Korean Classes

Back in September, Neil and I started taking Korean classes on Wednesday and Friday mornings (10-12p). At first we thought we could handle it but we were in way over our heads!

After doing two hours of class and then to teach a full day of classes (5 to 7 classes with only 5 minute breaks in between), we were completely exhausted! Let alone try to do our homework. After about two months, we called it quits. Especially since we just started teaching and there was sooooo much we have yet to learn. 

Alas, we still wanted to continue learning Korean so we decided to enroll in classes again. This time we're only taking classes on Saturday so we still have our weekdays to concentrate on work. Although work is getting a bit easier, we rather not make ourselves too busy.

In our new class, there's an American couple, a Thai girl and a Nepalese guy. They all seem really nice and some are a bit further ahead than others. The first two classes felt like a bit of review so that's really good, not to be behind right out of the gates. I can see how this class would be very intense if you only take it once a week because it covers two chapters a week. So I'm very glad this is our second time around. 

We are definitely committed to finishing this and who knows, maybe move up to the next level :) 

Intensive Classes

So in Korea, there are two major semester. One starts in the fall and other in the spring. The fall semester starts in September and spring in March. From January to February, hagwons have a period call Intensives. It's basically when the students no longer have public school and parents enrol their kids into more classes at their hagwons to increase their ability. Since a lot of these students already come on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, they signed up for more classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This time, we had a lot of the younger students that signed up for Phonic classes. 

Normally the Korean teachers teach phonics so it's the first time for all the foreign teachers. And only foreign teachers have these extra classes. Since I already had four classes on Tue/Thu, I only got one extra class so I have five classes in total. Neil on the other hand had three classes, he got an extra four classes so he has seven classes in total. Poor guy. 

In my Master Phonics class, half the students are in my regular classes so it's not a surprise for them to see me. Teaching phonics is interesting because I hardly remember taking phonics when I was a kid. And making those sounds is silly outside of class and at the beginning some of the older students felt embarrassed when I make tell me what sound "A" makes. And sometimes I forget what that letter is suppose to sound like too! I'm glad the students participate and seem genuinely interested in it. 

Neil has seemed to let himself go during these intensive classes. He's developed a game where he gives a word like "crazy" and the students have to act crazy for a few seconds and then he'll shout "serious!" and they can't laugh, move, or say anything otherwise they don't earn their points. All the while, he desperately tries to make them laugh by doing chicken dances and going through his Jim Carey repertoire along with impressions of asian stereotypes (i.e Five dolla!). There's an instance where kids slam their faces in their books to hide from him. He's usually exhausted on these days however he has a lot of fun. Some of my students that he teaches have started calling him "Nail-teacher". In fact, one of his students in the writing class wrote about him: 

  

Jeonju Day Trip

After a brief trip to Jeonju with Neil's parents in November, I really wanted to come back! Since we have a few days off for the new year, we made a point to go back there for their fresh bibimbap. I googled to find any place that's super famous and Gogung came up and that was it. After arriving in Jeonju, we hailed a cab to bring us to the restaurant. Probably waited a few minutes before we were seated. 

I chose the normal metal bowl and Neil got the stone bowl one. The colours were amazing and so vibrant. I love that it doesn't need to have onions in it and it's still okay. I love the texture of the dish that there's crunchy and soft in the same bite. Neil really enjoyed his dish. He liked that it wasn't spicy like most Korean food are. 

Bibimbap in Jeonju - CHECK!

Next we went back to the Hanok Village and walked around to get some snacks. I got some deep fried squid. I had hoped that since it's a Friday that it won't be busy but it was still super packed. After getting my snack, I was too full for anything else so we decided to walk around. I saw PNB and it was not packed like the other one! They're suppose to be famous for their chocolate pies. Neil wasn't interested but I got one chocolate and one white to see what it's all about. It was quite large so it was very fulling. I actually didn't try it until I got home since I was already full. It's pretty good but I would not line up for an hour for it. 

When we got back to the bus terminal, we found out the next bus to Gwangju isn't until 7:20pm and it was currently 5:00pm. We got approached by a taxi driver who offered to take us to Gwangju for 50,000 won if he can find two more people. In the end he could only find one more person and asked us to pay for 70,000 and we can leave right away. In the end we took that offer because we'll get back home quicker and we'll be more comfortable if it's just the two of us in the back. The driver was nice and it took us only an hour to get back compared to an hour and a half. He also dropped us off a lot closer to our home than the bus would have. It cost us a lot more to take this taxi but in the end it's worth it.  

New Years Eve

For New Year's Eve, we decided to go out for some steak as our special treat. Since being in Korea, we haven't really been able to eat a lot of red meat. Mostly because it's super expensive. A piece of steak can easily cost $30 and it's not even a huge piece. That same amount of meat would be about $5-$6 in Vancouver. See the difference? We've mainly stuck to pork and chicken. 

We went to Outback Steak House - an Australian chain. We thought we'd see a lot of foreigners in there but it was mostly Korean. When we ordered our food, we got really confused. There was an item that said "for two" and we thought "wow, what a deal! such a cheap price for two!". We tried to order it and almost ended up order two orders of it! Apparently it was only for one person, but perhaps the ad wanted to suggest you should order two for you and your date. Luckily there was a staff that was able to speak English and helped clarify it for us before the order was put and we quickly rectified the order to something less extravagant. 

The steak was delicious. It was thick and made the way we liked it. The side of mashed potato was also great. As we left, they told us that they're giving away bread for free so we got some. 

After that dinner, we went to do some grocery shopping at E-mart (across the street). Then we went home and watched tv. Neil did some work and a minute before nye, we sat and down and did our count down together. Not the most exciting, but I'd much prefer to be with loved ones at home where I'm safe and warm than be with a bunch of strangers and get my drink spilled on me. It was a nice and comforting way to move on to the next year. 

I heard somewhere, how you spend your last night of the year is how you'll spend the rest of your next year. 

Christmas Party

This is my first Christmas away but not Neil's. We decided to ask our co-workers to join us for dinner at our place to celebrate. I convinced Neil to make his oh-so-yummy mulled wine and I wanted everyone else to try it as well. The cover charge was a bottle of red wine. We had 10 in total that night and all the bottles were emptied.

(Didn't get a chance to take any pictures cause we were so busy, but here's a picture of my diy decorations)

On the menu that night was oven-roasted chicken, mashed potatoes with homemade gravy, pasta, fried rice, blanched broccoli and carrots. The main feature was the mulled wine. Our guests brought an array of appies such as cheese, crackers, cakes, and fruits. Our main concern was not enough food so we were very happy when people were stuffed! We even had leftovers. 

We put on Christmas music and movies as people were arriving and eating. After dinner, we decided to play some wii games, namely the dancing game. It was gold! Some people were reluctant to make a food of themselves, but the boys really showed off their dancing skills. I wonder if these are the same skills they showcase in the clubs.

It was a tiring and fun day. Who knows where we will be next Christmas, but I believe it's a time where there should be lots of people!

Stand Up in Busan

Neil discovered a open mic for stand up in Busan, so needless to say, that's where we headed. I've always wanted to check out Busan. We booked a guesthouse near Gwangalli Beach since the venue is located there. Our stay was very short because it's only a weekend.

It takes the same amount of time for us to go to Busan as it does for Seoul (3.5 to 4 hours). It was snowing as we boarded the bus and for more than half the trip there was snow everywhere. However, as we got closer to Busan, there was no snow. I guess because it's near the ocean, it doesn't snow as much? Like Vancouver? 

I didn't realize how big Busan was, granted I do know that it's one of the biggest city - I think second? I expected a fishing village, but it's known for it's seafood there, but it's definitely a metropolitan city. Although their bus terminal was a bit less modern. There's a different vibe to the city and I can't quite put my finger on it. Their subway is pretty good and we made it to our cute guesthouse. This is our first time in one and it's super cute! It reminds me of a house that's in one of those k-drama. Tons of cute wall deco and furnishings. 

Our first night was the night of the open mic. We made our way to the beach and popped into a seafood restaurant right away. It was okay. The presentation was better than the food because there was a lot of food we're not quite sure what it was and the shells took up way too much space. I'd like to try other types of seafood though, so we'll definitely come back. It was a very very cold night and we walked back and forth on the boardwalk trying to find this venue, which we did.

This place had a window that overlooked the beach and the Gwangalli bridge and it was gorgeous! The evening went great as well. There were a lot of comedians, mostly amateur and some were funny. Neil went up and did his thing and he was great! The voting was buy the number of drinks you buy and there were over 10+ comedians that night, it would've been hard to keep track. Two local guys and a guy from Seoul won the top three positions. I still prefer Neil's edgier stuff compared to the safe and self depreciating ones. But then I am a little bias. 

It's a shame we didn't get to stay longer in Busan, we would've loved to look around more but alas work calls and we had to get back before Monday.

Winter Clothes and Shoes

Since we're limited by the amount of clothes we can pack, a lot of the thicker clothes were obviously missing. So after our payday in December, we decided to do some shopping. I was in dire need of a nice pair of winter boots since the roads were becoming slick. With my history of balance it would be best for me to be safe than sorry. At the beginning, my rain boots were sufficient but I started slipping on the ice so I had to get winter boots. 

In downtown, Neil and I wandered to H&M. He has expressed many times in the past how he does not enjoy shopping and would much rather I do it and then call him to join me. In fact, that day Neil didn't really plan on doing any shopping but I dragged him to H&M. We headed downstairs to the men's section and we saw some really nice pullovers. There was a sale so it was a really good deal. Before we knew it, Neil has picked up 3 sweaters, a scarf and a hat. After leaving him to pay for his stuff, I ventured upstairs to see what kind of deals I can get. I ended up getting two sweaters, a scarf and a pair of sneakers. 

Next we went to a few more shops but didn't see anything. I finally laid my eyes on a pair of boots that looked sensible and only cost me thirty bucks! Since I'm not sure where I'll be next year, I don't want to pay anything too exorbitant for any stuff I may or may not bring with me, so I just snapped it up. 

Shopping in Korea isn't so bad :) Next stop to try one of those Korean shops!