directions, etc. My class of two or three students is higher level and already know most of the basics. So, for tomorrow's class, I am going to play them the following TED Talks video. It's only 4 minutes, 32 seconds, but I would like for them to discuss the video and if they agree or disagree. Maybe what Jay Walker says in the video isn't completely accurate; maybe it is. I'm not too concerned about accuracy. I just want to hear what my students think of topic and why they think English is an important language to learn. To view the video I am talking about, please click on the following link: TED Talks: The World's English Mania.
I would really like to hear your opinion on this subject. Why do you think it is so important to learn English? Do you feel lucky because you speak English?
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Dancing to K-POP Every Wednesday
Everyday, the students get a 20 minute break between 10:30-10:50. Usually they just go outside to play. However, for the past two Wednesdays, all of the students in school have gone outside and loud music is blared over the loud speakers. Two weeks ago they did the following dance:
From left to right: 1st grade-6th grade
I asked one of the teachers why they were dancing. She told me that they actually performed this dance last semester but that they didn't take enough pictures so they were just doing it for the pictures. Haha!
Last week they did the following dance:
From left to right: 1st grade-6th grade
I don't know why they were doing this dance. I really like watching the younger kids trying to do the dances because they actually tried. They may not remember all of the moves, but they sure tried! The older kids could care less.
Tuesday, October 8, 2013
Dancing Police
My school is across the street from a police station so it didn't seem strange to me when a bunch of police officers invaded our playground the other day. I was sitting in my 5th grade after school class teaching the idiom "piece of cake" when a girl in my class started laughing and squealing. In a limited number of words, she tried to explain to me that the police officers where trying to do a dance cover of a really popular Korean song/music video, Crayon Pop's "Bar Bar Bar". (I had to do some research to figure all of this out.) Below is the original music video.
Apparently, it's been really popular for police officers to do dance covers of this song. Below is one of the most watched dance covers.
Here are some pictures and a very short video of the police officers practicing at my school.
Want to see more dance covers? Click here.
Apparently, it's been really popular for police officers to do dance covers of this song. Below is one of the most watched dance covers.
Here are some pictures and a very short video of the police officers practicing at my school.
Want to see more dance covers? Click here.
Friday, October 4, 2013
Problems in Paradise
No, this is not a post about marital problems. Ha!
For the most part, I love living in Korea! It truly is an easy life. Yes, there is the language barrier that can be frustrating at times, but it's not always an issue. I don't have much work to do even while I'm at work. My housing is paid for. I get to save a lot of money. I get to travel to other countries (soon!). However, there is one specific thing about Korean life that I cannot stand. It's the education system. When I was working in middle school, my eyes weren't open to the way the system works. I never saw my co-teachers in action. I taught the whole class by myself. I tried my best at all times to teach them as much English as possible. It's way different in elementary school - at least in my school.
Here's how a typical class runs (3rd-6th grade):
1. I greet the class and ask them how they are, what is the date, and how is the weather.
2. My co-teacher "teaches" for 20-25 minutes.
3. I "teach" for 15 minutes.
The way my co-teacher teaches is he has everyone get out their dialogue sheets. These sheets have English, Korean cheats for the English words (phonetics of the word written in Korean), and the Korean meaning. He says a word or phrase and the students repeat after him. Why is that not my job? The kids are repeating bad English when they repeat after him. He then has them self-study the words and phrases. Then, he says the Korean word/phrase and they say the English equivalent. If they get it wrong, he bops them over the head with a toy hammer that makes a squeak sound. That's all he does for 20-25 minutes.
Then it's my turn. My job is to play the CD that goes along with the book. We spend about five classes on one lesson. If I am able to finish the book before those five classes, I am able to create my own material and games to do in the class. I think this is fairly typical in most classes with a bit of variation depending on the teacher.
Corporal punishment is technically not allowed in the classrooms anymore, but my co-teacher definitely still uses it. He hits kids on the head with a small stick, hits them with the toy hammer, etc. He also has them stand in the back of class with their arms straight out in front of them. The kids that get this type of punishment are usually the ones who don't do their homework. However, not all kids have homework. If a student answers a question in class, they are exempt from homework. The kids that don't answer questions are usually the ones who are struggling in the class or have learning disabilities, etc. So, the kids who struggle are required to do homework that they don't understand. When they don't do it, they have to stand in the back of class and suffer while class continues. While they are in the back of class, they don't have their books in front of them, they can't answer or ask questions, etc. It's such a vicious circle!
I've even been told to ignore students. The students that I'm supposed to ignore are the ones with learning disabilities or the students who act out or don't try. I definitely do some ignoring - ignoring my co-teacher, that is. Instead of ignoring students, I think we need to give them attention. I agree that I shouldn't focus all of my time and energy on one or two students, but I am definitely not going to ignore them! I had an "I told you so moment" with my co-teacher this week. One of the students he told me to ignore, I definitely didn't. I helped him find the right page to be on and even gave him a pencil when he couldn't find his. The next time I had him in class, he volunteered to answer two questions and when I pointed at him to answer, he got them correct! I am just finishing my 6th week here and not once has he raised his hand to answer before. I just wanted to stick out my tongue to my co-teacher and say I TOLD YOU SO!
I know that not all schools and/or co-teachers are the same as mine, but there are some basic similarities. I know there's not much I can do about it except be the best teacher I can be for 15 minutes every class. I just feel sorry for the students who are lagging behind because they are probably not going to have a chance to ever catch up. It just makes me sad how we are failing these students.
Other than these issues at school, all is well!
For the most part, I love living in Korea! It truly is an easy life. Yes, there is the language barrier that can be frustrating at times, but it's not always an issue. I don't have much work to do even while I'm at work. My housing is paid for. I get to save a lot of money. I get to travel to other countries (soon!). However, there is one specific thing about Korean life that I cannot stand. It's the education system. When I was working in middle school, my eyes weren't open to the way the system works. I never saw my co-teachers in action. I taught the whole class by myself. I tried my best at all times to teach them as much English as possible. It's way different in elementary school - at least in my school.
Here's how a typical class runs (3rd-6th grade):
1. I greet the class and ask them how they are, what is the date, and how is the weather.
2. My co-teacher "teaches" for 20-25 minutes.
3. I "teach" for 15 minutes.
The way my co-teacher teaches is he has everyone get out their dialogue sheets. These sheets have English, Korean cheats for the English words (phonetics of the word written in Korean), and the Korean meaning. He says a word or phrase and the students repeat after him. Why is that not my job? The kids are repeating bad English when they repeat after him. He then has them self-study the words and phrases. Then, he says the Korean word/phrase and they say the English equivalent. If they get it wrong, he bops them over the head with a toy hammer that makes a squeak sound. That's all he does for 20-25 minutes.
Then it's my turn. My job is to play the CD that goes along with the book. We spend about five classes on one lesson. If I am able to finish the book before those five classes, I am able to create my own material and games to do in the class. I think this is fairly typical in most classes with a bit of variation depending on the teacher.
Corporal punishment is technically not allowed in the classrooms anymore, but my co-teacher definitely still uses it. He hits kids on the head with a small stick, hits them with the toy hammer, etc. He also has them stand in the back of class with their arms straight out in front of them. The kids that get this type of punishment are usually the ones who don't do their homework. However, not all kids have homework. If a student answers a question in class, they are exempt from homework. The kids that don't answer questions are usually the ones who are struggling in the class or have learning disabilities, etc. So, the kids who struggle are required to do homework that they don't understand. When they don't do it, they have to stand in the back of class and suffer while class continues. While they are in the back of class, they don't have their books in front of them, they can't answer or ask questions, etc. It's such a vicious circle!
I've even been told to ignore students. The students that I'm supposed to ignore are the ones with learning disabilities or the students who act out or don't try. I definitely do some ignoring - ignoring my co-teacher, that is. Instead of ignoring students, I think we need to give them attention. I agree that I shouldn't focus all of my time and energy on one or two students, but I am definitely not going to ignore them! I had an "I told you so moment" with my co-teacher this week. One of the students he told me to ignore, I definitely didn't. I helped him find the right page to be on and even gave him a pencil when he couldn't find his. The next time I had him in class, he volunteered to answer two questions and when I pointed at him to answer, he got them correct! I am just finishing my 6th week here and not once has he raised his hand to answer before. I just wanted to stick out my tongue to my co-teacher and say I TOLD YOU SO!
I know that not all schools and/or co-teachers are the same as mine, but there are some basic similarities. I know there's not much I can do about it except be the best teacher I can be for 15 minutes every class. I just feel sorry for the students who are lagging behind because they are probably not going to have a chance to ever catch up. It just makes me sad how we are failing these students.
Other than these issues at school, all is well!
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Beer Marts
My friends and I just recently (in the past couple of months) discovered one of the greatest things about Korea. They are called beer marts. They are basically convenience stores that have bar seating. You walk in and grab as many drinks and snacks as you like and pay for it at the counter, just like at a convenience store. Then you take your goodies and sit down at a table or booth with your friends and enjoy your night. The prices are the same as in the convenience stores. If you buy popcorn, they pop it for you and bring it to you when it's finished. It's really one of the neatest things around. Just take a look for yourself! (Sorry, I didn't get any pictures of the seating area, but just picture any bar that you've ever been in.)
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Getting Our Teaching Certificates
The title says it all. Zach and I are going back to school to get our teaching certificates. We got e-mails this week saying that we are in: "Congratulations! You have been accepted into the October 2013 TeacherReady®cohort." We are going through TeacherReady which is a 9-month online certification program out of Florida.
About 3 weeks ago, some friends of ours (J & K) brought to our attention that they had applied for the program which starts the first week of October. They mentioned that we could start in the February intake if we wanted. We discussed it that night and decided that if we could get into the October intake, we would go for it.
You might be wondering why we are doing this. Neither of us really had any intention of becoming teachers. After being abroad and seeing what opportunities are open to us, we decided that getting teaching certificates was our best bet. For a few months now, Zach and I have been planning with J & K to teach in the Middle East starting sometime in the Fall of 2014. Having teaching certificates opens up many more jobs for us and pay would be a lot better. We also talked about getting jobs with the DOD (Department of Defense) teaching abroad. We would be employed by the U.S. government, working oversees.
I know for many friends and family, this is hard to news to hear. I've already had several questions about being abroad:
1. Are you EVER coming home?
2. Don't you like us?
3. What's wrong with the U.S.A.?
Short answer? We love what we're doing and want to do it for as long as we can.
So it starts. Classes begin on September 30th! Wish us luck.
If you want more information about the program, click on the TeacherReady link above or visit their Facebook page.
About 3 weeks ago, some friends of ours (J & K) brought to our attention that they had applied for the program which starts the first week of October. They mentioned that we could start in the February intake if we wanted. We discussed it that night and decided that if we could get into the October intake, we would go for it.
You might be wondering why we are doing this. Neither of us really had any intention of becoming teachers. After being abroad and seeing what opportunities are open to us, we decided that getting teaching certificates was our best bet. For a few months now, Zach and I have been planning with J & K to teach in the Middle East starting sometime in the Fall of 2014. Having teaching certificates opens up many more jobs for us and pay would be a lot better. We also talked about getting jobs with the DOD (Department of Defense) teaching abroad. We would be employed by the U.S. government, working oversees.
I know for many friends and family, this is hard to news to hear. I've already had several questions about being abroad:
1. Are you EVER coming home?
2. Don't you like us?
3. What's wrong with the U.S.A.?
Short answer? We love what we're doing and want to do it for as long as we can.
So it starts. Classes begin on September 30th! Wish us luck.
If you want more information about the program, click on the TeacherReady link above or visit their Facebook page.
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Supper Club: BACON!
This month, it was our turn to host Supper Club. I am so happy with our choice for a theme that I just have to share it with all of you. Our theme was......BACON!
The appetizer was mini BLTs. Danny and Eun Mi did a really wonderful job with these!
Josh and Kalie did the salad which was just delicious. It was so much more than just a salad with bacon bits.
Zach and I made a cream pasta with....you guess it! BACON!
For dessert, Jordan and Ferrin made caramel- and chocolate-covered apples with bacon sprinkled on top. It definitely hit the spot!
There is always a specialty drink and this time was no exception. In keeping with the theme, Zach and I served bacon infused vodka and mixed it with apple juice. Since we are not going to find bacon vodka in Busan, we made it ourselves! We fried up some bacon until it was pretty crispy and soaked it in vodka for a few days. Then we drained it using coffee filters. It was quite the experience but I don't know if we will be making it again. It was ok, but I don't think I'll be craving it any time soon.
I love Supper Club and cannot wait to see what next month has in store for us!
The appetizer was mini BLTs. Danny and Eun Mi did a really wonderful job with these!
Josh and Kalie did the salad which was just delicious. It was so much more than just a salad with bacon bits.
Zach and I made a cream pasta with....you guess it! BACON!
For dessert, Jordan and Ferrin made caramel- and chocolate-covered apples with bacon sprinkled on top. It definitely hit the spot!
There is always a specialty drink and this time was no exception. In keeping with the theme, Zach and I served bacon infused vodka and mixed it with apple juice. Since we are not going to find bacon vodka in Busan, we made it ourselves! We fried up some bacon until it was pretty crispy and soaked it in vodka for a few days. Then we drained it using coffee filters. It was quite the experience but I don't know if we will be making it again. It was ok, but I don't think I'll be craving it any time soon.
I love Supper Club and cannot wait to see what next month has in store for us!
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Elementary School Is SO Different From Middle School
It's been a while since my last post. Sorry about that! Well, I have officially moved from middle school to elementary school. I was terrified about the move. In hagwon I taught elementary kids, but that was almost 3 years ago and it's completely different than public school. I had heard some horror stories from friends who taught elementary school and was pretty nervous about going. But, I am starting my 3rd week and can honestly say that I love it! Below, I will give you an idea of what my week is like. Please remember that this is MY experience in elementary school. Each school is different; therefore, each elementary school experience is different.
3rd & 4th Grade
I have two 3rd grade classes and two 4th grade classes and I only see them once each week for 40 minutes. At the beginning of each class, I greet the kids and ask them about what day it is and how the weather is. My co-teacher and I check any homework they may have. I then stand in the back of the classroom for 20-30 minutes while they practice key words and dialogue from the chapter with my co-teacher. I am supposed to correct any speaking mistakes and make sure they are on the correct page in the book. I get the last 10-15 minutes to do activities from the book or activities that I come up with. My 3rd graders are still pretty excited about learning English and usually participate really well. Getting my 4th graders to participate, or god forbid raise their hands, is like pulling teeth! But, I think they are warming up to me.
5th & 6th Grade
I have two 5th grade classes and three 6th grade classes. I see them twice each week for 40 minutes each. [At the beginning of each class, I greet the kids and ask them about what day it is and how the weather is. My co-teacher and I check any homework they may have. I then stand in the back of the classroom for 20-30 minutes while they practice key words and dialogue from the chapter with my co-teacher. I am supposed to correct any speaking mistakes and make sure they are on the correct page in the book. I get the last 10-15 minutes to do activities from the book or activities that I come up with.] Sound familiar?? Haha! My 5th graders aren't too bad about participating. My co-teacher gives me candy to bribe them to answer. It works pretty well. One of my 6th grade classes is full of trouble makers and students who don't want to study. The other two 6th grade classes are really great about participating which is a little unusual from what I hear from my friends.
5th Grade & 6th Grade After School Classes
On Mondays, I have two 5th grade after school classes and on Tuesday I have two 6th grade after school classes. They are called after school classes but they run from about 2:30 pm-4:00 pm. During the first period, we learn a new idiom and draw a picture of it and write the definition in our idiom books. Then, we spend about 10-15 minutes in the BEPA book. The best thing I can relate it to is an I-STEP prep. Whatever time is left over in that period and the next, we do a lesson. These lessons are supplementary to their classroom lessons but I have a lot more flexibility and can go beyond the book.
2nd Grade
I have one 2nd grade class once per week for 40 minutes. This class is totally up to me. It was suggested that I go over some key vocabulary, read a story and ask questions about the story, do worksheet or coloring sheets, and then review the ABCs. My idea has been to have the theme be around the book that I'm reading that day. I've had one class and that seemed to go over really well!
Kindergarten
I have two kindergarten classes. I see each of them once per week for 30 minutes. I have one class of 5 and 6 year-olds and one class of 7 year-olds. I was absolutely terrified to teach these classes. I had no idea what I was going to do with them. However, I was told to just play with them. I was also told that the kids in my school were mostly lower-level students. So, in kindergarten, some of them can't even understand when the teachers speak to them in Korean. This past week, I taught them for the first time. I taught them 'stop' and 'go'. Then, we went outside and played Red Light, Green Light. They absolutely wore me out! But, I am no longer scared of the class. They are a ton of fun and playing with them will be easy!
Adult Classes
I have one adult class at 3:00 pm every Friday and it lasts for 40 minutes. The adults who attend are teachers and staff from my school. As with the kindergarten classes, I was terrified to teach this class. This past Friday was the first class and it wasn't too bad. Forty minutes actually goes by fairly fast. I had eight students show up last Friday (this number will constantly fluctuate according to how busy they are). The four women want to discuss practical English and the four men want to discuss news and things that are happening around the world. I hope I can find a nice balance.
In total, I have 22 teaching hours per week. Each 40 minute or 30 minute class counts as 1 hour. The rest of the 18 "hours" is mine to plan for the classes. I only have one co-teacher in elementary school compared to the five I had in middle school.
Once I feel a little more comfortable in school, I will have to take some pictures. These kids are so cute!
3rd & 4th Grade
I have two 3rd grade classes and two 4th grade classes and I only see them once each week for 40 minutes. At the beginning of each class, I greet the kids and ask them about what day it is and how the weather is. My co-teacher and I check any homework they may have. I then stand in the back of the classroom for 20-30 minutes while they practice key words and dialogue from the chapter with my co-teacher. I am supposed to correct any speaking mistakes and make sure they are on the correct page in the book. I get the last 10-15 minutes to do activities from the book or activities that I come up with. My 3rd graders are still pretty excited about learning English and usually participate really well. Getting my 4th graders to participate, or god forbid raise their hands, is like pulling teeth! But, I think they are warming up to me.
5th & 6th Grade
I have two 5th grade classes and three 6th grade classes. I see them twice each week for 40 minutes each. [At the beginning of each class, I greet the kids and ask them about what day it is and how the weather is. My co-teacher and I check any homework they may have. I then stand in the back of the classroom for 20-30 minutes while they practice key words and dialogue from the chapter with my co-teacher. I am supposed to correct any speaking mistakes and make sure they are on the correct page in the book. I get the last 10-15 minutes to do activities from the book or activities that I come up with.] Sound familiar?? Haha! My 5th graders aren't too bad about participating. My co-teacher gives me candy to bribe them to answer. It works pretty well. One of my 6th grade classes is full of trouble makers and students who don't want to study. The other two 6th grade classes are really great about participating which is a little unusual from what I hear from my friends.
5th Grade & 6th Grade After School Classes
On Mondays, I have two 5th grade after school classes and on Tuesday I have two 6th grade after school classes. They are called after school classes but they run from about 2:30 pm-4:00 pm. During the first period, we learn a new idiom and draw a picture of it and write the definition in our idiom books. Then, we spend about 10-15 minutes in the BEPA book. The best thing I can relate it to is an I-STEP prep. Whatever time is left over in that period and the next, we do a lesson. These lessons are supplementary to their classroom lessons but I have a lot more flexibility and can go beyond the book.
2nd Grade
I have one 2nd grade class once per week for 40 minutes. This class is totally up to me. It was suggested that I go over some key vocabulary, read a story and ask questions about the story, do worksheet or coloring sheets, and then review the ABCs. My idea has been to have the theme be around the book that I'm reading that day. I've had one class and that seemed to go over really well!
Kindergarten
I have two kindergarten classes. I see each of them once per week for 30 minutes. I have one class of 5 and 6 year-olds and one class of 7 year-olds. I was absolutely terrified to teach these classes. I had no idea what I was going to do with them. However, I was told to just play with them. I was also told that the kids in my school were mostly lower-level students. So, in kindergarten, some of them can't even understand when the teachers speak to them in Korean. This past week, I taught them for the first time. I taught them 'stop' and 'go'. Then, we went outside and played Red Light, Green Light. They absolutely wore me out! But, I am no longer scared of the class. They are a ton of fun and playing with them will be easy!
Adult Classes
I have one adult class at 3:00 pm every Friday and it lasts for 40 minutes. The adults who attend are teachers and staff from my school. As with the kindergarten classes, I was terrified to teach this class. This past Friday was the first class and it wasn't too bad. Forty minutes actually goes by fairly fast. I had eight students show up last Friday (this number will constantly fluctuate according to how busy they are). The four women want to discuss practical English and the four men want to discuss news and things that are happening around the world. I hope I can find a nice balance.
In total, I have 22 teaching hours per week. Each 40 minute or 30 minute class counts as 1 hour. The rest of the 18 "hours" is mine to plan for the classes. I only have one co-teacher in elementary school compared to the five I had in middle school.
Once I feel a little more comfortable in school, I will have to take some pictures. These kids are so cute!
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Beach Season Ready
This post is more for people who live in Busan or are planning to visit Busan. But, friends and family back home are more than welcome to read this too! :)
The same friend who told me about laser hair removal also told me about a woman who does waxings. I went to her last week and was very pleased with the results. She is called Bewitched Busan and here is her website and Facebook page. Her English is basically perfect. She was super professional and I definitely plan on going back to her again. All information can be found on her website (prices, directions, types of waxings, etc.)
If you have a question, just leave a comment at the bottom of this post and I will be sure to respond.
The same friend who told me about laser hair removal also told me about a woman who does waxings. I went to her last week and was very pleased with the results. She is called Bewitched Busan and here is her website and Facebook page. Her English is basically perfect. She was super professional and I definitely plan on going back to her again. All information can be found on her website (prices, directions, types of waxings, etc.)
If you have a question, just leave a comment at the bottom of this post and I will be sure to respond.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Friday, July 26, 2013
Our Very Own Apartment
Believe it or not, today actually marks our 1-year anniversary of teaching in Busan. But, since we are on 13-month contracts, we can't yet celebrate our contract completion until next month. However, I can tell you that we've been out of the USA for a total of 533 days, or about 17 1/2 months. That's hard to believe!
Well, as I've said in an earlier post, this new contract period is bringing a lot of changes to me and Zach. First, we will be changing schools. We will no longer be teaching middle school boys. We will, starting at the end of August, be teaching in elementary schools with both boys and girls. We found out the names and locations of our schools earlier this week. Zach will teach at Changjin Elementary School and I will teach at Samduk Elementary School. Our schools are very close to each other. In fact, we are only one subway stop away from each other! We can commute together - at least in the mornings.
Another big change is that we are moving. In fact, I signed our lease today and we can start moving tomorrow. We technically don't have to be out of our current apartment until August 26th, so that gives us plenty of time to move.
You may be a bit curious as to how we went about finding an apartment, so I will try to explain it to you, briefly. Some friends of ours actually moved into their own apartment this last February so they were able to give us some great advice. One of them actually went with me to look at apartments. To look at apartments, you don't need to make an appointment. There are realtors on every corner, especially if there are many apartment buildings in the area. We just popped our heads in and asked if they spoke English. Most spoke enough where we could get buy. We saw a total of 9 apartments on Tuesday.
To rent an apartment, you need a down payment or what they call key money. The average amount for key money (at least in the buildings we looked at) is 5,000,000 Won (~$5,000.00). The more key money you put down, the cheaper your rent is every month. To secure the apartment you want, you need to put down the key money as soon as possible.
While looking at the 9 apartments, I took video so Zach could see them too. I narrowed my favorites list to 3 apartments. When Zach got off work, we looked at my favorites. We chose our apartment the same day and transferred our key money the next day. Today, I went in and signed the contract and paid for our first-month's rent. Since we have Supper Club/celebrating birthdays/saying goodbyes tonight, we won't start moving until tomorrow (Saturday).
If you have any specific questions about the process of renting an apartment in Korea, just post it in the comments section or shoot me an e-mail.
Also, if you want our new address and I haven't already sent it to you, just ask!
Thursday, July 11, 2013
My Favorite Street Food
My favorite street food is called Hoddeok. You can read about it here. But basically, it's a pancake with something sweet inside with any combination of brown sugar, honey, and cinnamon. It's a popular street food in the winter because it's prepared hot right in front of you. For me, not eating hoddeok in summer because it's hot is like saying I don't eat ice cream in winter because it cold. Yeah, right! At my favorite place to get hoddeok, it only costs 900 Won (~$0.90). What a great snack - delicious and cheap! Below is a quick 30 sec video of a street vendor making hoddeok.
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Oh Happy Day!
Right after lunch, before 5th period started, a familiar voice came over the intercom. The voice sounds a little something like this since I can't speak Korean. (*see video)
The speaker didn't get to finish talking before screams of pure joy rang out in the halls. Kids started to run down the halls giving each other high-fives. It was chaos! I thought school had been let out for the day. (I could only be so lucky!)
I asked my co-teacher what all the fuss was about. She told me that the air con (air conditioner) for the school had been turned on. That's right! It's July 9th and the air conditioner is being turned on for the first time this year.
"Has it been cool weather in Busan?" you might ask. Hell no! It's been HOT!!! I can handle the temperature; it's the humidity I can't stand. For those of you using Fahrenheit, it's been in the low to mid 80's. That's 26-29 Celsius. But, it's extremely sticky. The classrooms get so hot during the day, especially if there is no wind.
And, though the classrooms may have the air conditioner on, my office does not have air conditioner. So, I am stuck with the windows open and the fan on high. Oh well. I can do this! Only 8 more days left in the semester.
The speaker didn't get to finish talking before screams of pure joy rang out in the halls. Kids started to run down the halls giving each other high-fives. It was chaos! I thought school had been let out for the day. (I could only be so lucky!)
I asked my co-teacher what all the fuss was about. She told me that the air con (air conditioner) for the school had been turned on. That's right! It's July 9th and the air conditioner is being turned on for the first time this year.
"Has it been cool weather in Busan?" you might ask. Hell no! It's been HOT!!! I can handle the temperature; it's the humidity I can't stand. For those of you using Fahrenheit, it's been in the low to mid 80's. That's 26-29 Celsius. But, it's extremely sticky. The classrooms get so hot during the day, especially if there is no wind.
And, though the classrooms may have the air conditioner on, my office does not have air conditioner. So, I am stuck with the windows open and the fan on high. Oh well. I can do this! Only 8 more days left in the semester.
Monday, July 1, 2013
Rainy Season
It's raining, it's pouring....
Do you notice a pattern?! That's right, it's officially rainy season here in Korea. The season will probably last until the end of July. Yay for a month of rain!
This is the scene from my office window at school. Since I face the side of the mountain, all I can see are trees. I feel like I'm in the rainforest (though I have no first-hand experience)! I'm sure the excitement of rain will wear off in a day or two (or even in a few hours), but right now, I LOVE the rain!
Do you notice a pattern?! That's right, it's officially rainy season here in Korea. The season will probably last until the end of July. Yay for a month of rain!
This is the scene from my office window at school. Since I face the side of the mountain, all I can see are trees. I feel like I'm in the rainforest (though I have no first-hand experience)! I'm sure the excitement of rain will wear off in a day or two (or even in a few hours), but right now, I LOVE the rain!
Laser Hair Removal
Zach and I will sometimes play that game. You know the one. "What would you do if you had X amount of money?" One thing I always say is that I would have hair removal done. A friend of mine surprised me a couple weeks ago by telling me that she had laser hair removal done here in Busan. I asked her for all the details and she was more than willing to share them with me. Now, I will share them with you!
I went to a place called 애플 피부과 Apple Dermatology.
A great thing about this place is that you don't need an appointment; just show up!
Directions:
Take the subway to Sasang, the transfer station between the Green Line (Line 2) and the Purple Line (Busan Gimhae Light Rail Transit). Go out of Exit 3 at Sasang.
Apple Dermatology is located in the Apple Outlet shopping center directly to the right of Exit 3.
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| This is taken from the top of Exit 3. |
Turn right at this building. ^^
Go through these doors and take the elevator to the 5th floor.
As soon as you get off the elevator, this will be right in front of you.
Once you get inside, the receptionist will ask you for your name, Alien Registration Card (ARC), and phone number. The receptionist could speak enough English for me to give her everything she needed. I sat in the waiting room for a full 2 minutes before going in to see the doctor. The doctor spoke a good amount of English. He asked me what I wanted. That's when I said I wanted hair removed from my armpits. He told me that I would have to do 5-10 sessions once per month depending on how well the treatment was working. He also told me that the first time was only 10,000 Won (~10.00 USD). I didn't ask him outright, but I'm pretty sure each treatment after that is 20,000 Won because that's how much my fried had to pay. He then asked me if I wanted to get started today. I told him yes!
I followed him into an ER type setup with curtains dividing beds. I removed my shirt and put on gown that covered my top half. He came back into the room and his assistant put cream on the area they were going to laser. The actual laser took about 1 minute per armpit. It wasn't really painful but slightly uncomfortable. His assistant put more cream on and I was free to change back into my shirt.
FYI: My friend started to notice some changes after 2 weeks. I'm not sure what other areas they laser and how much they cost, but I would assume they do everything.
It was seriously as easy as that! I will keep you updated on how things are going and if/when I start to notice any changes!
UPDATE 8/19/14: I went to my last laser treatment today. I did a total of 10 sessions. (I slacked off during the winter months.) I am so happy that I decided to do this because I notice a huge difference! My first six sessions cost 10,000 Won and the last four cost 11,000 Won
UPDATE 8/19/14: I went to my last laser treatment today. I did a total of 10 sessions. (I slacked off during the winter months.) I am so happy that I decided to do this because I notice a huge difference! My first six sessions cost 10,000 Won and the last four cost 11,000 Won
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Students - Enough Said
This post is about several unrelated topics. Well, I guess the one thing they have in common is school.
The first topic is about speaking tests. Each semester, I spend a week giving my students speaking tests. They individually meet me in the hallway and I ask them 2 questions in English. I then grade them on the following: propriety, contents, fluency, and behavior for a possible total of 100 points. Last semester, I created the questions based on the material we covered in class leading up to the speaking tests. This semester, the Korean teachers created the questions. A week before the speaking tests, I spent a week reviewing the questions. Each grade was given a paper with 5 possible questions and example answers. My favorite answer came from a grade 2 student. Here is the question and the answer (according to my Korean co-teachers):
5. Look at the three pictures of a Ramyun (라면) recipe. Tell me how you can make Ramyun. You should use one sentence for each picture.
Answer: First, boil water in a pot. Next, put the ramyun noodles and seasoning powder into the boiling water. Finally, add an egg and boil it with the ramyun for a few minutes.
While we were practicing last week, this is an answer I got from one of the students:
First, boil water in a pot. Next, put the ramyun noodles and MSG powder into the boiling water. Finally, add an egg and boil it with the ramyun for a few minutes.
I died laughing. He didn't know why I was laughing so hard but he was pretty proud of himself. The same kid said the same answer for his actual speaking test. I couldn't help but give him a few extra points for the clever answer.
The second topic is about students being punished. During lunch, I go up to the English room on the 5th floor and sit there while students are supposed to come up and do homework or read books in English. This rarely happens. Anyway, I am usually up there by myself without the Korean teachers monitoring the 5th floor. For the last week and a half, I noticed more and more kids going into the computer room during lunch. As the week wore on, I noticed that many were playing games - something I didn't think was allowed, but whatever! I never said anything. Two days ago, the computer/technology teacher came upstairs and lost his shit! Apparently, they actually weren't allowed, but were sneaking in. Boy did they get in trouble. The teacher took all of their names down and made them get into the punishment stance.
This stance is pretty common at my school when the students get in trouble. Since then, no one has been going into the computer room. It's back to being quiet on the 5th floor during lunch. Haha!
The third topic is about one of my second grade students. He has a mental disability but I don't know exactly what it is. Every time I see him in the hallway, I am sure to say "hello." He usually replies, but sometimes he is in his own little world and won't reply until I'm halfway down the hallway, "Sam-man-da, hello. Hello Sam-man-da!!!" I don't know if him spacing out has something to do with his disability or not..... Anyway, he is in the low-level English class even though he can speak way better than some of my mid-level students. He brightens my day every time I see him. I just love having conversations with him. Yesterday, as we were leaving school, one of his classmates hid around the corner and jumped out just as he was was rounding the corner. He screamed and they both laughed, so I did too. That's when he jokingly told me that I was not allowed to smile. But, we continued to smile anyway. When we got down the stairs, I asked him if I was allowed to laugh. He said, "No, you cannot laugh." So, I just puffed up my cheeks and crossed my eyes. That made him laugh even harder. As I was changing shoes, he came over and said that he was sorry and that I was allowed to smile and laugh. I just love this kid and I'm sad that my time with him is coming to an end very soon!
Fourth and finally topic. Today I wore a skirt to work. I NEVER wear skirts - ever! I am usually in jeans and since it's been hot, capri pants. Two of my co-teachers have come up to me and asked, "Are you wearing a skirt today?" Duh!
The first topic is about speaking tests. Each semester, I spend a week giving my students speaking tests. They individually meet me in the hallway and I ask them 2 questions in English. I then grade them on the following: propriety, contents, fluency, and behavior for a possible total of 100 points. Last semester, I created the questions based on the material we covered in class leading up to the speaking tests. This semester, the Korean teachers created the questions. A week before the speaking tests, I spent a week reviewing the questions. Each grade was given a paper with 5 possible questions and example answers. My favorite answer came from a grade 2 student. Here is the question and the answer (according to my Korean co-teachers):
5. Look at the three pictures of a Ramyun (라면) recipe. Tell me how you can make Ramyun. You should use one sentence for each picture.
While we were practicing last week, this is an answer I got from one of the students:
First, boil water in a pot. Next, put the ramyun noodles and MSG powder into the boiling water. Finally, add an egg and boil it with the ramyun for a few minutes.
I died laughing. He didn't know why I was laughing so hard but he was pretty proud of himself. The same kid said the same answer for his actual speaking test. I couldn't help but give him a few extra points for the clever answer.
The second topic is about students being punished. During lunch, I go up to the English room on the 5th floor and sit there while students are supposed to come up and do homework or read books in English. This rarely happens. Anyway, I am usually up there by myself without the Korean teachers monitoring the 5th floor. For the last week and a half, I noticed more and more kids going into the computer room during lunch. As the week wore on, I noticed that many were playing games - something I didn't think was allowed, but whatever! I never said anything. Two days ago, the computer/technology teacher came upstairs and lost his shit! Apparently, they actually weren't allowed, but were sneaking in. Boy did they get in trouble. The teacher took all of their names down and made them get into the punishment stance.
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| Sorry for the poor quality |
This stance is pretty common at my school when the students get in trouble. Since then, no one has been going into the computer room. It's back to being quiet on the 5th floor during lunch. Haha!
The third topic is about one of my second grade students. He has a mental disability but I don't know exactly what it is. Every time I see him in the hallway, I am sure to say "hello." He usually replies, but sometimes he is in his own little world and won't reply until I'm halfway down the hallway, "Sam-man-da, hello. Hello Sam-man-da!!!" I don't know if him spacing out has something to do with his disability or not..... Anyway, he is in the low-level English class even though he can speak way better than some of my mid-level students. He brightens my day every time I see him. I just love having conversations with him. Yesterday, as we were leaving school, one of his classmates hid around the corner and jumped out just as he was was rounding the corner. He screamed and they both laughed, so I did too. That's when he jokingly told me that I was not allowed to smile. But, we continued to smile anyway. When we got down the stairs, I asked him if I was allowed to laugh. He said, "No, you cannot laugh." So, I just puffed up my cheeks and crossed my eyes. That made him laugh even harder. As I was changing shoes, he came over and said that he was sorry and that I was allowed to smile and laugh. I just love this kid and I'm sad that my time with him is coming to an end very soon!
Fourth and finally topic. Today I wore a skirt to work. I NEVER wear skirts - ever! I am usually in jeans and since it's been hot, capri pants. Two of my co-teachers have come up to me and asked, "Are you wearing a skirt today?" Duh!
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Summertime in Busan
I was recently asked a great question from my friend, Jessica. She wanted to know what we did in the summer when there was no school.
There is one thing that you need to realize about the school year here in Korea. The school year starts in March and ends in January. The first semester ends in mid-July and the second semester starts just a few short weeks later in mid-August. That means that I still have another 4 1/2 weeks of school left.
Once school lets out, summer camps begin. It's different for every school, but I have summer camp for 10 days, 3 hours each day. But, that doesn't mean that I go into school for 3 hours then leave. Nope! I have to do a little thing called desk-warming. Last year, I didn't have to desk-warm because my co-teacher was awesome! However, this summer, I will spend the remaining 5 hours at my desk doing who-knows-what! We don't get "summers off" like teachers do back home.
But, don't you get vacation?!?!?! Yes! According to our contracts, we get 8 days of vacation during the summer break and 10 days of vacation during the much longer winter break. So yes, I will be taking my 8 vacation days this summer. However, Zach has no more vacation days left. We actually have 13-month contracts which is a little unusual. That means that our contracts covered 2 summer breaks and 1 winter break with the same amount of vacation time as the people with 1 summer break and 1 winter break. (A little confusing? I agree!) Anyway, remember how I said my co-teacher was awesome? Well, she didn't require me to take my vacation. She just let me leave. Zach's co-teacher wasn't quite as awesome. So, long story short, we will not be going anywhere for vacation. :(
However, there are plenty of things to do around Busan. We are a coastal city, so we can always go to the beach! My favorite beach to go to is Gwangalli.
Cafes, restaurants, convenience stores, and bars line the beach. It is not illegal to drink/be drunk on the beach. It's even quite acceptable to launch (small) fireworks towards the water.
There are all kinds of outdoor markets to explore. There are tons of temples. Hiking is a huge deal here and there are plenty of mountains to hike. There also plenty of festivals to attend.
However, rainy season starts at the end of June and usually lasts until mid- to late-July.
So, there you have it - summertime for a public school teacher in Busan!
There is one thing that you need to realize about the school year here in Korea. The school year starts in March and ends in January. The first semester ends in mid-July and the second semester starts just a few short weeks later in mid-August. That means that I still have another 4 1/2 weeks of school left.
Once school lets out, summer camps begin. It's different for every school, but I have summer camp for 10 days, 3 hours each day. But, that doesn't mean that I go into school for 3 hours then leave. Nope! I have to do a little thing called desk-warming. Last year, I didn't have to desk-warm because my co-teacher was awesome! However, this summer, I will spend the remaining 5 hours at my desk doing who-knows-what! We don't get "summers off" like teachers do back home.
But, don't you get vacation?!?!?! Yes! According to our contracts, we get 8 days of vacation during the summer break and 10 days of vacation during the much longer winter break. So yes, I will be taking my 8 vacation days this summer. However, Zach has no more vacation days left. We actually have 13-month contracts which is a little unusual. That means that our contracts covered 2 summer breaks and 1 winter break with the same amount of vacation time as the people with 1 summer break and 1 winter break. (A little confusing? I agree!) Anyway, remember how I said my co-teacher was awesome? Well, she didn't require me to take my vacation. She just let me leave. Zach's co-teacher wasn't quite as awesome. So, long story short, we will not be going anywhere for vacation. :(
However, there are plenty of things to do around Busan. We are a coastal city, so we can always go to the beach! My favorite beach to go to is Gwangalli.
Cafes, restaurants, convenience stores, and bars line the beach. It is not illegal to drink/be drunk on the beach. It's even quite acceptable to launch (small) fireworks towards the water.
There are all kinds of outdoor markets to explore. There are tons of temples. Hiking is a huge deal here and there are plenty of mountains to hike. There also plenty of festivals to attend.
However, rainy season starts at the end of June and usually lasts until mid- to late-July.
So, there you have it - summertime for a public school teacher in Busan!
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Lotte Giants Baseball Game
This Friday, we went to a Lotte Giants baseball game with a few friends.
We went to a few games last year but this was our first game of the 2013 season. I almost forgot how much fun they were. Baseball games in Korea are a little different than games in the States. One of the big differences is that you can bring food and drinks into the stadium (just no glass bottles).
Food and drinks are much cheaper at a Korean baseball game. The thing to eat at a Lotte Giants game is fried chicken. Fried chicken is sold by the box at the games Beer and friend chicken - doesn't get any better than that!
The cheering is way more organized at a Lotte Giants baseball game.
They even have cheerleaders.
The middle school boys were really enjoying the cheerleaders! Haha!
We had so much fun and the best part is that the Giants won the game!!!! If you ever have a chance to go to a Lotte Giants baseball game, I suggest you do it. Besides, it's super cheap. Tickets run from 7,000 Won (~$6.20) to about 25,000 Won (~$22.00). You can't beat that!
We went to a few games last year but this was our first game of the 2013 season. I almost forgot how much fun they were. Baseball games in Korea are a little different than games in the States. One of the big differences is that you can bring food and drinks into the stadium (just no glass bottles).
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| This group of middle school boys brought their meals in giant boxes. |
The cheering is way more organized at a Lotte Giants baseball game.
They even have cheerleaders.
The middle school boys were really enjoying the cheerleaders! Haha!
We had so much fun and the best part is that the Giants won the game!!!! If you ever have a chance to go to a Lotte Giants baseball game, I suggest you do it. Besides, it's super cheap. Tickets run from 7,000 Won (~$6.20) to about 25,000 Won (~$22.00). You can't beat that!
Thursday, June 13, 2013
Renewal
"CONGRATULATIONS! We welcome you all for a second (or another) year of teaching in Busan!!"
That's right. You've read it correctly. We have renewed for another year of teaching English in Busan, South Korea. The quote above is from an e-mail we got from the Office of Education saying that our applications for renewal have been approved. So, our current contracts will end on August 25, 2013 and the new contracts will begin on August 26, 2013. The new contracts will then end on August 25, 2014. At that time, we will immediately catch a plane to the States to start the celebration of my sister, Rachel's, wedding on August 30, 2014.
Though we are renewing with the Office of Education, there will be some changes when we sign our contracts. The first change will be with our schools. There will no longer be foreign English teachers in middle schools so we will be transferring to elementary schools. We are both excited about the change but also a little nervous.
The second change is really exciting for us. Instead of being provided with housing, we have chosen to get a housing stipend. That means that we are going to be looking for an apartment on our own. We will choose the location and amenities that we want. We will be moving sometime later this summer. Once we know our address, we will send out e-mails. Once we get started on the apartment hunting process, I will write a post about it. (I can't wait!)
So, we will be in Korea for another 14 months. If anyone is interested in coming to visit, we would be happy to house you and show you around Busan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just let us know! :)
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Zach Paragliding (taking off, in the air, and landing)
We didn't have to wait as long as we thought for Zach's video to be uploaded!!!!!!! His is definitely better than mine because you can watch him land! The take-off and the last couple of minutes of his video are the best - in my opinion!
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Sam Paragliding (taking off and in the air)
Here is the video I promised of me taking off and in the air while paragliding!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Zach's will be up within 7 days.
Buddha's Birthday 5/17/2013
This past Friday, Korea celebrated Buddha's birthday so we all got the day off work. Zach and I, along with a few friends, decided to visit Samkwang Temple (or Samgwangsa).
Below is a video I put together.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chR1ZzNlCKI
Below is a video I put together.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chR1ZzNlCKI
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Paragliding
This weekend, Zach and I went paragliding! We signed up with a group who took care of all our weekend plans. (http://daegucompass.com/)
At 8:00 am on Saturday, we met up with about 45 other people from Busan, including 3 of our Soju Family members, and got on a charter bus which took us to Ulsan. It only took about an hour. Another bus from Daejeon was also joining us. Since there were so many people, we were split up by city. The Busan people were to go paragliding first. That made us super happy! When we got to the paragliding site, we had to get into smaller buses to take us up the mountain. We were in the first group to go. Let me tell you, it was pretty incredible. I was able to get pictures/video of Doug and Rob because they went ahead of us. Once Zach, Fran, and I were at the front of the line, I put my camera away because things starting happening super fast at that point. Don't worry though! Each of us were given cameras on poles attached to us to record/take pictures while we were in the air. When we get those pictures/videos, I will be sure to post them for you to view.
Doug didn't quite make it off the mountain the first time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uNX-YTLHtg
But, he finally did: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10ybdwRVn0c
Rob made it off without a hitch the very first time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uNX-YTLHtg
Paragliding was so much fun! I would do it again in a heartbeat. I had a smooth takeoff and the view was awesome! We couldn't have asked for a better day in terms of weather. The sky was clear and the sun was shining! We were in the sky for about 5-10 minutes. We landed on our butts in the rocks near a small river (landing any other way could have caused broken bones).
Once all the Busan people were finished, the Daejeon people had their turn. While waiting for them, we went to a castle that wasn't really a castle. I guess it used to be, but there is no sign of it now. However, we were able to sit around and "shoot the shit" with some of the other people on the trip whom we just met.
Later that evening, we went to a pension. It's basically like renting cabins in the mountains. There were about 90 of us in several separate cabins. We all converged in front of our cabin and had a bonfire with hamburgers, hot dogs, a bunch of free alcohol, and music. The party went strong until about 3 am. Zach and I went to bed around 10 pm. We were both fighting colds and didn't want to be miserable the next day.
On Sunday, we left at 8 am and headed to Gyeongju. There were several stops planned for Sunday, but the 5 of us decided to stay in Gyeongju and catch the KTX back to Busan. We got home much earlier than we would have if we had stayed with the tour which made us all very thankful!
We had a really great weekend!!
At 8:00 am on Saturday, we met up with about 45 other people from Busan, including 3 of our Soju Family members, and got on a charter bus which took us to Ulsan. It only took about an hour. Another bus from Daejeon was also joining us. Since there were so many people, we were split up by city. The Busan people were to go paragliding first. That made us super happy! When we got to the paragliding site, we had to get into smaller buses to take us up the mountain. We were in the first group to go. Let me tell you, it was pretty incredible. I was able to get pictures/video of Doug and Rob because they went ahead of us. Once Zach, Fran, and I were at the front of the line, I put my camera away because things starting happening super fast at that point. Don't worry though! Each of us were given cameras on poles attached to us to record/take pictures while we were in the air. When we get those pictures/videos, I will be sure to post them for you to view.
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| Our tickets. It also has the contact information of the paragliding company. |
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| On the minibus going up the mountain to our paragliding spot. |
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| Me and Zach at the take-off spot. |
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| The "runway" |
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| The four of us were left after Doug took off way ahead of us. |
But, he finally did: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10ybdwRVn0c
Rob made it off without a hitch the very first time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uNX-YTLHtg
Paragliding was so much fun! I would do it again in a heartbeat. I had a smooth takeoff and the view was awesome! We couldn't have asked for a better day in terms of weather. The sky was clear and the sun was shining! We were in the sky for about 5-10 minutes. We landed on our butts in the rocks near a small river (landing any other way could have caused broken bones).
Once all the Busan people were finished, the Daejeon people had their turn. While waiting for them, we went to a castle that wasn't really a castle. I guess it used to be, but there is no sign of it now. However, we were able to sit around and "shoot the shit" with some of the other people on the trip whom we just met.
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| Some new friends. |
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| Me and Zach |
On Sunday, we left at 8 am and headed to Gyeongju. There were several stops planned for Sunday, but the 5 of us decided to stay in Gyeongju and catch the KTX back to Busan. We got home much earlier than we would have if we had stayed with the tour which made us all very thankful!
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| In the flower garden. |
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| Flying kites. |
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| Flying kites. |
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| New friends. |
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| Me and Zach |
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| Soju Family photo. |
Sunday, April 21, 2013
A Walk Through Bujeon Market
Yesterday I walked through (and got a little lost in) Bujeon Market, near Seomyeon. Below is the video I took on my phone while walking. Sorry for it being a little shaky.
Monday, April 15, 2013
A Startling Wake-Up Call
Living in South Korea, the thought of war breaking out is never far from the back of my mind. But, it's just that - in the BACK of my mind. Last week, everyone was concerned that something would happen on the 10th. If not on the 10th, then the 11th. The 15th was an important date to the North Koreans, so something could happen on that day too. Yesterday was the 15th of April and the day went on as normal. Even the regular morning news was on instead of coverage of what could happen between North and South Korea. It was a welcome change of pace.
This morning, however, we got a startling wake-up call. LITERALLY! I'm not sure of the exact time, but it was between 5:30 am and 5:45 am. The air raid siren came on the intercom in our apartment complex. It lasted maybe 10-15 seconds, but it scared us awake. Zach and I immediately checked our phones to see if we got e-mails from the U.S. Embassy. Nothing. We have a Facebook group for all of the foreigners living in our apartment complex. Questions were being asked without any real answers. The weird thing was, no one else besides those in our apartment complex, seemed to have had a siren go off. Our best guess is that the security guard accidentally pressed the wrong button. If it had lasted longer, there would have been more cause for concern. What a way to wake up!
While looking for an e-mail from the U.S. Embassy, I saw that my aunt had sent an e-mail about a bombing at the Boston Marathon. We went back to sleep, and when we woke up about 30 minutes later, I turned on CNN morning news. It had coverage of Boston. While what happened at Boston was absolutely terrible, I cannot help but to bea little selfish and relieved that the tragedy that really happened was not actually in South Korea but somewhere far, far away from me. (Just being honest.)
Thoughts to Boston and to all those affected.
This morning, however, we got a startling wake-up call. LITERALLY! I'm not sure of the exact time, but it was between 5:30 am and 5:45 am. The air raid siren came on the intercom in our apartment complex. It lasted maybe 10-15 seconds, but it scared us awake. Zach and I immediately checked our phones to see if we got e-mails from the U.S. Embassy. Nothing. We have a Facebook group for all of the foreigners living in our apartment complex. Questions were being asked without any real answers. The weird thing was, no one else besides those in our apartment complex, seemed to have had a siren go off. Our best guess is that the security guard accidentally pressed the wrong button. If it had lasted longer, there would have been more cause for concern. What a way to wake up!
While looking for an e-mail from the U.S. Embassy, I saw that my aunt had sent an e-mail about a bombing at the Boston Marathon. We went back to sleep, and when we woke up about 30 minutes later, I turned on CNN morning news. It had coverage of Boston. While what happened at Boston was absolutely terrible, I cannot help but to be
Thoughts to Boston and to all those affected.
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
According to my students.....
According to my students, my hair looks like jajangmyeon (noodles with black sauce - quite tasty).
I have a student who, every time he sees me, points, makes a slurping sound, and says, "Teacha! Hair look jajangmyeon." (Teacher, your hair looks like jajangmyeon.)
Below are pictures of jajangmyeon and my hair. I guess I can see a similarity....maybe?!
In my after-school class of 10 students, I asked them what they wanted to do/discuss in class. They wanted to learn American culture. "Culture" is such a broad term, so I decided that we would just have a round-table discussion. It worked out way better than I thought it would. They had so many questions that I think we could spend at least another 4-5 classes just discussing American culture. Here are some of the things we talked about.
We mostly talked about schools in America. Some of the statements/questions that stood out:
--"Schools are easier in the U.S."
--"Do students bring guns to school?"
--"Are there gay people in the U.S.?" They then wanted to know if I knew any gay people. I said that I did. They nearly fell over in their chairs. When I said that a few of my friends were gay, they pretty much died.
--"Are the bathrooms clean in the U.S.?" I asked what they meant by that. They said that there are bugs and mosquitoes in the bathrooms in Korea. I told them that most schools in the U.S. have air condition in the bathrooms and the hallways (uncommon in South Korea) so the windows aren't open. They couldn't believe it!
--"Are school lunches in the U.S. delicious?" "Do you eat a lot of noodles for lunch?"
I am definitely looking forward to our next round-table discussion!
I have a student who, every time he sees me, points, makes a slurping sound, and says, "Teacha! Hair look jajangmyeon." (Teacher, your hair looks like jajangmyeon.)
Below are pictures of jajangmyeon and my hair. I guess I can see a similarity....maybe?!
In my after-school class of 10 students, I asked them what they wanted to do/discuss in class. They wanted to learn American culture. "Culture" is such a broad term, so I decided that we would just have a round-table discussion. It worked out way better than I thought it would. They had so many questions that I think we could spend at least another 4-5 classes just discussing American culture. Here are some of the things we talked about.
We mostly talked about schools in America. Some of the statements/questions that stood out:
--"Schools are easier in the U.S."
--"Do students bring guns to school?"
--"Are there gay people in the U.S.?" They then wanted to know if I knew any gay people. I said that I did. They nearly fell over in their chairs. When I said that a few of my friends were gay, they pretty much died.
--"Are the bathrooms clean in the U.S.?" I asked what they meant by that. They said that there are bugs and mosquitoes in the bathrooms in Korea. I told them that most schools in the U.S. have air condition in the bathrooms and the hallways (uncommon in South Korea) so the windows aren't open. They couldn't believe it!
--"Are school lunches in the U.S. delicious?" "Do you eat a lot of noodles for lunch?"
I am definitely looking forward to our next round-table discussion!
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