At some point during the week, I received an email from an extending Entertaining Teacher from America. Turns out she and some other extending ATEs were going to a festival in Bongpyeong commemorating the author Lee Hyo Seok and blooming buckwheat. It’s in my county, so they thought my proximity might interest me. Well, it did, as did the prospect of meeting these ATEs who were not with us during orientation, but I decided to investigate the event’s English website as well. Blooming buckwheat and romantic donkey rides it turns out. Who can’t turn down romantic donkey rides?
So I went. It was fun. I did not ride any donkeys, though I did get my picture taken in the buckwheat fields. I also learned a lot about last year’s group of ATEs. Apparently they were a wild bunch. When I was asked for the “dirt” on this year’s bunch, I had to confess ignorance, partially because I didn’t hang out that much with everyone, at least not in big groups, but mostly because I honestly don’t think there is much dirt to be had on us. Overall, we were a fairly mellow group, especially compared to last year’s legendary status.
For those of my readers who are more interested in literature (cough… Faulkner addicts, cough, cough… BEN!) than my adventures, Lee Hyo Seok is most famous for his short story “When the Buckwheat Blossoms,” which is the inspiration for the festival.
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Addendum: Writing Travel Itineraries
I’ve decided that it will be worthwhile to start recording my travel itineraries complete with mileage/time taken by bus. The reason for this is that I want to remember what bus changes I need to make to get to places like Bongpyeong (There was a bus change in Jangpyeong.), but also because at some point I want to start making bike trips to local sites.
Some trips I’m looking forward to making are to Wonjushi, the nearest big city and home to two other ATEs as well as my RA from orientation, and 공해, the nearest city that also borders the Pacific. Both of these are longer trips (about 63.6 and 101.3 km respectively), but with 3 day weekends will be well worth the time spent, especially now that we are approaching the cool, beautiful Korean fall.
Some trips I’m looking forward to making are to Wonjushi, the nearest big city and home to two other ATEs as well as my RA from orientation, and 공해, the nearest city that also borders the Pacific. Both of these are longer trips (about 63.6 and 101.3 km respectively), but with 3 day weekends will be well worth the time spent, especially now that we are approaching the cool, beautiful Korean fall.
Friday, September 7, 2007
MBC원주 Riverside Concert and Announcement for 2018 Really Big, Five Ringed Flag, International Cold Weather Sporting Event Hopes
On Thursday night, my host family informed me that I’d have to leave TKD early on Friday night so that I could eat at the beauty shop at 7:00 pm. Why was I eating at the beauty shop at 7:00 pm? It turns out that there was going to be a concert by the river sponsored by MBC원주. (SIDE NOTE: It has frustrated me to no end that the local news stations are run by MBC. Everytime I hear announcements about programming on it, I always think NBC. For all I know, what with America being globally influential, there actually is an NBC station running in South Korea.) The concert was some sort of contest for up and coming trot singers, trot being akin to American country music in terms of social stigma but stylistically more like lounge lizard music.
The concert itself was entertaining enough. I couldn’t understand any of the lyrics, of course, except for the ubiquitous 사랑 (love) that permeated every song. What was more entertaining was the light and pyrotechnic displays that would accompany these songs. I kid you not—not only fireworks, but great balls of fire. Plumes, even, that burst from the stage floor as background dancers shook and shimmied and backup singers moved their arms in coordinated splendor. Really though. Fire? For trot?
It was cool to see some of my students and TKD buddies at the event though. They either blushed or said enthusiastic “Hello”s.
The other big event at this concert was an announcement concerning the 2018 Really Big, Five Ringed Flag, International Cold Sporting Event. (I’ve changed the name for the sake of not revealing my location. Figure out what it means.) Apparently, my hamlet is ready to try its hand at attracting this event for the third time in a row.
I’ve a couple of discussions with locals and concerned ATEs about whether hosting this event would be good or bad for the economy/environment of the area. I think in the short term it would be good, but in the long term… it’s debatable. The economy boost would certainly be considerable in the short term as the area’s tourism would skyrocket and so would the facilities and infrastructure necessary to host that tourism, but I worry about this area damaging its rustic qualities (which it trades heavily on) to such a degree as to make them laughable. I also worry about the area building so many hotels that it essentially becomes a ghost town. After all, once the event leaves, who will come here besides those who have always come? There are already plenty of hotels to house these.
The concert itself was entertaining enough. I couldn’t understand any of the lyrics, of course, except for the ubiquitous 사랑 (love) that permeated every song. What was more entertaining was the light and pyrotechnic displays that would accompany these songs. I kid you not—not only fireworks, but great balls of fire. Plumes, even, that burst from the stage floor as background dancers shook and shimmied and backup singers moved their arms in coordinated splendor. Really though. Fire? For trot?
It was cool to see some of my students and TKD buddies at the event though. They either blushed or said enthusiastic “Hello”s.
The other big event at this concert was an announcement concerning the 2018 Really Big, Five Ringed Flag, International Cold Sporting Event. (I’ve changed the name for the sake of not revealing my location. Figure out what it means.) Apparently, my hamlet is ready to try its hand at attracting this event for the third time in a row.
I’ve a couple of discussions with locals and concerned ATEs about whether hosting this event would be good or bad for the economy/environment of the area. I think in the short term it would be good, but in the long term… it’s debatable. The economy boost would certainly be considerable in the short term as the area’s tourism would skyrocket and so would the facilities and infrastructure necessary to host that tourism, but I worry about this area damaging its rustic qualities (which it trades heavily on) to such a degree as to make them laughable. I also worry about the area building so many hotels that it essentially becomes a ghost town. After all, once the event leaves, who will come here besides those who have always come? There are already plenty of hotels to house these.
TKD Weekly Update
TKD this week was a lot of fun. It also kicked my butt. Let me explain.
The first fun thing is that one of my high school students is apparently a black belt and has decided to return to TKD classes at the dojang. Unfortunately, he’s one of my second years whose English is a little iffy. Still, I appreciate his presence. He has brought a friend along who is just starting TKD apparently. I was actually teaching him a form the other night. (Laugh it up.)
The second fun thing is that I’m actually starting to learn the forms in some kind of semblance of order now. As it stands, I can complete Form 1 by myself and Forms 2 and 4 if I’m in a group.
The third fun thing is that I started learning hanja (Chinese characters) this week. I now know how to write mouth, sun, four, and five. At first I was working in a generic ideograph workbook I brought from orientation. I was just copying from the wall charts. But the sabonim gave me an actual TKD/hanja workbook with letters to trace and everything! With each hanja is a factoid about TKD, which is unfortunately in Korean and thus impossible to read.
Add these four to the hanja I can recognize from exposure in Korea and Japan (water, fire, moon, big, mountain, one, two, three, and stop), and I’m well on my way. I feel like it’ll be good to learn hanja for a couple of reasons, or one big reason and two sub-reasons—grad school, the sub-reasons being Chinese and Japanese. I may not know how to pronounce the characters, but at least I’ll be able to read them, and that’s a start. I figure it’ll also help improve my Korean category by degrees.
The fourth fun thing is that I finally met the kwanjangnim. Here’s where the butt kicking starts. With him. Basically, he arrived, he set me up on a target dummy by myself (I’m the only yellow belt), and had me do dulachagi with my left leg for about half an hour. That’s 30 minutes, one leg. Man, I was pooped. Later on in the week for movement drills I had to go against the sabonim. I’ve got the popped blisters to prove it. The good news is my body is recovering faster and faster from fatigue and soreness, and I’m losing the weight my doc said I needed to lose to avoid getting diabetes. Two hours of TKD a night is a lot of exercise, plus all the walking/bike riding I’m doing everyday anyway. I sleep well and long these nights.
The first fun thing is that one of my high school students is apparently a black belt and has decided to return to TKD classes at the dojang. Unfortunately, he’s one of my second years whose English is a little iffy. Still, I appreciate his presence. He has brought a friend along who is just starting TKD apparently. I was actually teaching him a form the other night. (Laugh it up.)
The second fun thing is that I’m actually starting to learn the forms in some kind of semblance of order now. As it stands, I can complete Form 1 by myself and Forms 2 and 4 if I’m in a group.
The third fun thing is that I started learning hanja (Chinese characters) this week. I now know how to write mouth, sun, four, and five. At first I was working in a generic ideograph workbook I brought from orientation. I was just copying from the wall charts. But the sabonim gave me an actual TKD/hanja workbook with letters to trace and everything! With each hanja is a factoid about TKD, which is unfortunately in Korean and thus impossible to read.
Add these four to the hanja I can recognize from exposure in Korea and Japan (water, fire, moon, big, mountain, one, two, three, and stop), and I’m well on my way. I feel like it’ll be good to learn hanja for a couple of reasons, or one big reason and two sub-reasons—grad school, the sub-reasons being Chinese and Japanese. I may not know how to pronounce the characters, but at least I’ll be able to read them, and that’s a start. I figure it’ll also help improve my Korean category by degrees.
The fourth fun thing is that I finally met the kwanjangnim. Here’s where the butt kicking starts. With him. Basically, he arrived, he set me up on a target dummy by myself (I’m the only yellow belt), and had me do dulachagi with my left leg for about half an hour. That’s 30 minutes, one leg. Man, I was pooped. Later on in the week for movement drills I had to go against the sabonim. I’ve got the popped blisters to prove it. The good news is my body is recovering faster and faster from fatigue and soreness, and I’m losing the weight my doc said I needed to lose to avoid getting diabetes. Two hours of TKD a night is a lot of exercise, plus all the walking/bike riding I’m doing everyday anyway. I sleep well and long these nights.
Addendum: Speaking of Hanja… Comic Books!
My host brother, 8, keeps begging his parents to let him take TKD. I think they may be wearing down. They asked me how much lessons were (70,000 won/month). I told them that this includes learning hanja, and to make the point clear, I demonstrated the four hanja I’d already learned. The host father brightened at this.
Apparently the family is fairly seriously about their son learning these characters at an early age. This is evidenced by the fact that in my room (where they keep most of my host brother’s books) is a comic book series, 마법첸자문, which is actually a learning tool for hanja. The main character must learn new ideographs to open up new moves to defeat various bosses who all have their own ideographs. There is even a brand of cookie similar to Nabisco’s Nilla Wafers that includes as a prize (a la Cracker Jacks) a collectible playing card. If I ever learn enough Korean, I’m definitely going to plow through these books. As it is, I might just buy a box of cookies every time I go to the bus station on a trip.
Apparently the family is fairly seriously about their son learning these characters at an early age. This is evidenced by the fact that in my room (where they keep most of my host brother’s books) is a comic book series, 마법첸자문, which is actually a learning tool for hanja. The main character must learn new ideographs to open up new moves to defeat various bosses who all have their own ideographs. There is even a brand of cookie similar to Nabisco’s Nilla Wafers that includes as a prize (a la Cracker Jacks) a collectible playing card. If I ever learn enough Korean, I’m definitely going to plow through these books. As it is, I might just buy a box of cookies every time I go to the bus station on a trip.
Teaching: Seven Years of English
Teaching this week was a little hit-and-miss in terms of student interest/participation. The adult classes went fairly smoothly, though I was running out of steam by the end of the week, and I fear my adult beginners may have suffered for it. The high school classes required the most energy as it was hard to get the students excited about the activities I had planned for them. Here’s how the classes broke down:
Grade 1: I had planned on doing a straight TPR lesson with these students working various commands and classroom objects. My first class blew right through it. Luckily, the co-teacher was there and said, “Why don’t you talk about Dog Soup?” Ok. So we talked about Dog Soup. Why do Koreans drink it? Why don’t Americans? What do you think? Explain it to me. Etc., etc., etc. After this, I felt inspired to give them a talking to about how much English they could understand and communicate:
“When did you start taking English?” Third grade, elementary school. “How old were you?” 10 years old. “How old are you now?” 17 years old. “How many years have you been taking English?” 7 years. “Seven years?! SEVEN years? Seven YEARS?! Seven years is a long time. An obscenely long time. Do you understand what I’m saying?” Yes. “You know more English than you know. But you do not talk to me. I thought this commands lesson would be good for your level, but it’s too easy! You guys are geniuses! You can speak in English. You just can’t do it well, yet, but that’s ok. You just need to practice. Just speak English at me, and I’ll help you correct what you’re saying, but please speak English!”
I decided to do that with the rest of the first years, even my troublesome bottom tier class. Seven years is an obscenely long time. They should’ve been talking years ago. They can talk about Dog Soup, after all. It’s excruciatingly slow, but they can do it. I don’t think they need TPR anymore. They need to have someone who’ll make them talk back in English about subjects they might not thought of talking about before. We’ll help each other find the missing vocabulary when necessary.
So, we’ll talk about sports, and feelings, and movies, and girls, and guys, and Americans, and Koreans. At least, I hope we will. I just have to figure out what vocabulary they need to talk about this kind of stuff…
Grade 2: This week, I had the second graders recite “The Announcer’s Test,” a speaking test invented in the 1940s to audition prospective radio talent and made popular as a memory test by comedian Jerry Lewis on The Tonight Show later on. (It’s now a drinking game in a slightly modified version designed to be “funny”.) We used to do it at Arrowhead Lutheran Camp as a time killer before Sunday evening hamburgers. (Man, I could go for a hamburger right now. I mean a real one, not one from Lotteria.) The test utilizes every letter of the alphabet in a variety of ways and also contains all the sounds of the English language. Thus, if you can recite it, you can say pretty much anything in English.
It is, however, very long. This was highly frustrating for the students (something I’m trying to avoid like the plague). I’ve decided to give the students the script for “The Announcer’s Test”. If they can say it to me memorized by the last Friday in September, they can receive a prize. I don’t want this to be stressful for them, just a good way to practice speaking. Plus, if they actually figure out what the vocabulary is on the worksheet, they’re going to have stellar vocab words to pull from. How many Korean students do you know who can use the words “diabetic,” “apathetic,” and “sympathetic” in a sentence? (If you’re ate a language high school or science high school, don’t answer that.)
I think I’m going to try moving Grade 2 back onto the same lesson track as Grade 1. I’m just going to expect more advanced responses from them.
Advanced Adults: Day 1 talked about class sizes and why young people aren’t getting married. Day 2 talked about Better than Ezra’s “A Lifetime” and Norman Rockwell paintings. I love this class.
Beginning Adults: Day 1, more shopping and tongue twisters with the “th” sound. Went to the department store this time. Joy. Day 2, I told them about my foray with Dog Soup. They asked me about it. I told them about it. I asked them about it. Asked about what they all do with their free time. It was freeform discussion, and pretty decent for a beginning class. One of my ladies is also taking Japanese. Apparently she’s becoming quite the cosmopolitan in her old age. She wants to see the world. After the freeform discussion, which included discussion of a couple of proverbs—“Live and let live,” “When in Rome…” and “Less is more”—we worked on pronunciation of the “f/v” and “r/l” sounds.
Still no word on when I’m to begin the Teacher’s Conversation course. We’re still trying to find a time that would be amenable to the three interested parties and myself. They would like to meet on Monday during 7th Period. I’d prefer not to, as Monday is ostensibly my day off, even if I find myself in the 교무실 catching up on email most of the day anyway. I’m willing to work on this day, but I’d rather not, especially as I’m beginning to travel a bit more on the weekends and would appreciate the three-day weekends. Ideally, I’d like them to just come to the Beginning Adult classes when they can. They’d get about four possible hours a week that way anyway instead of the one hour a week they’d get from a separate class just for them. My co-teacher still has to talk things out with them, thus the delay in a schedule decision.
Next week, the advanced adult class will watch a movie, either “The Pursuit of Happyness” starring Will Smith or “The Prince and Pauper” starring Errol Flynn. Both have their strong points in terms of talking about America, though I think “Pursuit” is probably more accessible (“What do you think of homelessness?”) whereas “P and P” lends itself more to questions about American cultural norms (“How does this reflect a Horatio Alger mentality?”). I think all the rest of my classes will go through a lesson on expressing emotion using one of those emotion charts and different images designed to elicit different feelings. Still, I’ve promised the beginning adults something on the uses of “get” in English, so that will take a little extra preparation.
Grade 1: I had planned on doing a straight TPR lesson with these students working various commands and classroom objects. My first class blew right through it. Luckily, the co-teacher was there and said, “Why don’t you talk about Dog Soup?” Ok. So we talked about Dog Soup. Why do Koreans drink it? Why don’t Americans? What do you think? Explain it to me. Etc., etc., etc. After this, I felt inspired to give them a talking to about how much English they could understand and communicate:
“When did you start taking English?” Third grade, elementary school. “How old were you?” 10 years old. “How old are you now?” 17 years old. “How many years have you been taking English?” 7 years. “Seven years?! SEVEN years? Seven YEARS?! Seven years is a long time. An obscenely long time. Do you understand what I’m saying?” Yes. “You know more English than you know. But you do not talk to me. I thought this commands lesson would be good for your level, but it’s too easy! You guys are geniuses! You can speak in English. You just can’t do it well, yet, but that’s ok. You just need to practice. Just speak English at me, and I’ll help you correct what you’re saying, but please speak English!”
I decided to do that with the rest of the first years, even my troublesome bottom tier class. Seven years is an obscenely long time. They should’ve been talking years ago. They can talk about Dog Soup, after all. It’s excruciatingly slow, but they can do it. I don’t think they need TPR anymore. They need to have someone who’ll make them talk back in English about subjects they might not thought of talking about before. We’ll help each other find the missing vocabulary when necessary.
So, we’ll talk about sports, and feelings, and movies, and girls, and guys, and Americans, and Koreans. At least, I hope we will. I just have to figure out what vocabulary they need to talk about this kind of stuff…
Grade 2: This week, I had the second graders recite “The Announcer’s Test,” a speaking test invented in the 1940s to audition prospective radio talent and made popular as a memory test by comedian Jerry Lewis on The Tonight Show later on. (It’s now a drinking game in a slightly modified version designed to be “funny”.) We used to do it at Arrowhead Lutheran Camp as a time killer before Sunday evening hamburgers. (Man, I could go for a hamburger right now. I mean a real one, not one from Lotteria.) The test utilizes every letter of the alphabet in a variety of ways and also contains all the sounds of the English language. Thus, if you can recite it, you can say pretty much anything in English.
It is, however, very long. This was highly frustrating for the students (something I’m trying to avoid like the plague). I’ve decided to give the students the script for “The Announcer’s Test”. If they can say it to me memorized by the last Friday in September, they can receive a prize. I don’t want this to be stressful for them, just a good way to practice speaking. Plus, if they actually figure out what the vocabulary is on the worksheet, they’re going to have stellar vocab words to pull from. How many Korean students do you know who can use the words “diabetic,” “apathetic,” and “sympathetic” in a sentence? (If you’re ate a language high school or science high school, don’t answer that.)
I think I’m going to try moving Grade 2 back onto the same lesson track as Grade 1. I’m just going to expect more advanced responses from them.
Advanced Adults: Day 1 talked about class sizes and why young people aren’t getting married. Day 2 talked about Better than Ezra’s “A Lifetime” and Norman Rockwell paintings. I love this class.
Beginning Adults: Day 1, more shopping and tongue twisters with the “th” sound. Went to the department store this time. Joy. Day 2, I told them about my foray with Dog Soup. They asked me about it. I told them about it. I asked them about it. Asked about what they all do with their free time. It was freeform discussion, and pretty decent for a beginning class. One of my ladies is also taking Japanese. Apparently she’s becoming quite the cosmopolitan in her old age. She wants to see the world. After the freeform discussion, which included discussion of a couple of proverbs—“Live and let live,” “When in Rome…” and “Less is more”—we worked on pronunciation of the “f/v” and “r/l” sounds.
Still no word on when I’m to begin the Teacher’s Conversation course. We’re still trying to find a time that would be amenable to the three interested parties and myself. They would like to meet on Monday during 7th Period. I’d prefer not to, as Monday is ostensibly my day off, even if I find myself in the 교무실 catching up on email most of the day anyway. I’m willing to work on this day, but I’d rather not, especially as I’m beginning to travel a bit more on the weekends and would appreciate the three-day weekends. Ideally, I’d like them to just come to the Beginning Adult classes when they can. They’d get about four possible hours a week that way anyway instead of the one hour a week they’d get from a separate class just for them. My co-teacher still has to talk things out with them, thus the delay in a schedule decision.
Next week, the advanced adult class will watch a movie, either “The Pursuit of Happyness” starring Will Smith or “The Prince and Pauper” starring Errol Flynn. Both have their strong points in terms of talking about America, though I think “Pursuit” is probably more accessible (“What do you think of homelessness?”) whereas “P and P” lends itself more to questions about American cultural norms (“How does this reflect a Horatio Alger mentality?”). I think all the rest of my classes will go through a lesson on expressing emotion using one of those emotion charts and different images designed to elicit different feelings. Still, I’ve promised the beginning adults something on the uses of “get” in English, so that will take a little extra preparation.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Culinary Note: Dog Soup (영양탕 or 보신탕)
Dog Soup, in Korean yeongyangtang, which means "nutricious soup" or boshintang, which means "invigorating soup" (영양탕 or 보신탕 respectively), is probably one of the most delicious things I've had yet in Korea. Surprisingly delicious, in fact. I ate it today for lunch with the other English teachers and some other faculty. It has the taste and consistency of beef, but is a little more tender and sweeter. It is served with various vegetables in a dark broth. Despite its fantastic taste, I probably will not be partaking of it very often, as it costs a pretty penny (about 8000 won or $8-9). At the same restaurant, I can also try goat soup, though I will have to wait on this.
But, why Jeremy?! Why? Man's best friend, for crying out loud! Oh, the humanity of eating a canine-ity: For those who are wondering about the ethical implications of this, Dog Soup is made from dogs that have been farmed, not household pets or even stray dogs. Thus, eating it is probably no different from eating a cow. Now, if eating beef causes you an ethical dilemma, then we have something to talk about. Just remember, I didn't eat Fido, today. I ate Bessie, or at least, Bessie's canine equivalent.
[Edit: I have since looked at some articles online about the dogmeat trade in Korea. As far as I can tell, it's actually illegal here. Many websites talk about how the industry has gone underground, though. This is not the case. The idustry is still above ground. The restaurant I went to was not shady. It was out in the open. Thus, I have a feeling it's illegal in Korea sort of the way that jaywalking is illegal in the states. No one's gonna bust your chops over it.]
But, why Jeremy?! Why? Man's best friend, for crying out loud! Oh, the humanity of eating a canine-ity: For those who are wondering about the ethical implications of this, Dog Soup is made from dogs that have been farmed, not household pets or even stray dogs. Thus, eating it is probably no different from eating a cow. Now, if eating beef causes you an ethical dilemma, then we have something to talk about. Just remember, I didn't eat Fido, today. I ate Bessie, or at least, Bessie's canine equivalent.
[Edit: I have since looked at some articles online about the dogmeat trade in Korea. As far as I can tell, it's actually illegal here. Many websites talk about how the industry has gone underground, though. This is not the case. The idustry is still above ground. The restaurant I went to was not shady. It was out in the open. Thus, I have a feeling it's illegal in Korea sort of the way that jaywalking is illegal in the states. No one's gonna bust your chops over it.]
Hello, Kitty! Mobile
On the way back to school from eating Dog Soup (If you’re not a vegetarian nor an animal rights activist defending Western cultural norms, try it!), I had the opportunity to ride in one of my fellow English teacher’s vans. I knew he was a family man, supporting a wife and daughter back in Chuncheon, but I had no idea to what extent he was… well, in America we’d call him whipped (sound effect of cracking whip, accompanied by appropriate hand motion). In Korea, I guess he’s just married, and the car is an extension of the decorative control his wife would have at home. At any rate, every upholstered surface of the car was covered in pink Hello, Kitty paraphernalia. Seat covers, steering wheel cover, dash cover, seatbelt straps, gear-shifter, etc. The works. (I should note that, culturally speaking, pink is quite in fashion for both genders in Korea. I applaud this. I think men should wear pink more often. After all, didn’t Don Johnson (“Miami Vice”) and The Duke himself where it?)
As if this wasn’t exciting enough to blog about, as soon as the turned the ignition key, my ears were bombarded by fully pumped out hip-hop. The dichotomy was so overwhelming, I did not know whether to expect a Barbie movie to appear on his in dash display screen or for the car itself to activate it’s hydraulics system as we “bounced” back to the school.
As if this wasn’t exciting enough to blog about, as soon as the turned the ignition key, my ears were bombarded by fully pumped out hip-hop. The dichotomy was so overwhelming, I did not know whether to expect a Barbie movie to appear on his in dash display screen or for the car itself to activate it’s hydraulics system as we “bounced” back to the school.
Do you have any Curry Powder?
In my beginning adult class, we have been learning how to go shopping. I was originally going to do this in one lesson, but I realized that shopping is a pretty big deal, and the vocabulary changes depending on where you are (e.g. aisle : supermarket :: floor : department store). For each lesson, I've been having the students perform the following dialogue (simplified for your reading brevity):
I for the blanks, I have the students generate their own vocabulary to use, which I then write on the board and they talk about in Korean for a while to make sure that everyone understands it. When we went shopping in the supermarket for instance, the first two vocabulary items they generated were Curry Powder and Cabbage, thus the dialogue read:
This led me to a curious question:
In what dimension does an American supermarket carry curry powder but not cabbage?!
To my knowledge, the above metaphysical quandry did not phase the ajuma in my class in the slightest.
P.S. Today's lesson on department stores could have led itself to similar problems. For instance, what kind of department store carries hammers but not clothing? Luckily, it did not.
A: Do you have any ______?
B: Yes, ______ is on aisle 5.
A: Thank you.
B: Anything else?
A: Do you have any ______?
B: I'm sorry. We don't have any.
Etc.
I for the blanks, I have the students generate their own vocabulary to use, which I then write on the board and they talk about in Korean for a while to make sure that everyone understands it. When we went shopping in the supermarket for instance, the first two vocabulary items they generated were Curry Powder and Cabbage, thus the dialogue read:
A: Do you have any curry powder?
B: Yes, curry powder is on aisle 5.
A: Thank you.
B: Anything else?
A: Do you have any cabbage?
B: I'm sorry. We don't have any.
This led me to a curious question:
In what dimension does an American supermarket carry curry powder but not cabbage?!
To my knowledge, the above metaphysical quandry did not phase the ajuma in my class in the slightest.
P.S. Today's lesson on department stores could have led itself to similar problems. For instance, what kind of department store carries hammers but not clothing? Luckily, it did not.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
A Frustration in Communication Leads to a Realization about Dalkgalbi
On Wednesday, I went to TKD as per usual, but I was pulled from the class early. The sabonim received a call from persons unknown (at least to me) who he could only describe as “chingu” or friends.
“Ah… Jeremy-shi?” he says to me politely while I’m mid dulachagi. “Yes?” say I, finishing the kick with a rather unsatisfactory plop against the padded target. (It’s supposed to make more of a plablam! sound if you kick it correctly.) “Chingu-rul Mimisa-ei manayo. (Friends meet at Mimisa.) You go.” “Chingu manayo?” I respond in confusion. “Now?” “Yes. Go, ot change-y. (Change your clothes.)”
Now, my confusion was understandable, as there is no one in the hamlet that I can properly call chingu. Everyone is either too young or too old or a colleague or just plain Korean. Because of the social hierarchy, no one would call me a chingu. This led me to all sorts of wild conclusions (and, admittedly, fantasies) about who could be waiting for me at Mimisa. Did one of my fellow entertaining teachers from American happen to come to the hamlet without telling me in order to surprise me? And if so, how on Earth did they know to look at my host mother’s beauty shop? Did they just ask every citizen of this fair city, “Hey! Do you know who the foreign guy in town is staying with? … Which foreign guy? You mean there are two? … Well, what are my options? … Australian or American, huh? The American one then. … The beauty supply shop? This way? Ok, thanks,” until they found me? I could only imagine this scenario as I walked in great anticipation towards my host-mother’s humble shop.
Well, the reality turned out to be much less exciting than the fantasy. As per usual, I suppose. Turns out, my host mother was meeting her friends for dinner. I just needed to tag along if I wanted to eat that night. Ah, disappointment. At least it was followed by food, a lesson in hospitality if I ever heard one: If you’re going to disappoint someone, give them some food to go with it. (One of the Korean proverbs in the back of my phrasebook in fact says, 둘이 먹다가 한 사람 죽어도 모른다 Duri meogdaga han saram jugeodo moreunda (While two are eating, one could die and the other wouldn’t know).
The evening was not a total loss, however, as I realized that one of Chuncheon’s claims to fame, that it serves the best dalkgalbi in the world, is in fact true, at least so far as Chuncheon and my hamlet are concerned. Dalkgalbi here is positively disgusting when compared with Chuncheon’s, and even I, one who has been voted by my fellow ATEs as “Most likely to eat anything,” had trouble finishing it to my aching stomach’s appeasement. I wonder how many of my fellow ATEs have been similarly disappointed outside of Chuncheon, and whether this is pandemic across the country. I thought before that such regional differences in food taste must be exaggerated to the benefice of the city which claimed to have the best item, but I see now the truth of this concerning Chuncheon. Once you’ve had dalkgalbi there, you’ll never go anywhere else.
I bemoan my leaving Korea eventually because of the loss I will feel at leaving Chuncheon’s dalkgalbi forever behind…
“Ah… Jeremy-shi?” he says to me politely while I’m mid dulachagi. “Yes?” say I, finishing the kick with a rather unsatisfactory plop against the padded target. (It’s supposed to make more of a plablam! sound if you kick it correctly.) “Chingu-rul Mimisa-ei manayo. (Friends meet at Mimisa.) You go.” “Chingu manayo?” I respond in confusion. “Now?” “Yes. Go, ot change-y. (Change your clothes.)”
Now, my confusion was understandable, as there is no one in the hamlet that I can properly call chingu. Everyone is either too young or too old or a colleague or just plain Korean. Because of the social hierarchy, no one would call me a chingu. This led me to all sorts of wild conclusions (and, admittedly, fantasies) about who could be waiting for me at Mimisa. Did one of my fellow entertaining teachers from American happen to come to the hamlet without telling me in order to surprise me? And if so, how on Earth did they know to look at my host mother’s beauty shop? Did they just ask every citizen of this fair city, “Hey! Do you know who the foreign guy in town is staying with? … Which foreign guy? You mean there are two? … Well, what are my options? … Australian or American, huh? The American one then. … The beauty supply shop? This way? Ok, thanks,” until they found me? I could only imagine this scenario as I walked in great anticipation towards my host-mother’s humble shop.
Well, the reality turned out to be much less exciting than the fantasy. As per usual, I suppose. Turns out, my host mother was meeting her friends for dinner. I just needed to tag along if I wanted to eat that night. Ah, disappointment. At least it was followed by food, a lesson in hospitality if I ever heard one: If you’re going to disappoint someone, give them some food to go with it. (One of the Korean proverbs in the back of my phrasebook in fact says, 둘이 먹다가 한 사람 죽어도 모른다 Duri meogdaga han saram jugeodo moreunda (While two are eating, one could die and the other wouldn’t know).
The evening was not a total loss, however, as I realized that one of Chuncheon’s claims to fame, that it serves the best dalkgalbi in the world, is in fact true, at least so far as Chuncheon and my hamlet are concerned. Dalkgalbi here is positively disgusting when compared with Chuncheon’s, and even I, one who has been voted by my fellow ATEs as “Most likely to eat anything,” had trouble finishing it to my aching stomach’s appeasement. I wonder how many of my fellow ATEs have been similarly disappointed outside of Chuncheon, and whether this is pandemic across the country. I thought before that such regional differences in food taste must be exaggerated to the benefice of the city which claimed to have the best item, but I see now the truth of this concerning Chuncheon. Once you’ve had dalkgalbi there, you’ll never go anywhere else.
I bemoan my leaving Korea eventually because of the loss I will feel at leaving Chuncheon’s dalkgalbi forever behind…
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
On the Streets of the Hamlet: An Encounter with My Students
I happened upon some of my students while walking from TKD to my host family’s beauty supply shop. We were equally surprised to see each other. Turns out there is a noraebang in the hamlet after all. At any rate, I think if I ever want to practice my Korean and learn new words (i.e. slang), it might be possible to hang out with my students. I think this will definitely happen if I ever shave…
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Writing Tutoring
Today, I got to dust off my writing tutoring skills, which were quite dusty. The pastor’s daughter wanted me to look over a couple of her essays at church, two for the TOEFL and one for the GRE. They were decently written. Certainly not the best English I’d ever seen, but since she has never studied at a native English speaking university where she’d have to learn how to actually write an English language essay, they were actually quite good. She attends Seoul National University, the Harvard of Korea (or the Yale or Stanford or Columbia, depending on your allegiances), so I really expected them to be about what they were. Still, she did have the common problems native Asian-language speakers have with article usage.
Her spoken English is quite good as well, and she has been very helpful in helping me know my way around the church. I was only too happy to oblige. She apparently wants to study 18th century western music at a university in the West, and I hope she can succeed. An American university would be foolish not to take her, to be honest.
Her spoken English is quite good as well, and she has been very helpful in helping me know my way around the church. I was only too happy to oblige. She apparently wants to study 18th century western music at a university in the West, and I hope she can succeed. An American university would be foolish not to take her, to be honest.
Korean Hostages Home
This morning, I found out that the Korean missionary hostages captured by the Taliban have been returned home. They are hospitalized for the duration of their recovery.
I cried a little when I saw the images on the news. My abeoji was as stoic as ever, but watched intently.
I cried a little when I saw the images on the news. My abeoji was as stoic as ever, but watched intently.
Watching TV
I’ve found watching television with my host family to be a worthwhile activity. For one thing, it allows me to just relax after a day of teaching, lesson planning, and TKD-ing. For another thing, we’ll usually see something on the TV that will inspire my host mother to ask me something about American culture, thus the following 0.5 to 1.5 hours will be spent trying to explain something relatively simple in a mixture of English, Korean, and improvised hieroglyphics. (For those traveling to a country where you cannot speak the language at all, a pocket-sized sketchpad is a must. You’d be amazed what you can get across about the American education system with a pen, some paper, and a LOT of stick figures.) Most recently, we were watching the World Track and Field Championships hosted in Osaka, Japan, and she noticed that the Jamaican runner crossed himself. My reaction was a silent, “Sweet!” Her reaction was a flustered one. Apparently, Catholics aren’t Christians, or at least are a lesser form of Christians compared to Korean Protestants. When I told her that some people in my church cross themselves too, she immediately became suspicious of my Catholicity. I had to assure her that I am not Catholic and that I am Christian. (Luckily, my Korean isn’t all that good or I might have been kicked out of the house by now in trying to inform my host mom that Catholics are Christians too and that most of my closest friends have a romantic inclination to become Catholics someday, as I do.)
There are a few things I’ve noticed about Korean TV this week however. The first has to do with subtitles. They are both annoying and interesting. Annoying, because people reading the subtitles (i.e. my host family) can get the jokes before they’re even delivered by the actors. They pre-empt my laugh and that makes it less funny for me.
But they are interesting not only because I can sit there trying to figure out what the Korean is saying based on the dialogue, but also because of the slight differences I can already notice despite my lack of Korean. For instance, I watched “The Kid” starring Bruce Willis last night with my abeoji. I was surprised to find that, whereas the 8-year old Russell would refer to the 40-year old Russell by his name on the English language track, the Korean subtitle would have the boy say a more respectful ajeoshi (아저시). Also, whereas Russell’s assistant would refer to Russell as Russell on the English language track, in the subtitles she would refer to him as boss (I can’t remember the Korean for this at the moment).
I think it says something about Korean society (or Disney, depending on who did the subtitling) that they would change the dialogue of the movie to fit their own cultural norms instead of leaving the dialogue as is and letting Korea deal with it on its own. The producers might not have wanted Korean children calling their old men by their first names nor assistants calling their bosses by the same. It is a sort of family film though, so that might have something to do with it.
(The film itself was entertaining, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wanted something lighthearted to watch. It’s by no means award winning material, but good clean fun to be sure. A coming of age story for the middle aged to childlike audience.)
In watching Korean dramas, I have noticed that sometimes directors get just plain sloppy with their film editing. For instance, in watching one today, the scene was a man racing to a wedding to stop the bride from getting married so he could declare his love to her. He was in convertible, anxiously checking his watch as he sped along the freeway. At least, we were supposed to think he was speeding. Instead of having him actually speed, they just sped up the film so the trees went by quicker. I might not have noticed if it weren’t for the fact that he was in traffic. Apparently, everybody on the freeway in Seoul was also in a rush to get to that wedding…
And a final blurb about Korean television, this time commercials. One advertisement this morning was selling a heated marble bed. That is, the actual part of the bed on which one sleeps was a marble slab with temperature controls. This is supposedly healthy and has been approved by the FDA. Not the Korean FDA mind you. The Miguk FDA. For those of you who don’t habla Korean, that’s the American FDA. Why do Korean advertising agencies think the American FDA is a selling point for a product? I haven’t the foggiest.
There are a few things I’ve noticed about Korean TV this week however. The first has to do with subtitles. They are both annoying and interesting. Annoying, because people reading the subtitles (i.e. my host family) can get the jokes before they’re even delivered by the actors. They pre-empt my laugh and that makes it less funny for me.
But they are interesting not only because I can sit there trying to figure out what the Korean is saying based on the dialogue, but also because of the slight differences I can already notice despite my lack of Korean. For instance, I watched “The Kid” starring Bruce Willis last night with my abeoji. I was surprised to find that, whereas the 8-year old Russell would refer to the 40-year old Russell by his name on the English language track, the Korean subtitle would have the boy say a more respectful ajeoshi (아저시). Also, whereas Russell’s assistant would refer to Russell as Russell on the English language track, in the subtitles she would refer to him as boss (I can’t remember the Korean for this at the moment).
I think it says something about Korean society (or Disney, depending on who did the subtitling) that they would change the dialogue of the movie to fit their own cultural norms instead of leaving the dialogue as is and letting Korea deal with it on its own. The producers might not have wanted Korean children calling their old men by their first names nor assistants calling their bosses by the same. It is a sort of family film though, so that might have something to do with it.
(The film itself was entertaining, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who wanted something lighthearted to watch. It’s by no means award winning material, but good clean fun to be sure. A coming of age story for the middle aged to childlike audience.)
In watching Korean dramas, I have noticed that sometimes directors get just plain sloppy with their film editing. For instance, in watching one today, the scene was a man racing to a wedding to stop the bride from getting married so he could declare his love to her. He was in convertible, anxiously checking his watch as he sped along the freeway. At least, we were supposed to think he was speeding. Instead of having him actually speed, they just sped up the film so the trees went by quicker. I might not have noticed if it weren’t for the fact that he was in traffic. Apparently, everybody on the freeway in Seoul was also in a rush to get to that wedding…
And a final blurb about Korean television, this time commercials. One advertisement this morning was selling a heated marble bed. That is, the actual part of the bed on which one sleeps was a marble slab with temperature controls. This is supposedly healthy and has been approved by the FDA. Not the Korean FDA mind you. The Miguk FDA. For those of you who don’t habla Korean, that’s the American FDA. Why do Korean advertising agencies think the American FDA is a selling point for a product? I haven’t the foggiest.
Weekly Letter Home
Dear Family and Friends,
This was a busy week in the town in which I live in the country in which I reside for this yearlong stint that the government, to which I am ever so grateful, has graciously bestowed upon me. (If you’re wondering why the cryptic language, I’ll explain below.) The highlights are these. I had a party with my fellow English teachers and a couple others of the faculty, which ended in disaster for me both that night and the next morning. My school put on a festival showcasing the talents of the students and the willingness to put themselves forward for public ridicule of the teachers and administration. (During a break in the festival, some of the older teachers offered to set me up on a blind date.) I began TKD at the local dojang and have signed up for hanja lessons at the same. I traveled to Wonju, the nearest big city, to meet friends from orientation. Oh, and I managed to teach students somewhere in between all those events as well.
Those were the highlights. The details (and an explanation for the cryptic language) are below.
This was a busy week in the town in which I live in the country in which I reside for this yearlong stint that the government, to which I am ever so grateful, has graciously bestowed upon me. (If you’re wondering why the cryptic language, I’ll explain below.) The highlights are these. I had a party with my fellow English teachers and a couple others of the faculty, which ended in disaster for me both that night and the next morning. My school put on a festival showcasing the talents of the students and the willingness to put themselves forward for public ridicule of the teachers and administration. (During a break in the festival, some of the older teachers offered to set me up on a blind date.) I began TKD at the local dojang and have signed up for hanja lessons at the same. I traveled to Wonju, the nearest big city, to meet friends from orientation. Oh, and I managed to teach students somewhere in between all those events as well.
Those were the highlights. The details (and an explanation for the cryptic language) are below.
Cryptic Language: An Explanation
A disclaimer about my future updates: They will be cryptic. By cryptic, I mean that names associated with my employers, my place of employment, my town, my position, etc. will be omitted in favor of phrases such as “The Powers that Be” in the case of my employers, “The School” in the case of my place of employment, “The Hamlet” in the case of my town, and “Entertaining Teacher from America” (ATE, when I want to abbrv.) in the case of my position. Other titles, I’ll make up as I go along and keep personal notes on them in case I ever want to publish my adventures here in … this country.
But, why the cryptic language? The Powers that Be have determined that some of our blogs within the Entertaining Teacher from America program are hitting a little too close to home in that they are easily searchable and even findable on the Internet. This would not be a problem if not for the fact that we have to maintain good relationships with our places of employment in order to have things like adequate stipends, homestays, two month paid vacations, and generally comfortable positions as we have now. If the place of employment happens upon an Entertaining Teacher from America’s blog, it might not like something it reads, whether that material is good or bad. It might just be information that the school doesn’t want made public. Thus, the Powers that Be want us to disassociate our blogs from the program, our schools, our hamlets, etc.
Now, technically, I do not have to abide by the censoring of this blog (free speech and all that), but I would like to get along with the program and I can understand their position concerning the benefits we receive from the host schools and would like to continue to receive.
Besides the language change in this blog, it also means that the blog will not be up for a while as I have to review old posts and censor them accordingly. I apologize for any confusion the new nomenclature might cause, and I hope it doesn’t make your reading too strenuous.
But, why the cryptic language? The Powers that Be have determined that some of our blogs within the Entertaining Teacher from America program are hitting a little too close to home in that they are easily searchable and even findable on the Internet. This would not be a problem if not for the fact that we have to maintain good relationships with our places of employment in order to have things like adequate stipends, homestays, two month paid vacations, and generally comfortable positions as we have now. If the place of employment happens upon an Entertaining Teacher from America’s blog, it might not like something it reads, whether that material is good or bad. It might just be information that the school doesn’t want made public. Thus, the Powers that Be want us to disassociate our blogs from the program, our schools, our hamlets, etc.
Now, technically, I do not have to abide by the censoring of this blog (free speech and all that), but I would like to get along with the program and I can understand their position concerning the benefits we receive from the host schools and would like to continue to receive.
Besides the language change in this blog, it also means that the blog will not be up for a while as I have to review old posts and censor them accordingly. I apologize for any confusion the new nomenclature might cause, and I hope it doesn’t make your reading too strenuous.
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