American-Style House Party

I recently introduced some of my Korean friends to an American-style house party.  Although common for us, it’s an unusual concept to Koreans for many reasons.  I think the biggest reason they don’t throw house parties is due to lack of private space.  Many Koreans live with their parents until they are married, so they don't exactly have a way to throw a house party for friends.  Another reason house parties are uncommon is due to the small apartments.  There are about 45 million people living in a country the size of Indiana that is 70% mountainous.  There isn’t a lot of space for large apartments and houses.  Most people live in high-rise apartments of modest size.  That includes me, so fitting 13 people in my tiny apartment was a bit of a challenge and required some rearranging, but it all worked out.

American style party foods were served: veggies and dip, chips and salsa, bean dips, chicken nuggets, and chips.  There was even a cooler for beer on my veranda (my fridge is way to small to hold the beer). 

Another unique part of the party for the Koreans was the mingling.  Many social outings for Koreans involve enjoying dinner together.  They are very social with the family-style meals, but they often stay at the table and only talk to those around them.  With this party, there were no tables and there was no sitting in one place.  Everyone was encouraged to move, mingle, and talk with different people.

And, of course, what house party would be complete without some drinking games.  Line dances even made an appearance…you know how I love the Cupid Shuffle and Wobble. 

 

Everyone had such a good time!  I can’t wait to do it again!

Summer Recap

Middle school starts back up tomorrow.  Figured it’s as good a time as any to update you on my summer.  My middle school had a summer break between July 23 and August 21.  This is a break between semesters, as opposed to a break between school years like in America.  During that month, I had seven days off per my contract.  For the other days, I worked at an English summer camp held at a local elementary school (I can actually see the school from my apartment).  Although I was working, it was a nice to change things up a bit.  And, I did manage to fit a lot in…

Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Vietnam

Enjoying the sunset in
Halong Bay!

I traveled to Vietnam for seven days with three other foreigners: an American, Canadian, and Kiwi (from New Zealand).  We had an awesome time!  We spent a night on a boat in Halong Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It was absolutely beautiful!  Being on the boat in the bay was so peaceful.  We spent some time on a beach, did some kayaking, and toured a cave.

The beautiful countryside of Sapa!

Loving the terraced
rice fields of Sapa.

After Halong Bay, it was an overnight trip on a train to get to Sapa.  The countryside of Sapa was breathtaking!  Trekking through the countryside was the highlight of the trip for me.  Just look at the pictures, and you’ll see why.

Another interesting thing about the trip was the traffic in Hanoi.  Hanoi was our starting and ending point, as well as a mid-trip stop, so we spent a fair amount of time in Hanoi.  Most people ride motorbikes in the city, and there are basically no traffic rules.  Crossing the street is unreal…it’s a human frogger game.  There is no way to really describe what it’s like.  Just YouTube “Hanoi traffic” and prepare to be amused and amazed.

Hanoi traffic...be on your toes at all times!

All in all, Vietnam was a great experience!  So glad to get to experience another part of East Asia!!  Check out my album on Facebook to see more pics.

SCUBA Certification

Off the coast of Haeundae Beach

I have wanted to get SCUBA certified ever since my first diving experience on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia back in ’96.  However, I never quite had the time or money to do it.  Now I have both!  It was a very cool experience.  I’m looking forward to exploring another world.  My first dive as a certified diver will be with Karla Schottle.  She’s coming for a visit and arrives on September 1…CANNOT WAIT!!!!

Summer Camp

Working the English summer camp was a great experience!  It gave me exposure to the elementary level.  As would be expected, students whose parents are pay for them to attend a summer English camp are at a little higher level.  For the most part, they were eager to learn and participate, which is a bit of a switch from my middle schoolers.  On the other hand, they are a little whinier and needier than my middle school students.  There are goods and bads to everything.  I am thankful for the experience, though.  I want as much exposure to the teaching environment in Korea I can get.  Heck, I want as much exposure to everything Korea that I can get.  That’s why I’m here!

So, tomorrow I start back at the middle school.  Part of me is ready because I’m looking forward to getting my routine back and seeing my coworkers, who are truly fabulous people.  Part of me is not ready because middle schoolers are a bit of a tough crowd.  I’m still figuring them out, and I’m sure they’re still figuring me out.  In that process, we have good moments and some less than desirable moments.  Luckily, the good moments shine brighter.  It’s all part of the process of experiencing a whole new culture! J

Well, that’s the recap of my summer!  I am still loving life in Korea and soaking up as much as I can.  I continue to make Korean friends and enjoy learning about the culture.  There are so many amazing things about Korea and Koreans.  Can’t wait to see what I learn next…

A Day of Wacky Fun with my Coworkers

If you are looking for wacky, family fun day games, you can learn a thing or two from Koreans!

Wednesday through Friday of this week is final exam time.  The students take finals in the morning and then go home.  Teachers spend the rest of the day planning, socializing, and having fun.  Today’s big event was a competition among the teachers…so much fun!

After lunch, the teachers all geared up and headed for the gym.  We divided into three teams based on departments.  Then…let the games begin!

First up was team jump rope.  Imagine 14 people trying to jump rope…at the same time!  We formed two lines of seven as two other team members began to rotate the rope.  Let me just say…it is hard to do synchronized jumping with that many people.  The winning team had a total of 3 jumps…my team got 2…the other team…none.  Since I was participating in this one, I don’t have a picture.

My principal and a coworker.

Next up was your good ol’ three-legged race.  A family-friendly competition just wouldn’t be complete without this one!  My team came in first for this one.

After some good laughs over the three-legged race it was on to Rock, Paper, Scissors...you know it as Ro-Sham-Bo.  Koreans call it Kawi-Bawi-Bo.  And they LOVE this game!  It solves disputes between students instantly.  If they’re arguing over something, just tell them Kawi-Bawi-Bo, they get a winner, fight ends…simple as that!  I even attended a wine party that included Rock, Paper, Scissors as part of the ice breaker.  So it’s only natural that it showed up at today’s competition.  My team came in second for this one.

Steal the flag was a fun game.  Imagine wearing flag football belts and flags and trying to rip them off the other team.  It’s a free-for-all of everyone running every which way.  So fun!  Even though my team lost. : (

 

The last three left...and the man won.

The next game was so unique and one of my favorites.  I refer to it as shoe toss.  There was a starting line and a target.  Then you had to flick your shoe into the target.  The team with the most shoes in the target area wins.  Hilarious!  And my team was the victor for this one. : )

And to bring it all home, the last game involved kicking a soccer ball past the goal keeper and into the net.  We came in second…I think (kinda lost track).  I did get a goal, though, so I was pretty proud of myself for that.  : )

And of course what day of wacky games would be complete without door prizes.  Names were drawn and prizes handed out throughout the afternoon.  I was even called one round to pick and read the names of the winners…good thing I know Hangeul (Korean writing system).  It made me feel good to be included in that.  : )

All-in-all very different and fun day to spend with my coworkers!  As always, looking forward to more adventures to come!

Camping...Korean Style

Seonbawi: a famous view along the Taewha River.
It is easily seen from a popular Korean camp site.

Koreans hanging out under the bridge.

Once the weather got nice, I quickly noticed that camping is a big past time for Koreans.  That would explain all the camping and outdoor retail stores (they are as frequent as Waffle Houses in Atlanta).  I first discovered the camping past time as I walked along the Taewha River.  Koreans love to gather there...under the bridge.  Yes, under a bridge!  I mean no disrespect when I say this, but...it kinda looks like a community of homeless people.  And when they camp out, they don't spare any of the luxuries.  They're grilling out Korean-barbecue style and have massive tents...whole families easily fit in these tents.  There's plenty of beer, makeoli, and soju flowing to keep the good times going.  The younger kids love to cool off in the river. One somewhat odd thing about all of this is that it takes place within a 5-minute walk from the town.  And I thought car camping was the easy way out.  City lights keep the area lit all night long!  And when I watch all of this, I can't help but feel envious of the good times and memories being made.  It makes me miss the camping weekends at Lake Alatoona!

Koreans campsite under the bridge.

I got really envious of the camping scene as the 4th of July approached.  As you know, celebrating the 4th usually involves outdoor barbecues, picnics, and going to watch fireworks displays.  At first, I felt a little cheated by missing out on that.  Then, I decided to take matters into my own hands.  Why not gather some foreigners (especially Americans) and have a picnic by the river?  Well, that's exactly what we did.  

Sam, Shara, and Kelsey

Sam and Kelsey are Americans that live in my part of town.  Shara is Canadian, but she was up for the festivities.  We met at the 7-11 (yes, the same 7-11 chain you see in the states), made our plan, and split to get supplies.  After meeting back up, we made our way to the river armed with beer and fried chicken (a VERY popular combination over here...it even has it's own name), and of course, since we were in Korea, we needed popular Korean picnic food:  kimbap (rice, vegetables, and some meat wrapped in seaweed...yum!). 

Picnic dinner:  fried chicken and kimbap.

As we approached the river, we started to feel self-consious.  Clearly, this is not a popular thing for foreigners to do, as we were the ONLY foreigners there.  We were not going to let this stop us from celebrating the independence of our country.  So, we found a little spot off to the side.  We did get many stares, but we carried on anyway.  We arrived at the river about 7:00 and left around midnight.  It was such a good time and perfect evening for a picnic dinner.  We ate, drank, listened to music, and enjoyed good conversation!  We had access to fireworks but didn't feel comfortable setting them off.  We're unsure of the regulations over here, and we didn't need to call any more attention to ourselves.

All in all, it was a great 4th of July in South Korea


!  We celebrated the American holiday with a Korean flare and made good memories!  Looking forward to making more.  : )

Another view from the Taewha River.

Aly and Pops Take On Korea!

I am long overdue for a post!  I started blogging to keep people informed about my adventures over here and because I thought I would have a lot of downtime.  Well, in true Betsy fashion, I have managed to fill my time.  Here’s my weekly schedule:

• Mondays: taekwondo (8-9)
• Tuesdays: language exchange (8:20-10:20)
• Wednesdays: badminton with coworkers (4:30-6:00) and taekwondo (8-9)
• Thursdays: language exchange (8:20-10:20 )
• Fridays: dinner and drinks in my town with other foreign teachers

The difference between this busy schedule and my busy schedules in the past…this one is filled with fun stuff not work. J

Okay…now onto my post.  This post is all about the wonderful visit I had with Pops and Aly.  They arrived on June 3 and left on June 16.  This is a rather lengthy post, so if you don’t feel like reading everything, just look at the pics and read what catches your eye!  : )  BTW…if you’re Facebook friends with Aly, you will find TONS of photos on her page.

Run down of family visit:

Tuesday, June 3:  Pops and Aly arrive in Ulsan around 8:20PM.  We meet Sam (another foreign teacher) and Ryan (a Korean friend of his) for drinks in my charming town of Guyeong-ri.  Aly discovers a fondness for makgeolli, a yummy rice wine.  Ryan learns of our plans for touring Ulsan on Wednesday and offers to take us around (Wednesday was election day, so many people had off work).  Korean hospitality is truly amazing!!

Aly and Pops with our wonderful
Korean host Ryan!

Wednesday, June 4:  We hit two of the “12 Scenic Sights of Ulsan”  Daewangam Songnim (Pine Forest) near Ilsan Beach and the Bamboo Forest in the middle of town along the Taehwa River.  Very fun and relaxing day!

Hanging out in the bamboo forest.

Thursday, June 5:  Aly and Pops were on their own while I was at work.  They basically took it easy since the weather wasn’t too cooperative.  Thursday evening, they got to meet 6 of my co-teachers (5 of whom were English teachers) over traditional Korean barbecue (Samgyeopsal).  Then we went for coffee…or I should say the Koreans had coffee while we three foreigners had traditional Korean tea.  And of course…dessert consisting of bingsu (shaved frozen milk).  With Koreans, there is never a shortage of food.  We had a great time hanging out and enjoying the company.

Friday, June 6:  We experienced another amazing display of Korean hospitality.  We had planned to depart to Busan and tour that city for Friday and Saturday.  Busan is the second largest city in South Korea.  We were going to do a hop-on-hop-off bus tour, but there was no need!  One of my co-teachers volunteered to meet us at the train station and be our tour guide for the day.  We visited famous Haeundae Beach and saw some amazing sand sculptures.  Had a delicious lunch of bulgogi before heading to the only coastal temple in Korea: Haedong Yonggungsa Temple.  We hit heavy traffic on the way to our next destination.  By the time we got there, it was too late to hike the fortress.  So, we made the most of it by hitting the local college town, grabbing dinner, and having a few drinks.  Okay…more than a few drinks. In fact, our driver (the beautiful Marcelle) had to call a driving service to take us to the hotel where she crashed with the Foy family for the night.

Coffee break with the lovely Marcelle,
our Korean tour guide in Busan.

Saturday, June 7:  Marcelle dropped us off at the Geumjeongsanseong Fortress for some hiking before heading on her way.  We enjoyed walking the trails and taking in a little piece of Korean history before heading to the Jagalchi Market.  This was a unique and fun experience.  It’s a live fish market.  If it lives in the water, we probably saw it (or could have seen it).  This place was HUGE!!!!!  It was really wild to see everything that was there.  After the fish market, it was off to another scenic sight…Taejongdae…before heading off to dinner and an early evening at the hotel.  After all, we had an early departure for Tongyeong the next morning.

Night view of Tongyeong

Rocky coast of Geogje

 Sunday, June 7 and Monday, June 8:  We toured two islands: Tongyeong and Geoje.  In Tongyeong, we took a ferry tour, rode a cable car, and toured a naval musem.  In Geoje, we saw a windmill at Windy Hill, walked along rocks on the edge of the ocean, and toured a POW museum.  Both had impressive sights, but I think our favorite part was our taxi driver.  He picked us up in Tongyeong, and we were impressed by his English, albeit a little confused when he said his English name was Solro (not sure how that’s English).  We had such a good time with him that we negotiated a price for the next day.  He took us from Tongyeong to Geoje.  Then showed us all around Geoje, and drove us to Busan.  He was with us for about 10 hours, and it only cost us around $120.  It was the BEST way to see Geoje.  We would have struggled without him.  Apparently, renting a taxi for the day is a common thing to do in Korea.  I was proud of my negotiation skills when I learned we got a good price!  : )

  

The best taxi drive EVER - Solro

Aly and Pops were on their own Tuesday through Thursday and joined me again in Ulsan on Friday night.  We had a low-key Friday and just had dinner and drinks with my friends Shara and Sam.  After all, we had an early morning to head off to Gyeongju for the day on Saturday.

Aly and Pops with
the temple guards

Saturday, June 14:  We toured Gyeongju for the day, which is the old capital of Korea.  Lots of traditional Korean sites here.  We visited a famous grotto and temple, toured an artifact museum, and visited some tombs of famous past kings.  Gyeongju is a very pretty city, and many people rent bikes for the day…something I plan to do with my next visitor (get ready, Karla)!  J  And, once again, we hired a taxi for the day.  That sure does make things easier!

Aly and I rockin' it out!

Saturday night we celebrated our last night together by grabbing dinner and drinks with friends.  Then Pops and Aly got to experience a true Korean tradition:  a noraebong (aka singing room, aka karaoke).  My language exchange partner, Jack, and his friend Ryan were our gracious hosts for that experience.  What a night! : )

Waiting for our norabang (singing room)

Waterfall outside of Ulsan

Sunday, June 15:  Our last day together just so happened to be Father’s Day…how well was that planned (actually, it was just a total coincidence).  We did one final tour, which was a City Bus Tour of the more rural part of Ulsan.  We hiked to a waterfall, toured the amethyst caves, and visited a beautiful temple.  We all agree that once you’ve seen a temple or two, you’ve seen them all.  But…the setting of the temple makes the difference.  The amethyst cave area had a temple carved into the mountain side…very cool.  The other temple we visited was nestled in a valley…beautiful and peaceful!

Temple carved into the side of a mountain

All in all, Pops and Aly made the most of their stay here and really saw a lot!  It was so great to have them visit and get a little piece of home for a while.  I ended up having two extra days off while they were here.  So of the two weeks, there were only four days that I was not with them.  The bittersweet part of having visitors is saying good bye.  It was tough, and there were tears, but it was all worth it.  Nothing beats having family and friends close by even if only for a short visit.  I’m so thankful to have had the time with them!  : )

 

Aly and Pops upon arrival.

Celebrating the Small Things

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!

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 40^th 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

One of the trails near my apartment

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.

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

The end of the sunset (just 3 minutes from my apartment)

Long Weekend in Seoraksan National Park

Looking up at Ulsan Bawi

I had a GREAT long weekend last week.  I had off on Friday because it was my school’s birthday.  Then Monday, May 5 was “Children’s Day” followed by Buddha’s Birthday on Tuesday.  So…a 5-day weekend for me…yahoo!

The legend of Ulsan Bawi

A portion of the 888 steps

A few of us from Ulsan headed north to Seoul Friday night.  We stayed in a hostel and then met up with Adventure Korea bright and early Saturday morning for our trip to the northeast corner of South Korea.  Our destination: Seoraksan National Park.  What should have been about a 4 ½ hour ride on a coach bus was more like a 6-hour drive with traffic.  That still gave us plenty of time to hike Ulsan Bawi Rock.  We were told it was a hard hike, but I didn’t know what that would mean.  I’ve taken on many a hike in the US that was labeled “strenuous” only to discover it wasn’t that hard.  That is NOT the case in South Korea!  When they say hard, they mean HARD.  The locals say it’s 888 steps to the top (felt like more than that, though).  And those steps were never ending.  In between the stairs was a nice uphill trail, so there really was no break once you started the ascent.  The exercise was much appreciated after two weeks of inactivity due to being sick.  And the view…AMAZING!  Well worth the climb.

The view from the top

The Straddle Split "Game"

The Punishment for the Losing Team

Sunday was a low-key day.  We went to Gyongpo Beach and people watched.  And let me tell you…people watching at a Korean beach is interesting!  We were wildly entertained by a group of high school boys who were finding odd ways to pass the time.  One of their “games” was to form two teams of four and see which team could make the longest line by doing foot-to-foot straddle splits.  What happened to the losing team you ask?  Well, naturally, they got hit in the butt with a used firework.  It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen!  While all of this was going on, another group of high school boys was burying a friend in the sand.  And, yes, they proceeded to give him breasts (it’s funny how many things are universal).  The icing on the cake was an older gentlemen posing a soju bottle next to a sleeping friend (soju is a popular Korean

Posing for a Picture

alcohol).  At first, the soju bottle was just next to his hand, but that wasn’t good enough.  The next picture was with the bottle between the sleeping gentleman’s legs.  The older gentleman taking the picture was so proud of himself and just laughed at his handiwork.  As I as said…very interesting people watching!

The final day was another hike that I dare say was just as challenging as the first one and definitely worth the effort.  This hike also involved lots of stairs and even a few areas that required some scrambling.  I think I enjoyed the second hike a little more because we followed a stream with rock formations and small waterfalls along the way.  After the hike was lunch then time to hit the road.  There was MAJOR traffic.  I felt like I was in Atlanta in rush hour on a rainy day.  What was supposed to be a 4 ½ hour ride took about 8 hours.  We missed our train back to Ulsan and had to take a later one getting us back to Ulsan around 1:30.  Luckily, we didn’t have to work on Tuesday…that would have been miserable.  Not a great ending to our trip, but it also wasn’t bad enough to ruin my fun!

It felt so good to get out and do some hiking.  It’s giving me the itch to find more trails.  Ulsan is supposed to be full of them.  Now, I just need to find them.  All in all, it was a great weekend!  Looking forward to similar adventures in the year to come!