Kimchi

The smartest, funniest, rarest girls at orientation



Spotlight on Kimchi!- Korea's secret natural resource and underrated superfood. Kimchi is known to be an antioxidant, an effective intestinal cleanser and eating it strengthens resistence against illness. The vegetable fiber in Kimchi helps to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, obeisity and even cancer.

Billions of years ago Koreas main industry was agriculture, and cabbage grew easily from coast to coast. Naturally, most Korean people love vegetables and making Kimchi was a great way to preserve them to be enjoyed during winter months. The origin of this fermented specialty dates back to the 7th century when women simply pickled the vegetables using preserving salts. Along with Garlic and Ginger, today Red Pepper is a main protagonist in the tasteful epic of Kimchi. Around the 18th century Mr. Kimchi married Ms. Red Pepper and they have been inseperable ever since! The Capsisin in the Red Pepper stimulates the stomach and aids with digestion while the Ginger helps blood circulation. The Garlic in the Kimchi not only gives you a reason to brush your teeth for awhile, it strengthens energy and activates physiological function by asborbing vitamin B1.

Whether you love it or not, the history is rich and it is rude to ignore Kimchi at the dinner table.
Honour Korean culture and cuisine and eat the spicy Kimchi!


Seasoning (a poem)

The rainy season speaks it’s mind,
Clouds multiply, bigger puddles I find.
Endless umbrellas cover noses and teeth,
Prepubescence is spinning beneath.


Friends with Samsung, Kim, Kwack and Lee,
living slowly to avoid entropy.
High rise, nice ties, tops of trees,
High heels, good deals, yellow cheese.
Layers of language hold my breath,
eat fish for breakfast until death.


If at first it is not for you,
another attempt you must pursue.
Healthy, spicy, bitter and sour,
To your life, Kimchi adds an extra hour.

Good morning Jennii Teacher!

At school

The school is a green monster which sits on a hill and stares down at the city of Suwon.

It is certainly not as new or flashy as some of the other schools in the neighbourhood but it has personality, and so do the students. Generally the boys are attentive and well behaved. For some; English is an asset to their future career, for others; English is a menace to their brain’s real-estate. Upon entering the classroom, before beginning a lesson the class leader summons the students to greet the teacher with an army-like ‘Attention!’ which is accompanied by a respectful bow.

It is my job to get the students speaking as much English as possible. There is a wide variety of ability and the challenge is to deliver lessons that are basic enough to be absolutely inclusive and yet offer an extra challenge for those whose English skills are more developed. The Middle School students I teach are in grades 1, 2 and 3, which are equivalent to North American grades 7, 8 and 9. So far, my experimenting has lead to the obvious conclusion: Boredom is lethal to learning, so I need an engaging solution.

A typical day for me at school includes some of the following activities… Smiling, surfing the internet, looking out the window, making games for my class, trying to learn how to say things like ‘Will you be my friend?” in Korean, bowing, wishing I had brushed my hair more in the morning, watching kids get in trouble by the Vice Principal, drinking sugar and cream with a microscopic amount of coffee in it, staying up to date on breaking news, hiding the disgusting stench of my feet, talking on msn, sweating, trying to enjoy the Korean cafeteria lunch (synonym for weight-loss plan), lesson planning and of course… teaching- or what I prefer to call professional motivating!

News Flash!
Brushing your teeth after lunch is a great way to bond with other teachers.

Imagine the intimacy: Huddled in the romantic dimmed lighting of the bathroom, a speechless, frothy gaggle of freshness emerges as we each have a turn spitting in the sink. It’s not much; but teeth-brushing is a language I can speak… with Colgate confidence. [*This paragraph has officially been sponsored by Colgate.]

Hwaseong Fortress- is just around the corner

Hwaseong Fortress was constructed out of stones, bricks and wood under the reign of King Jeongjo in the late 16th century.
It suffered partial damage under the Japanese colonial rule and the Korean war but it's well-maintained today from the sentry towers and secret gates to the the hand-painted details.
Built to serve the Korean people, the fortress was designed to serve political, commercial and military functions.
Hwaseong currently serves as the set for a traditional Korean television drama and is a fine example of true oriental architecture and early building technology.

drawing the line

Here are a few of my doodles from orientation.
Unfinished inklings conceived during endless hours of rhetorical lecturing.
My pen was the best friend I had that week.

Insadong Art Market (Jennii's got Seoul)

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Suwon randoms...

September is the perfect time of year for Koreans to dry out their peppers to prepare them for winter use. The peppers lay out in the wind all day and when dry they can be opened and the seeds can be removed.

Who comes to Korea to teach?

* Meet Soju, Korea's favourite alcoholic beverage. Soju is made using potatos, sweet potatos, wheat, barley, or tapioca and boasts an alcoholic percentage of 20-45%. I have not made friends with Soju, but have been told that it tastes similar to vodka and have witnessed that it's effect on humans is similar to that of tequila. Soju is dangerously ubiquitous, he can be found and enjoyed anywhere and everywhere. Soju can be your friend for about 2500 won (about $3 Canadian).

ORIENTATION in the ORIENTnation

The week long orientation experience turned out to be more than just a friend-generating vehicle or a simple exercise of common sense... What I got out of the lectures is simple: Attitude is everything!!


A glimpse at the Korean-style highlife revealed their love of Art: The resort is brilliant! Inside it's walls hold a variety of contemporary artwork, including giant Pollock-like paintings which cling to the walls, and a few somewhat erotic sculptures that deck the halls. Outside, the resort is surrounded by golf courses, trees, gardens and well kept grounds....
I came close, but couldn't commit to enjoying a coffee inside the resort's beautiful cafe... they wanted a ghastly 8000 won for a coffee!- 8000 won is enough money to buy 3 or 4 bottles of Soju*!

The highlight of the week for some would have been the nightly Soju* feasting, for others it could have been the trip to the Hwaesong Fortress. For neolithic nomads (like myself); the climax was without a doubt the Korean traditional Music performance. The performance began with Korean singing and fan dancing, it led to the soothing plucking of the silk-strings of the Geomungo zither. The performance ended with a bang- literally!... The tennacious skill, consuming focus and thunderous energy of a childrens drum circle is the ultimate experience of my journey so far. Runners-up include Tasting fire chicken, exploring Insa-dong and finally landing at my own apartment.

LECTURES

Although heavily rhetorical and painful at times, some of the lectures were laced with inspiring bursts of innovative truth.
I took the opportunity to draw my way through the lecture periods. Drawing gave me a reason to look forward to the lectures, and some of my scribbles turned out to be a good waste of ink!


Orientation yielded some unforgettable moments and friends and it answered the question many of us were wondering...

WHO COMES TO KOREA TO TEACH?...

[The following evidence is based on a 5-day analytical journey including approximately 200 (mostly) human prototypes.]

15% - Licensed teachers who are seeking to murder their student loans
24% - Single alcoholics who are having a quarter-life crisies
9% - Girls who just broke up with their boyfriend of many years
19% - Middle-aged know-it-alls
7% - Couples looking for adventure outside the bedroom
29% - Creepy males who have no friends (or social skills) who are itching to marry a Korean babe.
3% - Escape artists


I knew the week was over when everyone else looked completely torn and hungover and when I had run out of skin real- estate for the mosquitos to capitalize on.

I am currently cleaning my apartment, while taking in glimpses of the Discovery channel, meanwhile drinking Black Bean tea and Aloe Vera juice, while making wire sculptures, while doing laundry, while killing ants, while packing for tomorrow's trip to spend Chuesok (Korean Thanksgiving) with a welcoming family (whom I've never met).

Images coming Soon!...(whenever I find my battery recharger)

It's what's for dinner!

Shrimp, tofu, octopus and crabs in a salty peppery sauce! Try it today!
Usually I prefer to have my shrimp leave their leg and eyes behind when they come over for dinner... but here in Korea the shrimp are not afraid to come over for dinner just the way they are. After romancing them with a bottle of Soju and some compliments they will let you attack them with your chopsticks until they are fully, deliciously naked.

I ate it like a champ!

Heewon Traditional Korean Garden

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The Science teacher from my school, her family and I toured the Ho-Am traditional Art Museum.
The Korean prehistoric (to modern) paintings and pottery gave me Art History lesson flashbacks.
Similarly to most Art Galleries and Museums- I was not permitted to take photos of any of the Art... so I took advantage of the beautiful gardens for some scenic photo opportunities.

Meridian

Soccer anyone?

This world-cup soccer stadium is not only my personal compass, but it is also where the Samsung Bluewings play.
I am lucky to live close to it and I know approximately how close I am to home by it's proximity. With this said, I should really invest in a map of Suwon if I ever want to independently perambulate far away from its kicking glory.

Follow the interlocking bricks...

I love divine intervention! It is my favourite invention!... I really needed some bright coloured-paper to make a game for class and on my walk home I just randomly fell into a stationary store! I originally thought it was a regular corner store and was going in to get a bottle of water but when I walked in the colourful store I saw paper-everywhere!

In the photo you will see what you can get for 9000 won (about $10.00 Canadian) at a Stationary store. There are 3 mega-size slices of vivid cardstock paper, 2-100 packs of double sided Origami paper, funny piggy stickers and 2 of the grooviest notebooks ever featuring more of the hilariously translated English that I so love.

The next photo is quite obviously a street, this is what a typical side street looks like in Suwon- Try and get your Hummer in & out of that maze!

I've got paper! Things are great. Now if I could only figure out how to work my phone card...

Have a bite of my Tit Bit bar...

It tastes just like a Kit Kat bar but nooooo it is a Tit Bit bar!
Just one of my favourites from the myriad of things that have hilarious and/or bastardized English written on them!

a great view of sleepless darkness

Disciplining the disciplined

Whispering: This, my dear friends is a squatter... originally intimidating but enevetably (in Korea) you will have to face it.


Oh Yes! I am here to teach, not just to wander the streets aimlessly and take pictures of things. The teaching is going well so far, though the variation in English speaking ability is great from one student to the next and from level to level. Surprisingly the younger the student, the better they seem to be at speaking English. Did I mention that I have the pleasure of teaching prepubescent teenage boys? I reckon that if I can merely keep them distracted from whatever they are daydreaming about long enough for them to learn a few stanza's of English prose then I am doing alright.

I have yet to see another caucasian creature but I don't stick out so much (except when I am behind my camera), at which point I am clearly a tourist. The walk to school is a modest 15-20 minutes (when I don't get lost), my sense of direction is sharpening slowly and my Tim Hortons withdrawal sypmtoms are fading into oblivion.

A little rant on discipline...
Forgive my generalization, I am new at this "moving to a new country" thing but I've observed that the Korean people are far more disciplined then us (lazy) Westerners. My apologies to the hard-working Westerners (you know who you are). Anyways...

In South Korea convenience is not held on a pedestal as much as it is North America. Technology is held on a pedestal, it is ubiquitously prominent- from the perpetual use of cell phones to specialized kimchi refrigerators, to all the beeps and bells and unexpected electronic voices that pop in and out of the walls somehow. And yet with all of this advanced technology I come across some uncivilized property- a squatter! What preposterous hypocricy! I almost walked right out of the bathroom with my tail between my legs! Where are the instructions for this thing anyways? Oh well, it is a (not-so) pleasant reminder of where I am and it will haunt me all day, to remind me to avoid overdosing on diuretics while at my daily 9-5... or 8:30-4:30.

Back to the discipline thing though- From the daily ritual of rigorous recycling methods to endless school hours and homework for the children the South Korean people live to THINK! I wish I could understand Korean so that I could participate in the brilliant discussions they are having...or at least know when I am being made fun of. At any rate, South Korea is a part of the world where respect for elders is paramount, where everybody owns a Samsung, drives a Hyandai (or Kia) and where the preservation of tradition is rooted in the celebration of family.

Using a shamelessly psychic method to account for the events of tomorrow today: I plan to open a bank account and eat some fresh eggs and fresh rye bread... I mean that is why I came to South Korea- to find fantastic eggs & bread!

Enough run-on sentences for now...

Naps are for suckers (September 1st)

We were met at the airport by the director of the board of Education for Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. From the airport we took a bus to the Suwon board office where we waited for our name to be called. I met my co-teacher and she is so beautiful! Her name is Seung-Hyun. We went to Yonmu middle school where I met the teaching staff. There is school on Saturdays sometimes!

I am lucky to be living with a Korean family for the next couple of weeks until my apartment is ready. Their apartment is big and very nice, it is in a good neighbourhood and is only a 15 minute walk to the school I will be teaching at.

I wonder what the other teachers are doing right now in their own apartments- I imagine them frantically ironing out their clothes, trying out their wet rooms, missing their family.

The two meals I've eaten since I've been in Suwon have been fabulous, I had lunch with my teaching partener at a restaurant and enjoyed dinner with my host familly's sister. Both meals consisted of bean & onion soup (tasting similar to miso soup), sardines, cucumbers, beans, a whole bunch more vegetables, rice and seaweed- Korean food is very healthy food with an incredible variety at every meal! I just feel bad for whoever has to do the dishes.

Need a reason to celebrate? My ankles are no longer swollen.

Korean hAirlines

Along with a healthy dose of anxiety, my plane ticket fare included some covetable bonus features. Yes! You should be jealous, I received free socks! along with a toothbrush and toothpaste, new friends (not really though because they think I am a weirdo), free food and funny-looking diet coke and your choice of head, ear or tummy ache.

I left Pearson International around midnight, full of wonder and ready for take off.
I sat near the back of the 747 beside the window with two friendly Korean men who were on their way home from Toronto.
The movies were pretty random, it took me until the ending credits to figure out that we had been watching "The Last Mimzy" (in Korean of course), there was also some other trendy Korean movie with Chinese subtitles (not particularly helpful or interesting). The rest of the time they projected Korean News, Car advertisements disguised as a show, a strange sequence of snowboarding and my personal favourite- A poorly computer-animated "Animal vs. Human Winter Olympics" (where fish and reptiles earned no medals and the polar bears kicked some serious ass in Hockey).

Tried to sleep but it was difficult
I found the food on the plane much more comforting than the seats which were clausterphobia-provoking. (I know how Shizaaaam feels in his cage now).

We had the choice of Bibimbap or some sort of chicken for supper- went with the Bibimbap (which includes seaweed soup, beef and vegetables on rice with chili paste and sesame oil.) My Bibimbap meal provided entertainment for the guys I was sitting with who laughed at me because I was eating it wrong.

We took a very direct flight route: From Toronto we went North up past Moosenee, we went over the Northwest Terretories, passed Hudson's Bay and Baffin Island, we came close to the Arctic, flew over Siberia, then through China to South Korea! I was very allergic to Siberia and unforgiving snot began to pour from my nose from this point on- must be those Siberian Huskies or something... I'm actually sneezing right now just writing about it!

Customs in both nations were an absolute breeze, no problems at all!
I found my luggage very quickly- due to it's brightness. Fellow teachers laughed at me and said that they could find me in a snowstorm.

I managed my luggage surprisingly well, I also managed to make some friends, some of which I will see again at Orientation. There is quite a mix of students here teaching for different reasons, there are a few couples, a few pairs of BFF and some loners like me...I wonder how many of them will last the year. I wonder if I will... What do you think?