Koreans

I thought a quick post about the Korean people might be nice, since until now most of our posts have been about traveling or getting settled in. Before coming to Korea, I think that Katie and I imagined that Koreans would be stuffy, prudish, and generally disapproving of foreigners. This perception was likely the result of reading countless guidebooks that went into painstaking detail regarding Korean cultural specifics and placed a heavy emphasis upon the influence of Confucianism in Korea.

However, in general we have found Koreans to be remarkably friendly and helpful. They may stare a great deal (especially in Changwon, where a foreigner is a rare sight), but so far we have not been harassed or heckled in any way. On the contrary, Koreans have gone out of their way to help us. A case in point: Katie and I found a couch the other day -we had been on the look out for a discarded couch in good condition- but unfortunately it was very far from our apartment. Katie helped me carry it about a quarter of the way home, but a man in a business suit came out of no where and took Katie's end of the couch. He then proceeded to help me carry the couch all the way back to our building. I wisely opted not to let him help us up to our apartment, or even our floor, thinking it best that he not know where we live. I naturally assumed he would want something for his effort. To our surprise, he would not even accept compensation for his cab ride back to his area of town. He shook my hand, gave me his business card, and cheerfully waved goodbye as he walked away.


Most of the school kids wear uniforms, and a sight like this is not uncommon. Often if there is a large group of school children, especially girls, they will dare each other to run up to foreigners and say "hello". Then they giggle and run away. Every time. Though we are certainly getting used to it, I haven't seen any of them do it out of meaness.


Small stores and shops frequently employ entertainers of various sorts to stand outside and advertise for them. In this case, a shop had guys dressed up as clowns and wearing stilts making balloon animals and singing and dancing in front of the store. They were hilarious, and absolutely loved having their picture taken.


I'm sure that we'll encounter friendly people and unfriendly ones in Korea, as we would anywhere, but so far we've generally enjoyed Koreans' warmth and kindness.

Cookie Plaza

Today we explored a little piece of western heaven called "Cookie Plaza". It's a small shop tucked away just like every other place, but is easy to spot because of it's pink sign and English lettering. When we walked inside I could hardly believe my eyes! They have BBQ sauce, KoolAid, cake mix, tons of cooking wines, many spices, maple syrup, oatmeal and even taco seasoning! It's an expats dream, really. We don't have an oven so baking is out of the question, but if we did, I could make cakes and other yummy things that remind us of home. Cookie Plaza is small, they usually don't have more than one of the same item, and some things can be very pricey like Parmesan cheese for $8000 won. But we were able to find cinnamon for around 1600 won which is pretty cheap, but the taco seasoning was more like 3000 won. I'd never pay more than $1.50 for that at home, but I am missing the taste of so many things that we're willing to pay a bit more for them here.
Mom told me we have a box of yummy things on the way too! I can't wait! Thanks Mom!

Market Day

As mentioned previously, every five days is "market day" downtown. On Monday Katie and I went in search of produce and veggies.


Bowls containing what we believe to be primarily different varieties of kimchi.




Many vendors expertly slice fish up before wrapping them for their customers.


Katie and I spotted this large octopus trying to escape. The old man attending the booth nearby just stared at me absently as I took the photo. I think he wondered what my problem was.


These frightening-looking eels can be found all over the market.


Squid can be found in various forms all over the market, but I thought these fun-sized dried squid were unique.




A crate full of chicken hearts- just one of the many kinds of animal innards that can be purchased at the market.

First Impressions of Korea

Today marks two weeks that Katie and I have been in Korea. As of yesterday, we have been in Changwon for one week. We are now relatively settled into our new apartment, and have had a little time to being adapting to life in Korea.

One of our primary concerns was to find out how/where to buy groceries, and where to go to eat. So far, we have found that the "ramp store" and E-Mart are great places to buy household items such as toilet paper, cleaning supplies, paper towels, and certain other items. But there is an open-air market not far from us in downtown, and it is generally better to buy produce there. The produce looks and tastes better, is cheaper, and on "market days" (every five days) there is an overwhelming selection. Other items can be bought at the market as well, such as the pottery you see here.


As far as eating out, we were not disappointed to find an Outback Steakhouse within a five-minute walk of our apartment. We have learned that eating "western" food out can be a very expensive pastime here. Korean restaurants abound, and a meal can be purchased for around $5 or so. However, most restaurants either specialize in seafood, or have many seafood items on the menu -much to Katie's disappointment.


Restaurants are in the habit of keeping live fish tanks in front of their establishments, presumably so that passersby can see what might be had for dinner. These tanks might contain any of the following: Fish, crabs, snails, eels, octopus and squid (I'm sure I'll be able to add to the list in time).

There is a veritable seafood palace downtown, and the whole building is very quaint and European-looking. Walking to school one day I noticed what was written in Gothic script on the side of the building:


The same restaurant also features a rather odd statue near the front entrance...



Here, an innocent octopus awaits inevitable consumption by a Korean diner in his tank in front of a restaurant.



Another phenomenon worth commenting on is the abundance of scooters that we have seen. Don't misunderstand; there are plenty of nice, new cars always zipping around when we go out. But we have also seen a lot of scooters.

Scooters are used for practically everything here, and we have seen lots of examples of makeshift trailers being attached to maximize efficiency.



We saw this garbage man one day, and were amazed at how much stuff he was able to pack into his scooter/cart... and how dirty he was.



I also saw what has to be the world's biggest scooter a couple of days ago downtown. I had no idea they made them this big:



We will certainly post more regarding all the interesting cultural curiosities that we encounter. But these have been among our first impressions.

Our Apartment

As most of you have heard, our apartment is quite small. We have one large room, and a separate bathroom. It's definitely cozy :) It reminds me of a college dorm, only a bit more fancy. Nevertheless, we have already begun making it feel like home.

The kitchen/laundry area is built into the wall, as well as all our storage and closet space. There is no oven, only a gas range. That unit below the stove is our washer/dryer. I was quite surprised to find out that you can wash your laundry and dry it in the same machine!

This is the view looking towards our front door. The kitchen is now hidden behind those double doors. I like that you can separate the two. The bathroom is the first doorway on the right, and the refrigerator and closet space is opposite the bathroom. Aaron took this picture while sitting on our bed. We're hoping to get more furniture like a table and desk, and maybe even a small couch.

We'll post pics of our place when it's all set up!

A Word Regarding Food

Spring is obviously in the air here in Changwon, as evidenced by this tree that is about to be in blossom. The tree is located in a park not far from where we live. We're not sure what it is, but it's bound to be beautiful when the blossoms open.

But the real purpose of this post is not horticultural. I thought I should say something -very briefly, for now- about the foods we've encountered here so far.


These bags of freeze-dried fish can be found in every grocery and convenience store. We're not sure whether you're supposed to put them in a bowl, add milk and sugar, and eat them for breakfast, or simply sprinkle them on your favorite foods.


Plum pudding, per chance? As gross as plum pudding sounds, this is actually a frozen octopus. Then have a pile of these in the freezer section of the "ramp store" (a nearby grocery store that is located underground, at the bottom of an astro-turf covered ramp).


Robyn was our tour guide to the local E Mart yesterday, and suggested that we buy some rice and bulgogi to make at home. Bulgogi is thinly sliced, marinated beef. We took her advice and made some this afternoon: our first real meal at home in Korea. It was delicious.


Of course, it doesn't take much looking to find good old, Western-style food either. We were grateful to find a Dunkin Donuts located in the middle of downtown. This morning we treated ourselves to real coffee and delicious confections. At about 8:00 AM the shop was empty except for us. But late last night it was bursting at the seams with patrons.

We Finally Arrive in Changwon

At long last, we’re here in Changwon. I’m not sure whether I was more relieved to be out of Seoul or to be done with training. Friday, my last day of training was by far the most intense. I was tested regarding the structure of classes and evaluated on my ability to present the information. At the very end I sat down with one of the staff and learned the details of how Katie and I would be getting from Seoul to Changwon. At 7:00 that evening, a cab driver would pick us up from the hotel and take us to the bus station. The cab driver would then purchase our tickets to Changwon and call the director of the Changwon branch to inform him as to what time we would arrive. The director would then arrange for someone to pick us up and take us to our apartment, which was already prepared for us.

I had been getting back to the hotel around 4:00 each day, but Friday the shuttle bus to the hotel didn’t even leave until 6:00. By that time the traffic had mounted to an unfathomable gridlock. The gridlock became increasingly worse as we entered the Gangnam district (where the hotel was located). A 15 minute drive ended up taking an hour and-a-half.

Meanwhile, Katie had had to check out of the hotel room at noon. In the morning we had taken some of our luggage down to the front desk and checked them so that Katie would not have to carry down so much at check-out time. After noon she had to wait in the hotel lobby until I returned from training. Around 5:00 I was able to call her, and told her I thought he shuttle bus would be leaving shortly. So she waited patiently until after 7:30, when I finally got back. Fortunately Dave, a nice Canadian fellow trainee, had left training early and was also waiting in hotel lobby. Katie had met Dave previously was able to talk with him for awhile while she waited. As it turned out, Dave was going to Taejon and also had to go to the bus station. The school had arranged for him to ride with us.

When I arrived we hurriedly loaded our luggage into the cab (which, of course, had been waiting for over half and hour) and dashed to the bus station. The cab driver quickly arranged for Dave’s departure since his bus left earlier than ours. Then he took us to the platform where our bus would arrive and called the director of my branch. After speaking Korean with him for awhile the cab driver removed his blue tooth headset and handed it to me. He them emphatically pantomimed that I should put it in my ear. Unenthused, I placed the device in my ear and said “hello”. My director explained that I would call a number from a payphone at the station after we arrived and that someone would come to pick us up.

The cab driver waited with us on the platform until our bus arrived, then he helped us load our luggage. The trip to Changwon took about four hours, and unfortunately it was night, so we didn’t see much of what we were later told was beautiful countryside. Upon our arrival in Changwon I called the number and within five minutes a young Korean man had arrived and was helping us carry our luggage to a cab. His name was Anderson and he was remarkably jovial considering that it was nearly 1:00 AM.


The cab pulled up beside an apartment building, and Anderson gestured toward it saying, “This building is for you.” Then he smiled and added, “Not the whole thing.” We hauled our things to the elevator and went to the eighth floor (the pic is of the apartment building). Anderson helped us into our one-room apartment and apologized that we had a single bed instead of a double. He explained that school headquarters had failed to mention to them that my wife would be accompanying me.

Within just a few minutes, the two head instructors from the school, Kyle and Robyn, had come up to greet us. Kyle and Robyn are Canadians, and have been in Changwon for about seven months. They both turned out to be very nice, and their warm reception was much appreciated. After they left, Katie and I crawled into our tiny bed and got some much needed sleep.


Yesterday morning we were pleased to find that Changwon is very different from Seoul. The first thing we noticed was the blue sky, followed by a beautiful sunrise and ideal weather. Around noon Kyle and Robyn showed us the sites (and the necessities) around the city, and also took us to the school. The school’s facilities are very nice; everything looks new and clean. I was given my schedule and the books that I’ll need to teach my classes. Kyle and Robyn ordered lunch at the school, giving Katie and I the opportunity to try several new Korean dishes.
We were exhausted by the end of the day yesterday, but feeling pretty good about living here in Changwon. Needless to say, I have some nerves regarding my first day of teaching tomorrow. I really want to do a good job, but my week-long cramming session at headquarters has not made me a hundred percent confident that I’ll do a great job from day one. The class structures are complex, and I’m teaching three separate kinds of class this term.

So-long, Seoul

We're preparing to say goodbye to Seoul today. This being my last day of training, we will check out of the hotel and leave for Changwon this evening. I have been told that we will likely be traveling there by bus.


Though we have enjoyed the sights and sounds of Seoul, we're a little relieved to be getting away from the hustle and bustle (not to mention the pollution) of this colossal city.

It's hard to say for certain when we will be able to update the blog again. Of course, we hope that we will be set up for high-speed internet immediately when we move into our apartment in Changwon. In any case, stay tuned for further details as we embark on our adventure within and adventure: our trip through the heart of South Korea to our new home in Changwon.

No Sunshine in Seoul

Today was our fourth day in Korea. Once again, I went to training at my school's corporate headquarters and Katie stayed at the hotel. Training has definitely lived up to my expectations of being very challenging. Between the barrages of information, there are "mock" teaching sessions and exams. I'm very thankful that I have only two more days of training after today.


We have begun to realize just how polluted Seoul is. On Sunday morning, upon waking up and looking out the window, we thought the day was cloudy. The day seemed overcast until about noon, when the sun seemed to come out for several hours. We have subsequently realized that each day we have been here has been "sunny" -but the sun has to rise high enough above the smog before it actually looks like a sunny day. I guess it isn't surprising considering that ten million people live here (roughly 10 times the population of Dallas).


When I returned to the hotel this afternoon, Katie and I went out for Mr. Pizza. Mr. Pizza is a popular pizza chain here, and we have found that they do a pretty good job; this is impressive when you consider that we have been informed that Domino's here can't make a "normal" pizza even if you ask them to. At Mr. Pizza, you can get a large pepperoni pizza with a side of pickles (yes, pickles) for just 15,000 KW. Click here to see their website.

Oddly, Mr. Pizza's advertising campaign seems to revolve around the company's solidarity with women. Take a look at the photo I took of their English menu, which they will give you upon request, and you'll see what I mean...

Orientation and A Crunky Bar

During our second full day in Korea (yesterday for us), I attended my first day of orientation at the school's headquarters, and Katie spent the day at the hotel. Around 8:45 in morning the school sent a bus over to pick me up, as well as the other recruits staying a the hotel. It was my first opportunity to meet my fellow trainees, and it was a very positive experience. The vast majority, not surprisingly, were Canadian; there were also a couple of Americans and even one person from South Africa.

We were all taken to the school's corporate headquarters where we were seated at a large conference table. After the first half hour, I realized that this week of training is going to be intense. The material has been concentrated so that it can be presented in the short time frame we have available. Additionally, we will have to take a variety of tests on grammar and syntax, and will also receive a comprehensive evaluation on Friday. This is going to be a very busy week, with lots of studying at the hotel.

Afterward, we were all transported to a hospital where we were given a cursory physical, a chest x-ray, a blood test, and a drug test. I was amused when the nurse giving the physical tested me for color-blindness. After I had demonstrated that I was unable to recognize the numbers hidden within the colored dots, the nurse looked at me earnestly and began to laboriously try to convey something to me in English. After several attempts, she finally managed to say "color-blind!" I think she was genuinely concerned about me. I just smiled politely and nodded; she probably assumed I had simply failed to comprehend the seriousness of my condition.

By the time I was delivered back to the hotel it was nearly 4:00, and I not eaten since about 7:30 in the morning. Katie was glad to see me, and we went out to "Cafe Mix & Bake", a pizza-parlorish place nearby. Afterward we went to the "Family Food Mart" (a convenience store) and bought a number of Korean instant noodle bowls, as well as our first "Crunky" bar. Crunky bars are advertised incessantly on television, and we were beginning to feel the urgent need to try one. I'd describe it as basically like a Nestle's Crunch bar, though it leaves an inexplicable caramel corn attribute on the palette. Overall, not bad.

Bumming Around

A little while ago I left the hotel and spent some time just bumming around the neighborhood. I snapped a few photos; none of them are special, but I think they convey a good sense of what it looks like here.


This is a major street just to the north of where the hotel is located. As you can see, office buildings stretch into the distance as far as can be seen. Many of the buildings bear familiar Korean brand names like Samsung and Hyundai.


A smaller street that branches off to the north of the other one.


Clearly, everyone loves Texas. This restaurant is tucked away in what I thought was a fairly unlikely spot. There's a Black Angus not far from here that's in a more heavily trafficked area, as well as a Burger King and a Dominos Pizza.


Here's one final pic mainly intended to demonstrate how much hangul (Korean script) we're up against here. Upon painstakingly deciphering some of it that was written on instant soup that we bought, I found that many times it simply phonetically spells something easily recognizable (i.e., "Ramen", or "Kimchee"). We'll definitely have to spend some time practicing sounding out words written in hangul, even if we don't understand most of them.

We Have Arrived...

The day has finally arrived. Fanfair, please: This is our first post from Korea.

Yesterday morning Mom and Dad drove us from their house to DIA, where Kyle was also waiting to see us off. After a tearful goodbye, Katie and I boarded our Frontier Airlines flight from Denver to San Francisco. From San Francisco we took Singapore Airlines to Seoul, which was a 12-hour flight. We followed my school's directions for getting from the airport to the hotel with little difficulty, though "exhausted" does not adequately describe our condition by the time we finally turned in for the night.

The photo is of a small, plastic device affixed to the wall of our hotel room here in Seoul. When we got in yesterday evening, I found that flipping the light switches on and off seemed to have no affect. I called the front desk, of course, and explained that the lights were not working. Several moments later our buzzer rang and a video image popped up, on the screen on our phone, of the area just outside the door (I am not kidding); I immediately recognized the man from the front desk.

I opened the door, and he politely asked if I had "tried" my card. As I had no idea what he was talking about, he asked to see my card. I handed it to him, and he placed it into the small plastic device. Then he turned on the lights. He then looked at me the way you'd look at a person for whom you just had explain how to open a door. Katie and I later noticed that her key card bears the word "Woomin", presumably because the extra key is intended for the spouse.


As you can see, the hotel room is very "Asian". Although it is not as clean as we would have preferred, we are glad to be settled into our hotel for this week of orientation.


These slippers were awaiting us when we entered our room. They are an example of the infamous "house slippers" we have read so much about. As you can see, they provided one pair for me, and one for my "Woomin".

Today being Sunday, we really have nothing to do but relax and explore downtown Seoul a bit. Orientation begins tomorrow for me, and we'll provide updates as soon as possible. So far, so good, albeit we're a bit jet lagged and just a little homesick. We are very thankful to God that we made it here without any hitches!