Soundtrack of my social life

So, I wanted to share something that time and time again has brought me to the dance floor at the Singing Chicken. This song, by South Korean hip-hop artist MC Mong, has become a staple of my weekend enjoyment. This song is infectious and playful, and can lead to some crazy dancing. Often when this song comes on, it kinda has a "souja boy" effect, meaning a dance routine usually ensues. I've learned a few of the moves, and I'm pretty sure I will have it all down in a couple of weeks. Anyway, you don't need to understand korean to enjoy this one, I have only just found out the english translation, but the music itself is very expressive of the overall sentiment.
Please enjoy, laughing is definitely allowed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTUclwr-Jo0

I stand corrected

Leading up to my departure for Korea, I was thinking long and hard about the reality of teaching 6-12 year old children. Throughout my undergraduate degree in English I was frequently asked if I wanted to be a teacher, and I always promptly and with conviction said, NO! I never considered myself to be good with children, nor did I particularly ever want to be around them for too long. So it came as quite a surprise to myself, and to many others, when I decided to sign on for a year of teaching. But I finally decided, as I finalized the contract, that I struggled long enough with the language and I might as well help others struggle along as well.


Today I'm really glad I made that decision. There is a strong sense of fulfillment and satisfaction that comes along with this teaching gig. It's a great experience to watch these kids progress and to know that you've had some part in that. I am thoroughly enjoying teaching, even if they are little germ toting, nose picking, children. They are dedicated to learning and are also adorable little humans.


I would like to add that the teaching experience has been made just a little sweeter when I discovered today that there is an optional booklist in the curriculum which includes a book based on my favourite Shakespearean play. So, next week, I will introduce my grade 6 class to A Midsummer Night's Dream. Looks like they are ready for my Shakespearean interpretation after all.

My Korean Easter

So this wasn't an average Easter for me. First Easter without turkey and my moms stuffing. First Easter without my moms decorative bunnies and eggs. And, first Easter without Cadbury chocolate mini eggs. I of course missed all of these things, but I enjoyed my Korean Easter nonetheless.

Easter is not celebrated in the same decorative and highly commercialized way that it is in North America, but the decorating of boiled eggs, like I used to do back in elementary school, seems have made its way across the ocean. One of my grade one students gave me some easter eggs today. Yes, they are edible, but no they are not chocolate. Three eggs, nicely decorated, came in a little basket with a package of salt and sesame seeds. I'm not a huge fan of hard boiled eggs, but the presentation alone is enough to make me give it a try. So I have my morning snack all figured out.

I also received a gift from a student in the Grade 4 enrichment class I teach after school. Now, I'm not sure if this has anything to do with Easter or not, but it is a gift worthy of recognition.

First I should say that before I left for Korea I said my goodbyes to a number of food items: peanut butter, sour watermelons, soda crackers, bread. But to my surprise, I can still get peanut butter, although for a premium price, and I can get bread, however whole wheat is almost impossible for me to get my hands on. But one thing I knew I was definitely going to miss the most, was my sesame seed bagel, well toasted, with plain light cream cheese.

I have managed to find bagels on occasion at a bakery in town called Paris Baguette, but you can only buy them separately and they are definitely not the cheapest thing on the menu. And I've been able to find cream cheese, not light cream cheese but I can deal with that...of course that is also about $5 CAD, so my cheap bagel order at tim horton's has turned out to be quite the delicacy here.

Anyway, back to the gift. The mother of one of my students made me, yes actually made as in baked, four bagels, all different kinds. Today was a major success just because of these bagels. There was a note attached from the mother explaining that her daughter liked me and that she appreciates that and she thought I would be missing bagels. I would like to give this woman a hug. She couldn't have been more right. I miss bagels a lot. I'm not sure if I want to save them or eat them all at once. Anyway, some may call this "bribery" or an act to "soften the deal". But I should explain that the kids do not get marks for the enrichment class, and they are there by their own will, or I guess their parent's will. But none of that matters anyway, all that matters is that I have a sesame seed bagel crisping up in the toaster, and that in this moment I am content.

Happy Easter!

It's all news to me.

Without the internet and the skype update from my mom, I wouldn't have a clue as to what is going on in the world. I've become increasingly aware of the limitations to the information I do receive. Hindered by my inability to understand more than a couple common korean greetings, I live in a knowledge bubble that consists of children behavioural problems and literature with a grade six reading level. With North Korea's recent attempt to gain the world's attention, and by that I suppose I mean Mr. Obama and Co., trying to decipher what exactly is going on has been tricky.



Last weekend I was sitting in a bar called the Singing Chicken, which is a popular foreigner hang out, and every television had a korean news channel showing coverage of what the rocket launch would look like. I'm sure the journalist was going into extensive detail about time, place, possibilities, outcome, but without my own personal translator, all I got out of it was that a rocket may or may not have been launched from North Korea. Of course, the dissemination of information from North Korea is not the most reliable, unless of course you are China and have an alliance, otherwise you're working with grainy visuals and a skewed interpretation. Regardless, the broadcast I watched answered none of my questions, and also made me think, should I be worried? But then the music in the bar got louder as the friendly korean gentlemen at the bar began his lengthy playlist of Celine Dion, starting with the Titanic monstrosity, My Heart Will Go On, which he played first as an instrumental rendition. I believe The Power of Love followed, and then My Heart Will Go On repeated about 4 more times. So, about 3 Hite beer later and enough Canadian music to last me the year, I totally forgot about the sanction defying rocket launch North Korea may or may not have done.

As it turns out, what I had been watching was in fact coverage stating that the rocket was launched and that the accompanying satellite had not made it into orbit, although initial reports from NK had expressed a different sentiment.

I would never have even known this had my concerned and loving mother (who reads this blog and offers me...er...suggestions, and shows me the errors of my sloppy grammar) had not timely emailed me a link from the New York Times informing me of the current situation.

I feel as if as soon as I got off that plane in Busan and headed toward my desitnation here in Okpo, I've treated it like I'm in an alternate universe where the same political, social and environmental news that used to keep me in a far too personal relationship with my BlackBerry, is no longer of importance.

Anyway, failed satellite launch or not, I've realized I need to make an effort to know what is going on around me. I can't just assume I'm going to hear through the korean grapevine, or see a clip on tv and be able to piece together the state of world affairs. So now I'm back to my news feed obsession, although my poor BlackBerry has been reduced to nothing more than an alarm clock here in Korea, but the RSS feeds on my computer are alive and well again.

Just today I learned that a Canadian decided to steal a plane from Confederation College and fly out across the border to our friendly neighbours to the south, in an apparent suicide attempt, only to end up parking it somewhere in Missouri to wait for "Homeland Security."

I'm not sure why it's important for me to know all the little and big things that are going on around the world, especially since it's usually after the fact, but I guess if Mr. Kim Jong-il to my north is planning another sensational attention grabber, I may want to know about it before my mother gets on her email.



OK, let me have it mom, what did I spell wrong and where did I use the wrong form of the verb to have.

The Singing Chicken westerner/foreigner bar

My apartment.

It has everything I really need and it takes about 5 min to clean. The room is heated through the floors and is probably one of the best features. I never have to worry about cold feet in the morning. It's definitely a little stark and blindingly white, but this picture was taken the day I arrived, so I have some personalizing to do. Behind the sliding door in the one picture is where my laundry room is located. I also have a tv, a microwave, a toaster oven, a gas stove top and a fridge. I have yet to cook an elaborate korean cuisine in my kitchen, and it's quite possible that may never happen, but I can do poached, scrambled, sunny side up, and over easy eggs...oh and a mean omelette. I have become a huge fan of kimbap though, which is I guess Korean fast food. It's convenient and requires zero cooking and therefore no mess to clean up afterwards.