Love my Friends

Today was another day I'm so thankful for the friends I have. They bring me so much joy. I know my time in Korea would not be the same without them.

I met Jacob for brunch in Hongdae. We both got a breakfast burrito and hash browns. Then it was off to Wangsimni Station to meet Sung Min (Ji). When we got there, Ji said he went the wrong direction on the subway and was going to be getting picked up by his cousin and dropped off in a bit. So, Jacob and I did some shopping and I bought a pair of shoes. Finally Ji arrived and we met his friend "Cabbage". They have been friends since elementary school. And his name is Cabbage because he has "a big head" that "looks like a cabbage". We got coffee and talked until Yeojin, Ji's girlfriend arrived. Then we played Uno. We set the stakes high--2 winners (of 3 games) and 3 losers; the losers buy dinner! Well, I started out strong and had 2 wins back to back, but then ended up one of the losers. But it was a lot of fun. We went out to look for a place for dinner. We picked a ddeokboki restaurant; it's like a spicy stew with rice cake and noodles and some vegetables in it. After we eat, we tried to find somewhere to play billiards, but we couldn't find a place. We did find a little arcade and did the shooting range~I got 6 out of the 9 targets so I was proud, but I had the lowest score. Then we went for some drinks, talked and played more uno. It was such a fun day. :)

Cheesy Egg and Bacon Burrito

Jacobbbb.....

Playing uno!

Cabbage and Ji

At dinner

Cabbage, Ji and Yeojin at dinner

Friday and Friends

Work was work. The 5th graders were better and my 6th graders did okay, but I did get on one class for being rude and talking/not paying attention to other students while presenting.

Then...freedom! I stopped at home briefly and then went to meet Jacob in Sinchon. We walked through some shops until Min Kyung and Bora arrived. We went to a jjimdak restaurant (chicken stew) for dinner. After dinner we went to "Garten Bier" for some drinks and to talk. My friend Jenna joined us a little later. Match making is very common and popular in Korea, so Jacob and I were trying our hand at it, to find someone for Bora. We went through our list of friends and drafted a few names for her. We'll see what happens.

Bora, Min Kyung me and Jacob in Sinchon

Merry Christmas!

Relaxing Evening

School went okay--some of my 5th graders were a bit crazy. I was also supposed to have a make up class with my 6th graders but at the last minute found out from my COT (co-teacher) that it was cancelled.

After school I came home and relaxed. I cooked dinner--I made a vegetable stew with carrots, mushrooms, onions and bell peppers over rice. It was okay. Probably one of the healthiest things I've eaten in awhile, so that was good. After dinner, I watched some tv shows and took it easy. It was nice to have a quiet evening at home.

Shabu Shabu

School was okay. I found out the results from my open class. I scored higher than the average of all the other teachers in all categories from teachers, students and parents! I also tried to read some of the comments, but everything is in Korean, so I only had a rough idea of what they were saying.

After school I took a short break. Then I went to meet Jacob for dinner. He came to my area and we went to the shabu shabu restaurant I went to with my co-teachers a few weeks ago. It was really delicious and filling. Then we walked to Bulgwan Station and went to the department store there to look for a winter jacket for Jacob. After shopping, we walked back to my area and got ice cream and watched The Office.

Meet up and Relaxing

I had to change the worksheets for the students a little bit and I think it worked better. I actually had two surprises. The first was that the second class was cancelled because the students had a big science test. The second was that my fourth period class was also cancelled. I don't remember why my co-teacher said this was cancelled but it was.

After school I went to Dongdaemun to meet Krystle. We did a little bit of shopping, all just window shopping. Then I came home and got some kimbap. I watched tv and had a nice relaxing evening.

Decorations in Lotte Department Store in Dongdaemun

Christmas Decorations

Monday, Monday

School was okay. We had a writing lesson and it went okay; tried something a bit different than our typical activities.

After school I went to City Hall to meet Jacob. We had dinner at a burger place. I ordered a philly cheesesteak and it was pretty good. Then we went to the Sejong Concert Hall to meet our mentees' family. My mentee, Yoon Ju plays the viola in a orchestra. We sat with the family and some of their friends. The concert was pretty good, but it was very long. It was 2 hours; Yoon Ju only played 3 pieces. After the concert, the family asked if we wanted to have dinner with them, but it was already 9:30 and both of us were quite tired. Yoon Ju was so crabby after the concert too, she looked very tired as well.

Around City Hall

Christmas tree at City Hall

Ice Skating Rink being built

Dinner with Jacob

Jacob and me with our mentees and their parents

Soccer AND Dec 1st?!

Wow, I can't believe it's already December~starting to say goodbye to 2013...

Everyone woke up and then we reheated the curry that Tim made. We also ate some of the apple crisp. Everyone helped clean up and then took off.

Jacob came over a little before soccer to hang out and help move the furniture back a bit. We had a snack (made chicken nuggets) and watched some tv on my computer. Then off to soccer. We passed the ball around until everyone else arrived. I saw my student who plays on the field before me. He bowed to me this week. We had 4 v. 4 this week; and John split us up by the "younguns" and the "oldies". I was on the young team~we played really well. I actually made 3 goals and and stopped a few shots on goal. This was one week I was really really sad I had to leave for church. I would have loved to keep playing for another hour.

Church was good. After church I met Jacob for dinner in Sinchon (near church) and we got noodles. Yum!