I hit my 6th month mark today, April 26th. CRAZY! I really cannot believe how fast it went at times. Now...six more to go. I'm excited to see what unfolds...
Also, because I've been immersed in it for six months, I've finally started to like K-Pop (Korean Pop Music).
here's my favorite song so far. It's called "Sherlock" by SHINEE (pronounced like shiny) ...
I have no idea what's going on, but I'm totally hooked! Enjoy!
Spring is most definitely in the air! :) And I am in love with Korean Springtime. Although there is still a chill at night, the mornings are glorious. The trees that line the streets are starting to bud and blossom with some magnificent cherry blossom flowers. It is absolutely beautiful.
Along with the spring has come some amazing opportunities to hike the mountains that surround Daegu. There are some amazing sights of the city from atop these mountains. It is such a wonderful chance to explore nature and clear your head...(not to mention get away from the students!)
The mountain near our apartments.
View from Apsan Mountain
Also...we have now entered election time. Voting day is April 11 (which, might I add is a holiday! So, I get it off!) and therefore the campaigning is getting crazy. Now, a campaign in Korea is nowhere near like a campaign in America....it is a SHOW! And an entertaining one at that. The candidates hire people to stand on corners and hold pictures of them, they dance and scream their names. It's madness. But, my personal favorite, is the trucks. They have these trucks that people stand on in the back with the pictures of the candidates and they blast music and yell into microphones. It's always fun to see which candidate's truck will drive by during the day. Usually, at school, we can hear the trucks coming from miles away and so I'll open the window and have my students translate what they're screaming. The translations are almost as funny as the situation itself. "Hello. My name is.....vote. Pick me. I'm....how do you say Teach-uh? uh,....awesome?" I'm entertained...but I'll admit it...I'm really only excited for the day off! :)
Hard to see...but here's some of the election hype!
I cannot believe it is already April. Amazing. I've almost been here for half my contract. Wow. These next few months will fly...because they are PACKED! Tomorrow, I head up to Seoul with my friend Bonnie to see the band LMFAO perform. Then, next weekend , I'm participating in a charity walk. Following that I'm going back to Seoul for a girls getaway and then it's going to be May and my friend Katy comes, then June when Mom and Dad come...AND THEN!!!! (here's my exciting news) I'M GOING TO KATY & KYLE'S WEDDING! And I couldn't be happier. I cannot wait to see them and everyone! It will be a VERY fast trip...but I am ecstatic!
Other than that...nothing new has really happened to me. I had to go do ANOTHER medical test today because apparently they lost my last one? Made me a little upset, but I'll get over it.
I have now acquired a sort of "phantom" pet. :) There is a cat that lurks around my window at night. S/he meows all the time...and so, I'll walk outside to see s/he and can never seem to see him/her. But, I've been leaving some milk every night...and in the morning, it's gone. So, I've decided to call the cat 나비... or Nabi, (pronounced Nah-bee) which means "Butterfly" in Korean. Maybe one day s/he will maker his/her appearance?
Teaching is still having it's ups and downs. I've finally picked up on the Korean swear words! So, when I react to my students saying them, they actually start to do their work. But, like any job I guess, I still have days where I want to run to the bathroom and cry...but then I have some where I think, wow, I feel like a real teacher...I love this. Ce la vie.
Playing a game that my parents sent me.
I'm really looking forward for the spring to settle in. Apparently, this will be the only time where I will really want to be outside, for the summers here in Daegu are sweltering. So, I can't wait to stroll through the parks and streets on the spring days.
Finally, here's an update on the Things I've Learned So Far....
46. Kimchi is a food you can really grow into...it took 5 months, but I kinda love the stuff now.
47. Vegetable/Fruit markets are AMAZING. I absolutely love going to the little Monday market and buying fresh vegetables and fruits. I have my favorite vendors now, and they know me as well. They always smile and get all excited when they see me..."waygook, waygook!" (foreigner, foreigner!) I kinda love it. :)
48. COSTCO! I've finally made it to the Costco in town and it was wonderful. But, if you thought COSTCO on the weekends in America was crazy...come see me in Korea. MY.GOD. After shopping on a Saturday afternoon, all I wanted to do was curl up in a ball and take a nap. So, although I loved getting familiar food and seeing the wonderful Kirkland brand...I'll stick to shopping on the weekdays there.
49. With the spring comes tons of street food vendors. This is wonderful...until you actually look at it. Bleh. These people eat larva...let me repeat...COOKED.LARVA. grossest thing ever. Another one that freaks me out is this little truck that parks on the curb and opens all these doors and windows and becomes a little shop. BUT! This one has this HUGE aquarium FULL, FULLLLLLLL, of these tiny fish that I can only equate with sardines. And they are packed into this aquarium, and then right next to it, in front of the haggered old lady, is this huge pot of fried sardines. So, these little fellas watch as their friends die. Bleh. (picture included)
My best shot of the creepy fish thing.
50. Being tan here is kind of looked down upon. They see people who have some color from the sun to be "field workers" and therefore, not that great. So, most lotions and make up have "whitening" effects in them. Therefore, when the California blonde with sensitive skin comes to work after a weekend of a bit too much sun...EVERYONE has to mention how my face is red. Awesome.
51. I just want to take a second and mention the wonderful little old lady who works at the corner market. She is absolutely wonderful...and always has a smile on her face when I walk in to grab a water or treats (bribes) for the students. She always touches my hair and when I tell her (mime) that I'm thinking of cutting it...she gasps loudly and says "Aniiiiiii" (Nooooooooo!) She will always put a smile on my face.
I'll update soon and post pictures of the concert and some cherry blossoms! :)
