A Visit From Home

This past week was Chuseok, the fall harvest festival that is often likened to American Thanksgiving. Its a time marked by food, family, and 3 days off work. I was lucky enough to have some of my own family to celebrate with, as my Dad came and spent a week with me in Korea! It was a great (and busy) visit. Some of the highlights included hiking Bukhansan, biking along the Han River, a spirited Korean baseball game, a visit to his former home and school on Yongsan Military Base, and lots of good food. Here is the trip in visuals:

Touring Gyeongbokgung Palace on a sunny Sunday afternoon.

At the top of Baegundae Peak on Bukhansan. We were definitely sore the next day, but the hike was worth the stunning views, exhilarating climb, and yummy samgyeopsal at the end.

A glimpse at Korean hiking. Just throw up some steel cables and you're set!

Biking along the Han River after an outdoor yoga session.

Dad adjusting to Korean public transportation by becoming some one's pillow on the subway.

At the Doosan Bears game. Korean baseball is a whole different ball game, with cheerleaders, personalized songs, and beer guys with keg backpacks.

Each player has their own song that comes on when they are up to bat and their name is incorporated into the lyrics of the song. Also- hands are of no use; you must have thunder sticks.

Korean baseball under the full Chuseok moon.

Dinner with some coworkers in Sinsa!

Dad with my volunteer group that feeds the homeless, Help Your Soul, in from of the newly reconstructed Namdaemun Gate.

It was so nice to be able to share my life in Korea (even the boring day-to-day things) with someone from home. So come visit me! I'd love to show you around Seoul!

Summer Updates

Gahh I'm so sorry I have completely failed at posting this summer. Time has completely gotten way from me- I can't believe it is already mid-September. Here is a recap of my summer adventures:

First up- celebrating the Fourth of July in Korea! Unfortunately, the actual holiday fell on a rainy Thursday, but I still managed to head into Seoul and get a hazy view of the fireworks from Yongsan military base. Yummy drinks, good friends, and an off-key rendition of the Star Spangled Banner made for a great night. The celebrations continued over the weekend as an enormous group of foreigners took over Muuido island near Incheon airport to celebrate with barbecue, fireworks, and all things American. A bunch of military guys came as well and brought a bunch of American food from base, giving the whole weekend a feel of a vacation from Korea.

Sparklers on the Fourth at Muuido!

A few weekends later a attended Boreyeong's Mudfest for a weekend. The name is pretty self explanatory: thousands of people descend upon a beach to slather themselves in "healing" mud, climb inflatable slides and obstacle courses, and generally just have a good time. I almost sacrificed my phone to the mud gods, but luckily a bag of rice saved it! I had a really great time and plan to go again next year!

Muddy times on the beach!

Friends at mudfest!

 Then I celebrated the wedding of my coworker Jessie! It was really exciting to go to a Korean wedding and note the similarities and differences between American weddings. Some interesting traditions in Korean weddings: 1) The bride is in a special room before the wedding so everyone can take pictures and give their gift. 2) Gifts consist solely of cash in envelopes or large flower displays. 3) The bride and groom cut the cake, but do it during the ceremony and no one gets to eat it. 4) There are crazy amounts of cameras, disco lights, and assistants running around during the ceremony. In fact, the audience was talking and moving about throughout the ceremony and not really paying too much attention. 5) The crazy amount of food at the buffet seemed to be the main reason everyone came to the wedding. Hands down, my favorite part was when the couple performed the bows to their parents and were welcomed into each other's families. All in all, a really great chance to compare different cultures.

Romp n' Roll girls at the wedding.

Brit and I with the bride <3

I attended another music festival, this time in the rain and mud. The Ansan Valley Festival was really cool, and I saw Yellowcard, Coheed and Cambria, Nine Inch Nails, Foal, and Fun.

Fun. at Ansan Valley Rock Festival

Enduring the rain and mud for the sake of music.

Then it was off for summer vacation! I headed to Hong Kong and met up with my friend Matt for a few days. I absolutely LOVED Hong Kong! I didn't have very high expectations and was surprised by how much I enjoyed myself. HK would be a great first "Asian" city; it has all the uniqueness of Chinese culture mixed with the conveniences of a Western city (English speaking inhabitants and signs, etc). I visited a couple temples, some great museums, and Disneyland! I had amazing weather (it kind of felt like being in Manhattan on Hawaii) and definitely plan to return!

The Big Buddha on Lamma Island.

"Chinese cemetery" in Aberdeen. It went on for ages.

Matt and I in Hong Kong.

Hanging incense at the Man Mo Temple.

Disneyland Fun!

 After HK, I met up with Jackie and Allie in Taipei for a few days in Taiwan. We definitely had planned too much to do with too little time, so we ended up spending a lot of time on trains. Taiwan was really cool and I'd love to go back and explore the country a bit more. We spent a day in Taipei, visiting Taipei 101, night markets, and the Chaing Kai Shek memorial for  a beautiful sunset. Then it was off to Sun Moon Lake, which was gorgeous but everything shut down really early so exploring was a bit difficult. The last day was spent in Taroko Gorge, a gorgeous national park in Haulien.

Taipei 101

The beautiful Sun Moon Lake

Sunset at Sun Moon Lake.

Amazing, non-filtered sunset at the Chaing Kai Shek memorial in Taipei.

Taroko Gorge

Suspension bridge fun at Taroko Gorge

Chingshiu Cliffs

August flew by in a blur of work and goodbyes. I had many friends end their contracts in August and saying goodbye was definitely tough. But, that also means a bunch of new people are coming to Korea bringing new friendships. We opened our second center last week, and the month leading up to it was insane! Getting our new teachers over, training them, ordering and organizing all the materials, and commuting to the new center resulted in lots and lots of overtime. However, I'm really happy with the new center and looking forward to opening 2 more this year! I officially move to the upstairs office next week to really get involved more in the franchises and cutting back on teaching. I will be staying in Korea for at least another year, but will be home for Christmas this year!!

My dad arrives in Korea today and I can't wait to play tour guide!

Summer Begins

Well its been a busy month since I got back from Hawaii. Work as been INSANE recently. I'm starting to envy those times when Brit and I would be bored out of our minds trying to find something to do. Since we started franchising, we have to get everything ready for the new locations, which means finalizing lesson plans, going over material lists, and hiring new instructors. We had a visit from Michael (Romp n' Roll's CEO) a few weeks ago and since then things have been non-stop.

With all the craziness of work, I have really been trying to enjoy my weekends as much as possible. Originally, Brit and I were switching schedules for the summer (so that I would work Tues-Sat). However, since we aren't running any Saturday classes, my boss decided (after much not-so subtle prompting) to keep both of us at Mon-Fri. Therefore, I get to do so many exciting festivals and weekend trips.

A few weekends ago we all headed out to Korea's Ultra Music Festival. Ultra started in Miami and has now spread to a couple other countries. This was the second year they had the event in Seoul and it was SO much fun. There were three stages, each with about 8 DJ's each day. The place was completely packed (we nearly got trampled at one point and so decided that maybe being 3 feet from the stage wasn't where we wanted to be) and I had an amazing time. I definitely can't wait for next year!

Stage at Ultra

Jac and I during Armin Van Buuren

Day Glow All Day

Other summer adventures so far have included: beach trips, park picnics, small hikes in sweltering humidity, exploring Seoul's French Quarter, and much more. So far so good! Coming up: another music festival, Mud Fest (pretty self explanatory), bungee jumping, sky diving, fly boarding, and possibly a trip to Beijing/Taipei. I have to say, I really love my life.

Hamilton Hotel Pool Party on a Sunny Sunday

Yoga on Achasan

Speaking of loving Korea, the past few weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster for me. I had been become a bit fed up with always standing out and being different here. I was over having old men stare at me, having old women touch my hair, and constantly being referred to as a waygook (foreigner) by everyone, even people who know my name. I missed being in the melting pot that is America, where people don't stare at you for looking different. Then I found an article about Native English Teachers (NETs) from a Korean perspective that was fairly negative (I mean, really, how can you say precision in pronunciation is not important when if I say ONE letter wrong in Korean the entire sentence is incomprehensible?). So I was frustrated.

Then we had a huge, province-wide mandatory seminar for all foreign teachers. With a thousand foreigners gathered at City Hall, I became immensely aware of my privilege in the world. Because of essentially random luck (my skin color, my nationality, my education), I've been given amazing opportunities. Therefore, when some of the other foreign teachers started acting in a completely ridiculous and disrespectful manner towards our hosts, I was both astonished and ashamed. Until that point, nearly every foreign teacher I've met in Korea has been wonderful. While we all complain every now and then about our jobs (who really wants to go to a seminar at 9 AM on a Saturday), most teacher's I've encountered truly care about their job and their students, regardless of what their long term career goals. However, if what most of Korea is seeing are simply the "ugly foreigners" I saw at the seminar, I can understand why they would resent us.

To end on a positive note, Brit and I were just told that we will get another week off at the end of July! Last minute vacation research was done and I am going to..... Hong Kong and Taipei! I'm so excited to explore these cities and am super lucky I get so much vacation time at my job!

Aloha!

Sorry that I haven't posted for a while! Things were pretty busy over here as I was gearing up for my family vacation. A quick update of my goings on before the vacation: Lots of festivals! Spring has arrived and I have taken every opportunity to get outside in the nice weather. I went to the Cherry Blossom Festival in Yeouido, an island in the Han River, and spent a lovely day walking amongst mobs of Koreans looking at thousands of cherry blossoms. I went to a Wine and Spirits expo at COEX, a gigantic underground mall/entertainment complex, where my friends and I got in for free on the good fortune of being foreigners and had a blast trying wine, beer, and spirits from all over the world. The next weekend I went to the Seoul Friendship Fair at City Hall where a hundred or so countries performed music/dances and sold amazing national dishes. So to sum up, lots of festivals, crowds, sunshine, food, and friends.

Cherry Blossom Festival

Wine and Spirit Expo

Friendship Fair with some fair friends!

I spent the last 9 days with my family in Hawaii! Hawaii is pretty much halfway between Virginia and Korea, which makes it the perfect reunion spot (not to mention the beaches...). We started in Honolulu where, with all the time/date changes, I had a 43 hour Friday. We stayed in Waikiki, which was really nice, if not overly congested. I took a much anticipated trip to Target and went insanely slightly overboard buying shorts, dresses, and toiletries. We spent the next day driving around the island and visiting the North Shore, which was again wonderful expect for the traffic. Sunday morning was a trip to Pearl Harbor, some pool time, and then off to the airport to head to Maui.

Maui was much more our speed and we had a great time relaxing at the resort. There was a great reef right off our beach which meant we could snorkel anytime. Some highlights from the trip include watching the sunrise at the top of the volcano followed by a bike trip down to the base, watching a sunset cliff diving ceremony and then proceeding to jump off said cliff the following day, and visiting multiple scenic overlooks such as a blowhole and "Dragon's Teeth". I also ate some AMAZING food, pretty much gorging myself on seafood and fruit. We went to a nice luau with food from Hawaii, New Zealand, Samoa, and Tahiti. A sunset cruise was also a great time spent looking at rainbows and taking family photos.

Sunrise over Haleakala

Ready for the ride!

Switchbacks above the clouds.

Sunset cliff dive. Kim and I jumped off it the next day (she took a lot of persuading...)

So happy to see them!

The whole family!

I'm so happy I had the chance to see my family. Nearly 8 months was far too long, no matter how often the skype dates are. It was great to relax and enjoy each others company (and some time off work). Speaking of work, I have been swamped the past few weeks! We franchised, yay!, and are planning on opening a new center in June. This means that I've been crazed writing lesson plans, setting up interviews, and teaching a bunch of new classes. Despite the workload, I'm really excited to have more responsibility at work and start having a more administrative role in the centers!

xo Julie

Amurica

I realize my absence from blogging has coincided with Kim Jong Un's latest tantrum, so let me reassure you that I'm doing fine over here. Its really easy to forget what is going on up in North Korea because most South Koreans barely seem to acknowledge its existence. Then I read the US news where most events are completely over-sensationalized. The truth is somewhere in between. Most foreigners are slightly more concerned then South Koreans, but we realize that if something were to happen, it would be a small border skirmish like we've seen in the past. I, like other expats, have registered with the embassy and they are great about keeping you updated on any cause for concern. If you're interested, Eat Your Kimchi did a great job explaining the situation in their TL:DR video. 

As my boss says: "Don't worry. America will defend us."

I've been lucky enough to have some beautiful weekends the past few weeks, and have attempted to spend as much time outside as possible. I went back to Busan for a friend's birthday a few weeks ago and had another amazing trip. Beautiful weather, a Motown dance party, and good friends made for an excellent weekend!

I had a few America-filled days this past weekend. Friday I went to fundraiser for a friend's soccer team, which was a flip-pong tournament. The rules were crazy complicated but it was lots of American-college-fun. On Saturday I finally got over to Costco and signed up for a membership! I had been once before with one of my kiddo's Mom, but now I can go on my own. Its great for finding decently priced Western goods, but I struggle with the idea of buying in bulk! I cannot fathom going through two 32 ounce peanut butter jars within 6 months.

Work has been going really well lately. I have been spending a lot more time in the upstairs office proofing and writing English and Math curriculum. I work well under pressure, so its nice to be busy!

This was a math flash-card I was proofing. Needless to say we had them change the girls to trees to avoid any future eating disorders/body dysmorphia.

The cherry blossoms started blooming in my neighborhood! It starting to finally feel like spring with sunshine, flowers, and (slightly) warmer weather!

Flower lined sidewalk on a beautiful Spring day!

T-minus 25 days until family fun times in Hawaii!!

xo Julie

Beautiful Busan

This past weekend has been one full of both reminiscing over old memories and creating new ones. A freshman hall mate of mine who currently lives in Thailand came to visit Korea and stayed with me for part of her time here. It was great to see someone from home and moan about how much we missed William and Mary. Plus it gave me a chance to act like a guide book and pretend I know a lot more Korean than I actually do.

Since Ryann was here for a while, I suggested we use the weekend to visit another city in Korea. Where else would you want to go but the next largest city in Korea that happens to be 20 degrees warmer than Seoul and right on the ocean? So bright and early Saturday morning, Ryann, her cousin Sierra, and I boarded a KTX to Busan.

Since our hostel was located in a neighborhood further from the train station and we couldn't check in until 2:00, we decided to explore the downtown area and have lunch before heading north. Our first stop was the Jalgachi fish market, the largest fish market in Korea. Seafood is a staple in the Korean diet (and given the fact that the country is a peninsula, your seafood is always fresh), and Busan is known for having some of the best seafood in the country. The fish market was really huge and so much fun to walk around and look at all the strange shellfish. We spent the whole morning wandering from booth to booth looking at all of the oceans bounty (including sting ray!).

All kinds of shellfish: gooey duck, abalone, mussles, clams, scallops, crabs, lobsters, and more

This is just the front of the market. It went on for about a mile or so.

The three of us are pretty adventurous girls, and we all wanted to try the Korean specialty sannakji. While you can get it all over the peninsula, it is most fresh in Busan. Sannakji is basically a young octopus that is killed and quickly chopped into very small pieces, dressed with sesame and laver, and served still squirming around on the plate. Don't worry, the octopus is definitely dead, its just (as Anthony Bourdain says) "too stupid to know its dead". The key to eating sannakji is to chew quickly and vigorously before you swallow, otherwise you risk the cups suctioning onto your throat/cheek. Its such a strange sensation but you can easily pull it off and keep chewing. It actually tastes pretty good, like the ocean, and overall was an enjoyable experience. Here is a delightful video for your amusement. It actually looks a bit worse in the video than it did in person.

After that appetizer, we grabbed some real lunch of whole broiled fish that was delicious! I wasn't quite adventurous enough to eat the eye, but Sierra went for it! After the market, we headed toward BIFF square, a huge shopping area where the international film festival is held. We also went to the top of Busan tower to get a great panoramic of the city. The park below was full of families out enjoying the sunshine (did I mention it was almost 65 degrees and sunny!).

Busan Tower on a sunny day.

We headed up to Haeundae next, which is where our hostel was located. Haeundae is the main beach/restaurant/party area and was so cool to explore. We went down to the beach just after sunset and everyone was out listening to street performers and shooting off fireworks. After dinner, we headed to an Irish pub to celebrate St. Paddy's day with Irish Car Bombs and green beer!

So excited for a beach and new friends!

The girls out for St Patrick's Day. I forgot something green...

We woke up early the next day to head to Haedong Yonggung Temple. This is an absolutely beautiful temple situated right on the cliffs with great views of the ocean. It was super crowded but still so cool to explore. It also had a cool little market out front where I got a dress and a bracelet. After a delicious mandu lunch we headed to the aquarium to play with starfish and see sharks. Then we headed to the station and somehow got tickets on one of the last open trains back to Seoul that night.

This was actually a tank at the aquarium to celebrate White Day (March 14th, where the boys buy gifts for the girls). The teddy bears are IN the water with the (lonely?) fish.

Dolphin Baloon headband. Enough said.

Great view of the temple right on the water.

Just get rid of the industrial ships spewing black smoke in the background and you've got heavan!

All in all it was an excellent Busan weekend. I can't wait to go back later in the year for some beach chilling and seafood feasts!

xo Julie