DMZ photos

Outside one of the discovered North Korean tunnels in South Korea


Bridge of No Return


View of North Korea and one of their model villages


North Korean building and soldiers


ROK soldier

Weekend of Champions

OK, maybe not really, but it was a good weekend. Saturday I got up the earliest I've gotten up in a long while... 5:30am... to go to the DMZ with 3 coworkers. Photos will be up in the next few days. It was pretty amazing! Freezing like no other, but North Korea is surprisingly beautiful with the mountains... and their ridiculously tall flag pole to out-do the South Korean flag pole. Ohhh egos.

Also saw The Green Hornet, which just came to Korea this weekend. Jay Chou, aka Kato, is uber famous across Asia. The movie far exceeded my expectations and Jay Chou might be cooler than Chuck Norris.

This week is a short work week and then I leave for Beijing Wednesday evening. Packing is on my to-do list, but of course it'll probably be the last thing I do. I hate packing. :P Not expecting many kids to come to class Wednesday, or perhaps even Tuesday, so this week shall be interesting.

TOP

aka the man I want to marry. hahahaha

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQUpXndMeEE

I'm in love with this song. and his voice. love his voice so much. very unique. of course in this song it's autotuned like crazy, but still fun.

Big Bang is having another concert -- their 'comeback' concert -- at the end of February. Lucky me with great friends is going. When I looked, tickets were sold out, but seats opened up so a friend was able to get us tickets. Yesss. Second Big Bang concert within 2 months? That's not unusual or obsessed...

English lyrics to Oh Mom:

How could this happen to me
But even worse, how could this happen to you
It began with a letter and was the beginning of pain
I'm a tell it to you straight
Hey look
Every breathless day frantically passes
At some point, meeting you became a precious bond
All of the universe appeared beautiful
I came to like what you liked
Within our perfectly stable days
Sharing our inner most feelings
I've been taken ill, There's no reply
Sorry I'm sorry bye TOP

Oh mom, What should I do mom
A selfishness hotter than a fire torments me, Oh my God
Oh mom, I promise mom, What can I do
Now, I now, Oh my God, Oh my God

A desolate day, I receive a letter
Your circumstances make me tear
If my voice brightens your world
Farther and farther, I'll shout
Nananana Nananana Do you hear my heavy heart
Friend wipe your tears, I think you're prettier when you smile
Sorry I'm sorry, Oh my God

Oh mom, What should I do mom
A selfishness hotter than a fire torments me, Oh my God
Oh mom, I promise mom, What can I do
Now, I now, Oh my God, Oh my God

Baby don't cry, You stand vacantly alone
Don't worry, It may be lonely but you're not the only one
Look beside you, you're not alone
Don't cry, You stand vacantly alone
Don't worry, It may be lonely but you're not the only one
Look beside you, you're not alone

Life is funny, It's a delicate play with fire
Playful obstacles are life's restraints, Everything is for your heart's resolution so
Keep your head up

Baby don't cry, You stand vacantly alone
Don't worry, It may be lonely but you're not the only one
Look beside you, you're not alone
Don't cry, You stand vacantly alone
Don't worry, It may be lonely but you're not the only one
Look beside you, you're not alone

Oh mom, Oh mom

Leggo my Bundigie

Lesson of the Day: when at a hof and you have to order food to go with the beer others are going to drink, choosing the cheapest item is not always your best option.

The lady might give your friend a strange look, repeat it, and when he says 'nay' (yes in Korean) thennnn you just might be greeted with this beauty:




The infamous Korean silkworm larvae speciality, in this case presented as a stew. I was not brave enough to try it as it looked too much like cockroaches in soup, but John had to eat some of it since he ordered it. Jenn and Greg tried one each and their expressions were fantastic. If the smell doesn't overtake you first, then the 'popping' sensation (when one bites into it) followed by the egg yolk-like fluid will.

Definitely provided some good laughs. Only a few days ago we had been talking about the vomit-inducing smell of this dish. Most younger people do not eat silkworms, but just follow the smell at an open market or park and you'll be sure to find other people enjoying it.

China Update

Miracles do exist!!! We were able to change our flight to 6pm for only about $25 a person. No idea how that happened since previous calls told us it'd be $300+. And we have our visas, so now we're all set!!! Just gotta wait a month. Ha

This month is going to be very very busy as we are now doing intensives, or workshops the kids can attend while they are on winter holiday. I'm teaching a reading class to a handful of young boys early in the morning. Most are very eager to talk, which is good, but not necessarily about what's on topic, or in Korean, so it's been quite tiring. I teach the intensives Monday Wednesday Friday 10am-1pm and then teach regular classes 4pm-10pm, except now my second Monday/Friday class is combined with another teacher's so I actually get to go home earlier. Yay! But Wednesday is a longggg day. I also had to teach this Saturday morning, or well, more like proctor, as students retook some tests to help raise their averages. Sooo ready for a day just to sleeeeep.

Oh, and this week I happened to open one of the windows to cool off the room only to see one of the MIA pencil cases chillin in the snow. Tempted to hold it for ransom... speaking of the said pencil cases, this week the reading class had to create their own fantasy lit-inspired movie plot. Kyle and Mark made themselves the heroes (of course) and I was their dragon they could summon to help them save all pencil cases of the world. Great.

Hope everyone's first week of the New Year went well!