March 14, 2010
Well I am sitting here on a Sunday afternoon trying to motivate myself to do something productive such as learning/practicing Korean or studying Hinduism or Buddhism or plan for my upcoming adult English classes yet I am not doing any of that. Instead I spent all morning watching episode after episode of Scrubs (still one of my favorite shows of all time) enjoying both its humor and its thoughtfulness. It’s a show that almost makes me feel like I am talking to someone about some of the deeper issues of life, which is something I just cannot due here. We simply don’t have the vocabulary for it. Then I just went for what amounted to an hour and a half walk around the city trying to get my bearings about where I am. My sense of direction is still fairly good. I walked in and out multiple streets but ended up right back at home without returning down the same path I had come. Still the hardest thing about walking around here is the for the most part I still don’t have a clue about what stores or restaurants are around me. It is just sign after sign after sign written in Korean and if I cannot see into the store I really have no clue what goes on in each building. I believe part of my motivation struggles today surround the numerous logistical problems that I still face trying to get settled in here.
Before I came my contacts had told me that when I showed up I would need to have a physical testing my health and making sure I didn't have various illnesses or diseases. Then after taking this physical I would need to apply for an Alien Registration Card (ARC) allowing me to then set up various services such as banking, internet and cell phone service. In particular the school told me that after I had my bank account set up they would deposit some a stipend to help me get through the month and then they would use direct deposit for my salary. All of this sounded just great but since arriving I have found that like many things these steps have not been as simple as they were advertised.
First I paid for my physical and had to wait 3 days for the results. After getting the results I went to the registration office to get my ARC only to find out that I had not been given the proper tests with my physical and would have to go back to the hospital. So I returned to the hospital and paid again for a new physical and had to again wait 3 days for the results. I then returned to the registration office to discover that the ARC was going to take at least 2 weeks to process and received. That meant I would not have my ARC until around March 23rd. So until March 23rd I would not be able to have any phone or internet service and most importantly I would not have a bank account. Living off of the cash I had arrived with was going just fine when I thought I would be getting a bank account soon along with more money but now I was looking at weeks before I would have access to new funds. My friends at the school understood the problem and talked to the administration and were able to get them to give me the stipend they had promised in the form of cash. When I got that cash it was a large weight off my shoulders and everything seemed like it would work out just fine I would just have to wait for phone and internet service.
On Friday I came home and found a yellow slip of paper in my mail box. I had not received any mail yet. Junk mail did not seem to exist here and my family couldn't send anything because I still have not figured out my address. I have asked three people and have been given a different one each time and none of my internet searches have been able to locate any of the addresses I have been given, a logistic annoyance in and of itself. Now it didn't take long to figure out the yellow slip was a bill even though I could not read anything it said. But as I examined the bill two things were very clear first was the amount that was due. It is around 55 American dollars. The second thing was the due date, which was March 22nd. The first concern I had was trying to figure out how to pay this bill I had no idea how that worked here but knew if it was anything like at home a bank account would be fairly important. Then as I examined the bill closer I did notice a few other things. There was no name on the bill it was simply attached to the room number and at first that didn't seem like a big deal but then I started looking at all the numbers that led to the total bill. Some of the numbers were in a large red box and were then added to another number leading to the total amount of the bill. There was also a chart showing the amount of power that had been used each month for the last year and I saw how much power had been used last month. It then seemed fairly clear that the bill included months I had not been here. The teacher who had lived here before me had left me not only numerous household objects and chores but at least one of her utility bills as well. There was no way for me to confirm this as true yet so I just waited and tried not to get to antsy.
The next day I got to see Seo and her family. We all played in the park. Jong Woo and I played some baseball, soccer and basketball all of which was very fun. Then we had lunch at my place and I showed Seo the bill and she confirmed what I had thought. She said that the bill was for the time before I was here and she told me that if the bill isn't paid this time they will shut off the power. So I asked her how I could pay the bill. She studied all the writing and said that it seems like the only way to pay was with a credit/debt card or a check. So now I am sitting with a bill that has to be paid by the 22nd from my bank account which I can't even think about getting until the 24th and if it isn’t paid then my gas shall be turned off. On top of this pay day is the 17th but again with no bank account the best I can hope for is cash, which while useful in buying day to day things does not help in anyway with the gas bill and whatever other bills will soon be showing up.
Like so many things that have happened since I got here there is nothing I can do except wait and hope other people figure it out. But I can’t help but sit here and be nervous as well as upset. First and foremost upset with the previous teacher who seemed to have no thought about all the junk she had left behind for me to clean up and throw away and now the complete stupidity or worse intentional apathy it took to not pay her bills and leaving them to me. Next I was upset at the billing system that allowed a bill to be attached simply to an apartment and not to a name. It makes whoever is in the apartment responsible for the bill no matter who had previously lived there the month before. I honestly wondered if this was just a normal expense here when moving into a new place. Who would pay their last bill if they didn't have to? And of course I am just frustrated with the overall situation here where I am in a place where I can't really communicate clearly with anyone and therefore have no real way of explaining any of my concerns or understanding any of their solutions.
It's not even 3pm so I still have a lot of time to get some worthwhile stuff done but will I? Honestly, probably not. Music and movies seem to be the only two things that can keep my mind from thinking (worrying) intensely. When I try to read or study I find myself just lost in my head trying to figure out a way to stave off my fears and desire to go home especially sense I know home is not an option. I have this odd feeling that I am going to come to be completely comfortable here in Korea and enjoy living here but I also have the feeling that will occur around week 49 or 50 of my 52 week stay here. Ah, nothing like unbridled optimism on a Sunday afternoon.
But just so as not to end this blog on too down note I was taken to Costco by my co-teacher and able to buy some large amounts of soda. One of the packs I got was of Dr. Pepper. It was in the regular 12 ounce cans which is a large part of why I bought it instead of the Red Bull sized Diet Cokes. When I got it home and had one I found it actually tasted like Dr. Pepper. I couldn't believe it. There was no weird after taste or slightly different flavor it was actually Dr. Pepper. The key now is not to down all 30 cans too quickly. But when I have one it does have a way of making me feel better despite knowing that I am taking in calories again having left my diet coke behind. But since I did not know what I was getting when I was buying the Dr. Pepper I did also get a pack of Coke Zero. My co-teacher's wife laughed at me when I bought it apparently diet soda is seen more as a woman's drink here. Oh well I am trying to watch my figure.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Social Fears and Fresh Water Eels
March 11, 2010
Well I just got home from my first night out with “the guys” and I think it went pretty well but let’s start from the beginning. Earlier in the day my co-teacher, Choi told me that at 4pm we would be playing volleyball with the other male teachers and then be going out to dinner. Now for the last week Choi has been having me practice volleyball with him in the gym after lunch. I found out that the teachers have a volleyball team that plays against other schools and they seem to take it fairly seriously The first time Choi and I played together he seemed excited and thought that I was pretty good. I haven’t played volleyball in a long time so I was surprised that I could be considered good by anyone. Choi told me that the principle and some of the other teachers were glad I was a man because they thought I could help their volleyball team. The previous teacher was a woman and apparently she was not very good at volleyball. Needless to say, while this was all somewhat funny I found myself beginning to feel the pressure of needing to perform well in volleyball in order to impress my co-workers. I couldn't talk to them so my actions are really all I have and they wouldn't need to speak English in order to see if I am any good at volleyball.
So at four that afternoon we went down to the gym and as I walked in the nets were already being put up and there were ten other guys there. Shortly after me another teacher showed up so we had an even six-on-six game. At first we just warmed up and banged the ball around so no harm no foul for bad shots but then it was time for the game to begin. There was lots of talking just like any normal sports game between friends but of course I had no idea what was being said. I was lined up next to the net on the left side and right across from me was the vice principle. The vice principle was a nice man but also one whom I was very careful to bow to and try to be clearly respectful. So I didn't really know what to do with him standing there across from me and it didn't take long to realize he was one of the best players on his team. But my highlight of the game came early within the first five points when someone set up the vice principle for a spike and I jumped up and blocked the ball right back into him. Now I'm not pretending I jumped amazingly high or anything like that really all that happened was I saw where he was going with the ball and I got there in time to block it. But all of the sudden my entire team shouted and cheered and everyone came over to give me a high five. Most of them couldn't speak English and of course I cannot speak Korean but in that moment it felt like I had just made five new friends. Now the rest of the game proceeded fairly normally. There were some differences I found in their style of volleyball compared to how I was taught to play. First the positions never rotated. Everyone stayed where they were. The only problem this created was the same three or four players on each team got most of the playing time. I was in a spot that did not get a lot of action so I spent most of the game watching. The other thing was that they counted points on every possession no matter who served. I was used to the idea that only the team serving could score. This didn't matter to me at all but it did make the game go faster.
We played a couple of games and then it was time for dinner. So I had made it through the first test fairly easily but now came the hard part for me, socializing. We all went to a restaurant and my co-teacher Choi asked me if I liked eel? Koreans call it Jangan (fresh water eel). I told him I had never had it and he said I was about to and he pointed at a tank near our table where there where live eels swimming around just waiting to be “chosen.” I tried not to let the idea of eel bother me and reminded myself that everything I had eaten so far had been good. I mean if people here like eating it there must be a reason. But before any food was brought to the table drinks were ordered. Large bottles of beer and another alcoholic drink called Soju were placed on the table and people began pouring drinks for one another. The drinks were of great concern to me, far more than the food. Was I allowed to refuse the drink without coming across as disrespectful? What do I tell them if they ask why I don't drink? I mean I don't really have a specific reason anymore I just don't drink. Part of me thought I should just go for it but then part of me thought that a Thursday night before another school day with a group of co-workers most of whom do not speak English might not be the best place to have my first real drinking experience since college. I had been told my co-teacher was a big drinker and I soon found that to be true. He poured me a glass of beer and everyone raised their glasses and started making toasts and touching their glasses together. I touched every ones' glasses and then took a very tiny sip of my beer and kind of like I thought it just did not taste good. I tried to fill my shot glass with water since it looked the Soju. The problem was that you weren't supposed to pour your own drink so anytime my glass was empty someone immediately went to fill it again but with Soju. I finally said no thank you to enough people that they realized I wasn't going to drink. They all seemed fine with it but they did want to know why. I didn't really come up with anything good to say so I tried to use my seizures as an excuse but that didn't really work because no one could understand what I was trying to say. The word seizure just sounded like scissors to them and when I tried to explain it as a brain problem they kind of got it but eventually both sides kind of gave up and just okay. One of the head teachers ordered a coke and brought it over to me and I instantly accepted that gift and they used the coke to fill my shot glass allowing me to participate in all the toasts. I was amazed at all the toasting that they did. During the night everyone kept switching seats so they could drink with a different person and raise a glass with them. I think I was the only person who never moved. And because of that fact I spent a good deal of the night away from Choi and with other teachers who spoke very little English.
Next came the food. The tables came with holes in the middle of them where a container of burning coals was placed and a grill was put on top of it. Right of the bat I liked this because it made the table very warm and you can never go wrong with warm. Waitresses then brought over multiple side dishes and various sauces. I tried most of the sauces and like them all. One in particular, which kind of looked like a marinara sauce. It was fairly spicy, almost like salsa. It was called Ssamjang. The main ingredient of the sauce was chili pepper paste and of course I like that. There was also a type of soy sauce mixed with another item, it was green and I think it was some type of mustard. Then before I knew it the waitresses began placing large pieces of eel on the grills right in front of us. The eels had been sliced open and skinned. If I had not been told what I was looking at to look at I would have just thought it was some type of fish. After it had cooked for a bit the waitress cut up the eel into smaller pieces and let them cook further. Then came the moment of truth, everyone began grabbing the cooked pieces of eel and dipping them in sauces or wrapping them in lettuce or whatever else they liked. My co-teacher had me take a piece and put it in some kind of leaf with some ginger, a pepper and the ssamjang and I ate it. I wasn't sure about the pepper but everything else I really liked. So I grabbed a second piece and did it again and before I knew it I was just going to town and trying eel with all sorts of different sauces and discovering numerous tastes I had never tasted before. It didn't take long for me to say that this was the best meal I had had since coming to Korea. The eel meat was just great and all the sauces and veggies were perfect. Then came the second dish. They took some kind of meat and began cooking. My co-teacher gave me a piece to eat. I asked what it was but he did not want to tell me so I just ate it. It was kind of chewy but it tasted just fine kind of like ham. I did not like it as much as the eel but it was good. Then Choi told me what it was. It was grilled pig intestines called Makchang. I just kind of laughed. The chewy part was the inside of the intestines. I don't know what I would have thought if Choi had told me that before I had eaten it but I bet he was right not to tell me. After having my first piece I went back for more. I also had some soup. Koreans really know how to make good soup. There hasn't been a soup yet that I haven't thought was great and they have soup with every meal.
The other teachers were very friendly and after Choi moved another guy named Kwon sat down and began trying to talk to me and interpreting others to me. One of the teachers whose family name (last name) was Kim really liked talking. He was probably the first one I noticed getting a little drunk though after I noticed it with him I began to see it in most of the people around me. He told me that his nickname was The Bear and then he began acting like a bear to make sure I understood. I laughed and shook my head yes to let him know I understood. Kwon then asked what my nickname was. I told him that I didn't have one. They all got quiet for a second. They were all clearly thinking about what my nickname should be and then suddenly Kim looked at me and said fairly clearly Jack Sparrow and began acting like Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean. Now most of the Koreans I have introduced myself to call me Jack. Korean does not have a Z sound but I know they are talking to me and that is just fine. But when Kim called me Jack Sparrow I couldn't help but laugh in part because I had just watched Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl the night before for no particular reason. What are the odds? And Kim was very good at mimicking the gestures and body language of Jack Sparrow. So I guess I'm a pirate now. A few of the men were the teachers of the 5th and 6th graders I had been teaching English. They were laughing and telling me all the things that the kids were saying about me. How long my hair was, that I was left handed and I drank a lot during meals. (I feel like I'm drinking almost nothing, one glass a meal) But the most common thing was that the kids think I am very handsome. I asked them if that was just something girls said but they said no it was boys and girls. I was fairly certain that was the case because I had seen proof of that earlier in the day. All the kids have to keep a dialogue journal where they write short journal entries in English about something they did or saw that day and before lunch today one of the boys from class had done his journal early and wanted me to check it. He wrote about the cold weather (it snowed yesterday) and about meeting me. He described me as handsome. I guess I am really only writing this to bolster my own self-esteem and prove that it was good that I kept at least some of my hair. But should I even care that 11 and 12 year olds think I am handsome/pretty? (They say pretty too) Probably not but I do. Oh well.
(to be continued)
March 12, 2010
Around 8:30pm I spoke with Choi and asked if it would be okay if I went home. My apartment was within walking distance. He said that would be fine and I said good-bye to everyone. I thought I had stayed quite awhile and that most of them would begin leaving shortly. But today I spoke with Choi and found out they had hung out for many more hours and even gone to some other places. Choi even had a small hangover when he got to work as proof of his story. So that was my night last night. As always the men in the group were extremely nice to me but I admit that the night drags on a bit slowly when you cannot understand most of what is being said around you. Now tonight I am going to dinner again but this time with only the 5th and 6th grade teachers both men and women. Then Choi is going to take me to Costco so maybe I’ll be able to stock up on some soda there.
So it is official one week down fifty-one more to go.
Well I just got home from my first night out with “the guys” and I think it went pretty well but let’s start from the beginning. Earlier in the day my co-teacher, Choi told me that at 4pm we would be playing volleyball with the other male teachers and then be going out to dinner. Now for the last week Choi has been having me practice volleyball with him in the gym after lunch. I found out that the teachers have a volleyball team that plays against other schools and they seem to take it fairly seriously The first time Choi and I played together he seemed excited and thought that I was pretty good. I haven’t played volleyball in a long time so I was surprised that I could be considered good by anyone. Choi told me that the principle and some of the other teachers were glad I was a man because they thought I could help their volleyball team. The previous teacher was a woman and apparently she was not very good at volleyball. Needless to say, while this was all somewhat funny I found myself beginning to feel the pressure of needing to perform well in volleyball in order to impress my co-workers. I couldn't talk to them so my actions are really all I have and they wouldn't need to speak English in order to see if I am any good at volleyball.
So at four that afternoon we went down to the gym and as I walked in the nets were already being put up and there were ten other guys there. Shortly after me another teacher showed up so we had an even six-on-six game. At first we just warmed up and banged the ball around so no harm no foul for bad shots but then it was time for the game to begin. There was lots of talking just like any normal sports game between friends but of course I had no idea what was being said. I was lined up next to the net on the left side and right across from me was the vice principle. The vice principle was a nice man but also one whom I was very careful to bow to and try to be clearly respectful. So I didn't really know what to do with him standing there across from me and it didn't take long to realize he was one of the best players on his team. But my highlight of the game came early within the first five points when someone set up the vice principle for a spike and I jumped up and blocked the ball right back into him. Now I'm not pretending I jumped amazingly high or anything like that really all that happened was I saw where he was going with the ball and I got there in time to block it. But all of the sudden my entire team shouted and cheered and everyone came over to give me a high five. Most of them couldn't speak English and of course I cannot speak Korean but in that moment it felt like I had just made five new friends. Now the rest of the game proceeded fairly normally. There were some differences I found in their style of volleyball compared to how I was taught to play. First the positions never rotated. Everyone stayed where they were. The only problem this created was the same three or four players on each team got most of the playing time. I was in a spot that did not get a lot of action so I spent most of the game watching. The other thing was that they counted points on every possession no matter who served. I was used to the idea that only the team serving could score. This didn't matter to me at all but it did make the game go faster.
We played a couple of games and then it was time for dinner. So I had made it through the first test fairly easily but now came the hard part for me, socializing. We all went to a restaurant and my co-teacher Choi asked me if I liked eel? Koreans call it Jangan (fresh water eel). I told him I had never had it and he said I was about to and he pointed at a tank near our table where there where live eels swimming around just waiting to be “chosen.” I tried not to let the idea of eel bother me and reminded myself that everything I had eaten so far had been good. I mean if people here like eating it there must be a reason. But before any food was brought to the table drinks were ordered. Large bottles of beer and another alcoholic drink called Soju were placed on the table and people began pouring drinks for one another. The drinks were of great concern to me, far more than the food. Was I allowed to refuse the drink without coming across as disrespectful? What do I tell them if they ask why I don't drink? I mean I don't really have a specific reason anymore I just don't drink. Part of me thought I should just go for it but then part of me thought that a Thursday night before another school day with a group of co-workers most of whom do not speak English might not be the best place to have my first real drinking experience since college. I had been told my co-teacher was a big drinker and I soon found that to be true. He poured me a glass of beer and everyone raised their glasses and started making toasts and touching their glasses together. I touched every ones' glasses and then took a very tiny sip of my beer and kind of like I thought it just did not taste good. I tried to fill my shot glass with water since it looked the Soju. The problem was that you weren't supposed to pour your own drink so anytime my glass was empty someone immediately went to fill it again but with Soju. I finally said no thank you to enough people that they realized I wasn't going to drink. They all seemed fine with it but they did want to know why. I didn't really come up with anything good to say so I tried to use my seizures as an excuse but that didn't really work because no one could understand what I was trying to say. The word seizure just sounded like scissors to them and when I tried to explain it as a brain problem they kind of got it but eventually both sides kind of gave up and just okay. One of the head teachers ordered a coke and brought it over to me and I instantly accepted that gift and they used the coke to fill my shot glass allowing me to participate in all the toasts. I was amazed at all the toasting that they did. During the night everyone kept switching seats so they could drink with a different person and raise a glass with them. I think I was the only person who never moved. And because of that fact I spent a good deal of the night away from Choi and with other teachers who spoke very little English.
Next came the food. The tables came with holes in the middle of them where a container of burning coals was placed and a grill was put on top of it. Right of the bat I liked this because it made the table very warm and you can never go wrong with warm. Waitresses then brought over multiple side dishes and various sauces. I tried most of the sauces and like them all. One in particular, which kind of looked like a marinara sauce. It was fairly spicy, almost like salsa. It was called Ssamjang. The main ingredient of the sauce was chili pepper paste and of course I like that. There was also a type of soy sauce mixed with another item, it was green and I think it was some type of mustard. Then before I knew it the waitresses began placing large pieces of eel on the grills right in front of us. The eels had been sliced open and skinned. If I had not been told what I was looking at to look at I would have just thought it was some type of fish. After it had cooked for a bit the waitress cut up the eel into smaller pieces and let them cook further. Then came the moment of truth, everyone began grabbing the cooked pieces of eel and dipping them in sauces or wrapping them in lettuce or whatever else they liked. My co-teacher had me take a piece and put it in some kind of leaf with some ginger, a pepper and the ssamjang and I ate it. I wasn't sure about the pepper but everything else I really liked. So I grabbed a second piece and did it again and before I knew it I was just going to town and trying eel with all sorts of different sauces and discovering numerous tastes I had never tasted before. It didn't take long for me to say that this was the best meal I had had since coming to Korea. The eel meat was just great and all the sauces and veggies were perfect. Then came the second dish. They took some kind of meat and began cooking. My co-teacher gave me a piece to eat. I asked what it was but he did not want to tell me so I just ate it. It was kind of chewy but it tasted just fine kind of like ham. I did not like it as much as the eel but it was good. Then Choi told me what it was. It was grilled pig intestines called Makchang. I just kind of laughed. The chewy part was the inside of the intestines. I don't know what I would have thought if Choi had told me that before I had eaten it but I bet he was right not to tell me. After having my first piece I went back for more. I also had some soup. Koreans really know how to make good soup. There hasn't been a soup yet that I haven't thought was great and they have soup with every meal.
The other teachers were very friendly and after Choi moved another guy named Kwon sat down and began trying to talk to me and interpreting others to me. One of the teachers whose family name (last name) was Kim really liked talking. He was probably the first one I noticed getting a little drunk though after I noticed it with him I began to see it in most of the people around me. He told me that his nickname was The Bear and then he began acting like a bear to make sure I understood. I laughed and shook my head yes to let him know I understood. Kwon then asked what my nickname was. I told him that I didn't have one. They all got quiet for a second. They were all clearly thinking about what my nickname should be and then suddenly Kim looked at me and said fairly clearly Jack Sparrow and began acting like Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean. Now most of the Koreans I have introduced myself to call me Jack. Korean does not have a Z sound but I know they are talking to me and that is just fine. But when Kim called me Jack Sparrow I couldn't help but laugh in part because I had just watched Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl the night before for no particular reason. What are the odds? And Kim was very good at mimicking the gestures and body language of Jack Sparrow. So I guess I'm a pirate now. A few of the men were the teachers of the 5th and 6th graders I had been teaching English. They were laughing and telling me all the things that the kids were saying about me. How long my hair was, that I was left handed and I drank a lot during meals. (I feel like I'm drinking almost nothing, one glass a meal) But the most common thing was that the kids think I am very handsome. I asked them if that was just something girls said but they said no it was boys and girls. I was fairly certain that was the case because I had seen proof of that earlier in the day. All the kids have to keep a dialogue journal where they write short journal entries in English about something they did or saw that day and before lunch today one of the boys from class had done his journal early and wanted me to check it. He wrote about the cold weather (it snowed yesterday) and about meeting me. He described me as handsome. I guess I am really only writing this to bolster my own self-esteem and prove that it was good that I kept at least some of my hair. But should I even care that 11 and 12 year olds think I am handsome/pretty? (They say pretty too) Probably not but I do. Oh well.
(to be continued)
March 12, 2010
Around 8:30pm I spoke with Choi and asked if it would be okay if I went home. My apartment was within walking distance. He said that would be fine and I said good-bye to everyone. I thought I had stayed quite awhile and that most of them would begin leaving shortly. But today I spoke with Choi and found out they had hung out for many more hours and even gone to some other places. Choi even had a small hangover when he got to work as proof of his story. So that was my night last night. As always the men in the group were extremely nice to me but I admit that the night drags on a bit slowly when you cannot understand most of what is being said around you. Now tonight I am going to dinner again but this time with only the 5th and 6th grade teachers both men and women. Then Choi is going to take me to Costco so maybe I’ll be able to stock up on some soda there.
So it is official one week down fifty-one more to go.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Unexpected Friend
Written today: March 7, 2010
I had dinner last night with Seo and her family. When I arrived I was met by her two children. Her oldest is a boy named Jong Woo and his English name is Andy. Jong Woo is 9 years old. Her daughter’s English name is Sally but I never got to hear her Korean name. Sally is 4 years old. Right when I saw them I was nervous whether I had gone to the right apartment and of course all I could do was ask in English. I spoke slowly but Jong Woo responded quickly and said, “Yes this is the right house come on in.” He barely even had an accent he just sounded like a native English speaker and that surprised me. Soon Seo came around the corner and welcomed me into the house and introduced me to her grandmother-in-law who clearly did not know any English.
Dinner was not yet ready so I sat down and very quickly Jong Woo and Sally approached me and Jong Woo started talking to me. As we talked I found myself having the clearest conversation I had had since arriving in Korea and it was with a nine year old. He had all sorts of questions. He wanted to know about saliva and spit and what those words meant. I kind of laughed and found out he wanted to know because of Looney Tunes and Daffy Duck who spits a lot. He also asked about things like the possessive and genitive cases which really took me by surprise. I soon started asking him questions about Korean and he took me over to the table and began writing down words for me in English and then spelling them out phonetically using the English alphabet and then writing them in Korean. We went through all sorts of phrases and words and as I tried to keep up Sally kept laughing. She was nervous around me at first but soon began coming up to me to show me all sorts of things she had (toys, pencils, erasers, drawings she had made, etc).
It was then time for dinner. I sat down and Seo warned me again that I may not like the food. I started to dig in and found that I enjoyed everything she served especially the soup. I told Seo I liked it and she was glad but you could tell she still held some reservations like maybe I was just being polite. When I asked for more soup she was surprised and said, “Really! You like the soup that much?” I said yes. Apparently it was a very traditional Korean dish but even many Koreans did not like it. Her mother-in-law also laughed when I had more soup. The spiciest dish they served was made by the mother-in-law and seems to be the most common Korean food. So far it had been served with every meal. This was by far the spiciest version of it I had yet had but it was still good. They also had a beef dish and a type of pan fried noodles which were really good. Towards the end Jong Woo started bringing out books to show me some in English and some in Korean.
As Seo began to clear the table I asked if I could take some of the food home. Again surprised she said, “Of course.” Now I did not know how to properly prepare it because apparently it wasn’t as simply as throwing it in the microwave. Seo tried to explain it but I didn’t have oil yet in my house so I would need water and a large pan. I told her I didn’t know if I had a pan yet either. I had seen a small pot but I had not looked through everything in the kitchen. Seo then offered to simply cook the food longer so that I could put it in the microwave. I said thank you and told her how much that would help me.
While Seo and her mother-in-law cleaned up Jong Woo and Sally began playing with me. Jong Woo went into the other room and brought the movie Space Jam with Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes in it. I began to laugh a little. Jong Woo wanted to know why they called the movie Space Jam, what did Jam mean? I explained it to him and he immediately understood saying, “so Jam means the same things as Dunk.” “Yes,” I told him. We went into the other room with the TV and began to watch the movie for fun. As it started Jong Woo and Sally sang along with the song in the opening credits even though I don’t think they, especially Sally, knew exactly what they were singing. They put on subtitles but they put on English subtitles. Jong Woo said it helped him learn English better. As the movie went along both of them said lines right before the lines were said in the movie and Jong Woo asked a lot of questions. Most of his questions had to do with words or phrases which were used as jokes. The characters would say one thing while clearly the opposite was true. There was a scene where a man was driving Michael Jordan around in a junky old car and Michael said he could drive himself next time. The man said oh is my car too conspicuous? Michael delayed and said, “Yeah that’s it” I explained to Jong Woo what the word conspicuous meant and how the car was the opposite of conspicuous and he said, “Oh I get it,” and laughed a lot.
During this time Jong Woo’s father came home. He had been at a party that he had to attend so he was not at dinner. It became clear quickly that he did not speak English very well. Certainly not as well as Jong Woo or as well has Seo. I went back to the dining room table and chatted with Seo’s husband. I can’t remember his name right now. He said he was very glad I was able to come and that his son clearly liked me. He asked if I played tennis and I told him that I know how to play but I am not very good. He wants to play with me some time so that could be fun though I don’t have any sports clothing with me. They also asked if I like to go hiking and I told them I enjoy doing that. He also wanted to know all about where I lived in America. So I tried to explain it to him but it wasn’t quite working. I found out they had a kids’ book with a map of America and I began to point at places. He knew a lot of city names but didn’t really know where they were on the map. He asked if LA was near Washington DC or Boston and things like that. But the one place he knew instantly was Arizona because apparently the Arizona Diamondbacks have a pitcher on their team who is Korean. He was surprised I didn’t know who the player was I tried to explain that I don’t know baseball very well and that there are lots of players but you could tell he was disappointed.
As I got ready to leave Seo’s husband said he would drive me home. I told him he did not have too but it became clear quickly that no was not an option. I don’t think he was just being polite, rather I think he felt a type of obligation to me as his guest. I thanked them for dinner and went down to the car with Jong Woo and his dad. When he dropped me off I told Jong Woo that we should hang out some more. He got very excited and said, “Yeah, I could help you with you Korean and you could help me with my English.” I said that would be great. He then handed me a paper with all the Korean words I had learned that night written in English and Korean which showed me how to pronounce them. I said thank you and went inside. It was a great night. Who would have thought a nine year old boy would be the first person I felt truly connected to?
I had dinner last night with Seo and her family. When I arrived I was met by her two children. Her oldest is a boy named Jong Woo and his English name is Andy. Jong Woo is 9 years old. Her daughter’s English name is Sally but I never got to hear her Korean name. Sally is 4 years old. Right when I saw them I was nervous whether I had gone to the right apartment and of course all I could do was ask in English. I spoke slowly but Jong Woo responded quickly and said, “Yes this is the right house come on in.” He barely even had an accent he just sounded like a native English speaker and that surprised me. Soon Seo came around the corner and welcomed me into the house and introduced me to her grandmother-in-law who clearly did not know any English.
Dinner was not yet ready so I sat down and very quickly Jong Woo and Sally approached me and Jong Woo started talking to me. As we talked I found myself having the clearest conversation I had had since arriving in Korea and it was with a nine year old. He had all sorts of questions. He wanted to know about saliva and spit and what those words meant. I kind of laughed and found out he wanted to know because of Looney Tunes and Daffy Duck who spits a lot. He also asked about things like the possessive and genitive cases which really took me by surprise. I soon started asking him questions about Korean and he took me over to the table and began writing down words for me in English and then spelling them out phonetically using the English alphabet and then writing them in Korean. We went through all sorts of phrases and words and as I tried to keep up Sally kept laughing. She was nervous around me at first but soon began coming up to me to show me all sorts of things she had (toys, pencils, erasers, drawings she had made, etc).
It was then time for dinner. I sat down and Seo warned me again that I may not like the food. I started to dig in and found that I enjoyed everything she served especially the soup. I told Seo I liked it and she was glad but you could tell she still held some reservations like maybe I was just being polite. When I asked for more soup she was surprised and said, “Really! You like the soup that much?” I said yes. Apparently it was a very traditional Korean dish but even many Koreans did not like it. Her mother-in-law also laughed when I had more soup. The spiciest dish they served was made by the mother-in-law and seems to be the most common Korean food. So far it had been served with every meal. This was by far the spiciest version of it I had yet had but it was still good. They also had a beef dish and a type of pan fried noodles which were really good. Towards the end Jong Woo started bringing out books to show me some in English and some in Korean.
As Seo began to clear the table I asked if I could take some of the food home. Again surprised she said, “Of course.” Now I did not know how to properly prepare it because apparently it wasn’t as simply as throwing it in the microwave. Seo tried to explain it but I didn’t have oil yet in my house so I would need water and a large pan. I told her I didn’t know if I had a pan yet either. I had seen a small pot but I had not looked through everything in the kitchen. Seo then offered to simply cook the food longer so that I could put it in the microwave. I said thank you and told her how much that would help me.
While Seo and her mother-in-law cleaned up Jong Woo and Sally began playing with me. Jong Woo went into the other room and brought the movie Space Jam with Michael Jordan and the Looney Tunes in it. I began to laugh a little. Jong Woo wanted to know why they called the movie Space Jam, what did Jam mean? I explained it to him and he immediately understood saying, “so Jam means the same things as Dunk.” “Yes,” I told him. We went into the other room with the TV and began to watch the movie for fun. As it started Jong Woo and Sally sang along with the song in the opening credits even though I don’t think they, especially Sally, knew exactly what they were singing. They put on subtitles but they put on English subtitles. Jong Woo said it helped him learn English better. As the movie went along both of them said lines right before the lines were said in the movie and Jong Woo asked a lot of questions. Most of his questions had to do with words or phrases which were used as jokes. The characters would say one thing while clearly the opposite was true. There was a scene where a man was driving Michael Jordan around in a junky old car and Michael said he could drive himself next time. The man said oh is my car too conspicuous? Michael delayed and said, “Yeah that’s it” I explained to Jong Woo what the word conspicuous meant and how the car was the opposite of conspicuous and he said, “Oh I get it,” and laughed a lot.
During this time Jong Woo’s father came home. He had been at a party that he had to attend so he was not at dinner. It became clear quickly that he did not speak English very well. Certainly not as well as Jong Woo or as well has Seo. I went back to the dining room table and chatted with Seo’s husband. I can’t remember his name right now. He said he was very glad I was able to come and that his son clearly liked me. He asked if I played tennis and I told him that I know how to play but I am not very good. He wants to play with me some time so that could be fun though I don’t have any sports clothing with me. They also asked if I like to go hiking and I told them I enjoy doing that. He also wanted to know all about where I lived in America. So I tried to explain it to him but it wasn’t quite working. I found out they had a kids’ book with a map of America and I began to point at places. He knew a lot of city names but didn’t really know where they were on the map. He asked if LA was near Washington DC or Boston and things like that. But the one place he knew instantly was Arizona because apparently the Arizona Diamondbacks have a pitcher on their team who is Korean. He was surprised I didn’t know who the player was I tried to explain that I don’t know baseball very well and that there are lots of players but you could tell he was disappointed.
As I got ready to leave Seo’s husband said he would drive me home. I told him he did not have too but it became clear quickly that no was not an option. I don’t think he was just being polite, rather I think he felt a type of obligation to me as his guest. I thanked them for dinner and went down to the car with Jong Woo and his dad. When he dropped me off I told Jong Woo that we should hang out some more. He got very excited and said, “Yeah, I could help you with you Korean and you could help me with my English.” I said that would be great. He then handed me a paper with all the Korean words I had learned that night written in English and Korean which showed me how to pronounce them. I said thank you and went inside. It was a great night. Who would have thought a nine year old boy would be the first person I felt truly connected to?
Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer
Written on March 6, 2010
Today was my visit to the doctor. First I went to school and met one of my fellow teacher’s whose English name is Sue, her Korean name is Seo, so either way it is fairly easy to say. I got to the school around 8:10 am and found all the kids arriving at school around the same time. I discovered that the first and third Saturdays of each month are also school days. Yeah for the Korean work ethic. I mean not only am I American I also have a California mind set so it is really hard from me to imagine school on Saturdays. And the older the kids get the longer their school hours become. It really is quite amazing. I guess I am lucky I like school.
So just before 9 am Seo and I headed off to the hospital to get my medical check-up. I needed this health check-up in order to register and obtain my Alien Registration Card (ARC). It is only after I have obtained this card that I am able to open a bank account and to purchase certain things like cell phones and internet service.
The hospital was just down the street so Seo and I walked. Once inside the hospital we went through various lines and to different floors to get my check-up. Overall it was not that different than a normal physical in America except that I had a dental check-up as well. They tested my eye sights and hearing; they weighed and measured me; they took blood and urine samples and basically that was it. Seo was with me every step of the way helping interpret the various questions being asked to me. After about half and hour we were finished and I was told that on Monday I was to return between 3 and 5pm to get the results. If there were no problems then I would be able to register from my ARC right away but if there were problems I would have to take more tests. As we were leaving I was told I would also need to bring a photo of myself for the card. I told Seo that I did not have a photograph of myself and wasn't really sure how to get one here. She told me it was no problem that we could just find a photo store and they could take my picture and develop it for me fairly easily. So off we went to find a photo store. When we left I thought she knew where one was but I soon found out that she did not. Seo was also new to the area and to this school so she did not know much about what was around us but she was certain that it would be easy to find a photo store. She told me that in her last neighborhood they were everywhere. She checked to see if I was okay with walking and I told her that was no problem. In fact I admit I have kind of been missing my longer walks from Pasadena while living in Colorado for the past 5 months, though I have a feeling that my first trip to the grocery store and carrying back everything I bought to my apartment may make me miss those nice cars of my parents.
During our search Seo showed me various stores including a grocery store, which was not too far from my apartment and other stores like bakeries and mini marts. At the grocery store she bought me a couple of donuts to eat. Due to the physical I had been asked not to eat since 9pm the night before. I wasn’t too hungry but I didn’t want to refuse her generosity so I took my free donuts and off we went once again looking for the photo store. We ended up walking for a good 45 minutes and I had little hope that we would find anything but Seo, unlike myself, had no problem walking up to strangers and asking for help. We got various tips from people all of them pointing us in the same general direction though none of them knew for sure. Part of the difficulty for me was of course that I could not read any of the store signs we were passing and had no idea what we were looking for so I spent most of my time trying to get my bearings. I was trying to figure out where were we were in relation to my apartment and the school. The further out we went and the more zig zagging we did the harder it became. Since I couldn’t read most of the street signs I began looking at various land marks and trying to use them to gauge our position. I honestly hate using land marks for my directions. I have a fairly good sense of direction so for the most part I was able to use the land marks on corners to show myself where we had turned and could then follow the trail back to the road my apartment was on. In the long run the zig zagging probably helped in that I got to see many different streets and angles of the city that I would not have explored if Seo wasn’t there with me to make sure I didn’t get lost. This allowed me to get a better picture in my head of the layout of the town.
Suddenly Seo pointed across the street and said look there is a photo store. I looked and squeezed among a long row of small stores there was a yellow sign written in Korean that had a Kodak symbol on it. So we walked into the store and it was a small portrait studio. She spoke with the clerk and told me I could get my picture taken and be given prints in about 20 minutes. The price was fairly cheap and I was going to get 10 wallet size photos. Seo told me I should probably get extras because there will likely be other things I will need pictures for. The photographer didn’t speak English but thankfully math is the universal language and someone counting to three remains an easy way to know when a photo is going to be taken. Now being myself I was self-conscious about how I was going to look. I knew it wouldn’t be great. The weather was fairly cold and I have been battling a sore throat and running nose since yesterday so after walking outside for an hour my face was pale white while my nose was a nice bright red. I know this because they gave me a mirror to look in before they took the pictures and there was simply nothing I could do to fix the coloring of my face and my hair was sadly flat. The photographer took about 6 or 7 different shots and I tried to smile in them all but he went very quickly so half of the photos were me starting to smile or with no smile at all. The photographer then went to his machine and began working. Sue explained to me that he would pick the best photograph and develop it. I asked her if I could choose the photo I wanted and she said not to worry about it the photographer would know which one was the best. I wish I could say I wasn’t worried. I told her I tried to smile and she laughed a little and told me that for official photos like drivers licenses and such Koreans do not smile. Sure enough the photographer picked one of the photos I did not smile in and then he began working on it. I cringed as I saw my face I truly looked like an albino Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer or some kind of abdominal snow man who had been crying over the fact that he never looks good in pictures. I told Sue this and she laughed and said something to the photographer who also laughed. I didn’t know whether to feel proud because I got them to laugh or embarrassed because well…I got them to laugh. She told me to watch what the photographer was doing and he began adding color to my forehead which was so shinning I think you could see the reflection of the camera in it and taking color away from my nose. By the end when he printed the picture I really did look pretty good considering what the photograph actually looked like at the beginning. He had successfully reduced the shine on my forehead and rid me of my bright red nose. I was so happy. During this time Seo and the photographer were taking a lot. Sue is very friendly so I just assumed that they were making polite conversation. As I came to pay the photographer gave me more pictures than I had ordered and charged me less then I had been told. I found out that Seo knew this photographer personally and that he had a store in her previous neighborhood. She told me that because of that the photographer decided to give me some extra prints for free and give me a discount on the photographs I bought. I guess it really is a small world…but don’t quote me on that because even though it sounds good I’m not sure I actually feel that way right now.
As we walked home Seo invited me to her house tonight for dinner. So at 6:30pm I am going to go over to her house to meet her family and have a meal. During the walk she also told me that yesterday at lunch in the cafeteria one of the cafeteria workers talked to her about what I was able to eat. The teacher before me was a vegetarian which was very hard for the cafeteria to accommodate I told her not to worry I was no vegetarian. She then said that many foreigners cannot handle or do not like the spiciness of Korean food. But the day before I ate what they had given me and I told them that I really liked one of the dishes and they told me that was one of the spicy dishes that most people did not like. Seo told me that the cafeteria workers and many of the teachers were surprised and impressed that I liked the food. It was spicy but not in the normal way I tend to think of spicy like Mexican food. It really was good. More than anything it has been the textures of the foods not the flavors that have been odd to me. Anyway I laughed and told her that so far I really like Korean food. She warned me that she was not a great cook but still would like to have me over. I was not about to turn down a free meal and a chance to get to meet some new people even though I am still a bit tired and my apartment is a wreak.
When I got home I snaked a little on another item that Seo had bought for me at a bakery. It was a piece of bread with a small sausage or hot dog baked into it with cheese on top. The second I saw the cheese I was sold. It was fairly good though the bread seemed to be sweetened and that was a little odd. I also had my first diet coke since the airplane. The night before at the store I bought some diet coke cans. Compared to so many other things in the store they were quite expensive and very small. The cans look like Red Bull cans and here it is called “Light Coke” not diet coke. Besides that the color and the text look exactly the same as normal diet coke cans. I held off till the very end of lunch to have my 6 or 7 ounces and it was nice. It did taste different but it was still good. I already know that soda is pretty much going to be a luxury from now on and while I made jokes about it before I came it really is going to be something I miss. At the mini marts around my house they carry coke and coke zero but not diet coke. I may end up getting back into coke zero just to have my fix every now and then. Then I crashed on my bed and watched Die Had with a Vengeance (Die Hard 3). Yippie kye yay mother fucker. Yes potential offensive but still just a great quote from the wonderful John McClane. I finally got up and started writing and that has been my day. I really have no idea when I am going to get to post these things but I hope it is soon.
Today was my visit to the doctor. First I went to school and met one of my fellow teacher’s whose English name is Sue, her Korean name is Seo, so either way it is fairly easy to say. I got to the school around 8:10 am and found all the kids arriving at school around the same time. I discovered that the first and third Saturdays of each month are also school days. Yeah for the Korean work ethic. I mean not only am I American I also have a California mind set so it is really hard from me to imagine school on Saturdays. And the older the kids get the longer their school hours become. It really is quite amazing. I guess I am lucky I like school.
So just before 9 am Seo and I headed off to the hospital to get my medical check-up. I needed this health check-up in order to register and obtain my Alien Registration Card (ARC). It is only after I have obtained this card that I am able to open a bank account and to purchase certain things like cell phones and internet service.
The hospital was just down the street so Seo and I walked. Once inside the hospital we went through various lines and to different floors to get my check-up. Overall it was not that different than a normal physical in America except that I had a dental check-up as well. They tested my eye sights and hearing; they weighed and measured me; they took blood and urine samples and basically that was it. Seo was with me every step of the way helping interpret the various questions being asked to me. After about half and hour we were finished and I was told that on Monday I was to return between 3 and 5pm to get the results. If there were no problems then I would be able to register from my ARC right away but if there were problems I would have to take more tests. As we were leaving I was told I would also need to bring a photo of myself for the card. I told Seo that I did not have a photograph of myself and wasn't really sure how to get one here. She told me it was no problem that we could just find a photo store and they could take my picture and develop it for me fairly easily. So off we went to find a photo store. When we left I thought she knew where one was but I soon found out that she did not. Seo was also new to the area and to this school so she did not know much about what was around us but she was certain that it would be easy to find a photo store. She told me that in her last neighborhood they were everywhere. She checked to see if I was okay with walking and I told her that was no problem. In fact I admit I have kind of been missing my longer walks from Pasadena while living in Colorado for the past 5 months, though I have a feeling that my first trip to the grocery store and carrying back everything I bought to my apartment may make me miss those nice cars of my parents.
During our search Seo showed me various stores including a grocery store, which was not too far from my apartment and other stores like bakeries and mini marts. At the grocery store she bought me a couple of donuts to eat. Due to the physical I had been asked not to eat since 9pm the night before. I wasn’t too hungry but I didn’t want to refuse her generosity so I took my free donuts and off we went once again looking for the photo store. We ended up walking for a good 45 minutes and I had little hope that we would find anything but Seo, unlike myself, had no problem walking up to strangers and asking for help. We got various tips from people all of them pointing us in the same general direction though none of them knew for sure. Part of the difficulty for me was of course that I could not read any of the store signs we were passing and had no idea what we were looking for so I spent most of my time trying to get my bearings. I was trying to figure out where were we were in relation to my apartment and the school. The further out we went and the more zig zagging we did the harder it became. Since I couldn’t read most of the street signs I began looking at various land marks and trying to use them to gauge our position. I honestly hate using land marks for my directions. I have a fairly good sense of direction so for the most part I was able to use the land marks on corners to show myself where we had turned and could then follow the trail back to the road my apartment was on. In the long run the zig zagging probably helped in that I got to see many different streets and angles of the city that I would not have explored if Seo wasn’t there with me to make sure I didn’t get lost. This allowed me to get a better picture in my head of the layout of the town.
Suddenly Seo pointed across the street and said look there is a photo store. I looked and squeezed among a long row of small stores there was a yellow sign written in Korean that had a Kodak symbol on it. So we walked into the store and it was a small portrait studio. She spoke with the clerk and told me I could get my picture taken and be given prints in about 20 minutes. The price was fairly cheap and I was going to get 10 wallet size photos. Seo told me I should probably get extras because there will likely be other things I will need pictures for. The photographer didn’t speak English but thankfully math is the universal language and someone counting to three remains an easy way to know when a photo is going to be taken. Now being myself I was self-conscious about how I was going to look. I knew it wouldn’t be great. The weather was fairly cold and I have been battling a sore throat and running nose since yesterday so after walking outside for an hour my face was pale white while my nose was a nice bright red. I know this because they gave me a mirror to look in before they took the pictures and there was simply nothing I could do to fix the coloring of my face and my hair was sadly flat. The photographer took about 6 or 7 different shots and I tried to smile in them all but he went very quickly so half of the photos were me starting to smile or with no smile at all. The photographer then went to his machine and began working. Sue explained to me that he would pick the best photograph and develop it. I asked her if I could choose the photo I wanted and she said not to worry about it the photographer would know which one was the best. I wish I could say I wasn’t worried. I told her I tried to smile and she laughed a little and told me that for official photos like drivers licenses and such Koreans do not smile. Sure enough the photographer picked one of the photos I did not smile in and then he began working on it. I cringed as I saw my face I truly looked like an albino Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer or some kind of abdominal snow man who had been crying over the fact that he never looks good in pictures. I told Sue this and she laughed and said something to the photographer who also laughed. I didn’t know whether to feel proud because I got them to laugh or embarrassed because well…I got them to laugh. She told me to watch what the photographer was doing and he began adding color to my forehead which was so shinning I think you could see the reflection of the camera in it and taking color away from my nose. By the end when he printed the picture I really did look pretty good considering what the photograph actually looked like at the beginning. He had successfully reduced the shine on my forehead and rid me of my bright red nose. I was so happy. During this time Seo and the photographer were taking a lot. Sue is very friendly so I just assumed that they were making polite conversation. As I came to pay the photographer gave me more pictures than I had ordered and charged me less then I had been told. I found out that Seo knew this photographer personally and that he had a store in her previous neighborhood. She told me that because of that the photographer decided to give me some extra prints for free and give me a discount on the photographs I bought. I guess it really is a small world…but don’t quote me on that because even though it sounds good I’m not sure I actually feel that way right now.
As we walked home Seo invited me to her house tonight for dinner. So at 6:30pm I am going to go over to her house to meet her family and have a meal. During the walk she also told me that yesterday at lunch in the cafeteria one of the cafeteria workers talked to her about what I was able to eat. The teacher before me was a vegetarian which was very hard for the cafeteria to accommodate I told her not to worry I was no vegetarian. She then said that many foreigners cannot handle or do not like the spiciness of Korean food. But the day before I ate what they had given me and I told them that I really liked one of the dishes and they told me that was one of the spicy dishes that most people did not like. Seo told me that the cafeteria workers and many of the teachers were surprised and impressed that I liked the food. It was spicy but not in the normal way I tend to think of spicy like Mexican food. It really was good. More than anything it has been the textures of the foods not the flavors that have been odd to me. Anyway I laughed and told her that so far I really like Korean food. She warned me that she was not a great cook but still would like to have me over. I was not about to turn down a free meal and a chance to get to meet some new people even though I am still a bit tired and my apartment is a wreak.
When I got home I snaked a little on another item that Seo had bought for me at a bakery. It was a piece of bread with a small sausage or hot dog baked into it with cheese on top. The second I saw the cheese I was sold. It was fairly good though the bread seemed to be sweetened and that was a little odd. I also had my first diet coke since the airplane. The night before at the store I bought some diet coke cans. Compared to so many other things in the store they were quite expensive and very small. The cans look like Red Bull cans and here it is called “Light Coke” not diet coke. Besides that the color and the text look exactly the same as normal diet coke cans. I held off till the very end of lunch to have my 6 or 7 ounces and it was nice. It did taste different but it was still good. I already know that soda is pretty much going to be a luxury from now on and while I made jokes about it before I came it really is going to be something I miss. At the mini marts around my house they carry coke and coke zero but not diet coke. I may end up getting back into coke zero just to have my fix every now and then. Then I crashed on my bed and watched Die Had with a Vengeance (Die Hard 3). Yippie kye yay mother fucker. Yes potential offensive but still just a great quote from the wonderful John McClane. I finally got up and started writing and that has been my day. I really have no idea when I am going to get to post these things but I hope it is soon.
Dumb
Written on March 5, 2010
Well my first day in Korea is over and I feel completely overloaded. I just want to crash on my bed and just do nothing but I know I should write what I am feeling now.
After 24 or 25 hours of travel yesterday I was brought to my new apartment and within moments I had fears. When I came into the apartment the size was nice but as we turned on the lights I saw many things that I was told were not going to be there. There were pots and silverware in the kitchen and sheets on the bed along with pillows. At first this seemed great but the more I looked around the more things I saw that I didn’t feel any person moving out would leave behind. There was leftover food in plastic containers and a Brita water filter in the fridge; there were sandals by the door; there were books and picture frames on the shelves; there was a space heater by the bed; there was a vacuum in the closet; there was a toaster and blinder under the sink; there was soap and shampoo in the shower; there were pens, pencils, post-it notes, paper and other office supplies in the desk drawers; there was a painting on the wall; there were CDs on the shelf; and there was even a cell phone on the desk. The cell phone was the last straw. Right when I saw it all I could think was that someone already lived here. The person dropping me off, Ray, told me this was my apartment and not to worry but he could not explain why there were so many things in the apartment. Ray didn’t work for the school so I was struggling to believe he knew for sure what he was talking about but he kept reassuring me that this was my place and he was pretty sure no one else lived there. Now Ray and I were waiting for my co-teacher to come and meet us at the apartment. As we were waiting Ray told me that my co-teacher was also brand new to the school and this was his first semester too. My co-teacher finally showed up and introduced himself as George. While he and I chatted Ray talked with someone over the phone and told me that the previous English teacher who had lived there had moved back home to South Africa and she must have simply left all this stuff behind. Hearing that was very calming but I still couldn’t believe that a person had left so much behind.
Once I was finally sure that this was my place I felt I could start unpacking. The first thing I did was of course to go to the computer and try and plug it in and discover if I had any internet access. Well before I had even turned on the computer I found that the adapter I had purchased before I left, which was supposed to enable my American plugs to plug into the Korean outlets, didn’t quite work. By that I mean when I plugged in the adapter it seemed fine but then whenever I plugged my computer into it the adapter the plug would fall out of the socket, adapter and all. It was as if the prongs were just not long enough to stay in the wall and they would fall away any time something heavy (a plug) was placed in it. This did not bring me much joy. Besides the fact that I had spent almost thirty dollars on the adapter I just couldn’t imagine not having the ability to use my computer at all. I was still trying to make peace with the idea that I may not have internet for a while and now I was facing the possibility of no computer at all. I finally saw there was simply nothing I could do to change the adapter problem so I just turned on the computer to see about the internet. The battery life is only about four hours but I thought I could at least send out a few e-mails. I quickly found that there was no internet which I could steal from my neighbors. The few wireless signals I could pick up were all locked. Oh well, it was a long shot. In an effort to be more positive I tried unpacking my other things but I found it harder and harder to stay awake. It was almost 11 pm on Thursday night and I had traveled over 24 hours' worth or real time that day and was only able to get about an hour and a half of sleep on the plane. So after I hung up my shirts and pants I just ignored the rest and went to sleep.
I set an alarm for 7:30 am. George said he would pick me up at 8:30 am. I would have probably set the alarm for later but I did not have a hair dryer that would work so I knew after I showered I would need some time for my hair to dry. I admit I can see the practical advantage of having short hair but come on is it worth it? Not for me, my beauty is in my hair. I did get to sleep pretty fast but I woke up multiple times having all sorts of scary dreams about my first day in Korea. I eventually got up at 6:45am knowing I wasn’t going to fall asleep again. Part of my fear came from the fact that the only alarm I had was my I-Pod. I had never used it before and I had used the I-Pod so much during the trip in order to listen to music that its battery was fairly drained. Each time I woke up I would check to make sure I hadn’t over slept until finally I just got up. After I got up I went to the bathroom to get ready. Now there was no separate shower in the bathroom instead there was a detachable shower head that was attached to the sink and on the floor was a drain. Basically your bathroom is one big shower and everything you put in there can and likely will get wet. The water was warm enough but it was still a bit odd showering in front of a mirror. I mean I never realized how good I look in the shower but still it isn’t really something I wanted to see. I had been forewarned about how the bathrooms were set up but it was still odd for me. It has also made it difficult to unpack all my bathroom stuff since a lot of it is stuff I do not want to get wet.
George picked me up right at 8:30 and after about an hour of waiting my hair was just about dry. We drove to the school, which seemed relatively close to my apartment. Based on how long we were in the car it would probably be a 25 or 30 minute walk from my place. So that is certainly doable. As we walked into the school George stopped me and had me take off my shoes. There were shoe lockers for all the teachers and in them the teachers kept their slippers or sandals which they wore inside and then placed their outside shoes in the lockers during the day. Of course I did not have any sandals so George got me a pair for visitors. Unfortunately the largest pair of sandals they had was about half a shoe length to small for me. What that meant was that my heels where hanging of the back of them for the entire day, which did lead to some discomfort. Besides the minor pain I never realized how much colder the world is when you are walking around without shoes.
George and I went to our classroom. As I looked around the room everything I saw was labeled in English (door, window, desk, chair, etc) and I realized what our language classrooms look like to those who already know the language. But I enjoyed it in fact it was the only place I was the entire day where I could read the majority of the words around me. George and I were still talking when the bell rang and the kids started pouring into the classroom. Most of them entered talking, laughing and just being loud like all kids. But as each kid saw me they grew quiet and before you knew it every kid was at their desk staring at me and whispering to one another. Now whispering can be hard enough to understand when it is in English but once it was in Korean I had no chance. In fact I thought if the kids actually realized that I had no clue what they were saying they could just talk as loud as they wanted and I wouldn’t know what they were saying. Before I knew it I was in front of the class and trying to introduce myself. I told them my name and got them to repeat it a few times but as I was talking I knew that they didn’t understand most of what I was saying. So I asked them if they had any questions for me. In all the classes I was in that day the first question I was asked was whether I was a boy or a girl. Besides the humor of the question itself you could tell that it was a question every kid wanted to ask but only one or two of them were brave enough to raise their hand and ask it. I laughed out loud and even had them vote on who thought I was a girl versus a boy. More kids thought I was a girl, not a lot more but still more. I asked them why they thought I was a girl and it really was all about the hair. They said my hair was really long for a boy. As I said earlier my beauty is my hair. They were even more surprised when I told them that it used to be a lot longer and I had cut it before I came here so I would look more like a boy. After some more basic questions (how old am I; where am I from; what sports do I like, etc) we began the class. As we took roll each child came forward and introduced themselves to the class in English and told the class something they like to do, or their favorite subject in school, or their favorite food/color and then sat down. Many of the kids spoke so softly that I couldn’t hear anything they were saying. George explained to me that many of them were very shy especially now that I was there. With 35 kids in the class this exercise took quite a while. After that we began on various exercises. The classroom is very technologically advanced. Most of the lesson was done through multimedia exercises with pictures, songs and practice. I spent most of the class time just listening. Even though it was English class there was not a lot of English being spoken. As the kids did the exercise I was often used by George to read out loud so the kids could hear how I pronounced words. I would have them repeat a lot of what I was saying but that is really the closest I got to teaching. After about four hours of teaching we got to have lunch. I couldn’t tell you what the dish we had was called but it was good. Besides trying to use chopsticks the hardest thing for me about the meal was the fact that they did not have drinks with their food. They have small cups for tea or water after you eat. But the food was good so that made me happy. I was one for one with Korean food.
That afternoon George and I did not have any classes, it was a half day for the students but we still had to remain at the school until 4:30pm. But that was just fine with me because they gave me a desk with a computer and the computer was connected to the internet. It was a slow connection but it was still a connection. I think I hadn’t been online for around a day and a half but it felt like forever. My mailbox was stuffed with worthless junk mail and numerous notes from people wishing me well or wondering if I had arrived safely. First and foremost I sent an e-mail to my parents to let them know I was okay then I spent some time looking around at other stuff including my facebook page.
At 4:30 George and I left. He offered to take me to the store because I had told him about all the things I needed. He took me to a store called E-Mart and yes it was kind of like Wal-Mart. Basically it was like a super Wal-Mart except bigger. First I got a hair dryer which caused George to laugh and tell me my hair really was long. I also got some sandals that fit, an alarm clock and food. Grocery shopping was probably the worst part of the day. As George and I went through aisle after aisle I couldn’t find anything that looked familiar. There was almost nothing I was buying which I knew for sure what I was getting. Some things looked familiar based on their packaging but almost everything was in Korean and a majority of the food items are just things we don’t have in American grocery stores. I found myself hungry and surrounded by food products yet having no idea where the food I wanted was or if it was even there (most of it wasn’t). George was very helpful and while I was grateful that he was there I was embarrassed by my complete lack of knowledge and basic helplessness trying to buy groceries.
So George dropped me off I came into my new apartment and just sat down and stared at the wall for a while. I kept looking at the computer knowing I had to write about my day but having no desire to do it. I just felt drained. There is just so much information that I take for granted back home like being able to read the street signs or pull down menus on the computer or directions on the back of a pill box or just knowing how to throw away my garbage. In Korea you can only throw away your trash in government approved bags which are only sold at certain places and in certain sizes. You must separate all of your garbage. So food cannot be with paper, paper cannot be with plastic, plastic cannot be with glass and you end up with 4 or 5 different kinds of trash which you are only supposed to take outside on trash day. It is weird when you realize you don’t even know how to throw away garbage at the place your in. I’m just sitting here shaking. There are a lot of things I would love to have right now such as a diet coke or burrito or things I would like to do right now such as watch a hockey game or basketball game but those are things I can and will get used to not having. But I just don’t know if I will ever get used to my ignorance. The ignorance of having no idea what street you are on or what store you are looking at or even what someone looking right at you is saying. I know this is going to be some sort of life bettering experience but man I hate feeling this...well, this dumb.
Well my first day in Korea is over and I feel completely overloaded. I just want to crash on my bed and just do nothing but I know I should write what I am feeling now.
After 24 or 25 hours of travel yesterday I was brought to my new apartment and within moments I had fears. When I came into the apartment the size was nice but as we turned on the lights I saw many things that I was told were not going to be there. There were pots and silverware in the kitchen and sheets on the bed along with pillows. At first this seemed great but the more I looked around the more things I saw that I didn’t feel any person moving out would leave behind. There was leftover food in plastic containers and a Brita water filter in the fridge; there were sandals by the door; there were books and picture frames on the shelves; there was a space heater by the bed; there was a vacuum in the closet; there was a toaster and blinder under the sink; there was soap and shampoo in the shower; there were pens, pencils, post-it notes, paper and other office supplies in the desk drawers; there was a painting on the wall; there were CDs on the shelf; and there was even a cell phone on the desk. The cell phone was the last straw. Right when I saw it all I could think was that someone already lived here. The person dropping me off, Ray, told me this was my apartment and not to worry but he could not explain why there were so many things in the apartment. Ray didn’t work for the school so I was struggling to believe he knew for sure what he was talking about but he kept reassuring me that this was my place and he was pretty sure no one else lived there. Now Ray and I were waiting for my co-teacher to come and meet us at the apartment. As we were waiting Ray told me that my co-teacher was also brand new to the school and this was his first semester too. My co-teacher finally showed up and introduced himself as George. While he and I chatted Ray talked with someone over the phone and told me that the previous English teacher who had lived there had moved back home to South Africa and she must have simply left all this stuff behind. Hearing that was very calming but I still couldn’t believe that a person had left so much behind.
Once I was finally sure that this was my place I felt I could start unpacking. The first thing I did was of course to go to the computer and try and plug it in and discover if I had any internet access. Well before I had even turned on the computer I found that the adapter I had purchased before I left, which was supposed to enable my American plugs to plug into the Korean outlets, didn’t quite work. By that I mean when I plugged in the adapter it seemed fine but then whenever I plugged my computer into it the adapter the plug would fall out of the socket, adapter and all. It was as if the prongs were just not long enough to stay in the wall and they would fall away any time something heavy (a plug) was placed in it. This did not bring me much joy. Besides the fact that I had spent almost thirty dollars on the adapter I just couldn’t imagine not having the ability to use my computer at all. I was still trying to make peace with the idea that I may not have internet for a while and now I was facing the possibility of no computer at all. I finally saw there was simply nothing I could do to change the adapter problem so I just turned on the computer to see about the internet. The battery life is only about four hours but I thought I could at least send out a few e-mails. I quickly found that there was no internet which I could steal from my neighbors. The few wireless signals I could pick up were all locked. Oh well, it was a long shot. In an effort to be more positive I tried unpacking my other things but I found it harder and harder to stay awake. It was almost 11 pm on Thursday night and I had traveled over 24 hours' worth or real time that day and was only able to get about an hour and a half of sleep on the plane. So after I hung up my shirts and pants I just ignored the rest and went to sleep.
I set an alarm for 7:30 am. George said he would pick me up at 8:30 am. I would have probably set the alarm for later but I did not have a hair dryer that would work so I knew after I showered I would need some time for my hair to dry. I admit I can see the practical advantage of having short hair but come on is it worth it? Not for me, my beauty is in my hair. I did get to sleep pretty fast but I woke up multiple times having all sorts of scary dreams about my first day in Korea. I eventually got up at 6:45am knowing I wasn’t going to fall asleep again. Part of my fear came from the fact that the only alarm I had was my I-Pod. I had never used it before and I had used the I-Pod so much during the trip in order to listen to music that its battery was fairly drained. Each time I woke up I would check to make sure I hadn’t over slept until finally I just got up. After I got up I went to the bathroom to get ready. Now there was no separate shower in the bathroom instead there was a detachable shower head that was attached to the sink and on the floor was a drain. Basically your bathroom is one big shower and everything you put in there can and likely will get wet. The water was warm enough but it was still a bit odd showering in front of a mirror. I mean I never realized how good I look in the shower but still it isn’t really something I wanted to see. I had been forewarned about how the bathrooms were set up but it was still odd for me. It has also made it difficult to unpack all my bathroom stuff since a lot of it is stuff I do not want to get wet.
George picked me up right at 8:30 and after about an hour of waiting my hair was just about dry. We drove to the school, which seemed relatively close to my apartment. Based on how long we were in the car it would probably be a 25 or 30 minute walk from my place. So that is certainly doable. As we walked into the school George stopped me and had me take off my shoes. There were shoe lockers for all the teachers and in them the teachers kept their slippers or sandals which they wore inside and then placed their outside shoes in the lockers during the day. Of course I did not have any sandals so George got me a pair for visitors. Unfortunately the largest pair of sandals they had was about half a shoe length to small for me. What that meant was that my heels where hanging of the back of them for the entire day, which did lead to some discomfort. Besides the minor pain I never realized how much colder the world is when you are walking around without shoes.
George and I went to our classroom. As I looked around the room everything I saw was labeled in English (door, window, desk, chair, etc) and I realized what our language classrooms look like to those who already know the language. But I enjoyed it in fact it was the only place I was the entire day where I could read the majority of the words around me. George and I were still talking when the bell rang and the kids started pouring into the classroom. Most of them entered talking, laughing and just being loud like all kids. But as each kid saw me they grew quiet and before you knew it every kid was at their desk staring at me and whispering to one another. Now whispering can be hard enough to understand when it is in English but once it was in Korean I had no chance. In fact I thought if the kids actually realized that I had no clue what they were saying they could just talk as loud as they wanted and I wouldn’t know what they were saying. Before I knew it I was in front of the class and trying to introduce myself. I told them my name and got them to repeat it a few times but as I was talking I knew that they didn’t understand most of what I was saying. So I asked them if they had any questions for me. In all the classes I was in that day the first question I was asked was whether I was a boy or a girl. Besides the humor of the question itself you could tell that it was a question every kid wanted to ask but only one or two of them were brave enough to raise their hand and ask it. I laughed out loud and even had them vote on who thought I was a girl versus a boy. More kids thought I was a girl, not a lot more but still more. I asked them why they thought I was a girl and it really was all about the hair. They said my hair was really long for a boy. As I said earlier my beauty is my hair. They were even more surprised when I told them that it used to be a lot longer and I had cut it before I came here so I would look more like a boy. After some more basic questions (how old am I; where am I from; what sports do I like, etc) we began the class. As we took roll each child came forward and introduced themselves to the class in English and told the class something they like to do, or their favorite subject in school, or their favorite food/color and then sat down. Many of the kids spoke so softly that I couldn’t hear anything they were saying. George explained to me that many of them were very shy especially now that I was there. With 35 kids in the class this exercise took quite a while. After that we began on various exercises. The classroom is very technologically advanced. Most of the lesson was done through multimedia exercises with pictures, songs and practice. I spent most of the class time just listening. Even though it was English class there was not a lot of English being spoken. As the kids did the exercise I was often used by George to read out loud so the kids could hear how I pronounced words. I would have them repeat a lot of what I was saying but that is really the closest I got to teaching. After about four hours of teaching we got to have lunch. I couldn’t tell you what the dish we had was called but it was good. Besides trying to use chopsticks the hardest thing for me about the meal was the fact that they did not have drinks with their food. They have small cups for tea or water after you eat. But the food was good so that made me happy. I was one for one with Korean food.
That afternoon George and I did not have any classes, it was a half day for the students but we still had to remain at the school until 4:30pm. But that was just fine with me because they gave me a desk with a computer and the computer was connected to the internet. It was a slow connection but it was still a connection. I think I hadn’t been online for around a day and a half but it felt like forever. My mailbox was stuffed with worthless junk mail and numerous notes from people wishing me well or wondering if I had arrived safely. First and foremost I sent an e-mail to my parents to let them know I was okay then I spent some time looking around at other stuff including my facebook page.
At 4:30 George and I left. He offered to take me to the store because I had told him about all the things I needed. He took me to a store called E-Mart and yes it was kind of like Wal-Mart. Basically it was like a super Wal-Mart except bigger. First I got a hair dryer which caused George to laugh and tell me my hair really was long. I also got some sandals that fit, an alarm clock and food. Grocery shopping was probably the worst part of the day. As George and I went through aisle after aisle I couldn’t find anything that looked familiar. There was almost nothing I was buying which I knew for sure what I was getting. Some things looked familiar based on their packaging but almost everything was in Korean and a majority of the food items are just things we don’t have in American grocery stores. I found myself hungry and surrounded by food products yet having no idea where the food I wanted was or if it was even there (most of it wasn’t). George was very helpful and while I was grateful that he was there I was embarrassed by my complete lack of knowledge and basic helplessness trying to buy groceries.
So George dropped me off I came into my new apartment and just sat down and stared at the wall for a while. I kept looking at the computer knowing I had to write about my day but having no desire to do it. I just felt drained. There is just so much information that I take for granted back home like being able to read the street signs or pull down menus on the computer or directions on the back of a pill box or just knowing how to throw away my garbage. In Korea you can only throw away your trash in government approved bags which are only sold at certain places and in certain sizes. You must separate all of your garbage. So food cannot be with paper, paper cannot be with plastic, plastic cannot be with glass and you end up with 4 or 5 different kinds of trash which you are only supposed to take outside on trash day. It is weird when you realize you don’t even know how to throw away garbage at the place your in. I’m just sitting here shaking. There are a lot of things I would love to have right now such as a diet coke or burrito or things I would like to do right now such as watch a hockey game or basketball game but those are things I can and will get used to not having. But I just don’t know if I will ever get used to my ignorance. The ignorance of having no idea what street you are on or what store you are looking at or even what someone looking right at you is saying. I know this is going to be some sort of life bettering experience but man I hate feeling this...well, this dumb.
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