Merry Christmas to all of you! I hope it is blessed with time spent with family and friends.
This will be my last post before the holidays, and the last post before my family arrives in Korea! It still seems surreal that they will be here in three days!
Last week, Hwacheon county took us on a "cultural experience". In truth, it was more like vacation! First, we drove to Hongcheon to a ski resort. Although the resort was kind of small (they had a total of 6 slopes), it was still a lot of fun. It was also man-made snow, so it reminded me a lot of going skiing in Weston. In the afternoon, we headed to an indoor waterpark. It was all part of the same resort. This was an interesting experience. First, we all had to wear the swim caps (like pro swimmers wear)- I guess they didn't want any foriegn hair in their pools :) Second, the water park was also part jimjilbang. So, much to our surprise, when we went to the shower/locker room, there were many naked Koreans walking around. This is okay if you are expecting it, but a whole different story if it just happens to you! Anyways, the water park was fun- there were a couple of slides, and jet pools. They also had hot tubs- which were located outside, so picture a full on sprint between the doors and the water (temperatures were around 24 degrees Farhenheit).
That night we drove almost an hour to eat. However, in Korea, they don't want you to get bored with driving (hence, it is ok to have mini t.v.'s in the front half of the car), so on the bus back to the hotel, we all sang karaoke (called noraebang in Korean). That night, we stayed in a pretty nice hotel. In it, there was bumper cars, bowling, ping pong, billiards, and a carousel. We (19 foriegn teachers) played bumper cars and bowling- lots of fun!
The next day, we learned taekwondo in the morning, and salmunori in the afternoon. Taekwondo was cool because we had middle and high school students helping us (they are black belts). Salmunori is Korea's traditional drumming. It was interesting, but not really my thing. When we went to learn salmunori, we went to a middle/high school. This school is a missionary school for "maladjusted students." The cool thing was they had so many "alternative" classes. So they have classes of band, rock band, salmunori, cooking, art, and gardening. These classes are very rare in Korean schools, and it was great that a school for "maladjusted" students sees the value in these classes.
The last week of school has been very stressful for me. I have been trying to finish our book project (which we finished today!), keep pen pals going over my lunch hour, finalize plans for winter break for my family and myself, and work on plans for my winter English camp (which no students want to go to b/c it is during their break- who can blame them?).
I have prepared gifts for my host family and for the teachers at school. We were told at orientation that gift giving is a huge culture here. However, I have not seen this. When I give gifts, it makes an awkward situation, because then the receiver feels like they should have gotten me something, but they didn't, so now everything is weird. This has happened for birthdays and for Christmas both.
Today was my last day at school for the semester! I really can't believe that my grant year is basically half over. Reflecting on the semester, it has really gone fast (although while I was living it, I thought time was crawling by!).
In three days my family and Darrell will be here- YAY! They will stay until January 5. Then from Jan. 11-22, I am teaching an English Camp at my school. Then from Jan. 27-Feb. 22 I will be traveling with friends to Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam!
I will start back teaching on March 2nd, and only have 4 1/2 months left. I know it will go so fast.
Please have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Love you
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Counting down....
This week, I have been counting down to many things.
First and foremost I'm counting down to winter break. I am burned out teaching English- out of ideas of what to teach and out of patience with both my co-teachers and students. I am SO looking forward to seeing my family and traveling over winter break.
Second, I'm counting down the the end of my after school program. While this program has been great (I've really enjoyed working with the students), it's has made for really long days. I get to school at 8:15 and don't leave until after 7:15. Although I did the same thing when I student taught at Centre, it was very different because I enjoyed what I was teaching.
Third, waiting patiently for ag. ed. jobs to start opening up in Kansas. I think about where I was at this time last year- I was getting ready to start student teaching- and job searching was the last thing on my mind. Now, I am already starting to get antsy. It doesn't help that educational funding in Kansas was cut big time this month. I know that usually the first things to go are the "extra" classes, therefore the "extra" teachers.
Last weekend, I spent the weekend in Seoul. My friend and I saw the New York Harlem singers at the Seoul Arts Center. They were very good! The first half was traditional soulful songs. The second half of their show was Christmas music. It was so great to hear both kinds of songs. My friend and I also got a lot of Christmas shopping done! We even found a Costco (finally, on our second try!), so that was awesome.
I had no school on Monday, so I went to the Vietnam Embasssy to get a visa. I am planning on visiting Vietnam over winter break. The worker at the embassy was a jerk, and got me to tears. It was a really bad experience (I'll spare you the details), and if I hadn't already bought my plane tickets I wouldn't be going to Vietnam. They had to keep my passport, and I got it in the mail on Friday.... along with a receipt. The worker that I dealt with ripped me off 60,000 won (about $55). Because I didn't get a receipt of how much I paid when I was at the embassy (and of course it was in cash), there is no way to prove that he ripped me off. I am still upset by it- the ambassador will be receiving a letter from me, and I will be paying this particular worker a visit. The only good thing is that I received my passport back.
Teaching this week was very strange. The first and second graders were testing. So Monday, no school. Tuesday, I was supposed to teach 3rd graders (they aren't testing), but I ended up only having a half day. Wednesday, I was supposed to come in for the afternoon classes. When I got to school, the English teachers were like, "Why are you here?" so I told them that I had a class and they were like "No, all of the classes have been cancelled for the afternoon." I replied, "Oh, no one told me. No one called or texted me." I still don't know why they didn't think to call me- it would have been really considerate of them. Thursday and Friday were regular days for me. The English department at our school just bought 20 new movies (English movies with Korean subtitles), to use in class. So, I had planned to use one of these. However, I got told that I could not show movies in my class, and that I needed to come up with something else. I don't understand why the English department bought all of these DVD's, if no one gets to use them.
My students wrote their first pen pal letters this week. They are so incredibly excited to be making friends in the U.S. It makes it a lot of fun for me :) I even had to convince one boy NOT to write "I love you" at the end of his letter- haha. It is such a great thing for these students to be able to "experience" a new culture.
Tomorrow, Hwacheon County is again taking us on a cultural experience of Korea. All of the foreign teachers in Hwacheon County will go. First, we will go to a ski resort and go skiing- YAY! Then, at the same resort, they have an indoor water park, so we will go swimming for the afternoon. On Tuesday, we will learn taekwondo (martial art) and salmunori (traditional drumming). I am really looking forward to these- it should be a lot of fun. When I get back, I only have 5 days of teaching left!!!
I hope you are doing well. Much love.
First and foremost I'm counting down to winter break. I am burned out teaching English- out of ideas of what to teach and out of patience with both my co-teachers and students. I am SO looking forward to seeing my family and traveling over winter break.
Second, I'm counting down the the end of my after school program. While this program has been great (I've really enjoyed working with the students), it's has made for really long days. I get to school at 8:15 and don't leave until after 7:15. Although I did the same thing when I student taught at Centre, it was very different because I enjoyed what I was teaching.
Third, waiting patiently for ag. ed. jobs to start opening up in Kansas. I think about where I was at this time last year- I was getting ready to start student teaching- and job searching was the last thing on my mind. Now, I am already starting to get antsy. It doesn't help that educational funding in Kansas was cut big time this month. I know that usually the first things to go are the "extra" classes, therefore the "extra" teachers.
Last weekend, I spent the weekend in Seoul. My friend and I saw the New York Harlem singers at the Seoul Arts Center. They were very good! The first half was traditional soulful songs. The second half of their show was Christmas music. It was so great to hear both kinds of songs. My friend and I also got a lot of Christmas shopping done! We even found a Costco (finally, on our second try!), so that was awesome.
I had no school on Monday, so I went to the Vietnam Embasssy to get a visa. I am planning on visiting Vietnam over winter break. The worker at the embassy was a jerk, and got me to tears. It was a really bad experience (I'll spare you the details), and if I hadn't already bought my plane tickets I wouldn't be going to Vietnam. They had to keep my passport, and I got it in the mail on Friday.... along with a receipt. The worker that I dealt with ripped me off 60,000 won (about $55). Because I didn't get a receipt of how much I paid when I was at the embassy (and of course it was in cash), there is no way to prove that he ripped me off. I am still upset by it- the ambassador will be receiving a letter from me, and I will be paying this particular worker a visit. The only good thing is that I received my passport back.
Teaching this week was very strange. The first and second graders were testing. So Monday, no school. Tuesday, I was supposed to teach 3rd graders (they aren't testing), but I ended up only having a half day. Wednesday, I was supposed to come in for the afternoon classes. When I got to school, the English teachers were like, "Why are you here?" so I told them that I had a class and they were like "No, all of the classes have been cancelled for the afternoon." I replied, "Oh, no one told me. No one called or texted me." I still don't know why they didn't think to call me- it would have been really considerate of them. Thursday and Friday were regular days for me. The English department at our school just bought 20 new movies (English movies with Korean subtitles), to use in class. So, I had planned to use one of these. However, I got told that I could not show movies in my class, and that I needed to come up with something else. I don't understand why the English department bought all of these DVD's, if no one gets to use them.
My students wrote their first pen pal letters this week. They are so incredibly excited to be making friends in the U.S. It makes it a lot of fun for me :) I even had to convince one boy NOT to write "I love you" at the end of his letter- haha. It is such a great thing for these students to be able to "experience" a new culture.
Tomorrow, Hwacheon County is again taking us on a cultural experience of Korea. All of the foreign teachers in Hwacheon County will go. First, we will go to a ski resort and go skiing- YAY! Then, at the same resort, they have an indoor water park, so we will go swimming for the afternoon. On Tuesday, we will learn taekwondo (martial art) and salmunori (traditional drumming). I am really looking forward to these- it should be a lot of fun. When I get back, I only have 5 days of teaching left!!!
I hope you are doing well. Much love.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Thanksgiving!
Hello everyone!
I hope that this blog finds you STILL recovering from an AMAZING Thanksgiving, filled with lots of family, friends, and of course food!
I had never thought about NOT being able to spend Thanksgiving or holidays with family, and it has made me that much more thankful for what I have.
In school, I taught Thanksgiving to my students. We watched a Simpson's episode, watched a clip of football, and a video clip of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The parade and football were/are so foriegn to my students. They really enjoyed seeing how other cultures celebrate a holiday. Then, we made turkeys. They wrote four things that they were thankful for on the feathers, cut them out, colored them, and pasted them to the turkey. Although they thought that this was kind of silly, they enjoyed getting to do an art project. Because of their curriculum, students very rarely get to take an art class in school.
Thanksgiving Day was very difficult for me. I was in school, teaching about the holiday, and missing my family and friends very much. The most difficult was when I was showing pictures of my family eating, and knowing what I was missing out on. However, I know how extremely lucky I am to be in Korea, and that in the long run of things, missing one Thanksgiving isn't that big of a deal.
On Friday, all of the ETA's in Korea, were invited to the U.S. embassy for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. How many times in your life do you get the chance to spend a holiday at a U.S. embass, with the U.S. ambassador and the head of your program? Additionally, all of my friends were there. We ate an amazing meal! Turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes w/ gravy (the first gravy I've had since being in Korea), salad, fruit, two kinds of cheesecake, pumpkin pie. The whole experience was really great.
I spent the rest of the weekend in Seoul. It was so good to catch up with friends that I hadn't seen in over a month! Additionally, I checked out the National Museum of Korea. It was HUGE!!! There were so many cool artifacts from throughout Korea, as well as Japan, China, and even Vietnam. Soon, they are going to have a travelling exhibit about the Incan Indians from Peru. I hope to be able to check this out!
This weekend, I again traveling to Seoul. I am meeting a friend and we are going Christmas shopping. We might even try to go ice skating!
This week I received a box from home and a letter from Darrell. I have enjoyed wearing the boots that my family sent me- they are so warm!
Our after school program started on November 23. I have really enjoyed working with these students. We are making a book about Korean culture and history. Additionally, they are going to enter a photography contest with pictures taken from their cell phones. I feel like having the students use English to write a book, is far more useful, than having the students sit and memorize grammar structures. However, their parents don't think so. We started out with a group of 20, and are now down to 11 students on a regular basis. The parents are pulling out the students to go to hagwon instead. It is very disappointing to see this. I know that this will also be ab obstacle I face with my agriculture students when I return to the U.S.
This has been a relatively good week. I hope you are all doing well.
Love and miss you
I hope that this blog finds you STILL recovering from an AMAZING Thanksgiving, filled with lots of family, friends, and of course food!
I had never thought about NOT being able to spend Thanksgiving or holidays with family, and it has made me that much more thankful for what I have.
In school, I taught Thanksgiving to my students. We watched a Simpson's episode, watched a clip of football, and a video clip of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The parade and football were/are so foriegn to my students. They really enjoyed seeing how other cultures celebrate a holiday. Then, we made turkeys. They wrote four things that they were thankful for on the feathers, cut them out, colored them, and pasted them to the turkey. Although they thought that this was kind of silly, they enjoyed getting to do an art project. Because of their curriculum, students very rarely get to take an art class in school.
Thanksgiving Day was very difficult for me. I was in school, teaching about the holiday, and missing my family and friends very much. The most difficult was when I was showing pictures of my family eating, and knowing what I was missing out on. However, I know how extremely lucky I am to be in Korea, and that in the long run of things, missing one Thanksgiving isn't that big of a deal.
On Friday, all of the ETA's in Korea, were invited to the U.S. embassy for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. How many times in your life do you get the chance to spend a holiday at a U.S. embass, with the U.S. ambassador and the head of your program? Additionally, all of my friends were there. We ate an amazing meal! Turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes w/ gravy (the first gravy I've had since being in Korea), salad, fruit, two kinds of cheesecake, pumpkin pie. The whole experience was really great.
I spent the rest of the weekend in Seoul. It was so good to catch up with friends that I hadn't seen in over a month! Additionally, I checked out the National Museum of Korea. It was HUGE!!! There were so many cool artifacts from throughout Korea, as well as Japan, China, and even Vietnam. Soon, they are going to have a travelling exhibit about the Incan Indians from Peru. I hope to be able to check this out!
This weekend, I again traveling to Seoul. I am meeting a friend and we are going Christmas shopping. We might even try to go ice skating!
This week I received a box from home and a letter from Darrell. I have enjoyed wearing the boots that my family sent me- they are so warm!
Our after school program started on November 23. I have really enjoyed working with these students. We are making a book about Korean culture and history. Additionally, they are going to enter a photography contest with pictures taken from their cell phones. I feel like having the students use English to write a book, is far more useful, than having the students sit and memorize grammar structures. However, their parents don't think so. We started out with a group of 20, and are now down to 11 students on a regular basis. The parents are pulling out the students to go to hagwon instead. It is very disappointing to see this. I know that this will also be ab obstacle I face with my agriculture students when I return to the U.S.
This has been a relatively good week. I hope you are all doing well.
Love and miss you
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