Eat, Pray, Love: July 2014

This title probably sounds funny since I have been here for over 5 months. However, this past month there were a lot of firsts! I say this every time but wow, time (and this year-holy cow it is nearly August!) is flying by!!!

The World Cup-it was awesome to watch it since I am a fan of the game BUT waking up super early for games was not the easiest. Especially when we didn't win :( BUT the USA did great-I already am excited for the next World Cup!!

4th of July-well this is the 2nd time I have celebrated America's bday in another country. The last time I was 20 and was on a pub crawl in Rome. Good times :) My friends and I decided to head to the beach. What says Happy Bday USA better than the beach, fireworks and some baseball?! Let's start with the fireworks-slight fiasco. My Irish neighbor here had never touched fireworks before...well this 4th of July will be one to always remember...since he nearly killed a Korean family. No joke, he hit the dad on the head. It wasn't pretty (and it wasn't intentional of course!). I did say to him WHY couldn't he have been wearing an Irish shirt or something so they didn't assume it was an American?! ;) Luckily, one of the other guys in our group went over and apologized. Meanwhile some of the group had their fireworks 'lit' and were trying to put them out-it wasn't working. I just wanted to bury myself in the sand. In the end the family was fine (they did leave in a hurry tho LOL) and we had a great time letting off birthday candles for the USA :)

Saturday we went to the beach and then the baseball game. Hands down this could be the best game I have ever been to. Last month I told you how it was the most runs scored (different team-that was the Daegu Lions) but this game-wow it was something. Busan Lotte Giants were losing by quite a bit and then came back in the bottom of the 9th and won AND from a walk off-poor pitcher for the other team! They did do something funny (no they do not do the 7th inning stretch here)-they had a competition between 2 women in the stands...a no blinking competition. So here you have these 2 ladies on the big screen and they aren't blinking-I think it went on for over 2 mins. One of the ladies was sitting in front of our group so of course we tried (and succeeded) getting on the big screen behind her. The stadium in Busan is just gorgeous-I love it!!

So here are some of the 'firsts' for my Korean adventure:

My first time playing soccer in years, and here with my kiddos, sooo much fun!!! It was probably one of the best things I have done since being here. It was a reminder of why I am here-sure I want the kids to learn English. BUT by playing with them and having fun it makes them open up to me more, and in the long run, hopefully be more excited to learn and practice their English.

My first 6 course meal in Korea (HBD Jen!) maybe my first 6 course meal ever? {hmmm thinking back to the prom days haha} Jen had told us all about this restaurant and it was so good-they change their menu every month and offer yummy courses. The opening 'soup' I wasn't a fan of BUT everything else was really good! I can't wait to go back next month for a new menu.

First Korean massage...and the bruises to make ya wonder if it was a beating! So, let's just say that it wasn't the most relaxing massage I have ever gotten. I have had massages in other countries before and the language barrier isn't a problem BUT this was just a whole different experience. I was sore for days. The funny part is the lady wanted me to 'buy a special 10 pack' and I was like oh heck no! My co-teacher asked me the next day how it was, because she had warned me about a few different things they do, and I told her it was different! And that I wanted to try out other places for future ;) Really hoping I can find a good place that doesn't leave a mark!

First co-teacher dinner and first time having Shabu-shabu DELICIOUS (I have now had it 2 times-had it with Elsa and Lauren this past wkend when checking out their cute town!). I am a fan of this and look forward to many more meals with friends here, and when friends and family visit me too!

First time to a temple (and finished my lunch there-miracle!) The cultural field trips that I signed up for (went to the large market last month) took us to Donghwasa Temple which is near Mt. Palgongsan and it was GORGEOUS! I was kinda freaking out b/c the 'word on the street' was you had to finish your food AND clean your plate with a piece of kimchi (so not a fan!) and then rinse it with water and drink that (they do not believe in waste). Well, luckily none of that happened to me, or maybe this temple is 'touristy' enough that they don't do that whole process. I let out a sigh of relief when I saw that we got to wash our dishes in the back. Score! After lunch we went and walked around the grounds and were shown how to conduct a proper tea ceremony-it was really interesting. We also were showed the proper way to bow. After the temple visit we went back to the Art Gallery (where we always meet for these cultural field trips) and had another concert with local artists playing some awesome instrument that I have never seen-these women were talented. It was beautiful and really relaxing. A great Saturday :)

First time making hummus-and it came out okay! Woohoo ;) *Jade totally thought of you when you made it years ago for me

First time doing Insanity workout-ouch is all I can say :) It is better to do insanity in my apartment (or 'apart' as Koreans say-yes this is another cultural difference-they do not say apartment, for some reason 'ment' is left off the word) than working out at a hot gym with no AC though...b/c I can blast the AC in my place!

First Chicken & Beer Festival (Chimac) at Duryu Park (and first time visiting the park!) So the Chimac festival was cool-I went with a few friends on a Friday night and luckily we missed the rain-yay! I will never understand people who wait in line for HOURS for one free piece of chicken though. We decided to go right next to that line and buy a basket (see below) for a whole $10 TOTAL. It was a muggy and warm night so the cold beer was very refreshing! We also got to take a picture with the Chimac 'men' ;) I don't even know-I just take pics to capture all these moments!

First time taking swing dance lessons (and dance lessons in Korea!) This has been a ton of fun. I was kinda nervous going into it-since I was the only foreigner. Clearly you don't need to 'talk' to dance-you can watch the motions, etc. BUT there are times when they are giving an instruction and I am like 'what is going on?!' haha luckily I have my young co-teacher there (well the first week she was) and she translated when necessary. After the class was over we all went out for chicken and beer-a Korean staple. When we did introductions they all clapped b/c I can introduce myself in Korean-it was cute. The 2nd week I went and my co-t couldn't make it. So luckily her friend was there and did the minimal translating required. Everyone is really excited that I am there-which makes me excited to be there. I left to meet friends for dinner and everyone was like 'where are you going?' I reassured them and said I would be back the following week and would stay for 'free time' when you can just practice what you learned in class and hang out.

Finished my first semester teaching ESL-wow!!! I can't even describe this feeling-part of me feels like it flew by, but there are times when it seemed to drag too! I will say that I cannot believe how much I have learned this last semester. Not only about teaching, but about myself too! I am excited to see what 2nd semester will teach me-both in the classroom and in life!

Another English Festival-so fun! The kids really enjoyed it and it was a nice treat to the end of the semester (for both the teachers AND the students!) We made Oreo Dirt Pie-it was interesting b/c they use yogurt instead of pudding...I wasn't a fan but the kids were! (and that is what matters!) I will also say that I had way too many oreos that week hahaha

Went to visit my friend Elsa in her town, Buksam, about an hour away. It was awesome b/c I was able to figure out the train and navigate it all by myself-it makes you feel like you are FINALLY really living somewhere when you can accomplish that! Elsa's town was awesome-I was thinking it would be more 'country' and we both laugh that the Koreans say she is out in the country b/c it still has a 'city' vibe to it. Maybe not lots of the big stores, etc. we have in Daegu-but I was imagining one street going through town with trees and green grass on the side hahaha NOT the case. It was gorgeous to see the mountains in her backyard-we are all planning a hike when it cools off late September! And, when we were walking to lunch I passed so many gardens and rice fields-that makes her town feel like a small town for sure! It was awesome having a day trip to see another side of Korea!

The weather here-some of you have asked me 'is it hot there' and the answer is YES haha We all know that I love the heat-I can lay out all day, any day, and LOVE it. There is a difference though when you can a) jump into a pool/lake to cool off b) wear clothing that is revealing (i.e. cooler than being covered up) & c) have AC on during heat like this. So clearly a & b do not happen here. A few of us were talking the other day about the clothing that is worn by Koreans with this heat and a majority of them are covered up-I look at them and just start to sweat! There is AC in my classroom BUT it is frowned to use it too much-which is why they keep the windows open (see below about no screens and the wasp problem!) BUT this girl needs the AC on if it is this darn humid. To give y'all an idea the weather in the summer here (and especially where I am in Daegu) was 93 yesterday AND 75% humidity during the day. To paint a picture for all of you that don't know what the humidity is near you I did some research (of course I did!) and in the 209 (mom/dad/siblings/hometown friends) the humidity is usually in the 20% range (yes you read that correct). For my Texas friends your humidity (which you prob already know this) is around what I have-it all varies of course! But can go from 50-80%. I thought it was super interesting that it gets MORE humid in the evenings...the things I am learning :) Yesterday was a beast though, there have been a few really rough days and yesterday was for sure one of them!

Sometimes I get overwhelmed...overwhelmed that I am really teaching English in South Korea, overwhelmed that I took a leap of faith and landed on my feet and get this opportunity, overwhelmed by the amazing & supportive family and friends I have. Most of all though, overwhelmed that this is really a chapter in my life. I feel so lucky and so blessed.

Cultural Differences:

Shoulder holes in shirts? Not really sure about this...I mean, you are discouraged to show your shoulders and definitely NO cleavage/chest area but they ALL wear these shirts that have the cut-out on the shoulder (but then a sleeve going past that).
Yellow hair (blonde) My students, and co-teachers, call anyone that is 'blonde' yellow haired. It is HILARIOUS.
This article is really interesting-it shows you how the Korean students feel about their education system. I highly encourage you to check it out. http://iamkoream.com/what-south-korean-students-really-think-about-their-education-system/
First hug in Korea-from a Korean! I was in shock-I got a hug from a Korean, and not even one I am super close with-one that I had only met once. You all do NOT get it but that is a huge thing here! *Darrell totally thought of you when you warned your Korean friend you were going to hug her
Chasing wasps out of the classroom-no screens on windows...well this week was eventful! While trying to plan for my camps I also got to chase/scoot some wasps out the windows that were open (b/c in the morning it wasn't too hot so didn't put air on right away). Well, that was when I noticed the wasp NEST right outside my window. It all makes sense now-I mean, we get a wasp weekly in the classroom (which I still do NOT understand why we just can't have screens-would make it all easier esp. since they don't like to run AC often). I told my Dean of Students b/c he was also at school (remember there are only like 5 of us here right now during 'summer' break) and he also speaks fairly good English. So, he came up to my classroom and I think he might've thought I was exaggerating at first...and then he saw the nest! Then he called the Firemen to come out and get rid of the nest and they sprayed poison in my classroom and around the window (picture below-yes of course I took a picture of this! They probably thought I was crazy but way too great of a story to let this pass me by!).

My friends and I checked out a cute new ice cream shop last weekend. Fell in love with this sign, isn't this the truth?!

You can't buy happiness, but you can buy ice cream. And that's kind of the same thing. ~Sally's Law

Wishing you all an ice cream filled summer full of happiness :)

Milkshakes with cotton candy on top-Sally's Law

Future job ;)

It was really hard to make them stop for a picture!

Happy Birthday Jen! Love celebrating so many bdays here!!!

Gorgeous temple

Nature-so gorgeous!

Hayley and me with the biggest Buddha in Korea behind us

Tea ceremony and a monk came in to say hello

I cleaned my plate-that is a first for me here!

Had burgers and fries delivered for my advanced after school kiddos-I think the delivery guys think I am crazy for taking pics!

English Festival-kids loved it!

Kids being kids! Love it :)

Last week of school

Adorable 2nd graders (not my students but came by to say 'hi' to me!)

Swing Class!

Action shot during 'free time' where we practice dancing with anyone in the class. It is like 7th grade all over again-girls on one side and boys on the other. Hilarious!