안녕하세요.
It's been a while, hasn't it readers? This past bit of time has been really busy. I've been working quite a lot on top of studying for the TOPIK exam which is coming up in September. I haven't exactly had a whole lot of extra time to type up on the blog.
Ugh, my whole being is tired! It's been 'go go go!' pretty much non-stop since the last post. Open House classes at work made things really stressful for everyone, but thanks to the hard work and all of the effort that everyone put forth we believe that it was a success. Working at this private institute is sometimes really daunting, but I tell you what... I'm proud of it. I'm proud of the school, I'm proud of my co-workers, I'm proud to say that I'm a teacher there. While there are some things that I don't agree with (like some methods of teaching and what not), overall the programs are incredible and I enjoy being a part of it. It's certainly not what I want to spend the rest of my life doing, but for now I'm happy where I am.
This weekend was a holiday here in Korea. Buddha's Birthday. I think about it being kind of on par with Martin L King's Birthday back in the states. It's a holiday, no school, some work places are closed... but there's not really any kind of amazing celebration happening. Everyone just gets a day off. Having a three day weekend gave me the perfect opportunity to head up to SEOUL!
SEOUL SURVIVOR
As for the title, it's actually borrowed from some sign that I and the group I was with saw at a sports bar in Itaewon. Kind of clever, I guess.
Anywho. I had trouble getting online tickets for the KTX trip up to Seoul because I don't have my Alien Registration card yet (by the way... where is my card anyway? The 90 day deadline is approaching and I haven't even heard anything about it since my first week in Busan). Getting to a station to buy tickets was a problem because of my hectic work schedule last week. Luckily my good friend Jeongmin came to the rescue!
Jeongmin is the whole reason I was going to Seoul in the first place. You want to hear a touching story? Well, I'll tell you one....
OUR STORY
Jeongmin and I met in the 10th grade of Highschool. That put us both at about 16 years old. She was an exchange student from Seoul, South Korea. How in the WORLD she managed to find herself studying in Hot Springs, Arkansas is beyond me, but it happened and there she was. My school wasn't exactly diverse, with the majority of the student body being white, middle class and she was the first person I'd ever known from a foreign country. We had an Oral Communications class together and also played the same instrument in band (flute). We started chatting and after a while an awesome friendship formed.
I tell everyone, and this is true, that she's the reason I became interested in Asia in the first place. It was so amazing to me ( as I was this ignorant, unwordly, awkward teenager) that someone could come from such a different environment, surrounded by such different things, and still be so similar to me. That year was the year I really started to think about the differences and similarities in people. People everywhere... are people. Despite culture, religion, upbringing, language... we can all connect to each other. How awesome is that?!
The end of our 10th grade year was pretty sad, because Jeongmin had to go back to Seoul. Her year of study abroad was over. We kept in touch. Before we had facebook we e-mailed and occasionally talked on the phone. Even though we were on separate sides of the world and even though YEARS were going by, it always felt like she'd only been gone for a few days.
I started college hell bent on Asian Studies. I learned Japanese (there was no Korean program, unfortunately), studied abroad in Japan, and worked with students from all over the globe at a language center. Seven years later, and who would have EVER guessed this would happen (I mean, really), I end up in Busan, South Korea.
Friday was the first time in 7 years that I'd seen Jeongmin, and it barely felt like it'd been even seven hours!
BACK TO THE SEOUL SURVIVOR THING
Jeongmin, her boyfriend, and her best friend from college all greeted me at Seoul station. We went around all over the place, and while I can't remember the name of the area exactly, it was pretty fantastic. And it was HOT! HOT HOT HOT! I'd dressed in jeans and a heavy quarter sleeve shirt thinking that since I was going further up NORTH that it would be cooler in Seoul than it was in Busan. WRONG! I thought I was going to melt.
We had an awesome time.
We ended up in Itaewon because I'd told Jeongmin that I wanted to go to "WHAT THE BOOK" a mainly 'used' bookstore that offered all English titles. We all browsed some, and I bought two titles by Haruki Murakami. After that we met up with Jeongmin's friends brother (I would use names but I really don't know if they'd be okay with that. So, you're just going to have to put up with the 'friends friends cousins brothers ex girlfriends goldfish' explanations) and browsed around the area until we found a cozy little sports bar to chill at and talk. It was a good time. :)
The whole night was a good time. When you're with a group of friendly, good, people you can't help but have a good time. You feel safe, you feel comfortable, it's all great.
Jeongmin and a new friend I'd made from the evening out ate lunch together the next day and spent some time shopping around Seoul station before it was time for us to part ways. Even though I only spent a little over 24 hours in Seoul, it was a great time and I definitely know I'll be going back.
And to think.... I was actually DREADING Seoul. The only reason I was going in the first place was to see Jeongmin. That's it. But Seoul turned out to be pretty cool. I guess I can admit that.
Anyway,
It's another busy week looking at me from just over the top of Sunday's head. I can't tell whether it's smiling or scowling... I guess I'll find out starting tomorrow. Monthly tests for the students are at hand! That either means that I'll be glowing with pride or afire with irritation at the end of the week after countless hours of speaking/listening/ and writing tests with students who may or may not have studied for them.
That's all for now. The biggest highlight was Seoul... oh, and yeah, I guess I did emotionally survive the open houses. That's something pretty nifty in and of itself.
Until next time,
~Auggie
It's been a while, hasn't it readers? This past bit of time has been really busy. I've been working quite a lot on top of studying for the TOPIK exam which is coming up in September. I haven't exactly had a whole lot of extra time to type up on the blog.
Ugh, my whole being is tired! It's been 'go go go!' pretty much non-stop since the last post. Open House classes at work made things really stressful for everyone, but thanks to the hard work and all of the effort that everyone put forth we believe that it was a success. Working at this private institute is sometimes really daunting, but I tell you what... I'm proud of it. I'm proud of the school, I'm proud of my co-workers, I'm proud to say that I'm a teacher there. While there are some things that I don't agree with (like some methods of teaching and what not), overall the programs are incredible and I enjoy being a part of it. It's certainly not what I want to spend the rest of my life doing, but for now I'm happy where I am.
This weekend was a holiday here in Korea. Buddha's Birthday. I think about it being kind of on par with Martin L King's Birthday back in the states. It's a holiday, no school, some work places are closed... but there's not really any kind of amazing celebration happening. Everyone just gets a day off. Having a three day weekend gave me the perfect opportunity to head up to SEOUL!
SEOUL SURVIVOR
As for the title, it's actually borrowed from some sign that I and the group I was with saw at a sports bar in Itaewon. Kind of clever, I guess.
Anywho. I had trouble getting online tickets for the KTX trip up to Seoul because I don't have my Alien Registration card yet (by the way... where is my card anyway? The 90 day deadline is approaching and I haven't even heard anything about it since my first week in Busan). Getting to a station to buy tickets was a problem because of my hectic work schedule last week. Luckily my good friend Jeongmin came to the rescue!
Jeongmin is the whole reason I was going to Seoul in the first place. You want to hear a touching story? Well, I'll tell you one....
OUR STORY
Jeongmin and I met in the 10th grade of Highschool. That put us both at about 16 years old. She was an exchange student from Seoul, South Korea. How in the WORLD she managed to find herself studying in Hot Springs, Arkansas is beyond me, but it happened and there she was. My school wasn't exactly diverse, with the majority of the student body being white, middle class and she was the first person I'd ever known from a foreign country. We had an Oral Communications class together and also played the same instrument in band (flute). We started chatting and after a while an awesome friendship formed.
I tell everyone, and this is true, that she's the reason I became interested in Asia in the first place. It was so amazing to me ( as I was this ignorant, unwordly, awkward teenager) that someone could come from such a different environment, surrounded by such different things, and still be so similar to me. That year was the year I really started to think about the differences and similarities in people. People everywhere... are people. Despite culture, religion, upbringing, language... we can all connect to each other. How awesome is that?!
The end of our 10th grade year was pretty sad, because Jeongmin had to go back to Seoul. Her year of study abroad was over. We kept in touch. Before we had facebook we e-mailed and occasionally talked on the phone. Even though we were on separate sides of the world and even though YEARS were going by, it always felt like she'd only been gone for a few days.
I started college hell bent on Asian Studies. I learned Japanese (there was no Korean program, unfortunately), studied abroad in Japan, and worked with students from all over the globe at a language center. Seven years later, and who would have EVER guessed this would happen (I mean, really), I end up in Busan, South Korea.
Friday was the first time in 7 years that I'd seen Jeongmin, and it barely felt like it'd been even seven hours!
BACK TO THE SEOUL SURVIVOR THING
Jeongmin, her boyfriend, and her best friend from college all greeted me at Seoul station. We went around all over the place, and while I can't remember the name of the area exactly, it was pretty fantastic. And it was HOT! HOT HOT HOT! I'd dressed in jeans and a heavy quarter sleeve shirt thinking that since I was going further up NORTH that it would be cooler in Seoul than it was in Busan. WRONG! I thought I was going to melt.
We had an awesome time.
We ended up in Itaewon because I'd told Jeongmin that I wanted to go to "WHAT THE BOOK" a mainly 'used' bookstore that offered all English titles. We all browsed some, and I bought two titles by Haruki Murakami. After that we met up with Jeongmin's friends brother (I would use names but I really don't know if they'd be okay with that. So, you're just going to have to put up with the 'friends friends cousins brothers ex girlfriends goldfish' explanations) and browsed around the area until we found a cozy little sports bar to chill at and talk. It was a good time. :)
The whole night was a good time. When you're with a group of friendly, good, people you can't help but have a good time. You feel safe, you feel comfortable, it's all great.
Jeongmin and a new friend I'd made from the evening out ate lunch together the next day and spent some time shopping around Seoul station before it was time for us to part ways. Even though I only spent a little over 24 hours in Seoul, it was a great time and I definitely know I'll be going back.
And to think.... I was actually DREADING Seoul. The only reason I was going in the first place was to see Jeongmin. That's it. But Seoul turned out to be pretty cool. I guess I can admit that.
Anyway,
It's another busy week looking at me from just over the top of Sunday's head. I can't tell whether it's smiling or scowling... I guess I'll find out starting tomorrow. Monthly tests for the students are at hand! That either means that I'll be glowing with pride or afire with irritation at the end of the week after countless hours of speaking/listening/ and writing tests with students who may or may not have studied for them.
That's all for now. The biggest highlight was Seoul... oh, and yeah, I guess I did emotionally survive the open houses. That's something pretty nifty in and of itself.
Until next time,
~Auggie
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