The nicest birthday weekend I've had so far

So I turned 31 last month. 

That's kinda sobering.

This was one of the few times I've celebrated my birthday with a couple of friends.

It was not the first time I was with friends on my birthday, but it was one of the few in which we celebrated my birthday together--at least, from what I can remember. I'm getting older, so my memory is not like it used to be.

I went up to Seoul on Friday after school. Once in Seoul, I went straight to my friend's apartment in northern Seoul. This friend was my Religion student my first term in Korea, 7 years ago . . . She was in her third trimester of her pregnancy at that time. That baby will start going to school in March . . . Whoa.

So my friend, her husband, and I took a few hours to catch up. Afterwards, the accumulated fatigue from the week kicked in, and we went to sleep in our respective rooms.

In the morning, I saw their girls. Oh. My. Word. Have they grown!
So while the dad spent the day with his kids as an ideal father, my friend joined me as we went to meet a mutual friend who was visiting from The States. We met in Sinchon, ate and caught up in a vegan bakery/cafe, then went out for a walk. We were going to explore a flea market they usually have during the weekends, but we were met with something different . . .

You are entering the Water Festival!

Entrance to the Festival

Apparently, there was a water festival going on. Considering how hot it's been getting here (ridiculous), that was a genius idea. We decided to wander around and get a feel for it--while trying to not get (very) wet.
Utter craziness.

They agreed this was a good idea.

About a half-kilometer of the street was completely blocked off for the people to dance, get wet, and get others wet. There was a narrow passage to the side where regular pedestrians could pass amidst threats of water. We got a few drops, so we did not escape untouched.

At the middle was a DJ (or 2?) pumping the masses and keeping the hype going.

The live DJ on his high altar, surrounded by speakers and water cannons.

To get an idea of how it was.

None of us knew about this. The one friend was taking it all in. The other was getting into it without wanting to get wet. I was shocked and felt completely out of place. I'm sure it was a lot of fun, but I just wasn't mentally prepared for it--especially the music's volume! I don't remember being so close to music that sounded that loudly. Remember, I'm a quite person who treasures my privacy and peace. Yet here I was, in the middle of loud chaos I did not expect. I'm actually surprised I stayed for as long as I did.

Shew, I'm really getting old.

Two wonderful friends and I.

Ah, in said vegan bakery/cafe, the topic of birthdays came up, and that was when my friends discovered my birthday was the next day. Then the friend I stayed with contacted her husband and prepared a surprise celebration for me at their home that night.

It was so sweet (literally)!
They ordered fried chicken (as any true carnivore friend would) and as things were dying down, the husband brought out an ice cream cake--and the family started singing "Happy Birthday" to me (including the 2 cute little girls)! I felt so loved!
This was also my first ice cream cake. Ever, if I'm not mistaken (remember what I wrote about my memory at the beginning of the post?). That moment was precious.


Come Sunday, my birthday.
Just like the day before, friend and I go to spend more time with visiting friend. Getting off at Konkuk Station/건대입구역 (Konkuk University Station) exit 3, we found this interesting set-up...

Welcome to Common Ground

So this is the largest shopping mall in the world--made of shipping containers.
Interesting, it truly was.

Panoramic view from the open air area on the third floor. 

After walking around a bit, we ended up having lunch there. We ate at "Sobang Life" on the 3rd floor. Here's the website for more info (unfortunately, only in Korean).

We all ordered the same thing. Truly a good--and healthy decision.

Walking through the 1st floor, making our way to Dore Dore cake cafe, we spotted a DJ in a smaller shipping container.

Seriously, I kid thee not. See for yourself.

Dore Dore cafe is at the bottom left of the picture.

Both friends agreed to treat me, so they let me choose and you can see it below.

My red-velvet cake with legit Oreos.

That was huge!
I really liked that the frosting wasn't so sweet. It also had the consistency of whipped cream, very light. That's EXACTLY how I like my cake frosting.

Hi there.

Unfortunately, both had to leave and I had 3 hours to kill before catching my bus back home. I looked desperately for a water pitcher with filter (like Brita), but in vain. At least I was able to pass by Lotte World Tower, the tallest building in South Korea, at Jamsil Station.
It is 555 meters (123 floors) tall. It's the tallest building in the OECD countries and the 5th tallest in the world. Their official website offers more info, or you could always check out what Wikipedia says.
I just regret not going up to the observatory somewhere up there.
On second thought, maybe it's better that I didn't go. There were literally hundreds of people there. I'm not claustrophobic, but conditions were ripe to drag me to that point.
I'll try again someday. Hopefully, soon.

Lotte World Tower

"Hello Asia" -- Taste of Indonesia (Halal!) in Changwon (창원)

The entrance and sign

A word about the meat . . .

It's all halal. No pork--but they do have seafood!

It all started with a random meeting in an elevator.

I had just returned to Korea. I walked down memory lane as I went through Emart's aisles, LotteMart's crowds, and LotteMall's escalators in Changwon, Gyeongsangnam-do. I had enough and wanted to rest a bit in my Namsun Hotel room about 4 or 5 blocks away. Said hotel was on the 4th - 6th floors of a building that has several other businesses occupying its other floors.

A lady and I enter the elevator. She starts speaking to me in English. Not so strange. I'm obviously not Korean/Asian, so by default I must be an English-speaking foreigner--which just happens to be true.

She told me about her restaurant and that I should check it out. I had other dinner plans that day, so I couldn't. However, I did tell her I would visit her restaurant. I had already seen the sign. Just the fact that it was in English was enough to make me consider it further--even become curious.

Fast-forward over a month later, and I finally get to follow through with my word. I must have come in at the perfect time. It was empty. I don't like crowds, so for me, this is a good thing. I was told this place gets busier on the weekends and was relatively active during the week as well--just that day/moment when I entered, it just happened to be empty. Perfect timing, if you ask me.

180 degrees from my seat.

My table

The tables right beside the door.

She gave me a menu to browse and told me about the drinks. One drink, in particular, caught my eye. Let me show you the picture.

Guess which one made me do a double-take...

Did the drink that caught my eye catch yours?

If you were quasi-startled with "Avocodo juice," then yes.

I've never heard of this before--and we eat a lot of avocados in my family. I had to try this. Those of you who know me, know I'm an overall explorer--with countries as well as food.

My glass of avocado juice!

At first, it was a little weird. Then again, with each sip, it got better and better. There was a bit of chocolate in it, which helped with the sweetness (as well as other ingredients I couldn't taste). My sense of taste is not that good, so I would be a pathetic food critic. However, I did enjoy it.

Positive reviews from me!

While I waited for my dish, I took pictures of the decoration. I thought it was well done. Let me show you what I mean...

I liked this map of Indonesia (with a few other countries)

Felt somewhat rich, in a not-so-rich way.

Game of pool, anyone?

So you know what time it is in these countries.

Some of the loveliest flowers are the hidden ones.

Oh, I didn't expect this.

Adds to the already exotic atmosphere.

Colorful wall lamp from up-close.

More of the same clocks with a TV, if that's your thing.

And behold, my dinner!

Nasi Goreng + Sate Kambing for less than $10!

Close-ups!

Skewered lamb (spicy)

Fried rice with vegetables and beef.

So "Before."

Food and juice

And "After."

Clean-up, Joann-style.

I was happy with my meal. I'll definitely come back to explore the menu some more--while sipping on another glass of avocado juice.

The address to this place and where it is can be found here (some of the pictures must be a bit old, or my menu looked different, just to let you know).

I hope you get the chance to check it out!

One more look, as I leave.

What to expect to pay in Korean stores

Let's look at what you might pay for some known items.

If you use dollars (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, US, etc.) just use the 1,000 Won = $1 rule of thumb. For exact conversion rates, I use xe.com.

**Note: If there's something specific you'd like to see the price of in Korea, write it down in the comments, please.**

This is at the International food section of Emart.

Emart is one of the 3 major "marts" in Korea. The other two are LotteMart and Home Plus. Of the three, my personal favorite is Home Plus because it offers the most foreign/international products. I'd say Emart is generally cheaper than LotteMart, but it depends. Sometimes LotteMart can be cheaper.

Click on the links to visit each store's site and check out the prices.

Don't feel intimidated by all the Korean text. Just look for a number in the thousands (usually under the picture) and that's the price!

Always remember the rule of thumb: 1,000 Won = $1

I've included other random pictures I've taken of products in stores to continue giving you an idea of what to pay over here. I'll probably update this page when I have more pictures to add.

A couple of small pressure cookers on regular-sized shelves in Hi-Mart.

Smallest Pressure Cooker I've seen--at Home Plus

Ha! It made it here too! AND it's cheaper!

You'll find the most random things in Daiso-a GODsend.

Some prices don't make sense. If you can read, that may help.

You can find most condiments/spices/flavors here.

Fish in a chain, anyone?

How about "fish chain" in an arch?

Food court's menu. Love this concept.

Wait, I've come to my 1-month anniversary already? (28. July)

Oh wow, it's been a month since I returned to Korea . . . Already . . . Whoa . . .

What's happened? Here are a few summaries:

Yesterday was the last day of school for the 1st semester. The day before was the last day of actual classes at the school.

After classes were done, the principal treated all the teachers out to--no, actually we did not go to a staff dinner (where you potentially get ridiculously drunk 'cause you're not allowed to decline)! We went out to a movie instead! The movie was "군함도" or "Battleship Island." It was intense. You can see the trailer here. Of course, the movie was in Korean. Even when the Japanese spoke Japanese, there were Korean subtitles. I understood one whole line in the entire movie and the subtitles were too fast for me. That didn't really matter. I got the story just from watching what happened. I can almost bet you I was the only foreigner in the entire building at the time. Cool experience though!

Today was the first day of summer vacation. That meant coming to a virtually empty school to desk-warm.

What is "desk-warm" you may ask? It is when you come to school, to your room/office/desk and just stay there until they tell you you're allowed to leave (if that happens before 16:40). 

What do you do? You can plan for the summer English camp, the following semester, the following winter camp, your summer/winter vacation, your next steps in Korea/post-Korea, or whatever else. I take this as an "I can do just about whatever, 'cause they're paying me to spend time here." I want to learn about investments and how they work. I'm going to research that anyway, might as well do it at school where I'll "be paid" to do so.

If you have nothing to do, this can be torture. So best start thinking about what you'll do later on down the road, research, and if you need to study, do so during this time--if you've already planned out your first few classes for the following semester. 

My first summer camp will begin Monday. It'll run for 2 weeks. The theme for camp is the five senses. Week 1 will be for the 3rd & 4th graders, whereas Week 2 will be for the 5th & 6th graders. So there's the good news: prepare for 1 week and do it twice, just add more challenging content the following week.

Wait, "first summer camp?" That implies there's more than one. What about the second? That camp will be at my Friday school. This will last for 3 days in the 3rd week of August. What will I do? The same as in my main school! Just adapt it to fit the 3-day schedule. It shouldn't be too bad.

Switching off school, I've explored my area a bit and learned where the bus terminals and train stations are. I even took pictures of the bus schedules to better plan potential weekend getaways.
Speaking of "weekend getaways," I'll be heading off to Seoul as soon as I get out for the day. I got my bus ticket, so I shouldn't have anything to worry about--until I arrive at Seoul. I need to make sure I get a ticket back for Sunday. Then, I need to make my way over to my friend's place, where I'll be staying. I expect to arrive around 23:00 tonight. Why so late? My bus will leave at 17:20 and it's a >4 hr. ride from Masan to Seoul one-way.

Then again, that's not so bad. Only >4 hours to cross 85% of the country from south to north? See why it's great to travel within Korea?

Whew, I'm gonna be so exhausted tonight, but it will be good to see her and her family again.

Brief Overview of My First Week (3. - 7. July '17)

Whoa . . . I'm just finishing my second week, and I'm going to write about my first? I guess I have been kind of busy lately.


Let's start off at my apartment.

When I wasn't teaching, I was cleaning/moving in (much much much more cleaning than moving in). I have this thing; when I move into a new place, for me to make it "mine," I have to clean it. Even if it is already clean, just passing a wet cloth over the counters and the floor or whatever is needed, so I can actually say that this place is "mine."

Well, I moved into a place that was inhabited by a guy. Another man lived here (I believe for a few years) before him. I know there are very clean guys out there, but neither of these would have fit into that category.

I had moved into this place on a Friday. It wasn't until this past Sunday (2 weekends later) that I finished cleaning the place (as in, it took about +/- 10 days).
When I first stepped in, it didn't look so bad. If I hadn't moved any of the furniture, I wouldn't have changed my mind. The first thing I moved was the bed to clean under it (hey, I've got dust allergies, so I need to take care of myself). After going through the entire apartment (luckily a studio apartment), I found enough dust bunnies to stuff a pillow or two. After scrubbing the floor (yes, on my hands and knees scrubbing) I saw it shine in a way I didn't know it could. After cleaning the windows (both inside and out), I realized it wasn't so dark outside. My windows were just tinted--with filth. Once the kitchen sink was cleaned, I thought it was a mirror for a short moment. I refused to cook in the kitchen until I cleaned it--it was that bad.
Anyway, the darkness has passed, and everything is clean enough to impress a mother-in-law.

Now to my schools.

I've got 2 schools. Both are elementary. I teach in my main elementary school Mondays - Thursdays. The other smaller school is where I make a weekly appearance every Friday. I teach 5th and 6th graders in my main school (four classes of each grade, so eight classes total. Oh, and each class has 25-28 students). I teach 4th, 5th, and 6th graders in the other school--only one class of each (there are 4 in 4th grade, 7 in 5th grade, and 14 in 6th grade).
As you can tell, both schools are very different. My main school is within the city, about a 15-min. walk from my place. The second school is about a 15-min. bus ride from the stop that's about 10 min. away from my place (in the same direction as my main school). That school is just outside the city.

This is very different to my experience in Gangwondo (강원도) last time. I had 5 schools (2 elementary, 2 middle, and 1 high). Only 1 class in each grade and I saw each school/students once a week. I was paid a lot more then, but I like this arrangement more. I can actually form relationships here. Who knew?

I teach 22 hours per week, which is the max. If you teach more, then you (should) get overtime pay.

The Korean school year is from March - December. I came in towards the end of the 1st semester (early March - late July). The second half runs from the end of August to the end of December. You can see, I've got about 2 weeks of teaching left before summer break. So I've got a nice 1-month summer break ahead of me, right?

WRONG!

I've got to prepare and teach summer (English) camp at both of my schools! I've got a 2-week summer camp in my main school and a 3-day camp at my other school. My co-teachers and I have already been working hard on them, planning the activities, ordering the materials needed, and so on.

I could have 1 week (5 work days) as my summer vacation. We'll see. I still need to request it (Korean school bureaucracy--just accept it) and have it approved. There's some stuff I'd like to do during this time, like visit friends and get my wisdom teeth pulled out. Looks like it'll be tricky planning both. Oh, decisions, decisions . . .

*Random story*
I went to get my teeth cleaned at a dental clinic near my main school. Either there was a misunderstanding or they only clean teeth by drilling along the gum line. It was nerve-wracking, not gonna lie. But I only paid less than $15 for the whole thing (I've got the national health insurance. Wonderful thing--especially since I am uninsured in the States). So both I and my wallet survived the experience.

My First Jimjilbang experience (2. July '17)

That's right. I finally did it. It only took me over 3 years to gather up the courage to finally go and try a jimjilbang (public bathhouse) in Korea.

"Courage?" Actually, "desperation" would be the correct word.

Hey, I see you jumping into conclusions over there! Hear (read) me out first!

The shower drain was clogged and there was no point in showering there since the floor would start flooding with less than a liter.

Remember, this is the beginning of July. The heat--and especially the humidity--are up there. I was working hard in my new apartment, since it looked like it wasn't thoroughly cleaned some tenants ago. Then, I was unpacking too and putting my clothes and stuff away into their newly designated areas. After I finished unpacking, I started to really clean. This was all I was doing a couple of hours before Sabbath started on Friday, Saturday night, and most of Sunday.

I'm proud to say I got a lot done and organized, but I still have a lot to do before I can say "I'm done."

Then Friday night, I found out how bad the shower drainage was.

The teacher I replaced warned me about this and I got the Korean equivalent of Draino and applied it on Saturday night (I was too tired and disgusted to be bothered to do it immediately). Sunday morning, it was fine--except for the grimy clean-up work I had to do. Even while cleaning it up, the drain was clogged again. This time, when I waited, the water eventually went down within an hour. Promising...

So, about 2 days of constant motion and action and manual labor + hot apartment with an air conditioner that's expensive to operate (and hardly any breeze ever enters the windows when open) + the heat and humidity of southern South Korea + a shower that's basically broken = a grossly sweaty, sticky, serious situation.

I needed to call the landlord (or somebody), but I didn't (and still don't) have the contact details nor the language proficiency to do it. Hence, I couldn't wait for Monday, when I could make my plea to my co-teacher. However, I still needed to get through Sunday night. So I did it. I packed a change of clothing, money, my water bottle and went out the door to a Jimjilbang I saw on the main "downtown" area. I figured a bigger one might be better able to help foreign jimjilbang virgin.

It was a little weird, but I was too desperate to be clean to care. I didn't know I had to bring my own stuff, or I could buy packets there. The entrance cost me about 5,500 Won and all the little packets and stuff about 4,500 Won. I read on a couple of blogposts (mainly this guy's) that one should shower 1st. Perfect for me! That's the reason I came! Then one can enter the pools. Each pool has a different temperature. There were 2 saunas as well. The ladies there directed me to what I should do; when, how, where, etc. Before that night, I would've been so feed-up and just left, but I came in knowing they would want to help me, not insult me. Shew, I went there by myself and was naked in front of them all in many different ways (so were they, it is a public bath, after all). 

I can honestly say it was actually nice. A couple of ladies helped me around at differing stages of the process. One even scrubbed my back (which is normal). I think I'd do it again, just not sure when.

My jimjilbang virginity had come to its end.

(Side note: my shower was fixed that Monday afternoon. I've been enjoying blissful, cold showers in the comfort and privacy of my home, just as I should.)

My flight back to Korea (28. June '17)

"Hmmm, how much of this can I share right now?" I think as I'm sitting on a couch in my hotel room in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea.

I guess I can start with my journey here.

My flight itinerary back was the following:

Jacksonville, Florida --> JFK, NYC --> Taipei, Taiwan --> Busan, South Korea.

Total travel time (with layovers--and delays): about 30 hours.

First leg of the trip

I get to Jacksonville with plenty of time. The flight was supposed to leave @ 17:07 and arrive at JFK @ 19:30. There was a severe thunderstorm with lightning a little too close for comfort. The plane needed refueling, but with the proximity of the lightning, they needed to wait for the storm to pass. We were all boarded and in our seats for over an hour when we were told to gather our stuff and get off the plane (get some walking in, go to the restroom, be a little more comfortable). That was when they refueled the plane. About 30-40 minutes after disembarking from the plane, we all boarded it again. By the time the plane left, it was 19:30--the time we were supposed to land in JFK.

Don't need to worry about messing up the sink!

Curving skylights

Somewhere over Florida or Georgia

Second leg of the trip

We landed in JFK, and I had to figure out how to get to my connecting flight. Sure, my flight was late. It was about 21:00 by this time, but my flight to Taipei left at 1:35, so I had over 4 hours (still) to kill. A friend who was familiar with that airport told me to not bother going out to explore NYC since this airport was too far from just about everything. Since I had less time to kill, I thought it doubly wise to heed his warning. Eventually, I found out I did not have as much time to waste as I had initially thought. I had to check-in again (through China Airlines--very helpful!) and go through security again. This was not very pleasant, considering several transoceanic flights were leaving at the same time. Not fun.

By the time I was near my gate, I had about an hour and a half until boarding time (which was 40 minutes before the scheduled flight time). I found the one other place besides McDonald's that was open and selling food, and used their services gladly--even though the price was beyond what I would've normally paid anywhere else. I sat in a quiet area with several armchairs, made myself comfortable, ate, and communicated with family and a few friends. 

At the appointed time, I was waiting in line at the gate. We all boarded and the plane left. Fifteen hours of flight, 6-8 hours of sleep (praise GOD!), two movies, and an overall pleasant experience later, the plane landed at Taipei around 5 am Wednesday morning (Taipei time).

Greeted by a line of orchids. See the time?

My gate to my plane to Busan.

Hmmm, which bike would you like?

Nice, if only there were more than 3 such chairs ...

Third and final leg of the trip

I can't say how nice it was walking through an empty yet sparkling clean airport while being fully awake at 5 am. I went through security one more time. This time, it was a breeze. I was the only passenger there! Hence, I was able to get in and out quickly, without worrying about anyone trying to steal my stuff (bliss). I made it to my gate, but I still had an hour before boarding. Then one of my close friends called, and we talked for about 40 minutes, catching up. I was going to see if I could get something to eat, only to remember I didn't have any local currency (luckily, before I found an eatery). So I went to the waiting area at my gate and waited until boarding time. We boarded, got settled, and took off. I was so thankful when they served us meals because I was famished! I didn't know what it was or what it had, but I ate it heartily. I hadn't eaten for 7 hours or so by then.

We arrived at Busan without any problems. Then, I realized I needed to fill out some arrival documents--which I did not receive on the flight. So, off to find them and fill them out. All in all, I got that settled and my bags were easy to find since everyone else had already claimed theirs. I walked out and met my recruiter (again). He is Alistair Wery of Korean Horizons (I've already posted a review about him and his services here).
He took me to NS/Namsun hotel where he reserved a room for each of his recruits. I approve! The room is nice and clean. There are 2 bottles of water and 2 cans of either juice or coffee (FOR FREE!) in the mini fridge. There is a whole set of toiletries you can use (FOR FREE!). The hotel even has complimentary (Korean style) breakfast that made me so happy to be reunited with Korean food again.

Today, I will check out of NS Hotel/Namsun Hotel, meet my co-teacher and other staff members, and move into my new apartment.

From my window. See the full rainbow on the bottom left?

So far, so good.

Guess who's back, back again . . .

Who would have thought?

I guess when you go to Korea, you can't stay away forever.

Yes, I was hired and accepted to a public school teaching position in Korea again. I'm still in the States, but I will leave for the airport in about 2 hours. After about 29-32 hours, I should land in Korea.

I'll share more on a later post. 

This is just to announce my return and the revival of this blog.