Heidi, one of the folks at the climb, was way more on the ball than I was and took a TON of really awesome photos.
Saturday Night:
We took a car and a taxi to Yeosu for the costume party, and struggled a bit to find a hotel room - Korea doesn't really celebrate Halloween, so when you have about 8 white folks, some of whom are in rather dramatic costumes, it makes it a little difficult. We were turned away by two places until we wised up and sent some of the more normal looking folks and left the others waiting outside.
Some pictures:
I just drove my bike home!!
To be blunt, it was pretty scary and there were times I had to stop and take a deep breath and collect myself (like starting going downhill - that wasn't a lot of fun) but I DID it! I followed a friend who was very nice about how long it took for me to make what should be the 10 minute drive (read: long time) and it gave me the chance to get used to the feel of the bike and what it was like to drive on the road versus drive on a practice road.
And I didn't cry. I have a tendancy to start to cry a little when I make myself do things I either think I cannot do, or that scare me. This was both of those things.
Considering I sort of live on the side of a mountain here, I should probably learn to feel a little more comfortable with the starting on the downhills. But then, when I was learning to drive a manual transmission, I sucked at that, too. Practice, practice, practice. And learning to trust myself a bit more.
Three days, three towns, lots of bus rides.
Friday: After a day at Daap (how much do I love teaching at that school!? interobang!) I came home and packed a backback for the weekend, dashed to the bus terminal, and hopped on a bus for Suncheon.
* I should note that for some reason, the bus terminal in Gwangyeong has moved, and I'm not really sure where or why. Okay, I really don't care why, but the where would sure be helpful to know. I gave up and took a taxi.
In Suncheon, after arriving at Virginia'sI realized that the party the bar was having was supposed to be a costume party. Oops. After whining for a while, I decided I was "every other woman at my gym" which kind of morphed into popular girl to counter a friend's Emo boy costume, and wore lots of makeup, a pink tank-top with rhinestones, and my new favorite article of clothing, a baby-pink hoodie. Seriously, wearing this sweatshirt makes everything a little bit better. Oh, and I wore glitter. It was awesome in its lameness. (Okay, maybe just lame. Anyway.) Went out for a while, saw bunches of folks, ate hottok (these sort-of-pancakes that are stuffed with brown sugar and deliciousness) and laughed a lot.
6 people, one apartment in Shidae Apartments (read - somewhat small). Stu took the balcony.
Saturday:
After an amazing brunch, we finally set off. For motorcycle safty gear, it seems like women's jackets are a tiny bit too short, but US men's are too long, so my thinking was that a Korean men's jacket would be perfect. Virginia took me to her mechanic, and we ended up meeting my new bike. Or what will be my bike in a few days (a friend uses this mechanic, too, and had the bike checked out here, they should be delivering it to Gwangyang in the next couple of days!!) Sadly, I only had my camera phone:
(the bike and me and the bike. Only showing the last one to prove that it is a little bike - the first shot makes her look bigger than she really is.)
After extended goofyness and giddiness (all by me), a helmet for Virginia and a test drive for Stu, there was E-Mart.
There are some stores which are almost like wonderlands. They have a couple of delicious and familiar things in a sea of "Well, this LOOKS like it might be..." and E-Mart was one of those places. Evidenced by their having Enviro-Kids Peanut Butter Panda Puffs. Now, while I'm not the greatest fan of the peanut butter panda puff, it IS peanut butter flavored children's cereal, and beggars can't be choosers. I bought two boxes.
Okay, there will be more to follow that elaborates (with pictures!), but it is getting late - so the short version:
* working out at a gym and not having a single person say ANYTHING - Suncheon is awesome.
* amazing dinner
* Party, with friends in wonderful costumes
* First time rock climbing!!
* and being harassed by someone who appeared to be both mentally challenged and emotionally disturbed in the Suncheon bus termial. I have had bad bus-weirdo karma this week. Eep.
There really is nothing like knitting in lovely silk yarn on needles about two size too large for the yarn (but you are getting such fantastic drape and when blocked it would look amazing so you don't want to start over and you don't want to have to go buy another set of needles) to show how dramatically different your knit and purl tension really is.
and wow, that's a bad sentence. Also, i realize that for some of you, I could have posted:
'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.
and had it make as much sense.
In other knitting news, I bought the pattern for Hopeful and may look at adapting the sleeves to full length, and may futz with the bow thing at the front. But I like the lines, and I think it is a good cause, and I wanted a pattern for a nice v-neck sweater that might make it look like I have a waist.
I'm still sort of sick (not a lot, but still...), and when I'm sick I'm kind of mushy. That's the disclaimer.
Over the past several weeks, I've noticed many more teachers trying to talk with me - people who my first weeks at the school didn't say anything. I know that a lot Koreans won't try to speak English because they are afraid they'll make mistakes, so when people start trying to make an effort, I really, really appreciate it. Today, I noticed that one of the teachers was whispering to one of the English teachers, and then asked if I was ready for sports day - I'm almost positive he was trying to make sure he said it correctly. Another teacher came by and reminded me about volleyball practice tomorrow, and a third found out about yoga classes in a nearby neighborhood for me. One of the teachers I hung out with at the field trip took pictures and today gave me copies, and people make sure that I feel like I'm included in the meals before and after volleyball, that when there are snacks in the teachers' room I know I can take part, and invite me to go to lunch with them everyday.
All of these little kindnesses really make me wish I had better understanding of Korean, and will be why I try to take the bus to Suncheon once a week to try to get better. I may make mistakes but if they are willing to try, so am I.
started to get the cold of DOOM last week - the kind where my voice goes completely away or I sound like Patty and Selma from The Simpsons. So, since today was day two of all-day sports competition and I had nothing to do, and the last two times this happened it was a sinus infection that progressively got worse until I was starting to cough from the river of phlegm going down my throat so badly that even the students suggested I go to the doctor, I went to the doctor today. Or rather, the hospital, because somehow, here that seemed to be what everyone wanted me to do.
And it is Salang Pyongwon - Love Hospital. How could I say no?
I took a taxi in to Jungma, and in less time than it would have taken to for me to wait for the doctor when I had an appointment in the US, I got in, was taken to the only reception person willing to speak English, saw a doctor (who spoke English reasonably well), went three doors down to get a bunch of packets of pills and a bottle of really vile syrup of some sort, and got out the door. Now, I'm not really sure what is wrong - I think he agreed sinus infection - and I'm supposed to go back on Friday. All told, including taxis to the hospital, to Home Plus, and back home, I spent $5 less than my co-payment for a doctor in New Mexico. AND I didn't have an appointment or have to wait at all! (my co-teacher called to warn them that I would coming by - that probably helped.)
I also went to Home Plus. It is a wonderland. Dark Chocolate Hershey's Kisses. Wheat bread. Tortilla chips. Single-serving frozen pizza that doesn't taste like the sauce was made from ketchup AND with only cheese and nothing strange - like carrots or corn - on it. All manner of deliciousness.
Also, the Face Shop, which is kind of like The Body Shop, has nailpolish for a dollar. A DOLLAR!! How can you go wrong?
________________
Last night, I went up to Suncheon for the free Korean class. I wish I was closer! It was good because it made me think a lot faster when reading Korean letters, and I like the idea of having the struture of a "class" to make me actually study. It was also a really good reminder of how hard my classes must be to all but some of the more advanced students. So, more differentiation in the classes I teach, and even though it is a long way to go (and I missed the last bus out of Suncheon and had to taxi to the main terminal in Gwangyang-Eup - about halfway home for me! oops!) as long as I can cut out a little bit earlier, I think I'm going to try to make it back for the Monday classes.
AP Journalist held without charges
1st Amendment
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
Oh, but wait, he isn't American. Null and void.
This is horrific.
(Normally, I'm not a fan of using other blogs as a source, but the writer links to several different - legitimate - news sources.)
I love Barack Obama. And while he may not be a magical solution, he is smart and good and well spoken, and not embarrassing to have as a representative of the US. And while I'm cynical enough that I honestly don't know if the US would ever elect a black man as president, I think that Obama would be one of the few who might be able to build the censuses necessary to do it.
This weekend has been pretty lovely, all things considered.
Friday:
I attended a workshop that I was notified about the day before. There was some timing issues with the bus (okay, not with the bus, but with the fact that while eleventy-million taxis go by while I'm walking to work, that day I had to walk forever to find one. Foiled! And also maybe that I move too slowly in the morning.) that was solved with some creative taxi solutions, and I crashed out for another two hours on the bus. Literally, sprawled across the seats. I'm so classy.
I got to hang out with awesome folks, though there is something a little sad about losing my voice the day I'm finally around people where I can talk at a natural pace all the time.
An aside - I have a cold. Well, actually, I have the exact same symptoms as the sinus infection I had last school year, and what I need is flonaze and antibiotics. And I need to try to find a doctor who speaks English. When I asked my co-teacher, her response was that she thought ALL doctors would be able to do so. Um, I'm guessing she's wrong on that one.
So, hanging out with friends in Gwangju, a ride from a friend to Yeosu (didn't have to take the bus! woo!), and a evening that included going to the gym (GEE, I'm a GIRL and I'm strong? and that is unusual here? you don't say.) curry, pizza, and poker. I'm not good at poker, but at least I came out ahead.
Saturday:
I love sitting around and talking to people over breakfast. And I got to do it two times! Yay. Also, Banana Nut granola bars ROCK. After that, I almost learned how change the oil on a motorcycle. I was only able to learn how to change the oil filter, as the bolt over the drain didn't want to budge without different tools. Anyway. I put the fairings back on, which was the only thing useful I really did. But I did learn a little more.
Motorcycling: One of the more interesting points of having two parents who are psychologists is that you are able to fairly accurately diagnose your own neuroses, yet have no idea how to actually CHANGE THE REACTION. Acknowledgment is not behavior change.
The short version is that the motorcycling started out reasonably well, became rather bad (not TOO dramatic, and mostly about me psyching myself out), and ended with me getting un-psyched-out and getting over my fear of driving into a ditch or into the curb. Or into parked cars, or that a vehicle was going to come out of nowhere. Once I was able to relax a little and realize that I AM able to make the bike go where I want it to go, things got better again quickly. I am able to do figure 8's, loops, and all the basics. What I need is actual road experience. I still do not like traffic, and would like to have the chance to practice in an area where there are a limited number of others on the road, which makes me want to have a bike here NOW.
To that end, I have bought this:
Guess who did her first chin-up EVER today?!
I cannot believe this! Even in middle school when we had to do those flexed-arm-hang-things for the presidential fitness test, I wasn't able to do more that 1 second. Seriously. And today, (which, by the way, marks excatly two months since I arrived in Korea) I did it.
Today was great, and there are lots of things I'd like to say about it, and there are pictures.
But this post isn't about that.
This post is about the fact that I just submitted the final payment for my car. The first vehicle that I bought all on my own.
Little tonka-truck-lookin' Rav4, I miss you!!
Over the past few weeks, I've been finding it harder and harder to get excited about going to the gym. The past few days, I've had to force myself to go, and the running has been even worse. Except for one trail that is a pretty far walk/hike, it is a choice between un-runnably steep and/or concrete cobblestones, which my knees cannot handle. So I've been stuck on the treadmill and hate it.
I decided I need motivation - something to work towards. Before moving here, I had started to research running groups and there is a club in Seoul, but their race calendar ended in July and they haven't updated for the rest of the year. Today, I asked one of the teachers who has been incredibly helpful to help me find races in the next few months, and he found the Sunchon Marathon. I guess marathon is a general-purpose term for race here, as there is a 5k, 10k, and 1/2 marathon. So today, I signed up for a 5k on November 12th. I don't feel like I would be able to prepare for a 10k with the time I have (and would stab out my eyes from boredom if I had to run 6 miles on a treadmill) and as I am doing 5k several times a week on the tread at about a minute faster than my fastest race time, should be able to do reasonably well. I still won't set any speed records, but I hope to be able to get in under 30 min.
Unrelated, today the teacher room is mouth-noise central - gum popping, slurping, lip smacking, teeth sucking - and it is about to send me 'round the bend.
After I run or lift, I usually drink a protein shake. In super simple terms, the idea is that it encourages your body to maintain/build muscle instead of breaking down the muscle for fuel.
I've been experimenting with fruit/protein mixes, and for a while was making the shakes with frozen peach chunks (which, by the way, was really, really wonderful) but now that I am out of peaches, I've been experimenting with other fruit. Plus at one of the schools I go to, the principal gave me a big bottle of concentrated plum juice (they make it at the school) so I've been putting shots of that in, too. I mean, what the heck else am I going to do with it?
Yesterday, it was a persimmon/plum juice mix, which was surprisingly delicious! (good, as there will be TON of persimmons at the market soon!) and today is Chinese Cantalope+plum juice.
Odd. Not bad, but still, kind of... Odd.
Also, this would be two days in a row when I have eaten a fruit I have never had before.
his weekend, I got the chance to hang out with a girl from Ohio who teaches at one of the elementary schools in my neighborhood. I got the chance to speak in English! Fluently! She lives in the bigger area not too far away, and I am trying to get over my ideas that a five dollar taxi ride is paying too much.
I also just had a teacher I work with teach me how to say "please stop staring" in Korean. (In Hangul, it is 쳐다보지 마세요. the Romanization is cheo da boji masseyo.)
It gets old, but I understand and am fine with people looking at me. I get that I'm one of the first white people some people have ever seen in person, and that it is pretty darn interesting. I get it. And most people realize that I'm a person, and at least are somewhat respectful, or are at least nice about it.
But what ISN'T nice is when people forget that I'm a person, and when they keep staring in really disrespectful ways. Really, I can see you staring at my ass while I'm on the treadmill - there is a whole wall of mirrors, and you aren't being subtle. Or when I meet your eyes to let you know you've taken it a little too far and you then start staring about a foot lower than my eyes? Not appropriate.
And the thing is, I know that it is considered rude here to stare, at least in that way. And so it is the fact that sometimes I'm not treated like an actual person that really gets to me. And I know that I'm lucky, and that if I were in a bigger area it would be worse. But sometimes it is just too much.
쳐다보지 마세요.
Once upon a time, I thought it would be great to get paid to sit around and do nothing but play on the internets and knit all day.
Over the past two days, I have found that it is the most profoundly boring thing ever.
Students are taking mid-term exams, and so after a day of having all but one of my classes pulled for test prep and a day of nothing at all due to testing, I was incredibly grateful for the chance to go to my elementary school workshop. Tomorrow I will be at the other middle school, which while usually also very boring, will be less boring as I will actually have classes to teach.
The downside to having the class was that since students were done after lunch, a group of teachers went on a group hike up a nearby mountain. I was invited, but couldn't go because of the workshop.
It is interesting to be able to watch the dynamics of what goes on in a school, and see how similar it is everywhere. Even when you don't know the language, you can see the personalities and the way people interact - maybe even more clearly. It was kind of bittersweet to sit and thing about the people that I would have gotten along with if I had been able to communicate with them or them with me. Because English is a required subject, most of the teachers have at least some reading and writing ability in English, and several are actually pretty good. But there is a difference between being able to say hello, thank you, and goodbye in shared languages and being able to make friends.
I am one of the most spoiled kids on the planet.
My mom sent me another big box of goodness! Combine me whining about it getting cold, whining my apartments lack of blankets, and also whining about the expense of buying blankets, and I must have created a critical whine factor that made my mother jump into action and send the duvet I "gave" to her before I left. And if that had been it, it would have been pretty amazing, but then she added a ton of other good stuff, too!! Yay!! WHOLE WHEAT TORTILLAS!! A whole bag of em!! Treats in the form of Mexican food and bars and oatmeal and cereal, and cute stuff for my classroom for Halloween. AND!! And a sweater worth of yarn from the Navajo Arts and Crafts Enterprise (basically, Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride), which I had asked for as a Christmas gift.
I am very lucky that my parents love me as much as they do. There is no way I could have done this without them. From boxes full of both necessities and treats, to financial help at critical times, to buying and sending a winter coat because nothing here is long enough, I am so grateful. Truly.
Me in Seoul.
Seoul was wonderful! The weather was amazing, we basically ate our way through the city, and all in all had a lovely time.
The picture above is from a temple near Insadong, which after the dirt and... volume... of the westerners in Itaewon, was wonderful. This was also the neighborhood where I saw some of the most incredible paper I have ever seen in my life. Seriously.
Other temple/Insadong pictures:
(I love the vividness of the colors used on the temples here)
This temple area is in the middle of Seoul. It is pretty wonderful to find this place after the buzz of the city. The main temple is behind me as I'm taking the photo, but I liked how this was framed against the office building.
A monk on the street in Insadong.
This lady is making one of the most amazing street foods ever. In Korean, it is called Hottok, and it is basically a sort of pancake that is filled with brown sugar and fried. I used to love a good funnel cake, but I will never be able to look at them the same after one of these.
There was lots of shopping, lots of food (including two of us clearing out 30+ Nature Valley granola bars from a corner store, Mexican, Indian, and burgers), but the highlight really was the tour to the DMZ. I don't really know what to say about that, really.
Itaewon was worth it for the bookstore and the restaurants, but there are a LOT of white folks with bad manners there (but I should also point out that it was only the Korean men who thought I was a prostitute...)
We only has a couple of days, so there was a lot that we missed. Also, because of the holiday, many of the places I really wanted to go were closed. We are already talking about a weekend trip in November.
Also, running into people I knew, being able to navigate the subway on my own, and having enough of a command of the language that I was able to barter in markets and get a taxi to take me where I needed to go reminded me how far I have come in terms of language. I have a LONG way to go, but I feel better about using what little I have.
This is as far as my camera could see into the DMZ/North Korea.
The tour of the DMZ was pretty amazing, and I realized how ignorant I really am about the war here. Political leaders jockey for position and power and ego, but the reality comes down to the fact that many people in North Korea don't have enough to eat, have no way to get in touch with their family in the South, and have no way out. There was an amazing amount of propaganda about how far the countries have come and how close a peaceful reconciliation is, but today's news makes it pretty clear how accurate that is.
I'm almost as far away as you can get and still be on the same peninsula. But I did register with the US Embassy today.
Home.
Seoul is a magical land where you can find things like books in English, curry, food from around the world, and long-sleeve t-shirts that are long enough.
However, three of the 4 places I really wanted to go were closed Friday and Saturday - I think for Chuseok, but I'm not really sure ("Ah, Korea" was the only response I had after the third place was shut). And I was sad. BUT!! We got to go on the DMZ tour, and are planning a weekend trip in Novemeber, I think.
More later when I've uploaded pictures.
Today I went to lunch at a co-worker's house and it was so much fun! I wish I had thought to take pictures while I was there. It was more about sitting around and talking (the co-worker has pretty good english, and her sister is a high school English teacher in Seoul and lived in the US for a year, so was awesome) and it was good just to be able to sit around and talk about basic things (like where to find cotton balls or embroidery floss) and have people correct my lame attempts at Korean in a nice way. Her daughter is about Katy's age, so it was so much fun just to play goofy little girl games (naming colors, counting). I almost think I should set up a language exchange with the 3 year old...
Tomorrow I will transfer money to my US account (YAY for getting paid for my flight!!) and leave for Seoul for the rest of the week, where I WILL remember to take pictures.
I was having a "korea is hard" day today, and if i get any flack for the motorcycle riding, I will post the detailed, whiney breakdown of how and why I feel isolated and alone and how this is the longest I have been without a vehicle since I was an undergrad at IU about a million years ago and how it is driving me crazy.
Whew. I have some issues. Anyway, with that being said...
I have run, lifted (and finally am able to bench 50kg for reps again! yay for being stronger!) and got the knots in my back pummeld by the incredibly forcful jets in one of the tubs at the gym/jimjilbang.
When I was in the market on my way home, I ran into a bunch of girls from my school. I thanked the cashier in Korean, and the girls all gasped and asked if I knew how to speak. I replied (in Korean) that I couldn't and the lady who works in the store told them that I could, and indicated that I was doing well.
This is what I like about my neighborhood. I see the same people everday, and while I still get a lot of looks and stares, it feel a lot different than it does when I'm in bigger towns. To borrow a line from someone, I'm still a freak, but I'm THEIR freak. The baker, the lady who works evenings at the hannam market, the lady who runs the DC123 (kind of an "everything" shop) - they see the teacher from the middle school who lives up the s treet, not just the tall foreigner. At my gym, most of the men seem to be okay with the fact that I lift pretty close to what they do. (Someone new said something to the guy who runs it and he just said something about me being American. And because I'm the only one, I guess they now think that all American women are strong, which is kind of cool.)
I guess part of what it comes down to is that I have a place in this community, and even though I can't speak or read very well and most of the time I have about 1/8th of a clue I wish I had about what is going on, I'm being accepted to some degree.
_____________________________________________
I finally realized earlier today that there is something I need to learn about being alone and being away from more populated areas. I mean, Gallup was 2 hours away from ABQ, and now here I am, about 2 hours from friends here, too. I keep being given a chance to learn something, I and I guess it must be pretty important lesson for me because it keeps happening. But I hope that I can get it this time, because this is hard.
If you are my mother, you should not read this post.
Today I started to learn to drive a motorcycle!
I did a lot of starting and stopping. I can switch gears (well, downshifting is still pretty rough, but I was rough on downshifting when I drove a manual car, too) and can turn. Well, turn to the left.
I also get a little lot nervous when there are other cars around and get a little discombobulated. Which causes me to scare the person trying to teach me. But I'm getting better, and plan on avoiding traffic until that little problem goes away.
I also learned that bike are top heavy, and they can fall if you somehow sorta do something wrong when getting on. Oops. I didn't fall, but the bike did.
And it is FUN!!
(and I wore a full-face helmet, a jacket, and doc martin shoes. I was safe.)
I also helped to put back together (the carburetor was being worked on, and I put in bolts, helped re-install the gas tank, destroyed a 12mm ratchet head, and helped to put on the fairings) the bike before I rode it, so I have a least a little bit of the beginnings of an idea how the pieces go together.
I still smell a little bit like gasoline, but had a good time!
I have awesome friends.
Tomorrow is the last day before we go on break for a week. On Tuesday, I'm going to lunch at a co-workers house, and then on Wednesday, I'm going to try to do a money transfer to the US, meet friends in Gokseong, and then take the train to Seoul.
In other news, I am eating toast. It is delicious.
