Election Day in Busan

Today is a local election day which means we don't have school!  Candidates trying to get their names out there is very similar to candidates in the U.S.  Banners, posters, and advertisements of all kinds are everywhere.  However, it lasts only a couple of weeks instead of months and months.

A stack of flyers that were in our mailbox last week.

A stack of flyers that were in our mailbox last week.

Posters on the bridge outside of my school.

Posters on the bridge outside of my school.

And these have been going really strong for at least the past two weeks:

Well, happy election day, Busan!

Tubal Ligation in Busan, South Korea

If you are reading this and are family or friends, yes, I recently had a tubal ligation.  (I haven't told everyone I know.  Sorry if you are finding out this way.)  However, this post isn't about my decision to have the procedure.  This is to help others who are interested in getting this done while in Korea, specifically Busan.  While I was doing research prior to getting the procedure done, I couldn't find anything.  I hope this helps if you are wanting one but don't know how to go about doing it.

I went to a gynecologist, Dr. Shin's Women's Clinic located near Lotte Department Store in Seomyeon.  She was a great doctor and spoke pretty decent English.  Her phone number is 051-803-5551 if you want to make an appointment.  However, she tried to talk me out of having the procedure.  Thinking that I'm too young is a common reason people didn't want me to have it done.

So, I contacted Suyoung Lee (이수영) at Smart Hospital in Bujeon, Busan.  Suyoung Lee works in the International Department at the hospital and has been so much help to me.  Her e-mail is seinsy@naver.com.  If you have any problems, you can just send her an e-mail and she will get back to you as soon as she can.  The hospital website is www.smarthos.com.  However, she said that Smart Hospital does not perform tubal ligations so she referred me to Ellium Women's Hospital.

To contact Ellium Women's Hospital in Jangsan, Busan, you can call 82-51-933-0239-0230.  You will probably speak to Olga.  Or, you can do what I did and fill out the information on their website, http://www.elliumintl.com/en/kontakty/, and someone will call you back fairly quickly.  I made an appointment for a Saturday morning to talk with the doctor.  To get there, take the Green Line, Line 2 to Jangsan (the last stop) and you can take either Exit 11 or 13.  Go up to the 10th floor.

My husband went with me to talk to the doctor.  The doctor spoke pretty good English.  We were put to ease talking to him.  We scheduled my tubal for May 3rd.  That was a long weekend as Monday and Tuesday were national holidays.  I wanted to have a longer time to recover before going back to work.  He was kind enough to agree to do the surgery on a Saturday.  I was surprised to find that I would have to spend one night in the hospital.

I highly recommend that you bring your partner or a really good friend with you on the day of your surgery.  For some reason, they had my husband sign all of my paperwork.  I was completely knocked out and they performed a laparoscopy.  Everything went well.

When the anesthesia wore off, they took me to my hospital room.  I was not given a call button in my room.  That is why it is a good idea to have someone there with you.  You will need to tell the nurses when the IV bag is empty.  I wasn't checked on as much as I would have been if I were in the States.  Also, bring your own water bottle or cup.  You can't drink for probably 8 hours after the surgery, but once you can, they will not provide it for you.  Once you are allowed to eat, they will bring you food, however, they will not give you eating utensils.  Also bring along slippers to walk around in.  My husband left in the evening so that he could sleep at home.  He could have slept in my room, but it would have been fairly uncomfortable for him.  He came back in the morning before I was discharged.

I had my surgery on a Saturday and I have to go back to the hospital on Wednesday for the doctor to be able to change my bandages.  However, my "bandages" are band aids.  So, I'm not really sure why I have to go back.  I also have to go back this coming Saturday to get my stitches out.  I was told that I cannot shower until my stitches are not.  That just will not work for me, so I put gauze over my stitches and use tape to make it "waterproof".

My total bill was 750,000 Won.  I even got a private room.  Oh, I did pay almost 75,000 Won when went to talk to the doctor the first time because they did blood work and an EKG.

I was given three days worth of pain medication and antibiotics.  I've taken extra Acetaminophen only a couple of times.

I hope this has been helpful for anyone in Busan who is interested in getting a tubal ligation but doesn't know how to go about doing it.  If you have any specific questions, you can always leave a comment and I will get back to you as soon as possible.

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!  :)

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.

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.)

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.

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!

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!

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.

Video of New Apartment in Busan

Here is the video of our new apartment.  To see how we went about getting our apartment, click here.

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.