Myeongdong and Gwangju

We believe we have finally survived the Korean winter. The temperatures are actually staying above the 40's and the trees are starting to sprout. We've been told that Spring comes and goes quickly, so to enjoy it while it lasts.



Two weekends ago Ian and I explored a new area of Seoul called Myeondong. It took us by surprise because it's appearance did not resemble the rest of Seoul. It contains multiple streets of updated shops, restaurants, and actual department stores. It was also cut off to most car traffic, so we didn't have to worry about the weaving motorcyclists. Before exploring , Ian did some research on the best noodle houses in Korea, and apparently there's one right in the heart of Myeongdong. We were able to find it rather quickly because of the line of people waiting outside and the smell of garlic incorporated in the air. Since the line is continually long, the restaurant employees get you in and out fast. You immediately pay when you sit down and once your food arrives, you are expected to eat, not socialize. The noodles were hand pulled and covered in a pork broth with garlic, ground beef and dumplings. It was delicious! The only bad part was that it ruined our breath for at least two days.



After eating our soup we made our way down the meandering streets. Needing to calm the garlic taste in our mouth, we decided to have dessert. Fortunately, we quickly found soft serve ice cream. However, this is not the dinky soft serve you get at McDonalds, these were at least 10 inches tall of creamy chocolate and vanilla ice cream. They were quite delicious. After stuffing ourselves beyond belief we shopped some more and eventually made the trek back to the apartment.



This past weekend we decided it was time to visit our friends Eric and Dana, who are now teaching in Gwangju. After an exhausting 50+hour work week we trudged ourselves and some clothes to the train station. Fortunately, the train was very quiet and relaxing. So, after eating salami sandwiches and Pringles, we listened to music and relaxed for the entire three hour ride there. Definitely one of the most relaxing train rides I have ever taken!



Once we arrived, Eric and Dana showed us around a shopping district in Gwangju. We got some drinks and ttoekpoki (deep fried food items covered in a Korean chili sauce). The next day was spent taking a bus to the nearest mountain range. We attempted a small hike, but stopped early because Ian was feeling under the weather. So, we made it back into town, walked around the shopping district, went bowling, and ended the night with some delicious Korean BBQ. All in all it was a great trip. It was nice to see Eric and Dana and to see an area outside of Seoul.



Tonight, Ian and I are working the late shift and then coming home to eat home cooked vegetable coconut curry! Hopefully it's as tasty as it smells.



Sorry for the delay in posts. Becoming Head Instructors has literally taken over any free time we may have. But, I think we are slowly learning how to strategize our work and free time. Hopefully our posts will be more frequent. Pictures will also be posted soon!

Long Time No Post

Okay, so we haven't posted in like 3 weeks, but we do have an excuse. Since becoming head instructors Leslie and I have been working about 11 hour days (including class prep) and we just haven't had the energy to post, but we are back on the wagon now!

We are now about 1.5 weeks into the new term and things have been busier than ever. Our classes have been good, but they are giving us some challenges as well. Leslie has been teaching a TOEFL test preparation course, which is a lot of work and can be quite complex. I am teaching an advanced grammar class, and have found that explaining English grammar rules, that at times I don't even truly understand, is no small undertaking. My first day of class was met with more than a few befuddled and mildly panicked expressions from students. But practice makes perfect right? Right.

This term I am also teaching a couple students with moderate mental illnesses, which has been both rewarding and frustrating. It is great to see them succeeding, but it also make class less beneficial for other students.

On our limited free time we have been trying to explore Seoul a little more. With the Olympic fever that has swept this small nation due to the success of Yu-Na Kim and other Korean athletes, we decided to check out Seoul's Olympic Park. Seoul hosted the Summer Olympics in 1988, and created a huge park on the city's eastside where many of competitions took place. It reminded me a bit of New York's Central Park, as it is a big chunk of grass and trees surround on all sides by high rises. The only difference was that the border of the park was sprinkled with stadiums catering to the various Olympic sports. The park also contained pieces of an earthen defense wall dating from 300 A.D. We weren't sure if the wall was real or simply a modern reconstruction (like most "historical" sites in Korea), but we let our imaginations take hold and hoped for the best.

The other big news around hear is that we are taking our week vacation in the middle of April. From April 17th to the 25th, Leslie and I are headed out of cold, polluted Seoul to the beautiful and fresh Philippines, where hopefully the majority of our activity will involve sand, water, good books, and 50 cent beer. We are going to spend a week on the island of Boracay, and maybe poke around Manila for a day or so. We are incredibly excited and are already counting down the days!

Tardiness

Our deepest apologizes for failing to maintain the blog over the past couple of weeks. We have been really busy starting the next term as Head Instructors and teaching new class. Excuses aside, we promise we will get a post up by this weekend.

Thanks for your patience!

Gearing Up

Things are gearing up over here to be sure! In less than two weeks Leslie and I will officially be head instructors at our school, however the responsibilities of our new positions are already upon us.

This last week we had the unfortunate mission of returning to "Hell," more commonly referred to as CDI Training Center, a place Leslie and I vowed to never return if at all possible, due to our less than positive experience there 7 months ago. We were headed there for CDI Head Instructor Training, which thankfully was only 3 hours instead of a full week. After we overcame the initial nausea and panic upon entering the building, the training turned out to be not nearly as bad as we predicted. We actually learned a lot useful information, like how to deal with various instructor personalities, strategies for creating effective workshops, and the best ways to tell bad teachers that they are doing a crappy job. Overall, it was much less mind-numbing, exhausting, and sterile than our original training.

Over the next two weeks Leslie and I will each go to two more workshops. We both have to go learn about a new test-taking course CDI is implementing this term. Also, Leslie will be teaching a TOEFL Test preparation class next term, and needs to go to a workshop for that. I will most likely be teaching a speaking presentation and debate class that also requires me to attend a workshop. We have heard that these workshops are of limited value, and the best thing to do is just smile and nod until they let you out. However, our first workshop was a pleasant surprise so we're hoping the trend continues.

There is breaking news on the food front as well. The latest excitement stems from the discovery of a California Pizza Kitchen in Seoul, which we are hoping to try soon. We also learned of a spot that apparently serves "legit" Mexican food. Our quest on this culinary manner has repeated been filled with great hoped followed by utter despair. Let's hope this time things turn out differently....

Finally, our friends Eric and Dana are coming to Korea on Tuesday for a teaching gig down in Gwangju, a city about 2-3 hours south of Seoul. They will be working in the public school system. We are looking forward to having them here and going down for some visits. We have heard Gwangju is really nice and have been wanting to see more of the country once the weather warms up. We are hoping their training goes a bit more smoothly than ours did.

That's all the news for now. Leslie and I have to hold our own workshops in about two weeks, plus train some of our newbie teachers. We'll let you know how it goes.

New Slideshow

We just posted a new slideshow above this posting. These pictures are...

• From our apartment flooding
• Riding the public bus
• The local movie theater
• The subway/map
• A university area
• A bowling tournament that I particpated in with some girls from work

Ian is going to write a new post this weekend. So, look out for that! Enjoy the pictures...

Wii Room and 110 Bus Ride

The past couple of weeks have been very busy with teaching intensive classes and regular classes. We are both very thankful to have intensives done with so we can enjoy a little more time relaxing and touring the city.

A few weekends ago, our friend Peter had a birthday. So in full Korean fashion we had a big, relaxing dinner and finished the night off with going to a Wii room. The Wii room fits about 7 people and is $30/hour. You can play any Wii game that interests you, including tennis and Mario Kart, which are my favorite! The only set back is the directions are in Korean. Thankfully the room Ian and I were in had two Korean speakers, so we had no problem.

Yesterday, with a lazy day in mind, we decided to take a bus ride around the city. It wasn't a bus tour, it was actually the regular city bus. This specific bus takes you to Itaewon ("America Town"), which we go to a couple times a month. However, we have recently been interested on what lays beyond our usual Itaewon stop. So, than other getting off the bus at the usual stop we kept on riding.

For the most part, the rest of the route consisted of the same gray and run down city that the rest of Seoul looks like. However, half way through we noticed a large food market. Since we were getting hungry for lunch, we jumped off at the next stop, in hopes of delicious food. Well, we didn't find any scrumptious food for lunch, but we did find, we believe, the largest produce, meat, and seafood market in Seoul. It was huge. At least a half a mile in every direction.

The market was very interesting. It was the first time we have seen turtles, frogs, and dog's legs sold to the public. The meat vendors were selling every part of the cow and pig, and the produce vendors were selling everything from giant asian pears to ginsing. While the smells were a little overwhelming, the markets was one of the most interesting sites I've seen in Seoul.

After walking through part of the market, and not finding any lunch foods, we decided to jump back on the bus and keep riding. Unknowingly, about half way through our trek, the bus turned off the usual route to head back to the bus depot. While it caused a little concern when the bus abruptly stopped and the bus driver kicked everyone off, we were able to find the next bus stop in no time! The rest of the ride took about 20 minutes. Even though the ride wasn't very eventfuly, we were led to a fascinating market and were able to see even more of Seoul!

For some exciting news, Ian and I were recently asked to be Head Instructors for the following term! This means that we, including two other instructors, will be in charge of the different Programs, including EC, Memory, and Interactive classes. We will be in charge of getting the new instructors situated and evaluating instructor's teaching skills. We don't know of all of the details just yet, but we will tell you as soon as we know!

Delay

Sorry for the delay in posts. We are in the last week of Intensive classes, so we are busier than ever! Plan on a new post and more pictures this weekend...