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!