Good For Man's Health

Seollal 2012 and Family

2012-01-28T23:03:00.000-08:00

Seollal, the Lunar New Year, offers a lot of time for activities with the family. Being one of the two big holidays here in Korea, you're expected to see the family and eat some traditional Korean food. This year, I helped to prepare some of that food.

A few weeks ago, I went to Jeong Mi's parents' place to help make mandu (dumplings). It was a lot of fun. I've eaten them a thousand times in Korea, but never before made them. So it was cool to do that with her family.

January 23rd was the day of the Lunar New Year. This year is the year of the dragon, which means absolutely nothing to me, haha.

I guess it does mean I get to hang with Jeong Mi's family, so that's nice. Just like last year, we went to her parents' place, bowed to show them respect and received our Seollal money!!! Yay!

Money aside, it is really fun to participate in the tradition. And I do want to show her parents respect, just as I would show my own.

We also did the usual eating and hanging out-type stuff. It's a pretty low-key holiday, but one that Koreans view as important, nonetheless.

Next up on the family calendar is Jeong Mi's brother's wedding. He'll be getting married February 12, and I'll be singing at the wedding!!! Click here to hear the song I'll sing. It's not too difficult. I just have to memorize all the words. Her parents even had me fitted for another suit for the wedding. I protested, but that only upset Jeong Mi's mom. So I had to give in and accept. Once again, very generous of them.

Of course, I miss my own family and friends back in America very much. We're planning a trip home for a couple weeks VERY soon. I'll keep everyone posted. And in the tradition of Seollal, I'm sending a virtual bow your way!!!

Check out all my pics here:

Making Mandu

Seollal 2012

The Life of a Non-Teacher (Sort Of)

2012-01-28T22:46:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy month and a half since my last post. While I haven't been exceptionally busy, it's been busy to the point that I've been a bit tired when it comes to chronicling my adventures. The life of a bar owner is an interesting one. It's not because I'm a bar owner specifically, but because I'm outside of the native speaking teacher club.

Since ending my contract, I've been fortunate enough to make connections (or use former connections) to get private lessons. I was very close to my vice principal at Hambak. Her son is going to Canada in a couple of months. Because she felt so bad about the closing of the English Center, she asked if I would do privates with her son until he goes.

He's a great guy, and his English level is high. So we meet every day to work on his grasp of idioms. He simply wants to sound more natural.

The VP even said she is trying to make up a new position at the school for me to teach English. How insane would that be?

I also have started doing private lessons through some of our customers. I work with the son of the the man who owned the bar 4 years ago, when it was a western bar. I also will start working with three girls who work in a salon and come to the bar to hang out. It's nice to earn a little extra money, and I enjoy the teaching.

The bar has been going better than expected, but we still have more expenses now than before. After all, we no longer have a school to sponsor our housing. We moved out of the officetel and into a comfy one-room apartment a few blocks from the bar. I like being out of the officetel. Even though I enjoyed our last apartment, I like being out here. It feels more like I'm a regular guy, rather than a teacher lumped in with every other teacher.

The bar has really turned into a cool spot for the community in Yeonsu-dong. There aren't many other options in the neighborhood, which helps us. But we also have a great crowd of people. We like to joke that we're a modern-day Cheers, where everybody knows your name.

And there's truth in that. People can just show up at the bar, and they're sure to find a group of friends they know and with whom they can hang. It makes for a really intimate, fun atmosphere.

It also allows us to have really nice events. Since Thanksgiving was so successful, we had a Christmas dinner and New Year's party as well. Both of those turned out really nicely for us.

On top of that, we have regular events at the bar that are really fun. On Tuesdays, we have a card group. Wednesdays is our cheap night, which really brings our friends out. Thursday is our trivia night, which has grown to be just huge. We're almost always packed for trivia, and competition is pretty intense.

We're so happy with how things are going so far. We don't really look at most people come in as customers, but as friends. That sounds corny, but it's true. It's just a really nice group of people, and we're having a great time with them.

Check out pictures from all our fun events here:

LB Random Pics

Trivia

Christmas

New Year's

Goodbye Letter to Hambak Students

2011-12-28T22:40:00.000-08:00

Well, today is officially my last day at Hambak. In classic Korea style, I have no classes, but have to spend the whole day here anyway. Why not one last reminder of the cultural differences? Haha.

But really, it's a sad day. I had some terrible experiences at the academy during my first year. But since coming here, I've learned that professionalism actually exists here in South Korea. I was fortunate enough to find something that is more of a career feeling, rather than just a contract gig.

I posted the message to my colleagues a couple days ago. I also wrote one for my students. It says something similar to that of my colleagues.

I'll miss everyone here. It's off to new adventures at Liquor Burger! Here's the letter. So it goes ...

학생들한테,

이제까지 저는 2년동안 함박에서 일했습니다. 계약이 끝나니까 여기서 끝이네요.

이번 시간은 완전 좋았어요. 학생을 가르치면서 재미있었어요. 함박학생들은 한국에서 제일 좋은 학생이었어요.

저는 함박에서 많은것을 배웠습니다. 학생들도 계속 많은것을 빼워야대요. 그래서 질문이 있어면 애런샘한테 문자를 보내주세요!

이제 함박에서 끝나지만 한국에서 계속 살거예요. 그래서 이거는 영원히 안녕은 아니에요. 나중에 또 봐요.

고맙습니다!!!

애런샘한테서

Goodbye Letter to Hambak

2011-12-26T16:33:00.000-08:00

Today I wrote a letter to the Hambak staff, and Ridia corrected my mistakes for me. It's basically just thanking them for making my time at Hambak so enjoyable. Here it is:

12/27/11
선생님들께,

이제까지 저는 2년동안 함박에서 일했습니다. 계약이 끝나니까 여기서 끝이네요.

이번 시간은 완전 좋았어요. 학생을 가르치면서 재미있었어요. 동료들도 진짜 좋았어요. 함박선생님들은 한국에서 제일 좋은 선생님이었어요.

저는 함박에서 많은것을 배웠습니다. 한국 문화와 미국 문화는 교육 스타일이 다릅니다. 처음에는 힘들었어요. 하지만 부인이랑 동료들때문에 저는 더 쉽게 지낼 수 있어요.

이제 함박에서 끝나지만 한국에서 계속 살거예요. 그래서 이거는 영원히 안녕은 아니에요. 나중에 또 봐요.

고맙습니다,
애런에게서

P.S - 앞으로 같이 놀아요! 010-3305-8367. www.liquorburger.com

Half Korean! (Sort Of)

2011-12-14T22:56:00.000-08:00

Jeong Mi and I do have some huge news. As of Dec. 26, my F2 Visa status will be official! Getting closer to my dual citizenship. For now, we're very happy!

End of an Era, Big Parties and Big Things Ahead

2011-12-14T22:54:00.000-08:00

As December 31 quickly approaches, one thing is happening without a doubt: My time as a teacher at Hambak Elementary School is coming to an end. Now, my teaching in South Korea isn't done, as I've had offers for part-time work with private individuals, small companies and even a substitute teaching gig at an international school.

So here we are. It's been an interesting three years in South Korea. From the absolutely terrible working conditions at my first academy, to my wonderful two years at Hambak and all the adventures in between, South Korea has become a great second home to me.

As far as Liquor Burger goes, things have been going really well. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner at which we hosted 53 people. We almost didn't get the food, because the Koreans who work at the deli at the American military base failed to tell me that I need a base pass or escort upon my arrival in order to get the food.

I was in an argument with the kitchen staff for 20 minutes because they insisted they told me I need a base pass. When, in reality, they only asked me if I had a car and if I could come to the base. Apparently, those things are all the same in their mind.

Fortunately, we were willing to find a GI who escorted us in and out, and we are very grateful for him for that.

Besides that, we've been really successful thus far in expanding our business and getting our name out. Obviously, a lot of it is through social media and the Internet, but we've been fortunate enough to have word of mouth really work for us.

We're really doing what we can to help everybody, besides just giving them a fun place to drink. We've helped a few people get cell phones and bank accounts and we teach free beginner Korean lessons every Sunday.

We've also established ourselves as an interesting place among western bars. On most nights, our ratio of Korean to westerner is right around 50/50. Now, on a packed Friday night, the westerners outnumber the Koreans. But on a normal night, we have a great ratio. It's really refreshing to have a place where these different cultures can come together and just hang out and be buddies. It's awesome.

We've also established a very nice relationship with an international school in Songdo. They brought a busload of people the night before our Halloween party, and turned it into a Halloween weekend. They also recently celebrated the end of Movember by bring 45 people over. We give them a good group deal on alcohol, and they bring a bunch of people. It's a lot of fun, and has even established some great contacts for me and my life after Hambak.

So what's next for us? Well, we have our poker nights on Tuesdays and are starting our trivia nights on Thursdays. Our first trivia night is tonight and we're super excited. After that, we have our Christmas dinner on December 24 and our New Year's party on December 31.

There is so much stuff going on right now, and I'm incredibly tired. But losing sleep is a small sacrifice for what will be my life after being an every-day teacher in South Korea. It's weird to think that I'm leaving the system that brought me over, but I'm sure it won't be a final farewell.

So here we are and here we go!

For more of our Thanksgiving pics, go here: https://picasaweb.google.com/110752803825288352709/LBThanksgiving

For more of our general Liquor Burger pics, go here: https://picasaweb.google.com/110752803825288352709/LiquorBurger2

Scary Drunk at LB Halloween

2011-10-30T18:38:00.000-07:00

We had two amazing Halloween parties at Liquor Burger. I was worried about one being a success, considering every bar in Korea had a party. But the place was packed and so much fun.

On Friday, 45 or so teachers from an International School five minutes away made us their first stop on a Halloween bus tour. They were at our place for about an hour and 15 minutes. We gave them free Jello shots and Soju cocktail shooters for hanging with us. Their costumes were great, and most of them were visiting us for the first time.

On Saturday, we held our official party, and it was monumental. Only about a third of the people wore costumes, but there were a ton of people hanging out and having fun. To make it even more fun, a bunch of the guys from the International School joined us again.

So not only did we have two great parties, but we got to spread the word about Liquor Burger. It was just an incredible weekend!!!

Check out all the pics here!!!

Farewells and Happy Birthdays

2011-10-23T05:27:00.000-07:00

We're finding that our niche -- besides being a comfy, neighborhood bar -- is throwing parties for our regulars and friends.

After the success of the 80's Night birthday party last week, we were really excited for this Saturday. We threw a big party to celebrate the birthday of our friend Lisa and the going away of our friend Isaac.

We had kind of a slow Friday, so we were a bit worried. I am constantly worried, of course. But Friday has generally been our big night, and Saturday is slow.

Fortunately, it seems that Friday was slow because everyone was planning on coming Saturday.

All of Lisa's, Isaac's and our friends came out on Saturday and we had a massive bash to celebrate our friends.

I'm going to write a big entry soon on how the bar is going so far and how our lives have changed in very significant ways. Until then, enjoy our pics.

Isaac and Lisa's Party

Liquor Burger Random Fun Pictures

80's Night at Liquor Burger

2011-10-17T21:51:00.000-07:00

We had our first 80's Night at Liquor Burger to celebrate the birthdays of two of our buddies. It was a ton of fun.

Check out a bunch of pics here!

I promise I'll update a bit more when things settle down. Between the two gigs, however, I rarely find time to sleep, let alone blog.

So it goes ...

Terrace Trouble

2011-09-28T19:15:00.000-07:00

I guess things were just going too well for us at Liquor Burger. The crowds have been nice in size and personality. Business has been going well. Besides me being tired, everything has just worked out for us so far.

But as of Monday, that all changed. On that day, some government workers from the district office came by to tell us they've gotten complaints that our patio is too loud. They didn't give any empirical evidence or dates or times. There's no data or facts. They just got some complaints.

So they told us we couldn't use the patio for seven days. SEVEN DAYS because of a couple complaints of noise?

Well, Jeong Mi and I went to the office Tuesday to discuss the issue. They claim our lease only covers what's inside, so we have no actual rights to the outside, despite being told otherwise by our landlord.

We also found out that there is ONE person who is complaining. ONE PERSON!!!

I'll be the first to admit that people can be loud when they're drinking. But our friends and customers have NOT been. The patio isn't seen as a place to party. People out there eat dinner, have a couple drinks and have nice conversations. We don't even have speakers out there.

There are bars, drunk Koreans, gaming rooms and students coming out of academies late at night that are way louder than we are. There are other bars and convenience stores in the area that have outdoor seating that are louder than we are. Yet it is Liquor Burger that is now facing off on a noise complaint.

Now, they told us people can be out on the patio for short amounts of time. They said the patio could be used for smoking, or getting fresh air, but there can be no food and drinks out there.

The problem is not that we are clearly being singles out (though that is frustrating), it's that I can't believe one person saying we're loud is enough to take action. There was never any check of any kind. There's no decibel meter reading or drop-ins by officials to monitor noise. One person says we're loud and that's that.

We're not done with this fight yet. We put money into the patio to make it look nice and we promote it as a big part of the comfort of our bar. People really enjoy relaxing out there.

Our next step is to go greet all the people in the apartments by us and ask if there are any problems. I also will request that if there is a problem, they call us directly and not whine like little dirty-diapered babies to the district office.

The office employees said as long as there are no complaints, there's no problem. But when I already know our friends and customers aren't being loud, what are the chances the person won't complain of a noise problem again?

Keep checking back for updates. If you're friends and family back in America, I wish you could be here to hang out. If you're living in South Korea, stop by Liquor Burger sometime for some food and drinks. We've expanded our menu to include the sliders, tacos Johnsonville cheese-filled hot dogs and a Frankenwich that combines all three.

Check us out at www.liquorburger.com!

See a bunch of great pics here!https://picasaweb.google.com/110752803825288352709/LiquorBurger

Three Day Weekend

2011-09-28T19:04:00.000-07:00

We get Monday off, as it is a Korean national holiday. I've been here for three years now, but haven't really taken the time to understand all the holidays. I just know the major ones, and happily accept my days off for smaller ones.

Monday is National Foundation Day, which celebrates the founding of Gojoseon -- the first state of the Korean nation -- in 2333 BC.

Here's a Wikipedia page that list all the major national holidays with a brief description of each. If you're an old vet here, you might know them all. But if you're a rookie, or are just interested, learn something new!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_holidays_in_South_Korea

Liquor Burger So Far So Good

2011-09-13T23:35:00.000-07:00

Liquor Burger has been a resounding success so far. We're only 6 days in, but the response from the foreigner crowd in Yeonsudong has been really encouraging.

Like I've been saying, there just isn't a bad with this atmosphere in Yeonsudong. We're just filling in a void, and it's been met with good results so far.

I'm under no illusion that things will be bumping every night. And we understand that when there's nice weather on a weekend, a lot of people will go to Bucheon, Bupyeong or Seoul. But we can offer a great neighborhood bar during the week. And if people are around on the weekends, we hope they come here!

We're having our grand opening on Friday and our first beer pong tournament on Saturday. We're still looking for bands and dart players for our league.

I have to go back to work tomorrow, so Popper's girlfriend, Jong will be our part-time worker from Sunday through Thursday nights. I wish I could be here full time already.

Our customers have been friendly and fun, and I really think they feel a connection here. I certainly feel a bond to them thus far.

So it's back to Hambak for me tomorrow, and our big party begins on Friday. Here's to Liquor Burger!

Check out our pics!

Arsenal Signs Korean Player

2011-08-30T16:52:00.001-07:00

Arsenal just finished the transfer of Park Chu Young. I used to berate everyone here for being a Manchester United fan simply because of Park Ji Sung. But this works in my favor. Now, EVERY Arsenal game will be televised here. Awesome.

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/player-chu-young-park-the-first-interview

Multicultural Korea

2011-08-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

The Diplomat discusses Korea's multicultural future.

A link from a Korea story on CNN took me to a story on The Diplomat about Korea's multicultural future. I think the article makes a lot of good points about what the country might need and where it's going.

Some of the responses -- as usual -- are just ridiculous and even infuriating. Again, I'm not telling you to bust your ass and learn Korean. I'm saying that if you want Koreans to accept you as a member of their society and respect you, you'd better put forth the effort. You can get by here without Korean, but you'll never earn any respect or acceptance from the people.

Anyway, here is my response on the article's forum:

Let's get this out of the way right now. Considering all the times the Korean peninsula has been invaded or occupied over the last few hundred years, to really think Korea's "one, pure blood" myth is real is either stubbornness or a terrible case of naivety. Unfortunately, that idea still does exist.

I am an American who married a Korean girl and have lived in South Korea for three years. I plan on living here for a few more years because we're opening a small business together.

While I agree that the average Korean can be unbelievably cold and unwelcoming, it would be wrong to group them all together; just as it's wrong to think they all have 100 percent Korean blood.

My wife and her immediate and extended family have been as welcoming and loving to me as anyone in my whole life. I'm as close to them as I am to my own family. I also have a large group of Korean friends that welcomed me immediately without flinching.

Here's the issue. We, as foreigners, look at Korea and think that they owe us the same politeness we give people back home. That's not how the world works. Of course the government sets up a language test before you can get permanent status.

Why should a whole country that speaks Korean be so catering to people who speak English? I understand that English is the current international business language, but there are millions of Koreans who only need it to understand some K-pop songs, commercials and nothing else.

You know what will help you become a part of Korean society? Learn the language. From the day I got here, I studied Korean. And there is nothing about that effort that has been wasted.

Complain all you want, but if you are married to a Korean, have lived here for two years or more and still can't speak Korean, then you're a waste of a human being.

My wife spoke zero English when we met, and only knows some now because I help her study. But our language of communication is -- and probably always will be -- Korean.

While there is institutionalized racism at companies, anyone who is truly skilled is a prized asset. If we have kids, they could run this country in the future. They'll be as fluent as a native speaker in English and Korean. If you look at a lot of schools and companies, the amount of "teachers" or "English speakers" who speak both languages fluently is surprisingly minimal.

I'm not telling you to throw away your own culture. I hold true to a lot of things I learned back home. Though I attribute that less to being an American and more to having good parents and a supportive family.

Hold onto your culture, but you have to make a concerted effort to learn about Korea. That includes language and culture. Even the weird stuff like fan death is something you'd better know about, even if you laugh about it openly.

Want to be accepted? Set yourself up to be in that position. Only after that can you truly know if Koreans can handle a multicultural society. They totally accept anyone who puts in effort at being a contributing part of their country and society.

So give that a shot first, and see how the reaction to you being a foreigner changes from disdain to thanks and awe.

Colin's Wedding

2011-08-28T19:31:00.000-07:00

Our good friend Colin Beaton tied the knot yesterday. He and Suki have been dating for a long time now, and this was all in the making for awhile.

They held the ceremony at the Grand Ballroom in East Incheon. It was a wedding hall-type ceremony, but not quite as 80s as the others we've been to. They did, however, have smoke coming out of the walkway.

Either way, congratulations to Colin and Suki. I'm sure they're going to be very happy together.

Check out the pics here!

Liquor Burger Is Ours!

2011-08-28T19:26:00.000-07:00

Another big move in our lives is in progress. Jeong Mi and I are opening a bar! While our stress level has increased by a million percent, it's really exciting and scary.

We already signed the papers and put down the deposits. We're now working on our interior changes. The bar was a foreigner bar three years ago, but was most recently a hostess bar. That means the interior is ugly, terrible and all black.

We also have to strengthen the stage and take out some shelves, as well as adding a hot water dealie and tiling the kitchen floor.

We're really only spending as little as possible for the opening. It'll be just enough to change the color of the walls, and do the necessary things first. Once we get rolling, we can make other changes as we go.

We're looking to open Chuseok weekend, and then have a Grand Opening the weekend after. Everyone get ready for Liquor Burger! We'll have events, specials, cheap beers, mini-burgers and a patio!!!

Check out some early pics before renovations.

http://www.facebook.com/groups/liquorburger/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Liquor-Burger/267569009939523

http://liquorburger.com

Twitter.com @LiquorBurger

Bryan's Bungee Birthday

2011-08-28T19:19:00.000-07:00

Bryan's birthday was celebrated in big style as we went bungee jumping in Bundang. It was only 25,000 won per person and it was a blast. It was my first time bungee jumping.

While Pel, Popper and I all brought our girls, Jeong Mi was the only one who jumped with the three of us. It was just a great experience.

All the fun pics are here!

Marriage License

2011-08-28T19:11:00.000-07:00

It's official and there's no turning back! Jeong Mi and I went to the American Embassy in Seoul and filed for our marriage license. It takes a few days to go through, but all should be well by now.

Married!!!

Pictures are here.

Vietnam Honeymoon!

2011-08-28T19:07:00.000-07:00

This is a long time in the making. We've been so busy with out latest adventures, that I've had zero time to blog. I'm going to keep the writing short on this one, and let the pics do most of the talking.

We went to Vietnam on Aug. 13 for five days, and had an incredible time. Vietnam is very welcoming of foreigners, even if the motor scooter culture is slightly terrifying. Seriously, there are so many scooters buzzing around that I had a dream I was driving one on the first night.

Our first day started out ominously, but things turned up. It was raining and we couldn't find a travel agency because the one we planned on going to didn't exist anymore. Once we found Saigon Tourist, we were all set.

It rained almost every day for at least a couple hours around dinner time. It was little more than an annoyance, but that adds to the stress a bit when you're just trying to tour around.

In Ho Chi Minh City, we stayed in the district with a lot of shops, restaurants and hotels. As far as HCMC goes, we didn't leave our district very much. We didn't have a ton of time there, and we really had everything we needed right there.

On our second day, we went to the Cu Chi Tunnels. It's an area of Vietnam that has proud people who held off the "crazy devil" Americans as they tried to push north. They did so by making elaborate, excruciating traps and popping out of tiny tunnels in various locations to mow down troops.

While the day-long American hate fest was a bit uncomfortable, it was a really interesting experience to hear history from the other side.

On our third day, we took a great trip to the Mekong Delta. The guide on our car ride spoke English really well, and we had a great conversation about the country. When we arrived, we switched off to a local tour guide. She took us on a variety of boat rides to the various islands.

While there, we rode on a horse cart, went to some local villages, saw a bee apiary and ate some awesome honey. The day wasn't even close to over then. We also saw some traditional Vietnamese singers, are a lot of fruit, saw them make coconut candy and were served a traditional meal of fried fish, meat and fruit.

The jungle was just beautiful, and it was interesting to see how a lot of these people live their lives. They really do depend a lot on tourism, but would probably just go on the same without it.

We spent Wednesday and Thursday on the east coast at a beautiful resort. The ride was about 5 hours each way with traffic that appeared to have no rules. We really went through some incredibly poor areas, though they were rich in propaganda.

The resort was awesome. It's right on the beach, and only a ten-minute drive from a natural phenomenon. It's a red sand desert that is sitting right next to the beach. It's stunning to see.

At the resort, we just relaxed and took it all in. There was the beach, a pool, great food and cheap drinks. There's nothing wrong with any of that. It was a perfect end to a wonderful honeymoon.

Even though the plane ride back was quite bumpy, we really had an unforgettable vacation. It lived up to anything I could've imagined as a honeymoon.

We have so much more to do now that we're back. Back to work!

Check out my pictures here.

And check out Jeong Mi's pictures here.

Getting Laid Off: Doesn't Feel Great

2011-08-11T22:44:00.000-07:00

I've been quite busy lately, and with good reason. It turns out that the Hambak English Center will lose its funding from the district office at the end of the budgetary year in December.

The last we heard is that we'd be funded for one more year, so this was a surprise. It was also a bit of a wake-up call. As stable as I thought this job was, it just goes to show that nothing is set in stone. I was expecting to sign up for one more year at Hambak, and then look to other options.

But timing is pushing me in another direction.

While I am upset about this, I don't blame the school. They want to keep us. My contract ends in October, but they're offering me the option to stay on until the end at the end of December. So I'll be the last native speaker to have worked at Hambak English Center.

It's a nice gesture by the school for a few reasons. One is that I don't have to scramble to find a new place to live. Two is that it gives me two more months of paychecks and pension contributions before I'm cut off.

So really, as losing a job goes, this really isn't the end of the world.

To add on to the relief pile is that we'll finalize our marriage license on Tuesday, and then go about changing my visa to an F-2-1 from my current E2. As far as I can tell, an F-2-1 (spouse visa) gives me the opportunity to really do anything I want as a job over here.

And it turns out, Jeong Mi and I already have a plan. We are going to open a bar. It sounds like a strange idea considering there are endless drinking establishments here. But the options aren't endless in this neighborhood for places where teachers and other non-Koreans can go and feel welcome. Now, there are places we can go, but welcome is not always there.

I've been lucky to find a good hangout and friend in Radio and Woo Min. But he is trying to sell. He has been for awhile. We actually talked about buying his, but one of the required deposits is far out of our range.

But what we did find is a bar on the second floor of a building on the main drag. While that is sometimes seen as not good for business, this bar has an outdoor patio, which really boosts its appeal. It also used to be a foreigner hangout three years ago. Some of my current friends had gone to the old place, but turnover here is so high that most people don't remember it.

And while I was stressing about making sure we'd do enough business to make a decent living, I came to the realization today that with an F-2-1 visa, I'm not limited to one job. So I can teach English part-time with any company or do private lessons to supplement the bar. I could easily make enough teaching a few hours a day, three days a week to completely pay for the rent for the bar in any given month.

We also have some ideas to draw in enough teachers and other foreigners that are unique to the area specifically, and Korea in general. Jeong Mi will make these awesome mini-burgers as our specialty food item, and we'll have a variety of event nights throughout the week to try to turn our place into a good hangout. Of course, we're not forgetting our Korean brothers and sister, as we'll have soju and a few popular bar side dishes from which to choose.

So I haven't updated in awhile, but I think you guys can understand why. I'll have a more uplifting post in a week or so. Jeong Mi and I leave for Vietnam for our honeymoon from the 14th through the 18th. We're very excited.

So think good thoughts for us as we take our trip and come back to embark on a new career opportunity as a small business owner!!!

Songdo Resort

2011-08-01T21:32:00.000-07:00

Right between my original neighborhood and my current one, and only about 10 minutes way by taxi, is a nice little slice of paradise called Songdo Resort.

Songdo Resort is a little man-made lake surrounded by sand, with terrifyingly unkempt amusement park rides and concession stands for good measure. I've been there many times. Just look back at my bachelor party pictures for my most recent trip there.

It's really a great place. It only costs 5,000 won to get in, and you can bring in any supplies you want. That typically means food, drinks, alcohol and even a tent if you're so inclined.

While we haven't yet camped there, Jeong Mi and I did go last Saturday with all our buds to grill, drink, relax and enjoy the summer in a place relatively hidden from the bustling city.

Jeong Mi and I took our tent. Bryan and Kim also brought one (which is identical to ours) and set it up next to us to complete our compound. We then broke out the grill and music and had a really great day.

Check out more pics here!!!

Summer Camp Starts Tomorrow

2011-07-24T04:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is true. Camp classes start tomorrow, but we took advantage of our last weekend.

On Saturday, Popper, Jong and I went to the Incheon United game. It actually was pretty entertaining. Incheon came back from 2 goals down to salvage a 2-2 tie. The Gyeongnam goalie was super angry at what was clearly a goal. He thought otherwise.

Pics are here.

On Sunday, the whole crew made it out to Sunrise Park in New Songdo for a big picnic. We originally wanted to go to old Songo Park with the man-made lake, but the morning rain canceled those plans. But we all made it out to New Songdo City for the afternoon and evening. We ate, drank and played in the big fountain. It was a ton of fun.

Pics are here.

It was a great mini-vacation and it's a bummer that it has to end. But back to work!!!

Never Ending Summer

2011-07-23T01:37:00.000-07:00

So much has been going on in the weeks since my parents left, that I've once again neglected my blog. I've taken a ton of pictures and had a bunch of new and old (but still fun) experiences. Because of that, I just have been putting my pics on my computer and not getting around to the whole uploading part. So finally, here is a little update on my life in South Korea.

Wolmido

We've made quite a habit out of going to Wolmido, and that is not sad at all. Pel, Popper and I went a few weeks ago and made t-shirts with our pictures on them to give to our girlfriends. On another occasion, a few of the couples went to hang out. Jong, Popper, Jeong Mi and I went on the boat ride, as well. I never get tired of the boardwalk.

So check out more Wolmido pics here.

Exercise Time

If I didn't exercise in Korea, I'd be a downright unhealthy mess. Thankfully, Jeong Mi started joining me once the weather for nice. We've been hiking the mountain by our house in Yeonsudong. It's really great. We hike up three days a week. On two of those days, we use the free weightlifting equipment that is up near the top. The fresh air and exercise feel great.

Check out our exercise pics here.

First Birthday

First birthdays are big here in South Korea. Jeong Mi said they're so important because not many babies used to make it to one year old. So there that is. It's actually quite terrible, if you don't like kids. Because that's all it is. There's a DJ, and a buffet and tons of screaming, smelly babies. Yikes.

Anyway, check out the pics here.

Teachers Trip

All the Hambak teachers went on a great trip to Songchu. It's a valley by North Mountain. It's just incredible nature. We went hiking, saw a waterfall, ate, drank and played sports. We ended up the night with me and six of our head teachers at a noraebang. It was a pretty great day.

A lot of pics are here!!!

Pitching a Tent

Yep, you read that right. Jeong Mi and I got a tent. We have a camping trip planned with Kim and Pel. But first, we used it at Sunrise Park in New Songdo to kick back and relax.

Here are the pics.

That pretty much catches us up on what I've been doing in the past couple weeks. It's been busy and it's been fun. The summer is a huge stress reliever from the jerky winter.

My last day of a mini-vacation is tomorrow, and then we have three weeks of summer English camp. After that, Jeong Mi and are going to Vietnam!!! That's the right. For our honeymoon, we're going to the one country I've always wanted to visit. It's going to be awesome!

Tomorrow, we're all going to Songdo Park to have a little cookout, as long as there is no rain. So pray to the storm gods to stay away (at least until night time. They can come after that).

Back to the fun!

The Wedding, Family and All The Fun Times

2011-07-06T06:49:00.000-07:00

This might be a bit of a long post, but there's a good reason. I saved up EVERYTHING we did during my family's time here, and I'm going to throw it all out here. I usually throw all my pic links at the end, but look for them throughout this post.

Also, you can check out my dad and mom's blog for another perspective on the trip. You can find dad and mom's blog here.

I won't type too much, as I'll try to let the pics do most of the storytelling, but get ready for the show!

June 24

The family arrived right on time, and Jeong Mi was at the airport to meet them with a call van. We got them back to their rooms quickly, and then went straight to the hanbok store. We had to get there quickly so we could catch the baseball game.

While there, my parents got measured and picked the style they liked. It all went smoothly, as my parents were also meeting Jeong Mi's parents again for the first time in a year.

We got out of there quickly to head to the baseball game, but the rain would take its first point from us, as the game was called off. You'll see the rain becoming a common, unwelcome theme throughout the trip.

We ended up just going back to my neighborhood to eat lamb skewers at my favorite place, and then we headed to Radio to introduce my family to my friends and the place where I spend the majority of my weekends.

June 25

Jeremy, Melissa and Alan had a morning and afternoon to rest, but Mom, Dad, Jeong Mi and I had to get up early-ish. We went to the wedding place to check out a ceremony, so my parents would have some idea of what was going on. Though they didn't need to know much, it was good to see.

After that, we went back to Yeonsu-dong and ate at a galbi restaurant with Pel, Kim and Popper. In an unprecedented event, they all decided to stay with us and join us for a trip to the norarbang. There are a million in the area, so we picked one and hit it. We had a great time singing and hanging out. We took a lot of good pictures and great videos.

Check out the June 24 and June 25 pictures here!!!

June 26 - Wedding Day

As I've been saying, if it rains, it might as well be a typhoon. And that's just what we got. A tropical storm blew through the morning of the wedding. While we were covered under tarps, the wind still whipped in and brought some splashes of water with it. To add to the fun, Pel and Popper got stuck in an elevator, and made it only minutes before the ceremony started.

Unfortunately, that means they couldn't carry me in, but Jun and Oson stepped in alongside Barry and Woo Min, and it was as really fun experience. While I was carried in, I was goofing around by peeking around the shade and generally just having a good time. Then Jeong Mi came in, and the wedding was underway.

The ceremony itself was short, but ours added other things on to stretch it out. We had a drum band play for at least ten minutes. Our fathers both tossed roosters. I carried around basically my whole family and her family on a piggyback ride. We also had the ceremony where the family members each come up and say nice things to us. Then we took a bunch of pictures. I also translated the whole ceremony through the mic. I didn't expect to, but I guess it was bound to happen. While fun, those things definitely tacked on time.

There was hardly any food left for us when we finished!

After that, a big group of us headed back to Radio for the after party. Woo Min really worked hard that day to help organize all our friends and then host us after the wedding. We had a blast hanging at Radio. We even got to do the Chicken Dance!!! A Bruckart wedding can't happen with that!

Check out wedding pictures here!!!

Keep in mind that we have a ton of wedding pics. This is just a first uploading. So if you keep checking back, there will be more and more. This will at least give you a taste of what happened that day.

June 27 and 28 - Gangwondo

While not yet a honeymoon, really, the days after the wedding provided us a chance to take a trip with Jeong Mi's parents as well as my family. We went to the northeast coast to the province of Gangwondo. It's my favorite place in Korea. It's all nature and beaches and mountains and trees and rivers. The air is fresh and clean, and it's just beautiful.

On Monday, we checked out a beach and a few different spots to catch a good view. We then got to our pension and grilled as much meat as two families possibly could. We also toured a South Korea ship and a North Korea submarine.

On Tuesday, we headed up past the 38th parallel to a lookout that is less than 5 kilometers from North Korea. From the mountaintop, we were looking straight into North Korean territory at some of its mountains and islands. It was an incredible site.

After that, we checked out the DMZ museum and headed over to Mount Sarak, where we rode the cable car up and hiked onto one of the peaks. What a beautiful view! I definitely want to go back in the winter time.

Check out the pictures from the Gangwondo trip here!!!

June 29 - DMZ

This day was another early morning riser. This day was special because we were going to the DMZ. We left our place at 6 a.m., and headed into Seoul. That's where we would catch the bus to the most heavily armed border in the world.

Just crossing into the civilian territory is almost surreal. Soldiers check IDs and passports, and they warn you not to take pictures. Though, if the barbed wire and armed guards weren't all over, the countryside would be just beautiful.

Unfortunately, rain once again reared its ugly head. But that didn't hurt our first plan. We went to the third infiltration tunnel made by the North Koreans. Once there, we strapped on our helmets and rode the tram underground. The tram tunnel was made by the South Koreans, but we soon stepped into North Korean-made territory. The tunnels were tight and small. An average person couldn't stand straight up. The helmets came in handy for a few people on the tour. It was interesting to think that these tunnels exist and were once used for terrifying things. On top of that, there could be many more tunnels around the DMZ.

After that, we went to an observatory, where we saw ABSOLUTELY NOTHING because of the rain and fog. Then it was onto Dorasan, the northernmost train station between North and South Korea. It was previously used to make cargo deliveries, but in recent years, trains hit that stop for some workers, and then come right back. It's another surreal area, almost like a ghost town.

Our last stop on the tour (besides eating) was Imjingak unification village. There was really nothing to see there. It's mostly set up as propaganda. I think the tallest viking in Korea is there (!).

That was it was the DMZ. The idea of it is scarier than being there. Of course, being there when a war is actively happening would probably be a nightmare. I couldn't imagine fighting in the heat and humidity and the heavy forests. And don't even start thinking about wintertime. Yikes.

Check out DMZ photos here!!!

Coming back in from the DMZ, we stopped at Jeong Mi's parents' place. We had a great meal at a Jajangmyeon restaurant, then went to their house to watch some of the DVDs and picture slideshows her dad made for us. It was really fun.

June 30 -- Wolmido and Baseball

We woke up Thursday morning late, because it was a planned rest day. But seeing as the weather was nice, I wanted to do something relaxing. So we headed to Wolmido! Wolmido is my favorite place in Incheon. It's the site of the famous Incheon Landing, and is now home to an awesome boardwalk with rides, drinks and fun.

We got there around 4 p.m., which is a bit unfortunate, because the place really starts rolling at night. Also adding to the bummer factor, is that they are now doing construction on a large chunk of the boardwalk in order to expand it into the sea area.

We still had a good time, because almost all of us got on the slingshot. It's a wonderful ride that does what it says and shoots you into the air. Though we all only paid for one trip, business hadn't really started for them yet, so he gave each of us to big rides. It was a great time. Even Jeong Mi and Dad got on the ride.

Then, since the weather was holding out, we got to go to a baseball game!!! This was really exciting for me. Baseball is a really different experience here. So we sprung for tickets almost behind home plate, got our thunder sticks and enjoyed a really great game.

We got on the jumbotron a bunch and mom even won a free pizza for a dance contest. We even saw an almost-fight between the first-base coach and the ump. Incheon lost, as usual. I'm sure me being there hurt us. But it was still a great time.

Check out Wolmido and baseball game pics here!!!

July 1 - Seoul Bus Tour

Just like last year with Mom and Dad, we took the family on the Seoul Bus Tour. It's a great tour that is only 10,000 won per person, but takes you to basically every big spot in the city. This year we went to Gyeongbokgung (Sejong's palace), Seoul Tower, Itaewon (only for lunch!) and Insadong.

This was really the only time we got to spend in Seoul, but it's a cool trip and worth a day on anyone's schedule. I didn't take too many pics, but mom has a bunch more in her blog.

Check out Bus Tour pics here!!

July 2

Saturday was really just a day to relax. We went to Outback for some actual good food, and then I took Jeremy shopping a bit. Melissa and Alan came over to our place and hung out. Then we went to Radio for a couple hours to hang out and wind down. Woo Min and Jun surprised my parents and family with some very nice gifts. I have some great friends here, and I'm glad my parents got to meet them all.

July 3 - Farewell

We woke up early-ish on July 3 to meet Jeong Mi's parents for one last meal. We went to a nice meat restaurant in the neighborhood, and they got to chat (through me) one last time on this trip.

We then loaded into the van, and headed to the airport. For the second year in a row, I watched my family take off from the airport and head back to The World. It's always hard watching them leave, especially when I don't yet know what my own future will hold.

We had a really incredible time and things went fairly smoothly. Unlike last year, where a day of translating would force me to take two recovery days from mental and physical fatigue, this year was a piece of cake. What a difference a year makes, huh? I only needed my dictionary a couple times at the DMZ, but it was mostly in my ear hole and out my mouth hole without even stopping to think anymore. And it didn't wear me out at all. It felt pretty normal.

I'm so thrilled my family could make it out for my traditional Korean wedding, and that they could see a glimpse of my life over here. Any of you other teachers -- or anyone living here -- who has a close family, get them to come out and spend a week with you. Even though it can be a bit stressful, it's totally worth the time and effort.

As for the rest of my family, we look forward to partying with you guys back home and celebrating American-style as soon as possible. Anyone who stuck with this through the end, thank you so much! Keep checking back for picture updates.

Once more to my family, Jeong Mi, her parents and my friends: I love you guys! Thank you so much!

Tomorrow is the Day!

2011-06-25T07:54:00.001-07:00

It's wedding time!!! We're about 11 hours away. See you on the other side. I am so happy my family and friends are here for it. I love you, Jeong Mi!!!

Family on the Way

2011-06-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

Dad, Mom, Jeremy, Melissa and Alan are on a place right now. They should be almost in San Francisco. Then they hop on a direct flight to Incheon. They get here tomorrow at about 2:55 p.m., if all goes well.

Tomorrow might be a busy day. We're going to the hanbok shop, then, hopefully, to a baseball game. Let's hope the rain gives us a break for a few hours tomorrow evening. And then, of course, for a few hours on Sunday morning/afternoon.

It's going to be a fun week. Wedding, here we come!!!

Perfect Bachelor Day

2011-06-20T06:07:00.000-07:00

After last weekend, I didn't think a better day could happen here in South Korea. But on Saturday, my friends organized the best possible bachelor party they could have. It was perfect.

At about noon, we headed to Songo Resort. If you look in my past pictures, you'll see I've been there before. But this one was just with the guys. Woo Min, Pel, Popper, Onson, Spill, Jun, Barry and Isaac all came out to celebrate with me. We grilled burgers that Pel made, played soccer, threw the disc around and played the awesome soccer/volleyball combo game.

We even played against some Koreans and had some sand wrestling matches. The sun was out, but not beating down. It was incredible.

After that, we came home for 30 minutes to clean up, because it was onto Wolmido. Anyone who has seen my blog knows how much I love Wolmido. It's a great boardwalk with games, food, rides and great people-watching areas. There's nothing better to me on a nice day than hanging in Wolmido.

And that's just what we did. We strolled around the boardwalk, had a few drinks and rode some rides. It was so much fun, as usual.

After that, we headed to Guworldong to hit Bar Q. But I was dead tired by that point. We only stayed there for one drink and probably about 30 minutes before making our way home. There's not much more that could've made the day better.

Once again, thanks to my wonderful friends, Korea is turning out to be a fun place to live. Thanks, everyone!!!

For all the Bachelor Day pics, head here!

Anseong 10 Kilometers of Love

2011-06-13T06:11:00.000-07:00

This may have been my best weekend in Korea yet. I've been here more than 2 1/2 years, but haven't had such a full weekend with so many new experiences. It was just incredible.

On Friday, we did our usual deal and hung out at Radio. That has definitely become our club, and since Woo Min gave four of us VIP cards, we get 10 percent off on all our bills. I'm just really comfortable there. And Woo Min is more than just a bartender/owner, he's a good friend. In fact, he'll be one of the four friends carrying me in for my wedding.

On Saturday, Jeong Mi and I went to another bar owner/friend's wedding with Bryan and Kim. Mike is the guy who used to own Go Bar. It's the bar in Inha that we have frequented quite often over the last couple years. He's always been really good to us, and I was even on his big, blow-up advertisement out front of the bar.

So we went to his wedding at a wedding hall in Bupyeong. While the wedding hall was pretty similar to many of the others ones we've been to, it was the food that stood out. This was probably the best wedding buffet I've had in Korea yet.

Another really cool thing happened at the wedding, too. Apparently there's a bit of tradition with the throwing of the bouquet that is a bit different from America. In America, we have the single girls get up there to catch it. In Korea, they want a soon-to-be-married girl to do it. As luck(?) would have it, Jeong Mi is the only girl who fell into that category.

So she got up there in front of a big crowd and caught the bouquet of nice, yellow roses. We even got a free cake as the couple who came away with the bouquet. That was really fun.

There was a soccer game Saturday night that I really wanted to go to, but Bryan and Kim we're trying to talk Jeong Mi and I into going 93 km south with them to Anseong, where they would be running a 10k the next day.

As has been my habit over the last couple of years, I usually don't do anything big on Saturday night, and then so something restful on Sunday. But that's a habit I've been trying to break, and have been successful so far.

So I decided that we'd take Bryan and Kim up on their offer and join them down south. So we went home, packed our stuff and headed to Emart to get some supplies. One of those supplies included a Rayboard for me. It's this awesome skateboard with only one wheel in front and one wheel in back. The center of it is a big spring, so you move it by rotating your feet back and forth. I always see students buzzing around on them, and decided it would be my summer toy purchase.

We got on our way around 3 p.m. and got down there around 6 p.m. We would've gotten there sooner, but we saw a sex shop in a tiny pink trailer by the side of the highway and we had to stop and check it out. Did we buy anything? Oh, the stories we could tell.

Anseong is a very small area. This little town might be smaller than my home town of Franklin, PA. And Franklin only has about 6,000 people. What I'm saying is this place is AWESOME. There are no huge apartment complexes or neon lights. It's just small buildings, a main street and actual houses with yards and gardens. It was like being in Small Town, USA, South Korea.

The 10k was happening as part of Anseong's cultural festival. It was like a smaller version of Applefest. They even set up a big stage in the town square area with some little (falling apart) carnival rides and food booths. On the stage was a variety of martial arts shows, singing and bands.

We hung out in the area for a bit after we arrived, and Bryan and I were flagged down by a police officer who asked to see our IDs. As he was checking our IDs, he was asking where we were from, how long we've been in Korea and how far they were running the next day.

It was too perfect of a day to be upset. And really, we think he just checked our IDs as an excuse to practice some English with us. We were joking that we are probably the only two Americans who have been in that town since the war. The more we thought about it, the less it seemed like a joke.

We stayed that night in the Shot motel, which was pretty newly built. It had great gear on the inside, and Bryan's room even had blacklights. Unfortunately, our blacklights were broken.

We got up bright and early the next day to make our way to the race site. It was just a few kilometers outside of the small town at the public square in front of the local hospital/old folks home. There were a ton of tents and spaces set up for the various teams and organizations who had runners entered.

We didn't have a tent, so we just hung out while everyone was stretching and getting ready.

When the time came for the race, Bryan and Kim got into place, and they were off. They took a little over an hour for their 10k. Kim has been running lately, but Bryan hadn't trained at all. Also, the heat was just sweltering. I was just hanging with Jeong Mi and I was sweating.

After the race ended, we headed back into town to hang at the festival some more. We first went into one of the event halls to see some of the Chinese-inspired art. While there, an older man came up to me and asked me if I spoke Korean. He then proceeded to lead me around the whole exhibit and explain all the paintings to me. He even introduced me to one of the teachers/artists. He was a little surprised when I asked to take a picture with him. But it's that small-town mentality that's so nice.

We headed across to the square after that because there was a mariachi band from Mexico City who played. And they were GREAT. We bought a couple of beers and hung out to listen to them. It turns out they are staying in Bucheon, which is just 20 minutes away from us on the subway. So we got their email address and I said I'd send the names and numbers of local bars. Hopefully we can see these guys again.

We hung out for a little more after the Mexican band finished, took int he festival, are some corn dogs and relaxed. We then hit the road to make our way home.

Since it was only about 5 p.m. when we got back, we decided to grab some galbi and beers and hang at Radio a bit to have a night cap.

All in all, this weekend was full of new experiences and really fun times. The weather was beautiful and we were with good friends. If it gets any better than this, I won't know what to do with myself.

Picture time!

Mike's wedding

Anseong 10k

Barry's Return

2011-06-07T05:10:00.000-07:00

We had a three-day weekend last week thanks to Buddha. We all had Monday off as it was a national holiday.

The weekend started off with a bang when I got a text from Barry saying he was interested in coming to Incheon. Of course, I did not hesitate to give him the go ahead.

On Friday night, we hung around Yeonsu-dong, and went to the batting cages and Radio. We pretty much just relaxed and had fun, playing darts and drinking some beer.

On Saturday morning, Barry joined Jeong Mi and I to meet Jeong Mi's parents at a hanbok shop in Guworldong. We pretty much finalized our hanbok choices. Jeong Mi's parents are buying hers and renting mine. Barry even got into the fun and tried on some hanboks.

I had pretty much given up on the idea of getting the color I want, but Jeong Mi's parents helped me sway her, so I will be wearing a great yellow and blue one.

After that, we headed over to the square where all the restaurants and bars are. We originally planned to go to the baseball game, but due to the nice weather and holiday weekend, the game was packed. We decided to skip the game and continue to hang in Guworldong and play at the arcade for awhile.

We sang in the tiny karaoke booths, drank some beers, shot some arcade basketball and fired the pellet guns. The karaoke booths are the best. It's like a noraebang, but just big enough for about four people and it's 500 won per song. That's about 50 cents to sing anything you want.

Even though we didn't go on Saturday, we decided to take in the baseball game on Sunday. It was packed, and even though we got there almost two hours early, we still had to sit way up in the upper decks. And as is once again becoming my thing, the Wyverns lost yet again.

On Monday, we took advantage of the beautiful weather to head over to Sunrise Park in New Songdo. Jeong Mi and I went with Bryan, Kim, Geoff and Eun Hye. We set up our blankets and we each prepared some food and drinks. We had a great time playing in the fountain, kicking the soccer ball, playing hacky sack and just relaxing. I even saw one of my students and chatted with her parents a little bit.

Don't you wish every weekend was three days long? The weather was beautiful and we spent time with good friends. I can't really ask for much more.

As always, you know where to see the pics!

Wedding pics

Yeonsu fun-su

Wyverns

Guworldong

Sunrise Park

School Announces My Marriage

2011-06-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

Every morning, we get a message from one of the head teachers with birthdays, hospital notices, birth announcements and so on. It's just a little update to spread word about things that are going on with the teachers.

Well, my wedding news made it into today's announcement. Here it is:

6/2(목)
안녕하십니까?
오늘도 좋은 날이 되십시오.
* 6월 2일은 그레고리력으로 153번째

   - 친목회 소식 -
♥ 드디어 '결혼' 소식 ♥
금년에 처음으로 결혼 소식을
알려드립니다.
주인공은 Aaron Bruckart
(애런 브럭알트-영어체험)님입니다.
일시 : 2011. 6. 26(일) 오전 11시
장소 : 인천도호부청사 객사마당

♥ 타국에서 외롭게 이루어지는
혼사(婚事)인 만큼 우리 회원님들의
각별하신 관심이 필요합니다.♥

- 만남의 기적 -
세상을 보는 데는
두 가지 방법이 있다.
모든 만남을
우연으로 보는 것과
기적으로 보는 것이다.
   - 알베르트 아인슈타인 -

* 첨부 파일 : 감상 사진(청산도의 청보리)

   함박친목회에서

I'm sure you can see which part is about me. It just tells the location and date of the wedding, and says something about how this being a wedding in a foreign country, everyone should support me. Also, 주인공 means 'hero.' Haha. So that's nice.

The bottom passage is a quote from Albert Einstein.

So that's the type of thing we see every morning, and it was a nice gesture to see my name in it.

Jamming Into the Summer

2011-05-30T05:02:00.000-07:00

When the nice weather comes, we finally get to break out of our cabin fever ... and it feels good.

On Thursday, after our study group, Woo Min and his girlfriend took us to the Incheon University Festival in New Songdo City. Woo Min graduated from there last semester, and wanted to show us where he went to school. There were a ton of college kids and professors out at various tents, just drinking and eating.

It was wacky because it is something that probably couldn't happen in America. There could probably never be a festival on campus where alcohol is so openly prominent because the drinking age is 21. Whereas it's 20, Korean age (real life 19). So even most of the youngest students can drink legally. The second thing is it's really frowned upon to have students and professors mix socially like that. Maybe it was okay because it was nearing the end of the semester or something.

Either way, we had a lot of fun. I had to leave around 1 a.m. because I had to get up early for work. The rest of them left about an hour later, but finished off their night at Woo Min's bar and our favorite spot, Radio.

Onson's parents have been here all week, and we had lamb skewers with them Friday after work. They're very nice people. It was cool because it's only the second set of my friend's parents who have come over. Barry's mom was here a few months ago, but I didn't really get to meet her or anything. It was very nice to meet Onson's parents, however.

On Saturday, I took a big, unexpected step in my relationship with Jeong Mi's parents. It was the first time I'd hung out with them without Jeong Mi around. Jeong Mi's mom called me twice around 10:30 a.m. to invite me to watch a wedding and try the food at our wedding place. I tried to tell her I didn't need to see or try the food. I was pretty nervous about not having Jeong Mi there.

But I gave in and met them around 11:30 a.m. We actually saw a big, Canadian guy get married to a Korean chick. It looked to me like -- due to his size -- he was really struggling with the things like bowing, being carried in, wearing the clothes and, at one point, giving his girl a piggyback ride. But he managed to get through the day.

I am happy I got to see the ceremony. I also got a script with English so I could send it to my family. The food at the buffet was decent. It was buffet food, but it'll be all-you-can-eat and will be satisfying.

I also had a nice time with her parents. It's always fun to get to know someone without that safety net there. I needed that challenge, and I think it all went well. We mostly talked about wedding stuff, and plans for my family when they get here. But I now have a newfound confidence when speaking with them.

Last but not least, Woo Min has become a really good friend. I, personally, am thankful for him simply being a great guy. He owns our favorite bar, and we go there frequently, but he's more than just a bar owner. We've played sports with him, gone to events with him and gotten dinner together. He even made VIP cards for Popper, Pel, Onson and I. Because he's such a good guy, I've asked him to join my crew of carrying guys at the wedding. So he, Pel, Popper and Barry will all carry me in on a throne. It's a great crew to have do it and I'm excited.

So I finally threw together some of the Radio pics we've taken, and will continue adding to the list. That includes the new high score board drawn by yours truly, which includes Pel's and my high score for two separate games.

As always, it's picture time.

Wedding pics here

Incheon University Festival pics here

Radio pics here

Nice Weather = Busy Weekends

2011-05-25T23:23:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a whirlwind of a day for Jeong Mi and me. We started out going to Bupyeong to do a fitting for my suit. The measurements were pretty good, but he'll make a few adjustments before throwing it all together for me. Getting a tailored suit is awesome. I feel like Jeong Mi and her family are spoiling me. But it's great knowing they think of me as family as well.

We then headed to Osan to visit some of her family. A lot of her family is from Osan, which is an hour or so south of Incheon. We went to deliver some wedding invitations and do some family introductions.

I met her grandma, her great uncle and her great aunt. I also met some of her aunts and uncles who I had met previously. Her grandma is in a very frail condition, and didn't say too much. One of her great uncles is pretty sick with cancer, so he wasn't in good shape either.

Some of her family members own a little shop and live above it. And her one great aunt lives in a traditional-style Korean home. Osan is a lot of countryside. It would be a relaxing place to live, but it might get a bit boring after awhile.

It was nice to see the previously-met family members again. I first met them over Chuseok last year, and they are very friendly. All in all, I met or re-met about 15 people on Saturday. It makes for a tiring day, but it was a lot of fun.

When we got home Saturday night, Pel, Popper and Onson were playing screen golf. I've only played screen golf one time, and I'm just about as bad at it as I am at real golf. But I joined them as we had a few drinks and hung out, playing some golf. Bryan took advantage of his new camera to get some fun pics of all of us.

On Saturday morning in America, my sister graduated from Seminary. Thanks to the 'net, I got to watch the ceremony. It was Saturday night at 11 p.m. for me. The ceremony lasted until about 1 a.m. here. I could see my parents sitting in the crowd, and even got some pics as Melissa received her diploma. I gave them a call right after to congratulate and let them know I watched.

Unfortunately, as is the case with burning the candle at both ends, I caught a little cold again. I used to never get sick in America. Then it became a once-a-year type of thing. But since coming to Korea, it happens a few times a year. I'm not blaming Korea, because I'm sure aging plays a big part in it. But sometimes stress can help knock me down a few pegs, as well.

Our new semester starts at Hambak on Monday. We're going to reduce our first grade classes to only 10 students, which is nice. We also may change around some other things in the future, but we have to get through this semester first.

Onson's parents are here this week, so he has a little time off from work to hang with them. Hopefully we'll all get to meet them and see about from where the mysterious 과묵 (silent) comes.

Jeong Mi and I are nailing everything down for our wedding. Getting the cards out is sort of the last of it. I think I have to head out to get fitted one more time for my hanbok, but things are all coming together. Nothing will be slowing down as the wedding gets close. Thankfully, I get a week off for the wedding to spend time with my family when they arrive.

As always feel free to check out all my pictures.

Wedding planning

Rec Room ROK

Osan trip

Melissa's graduation

Plastic Surgery Capital of Asia

2011-05-23T19:39:00.000-07:00

CNN has been doing a lot of stories lately on Seoul. Most are pretty forgettable, even if you've never stepped foot in South Korea. For example, one reporter went to various places in the city using her bank card. She used it on the bus, taxi, subway and at restaurants. Let's face it, that's not too far off from many places in the world.

But one story stands out today. It's something that interests me because so many people do it, while so many others think it's stupid. That thing is plastic surgery.

Korea is one of the leading plastic surgery nations. One of the doctors CNN interviewed says his clinic is called the "plastic surgery capital of Asia." The main focus of the story is about the double-eyelid surgery, which is extremely popular here.

The girl they profile is a 12-year-old (so probably really 11 by international standards). She thinks her eyes are ugly, and is excited for the surgery. But her mom says she didn't asked for it. No, no. Mom is MAKING her do it.

A week or so ago there was outrage in America over a mother supposedly giving her young daughter Botox injections. People were livid. Yet, here, it's perfectly acceptable to have an elementary school child get surgery to change her appearance.

Most of the time, in my experience, the surgery makes hardly any difference. It's only noticeable if you have a before and after picture next to each other. Even the, the changes are so subtle they can be hard to spot.

The doctor in the story says:

'"They always tell me they don't like their faces," says Dr Kim, explaining what his patients request prior to surgery. "They want to have some westernized, nice faces. They want to have big eyes like westernized people, high profile, nicer noses."'

An interesting counterpoint is what an Asian American magazine editor gave:

'"They're making a statement about their own race, about where they come from, who they are," says Wong. "They're not doing it on purpose. They're not saying that they think they're inferior looking. They're not saying they're ugly, but that's the message that they're giving nonetheless."'

The story goes on to say that there's even a surgery now that is performed on toddlers to snip a muscle under the tongue, with the belief that it will help them speak English more clearly. Because, you know, everyone who speaks English had their tongue muscles snipped.

I know very few Koreans -- guys and girls -- who haven't had some form of plastic surgery, though it's certainly more rare with my male friends.

Either way, it's an interesting read on a cultural difference. Check out the story here.

Nation Finally Taking Notice???

2011-05-22T18:38:00.000-07:00

I haven't written about suicides in Korea in a long time. It's not that interesting to me and, frankly, it's a sad topic about which I don't want to write.

But a slew of recent suicides at Kaist, one of Korea's most prestigious universities, is making me wonder if the country will finally take notice and do something instead of just continuing to take the top spot in OECD rankings for suicides year after year.

Check out this article in the New York Times about what's happening. The article paints a pretty accurate picture of student life here, from my experiences anyway.

As much as Korea has changed over the last 25 years -- and will continue to change -- I doubt they'll ever snap out of this. Suicide is almost encouraged when someone is humiliated or, more appropriately, humiliates themself in some way.

I don't want to write about this anymore. It's a bummer. So read the article and let me know what you think.

Thank Goodness For A Break

2011-05-19T16:27:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since we got some time off, and Geoff and I were lucky to get a long weekend thanks to Children's Day and our school's anniversary last week. Our friends weren't all so fortunate to get the Friday as well, but we did all get the Thursday. We ended up turning a few rest days into a great weekend.

On Thursday, Will, Onson, Bryan and I played soccer with Woo Min, Jun and their friend, Bo. We went to a local park with some indoor-style soccer courts. We didn't beat the high school kids we were playing, but there're a host of rules and cheap tactics the Koreans use at this court of which we couldn't take advantage.

One is that any time they got the ball in their defensive zone, they simply went to the corner with it, and we HAD TO BACK OFF. Even in our defensive zone, they expected us to give them room when they went to the corner. It was stressful. They also cherry-picked like crazy. I realize there's no offsides, but there's a sense of courtesy and fair play that they didn't care about. Speaking of fair play, one time, their goalie left the box with the ball. When the ball squirted back into the box, a defender ran back and picked it up with his hands, like he was now the goalie. They also played it back to their goalie constantly and the keeper would just pick it right up. I'm not saying we're super good, but I am saying that we play fair.

On Thursday evening, we went out to Guworldong. It used to be one of our favorite squares in which to hang, but we've largely lost interest because there was really a lack of things to do when you can't sit at a table outside in the summer. But there's a new-ish bar there that has super-cheap drinks, as well as some new chicken places and a host of other new batting cages and games and whatnot. We took it all in and had a fun time.

On Saturday, Popper, Kim, Pel and I went to the baseball game to watch Incheon lose to Kia. There were so many people that we had to sit way up in the upper decks. We also got in using some sneaky method through a scalper. We basically followed him in as he showed the gate people already-torn stubs. Very strange. But we got in for 5,000 won each.

On Sunday, we headed to Wolmido to take advantage of one of the few days during the weekend with no rain. It got a little chilly at night, but we had a lot of fun. I took some pictures, but the stupid Microsoft pictures manager decided it didn't want to rename my photos, and simply deleted them. The good news is, we will be making our way back there frequently during the summer. It's so nice to hang out on the boardwalk and listen to the live music and watch the people walk by.

It's going to be a good summer.

See the Wyverns pics here!

Check out Guworldong shots here!

Hanbok Shopping

2011-05-19T16:26:00.000-07:00

Apparently there's an underground-ish market for everything here. That certainly includes traditional Korean clothing. I met Jeong Mi and her family in Bupyeong. About 10 minutes walking distance from the station is a whole mess of tight alleys with hanboks and other Korean clothing and goods.

If you've been in Korea for awhile, it's exactly what you'd expect. There are bunch of older ladies sitting around, basically doing nothing until someone comes in. Then they all talk furiously at once. And keep this in mind: No matter how many times they ask for your opinion, they don't really care. I told them what I liked, and they would just tell me what they thought was more beautiful.

I told Jeong Mi's mom to just pick one that she liked for me. She appreciated that. Let's face it, my idea of a cool hanbok is probably the exact opposite of what she would like. So she can choose one that she likes. I'm sure it'll be fine.

To top off this evening, we then went to a tailor and he measured me for a brand new suit. Once again, they're very generous, and I probably don't deserve it. I have trouble accepting gifts -- especially large/expensive gifts. So while I am truly appreciative, I feel a little uncomfortable with it all. I have to work on just showing my gratitude without showing my worry for them buying something for me.

I really am thankful for how they've been and will continue to be for me. I bought dinner tonight. So that's something!

Anyway, as the wedding preparation continues, you can check out the photos here!

Hambak Promo Video

2011-05-19T16:24:00.000-07:00

Someone in the school put together promotional videos for all the after-school programs. Ours turned out pretty well.

25 Manners

2011-05-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a little column on 25 manners kids should know by the time they reach age 9. Certainly when I was growing, my parents stressed all of these to me (Except for the one about the phone. I rarely introduced myself first unless it was for a professional call.).

Here's the article!

Now, we can't expect kids to remember or adhere to these all the time. But if they are at least putting forth the effort, it's a relief. I also realize there are some cultural differences at play between Korea and America.

But even with that in mind, take a look around at many Koreans you either know or just pass by while walking. It's beating a dead horse to bring these things up again, but it's also a fun way to vent.

Check out the list. Any other manners you think Koreans -- especially students -- should learn?

Rocket Boy

2011-05-03T03:32:00.000-07:00

Barry performs his speech, "Rocket Boy," at the Area 30 Toastmaster International speech competition in Seoul on April 29, 2011. Barry won the event and will represent Seoul in Busan at nationals.

Barry Smith - The Toastmaster

2011-05-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

Geoff and I went to Seoul on 4/29/11 to watch Barry Smith compete in his regional Toastmaster speech competition. And, as we expected, Barry walked away victories after besting the sex other speakers.

We almost didn't get in. The event was held in a small room, and it filled up fast. Fortunately, they found a couple seats for Geoff and me, and we got to see Barry win the crown.

For winning the Area 30 Toastmaster International speech competition, Barry will go on to represent Seoul in Busan at the end of May.

I'll post the video in my next update. Congrats Barry!!!

Check out the pics here!

Losing Streak is Over

2011-05-02T20:56:00.000-07:00

Thankfully, my Wyverns losing streak halted at two games. A bunch of us went to the game on Sunday to watch a 3-1 victory over the Doosan bears. Pictures have been added to the album.

Wyverns pics are here!

Losing Streak Reaches Two

2011-04-20T21:39:00.000-07:00

For the second game in a row that I attended, the Korean Ace was on the mound. And for the second game in a row for him, he sucked big balls. Just like last week, the final score was 9-4. This time the loss came to LG, who got an early 3-0 in the top of the first and never really looked back.

Incheon played like a bunch of high schoolers who were trying out for a team. I saw a guy reach base after striking out when the catcher failed to control the ball. Then, just to rub in how bad Incheon was playing, the runner continued onto second before the catcher could get his head out of his own kimchi hole.

Oh well. I suppose they can't win them all. And if they're going to lose, it might as well be by a huge score when I'm there. Jeong Mi had a day off, so we went to check it out. The weather was definitely nicer, but still gets nippy at night.

The highlight of the night was arm-waving guy, who I hadn't yet seen this season. This guy was in the same spot as last year, swinging his arms wildly. But this year, he seems to have gained a following. It made for a few hilarious innings.

Anyway, as usual, check out the updated link for baseball pics here. Enjoy!

Date Set and Wedding Planning

2011-04-18T05:46:00.000-07:00

Jeong Mi has decided she wants a traditional Korean wedding, and her parents are all for that idea. It's fine with me as well. I've seen a ton of American weddings, so why not change it up a bit?

While I won't get into all the details here quite yet, I can say that the wedding will be on Sunday, June 26, at 11 a.m. It will be held at a temple in Munhak dong, which is a 5 minute taxi ride from our house.

The wedding will have all the traditional Korean things, including the clothing and ceremony itself.

Here are some pics of the temple. It was rainy today, so they're a bit dark and not so clear. But the place relaly is beautiful in the day time. So let's hope for nice weather! I have a pretty good feeling about it.

Check out all the pics here.

Sunrise Park

2011-04-18T05:37:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I went with Bryan and his girlfriend Kim to Sunrise Park in New Songdo City. I've only been to Songdo a few times, because it has basically been a ghost town during it's construction. But they've added a lot to the area, including some really nice parks.

The three of us took advantage of a beautiful day to hang in the park. Kim roller bladed and ran, and Bryan and I kicked the soccer ball around and drank beer. You really can't ask for a better time than that.

See the rest of the pics here!

Busy Beginning of Spring

2011-04-17T04:30:00.000-07:00

Every time I get really with various fun activities and school, I put off updating my blog and photos. I just see a giant stack of e-work to do and I get lazy about it.

There's not too much to write about these new activities, but there are a bunch of new photos to check out. So let's get to it.

Last week, Jeong Mi and I hit another Incheon United game and were treated to yet another 0-0 draw. Good old Incheon United. They don't like to score goals.

A big group of us also went to the another Wyverns baseball game. While the weather started out really nice, it quickly got cold and rainy. And Incheon decided to give up 7 runs in the 5th inning. Due to the weather and the terrible score, we didn't see much of a point in sticking around.

On April 9, Jeong Mi had a day off from work, but we were quite busy. In the afternoon, we went to her friend's wedding at a typical '80s-looking wedding hall in Bucheon. At night, we met with her family to celebrate her mom's 60th birthday. But it's not the big birthday. That one comes next year.

Either way, it was nice to hang with her family again. Her brother even came out to Yeonsu to have a few drinks with us afterward. He crashed on our downstairs bed, then got up early to head back down south.

Like I said, there are a ton of pics.

Go here for Wyverns baseball.

United soccer is here.

Check out the wedding here.

Look at JM's mom's birthday here.

Opening Day Success!

2011-04-03T06:28:00.000-07:00

I've been around for quite a few Korean baseball seasons now. This is actually the fourth one for which I've been in this country. I caught the end of the first season, then went to opening day for the 09/10 season. And now another opening day is under my belt.

Incheon played a tight, low-scoring game and came away with a 2-0 win over Nexen Heroes (who used to be called the Hyundai Unicorns). The winning pitcher was American Gary Glover.

A big group of us went about an hour early to secure our seats in left field. As expected, it was a sell-out. The first few games of the season always are sell-outs here. After a couple weeks, you could show up as they're throwing the first pitch and have no trouble finding a seat anywhere.

Incheon also won today over Nexen. Nothing wrong with a 2-0 start to the season. Hopefully they can bring home a fourth championship in five years!

I'll keep adding pics to this album. Check them out!

Preseason Over. Opening Day on Saturday!

2011-04-01T02:42:00.000-07:00

The baseball preseason has come to an end, and opening day is tomorrow. We took in one last preseason game last Saturday when Nexen came to town. Incheon lost 5-4 in extra innings, but what they gained was us tormenting the Nexen outfielders by making a sound effect every time they threw a warm up throw.

Adding onto our joy is that opening day tomorrow brings Nexen back! I'm sure they'll remember us. The players all started to respond once they realized what we were doing. A couple tried to pump fake us, and the shortstop really got into it by not only pump faking, but also speeding up and slowing down his throws as we followed appropriately.

It's going to be a fun baseball season. And about 13 of us will be drinking it in tomorrow at 2 p.m.

Go Wyverns!

As always, check out pics here!!!

More Soccer and Baseball Begins

2011-03-24T00:16:00.000-07:00

Sticking to my promise, I went to two more sporting events last weekend. I even went all the way to Seoul for one. Not like me at all, but that's what cabin fever does to a man.

On Saturday, Onson, his girlfriend and I went to Seoul to hang with Barry and Christine to watch the Wyverns take on Doosan. It was a ton of fun. I'd never gone to a stadium other than the two in Incheon. So it was cool to see a different one.

We went to Jamsil, home of the the Doosan Bears. It was just a preseason game, which made it even more awesome. Tickets were free, so all we had to do was buy our beers. And we did. A lot.

Incheon won 5-1, and we saw some really great plays.

After the game, we went out for dinner and beers with Barry, Christine and Onson's buddy, Will. Will is even going to be joining our study group. So it was a great Saturday.

On Sunday, it rained in the morning, but the afternoon was beautiful. So Popper, Onson, Eun Hae went to the Incheon United game. Incheon took on Daegu. Unfortunately, Daegu doesn't have a soccer team, so they had to send their diving team (get it!).

I'm not one to get on referees since I did it for so long with roller hockey, so I understand that it is an impossible job and you can't really make anyone happy. But the ref was duped for 3/4 of the game from all the dives. That's not really his fault. If the player really sells it, the ref is going to call it. Plus if you factor in the speed of play, it's just tough.

But he eventually started getting it right and telling the Daegue chumps to get up and stop being babies. Unfortunately, Daegu used their cheating to their advantage, and got a 1-1 tie out of the game. But Incheon's goal came off a free kick and was an absolute blast. So that gave us something to cheer about.

All in all, it was great weekend. I got to hang out with a lot of friends and go to two sporting events in beautiful weather. It's sad that this semester has been rough so far, but the weekends are keeping me energized. Korean study group tonight!

Check out the Incheon United pics here.

Check out the Wyverns pics here.

Incheon Wins

2011-03-16T23:41:00.000-07:00

Jeong Mi and I went to the Incheon United game against Daejon last night. It was quite cold and not many fans showed up. But we had a really good time. Incheon won 3-0 and they dominated play for the whole game.

Jeong Mi had gone to a World Cup game when it was in Korea/Japan in 2002. But she hadn't yet gone to a professional game. This wasn't a K-League game, but the Rush Cash Cup. So we'll have to get her to another game soon. Regardless of it being too cold to drink, we had a blast.

As always, check out the pics.

Soccer, Bad Movie and Faulty First Impression

2011-03-14T23:36:00.000-07:00

Let's get this out of the way right now: I was clearly tricked by the initial impression I got from the vice principal. Like clockwork, she has already loaded more work onto Geoff, Ridia and me. She's making Geoff and me do an extra class on Wednesday, when we had our only break of the day.

Fortunately, she is paying us OT for it, because it puts us an hour over our limit. But I prefer the rest/prep time. This semester doesn't leave us a lot of room for prep time, and I liked having that extra hour on Wednesday. Instead, I'll be babysitting 20 first and second graders for an hour. What a shocker.

On a brighter note, it's been an entertaining week outside of work. Now that the weather is warming up, it's easier to get outside and do stuff, rather than just sitting in a bar playing darts.

Jeong Mi and I caught 'Black Swan" at the neighborhood theater last night. Jeong Mi really enjoyed it. Besides some of the sex scenes, I didn't really find anything appealing about the movie. Not my type of flick. But it's good that Jeong Mi liked it. I know she'd prefer to go to more movies, but I don't like just sitting there for two hours. I need something more social.

And that's why last Saturday was nice. Pel, Popper, Tim Woo Min, Woo Min's girl and I went to the Incheon United soccer team's home opener against Jeju United. We loaded up on beer and enjoyed the beautiful weather. The game was nothing special. It ended 0-0. But we had a really nice time. The weather was warm and the beer flowed freely. It was a really fun day.

Hopefully I'll be hitting two more soccer games this week, as well as a preseason baseball game with Barry in Seoul. We'll follow SK as they take on Doosan. It's going to be a fun week outside of work.

Check out our soccer pics here and expect more soon.

Also on a good note is that both of my discussion groups went well. The guys all came prepared and we had a nice discussion. Everyone followed pretty well, and we're all learning. So we're meeting again this Thursday. Jeong Mi and I worked on our discussion when we met Alex and Pel for dinner. So they peppered her with some questions, as well. She did a good job, and we're meeting again Wednesday. As long as everyone keeps working hard, the group should continue to go well.

Warm weather is arriving, and I need to simply keep my thoughts outside of the office. That's how I can keep sane here.

Study Group, New Principal, VP and Semester

2011-03-07T19:47:00.000-08:00

As always, the beginning of a new semester means a lot of preparation work. But this time around is a little bit different, which means we're even busier.

Our new principal and vice principal have arrived at Hambak. We had a staff dinner last Friday to greet them along with the many new teachers. Teachers in Korean public schools have to rotate every four years, so each new year brings a lot of new faces.

Some of the new teachers are pretty cool. I had nice conversations with a few of them, including one unfortunate chick who is basically a freshman teacher, but was given the terrible responsibility of homeroom teacher for a first grade class. Nightmare for her.

The new principal was very nice, even letting me take the welcome shots in place of Ridia and our new assistant, Hye Yun. The former principal and vp were not big on letting that happen. There's actually a word in Korean for taking a shot in place of someone. Yes, it's that serious. I don't remember the word, because I only hear it when I'm tagging in for someone.

The new vice principal was really cool. We got to know her a bit better than the principal. I sat next to her for about an hour, just chatting and drinking. It's always a hesitant time when new administration comes. We never know if they're going to want to change things, and the English center is always a prime target for an administrator looking to make his or mark on a school.

Our outgoing principal left us with the terrible gift of switching around our whole afternoon class. The changes include decent things like adding students from the other schools that come for morning classes, and bad things like stretching all afternoon classes to 50 minutes. Forty minutes was almost ideal. Fifty minutes stretches things quite a bit.

So things are up, but I'm sure we'll be fine. As long as Ridia is in charge, I'm confident.

On a personal note, my friends and I started a Korean study/discussion group. I've never studied with fellow foreigners before. I just worked on my own, and of course with my Korean friends (especially my lovely lady, Jeong Mi).

The group includes Pel, Popper and Onson. Onson has the most studying experience, while Pel has been hitting the books a lot within recent months. Popper has been in Korea the longest out of any of us, and while he lacks any formal studying, he has a strong base of vocabulary and phrases.

The group works as a discussion group. We pick a topic and, on our own, have to fill out at least one page of our notebooks with vocabulary, phrases and anything else that might be pertinent to the topics. Then, we meet a week later and have a discussion all in Korean for 30 minutes. After the time is up, we share our notebooks with each other, and ask any questions we might have in English. I am moderating the group as far as keeping the discussion going and asking questions when necessary.

We had our first discussion last night, and the topic was food and restaurants. We had plenty of stuff to fill the 30 minutes. It went really well. I only had to remind Popper a couple times that even asking questions in English is not allowed during the 30 minute time period. Questions have to be saved for afterward.

Everyone showed up on time with their notebooks filled. I'm pretty excited to see how quickly we'll advance our speaking skills. It's definitely going to be beneficial for all of us. Just sharing our ideas and hearing different voices will help us. Also, when Jeong Mi is around, it's really nice. I think she enjoyed sitting in. She got to see exactly how my study group with her will run. We'll have our first English discussion on Wednesday.

So there it is. It's a new semester and big things are happening. Spring is here and it's time for soccer and baseball games. All is well.

K-Blogger Added -- Check the Blogroll!

2011-03-07T18:33:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update on the blog:

I added a K-Blogger I recently started following. The blog is 'New Yorker in Seoul.' Not only do I really enjoy her perspective on Korea and Korean culture, but she speaks Korean. That's something even many of the well-established bloggers lack.

I think speaking Korean gives a person a more in-depth perspective on the country and culture, especially if you have regular discussions with your Korean friends or family. While it won't give you any more info on the big picture things, just hearing how a Korean describes a cultural topic or current gives you a little peak inside their wacky heads.

So check out the left side of the page where my blogroll is located. Give my new blogging buddy a read.

Principal's Retirement

2011-02-28T23:52:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, all the teachers gathered at a restaurant a short bus trip away from the school to celebrate and congratulate our principal on his retirement.

I have generally only good feelings associated with the principal. In my time here, he's treated the native speakers well and has taken care of us to the extent that an administrator can or does. Realistically, Ridia is the one taking care of us, but he gives his approval, and that's more than a lot of my friends can say.

He did some strange things during the last few months of his time here that give us a lesser opinion of him. He made our secretaries do a lot of his personal work, such as sending out his daughter's wedding invitations or helping to put together a CD of him playing harmonica. The thing that really bugs me is he made our afternoon classes all 50 minutes. We had the luxury of 40 minute classes before, which is an ideal time for keeping students' attention and getting things done. I'm not looking forward to an extra 10 minutes each class.

Other than those weird things, he seemed like a good dude. I have no real complaints about him that shouldn't more realistically be directed at the bureaucracy of schools and the department of education.

So we celebrated his time with us and told him good luck in the future. We even topped off dinner with a little noraebang trip. I put my noraebang skills on display for the teachers once again and had a really good time.

Anyway, thank you to Principal Kim for everything. I hope your harmonica career takes off!

Check out more pics here!

Skiing

2011-02-23T04:21:00.000-08:00

Jjong and Popper had extra tickets to go skiing and generously invited Jeong Mi and me. It was not only my first trip to a ski resort in South Korea, but my first EVER trip to a ski resort.

We headed out on Saturday to Jisan Ski Resort for a 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. super ski fun time. The place is about 45 minutes to an hour from Incheon, so it's not a bad trip at all.

We got there and rented all our gear. For 32,000 won, they deck you out in snow suit, skiis/boards, gloves, goggles and whatever else you might need. I got the manliest gear they had.

After we got our equipment, we headed to the mountain. It's a fairly small resort with 7 different courses of varying degrees of difficulty. The best one -- and the one I wiped out on -- is basically just a straight down drop. It hit some ice on it and it was hello snow buffet to my mouth.

Jeong Mi had a rough time on the snowboard, so I think she'll change it up next time, but she's gone skiing before and wanted to try something new.

It was another great new experience for me here in Korea. Big thanks to Popper and Jjong for inviting us along. It was awesome.

Check out all the pics here!

One-year Anniversary

2011-02-15T18:02:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day was our one-year anniversary together. We just went out for some galbi and kept things really low-key. It was nice, however, because our rings were finished and we picked them up that day.

As you can see, the rings are really simple. They're white gold bands, with a little message engraved on the inside. Also, yes, they do match.

Check out a few more pics of the evening here.

Proposal (and Tacos)

2011-02-13T04:50:00.000-08:00

We invited a big group of our friends over on Saturday for tacos. Mexican food -- good Mexican food -- is hard to come by in Korea. There are a couple of good restaurants in Bucheon and Seoul, but that involves traveling, and they're a bit pricey.

So thanks to my parents and Bryan's parents, and Jeong Mi, we whipped up our own meat with some taco seasoning, shredded our own cheese, sliced up the veggies and ordered hard shells and sour cream. The food was great and everyone had a good time.

Oh yeah, I also proposed to Jeong Mi. I decided that in front of our buds would be a great time for it. She was really surprised, and she did, in fact, say yes!

And Bryan got it all on video!

[Translation: "Jeong Mi, I will love you until I die and will always be with you. Will you marry me?"]

I've already posted it on Facebook, so by the time this gets there, it'll be old news to you. But it's still good news! Haha.

Anyway, check out the taco-y pics here.

Sollal and the Kindness of Jeong Mi's Family

2011-02-11T23:21:00.000-08:00

I was so busy getting ready to go back to work, that I left out a really important part of my vacation. That important part is Sollal.

Sollal is the Chinese New Year and one of the two big family holidays in South Korea. As you remember, I went to my first family Chuseok earlier in the year. I was fortunate enough to be invited once again to Jeong Mi's parents' house for Sollal.

Jeong Mi's family went traditional and wore hanboks, the traditional Korean clothing. I just had a tie and sweater. Oh well. Maybe next year.

We did all the traditions. I got there at 9 a.m. and we ate a nice meal with some really good meat. We also at the ddeok guk, which is a rice cake soup with meat. In Korean tradition, eating a bowl of this on Sollal will ensure that you turn a year older. I felt the same after eating it, but I guess my knees were a little sore when I stood up. Uh oh.

After that, we play yutnori. It's a game that's played with four sticks. By throwing the sticks, and depending on how they land, you move your pieces around the board. It's almost like a mix between backgammon and Sorry. It's pretty fun. I had played it before, and the rules are pretty basic, but I didn't get a full understanding until this time playing. Her family made sure to explain it all to me. So that's cool.

We also did the traditional bowing to the parents. I bowed alongside Jeong Mi's sister and brother. It was cool to be included in that, and really made me feel a part of the family even more. Also following tradition, her parents gave us pocket money for bowing. I got 20,000 won, while Jeong Mi and her bro only got
15,000 won each. Haha.

It was a really nice day, and once again, I'm honored to be included with her family as a part of it. Her parents and family are very cool. Things just keep coming up roses for Aaron, as my former newspaper editor, Dave, would say.

Check out all the pictures here!!!

End of Vacation

2011-02-06T18:27:00.000-08:00

It's time to head back to work. I'm sitting here at my desk after a three-week layoff, and it doesn't feel too bad. I wouldn't mind a little more time off, but it's also nice to not feel like a lazy slug anymore.

Fortunately, we have sixth graders this week, and only for three days. Since they're graduating next week, we're just making cookies with them.

That also means I had no morning classes today. That's huge, because I have three weeks worth of prep work I had to catch up on. So this extra morning gave me time to get my schedules and report cards all wrapped up for January and February. Then, we'll have afternoon classes today. I also get to hit the gym after work for the first time since my surgery.

Not much happened over break besides the things I already posted. I went ice skating twice and had my eye surgery. Other than that, it was mostly about resting and hanging out with friends. I appreciate their willingness to hang out, as well, seeing as they didn't have the break that I did.

So it's back to life as I know it. Big things coming this week. Stay tuned!

Ice Skating at Walker Hill

2011-01-26T00:45:00.000-08:00

Jeong Mi and I went to Seoul yesterday to Walker Hill where they have an ice rink set up for the winter. We had perfect weather, albeit quite cold. But I guess that's good when you're ice skating.

It was Jeong Mi's first time on ice skates. Though I've skated quite a few times, I've never claimed to be any good. It's also been about 5 years since I've strapped ice skates on.

She really got the hang of it after about 30 minutes in the beginner's area. We had a really good time. It was a bit far, and took us about 3 1/2 hours to get there, but it was a great trip for my vacation. Next time, we're going to go to one of the rinks in Incheon. They even have one right up the road in my neighborhood.

But a first time on skates is a special occasion, so we had to go big.

Check out the video below or here at youtube.

Check out all the pics here.

Walker Hill Ice Rink

2011-01-26T00:39:00.000-08:00

Eye Surgery Success

2011-01-26T00:34:00.000-08:00

As of today, I think it's safe to say my eye surgery was a success. Let's go through all the steps.

On Jan. 15, I went in for a free exam to see what surgery is right for me. They do a 2-hour, very thorough check on your eyes to figure out what you need. Just my luck that I needed the only one that would have any pain associated with it.

So a week later, on Jan. 18, Jeong Mi went with me to Kim Eye Clinic -- a block away from my house -- and I got surgery. The surgery itself really only last about 10 minutes, and maybe less. The doctor preps you and pops you under the computer/laser, and it goes to town.

There is some discomfort when it slices your eye open, but no actual pain. The strange burning smell when the laser is running is interesting, though.

After surgery, they sit you in a comfy recliner with an ice pack for 20 minutes. Then, it's time to head home.

The day of the surgery, my eyes were blurry, but felt fine. It was day two that the pain came. I woke up a bit uncomfortable, but generally okay. I went for a checkup, and the doctor warned that it would hurt for the next couple days.

Starting that evening, my eyes were so swollen that I couldn't open them. The pain wasn't terrible, but enough that even though my eyes were closed, I couldn't really sleep. Day three continued along that path until the evening, when everything started letting up.

On that Friday, I went back in and had the after-surgery protective soft lenses removed. My eyes went back to blurriness again, but the pain was gone by that point.

Even now, there are times when focus comes in and out a bit. My eyes seem to still be getting used to switching focus from near things to far things, sometimes throwing me out of whack. But things are coming in clearly, and they seem to be getting more stable.

It's weird to be without glasses or contacts. I have been using them since third grade. Waking up in the morning and seeing across the room is the nicest part. Just knowing that option is back in my life. Technology, huh?

The clinic I went to was recommended to me by Ridia, who also had her eyes done there. The cost was 1.4 million won, which is about $1,250. I think that's a pretty good price for the convenience of not needing help seeing.

The only issue for a foreigner is that they don't speak English there. It's a great place, but either speak Korean or take a Korean friend for help. Other than that, it's a nice place to get your eyes fixed.

They warned that somewhere down the line, I may need reading glasses or even a touch-up type surgery that's available. But by that point, I figure I'll have robot eyes anyway.

The video is conveniently posted below, or you can check it out here on youtube.

Check out all the fun pictures here.

Laser Eye Surgery in Korea

2011-01-26T00:13:00.000-08:00

Eye Surgery Tomorrow!

2011-01-17T01:31:00.000-08:00

My vacation has started and the relaxation has been wonderful so far. Even though I like my job and coworkers, being around kids every day can be pretty brutal.

So I have the next three weeks off. Instead of taking a trip somewhere, which was one of my main goals while living in Asia, I decided to get eye surgery instead. I figured I'm so used to the hospital system here, there's no reason not to.

The price is only 1.4 million won at the doctor's office in Yeonsu-dong. That works out to about $1,240. That's a pretty good deal to not need contacts or glasses. So I get this done, and the next time I travel will be monumentally better.

As soon as I'm able to use the computer, I'll post the results of the surgery. If you never see an update, that's a bad sign, huh?

Jeong Mi's birthday is tomorrow. It's also her day off. She's pretty great, so she's going to the doctor's office with me for the surgery. It's only a 10-minute operation and then another 90 minutes of rest at the office.

I bought her a cake and got her more photos for the photo album I got for her for Christmas. I'll take her somewhere special this weekend, when I'm feeling a little better.

Anyway, think good thoughts for me tomorrow, please. I could use them. SEE you later!

A Move Deserves A Celebration

2011-01-08T21:22:00.000-08:00

A very stressful week came to an end with a big payoff. This week, I moved from my adequate apartment with many broken appliances, to a very nice-sized apartment with solid windows and a heater and washing machine that actually work. It is awesome.

While I wanted to get a moving company, Jeong Mi's father insisted that he and Jeong Mi could move my stuff. As I expected, it was he and I who did all the moving. Though Jeong Mi and her mom did help organize and clean as the move took place.

Fortunately, it only took about 3 hours to move all my junk. As stressful as it was, it's so worth it to get into the new apartment. The fact that I don't have to wear a sweater and sit in front of a space heater the whole time I'm at home is payoff enough.

I bought her family dinner on the night of the move, but there's really very little I can do to actually repay them for all their generosity. But thanks goes out to them anyway.

And with any move, a housewarming party is clearly necessary. So on Friday night, all my very good friends came over and we celebrated with pizza, booze and beer pong. Popper and I even put the coveted beer pong trophy on the line in a four-team, double-elimination tournament. And as we are used to doing, we rolled through the tourney with three straight wins and a retention of the legendary trophy. Back-to-back champions, and it feels so good.

Once again my thanks goes out to all my friends. It was really great that they could all stop by. I've been fortunate to meet such good people, between Koreans and Westerners, here in Korea.

Winter camp is in full swing now at school. We had the sixth graders last week. This week will be the toughest as the first graders come through. Fortunately for me, this is my last week of work before a nice three-week long vacation. During that vacation, I plan on getting eye surgery, so hopefully by the end of next week, I'll be going sans contacts and glasses for the rest of my life.

It's been busy lately, but it's also been a lot of fun. If this month is any indicator of the new year, I think it's going to be a good one.

As always, go here to check out the great pics from the housewarming party.

Busiest Christmas and New Year's Ever

2011-01-01T01:52:00.000-08:00

It was nice to have the entire week off between Christmas and New Year's. I had some big plans, but didn't know just how busy I would be.

First, Jeong Mi helped me make Christmas cookies. It is one of my mom's recipes, and one of my favorites. They're Christmas Wreath Cookies and they're corn-flakey and marshmallowy and awesome. We whipped up a few batches of those, and I gave them to my friends and co-workers as Christmas gifts. Homemade? Check. Tasty? Check. It's pretty much the perfect gift.

The celebrating began during the week at Hambak. We made Christmas cookies with our fifth-grade class, and gave stockings to our afternoon kids. It was a nice way to wind down the work week and prepare for the break.

The real started off on Christmas Eve at Go Bar, my new/old favorite place. Jeong Mi and I met Bryan, Geoff and Alex as well as a bunch of our other friends, including Chelsea, her boyfriend, Dorian and Andrew. We all had a really great time. I even got to introduce my new friend, Jingis, to the world. I think he had fun, too. You'll see him in a lot of the pictures.

On Christmas, I took Jeong Mi and her parents to a fance-shmancy restaurant on the top of the mountain next to Yeonsu-dong. I'd had a drink there once before and knew it was a little bit expensive, but it was a special occasion. We had a nice time during the meal, and I used the opportunity to ask Jeong Mi's parents for permission to propose to her.

Thankfully, they were thrilled with the idea. I haven't proposed yet, but the first step is out of the way. So Christmas of 2010 marks a very special time in our lives.

On Sunday night, I stayed at Jeong Mi's place because we got up bright and early for our trip with her parents down to the south coast of the country. We drove on down to Busan. Jeong Mi had never been there before. This was my second time.

When we first got there, we went on a boat ride around the coast of the city. Busan is the second largest city in South Korea and has the largest port. So it was a cool perspective to see it from a boat.

Next, we tried a Busan-style hotcake. It was pretty good, but I prefer the ones up here in my neighborhood. We then headed over to one of Busan's many fish markets. It was absolutely terrible. I like fish sticks, and fish and chips style of fish. But I don't really like seafood. And this was just a tightly-packed kilometer of seafood. Just brutal. We even ate in one of the dirty little restaurants. Needless to say, I didn't eat too much there.

After that, we drove over to some of the beaches, where we got a view of a fairly recently finished bridge that connects one part of the city to another across what is now a bay-type inlet. It was really lit up beautifully, and the beach is nice during the winter without millions of sun umbrellas and even more millions of people.

After that, we went to another oyster place because the first place got her mom's order wrong. The grilled oysters are not too bad, but still not really my style. It was nice to sit with her family and hang out though.

A Korean trip wouldn't be compete without heading to a jimjilbang. So that's where we went. I wasn't super excited to shower and sauna naked with her dad, but when in Korea ... Jeong Mi and her mom got some special salt scrub, so I waited two hours while her dad dozed off in the sleeping area with a THOUSAND Koreans. When going to a public bath house becomes a weekend trip in America, that's the day I change my citizenship. Fortunately, when Jeong Mi finally finished, we went to a motel to stay, while her parents stayed at the jimjilbang.

The return trip was an entirely different path home. We went east first and curled up around that way. We went to a famous battle site where one of their admirals became the most famous Korean naval officer ever. It was a nice monument and park area. We also checked out a really windy fishing inlet with a windmill at the top of a small hill. We almost got almost blown off of that hill when a huge gust came in.

Then the snow came. Thanks to that and our pit stops, it took us about 12 hours to get home. When we finally got there, I was dead. But her parents wanted to get dinner, so we went to the local galbi place I liked. I went to bed and thought all was well.

Well, it wasn't. Whatever I ate there made me so sick that I couldn't even drink water the next day. While I didn't want to leave, Jeong Mi's dad took me to the hospital, where I spent the next two days recovering. I was probably ready to go after getting a shot and an IV, but they wouldn't let me go. So I was just stuck.

My roommates and the nurses and doctors were all very nice, but I still was just dying to get out of there.

I was released on Dec. 31. I had basically zero time to recover, but still met with my friends at Go Bar. Unfortunately, I couldn't drink. Jeong Mi and I only stayed a couple hours and left right after midnight.

I suppose that's not too bad. Winding down the week slowly and getting ready for two weeks of work. After that, it's vacation once again, when I get my eye surgery (hopefully).

As always check out all the pictures from Christmas here.

And check out the New Year's pics here.

Expanding My Horizons

2010-12-21T07:05:00.000-08:00

Due to something unfortunate, I got a chance to try something new as a far as my Korean speaking and job at the English center goes.

The unfortunate thing is that all last week, Ridia started getting sick. When Monday rolled around, she was at her worst. She texted me while I was walking to school saying she couldn't come to work. In more than a year -- my entire time at the school -- she has yet to miss a day. Now, Geoff and I haven't missed either, but a number of other Korean teachers have. Even some of our other native speaking teachers have missed a day.

Either way, it's a rarity for someone to miss work in South Korea, so she was pretty sick. She asked Geoff and I to teach her class, so we sort of scrambled to come up with some worksheets and games. It wasn't a big deal. Geoff came through big and found a great dinosaur measurement worksheet that fir in with both of our lessons.

The big thing for me was that Ridia asked me to do orientation. That's basically the only part of class that she speaks Korean to the kids. She explains about the English center, the equipment, our lessons and so on.

Now, I speak Korean almost fluently at this point, but I still get nervous speaking in front of a lot of students whom I don't know. Students are the harshest and meanest critics of a Westerner's speaking ability. Their initial shock (which all Koreans have) turns to rude comments if they can't understand you. Never mind the fact that you may just know their grammar better than they do. Haha.

I have heard Ridia do the orientation a thousand times, so I knew what to say and how to do it. But I knew I wouldn't be as smooth. So I decided to do it Korean and English. That makes sense being at the center.

On Monday I was actually pretty nervous, but the kids took to it and understood me right away. So that felt really good. The difference is that what takes Ridia 15 minutes to describe, I buzz through in less than 10. It's part nerves and part that my speaking is not as elaborate or in depth as hers.

Well, she was still feeling sick today, so Geoff and I split up the class in two and did the first two lessons, and Ridia only had to worry about teaching one class in our third time slot. She asked me to do the orientation again. I was feeling more confident about being in front of the kids, but I didn't want to sound like a dummy in front of Ridia.

I definitely did a better job of it today. I spoke my Korean more smoothly, and explained things better than I did yesterday in both languages. I even stretched it out a couple more minutes. Ridia said I did a really good job. She would tell me that anyway, but it's still nice to hear.

She's told us before how sick of it she is that she has to give that opening speech almost every day. And we would be, too, I'm sure. I told her awhile ago I'd be willing to do it for her. I just never really expected her to ask me to run the show.

But it's been a success, and I'm guessing she'll let me do it on a more regular basis now that she's heard me do it. I don't mind showing off a bit. I think it even helps me connect to the students a little bit better.

So it's been an exciting week so far, and we have big things to come. Get ready for Christmas pics from both our afternoon classes and my time Jeong Mi and friends. It's going to be a fun month.

Bucheon Year End Dance Party

2010-12-14T21:29:00.000-08:00

My good friend Eun Sang threw a year end party at his dance studio in Bucheon last Saturday. I met Eun Sang at Bamboo Dance Academy and did my performance and the competition with him. I was super excited to go to the party at his studio.

Though they did play some salsa music, and we definitely did dance, it wasn't a salsa party. They played pop music and dance music throughout the night, and had a big buffet of food and a ton of beer. It was awesome.

On top of that stuff, there were also three different dance performances by some B-boys and some high school girls, as well as a singing performance. There was also a magician! It was awesome. Its no secret that I'm a big fan of magic acts, and this guy had some pretty good tricks, and even had a bird do some card tricks with him. And to make it even better, Jeong Mi volunteered and did some tricks with him! It was really fun.

We saw a few of our friends from the Bamboo A Team there, with whom I did the Seoul Salsa Competition. It was great to see everyone and hang out. Bryan and Geoff came along with Jeong Mi and I, and there were a couple western girls there as well.

We drew numbers and they handed out prizes at the end of the night. Geoff won some comfy socks!

It was really nice to do something different. I've been stuck in a rut lately, for sure. This came at the perfect time to shake things up. I can't wait until they throw another one.

Check out all the pics here!!!

North Korea's Facebook Page

2010-12-05T22:54:00.000-08:00

Cracked.com is one of the foremost contributors to research and information on the Hermit Kingdom. They are presenting, for the first time, the Facebook page of North Korea.

Check out the page here!!!

And don't forget to check out the number one dictator on their most recent crazy dictator list!!! You know him, you love him. It's Kim Jong-il!!!

Winter Semester Begins

2010-12-01T21:58:00.000-08:00

It's the start of a new semester and changes are already taking place at Hambak.

The first big one happened last month when our secretary and friend, Sunny, did not have her contract renewed by the school. It's sad that she's not here, but the good news is that our new secretary, Olivia, is really cool. She is an English major, as well, so that could be helpful to any of our teachers who don't speak much Korean.

With the new semester, our after-school classes are all leveling up. My first graders are moving onto level 2 of our Backback book series. I can tell you that they're not all ready for the jump, but certainly enough if them are so that they can help the others along.

I did our new level tests on Monday, and was initially worried that my first grade class would top the 20-student level. I knew that three of mine were taking this semester off, but I interviewed eight students, meaning there was a strong chance that I'd hit that magical, terrible number.

What I didn't know, is that five students are taking this semester off, and I only got three more. So that puts me at 18 students. That's one less than last time. And even better is that one of my "trouble makers" didn't come back. He was a nice boy, but he talked too much and he stood up and walked around the room so often that I was frequently stopping class to reprimand him. He's not bad, but he's a first-grade boy. There's only so much I could do.

My fourth, fifth and sixth graders are my favorite class. It's the most advanced class we offer, so I get to teach a lot of writing and grammar. It's something I really enjoy. That class added one new student, but shrank to ten total. I had fifteen last time. The students who dropped out were some of the lower-level fourth graders and one of my sixth graders. Unfortunately, one kid who I wish had dropped it is still there.

He was going by the name of Spongebob, but now changed his name to Elmander, a soccer player. He already told us he doesn't want to be in class, but his mother wants him there, so she signs him up. Unfortunately, now that he's signed up, she seems to not take any responsibility for him getting here. Last semester, he came 10-15 minutes late every day. It got to a point where I told him if he was late, don't bother coming.

I don't know how it is in America now, but in Korea, if a kid shows up late, the class loses it and teeters on the edge of chaos. No matter how well they're studying before the kid arrives, everyone has to say something when he comes in. It's a nightmare.

So we talked to him and talked to his mom. I already knew the problem. He is outside playing soccer every day, so he delays his arrival to the classroom. He came on time Wednesday for the first time ever. But I don't expect this to last. Parents here need to understand that a kid not wanting to attend class is just harming all the other students. It's selfish of the parents. Let the kid join a sports academy. That's what he wants to do.

We do have some great news now that December is here. Geoff and I are about a month away from moving out of our crummy current apartments into these sweet, lost-style apartments in a building that's a block away from us.

I've documented my troubles. I actually don't mind my apartment, but none of the appliances work. The air conditioner doesn't work. The heater doesn't work. The washing machine has been repaired twice. And the building frequently shuts off the hot water. It's an office building, essentially, and we're just converting it into living quarters. Therefore, they don't cater to the residents.

Ridia has been doing more wonderful work for us, and got us into the new places. I'm moving Jan. 1. My only responsibility is getting my stuff there. I will hire a moving company for the job. What would take me a group of friends and most of a day will take them a few hours. I don't know the price yet, but it'll be worth it for sure. I'm so excited to move into an actual apartment. Just having the loft in which to keep my bed will pretty much double the amount of space I have. It's going to be so nice.

The other big news of late is that I decided to join a gym. I've felt like a lazy slob recently because I haven't been salsa dancing anymore. It just got to be too expensive, and the late class times meant I wasn't getting to bed until close to 1 a.m. three nights a week. It also ate into my weekends a lot. Jeong Mi and I still attend the Saturday open dance sometimes (though it's not been switched to Fridays), but we don't take class.

So I joined a gym that is about two blocks from my house and sits between my home and the school. Adding to it is that the gym is also a sauna. So after working out, I can relax in the steam room or jump in the hot tub. It's a pretty nice extra feature. And it's also important to work out in Korea. With all the drinking, it's not difficult to start growing a little belly. Thank goodness I will continue to avoid that. Bryan and Geoff also joined the gym, so that's good, too.

Other than that, things are pretty routine here. Nothing lately has happened as far as the crazies up North are concerned. Geoff and I had no classes today, so we did a ton of prep work, and we're also discussing winter camp, which is fast approaching.

We have the last week in December off for vacation, but neither of us have plans yet.

That's what's happening here now. Hopefully everyone else is doing well! So it goes.

Best Thanksgiving In Korea Yet

2010-11-30T04:56:00.000-08:00

When big American holidays come and go here in the ROK, it's pretty typical to get a lot of E-mails from family and pictures of the wonderful meetings and feasts of which they are a part.

Of course, there are always events for foreigners here. For examples, while I was on a trip with Vicky and her parents last year, all my friends went to a really nice dinner at a hotel in Seoul. It looked like a nice time. Certainly, when you can't be with family, it's nice to have friends in their place.

I haven't yet taken part in any special things with friends. I've been fortunate enough to spend my time with Korean families. It gives me a chance to see what they do, and also I like being with a family during holidays.

But this Thanksgiving, I changed it up a bit thanks to some very good friends. If you are a regular reader of the blog, or live somewhere near Inha University, you're familiar with Go Bar. It opened a few months after I first arrived in Korea in 2008, and I went there on a very regular basis when I lived in Okryeondong.

But since I've moved to Yeonsudong, I haven't been there as frequently. I went last year for a super-fun New Year's Eve, and have been there maybe once or twice since.

But Mike, the owner, wanted to something nice for Thanksgiving this year. So Bryan, Alex, Geoff, Scott (Bryan's new co-worker) and I all decided to join in. We brought girlfriends, of course, and various people provided various food items. It all added up to a really nice time with friends and a nearly authentic American Thanksgiving meal. We replaced the turkey with chicken, but it was still really good. Check it out.

As you can see, that's a pretty good-looking meal.

Along with the food and friends, we also had our fair share of drinks and darts. It was a really nice Thanksgiving and the first time I really celebrated an American holiday over here.

Christmas is up next, and we have no plans as of now. But it would be nice to do something like this again. Thanks to everyone who was involved!!!

Update On The Yeonpyeongdo Attack

2010-11-23T07:22:00.000-08:00

Apparently, the North attacked the South's island of Yeonpyeong because the South was holding some military exercises there. That would be like the U.S. attacking Canada because they wanted to do basic training with their Army.

Here's an updated AP story with more details.

I had a discussion with Bryan about how the news feeds into the fear, but some of these quotes from President Lee Myung Bak are pretty severe this time around.

He said:

'"Enormous retaliation should be made to the extent that (North Korea) cannot make provocations again," he said.'

That's pretty intense. To make sure the North can't attack or provoke again would basically need a full-on war ... again.

The island is about 80 km (50 miles) from Incheon. It's not as close as I thought. But that's still pretty close for an almost-full-on attack.

More Shots From The North

2010-11-22T23:22:00.000-08:00

North Korea is once again pushing the South's buttons by firing on Yeonpyeongdo, a small island off the western coast of South Korea.

Here's the AP news story.

Here's the Aljazeera news story.

Here's the CNN report.

Both stories include some pictures.

Apparently, there have been at least four casualties, as well as a number of houses being destroyed. It prompted a quick response from South Korean marines.

I'm usually pretty quick to write any crazy North Korean news off, but the past few months have seen the most shooting between the two countries in a very long, especially being condensed in such a short period.

First, the Cheonan ship sank in March. I was pretty skeptical about the North's involvement, but now I'm pretty much convinced they did it. Actions speak pretty loudly, after all.

Because after the ship incident, troops from the North once again fired on the South in October, right before everyone arrived for the G20 summit.

And now, they're firing once again. Keep in mind that this time is not too far from those of us living in Incheon. I used to tell my family and friends not to worry, but now I'm actually a little nervous about all this activity. On top of that, we get to hear continual 'scare' stories about this nuclear reactor that's taking shape.

I know that news feeds the masses a healthy dose of fear. I've managed to think rationally about it before. But even I am concerned about why all these military exchanges have been taking place in the last 8 months.

Let's hope we hear something more solid on this soon.

Hambak's Halloween Celebration

2010-11-15T22:47:00.000-08:00

I wrote about teaching Halloween lessons and celebrating here at Hambak, but I realize I didn't post any pictures.

We took Thursday and Friday at the end of October to teach Halloween culture lessons to the morning classes. Don't forget, Koreans don't celebrate Halloween. Certainly the idea is well-known here, but kids don't trick-or-treat, and unless a Korean is friends with westerners, they won't be donning a costume for super-fun times, either.

With our afternoon students on Friday, we all dressed up in costumes and handed out candy to celebrate. It was a busy and fun afternoon. So enjoy some pictures of our Halloween fun at Hambak.

Check out all the pics here!

Yeonsu District Office Song Performance

2010-11-07T16:00:00.000-08:00

Twenty schools came out to sing at the performance on Nov. 3 at the Yeonsu District Office. We learned that out of all those teams, our group and one other sang English songs. Both of our songs were English, as we sang 'Sweet Caroline' and 'Summer Nights.' One other school 'did Sing, Sing, Sing.'

Ridia was a bit worried that we didn't have a ton of motions, but it made more sense since we had to learn English words, while the other schools only had to learn movements, essentially.

The students did very well with their singing. I think they had fun, but we're all relieved that it's over. We did a ton of practice and basically had no real down time or prep time for the last 6 weeks. It was fun and whatnot, but that really can drain a person.

It wasn't a competition, so there were no prizes awarded, but our students put on a really nice show. I think the crowd got into it, when they weren't being rude by talking and walking all over the place. The auditorium was packed far beyond its limit, and typical Korean manners took over. I spent the majority of my time reprimanding students for talking and running around during other schools' performances. Oh well. If I can even influence one student to be considerate of others, I'll feel that I accomplished something.

But enough of my complaining. Here are some more pics from the event. It was a good time, and it's nice to get it over with. Back to normal schedule!

Languages Shape You

2010-11-03T19:54:00.000-07:00

There is a really great article on cracked.com about how your native language can shape the way you think, based on what words and concepts are available and how they are used.

The article is here. Please check it out.

One of their examples is about people who watched a video of a person breaking an egg. In English, especially, the viewers would say, "That man broke the egg," or something to that effect. But in other languages like Japanese or Spanish, people would simply say "the egg broke."

This is something Popper and I talk about all the time. For example, Koreans only have about 6 tenses, and only use three on a regular basis. Whereas in English, we have 12 tenses, and use at least 6 on a regular basis, depending on how pretentious you are.

Korean speaking and description is very much a situational language. Describing things in person, like where something is placed or how to get somewhere, is monumentally easier in person. If you're doing it over the phone, or even talking about past and future tenses, it's much more difficult to convey exactly what you're trying to describe.

English goes the opposite direction. In English, we tend to describe things in great detail in order to make sure we're as clear as possible. It doesn't matter where you're standing in relation to me, or if it's happening in the future. We an describe the details to a point where it is 100 percent clear to the listener.

An example Popper and I talk about is the Korean word '거꾸로.' That's how Koreans say backwards. But it's also how they describe something that's upside down. Popper even did a little experiment where he held had stood behind one student and had the student's friends describe how he was hold a pencil sharpener. They used the same word for upside down as they used for backwards.

If you're going into a business meeting and have 5 minutes to prepare, what do you do if your secretary tells you all your slides are '거꾸로?' Do you simply flip them around or do you actually turn them right side up? You only have 5 minutes and you have 200 slides. I hope you make the right decision.

Anyway, next time you're thinking about how easy it is to describe some things and think of some concepts in English, keep in mind that it's very difficult in some language, and even non-existent in others.

Halloween in Hongdae 3: The Revenge

2010-11-02T17:29:00.000-07:00

For the third year in a row, we dressed in our costumes and headed to Hongdae in Seoul to celebrate Halloween. And just like any sequel, it provided some new twists and turns, new characters and some of the same old stuff that you never liked in the first place.

This was the first time Jeong Mi officially celebrated Halloween. She bought cat ears, but made her own tail and put together a really cool cat costume. I continued my practice of going as my favorite androgynous and/or gay singers by dressing as David Bowie.

I bought a terrible wig and did my best to cut it, but that was mostly a disaster. Haha. But Jeong Mi did the lightning bolt paint job on my face and it was stunningly awesome.

We left Yeonsu-dong for Hongdae around 8 p.m. and got there close to 9:30 p.m. The bus ride on a Saturday night to Seoul is kind of a traffic nightmare.

We met Barry and a bunch of our other friends at GoGo's in what is now Euro Tinpan Alley, or some terrible location name. It was Barry's birthday as well, so we celebrated with Geoff, Bryan, Colin, Popper and a ton of other friends. I even got to see my buddy and former college roommate, Kevin.

It was cool, as always, to celebrate Halloween and see all the costumes. But, as usual, it was just way too many people. We had a cool back room to ourselves, but ourselves was about 30 people more than could fit in the room.

We took off fairly early with Popper and Jong, and headed to smaller restaurant/hof that wasn't packed with westerners celebrating..

While hanging with my friends was fun, there were just too many people. But going to the smaller place was really great. We even had a good time with the staff, and they offered us a bottle of beer for service.

That may or may not be the last time I celebrate Halloween in Hongdae. It's just too many people. I'd rather be with a smaller group of close friends than with 100 acquaintances. That's just more my style. But if it is the last time, it was super fun and I'm glad that I went.

Check out the pics here!!!

North-South Gunplay

2010-11-02T05:17:00.000-07:00

Some North Korean troops fired at South Korean troops across the DMZ on Oct. 29. It happened about 56 miles northeast of Seoul.

What does it all mean? Probably nothing. I rarely post news stories anymore because most of them are boring. Even the interesting cultural stories don't really pique my interest very much anymore. I'm sure that people in America see more about the North-South conflict than I do. You guys could probably be filling me in on details.

Anyway, here's the link to the BBC page.

Pumpkin Carving In Korea

2010-10-28T06:39:00.000-07:00

Of all the holidays, Halloween is my favorite. It holds an even more special place in my heart because I arrived here just a couple months before it in 2008, and even make a trip into Hongdae in Seoul to celebrate.

So this will be my third year of heading into Hongdae to have Halloween fun. I'm not a huge fan of going to Seoul ... at all. But to celebrate Halloween the right way, you have to be where the westerners are. That's just science.

So to prepare for my third Halloween in Korea -- and Jeong Mi's first official Halloween -- she and I carved pumpkins last weekend.

It was a lot of fun. She had never carved pumpkins before, and I haven't done it in two years, so it was awesome.

We found a big orange one and a small green one at Lotte Mart. The big one was about 12,000 won ($10.62 right now). That's not a bad price. The little one was only about 4,000 won, so that's a good deal.

The pumpkins here are a bit different than what we carved at home. I'd just refer to these as big gourds, really. But a pumpkin is a gourd, and there did the trick.

We spent about an hour doing the whole thing. We checked out some pics of other cool jack-o-lanterns, then got to work on ours. Afterwards, I cleaned off the seeds and baked them for a nice little treat.

Jeong Mi definitely has a good time with the pumpkins. Of course, I did too. The only problem is we have no porch to set them on or window where we can point them out towards the world. And with Halloween this weekend, my apartment is starting to get that unmistakable squishy pumpkin smell. Haha.

But we took a ton of pics, and we made some nice memories for sure. As long as I'm in Korea, I'm sure this will become a tradition for us.

Check out all the pics here!!!

Principal's Daughter's Wedding

2010-10-28T06:26:00.000-07:00

The English Center crew, along with most of the teachers, headed to nearby Juan on Saturday to attend the principal's daughter's wedding.

We gave our cash envelope with $100 from the Center, and Ridia and Sunny immediately headed to the buffet. I learned something new again. Ridia said that if you're not that close to the person, it's common to just give the cash and go eat and drink and whatnot.

Our newest teacher Dorian, her husband Andrew and Geoff have never seen a Korean wedding, so we took in 20 minutes of it.

The odd thing about it is that it was at the exact same wedding hall as the only other wedding I've been to in Korea. I went to that wedding two years ago. And it's the EXACT SAME PLACE.

I understand that this might be a popular hall, but of the thousands of halls in Korea, what are the odds? Well, I guess they're pretty good.

Anyway, the food was as good as before, and they even added grilled meat on their deck. It was a step up from what was already a good meal.

The wedding was at 5 p.m. and we stayed until they kicked us out around 7 p.m. That was plenty of time for us to get our money's worth and drink a few drinks.

After that, we headed back to Yeonsu-dong and met up with the crew. Everyone was able to make it out that night. A group of us even went to a noraebang, which I love. Unfortunately, their enthusiasm for going didn't match their desire to sing. I took off after 12 minutes even though I paid for it, haha. I need to just hit those personal booths for a few times when I want a noraebang. If Jeong Mi isn't there, it just isn't as much fun.

Check out some pics from the wedding here.

Unsure Times Continue

2010-10-28T06:17:00.000-07:00

They already started interviewing new secretaries for our English Center. That was a good sign. It sucks that Sunny has to leave, but it was comforting knowing we weren't going to be flapping in the wind while they dragged their feet.

But when it rains it pours. The principal told Ridia that the November Market Day would be our last one. He thinks it's a waste of money. But he's retiring in February. What stops us from bringing it back. Let's hope this new person is cool, whenever he or she arrives.

Ridia also said that, in general, she thinks the principal isn't happy with the English Center. I don't understand that at all. What we're finding out is the principal's outward attitude and inward emotions can differ wildly. That means that even though he's smiling on the outside, he could be stewing deep down.

That puts us all in a precarious position. I don't want Sunny to leave. That's obvious. But Ridia is the absolute key to how successful we've been. If she's not there, I'm afraid of what might happen to the atmosphere at the center. Keep your fingers crossed, please, because we might be facing some rocky roads ahead.

Sad News From Hambak

2010-10-25T21:25:00.000-07:00

Keeping with standards and traditions, South Korea once again set out to rain in everybody's parade. It's kind of like ... well ... that one guy we know who always rains on everybody's parade.

Anyway, I posted a note recently about how great things are going here. My new contract, my fat bonus and my time with Jeong Mi are just the tip of the really-good-stuff iceberg.

But South Korea sucked me in with its ups, and is now laughing at my face during the downs.

We found out yesterday that our English Center secretary, Sunny, will not be re-hired. They told her this yesterday, as well. Her contract ends on Saturday. Thats right. They told her and us that her contract would not be renewed with only 4 days to spare.

This is bad for many reasons:

1. Sunny is awesome. She is super fun, and we could always count on having someone cool around when we do work-related activities.

2. She's a good employee. They give her way too much work to do, including stuff that she shouldn't be doing (sending out invitations for the principal's daughter's wedding) and she did it without raising a stink.

3. We are short a person in the English Center. That means Sunny's responsibilities will fall to Ridia until they hire someone new. Knowing the system, that means we could be short one person for while. And realistically, we could have used another person as it was.

There was no reason given for her not being re-hired. There are a few ideas floating around. One is that because the principal is retiring in February, the administrators thought the new person would want someone fresh. A second is that this is the end of Sunny's second year. That means that after this renewal, she would leave yearly contract status and become an official employee. The thought is that the administrators want someone who they can get rid of in the short term if need be.

Regardless of any hairbrained theories, this is bad all around for us. We like working with Sunny and don't want to see her go. Even if the new person they hire is just as good, no one can compare to Sunny for her personality and the hard work she put in here.

We'll miss you, Sunny. Sorry that even at a good school, people can become victims of a bad cultural system.

Seongnam In Champions League Final

2010-10-20T06:50:00.000-07:00

K-League's Seongnam Ilwha reached the final of the Asian Champions League by getting 1-0 win over a Saudi Arabian team. After two legs, the aggregate was 4-4, but Seongnam won thanks to their three away goals in the first leg.

They'll either play a Saudi Arabian team or n Iranian team in the final. Let's face it, those countries are lame.

Check out the recap here.

Life Has Been Good

2010-10-14T22:21:00.000-07:00

I love writing negative things about South Korea. Okay, that's a bit of a stretch, but in my first year here, I regularly vented my frustrations and came off like a whiny baby who needed a diaper change.

But thanks to my current school and co-teacher -- Hambak Elementary School and Ridia, respectively -- this year has been pretty much wonderful. So here's a recap on recent events taking place. This is basically everything that's been going on since we headed to Jeju Island. It's been busy, but fun.

The first thing to get out there is that I've signed on again with my current school. This is a great place to work. The teachers and administrators are all very friendly, and Ridia has put together a great program which has skyrocketed in popularity. It's a very low-stress environment, and the head of our English dept. and I even had a little talk and worked out our differences. It feels great.

My eye seems to be all healed up. I went through a pretty terrible time with the eye cut and subsequent use of glasses for the next 6 weeks. That was no fun. But everything feels okay now and I'm back to wearing contacts. Of course, that's right in time for my winter allergies to start kicking in. So now I'm concerned of hurting my eye(s) again. Let's just hope that's not the case.

All is going very well with Jeong Mi and me. We both are still on our 'time off' from Bamboo Dance Academy, but that only applies to classes. We've become regulars at the Saturday open dance now that we don't go to classes during the week. I want to learn some new moves, but I'm really starting to enjoy open dance now that I don't practice all week.

Halloween is right around the corner. This will be my third Halloween here. Even though I basically avoid partying in Seoul at all costs, one tradition will hold true. We will, once again, go to Hongdae to celebrate Halloween. This will be Jeong Mi's first official Halloween. We're both really excited. All our friends are, too. Only going to Hongdae once a year actually makes it fun.

Back to Hambak, I started going to the cafeteria again for lunch. I took about 8 months off and that was pretty awesome. But I was forced to withstand a barrage of questions from a lot of teachers about why they never saw me at lunch. I figured that since I'm getting a raise this year, I can handle the cafeteria food. The good news is that the school switched to a new food company this semester. I've only gone one day where I only ate rice and salad, because the food has been pretty decent so far.

Our students have been practicing for a singing competition in November for about 6 weeks now. We're singing 'Sweet Caroline' and 'Summer Nights.' Of course, the kids are getting pretty sick of the songs, haha. But they're doing a good job with it. The competition is right around the corner, and I'm excited for the students.

We don't really have a break here for awhile. Thanks to Christmas falling on a weekend this year, we'll get no days off for that. I don't think we get any time off until the lunar new year celebration in February. That's a long time with no extra days for rest. But we don't have a ton of planning to do right now, so it's not too bad. We have some extra stuff to do for government inspectors, but we can handle it. Ridia is really busy as usual, but we're doing our best to help her out as much as we can.

That's all there is for now. As always, people are leaving and new people are coming in. Some of that is good and some is bad. But that's life.

And right now, life is good. Let's hope this feeling continues.

Nobody Parties Like The North Koreans Party

2010-10-11T23:52:00.000-07:00

Everybody celebrate!

North Korea is celebrating the 65th anniversary of their ruling Workers' Party of Korea in style. There's singing and dancing and even an appearance by Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong-il's son and eventual successor to the throne.

As my life over here becomes more routine, I can find a little comfort in the fact that posting North Korea news is still interesting. And if it's not interesting to anyone else, it is at least to me.

Knowing I live in a country where the people go about their every day lives under the shadow of one of the most bitter and itchy-trigger-fingered regimes in the world still fascinates me. It's incredible that the people of South Korea are at a point where they barely discuss the guy anymore.

Of course, the North gets play on the news here, but you won't find people discussing it or worrying about it in bars, unless of course their western friends bring it up. I've been dating my girlfriend for 8 months now, and we've only had lengthy discussions about the North a few times.

How many years do people have to live under an ongoing threat before it becomes mundane to them? Anyway, check out the video and pics in the article above. The people seem pretty happy, right? For all we know, maybe they are. We can argue all we want about them being treated poorly, but if you didn't know what a cell phone was, would you be mad that you didn't have one?

South Koreans Are Good At Indoorsy Things

2010-10-03T22:28:00.000-07:00

South Koreans whipped the rest of the world once again at the World Cyber Games, held over the weekend in Los Angeles. Not far behind the Koreans -- who won four gold medals -- were the world's other favorite indoor kids: The USA won three gold medals at the games.

Check out the story here.

South Korean Girls Win World Cup

2010-09-28T22:19:00.000-07:00

The South Korean U-17 Womens soccer team has won its first international tournament. The girls from the ROK beat Japan in the final 3-3 (5-4 PKs). Check out the story here.

If anyone cared about girls in South Korea, I'd probably have to be defending the USA over this one. Good thing they're still second-class citizens here. (Joking ... sort of.)

Kim Jong-il's Son Gains Notoriety and Rank

2010-09-28T22:14:00.000-07:00

Kim Jong Un, the son of North Korea leader Kim Jong-il, received his expected promotion this week as he was named a 4-star general in the North Korean military as well as a member of the Central Committee of the party.

While that news was expected for about a month, it's news about the life of this rising communist star that people seem to know little about.

Here are the details that are coming out:
- He's 27 or 28 years old.
- He studied at an elite school in Bern, Switzerland.
- He's the youngest of three brothers.
- He has characteristics of his father.

Other than that, very little is known. There are apparently only two or three pics of this guy even circulating the news agencies.

Here are details on his Central Committee promotion and his military general promotion.

One of the big questions is how the handover of power will affect the North. It seems to me that it won't be a significant change as far as that goes. A bigger question is how long will daddy hold on with his son in an intern-type role. And then, the hope of most of the world is that regardless of how the government continues, will this guy have the balls to step out of the cult of personality of his father and grandfather and do something to actually help the people of his country.

I would think studying abroad would be a major step toward taking over and laying down his own new rules. He must be well-aware of the joke that his country has become. Of course, his father is aware, too, but has spent the majority of his life inside the walls of the fortress. Being raised in the outside world has to change one's perspective on life.

For a refresher course on the North and how it got to its present state, check out this story from CNN.com.

Chuseok and Jeju Island - Yeah, I Went There

2010-09-27T22:09:00.000-07:00

It's been an exciting couple of weeks for Jeong Mi and myself. We both have had a lot of new experiences and it's been a ton of fun spending so much time together.

Back at the end of August was, of course, our trip to the USA for my sister's wedding.

Adding another chapter to our travel log, we headed to Jeju Island last week to spend our Chuseok vacation. Chuseok, as understanding Koreans will tell you, is akin to the American Thanksgiving. If the Korean is a jerk, however, they'll tell you your phone dictionary and less uptight Korean buddies are wrong.

Chuseok is a day of thanks, for sure. It's not about turkey and stuffing, unfortunately, but it is about giving thanks for family. The timing of Chuseok is a harvest-timing type of thing from the past when Korea was mostly farms. So, 1997. But really, it was a time for the family to come together to get the fall's harvest.

It has transformed itself now into a time for family to get together and give thanks for the family members who came before them. It's one of the two biggest holidays here in South Korea.

I was fortunate enough to be invited by Jeong Mi to join her family on the morning of Chuseok and check out the traditions. I arrived at 8 a.m. and her dad's brother's family was already there. Everyone was preparing the traditional food and dishes, and had the screen with all the symbols of longevity on it.

After it was all prepared, Jeong Mi's dad and brother took a few turns bowing, wow her uncle's family just bowed their heads and prayed. I just took pictures and took it all in. I've been a part of thanksgiving ceremonies in Korea before, as I have been to a few bamboo dance academy openings. But this was my first Chuseok that I got to experience.

I'm very thankful for Jeong Mi and her family, and I think it was appropriate for me to share that day with them.

Jeong Mi's mother's family came later in the morning, so I got to spend some time with them as well. I think I'm making a good impression. After all, they keep inviting back.

After the meal, Jeong Mi's brother took us to Gimpo Airport, where we met with Popper and Jeong before their flight. We boarded an hour or so later and made our way to the southern sea below South Korea.

Jeong and Popper rented a car, and went to check in when they arrived on the island. When we came an hour later, we had to wait a bit for them to come back to pick us up. The island is about 25 kilometers from the side the airport is on to the side our hotel and pension were on.

We got back to our pension and checked in, and we immediately started having fun. Jeong Mi and I checked two suitcases full of meat, side dishes and alcohol. Also, her dad generously gave us a bottle of whiskey. We paid the owners of the pension 20,000 won and he heated up the grill for us. We hung on the porch, basically overlooking the ocean, took in the cool breeze and grilled up some meat.

The yard of the pension was beautiful. Typical grass in Korea is scratchy and hard. This grass was soft and beautiful like a plush carpet. Just awesome.

We hit the road Thursday morning to take in all our adventures. We went horseback riding first thing on Thursday morning. It was a lot of fun. Jeong Mi and I had really nice horses and the trainer walked far ahead to allow them to gallop and catch up. That was nice. They even got to break into a lite run around the final stretch of the track.

After that, we headed to Seongsanilchulbong. It's a now-dormant volcano. The four of us hiked up the side of it and took and ton of really great pictures. The inside of what used to be the volcano was beautiful. It was a bowel covered in trees and grass. It was also high up and allowed for awesome views of the ocean.

Next, we were headed to a hot-air balloon ride, which, unfortunately, we never got to because of "windy" weather. What we found along the way was a go-kart track. While I thought it was a little pricey, the lady ended up giving us a discount and we got a couple of two-person karts.

Good for me and Jeong Mi is that our kart was really fast. Unfortunately, every time we came around the track, the employees told us to slow down. Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, it's only a go-kart track. Why would we want to go fast?

After that, we headed to the trick art museum. It was really fun. There were bunch of pictures that were painted in a way that allowed you to interact with them. It gave great opportunity for some really awesome photos. We took a ton in there and it was really fun.

After that, we got some of the famous Jeju black pork. Now, we unfortunately went to a restaurant with terrible service. But if you ever go to Jeju and everyone is telling you you have to try this meat. I can tell you that it's not worth the trip. It's between 12,000 and 15,000 won per portion and tastes NO different from what we always eat around here. Want to know what it tastes like? Have you eaten galbi or samgyeopsal in Incheon? Well, you know already.

Next, we went to a small waterfall to get a few pics. It was dark at that point, but the waterfall was lit up and it was really peaceful.

The next day, we headed to a small park where you can get a really good view of the lava rocks formed from whenever the volcano blasted. We didn't stay there too long, because we had to get to The World Automobile Museum.

The car selection there was pretty spectacular. Popper and I were discussing how it seemed likely that the cars probably all belonged to one super-rich collector and he wanted to share them with the world. There were a lot of fancy cars like a classic Cadillac, a Benz, a Rolls-Royce and a Bentley, among others.

There was also row of crappy Korean cars from the early 90s. They don't even come close to the sweet styles Kia and Hyundai are making now.

Next up for us was the sex museum. Now, I know what you're thinking. "Sex museum? Awesome!" Yeah, me too. But it's not so awesome. There were some entertaining things in there for sure. But it was moslty a lot of info and stuff about world cultures. It was like being in a building with a bunch of pamphlets from health class.

At least there was the sex toy room. That was hilarious.

Then came the moment I was really looking forward to: The giant hamburger. Of course, I shouldn't have built it up in my head. It didn't quite live up the expectations. It was big and it did taste good. But I forgot that I was in Korea with all the nature and fresh air down there. The hamburger wasn't beef. It was pork. It was still tasty and I'm happy I ate it.

When the burger time finished, it was over to mystery road, where we had to avoid the bugaboo!!!! Mystery road is a place where your car is going downhill, but the scenery makes it appear that you're going uphill. The girls didn't explain it to us at first, so we were confused when his girlfriend stopped her car and stuck it in neutral in the middle of the road.

After the first time, we realized what was going on. So we did it a second time, and screamed like our car was flying off a cliff. It was hilarious. We then had a little snack at one of the roadside restaurants and chatted with the ladies there. They were really nice and we had a ton of fun.

We then headed up the top of the peak. It was too dark to see anything at that point, but the ride down was awesome. We saw a ton of deer running along and across the road on the way down. It was like being back in Western Pennsylvania.

After checking the deer, Popper and his girl dropped us off at the airport, and we caught our flight home. I crashed at Jeong Mi's parent's place that night, and rode the train with her to work on Saturday. I went home and crashed for a few hours and then got back into normal life.

Overall, Jeju was an awesome trip. We got a really great deal on our flight and the pension we stayed in was really cool and comfortable. Everyone down there was really nice, as well. The four of us got to see a lot, but there's still more to do, if we ever want to go back.

If you get the chance, take a trip down there, even for a weekend. You'll be happy you did.

Until then, check out my pictures. I'll be updating them as more come in. We have three cameras worth of photos to sort through.

Enjoy all my pics here!!!

Things Happening Up North

2010-09-21T00:09:00.000-07:00

North Korea's officials and ruling party are holding a massive meeting on Sept. 28 to possibly appoint new leaders within the world's only hereditary, communist government.

On BBC World News today, they reported that the last meeting of this magnitude was in 1980, when current leader Kim Jong-il was given his senior position.

This is a photo of the man who is thought to be Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong-il's youngest son.

With Kim's health in question, the thoughts are that the party is ready to elect one of Kim's sons, Kim Jong Un, to the top post. Not much is known about KJI's youngest son, but he is thought to be in his mid- to late twenties. KJI has other sons, but BBC reported that one of the older sons will not be promoted because KJI thinks he is too feminine. Classic North Korea.

There are major questions around the meeting, such as if a transfer of power will take place, and how it will affect the party and its power. My questions is that, even though the chances are slim, what if this guy isn't like his father at all, and is tired of his country being the joke of the world. Could even bigger changes be coming???

Starcraft Is Dumb

2010-09-19T21:21:00.000-07:00

I mean, seriously. The game is like 100 years old, but Koreans still play it like it came out yesterday. Popper and I were talking about whether they would start playing Starcraft 2, and he had a good point. They will start playing when it's also 10 years old and no one plays anymore. That way, they can feel like the best.

Anyway, check out this article talking about how ridiculous the Starcraft culture is in Korea.

StarCraft is Practically Korea's National Sport ...

2010-09-13T07:05:00.000-07:00

And America mocks you for it.

Check out this great video by Cody at cracked.com. He's doing a tutorial on a StarCraft-type game and getting destroyed by his Korean competiton. Good stuff.

Another Reunion Planned

2010-09-13T05:11:00.000-07:00

North Korea's Red Cross is proposing another meeting of separated families between North and South Koreans.

These stories are incredibly heartwarming. Yes, it's terrible that there are people stuck across the border in the first place, but to see a family member you haven't seen since the 1950s and aren't even sure if they're alive has got to be one of the most wonderful feelings in the world.

Some really nice video always surfaces after these events happen, so I'll post that as soon as it comes out.

Here's one of the meetings from last year:

'Yoon Ki-Dal, 88, of South Korea thought such a moment would never come. After leaving his son and daughters when they were babies during the Korean War, he was able to hold the hands of his North Korean children last September.

"Father, we thought you were dead," his daughter, who was in her 60s, told him, her face trembling.'

Again, it's just brutal that two bigger governments (The USA and USSR) could have agreed to separate an entire country and separate millions of people.

But at least there is enough cooperation for a few hundred families to meet every year. If that doesn't inspire hope, I don't know what could.

South Korean Clubs Dominate

2010-09-13T05:06:00.000-07:00

South Korea's K-League had placed all four of its' entered clubs into the quarterfinals of the Asian Champions League. It's the first country in the history of the competition to do so.

Suwon Bluewings and Seongnam Ilwha will play each other in the quarterfinals, thereby eliminating one of South Korea's teams' chances. Jeonbuk Motors and Pohang Steelers are Korea's other two teams in the quarterfinals.

This could be a big year for the Korean clubs, who are looking to bring a 9th AFC title to the peninsula.

Melissa's Wedding and The Whole Trip

2010-09-12T02:38:00.000-07:00

Well, I've taken plenty of time to recuperate and I've also been pounded with a heavy work schedule since one of our teachers is on vacation. But it's time to document my time back in America.

Overall, it was really great to go home and hang out. It was a super-short time, and we really had to rush around, but seeing my family and friends, giving Jeong Mi the tour, meeting her sister and having a little break were all very nice. The one major problem was the traveling itself, which is still haunting me as I type.

I'll break this up into three parts. So let's start with the first leg of our trip.

Heading back to America

The trip started off a bit ominously, but I knew it would be stressful, so I just tried to go with it. Jeong Mi's dad was going to pick me up at 1:30 p.m. on that Wednesday and we'd go to the airport, say goodbye and be on our way.

Well, as is the case in Korea, a plan is never actually set. Jeong Mi called me at 11 a.m. that day asking me to meet them at her house, instead of him coming to get me. Well, that would've been nice to know the night before, but I got all my stuff together, took a cab to the subway, and lugged my gear to her place.

I had a tiny breakfast with her family and we all hopped in the car and got on our way.

We got to the airport in plenty of time, checked in smoothly and headed to our plane. All was going well. I was even feeling saucy enough to upgrade our seats to get some extra leg room. Yep. All looked good.

We even got to use the Asiana lounge, which had a salad bar and drinks -- including beer. Totally worth the upgrade price.

Well, we got on the plane to find our first disappointment: The plane had no individual screens on the backs of seats. Now, we were close enough to the big screen at the front, but when you get used to having a personal screen and a ton of options, it sucks to suddenly not have one on a 10-hour flight.

Another problem on our United airplane was that even though we were on a trip leaving South Korea, there was only one Korean-speaking flight attendant. Only one! This was a plane with 200 Koreans and there was one Korean speaker. The attendant we had working our row subscribed to the theory of speaking louder if someone doesn't understand English. So when she came around and asked Jeong Mi how she wanted her coffee, and Jeong Mi didn't respond, she just practically yelled it. It came off as very rude.

After being in a country that caters to English-speakers, it was a little reverse culture shock to see how little an American company (flying out of South Korea) cared about speaking Korean.

Well, to add onto our already subpar experience, our flight arrived late in San Francisco. Then, we went through immigration. She had to wait a longer time in her line, because American immigration employees insist on interviewing people who don't speak any English. So I waited in order to translate for Jeong Mi, and had four different people try to make me leave the area.

The final person told me to leave and I got a bit testy and said, "I'm going to do you a favor and translate." The guy said, "Does she speak some kind of strange language we wouldn't know?" I said, "I don't know, buddy. Do you speak Korean?" And what a surprise, after that, they stopped bugging me.

Even after spending 20 minutes at the immigration area, we still had to wait for almost 25 minutes for our luggage to finally roll around. At that point, we had missed our next flight. We were supposed to fly to Denver next, and then to Pittsburgh. We got re-booked on a direct flight to Pittsburgh that would get us in one hour later than before. How stupid is that? Why didn't they just book us on that flight in the first place?

Either way, we got on that plane (with excellent flight attendants) and got to Pittsburgh, where mom and dad picked us up, and took us through Sheetz for a snack. It was awesome.

Franklin, Pittsburgh and Erie

We got up the next day, and I took her through our quaint little downtown area, where we got some coffee and checked out some of the shops and the park. It was really nice, and she loved our town. A 6,000-person American town is obviously different from EVERYWHERE in South Korea.

After that, we headed down to Pittsburgh so I could show her where I spent the last 6 years of my life before coming to Korea.

We checked out Piper's Pub in the South Side for lunch, rode the incline and then headed to Lawrenceville where we hit the Blue Moon and Belvedere's for 80s Night. It was awesome. The bartenders and DJs remembered. It was strange to see how little had changed. It's like time stood still while I was gone.

She and I both loved every minute of it.

The best part was seeing Joe, Amanda, Matt and Joe's wife. It was so great to see my best friends again. We went right back to our old routine, and it just felt so good.

The next day, we woke up, grabbed our stuff, and headed up to Erie, where the wedding was taking place. We stayed at the Sheraton Bayfront Hotel. It was in a really nice location on the lake.

After we arrived, we headed to the church for the rehearsal/rehearsal dinner. The food was great, and Jeong Mi started meeting everyone. She was pretty tired, so she took a bit of a nap, but we had a nice dinner.

After that, it was back to the hotel where we got in the hot tub for a bit before winding down. Her sister, Limmy, came at about 3 a.m., so she went to meet with her for a bit.

We were both awake by about 7 a.m., so we went for breakfast with dad. We also headed over to the beach to check it out. She was pretty impressed by a lake that was so big it actually has waves.

Then, she went to hang with her sister while I was headed to the church at the terribly early hour of 10 a.m. for pictures. Our groomsmen pics took about 15 minutes, followed by roughly 3 hours of just standing around bored out of our minds. Totally unnecessary.

The wedding went by just fine, everyone was happy and whatnot. And then, it was onto the good part of the night.

Jeong Mi had already started meeting everyone, but it was at the reception where she really had to be on her toes. Of course, right after dinner, the travel had caught up with her again, and she had to take a little nap. She missed the Chicken Dance, but was back soon for more dancing and fun.

We even did a salsa dance in front of everyone. She was a bit nervous and wasn't wearing great dancing shoes. We also didn't have a salsa song. But it was a Latin tune, and we pulled out some moves and had a lot off fun. Everyone really enjoyed it.

Then, my night got even better as Lynn and I sand 'Dream Lover' on karaoke. It was my special day and everyone knew it. Haha.

We wrapped up the night by hanging out in Paul and Pauline's room with some of mom's side of the family, and then hanging in Limmy's room for a bit. It was a really nice way to close down the night.

Sunday in Erie and Franklin

I woke up the next day with a pretty big problem. My eye was swollen shut and I was in serious pain. I always have some issues with sensitive eyes because of the airplane and hotel air. It's really dry, and it makes wearing contacts a bit tough sometimes.

Well, we had dinner with the family in the morning to say goodbye to everyone, then headed to a clinic, where I got the wonderful news that I cut my eye. Most likely, it was when I was taking my contacts out. My eye was probably really sensitive at the time, and I probably didn't go easy enough.

Well, we headed over to the beach for one last quick visit, then back to Franklin.

At home, we did a Bruckart family tradition and had a campfire in the backyard complete with hot dogs, beans, mac 'n cheese and , yes, DILL pickles. It was all so good and it was nice to show Jeong Mi how nice life was back home.

We were fast asleep soon after that, and up early to head to Pittsburgh for our return flights. And that's where the stress really happened.

Heading Back To Korea

Here's a little tip for any of you traveling to South Korea. Don't go through China. Our tickets took us to Beijing to transfer, and it was a nightmare. First, in Pittsburgh, they weren't confident about letting me get on the plane, because they were convinced I'd need a visa just to transfer in Beijing. After about 30 minutes of phone calls and searching, they found out that people staying less than 24 hours and not leaving the airport don't need a visa.

But I already knew the day would be nuts.

Our flight to to Newark went fine, and the transfer in Newark was a piece of cake. It was in Beijing where things were a mess.

First, we got sent to about 10 different places, some of them twice, just trying to get through to pick up our bags and check back in. While all the employees spoke English well, none of them knew the process we needed to go through. So it was back and forth between various lines and counters, getting information and misinformation along the way.

As our time was getting exceedingly close to missing our flight, we finally got through, only to find out that we had to ride the tram to a different building, get our bags, re-check in and then come back to the building we were currently in.

While, we were stressed and it was insane, but after running around everywhere, we made it to our plane as it was boarding.

And here's the sweetest part: We flew Asiana from Beijing to Incheon. So we were coddled the whole way back. And that is a great way to end a trip.

Back to Work and Normal Life

And that was pretty much that. I went back to work the next day and one more before hitting the weekend. And last week, Geoff left for a little time off because his contract is finished, and he's re-signing. He's taking little trip at home. Unfortunately, that means we're getting pounded at work.

But fortunately, we only have one more week and a Monday before Chuseok, the Korean harvest and family holiday. So we'll get four work days off, and the following weekend. Jeong Mi and I are planning to hit Jejudo with Popper and his girlfriend. After that, I'll have hit pretty much every major thing in South Korea. So I'll be ready to start checking other countries.

It's going to be a busy week or so, but it's nice to get back to the familiar routine.

The only real problem is my eye is still bothering me. I've gone to the doctor a few times, and have at least one more trip next week. Also, I can't wear my contacts for a month, which is terrible. I'll have to wear my glasses in Jejudo. That's not cool. But oh well.

So, except for the glasses, it's back to normal. Enjoy all the pictures. I posted a few different sets in the previous blog posts. So check them out and see our time in America. Enjoy!

More Wedding Pictures

2010-09-09T05:45:00.000-07:00

Here are more wedding pictures, which obviously include my time at home.

Here are mom's pics.

Here are my aunt's pics.

As always, enjoy!

Wedding Pics and Tiny Update (Anger)

2010-09-06T23:07:00.000-07:00

Here are the pics from my sister's wedding. Notice how happy I am during most of the images. I will not be that happy again for a long time.

While I was at home, I scratched my eye. I think it was because of the dry air in the airplane and the hotel, and not enough downtime in between the trip over and trip back. Because my eye was irritated, I must've scratched it when removing my contacts.

I'll give a description of the trip later, but as for now, I can't even open my left eye because it is throbbing with pain. The doctor told me that I can't wear my contacts for at least a month, and gave me a bunch of pills and drops. So the next month of my life is going to be pretty terrible.

Check out the wedding/travel pics here.

Back In A Flash

2010-08-24T18:46:00.000-07:00

At 5 p.m. today I board a plane to head back to America for a week. My younger sister is getting married on Saturday, and I'm using my only vacation time this year to go to the wedding.

The one good thing about it is I'll get to see all my family in one place. On my last visit home, I had to do a ton of traveling around. This time, I'll stick to just Franklin, Pittsburgh and Erie.

Another good thing is that I'm taking Jeong Mi with me. This is a pretty big trip and I'm excited that she's coming along. I'll get to do a lot of translating since she doesn't know English, but I don't mind showing off. Her sister, who lives in San Francisco, is coming to the wedding as well. It's cool they'll get to see each other since they'll be a bit closer than 7,000 miles apart.

I'm so thankful my co-teachers at Hambak have a system worked out to allow us to take some stretches of vacation here and there.

I'll be quite busy at home, and might not have much time to get to a computer. I hope all goes well for everyone in Korea while I'm gone.

See you in a week!