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Training
This week I’m in Chungju for teacher training. I’m impressed by the time and effort put into our week of training and even more impressed that the mayor of Chungju spoke at the opening ceremony. He encouraged us to buy local peaches and tell our friends to come visit. Man, I love a good businessman. The women at my table were so earnest to dive into the culture that they ate our western style dinner with chopsticks (I’m not going to tell them that no Korean eats peas with chopsticks). So cheers to Chungju! Like most of Korea its charm snags you when you least expect it. It makes me…
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Jeju Island, Part 2
I visited the Jeju folk village which is a recreation of 1800s style Jeju living. As it’s not tourist season, there were few visitors and at times I was the only person around with only Joseon era mannequins to keep me company. Only mildly creepy. Later I found a petting zoo with an emu and goats and around the corner were real women shucking corn that were not a part of the exhibition. But we smiled and nodded at each other in a fitting end to a strange but informative experience.
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Jeju Island
I’m currently on an island for a mini break before teacher training begins. After eating with a new hostel friend we parted ways and I entered one of the many hipster cafes on this side of town. As I waited for my tiramisu cafe latte two older men, decked in the classic middle aged gear of a fishing vest and hiking shirt, waved hello at me. I waved back and said in Korean “aren’t I pretty?” with appropriate cutesy hands. They were momentarily shocked into silence and then conspired amongst themselves, countering in English with “American?”. I responded in Korean “Yes I’m American” because someone on this island is going…
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August 13, Cap & Gown
Oh my goodness y’all, not only did I pass this 200 hour intensive Korean language course but I am also class valedictorian! Wow, what a turnaround from the first day where I wanted to cry through most of class. And to think just a few months ago I worked for someone who regularly implied that I was slow. It’s nice to win one!
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August 12, Thank you, Teacher
I learned a lot from my female teacher this summer not just about Korean language but also how to be a better teacher. I took an hour to write her a small letter. It took so long because there is of course another tense to use when talking about a teacher (but not yourself). So hashtag “I tried” “making an effort”. Now I’m sure there are grammatical errors and awkward phrasings but hey, those are all part of the charm. I wish her the best and hope she does in fact get married to Park Bo Gum. 감사합니다~
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August 11, Itaewon
Itaewon is a non-Asian-foreigner district right of the US army base where stores proudly advertise”BIG CLOTHES”. I live on the east side of the city where things are a lot less international and a lot more sleepy so wandering through hilly, narrow, crowded streets with different neon signs in English, Thai, and Arabic was a jolt to the system. There were falafel stands and pancake houses and hip hop bars and 24 hour cafes and buskers. I went to a vegan restaurant where the waitresses were American and I could actually eavesdrop on people’s conversations (“so should I date this guy? Should I chase love?”), a pastime I didn’t realize…
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August 6, Encounter
I was at the newly erected emart convenience store buying milk (let’s talk about my dependence on dairy another day) when another strange magical thing happened. Not only did the cashier say more than one word but the friendly older man also spoke English? You’ll probably read below and think “this is what you mean by speak English?” but when I hear zero English on a daily basis (aside from “ice Americano”) any effort impresses me. C: 천팔백 원.C: Eighteen hundred.A: 카드 괜찮아요? (Card is ok?)C: mhm. You like milk?A: um. I like cereal.C: ah. Mix? [makes stirring hand motion]A: yes… [confused at what amounts to excessive amount of convenience…
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August First, The Winds of Change
I was excited to go to the bank to pay my health club bill because it was something I (thought I) knew how to do only to find that the original teller room had been removed because the bank walls have been knocked down and everything else rearranged. I was gone for a week and when I came back two fast food places has shut down, Innisfree had moved from its new location back to its old location four doors down, and a Starbucks had popped up. Two weeks ago there was a convenience store on my corner that has since been gutted and made into a different convenience store.…
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July 27, 개고기
Well it finally happened. In between cured pig heads and bags of kimchi and men shouting watermelon prices and the biggest lobster I have EVER seen with claws the size of my face in this never ending maze of a market, I saw two stalls selling meat from a butchered animal that looked very familiar. I wandered closer to look at the sign: 개고기. Yep. Dog meat. No, I did not buy any. I did, however, buy kimchi from the neighboring stall. Shop local, as they say. ****** Disclaimer 1: I have never seen a restaurant that has 개고기 on the menu and I eat out a LOT. It’s simply…
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~It’s Official~
July 25 I am officially an immigrant! Or something. Not only was my visa approved, but I also received the unicorn of E2 visas. On the Korean visa application there is no place to request single or multiple entry and most E2 applicants are automatically assigned single entry, which means they can’t leave the country until they have an official alien card. Alien cards are required but take about a month to process after initial entry. Somehow the Korean powers that be granted me multiple entry so I am free to come and go as I please regardless of a separate ID. Feeling blessed, y’all .