It's a good news Monday

Before this weekend we had a pretty slow week, but it was stressful. Arguably the worst thing about EPIK (English Program In Korea) is the one thing that is not nationally regulated - camps and vacation during breaks. The good news about this being up to the individual schools is that during both breaks we've been allowed much more than our gauranteed 7 days plus weekends of vacation. The bad news is that we never know how much time we'll have or when we'll have it because the schools decide pretty late by someone anxious to buy a plane ticket's standards. This is made additionally stressful by the fact that our co-teachers don't want to force the issue with the principles, so they tell us what they think will happen as if it were what the principle has already set in stone. Example: last week Sun Ja told me on Wednesday that I definitely (go home and buy a plane ticket now definitely) would have only 1 week of camp and could travel the whole month of August. But then Friday she said I only had 7 days of vacation and would have 3 weeks of camp and would have to come to school for 8 hours a day when I didn't have vacation or camp, or any other teachers or students around either. That was devastating, but now it's Monday, and the story is I've got 2 weeks of camp and can travel for 3 weeks in August - a compromise I am more than elated with. Such a good news Monday!

So during that slow, ants in my pants week I experimented with the macro on my camera.
Hooters.

Party time.

These are my Philippines jewels.

But, the stamp pad is my favorite.

Luckily, things picked up on the weekend. Thursday was Soo Jeong's last day of teaching with Brian, so we all went to a Giants' baseball game to say farewell. Much to our surprise we saw David and Duck there too. Though it was a full stadium, two 6 foot foreigners were easy enough to spot in a sea of Koreans. And the Giants won! It was a great game and we had a lot of fun. Observe.

Friday David came down to our side of town. We kicked off with a trip to see the fountains at the park near the apartment. The fountains themselves were nice enough to see, but the best part was all the the kim baps running around in the water.

The little guy in the rain jacket was my favorite. Turns out those things don't work so well when the water is coming from the ground.

Once the fountains finally died out we ventured onward. We found ourselves at a Japanese restaurant for dinner and drinks where I was excited to find out I could recognise some of the hiragana written there. Hiragana is one of the 3 different kinds of Japanese scripts, which I've been studying recently because I had all this nervous energy pent up that I desparately wanted to spend on planning trips but was thwarted by the lack of information about when and how much time I would have for said trips. I had to do something, so I started studying Japanese in case we find ourselves teaching there next year.

After Japanese time we went to Keno Eye for a lively round of darts. And the boys, believing themselves to be beautiful people, wanted to see and be seen. Here they are striking a pose fit for magazines. Check that mustache action.

Saturday was bright and sunny at our apartment, so we pulled ourselves together and struggled over to Haeundae where the weather was very strangey. It was hot and somewhat sunny, but mostly there was a very dense, very local fog that may or may not have been man made.

We found out the next day that it had been nakey time on the beach day, an event sponsored by Busan to increase foreign tourism. I find it doubtful, but within the realm of possibility, that the fog was created to engulf the nudity, which we never saw, so perhaps this scheme was effective.

Saturday night Brian and I took it easy, but we still acompanied David to the convenient store for a sit and some people watching. This plan allowed us to get up early on Sunday and go for a hike. We went out in search of a temple called Seokbulsa, but we did not find it. Instead we found an amazing obstacle course and a ropes course. It was also the first time I'd seen the town within the valley up on Geumjeong Mountain.

We spotted this old couple having a Sunday picnic in their garden. I love this bit of rural Korea in the center of Busan.

We never found what we came for, but what we got was better than what we'd planned on anyway. We found a bee keeper selling honey on the mountain. We even found an explosion of pheasant feather souvenirs on the overgrown trail we bushwhacked.

And now it's good news Monday. I don't have my after school classes this week because Sun Ja has a conference to attend, so I'll have time on my hands to plan our Mongolia trip. I can't wait for two humped camels, fermented mare's milk, and nomad nights in gers. We're going to the Gobi!

January in Busan

Since we've been back in Busan we've been busy. First off was 2-3 weeks of English Camp for each of us. Around the board the consensus is - GREAT! We went in around the regular time, and we got off at 12, so we had our afternoons off. And now that it's over we have about 2 weeks of vacation again because the kids aren't back in school yet. But more about that later.

Since we've been back Brian and I have been taking care of Ryan and Shannon's rabbit, Chingu, while they're on vacation. She's been a lot of furry fun and a pain in the ass all at once. I'm glad this experience has cured me of my desire for a pet in our one room apartment. I think Brian's even more glad. There are some pictures of her in the slide show below.

Our big adventure day since we've been back was a Saturday; David, Duck, Brian and I played blackjack with coins at D and D's apartment Friday night. Then we were off to Shanghai street and Foreigners' street near Busan Station to explore. Foreigners' street used to be Texas street, but now there's so much Russian influence there that the name was changed. Most of the signs are in Russian, and the Russian mafia is known to cause trouble there from time to time. It might be the only part of Busan where you have to hold your bags close and stay clear at night (see slide show).

From Foreigners' and Shanghai we walked to Nopodong where we saw this friendly, cabbage covered lion. We also found a great street full of antiques and traditional ceramics near there.

After a coffee break it was time for the true mission of our day - sashimi (called hoe (hweyh) in Korea) dinner at Jagalchi market. This is the enormous seafood market near Nopodong, but upstairs are restaurants with a view of the harbor and delicious fresh fish. It was our Christmas gift to each other, and we ordered 2 small flounders raw and 2 small flounders fried (but not battered) along with various banchan and drinks and it was all less than 17 bucks a person. Here's the raw fish platter. Koreans usually put this in a lettuce wrap with some spicy/salty sauce, but there's also soy sauce with wasabi for dipping. It was amazing. OH, and on our way there we saw whale balene outside the market. The lady said it wasn't for eating, maybe it was just to let you know that they sell whale at those stalls. It felt like fingernails.

We milked our time at Jagalchi to enjoy the view, but once we finally left we walked through Nopodong once more on our way to Busan tower. The streets are festively lit all year round.

Half way up the escalators to the tower there was a little shop area with a traditional tea shop and these Buddhist lanterns.

And then finally, the tower. It changes colors of course. The view was pretty great with Pusan Port and a huge portion of the city visible. The glass angled out too so that you could look directly down and get dizzy, which is always fun.

Once finishing our tower observing we had to walk back through Nopodong on our way to the subway (heading to our apartment for a late night of gin rummy and rhum and cokes), and along the way we found a wig stand. Look at all those colors! And observe the slide show.

It was a great day in Busan.

Since then there's been a burrito bonanza at our place with Sunny and Yun Jae (I made pretzel appetizers but didn't think to explain the appetizer concept and Yun Jae ate 6 big ones because he thought it was the dinner I'd made, but he still managed to eat 2 burritos too), a seashore exploration at Igidae Park, and Seollal (Lunar New Year, biggest holiday in Korea) dinner at Sunny's apartment. And Brian and I just got back from a trip to Seoul. Check in soon for the post (there will be videos with gruesome footage!).

Geumgang Park

This past weekend we visited Guemgang Park near David and Duck's place. This is a mountain with many temples and rides for kids and an outdoor public workout facility. We only visited one of the temples, but you gotta start somewhere. While we were there we met a monk who showed us around and gave us some water. He told us about tea leaves that were growing there and took our picture.


Then we went to the outdoor workout place. It's like a gym, but outside and free. That's where the foot torture path video came from on yesterday's post. These pictures give you an idea of what's available there. Duck can really rock the giant hoola hoop.

There's also a sky lift at Geumgang and you can hike up to the peak. We'll post more once we've gone on that adventure.

Getting to know S. Korea

We made it! 15 hours flying, 3 days orienting in Seul, 4 hours bus riding, and 2 hectic days of teaching led up to last weekend when we finally settled in to our new apartment and started our new lives in Busan, South Korea. Last Friday was Korea's foundation day, so we had a three day weekend to explore our new town. These are some of our first impressions:



1. Korean people are incredibly friendly.

They've helped us use the hot springs foot bath,
,

Girl Fight, an arcade test of strength, and the circulation stimulating foot torture path.





2. Food is unbelievably cheap and delicious. Paejeon = delicious

About $12 worth of sushi.







David, Duck, Brian, and I eat dinner with makulli (unfiltered rice wine, my favorite adult beverage so far) for about 19 USD. 3. Squat toilets look gross but can be fun, but you must squat facing the splash guard - this is confusing at first because some are oriented horizontally in a stall. Our apartments have western style toilets, but in our schools and older public restrooms, you squat.





4. Our students are so excited we're here that they really might explode. Hopefully we can get a video of this because I really don't think words can describe the level of love they feel for us. My kids want to know why my eyes are blue and my hair's "that color" and why we're zero when we're born in the US (here you are instantly 1 year old when you are born). They want to know what my hobbies are and whether Brian's good at sports and what's my blood type (Korean's believe blood types are kind of like horoscopes - they give clues as to your personality).



5. Everyone hands things to you and receives things from you with two hands or one hand on the chest. This is because traditional Korean clothing had sleeves that hung 3 feet past the hands and it was a sign of respect to hold back your sleeves. It's hard to remember to do this, but we're getting better.



6. Korean chopsticks are metal and flat and heavy. I'm getting better, but people keep asking me if I want a fork so I think I still have a ways to go. Brian's a pro already.



7. You MUST NOT leave your spoon or chopsticks in your food bowl. This is done only when food is offered to ancestors, so to do this in front of another diner is to imply that they are dead - very rude.



8. Drinking etiquette is complicated, but the basics are that you never fill your own glass and you never leave someone else's glass empty. You pour with two hands and they receive with two hands. Also, Koreans don't drink water, juice, or anything with meals unless it's alcohol with dinner. They don't seem to sweat, but we're all getting dehydrated.



9. Pusan is extremely clean considering how crowded and populated it is. Everyone recycles everything because recycling is free but you must pay for the volume of food trash and misc. trash that you produce.