KOREAN CULTURE!

A breath of fresh air

So, this past week, we've really had some junk in the air! I've never really had a problem with allergies, but something in the air has really gotten to me. I keep dusting my new apartment hoping that will help, but I hear that it's the pollution from the factories in East China that has blown in and caused so many of my students, including myself, to have this annoying upper respiratory cough! You can see a bit of haze this morning from the 14th floor balcony of my apartments. They call it "yellow dust" season, but it doesn't last too much longer. Thank goodness! I've had several students miss class this week too. Ugh! I'm told some of my students had to go to the hospital. Well, the hospital in Korea doesn't mean what it means in America. I learned that going to the hospital here just means they had to go to the doctor.

Government red tape

Last week, we waited in line for three hours at the Korean government office to apply for our ID card. We had to take our "sealed" health exam results from the hospital that took us over a week to get back and give it to the government employee to open and inspect. They are making sure that we are not bringing in any diseases to their country. It takes two weeks to process, and then I'll be able to pick up my alien registration ID card so that I can open my bank account and finally get "unlimited data" cell phone data service! It's crazy that in order to come and work in Korea, there are so many hoops that you have to jump through in order to be able to work here. If it wasn't enough to have to wait 16 weeks for our background checks to be completed by the FBI, we then had to have several of our documents apostilled by not only the State of Texas but also the US Department of State office in DC and the Korean consulates office in Dallas before we could get our Visa. All this had to be completed before we could even get on a plane to come here! Funny how easy it is to come to America to work or get benefits or vote for that matter. Don't get me started.... Lol. We are the land of the free, right? :)

       

Cleaning those pearly whites

There's another cultural thing I'm really digging! Do you remember your dentist always saying to "brush your teeth after every meal"? Well, in Korea, they do! I've joined in and take my tooth brush with me to lunch so that I can stop off to freshen up after eating. It's not unusual to be standing next to the other Korean teachers in the bathroom brushing away too! However, I don't enjoy seeing the high school students walking around the halls with the brush sticking out of their mouths, though, especially when they try to carry on a conversation while brushing. Ha!  How do you say, "No brushing while talking" in Korean?

Teacher talk

I'm struggling a bit teaching a few of my students that have limited English speaking abilities. It's so cool though to see their faces light up when the "lightbulb" turns on and they finally understand what I am trying to say. Those are the rewarding moments that teachers just love to see and I'm no exception! Sometimes, it takes me several different ways of saying something for them to understand, but then there are other times when I succumb to asking another student to help me explain it to them in Korean and make the connection that way. My kiddo's are just the sweetest little ones! You can see their bright shining faces here! And just as we do in schools in America, we also have those lovely students with vibrant personalities who want to cut up and play a bit in class instead of learning. So for those moments, I have another wonderful Korean elementary teacher who has had a little "talk" with a couple of my students to "remind" them of what is expected in the classroom. These talks always end with a bow and an apology to me. She sure seems to have a great way of getting through to these kiddo's in the way of backing me up. Having two teachers scolding you are always better than one, right! :) If you're a teacher, you know what I mean though..... Can you say "Principal's office"? Lol.

     

Sofie, Rosey, and Shannon
(These are their English names)

Just a few of my little 5th graders!

         











Pancakes and more!

Not sure what you call them, but they look like pancakes.... They are soooo goood! She cooks these right there on the street, and I'm turning in to a "regular" customer for this nice treat after school. Cafeteria lunches will sometimes have fruit, but not very often. I get that fresh from the market and for a whole bag of mandarin oranges and a whole basket of large strawberries, I'll pay 5000 won (equivalent to about $4.50 for each). I have had the pleasure of enjoying the biggest, juiciest apple and pear ever. So good! And, since I've been here, I've eaten more vegetables and/or roots (especially ones that I have no idea what they are) and am loving it! It's been interesting though getting used to the family style eating! Dining is such great entertainment these days. Chopsticks are my way of life now! Who needs a fork?

Family style dining!

The dumplings were delicious!
                                             

Chapel time

It's been such a great three weeks and to top off the end of the week at school, on Friday's, we always end the day with a school wide Chapel service with lots of wonderful singing and praying. It's really a beautiful service and the pastor gives a sermon to leave everyone with a special message before the start of the weekend.