Well, I've found that instead of waking up at 7am, my new favorite time to wake up is 6:30 (yes, that happened even on this wonderful 4 day weekend). I'm up before the construction so I can't even blame it on the construction anymore...
I was almost to school when I realized that I forgot my water at home. I stopped in a 7-11 to get some kind of beverage. Inside, there was a sparrow flying around and two workers trying to get it out. The bird got out safely.
Once I got to school, I got a message from my COT telling me that our first class was cancelled because the students were preparing something for Parent's Day (tomorrow) and would reschedule tomorrow afternoon. The 3 classes we had today did a speaking test. It was very easy for me-just asking them how they feel and why, and for them to create a dialog from some pictures.The girl students came to me and my COT had the boy students. While we were testing one on one, the rest of the class was watching a movie. After everyone finished the speaking test, there was about 15 minutes left that I got to see part of the movie as well.
I was again fooled by the lunch. Again it was fried rice and again there was seafood in it; this time tiny little shrimp. Ugh. The afternoon passed quickly (as I had some things I needed to work on and preparation for Erin's stay).
After work, I came home, cleaned and moved some things around to make room for Erin. Then I went to go meet Jacob at the GOAL office. He was still finishing up stuff so he told me to come up to the office. Jes was there, my friend from Denmark. He used to work there, but has recently resigned; he still helps out there and was visiting the office. It was good to see him since I haven't gotten a chance to meet up with him since his return from Denmark in February. I talked with John too. I asked him about the phone that Jacob got and he said he could do some stuff to get the phone to work and if I brought it to him he'd do it.
Jacob and I left to go get dinner at a Mexican place near Eastern. Unfortunately, because of the long weekend, they also took today off so it was closed. We were both pretty bummed. Instead we went to get pho at a Vietnamese restaurant a little closer to his guesthouse. It was really delicious. We also ordered some fried rice that was really good too. After dinner, we stopped at his guesthouse to pick up the phone and took a taxi to Hapjeong; John was having dinner at Wild Fire with Jes and two of Jacob's housemates. John tried to get the phone to work, but it will need a new SIM card. He thinks if I get a SIM card, it should be fine. I felt bad because he tried for about an hour to get it to work. When he was done, Jacob walked me to the subway.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Buddha's Birthday
Happy Birthday Buddha~~
Yet another "red day" and more construction in the morning...
I went over to Jacob's guesthouse because they were having a BBQ. The Eastern (adoption agency) President's son wanted to have a cookout for the guests of the guesthouse. He brought his 10 year old daughter and a bunch of meat with him. The guys grilled on some grills outside. It was a big meal of meat, kimchi and rice.
After lunch, Jacob and I went to get our haircuts. I was kind of nervous because I don't normally cut my hair often. It's something I think about for awhile and plan before doing. Jacob went first while I continued to look for pictures as an example to show the guy. When Jacob finished with his cut, I still hadn't found anything I really liked. I talked with the guy and he pulled out a tablet and showed sample pictures; after about 5 of them, I found a style I liked. He did a really good job. I had been left unsatisfied with the haircut in December because the bottom was quite "heavy" and thick; plus my perm was still hanging around at the last 2-3 inches which made it curl a bit funny. Anyway, I had about 2 inches cut off, so the perm is finally gone and it thinned out the ends. I really like it.
When our haircuts were finished, we went back to the guesthouse and talked a little bit with Troy, Jacob's roommate and business partner. For dinner, we went to a restaurant called Jenny's Cafe. We shared an eggplant pasta dish and a cesar salad. It was really good. After dinner we hung out more at the guesthouse before I headed home.
I cleaned my place up a bit in preparation for Erin's arrival (Thursday already!). I can't believe she'll be here so soon. I already feel like May is flying! Before I know it, I'll be turning 27! Which makes me 28 in Korean age. Yikes, I'm getting old!
Yet another "red day" and more construction in the morning...
I went over to Jacob's guesthouse because they were having a BBQ. The Eastern (adoption agency) President's son wanted to have a cookout for the guests of the guesthouse. He brought his 10 year old daughter and a bunch of meat with him. The guys grilled on some grills outside. It was a big meal of meat, kimchi and rice.
After lunch, Jacob and I went to get our haircuts. I was kind of nervous because I don't normally cut my hair often. It's something I think about for awhile and plan before doing. Jacob went first while I continued to look for pictures as an example to show the guy. When Jacob finished with his cut, I still hadn't found anything I really liked. I talked with the guy and he pulled out a tablet and showed sample pictures; after about 5 of them, I found a style I liked. He did a really good job. I had been left unsatisfied with the haircut in December because the bottom was quite "heavy" and thick; plus my perm was still hanging around at the last 2-3 inches which made it curl a bit funny. Anyway, I had about 2 inches cut off, so the perm is finally gone and it thinned out the ends. I really like it.
When our haircuts were finished, we went back to the guesthouse and talked a little bit with Troy, Jacob's roommate and business partner. For dinner, we went to a restaurant called Jenny's Cafe. We shared an eggplant pasta dish and a cesar salad. It was really good. After dinner we hung out more at the guesthouse before I headed home.
I cleaned my place up a bit in preparation for Erin's arrival (Thursday already!). I can't believe she'll be here so soon. I already feel like May is flying! Before I know it, I'll be turning 27! Which makes me 28 in Korean age. Yikes, I'm getting old!
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| Jacob playing with the granddaughter of Eastern |
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| Some of the steak leftover |
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| New hair cut! |
Monday, May 5, 2014
Children's Day
Today is Children's Day--a holiday to celebrate children. Unfortunately, with the Sewol Ferry accident, Children's Day was a bit more reserved this year. The poor families having to deal with their loss and Children's Day occurring so soon afterwards...
I thought I would get a break from the construction as it is a "red day" (read: holiday) but no such luck. No rest for the weary, and I'm getting pretty weary!
Jacob and I met at Sangsu and went in search of Wild Fire, a new American BBQ restaurant (my adoptee friend, Christian -he made Thanksgiving dinner--is a cook there and I met the owner, Jeff, at the GOAL Thanksgiving...Jeff (and his brother Ki) also owns the amazing Left Coast place I went to on Thursday) I had heard about. We got a little lost because we both thought it was in a different location. Anyway, we finally found it and ordered. I got the pork and salad set; Jacob got the chicken rice bowl. Both were really, really good. They have real, real smokers and the meat is so tender and flavorful! We looked at the dinner menu and agreed we'd be coming back soon for dinner. We also ordered jalpeno bread--it was pretty good.
After lunch we went to Yeoido. Jacob's Korean friend Dongwoo told him not to go there because it would be so crowded, but we figured we'd take the risk and see--if it was too bad we could always just leave. Well, we arrived at the shopping mall (and it actually looks like an American style shopping mall!) and it wasn't that crowded. After walking around in the mall, we went outside to walk around the island and towards the Han River...except it was really windy and cold so we didn't get too far before turning around and heading to Hongdae. We had made plans to have dinner with our friend, Maree. She is going to be returning to the US at the end of the month and since May is going to be so busy, we thought we'd sneak in a dinner with her. Well once we got to Hongdae, we went to Auntie Anne's for a snack. Hongdae was pretty crowded-much more crowded than the mall at Yeoido was. We finally settled on a restaurant in Yeonhuidong, the neighborhood that Jacob and Maree live in (she is at the InKAS guesthouse) and so we headed over there to meet her. She told us Kasey would also join (Kasey is the other mentor of the 3rd child in our family). We went to a kimbap shop and had a good time catching up.
I thought I would get a break from the construction as it is a "red day" (read: holiday) but no such luck. No rest for the weary, and I'm getting pretty weary!
Jacob and I met at Sangsu and went in search of Wild Fire, a new American BBQ restaurant (my adoptee friend, Christian -he made Thanksgiving dinner--is a cook there and I met the owner, Jeff, at the GOAL Thanksgiving...Jeff (and his brother Ki) also owns the amazing Left Coast place I went to on Thursday) I had heard about. We got a little lost because we both thought it was in a different location. Anyway, we finally found it and ordered. I got the pork and salad set; Jacob got the chicken rice bowl. Both were really, really good. They have real, real smokers and the meat is so tender and flavorful! We looked at the dinner menu and agreed we'd be coming back soon for dinner. We also ordered jalpeno bread--it was pretty good.
After lunch we went to Yeoido. Jacob's Korean friend Dongwoo told him not to go there because it would be so crowded, but we figured we'd take the risk and see--if it was too bad we could always just leave. Well, we arrived at the shopping mall (and it actually looks like an American style shopping mall!) and it wasn't that crowded. After walking around in the mall, we went outside to walk around the island and towards the Han River...except it was really windy and cold so we didn't get too far before turning around and heading to Hongdae. We had made plans to have dinner with our friend, Maree. She is going to be returning to the US at the end of the month and since May is going to be so busy, we thought we'd sneak in a dinner with her. Well once we got to Hongdae, we went to Auntie Anne's for a snack. Hongdae was pretty crowded-much more crowded than the mall at Yeoido was. We finally settled on a restaurant in Yeonhuidong, the neighborhood that Jacob and Maree live in (she is at the InKAS guesthouse) and so we headed over there to meet her. She told us Kasey would also join (Kasey is the other mentor of the 3rd child in our family). We went to a kimbap shop and had a good time catching up.
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| Jacob and his chicken rice bowl |
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| Me and the pork salad--yum! |
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| Jalapeno Cornbread |
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| Around Yeoido |
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Another Good Day
This morning I was supposed to skype with Phil to talk plans for his upcoming visit. Unfortunately he couldn't make it, but it worked out because I was able to talk with my Mom for around an hour or so instead. I'm glad I could catch up with her.
Jacob came over and we went to the bibimbap restaurant in front of my building. After lunch, we went to Emart. He bought a jacket and we used my Emart points card (I'm not really sure how exactly it works) and somehow ended up getting a discount of about $5 off his jacket!
We relaxed a little bit at my place before heading out to soccer. Unfortunately Jacob still is on the road to recovery and can't play. He gloomily watched us from the bleachers. Again we had a pretty big turnout--3 teams of 6. However, the field at Yongsan is a little bit smaller than at World Cup, so 6 was a bit crowded and chaotic. As time went on, it started getting darker and darker and windier. Finally when there was about 30 minutes left, it started raining. We finished out and Jacob and I took the subway to church. We arrived early and went to Tom n Toms for a snack.
Father Bernard had mass this week. There weren't many people there and we assumed it was because of the long weekend many people traveled and were away.
After mass, Jacob came back with me and I made ramen and mandu for dinner. It was nice to have another relaxing evening with him before he headed home.
Jacob came over and we went to the bibimbap restaurant in front of my building. After lunch, we went to Emart. He bought a jacket and we used my Emart points card (I'm not really sure how exactly it works) and somehow ended up getting a discount of about $5 off his jacket!
We relaxed a little bit at my place before heading out to soccer. Unfortunately Jacob still is on the road to recovery and can't play. He gloomily watched us from the bleachers. Again we had a pretty big turnout--3 teams of 6. However, the field at Yongsan is a little bit smaller than at World Cup, so 6 was a bit crowded and chaotic. As time went on, it started getting darker and darker and windier. Finally when there was about 30 minutes left, it started raining. We finished out and Jacob and I took the subway to church. We arrived early and went to Tom n Toms for a snack.
Father Bernard had mass this week. There weren't many people there and we assumed it was because of the long weekend many people traveled and were away.
After mass, Jacob came back with me and I made ramen and mandu for dinner. It was nice to have another relaxing evening with him before he headed home.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Bohye and Starry Night at the Palace
Jacob and I met Bohye in Hongdae. The only problem was that at 11:15 on a Saturday morning, hardly anything is open in Hongdae. Also, Bohye had just gone to the orthodontist and could only eat soft food. Jacob remembered a Japanese noodle soup place so we finally picked that as our lunch. We walked around Hongdae a little and then went to a coffee shop and ordered something to drink and a dessert to share. We chatted and sat in the cafe for a long time. Then we figured we should take a little walk and we went to Hapjeong. Unfortunately it was a little bit chilly and windy even though the sun was out. When we got to Hapjeong Bohye had to leave. It was good catching up with her, and afterwards she apologized for her low English skills. I told her my Korean is no better than her English so she shouldn't feel bad. We both agreed to talk with each other in the opposite language to help each other.
Jacob got a used phone from one of his students and we're trying to see if I can possibly use it and switch phones. We asked Bohye and she said she didn't think it was possible at all. I'm a little bummed, but we're going to keep researching to see if maybe it will work. Fingers crossed!
Once we parted ways from Bohye, Jacob and I headed to Myeongdong and Jongno area to do a little shopping. We also stopped at Pita Pit to get some pita sandwiches to take along with us. We walked through Insadong (it was so crowded!! AND for the first time, I think there were more Koreans than foreigners there too!) We were going to keep walking through the "couply" area, but looked down towards the palace and noticed a lot of people so we figured we should try and get our tickets for the palace event asap.
At first we were a bit confused about where to go/how to get the tickets, but eventually we found the "foreigners" line to stand in and saw that there were 55 tickets for us available--we were maybe 10th in line or so, so we were good. In front of us stood a Korean mom and her daughter. After waiting for a bit, the mom turned to us and started talking to us in Korean. Then she called her daughter over to try and talk to us in English. Basically, they were asking us to buy a foreigner ticket for them because they got 2 tickets and needed one more (for the dad). It was really awkward and uncomfortable. Jacob and I were both a little torn--not sure where the line between being nice and following the rules so that foreigners got tickets too. In the end we decided we didn't want to get in trouble and figured they could work something out. (We later saw the family as 3 in the palace, so they did get it worked out) We had to wait in line for a little over an hour til the palace opened at 7-then they started selling tickets. It was worth the wait though. Once it started getting a bit darker around 7:30 it was quite beautiful. We didn't wait until it was completely dark because we were both getting cold (and tired from walking all day). We took the subway home and had the pita sandwiches we bought earlier.
Jacob got a used phone from one of his students and we're trying to see if I can possibly use it and switch phones. We asked Bohye and she said she didn't think it was possible at all. I'm a little bummed, but we're going to keep researching to see if maybe it will work. Fingers crossed!
Once we parted ways from Bohye, Jacob and I headed to Myeongdong and Jongno area to do a little shopping. We also stopped at Pita Pit to get some pita sandwiches to take along with us. We walked through Insadong (it was so crowded!! AND for the first time, I think there were more Koreans than foreigners there too!) We were going to keep walking through the "couply" area, but looked down towards the palace and noticed a lot of people so we figured we should try and get our tickets for the palace event asap.
At first we were a bit confused about where to go/how to get the tickets, but eventually we found the "foreigners" line to stand in and saw that there were 55 tickets for us available--we were maybe 10th in line or so, so we were good. In front of us stood a Korean mom and her daughter. After waiting for a bit, the mom turned to us and started talking to us in Korean. Then she called her daughter over to try and talk to us in English. Basically, they were asking us to buy a foreigner ticket for them because they got 2 tickets and needed one more (for the dad). It was really awkward and uncomfortable. Jacob and I were both a little torn--not sure where the line between being nice and following the rules so that foreigners got tickets too. In the end we decided we didn't want to get in trouble and figured they could work something out. (We later saw the family as 3 in the palace, so they did get it worked out) We had to wait in line for a little over an hour til the palace opened at 7-then they started selling tickets. It was worth the wait though. Once it started getting a bit darker around 7:30 it was quite beautiful. We didn't wait until it was completely dark because we were both getting cold (and tired from walking all day). We took the subway home and had the pita sandwiches we bought earlier.
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| The exclusive ticket! |
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| Jacob and me |
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| These lanterns were around the paths |
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| Maybe my 10th time here now |
Friday, May 2, 2014
Friday before a 4 day weekend!
Work wasn't too bad today. One of my classes got cancelled because they were having a Children's Day celebration in their homeroom. That was a nice surprise. Also, when I came into the English room, I noticed there had been some writing on the whiteboard that was erased, but it was kind of stained on the board still. I could barely make out the following message:
To Amy teacher
We are 민경 수경 지영 (Min Kyung, Su Kyung and Ji Yeong)
really LOVE YOU
See you soon
how you are?
I was so happy to see a message left from my old 6th graders. It makes me really sad that I keep missing them! I'm guessing that they are here while I am still at work. I don't know how to leave a message for them and to tell them to come to my office right next door!
After work, I headed downtown to look for shoes again. Still on a mission. After doing some quick browsing, it was off to class. Now there is only one more week of Friday classes! When class was finished I returned home to relax.
To Amy teacher
We are 민경 수경 지영 (Min Kyung, Su Kyung and Ji Yeong)
really LOVE YOU
See you soon
how you are?
I was so happy to see a message left from my old 6th graders. It makes me really sad that I keep missing them! I'm guessing that they are here while I am still at work. I don't know how to leave a message for them and to tell them to come to my office right next door!
After work, I headed downtown to look for shoes again. Still on a mission. After doing some quick browsing, it was off to class. Now there is only one more week of Friday classes! When class was finished I returned home to relax.
Thursday, May 1, 2014
Happy, happy day
Happy Birthday Jung Yoon!!!
Jenny and I had a leisurely morning. I didn't think the construction was too loud, but she said it was a little noisy. I was going to run out and grab something for breakfast, but she was still full from dinner. Since it was her birthday, she got a lot of calls. Her dad called and wanted to talk to me--he's so sweet. Jung Yoon had to help translate a bit for me (his accent is a little bit difficult for me to understand) but he asked if I was having fun living in Seoul and that I need to come and visit them again. So very kind.
Then we headed out to meet Jacob in Hapjeong and continued on to Itaewon. We went to Left Coast burgers and it was absolutely amazing! Jenny and I ordered the mini pulled pork sandwiches and split them, Jacob got the Juicy Lucy, and we shared an order of the baked mac n cheese and "totchos" (which were handmade tator tots with special spicy ranch sauce, cheese and veggies). Wow. So, so, good. Unfortunately after lunch Jung Yoon had to get going because she needed to have a birthday dinner with her family down in Jinju (3 1/2 hours by bus). So we walked her to the subway and said our goodbyes. After she left, Jacob and I walked around Itaewon a little more; I finally got to look at the antique shops around there and take some fun pictures. We then went for churros at a place we saw awhile back. It was pretty good. After sitting and talking there we headed to Hyehwa area to see about getting tickets for the special "starry nights" at the palaces. (They will have extended hours at some of the palaces and light up the paths and there is also a full moon.) Unfortunately there weren't any tickets so we had to pass for tonight. We will try again another night, but it ends on the 11th. We walked around Hyehwa a little but I had expected it to be a bit more romantic from the things I had heard about the area.
We decided to have a light dinner at my place, so we got kimbap. When we walked into the shop Jacob noticed that a whole family sitting started staring at me. I was busy looking at the menu and taking our order. Then I looked over and saw them--I heard "Amy ssem itda!" (It's Amy teacher) at the same time Jacob asked me, "are those your students?" And yes, it turned out to be 3 of my students-all in one family. (a 4th, 5th and 6th grader) I waved and said hello and then we took our food to go. At home, I also made some rice and mandu. Jacob and I went to Emart to fill up some of my water bottles and he headed home early-ish because he has his first day working at GOAL tomorrow!
PS--is it May already?!
Jenny and I had a leisurely morning. I didn't think the construction was too loud, but she said it was a little noisy. I was going to run out and grab something for breakfast, but she was still full from dinner. Since it was her birthday, she got a lot of calls. Her dad called and wanted to talk to me--he's so sweet. Jung Yoon had to help translate a bit for me (his accent is a little bit difficult for me to understand) but he asked if I was having fun living in Seoul and that I need to come and visit them again. So very kind.
Then we headed out to meet Jacob in Hapjeong and continued on to Itaewon. We went to Left Coast burgers and it was absolutely amazing! Jenny and I ordered the mini pulled pork sandwiches and split them, Jacob got the Juicy Lucy, and we shared an order of the baked mac n cheese and "totchos" (which were handmade tator tots with special spicy ranch sauce, cheese and veggies). Wow. So, so, good. Unfortunately after lunch Jung Yoon had to get going because she needed to have a birthday dinner with her family down in Jinju (3 1/2 hours by bus). So we walked her to the subway and said our goodbyes. After she left, Jacob and I walked around Itaewon a little more; I finally got to look at the antique shops around there and take some fun pictures. We then went for churros at a place we saw awhile back. It was pretty good. After sitting and talking there we headed to Hyehwa area to see about getting tickets for the special "starry nights" at the palaces. (They will have extended hours at some of the palaces and light up the paths and there is also a full moon.) Unfortunately there weren't any tickets so we had to pass for tonight. We will try again another night, but it ends on the 11th. We walked around Hyehwa a little but I had expected it to be a bit more romantic from the things I had heard about the area.
We decided to have a light dinner at my place, so we got kimbap. When we walked into the shop Jacob noticed that a whole family sitting started staring at me. I was busy looking at the menu and taking our order. Then I looked over and saw them--I heard "Amy ssem itda!" (It's Amy teacher) at the same time Jacob asked me, "are those your students?" And yes, it turned out to be 3 of my students-all in one family. (a 4th, 5th and 6th grader) I waved and said hello and then we took our food to go. At home, I also made some rice and mandu. Jacob and I went to Emart to fill up some of my water bottles and he headed home early-ish because he has his first day working at GOAL tomorrow!
PS--is it May already?!
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| Happy Birthday to my Best friend!! |
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| Our BBQ Sandwiches and Mac n Cheese |
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| Group pic |
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| Fun with mirrors |
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| Chairs! |
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| Fun with mirrors |
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| Locks for sale |
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| Cool Graffiti |
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| Turkish Delight!! |
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| Strawberry Ade |
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| Churro~~ |
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