Thursday, April 27, 2006

This weeks been pretty good, of course there is time for it to take a sharp dive! Went out for dinner last night with Elaine and her Irish mate and some of her friends. Had a really good evening. The Kalbi place we went to had amazing side dishes. And loads of different types of leaves to wrap the meat in. The array of leaves did actually excite me! We went on to a bar called GLASGOW, which was terrible. We were the only people in there and being foreign, we obviously wanted the guy at the bar to stand and watch us for the 45 minutes we were in there. Then we went to another place which actually had people in it, much better atmosphere.

With my ipod gone to apple land the only little bit of music I have been listening to has been on www.theworldofadam.com . The crazy fox videos for Anthony and the Johnsons songs.

Oh yeah! Last.fm site get some 30 clips of stuff. Seriously I am that desperate for some decent music… ooooo bbc radio on the net!!!

Right gotta go!

dx

Sunday, April 23, 2006

COEX

Another week begins on a good note. Today the kids were ok. One little boy was soooo sad when I told him that not every one would get 20 stickers. Pretty much everyone gets ten every lesson, but he wanted everyone to get 20 and was in tears cos I was only giving 20 to the kids who finished a it of work I gave the whole class.

Other than that the kids have been ok. Tomorrow there is a field trip to Bucheon to watch a film with the kids. Should be fun. It also means that I wont have to teach the kids in the morning. So tomorrow will be a Good day.

Had a good weekend as well. Had some beers in my place for Brian’s birthday and then went to Goose Goose. I then got lost on the streets and had to ask a bunch of people how to get back to the bar. All the streets seemed to look the same! Well I got back safely and all was good. Saturday was ‘Pot Luck’ for Angels leaving. Everyone brings a dish and we all eat together. I did a stir fry and some leaves with a bit of sauce, and potato wedges. Got a good feeding. That was during the Spurs vs Arse match, which somewhat annoyed me.

Then the rest of them went out and I joined them later. It was pretty good going out after everyone else, cos they were all drunk and hungover from the night before and I was stone cold sober! HA! They all went off to a NoreBang (Karaoke) and I went to bed, it was 2 in morning already!

Sunday I had planned to go, with however wanted to go, to COEX Mall, and I did, but no-one else did. So my first trip into Seoul was alone, but it was really nice, had a good walk around COEX, went to the Sony shop and the Apple Store, got some good news and got some news pending. Sony say I have CCD problem with my camera and they will fix it for free. Apple said that they will call me, but I am going to get my boss to call them instead cos there is a serious language barrier. COEX is massive! I got lost a few times. I was going to have a walk around the area but it began to rain so I made my way home. I only took one wrong train the whole journey! I was impressed!

Right have to go,

dx

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Totally forgot to mention the crazy storm the other night……

Woke up at about 3am thinking that there was a swarm of wasps trying to get in my window! It was just the freak storm blowing the rain though. Pretty loud! Brian thought that his lights were flashing on and off cos of all the lightning. It’s been quite cloudy and chilly here for the past few days. Not very nice really.

I had to re-seal my window this morning. It leaked one of the first nights I was here and it leaked again the other night when it rained. So this time I sealed just about everything that doesn’t have to be opens. And we’ll see how the water gets in next time it rains!

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

one month down...

It was my month aniversary with korea yesterday. It’s been an interesting month! I think I have used all of the books I am supposed to and even learnt what a past participle is! Well… ok, perhaps I am still not sure what it actually means but I know when to use them and what they are. I am getting used to the classes and the kids are definitely used to me. My silent class is not even so silent anymore!

But the month has had its casualties. My ipod, my camera, Brims and Celene, and I learnt last night that it looks as if one of the other teachers in another school down the road has been fired! I didn’t know her very well, but it means the infamous Jason is probably coming back. Jason is the guy I replaced and sounds like a bit of a bell end. I have been told to make my own judgment and will do if I get to meet him. There are going to be a couple of changes in another school, due to Brims leaving and Angel leaving in a couple of weeks, so there are going to be a whole bunch of newbs coming into Mansu.

Its Brains birthday party on Friday, which I am having in my flat/room…

Hello from Sharon

That’s one of my students! She’s cute.

Anyway, I am holding Brians party as a bit of a present for him, as he gets a little stressed when his place get a bit of a mess. While my place is usually a bit grubby anyway. The space is better in my room as well, there is a open area and I don’t have as many plants. My room (as I cant put any photos up!!) is about three times the size of my uni room, but then you have to take some off for the kitchen area and the wet room and wardrobe. I will sort some photos out when I get my camera sorted!!

Ok its my break and I am going to go home and tidy up a bit.

Take it easy

dx

Sunday, April 16, 2006

How long have I been here again!?

Another week begin, and begin on a good note. A high pitched screaming note to be exact! There was a spider in the bin in my second lesson. So I rescued it from the bin, only to have to have it blown around the table by some of the nastier children. I tried to explain that the spider was probably more scared of the children that they are of it. It was only a mincy little fella anyway! The spindly legged type and a baby one at that. I don’t really know how it got into the class room, the cleaning ladies really go over the whole place thoroughly every night.

Had a good weekend as well. I have borrowed Elaine’s speakers and have not returned them so I can listen to music. I have also reset my ipod which brings back the clicking sound on the menu, so now I can tell which menu I am on, well I can tell if it’s the menu with the albums/artists cos they are much longer than the other ones. So I can listen to music its just a bit of a lucky dip. I am going to take the 2 hour train trip to the other side of Seoul on Sunday I think to go to the COEX centre, which has an Apple Experience store in it, hopefully they might help me sort my ipod. Then the next week I might try and get my camera sorted.

Had a really lazy Easter Sunday, Ben Hur was on and Shawshank Redemption was on straight after so that was most of my Sunday in bed watching movies with Brian and Elaine.

Mark moved back to Mansu on Saturday, which is good, as is place before was really expensive and now he doesn’t have to get a bus to see us or get to work. Had a coughing fit on Saturday night, sent me home early from the bar and I didn’t get to go to the Nore-bang (karaoke), but I heard it was quite alcohol fuelled! I did manage to wake up at 7.30 am on Sunday morning and decide to go to the sauna. What an odd place it is in the mornings. After going through the bathing area you have to go downstairs to the sauna rooms, which are all off one main hall. I opened the door, and first thought it was closed cos the lights were very low. But I opened the door a little more and found that the hall was full of sleeping people! They simply decided to stay the night! I thought it was a good idea. Cheaper than a room in a hotel. I might have to do that one day, maybe go for a weekend in another town and chill in the sauna all night.

Rightio, have to sort some bits and bobs out at home, clean up after the weekend!

dx

Thursday, April 13, 2006

All the best Brims and Celene

Things are a bit weird here. One of the guys living on the seventh floor has gone. He got a call about his grandma being sick and packed his things and left. I didn’t even get to say goodbye. It was pretty weird. Both his girlfriend and him left so it’s left a bit of a hole already. Both of them are already missed very much.

I had to get dressed up today because my boss was taking pictures of me and my classes. I asked what I should wear yesterday and he told me to be smart. Then he told me that the big boss was planning to get the foreign teachers on the side of a bus!!! Hahahahhahahah how funny would that be! Me on the side of a bus!!! Oh dear, but it does make me laugh… just the thought of it. But she seems pretty serious. I was told that if the shots were not good enough that a professional photographer would be asked to come in and take the photos again. We’ll have to see. I’ll try and get some of the photos of the kids from my supervisor so that you can all see them.

Last night of phone teaching tonight. Its gonna be a busy one, I only did about 15 last night. But I did all of my kindergarten on Tuesday and got most of the hard ones out of the way last night. I have half of two classes to get through and a couple of whole ones. But one of them is a class of 2, so that’s not bad. I hope to get fed again tonight. The dominoes last night was good! But the garlic sauce was not all that compared to the one you get in the UK.

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Guess What..??

Egg and snot.

Well I tried to take some photos to put on the blog, this morning, but guess what?? My camera is broken!!! I dunno whats going on, i think I am going to have to go back and live in a time with no technology and nothing to go wrong. But give me three weeks in that place and something will break anyway!!! I dont know whats wrong with the camera. It looks like the colours are running in the pictures adn its misaligned. Might have to try and find a shop adn try a new lens.

So that really sucks!!! I am going to have to get a disposable camera or simply use the four shot camera for everything!

Other than just about everything breaking things are going well! I bought a money plant, its really cute but could do with repotting as its too big for its current pot. Thats what i wanted to take a picture of.

Phone teaching was not as painful as I thought it would be, just a bit of a waste of time to be honest. Most of the older kids dont want you to call cos they cant be bothered. and the younger ones are not so good often because they are being distracted or are sleepy or something. I did have a great chat with one mother who didnt speak a word of English to me. We were both laughing at the fact that we had no idea what was being said to eachother, probably she was saying what I was saying... I dont understand you... I dont speak Korean (English)...

right I have to go home and get my watch.

laters

dx

Getting fed!

Went for a meal last night with my supervisor. Had ‘sum-gip’. Its like kalbi but with pork. Its really good served with fried kimchi. We had it with a couple of bottles of beer and shots of soju. ‘Bomb-soju’…. Something that I might try again! You get a glass of beer and drop a shot of soju in it! I think soju is definitely an eating drink. Not to be drunk without eating!

I get fed again tonight because of the phone teaching. We call the kids and talk to them over the phone so that the parents can hear how they are doing. It’s gonna be interesting and should last until 9pm tonight and tomorrow and all the left over ones will have to be done on Thursday. But that’s three meals! Chinese tonight, Dominoes tomorrow and I don’t know what on Thursday. I got a bank account out here and have been paid some of my next months wages. Basically I think I have been paid for what I have done. But the pay wasn’t right. I have been paid for three days orientation, which I did only one of! And that means the two days teaching I did which is under the orientation bracket are being paid to me at about a third of the wage that I should get, as I started teaching and certainly wasn’t orientated!

I cant wait for the weekend!!! I think a trip to Seoul is on the cards. As I haven’t even bee there yet and I’ve been in Korea for How long?? Since the 18th last month!! Right I am going to do some planning and stuff.

dx

Saturday, April 08, 2006

BROKEN IPOD!!!

Well it was inevitable...

It was in my camera bag and somehow got broken. I should be really pissed off, but I kind of expected it. I've found some reasonable repair people on the net and am going to post it off I think. its a shame! I can listen to music on it, but its the same album. which isnt so bad, as its 2ManyDJ's. there is alway something to learn from mistakes!

Its sunday again and the week kind of went pretty quick. I'm in a PC bang and loading CZ onto a pc. Had a good weekend. yesturday I went to Shinsagae and met up with Mark, we chilled and walked about for a while then Seline and Elaine met up with us and we went to a board game cafe. Whata great game i discovered, BLOKUS.

Friday was good. Mark had people over to his for drinks. I avoided the soju and beer mix, but went for Bravo and soju, which wasnt much better. then load of us went to a club, but i didnt fancy it, and went home with Elaine, who also didnt fancy it.














Heres a picture of Brian with a dancing girl form the opening of the 'stuff-on-a-stick' shop down the road.

This is Elaine my next door neigbour, shes cool, although she attacked my with an onion ring and cut my lip. There are all of the bottles of orange juice from the Mamosa's, as Brian likes to call them. Orange juice and Bravo (sparkling wine) goes down quite nicely.

yesturday the air in Korea was horrible! it was yellow and nasty, i heard t was bad air from China. not sure if it was a dust storm ther or if it was pollution but either way, its not very nice!
This is a picture of where my school is. The building is the one with the yellow bus in front of it, its on the 4th floor.

HA!!! managed to get belle and sebastian on my ipod without the screen!!! EAT THAT 2MANYDJ'S!!!

just finished loading CZ but i cant find NEPCGamers server, oh well.
gonna go. take it easy!

Thursday, April 06, 2006

What a moron!

Well i'm not too sure if thats fair actually.

All of the buttons on my screen are in Korean, so i have had to guess what everything does. So I have been pressing the save post key all this time and not the publish post key! so there is a bit of reading up to do. Enjoy the pictures, that are actually there this time and I will get some more.

I have taken some today of my school and the new stuff on a stick shop that opened up so i will post them up soon.

lots love

Thursdays are almost as good as Fridays!

Its Thursday, April 06, 2006, today is a good day. I have to survive the morning but that’s not too bad most days. I did have the joy of spaghetti for lunch, which was nice, but it was more funny than tasty! Watching ten kids, some of them have difficulty eating in the first place, eat spaghetti with chopsticks was a giggle. I had to hand out tissue a number of times, and the kids had sauce all over their wee little faces for the next class as well! I think that was the highlight of my day so far! i only have 2 lessons left adn this is my mid afternoon break. most of the other teachers are teaching now, but i get to chill for 40 minutes!

I am just getting over my first illness. A gland in my neck grew over night on Tuesday and put me in a bad way on Wednesday. It wouldn’t have been too bad but for the kids. Having had broken sleep and feeling drained already, I started my first class. That was ok. Lunch was really nice and I ate like I normally do. Probably enough for half the class!

Wednesday is a long long day, with loads of grumpy kids to teach in the afternoon/evening. I mean… what school starts a lesson at 7pm!!! But the kids are pretty clever, I tried to get them to do a suduko, but about ten minutes into trying to explain it I saw that it was a hard one and the kids didn’t even have a chance! Hahahaha for the record I didn’t really have a chance! At the end of the day the three of us at Wonderland went to the sauna again. That place is great. I am thinking of going into Seoul and finding one to stay over instead of getting the train home. I could chill in one all night, and you can as well! They are 24hr!

Well, I am going to somewhere this evening, forgotten the name of the place, but there is a Carrefour there and I fancy finding out if they have any bacon and sausages.

I will actually try and put those pictures on the net at some point soon!!!

Take it easy all!
Lots love

dx

Monday, April 03, 2006

Yan will be proud

With my kindergarten classes, I have to make them read words from a book, and they have pictures… DRUM… DRESS… DRAGON… DRIVE… hold on a minute!!! DRAGON!!! So I made them draw a dragon, to waste sometime… so I introduced them to TROGDOR THE BURNINATOR!!! I drew him on the board and one of the students got me to draw him on a bit of paper so he could take him home. I had to hold the laughter in so much! I think the kids liked the dragon… in all his majesty.

I like this time, it’s the calm after the storm! The two kindergarten classes are so different, one is full of bright kids that want to mess about and one is full of… lets say the number of bright kids is less impressive. The ones that cause the trouble really hold the rest of the class back. And they don’t get to play many games. You know… I never knew that Hang’what?’ could be so entertaining. We’ve had Hangburger, hangcowboy, hangpanda, hangrabbit, hangdinosaur I’ve hung a lot of stuff while here (my drawing is improving everyday!).

Tuesdays and Thursdays are short days, I arrive at work at about 10.15, half and hour before my 1st lesson and leave just after 6. My last class is great! Two student that have pretty good English.

Ok, time to check my lessons and sort my bits and bobs out!

Oh and I tried to put up a blog with photos on it and the photos didn’t load, I might try again tonight... then again I might not! Take it easy

dx

Sunday, April 02, 2006

weekend rules!

Weekend rules....

cook at least once

do some kind of physical excersize

dont drink soju (i am thinking that is a rule forever!)

I think those are a good start to a list of worthy rules.

friday night was good, we were all going to go to Goose Goose, but it got a bit late and we just chilled at the apartment for the night. The morning was horrilbe tho! Not only raining but my body was having an adverse reaction to the national drink of Korea... SOJU. Its a bit like cheap vodka, and should not be drunk with beer. I failed to get dressed on saturday until about 9pm, there are so many films on in the day!

Sunday was much better, after a cloudy start which helped my write my report cards and Notting Hill on TV (which didnt help the report cards) I went to a basket ball court and got beat two on two. Mark, Brims , Soobi and myself. then went went to another court with Brian and played 5 on 5 with some Koreans. Having Brian helped just a bit! But my ankle is not happy today. I think I calmed the rage by going to a 24 hr sauna opposite my apartment. Now this was an interesting place! you go in and get a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Girls and boys seperate for the bathing section where everyone is nude. I heard stories later from the girls of what its like in the ladies section and it didnt sound too pretty!!! Ajumas (not so young ladies) squating down and scrubbing eachother... Three baths: warm, hot and mineral. Oh and a cold one for the steam room, which is in the single sex area. Then you go to the sauna area where you meet up with the ladies. we got a beer each and headed for the niceest looking room. It was hot, unsurprisingly, and rather sweaty! but it was a really nice room with marble floor with wicker mats and a stone patterned ceiling. next we went into the cool room, which was made up to look like a log cabin inside, very pleasant after the heat. Then there is a very warm room, not as hot as the first which is also loggy. There were a whole bunch of people chilling in there and sleeping in hall way, which was big and comfortable.

And down the road there is a new 'meat on a stick' place! the Koreans love meat on a stick, and its good! The fried chicken here is really good and in places doesnt have any oil, or cholesterol!!! MY ARSE!!! Beer Cabin, where I had chicken on saturday had a poster up saying that in Korean... what lies!!!

So.. I had a good weekend, hope you did, take it easy all and lots love!!
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