Why Korea is like a Time Warp to the 90's

1.       Boy Bands/ Girl Groups:  There are multiple boy bands and girl groups in South Korea that could put the Backstreet Boys and Spice Girls to shame.  All you have to do to form an instant bond with your elementary or middle school students here is to start talking about Kpop groups such as Super Junior or Girls Generation. They’ve got it all, from the choreographed dances with props, the cheesy lyrics, and the crazy makeup/hair/outfits. The major difference is that Backstreet Boys and N’sync each had 5 members. The average Kpop group has a small army of 8-14 members.

2.       Neon: Neon hiking gear, matching tracksuits. And neon, flashing lights and signs. Everywhere.

3.       Hair Accessories: I can’t get enough of this one. I am a sucker for cute headbands and they are everywhere here! And crazy cheap. Is it bad that it’s mostly my students who compliment my hair bows?

4.       Skorts: Who remembers those inappropriately short skirts that were somehow deemed appropriate to wear in public because they had built in shorts sewn underneath them? Well Korea is still riding this trend. Hemlines here are ridiculous.

5.       Smoking Inside: I can’t even remember the last time that I was in a public building in North America and people were smoking. Some restaurants or bars here have designated smoking areas or rooms but that isn’t usually the case.

6.       Polaroid Cameras: Remember that Christmas that your parents finally got you a Polaroid camera, and the sheer joy that came from shaking the picture as you waited impatiently for it to develop? They are still popular here. I must get one, ASAP!

7.       Bowl Cuts/Funky Hairstyles/Perms: When I was going through my chubby stage in grade 3, my mom took me to a hair salon for a routine cut. The hairstylist that I got was Eastern European and her English wasn’t great. We had some miscommunication somewhere and I ended up with a traumatizing mushroom cut. Korea is bringing it back in style. There are two types of perms here: First, the Ajumma perm is popular amongst Korean women 60+ and is characterized by short, tight curls. Second, many young people here also perm their hair, but usually in a more youthful, attractive way with long, beachy waves.

School Life

While I work on my next post, here are some pictures :) :

Notable Students:

Cutest boys award goes to: Harry and Tiger. Cutest girl award goes to Viviana. 

                  James: No introduction needed, you already know him.                                                can't see it from this angle but he has a rat tail.

Official Portraits of Myself by Some Important Artists

Little Monsters

Hilarious Mishaps

Assignment: Describe your family

                                                               She is straight, pretty and black.....

Assignment: Draw Aladdin and his lamp

                                                                                 Picture: Aladdin with a gun and Iron Man off                                                          to the right

Nope.... Was supposed to spell pencil.

Cafeteria Lunch: Bleh...It's no better in a different country

Soup and Bukhansan National Park

Hello dear readers,

I apologize that it has been an entire month since my previous post. I’ve been struggling a bit. I’ve been here for 3 months now and have reached the point that every expat must experience at one time or another. The newness has started to wear off and the realization has hit that it’s getting colder, the holidays are coming and I am a long way from home. Being here feels a bit like a new relationship: the quirks that initially attracted you to someone may eventually end up being your biggest annoyance. Also, I’ve been having a tough time with some of my classes. A lot of the kids here have no respect for foreign teachers. Most of the time it doesn’t bother me but sometimes it gets under my skin. I thought for a while that I had reached an understanding with James (my little troublemaker), but he still goes into blind fits of rage pretty much every day where he punches, bites me and pulls my hair. The frustrating part is that my Korean coworkers think it’s hilarious, or they brush it off saying “oh, he’s only 5.” It’s like there’s some weird divide with discipline here because I’ve taught middle school classes and the older kids are extremely respectful.

The way that I feel right now can be summed up by some wise words from a fellow expat that I heard this past weekend: “Sometimes Korea sucks, and sometimes it doesn’t.” It seems to be one extreme or the other. I thought it was very poetic because we were standing on a mountain in Seoul watching the sunset. And so it goes…Just when I have the crappiest of crappy weeks, I end up having a great weekend and the rest falls away.

Teaching here is tough. It can be easier or more enjoyable depending on what type of school you work at (public or private) and who your coworkers are. But in general, the office politics that are often experienced back home are multiplied here because there is a bit of a divide between Korean and foreign teachers. Many of my Korean coworkers are very non-confrontational. So if there is an issue, you won’t hear about it directly from the source. It gets passed around like a secret in a highschool classroom and eventually makes its way back to you.

Anyway, this past weekend was interesting and enjoyable. On Saturday I had plans to go to Songtan for the day, but as I was walking near my apartment, I found a dog wandering in the rain. This is not an unusual sight here as many people discard their pets like yesterday’s garbage when the novelty wears off. But this one was really tame and he came right to me. He looked relatively clean and healthy so I scooped him up and brought him home. I didn’t know what I was going to do with him at that point because realistically I don’t have time or money for a pet right now but he looked so scared that I couldn’t leave him.

My boyfriend and I brought him to my apartment, bought him a leash and some food and named him Soup. We posted a picture of him on the expat website hoping to find him a good home. For a brief moment, I considered keeping him but I knew that it wouldn’t be fair since I am at work for 10 hours per day sometimes. After an unsuccessful attempt at finding him a home ourselves, we walked back to the convenience store that we found him in front of and the lady behind the counter helped us call a shelter to pick him up. It was really sad saying goodbye. He was such a sweet dog and I hope that he finds a good home.

Yesterday we took a bus, a subway and another bus to Bukhansan National Park which is in the northern part of Seoul for a little bit of fresh air and hiking. This past weekend was supposed to be the peak weekend for fall colors and it did not disappoint. The bottom of the mountain was littered with cafes, restaurants and hiking gear shops. Koreans like to dress the part for whatever activity that they partake in, but especially for hiking. It is hilarious to see busloads of older Korean ladies and men decked out in neon gear and with hiking poles. I was really impressed with the age range of people that were doing the hike. It really is a family affair here. North America needs to adopt the smaller portion sizes and regular outdoor activity that are prevalent here.

The highlight of the hike for me was stumbling upon a pretty little temple midway up the mountain where a monk gave us water. I almost made the grave mistake of accepting the cup with one hand which is considered rude here. It is polite to receive something from an elder with both hands outstretched, while bowing your head. Other highlights included sitting on a rock and watching the sun disappear behind the mountains, and exploring the bunkers that were left over from the war. Reaching the summit was very satisfying, the view was spectacular. It felt like a tease, to be able to escape this city just for a day. Weekends go by way too fast.