At the end of the month, after settling in we decided to invite our co-workers over for a house warming and get together. Unlike Christmas, I only prepped snacks this time around. Veggies and chips. Everyone bought some drinks and dessert to share. There were raspberry sponge cake and cheesecake!
Most of the native teachers showed up and had no trouble finding our place because we are so much closer now. Two Korean teachers showed up! One even bought us a box of strawberries and toilet paper. Apparently a Korean tradition when someone moves into a new place is bring toilet paper. Interesting...
Rather than dancing, we opted for Cards Against Humanity game instead. It was great, especially when I was doing so well. It was great just socializing and talking with each other. As this was at the end of the semester, we had a lot of stories to share about our students and classes. We all dolled out advice on how to manage certain students and classes. The next month, we would have a whole new schedule and new classes and new students (obviously).
There are two major breaks in the Korean school semester: summer and winter. And also two new semester starts: September and March. Korean students graduate in February and move to a new level in March. So every March we would get a whole new schedule and change classes and students. In September, nothing really changes. But this is a busy time for new incoming foreign teachers. Our school should be expecting some new foreign teachers at that time.
One thing Neil wanted to pursue is comedy. Unfortunately Gwangju still hasn't built a big enough community of comics to really go anywhere. So whenever we go to the bigger cities like Seoul and Busan, we try to go to a comedy night. It's a shame that most happens on weeknights instead of weekends when we can go there. It's too bad.
When Neil heard there's a comedy night at the local pub Speakeasy, we made a point to head there. This comic was someone we had seen in Seoul: Brian Aylward. He was hosting a amateur comedy night and was very good so we knew it was going to be a good show. Apparently Brian has been on a tour all over Asia.
We ended sitting with the comic himself! and a few of his friends. They were all very nice. Brian is actually Canadian, so I instantly liked him! His set was very good, as we had expected. Then we spent the rest of the night chatting and drinking with him and his friends. After numerous drinks and shots, I was well tipsy and super tired. We don't normally go out at night very much so I usually get tired easily. And especially with some alcohol in us. But it was definitely a good night, I'd do it again in a heart beat, even if it meant all the suffering the next morning.
So our friend and past colleague had moved to Suncheon at the end of last year. He's invited us out to visit whenever we're free. The last couple of months have been busy but finally we decided to take him up on the offer and take the 2.5 hour bus trip there.
We woke up a little later than we intended to and ended up getting there around dinner time. Ashley and his wife Amy picked us up at the bus terminal and then we all took the bus to a buffet restaurant. I can't quite recall the name but it was popular so we had to wait a little bit. After a nice buffet dinner, we decided to go for karaoke.
At first we entered an establishment that reminded me of those 80s karaoke lounge from Chinese shows. There's a huge stench of old ladies' perfume and there were booths covered with purple velvet. Most of the patrons were well into their 50s? After stepping into this place, we quickly realized this was not what we were looking for so we said our goodbyes and hightailed out of there.
The next place is very much the typical karaoke place so we planted ourselves down for the next two hours and belted ballads, rock songs, etc. It was a great way to spend a Saturday night! After sufficiently wrecking our vocal cords, we headed back to A&A's abode. Their apartment is in a newly developed complex - even area. Everywhere around that area looked so new and clean! And their apartment was gorgeous! It was a three bedroom, with 1 bathroom and an ensuite, an open floor plan of the living and dining/kitchen space. Amy told me that she bought a lot of her future online - I wish I could do the same but alas she is Korean so it's a lot easier for her.
After a night's rest, we spent the next morning walking around their area. It's very spacious with very tall buildings. There's not much traffic or people walking around because it's still new and people are slowly moving in the area. But because it's so far from the city center (very much a suburb), most people would need to have cars as the buses don't run that frequently. After walking around the area and having some lunch, Ashley decided to take us to the Suncheon Bay Gardens. It took us a long time to find a cab, reminded me a bit like Vancouver (lol). Amy almost had to call a cab for us but eventually we found one and started off on our adventure.
This garden is not little, it was massive! We were too early for many of the flowers to be in bloom but I bet it would be so beautiful come spring and summer. There were lots of people there and we spent a good few hours and still couldn't walk around the whole place. One very interesting thing we did here was ride the SkyCube. It's a compact unmanned streetcar. It sits on tracks above ground (like a skytrain!). It takes about 12 minutes to get from the garden to the next stop. It fits about 8 people and costs $5 for a round trip. According to the brochure because it's run on electricity, it's suppose to protect the Suncheon Bay (world top 5 wetland) from exhaust and traffic congestion. From this experience, we also learned that Suncheon wants to be known as one of the most green cities in the world. As we were walking through an exhibition hall, I saw Vancouver named as one of the top green cities in the world. Made me miss Vancouver a little bit and feel a bit proud of my hometown. (both pic on the bottom if found via google)
After we got back to their apartment, Amy had make a wonderful roast chicken dinner for us! By the way, she has a full size oven that I am completely envious of! After thanking our hosts, we headed to the train station to head home. Unlike Gwangju, after buying our tickets we had to line up to get a seat on the bus rather than having it assigned. Needles to say, the station was super busy! Never knew so many would head back to Gwangju on the same night.
For Lunar New Year we got five days off and decided to head to Seoul. We booked our hostel in the Jong-no area called Fortune Hostel. It was great! Very convenient and close to the subway station. Only one train from the bus station.
We kept hearing about how it would be really busy to travel on this day but our trip was really smooth. We got there in 3.5 hours and no big traffic jams. After getting to the hostel, we decided to head out the Itaewon to grab dinner. We originally wanted to eat at a Thai restaurant but changed our minds and headed to Boiling Crab instead. BEST decision! It was delicious!
After dinner we went to Tony's Bar for their stand-up comedy night. It was also very good. We'll definitely go back there the next time we're in Seoul.
The next day (Thursday) we went to Gyeonbokgung Palace. It was a 20-minute walk from our hostel. Being as it's LNY, we got free entrance to the palace and there was also a festival going on as well. Too bad, the tour wasn't going on so that's another place I want to read up on or go again. I bought some treats at the various food tents. Next we went to find the dim sum restaurant Mong Jung Heon. It was nice and super fancy. The dishes were very expensive. The shrimp dumplings were delicious but the pork dumplings did not taste homemade at all. It looked and tasted like the ones I could buy at T&T in Vancouver.
Afterwards we headed to Seoul Grand Park Children's Zoo. It has been a long time since I was at a zoo and this one was pretty cool. During this holiday, it seems half of Seoul was empty and it's been remarked on by some comedians the night before. It was great because that meant we could sit down on the subway and the lines were not long to all the attractions, including the zoo. The zoo was huge! In fact, the whole park was huge! We spent at least two to three hours and there was a whole avian area we skipped (due to the avian flu warnings). We went back to the hostel to rest a bit before heading out for dinner. We were going for Thai food (again, tried) but it was closed so we ended up across the street at an Irish Bar. Neil had some bangers and mash and I had fish and chips. It was okay.
On Friday, we visited the Seodaemun Prison and learned quite a bit about the Korean/Japan war/colonization. It reminded me a bit of the Alcatraz but less scary. It was definitely more educational. Next we went to the Coex Aquarium in the Coex Mall. Before the aquarium, we had some pho in the mall. The mall was beautiful! There's so much to see and it's just very pretty. The last time we were there, the renovations wasn't complete so we didn't see how beautiful it was. The ticket for the aquarium was pricey but we went anyways. It was interesting. There was a section where there were fish tanks in every day items like a fridge and a washing machine.
After the aquarium, we saw another Chinese restaurant so we went there to try their dim sum. It seems like this was another fancy restaurant too. The pork dumplings were much much better but the spring rolls were super tiny and meh.
On Saturday, we had booked a DMZ-tour and the guide came to pick us up at our hotel at 7am. There were five other people in the tour with us. I really liked the tour, the guide was very thorough and gave a lot of explanation and history. She really took care of us. We took a van ride to a city near the DMZ (de-militarized zone) called Paju to meet up with other tourists with their own tour guides (mostly Chinese and western) to travel on a bus to the Third Tunnel. As this is not a UN tour, we couldn't go into the actual DMZ. That tour needs to be booked months in advance and cost slightly more. We did enter the DMZ through the third tunnel which went under this area. We gained a lot insightful information about South and North Korea. This tour was worth it and I would go on the UN tour to see more of the DMZ.
After getting dropped off in Hongdae (after a gingseng store tour...) we went to find this sushi place my co-worker Rami told us about. The thing about Seoul is that there are tons of little and side streets that don't have names so it's a real challenge finidng anything! We walked around the area for at least 20 minutes before we finally found it! At one point I was going to give up but it was definitely worth it. We finally had salmon sashimi and it was sooooo good! We also got some "service" (=free) items such as a shrimp sashimi (I ate both and they were so sweet!) and a seared salmon.
That night after resting at our hostel, we headed to Itaewon again to do a bit of foreign grocery shopping. We also finally had some Thai food. It was a super pretty place (all purple!). The food was good but it wasn't excellent. It's too bad. We also dropped by a place called Ben's Cookies and bought half a dozen. We had them for dessert back at our hostel. It was delicious! One cookie was really filling.
By Sunday, we decided to do a little bit of shopping and then head home. However, we didn't find anything we wanted and just took the bus home. It was a very productive trip and there's only a few things we still have to do (i.e. rainbow bridge, fish market, etc.) Until next time Seoul!
We were told at the end of December that we would have to move at the end of January. We did not expect that at all. Our concerns were mostly what this new place would look like, what furniture and things are provided, how are we going to move our stuff? The last time we moved, we only moved our very few possessions and our suitcases. Now we have an apartment full of stuff and we did not want to buy any new stuff. We only have six months left on our contract. So we were full of concerns and questions, but everything turned out great!
We got to see the new apartment before moving in and took some pictures.
The school hired a moving company for us and helped us settle our bills. The weekend before our move, the movers dropped off some boxes and crates. We were not really told how the process is. I had inklings from reading and watching blogs online but we were never really told explicitly. From my research, the movers would come in and help you back up your stuff, move it, clean your new place and unpack your stuff. In case our movers aren't going to do that, Neil and I decided to pack everything in those boxes and crates ourselves. Well, Neil did most of the packing, I did my stuff and the kitchen. hehe
Then on Friday morning, the gas people came to turn off our gas so we had no heat or hot water! We made sure to wake up super early to shower before he came. Luckily we did. That night, we had no heat so we both wore a lot of clothes to bed. At 6:00am Saturday morning, our alarm clock went off. We decided to Neil would go to the new apartment early to do some cleaning and move some stuff out of the way to make room for our furniture. I would stay at our old apartment to direct the movers what to take and what not to take. Our old apartment had a lot of accumulated furniture and most of it was not used, like those unused icons on your desktop. Since we won't have any translators I had to stay to make sure they only took things we wanted.
Neil left around 6:30am and I packed up the rest of our stuff and waited for the movers to arrive. They were right on time! A man and woman duo came in and noticed all our stuff was packed. I guess we weren't suppose to pack it ourselves oops! I tried to communicate to them what needed to be moved and were staying. I'm glad I stayed because there were some things I had to tell them twice to take or not to take. A lot of hand gestures were used haha. They were super nice! The woman repacked some of our stuff so the crates would stack on top of each other. Another man came in to help. We all kind of waited around for the crane to set up. I was very fascinated!
This crane is pretty awesome. Rather than having to carry things out of the apartment, down the elevator and into the truck, this was all done via the balcony. Now I understand why apartments here have so many big windows and balconies. The first man brought a metal plate with a hook that hangs on to the balcony and outside. A crane is parked below the balcony and the neck extends all the way to the top. (We're on the 19th floor of a 20-floor apartment) The man would direct the crane until it's at the right height and location and then the crane's neck tilts so that leans against the metal plate. I believe there is some magnet there because it really steadies the crane's neck. There is a platform that moves up and down this crane's neck where all the crates, boxes and furniture go. It moves quick and steadily up and down so nothing falls off. So the movers job is to move our stuff onto this platform and it will be lowered down to where somebody will to move it into truck. This really decreases the amount of heavy lifting! After the crane was set up, it took less than an hour to empty our apartment and into the truck!
At one point, the woman asked if I was Vietnamese but I told her I was from Canada. She also said I'm like a kid cause I'm small size. I'm small even for Asian standards. *sighs*.
We were told that we should get some coffee for the movers. They were really nice and gave me a ride from the old apartment to the new one so I asked Neil to pick up some coffees when I arrived. He did a wonderful job and swept and cleaned the floors so we didn't have to do it later. There was a bit of a lull as we waited for the crane to be set up again but once it was and the boxes and furniture moved in, we all got busy. I didn't have to lift a finger and they moved everything to where I directed. They helped up unpack as well. The woman even helped put everything into the cupboards! And once they were done they disappeared. I didn't even know when they left. I would've loved to thank them again.
I have packed and moved four times in the last two years and this was by far the best experience! If only all moves were this great then I wouldn't mind at all. But still the packing is still a nightmare so I'll take that back. :-P
Oh the new apartment is great! We'll be having a video up really soon!
We moved into our second apartment in September. We had every intention to do a video tour but unfortunately we got too busy and never had the chance before we were told we're moving. So here's a post about our second apartment with pictures and the floor plan.
This is a 3-bedroom apartment on the 19th floor in a very residential area. We are 15 minutes walk away from the subway station and 2 stops from our school. It takes us about 30 minutes each day to travel to work.
This is an older apartment and we had keys instead of the electronic locks. Once you go in, you're in the entrance/foyer area. It's an open plan and you can see the living room on your immediate left. On the right hand side is a door for one of the bedrooms. We changed it into a dining room because the dining table took up too much space in the living room. We hardly use this room and it's super drafty because of the enclosed balcony. We use the big closet in this room to store our winter coats, suitcases, and miscellaneous things. We put the desk in the enclosed balcony because it's where it fits.
Further down from the living room and to the right is the kitchen area. We originally had a mini fridge so we bought a second full-size fridge instead. this cost us about 100,000 won ($100) and included delivery! This place came equipped with a microwave, a rice cooker, a blender and a french press! There were also lots of utensils and kitchen stuff left over from previous owners. So we didn't have to spend anything on that. The only things I spent money on were our pots and pans, which I prefer to get my own. The sink is quite large and there's even a sanitizer/dryer above the sink! We only used it at the beginning because of its novelty. Most of our dishes were left in the drying rack instead. The stove only had two elements and it's detachable.
The sliding doors lead out to another enclosed balcony space. This is where the washing machine is and the broken mini fridge. We also store our cleaning supplies, recyclables and garbage.
There is a large bookcase that we used as our pantry for our canned/packaged/dry goods, teas and our toaster. In the bottom cupboards are my baking ingredients and supplies. On the right side of the shelves is second bedroom: the guest room. There is a big closet in there that we use to store our extra blankets and linens. We inherited three single mattress pads which we've stacked. When we have guests, we'll take them apart and it just barely fits (can't fully open the door). There's also some night stands in there for extra storage. The walls had Disney Princess decos that we've covered with a map.
On the left side of the shelf is a door that leads to the toilet. Unlike many Korean apartments, we were blessed with an actual tub! It's great for baths and because of this, the room tend not to be too wet.
Next to the toilet is the master bedroom. It is considerably larger than the other two bedrooms. It comfortably accommodates a double bed, a set of drawers, a large closet, and a vanity table and area. Korean beds are known to be hard but luckily the previous resident sold us their foam mattress which made the bed a million times better! (Thank you Carly!) I was super happy to have an area where I can set up my make up and get ready. This room has large windows that open out to another enclosed balcony.
The entrance to this balcony space is through the living room. It is a very good size which we use to hang our laundry because there is no dryer.
This apartment is very nice and roomy so that Neil and I don't have to bump into each other all the time. We've had many good times here watching netflix and hosting wii dance parties!
