Christmas in Ulsan

Merry Christmas!

This year the holidays have been a little different than they have been in the past. Christmas in Korea is very interesting. Stores go all out with decorating the inside and outside of their businesses along with playing Christmas music that is typically in English. You see this especially downtown. Many Koreans follow the western tradition of gift giving, but with many non-Christians here it is not celebrated like in Canada.  

Christmas eve was a fun day as I gave my co-workers their gifts and we had a games day at the academy. It was a little funny how we all got together and planned various games but after all was said and done we pretty much just played limbo and the zombie game. The kids had a really good time and the director, Jenny, made a dish called ddeokbokki, which is basically ramen noodles, rice cakes, fish cakes, and cabbage in a spicy sauce. It probably doesn't sound too appetizing but it is actually delicious. My 6:30pm class of boys wanted me to take them to the park to play tag because I took them about a month ago and now they always want to play it. Jenny said it's because they are not used to a teacher who will take them outside and actually play with them. Anyways we went and it was a lot of fun. I was wearing the wrong footwear but I still managed to catch a few of them. I would also scream and sing while chasing them so they started calling me "Crazy Teacher" hahaha. It was too funny. After work was finished, Kelly had plans for the evening and I was about to head home for a quiet evening until Jenny's son came after me insisting that I have dinner with them. I guess they felt bad I was going to be alone on Christmas eve. It was a really nice sentiment and we had a nice dinner that was pork short ribs marinated in something delicious (probably soybean based) with various side dishes. It is a type of Korean BBQ. After dinner I came home and had a quiet evening until turning in for the night. I had a plan to wake up early to call home but I slept in a little longer than planned (oops!). I did manage to talk to my dad for a short while though, which was good.

This afternoon, Kelly and I went to Samsan where we had dinner at a bistro called Black’smith. It is a very westernized place and it reminded me a lot of the Bauer Kitchen. Kelly loved that place and decided that we should get steak, pasta, and pizza to share. Apparently she wanted to roll out of there. The food was delicious. Afterwards we wanted to go see the movie Les Miserables, but the next two showings were sold out. Movie theatres are different in Korea than in Canada. There is assigned seating that you can choose from, and you can bring any kind of food or drink you want into the theatre with you. Also, it’s only about 8,000 won, which is less than $8. We decided not to wait another four hours for the movie so we went shopping instead. I spent a fair chunk of change as I have been becoming more and more aware of how few clothes I actually brought with me and how important layering is in the winter months in Korea. I also bought some fleece pajamas that fit well apart from the bottoms being about four inches too short. This made me laugh when I put them on at home. After this, Kelly had an appointment with a friend and I decided to come home. Overall it was a different Christmas, but it was nice. It was low key, which I like. Next week we are off Tuesday-Sunday and although Kelly and I were planning to go to Jeju-do Island, we weren’t able to find accommodations for the length of time we wanted, so we are still deciding what to do. We will figure it out though! I survived my first major holiday across the world from my family and friends. I think I managed pretty well. I took some more pictures of the lights in Samsan because they are so pretty. I hope everyone had a safe and happy Christmas!! Sending love from Korea!

Sunday Shopping Adventure

Today I ventured out and did a little shopping!
I ventured out to a new area of Ulsan called Seongnam-dong. It is usually referred to as "old downtown". While on the bus one of my students came on and said a quick hello. And questioned my being alone. I don't think many young adults do anything alone here. I made it to Seongnam and it was pretty cool. There were many shops and the streets were so tiny but with crowded with people and all kinds of shopping places. My mission today was to find some gifts for my co-teachers and the director and her family. I also wanted to go to this stationery/art supply store in Samsan to get supplies so the kids can make Christmas cards this week. I went to the bus stop to wait for the bus that would take me to Samsan from Seongnam but it ended up driving right passed me so instead of waiting another half hour I decided to walk there. This took me about an hour and I was a little lost. For some reason it escaped my mind that I packed a map of Ulsan in my purse... While on my walk a small dog started to follow me for about a mile and he was so cute! I had to take his picture. After a while I was starting to think that I was walking a little too far and if I was going the wrong way it would take a great deal of time to find my way back where I came. However, the next street was labeled Samsan-ri. I did it. My usual lack of directionality was not evident for one. I found the stationery store and was in heaven as it was 4 levels. I was able to find red and green paper but there wasn't much else Christmas-y. We will figure it out tomorrow though. I ended up spending about 50,000 won there after all was said and done but it was worth it. I managed to find gifts for my co-teachers but still nothing for my director. I was able to buy myself a few items as well (of course). One thing that I love and have bought a few of it scrunchies. These are seen as a thing of the past back home in Canada but they are quite popular here in Korea and I am in love. I also got myself some warm socks and an infinity scarf, or what they refer to as a "muffler". Eventually I made my way back home to make some dinner but was happy to see some nicely lit trees before leaving that put me in a good mood.

One Month In...

I have been here over a month now!
Time really flies. I am starting to settle in nicely and it is starting to feel like home.

This week went by pretty quickly but I have to say that I am happy it is over. We did "Class Arrangement" or "Class Placement" testing. I covered the interview (speaking) portion of the testing and was surprised in both good ways and bad. Some of the students who did really well I expected the opposite and those who did poorly I had high hopes for. Overall the speaking level of the students is lower than we would like. This is the same for the writing assessment. This depressed me a little bit and had me questioning my teaching style and looking online at resources for any assistance in improving my teaching ability. I expressed my feelings to my director and she told me not to let it get to me as I have only been there for a month but that she needs to look at how the classes are structured and how to improve her own teaching and the other teachers' as well. We are looking at introducing new books where all skills will be addressed using one central topic. Currently we use many different books with a wide range of topics. This could be what is causing the students to struggle. We will have more meetings to discuss this.

Unfortunately last weekend I was quite ill and stayed in bed for most of it. My roommate was amazing through this and made me rice soup along with pumping tons of vitamin C into my body through clémentines and various drink concoctions. She was like my surrogate mom when I really wanted my mamma haha. On Thursday after the arrangement testing was finished and we had discussed a little about the results and some solutions we went out to dinner and to a norebang (karaoke room) afterwards. This is always fun and my co-teacher Eric and I sant the song "A whole new world" from the movie Aladdin together. It was hilarious. It loosened us up after the week we had.

Today I had planned to go downtown and do some shopping and get some supplies for teaching this week as I want to do some christmas activities with the students. I found out there is a 4-level stationery store downtown that could be very dangerous yet amazing. I am still having problems falling asleep at a decent hour and was up until about 6am and slept until almost 3 so that didn't happen. Tomorrow I will go though and experience that store and downtown in all its glory. Its supposed to be sunny too so that will be a bonus.

Next week we have Wednesday off as people don't go to work on election day which will be nice. Kelly and I are going to take Jenny's kids to the movies. Should be fun!

Happy Day = Happy Emma!

Today I had a REALLY good day. I thought I would share it.

It started off with getting up early to go with my director to Busan to declare my passport lost/stolen (still not sure what the hell happened) and to apply for a new one. This was fairly painless. We go a little lost in Busan but that turned into a brief tour of the city so all was good. Busan is really pretty and I plan to go back, maybe in the spring/summer. I hear it's only 45 minutes on the train from here. All the driving we did was a good opportunity for me and Jenny to talk and get to know each other more. I feel very comfortable with her and she opened up to me which was nice. She didn't seem like my boss which is a nice feeling. Coming home from Busan gave me the feeling of "home sweet home" for the first time which was a really good feeling. It still doesn't beat Kitchener but I am definitely starting to feel comfortable here. The trip to Busan also made me appreciate that I chose to come to a smaller town. With downtown Ulsan a bus ride away it really is nice. When we got back I took Jenny out for lunch to show my appreciation for taking me to the Canadian Consulate. We went to the Japanese place that is literally 20 paces from my apartment. It was quite good. A different experience from our Ye's back home. It was simply better haha. and the price was significantly less.

Teaching today was also good. After having an odd schedule for the last couple weeks, I am finally back to my regular classes which means I get to see all the kids again. My first class was full with 12 students and it was quite a riot. I like to get them to say words in English and then have them teach me what it is in Korean. The kids love it too. This one student, Jackson, was in a silly mood today and laughed uncontrollably at my pronunciation. Just thinking about this is making me laugh a little because he has the most infectious laugh. Eventually we were all laughing and had a pretty silly class. My second class was with younger students and they are always so cute. We were working on telling time and by the end I think they got the hang of it (yay!). Our middle school kids are having exams right now so I had two extra spares which is always nice and I finally changed my classroom's decor a little bit. Korea has an English newspaper for kids called The Kids Times and they have really cool articles about a range of topics. We had a bunch from over the years, so I flipped through them and cut out some articles on animals because the kids love them and some other articles I thought they'd enjoy and posted them on the bulletin boards in my class. I am really starting to feel comfortable which is also good! Just before leaving work I realized that I hadn't seen Jenny's daughter lately but knew she was somewhere at the school. Then I saw her and I guess she was sleeping in a vacant classroom and had just woken up. She then proceeded to come up to me and hop in my lap and cuddle for about fifteen minutes. It was incredibly cute and well needed on both ends haha.

By the end of the day I was hungry but really didn't want to make anything for dinner. Luckily about  minutes after that thought Jenny said that she would like to have dinner with everyone tonight. That worked out perfectly. It just happened to be Jenny and Crow's 14th wedding anniversary so we were all out celebrating with them. It was really nice. We went to this restaurant that was very good. We sat at a round table that had a grill in the middle and the girl serving us cooked up pork, onions, garlic, and jalapeño peppers marinated in this slightly spicy but delicious red sauce. It think this is what it is called: Daeji Bulgogi  (spicy marinated pork) 돼지불고기 It is served with lettuce for wrapping (I am pretty sure I have talked about something similar before) and various side dishes like kimchi of course and onions. I am surprised with how much spicy food and onions I have been eating that my tummy has not acted up at all. I am quite thankful actually. As an appetizer we had this amazing spicy marinated tofu. I could have eaten a ton of that stuff. I have also grown a liking to having a beer or two when we go out, but mixing soju with it. It is quite tasty and common. During dinner we chatted about all kinds of things and our server was super cute and said that she wanted to learn some English because she plans to go to New Zealand soon. Crow asked a lot of questions about Canada which was nice. I always appreciate when they try their English with me, just like the appreciate when I try using Korean. I can ask for water at a restaurant officially! haha. The are all so surprised to hear that I like to do the same things they do like bowling and sledding and skiing. Its humorous for me to see how surprised they are haha. They are also impressed how I have adjusted to eating Korean foods. I am too.

Crow came up with a really cool idea that we are going to start in the new year. Once a month we will choose on class who has behaved the most, brought their books, done their homework, and participated and Jenny and Crow will put 100,000 won ($100) in each month and on either a Saturday or Sunday, I will take that class on an outing. It might be a hike, to the movies, bowling, out for lunch, on a picnic etc. I love the idea and so does Jenny. Crow was worried that it would take away from my weekends, but it would be a lot of fun and I enjoy spending time with the kids so much anyways. This idea will also be good for business so its a win all around. Another thing that made this such a great day was that Jenny and Crow said to me that if I want to travel somewhere in Korea to let them know and if it is possible we will all go together. I think that I have this independent mind set because I travelled here on my own that I think I have to do things alone. It is nice to have them plus my roommate Kelly to do things with and ask any question that arises. I am truly grateful. After dinner we all walked to the convenience store and got coffee. I know this may sound strange but its a thing here. You purchase a cellophane wrapped cup with the mix all ready to go and once you've paid you unwrap and add hot water from a dispenser and mix 'er up and drink. I got a Mocha Cappuccino and it was quite tasty! It also warmed me up because it is hella cold here right now. Seoul got snow last night and we saw some ice here tonight. I will have to start wearing my heavy jacket and scarf. The temperature drop from afternoon to evening is so significant and I am still not quite used to it.

That was my good day. Sounds pretty awesome eh?
This didn't happen today but it is still something happy so I'll add it. The dates for my winter break have been finalized. We are off on December 25th as it is a holiday, and The 1st of January is a holiday too which is not taken away from my 8 days of vacation I get over the year. The 2-4 is my vacation. This means that Tuesday-Sunday I am a free woman! haha Kelly and I are going to go on a trip. We are thinking either Seoul or Jeju-do Island. Google Jeju Island if you can, it looks amazing. At first I said that we should go to Jeju because it looks like it will be great scenery, but Jenny suggested we go there for our summer break where we will get 5 days off. So now I am thinking Seoul for the winter break, but Kelly and I will have to talk about it :). We might have an end of 2012 party/get together on Christmas day with everyone from work since I don't have any plans. I thought it was a nice gesture on their part.

Overall I had a good day, and I am starting to really settle in which is a good feeling. I have had some doubts over the last few weeks but they are slowly dissipating which is good! Now I can enjoy Korea in all its glory!

Tip: Don't Lose Your Passport While Abroad

Yes, that's right folks, I have lost my passport. I realized this after being here for a week. Naturally panic mode set in and I tore my room apart looking for it going through every pocket and item I own. Nothing. It took me a few days but I finally had the courage to tell my director that I couldn't find it. She called Korail which is the company we rode the KTX from Seoul to Ulsan in but they hadn't found it. She also cheked her van that we rode in from Ulsan station to my apartment. Nothing.

So this is what I remember. I remember putting it into my back pocket of my jeans after customs at the Incheon airport and because I didn't sleep well on the plane and had been up for almost two days after everything was said and done my memory is a little foggy. I think I might have put it into a pocket in my suitcase which was later open but can't be sure. Finally I called the Canadian Consulate in Busan and asked them what my next steps have to be. First of all I had to go to the police station and report it lost. Thankfully Jenny offered to take me since I didn't know where it was and knew conversing would be difficult. Then I had to get new passport photos because the ones I have from when I was applying to teach in Korea are too small. This was a mission too because they gave me the wrong size initially and I had to go back the next day and get the proper size. This meant that I had to venture there by myself before work. I mean I'm a big girl and can travel to places on my own, but it was more the directions and trying to remember how we drove there haha. Eventually I found it without getting too lost.

The paperwork that the Canadian Consulate emailed me was first the declaration of a lost or stolen travel document, and second was an application to get a new passport. I was hoping that I could simply fill out the renewal form, but unfortunately I have to go through the whole shebang as if I were getting my passport for the first time. This actually makes sense but means that I had to fill out the paper work and send it to Canada where my parents get my doctor or dentist to be a guarantor and fill out the application form and sign the back of one of my photos. From there my parents sent everything back to me and then finally I can go to the consulate to apply for my new passport!

The director of my school was kind enough to offer to drive me to Busan because she thought it would take too long if I tried by bus or train. We got lost a little bit but it turned into a tour of Busan. My first impression of Busan while driving into the city over the bridge was WOW. Busan is really beautiful and BIG. I would definitely like to go back to take pictures and wander. As much as I liked Busan, when we returned home to Onyang, I was really pleased. I had a wave of relief and the feeling of "home sweet home". This was the first time that feeling came over me and it felt nice. Driving to Busan and back was also a good amount of time for me and my director to talk and get to know each other. Everything is all set with my passport now, just have to wait for it to arrive and then go to immigration to get my visa all sorted. We are going to see if I can open my bank account and get my medical check with just a photocopy of the passport I lost. Otherwise I have to wait another three weeks for my passport to arrive which is a couple days before my winter break. Making things a little tight as I do want to go on a trip during that week so a bank account is necessary. All in all, I think I am on the smooth sailing part of the process.

Now that this is all said and done, it seems simpler and not a big deal, but the time that I didn't have my passport was rough and really ate at me. I didn't like the feeling at all. BUT that's in the past! :)

Weekend Numero 3

Hello!

So I seem to be making blog posts on a weekly basis right now. I hope that is enough for my readers out there, and if not I guess that's just too bad! haha

I just had my third weekend here in Namchang and it was pretty good. Thursday night I met a few of the other foreigners or "waygooks" that are here. Three of them and I met up and walked around until they picked a restaurant that they liked. This place was pretty nice and had some westernized food. All of the foreigners are from America originally and have all been here for varying amounts of time. Zac has been here the longest with just over a year. He also knows the most Korean which comes in handy. He works at the local Middle School. Joe has been here for about 9 months and works at an Elementary School. And Soma is the last one that I met and he has been here for about 5 months. He works at a Hagwon or Private Academy like I do. They are all pretty nice and were able to welcome me to this city nicely in English. They were also great for easing some of my worries that I was feeling as a foreigner because they felt the same at one point. It will be nice to spend some time with them as my time here progresses.

Friday night was pretty quiet. I did some shopping at the larger grocery store in our area and then made dinner. After that I talked with my parents and some friends over Skype. I also called a friend since it was her birthday. It was really great to hear her voice. My plan was to go to sleep earlier that night as I wanted to get up early and venture out. I ended up staying up super late again (grr) but I set an alarm so that I would still get up. By noon on Saturday I was out of the house and walking to the bus stop. I wanted to check out the Costco that is here. It was quite the journey. I took two buses and had to make sure I got off at the right stop in order to transfer. I checked it out the night before on the map (thank you google maps!). I made it to Costco a little over an hour later and when I stepped through the doors I thought I had teleported home somehow. This Costco looked almost identical to the ones back home. It was great. It was also great that my membership from home works here. The place was a zoo with it being a Saturday afternoon and so close to Christmas. I didn't walk through the whole thing but here are some things worth mentioning. Beauty products such as shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, anything for the face should be bought here because they are a fraction of the price and there are more varieties than at the grocery store. There were many kinds of chocolate and goodies from back home as well which was comforting but I was good and didn't buy anything bad! Electronics there were priced significantly lower than back home. I read up before leaving and was told the opposite but oh well. The biggest difference between the Costco here and home is that they sell alcohol. After all was said and done I walked out of there with a ridiculous amount of white board markers and my favourite cereal from back home. I realized that I did not plan this as well as I could have as I didn't bring my knapsack and I had to take everything I bought on the bus...hence only buying two items.

After leaving Costco, there was a LotteMart beside it that I checked out. I knew I wanted to buy a toaster and a second set of bedding. We don't own a dryer and everything is hung dry which takes a while so a second set of bedding it necessary. The LotteMart was a very large department store with about 5 levels. There was even a Toys'R'Us inside. I was able to find a toaster no problem. Finding bedding was a little more challenging but I got there eventually and the ladies helping me were absolutely great. I pointed to the display bed to let them know what pieces I was looking for and then they showed me the varieties and colours I could choose from. I ended up with this pretty vibrant pink duvet cover with two white cat silhouettes on the front and lime green on the back. It might be meant for a kids bed but I like it nonetheless. It also brings colour to my room and it is pretty white and boring. I need to find posters to put up or something. After all my shopping was done I had quite the haul to bring back with me on the bus. Eventually I made it home and then received a text message from Soma asking if I wanted to meet him and Zac for dinner. We went to this cool place and had a variation of Korean Barbecue. We also had this amazing soup that was delicious and then I realized there was squid in it...and the thing was that it actually looked like squid too, which freaked me out a little bit. However, I "manned up" and decided not to think about it and ate it and did like it. I also tried a little octopus which wasn't too bad either. I actually haven't had anything I haven't liked yet which is good. After dinner we went to a cafe that is a chain here called Paris Baguette. They have tasty treats and good coffee. We played this language game while there that was pretty fun. It's a little complicated to explain but basically you try to communicate with using only Korean or sign language. No English. I wasn't sure how I would do it but we played for a while and it ended up being fun!

Some of the other foreigners were meeting to go to a new bar that opened downtown called JJ's, but I decided against it as I wanted a calm evening and did some chores at home. Sunday was pretty lazy. I caught up on some tv shows and worked on learning some Korean. Its funny how excited my students get when I say anything in Korean.

Here I am awake at almost 3am again...blast! I will get this sleeping thing under control eventually.

Next weekend I am going with Kelly to her friend's wedding and to the director's house to learn how to make kimchi. Should be fun!