I wanted to share this with you. The essay topic was, Write about a typical day in the life of an animal, a living person, a dead person, anyone, or anything. I was hoping to get some interesting, creative stories out of my students. Here's the one that really blew me away, and made me laugh out loud a few times.
This morning when I woke up, I ate four eyeballs and drank a cup of hot blood. The eyeballs tasted sweet and delicious, because they have a lot of blood. I like to eat this for breakfast, because I'm a zombie.
After breakfast, I went to the zombie village. I saw a child who found his brain. I also saw some grandma eat her own finger. It's 12 o'clock. I feel hungry, so I go to a restaurant named “Yummy People!” I think this name is great. When I go inside, a couple is on a date, but the boyfriend feels hungry, so he eats his girlfriend's heart. I think it is romantic. I call the waiter, and I see a handsome waiter, because he doesn't have a head. I order 100 hearts for lunch, and I eat fried fingers. It tastes awesome!
After lunch, I leave the zombie village. First I go to New York. There, I eat Bill Gates. He tastes good. Next, I go to Seoul. I see Lee Myung Bak [Korea's unpopular president], so I cut off his head. Then I go to City Hall. There are a lot of people here. So I eat all of them. I feel full, so I go back to my home. I cut off my head, and change my head. Today's head is heavy zombie, and tomorrow's is light zombie. After I change my head, I go to sleep.
June 24, 2009
June 23, 2009
villages
A couple weekends ago I went camping and rock climbing outside a teeny-tiny, remote Korean village called Wonju, east of Seoul. Just me and T and two guys who also teach in our town. We took a train to the nearest station. And from there a cab took us through a maze of run-down single-story homes and businesses to the park's entrance.
When we arrived I noticed the layout was really simple: just a few minboks, snack shops and restaurants lined up at the top of a hill along a road that ran parallel to the river, which in turn ran parallel to the face of the cliff. The cliff was what everyone came there for, and the snaking of ropes was a constant as climbers maneuvered up set routes at the base of the cliff. Most impressive were the climbers doing multi-pitches - route after route, climbing several stories high, all the way to the top of the cliff.
The site was enveloped by steep rocks and small, tree-covered mountains. There were campsites available along the wide and shallow river, and we slept by the sandy banks. Four of us shared a two person tent! There were basic facilities for campers provided for free. Very basic. It was the very definition of rural, so squatting toilets were the only option. I was forced use them for the first time, after somehow avoiding them for the first six months.
My friend T is gradually becoming an expert climber, and she introduced me to the sport. We found a group of foreigners that T either knew from a previous climbing trip, or quickly befriended. They let us take turns borrowing their rope and a pair of climbing shoes. The route she chose for me to climb was pretty easy, limestone with plenty of footholds and deep finger pockets.
A lot of people were there to spend the weekend rock climbing. All of the routes were occupied, and while people waited their turn, it was fun to watch other climbers and cheer them on. Despite the popularity of this park, it still always felt completely secluded and was not at all crowded.
Rock climbing - real rock climbing, not the kind you do on a fake wall - was instantly something I knew I loved. Getting to the top was challenging as hell, but looking down with that sense of accomplishment was exhilarating. I'm considering whether to get the proper shoes and a harness so I can do it again while I'm here. It's popular here in Korea.
There was a two-story, sit-on-the-floor style restaurant a short distance from the campsite. We made the trek and had a nice dinner on the top floor with other foreigners we'd met. The night ended with an outdoor, rave-esque noraebang with a group of middle-aged Koreans wearing glow necklaces. Then, drinking North Korean soju around the campfire on the beach. T had been saving the soju for a special occasion ever since she purchased it on the DMZ trip.
In the middle of the night, I made friends with a Korean kid whose face I didn't see, but who shouted questions to me from across the river then waited to decode my English before asking more and more. It all came back to me the next morning when, to my surprise, a chubby Korean boy passed me on the pavement and asked, "Are you Amanda?" After racking my brain, I told him, "Oh yea! Nice to finally meet you!"
Thanks to soju, I was not feeling well the next day. Luckily the boys asked around and found a man who spoke some English, and who helped them order a large batch of chicken soup from one of the restaurants. (Much later, I found out this dish is called samgyetang.) As we waited for T to finish up a climb, the boys and I walked barefoot in the stone-lined river to a short waterfall that spanned the entire length of the river. Afterwards, I lay on the sand and closed my eyes for a couple of hours. The rest of the waeguk slowly trickled over to join me after a while.
We hitched a ride to the train station from someone we met in the park. I was really grateful, as there was no chance of finding a taxi and it would have been a long walk. T lucked out and got a ticket for the last available seat on the train. So I wouldn't have to stand the whole ride north, in desperate, very broken Korean I convinced the ticket woman to check for last-minute cancellations. But still with no luck, I said goodbye to Wonju and headed home.
In more recent news, Ryan and Corey are going to be in Korea tomorrow! They're on the long plane ride over as I type this. My apartment is spotless in anticipation of their arrival and the inevitable mess that will ensue.
When we arrived I noticed the layout was really simple: just a few minboks, snack shops and restaurants lined up at the top of a hill along a road that ran parallel to the river, which in turn ran parallel to the face of the cliff. The cliff was what everyone came there for, and the snaking of ropes was a constant as climbers maneuvered up set routes at the base of the cliff. Most impressive were the climbers doing multi-pitches - route after route, climbing several stories high, all the way to the top of the cliff.
The site was enveloped by steep rocks and small, tree-covered mountains. There were campsites available along the wide and shallow river, and we slept by the sandy banks. Four of us shared a two person tent! There were basic facilities for campers provided for free. Very basic. It was the very definition of rural, so squatting toilets were the only option. I was forced use them for the first time, after somehow avoiding them for the first six months.
My friend T is gradually becoming an expert climber, and she introduced me to the sport. We found a group of foreigners that T either knew from a previous climbing trip, or quickly befriended. They let us take turns borrowing their rope and a pair of climbing shoes. The route she chose for me to climb was pretty easy, limestone with plenty of footholds and deep finger pockets.
A lot of people were there to spend the weekend rock climbing. All of the routes were occupied, and while people waited their turn, it was fun to watch other climbers and cheer them on. Despite the popularity of this park, it still always felt completely secluded and was not at all crowded.
Rock climbing - real rock climbing, not the kind you do on a fake wall - was instantly something I knew I loved. Getting to the top was challenging as hell, but looking down with that sense of accomplishment was exhilarating. I'm considering whether to get the proper shoes and a harness so I can do it again while I'm here. It's popular here in Korea.
There was a two-story, sit-on-the-floor style restaurant a short distance from the campsite. We made the trek and had a nice dinner on the top floor with other foreigners we'd met. The night ended with an outdoor, rave-esque noraebang with a group of middle-aged Koreans wearing glow necklaces. Then, drinking North Korean soju around the campfire on the beach. T had been saving the soju for a special occasion ever since she purchased it on the DMZ trip.
In the middle of the night, I made friends with a Korean kid whose face I didn't see, but who shouted questions to me from across the river then waited to decode my English before asking more and more. It all came back to me the next morning when, to my surprise, a chubby Korean boy passed me on the pavement and asked, "Are you Amanda?" After racking my brain, I told him, "Oh yea! Nice to finally meet you!"
Thanks to soju, I was not feeling well the next day. Luckily the boys asked around and found a man who spoke some English, and who helped them order a large batch of chicken soup from one of the restaurants. (Much later, I found out this dish is called samgyetang.) As we waited for T to finish up a climb, the boys and I walked barefoot in the stone-lined river to a short waterfall that spanned the entire length of the river. Afterwards, I lay on the sand and closed my eyes for a couple of hours. The rest of the waeguk slowly trickled over to join me after a while.
We hitched a ride to the train station from someone we met in the park. I was really grateful, as there was no chance of finding a taxi and it would have been a long walk. T lucked out and got a ticket for the last available seat on the train. So I wouldn't have to stand the whole ride north, in desperate, very broken Korean I convinced the ticket woman to check for last-minute cancellations. But still with no luck, I said goodbye to Wonju and headed home.
In more recent news, Ryan and Corey are going to be in Korea tomorrow! They're on the long plane ride over as I type this. My apartment is spotless in anticipation of their arrival and the inevitable mess that will ensue.
June 07, 2009
seoul grand park
I watched sea lions swimming, badgers play-fighting, and baby giraffes nursing today. I also saw lions and tigers and bears. Oh my.
The weather was absolutely perfect for a day in Seoul Grand Park. My cheeks are sunburnt, despite a threat of rain this afternoon, which kept a lot of tourists away. I had the zoo all to myself. I took a billion pictures.
I now know how celebrities (and zoo animals) must feel. Although I've been here "alone" for months, I rarely do anything by myself. When I do venture out I never stay alone - I'm always approached by someone who wants to practice their English or is just curious about me. Typically it's been older Korean men, like cute old grandpas. One stopped me while I was on my bike this morning. The other sat next to me while waiting for the subway. The script looks like this:
Grandpa: Good morning! (Subway grandpa said it at 7pm.)
Me: Hello.
G: Where are you from?
Me: I'm American.
G: I think you are an English teacher.
Me: That's right.
G: [Broken English life story.] Then, I lived in [English-speaking country] for [#] years.
Me: Oh, yea? Well, your English is really good.
G: Thank you. [A jumble of English to show what he knows.]
Me: The light's green/this is my train. It was very nice to meet you.
Subway grandpa looked me right in the eye and saluted me here. I burst out laughing. He was ridiculous. When he spoke he shouted, didn't pause between ideas, and looked at a vacuum in space to the right of my shoulder. When he finally did look me in the eye it was shocking!
The thing is, Koreans see my foreign face, assume I speak English, and switch to English mode immediately. I never really get a chance to practice Korean, because they have the reflexes of a cat! Someone bumps me, glances at me for a split second, instantaneously says, "Sorry."
Anyway, I counted and I was one of only six foreigners in the zoo today. I was the only foreigner in the art gallery. Ah, the art gallery. I checked out the National Museum of Contemporary Art, because it was right in the park. I can't decide if I was just hungry and grumpy or if I have something against Korean artists. I just wasn't feeling it. I forced myself to stick it out, give it a chance before making up an excuse to exit early. Before leaving I sat in the stark white atrium and told the gallery: "Listen, I know there's someone out there who's perfect for you. It's just not me."
The weather was absolutely perfect for a day in Seoul Grand Park. My cheeks are sunburnt, despite a threat of rain this afternoon, which kept a lot of tourists away. I had the zoo all to myself. I took a billion pictures.
I now know how celebrities (and zoo animals) must feel. Although I've been here "alone" for months, I rarely do anything by myself. When I do venture out I never stay alone - I'm always approached by someone who wants to practice their English or is just curious about me. Typically it's been older Korean men, like cute old grandpas. One stopped me while I was on my bike this morning. The other sat next to me while waiting for the subway. The script looks like this:
Grandpa: Good morning! (Subway grandpa said it at 7pm.)
Me: Hello.
G: Where are you from?
Me: I'm American.
G: I think you are an English teacher.
Me: That's right.
G: [Broken English life story.] Then, I lived in [English-speaking country] for [#] years.
Me: Oh, yea? Well, your English is really good.
G: Thank you. [A jumble of English to show what he knows.]
Me: The light's green/this is my train. It was very nice to meet you.
Subway grandpa looked me right in the eye and saluted me here. I burst out laughing. He was ridiculous. When he spoke he shouted, didn't pause between ideas, and looked at a vacuum in space to the right of my shoulder. When he finally did look me in the eye it was shocking!
The thing is, Koreans see my foreign face, assume I speak English, and switch to English mode immediately. I never really get a chance to practice Korean, because they have the reflexes of a cat! Someone bumps me, glances at me for a split second, instantaneously says, "Sorry."
Anyway, I counted and I was one of only six foreigners in the zoo today. I was the only foreigner in the art gallery. Ah, the art gallery. I checked out the National Museum of Contemporary Art, because it was right in the park. I can't decide if I was just hungry and grumpy or if I have something against Korean artists. I just wasn't feeling it. I forced myself to stick it out, give it a chance before making up an excuse to exit early. Before leaving I sat in the stark white atrium and told the gallery: "Listen, I know there's someone out there who's perfect for you. It's just not me."
June 03, 2009
to the dmz
The DMZ. The experience wasn't what I expected. I wasn't afraid at all, even with all this nonsense in the news, North Korea didn't scare me. The whole tour actually just left me with an uneasy sense that the South Koreans are putting as much effort into feeding propaganda to their people as the North. This was not the conclusion I expected to come to at all.
I didn't pay for the Panmunjom tour, which would have allowed me to see the JSA, the line where you can see North Korean soldiers staring down South Korean soldiers. I've already decided I'm going back to the DMZ in a few weeks to do the more expensive tour where you get to see the JSA and go inside the building where the two countries always meet to have talks. I can't leave Korea without going there and being able to say I was technically in North Korea.
That being said, my tour did include some interesting stuff. First we walked through the Third Tunnel of Aggression. We put on hard hats and hiked down a really steep tunnel made by the South in order to show tourists a tunnel made by the North, apparently to be used for a surprise attack on Seoul.
Whatever, I didn't buy it. The whole thing smelled of propaganda. I don't know why, but I just automatically assumed the South made the tunnel to make the North look bad. Walking through the tunnel was uncomfortable and scary; the ceiling was too low to walk upright and I kept worrying the narrow walls would cave in. At the end of the tunnel is barbed wire and a little window where I could peek into the North's side of the tunnel. We weren't allowed to take pictures.
After the tunnel, we took some pictures outside in this little area full of so much propaganda. There were statues symbolic of the two countries reuniting. It was super touristy and fun, which was odd since we were supposedly in an area covered in land mines dropped carelessly by the North. Do you see what I mean about the propaganda?
Then we hopped on the bus and went to the area where you're allowed to see North Korea. We had to stand behind a yellow line to take pictures, so I have no proof of this, but I got to see North Korea with my own eyes! For some reason I am extremely fascinated by the DPRK, so it was really exciting to be looking right at it. Maybe it has something to do with being able to look but never touch. It makes things so much more interesting.
Amazingly, there is a fake town set up in North Korea about a mile from the border. The government built it there and (as if it wasn't special enough holding the title for the world's most bizarre town) added the world's tallest flag and flagpole. Through a telescope I could see it, a village of empty buildings planted into the hillside. I wanted to stare at it for ever. All I could think was, Why does this exist? What kind of world do I live in where a "town" like this can exist?
The reunification propaganda continued after that when we went to Dorasan Station. It's a fake (in my opinion) railroad station built on the spot that once connected North and South Korea. A station has been rebuilt/restored there and now its train makes a short trip everyday to a small factory or something. I don't know the details. There is no service for real passengers though. I got the sense this place only existed to give people hope that one day the two countries would get back together. As a child of divorced parents, I can understand the feeling, but I say at some point you need to give up hope and just move on.
On Sunday I went on a lovely picnic in the park. There are some pictures of that in the slideshow, along with some pictures of my classroom and my (so far hidden) life as a teacher. Anyway, after the picnic I saw the new Terminator movie. I'll never get over watching American action movies with Korean subtitles in a theater where I'm one of the only foreigners. It's so awesome for some reason. Good for homesickness, too. Then, on Monday night I ate raw, squirming octopus, a very Korean experience. Check out the pictures. They'll make you laugh and they'll probably make your mouth water, too.
My brothers are coming to Korea in three weeks. I'll be super busy planning their visit. I can't wait. It's pretty much all I can think about! Okay, here are the pictures from this weekend.
I didn't pay for the Panmunjom tour, which would have allowed me to see the JSA, the line where you can see North Korean soldiers staring down South Korean soldiers. I've already decided I'm going back to the DMZ in a few weeks to do the more expensive tour where you get to see the JSA and go inside the building where the two countries always meet to have talks. I can't leave Korea without going there and being able to say I was technically in North Korea.
That being said, my tour did include some interesting stuff. First we walked through the Third Tunnel of Aggression. We put on hard hats and hiked down a really steep tunnel made by the South in order to show tourists a tunnel made by the North, apparently to be used for a surprise attack on Seoul.
Whatever, I didn't buy it. The whole thing smelled of propaganda. I don't know why, but I just automatically assumed the South made the tunnel to make the North look bad. Walking through the tunnel was uncomfortable and scary; the ceiling was too low to walk upright and I kept worrying the narrow walls would cave in. At the end of the tunnel is barbed wire and a little window where I could peek into the North's side of the tunnel. We weren't allowed to take pictures.
After the tunnel, we took some pictures outside in this little area full of so much propaganda. There were statues symbolic of the two countries reuniting. It was super touristy and fun, which was odd since we were supposedly in an area covered in land mines dropped carelessly by the North. Do you see what I mean about the propaganda?
Then we hopped on the bus and went to the area where you're allowed to see North Korea. We had to stand behind a yellow line to take pictures, so I have no proof of this, but I got to see North Korea with my own eyes! For some reason I am extremely fascinated by the DPRK, so it was really exciting to be looking right at it. Maybe it has something to do with being able to look but never touch. It makes things so much more interesting.
Amazingly, there is a fake town set up in North Korea about a mile from the border. The government built it there and (as if it wasn't special enough holding the title for the world's most bizarre town) added the world's tallest flag and flagpole. Through a telescope I could see it, a village of empty buildings planted into the hillside. I wanted to stare at it for ever. All I could think was, Why does this exist? What kind of world do I live in where a "town" like this can exist?
The reunification propaganda continued after that when we went to Dorasan Station. It's a fake (in my opinion) railroad station built on the spot that once connected North and South Korea. A station has been rebuilt/restored there and now its train makes a short trip everyday to a small factory or something. I don't know the details. There is no service for real passengers though. I got the sense this place only existed to give people hope that one day the two countries would get back together. As a child of divorced parents, I can understand the feeling, but I say at some point you need to give up hope and just move on.
On Sunday I went on a lovely picnic in the park. There are some pictures of that in the slideshow, along with some pictures of my classroom and my (so far hidden) life as a teacher. Anyway, after the picnic I saw the new Terminator movie. I'll never get over watching American action movies with Korean subtitles in a theater where I'm one of the only foreigners. It's so awesome for some reason. Good for homesickness, too. Then, on Monday night I ate raw, squirming octopus, a very Korean experience. Check out the pictures. They'll make you laugh and they'll probably make your mouth water, too.
My brothers are coming to Korea in three weeks. I'll be super busy planning their visit. I can't wait. It's pretty much all I can think about! Okay, here are the pictures from this weekend.
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