Rachel In Korea

...And now back to reality

2009-03-29T09:46:00.000-07:00

I knew when I left Korea I wanted to write a blog about re-entry into the world I know and love. This world that contains my family, my friends, and a country that I feel has the power to do great things. Upon entry into this 'world' it was my instant reaction to sit down and write, but I couldn't. Every time I wrote something it came out wrong, or I was unable to fully capture what I'm feeling and the experiences I've had. So, I waited... I have put this off long enough, and I feel that I can fully express this (or at least that is my goal). For those that I have connected with, it has been so amazing to catch up with you and spend time talking with you. I have certainly missed all of you. For those of you I have not had the chance to catch up with, I hope to see you soon. Many of you have asked me what it feels like to come back or how I feel. By nature I tend to be a glass 1/2 empty type of person, but I fight this urge and I try to find the good in some things. For all, this blog might be a bit depressing, but bare with me to the end and I promise to put a positive spin on it :)

I have been back in America exactly 4 weeks today, and to answer that question about what it feels like to be back... it's not that great. I was employed, and while the exchange rate was killing me, I was at least making consistent money. I was living by myself (which I love, definitely one of those people who likes her alone time), I had more friends than I really knew what to do with, and I was living in an amazing city that had its flaws, but was still amazing. I knew where I fit in the grand scheme of my small circle of friends, I belong, and I had a place in that world. Most importantly, I had a job that I LOVE doing.

What has really effected me upon my return to this culture?

First, the utter quiet. Not just the, "oh there isn't as much noise here." but the feeling that something ominous is about to happen quiet. It's not just quiet, it's silent. I know this is all in my head. There is a great lack of noise here compared to Korea, and in many ways it is completely unnerving. Combine that with the open space and I feel like I'm in some sort of time/space continuum bubble.

Second, I miss my friends everyday. I miss the jokes, and the laughing, and telling stories of things that happen to me and having people understand the Korean culture behind the crazy story. It is hard because I had a life and routine, and people who loved me in Korea (not that there are not people who love me here) and I left it all behind.

However, those things are really just mental/emotional 'nothings.' What has really effected me and my return home is the utter, lack or sense of a lack of freedom. I can't explain it. I actually really don't understand it myself. In Korea, I could really just move from place to place, mostly unnoticed. Not only was I unnoticed, but people didn't understand me and mostly left me alone. Here, I am consistently on edge. I can't talk too loudly about things I don't want other people to hear me say because obviously people understand me.

So, I promised to put a positive spin on this...so here goes!! This year really taught me to look at life in a positive way. I CAN do things rather than I can't do them. I AM a great person, rather than... "well, I guess I'm an ok person." I have to put myself out there to accomplish what I want to accomplish. It was really easy to do that in Korea, and not so easy to do that here. I don't know why that is. Mostly, I think no one knew me in Korea, therefore they didn't really know what to expect. In America, people had 20+ years of experience in "what to expect from Rachel." It was easy to be completely honest with myself and other people and to be the person I truly am. So, with one of my New Years Resolutions being "to be myself" I am being myself. And those of you here in America... perhaps there are a few surprises in store for you! Either way I am happy with who I am and the path that I am taking. I'm taking risks (calculated ones... but risks all the same) to pursue what I want from life, and that makes me happy!

Koh Samui, Thailand

2009-01-26T23:24:00.000-08:00

My sister, Bethany came to visit me in Korea for the Holiday season. It was so great to see her. I really had not seen any of my family in 10 months, and to see Bethany was an amazing treat for me. Bethany is definately on my list of "Top 5 favorite people in the world." Bethany spent a few days here in Seoul before we left for Koh Samui, Thailand. For those who don't know, Koh Samui is a small island on the southwest coast of Thailand, located in the Gulf of Thailand. There is not much on this island, but resorts, and the beach. Basically, your perfect place to go and sit in the sand, get tan, and sleep. Honestly, my perfect vacation.

Bethany and I really wanted a place where we could sleep in until noon, relax on the beach, hang out with each other and do some shopping. Koh Samui provided all of this. We stayed at the Weekender Resort on Lamai (pronounced La-my) beach. It was a great place. The people were friendly and the food was amazing. We really had no schedule. We'd wake up in the morning, and say, "What do you want to do today?" We'd talk about it and we'd aim to do those things, but if we didn't do those things, then it wasn't really a big deal at all!

Koh Samui depends on tourism as it's main source of income. The beach is really one hotel right next to another. In the evening the hotels set up tables right in the sand and every evening we'd walk down the beach and eat at a different restaurant. We were there 9 nights and we never ate at the same restaurant twice. The most entertaining part of this was the little kids who would walk down the beach selling these balloon things that you put over a flame and they'd float in the air. They called them balloons, "Lucky Balloons." So they'd walk down the beach yelling, "Buy my lucky balloon." As long as you didn't make eye contact with them, they'd keep walking. Eventually we bought a 'lucky ballon', put it over the flame, made a wish, and off it went over the ocean. There were also the kids who sold fireworks. Plenty of people bought them too. These weren't your standard, sparklers or wimpy fireworks you buy by a roadside stand in Kentucky. These were the good, "baseball game in Comerica on the 4th of July" fireworks. People would set them off right on the beach. This was actually pretty cool because everynight there was a fireworks display. Except when we were trying to eat, and they would go off without any warning, and I'd hear the huge "boom" so close to my head. I jumped a mile everytime. Bethany found this really amusing. She would never warn me. She'd just wait for me to jump out of my chair.

For New Years Eve, our hotel had a mandatory dinner/gala. It was really quite nice. A big buffet with all kinds of food, fireworks, and those Polonesian fire dancers. The hotel also flew in this guy who sings with the Metropolitian Opera House in NYC. He was an amazing singer. For all who know my love of opera, you must know I was in my element with this guy singing. I really enjoyed him.

We did some hiking while on the island as well. There was an beautiful rock formation on one end of the beach. We hiked down the beach. The way back was interesting since the tide had come in. We basically got very wet, but it was so worth it!

I think the most entertaining part of our trip was the Swedish family we met at the hotel. I don't know their names since we never got that personal with them. Mostly, they were extremely entertaining to watch at the pool. Grandma & Grandpa were really nice, always greeting us in the morning at breakfast. They spoke very little English, so we never really talked to them much. Even though we couldn't really communicate with them, there was still this sense of kindness. They always smiled so genuinely and they reminded me of my own grandparents. The Mom & Dad spoke pretty good English so we talked to them a few times. The Mom was really nice. We talked about snow, cold, and school...comparing them to our own countries. The kids were the best though. There were 2 boys and a little girl. The 2 boys cracked me up. They were just so cute and you could tell, that even though they were brothers, they were really great friends. The little girl was about 18 months old. She loved Bethany. At one point Bethany was in the pool, the little girl saw her, and jumped in the pool after Bethany. Luckily, Bethany was there to catch her. Overall, they were a delightful family and it was nice to meet them and hear about Sweden.

Overall, the trip was amazing, but my favorite part was spending time with my sister. I knew I missed her, but I hadn't realized just how much. It was nice to see her! She spent a lot of time in planes and in about 4 different time zones. By the end of her trip, she quit trying to figure out what time it was and what city she was in. She made it home safely and I think she's adjusted to her current time zone again!

2008

2009-01-11T01:57:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! I have been in Thailand for the last two weeks. I had planned to post this blog a bit earlier, but I've been busy. My sister, Bethany, came to visit me on Dec. 22 and just left this weekend. We had an amazing time together. We took a trip to Thailand. I will eventually blog about our trip. However, I wanted to do a little reflection since it is a new year, and I have had quite a year. My journey has been important to me and I feel led to share it with you.

I have spent the last few weeks contemplating on my year, where I have been, and what I have done. It has changed me and had an effect on me and I want to share some of what I've done with you.

~ I have obviously been living in Korea for the last 11 months.

~I have spent 76 collective hours in an airplane and/or an airport.

~I have met people from 6 continents (although, I like to think I've met beings from 7 continents since I saw the penguins at the Seoul Zoo) and 22 countries.

~I climbed the Great Wall of China and talked to a World War II veteran and his wife who are from Holland. They were few of the people who were actually excited that I was American. They remembered the day Hitler marched into Holland and the day the Americans came and liberated them. They said they would never forget the Americans and always be thankful for our willingness to be involved in world politics and resuce the helpless.

~I've been in 4 countries in Asia, not including Korea (which would make a total of 5 countries)

~I've experienced a completely different culture. I feel that this has had the most profound effect on me.

~I've learned a different language. Not just a different Latin based, Romantic language, but an Asian language. I can read, write, and speak farely well in Korean. I am most proud of this accomplishment!

~I feel that I have "found" myself, and while it's not always easy to be 'myself' I feel that I am more comfortable in my own skin.

~I have searched for happiness, and realized that the grass truly is always greener on the other side.

~I know now that I was completely happy in America, and while life wasn't always easy or perfect, I was happy. This doesn't mean I am unhappy here, it does mean I know this is not what I want to do with the rest of my life.

~I have truly learned that life is what you make of it, and that happiness does not depend on what happens to you, but something that dwells within you.

~I have learned that I can choose to be happy, to be grateful for the good things in my life and to make the best of the bad things.

~I have learned how important friends are, and how much more important the support of a good family is.

~I have learned to be patient and wait for what comes rather than impatiently wishing for the next thing to come.

~I have learned to 'chillax' (as my sister, Danielle would say) and to enjoy the life I've been given.

I am looking forward to this new year and what it will bring! I look forward to coming home, and seeing my loving family. I am excited for the new opportunities and the new things I will learn!

Love and the Holidays...

2008-12-21T04:47:00.000-08:00

This week will probably be a little brief, but hopefully heartfelt and uplifting to all!

Obviously the holiday season is upon us. The stores in America, I'm sure are festooned in lights, garland, and fake snow. The stores in Korea are considerably less decorated, but there is a slight reminder that this week is Christmas. It never ceases to amaze me how much happier people seem to be at this time of year. We all watch the happy feel good movies that we watched the year before. We get together with family, that some of us have to grin through gritted teeth at. We have all this love for each other, there are gifts and hugs, and cheerful greetings of happieness. I've become rather convicted by this. Sure, the holidays are great and make us all happy, but why is it that we have to wait for the months of November and December to have this warm fuzzy feeling? Why do we have to wait until Christmas to show love to our family and fellow neighbors?

There is, inside us all, the ability to love unconditionally, yet we hold all of this in for one reason or another. We're afraid of being hurt, or losing someone dear to us. We get confused because someone else isn't clear about their feelings. I just want to take this time to say, we should all love each other all the time. This happiness, that flows at Christmas time, should flow all year round. The love we have for each other now, should always be there.

I am not deluded enough to think that life is all peaches and roses, but the overriding rule that we should love each other and treat each other as we wish to be treated should rule our lives and actions. Life brings difficult situations, but if we have people who honestly love us, life might not be so difficult.

So, in an effort to love people more, and be kinder to all...My first New Year's resolution is to be more polite, happier, and kinder to all those I encounter!

Merry Christmas to all of you. I hope you have a great holiday season whatever you find yourself doing!

16 Things...

2008-12-09T06:06:00.000-08:00

I have a friend here in Korea named Lauren. Lauren is one of those people who pushes others to be the best versions of themselves. She constantly challenges me to step outside of my comfort zone, to try new things, and to generally not be so inhibited. For someone like myself this is actually a pretty good thing, since I tend to be rather negative about some things. Anyways, she challenged me to post a blog telling basically anyone who will read this 16 things about myself that no one knows. This idea was not original with her, someone else gave her the idea. She did this too. So...deep breath...here are 16 things that no one or very few people know about me.

I am a teacher. Not just one of those teachers that shows up to work and does what she is supposed to do for 6 hours. I am a teacher first and then everything else. It is the largest part of the person I am. I can't imagine being anything else. When I was substitute teaching, I felt like part of my soul was missing because I wasn't really teaching. The only thing that kept me from going insane as a substitute was getting to know all of the kids at Huron High as well as I did. The passion I feel for teaching cannot be described in words and it depresses (yes depresses ) me that I am not helping the students in America who really need me.
When my sisters and I were kids we used to play this absolutely ridiculous make believe game. We'd pack up all of our 'stuff' into laundry baskets and pretend we were going to college. I think it drove my mom nuts because we'd pull all of our stuff out of our drawers and make a huge mess. It was probably my favorite thing to pretend with my sisters.
Most girls when they were kids played 'house' Since, I have no brothers, and I'm the oldest, I always had to be the 'dad'. For the longest time, when I was 7, I was convinced that God had made a mistake in not giving me a brother. Now, I can't imagine my life without my 3 amazing sisters (no, they did not tell me to say that)
I hate beef stew. I can't even think about it without gagging.
I really dislike little kids. I know I taught them for many years. However, they annoy me. They are great from a distance, and yes they're adorable...from a distance. But little kids bother me. Anyone under the age of, oh, 9, makes me itchy. You might be thinking..."Rachel, aren't you teaching little kids right now?" Yes, yes I am...I've invested in a nice anti-itch cream.
I start listening to Christmas music in October. I am one of those ever annoying people who is singing Silent Night on Halloween. I will openly admit it. I love Christmas music, it makes me happy, and only listening to it 3 weeks out of the year is another thing that depresses me. My favorite Christmas song is "Do You Hear What I Hear."
People who know me and not the rest of my family will openly agree that I am a pretty loquacious person. I can talk the hind leg off a donkey. However, I am far from the most talkative person in my family ( I will not say who the most talkative person in my family is. She can make her own confession elsewhere!). In fact, next to my father I am probably the most quiet person.
Sitting and thinking is a great activity for me. I love to think about stuff. I analyze everything. Sometimes this is a really bad thing to do because I over analyze everything as well.
I have to work really hard at being a positive person. Naturally I am a very negative nelly. However, every morning my alarm goes off and this is what runs through my head. "Seriously, it's morning already, it can't be. That really was not enough sleep. I'm just going to roll over and go back to sleep. No one will miss me. I'm not ready for another day. No, Rachel, it's going to be a great day. Get up, get that delicious coffee and greet the beautiful sunshine." Some of you are probably thinking...wow that's a lot just to process between snooze button pushes. It generally is, but it gets me out of bed...well that and the promise of COFFEE!! And, once I've had coffee and brushed my teeth...life isn't quite so bad.
(this one some people know but not everyone and it's just too funny a story not to share) When I was in 7th grade, I got it into my head that I could cut my bangs. Why not, when you're in 7th grade you can do anything right...HA! So, I cut my bangs to less than a 1/4 of an inch from my forehead. Then realizing it looked absolutely stupid, I blamed the hack job on my mother. Thinking that my mom would never find out I blamed her. Well she obviously figured out I cut my bangs and she fixed them, but I looked retarted for about 3 weeks. I made it all the way into 8th grade before she ever found out I blamed her for the 'hair cut'. She was not happy when she found out. I've never cut my own hair ever again.
My absolute most favorite class ever in my college career was US History I & II. I'm not sure if it was because I loved the topic (which I did) or because the professor I had was the best professor! By the way, that professor was a Dr. Jones. I talked about the class so much and about what I was learning, my sister started asking me, "So, What did Indiana Jones teach you today." I'd get so excited about the class and what I was learning, that one time my sister asked, "so does he show up in a fedora and a whip, cause that has got to be the only reason it is so interesting." She doesn't see the beauty of history as I do! (Sorry, Dr. Jones...I know you read this sometimes, hopefully this doesn't embarrass you. Take comfort in the fact that no one else who reads this knows who you are)
Since coming to Korea, I have started to LOVE walking. I could walk forever. I love it and I never get tired of it. I used to hate walking. Now, I'm thinking I want to move to a city that has public transportation so I can walk everywhere. I hate cars. They're expensive, destroy the environment, and are generally a waste of money. God gave me 2 legs, I should use them. Seriously, walking rocks!!
I'm a pretty private person. I don't share things with people outside of my family. Even within my family, I keep things pretty secret. This drives my dad nuts I think because he never really knows what I'm thinking. My sisters, he can figure out, I tend to be more of a puzzle for him. The probably twisted thing is this fact makes me happy. I like that people have a hard time figuring me out. I enjoy having a few secrets stored away!
Writing makes me happy. I don't really even have to be writing about anything in particular. It puts my soul at peace.
I hate being the center of attention. I am perfectly content to sit in the back corner somewhere and be unnoticed.
I hate sharing things about myself, which is partly why I have forced myself to type this blog. I prefer to remain an engima. I think if people don't know everything they can't be completely disappointed in me. I have to have approval for everything. Even if I have peace about doing something, I need for everyone else to be happy with the choice too.

Whew...that was tough. Hope all of you are well and happy!! I miss all of you dearly. I'll be going to Thailand in 2 weeks with my sister, Bethany. I'm greatly looking forward to it. Keep an eye out for the pictures!

Korea Poly School: Mokdong Magnet Campus

2008-11-23T05:01:00.001-08:00

I have had quite a few emails and phone conversations with some of you asking about where I work, what I do, and why it is so different from America. So, I have taken some pictures of my school, and will explain what I do, and how the Korean education system works. This might be a little boring for some of you, but for those who want to know...read on.

First, Korea has public and private schools just like America. Most children go to public schools. Elementary and Middle school are much like America, you go based on where you live. Everything is divided up into districts. At the end of middle school everyone takes a test and you go to high school depending on how you perform on this test. Higher scoring students go to the better high schools with lowest scoring students going to technical school. These students will most likely not go to college. The best high school in Korea is called Minsago (pronounced exactly like it is spelled.). Students graduating from this high school will most likely go to either Ivy League in the United States or Seoul National University (Korea's Harvard). One of my 4th grade students is already studying to go to Minsago (High School is 6 years away for him).

Secondly, education is extremely intense in Korea. 1st-12th grade students go to school from 8 am-2:30 pm. They go 5 days a week and every other Saturday. This is only public school. Then, they go to many different Hogwons. A hogwon is a private school specializing in a certain subject. There are hogwons for everything from Taekwon D0 to Piano, to Social Studies. English, Music, Math, and Science are the most popular. I happen to teach at an English hogwon. Depending on how old the student is they will go to more and more hogwons. Some of my 5th graders go to 10 or more hogwons. Meaning they go to school from 8 am-10 pm 5 days a week and then probably several hours on Saturday and Sunday. Not to mention their homework loads are usually close to 4 hours a night.

So, I teach at an English hogwon. I start teaching at 3 pm with 1st grade and then teach until 9 pm (5th grade) 5 days a week. I have a MWF/TTH teaching schedule. Meaning I see different kids on MWF than I see on TTH. Essentially it's the same thing. I really only plan 1 set of lessons each week as the TTH kids get the same material as the MWF kids. I have to adjust for the learning level, but if I teach adverbs on W, I teach adverbs on Th too. I basically teach Reading, Grammar, Writing, Vocab, and social studies. I have to say it's interesting teaching American social studies to Koreans. It was rather interesting this week when I had to explain the difference between George Washington and George Washington Carver. They didn't understand the concept that some people choose to name their children after important dead people.

The entrance to my school. Nothing special...but this is what I see everyday I go to work :) My school is on the 2nd floor of an officetel. An officetel is basically a building that has both comerical and residential dwellings. The 1st-4th floors are businesses with the 5th-16th floors being apartments.

This is the front desk and our secretaries Linzy and Sophia. They are Korean. They help the teachers out a lot in dealing with all things Korean. They will order us everything from a pizza to train and movie tickets. They also helped me a great more than I could explain with getting my cable and internet hooked up in my apartment. My life in Korea would be considerably more difficult without them. Sophia didn't really want her picture taken so she is hiding behind her computer.

This is my desk at work. It's not much, but it works for me. I have everything I need and mine is probably the most organized, outside of my co-worker, Jen's desk. We're the only two are slightly OCD.

This is the rest of the teachers' office. It's pretty small, but there are only 6 of us and it works out well. I only feel sorry for Jay as he is the only guy with 5 female teachers. Perhaps my dad has some advice for him and dealing with 5 women :)

This is the main hallway. There are 6 classrooms on this hallway, and another classroom is behind me. All of the classrooms are named after trees. Not sure why. "My" classroom is Acacia, but we also have Birch, Holly, Maple, Oak, Pine, and Spruce.

This is technically not 'my' classroom, but I do the largest majority of my teaching in this classroom. We (the teachers) switch rooms every hour, but I'm in this classroom more than 50% of my week. All the classrooms are basically the same. Each of the teachers choose a room to 'decorate' and we kind of claim that classroom as our. We have a basic unspoken rule that we don't hang things up in that room without talking to the teacher who is 'responsible' for that classroom. However, we're all pretty flexible and we generally say yes unless we have something planned for that room.

This is Judy and her office. Judy is a Korean-American. She speaks fluent English and Korean. She is our Academic Coordinator. Which is just a fancy name for the person who has to deal with all the parent complaints, then talk to the teachers about it. Then she has to call the parent back and explain what's going on. She makes the big bucks, but she doesn't make enough because Korean parents are nothing if not way over-concerned about their children's education. She puts up with a lot and my hat goes off to her!! She does an amazing job!

This is our staff computer room. Bethany and Shannon are hard at work, planning for their day's lessons. Bethany is displaying our drug of choice, Starbucks. None of us would get through our day without a nice cup 'o COFFEE!!! It's an unwritten law that if you are stopping at Starbucks you text everyone else to see if they want anything. However, we got a coffee pot a few weeks ago and I have begun making my own as Starbucks in Korea is considerably more expensive than America. A venti coffee costs close to $5.

This is Jay. He is Korean-American and our resident lunch order placer. He speaks functional Korean and can order whatever we want for lunch. He was late for work once and we all were pretty unhappy because we all
wanted lunch. He hasn't been late ever again. Poor guy.

These are all of my delightful co-workers. They are basically my family and I love every last one of them dearly. I couldn't have asked for better people to work with. Jay did not want to be in this picture, but I made him. However, he promised me he would not smile. So you'll have to forgive his scowl.

From left to right (front row): Carly Henderson (Missouri), Bethany Murphy (Prince Edward Island), Jay Sim (Virginia),
(Back Row): Jen Semple (Ontario), Shannon Tripp (Tennessee)

Finally, I'm kind of running out of ideas about things to tell people about. I get questions from time to time and I just wanted to put this out there...if anyone is interested in specific parts of my life or want to know anything...let me know. Otherwise, I can ramble on about things that some of you may not be interested in. I have plenty to say, but I want to cater to you my "readers"

Hope all of you are well. Miss everyone as always.

Kids really do say the funniest things...

2008-10-26T03:48:00.000-07:00

I know I have shared stories with many of you about the things my students say. Someone suggested that I should write a book. I don't know that I have enough stories for that, but I do have enough stories to share in a blog. So...this week will hopefully have you laughing. My kids are amazing and I love every last one of them. Many of them make my day!

Danny Yoon-Grade 1

On missing America

Danny: Ms. Patterson I drew you a picture

Me: Oh, thank you so much Danny. (he hands me the picture)

Danny: It's your neighborhood at home. I want you to hang it up at your desk so you won't miss your home so much and so you'll stay and be my teacher and not go back to America ever.

Me: (I give Danny a hug) Thank you so much Danny, this is beautiful and I will hang it up by my desk!

Brian Yang-Grade 1

On homework and textbooks

Brian: Sweet Nibblets Ms. Patterson, you have my writing book. I was looking EVERYWHERE for that today!

Me: (laughing uncontrolably) Brian you just made my day

(On a different day)

Brian: Holy cheese Ms. Patterson, that is a lot of homework!

Me: Brian do you mean holey, something has holes in it, or do you mean holy as in Jesus holy?

Brian: What's the difference Ms. Patterson?

Me: (writing both words on the bored) The spelling and meaning are very different.

Brian: No, Ms. Patterson, it looks like the only difference is the letter E.

John Chong-Grade 5

On the fairness of learning

John: Ms. Patterson, I don't think it's fair that we have to learn 12 vocab words EVERY week. You don't have to learn any.

Me: Well John, I did once upon a time when I went to school. I've already finished school, I paid my dues.

John: Still, I think you should learn vocab words until you die.

Me: Will you learn vocab words until you die?

John: Yes! Still I don't think you can learn 12 Korean words every week.

Me: Is that a challenge John?

John: Yes

Me: You're on John, but if I learn all of my words, you have to learn all of your words too.

(I am still teaching John and I still learn 12 Korean words every week. It has been the most helpful challenge ever!)

Sean Jung-Grade 2

On staying in his seat

Me: Sean please sit in your seat?

Sean: Sorry, Ms. Patterson. I'm sitting now

(5 minutes later)

Me: Sean, please sit down (slightly more annoyed)

Sean: Sorry, Ms. Patterson, I will sit now.

(5 minutes later)

Me: Sean, perhaps you should pretend that you have super glue on your seat. Maybe that will help you stay seated.

(Sean then takes out a 'pretend' tube of super glue and pretends to spread it on his seat. He sits down and wiggles his behind to, what I can only assume, make sure he's securely fastened to his seat. I stare at him, not teaching, but watching his behavior)

Sean: Ok, Ms. Patterson, I am glued now I won't get up anymore...you can continue teaching.

Ariel Kim-Grade 2

On winning and losing

(after playing a game in class)

Sean : (pictured above) I hate losing

Ariel: Well Sean, sometimes people win and sometimes they lose. You must smile and grip it.

(I think she meant to say, 'get a grip.)

Ariel Kim

On my classroom control

Ariel: Ms. Patterson, your class last hour was very loud. I couldn't hear the thinking in my head (again I think she meant, "I couldn't hear myself think.")

Me: I'm sorry Ariel, I tried, but the students were not listening today.

Ariel: Well, why didn't you put a piece of your mind in them?

(On a completely different note, Ariel used the piggy bank for a science project. She put a little bulb in the tail part and everytime you put a coin in the slot, the tail lights up. She did this all by herself. She was so proud)

Judy Ryu-Grade 1

On hugs

Judy: Everytime I hug you Ms. Patterson, it's like hugging a tree because I can never see the top of you.

(kneeling down in front of her)

Me: Can you see the top of me now? See I look just like you.

Judy: No Ms. Patterson, you do not. I am brown and you are very very white. We are not same-same (Koreans use the phrase, same-same when something is the same).

Henry Song-Grade 1

on American 'idiots'

Henry: Break a leg Ms. Patterson

Me: That's not very nice Henry

Henry: No Ms. Patterson, it's an American idiot. It means do a good job.

Me: I think you mean an American idiom

Henry: No, I mean American idiot because I think whoever came up with these sayings had to be a little dumb. Most of them do not make any sense.

Thus ends my tale for today!! Hope this made you laugh as much as it makes me laugh on a daily basis!

Christianity and Politics

2008-10-13T06:25:00.000-07:00

I have had quite a few emails, or conversations with friends from home and even some friends here in Korea. This blog will probably be rather controversial (in case you didn't get that from the title) and it might step on a few toes. So, if you are not up for that...perhaps stop reading now. Most of this is not really directed towards any one person, but just regarding some observations I've made as a Christian and as a student of poltical science.

This election has left Christians frustrated and confused at best. Being that I am in Korea and have very little access to American news, I have been forced to read much more online that I would have ever read in America. So, I'd like to say I'm well informed, but I'm sure there are those out there more informed than I am. However, this blog really isn't about the issues or who you should vote for, or my endorsement for any one candidate. I am frustrated with Christians. Politics will always be a mess and there unfortunately isn't much we can do about that. We live in an ever changing world and it is up to us to pray and trust in God. However, prayer alone shouldn't be our ONLY course of action. I am frustrated with Christians because they are sadly uninformed about how our government works or how we can change things.

I get the sense that Christians feel that if they show up once every 4 years to vote for the most conservative candidate they have done their part. This is highly short-sighted and demonstrates a clear lack of understanding for how the COURT system works. Voting for a presidential candidate will not abolish abortion (or any other moral issue on the table). A candidate might be pro-life, but he cannot do anything to change our countries position on abortion. He would have to wait for a Supreme court vacancy and nominate a conservative judge. Even if he did do this, the likelihood that the Roe v. Wade decision would be overturned is very slim. Our court system is based on precedent and there are far too many precedents set that allow abortion for it to be overturned. Does this mean we give up? I should hope not. Does this mean that God can't do for us what we ourselves cannot do. NO! Furthermore, Christians are less than open-minded when arguing with non-believers on this issue. I am not suggesting we compromise. However, how can we expect a pro-choice person to succumb to our 'it's immoral argument' when they are not Christians (this is not to say that all unbelievers are immoral). If Christians had a larger understanding of the Roe v. Wade decision and our Constitution, they would know that Roe v. Wade is unconstitutional, not because I believe it's murder, but because Roe v. Wade is about the right to privacy and not abortion and the right to privacy is not provided for under the Constitution. So, rather than take the time to understand the legal argument we fall back on a moral one--which is something that not everyone will see eye to eye on. But don't take my word for it...read the Constitution! We expect the country at large to see politics through Christianity's eyes and that is unfair to ask them to do so. However, if we understood our government and presented LEGAL arguments rather than religious arguments people have less room to argue. Having the Christian right control our government is disturbing to me. As much as we might enjoy how things are run, it disturbs me because if the Christian right controls our government, so can the Muslims, or Mormons, or any other religious sect. This country promised freedom to worship how we see fit and the moment the Muslims, or Mormons don't have that freedom...neither do we.

Secondly, simply voting for any given candidate does not absolves us from 'doing our part' to end abortion or gay marriage or poverty. Christians are constantly crying to abolish abortion, but when was the last time any one went and volunteered at their local pregnancy counseling center to help scared girls and women make the choice we hope they'll make? When was the last time you took your children's clothes they wore once and grew out of to the same center for the women who did chose to keep their child, but have no means of providing for them? Or better yet, when was the last time any of us volunteered to be a Big Brother or Big Sister to prevent teen pregnancy and to mentor these children who generally have one parent working two jobs to support them? When was the last time any of us befriended a gay person, not to preach at them, but to show them Christ's love? The majority of us get up on Sunday morning, put on our best clothes and consider our duty to God done, or that we have sufficiently shown God's love by putting a dollar in the Salvation army bucket at Christmas. No, we bury our heads in the sand and say "well we'll pray for God's grace." I have a hard time believing God will do for us what we are unwilling to do for ourselves.

I am frustrated with our Country. I am in Korea, because I can't get a job in America. Don't get me wrong, I have had a great experience and I'm glad I've done this, but this was not my first choice. I am frustrated because ALL of my 2nd graders are at least bi-lingual if not tri-lingual. I am frustrated because my 5th graders know more about American politics while most American children of the same age couldn't tell you who the president was before Clinton. I am frustrated because it is better for me to keep my money in the South Korean economy than for me to send it to America. And for the record, South Korea is a 2nd world country. It makes me sad that I have to contemplate coming home and risk not having a job AGAIN and staying here for JOB SECURITY!!

So, yeah I'm frustrated too!

The DMZ and a few other musings

2008-09-28T06:30:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I had the chance to visit the DMZ. It was interesting only from an historic standpoint. If you don't like history or are interested in historically significant things...maybe skip this first paragraph. I took a tour with some of my friends/co-workers. We went to the Freedom Bridge, which is a bridge that spans the river between North and South Korea. About 1/4 ways across the bridge is a huge barbed wire fence. South Koreans leave messages here for their families who are trapped in North Korea. This was a little bit depressing. We went next to the Third tunnel. This tunnel was dug by the N. Koreans into S. Korea with the hopes of invading S. Korea. It is apptly named the 3rd tunnel because there are 2 other tunnels that have since been shut down. S. Korea keeps the 3rd tunnel open a bit for tourists. The N. Koreans dug this tunnel with the hopes that 30,000 troups could walk through in 1 hour. I have proof that Kim Jung Il is insane because there is NO WAY that 30,000 kindergartners running at full speed could get through that tunnel in one hour. No matter how small Koreans are...30,000 troups in full gear are not fitting through there in an hour. Furthermore, signs clearly stated that this tunnel was 2 meters high (about 6 1/2 feet). I am not 6 1/2 feet tall, but I had to duck down so as to not hit my head on the ceiling of this tunnel. It is NOT 2 meters tall. It was a little interesting. After this we went on to the actual border w/ with N. Korea. We could only take pictures of N. Korea from beyond a certain line. To cross the line and take pictures you take the risk of being shot. So, FUN TIMES!! Over all...it was sad to be there and see the country torn apart as it is.

Some general musings...I have been here 7 months now (wow I can't believe that). I came to Korea for many reasons. Some pretty obvious ones to myself and those who know me and some really not so obvious ones...even to myself. One not so obvious one was to find somewhere within myself a purpose for teaching. The American educational system has issues and there are some days I look at it and really wonder "what's the point?" However, after being inside the Korean educational system for 7 months I feel that I see the point. Koreans are hard working. Even the students devote close to 14 hours a day on school and educating themselves. Some of you teachers probably wish your students would be that dedicated, and it is amazing to me that they are this dedicated to their education. However, even within this, there is a huge flaw. Least of which, these kids are amazingly stressed out. Korea has one of the highest teenage suicide rates in the world, slighly behind Japan. These students need no motivation. They are highly motivated as is. I finally feel as though I really know why I became a teacher. I know there are the general reasons people become teachers "I really want to help kids, I enjoy teaching new things, I like the subject material" the list can go on. All of these apply to me in some ways. Yet, it doesn't quit complete my reasons. I look at the state of some school systems, even within Michigan and my heart breaks. There are hundreds even thousands of students who want to get out of poverty, they just don't know how to to get out. Or, maybe they know, they just can't seem to reach what they need. I know this is so cliche and there are so many teachers who do an amazing job of helping others and working well beyond their contracted hours to help their students. However, THIS is why I became a teacher...to help those kids who just can't seem to help themselves...to help those kids who have only one parent and that parent, who is doing everything they can to help their child, just doesn't seem to be helping enough. I know I can't fix everything or help EVERY student. I know there will be students who I will fail. This makes me want to work harder. I love my students here, but they don't 'need' me. Being here has been an amazing experience and I am so greatful I came here and have had this opportunity, but I'm ready to dig into America and help the kids who need it much more than these kids do!

BEIJING!!

2008-09-17T06:31:00.000-07:00

I know it has been quite a while since I have posted a blog. I am eternally sorry. It has been rather busy. First, Koreans have July and August off of school, however, as I teach at a private school, the kids actually take more classes. During those months, I was teaching 12 hour days. While the days were insanely long, I got paid a great amount of overtime money and it allowed me to pay for my trip to Beijing. I was not there for the Olympics, but I was there 2 weeks after they finished. The following will be pictures from my trip and a little bit about the things I did.

You should know I went to Beijing for 3 days. It was Chusok in Korea (Chusok is kind of like Korean Thanksgiving) and we had a few days off of work. The people that were making this China trip all agreed we would get the most out of this trip and that we would be getting up at 6 am everyday and then go until we dropped (which we did). So, Saturday we arrived in China at 10 am and we hit the ground running. We had a list of everything we wanted to see and we carefully calculated how much time we could spend at each attraction. We basically stuck to this plan. We hit the Forbidden City first. It is named the Forbidden City because it was off limits to all people except the emperor and his family for 500 years. It was built during the Ming dynasty around 1403. The Fobidden City is huge. There is really no way to see it all in a few hours. It would really take an entire day to see all of it. It was neat to be there, but not interesting enough to spend an entire day wandering around. We were there about an hour. After we crossed the street to Jingshan Park. This park is set up on a rather high hill. It was to protect the Forbidden City from evil spirits. This park was much more beautiful than the Forbidden City (In my opinion) We climbed to the top of Jingshan Park (I learned quickly that climbing was to be a theme for this trip.) This is the view from the top of Jingshan Park. After the park we hiked down and moved on to Tiananmen Square. Now, for those of you who are not history nutcases like myself or who are not old enough to remember...in 1989 there were a huge uprising by some Chinese college students in Tianamen Square. I happen to be old enough to remember watching this on the news. Tianamen square is a huge area that is squared off by buildings on 4 sides. I stood in the middle of this square and was completely overwhelemed by what happened on the spot that I was standing. I will admit I began to cry. The square is festooned in Olympic banners at this time and there are of course no reminders of the event that took place there 20 years ago aside from the larger than life portrait of Chairman Mao on the North side of the square. After Tiananmen Square, we had dinner. This was actually really great. I was nervous to eat in China since I have heard so many horror stories from other people. However, we bravely walked into a cafe that didn't look too scary. We had delicious dim sum (kind of like an egg roll but steamed and not fried) and sweet and sour pork. They did not have bottled water and I was not about to drink from a tap. We ordered coke. Next, we decided to head out to Olympic village. It was getting darker and we definately wanted to be there while the village was lit up. The ParaOlympics were still going on, so we had to pay to get into the village area, but it was totally worth it. We took pictures of all the cool buildings and met some Para Olympians. I met this really great guy from Moldova who plays wheelchair basketball. He was so friendly and he was extremely impressed that I even knew where Moldova is (It's a little country sandwiched between the east of Romania and the west of Belarus). We walked around and stood in awe of everything. It was very exciting. I met a Chinese boy and his father. The kid had on a U of M Football shirt. I was so excited I told the kid I was from that city...meaning Ann Arbor (I'm sure he thought I was crazy). His dad was so nice though, he begged me to take a picture with his son, and he took a picture with my camera too. They were so nice. Eventually it started to get late, so we decided to head back to the hotel. We had booked a trip up The Great Wall the next day and it we had to leave at 7 am. Getting back to the hotel was a lot easier said than done. Long story short, we got lost and we had no idea where we were supposed to be going. Getting lost in a city where you speak the same language as everyone else is one thing, but when you don't speak the language it's even more frustrating. Finally, I saw the 22 bus and I knew if we got on the 22 bus we'd get back home eventually. The problem was we didn't know which direction to go in. We did what anyone in that situation would do...we "rock, paper, scissored" for it. Luckily I won and we headed in my direction. 15 minutes later we were home and back where we needed to be! Probably not the best way to choose how to get home; I definately don't recommend it...but it all worked out in the long run!

Day 2: We got up to take our tour of The Great Wall. Did you know that the Great Wall is on top of a mountain? Yeah, I thought it was on a little hill...but no...it's on a mountain. I was not mentally prepared for actual hiking. I told myself I was going up that mountain anyways. It was totally worth the climb and honestly wasn't that bad. After we got up to the wall though there were even more stairs. Basically, it was like being on a stair climber for 4 hours. It was nice though. I met some amazing people on the wall too. I met this one couple from Holland (as in the Netherlands) who are 81 years old. They both climbed up the wall too. I was honestly impressesd. We were all taking a little break and the husband fought in World War II for the Allies. He talked about the day Hitler marched into Holland and other things he experienced during the war. He was so interesting and funny. I enjoyed chatting with him. I also met a family from West Bloomfield, Michigan. The woman gave me a big hug. It was like touching a little bit of home. They were a nice family. After we got back to the city, we went to the silk market. The silk market does not just sell silk. They sell everything from watches to shoes, to underwear and tapestries. It was amazing. It is six floors of people yelling and pulling, begging for shoppers to come into their stalls and buy their products. The best part was bartering for the goods I bought. I was in my element. I loved it. I (like my grandmother) know how to get a bargin. I think maybe my grandmother's spirit was with me because I got some really amazing steals. I know I walked out of that market with over $3000 worth of merchandise and I probably spent only $500 (rememeber my 2 months of 12 hour days...they paid for all of that). After the silk market was dinner and then we went back to the hotel and chilled in the 'common room' with a few guests. We met people from Ireland, Chicago, and England...all very cool people.

Day 3: We were leaving that night, but we were still going to get every last second out of our day. We went to the Temple of Heaven. People went here to pray for a good harvest every fall. Next was the drum tower and bell tower. The drum tower was used to warn people of coming invaders. Finally, we had roasted duck (yum). Outside the restaurant was a little shopping street where we found some traditional Chinese stuff and went shopping. After shopping we went back to the hotel, collected our bags, and headed to the airport. It was an amazing trip and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to go.

A few comments about China itself. It is blantantly obvious that China is a Communist country. Not because people are afraid or walk around scared, but because of the backwardness of the country. NOTHING and I mean absotlutely nothing is in English. People don't even speak English. Very few people can even understand a small amount of English. Even after the Olympics being there, signs are still completely in Chinese. Also, there is an intense police presence. The Chinese are very kind people and welcoming to foreigners, however, the police are everywhere. Finally, and I will end with this, are the cab drivers (not that they have anything to do with Communisim, but I cannot blog about China and not mention the cabs)...I really did feel like I was going to die in the taxis there. Several times, we were sitting at a RED LIGHT, waiting to turn left and the cab driver just turned into on coming traffic. One time, there was a huge bus coming and the bus almost hit us. I actually braced for impact and the cab driver laughed at me. It might have been the most insane part of my trip.

Overall, had an amazing time and it was definately the experience of a life time!

Malaysia!!

2008-08-02T05:56:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to think of a way to give a detailed account of my vacation. I've gone over it in my head and tried writing it several different ways. Everyway comes out way too long. So, I've posted the sunset pictures in a slide show and will use pictures here to explain everything I did. I will say it is probably the best vacation I've ever taken (I just wish my family could have been there...that would have made it perfect).

First, many people have asked me where Malaysia is. Malaysia is country taking up 2 islands. The main island is known as Malaysia. Then there is Borneo. Borneo is the island I was on. Borneo is directly south of the Philippines. Half of the island is Malaysia and the other half is Indonesia. This is the last technical thing I will say :)

My friend, Lauren, came with me. We stayed at the Nexus Resort in Sabah, Malaysia. This was the lobby. This hotel was amazing. It was all completely open, like a bungalo. Sitting in this lobby was so relaxing. It was facing the beach so, even though there was no air conditioning it was completely relaxing and breezy, not hot at all.

Lauren and I spent a great deal of time relaxing by the pool and beach. The South China Sea is an amazing body of water. It's so clear and blue. Likewise the pool at this hotel was amazing. It was so great to relax by both. I took several books with me. I sat and read quite a bit. It was great!

We took a day trip into the city of Kota Kinabalu (KK as the locals call it). There are many things to do there. Mostly we walked around in a daze. The country of Malaysia is a 3rd world country. It's very poor and depends highly on tourism. Everything there is extremely cheap. I have included some pictures of the villiage here. Notice also the shipping boats. They were so old, and quirky. It's almost as if they had their own personality. Each object that is added to these boats seems to have it's own purpose or is some sort of badge of honor. The poverty of this country was a little sad. It was hard to see how some of these people live. Although they all seemed to be very happy. They were all welcoming, and very friendly. This is a picture of the largest shopping area we visited. Malaysia is also a Muslim country. There was a great mosque in KK. It was so beautiful. The interesting part of the mosque though was the largest part of the building is under water. Included here is a picture of the mosque.

Lauren and I also took a day trip out to 2 islands that are also part of Malaysia. One of the islands was used to film the very first season of Survior. I should say that island now is not remote in the least and if it was like that when Survior was filmed, I have lost any faith I did have in reality television. This first island is called Pulau Mamutick. We went snorkeling and parasailing on this island. Snorkeling was awesome. I really enjoyed seeing this fish. It was jellyfish season and we saw quite a few jellyfish, which made me extremely nervous. So, after the jellyfish I decided I'd had enough of snorkeling. Snorkeling was definately amazing though. I couldn't believe how clear the water was and how easy it was to see the fish. Not just seeing them, but how many different types of fish there were. This picture is just a school of one type of fish. I have no idea what type of fish they were either. There were angel fish though. I do know that, only because I used to have them when I was in high school. This last picture was taken while I was parasailing. Parasailing was a unique experience. I was very freaked out at first because it's very windy up there, but after I got used to the wind, it was very awesome. I enjoyed the experience and I was very glad I did it.

Last thing I'll talk about and show pictures of is the food. We mostly ate at the resort because food in a 3rd world country can be, well questionable. We did eat on the island though during our day trip. I was brave and ate some interesting things.
This first one is chicken foot soup. Yes, I said chicken FOOT soup. The waiter asked me if I wanted the feet in the soup. I said no. I mean, I'm brave, but not that brave and seeing feet floating in my soup would have made the soup less appetizing. The soup is pretty tasteless. It doesn't even taste like water. Last thing I ate was this srimp. This is what a real shrimp looks like before it gets to us in the grocery store. Malaysians, I guess, leave the head and tail on for everyone. I of course did not eat the head and tail, but pulled them off. Either way, it looked interesting. It tasted delicious!

Overall, it was an amazing trip and I'm so glad I got to have the experience!

The War Museum of Korea, and the dumb cats who lost their mother...

2008-07-13T02:30:00.000-07:00

This weekend kicked off what the Koreans call Mud Fest. Yes, a great deal of mud is involved in this 'fest.' I am not a big fan of mud. I think maybe my mom could tell you I played with it or in it as a child, but as an adult...I do not like to be dirty. Most of my friends have been gearing up for this event. They have begged me to go with them. I had begrudginly agreed to go. After agreeing to go, I was told that we would be CAMPING. Again, not something I have EVER enjoyed doing. My idea of 'camping' or roughing it as some people say is a Motel 8. I was further informed that there would be no showering at this event that is sounding increasingly less like a 'fest.' I was ok with going when it was just sitting on a beach watching everyone else get dirty, but when I found out that I would indeed have to be dirty as well, I bailed!! Not before most of my friends disappointingly told me that I was a wimp. I graciously said, 'Yes, I'm a wimp, but I'm a clean wimp thank you very much. Ya'll have fun now. See ya when you get back." My friend, Lauren also decided to not to attend Mud Fest. Instead we chose to do some 'sightseeing' this weekend. Both of our fathers have a mutual interest in military type 'stuff.' I have an interest in all things historical, so we agreed to go to the War Museum of Korea. Little did we know that war memorbial was not all we had in store (I'll get there a little bit later...first the museum.).

I have observed here in Korea, that Koreans take their museums very seriously. They are usually beautifully arranged and immaculate. They have proven to be an excellent experience for me. It was supposed to rain all weekend (and it has rained all weekend) so the museum seemed like a good choice for sightseeing. However, the most interesting part of the museum happens to be outside. They have Korean War era military equipment all around the museum. So, we hoped the rain would hold off until we had seen most of it. This picture is of how gloomy the sky was on Saturday. Thankfully the rain held off until we got inside the museum. The slide show is just some of the cool things that there were to see on the grounds of this museum. Museums in Korea also happen to be multi-purpose. The War museum I have to say, is a little depressing. Most of it is pretty neat, but in all honesty, this museum is about war. Maybe not the most cheerful of subjects. I believe the Korean Military have tried to offset the depressive mood by allowing people to get married on the grounds of this museum. It just so happened that on this rather gloomy, rainy day there was a wedding being prepared for. I thought why not get married at the National Cemetary too? I have included a picture here. It's pretty colorful and it seemed like it would be a festive event (Maybe the Mud Fest people should take some advice from this wedding. I mean...this could definately be considered a 'fest.' Anyways...I digress). I guess I would not have picked a war museum as my venue of choice for my wedding...but to each their own. After this Lauren and I started getting uncomfortable in the heat. It is very hot here in Korea. Mostly, it's bearable, but it was so humid due to the threatening rain and I was ready to be in some air conditioning. We headed toward the museum itself. The Koreans have a Korean War Memorial. This is basically like our Vietnam Memorial only in Korea and for the Korean War, not the Vietnam War. There are walls upon walls of names of the men and women who have given their lives in the Korean War. This picture is just one side of one corridor of this memorial. There are 3 corridors. It's very quiet in these corridors and it's very sombering. I am pretty sure people can find loved one's names and rub them onto paper as at the Vietnam memorial, but I'm not sure. Also, Korean names are all very similiar. It might be difficult to find a specific loved one as there are surely at least 50 other people with the same name. What was impressive and commendatory was that the Koreans had a wing of this memorial dedicated to those who gave their lives in this War who were not Korean. Most of these people were American. There were many from other countries (the UN forces) but one entire corridor was all American. I have included this picture here. They further divided this portion of the memorial by state. Each state was represented on these plaques, and each person that died from that state was placed on the wall. I found Michigan (since I have a love for the place) and photographed that as well. Michigan alone took up one whole plaque plus half of another plaque. As you can see, this corridor is long. I was sad about this (Can you see why getting married here might not be the most choice place to celebrate love for another human?). The museum was great though. Lots of very cool things inside. Unfortunately my camera battery died and I was unable to continue taking pictures.

The museum however, was not the most eventful part of my day. I love my friend, Lauren. She is probably one of the most altruistic people I know, but she's a little bit of a hippie. She would give you the shirt of her back if you needed it. While we were on the grounds of this oh so happy museum we came across 5 abandoned kittens. Being that I really don't like cats, I had a strong urge to continue walking. However, these kittens were so cute. They were not cute enough for me to want to take them with me. I kept telling myself, 'Their mother is around here somewhere. Ignore the matted fur Rachel...their mother is here somewhere." This really helped me not feel guilty for wanting to leave the cats there (typing this has made me feel heartless all over again.). Lauren was not so easily convinced. She found a box, (at a museum no less) picked up the 5 kittens, put them in a box and then we all got in a cab. Just as we got in the cab, one of those torrential downpours ensued. We both spent the entire cab ride back home calling people to help us find an animal shelter. We stopped at a Vet's office to see if they could help us, all to no avail. So, we took the kittens back to Lauren's apartment and began to bottle feed these kittens. (Did I mention I hate cats?) Lauren spent the better part of her Saturday finding a place to take these kittens. Korea is not big on animal shelters. Long story short...Lauren found a vet who took them and will feed them and then take them to an animal shelter. Included here is a picture of 2 of the kittens. Yes, I feel even more heartless now. I have assuaged my guilt by telling myself I was being slightly supportive of Lauren in her quest to care for the downtrodden.

On a different note, many of you have asked about the American Beef protests going on here. Just to clarify for some of you...There are protests going on against the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Korea has been importing American beef. Many Koreans are unhappy about this due to reported mad cow disease. I do not in anyway feel unsafe or threatened by these protests. They do happen, but they are usually well policed. I (and my friends) generally stay away from the City Hall area at night and I have experienced no ill will here. I think that the Koreans in general are very unhappy with the President here and are more angry with him than any Americans.

Lastly, I went to the American Embassy this week. I was on American soil. It was such a great feeling. I know that is really dumb and even I myself find it a little cheesy, but it was the highlight of my Wednesday!

Monsoon season?

2008-06-29T05:28:00.000-07:00

I know I missed last week. Many of you let me know. Sorry. I ended up going out to dinner with some friends and in true Korean fashion...dinner lasted 6 hours. In Korea, when anyone goes out to eat, you sit at the table for as long as you want. I've heard some true Korean groups sit at one restaurant all day. We did not do that, but we did have ALOT of food, and a lot of fun and some great conversation. This is why I love my friends here. Anyways, nothing overly interesting happened last week.

This week, I went to another baseball game. Pretty much the same as last time. I did take a picture of this guy though who did something very different with a balloon...
This guy was a true fan. We're going to try going to a soccer game soon. North Korea was playing South Korea last week and I missed the game. I was more than disappointed. However, no one actually one the game. No one even scored, so maybe I didn't miss too much. Soon though we will be going to a soccer game. We are too close to World Cup Stadium to not go to one!

I was warned about monsoon season before I came to Korea. I came prepared with rain boots. Since, I was also told I would not find shoes in Korea to fit my ski-sized feet (this has proven to be true). I have seen a little bit of this aforementioned rain. It comes down in sheets. I can't even make out raindrops...it's just like someone is taking a huge bucket of water and dumping it on my head, only the bucket never runs out of water. All of this is fine, if you can stay in your house all day. BUT, I came prepared with rain boots. The first real rain of the season happened this week. I got to wear my rainboots! I was pretty excited. I stomped in all the puddles, like a little kindergartener. It was great. I get to work and everyone loves my boots. It was pretty cool. After awhile everyone starts talking about Starbucks coffee and how much we all love coffee. So, now everyone wants a cup of coffee, only Starbucks is 3 blocks away and there's a 'hurricane' outside. Everyone looks at me and then looks at my fancy rainboots. I smiled and said, "What does everyone want..." So, I trapse out in the rain in my rainboots to Starbucks, bought 8 cups of Coffee. All of this was fine, I've got ma rainboots! Well, did I mention that along with this bucket like rain comes gale force winds. Also, not bad if you have 2 hands to hold your umbrella, but if you're also holding 8 cups of coffee...not great! My umbrella flipped inside out. In the 10 seconds it took me to set the coffees down, I got soaked! It was all good...the coffee was totally worth it.

Last thing...One of my favorite students (yes I know we're not supposed to have those...but it happens) Ariel is so great. She is 7 years old, in 2nd grade, and just hilariously profound. I love her. Everyday she has something completely hilarious to say. The best part is she just says stuff, not trying to be funny. 7 year olds say funny things when English is their first language. It's even funnier when English is not their first language. On Wednesday we were playing a review game in class. Her team happened to be winning and the other team was obviously losing. Sean, one of the kids on the losing team was pretty upset about this loss and he started crying (yes, I felt great about this) Anyways, Ariel gets up, walks over to Sean, puts her hand on his shoulder and says, "Sean, it's ok. Sometimes people win and sometimes people lose." Pats his shoulder a little and walks back to her seat. I actually laughed in class, outloud. The day after this, I walk into class and Ariel is not happy. She says, "Ms. Patterson, your class before this was too loud. It was very hard to concentrate." I said, "Yes, I know, I tried to get them to listen, but they didn't" To which she replied, "Well, why didn't you put a piece of your mind in them." Again, I laughed outloud and told her that the saying goes, "Why didn't you give them a piece of your mind."

All in all, a very funny week. My summer vacation is 3 weeks away. I can't wait! I am headed to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia. Also, in October all my 'girls' and I are planning a girl trip to Japan! Yes pictures will be forth coming!

Megukins (Americans) in Korea and the interesting people I meet on the subway

2008-06-15T07:27:00.000-07:00

Well, this week was actually just another week in Korea. One of my co-workers, Jay, has had a friend staying with him this month. James, has been visiting Korea for the month. James has been a pretty awesome guy. He has fit right into our group. Tuesday was his last night in Korea. We were all sitting outside the Log-in (a 7-11 type store next to our apartment--they put tables and chairs outside the store so anyone can sit at the tables and just 'hang-out') chatting and having a good time just hangin out. It was pretty late...maybe 3 am. Oh before I get too far into this story...James is Korean-American. He speaks Korean and looks Korean etc. Some Koreans have a problem with other Koreans speaking English. They consider is a betrayal to their ethnicity. Anyways, back to the story. It's 3 am and this really drunk Korean comes stumbeling out of the Log-in and starts to yell at James (James said that the guy was mad he was speaking English). Long story short...Greg told the guy they were all Canadian and they guy wandered off. I find it sad that the only reason the drunk guy was arguing with the guys was because they were American. Once he found out they were 'Canadian' he apologized. America has issues. It's disappointing.

Lauren and I spent a great deal of our Saturday on the subway this weekend. We had a lot of places to go and we had to take the subway to get there. As of this moment...I hate the subway, I don't want to have to ride it for a while. I have included a picture of Lauren here. I am 5'10" and Lauren is taller than me. Lauren also has very long very blonde hair. We both stick out like very sore thumbs. We're ok with this. However, the Koreans are generally enamored with our height and further more by Lauren's long flowing yellow hair, as they refer to it here in Korea. Being on the subway we are basically 'trapped' inside a metal can with 100 other people who stare at us the entire time. Yesterday, these 2 girls stood by Lauren the entire time touching her hair. She took this all in stride and we talked to the girls for a little bit. They kept saying how pretty Lauren was. They were nice. However, on a different train we ran into this drunk guy (this week was not my luck with inebriated people). He was so loud and so drunk, and he was basically hitting on us. His friend, who was missing most of his front teeth sat laughed at him. I'm pretty sure the friend was drunk too. Thankfully we had to get off at the next stop!

On a different note...Lauren and I did go to this really great Indian restaurant here called Little India. The food was pretty good, but it was REALLY expensive. However, it was a cute little restaurant and we took some pictures...I have included them for you!

As always, I hope you are all well...I miss everyone!!

American sports in Korea, and some interesting Koreans...

2008-06-08T07:29:00.000-07:00

I know all of you know by now that the Red Wings won the Stanley cup! It became a much bigger deal for me though since everytime I watched a home game, it was like watching a little piece of home. Seeing "The Joe" was really great. I know at home it's just "the joe" but when it's part of home and home is thousands of miles away, it becomes much cooler! I did get to watch the games here and it was so awesome to watch them win. It was made even more awesome when several of my co-workers from Pennsylvania watched the Penguins lose! It was all the more sweet!

I have been meeting for the last several weeks with a Korean girl named Yumi. She has been teaching me Korean and I have been teaching her English. Yumi is great, and I really like her. We always have a good time and talk about a lot of different things. She is the same age as me and it is interesting to hear about how she was raised and growing up in Korea. She is a very busy person and is not able to meet every week. I on the other hand have this insastable desire to learn Korean. I have been making an attempt to find another Korean to fill in for the weeks when Yumi can't meet. One of my Korean co-workers arranged for me to meet one of her brother's co-workers. It was long and complicated, but we were really doing each other a favor. So, I meet him on Saturday. I literally sat there for an hour and talked the guy's ear off. I asked him several questions and he answered every question with 'yes' or 'no' He finally said that he didn't really want to talk with someone he just wants to sit and listen to someone speak English. He already knows decent English, but he needs work with his listening skills. I asked him if he would be willing to teach me Korean and he said he didn't know how to teach me Korean, he just wants me to speak to him in English. I bascially told him that wouldn't work out since I wanted to learn Korean and that was part of the reason for meeting. All of this seems rather silly, but you have to understand, I literally sat there for an hour and talked to a wall. He sat and looked at me said very little and I talked about everything I could think of to talk about. He probably knows more about my family than many of my co-workers. It was crazy. On the bright side, today I had a cab driver tell me I spoke good Korean for a foreigner and I understood him. I was pretty excited about that. I replied that I only spoke a little Korean. So, I am learning Korean!

I have no fun interesting stories this week, I'm afraid it was a rather boring week. Next weekend I plan to go to the DMZ with some friends, so maybe next week there will be cool pictures and stories!

Korean baseball, and chicken noodle soup...

2008-06-01T04:39:00.000-07:00

Monday morning I woke up and felt like death warmed over. I very literally peeled myself from my bed and forced myself into work. I didn't know what was wrong with me, but I knew I did not feel good. I kept telling myself that I would feel better after I got going. This did not happen. I made it through Monday, and told myself that if I did not feel better by Wednesday I would go to the doctor. Well, Tuesday was not much better than Monday. Wednesday was the absolute worst I have felt since I've been in Korea. I still didn't want to go to the doctor. I am generally embarrassed that I don't speak enough Korean to communicate with people here. While, I know this is basically stupid, it is what it is. My co-teachers told me where their doctor is and I know where it is...so I went there. I was a little worried I would have to wait a while since I had no appointment, but I wasn't in the office 30 seconds before I was seeing the doctor. A nice lady, spoke decent English too. I told her what was wrong. She did all the doctor things, heart, eyes, nose, mouth and said, "you have sinus infection...I give you 6 drugs." I quickly told her no penicillin. All Koreans when they mean no will cross their 2 index fingers in the sign of an X. It means 'no' to whatever you happen to be talking about. I made sure she understood...NO PENICILLIN!!! Anyways...the entire Dr. visit cost me 3,500 won or about $3.50. Then I'm thinking...."this lady gave me 6 prescriptions this is going to cost me a fortune...6 prescriptions for 2 weeks....YIKES, on top of which I only have 1 hr before I have to be at work...I'm either going to be late for work, or I'm going to have to be miserable all day and come back to get the prescriptions. I resigned myself to being miserable. I walk into the pharmacy (which is conveniently located in the same building as the Dr.'s office) I give the lady my prescriptions and I ask her when I should come back. She looks at me confused and gets her co-worker who I assume speaks better English than her. I repeat myself. She is confused as well. I rephrased and said, "how long before the prescriptions are ready...when can I come back and pick them up." In the time it took for this whole interlude to take place, which was less than 5 minutes, the pharmacist had my 6 prescriptions all ready, in neat little M,T,W,Th, F packets FOR TWO WHOLE WEEKS. I seriously just have to rip open each packet, pop and swallow. Now, I'm dreading the cost. It's the end of the month, I'm really budgeting because I only have a little money left until next payday, but I'm sick, what am I going to do. I do have insurance, but I'm thinking even with insurance 6 prescriptions is still going to cost me like 60 bucks. Well this is Korea and in the land where everything is dirt cheap...it cost me a grand total of 4,500 won or approximately $4.50. So my total day of being sick cost me $8.00. Not to mention service that it out of this world!! Someone please tell me why we can't have this in the States?

This brings me to the next topic. This week I have been sick. Now normally, I'd have myself a nice bowl of chicken noodle soup, but they don't have that here. Well, I have found the best replacement ever. Dok mandu gok. (Dok meaning rice, mandu is a type of steamed stuffed dumpling, usually with pork. Kind of like an egg roll, but steamed and not fried, and gok meaning soup). Basically it's a rice, dumpling soup. It's the best thing I have ever put in my mouth. It's better than chicken noodle soup. I have included a picture of this deliciousness. Before you say, "Rachel, this really doesn't sound great" Let me tell you...it is so good. The rice isn't like rice either...not grains of rice, it's more like a disk of rice that is a little chewy. You'll notice in the picture the white oval shaped objects. That is the rice disk. There is also seaweed (which is so good) and scrambled eggs. Koreans put eggs in everything here. As you can see they give you a huge portion. I can never eat it all. This entire bowl of soup only cost 4 bucks and they deliver it to me at work. This is my new favorite Korean food.

My final topic today is Korean baseball. 12 of my friends and I all decided to go to a baseball game this weekend. The town I live in has a baseball team called the Woori Heros (Woori is pronounced 00r-re not worry). They are probably the worst baseball team I have ever watched in my entire life. That includes the Tigers in the 90s. However, the visiting team, the Lotte Giants were pretty good. In fact, the entire stadium seemed to be cheering for the Giants and not the Heros. We had no particular affliation to either team, so we just cheered for the ones that were actually winning. At one point the Giants hit a fly ball to right field. It was a great ball for the Heros to catch and give the Giants an out. The mid-fielder and right fielder, just stood and watched the ball hit the ground. It was rather comical. This was not the most comical part of this experience. Apparently, Korean baseball has cheerleaders. They were rather entertaining. Also, Koreans sing some pretty interesting songs at their baseball games. They sang " la cookaracha" in Korean and, Twisted Sister, "We're not gonna take it." also in Korean. They also sang some weird song that I did not recognize nor understand. Good times though. Last, but certainly not least, there was the squid. Koreans, don't eat popcorn or nachos at baseball games. They eat dried squid. It smells like feet that have been inside a shoe for 3 days. It's the worst smell ever and the old people sitting behind us were eating it like they hadn't eaten for days. That wasn't great. Koreans do however eat hot dogs at baseball games. They were decent hot dogs. I can't complain about that, oh and we did the wave. Obviously no ball game is complete without the wave! All in all a great day!

As always, I hope you are all well!! Until next week....

Korean banks, construction sights, and a few other musings...

2008-05-25T07:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this week has been a LOT better than last week :) I have some amazing friends here, and I have to give thanks for them. Sunday night they very literally dragged me from my apartment, took me to dinner, and purposefully made me laugh! It was great fun! I still miss home and my family, but it's much more palatable when I have the great friends that I do.

So, I have had a bank account for about a month now, but this week I just learned the glory that is the Korean banking system! I will say now, America is in the dark ages when it comes to banking and ATMs. As great as I think America is...it has a major flaw with it's banking system. First of all, customer service at all banks here is far superior. I have only been inside my bank maybe 2 times, they already know my name, recognize me, and great me with pleasure when I come it. (granted, I am a foreigner and we DEFINATELY stick out here, however, it is so good for my ego when they are happy to see me). Second, the ATMs here do everything but make you a cup of coffee while you wait for your transactions to be completed. I can take ALL of my bills to the ATM, slide my card in, slide the bills in, click a few buttons on the super cool touch screen computer, and VOILA, my bills are ALL paid in less than 30 seconds. If that wasn't sweet enough, I can then slide my pass book into the ATM and it will balance my account for me. Now, anyone who knows me well, knows that, while posses a great amount of knowledge, when it comes to money and balancing my checkbook...I have the talent of a 5 year old. This ATM feature alone has totally been worth any homesickness. Just when I thought there was a cherry on top of my ice cream sundae, there is one last feature that further increased my amazement in the glory that is the bank...I can transfer money from one back to another with the simple touch of a few buttons. No muss, no fuss...push a few buttons and my money goes from one account to another. This was great for paying for my summer vacation this week! So, in less than 10 minutes, I paid my bills, balanced my checkbook, and paid for my summer vacation, all while standing at an ATM! Wonders never cease....

Korean Construction sights...Anyone who is from Michigan knows that there are 2 seasons and not 4...Winter and Construction season. Well, I have learned that this is true in Korea as well. This month the construction has begun in earnest. Now, some of you maybe thinking, "well Rachel, you're from Michigan this should not be a big deal." Generally it wouldn't be, except in Michigan I am usually stuck in my car, in traffic for 30 extra minutes trying to navigate the construction sight while watching out for all the other stupid drivers around me. In Korea, I have no car so navigating a construction sight requires me actually walking through the construction zone. This is very normal as many people here take public transportation and walk. So, in an effort to accomodate this, Korean construction sights have an indoor/outdoor type carpet laid down so that you know where it is ok to walk and where you should not walk. However, this carpet is no where near adequate enough to keep the rocks that are under the carpet from almost piercing through my shoes. I have a picture here, it's not a great picture as the construction workers don't really want people to stop in the middle of their sight to take stupid tourist pictures. Just beside the orange cones is the carpet we are supposed to walk on. It is kind of a cool picture though because the Buddhist temple behind it has some pretty sweet shrubbery.

The last thing for this week, is on a more personal note. One of my many reasons for coming to Korea, besides the obvious experience and actually having a real job, was to find some balance in my life. I don't really consider myself unbalanced (although some members of my family may disagree), but I have always had this sense that I need to find true contentment. I think everyone at some point in their life goes through this basic struggle, some more than once. Some succeed in finding that balance, and others wallow in self-pity, and misery. In my many years and my accumulation of great wisdom (HA) I have learned that contentment is something I have to work on. Being content does not always come naturally. It is a choice we all make. So, I say all of that to say this...my students have been begging me to pick a Korean name. Koreans are given a Korean name at birth and then when they go to school they pick an English name. So, in an effort to amuse them I have sought to choose a Korean name. I really wanted something unique and meaningful to me, but that was cool too...you know...no one else has this name. So, I learned that the Korean word for 'door' is 'moon' Moon also happens to be a very common family name in Korea. So, I choose Moon (meaning door). Yes, I'm aware that this is odd, bare with me a moment... I then sought to find a first name. I thought about it and I asked my Korean friends what the Korean word for peace was. The reply was really a revelation for me. There really is no Korean word for 'peace', not in the sense that Americans view peace. The Korean equivilant is 'pyoung wha' (pronounced 'pyun wa' ) which really means peace, but Koreans understand it more as being comfortable in life. I was so struck by this meaning I chose it as a name anyways because I have realized that to be at peace or full of peace is truly to be comfortable. Koreans view it almost as sitting in a big comfy chair and being at rest. Granted we all have days where we just don't feel like the world is a big comfy chair, that life is at it's worst and pulling the covers up over our heads is far superior to acttually facing the challenges that before us. However, given life's challenges, it is still our choice on how we deal with those challenges. So, really in my quest to humor my students I have learned something very valuable about life! In the end I did choose Pyoung wha as my Korean name since it has taught me this oh so valuable lesson. Which honestly, I really already knew, but sometimes I need a simple reminder to focus on what is good in life rather than the negative. So in the Korean tradition of family name first...my Korean name is "Moon Pyoung wha" or very literally "the door to peace" or as the Koreans understand it to be...'the door to being comfortable.' Personally, I can't think of a better thing to name myself!

Finally, I don't really have a whole bunch of pictures to post in a neato slide show as I usually do, but I do love this fountain that is right across the street from my apartment and I thought I'd show it to all of you. It lights up at night and it changes colors. It's very weird, but I love it. The fountains are not on, but it's still you get the picture. Sorry, I think I really rambled on this week, but hopefully you can take the 'peace' lesson with you and apply it to your own lives.

As always I still miss you all!!

Loathing & Detestation...

2008-05-18T00:00:00.000-07:00

This week has been a little odd. We had Monday off for Buddha's Birthday. That kind of through me off. Then Tuesday and Wednesday were testing days, so I didn't really teach and my teaching schedule got completely thrown off. So, by Friday I really didn't know what day it was. During one of my writing classes, one of my students raised her hand and asked me, "Ms. Patterson, how do you spell YMCA?" I looked at her for I'm sure 10 seconds (which for any of you that have taught before...10 seconds is really an eternity). I seriously had to process her request. No one had ever asked me that before. I replied, "Well, you spell it Y-M-C-A" Then her face completely lit up like I had seriously given her the formula for the Theory of Relativity. She then said in the most excited voice I have ever heard, "Wow, Ms. Patterson that is so cool." I tried not to laugh and said, "Yeah it's pretty neat how that works out."

For the first time since being here, I really didn't feel like going out with my friends after work on Friday, I felt like going home and crawling in my bed and sleeping the rest of the weekend. I haven't actually accomplished this, but it's been close. Well, I was warned that this day would come--the day where I am crazy enough and hate being here enough and want to go home enough to pack up every last thing I own and come home. I say this is crazy because I am making way more money than I would teaching at home, AND the school is paying my rent. Right now...I just don't care...I WANT TO COME HOME!! Ok, so I'm a little homesick this week, in case you haven't noticed. Actually, I think maybe I'm being a little overdramatic. I really do want to come home, but reality and what goes through my head are two totally different things. I'm not really coming home, I think I have successfully talked myself down off that ledge, but none of the internal pep talks I have given myself change how much I miss being home and my sisters and DIET PEPSI!! Koreans really have not been shown the light of diet pepsi. I think I need to be the harbinger of this revolution for the Koreans. They have no idea what they are missing! Actually writing all this down has helped immensely. I have realized how ridiculous and whinny all of this sound. I know that in a few days I'll be back to normal, and realize that in all honesty, I really love Korea and am excited about being here.

Ok, now all of you know how much I miss all of you!! Hope that helps make your day at least!!

Sorry no new pictures this week. I didn't have time to go sightseeing this weekend...well I had time, I just didn't go!

Cinco de Mayo...even in Korea!!

2008-05-10T22:57:00.000-07:00

This weeks blog probably isn't going to be as exciting as last week's...political rally...but still I had a great week!

This week really flew by so quickly. I really have had this nasty cough for about 3 weeks, and finally this week it has started to go away. Although, Wednesday seemed to be the peak of this cough. At 3 am I was awake, hacking up my left lung, and my neighbor pounded on the wall and started yelling something at me in Korean. I can only assume he was not happy that I was coughing so loudly. There is really nothing like sleeping sitting up so I won't cough. The cough is going way though...so I'm happy!

This weekend is another holiday weekend here in Korea (Buddha's Birthday). Yesterday, my friend Mike (from EMU) and I went and watched the Philly/Pittsburg hockey game with some other friends. It was a nice little piece of home. Even though I'm not all that into hockey...it was really fun and I enjoyed being with other North Americans who know what it's like to be a foreginer in a place that has no concept of what good hockey is!

Tomorrow Lauren and I are going to a parade. It has been so long since I've been to a parade...I'm very excited.

The pictures this week are from our Cinco de Mayo celebration last week. The big group photo is of all the people I hang out with. Some of them are co-workers and others are just people who live in my building. We all generally hang out together. These are also my 'poker buddies' Which, by the way, I have won 2 weeks in a row now!!

This week is short I know...but mostly I wanted to post some new pictures for everyone. I hope you're all doing great! As always...I miss you all!

Insadong, Political Rallies, and The Seoul Philharmonic

2008-05-03T23:46:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a very interesting weekend to say the least. Actually it was really fun with one exception that I will get to shortly.

This is a holiday weekend here in Korea. Monday is Children's Day which is pretty much as big as Christmas. This is the one day out of the year children don't have to study. There are tons of festivals, parades, and the like for families to do and Koreans go to all of them. The subways are packed (see the pictures) and anything child related (i.e...zoos, amusement parks etc.) are PACKED. We did not do any of that. Lauren and I set out to Insadong (pronounced In-suh-dong). This is a very traditional Korean city. There are a lot of traditional Korean things to buy. I found some real silk scarves, Korean stationary, and these wicked awesome chopsticks! There is also a big Buddhist Temple here (see pictures) We wandered around this town for close to 3 hours and still didn't see everything there is. We will be going back.

Next, we hit the Korean Independence Park. This is really a very beautiful park, and they have all these historical artifacts from the Korean Independence movement which I believe started in 1902. Korea did not gain independence though until 1945 after the U.S. dropped the bomb on Japan. Before 1945, Japan had colonized Korea. It was actually a very sad time in Korean history. I'll spare you the details. This park was pretty neat though. They had the Korean Declaration of Independence and these wall sculptures that depicted the story of Korean Independence. It was really neat.

After, the park Lauren and I found this stream that was probably 2 miles long. We walked the entire stream. We crossed the stream on these rocks. There were 2 waterfalls and it was so sunny and gorgeous. We had a great time. We did this while waiting to meet up with our friends Greg and Mike who were going to come with us to hear the Seoul Philharmonic. We met up with Greg and Mike and then had dinner at Bennigans. After we left Bennigans though is when things got really interesting.

(Mom, maybe stop reading here) We exited the Bennigans and found ourselves smack in the middle of a Political Rally. This rally made the Democratic National Convention look like a 3rd grade birthday party. There was probably close to 150,000 unhappy Koreans gathered to protest. I really don't like crowds, especially unhappy ones. I wanted to get out quickly, and Greg wanted to stop and take pictures. I am unsure of what they were protesting, but I think they were protesting Lee Myung Bak's (President of South Korea) support of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Which really NAFTA has nothing to do with Korea (I think) but then there was something I caught about bad meat. It was all kind of confusing since I really don't speak Korean. Add that to the fact that I really wanted to get out of this crowd the Korean I do know was simply NOT helpful in understanding why these people were protesting. Praise God for Lauren who is totally willling to just push people out of her way. After about 40 minutes of pushing people out of the way we got out. I was glad for Greg though as he stands about 5 inches taller than most Koreans and makes for a good marker in a crowd. FINALLY, we made it through this crowd only to be greated by what seemed to be the entire Seoul police force in full riot gear. Behind the police force were probably 30 'prison' buses. These buses have bars on the windows and are used to cart people off to jail. Greg quit taking pictures and we walked more quickly away from this place!

We finally made it to the Seoul Philharmonic. It was wonderful to sit, relax and listen to some very beautiful music. Basically, after 8 hours of being a tourist it was nice to sit and relax. I did wake up today with a very gross cold. Yesterday was totally worth it though. Even the political rally...I mean one day I can tell my grandkids, "Yeah, grandma got caught in a Political rally once in Korea. It was kinda scary..." It was definately an experience and that's what I'm here for!

Just a plethora of randomness...

2008-04-28T06:35:00.000-07:00

I don't actually have any exciting, life altering, funny events to share this week. Mostly, I have kind of settled into this pattern that is 'life' here. This has its pros and cons. The pros being there is a certain measure of 'normal' that I have achieved and I have established a routine. On the other hand it's become a little 'ho-hum', but not in any sort of 'ho-hum' I ever had at home. So, I think this week will just be a little hodge podge of what happened.

Monday thru Friday I simply taught. I have caught on to the fact that Korean children in some ways are very similar to American children in that they will take advantage of their teacher's weaknesses. My teaching philosophy has always been to 'know and care for my students.' This is often to my benefit because my students generally have a greater level of respect for me because I, in return, respect them as people. On the other hand, it can often backfire in that they will take advantage of my kindness. Well, my students have figured out that I am 'a softy' and have become a little lax in doing their homework, following classroom rules, and in general treating me as a teacher. "Mean Ms. Patterson" reared herself this week. I hate being mean. It makes me feel bad as a person, but it had to be done and hopefully soon 'we' can go back to being a little more relaxed. I think a lot of teachers take the "don't smile until Christmas" mentality and I have always hated that concept. For the amount of time students spend with their teachers, there should be a better way to accomplish learning!

The teachers that live in my building have started a weekly poker game on Friday nights. We all take turns hosting this in our individual apartments. You should know all of our apartments are studio apartments (called Officetels here in Korea). They are approximately 12 ft. by 15 ft. Then add in a full-sized bed, a small table and chair, tv, fridge, bathroom, and wardrobe...there is not much space left for one person let alone 6. However, we make it work. This weekend was my turn to host. Now, the last several weeks I have called it a night around 2 am. Unbeknownst to myself, these poker games last until 4 am, and being the hostess...I had to stay up that late (or early however you look at it). It actually turned out really well. One of my friends, Greg, stayed until almost 6 am and we talked and pondered the greater issues of life. Greg is from Canada and we had an amazing conversation about politics. He's also very interested in reading about history...so you KNOW I was all about that business!! It was probably one of the best conversations I've had since I've gotten here. It was a good thing the next day was Saturday...

One of the things Greg and I chatted about, and something that has really been on my mind for a few weeks has been the overall rudeness of North Americans. I never really realized how rude we are. I know not everyone is rude and there are truly nice people that live in America. We are not completely devoid of compassion. There are people who still care about what happens to others, who reach out and do things for others simply "because." While, there are these people who continue to be selfless, it doesn't even compare to the kindness of the people in Korea. (This is not to say all Koreans are generous, there are certainly those here who are rude as well). I know as an American I get so frustrated sometimes with people who come to America and don't speak English, or at least not well. I never really took the time to help teach them, or at least be kind and try to help them. I am here in this country where very few people I encounter speak English. I am basically a guest here. I am trying to pick up Korean as quickly as possible and I feel terrible when I need something and can't speak enough Korean to get what I need. Now any American would just simply walk away and forget about 'me' but here, it is the Koreans who feel bad because they don't speak enough English. It simply amazes me. I was at the eye doctor and the customer service person kept apologizing because she didn't speak English. I am in Korea...they speak Korean here, not English, why should she be apologizing for not speaking a language her country doesn't speak? People get up and give each other their seats on the subway or bus. Young people (teenagers) ALWAYS give their seats to the elderly, pregnant, or crippled, without being asked. Today this little old man offered to help me carry my shopping bags across the street!! He had to be like 80, and my bags were HEAVY!! He wouldn't take no for an answer. I made sure to give him the lightest one. It has convicted me to be kinder to others!

And speaking of picking up Korean...I have set up a 'language exchange.' Basically, I meet one on one with Kevin, have a cup of coffee, go sight seeing...whatever, I teach him English and he teaches me Korean. Kevin is actually pretty good at speaking English. He has issues that most ESL people have, forgetting 'a, an, and the' or mixing up prepositions, and verb tense. I on the other hand have a long way to go with Korean. I have actually picked up quite a bit. I told my students I wanted to learn 3 words a week, so now they come in everyday..."what was your new word today?" On Fridays they 'test' me to see if I remembered them all. This is fun for me since I tell them, "If I can get a 100% on my 'vocab quiz' so can you!!"

Wow this has been a long one...sorry I guess I got kinda preachy...I hope all of you are doing great! I miss everyone :)

Hi Seoul Festival, Deoksugung Palace, and the Korean Health Care System!!

2008-04-20T02:03:00.000-07:00

This week has been CRAAAZZY!!! It went by in a huge blur.

I have started to bring my lunch with me to school. It's cheaper and I've figured out how to cook here! So, Tuesday morning, I was slicing some cheese and being the clutz that I am...the knife slipped and I sliced open my left index finger. At first, I was going to be tough and just put a band-aid on it. However, after an hour it was still bleeding. So, I went up to Jay (a fellow teacher whose Bachelor's degree is in Biology) and asked his opinion on stitches. He took one look and said, "Rachel...go to the hospital!!" My one problem though is that my insurance is not set up yet here in Korea, but I had to go. I could see the muscles inside my finger. So, fearing that Korean hospitals will be worse than the USA, I let my director know I would be late for work. I get to the hospital and the very nice security guard found me an English speaker. The doctor said, I would need to wait about 20 minutes and then they would stitch my finger. I didn't believe her. In the back of my mind, I said, "yeah right...she didn't mean 20 minutes, I misunderstood her, or she just didn't know what she was saying." While I was waiting in the waiting room, the nurse came and sat next to me (in the waiting room) cleaned my finger, took my blood pressure, temp, and medical history. Talk about service...exactly 20 minutes later, the doctor came back and got me. I was floored by this, and in less than 50 minutes, with 5 stitches 3 prescriptions and less than $100 (without insurance) I was out of the hospital. I really couldn't believe it. I was so excited. Plus, once my insurance is set up, I can get reimbursed for that money.

Yesterday, my friends Lauren, Betrice, and I went to the Hi Seoul festival, and Deoksugung Palace. It was pretty cool (see pictures). We walked around took pictures, and had a generally wonderful day. It was so awesome! And to top all of this off...the weather was AMAZING!!! Saturday night was my friend Greg's Birthday. Here in Korea we celebrate birthday's in grand style. Basically, at 1 am, I had to go home and sleep. I'm pretty sure everyone else stayed out until 4 am.

Today, I relaxed, went for a lovely walk, took a nap, and caught up on correspondence with people.

Again, I miss everyone. I hope you're all doing well!

This Week, and Cherry Blossom Festival

2008-04-12T18:44:00.000-07:00

I have been told that I will go through cycles of 'culture shock' The first few weeks are kind of the 'honeymoon' phase where everything is new and cool and I'm totally in love with being in a new exciting place. Then after the newness has worn off I will get homesick and be ready to go home. After which, I will go through loathing and detestation, and finally back to being in love with my 'home.' Well this week the honeymoon ended. Thursday after work I went shopping with my co-workers and didn't get home until pretty late. So, Friday I was so very tired. All day Friday all I could think about was going home during my vacation in July. Friday night my co-workers and I went out for Korean bbq and afterwards...I crashed into bed and slept almost 12 hours!!! Anyways...all of you at home... I MISS YOU!!!

All this was made better though on Saturday...I met one of my friends from EMU who is teaching here as well, and while Mike is not my family, he is still from 'home' and it was good to see someone from home! Anyways... Mike and I went out to Incheon Grand Park to this Cherry Blossom Festival. Mike's new friend Becca from Australia joined us as well. This was pretty uneventful. We got to see some pretty cool cherry blossoms. We did hike up some of the mountain and these 4 teenage girls asked to have their picture taken with us. One of the girls was hiking up this mountain in DRESS SHOES!!

Tonight I'm going with some other friends to Dongdaemun (pronounced Don-day-moon). This is basically all of the things that 'fell off the back of a truck.' Here in Korea all of that is completely legal though. It's all dirt cheap and it's all American stuff!! Plus, you can barter for cheaper prices. I look forward to this!!

Changdeokgung Palace, Elections and a few other general musings...

2008-04-05T04:05:00.000-07:00

Today I went to Changdeokgung Palace (pronounced Chang-dok-gung). It is the most important palace of the Joeson dynasty. The palace has been around for close to 1000 years. The last member of the royal family died in 2005. It was a pretty neat trip. (see the new slide show for pictures) A friend from my apartment building was going to go with me, but was unable to so I went by myself. I ended up meeting 2 really great people that were also on the tour and we had a good time. Charolette was from Wales and Christopher was from Florida. They cracked me up the whole day. It was pretty neat to see the different buildings and hear the history of how the Palace worked.

On Wednesday, April 9th there will be an election here in Mokdong to elect some city official. Now, I'm used to the campaign comercials, phone calls, and the occasional pamphlet in the mail. That is not how things work in Korea. Here in Korea, the candidates get on an ppen air bus, put the biggest flat screen TV I have ever seen and the loudest loud speaker I have ever heard on the roof of the bus. Then the candidate gets on the bus along with singers and dancers. The bus then drives around the city for about 14 hours during the day beginning at 8 am!!! This included Saturday and Sunday. Then they drive around the city singing their Korean songs and dancing. Sometimes, they park the bus on a street corner and the dancers get out and bow to every car passing by. While the bus is parked the candidate gives a speech, I'm assuming about why we should vote for him. But then I could be wrong. I actually miss campaign comercials.

I have figured out how to safely ride the bus in a standing position. If I think about it as basically riding a surf board it's pretty easy to stay standing. I just have to flexible and flow with the bus. Of course this doesn't really work when the bus driver slams on the breaks. I actually thought I was going to die in a bus this week. I think the driver thought he was driving a motorcycle and not a bus. He then got a phone call on his cell phone...AND HE ANSWERED IT! So, he is now driving this huge bus, like a maniac, WITH ONE HAND!!!! I seriously could not wait to get off the bus!

Korean Colds, sick days, and 7 year olds...

2008-03-28T07:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I got my first 'Korean cold' this week. It really wasn't that much different from any other cold I've had. Only, Koreans do not understand the concept of sick days, so we don't get them. On Wednesday, when I had my fever, I just had to teach through it. It wasn't that bad. Would I have rather been in my bed with my fuzzy socks, old ratty sweatshirt and my big comforter? YES!!! My kids are so great though. I told them I wasn't feeling well and they were all so concerned, gave me a hug and were even better behaved than they usually are.

I guess my real purpose for the blog today though is my class of 2nd graders. We had a very interesting conversation on Thursday in class. Thursday and Friday of this week is "Monthly Testing." Every month the kids take a test over the material covered in class for that month. Every student does it and it takes the entire day. During one of my block classes, there was about 5 minutes left after the kids were done with the test. So, I asked them if anyone had any questions. (This question can be dangerous with 7 year olds because they all instantly have A LOT of questions) Andrew raised his hand and asked, "Ms. Patterson, do you get to vote in your election this year." I was a little taken aback. I mean this kid is Korean, I didn't even know they were aware of the American system of electing officials. I said, "Well, Andrew, I do get to vote, but it's a little different than everyone else. I get to vote on what's called an absentee ballot. The voting people (I didn't feel like explaining what a county clerk was) will mail the ballot to me, I'll mark who I want to vote for and then mail it back to them." This of course sparked a political debate that no American 7 year old would have, and the fact that Korean 7 year olds were having this conversation still amazes me. Woojae raised his hand and asked, "Ms. Patterson are you going to vote for Obama, or Hillary?" I said, "Well, Woojae it's a little early to make that decision." At which time, Andrew says, "No, I think you should vote for McCain." However, the thing that really threw me was Sam. Sam raised his hand and says, "Ms. Patterson, I think that if Obama wins it will be very scary for America." Intrigued I said, "Well, Sam why do you think that?" And his reply was "Well, Ms. Patterson, Obama is black and he has a Muslim background. A lot of Americans don't like black people and they don't like Muslims either and if Obama was President a lot of people might try to kill him." To which I had no instant reply. I really didn't even know what to say. That this 7 year old had such insight into what is truly a very confusing political situation for most Americans really showed me that these children are amazingly intelligent! It also showed me how sad the American reputation has become. It's not enough that America actually faces these prejudices, but now 7 year olds around the world can see it. Yet, America can't seem to solve the problem of discrimination. I am a very proud American, and I believe that there is no greater place to be than America, it truly is a land where anyone can achieve whatever they want. However, in that one instant, a 7 year old made me sad that America has so many of the racial issues it has. Honestly, even if you don't like Obama, you still have to give him respect because at the end of the day, he is a human, and he still deserves to be treated as one! Sorry, that this hasn't had the same upbeat, funny tone as the other posts, but this situation really made me think about America in a different light and this was one of my whole reasons for coming to Korea....to gain cultural awareness!

On a lighter note...I am doing well. My first month is over. Report cards are due this week! I have an alien card, I can get a checking account, cell phone, and pay bills now (I actually wasn't that excited about paying bills). I did get my first 'energy bill.' Heat, and electricity for the month cost me $7.30, and I had my heat up high...around 74 degrees. I mean...I was pretty toasty in my apartment...I am very excited about the energy costs here! I did finally figure out how to post slide shows on here (as you may have already seen). I will change them periodically so you can see more pictures! Hope all of you are well. Keep the emails coming. I love hearing from you!

National Museum of Korea...

2008-03-22T04:49:00.000-07:00

Today I finally got the chance to go sight seeing. I chose the National Museum of Korea, as my first place to visit. It was relatively close and easy to find! Plus, I like history, so I was generally interested. I got on the subway, with my trusty map of course, and started on my journey. I had to transfer from one subway line to another at one point and I was just double checking my map and this little old Korean man stopped and insisted that he help me. It was really sweet, so I kinda let him do his thing. I got to the right place...so that was good. I got to the museum at 1 pm. And just decided to start at the beginning. I wandered through the museum and looked at EVERYTHING. It was in English too, so that was helpful. It was so amazing. This was probably one of the best museums I've ever been in. It was so well organized and clean, and really beautiful. All the floors and walls are marble block. I was so impressed by this museum. There must have been some field trip there because there were a ton of kids there. At one point this whole long line of them went past me...and as they passed me they all stared at me. I of course waved at all of them and smiled. A bunch of them said hello. One girl even asked to take my picture. So, a 7 year old somewhere in Korea has a picture of me with all of her friends. It was cute. I should of had her take a picture of me with them too. The funniest part of my day though was this little old couple from Singapore saw me and since I was white just started talking to me. They were really nice. They chatted with me, the proceeded to follow me around for 20 minutes. They were nice, but a little annoying. I finally lost them by saying I had to go to the bathroom. Of course as luck would have it they found me! I was leaving anyways, so it wasn't really a big deal. There was a lovely pagoda garden (that was my favorite). I was at the museum 4 hours...and didn't get through the whole museum...so I'll go back!!

Korean Physicals...

2008-03-14T06:39:00.000-07:00

So, as part of my E-2 visa (kind of like a green card) I have to have a physical. Now we all know how fun physicals can be (not really) but it's part of life and we grin and do what we have to do. All of this is fine in a country where the doctors and nurses all speak the same language we do. It's even more fun when they don't speak the same language.

My day started by taking the subway, by myself, which I had never done. So, like a crazy tourist, I had my English subway map in a death grip the entire way. Every station, I double checked to make sure this was not the place I was supposed to get off. After an hour on the subway I finally got to Hyewah (prounounced Hay-wah). The next step was to find Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH). My boss had given me a 'map' that wasn't really helpful. Luckily there was a very nice Russian guy at the subway station who gave me wonderful directions in English! I'll take help from anyone! Once at the hospital however, was different story!

Like all hospitals SNUH has many buildings. I of course went into the wrong building. My boss was kind enough to write in Korean the place I was looking for. This little old man told me to go the the 6th floor. This was not the place I was supposed to be. Again, the angles sent me help in the form of this really nice Korean lady who walked with me to the place I was supposed to be which happened to be about 3 blocks from where I was. This lady went way out of her way to help me. She was very nice and I thanked her profusely!

Once I was in the place I was supposed to be, I was assigned a nurse who moved at the speed of light everywhere. When she measured my height, she was astonished at how tall I was (keep in mind I'm 3 inches taller than the average Korean man). Next, we ran (and when I say ran...I mean we really ran) through the hospital to the place where they took my blood pressure and heart rate. After running 2 miles, my heart rate was a little elevated. I sat down, she took my pulse and said, "you pulse a little high." I tried not to laugh. I just said, ok thanks. The best part though was the entire body X-ray. I was told to stand against the wall and hold my breath. I was then given an entire life time supply of radiaton. After holding my breath for close to 40 seconds the lady came running back into the room and said I could breathe again.

In general Koreans find foreigners very interesting and it's not unusual for Koreans to stare at us. Well, the subway ride home was an hour. This little old Korean man stared at me the entire way. I finally found a Korean newspaper and put it up and pretended to read it. I don't read a word of Korean, but I felt so self-conscious because he was staring at me I had to put something between myself and him. He really wasn't being rude, but after 20 minutes of me smiling at him and bowing my head...I couldn't do it anymore.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

2008-03-08T16:12:00.000-08:00

Well, my first week in Korea is over, and I have survived. I cannot believe I've only been here a week. I feel like I've always been here, or that I've been here forever. I'm really surprised how well I just adjusted to being here. Some things still strike me as really odd, or not normal, but mostly I feel like just another person on the sidewalk. Yesterday, these two girls waved at me and asked to take my picture. That was kind of funny, of course I let them. They were really nice girls and they spoke a little English.

Funny story...yesterday I decided I was going to take the bus and just see where it took me, thinking that all buses run in a loop (like at home). Well, that is not the case here. The buses run in a U shape. Meaning the start at one place and stop at a completely different place miles from where you actually wanted to be. So I ended up in a place called Sinchon, which is about 45 minutes from Shinjeongnegorie (where I live). I walked around Sinchon for probably an hour and a half just checking stuff out. I found an Outback steakhouse! Finally, after I was tired of walking and a little cold, I hailed a cab and made my way home. Now, the cab driver did not speak any English. However, thanks to my fellow teachers I knew to say "Je se yo, Shinjeongnegorie Yok" which means, "please take me to Shinjeongnegorie Station." So, of course after I said that, in what I'm sure was terrible Korean, I think he thought I knew Korean and started chatting away at me in Korean. I did understand that he wanted to know where I was from. When I told him I was from America he instantly got excited. At least there are some people in this world who still like Americans. So, after 45 minutes of riding in this cab I finally made it home! He was so nice. And a 45 min. cab ride in really bad traffic only cost me about $10. For some reason this guy really liked me, and since the traffic was really bad at this time of day, after I got out of the cab and started walking I ended up passing him a few other times. Everytime he passed me he'd honk and wave at me. It made me feel welcome at least and less like a total idiot for getting lost. This was the first of I'm sure many adventures I'll have!

However, in all of my travels yesterday, I found some glass cleaner, some cookies, a place to buy groceries and household goods (that is near my apt.) several places to get cheap Korean food and a Dunkin Donuts!

The last 4 days...

2008-03-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

Ok, so here's the run down of what I've been up to, what's going on and how things work around here!

Saturday, March 1, 2008-Sunday, March 2, 2oo8--Spent the day flying to Korea...not a great day, but not bad. I did sleep on the plan a little bit, but mostly watched movies the whole time.

I arrived in Korea on Sunday afternoon, was taken to my apartment and then I attempted to sleep through the night. My heat didn't really work and it was very cold. I slept in about 3 layers of clothes.

Monday, March 3, 2008--Feeling very jetlagged and completely out of sorts, I was taken to my school's headquarters and completed my training. After which time, I was taken back to my school and observed teaching for 9 hours. I was exhausted at the end of the day, but I felt better about my job and where I was and how things are going to be here.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008--more observing. I did go out to dinner with the rest of the teachers at my school. We went to a Korean BBQ. It's really an awesome place. Bascially, you all sit at this table and there is a grill in the middle of the table and you order the kind of meat you want. The waitress brings it to you and you throw it on the grill and grill your own food. It also comes with a ton of different veggetables and side dishes (rice, kimche, etc). Then you put it all in this sesame sauce. It's the most amazing thing I've ever eaten. But, more amazing than all of that 12 of us ate a ton of food, had drinks, and had leftovers for about $80 total which worked out to be around $7 a person. I've never had that much food for only $7. After dinner (at 10 pm I might add) Jay, (one of my co-teachers) and I went to a store called Home Ever (it's like a Super Wal-mart). It's 3 floors of all kinds of stuff, clothes, house wears, groceries, electronics. You can find a lot of stuff there. It was the most amazing store, I could have spent hours there, but the store was closing (at midnight) and we had to go. One funny thing about the store, it's 3 floors and so people have their shopping carts and go from floor to floor and these 'people movers' that actually go up hill. They get their cart and push them on the people mover. It was the funniest thing I've ever seen.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008--I finally talked to my family, which was great! I miss them all so much, but it was amazing to finally get in touch with them all and see how they are doing. I also had my first day teaching all on my own. I loved it. It was so much fun. The kids are amazing here. I really can't believe how smart they are. One my students is 10, and he has read Robinson Caruso (for fun) and The Old Man and the Sea. He also knew who Ghengis Khan was. I know a lot of high school students who don't know who Ghengis Khan is. That blew me away.

Jet Lag is getting better every day and I'm really having a great deal of fun here! I can't wait for Pete, Corey, and Mike to get here. It will be so fun!

First Impressions...

2008-03-05T04:43:00.000-08:00

So, this is just going to be some of my own thoughts from things I've observed or thought since I've been here...It's been interesting. This will all be very random.

~I feel like a 5 year old all the time because I'm constantly wandering around staring in store windows and looking at EVERYTHING.

~lanes on the road are merely a suggestion. No one actually drives in them...they pretty much just drive where ever they want.

~I don't believe Korean's check their blind spots. They just turn on their blinker and get over. However, they do actually use their blinker much more than Americans do.

~Riding the bus is like getting in a blender. They drive so crazy...if you don't hold on while you're sitting down you'll end up on the floor.

~Korea smells like the food people eat. Make a trip to your local Asian market and you'll know how it smells here. I'm getting used to it though.

~Everything here is so cheap. I got 2 kilos (4 lbs) of strawberries for 2 bucks today.

~I've become so great at converting to metrics now.

~The kids here are amazing. I can't believe how smart they are.

~I love that the heat here comes through the flooring. So, my floor actually heats up. It's great on my feet...especially after I've been standing on them all day.

~I think the apartment complex forgot to put a matress on my bed and just left a box spring, but they didn't...that's really a matress.

I love it here...it's the most amazing place. The people are great and I'm really enjoying working here! I can't wait to finally know where everythign is!