Market Day

Anyone who lives in Dufferin county knows about Mrs. Trowbridge's legendary "Pay Days." They were the highlight of Primrose Elementary school and probably the height of any marketing or merchandising efforts I may have ever possessed.

At our school, kids get stickers for good behaviour and doing homework. We take stickers away for the opposite and then they get to exchange all their stickers for money to use at market day. The kids bring things they want to sell, and then the teachers set up booths to sell things as well. The kids go crazy for market day. This time we had duk buk ki, cider, tons of cool stationary and toys and about everything else under the sun. The cool part of market day is being a teacher and being able to buy all sorts of crap. I got a blowing bubble gun, a few toys for Benjamin, some magnets, a book, and a few lined notebooks.

Here are a few pictures from the day.

Ready to sell some stuff and make some serious money!

Sweet rewards for doing homework.

Yes they're twins.

What's up with this book? Have you done this with your wife recently? Lol....

Field Trip Day!

If there's one thing I like almost as much as I like a day off, it's  a field trip. It means teaching hours spent on buses, and mostly just hanging out. I usually score a ridiculous amount of swag and get to take a million pictures of cute Korean kids. I love field trips!

This Friday we ventured into Seoul to see the robot museum. This was actually probably the worst field trip ever but I had a good day. I got so bus sick on the way down in Seoul traffic, and then the actual place was kind of lame. I think the kids had an alright time, though. There was a robot band, and a 3d movie and then about as quick as it started it was over and time to go back to school. We hopped back on the bus and back to school for a spaghetti lunch and movie. Sigh....zero teaching-- yay!

Anywhere here are a few shots to peek at.



These two are best friends and it's so cute. They've pledged total allegiance to eachother in and out of the classroom.



Rocking the 3-D classes


Not willing to be anywhere else but wrapped around Evan's neck.

They haven't quite figured out the glasses. Notice that he's got his upside down and hers are crooked. 

Searching for Cherry Blossoms: Part 2

It's not like I always dreamed of living in Korea. I mean I became pretty obsessed with the idea once I arrived at university and realized it was an option, but Korea (or Asia for that matter) was never really at the top of my list. I know this probably rings true for a lot of people who have dreams of sailing the Mediterranean or basking in the sun in the Caribbean -- what's so great about Korea?

Well, I'm still asking myself that question. It's true in a lot of ways that Korea isn't that exciting or exotic. I think this has to do with the fact that Korea is so much like Canada or other western countries. Skyscrapers and shopping malls don't have the same allure as a good marimba band or a sombrero shop. Aside from cherry blossoms, and colored lanterns--I think alot of what we enjoy so much about Korea is all the little things. A day in Lake Park, a beer at Sunny's, a walk with Benjamin around Hwajeong, a night of Noraebang, a cheap Korean Barbeque meal, or even a run through Emart is what we find amusing about Korea and why we love it here so much.

This Sunday was the perfect example. We were supposed to go hiking, but it was cancelled and instead we found ourselves touring around Ilsan for the millionth time. This should be boring by now but it really isnt! We discovered a place that sells chocolate-covered hamburgers (yes, you read right), realized they put brail on cans of Budweiser here, and then sat in Lake Park and people watched until the sun went down. It was perfect!

Here are a few pictures from the day, nothing terribly special. Attempting to use my camera in Manual mode and learning how to use RAW format. I'm going to need some more practice!

 I was starting to go insane thinking these types of blossoms didn't exist but I finally found 'em!

Riding shotgun on the beach cruiser.

Budweiser in the park. Yes, there's the brail. 

In case you're wondering-- no, those are not real curls. That is a "perma" that his mom has insisted on, which he will hold against her for the rest of his life.

Magnolia blossoms-- or at least thats what I think they are.

Feeding monster-sized fish.

Sometimes feel like Central Park ain't got nothing on Ilsan Lake Park. Such a great place!

The common mode of transportation for kids in Lake Park.

The Seoul 2011 Photo & Imaging Show

We headed out to COEX this afternoon to see the Seoul 2011 Photo and Imaging Show. I was really excited to go to it, maybe because I've never made it to any of the ones that go on in Toronto. Anyways, we did the hour long ride out to Samseong station and stopped for some fuel first at On the Border. This place is the bees knees! Homemade nachos and salsa packed with cilantro. We both had enchiladas and they were the bomb diggity.

We paid our 5,000 won and walked through the photo exhibition. They had some really huge million dollar lenses that you could try out, and all sorts of exhibitions to walk through. To be honest though, the exhibition was pretty disappointing to me. I was thinking there might be more shopping, fun new products, and free stuff but it wasn't that exciting. It was pretty crazy seeing all the Koreans who came to this thing with 7 cameras strapped to themselves, with step-ladders and all sorts of other junk. I kid you not! Not really sure if they were just taking the opportunity to show off their gear, or if they were actually making use of it throughout the day but I can't imagine carting all that through the type of crowd that was happening at this place.

Another part of the exhibition was a bunch of modeling displays that were set up for all the people there to photograph. Alot of people were going crazy with this but I just took a few photos to throw on the blog. I should have made a video of these girls pouting their lips and changing their pose-- kind of hillarious. The boys were all over this scene!

I was also really hoping to figure out a solution to my current backpacking dilemma--- trying to sort out a comfortable way of packing light but bringing most of my photo gear with me and having all of my stuff in one bag. If we do the Everest trek in nepal without porters it's going to be a difficult one to figure out!!! Oh well, at least I've got months left to go.

Our Korean Gym

Now you wouldn't know it from looking at me, but we've been members of our Korean gym pretty much since we got off the boat here in Korea. It didn't take long to realize that the quantities of deep fried goodness  happening over here was going to go straight to the waistline, and before we knew it we had signed on for a gym membership. Korean gyms aren't too much different from the gyms I have belonged to back home, nothing beats the YMCA in Kitchener and everything beats the UWaterloo gym. 

Cost: It's about the same or a bit more than back home. At the YMCA I was paying around 45 per month and I had unlimited classes and a pool. It was awesome. Here it's around 60 a month just for the gym and then if you want to you can add extra classes on or something but we haven't done that. 

Clothing: They give you your own uniform as you walk in and it's awesome. I usually wear my own pants because I feel less depressed in my yoga-stretch than in the 6th grade overweight soccer mom style shorts they give you here. Either way it's nice because you don't have to lug your gym crap all over the place with you! You also get a key to a locker upon arrival so I'm able to keep my laptop and any other belongings from work safe until they make it back to my apartment. 

Machines: More or less the same. Some of the machines like the elliptical that are really popular back home, aren't as popular at our gym and there's only 2 or 3 of them. However there are some sick-wicked machines that make absolutely no sense that seem to be used quite a bit and more than make up for the lack of ellipticals. 

 This one jiggles the fat off of you. Seriously you stand on it and all you see is every bit of fat jiggling all over the place. It's not so "becoming" with the older crowd that uses it. Oh and then its right in front of the mirror for you to watch yourself jiggle.

 

This one is a belt massager. Basically you put a big loopy thing around you and enjoy the rug-burn sensation that it gives as the loopy-belt rubs against your skin and clothing. 

Then there is another machine or two that seem like a cross between one of those really old school/ugly beaded seat covers and a motor. For some reason, it seems like Koreans enjoy a pain sensation with any type of therapeutic treatment whether it is "slapping" themselves while putting on hand cream, using the equivalent of steel wool on bare skin at the jimjilbang, or when using these machines. There's my Korean generalization of the day. Another cool thing about the Korean gym is that there is a sauna room where you go in with clothes like you would at the jimjilbang and sweat it out. It's nice when your exercise partner is the opposite sex and you can use the sauna together after your workout. 

There are some fancier gyms but we actually like this one quite alot. The owners are always coming around and giving us little personal training sessions in English, and everyones really friendly. Our favorite guy always tells Evan he is going to look "like Arnie" by the end of the summer. We've made a few friends and the place is really welcoming. If anyone were living in Hwajeong I would definately recommend "Run Fitness" which is on the 10th floor, above outback steakhouse.   

Evan displaying his guns next to this inspirational photo.

The front desk.

We'll have to get some photos of our trainer friends the next time around, and maybe a video of someone using the fat machine hehe.

A Korean Birthday Party

So I dont think we've posted about this before, but one cool part of our job is BIRTHDAY PARTIES! And we get to have lots of 'em! It normally means a full 40 minute period of eating cake, laughing, taking photos and then a visit to the playroom. Also from time to time we score some sweet swag too,  meaning cool gifts. This week was my little friend Danny's birthday. His mom went allll out on this party and I have decided that she is now on my list of "potential Korean moms (PKM)" for when I finally decide who will be my Korean mom because I'd really like one. On a sidenote, I already have a Canadian mom that I wouldn't trade for the world.

Anyways, Danny's mom brought in this cake that was from Shilla hotel or something in Seoul and it was the best cake I've had in a really long time: like a boston cream pie made with cheese cake layers instead of custard. To say it's the best cake I've had in a long time means a lot because most Korean cake is pretty crap-tastic in our opinion. Then we were all given these personalized cupcake cookie combinations, a fruit bowl and this box with a homemade cookie, lollypop and iced coffee inside. Yeah, it was awesome. The only downside to the Korean birthday party is the photo taking, which is about 20 minutes of smiling and several standard photos that are comparable to a wedding photographer's shooting list. So without further adieu, here are a few pictures.

Full out fondent topping including the white part. 

One of my kindergarten classes, and my Korean coteacher. 

My personalized cookie/cupcake combination. 

    Oh just a picture of how our little plants are coming along. 

I don't really have a title for this one....

We're almost at the 8 month mark, which means that we have only 4 months left in Korea. I am insanely excited about this. I felt like I had to go past the 6 month mark before I could start rejoicing about my future return to Canada. Lately I've been pondering things like what I will be sending home via mail, what I am going to wear on the plane (wtf?), what I should bring back to friends and family, what I want to do the first day back on Canadian soil, what food I am going to eat upon returning to Canada.....basically I'm really excited!

I think alot of this has had to do with some discontent at work recently. As you may remember, we started a new semester in March. It has been a bumpy ride that is only starting to become a bit more comfortable. I had a kid pull my hair so hard the other day while screaming and kicking me, that clumps of hair were falling out of my head. Blame it on radiation or hard water, but I'm pretty sure the kid was to blame. This last month or so has just been daily vocal-exhaustion. I'm constantly yelling at kids, trying to get them to stop talking, to listen, to stop moving and fiddling and speaking in Korean. Yes, yelling. I've noticed that using a loud voice seems to be what the kids are used to here, or they just simply ignore you. I've also been constantly trying to get kids to stop hitting and kicking eachother. Sue Sylvester is my new role model, and maybe I'm straying away from my compassionate, social worker self but there'll be a time and a place for that in the future I'm sure. I'm sure Sue Sylvester would support me throwing small children out windows. Sorry, I've been watching a lot of Glee lately so pardon the Sue Sylvester references.

Now the weeks are starting to blend into another, and there is some sort of routine back in place again. I've stopped staring into my old students' new classrooms in a yearning sort of way, and am starting to actually like some of my kids which is definately a good thing. Even the two kids that scream at eachother in Korean, and insult eachother with words like ajumma (old woman) and dumb make me giggle a little. The past month had me so exhausted I could never force myself to the gym, and had me so bitter and angry!

We've just been told we're getting an extra day off in about a week, meaning that we now have thursday-sunday off, work Monday and then have Tuesday off. We are hoping to go to Deokjeokdo for a camping trip but those plans are very much still in the works. As usual, they only told us about this extra day yesterday, saying that they were 90% sure that it is 100% sure that we will have the Friday off to give us a long weekend. I'll take what I can get!

Anyways, I'll spare you further rambling and give you a cute video to watch! My poor editing skills have led to a bunch of little people that look like "little people." My bad. Enjoy! If you want to make it bigger so that you can read the little comments you need to click on the 4 arrows thing.


Untitled from kate halbert on Vimeo.

A trip out of Seoul!

It's absolutely shameful to admit this, but in 8 months of living in Korea-- this weekend was the first time we ventured outside of the Seoul area. We shipped Benjamin off to Dog Kindergarten and headed to Gyeongju for the Cherry Blossom Festival.

On Friday night, we opted to stay in Seoul so that we could make it to the Express Bus Terminal for 630 am. Now, I'm going to let you in on a wee secret. If you're willing to sleep on the floor, or at least not on a regular mattress-- you can head to the jimjilbang and stay overnight. Yep, 12,000 won (less than 12 CAD) gets you a night of sudsing and relaxation. Much better deal than staying at a hotel in our opinion, especially if it's just for a quick sleep to catch an early bus, plane, train or automobile. We visited Silloam for the second time, a great way to get back on the horse after having fainted naked on the floor the last time. Monica was on the fence about having an ajumma scrubdown, so to help her out I took one for the team. This time, the scrubber-woman was sporting a big tattoo. She giggled and pointed, chuckling in Korean as she tried to get in to all the cracks and crevaces while I attempted to keep my thighs pried shut, and her steel wool pad away from the girly bits. This experience was not as great as the first one. I didn't get a rocking neck massage and she didn't wash my hair. However, the skin is very soft as it should be.

At these places, there's a sleeping room thats dark and quiet and they're segregated for women and men. Monica headed to bed a bit early and Evan and I stayed in the common area with the mixed genders. We were worried about being able to wake people up when you cant go into the seperate rooms if you're the opposite sex. Worst sleep ever! I was so jealous when I saw what I would have had in the women's sleeping room. Oh well!

We hopped on a bus and headed to Gyeongju which took over 4 hours. We got there, hopped onto bikes and began our journeys. I rocked a pink beach cruiser, while Evan opted for the mountain bike variety. In hindsight, his bike was much more realistic for the terrain we experienced. It was a really beautiful day, and very enjoyable despite the intensity. We visited the famous refrigerator, the tombs, the fields, the lake and of course saw many of the cherry blossoms. Evan managed to lose his wedding ring for the 3rd time (as in the 3rd ring). God bless Titanium and its cheapness.

We stayed in a pension, which meant 4 of us basically sleeping on a hard (but headed) floor. The bathroom had a bathtub. I was so excited, until I realized the water pressure was the equivalent of a rusted public park fountain. There was also no tub stopper. In case this has you puzzled, I havent had a bath (as in naked, by myself, in private) in 8 months. So this was a huge bummer! We had a Korean buffet which was pretty blech but for 10,000 what do you do. Headed back to the pension, and everyone who was vowing to get loaded upon arrival was pooched out on the back of the bus.

We got up and decided we would opt out of a second day of biking. Evan's knee was killing and I was looking forward to being able to take pictures without also being on a bicycle. We ventured into a bunch of really cool areas, visited a market, hung out with some Korean boy scouts, and had McDonalds. Then we sat in the park forever, lying back and enjoying the sounds of kids' laughter and kites flying over our heads. At first we thought this city/area was boring, but after further investigation we think maybe it would be an alright choice for a second contract. We met some new, very cool people and that was a plus. We missed the peak cherry blossoms I think, and it wasn't quite the snowy-flowery picture I was hoping for but I'll live!