Christmas Wrap-Up

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! Here are few random photos of ours. As Sam mentioned in the doctor's blog below I wasn't feeling up to much on Christmas Eve or Day... or the days after that, but I did manage to rally for a few festivities...

The tree (thanks Abby!) I made all of the decorations except for the lights and green balls for a fully decked out tree for under 5000 won. Sam was uber impressed with the paper chains... sometimes I wonder if he missed Kindergarten entirely.

We decorated our gingerbread family and their abode.

Happy couple. (One of Sam's feet broke off, so we ate off the rest of the feet so that his wouldn't feel like less of a person... and because we might have wanted a little gingerbread cookie and a bite off the roof of the house might have been more noticeable.)

Our moms sent us some fantastic activity books and we dove right in.

Look how excited I am for a cheesy holiday movie to watch, even through the sickness! Worst. Picture. Ever.
And this is what the rest of my weekend looked like: OJ, painkiller/fever reducer, tissues, thermometer (side-note and random "Alison fact": taking my temperature ALWAYS makes me feel better, even if my problem isn't illness related. Basically, don't be surprised if there are multiple thermometers on our registry!), etc. At least the tree was nice to look at!

And my packet-o-pills and cough syrup! (It still weirds me out that they aren't in child-proof containers, but the single serving cougy syrup packets are SO handy!)

A Trip To The Doctor

If you have known me for any period of time, you know that I am a regular visitor to the hospital.  Whether it was sports injuries, appendicitis, metals bars in my chest, hanging from a fence, ridiculously bad allergies, or any other number injuries, a yearly visit to the doctor is not uncommon for me.  And it seems that Alison is starting a tradition of being sick on Christmas.  Last year she had her gall bladder out just a couple days before Christmas, and this year her Christmas present from me was a cold.

But we will get back to this weeks events later.  First let me tell you about healthcare in Korea.  Each of us pay roughly $50/month for national health insurance, this is the same plan that pretty much all Koreans are on.  You have two options if you want to go to the doctor.  There are clinics and international clinics.  Clinics are like your regular doctors office, and international clinics and small branches of large hospitals.  At the clinics there are usually one or two family physicians.  Their English is OK at best, they can tell you what is wrong if you have a simple cold or something, but they are definitely not fluent.  I have visited the clinic that is very close to our school 3 times.  The first was back during the first month when I did not have health insurance yet.  I had a sinus infection.  The visit and prescription(3 days of antibiotics, tylenol and who knows what else) totaled $16.  When you get the meds from the pharmacy, they give you all the pills that you are supposed to take at once, all in the same pouch.  Kind of convenient, but you're never exactly sure what you are taking.  But no one has died yet, so I think it is safe.  

I also made a trip to an international clinic back in the spring because my allergies were really bothering me.  So I found an international clinic relatively close.  The doctor's, as well as the staff's English, was not much better than the regular clinic.  Actually, there was one member of the staff who spoke English well, but that was it.  I had some blood work done to try to figure out what I was allergic to, but it showed nothing and ended up with some simply nasal spray. Pretty much no matter what you play 50% or less when you go to the doctor.  The blood work, two visits and meds all cost me about $90.  

Well, about three weeks ago I felt my self getting sick.  I just had this feeling in the back of my throat.  So I went back to the clinic, and this is how the visit went.

Sam: I have a sore throat.

Dr: OK, let me look at your throat(looks at my throat)your your throat is red bumps....but not bad

Sam:(nods)

Dr: Now I will check your neck nodes(checks my "neck nodes") Your neck nodes are healthy.

Sam:(nods)

Dr: Now I will check your lungs(listen to lungs) Your lungs are good.

Sam:(nods)

Dr: Now I will check your heart strength(listens to heart)Your heart is strong.

Sam:(nods)

Dr: Now I will check your kidneys(lightly punches my kidneys)Does that hurt?

Sam:Not any more than normal.

He then proceeds to tell me that I do not need medication and that all I need to rest, humid air, lots of water, and a good diet.  I walked away disappointed, and I had a cold the next day.  A week later I thought I was completely over that cold, but no.  Last Friday night my right "neck node" swelled up massively.  So I went back to the clinic(at this point I was wanting to go somewhere else but it was the weekend and I just needed something.  The conversation with the doctor went the same way, but he actually gave me medicine this time.  I thought he was giving me an antibiotic but I don't think he was.  Because later that day, my body decided that it wanted to form a painful and gross cyst underneath my tongue.  I figured that I was taking antibiotics and that it would clear up.  Well, within a few days(by Christmas Day), my cough cleared up but I was still very congested and  still had this cyst under my tongue.  By this time I had gifted my germs to Alison(even though she attempted to avoid me).  We decided that we would go to a different international clinic, one that a co-worker of ours had gone to for a chronic problem that she had while she was here.  She said everyone spoke great English and made everything very easy.  So I call the morning of the 26th to get an early appointment.  Mind that we still had to work at 2:3o that day.  So we get our appointments and get in a cab for the short ride.  We get there, and both the receptionists at the International clinic speak nearly perfect English.  We fill out our paperwork and wait for the doctor.  Alison goes in first and then it is my turn.  I go in, I give her the run down of my medical history and then I tell her what I have told you about the congestion and cyst.  So she is listening to my chest and this is the conversation.

Dr: You have some dander in your hair.

Sam: Yea, I think the dry winter air has dried out my skin, I have some dandruff shampoo that usually helps clear it up.

Dr: Oh, well lets have a closer look.  Hmm, yes, you have scales.

Sam: What is causing that?

Dr: Well, probably an overgrowth of bacteria, its not bad bacteria, but there is an overgrowth.....and your human function is failing.

Sam: OK (at this point I have gotten used to these kind of matter of fact phrases coming out of non native speakers, but this one almost made me giggle out loud)

So she ends up giving me shampoo and ointment for my scalp, more nasal spray, 10 days of antibiotics, and 10 days of ibuprofen.  The doctor visit was $15, and all my prescriptions were $24.  Before we left, Alison decided that she did not want to go to work that day, so we asked for a note so you could have a sick day.  The receptionist told us that it would cost her $10 for a note in Korean, and $20 for one in English.  How crazy is that?  haha. oh well. She got the Korean one. 

All in all I was very impressed with the international clinic at the Asan Medical Center.  It was definitely the best/funniest visit to the doctor I have had here.  

We are both feeling much better now.

The Most Random Day of All the Days

Well, I'm not going to lie, I've been having a little bit of a meltdown over here. It's been a tough week. First, Kendra teacher finally left to head back to Canada... a day I had really been dreading! I'm missing the girls that have gone home like nobody's business. Also, as Christmas is well, tomorrow technically, I'm also really missing home. I really love Christmas... like, a lot... and it's just well, different here (who would have thought??) Christmas here isn't so much about oh, the birth of Christ or even family and togetherness... it's about couples. Not entirely hard to believe from a country that has THREE Valentine's days, but I think it takes a little something away from the actual holiday. However, I think I'm rallying. Sam has been great, as always, and I finally got our Christmas tree up (expect photos soon), and just knowing we get a day off on Thursday (1st holiday since September!) is easing some tension. Still with me? Sorry, I just needed to get that off my chest, now for the REAL post :)

As I mentioned before, Kendra and I have been working on a list of things to do before we leave, and she, Shana and I (Shana post your pictures!!!) checked some off the list on Sunday! It made for a randomly awesome day for sure!

We started off at Lotte World, which is a giant mall just a few blocks from our house. In said mall they have 1) Ice skating 2) Bowling 3) an Amusement Park and 4) A SHOOTING RANGE!!! Obviously we had to go! A few pictures...

(I think the child really adds a little something special to this one)

(Prepping to shoot my Barretta 9mm... the Glock was broken, unfortunately)

Post shooting... leaning against (not) my 100% accurate target. I actually scored a 35%, but hit the target 7 times with 2 shots that would definitely have killed Mr. Super Stationary, so look out! If there's ever a pre-loaded and cocked gun chained to a booth that you are standing in front of, there is a 1 in 2 chance that I will maim you!

(Also, we may look tough, but none of us knew that the casings would come out of the gun, and I may or may not have momentarily thought I managed to shoot at myself. Dude, I grew up in Flower Mound and was not in Boy Scouts (ahem, Samuel) so this was my first time... don't judge!)

Kendra modeling our super hot vests and the hats we found just lying around the place.

Did I mention we were IN THE MALL? Just a few yards from where we were weilding our instruments of death (and adrenaline rushes!) there was a marching band on ice. Making a love heart. Because Christmas is for couples. (Sidenote... If I hear "All I Want for Christmas is You" one more time I may punch someone out. It's like the only Christmas song I hear!!!)

After a delicious dinner at On the Border ("Holasumnida!") we went back to Kendra's to help her pack up a bit and meet up with the boys. Then we decided to have a late snack of... Live Octopus!!! We headed up restaurant row in Cheonho to find a tank displaying the sea creatures and then whipped out the phrasebook to tell them what we wanted. Then we had to mime that we wanted it still wriggling. Yeah. So, out the man went to pluck a live one from the tank and then we heard the chopping block.

Technically the octopus is dead, but it still manages to wriggle and suction. So, basically, chew really fast and thoroughly, or it will suction to your throat. Awesome! Who doesn't like a snack with a side of possible death?

Look Ma, no hands! (I'm also pretty sure I didn't stop making that face for the entire time we were in the restaurant...)

Doing the same thing... to. Sam's. face. Ahhhhh!

Also, just because I have the pictures... there is an outdoor skating rink in Olympic Park where skate rental and entrance fee cost a whopping 1,000 won to skate basically under the Peace Gate. We went on Saturday and glided like ice angels. (Okay, at least we managed not to fall down and only took out one small child!)

That's all for now, but I wanted to wish all of you a very "Helpy Christmas" from South Korea! We love and miss ALL of you!!!

The View From the Top

It is absolutely amazing to me how quickly the time is flying by!!! I mean, seriously, when did it inch towards the MIDDLE of December? At the end of the month, another of the teachers, Kendra, will be heading home. While all of this leaving certainly makes me sad, it's also been fun having someone to go and do some of the things on my "must do list before leaving" list with. This weekend Kendra and I tackled a big one... Seoul Tower!

Seoul Tower is visible from lots of places in the city, and from the top observation deck it offers a 360 degree view of the city. Needless to say, it's best to go on a clearer day, and as we had heard that dusk was the best time to go we headed over around 4:00 (after a delicious lunch at Dos Tacos in Gangnam).

Here's the inside of the lobby:

A view from the observation deck... kind of a smoggy day, unfortunately.

There are a bunch of "media art" installations on the observation deck. I guess they are trying to actually make your 7,000 won admission fee worth it... I think they are using the term "art" rather loosely here.

If you don't want to click to make the picture bigger I'll just fill you in... some random skyscrapers, several fish, a nun, a boy with his head in his hands and an undentified blob. It certainly enhances the view. Errr...

Some of the fanciest bathrooms I've ever seen. (I felt awkward taking a picture in said fancy bathroom, hence the terrible framing and bad lighting... but seriously, a panoramic view and fancy sinks... had to be documented!)

As it got darker we decided to head down to the lower, outdoor observation deck to hang up our "love locks". On the deck there is a big chain link fence, and people write their names on locks and then lock them together to signify their love. Since Kendra and I are in love, obviously, we hooked our locks together. They have our names and the ever popular phrase "I love you, but your face is under attack". Sam and I will definitely have to head back up to make sure our love is properly documented in Seoul :)

I know, we all wish my night photography skills were better :)

While we were out on the observation deck it started snowing like crazy! So much fun. It would be more impressive, except that I heard you actually got some snow in Texas this week. Always snowing on my parade, aren't ya!

What else to do when there is a (mildly creepy) Christmas tree made of teddy bears? Make a love heart, obviously!

Debate Competition

For the past 5 months I have been teaching the highest level class at our campus, they are all 6th graders and have excellent English skills.  We concentrate on current affairs and issues. We cover a new topic every week with the culmination of the week being a debate on Friday.  The basic format is that we read an article on Monday, and then have a writing/discussion activity. On Wednesday we read another article on the topic and then they split into their groups and start putting together their debate.  Well, for the past 4 weeks I have been preparing four of my students for the debate competition.  They spent over 20 hours writing arguments, memorizing templates, and brainstorming rebuttals. I put in an additional 5 or so hours editing, copying, cutting and gluing arguments onto cue cards.  Alison was a sweetheart and did a couple hours of gluing the other night when I had had enough of it. Well, this weekend, myself, the students Korean teacher, Kabin, and I got on a bus to go to the competition with 20 other debate teams.  They won their first round, and did very well the second round but unfortunately they did not move onto the final round of four.  I was so proud of them.  They were not really excited in the weeks leading up to the event, but after their first debate something came alive in them.  I stopped forcing them to practice, because they were asking me for their cards, wanting to rehearse!!  It was really fun to see these kids enjoying themselves and it was fun for me to let them enjoy themselves.  Most of the time I am telling them to get back to work, stop speaking korean, get back to work, sit down, stop talking about me in Korean, where is your homework.  These kids work really hard and it was fun to get to see them have fun.  Jason, one of my best students, and the only boy on the team, wanted to play poker on the bus ride back.  I obliged and taught him, Uri, and Sujin how to play five card draw on the way back to Seoul, as well as how to shuffle a deck of cards.  I played a dozen hands with them, and then needed to sit back and rest, but they continued to play.  I had a couple observations.  One was that they kept speaking English.  Most of the time when I stop speaking with them, they revert back to Korean, but I think they just forgot all about Korean for a while after being surrounded by fellow Korean English speakers all weekend.  That was cool to see.  The other was that it dawned on me that when I was in 6th grade, I rode a bus from St. Louis to Yellowstone and on that bus was where I learned to shuffle a deck of cards.  I just found it very "circle of lifeish" to be teaching my 6th grade korean students how to shuffle on a bus.  If it is not clearly evident by this blog, I really enjoy teaching and coaching these kids.  I have had thoughts of teaching once Alison and I come back to the states, but you will have to come back later to hear about that. It is worth devoting an entire blog to.  I will leave you with a presentation that Jason wrote.  The topic is English Immersion Education, his assignment was to write a presentation on the topic from the viewpoint of a member of the Korean Government.  This was what he e-mailed me, I have not edited this at all.   I am going to make a push to "publish" more and more of my students work, whether it is the upper level stuff, or my lowest level kids, or just plain old pictures.

 President/Government

                                  By Jason

Hello. I am the education minister of the Republic of Korea. As the education minister I agree with President Lee. We believe that young students such as elementary school students or middles school students should be thought in English. There are lots of benefits in this plan. First, South Korea will be globalized. Second, our imports and exports will be more fluent.

First, South Korea will be globalized. You see, the world, the Earth, is united with a language called “English”. To be more and more compatible with other nations, such as the United States and Australia, we must be excellent in English. We must learn or accept their cultures and learn what are good for us. As we become better at English, the world will be friendlier to us and we will be able to solve problems such as F.T.A. with us having more benefits. We will even be a part of solving international problems because we have a good relationship with the others. So, we must be experts at English.

Second, our imports and exports will be more fluent. Korea is an exporting country. And exporting starts with importing. We don’t have a single drop of fossil fuels in our land. So we import fossil fuels from the Middle East. They’re language isn’t English but they can speak English. With a good communicator who can speak fluently, our imports will be better for all of us. With the oil, we can export products. Actually, not just exporting, but exporting in a fairly decent price. So, if we make students study English in younger ages, we will be able to have those communicators.

As you see, by studying English in a younger and younger age, it is good for our economy. Basically, it benefits all of us. All of us.

A Feast for the Masses

Well, we did it!! Sam and I officially hosted our very first Thanksgiving meal together, and I think it was definitely a success. As Sam mentioned before we were in no way expecting this to turn into as massive a par-tay as it did. I mean, come on... twenty people to feed, two small burners, a mini fridge, two tiny pots, and approximately 20 square feet of space??? The odds were formidable, but I wouldn't have had it any other way!

We started the fun by giving Sam's apartment a deep clean last night, then this morning went on a re-con mission to Lotte Mart, then to Costco where we purchased 7 rotisserie chickens, 3 big bags of potatoes, 2 bags of rolls and 3 giant apple pies. Then I went back and cleaned my apartment while Sam went to Lotte Mart and HomePlus to pick up the green beans, butter, bigger bowls, potato masher, etc. We also managed to snag the giant pot from Brett's apartment and then, the most clutch move of all, Brady and Ashlee hauled home the office microwave for us. (Yes, I have no shame, I asked to borrow the office microwave for our Thanksgiving feast, and luckily they were awesome and not only said yes, but also gave us some funds to actually have said Thanksgiving feast! Double score! Having no shame pays sometimes I guess :) Sam cut up all of the chickens and we got cooking around 5 pm.

Here is evidence of the 2 tiny burners. I only wish I had thought to take a picture of the GIANT pot of potatoes, because these two pots do not truly depict the fact that these are two. tiny. burners. (Thanks to Ian for lending us the toaster oven!)

Part of the spread. It looked much more impressive in person. Notice the microwave that was key for making everyone's dinner deliciously warm instead of just room temperature. Also notice the kimchi on the edge of the table. We are in Korea, after all!

We had mashed potatoes with skins and without, because we wanted everyone to feel at home :)

My plate of food.

Another plate of food. (Can you tell I was really proud of the food?) Frank brought Stove Top Stuffing. I don't even really like Stove Top in general, but his was de-licious.

Chowing down! It was really nice to have some "newbies" with us, too! David's friend Shannon was visiting from New York, our fav. Korean Jen came along, plus we had the new teachers from the Middle School campuses with us, too. How crazy is this... the guy in the brown jacket went to Trinity, and he and I actually know several people in common that went to Southwestern! Such a small world.

Mmmm... apple pie!

What Thanksgiving is complete without a family portrait? Ashley managed to sneak out before we got to picture time, but yes, you're counting correctly... that's 19 people! Everyone cracked up when Sam busted out the tri-pod, but this is SUCH a classic!

If Cole looks full, you know there was enough food!

Well, we definitely bought wayyyy too much food, but better than safe than sorry I say! Plus, everyone got to take home some leftovers, which we all know is the best part of Thanksgiving. (If you did not get leftovers and want some, we still have a ton, so just let me know!) It was so much fun to have everyone together and I'm soooo glad we had enough food and space! Thanks to everyone that brought drinks, food, cups, plates, and anything else too! I'm still in a bit of shock that it worked out! Thanks to EVERYONE who came, you totally made my Thanksgiving! To everyone at home, we hope you are having a fantastic holiday weekend, and look forward to celebrating with you next year!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!  It is now officially the day after Thanksgiving here in Korea. (side note = I proposed to Alison on the day after Thanksgiving last year, and writing this blog prompted me to check last year's calendar to see when Thanksgiving was.  Turns out it was on the 22nd of Nov last year, which means we totally forgot to celebrate one year of being engaged on the 23rd. haha)  Our Thanksgiving Day dinner consisted of us going out with 5 of the other teacher from our school for kalbi.  Which really is not too far off from a Thanksgiving feast.  Kalbi is pork ribs that are cooked over hot coals right at your table, and you can grill peppers, mushrooms, and garlic on the grill as well.  It is a ton of meat, and if you have read our other blogs about Korean meals you know that every meal comes with at least a few side dishes.  We went to our favorite kabli restaurant, and becase kalbi is considered a "big, heavy, somewhat nice, eat out meal" it comes with numerous side dishes. ? to be exact: 2 soups, the best kimchi in all of Korea, rice, hominy type stuff, red pepper dipping sauce, shredded cabbage, and 2 types of leaf lettuce to wrap it all in.  Korean custom calls for almost all meals to be eaten family style where everything is shared.  So the meal was truly as close to a Thanksgiving feast as we could have on Thanksgiving night.  

We are hosting a Thanksgiving dinner at our apartments on Saturday evening.  We initially planned on buy 3-4 rotisserie chickens from the supermarket, along with potato(e)s for home made mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, a couple pies, and some dinner rolls.  We figured this would feed 12 or so people(about the number of people we thought would come from our office.  Well, we did not realize how much people would latch onto this idea.  Word got around to the middle school campus and the new teacher at another campus across the hall from me.  They all invited a friend. Soooo, our current count is now over 20 guests. See my last blog entitled "I live here" if you would like to give me some tips on how to it everyone in here).  It is more than we planned for, but nothing another bag of potato(e)s, rolls, two more chickens, and another pie can't fix.  We are absolutely thrilled that we are able to host our family away from home for a Thanksgiving feast.  We will definitely take pictures and post them ASAP.  

We wish all of you back home the best on this Thanksgiving Day.  We hope that you are able to be with family and friends on this day that calls for being thankful for what we have.  As for us, we are thankful for all of our friends that we have made here, but especially for all of our family and friends back home that have supported us on this journey at the beginning of our lives together.  We are thinking about you and hope you have a wonderful day.  Take an extra bite of everything on your table for us!

I live here

Alison also wrote a blog today, don't forget to check it out also. 

I was looking through all of our old blogs todays and realized that the only pictures of our apartments are from the very first week we were here.  So I thought you might like to see what my place looks like now that it has been lived in.  I did some minor tidying up so I would not look like a complete slob, but I left all my books and gadgets exactly where they were when I had the idea to take some more pictures.  So here is the tour of an apartment that has been lived in for nine months.

My bike outside my door in the hallway

The view of the inside of my door.  I recently purchased my coat rack that was an absolute necessity for my collections of coats, gloves, hats, scarves, and umbrellas.  And yes, I take my shoes off at the door every time I come in.  I'm so asian.

Turn the right once you've walked in the door and you have my kitchen, complete with tea pot warming my water for some jasmine(쟈스민) tea.  I have acquired multiple cooking utensils, a drying rack, and a toaster since we got here.  I actually do quite a bit of cooking so my sink is always full of dishes.

Thats the washer underneath the counter(mini-fridge to the left of it), a 4kg bag of rice that needs to be put away in green, and the other bags are my non-food waste trash by the door.

My drying rack in the foreground.  Desk and "closet" in the background.  All the way in the back is the TV I never use.  I never set up cable or internet in my place because I can get Alison's wireless internet in my room.  My Xbox went out of commission a month or so ago, so the TV is relatively useless.

My desk and windowsill that are use for storage more than anything else.  The windowsill is full of things like Shout, airspray, change, pictures, books, video games, a lint roller, nasal spray, and some computer speakers.  The desk houses my DVD collection and random things that don't have a place.

The green chair was courtesy of the hotel that went out of business down the alley from us.  Alison and I spotted two of these bad boys one night on the way back from the convenience store.  We grabbed them, gave them a good wipe down and now we each have one in our room.  On my bed is the beautiful bedding set that Avalon provided for me.  The TV stand that I now use as my bedside table houses a GRE book, a Japan travel guide, and some other books that I am eventually supposed to get around to.

Just another view.

The floor table is where I find myself spending most of my time recently.  Thanks Abby!! Abby recently left and gifted me this table.  I plop down on my floor cushions and surf the net, download music, write blogs, etc.  The floor is the best place because the heating comes through the water that runs underneath the floor.  Coming home and sitting down on the warm floor is amazing. 

So there you have it.  It's what I call home.  I will be sad to leave it, but I really am looking forward to a full size kitchen(and refrigerator) a separate living room with a couch(ohhhh a couch!!!), and my full size corner desk from IKEA.   haha, its funny what I miss.

Change, Change, Change

Well, there have been lots of changes over the last couple of weeks and it has really gotten me thinking. The weather has definitely changed, and I am still adjusting to that. I've realized exactly how "Texan" I am... I keep thinking, "Okay, it's been cold for a couple of days, but it will warm up again soon!" Umm, not quite. I'm learning to wear socks and always have my scarf and hat handy! I'm also trying not to think about the fact that it will probably only be getting worse until we leave. Sigh.

There have also been quite a few changes in staff at our school. One of the teachers that I am closest to, Abby, finished her contract and headed back to Winnipeg last week. Lindsey and Jordan are back in the States, although, Jordan will be back here before we know it, and many of our favorite Korean teachers will be moving to a new campus that is opening later this month. We've also gotten some new teachers, so that has been exciting. For those of you that know me well, you know that change is not exactly my favorite thing. At all! However, with all of this transition it has made me think about the last nine months and also think about what the future will hold once we head back home.

I regret not posting more of our day-to-day activities here in Seoul, because I'm not sure how well it has come across on this blog how much I absolutely love it here. While adjusting to a new culture and a new city took some time and effort, I really do feel like Seoul has become "home". For one, this is the first real "city" I have ever lived in. Even though I have lived close to Dallas and Austin, I never explored them to the extent that we have explored Seoul over these last 9 months. Even with all that we've done I've already started compiling a list of everything we still have to do and am trying how to fit it all in over the next 12 weekends! I also love being able to function with out a car... even if it is mildly annoying to have to haul your groceries a mile on foot or on the subway, I don't really think too much about it now.

One of the things that has absolutely made this year for me, too, is the people we work with. While I absolutely adored the people I worked with at White Rock (and still do!) it has been nice to work with so many people in my own age bracket. Being here together, so far from home, really creates a bond. We talk about work way more than we should, and sometimes we get really sick of each other, but for the most part I really do enjoy the people we work with, which is a huge blessing. It's nice to have people in your neighborhood, to relax in front of the convenience store with after work, borrow books and movies, etc. It's like a slightly more adult version of college life :)

It's also been a year to slow down and think about where I am and where I'm going. Although I haven't found the "magic answer" for what I should be doing with my life (sorry Mom and Dad!), I've definitely had some time to think. I've also learned some valuable skills as far as communicating clearly and effectively and patience. Patience has NEVER been one of my strengths, but when you are dealing with a classroom full of kids who are obviously not getting the point or a cabbie who wants to take you anywhere but where you want to go you learn that blowing up won't get you anywhere. I'm not exactly Ghandi, but I feel like I have definitely learned to keep my cool much better than before (right, Sam??) I can honestly say I never expected to find myself in Asia, but it has by far been one of the best experiences of my life. I'm trying not to over think the "going home" part, and listen more, trusting that God will show us what we're supposed to next when the time comes. I'm trying to be patient :)

To close (if you've stuck through this rambling!) Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! We will be picking up a rotisserie chicken and apple pie at Costco this Saturday and mixing up some mashed potatoes, green beans, and maybe even some stuffing to feast on with our crew, but we will definitely be missing you all!

Layin' Low

It is Friday night here and Alison and I are both laying low tonight.  Alison is feeling a slight bit under the weather, it is probably just allergies, but she decided to stay in to get some rest just to be make sure it does not get worse.  I am just hanging out in my apartment because I don't feel like spending any money.  South Korea has not been immune to the economic downturn, and in a sense it may be hitting us harder being here rather than back home in the states.  Compared to nine months ago when we arrived the exchange rate between the South Korean Won and the US dollar has dropped over 30%.  So, if we sent home 1 million won in February, we would have gotten $1,000, but now we only get $670.  OUCH!!  We are hoping that the economy gets going in the right direction before we have to send all of our money home in three months.  It certainly won't be back to the rate it was at 9 months ago, but hopefully it will make a small rebound.  But we are not letting the bad exchange rate keeping us from making the most of our time here.  Like I mentioned before we are going to get to go to Japan on a four day weekend in January.  We will fly into Tokyo, probably spend a day there, then head over to Nagano to see the snow monkeys.  From there we might head south for the remaining two days before heading back to Seoul.  It will be a quick trip, but it would have been disappointing if we did not make it to Japan.  We have also decided that we are going to go to Vietnam and Cambodia(at least) immediately following the end of our contracts.  Our employer allows us to delay our flights out of Korea for up to 30 days after our contracts expire.  So we will fly to Vietnam, travel for ten days, then fly back to Korea, spend a night in Seoul, and then catch our flight back to the states the following day.  

Beijing Day 4

Go look at the other entry entitled Beijing Day 4. I wrote it a long time ago but never got around to publishing it, but when I did, it published it on the day I started writing it.

Beijing Day 3: The Great Wall

Well, what Sam said is true, visiting the Great Wall has been a life-long dream of mine. I had a strange fascination with the Wall when I was little (I can still see the small, blue, hardback book my parents bought me). I guess it's the allure of something you can see from space, but that was built without the assistance of any "modern" construction conveniences. The idea of this wall snaking though the countryside for thousands of years (construction on the first sections of the Wall began in the 6th century BC) just captivates me. In any case, finally getting to see it and walk it was a really amazing experience.

We decided not to take our hostel's tour because we wanted to set our own time frame on the wall. We also decided not to go to Badaling, the most often visited section of the Great Wall because we wanted something a bit less, well, crowded. Instead we took a bus (and then a taxi) to the Mutianyu section, about 70km northeast of Beijing. Overall, I think it was a good decision, and getting there and back was not too difficult. Just make sure that if you do this, when you get off the bus at Huairou you set a return price with your cab driver before you take off as your cab driver will sit and wait for you while you are on the Wall.

So, we finally arrived at Mutianyu and took the cable car up to the top. It was absolutely gorgeous, and I will now stop talking and provide photo evidence of our journey! (As usual, more over at the picture page.)

Ummm... so. many. stairs.

What trip to the Great Wall would be completely without a thoroughly exauhsted, ridiculously dorky high-five photo as a capper? Obviously not this one!