Ipod Inspiration

"There are places I remember

all my life

though some have changed

some forever, not for better

some are gone and some remain

all these places had their moments

with lovers and friends

I still can recall

some are dead and some are living

in my life I've loved them all."

-The Beatles, In My Life

Namaste

Love and War

Aren't all the greatest stories comprised of these two elements? This one was no exception.

When I saw that the opera, AIDA, was coming to Seoul for one weekend only I jumped at the chance to get some tickets. It has always been one of my items on my so-called bucket list to see a live opera performance. The opera was performed at the Seoul Arts Center Opera House. The theatre was huge and very elegant. Our seats were up high, but we still had a great view of the stage.

AIDA was a fantastic show and I loved every minute of it (sans the few at the end when my eyes were drooping like a cartoon character and my head was nodding to the side like I was dozing in a high school lecture and Sean had to nudge me back to full attention- it was a long week. I was tired.) The performers were nothing short of amazing. The main characters were all husky Italians with voices like butter. The army of supporting roles and dancers belonged to Korean students from an Art school. I was mesmerized by the lights, colors, sounds, ambiance of the entire performance. By the end of the show the applause for the performers was one of the longest and most respectful I have ever seen at a live show.

I loved the opera and can't wait for my second one, hopefully in NYC.

I snuck a photo of the stage

Sean and I at the Seoul Arts Center

Namaste

Vegas Lights and K-Pop Stars

This weekend was a long one. Since about 23% of Korea's population is Buddhist, the country receives a national holiday for Buddha's birthday on May 22 which means a paid day off. Happy birthday Buddha!

I had been talking about visiting my friend Sam in Seosan for a while now and finally made it happen. Seosan is about an hour and a half southwest of Seoul by bus. It's located in the Chungcheongnam-do province. Leaving after school on Thursday, Sean and I caught a bus into Seoul and then headed to the bus terminal. The station was so packed because of the long weekend that we had to wait an hour and a half to catch a bus. When we arrived in Seosan Sam met us at the bus terminal and we headed to the main part of the town to grab some food and drinks. Her friends started a band together and played some live music at a local bar that night. They even played a special song for Sam and I, Toto's "Africa". Sam has become really close with the bartenders at the local bar, 501. Coby and Bum are about two of the funniest Koreans I have met. They are both so smiley and energetic and make the bar a lot of fun. I had a great time listening to live music and meeting some of Sam's friends and co-workers. The next day we slept in and then got up to walk around Seosan a bit. After eating some lunch we found ourselves in the city center and eventually in the market. The market reminded me of a smaller scale Busan market with lots of seafood, produce, and other strange meats and things for sale. We purchased bus tickets and then cooled down with some bingsu at a local place. Friday was probably the hottest day we've had so far this spring/summer in Korea. Later we said goodbye to Sam and headed back to the big city.

Check out a video of the band playing Toto's "Africa" here: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10100213180725979&ref=mf

Seosan, Korean Vegas

the band

me, Bum, and Sam

Sam and I on the coolest swing seat ever

bingsu with ice cream

I didn't get a chance to explore Seosan very much, but what I saw I liked. The little strip with all the bars was lit up so brightly you would have thought it was Vegas or something. Seosan is such a small town that literally every foreigner knows each other. It's kind of got this home-town feel to it, but might be too small town for me. Sam is really enjoying herself and loves getting to know everyone including her Korean neighbors and shop owners. I am looking forward to a visit again soon to get out of Seoul and have a change of scenery.

Saturday night was the 14th annual Dream concert in Seoul. This concert was a collection of the hottest K-Pop bands out there right now all gathered in one giant concert. The best part was that the tickets were only 5,000 won. Consequently, the show sold out in half an hour, but we managed to get tickets. Imagine a concert in the U.S. circa late 1990's/early 2000's with like Backstreet Boys, N'SYNC, 98 Degrees, Brittany Spears, and Christina Aguilera all performing together in one show with $5 tickets and you can begin to imagine the hugeness of this event. After arriving late to World Cup Stadium and standing in the rain, we finally made it in and found some seats. We listened to a few bands from outside the gate and then got to see one of Korea's hottest K-Pop stars, Rain perform his latest hit. After that I was exhausted and hungry, so we called it a night and grabbed some dinner and beer. It was an experience and I'm glad I got to see a bit of it, but was also glad to have made it out of there early before getting trampled by thousands of screaming Korean teenagers.

Check out a video of Rain performing here: http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10100213191823739&ref=mf

the Dream concert

the crowd

what a trooper, got dragged to the concert after my seat buddy got sick and couldn't go

After 8 months in Korea there is never a dull moment, always something new to try or somewhere new to explore. I am loving my weekends and definitely living for them. Looking forward to a trip to Jeju Island next weekend, which is again a long one for me.

Namaste

That's My DJ

Seoul held it's 4th annual World DJ Festival this weekend. The festival kicked off at 2pm on Saturday and went all the way until 6am Sunday morning. There were different DJs and MCs from all over spinning different kinds of music such as rock, hip-hop, and house. Oh yes, there was house. Not exactly my favorite kind of music, but after enough time the beats all blend together and your feet just can't help but to move. There were four stages each playing different music simultaneously. I made my way back and forth to all of them and even squeezed my way through the crowd to the very front row for a bit.

I was surprised at the amount of people who came out for the event. There must have been hundreds (maybe a thousand?) of people spread out over a few acres of land right along the Han River. There were so many different types of people; punk rockers, goth kids, hippies, preppies, teenagers, middle-agers, Koreans, expats, you name it, they were there. People watching was part of the fun of the festival. You would be surprised at how big Doc Martins (yes, the same ones we begged our moms for in 7th grade) still are here. Not sure if it had anything to do with their huge promotional tent at the fest, but I'm thinking perhaps. Despite the differences, we all had something in common; music. Everyone came to hear the music and enjoy a night of partying and dancing.

For a few thousand won, you could down some cold Miller beers or stand by the Jager tent and sip Jager/energy drinks all night. Food was served in the form of a stick; fish cakes and sausages were devoured by hungry, energy seeking people. Glow sticks were everywhere to be found, as well as dance circles. Face painting/make-up was done by our friends and MAC make-up artists, Jin-he and Mini. Blankets and tarps were spread out all over the ground by those who arrived early and claimed their space. A reggae drumming circle came through the festival around 1am complete with a parade, flags, and lit up drums. And there were cameras. Oh man, were there cameras. People were desperately trying to capture every moment on film as if to prove that 'yes, it really happened'.

Koreans generally love to party until dawn and that's just what they did (minus the occasional person passed out on their tarp). We left the fest before sunrise, but there were plenty of people still jumping up and down rocking to the music as we made our way out. I survived with sore feet, aching throat, and pounding head, but it was worth it.

Sean and I before the DJ Fest

DJ Fest poster

some of the group

reggae drummer

Sean, me and Sam

Sam and I breakin it down

the main stage

Namaste

Dye, Not Die

Students in Korea who attend Hagwons, or private academies, are given English names, much like the names we (Americans) received in Spanish or German class. In an attempt to learn some of my students' English names, I have been asking them to write their English names along with their Korean names on their papers. I was walking around today looking at their names and I noticed one little boy wrote 'Atom'. I am sure he meant 'Adam', but I give him mad credit for phonetically trying to sound out the word. Too cute.

I found a PowerPoint presentation about Easter to show some of my students last week. There was a page about dying Easter eggs. In every single class students starting pretending like they were choking themselves, shooting their neighbor, falling over in their chairs, essentially 'dying' at the mention of the word "dye". This spurred a short impromptu lesson about homophones.

Sean and I tried a little Korean noodles place by my apartment for lunch on Saturday. The noodles were served in a big bowl as a kind of soup with broth and clams. They had some of the best mandu (dumplings) that I have had here. It was messy, but delicious!

a staple in a Korean diet, kimchi

Korean noodles and clams

in Korea it's ok to slurp your noodles!

Saturday night I met some friends for a pillow fight in Seoul. Apparently there are pillow fights in different cities across the world that all take place on April 3. Kind of cool that I took part in one of them. I was a little skeptical of people actually showing up, one, and two, actually fighting with pillows. But alas, as you can see from the pictures below, it happened. It was fun watching all these foreigners (and some Koreans) beat each other with pillows until the feathers came out. After everyone had exhausted their pillows and we had exhausted a batch of Jello-shots, a few of us headed to a BBQ place for dinner. Afterwards we hit up some random carnival games and hookah in Gangnam. I surprised myself at the shooting game by hitting almost every single target. Sean says it's because I'm American and we supposedly 'love our guns', but I just think I'm that good! ^ ^

pillow fight!

BBQ and Jello shots

I hope that everyone had a wonderful and blessed Easter holiday. As I have mentioned time and time again, it is always difficult being away from family and friends on holidays. I really missed my family celebration this year. It also made me miss my grandfather thinking about how he used to put old coins in some of our eggs during our egg hunt. Because I couldn't spend the holiday with my real family, I spent it with my Bundang family. Sean, Sara, Aly, and I woke up super early on Sunday morning to catch what we thought was an English Easter service. It turned out to be solely in Korean, but we got a bit of translation using head-sets. The service was held at Suwon World Cup Stadium. I couldn't believe how many people were there and what a huge ordeal they made out of the Easter service. There were all kinds of performers and singers including a crazy tae-kwon-do group, a saxophonist, and various children's praise groups. The best part was that they actually got a Korean pop group, U-KISS, to perform at the service. We got to see a free K-pop show! (Well two songs.) Check out their website here: http://www.u-kiss.co.kr/

performance at the Easter service

U-KISS

Easter din din

After the service, Sara, Aly, and I went shopping for Easter dinner. Jen and Becca joined us at Sara's place and we all cooked and prepared our meal together. It was so yummy. We had roast chicken, veggies, garlic bread, two kinds of mashed potatoes, alfredo pasta, and of course, wine. We sat on Sara's floor like an indoor picnic and enjoyed our little feast. After dinner we walked to Cold Stone for dessert and finished off the night with some Sex and the City and girl chat. Overall a fabulous Easter Sunday.

“Maybe mistakes are what make our fate... without them what would shape our lives? Maybe if we had never veered off course we wouldn't fall in love, have babies, or be who we are. After all, things change. So do cities. People come into your life and they go. But it's comforting to know that the ones you love are always in your heart... and if you're very lucky, a plane ride away.”

-Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

Namaste

March Madness

March madness is not just a bunch of college basketball games, but the weather we have been having in Korea lately. Snow instead of rain and yellow dust instead of sunshine. It was snowing like crazy yesterday evening. Snow. On March 22. Why??

outside my apartment

snow in late March!

Yesterday one my fifth grade students asked me, "teacher, do you love me?" I was taken back by the question and somewhat speechless for a moment thinking of an appropriate response. I didn't really know what to say and then finally I replied "I don't love you, but I like you." Then he turned around, pointed to another student, and said "do you love her?" At which point I realized he was cunningly quoting a K-pop song, "Brown Eyed Girls" by Abracadabra.

Korean students carry their pencils, erasers, rulers, etc. in a pencil case. I don't know if there is some kind of law that says you must carry a pencil case, but every single student owns one. They keep them on their desks and they often catch my eye as I am walking around the classroom. Most of them have really ridiculous English phrases written on them. I have no idea who makes these things or where they get these words from, but they are totally silly. I will give you an idea of a few examples of some I have seen. "Your heart and my heart are friends." "We love the earth together. Let's make it better." "Let's fly up." Basically I just smile and chuckle to myself when I read them. Along with pencil case phrases Korean students wear sweatshirts, hats, and bags that also have English words on them. Sometimes they are really silly as well. A girl in my class today was wearing an over-sized sweater that read "happy kitty" on it. Other times they are totally inappropriate for school/their age. Last semester one of my 6th grade students wore a baseball hat that said "drunken" on it. The other day I saw a student's backpack with pictures of hearts, panda bears, and some English phrases about alcohol including "alcohol is my soul mate". Not kidding. I am going to go out on a limb here and assume they don't really understand what these things say when they buy them and wear them to school, but who knows. As long as the principals and teachers don't speak or read English, it doesn't really matter, right?

I feel like a celebrity at school lately and I kind of love it. For some reason the students really seem to notice me more this semester and are way less shy about saying hello and talking with me. I walk down the hallway and students are saying hello and bowing left and right. I am constantly walking through the hallway saying "hello, hello, hi, hello, hi, how are you, hello, good morning.........." and that is just in one 5 minute walk to class. One of the things that I have missed the most from teaching in the states is the personal relationship I built with my students. I am finally beginning to feel like that is happening in Korea and it feels really good.

Namaste

Are You in SHINee?

The name on everyone's lips lately is Kim Yu-Na. The 19 year old won the gold medal in women's figure skating last week and put Korea on the map. She is literally everywhere I look here. There are a handful of companies who have plastered her face all over their TV commercials. The day she skated her flawless performance everyone was glued to their TV cell phones. It was all anyone could talk about. After all the pressure that was placed on this girl to perform for her country and with the 'fate of Korea' in the 2010 Olympics on the line, I was so happy to see her win. She must have been overwhelmed with joy. She must have also breathed a sigh of relief. If it was the U.S. or Canada and she had fallen or slipped up and gotten the silver she would still be deemed a hero. I'm not so sure people would have reacted the same way here in Korea.

I never thought I would witness the mass craziness that was the grand opening of H&M in Korea. The European store is popular back home in America, but nothing to make a big fuss over. The clothes are cheap, cute, and a bit trendy. The store on Michigan Avenue in Chicago is always busy. H&M opened it's doors in Myeong-dong, Seoul on Saturday and it was pure insanity. I never thought people would make such a huge deal over a clothing store. My friends and I thought we would get to shop and check out one of our favorite stores from home over here. We thought wrong. There was a red carpet. There was a VIP entrance. There were men guarding the lines in suits with ear pieces. There was a line that was broken into three parts. The last part stretched all the way around the block. There was no way we were going to get anywhere near that store today. Oh, well. It'll be here next time.

the line for H&M grand opening in Korea

Korean women are obsessed with beauty. They are also not afraid to look at themselves in the mirror in public for minutes on end. In western culture, people fear they will be thought of as vain if they stare at themselves in the mirror for too long. Not here. There are mirrors literally everywhere; the subway, bathrooms, on the street, on cell phones. People take major advantage of this and I have even caught men scrutinizing over their faces in public as well.

I wrote about K-Pop and the craze over here. My friends and I love a group called SHINee that is composed of 5 boys between the ages of 14-18. They are very talented dancers and have decent voices, other than that, they are just darn cute and girls go nuts over them. They have a certain look; well combed hair (often to the side), perfect skin, cute face, skinny build, skinny acid washed or black jeans, blazers, dress shoes, etc. Every time we see anyone that fits the description my friends and I are tempted to ask if they are in SHINee. We also point them out to each other and say "I see a SHINee!"

The new school year begins this week and I have three new co-teachers to work with, new students, and a new schedule too. Looking forward to getting back to a normal routine with school.

Spring, where are you? Please come soon.

Happy March!

Namaste

Ipod Inspiration

"If I could tell the world just one thing it would be we're all ok. And not to worry 'cause worry is wasteful and useless in times like these...

My hands are small I know,

but they're not yours

they are my own,

but they're not yours

they are my own

and I am never broken.

...In the end, only kindness matters."

-Jewel, My Hands

Namaste

K-pop Fever

I have been slowing expanding my musical taste while here in Korea and have finally succumbed to K-pop. K-pop is Korean pop music. It is a totally different genre of music all on it's own. I was not immediately taken by the repetitive lyrics and dancy beats, but I have grown to really enjoy this music. You could even say I have caught the K-pop fever. (Maybe I have just been in Korea too long or maybe I have been hanging out with my friend Sara too much- she loves the K-pop!) Either way this bubblegum brand of pop music is something that must be experienced. The heavy make-up wearing, neon and pleather clad teenage singers who bust out these tunes definitely deserve some credit for their originality and Justin Timberlake-like dance abilities. The only way for you to understand what I am talking about is to check it out for yourself. Below I have included several K-pop videos for you to watch. Give it a listen and you just may just enjoy K-pop too. (Or you'll get the cheesy lyrics stuck in your head and find yourself singing them in the shower, walking on the street, riding in the car...)

This is one that my friends and I have been obsessing over lately. The group is called SHINee and their single is "Ring Ding Dong". It is really popular in Korea right now and you'll hear everyone from elementary students with their mP3 players to 20-somethings at dance clubs singing along.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roughtzsCDI&feature=fvst

Sadly, we like it so much my friends even want to learn the dance that accompanies it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8M0hRfPRho

I really love this song by Epik High, "One". The video is quite intense, but that is Korean style in general.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0CSTVXSkcA

Brown Eyed Girls has one of the hottest K-pop songs out right now. It's called "Abracadabra" and there is a really famous dance move that goes with it. Often times Korean students will be caught busting it out in school.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Idlb9-bF2sc

My elementary students love this group, Big Bang. This is one of their songs "Lollipop". I actually think this one is quite annoying, but the outfits and hair styles are too good to miss.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIRW_elc-rY

This song is by IU called "Marshmallow". My girl students love when I play this song for them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IBGeI6bQLo

This is the Wondergirls song "So Hot". They are actually really big world wide and becoming more popular in North America.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmun5PO54VE

This is 2PM's "Again and Again". They are another huge group here in Korea.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUgReo37ECw

Super Junior's "Sorry Sorry" is one that will be sure to stick in your head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6QA3m58DQw

This is Rain's "I'm Coming". Rain is one of the biggest stars to come out of Korea and has even made it to the big screen playing a part in the new version of the movie Speed Racer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5B0XItDpSM

G-Dragon sings "Heartbreaker" which has been a hit in Korea for a while now. The Korean students love this guy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOXEVd-Z7NE&feature=fvst

This is Girls Generation. The song is called "Chocolate Love" and again, the lyrics are sure to stick in your head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkP1tCJtGS0&feature=related

If you found yourself tapping your foot to the beat, shaking your head or hips, trying to sing along with the refrain, busting out some of the dance moves along with the video, or even digging some neon threads out of your closet, then you have caught the K-pop fever as well. In this case, a healthy dose of K-pop news from http://popseoul.com/ is just what the doctor ordered.

Namaste