Definitely felt under the weather this week, probably had a sinus infection or what not, but nothing a little medication cant fix. However, with that medication comes some internal reactions I didn't like while I was at school. It is Thursday now and am starting to feel a little bit better.
Tuesday, we had an ENT meeting about our new schedule that starts next week. If you have forgotten or maybe I have not mentioned, the students have been on 'summer vacation' since December and head back to school in March starting a new grade. There calendar year for school is opposite than ours. So with the new schedule nothing much has changed for me, except that my first class is at 1:25 instead of 12:50. So basically I go in and teach 5 or 6 straight then end around 8 everyday. Not to bad, I like having the mornings off because most people who work at other schools don't get off till 9 or 10 as well. So there is not much to do when you get off early.
Wednesday, we went out for dinner for one of our buddies last night in town. Went to a galbi restaurant downtown and ate a lot. Since it was nice out, in the low 60's we decided to go to Go-go bag drinks and play corn-hole. The dude that is leaving made a cornhole set out of cardboard and socks, pretty efficient, but not nearly as nice as the one I made at Michigan. We spent a lot of time outside, then Max, Evan, and I went to Ping bar and played some pool. Max and Ev got pretty drunk, while I did not since I am on antibiotics while also having to be up at 10 on Thursday for preschool graduation. Met another Korean girl, who was a University student from Seoul, we hung out most of the night. Her English skills were excellent. Don't know if I will ever see her again.
Thursday had to be at school early for graduation. A very yucky day, raining cats and dogs. It was warm out but just an overall disgusting day. The graduation ceremony lasted about an hour and I didnt have class till 3, so I did a little bit of planning and then went home. Slept for an hour, woke up ate some lunch, then went back to school. Had four classes in a row, planned, then went home. I was supposed to have a date tonight, but it was canceled and will be rescheduled.
This weekend I am going to the countryside with Max and Evan to join one of our KT teacher and her family for this holiday on Sunday. Should be very interesting experiencing country life with a Korean family.
That is all
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Feb 16th-21st
The week was sort of a blur. The weeks are going by pretty fast and I am pretty sure the more I teach Korean children the worse my English gets. We all have started to leave out articles (a, the, etc) when we speak because the Korean language doesnt have any and to make it easier for them to understand you tend to make your speech as simple as possible. It then rolls over into your everyday life, which is pretty funny.
Thursday, I was invited to play billiards with the gym owner after my work out. It took about 10 minutes to finally understand what he was actually saying, but in the end we went to a billiard hall and he taught me how to play actual billiards. It is a very challenging game, but very entertaining.
Friday, work was work. Evan, Max, and I went straight from work to meet up with another buddy of ours to go bowling. First, we searched around the area we were in for some galbi, and of course we found one, thankfully being pretty good. Picked up some alcohol and headed to the bowling alley. Played a few games, drank, and then headed downtown. Went to Go-go bar, which results in good times.
Saturday, went to the gym, then met up later with Jay and Jen for dinner. After dinner, went downtown. First went to Who's Bob, then went to Go-go again having another good night.
Sunday went to Seomun Market, which is the largest market in daegu with over 4,000 shops. Went with Evan, Max, and Cynthia whom I met the night before. Saw a lot of textiles, clothes, food, and live animals. Witnessed a rooster getting its head chopped off. It was a great day accomplishing some traveling.
Thursday, I was invited to play billiards with the gym owner after my work out. It took about 10 minutes to finally understand what he was actually saying, but in the end we went to a billiard hall and he taught me how to play actual billiards. It is a very challenging game, but very entertaining.
Friday, work was work. Evan, Max, and I went straight from work to meet up with another buddy of ours to go bowling. First, we searched around the area we were in for some galbi, and of course we found one, thankfully being pretty good. Picked up some alcohol and headed to the bowling alley. Played a few games, drank, and then headed downtown. Went to Go-go bar, which results in good times.
Saturday, went to the gym, then met up later with Jay and Jen for dinner. After dinner, went downtown. First went to Who's Bob, then went to Go-go again having another good night.
Sunday went to Seomun Market, which is the largest market in daegu with over 4,000 shops. Went with Evan, Max, and Cynthia whom I met the night before. Saw a lot of textiles, clothes, food, and live animals. Witnessed a rooster getting its head chopped off. It was a great day accomplishing some traveling.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
2/16
Woke up at 9:30, pretty hard waking up at that time after a fun filled weekend. However, managed to pull it together ate some breakfast and headed to the gym. Worked out for an hour then went to school. Arrived at school pretty happy because it was pay day!!! Also, since it is Tuesday we had a meeting for the teachers. Nothing very important happened. Once the meeting was over had to plan for the day. Classes went well. One funny thing that happened was that a girl was trying to spell shirt and accidentally spelled 'shit'.
While at school, us foreign teachers made plans to hang out with the korean teachers next friday. We are going to dinner then a karaoke bar. We are all very excited to hang out with the KT's because we dont know what they are like outside of school. However, today I probably crossed the line of co-worker etiquette. Some how one of the KT's and I got on the topic of who I like in the office. And I just started ranking people. Max was also included in the conversation and by the end of the conversation I had Betty hugging me because I ranked her number 1. It was definitely a lot funnier there, but basically every one was laughing pointing fingers of who we had fake crushes or real crushes on in the office. The KT's seemed to enjoy it, but probably not the appropriate way to act in an office. Oh well, just trying to make the best of the job and have fun with people I work with.
While at school, us foreign teachers made plans to hang out with the korean teachers next friday. We are going to dinner then a karaoke bar. We are all very excited to hang out with the KT's because we dont know what they are like outside of school. However, today I probably crossed the line of co-worker etiquette. Some how one of the KT's and I got on the topic of who I like in the office. And I just started ranking people. Max was also included in the conversation and by the end of the conversation I had Betty hugging me because I ranked her number 1. It was definitely a lot funnier there, but basically every one was laughing pointing fingers of who we had fake crushes or real crushes on in the office. The KT's seemed to enjoy it, but probably not the appropriate way to act in an office. Oh well, just trying to make the best of the job and have fun with people I work with.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
2/8-2/14
Overall, great week because of the weekend. School was alright. In one of my classes, one of my worst classes, a student named Thomas (a trouble maker) was making fun of another kid Kevin. Kevin got so frustrated and upset, instead of hurting Thomas, he started grabbing the skin around his eye to release tension. I literally had to grab his hand and force it off of his eye. He had 4 marks around his eye the whole week. I told one of the KT's, who ended up kicking Thomas out of class for the day. I forgot how sensitive children get when you make fun of them for doing something with the opposite sex, when it is totally not true. I was having them making present continuous sentences and Thomas said, "Kevin is hugging a girl." Crazy stuff.
On Friday, the preschoolers dressed up in their Hamboks, which are very similar to the Japanese Kimono for the Chinese New Year. Pictures are on Facebook under the album Ding Ding Dang. It was very cute, then they performed the traditional bow for us and played traditional Korean games. It was nice not to have to teach preschool for the day and just enjoy their presence.
Another one of my classes A3 has also been really bad, not just for me but for the KT as well. She keeps scolding them and telling them that she hates the class. She told me that we can not have fun with them and dont smile, being serious as possible. A lot easier said than done.
After Friday classes were over, Evan, Max, and I headed to Busan for the weekend. Busan is the port city of Korea, as well as the second largest city in Korea. Arrived in Busan around 10Pm hopped on a train to the downtown portion of the city. Found a motel, dropped off our stuff and headed out for the evening. Went to a few bars, trying to find the right one and ended up at this bar called Girls. We were the only ones in there and decided to have a drink. This Korean dude came in, who ordered a bottle of Henesey for himself, and Evan said that by the end of the night we will be hanging out with him. After a few words between us and him, he invited Ev over for some shots and then eventually started pouring shots for all of us. An hour went by and he decided to be our guide to take us to a club. We find out during that night he is a lone shark and was an ex-gang member, however, a very nice guy. We end up at this club called Foxy, which was two floors with three different rooms of music. Wall to wall of people, dancing the night away. So much fun, Wan (our Korean friend) ended up losing his bag, jacket, and phone, so Evan and him had to go back in the club to find everything. Luckily, they came out with the bag and jacket but no phone. He was very upset and Evan started to become afraid of him. We went back to the motel and passed out.
Saturday
Woke up not feeling so great, and headed toward the largest jjembang (spa) in Asia. I have never seen so many naked men at one time in my life. The spa was very relaxing, with so many different areas of hot tubs, cold tubs, herb tubs, oxygen rooms, etc. It was awesome and felt a little better after it. Left the spa and went to Busan tower which was on the opposite end of town. Great view of the city understanding how big the 5th largest port is in the world. Finished with the tower and headed to a restaurant that we found in the lonely planet which supposedly had all you can eat and drink for 15 dollars. We were all very excited and after about 20 minutes looking for the place, we finally found it. We were ready to have a feast, but unfortunately found out they stopped doing the deal. Damn that lonely planet, which was 2 years old. Ended up eating at a Galbi place, which gave us all stomach aches. One of the worst I have experienced since Ive been here: the Galbi and the stomachache. Went back to the motel took a nap for an hour. Wan called us wanting to meet up again, so we did. This time he brought one of his friends, who spoke very little English.
Started at Max Bar drinking 3 Liter towers. Wan paid for those. Then went to a bar called Jewelry, where the waitresses were wearing bikini style clothes. Had a few drinks there, then went to a nooribang (karaoke) for an hour, ordering 4 bottles of soju and food. Sang our hearts out. Then try to go back to club Foxy, but we didnt want to pay so, tried to get in for free. Didnt work, and apparently Wan's friend wasnt allowed in anyway because he was too drunk. He said some words to the bouncer and almost got in a fight. Wan settled everything down. Left Foxy, hopped in a cab all the way back to Busan station, which apparently has a hooker street full of Russians (named Texas street). Went into one of the bars, had a few beers, got frustrated with the women because they demanded us to buy them a drink, before they said a word to us. We left the bar and went back to the motel.
Sunday
Woke up feeling alright, and we decided to head home because it was a holiday and everything was closed. But first went to the fish market, that was open. It was awesome, so much fresh fish ranging from octopus, squid, turtles, crab, etc. You could pick the fish or mammal you wanted and they would cook it for you. Unfortunately, we had just eaten so we did not do this. Definitely going to do it the next time we go down. After an hour or so there walked around for a bit more, then headed to the train station and headed back to Daegu.
A great weekend!
On Friday, the preschoolers dressed up in their Hamboks, which are very similar to the Japanese Kimono for the Chinese New Year. Pictures are on Facebook under the album Ding Ding Dang. It was very cute, then they performed the traditional bow for us and played traditional Korean games. It was nice not to have to teach preschool for the day and just enjoy their presence.
Another one of my classes A3 has also been really bad, not just for me but for the KT as well. She keeps scolding them and telling them that she hates the class. She told me that we can not have fun with them and dont smile, being serious as possible. A lot easier said than done.
After Friday classes were over, Evan, Max, and I headed to Busan for the weekend. Busan is the port city of Korea, as well as the second largest city in Korea. Arrived in Busan around 10Pm hopped on a train to the downtown portion of the city. Found a motel, dropped off our stuff and headed out for the evening. Went to a few bars, trying to find the right one and ended up at this bar called Girls. We were the only ones in there and decided to have a drink. This Korean dude came in, who ordered a bottle of Henesey for himself, and Evan said that by the end of the night we will be hanging out with him. After a few words between us and him, he invited Ev over for some shots and then eventually started pouring shots for all of us. An hour went by and he decided to be our guide to take us to a club. We find out during that night he is a lone shark and was an ex-gang member, however, a very nice guy. We end up at this club called Foxy, which was two floors with three different rooms of music. Wall to wall of people, dancing the night away. So much fun, Wan (our Korean friend) ended up losing his bag, jacket, and phone, so Evan and him had to go back in the club to find everything. Luckily, they came out with the bag and jacket but no phone. He was very upset and Evan started to become afraid of him. We went back to the motel and passed out.
Saturday
Woke up not feeling so great, and headed toward the largest jjembang (spa) in Asia. I have never seen so many naked men at one time in my life. The spa was very relaxing, with so many different areas of hot tubs, cold tubs, herb tubs, oxygen rooms, etc. It was awesome and felt a little better after it. Left the spa and went to Busan tower which was on the opposite end of town. Great view of the city understanding how big the 5th largest port is in the world. Finished with the tower and headed to a restaurant that we found in the lonely planet which supposedly had all you can eat and drink for 15 dollars. We were all very excited and after about 20 minutes looking for the place, we finally found it. We were ready to have a feast, but unfortunately found out they stopped doing the deal. Damn that lonely planet, which was 2 years old. Ended up eating at a Galbi place, which gave us all stomach aches. One of the worst I have experienced since Ive been here: the Galbi and the stomachache. Went back to the motel took a nap for an hour. Wan called us wanting to meet up again, so we did. This time he brought one of his friends, who spoke very little English.
Started at Max Bar drinking 3 Liter towers. Wan paid for those. Then went to a bar called Jewelry, where the waitresses were wearing bikini style clothes. Had a few drinks there, then went to a nooribang (karaoke) for an hour, ordering 4 bottles of soju and food. Sang our hearts out. Then try to go back to club Foxy, but we didnt want to pay so, tried to get in for free. Didnt work, and apparently Wan's friend wasnt allowed in anyway because he was too drunk. He said some words to the bouncer and almost got in a fight. Wan settled everything down. Left Foxy, hopped in a cab all the way back to Busan station, which apparently has a hooker street full of Russians (named Texas street). Went into one of the bars, had a few beers, got frustrated with the women because they demanded us to buy them a drink, before they said a word to us. We left the bar and went back to the motel.
Sunday
Woke up feeling alright, and we decided to head home because it was a holiday and everything was closed. But first went to the fish market, that was open. It was awesome, so much fresh fish ranging from octopus, squid, turtles, crab, etc. You could pick the fish or mammal you wanted and they would cook it for you. Unfortunately, we had just eaten so we did not do this. Definitely going to do it the next time we go down. After an hour or so there walked around for a bit more, then headed to the train station and headed back to Daegu.
A great weekend!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Feb 6th-8th
Sat
Woke up and tried to decide whether to go to baseball practice or not. It was really cold and was not in the mood to spend 5 hours in the cold, so I decided to let the coach know that we were not going to make. Instead of going to baseball, I relaxed, did some apartment cleaning, then went to the gym around 4. After my workout, called Evan to see if he wanted to join me for a soke at the jjenjebang (sauna). He met me outside the gym and headed to the sauna. 4,000 (4 dollars) for relaxation, well spent. Came out of the sauna feeling great, headed home and took a nap. Napped for about an hour, woke up and prepared for the evening. Ate some Galbi, then headed downtown. Bar hopped the whole night, and realized the more new bars we try to get in, the more realize why we go to the same ones. It is amazing how many bars are Korean only. It is bullshit, but what can you do. Hours of bar hopping an a good tie with friends came home and went to sleep
Sunday
Woke up around 12 or so ate some lunch, watched some TV and decided with Max that we should go walk around town for a bit. We headed toward Suesong lake, which took about 20-30 minutes to get there. A nice walk and luckily it warmed up. Got to Suesong lake, which is beautiful, but also enjoyed the little Carnival that was there, with small rides and games. I felt like a little kid again! Ate a corn-dog, threw some darts at balloons, and hit some balls at the batting cage. An eventful day. Headed back to the apartment and realizing that we have nothing to eat, decided to call Jen and Jay to see if they wanted to meet us downtown for some Mexican. They were aready downtown, so we met them and dined at an okay Mexican restaurant. After dinner, I wanted to look at he many shoe stores, so we did, finding nothing. Finally, by the 12th store, I gave up and we decided to go to a Hookah bar because it was still early. Reminisced about the weekend and life. Once we finished doing that, headed home.
Monday
Woke up at 8:30am thinking that the Superbowl would be on TV. At least that is what one of my friends said. Flickering through the channels finding nothing, tried the internet and was unable to get on any of the sites because they were all maxed out. Went back to bed for an hour, got back up took a shower, and tried it again, finally getting on a site being able to watch most of the 3rd and all of the 4th quarter. Seemed like an excellent game. Once the game ended, I headed to school, taking a cab because it was raining and I was a little late. Got to school, planned my classes and started Monday. Everything went well, nothing out of the ordinary.
Woke up and tried to decide whether to go to baseball practice or not. It was really cold and was not in the mood to spend 5 hours in the cold, so I decided to let the coach know that we were not going to make. Instead of going to baseball, I relaxed, did some apartment cleaning, then went to the gym around 4. After my workout, called Evan to see if he wanted to join me for a soke at the jjenjebang (sauna). He met me outside the gym and headed to the sauna. 4,000 (4 dollars) for relaxation, well spent. Came out of the sauna feeling great, headed home and took a nap. Napped for about an hour, woke up and prepared for the evening. Ate some Galbi, then headed downtown. Bar hopped the whole night, and realized the more new bars we try to get in, the more realize why we go to the same ones. It is amazing how many bars are Korean only. It is bullshit, but what can you do. Hours of bar hopping an a good tie with friends came home and went to sleep
Sunday
Woke up around 12 or so ate some lunch, watched some TV and decided with Max that we should go walk around town for a bit. We headed toward Suesong lake, which took about 20-30 minutes to get there. A nice walk and luckily it warmed up. Got to Suesong lake, which is beautiful, but also enjoyed the little Carnival that was there, with small rides and games. I felt like a little kid again! Ate a corn-dog, threw some darts at balloons, and hit some balls at the batting cage. An eventful day. Headed back to the apartment and realizing that we have nothing to eat, decided to call Jen and Jay to see if they wanted to meet us downtown for some Mexican. They were aready downtown, so we met them and dined at an okay Mexican restaurant. After dinner, I wanted to look at he many shoe stores, so we did, finding nothing. Finally, by the 12th store, I gave up and we decided to go to a Hookah bar because it was still early. Reminisced about the weekend and life. Once we finished doing that, headed home.
Monday
Woke up at 8:30am thinking that the Superbowl would be on TV. At least that is what one of my friends said. Flickering through the channels finding nothing, tried the internet and was unable to get on any of the sites because they were all maxed out. Went back to bed for an hour, got back up took a shower, and tried it again, finally getting on a site being able to watch most of the 3rd and all of the 4th quarter. Seemed like an excellent game. Once the game ended, I headed to school, taking a cab because it was raining and I was a little late. Got to school, planned my classes and started Monday. Everything went well, nothing out of the ordinary.
Friday, February 5, 2010
New Month new post. Feb1-5
School was pretty ordinary, nothing really eventful happened on the teaching side, but it has been pretty eventful on the teachers side. First, one of the Korean teachers quit last Friday because she didnt feel that her English was good enough to teach at the prestigious Ding Ding Dang. Second, we are pretty sure that the reason why the Korean teacher who just married a few months got hitched is because she is pregnant. She hasn't told us ENT's, but it is pretty obvious that she is pregnant, not only because of her stomach, but she is never feeling well. So now we are hearing rumors that she might leave. In addition, another Korean teacher is leaving at the end of the month to move to Canada for a few months then return to Korea and get married to her Fiance. So she isnt coming back either. Our director Betty, who is very nice, is now very stressed to find new Korean teachers. I feel bad for her, because now not only does she have to teach, she now has to scramble to find new teachers and hire suitable candidates.
On Wednesday, Betty, who observed one of my classes last week, met with me to give me feedback. Overall, she said I was doing well and was picking up things fast. However, I have only been teaching for 2 months and can improve greatly. Her biggest concern, as with most teachers who've I had throughout my life is my handwriting. She says that needs to be improved when I write contents for my class and when I write on the whiteboard. We will see what happens. In addition, she gave me some helpful activities to keep the students engaged. Overall, I was very pleased with the meeting and am glad I still have my job.
After school, Max and I met up with our friends Jay and Jen for some galbi (Korean BBQ). We wanted to try a new place, sometimes not the best idea. We step into this place, that was on the way home from our work and I knew at first glance that it wasnt going to be any good. We ordered the usual and all of us were disappointed about the meat and the sides. So we ordered a rotisserie chicken, which was there specialty and also disappointing with the amount of meat we consumed. Still hungry, we went to our go-to Galbi place, which is right near our apartment. Ordered, our usual and ate a great meal that filled us up. We were ready to go, and then the people sitting next to us a little intoxicated ordered us three more orders of meat. We couldn't say no even though our stomachs were and ate even more meat. I thought my stomach was going to explode, but it felt good feeling so full.
Friday night, Evan, Max, and I went to a new area of town. We went to one of the Universities areas, where someone was hosting a Haiti charity event. It was pretty fun, got to see some of the people I met on ski trip. Met a korean dude, who for some reason worked in Windsor, Canada, which is a shit hole. How did he end up there, I have no idea. He stayed there for 4 years, then returned to Korea and is now a textile exporter. Tried my Seinfeld on him seeing if he was only an exporter, or if he did both importing and exporting. I love how Seinfeld, still to this day can be used in everyday life. After spending a while at this bar, having a good ole time, we headed back to our apartment, but not before we spotted a MCDs. Ate a delicious chicken sandwich, then immediately got horrible heart burn, so I think. Whatever it was, it did not feel good. Made it home and went to bed.
On Wednesday, Betty, who observed one of my classes last week, met with me to give me feedback. Overall, she said I was doing well and was picking up things fast. However, I have only been teaching for 2 months and can improve greatly. Her biggest concern, as with most teachers who've I had throughout my life is my handwriting. She says that needs to be improved when I write contents for my class and when I write on the whiteboard. We will see what happens. In addition, she gave me some helpful activities to keep the students engaged. Overall, I was very pleased with the meeting and am glad I still have my job.
After school, Max and I met up with our friends Jay and Jen for some galbi (Korean BBQ). We wanted to try a new place, sometimes not the best idea. We step into this place, that was on the way home from our work and I knew at first glance that it wasnt going to be any good. We ordered the usual and all of us were disappointed about the meat and the sides. So we ordered a rotisserie chicken, which was there specialty and also disappointing with the amount of meat we consumed. Still hungry, we went to our go-to Galbi place, which is right near our apartment. Ordered, our usual and ate a great meal that filled us up. We were ready to go, and then the people sitting next to us a little intoxicated ordered us three more orders of meat. We couldn't say no even though our stomachs were and ate even more meat. I thought my stomach was going to explode, but it felt good feeling so full.
Friday night, Evan, Max, and I went to a new area of town. We went to one of the Universities areas, where someone was hosting a Haiti charity event. It was pretty fun, got to see some of the people I met on ski trip. Met a korean dude, who for some reason worked in Windsor, Canada, which is a shit hole. How did he end up there, I have no idea. He stayed there for 4 years, then returned to Korea and is now a textile exporter. Tried my Seinfeld on him seeing if he was only an exporter, or if he did both importing and exporting. I love how Seinfeld, still to this day can be used in everyday life. After spending a while at this bar, having a good ole time, we headed back to our apartment, but not before we spotted a MCDs. Ate a delicious chicken sandwich, then immediately got horrible heart burn, so I think. Whatever it was, it did not feel good. Made it home and went to bed.
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