Food

Just a few photos of what I have been eating for dinner lately. My breakfast usually is Blueberry Greek yogurt and lunch is served at my school. 


This is the first meal that I made in my new home. Chicken pasta in a basil pasta sauce with lots of delicious vegetables. Cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, avocados, garlic and carrots.

One night we went to Don Enrique for Mexican food. I had a beef burrito and a lime margarita. The burrito was nowhere near as good as the ones that you can get at Takorea, the Mexican restaurant in Eunhangdong that we went to a lot last year. The margarita, was, of course, wonderful. 

Another at home creation. A chicken vegetable wrap with Black Sesame dressing. 

On Monday night, David, Sarah and I walked down the street from our school to Bukhara and had some wonderful Indian food. Well worth the price. This is Beef Akbara  (spelling is probably wrong) and it was amazing as usual. I get it every time I go to Bukhara and I am never disappointed. It's not spicy, and they always give large amounts of beef in the curry. I usually get two orders of garlic naan bread to go with it. I never have any regrets eating here.

Deep fried dumplings. Or as they are known here, deep fried mandu. In Korea you can get mandu either fried or steamed. I prefer fried because the steamed ones always remind me of brains (that's what it looks like!), and because they don't taste as good. I made these at home in my first ever frying experience. They were great and I was really proud of my new found culinary skill in frying. Please ignore my feet which I didn't realize were in this picture.

Starbucks. As everyone here probably knows, I love Starbucks. I didn't take this picture for the drink though, but one of my first macaroons. I don't know about you, but it seems like every time I am on the internet I see macaroons artfully and prettily displayed in some pictures. Really it's advertising at its best (or worst depending on how you look at it). I broke down and decided to try a blueberry one from Starbucks for $2.00. It wasn't all that bad. The cookie was hard and yet soft and crumbly, and the filling had actual blueberries in it, which I was surprised to discover.

Thoughts About My New Students

I am not sure if I have ever mentioned this about ICC (my last school), but I think it is important to mention now. ICC was a great school because it was half government funded. The school was geared towards students from low income families who needed help in paying the tuition for their children. Half of that money came from the government. This is why so many of the parents were upset that the school was closing, because ICC was a rare school that offered this.The children were not from wealthy families, and as a whole, didn't act like little brats. Sure there were a few students that would act out or be a pain to teach, but most were fairly good. 

Here at Daejeon SLP, things are a horse of a different color. My classes are TERRIBLE. Let's forget about the Kindergarten kids for a bit, because they're special in their own way, and just focus on the 3 elementary classes that I teach in the late afternoon- early evening. Each of these classes are about 8-10 kids in total. I have maybe 2 or 3 kids, that are able to sit for most of the class, listen to what I am saying, and get right down to business. The rest of the kids, boys and girls alike (I do have more boys though), are little terrors. The reason for this I expect are 1 or a mix of the following possibilities.

#1} The kids are spoiled. And I say this in all seriousness. These kids are coming from wealthy four people families and are used to mommy and daddy doing everything for them, and not being disciplined for anything. Most hagwons (private schools/academies) in South Korea are very much business oriented and cater to the parents' wishes. Daejeon SLP is definitely no exception to this. I have never had so many complaints in my 1 1/2 years of teaching at ICC as I have had in these first 2 weeks at Daejeon SLP. Parents are incredibly more demanding here and they really go out of their way to make their opinions heard. As it so happens, the Korean co-teachers have to give the parents their PRIVATE cell phone number so that the parents can contact them at anytime, day or night. I feel bad for them (the Korean teachers).

#2} The kids are FULL of energy. And for that I can't really blame them. Their lives pretty much consist of school, school, school and more school. To review, the kids start off their mornings at public school where things are pretty much like they are back home. They learn English, Math, Science, History, Korean, basically everything that we do. The fun stuff happens after 2:30. At 2:30 public school ends, and the kids are whisked off to the first of what may be many, private schools for special tutoring. It is entirely possible that my students could go to up to as many as 3 private schools in one day. It is common to be walking around your neighbourhood at 10 at night and see young children getting into buses to be taken home after a long day of schooling. I have even heard that kids bully other kids if they do not attend private school or if they are not smart. Some parents don't even let their children play with other children who aren't as smart as theirs. I strongly feel that with all the time these kids spend in different schools, that they don't have enough time to run around outside and release some of the pent up energy that they have. Therefore, they bring it to class, where teachers like me, have to deal with them flailing their arms around, talking while I am talking, distracting other students, not paying attention, and just basically being rude and disrespectful. That being said, one of the Korean co-teachers did mention to me that she has noticed that kids nowadays are very rude. So it's nice to know that the Koreans aren't just blind to their poor attitudes. 

#3} They just genuinely don't want to be there. And I get that. If I was forced to go to countless boring schools every single day, I'd probably wouldn't be too thrilled about it either. These kids being at the age that they are can't and don't care to understand that getting this extra help will probably help them get ahead in the world. I know that Korean parents just try really really really hard for their kids to get the best education possible so that they can get into good universities, get good careers and have a good life. And I understand. But I also understand why South Korea has one of the highest student suicide rates in the world. 

#4} I'm a new teacher and they're testing me. I have been told a lot lately that because I am a new teacher and the students are just getting used to me, they're going to try and see how far they can push me. The other teachers here keep reassuring me that once they (the students) get to know me, they'll start behaving better and things will get easier once I have a routine down. I continue to pray that this day will come fast, for now, it remains a dream within a dream. 

So this is just some thoughts on what I have been experiencing so far with my students. I still enjoy my classes, and I am glad that I'm here. I just find it interesting how different these kids are than the ones I had last year.

Pictures of My Apartment

Return to Korea

Hello again faithful readers,

As many of you know I have returned to Korea for my second year of teaching. This particular post will (hopefully) address any thoughts or questions that you may have been wondering about. I know that I am not available often for chats on Facebook or by e-mail, and so I am hoping to keep a more updated blog this year now that I have a better internet connection. Also, it saves me from repeating myself constantly. That being said, please continue to e-mail/message me and I will answer when I can.

                                          * * * * *

So my return to Korea began with the much drawn out, dramatic regaining of my E2 visa documents. I had issues with the Korean Consulate in Vancouver due to lack of poor communication on their part. Once it started getting closer to my new job's starting date, my recruiter had me (with the help of my wonderful aunt and uncle, and trusty sidekick/guard dog George), drive to Vancouver and pick up my visa/passport from the Korean Consulate. Thankfully this was a successful endeavor, and I was able to get my visa. I checked into a hotel for the night, and was up at 4:45am to prepare for my 8:15am flight to Seattle. At about 5:30, I got on the hotel shuttle and headed for the airport where I exchanged my money and went through security. Everything went along just fine. While waiting at my gate I bought myself a water bottle and a fruit cup for a whopping $9.00.

My flight to Seattle was short and sweet, and I had less problems finding the train connecting to the terminal that I needed for my flight to Incheon then I had had last year. I ended up getting there for a 3 hour wait and just hung out at the boarding gate reading. For lunch I got a burger and a pop for less than what I paid for the water and fruit cup earlier that morning. My flight to Korea was pretty much uneventful. There was some turbulence, but nothing to crazy. My flight left a half an hour late, so instead of getting into Incheon at 6pm, I was there at 6:30pm. There was a Korean man from the recruiting company who helped me get my bus ticket and then he disappeared. The bus left Incheon at 9:30 pm. I slept for about an hour on it and arrived in Daejeon at 11:30pm. 

When I got off of the bus, the school manager Mr. Han, and the head teacher Matthew and his wife Meagan were waiting for me. They helped me grab my bags and took me straight to my apartment in Tanbang. Matthew and Megan stayed with me until about 1am just talking with me about the school and living in an apartment in Korea, which is quite the change from living in the dorm last year.

At 11am Monday morning, Mr. Han came and picked me up and drove me to SLP. We went in for a bit and then he took me for my medical exam. They did a chest x-ray, blood pressure, blood test, urine test, eye test, color blind test, hearing test, and measured my height, weight and chest size. On Monday, Mr. Han will be taking me to Immigration to get my ARC (Alien Registration Card) card. After the medical exam, we went back to SLP and Jesse (one of the supervisors) talked to me a bit about the textbooks and classes. She was really worried that I was tired from my flight, so she sent me home to rest. I got a little lost trying to find my apartment, but luckily I had a map that Matthew had drawn for me, and after retracing my steps, I was able to find my way home. 

On Tuesday, I was at work for 9:10am. Matthew went over my schedule with me, and I spent the day doing observations of the other teachers. I was supposed to teach a late evening class that night, but the class only had two students and was cancelled. 

My weekly schedule is really light. I get to work at 9:10am and am basically free to just lesson plan until 1:40. Lunch is provided by the school at 12:50-1:40 and is usually an array of a few Korean dishes. At 1:40pm, I start teaching my Kindergarten class. I have 6 students and I share the teaching with another foreign teacher, Sarah from Colorado (all of the foreign teachers at this school are either American or Canadian, there are 8 of us). Sarah teaches the kids in the morning, and I teach them in the afternoon. I teach them grammar and a storybook. We are reading The Emperor's New Clothes right now. 

The kids are sweet and cute and laugh a lot, but some of them are also a little problematic. Ji Hoon is apparently ADHD, and while he is smart and can do his work well, it is hard to get him to focus and stay in his seat. He is not yet on medication. Gi Taek is a little cutie pie, and can do the work, but he is a major procrastinator and takes his sweet time getting anything done. The class is usually held up from moving on because of him. Do Yu is very smart as well. His biggest problem is that he likes to work ahead and would finish the entire workbook if I let him. The girls, Chae Rin, Su Yeon and Song Yeon (the last two are twins), are quite happy and focus on their work. Like the boys however, they like to work ahead in their books as well. The class is age 7 in Korea (6 in Canada). The kids speak English quite well and frequently. While I do all of the teaching on my own, we also have a Korean teacher, Liz, who helps with keeping the kids on task, getting them their books, helping them put on their coats, and giving them their lunch and snack. I enjoy having her in the classroom, and it seems like we think a like when it comes to the kids. Class ends at 2:40pm, but I try to finish 5 minutes early so that they can put on their outside shoes, and jackets.

My afternoon classes start at 3pm. The class and students vary depending on the day. For example: I teach a textbook level called NHK (New High Kids)2 on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. On Tuesday and Thursday I have different classes. The class size is about 10 kids, elementary aged. NHK is a textbook series that was designed by the school for the school. It's really great because the teacher's edition of the book has all of the lesson plans already made, and pretty much word for word of what you need to say and do in your lesson to be successful. I really like it because it's straightforward and it is helpful for understanding what the school, and in turn, the parents expect from you and your classes. Prep work is minimal, and I usually finish quite quickly and am left with nothing else to do for hours. The NHK books all come with a Student Book, Conversation Book, Workbook, Reading and Listening Book, and Vocabulary Book for the students. Afternoon classes usually run for 90 minutes or so, with a short 5 minute break halfway through.

As the semester has just started, I have a fairly easy schedule, but Jesse and Monica (supervisors) have told me that I will probably be teaching some special classes once they begin. At both 4:30 and 6:10, we have to go to an assigned classroom and walk the children down to their buses to go home. We actually take the elevator (2 in our building, we're on the 6th floor) and it gets a bit hectic with all of the kids pushing and trying to run. My day ends usually around 6:10pm.

So far I haven't been up to much here in the evenings. I have been to Homeplus three times (we have two in the area) for shopping for my apartment (food, laundry basket/detergent, etc). I am hoping to get a routine going for in the evenings and working on studying my History course. I met up with Scarlet (my Korean co-teacher from ICC) on Wednesday night, and she has agreed to teach me Korean on Wednesday nights after work in exchange for "delicious foods or drinks". I offered to pay her for my lessons but she wouldn't go for it. Seeings how we'll be meeting at the dinner hour anyhow, this arrangement works out well. 

So that's pretty much my week in a nutshell. I will post pictures of my apartment in another post. I am getting used to it's size and the fact that my shower is connected to my sink. I just did my first load of laundry and was successful with that. I didn't realize that the water to the machine was shut off, so it took me a bit to figure that out, and then once I did, it started to leak. So I shut the water off and just un-did and re-screwed on the tube that carries the water into the machine and I fixed it all by myself. Now I have to put my clothes up to dry and throw on another load. I had a bit of an explosion in my bags on the way here, so a couple of my shirts smell like face wash. And yesterday morning, before I had even gotten dressed, a Korean woman came in and checked the gas line in my apartment to make sure that it was okay. 

So far everything seems to be going great. I really enjoy the school, and my co-workers are all really friendly and helpful. I like my little apartment and the neighborhood is nice. I live right next to the elementary (public) school. My school, SLP, is about a 10 minute walk from my apartment. There is a Starbucks and a Burger King on the first floor of the building, and also a gym, hair salon and an Italian restaurant in the building as well.

It looks like this is shaping up to be a great year and I will do my best to keep you updated on everything that's going on.