Mt Achasan in the Spring Time

Makgeoli Scooter (Located just off the

winding drive that intersected our 

hiking trail, we found this scooter

with a crate full of rice wine for sale.)

Jeff and I visited a spot we haven't been to since last fall.  Instead of enduring a 2+ hour subway ride (round trip) to Mt. Bukansan, we decided to stay a little closer to home and give Mt. Achasan another try.  We had clambered up this mountain with a small group of friends when we first met, and hadn't been back since.  Since we were by ourselves this time, we toured around a bit more, and went a bit further along the trail.  It was a tough decision to head back down to town, given how GORGEOUS the scenery was.  Much better than our previous visit.  Everything was green, and all of the flowers in full bloom!  Annnnd, a major bonus - the mosquitoes weren't yet out to bite!

Rex the Magician

I visited my host family last night, and ended up being treated to dinner and a show, with Rex the Magician!  He made handkerchiefs disappear, coins multiply in value, and balls disappear into a box.  Beyond adorable.  Especially now that I'm accustomed to how insanely rambunctious he is!  

JE NI PUH!

So, I walk out of my building this morning, and wait at the crosswalk as I always do.  When the light changed, I started crossing the street, and was surprised to hear my name.  The woman in the car I was walking towards was calling my name and checking if it was me or not.

"JE NI PUH, JE NI PUH!!"

Well, yes, I'm Je Ni Puh, as they pronounce it.  But who the heck is she?  She points at herself and says, Seonil (the name of my elementary school).  Then she proceeds to wave me into the passenger seat of her car.

What did I do?  I got in!  And it shaved 10 minutes off of my morning commute.  :)

While Out for Brunch

Jeff and I met our friends Ji and Phobi for brunch in a nice part of Seoul the other weekend.  The food was good, the coffee was strong, and the shopping that followed was full of great deals!  For the most part, the afternoon was pleasant and things were progressing in a fairly standard way.  Jeff and I stopped in our tracks, however, when we came across these two very specific, very unique, sights.

On the left: Car Ferris Wheel  For when there just isn't enough room for a parking lot.

On the right: Self explanatory.  Surprisingly, this sign was being displayed in a rather nice coffee shop.(Squatty potties aren't uncommon for women here.)  

A School Outing

It is common in the public schools here to have teacher dinners, outings, and weekend trips.  For this semester, our school decided to take a hiking trip together.

We left school at 3pm and drove over to a popular park in town that has a man-made waterfall, lots of flowers, and a mountain/hill with trails running throughout it.  I was incredibly impressed that our elderly principal led the way on the hike.  While the last bit of the hike was more of a walk, the beginning was quite steep, and I was definitely breathing hard.  I am amazed again and again at how active the older generation is here.

When we reached the top, we gazed out at the city of Ansan, and noted some local landmarks in the distance including a stadium, the tallest apartment building in Ansan, and Lotte Mart (aka Walmart).

Wait... Lotte Mart?  Am I on the same mountain as the one I've walked many times with my host family?  Is it possible that I'm just on a different part of the trail?  I started asking these questions to my co-teacher, and sure enough, as we walked a little further, we intersected the trail I knew!

What a small world!  It's a wonderful feeling when I recognize things over here.  It starts to seem less crazy and hectic, and more like a home that I know and understand.

I explained to my co-teacher that this was, in fact, the mountain I had climbed before, and that my host family lives nearby.

Then, speak of the devil, my host mom called me!
"Teacher... "Teacher... Mountain."
Wait, what?!

I turn around, and sure enough, my host mom is walking right behind me!!!  Once again, what a small world!

We stopped to chat via my co-teacher for a minute or two, and then went on our ways again.  How I would have loved to chat more, but I guess after a year and a half of not communicating, that's what we're used to.  I could hardly think of anything to say!

It was exciting, unexpected, and a little sad to see that we didn't have much to say.  Nonetheless, we made plans to have dinner on Thursday night. We will sit and eat in contented silence, as usual.  Without needing tons of words.  Just happy to be together.

The Universal Language

There seems to be two universal languages in this world. The first being a smile, and the second being math.  While it's not completely true - some ancient cultures (and possibly modern cultures that I'm unaware of) used bases other than ten - I believe that most humans have developed the same basic principals of mathematics.  This came to mind when I was at a Korean friend's house and came across this little book.  In English, it's Titled, The Number Devil.  It is a book meant to inspire curiosity about mathematics, and explains several different mathematical concepts in a story-like fashion meant to grab the attention of young readers.  I first read it in college while doing a math education project, and I must admit, I found it brilliant!  I was so excited to see it over here on this side of the world, too.

Positive Perspectives and Practicing What You Preach

The final bump... Ahh, the irony!

Jeff and I were at my place, talking about perspectives, and were getting all wrapped up in the incredible effect people's attitudes have on how they perceive and enjoy life.  How, with the right frame of mind, it is far easier to be a happy, compassionate, and healthy person.

I was just telling him about how despite all the little bumps of moving into my new school and apartment, I was still quite happy.  I acknowledged, however, that maybe (just maybe) my attitude could have used a little readjustment at times.  ;) I told him I was certain that the next time something popped up, I could do an even better job of staying positive and making the best of it!

Well, within 20 minutes of this conversation, my water refused to get hot again.  Yep.  Again.  My hot water was nowhere to be found.  Given that I needed to freshen up and take a shower before meeting with friends, this was not good.  Time to practice what I'd preached... except a good majority of my idealism flew out the window in frustration.  (To give myself at least a little credit, I did laugh a bit at the situation given the ridiculous irony and timing of it all.)

Trying to help out, Jeff filled the teapot with tap water and said he'd boil some up while I worked on getting a hold of my co-teacher.  As it turns out, however, my stove was out of order, too.  The water sat ice cold in the teapot.

It didn't take us long to discover that the gas had been completely shut off from my apartment.  To top it all off, my co-teacher informed me that the apartment office wasn't available on the weekends... and it was currently Saturday.  This meant that the problem would have to wait until Monday to get fixed.  

Although it was frustrating, it was helpful that we had just been talking about the importance and benefits of staying positive.  After taking a few breaths and reminding myself that it wasn't the end of the world, I remembered I had an electric kettle stored away, and we were able to boil enough water for a bird bath.

I'm not one to sit around, though.  I'm a doer and a fixer, and I wasn't content to leave things as they were.  I took the problem into my own hands on Sunday afternoon and tried one last ditch effort to get the help I needed.  Down the elevator to the security guard, I went!

Luckily, I was able to work my Konglish/sign language skills effectively enough that the guard understood my problem.  The helpful call to my recruiter (aka translator in times of need) probably didn't hurt, either.  ;)

Being kind to the doorman paid off - he magically had the problem fixed within the hour!

Thank goodness!

---

Now that life is calming down a tad, and I'm settling into my daily routine, it's easier to step back and keep my perspective in check.  Also, I am happy to announce that all of these bumps have been addressed, and most have been fixed. Whether it was with a hot glue gun (in the case of the desk and my electrical outlet covers) or with three separate visits from the repairman (in the cases of my washing machine and internet woes), progress has been made!

Positive Perspectives and Computers

Bump #9)

Road-rage is possible while sitting at your desk.  I realized this as I tried to use my school computer to create a PowerPoint presentation.  You see, my school computer is slower than molasses and the internet frequently freezes.  (Actually, It has since been cleaned up a bit and is running at a much more timely pace!)

Positive Perspectives and Housing Conditions

Bump #6)

It is highly dangerous to mix water and sources of electricity.  Hence, I was rather concerned when I noticed that my bathroom light fixture had exposed cords.  The one located inside my shower.  (Korean bathrooms are strange.)

Bump #7)

All the little things add up.  There were various other problems with my apartment - minor, but still.  (Burnt out lights in my ceiling that I couldn't reach to fix, outlet covers that repeatedly fell off the wall, the fact that I lost some important banking paperwork in the move, and the lack of internet access at my apartment.)

Bump #8)

It is true time and again that you pay for what you get.  In this case, my school paid for what I got.  And they didn't pay much.  Under the contract I signed, my school was supposed to provide me with certain housing items.  A couch, being on of them.  I didn't consider the strange folding contraption in my living room to be a couch, however, so I threw it away.  Thankfully my co-teacher sided with me and crossed it off the list of what my school provided me with.  

The second sub-par item was my desk.  My apartment is small, and I didn't want extra junk cluttering it up.  So the flimsy particle board desk didn't make the cut.  Unfortunately, my co-teacher didn't give me the okay on placing it on the curb.  We made a compromise though, and she let me bring it to the English office to at least free up some space in my little officetel.

Jeff, being the gentleman that he is, volunteered to help me bring it to school (about a twenty minute walk.)  I was fixing my hair in the bathroom when I heard something tumbling down my stairs, ending in a large thud.  Yep.  It was my desk.  When Jeff had picked up the desk, the side fell off.  Prompting the drawer to fall out.  Hence, he lost his grip and it all tumbled down my stairs.  As he nudged it all back together, the top fell off.  No idea how that happened.  I witnessed it in action (the top falling off), but I still don't get the physics of it.

So, yeah.  We carried it to school in three separate pieces and were met by a very surprised co-teacher at the front door.  I  borrowed a screwdriver from the maintenance man, reinforced my handiwork with a hot glue gun, and topped it all off with a little duct-taping action from my co-teacher. The desk now sits proudly in the front of our classroom and holds my flashcards and coffee cup while I teach.

Positive Perspectives and Laundry Gadgets

Bump #4)

It is energy-zapping when your washing machine flashes an error message and stops spinning while your clothes are sitting in it, soaking wet.  Yes.  My washing machine broke.  It took a week for it to be partially fixed, but the drier function will forever be out of commission.  Apparently my machine is too old, and they don't make the part needed to repair it anymore.  I'm back to hanging (and consequently stretching out) my clothes to dry now.  Not too excited about that.

Oh yeah, let's not forget to mention that I found a lone screw on my floor after the repairman left.  I didn't think too much about it until the next time I used my washing machine and it about jumped and wiggled its way to the middle of my kitchen floor.  

Bump #5)

Wearing wrinkly skirts feels frumpy and unprofessional.  But there's not much I could do about it, given that my iron broke.  It has since been replaced by some extremely futuristic model that I had to ask my co-teacher to read the manual for.  The device is not self-explanatory.  And the pictures on the box are of little help.  Hopefully it all gets figured out by the time summer hits!  

Positive Perspectives and Sixth Graders

Bump #3)

It is slightly mind-blowing when your co-teacher is scared of the sixth graders.

My first experience with one of my sixth grade classes was trying (unsuccessfully) to confiscate a fully-loaded water gun that was being squirted during class.  It is unusual for a student to hold their ground as well as this particular sixth grade girl did.  My co-teacher intercepted my efforts by whispering into my ear about how this girl has a history of beating up other students, and of pulling her teacher's hair.  

Now, I'm not one to give in to students, but given the size of this girl, and my lack of fighting abilities, I decided to heed the advice of my co-teacher and back down.  I've since learned a more effective, gentle way of dealing with misbehavior from some of our more troubled students.

Even with my adjusted approach, sixth grade can be a tough, tough crowd.  

Positive Perspectives and a Hot Water Heater

One of my Americorps buddies, Katelyn, posted a simple, yet profound Facebook status recently.

Her post: 

We see the world, not as it is, but as we are - or, as we are conditioned to see it.  When we open our mouths to describe what we see, we in effect describe ourselves.

Her words caught my eye for a couple reasons.  For one thing, Jeff and I have been talking quite a bit about the power of perspectives and attitudes lately.  Also, I have been reading a book titled, Beyond Religion, written by the Dalai Lama, which talks a lot about the importance of compassion and ways in which people can evaluate and adjust their perspectives to lead happier, more compassionate lives.  

This past month has been a month of readjustment and hard work, as a result of changing apartments and schools.  The extra demands on my schedule and energy level have made it easy to let my perspective and attitude slip from where I would have wanted them to be.  

Although I am incredibly thankful to be paired up with my new co-teacher, and am adjusting nicely to my new students and schedule, there were a few bumps that needed to be smoothed out along the way.

Bump #1) 

It's just plain difficult to end your current job on Wednesday, move apartments Wednesday night, and start your new job bright and early on Thursday morning.  I had help moving from some friends, which made it far easier than it could have been, but still.

Bump #2)

It is very disheartening to realize on Thursday morning that your water doesn't get hot.  Well, it gets hot, but only for about a second and half before becoming ice-cold again.  Hot, cold, hot, cold.  This makes showering very unappealing.  Practicing adaptability,  I heated up water in my teapot and took a bit of a bird bath on Thursday morning.  Felt a little off balance my first day at my new school.  

Bump #2.5) 

It is very frustrating when your landlord doesn't take your hot water problem seriously until a day and a half later.  Hence, I took another camping-style teapot shower on Friday morning.  Brr!

Bumps #3-9 To Be Continued...

Cherry Blossom Park

My neighbor, Larissa, recently moved out of our apartment building and relocated to a new school in Seoul.  Before her departure,  however, we decided to follow our long-lost tradition  of Sunday  night walks through the park near our place. In addition to one last walk through the park, we took advantage of shared access to her mini oven and baked a batch of chocolate cupcakes! (The box mix courtesy of my mom -thanks so much Mums!)  The beautiful white cherry blossoms were in full bloom, and the cupcakes were full of chocolate chips.  As you can imagine, it was a good night!

Notice the flavors of the icing:
purple, green, and rad.

Boat Ride on the Han

I can't quite place our expressions, but this photo was taken by our friend Iftin on an hour long "cruise" of sorts down the Han River (the river that cuts Seoul in half).  It was a new way to see the city, a fun way to spend a beautiful spring evening, and a mellow way to say goodbye to Iftin, who is back in Canada now.  

Jello

My host family treated me to a night out at Pizza Hut a while back.  The boys added a special touch to the mango jello.  ;)

J E N