Parade of Lights

Truth to be told, we didn't even realise that there was going to be a parade of any sort the evening we were at Everland. Almost all of a sudden, small children and families started disappearing from the lines of the rides we were walking by. We didn't really think much of it, we thought it just must be about that time for kids to be heading home to be tucked into their little beds, while dreaming of their Everland adventure. It was only when we finally stumbled across a huge group of people sitting and expectantly waiting that we realised that something was on the go. It was quite dark, so we didn't really know what to expect... and then we saw it coming in the distance... was it a bird? a plane? superman?


Nope! A parade!

It's almost here!

Naturally, we elected to continue to go on the rides while the parade was going, so as to take advantage of the shorter lineups, but not before I snapped a few quick pictures of the parade that was going by.

Here it comes!

Dancers danced through the streets, while princesses and princes kissed on their horse drawn carriages and Aesop's characters told important fables. There was also a smoke breathing dragon, because what Asian parade would complete without a dragon or two?

All it all, it was a pretty nice show... but then I wouldn't have expected anything less from Korea, now would I?

Always building...

Living in Korea as a foreigner, is a little like living in an ants nest:

1. There seem to be millions of Koreans everywhere you look.
   
2. They are very hard workers.
   
3. They eat some food items that I wouldn't even consider as, well, food.
   
4. They are always building things.

When I came to Korea first, someone told me that Koreans love to tear things down and then build them again. Especially being a country that has experienced a relatively recent economic boom, I could understand how that would be the case. I also thought, that with the recession that's caused Koreans --as well as the rest of the world-- to tighten their belts a little, that it would stop for a little while, or at least slow down. Little did I know.

There is a popular joke that in Newfoundland we have four seasons:

1. Almost Winter
   
2. Winter
   
3. Still Winter
   
4. Construction

Although Koreans would argue that Korea has four distinct seasons, I would disagree. There is only one: Construction. It just keeps going and going.

Everywhere I go outside I see construction, or at the very least people tearing up and laying down new tile sidewalks. It's an epidemic.

Korean Barbeque: Galbi

As far as Korean food goes, there is not much better than Korean BBQ, otherwise known as Galbi.

Galbi, sometimes spelled kalbi, is a delicious meal of marinated beef ribs barbecued on a grill which is right in your table. Galbi dishes can also be made from pork, or chicken, although beef is the most common. It's a sort of do-it-yourself meal, where your server will bring everything you need to your table, after which you set about grilling your meal and getting all your fixings ready. When you order galbi you will usually receive a variety of sauces, garlic, kimchi, lettuce, and some soup along with your meat.

Occasionally, galbi is grilled for you and brought to your table, in which case it looks like this. This is a less common method than the grill-at-your-table method.

The grill-at-your-table traditional method is really neat, and personally is my favourite. Your server will bring you meat and then you'll slap it on the grill yourself, and grill it to perfection. Gabli is usually grilled over hot coals, and the grill has a hood to take away the smoke.

When the meat has cooked for a few minutes on each side, its time to cut it up into bite-sized morsels for eating. If you leave your galbi untouched for too long, your server will notice your shining white skin and come over and do this part for you, but its pretty easy, so you can do it yourself if you feel up for the challenge. Just grab the metal tongs that were used to put the meat on the grill, and that large pair of scissors that you've been wondering about since you sat down, but felt too embarrassed to ask what they were for. Pick up the meat with the tongs and start cutting with the scissors. Its not as easy as it sounds -- at least not for me -- but you'll get used to it.

The man in this picture is already going for the next step. Once the meat is cooked and you've cut it into delicious pieces, grab some lettuce and put a piece of meat -- dipped in your favourite sauce -- into a piece of lettuce with some rice, and maybe some kimchi, roasted garlic or bean sprouts. Wrap it into a ball, put the ball in your mouth, chew and enjoy!

Galbi is a delicious Korean food, traditionally only affordable to the rich and famous, but today available to everyone. There are Korean barbecue restaurants in most major cities in Canada and the US, and if you ever have the opportunity to try one, you definitely should. Delicious!

Days that make teaching worthwhile...

Since I came to Korea and started teaching in November, there have been all sorts of different days. Days when I wondered why I had come here, days when I thought I might never want to leave, days when I was happy, days when I was sad and also days that were really just rather banal. There were days when my children made me want to tear my hair out, and then there are those good old days, that really make teaching worth while. I know I don't talk about those days very much, and they're not very tangible so I can't usually show you pictures, but one happened to me last week where pictures were available, and so here were are.

I actually have a number of really amazing classes. I also have a bunch of students who if I could teach only those students every day, I might never aspire to do anything else. All of the kids are sweet in their own ways of course, but some really stand out from others day in and day out.

One of those kids is a little girl named Iris. I call her Professor Iris after the old kids television show, and although she doesn't have any idea who that is, the name seems to please her quite well. She is such an adorably cute nine year old that I can't believe I don't actually have a picture of her on my computer. But I do have this picture of something she made for me!

Isn't it sweet? She looked so proud of herself when she handed it to me, and I was so touched. She is one of my best students, and it made me so happy to know that she cared enough to take the time and make me such a cute lily pad, with chocolates on the flowers. She must know how much I like chocolate!

I was so impressed and rejuvenated by her thoughtfulness and kindness that I took a whole bunch of pictures of that little lily pad, although I'll only burden you with three of them. I thought that her parents had been doing a pretty fantastic job of raising her up all along, but I hope that one day I also teach my own children to be this thoughtful and kind.

Congratulations!

Although there is a Korean version of the Birthday Song with Korean words to the familiar melody, whenever we go out to a restaurant or somewhere at night, or even in class if someone does something silly this is the song that you hear. It's a new twist on an old favourite that I admittedly didn't even know existed before I looked it up. First listen to the video of the Korean children singing their little hearts out, and see if you can recognize the original song.

Next, listen to this original. Pretty fabulous metamorphosis isn't it?

Finally, shake your head in wonder at those silly Koreans... :) Who would have know that Cliff Richard's Eurovision song, could become what those Korean children were singing in class? It's pretty fabulous. Wherever we are, the lights will go down and everyone else stops what their doing and claps while the Birthday Boy or the Birthday girl stands up -- usually on a chair, or even a table -- and dances along.

There is a recorded version of this song somewhere between the original and the mutilated version these Korean kids are singing, but I haven't been able to find it yet. When I do, you'll be the first to know.

Korean Dentists

So, as you know if you have been following my blog, or my facebook, I have been spending a significant amount of time at the dentist recently, and so I thought it fitting to make a post about my excursions -- a little more whimsical than the first.

A quick recap : filling fell out, is now replaced and crowned, dentist visits in Korea = almost over!

The dentist that both Meghan and I have been going to actually has a nice little office on one of the busier streets near our house. Meghan and I usually cab it there in the morning because its usually quite early and neither of us are really up for the walking.

When we arrived on this particular day -- for some reason our appointments seem to always happen together. Its never by design (on our parts at any rate) but it is very convenient -- I started snapping photos for this post, and Meghan just shook her head and accepted her fate as the subject. She thought I was being weird, but didn't say it -- it was all in the look on her face.

Walking into a dentist's office in Korea is surprisingly like walking into a dentist's office anywhere else that I've been in the world. Its pretty simple and quiet, with nondescript music trying to mask the drilling sounds that are coming from the non-reception areas.

The waiting area really is pretty nice, as I described in my last post. There are computers on one side for people to use as they wait, and a sitting area on the other side with a huge fish tank that I really enjoy.

After Meghan went in for her appointment, I got a little bored and decided to play with my camera by taking pictures of my new phone charm that I got from a little girl for Teacher's Day.

But the phone charm is so cute, almost as cute as the little cupcake who gave it to me. It was easy to pass my time until the receptionist called my name taking her picture.

I went inside, the crown got its final cement, and my visit to the dentist was over in no time.

Puppies and Pigs

A very popular image being circulated by email chain letters these days is of this cute little toddler featured below giving his friendly neighbourhood piggy a big wet kiss...

The picture is talking about swine flu, and its a big deal these days, especially if you're a caucasian living in Seoul -- or a Mexican, living anywhere. Recently there's been a fair amount of hubbub about English teachers from North America bringing swine flu with them when they come to Asia and there's a fair amount of suspicion surrounding foreigners in general. Recently, an entire chain of private English schools called CDI was closed when one of the Korean children attending one of the schools tested positive for swine flu. Using a week long closure as a chance to jet home for a quick hello, one of the teachers from that chain of schools who lives in our apartment buildings is now out of a job, while her school finds out a way to send all of her stuff back home. Ouch. Its a sad and complicated story, but it does have a positive twist, in that while her stuff, including her adorable year-old puppy is waiting to make its way back to the States, I got to dog sit today with my friend Amanda!

This morning around 10:30am Amanda and I trekked to the poor girl's apartment to collect her amazingly wonderful dog, Nala and take her for a walk. Isn't she adorable? Oh, and Nala is pretty cute too! I was definitely game for dog sitting, but didn't have any personal experience with a dog, so I was happy to have Amanda along to help me out, and tell me when I was being a bad dog sitter. She's good to have around like that -- very honest.

Nala, is perhaps the most well-tempered puppy that I've ever spent time with. She was very calm, and did not bark once, even though she had never before met Amanda, and myself only once. She even let me take her picture so I could show it to all of you!

We were told that if we walked out of our building and just kind of let Nala take the lead that she would eventually take us to the park, and so we did just that. I didn't even know prior to yesterday that there was a park so close by. It was literally about a 5 minute walk from my building! I can't believe I've been missing it all this time! It's not the most amazing park that one has ever seen, but when I'm surrounded by buildings and concrete 90% of the time, it was a very refreshing change of pace! There was even a small pond with a few fountains!

We walked along through the park and let Nala chase some pidgins for a while and when she was tired we headed back towards home. It was so nice to spend a few hours in the morning out doing something so nice. I think that I might have to introduce it into my regular morning routine, perhaps before I go to the gym when it is still nice and cool. It was pretty hot though by the time we were finished, and I think even Nala was ready to head back to the apartment building.

We saw lots of different kinds of people on the way back, but Nala didn't really pay attention to any of them. Just walked on by like she was used to being a celebrity. Everywhere we went people smiled at us, and waved and tried to speak to us about the dog. She is very big for a city dog I think. While we did see other dogs while we were out and about, she was the only one bigger than the size of a small terrier.

I took a few pictures here and there, but Amanda and Nala were impatient with me...

And when I turned around they were already heading off down the road, so I put away my camera and ran after them to catch up.

Amanda stopped for a pizza to eat on the way home, and while I was waiting outside the pizza place because the dog couldn't go inside the four sweetest Korean children came to stand near the door and ask me question in Korean about the dog, with perhaps a dozen English words thrown in to make it interesting. I really couldn't understand the majority of what they were saying but they stood around chatting with us for the entire 15-20 mins that it took to make Amanda's pizza, so at the end I took their picture. It made them really happy. And it makes me happy to have the picture to show to you. The two girls in the front were the ring leaders, and the girl in the back that you can barely see really only said goodbye at the end, but they were all really sweet.

After that Amanda headed off and I brought Nala back to her house.

gave her some food and water,

and then put her back into her kennel.

We were both sad about that part.

Comedy sensation that's sweeping the nation...

This comedy sketch is so pervasive in Korea right now, that I have automatic punishments for referencing it in the majority of my classes. Watch the sketch, think about pre-pubescent children, and you`ll understand why.

Learn Korean: Step 2: Annyeong Haseyo

A few weeks ago I posted an introduction to the Korean language here, about the Korean alphabet, or Hangeul. You might remember that I talked briefly about how supposedly easy it is to learn, and I hope that you've all been diligently studying -- just like my students!

So, now that you've had some time to learn a little of the Korean alphabet -- or even if you haven't -- the next step to learning the Korean language is to get some of the more simple expressions under your belt such as hello, my name is _____ and nice to meet you. The best way to do that of course is to make friends with a Korean and have them teach you, but in the mean time this series of videos on youtube will do just fine, especially for the basics.

A tale of woe for Roh...

On our way to Busan on Friday, we came across large groups of people gathering at large memorials outside Seoul station where we were to catch the express train south. Previously having been shushed on the bus, and having used our limited access to the media here in Korea, we had known that something was up, but we didn't realize what a big deal it was. Koreans everywhere were in mourning, and its a story worth mentioning, so here it is. In a nutshell...

South Korea's most recent former president, Roh Moo-Hyun threw himself off the side of a cliff near his home while hiking a week and a half ago, and Koreans aren't happy about it. At the time of his death he was being investigated for corruption, especially accepting bribes -- $6 million during his time in office -- and was being hounded by the media and the current government day and night, to the point where his health had deteriorated and he could no longer lead a normal life.



During his time in office Roh Moo-Hyun was an advocate of South Korea's 'sunshine policy' of reconciliation towards the North and also was responsible for a free trade agreement with the United States.

He was elected on the promise to change Korean politics for the better, and rid the government of scandal and corruption, but it followed him until the day he died. Roh left a suicide note on his computer saying:

I am in debt to so many people. I have caused too great a burden to be placed upon them. I can't begin to fathom the countless agonies down the road. The rest of my life would only be a burden for others. I am unable to do anything because of poor health. I can't read books, nor can I write. Do not be too sad. Isn't life and death all a part of nature? Do not be sorry. Do not feel resentment toward anyone. It is fate. Cremate me. And leave only a small tombstone near home. I've thought on this for a long time.

It's a little bit strange to be on the outside and the inside of an event like this. On the one hand I'm completely on the outside. Until I really started researching the only information I really heard about this was from this article on cbc.ca that I happened across last weekend when I was catching up on news from home. It say basically that he committed suicide, that he was a crook, that the suicide and the corruption were related and that current President Lee Myung-bak payed lip service. It's pretty emotionless and to the point, a blip on the radar that goes relatively un-noticed by 99% of the Canadian population.



Meanwhile, I currently am in Korea, on the inside, when people are crying in the streets in front of makeshift memorials and my children are telling me that:

"Teacher, a great South Korean man died on the weekend."

It's anything but emotionless, and the facts and theories are so confused that it seems that no one really knows up from down. A week and a half ago, I was unmoved by the article I read on cbc.ca. So some guy accepts bribes, kills himself to avoid the consequences... and? And, what?

And now, I feel compassion for that man. I feel for his family, and for the Koreans that saw the chance for a brighter future in him, even if they did only see him that way due to the tragic way his life came to an end. I feel compassion for anyone who feels that their lives are no longer worth living. Its so easy to forget that corrupt politicians on the other side of the world really are people to, and that even in their corruption they still have redeeming qualities and people who care about them. I would do myself well to keep that in mind more often.

Laura at the Monastery

A few weeks ago some people from church and I went on a journey. A very long journey which involved me leaving home on Friday morning, and only finally getting to my house on Sunday afternoon. Yikes! That sounds more dramatic than it actually was -- to be honest, the journey really only happened on Saturday. But, I digress... the most important point in all of this drivel is that we went far outside the city, where fresh air still exists in Korea, and visited a beautiful orthodox monastery. It was amazing.

After spending the evening in a neighbouring city, Incheon with my friend Stephanie because it was much closer to the bus station than my house, we (Stephanie and I) woke up early Saturday morning, met her student Jason and then headed for the bus station where we met the other people who were going with us. After a few hours on the bus, and quite some time in a taxi we still had a little bit of a hike ahead of us, but its been so long since I've seen nature here in Seoul, that I was more than up for the change of pace.

Did you know that they have dirt roads in Korea? And forests!?

Beautiful!

Stephanie and Jason

Constantin and other boys.

Once we got there the monastery was absolutely beautiful. All trees and flowers and green-ness and nature... can you tell what I've been missing during my time in the city?



The monastery is home to the Orthodox Bishop of Korea, Ambrosios, as well as a few nuns. There was a little bit of a party going on there that day and so they had a huge tent set up outside that was filled with people and food. I was mostly just happy to breathe the fresh air and see not-city for a while.

And then, as if we hadn't already availed of a wide enough variety of transportation to get to the monastery in the first place -- subway, walking, taxi, bus -- we finally got the train back home. What a day!