month 2 - "mandoo, por favor"

october 19th

I saw my first rugby game!


october 22nd

This was the first day it rained since I had been here, nearly three and a half weeks. I've been told I lucked out, as many of the newer teachers had been forced to survive monsoon season (solid rain every day for over a month) upon arrival.


october 26th

I haven't seen very many cops. In fact, this was the day I saw my first police vehicle. It was in Seoul. I was walking to brunch, (YES, I found a place, the Rocky Mountain Tavern, Canadian themed bar,) and had to step off the street to let a car pass. I noticed the cop lights, and then, as it was driving by just inches from me, I couldn't help but notice the driver's partner, also in uniform, was ASLEEP! Haha! So I guess you can be a sleepy cop here and go ahead and have yourself a nap if you need one. Plus two points for law enforcement style. october 29th
My first pay day. WOOT! As long as i don't think about the exchange rate, I feel rich with multiple millions of won. Side-note, several weeks after this, they discussed that they had decided to change our pay date, effectively moving it ten days later and breaking each and every one of our contracts. I was quite happy, I can't lie, as I hoped this would mean I could be set free and get a new job. They heard all the muttering in the staff room and changed their mind. This will now be effective in March for the new school year. Wise move on their part, but I was crushed.


october 31st

On Halloween day, Jamie Teacher and I hosted the "Monster Dance" room starting at 10am. Picture two white chicks, both dressed as cats (in heels), leading the freeze dance competition amongst swarm after swarm of tiny Korean children. We had to ham it up for every single song and every single group of kids that came in, and still they would often just stare at us blankly with a "you teachers are crazy" look on their faces as you got down to our hip-hop selection. It was pretty ridiculous. And I had a sprained ankle. It was really sprained after that. Later that day, I took a nap and went out in Hongdae (club scene in Seoul) with Soo Min and Nate (friends from back home in Boston.) I had an awesome night but was told I was a wimp when I couldn't hack it anymore after 4am... The clubs were packed tighter than submarine's right up until we finally went home at 5:30 in the morning. You literally could not move.


november 1st

This was the first weekend I didn't spend entirely in Seoul, although my subway trip back from Hongdae Saturday morning took over two and a half hours. My new friends were all in Hong Kong for the world championship rugby match, New Zealand vs. Australia. Today I mastered getting home in a cab by myself and said the right thing and everything: "Jung An Town." (That's not how you spell it, I'm sure, that's just how I remember how to say it.) The cabbie brought me right home! I was so thrilled with myself. It may sound minor but these types of things are major accomplishments toward becoming self-sufficient in this country.


november 8th

I went to a wine and cheese party! Made me smile like no other. Say it with me: "Cheese please!"


november 10th

Today I finished my NEWer and hopefully more improved Christmas "play." Yes, they told me to write another one. (They then waited several weeks after this and asked me to change it for a THIRD TIME! Grrrr...)


november 11th

Parents Participation Day: This is the day I had been dreading ever since I was forewarned about a month ago. As with perhaps any private school, their main goal is to keep the parents happy as it is their money that essential funds the programs, salaries, etc. My mothers came in and observed my class (a vastly shortened and rehearsed class, mind you), along with the occasional father, uncle, or aunt. My immediate supervisor and Korean partner teacher were also in the classroom. They told me that the parents would base their decision on whether or not to enroll their child for the following school year on the class alone. There was an immense amount of pressure. I have no idea what I did, but I guess I did fine. I had a meeting with all the mothers afterwords and sat in front of them with their chairs arranged like an audience. It was incredibly intimidating. They asked questions and my supervisor translated. The director came in for part of it. After I busted out at the end of our meeting, she called up the stairs after me: "Thank you for smiling!" I guess I don't smile that much at school. HA! I was amused, but they were happy so it was a relief.

To celebrate after PPC day, Jen and I went to a new restaurant in our neighborhood, "Taste Noodles." We took our shoes off as we entered and sat down to a hopefully delicious meal of hot noodles. We then realized there was no menu, or rather it was on the wall, but without pictures. This was the first time we went to a restaurant without a picture menu. We attempted to start translating things on our phones but the Agjama seemed impatient. I asked for two of whatever it was they were going to give us and hoped for the best. A minute later we were sitting in front of a big 'ol bowl of kim-chi. (If you don't know what kim-chi is, it's spicy cooked cabbage, served cold or hot, in this case cold. And honestly, it's pretty hard to get down, in my opinion.) You should have seen the look on Jen's face. Sooo disappointed! We both kind of smiled and then laughed and started translating the rest of the menu on our phone to see what we had ordered or if we should try something else. I started eating the kim-chi and suggested we have a contest to see who could eat the most. Then a few minutes later she brought over a giant bowl of green noodles with shrimp, clams, and spices. AH! Our delight was evident. We pushed the kim-chi aside and chowed down.


november 16th

My computer had crashed, (thus the lack of blogging until now).I went to Electronics Market in Yongsan in hopes of finding someone to help me fix it. I bought a brand new 80 GB hard drive for about $80 bucks, installed, ready to go in an hour. I'm thrilled. So I'm back up and running and emailing and such.


november 17th

I had dinner with Soo Min (friend from college) and his aunt and uncle's family who live pretty close to me. (I brought his aunt yellow roses because I didn't know what else to bring.) She made the most quintessential Korean meal she could when she learned I had only been in the country a few months and hadn't eaten with a Korean family yet. At times it was really awkward as Soo Min and I were speaking English and then he would translate after. They really wanted their children to speak English with me, probably to see that all their hard-earned money on TOEFL programs has paid off. The sixth grader was too shy and refused but their ninth grader spoke great English. Many families pay people just to come to their home and speak English with them, so this was a great trade I'm sure. They are Christians and asked me if I went to church and if I had found one here yet. They "mentioned" their church had services in English. It was all quite precious. I bowed profusely on the way out, but maybe not as deeply as I should have. I really adore meeting people's families. I was "tickled" as they say.


clothing:

The women here are dressed to impress almost 100% of the time. If they are out in public, they are fully done up: hair, make-up, accessories, trendy jacket, boots, designer purse, bejeweled cellphone, and on and on. The young women here are big fans of the mini-skirt or shorts with tights look. They would never show their shoulders or lower neck area in public, however. You won't ever see anyone but a foreigner wearing a tank-top here without a t-shirt underneath. I break that rule when I go out. Scandalous foreigner, I be.

I can fit in most of the clothes, fortunately, but clearly not the pants, due to height restrictions. My wardrobe will eventually largely consist of mu-mus and leggings. the other day I walked into a store, and before I had hardly had a chance to look at anything, the Ahjama said "big size-EH" and pointed to me and my friend. I looked at Jen in disbelief, "Did she just tell us she had plus sizes for us?" Jen: "Yeah, let's get out of here." I wanted to buy a pair of these trendy stirrup leggings the other day and asked the lady if they had medium or large. She knew what I was saying because I pointed to a sticker that said M/L on a pair of pantyhose. She then looked at me quizzically and said, "Plus size-eh?" I smiled and nodded, yes, plus size. Then I asked her if she thought it would fit me, the plus size. She looked me over twice and then shook her head. I had a good laugh. You have to. I was pretty sure it would have fit me but I was too embarrassed to stay at the counter any longer. I went and got myself a hot waffle on the street filled with something close to whipped cream and maple syrup. Then I bought leggings somewhere else.


safety:

I have never felt so safe in my life, really. Maybe it's a false sense of safety but it's a nice feeling. I feel safer here than in the quiet asian neighborhood I lived in in Malden (which has it's own S.W.A.T team), more than in Gloucester, and even more than back when I lived in Northern Maine. That's not to say that I don't always lock my door, but I can walk around at night and not be on alert, looking behind me every few feet. I'm not exactly sure what gives me such a feeling, especially since I've never seen such poorly lit streets in such a populated area. I trip over stuff on the sidewalk if I walk to the bus in the evening. It's very dark.


my korean etiquette:

I try to be super polite almost to a fault. Koreans are friendly-ish, but it's true that they judge you. Perhaps that is the same of all cultures and foreigners living among them. I always give my seat on the bus or subway to someone that looks over 55 or 60 or has young children. I guess I did that back home too, but even more so here. They always seem kind of surprised that a foreigner would think to do that. I like to make people smile. The younger people here don't seem to bow anymore as a greeting or goodbye. However, one of my students was asked to use "bow" in a sentence and wrote: "I bow to grandmother every morning." I think it's a quaint custom, so I use it in stores as I exit and thank the store owner, on the street when people stare, if someone holds a door open for me, etc. My friend Soo Min says that it's excessive, but they often bow first, or bow right back and smile. I think it is appreciated that I am trying to be polite. I know such little Korean that I try to do stuff like this that doesn't need translation and hope it's well-received. things i know how to say in korean: hello goodbye thankyou over here right left straight how much? one two three big brother married woman station Yeah, I need to work on this, ALOT. It's really hard. Someone will teach me how to say something and I instantly forget no matter how many times I repeat it to myself.


this brings me to my title choice:

It's natural for me to revert to my very limited Spanish vocabulary when searching for a word in Korean. I catch myself wanting to say "por favor" every time I ask for something. Part of this is that I feel so rude pointing but have little other choice. I feel it would be at least a little more polite if I point at something and then say "please." Unfortunatley there really isn't a word for please in Korean. You have to say something and then follow it with "Chuseo." There is this cart outside Samsung Plaza in Bundang that sells the best damn Mandoo. (Mandoo is dumplings filled with meat and other salty things.) I call the lady, "Mandoo Mama," and give her the biggest smile ever when I go there. You can catch me wondering back to the cart for seconds after I've shopped a little, and then for a third time for my dessert of whipped-cream-filled waffle sandwiches. Mandoo mama and Mandoo make my heart so happy.


overall:

Well, I know I've said a lot already but none of it specifically about how I'm really doing here. It's hard for me to sum it up nicely in a paragraph or even get it down to a general feeling. I have many feelings. Allow me to ramble between thoughts, please.

This month more so than before, I've become more homesick for my friends back home in Mald-y, NYC, and elsewhere. I miss my old roommates a ton, and that great apartment, but have been enjoying the evening solitude that I had lacked for so many years. I don't miss living in Boston itself all that much. I miss New York a LOT. I greatly enjoy just walking and watching here. (The people watching itself is fantastic, some of the best.) I have decided I do like being surrounded by just chatter, none of it registering. It gives you a lot more time to think and be in solitude even in one of the biggest cities in the world. I've been writing more lately.

I bought a journal whose cover reads: "I will stick to my dream and try my best to make it come true." I remind myself that leaving would defeat the point and that even though my job is much the same as I mentioned in the beginning, if not even more tiring and discouraging, I am still accomplishing my goal just by being here. There's been a lot to make up for all the job bullshit too, like having made good friends here already. I can't imagine how it would be if I hadn't found a few awesome people right away. It makes all the difference in the world.