Welcome to the S.K., where are you from?

It has been a while since I've updated. Honestly, though, there isn't all that much to say.
I, basically, am already in a routine where I wake up and go to work, teach, and go home.
Obviously, there are always odd happenings, but they usually are not consequential enough to mention.

Last weekend, I went to Chongdeokgung Palace with a co-worker and her friend. We had a really good time! :D I'll post a few pictures below. We had some Dolsot Bibimbap...which is now probably one of my favorite dishes. I don't really know how to explain it...there are a lot of vegetables, it's served hot, and a little spicy, but not unbearable. On our way to the palace we saw this elderly guy in the street. He had a tupperware of kimchi on his person. He then proceeded to try and give me the kimchi--to set the scene, he grabbed the cabbage in his hand and came towards my face with it. My 2 Korean friends were flipping out and yelling at him and they dragged me away. Although kimchi is good and all, I really don't think I wanted his kimchi.

I'd ballpark it to say that the average number, weekly, that strange things happen to me is around 10...about 1.2 per day. By strange things, I don't mean the usual stares, but people who actually decide that they think it is a sound idea to approach me. Usually, I get the question, "Where are you from?". I think I'm going to start deriving outlandish answers to this question. Beyond that, usually, when you talk to them, they end the conversation with "Welcome to Korea!"...thanks, but I've already been here a month.

So, Christmas is next week. It really doesn't feel like Christmas here, at all. Perhaps, it's because it's not really a big holiday here. Although, they do play a lot of Christmas music. Which is kind of funny, right now they play the song "Last Christmas" They play it, perhaps, with a little too much liberty. It's actually kind of ridiculous. Just like America, they play the same pop songs over and over again. Right now some popular songs you can youtube, at your leisure, if you so choose, are: nobody, but you (wondergirls), rainism, eat you up (boa), and, umm, there are others, however, those are the ones I actually know the titles to.

Although I suppose there has been a semi-negative tone to this post about my experiences here, I hope you all know that, honestly, I really love it here. This is by far one of the coolest experiences. The kids I teach are really awesome too. They all call me "teacher!" and usually I respond with "student!". I had them write auto-biographies for me this week...sooo cute. One of my students named himself Jesus...kind of funny. It was hard, at first, to say his name with a straight face. I had him in my debate class...they actually turned out to be my favorite kids. They were all 3rd years though, so I won't have them again. :( Anywho, that's about all for now, I'll try and update again soon.

So a lot has happened, but at the same time not a lot has occurred. This past weekend I visited Euljiro where the city just completed a river resoration project. You can stroll on both sides of the river and there are various bridges you can cross to get to the other side. Or, if you choose, you can cross the river on stepping stones. I want to go back when it’s warmer out. I actually walked around a little bit in the city area too and explored some shops. I saw a Christmas shop and various street vendors who specialize in certain products, like towels. I also want to go back to invest in some towels, they seem like they will be cheaper there than at E-mart. At E-mart one full sized towel can cost you about ten dollars.
After my individual exploration I met up with my co-worker and we headed to the Avalon Thanksgiving Party. Some of the teachers from the elementary school campus very nicely hosted the party at their apartment. It was awesome because I got to meet a bunch of other foreign teachers as well as eat some mashed potato, stuffing, and apple pie!
The next day I met up with a friend at Coex shopping mall in Samseoung. It definitely exceeded my expectations! The mall was huge and had everything you could ever want. Numerous western eating establishments. Naming just a few: Quiznos, Sbarro, and Uno Pizzaria. There’s also a huge movie theater that shows a variety of Korean and Western movies (with Korean subtitles, of course). I got a new book at the mall which is nice because I already finished all the ones I had brought with my from FL. Then I met up with one of my co-workers for dinner. We went to this cool Korean restaurant where they seve spicy chicken and rice. The thing about Korea is that oftentimes they cook your dinner right on the table. You kind of have to tend it yourself too. We ate dinner and then headed to get some icecream. My coworker ordered Korean icecream for me to try. I was skeptical at first, but figured, while in Korea…so I gave it a try and was pleasantly surprised by how great it was. The strange thing about the icecream is that they put redbean past in it…so it kind of throws you off. It comes in a huge bowl and on the bottom is very finely shaven ice, on top of that a huge variety of fruit (kiwi, banana, apples, pineapple, etc…), then the red bean paste, and then 3 scoops of icecream (vanilla and strawberry). You mix it all together and it turns into a smoothie like concoction. Delicious, truly.
My week at school has been nice. Kind of slow due to the fact that all the kids have final exams this week. The’re all busy studying and taking tests. The kids work ethic here though is really admirable. I taught my very first debate class yesterday. It was fun, next weeks topic is going to be Corpral Punishment in school. We’ll see how that goes. I might have some fun stories about that.

This is Kimbap. It's like Korean sushi!
I think I’m catching a cold too…so hopefully I can fight it off. Miss everyone lots.
Love,
Margaret