discovering even more

I've had a really great weekend. Met some new people to hang out with, bought a bike today (yay!) and just biked all over. The bike is unlike any other bike I've owned, but it is by far the most comfortable to ride! High handlebars, a basket, a bell, the works. It's perfect. Weighs about 3000 pounds, but I only live on the second floor, so I can manage carrying it. And it fits perfectly in my laundry room, so it's entirely out of the way. Road bikes seem impractical here (since I would die if I rode in the street- everyone rides on the sidewalks).


I also went on a really great 5 mile run yesterday. As I was running I had no idea that I was at the Daegu Arboretum- I discovered that today when I biked kind of the same way. It was a beautiful run that I'm thrilled to have discovered. As everyone knows, running on a treadmill is torturous, as is running on city streets constantly. I'm glad I've found some nature to submerge myself in. Most of the cool spots I've discovered, I found them completely by accident. Daegu is the kind of city that is hard to explain to someone where to go or how to get somewhere specific- for one thing, most streets lack names. Which drives me nuts! But I have a pretty good sense of direction, so just pedaling around or running can be quite fun for exploring. Today I saw so many cool things. I also ran into, separately, 3 students of mine! It was probably really weird for them to see their American teacher cruising around on a bike in some remote part of the city in a old farming village! Ha, that's where one of my students saw me. He was with his sister and his mom, and he is one of my most misbehaved students in my worst class. But you'd never know it by him seeing me today, because he was so shy! I saw another student learning to ride his bike with his dad. It was adorable.



Tomorrow begins my 10th week of teaching. That's crazy! In some ways it's seemed like forever, but in other ways it has flown by. I've learned so much. I would never lie and say any of this is easy. It's hard. I miss my friends and family. I miss Greg. I miss my baby niece! It's tough being away from people. I guess I knew that'd be the case, but maybe I didn't know quite how hard it would be. The internet makes it entirely possible to keep in touch with everyone, but even then it can never be like the real thing.

Ok! Enough of that! I'm seeing really unique and interesting things. The people are what make Korea. Some people have a natural furrow in their brow or a scowl on their face, but all it takes to make them crack is to smile and say hello. Old ladies have, on numerous occasions, reached into their purses on the subway and shoved pieces of candy into my hand while telling me I'm beautiful. People stare like they're never seen a white person, and that's not going to change. But no one is mean, no one is malicious. The hospitality here is remarkable. That was one of my first impressions that I am positive will hold true the entire time I'm here. One of my favorite things to do is to say hello in Korean, and just see the smiles spread across the faces of whomever I say it to. True, I can't say much more beyond a simple hello, but this is a gesture that really means a lot to me and to the people I'm saying it to.

fat-N-sassy

I'm in a serious food coma ZZzzzZzzzzzzzzz...

My sister mailed me 3 giant bottles of barbeque sauce all the way from Tennessee. I was all set for yet another stir-fry for dinner, but luckily I got to instead make the best meal I've eaten since leaving the US. Fried bbq tofu sandwich (covered in about 50 million oz. of bbq sauce) and made from scratch, skin still on, garlic and chive mashed potatoes. It took me about 45 minutes to make dinner, and all but 10 minutes to consume it. I don't think I breathed the whole time. Just for you, Greg- I'm feeling fat & sassy. Mmmmm, if I weren't out of bread, I'd make another sandwich.

Just.... wow.

Today at school I ripped up a paper airplane, then as I was striding confidently back to the front of them room, I tripped on a chair.
Yesterday I had to calm down 2 sobbing 8 year olds because one got an extra piece of candy over the other.
I routinely have to physically sit students as close to me as possible so I can keep an eye on them, and so I can yank out of their hands whatever distraction they're playing with that day.

I have discovered though that the 4 year old loves chocolate covered sunflower seeds. And he LOVES to cover my palms with as many layers of oil crayons as he can before it all cakes up and flakes off. So, naturally I let him do it. Otherwise he cries and punches me. School has now become very routine, with me relishing in my very infrequent breaks, taking to the couch in the corner to read a book and sip coffee like I'm not surrounded by 30 screaming children. But I'm learning how to cope, even though I spend most days counting down the minutes until the final bell rings so I'm free!

Last Saturday I went on my first organized group bus trip to a city called Cheongdo. There was about 150 foreigners piled onto 4 buses. We went to a wine tunnel (wine tasting in an old train tunnel- where we sampled some persimmon wine). Though I typically steer clear of group travel arrangements, I had a really great time. After the wine tunnel, we all hopped back onto the buses and went to a Korean bull fight (bull on bull). It felt somewhat surreal to be in a bullfighting arena surrounding by Koreans cheering and yelling at what looked to me like 2 very tired, very lethargic bulls! We didn't know what was going on for the most part, but we cheered right along with everyone else. I'll admit it though, due to the lethargy of the bulls, it was a little boring, but exciting nonetheless. After the fight we boarded the buses to head back to Daegu. To my happy surprise, the bus we were on was fully outfitted for karaoke! Flatscreen in front, songbook, and microphone! So everyone took turns singing songs from the very limited selection of English songs that a Korean tour bus has on hand! All in all, it was a great day. I may just decide to do another group event in the future!
And the following pictures are from Suseong Lake that Kathryn and I went to on Sunday (this is in Daegu)

hangman

It was bound to happen. Inappropriate anatomy drawn on hangman when I wasn't looking. Actually, I was looking, right at the boy as he drew... well... you can imagine what he drew. The class got a good, hearty 5 minute laugh about it. I, being the responsible-mature-adult-teaching figure spearheading their learning, immediately erased it, though I was laughing pretty heartily myself.

my first field trip!!!

Today my school went on a field trip with all the kindergartners. It was so much fun! We all piled onto 2 buses at around 10am, and drove to I have no idea where, to a place called I have no idea what. BUT! The kids all wore their sweats and they got to run around this tiny little "amusement park" for kids all morning. And don't think I didn't play with them, because I did. There was a ball-pit, a giant lump covered in smooth tarp-looking plastic that you could climb up (if you were graceful enough- the jury's still out on whether or not I was graceful enough...), a giant piano that played the notes as you walked on them (think BIG!), among many other things. The kids had a great time, and 2 little girls in particular kept grabbing my hands and dragging me around with them to everything. By the end I was a sweaty mess just like them. But it was definitely fun, and we all enjoyed not having to teach this morning!

All bundled up and ready to go!

Giant piano! There was about a 1.5 second lag after stepping on each note, but with patience you could play a song. A very slow song.

Giant white thing that required grace and poise to ascend.

On the bus- Ava trying on my Ray-Bans.

They are fascinated by my hair. No matter how ratty it is/ looks, they still love playing with it.

I am happy, truly happy right now. I'm feeling positive and very, very excited. I've just discovered my new favorite place in Daegu. I set out today with a backpack, not really sure of where I was headed. Well, that's a lie- I was headed to the Arboretum to check it out, maybe sit down and read somewhere. As I was walking I noticed a pathway veering off the the left of the road I was on, and my curiosity told me to follow it. I ended up hiking all the way to the top of whatever mountain I was on- in my white Vans sneakers- hiking boots were purchased mere hours later for next time!- and my black motorcycle jacket. Not only am I white, reddish-haired, and wearing completely inappropriate footgear, I'm also wearing a ridiculous biker jacket and skinny jeans. (Everyone else is donned in full on hiking gear, half of them with hiking poles, too). But I didn't care- I would stick out no matter what. Anyway, my new favorite spot was in a small clearing, away from everyone and everything, overlooking other mountains and nature. It was 4 mounds- and I'm not at all sure what the mounds were for (or who they were for). I really missed the outdoors living in NYC. But from this vantage point, all I see are trees and mountains.


After hiking up the mountain a little more, I saw something circular dangling from a tree. "What in the world?" So I keep following it like a drug dog looking to bust someone, and I come across an entire area with a sprinkling of "fitness equipment." One guy was working out on a balance beam (one horizontal tree branch tethered to 2 neighboring still upright trees). He looked curiously at me at first, but then immediately went back to doing leg-lifts on the beam.

I had a really uplifting weekend. The past month and a half have been an entire whirlwind of emotions, constant ups and downs, lots of encouragement, but also lots of sadness. Anyway, my weekend was really great. Aside from the hiking I stumbled upon yesterday, my Saturday was equally amazing. Ashley and I went to Gyeongju (I went there several weeks ago one afternoon with Greg while he was here). I had been daydreaming all week long about just biking along the river and generally exploring. When Greg and I went we saw this hot air balloon looking thing in the sky, and Ashley and I saw it again this time. We decided to bike towards it, and after our friend Tashia met up with us we decided to go up in it. This was amazing!! We got to soak in some incredible views of Gyeongju and Bomun Lake. There was also ATV rentals- so next time I go back I am definitely renting one.
Then there was just general merry-making, biking around and taking photos everywhere like it's our senior portraits.
Oh- see the above photo? We watched a little old woman walk her bike across this, water flowing heavily. I took a video because I was convinced her diminutive body and giant bicycle were going to be swept away by the rushing current and well... I... wanted a video of that...??? I don't know, but once we got up to it we saw what an incredible feat she had accomplished.

Right before I went to bed last night I developed a nasty sore throat. One of those where I postpone swallowing because it feels like a bouquet of razorblades is making its way down my esophagus. And Mondays are my looong day. 9 classes in a row with no break. So naturally I woke up this morning feeling completely sub par, and dreading the day. It actually went by extremely fast. I saved my voice all day, didn't yell at anyone once, and got through it without much hassle. I still accomplished my lessons, and with relative ease. My 4 year old, Su-in, that used to cry every time he saw me, has now done a total 180 and runs up to me yelling "EMILY TEACHERRRR!" and grabs onto my legs. So I guess that's cute, much cuter than him welling up with tears at my sight!

Ok, time to nurse my throat with some faux- Sprite.

snow!

Late last night and into this morning it snowed, mightily. I didn't even know it was going on, because I was tucked safely into my apartment, watching episode after episode of Friday Night Lights online (Greg and I became obsessed while he was here). At school today one of my co-workers was telling me how slippery the roads were last night, and how she nearly got into a wreck. Then she told me this was the biggest snow in Daegu in 50 years! And it's the middle of March! I'm really sick of winter weather! 2 months in NYC, followed by 2 more months here.... ugh, I'm ready for spring!

I've seen some minor improvements at school this week. As I mentioned before, last week was rough because of a new schedule and new students. It was a really upsetting week for me, because I was letting every little thing get to me. Since I'm only 1.5 months into my year here, I vowed late Sunday night to not have another week like that while I'm here. Half of my morning classes are teaching a 4 year old. ONE 4 year old. He is probably my most difficult to deal with because, let's face it, I have no idea what to do with a 4 year old that speaks no English and cries every time he sees the freckled foreign girl. Also, his mom comes in every day, so of course the first thing he does is run to her, and she's a huge distraction, not to mention a giant crutch for him. However, this week he tickled me one day, yesterday he let me color with him, and today he ran up to me and clutched my legs until I had to peel him off. So compared to last week, this is a great sign!

I end 3 of my days a week with my most rotten class. You know the types- smart alecs, pretending to not be able to read when they really can, cracking jokes in Korean, acting like I have no authority over them. Inevitably I have to throw at least one student out to the hallway per class. Today was no different. Though I have been letting my anger and frustrations disappear with them this week. I find that all I do when I yell at them is upset myself. If I'm going to be teaching them until next January, then obviously I'm the one that has to make a positive change for them. There will still be bad days, I'm sure, but one of the biggest challenges I'm facing here is to not let so many things upset me. I am seeing improvements almost daily, so I'm pretty happy about that!

I'm planning some trips in the next month or 2. Local trips- meaning trips in Korea. I don't know where or when yet, but it's time to start exploring! More!

Time for bed. Love and miss you all! Feel free to email me too! elbutcher@gmail.com

success!

All I have to say is that with a positive attitude comes a great day. I'm slowly but surely figuring out how to deal with difficult classes and students, and I've gone in this week with a much more positive attitude than last week, and it's working. I got some really sound advice from my mother, who's been teaching 30+ years: yelling does not work. Word searches, candy bribes, and targeting one student per class as an ally and one student as a target for some light mockery does work! As does making the most misbehaved student sit in a small chair at the front of the class, right beside me. My goodness, that embarrasses them.

twizzlers

I need to start this post with an apology to Laura Sjogren. That's right, Ladybird. I'm talking to you. See, Laura helped to send me a very thoughtful care package, including a couple framed photos of herself, no less than 4 of the USA's trashiest gossip mags, some hair spray, and some candy. This is where the apology comes in. I hate twizzlers. I am thankful for them, but I do not like them. Since I was having a rough time with my new students all week last week, I finally thought to bribe them- with an exotic American candy. Pull-n-peel Twizzlers. My idea was to give each of my afternoon classes one twizzler apiece.

The first class I gave them to was 3 girls and a boy. I explained to them how to peel the twizzler apart, and they struggled with it. This should have been red flag number one. Then one girl started making gagging noises and I thought she was just being a wuss. And you know how kids are- if one sees another not liking something, kid B will follow kid A and also 'not like it.' So pretty quickly I've got 4 gagging Korean 7 year olds, and I'm upset because I wanted to do something nice for them. But they HATE it. They think I've purposely given them something horrific. They all run out of the room and chug water at the water cooler for the next 5 minutes. So then I tell them I promise not to give them anymore American candy. (Though I don't understand, because I'm pretty sure I've tasted way more disgusting Korean candy here).

After the first Twizzler debacle, I was kind of scared to try them again on more students. But since I now dread my last class on Fridays, I thought I'd give them some to try. They are my most difficult class, they never listen to me, and they're always mocking me. Bribing them is something I'm going to have to get comfortable doing. Well, I think I've been knocked back down the ladder of 'cool teacher' by making an entirely different class of Korean students gag, mock-hyperventilate, and dart for the water cooler. I mean, I don't like Twizzlers, but the taste of them doesn't exactly render the kind of dramatic reaction that I got out of every one of these kids!

But I still need bribes, so I'm going to have to come up with something better.

Sorry for the giant hiatus!

Hello! I'm sorry I've been lax in posting for a bit, but my boyfriend was in town for a week. So can you really blame me for not spending all my time updating some silly blog while he was here visiting from NYC?!



I had a really great time with Greg while he was here. It was so nice to spend so much time with him, even though I still had to work the whole time. During the days, he mostly chilled out while overcoming his jetlag, exploring my neighborhood by foot some while I was at work. He came into my school a few days, too! My boss was introducing him to all the students as the new teacher, "Greg Teacher." Somehow, the kids saw right through it and didn't believe he was a new teacher.



While he was here we got to experience something uniquely Korean: noraebong. Bong means room, so I can only assume that "norae" means " singing zany Korean pop songs in a little room while what appears to be a 'madam' (though she wasn't) serves you Pocari Sweat drinks nonstop." In other words: KARAOKE. My boss treated all of the foreign teachers and the Korean teachers (and Greg) to a Korean buffet dinner, then we all went to the noraebong. I'm pretty sure Greg was scared out of his mind, but then again he and I sang a Taylor Swift duet as the 3rd song of the evening, so he couldn't have been too uncomfortable.



The next morning, Saturday, we woke up early, around 8am. We had all the reason in the world to celebrate for the rest of his visit: he checked his email and found out he got into grad school at the University of Wisconsin for creative writing (and for those of you who don't know- he was one of only 6 out of over 600 applicants- accepted every 2 years!!!) So we did some light hiking on Mt. Apsan, did a little shopping, and generally just hung out, eating and being merry. On Sunday we boarded a bus to a town called Gyeongju, about 50 minutes away. I heard it was very historical, and I figured we should see some of that while he was here. About 10 minutes away from our destination, we came to the semi-frightening realization that we barely even confirmed we were on the correct bus, and even if we were (we were) we had no clue what we would do from the bus station. Was it in the town? On the outskirts? Would there be maps? Would anyone speak English??? Well, everything turned out fine. We ended up renting bikes from right outside the bus station, then we found a tourist map nearby. We made our way to one sight, a tomb of a king of some sort (over a thousand years old) but spent the rest of the day simply biking around, along the river and into some mountains. It was gorgeous!! Though since it was a holiday weekend- lunar New Year, the traffic was heavy, and people were gawking at us left and right out their car windows. I wouldn't be surprised to discover that the sight of us caused a wreck or 4. We also got to witness, by chance, the burning ceremony celebrating the New Year. Everyone gathers around this giant pile of branches that look like Christmas trees, and fireworks are set off- then the whole pile is lit on fire. Seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen, though this is a lawless land. Something like that would require waivers and whatnot in America.


Greg left very early Tuesday morning. It was sad to see him go, but it just gives me something to look forward to when I see him again :)

I got new classes at school this week. To avoid sounding negative, they're going to take some getting used to! I'll write more about them at a later date. Right now it's already taken me about 37 years to write this entry, and I'm tired!