Xmas~~
Xmas tree
JeeHee & I can't skate^^
Hope everyone had a good Xmas. Mine was nice – although I did miss family, friends, and…Aunt Pat’s mac n’cheese. Ha ha ha, just messing. Xmas is not as big a holiday here. I worked Xmas Eve (during the day) and then had Xmas day off. Xmas in S.K. is mostly celebrated amongst families with small children and couples (excluding the religious aspect of it). It is a big “couple day”, almost like Valentines. You are supposed buy cake and spend the day with your significant other. How romantic…..still what about the food and presents?….they’re seriously missing out. ha ha
Joking aside, I had a nice holiday. I got to trim a tree with my students, which was a lot of fun for all involved. The students made the ornaments and we went outside and decorated it….and it turned out really nice, if I don’t say so myself. I also had a mini-Xmas party for one of my classes (my special “E-convo” class) and they enjoyed getting food and soda…at my expense. Ha ha
Christmas day I spent with two of my fellow co-worker friends. It was a lot of fun. We cooked and I ate a lot and we watched Twilight. Then we went skating, and I was reminded of how bad a skater I am. But twas lots and lots of fun. They’re good friends and I enjoyed spending time with them.
Well, that is all for now!!! wooo~~~ Will update again very soon!
P.S.
Changdeokgung Palace
My attempt at Korean cooking~
Extra~~~ On the weekend, I also went and visited Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul. I felt guilty for not doing anything cultural in a while, so I braved the cold weather despite my general ill health (I think I am finally getting better though!) and saw the palace. It was a lot of fun and I timed it so that I was able to go on the English tour; visiting the palace cost roughly $3, so it was very cheap. It was really nice seeing the palace though because I had just finished reading an brief essay written about it by the students (for the English newspaper) and thus I had a lot of questions about the palace. There is only so much you can understand/interpret; I finally got a mental picture to go along with what they were saying. Hopefully, I will get around to seeing and doing more things very soon….maybe in January. Yay!!!
Also, I attempted to cook a Korean dish by myself for the first time. I don’t know what possessed me, since I can cook very few Western dishes (unless you count spaghetti and chili) let alone Korean. But I tried to cook a variation on Korean dukboki. Dukboki are chewy Korean rice cakes (they are the white rectangle things in the picture). So, they are in this red hot sauce mixture and then you add ramen and dumplings. My friend cooked it for me once and this was my attempt mimicking what I saw a long time ago. Let’s just say it turned out alright. Meaning –> so so. But heck, I tried!
Odds & Ends
Happy Wedding Couple & Family
Students @ Wedding
More Students (some wore uniform!)
Last time I posted, I informed all of you that one of my co-workers was getting married. I am happy to announce that they got married and that the wedding went off without a hitch. lol just kidding. But seriously, the wedding was very nice (it was a Catholic wedding) and the bride (my co-worker) looked stunning. I must say that you really do look your best on your wedding day. I was shocked at how pretty she looked. I took many pictures of her and am sad to only post one (because I feel it does not do her justice) ha ha. But this picture includes some of her family; I know some of my family were curious about Korean wedding versus American wedding…and I must say there are some slight differences. Although now it is common for the bride to wear a white wedding dress, its seems that the mothers of the wedding couple normally wear traditional Korean apparal – the wedding couple can choosed to wear it also or later after marrying in tux and white dress. Then there is food after; in this wedding it was buffet; but there is no dance party after! I missed that; the music and dancing really make a good wedding for me! Seeing family and friends attempt to dance, who have little/no talent is just plain entertaining. ha ha Also, I was surprised to see some of my students at the wedding. It is normal for students to come (if the person is a teacher) and then some of the students perform something. In this case, three of the male students sang part of a song for the newly married couple. It was very nice and I felt for them because they had to sing it without any musical background…maybe there were technical difficulties? Anyway, it was also really nice seeing the students there supporting their homeroom teacher and taking many, many pictures. They were very cute – teasing the couple into a kissing photo op.
All in all, it was fun. And I happy for the newly married couple!
Sickness~
Well, I know it’s been awhile but here is a new post. I can’t say there is a whole lot to update on though. Just mundane matters.
Re: the photo, I have caught a cold and yes, it is annoying. It seems to be one of those lingering colds that evolves as it goes. So although it was initially a sore throat, it is now slowing breaking free of its cacoon (my poor throat) and becoming a beutiful new head cold. I can’t really complain too much though – if nothing else I am good spirits, which isn’t always the case when you’re sick. I have not had to wear a face mask like expected I would. It is the cultural norm to don a face mask when you’re sick; if I did so though, the students would have an even more difficult time understanding my speech. So, “for them” I have opted to go bare faced. On the bus though I will wear one in respect to other passengers….the added bonus of this strategy is that it keeps my face warm in this really cold weather….
On the weekend I did nothing terribly remarkable. I went hiking (yay!) in area called Sadang, slightly outside of Seoul. The weather was very cold and it snowed a little; I saw a Buddhist temple there but forgot my camera and can’t remember the name of the mountain (spelling too difficult). Other than these failings it was an enjoyable outing.
I am going to be attending a co-workers wedding this weekend. Looking forward to cultural comparison. The teacher is a very nice lady and I wish her the best and a happy marriage. Just thought of something…what should I wear? AHHH!
Mellow in South Korea 