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| The Taewa River and Seonbawi, one of the 12 scenic view of Ulsan (and only a 4-minute walk from my apartment) |
This blog post is a little
different than the others. I’m not going
to talk about any exciting adventure I went on or anything surprising about
Korean culture. Instead, I’m just going
to celebrate the simple things. One of
the things I really like about being in Korea is my slower pace of life. Feels really good to s-l-o-w down. Here’s what I mean…
I finished up a decent work week
on Friday. The highlight of my week was
working with my Wednesday after school conversation class. It is composed of about 8 girls who are in
their final year of middle school. They
are hoping to go to a foreign language high school next year, so their
motivation to learn English is high, and their English skills are much more
advanced than my other students. We’ve
been studying the differences between American schools and Korean schools. I partnered with a friend from the US who is
a middle school teacher. We sent her
students questions, and they made a video of a day in their school. That inspired my girls who decided to make a
video. I am so proud of them!!!! Check it out:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4mbBCBV8pQMZG9uYUt3eVoxRHc/edit?usp=sharing
Friday evening consisted of my
typical dinner in Guyeong with some other foreign teachers who live in the area. I always enjoy our low-key dinners. We often go for drinks afterwards but skipped
that this time due to a busy Saturday. Two of us had a Saturday program we
teach every third Saturday, and all of us had a teacher training for the
afternoon.
At the training on Saturday, it
was nice to see some of the other foreigners I met at orientation when I first
arrived in Korea. The afternoon sessions
were pretty good…I picked up a lot of little nuggets and strategies to use in the
classroom. (Apparently, the morning
session was dreadfully boring, so I’m glad I missed it.) Saturday evening I put together the video
clips my students recorded and then watched a movie in the comfort of my cozy
apartment. Oh, how I love the occasional
lazy weekend evening!
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| Virtually attending Aly's 40th Bday Party |
Sunday was a very relaxing day! It started off with a Skype session so that I
could virtually participate in my sister’s 40th birthday
celebration. I love how connected we can
stay with technology!!!! After talking
with some friends and family, I went to my usual church service at Ulsan
English Fellowship. When I first started
attending, it was just the American pastor and me. It’s grown since then. Today, in addition to me, there was an
American, a German, and a Korean. After
our service, we all went to a Korean service at Ulsan University. It’s an off-campus service where a lot of
students and staff connected with Ulsan University attend. My pastor was the guest preacher. We had lunch, dessert, and the sermon. I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting all kinds
of new people since I’ve gotten here.
Some I click with, some I don’t.
But in every case, the conversations are always fun and
interesting. I’m enjoying the many
relationships with various Koreans that are starting to develop. That was definitely a goal of mine in living
here; I didn’t just want to meet and hang around with foreigners. I feel like I am exceeding that goal! J
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| One of the trails near my apartment |
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| Koreans enjoying picnics under a bridge by the Taewa River |
On my way home, I stopped at the grocery
store. I got home about 3:45, put the
groceries away, and had a fruit salad.
Then it was time to figure out what to do next. I love that there was no schedule for a
change! It was a great day, so I decided
to hit the trails near my home. I ran
into a Korean man on the trails who was wandering around like me. He spoke good English, so we walked and
talked together for a little while. Then
I sat on a bench to take in the view and do some journaling. An older Korean woman sat on a bench next to
me and started talking to me. I was able
to pick up a few things and respond with just a few things. Then she must have thought that meant I knew
Korean because all of a sudden she started speaking a lot and fast. It wasn’t much of a conversation, but I
enjoyed the interaction nonetheless. As
I walked home, I noticed a lot of Koreans having picnics and just enjoying time
with friends and families. Wow…taking time to pause and be in the moment…what a
precious gift.
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| Affogato: gelato with an espresso that you pour on top |
My weekend ended with watching a
sunset at Hands Coffee while enjoying Affogato, a new favorite dessert. I truly am blessed and lucky to be having
this experience. I let the small things
go too often. What a great reminder of
just how special those moments are! J
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| The end of the sunset (just 3 minutes from my apartment) |
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