'tis the season to be merry!

Happy holidays everyone!

I've been busy thinking of Christmas and the people in my life, oh and making Christmas cards.
A couple of Sundays ago, I stayed home and made my Christmas cards. I'm not creative so I had to take ideas from the internet and play around with them. I couldn't pass the reindeers card when I made it; it was uber cute! And it was so easy to make. So I decided to make all of my Christmas cards this year the reindeers card.
While making the cards, I had my stupid moment. Since the weather was cold outside, I closed the windows, turn on the floor heat and made the cards inside my nice and warm house. For the cards, I needed to use my thumb print but I couldn't find any brown stamp ink so I decided to run a brown marker over my thumb for my prints. Of course, you know where this is going... I got high - a little. I kept asking myself, 'man, why do I feel light headed?', 'did I drink the Crown?'. After one hour of asking myself, I realized the ink on my thumb and that ink = fume. DUH! Then my thumb started to itch and have a weird feeling; I started to freak out about ink poison. Let's just say, the fume got to me good. But I had fun making the cards and I hope my family and friends enjoy their card.

Work
I renewed my contract to work in South Korea as a GET (NET) for another year. I like this school and my students, and I hope to teach the lower grade students next year ^^ It works out well for me and them.
Next week is winter break and English camp kicks off again!
Hope to have a wonderful and fun time!

Hongdae's Free Market

This past Saturday, a friend and I met up in Hongdae to go to the Hello Kitty Cafe there. Before we went to the cafe, we decided to look around Hongdae's Free Market that operates on Saturdays (http://www.freemarket.or.kr/). I heard about an artist who draws portraits of people based on the word that the people give her to describes them and the feeling of the person she receives from the person during the session. So while we were there, I decided to go look at her work and decided to do a session with her.
I couldn't think about a word that will describes me, so I thought and thought and I finally choose 'pollen'. It travels where the wind takes it, and wether it plants its self on good soil, bad soil, or no soil, it still grows. When it grows it can be taken as a pest (weed) or something good (flower). I saw the pollen as myself; the wind, my journey of finding myself being pulled here and there; the soil, my destinations and experiences.

After some small talks and listening to my conversation with my friend, this was her final drawing based on my word. And this is the poetry she wrote with it:

어디로 가는지 몰라도
날면 어느새 나는
태양선의 강렬한을
나무의 강인한을 닮아가며

I don't know where I'm heading 
but while flying, I'm getting 
the Sun's strong rays. 
the tree's thick trunk. 


-초 선영 Cho Sun Young 











Before we parted, she said 'It's not the destination that matters, but the journey'. I thought, she gets it, and smiled.

If you are interested to look at her works or just to get to know her more, here is her website:
http://www.chosunyoung.com/

11.7.2011

November has arrived! The leaves have changed color and most have fallen... oh the year is coming to an end; how time flies.
But before November begun, there was Halloween. Of course people know and heard of Halloween here in South Korea. Because my regular classes were behind schedule we couldn't celebrate Halloween so I just passed out candies and chocolates to my students. But for my after-school class, we were able to do something "Halloween". I gotta say, my students stump me on their idea of costume for Halloween -- just isn't the same...

Can you guess what she is?

Pin-the-Jack-O-Lantern

The Mummies

This past Friday there was a big event at my school, students held talent shows in their classrooms for their parents. There were some amazing shows and many students have a lot of talents. The shows ranged from singing, dancing, musical instruments, sign language, other languages, taekwondo, magic shows, and even comedy-- I enjoyed watching them perform.

playing the Kayagum

Comedy show ^.^

Taekwondo

November kicked off awesomely. The best news I heard and saw was my mom progress, she now can walk a short-short distance by herself, without a cane! WOW! I am amazed and so proud of her. Miss and love my mom and dad, lots ♥

I hope November continues to be awesome. 

To Hlee

Hlee, 

I remember when you were little, you were always favored by the adults; with your cute-girly smile and your easy character to liking people, there was not one adult who didn't adore you. And now you have grown into a woman who has learned to make her own choices and finding your own footsteps in life with people still adoring you. 

In a couple of days, you will be off and on your way to start a new and amazing part of life -- marriage. (wooh-wooh ^^ ) I am glad you have found someone who you love, and who loves you; someone who you can laugh whole-heartily with, share and build your future with, and grow old with. 

I'm happy for you and Toua, and I wish you two the best and happiness on this new start together. 

can't wait!

Planning and saving for my trip home. I can't wait! My family and boyfriend will finally meet and it's going to be awesome. So while we are working toward our trip, we won't be seeing much of each other. It's all worth it, all those lonely weekends spent without him.
I can't wait to see my mom and dad and the little kids <3

I miss everyone, I miss home and the comforts back home. CAN'T WAIT

On a different note, I saw the new movie, 도가니(The Crucible). It is based on a novel written by Gong Ji-Young on a true story that took place at a deaf school here in South Korea. My heart goes out to the students who have been sacred and hurt. My heart just ached watching it and I am sure many Koreans who were not aware of this situation is now doing a massive research on the story.  

This movie have so many dilemmas to the story; cultural, money, power, religion, status, relationship; I think it's a good movie that portray the dirty and common themes of corruption, Korean style. It's nasty, like any kind of corruption and evil. Watch it. 

Summer time, summer time...

Summer first kicked off with three weeks of English Summer Camp. These kids were cute and I had a great time. The most memorable moment of camp was when the 3rd graders kick-ass during a knowledge competition - these asses were of 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. It just shows that in a few more years, South Korea won't be needing native English speakers to come work as a guest teacher anymore; I'm so proud.

After Summer English Camp, I headed down to Busan with some friends and had a good time. The best part was chilling by the sea, eating some sashimi, drinking, and chatting up in Korean ^^;; But I gotta say, my Korean skill is awful but it was nice trying to speak the language.

      

Oh, and I went to 'Trick-Eyed Museum' in Hongdae, Seoul. It was nice but there were too many people making it difficult to take decent shots, maybe another time.


This pretty much concludes my summer...

Oh Korea!

This past weekend, I went to Samcheok with my boyfriend to visit a very special park in South Korea called Haesindang Park.
This park is known to for it's statue galore of penises. The fence is made of wooden penises and even the benches are penises.
I thought this place would be offensive for many Koreans before I visited it because of the theme but when I arrived at the park, the atmosphere was totally opposite; visitors were laughing and having a humorous time at the park. This place isn't sexist either, vaginas have their own share of being displayed, oh and not to forget about the he-she, she-he because they are there, too. This park is for EVERYONE :)
Enjoy the photos!

Penises hanging over your head

Zodiac Penis statues + penis bench

The shrine dedicated to the story of the penis in this park -- check out the fence

This one is called 'Power' 

The location of this park is very beautiful, right by the sea

Penis bench

Just some penis statues

Next on my list to visit are:  

-Toilet Museum

-Love Park

short stop by the Han River

My boyfriend and I stop by the Han River to have some time together and to enjoy the weather. Although I think there isn't much to do in the parks of the Han River, I always find something good to do or something awesome to see -- it could just be that, whenever I'm at the Han River, I'm either with great people or something eventful occurs there. And when I go back there, I am always reminded of people or events.

During my semester in Seoul, I met and made great friends. I will always cherish these friends and the friendship that I have bonded with these ladies. The day in the picture was a great day -- a whole new world. 

Right now, I'm nothing without you...

I have never felt as held back as I do right now in my life; I'm so lost without my alien ID.

I'm currently working aboard and all the important things that I need to set up and get, such as my salary, aren't going to happen until I get that alien ID in my hand. I'm totally broke and I got bills to pay -- I feel horrible all over every time I think about my situation and I don't like it.

Anyhow, fast rewind, here are somethings I've done and seen since I've been here -- 3rd time around.

1) A friend and I visited the grandmothers of 'The House of Sharing' here in South Korea. If you aren't aware, this place is the museum and home of former 'Comfort Women' for Japan's army during WWII.  I learned about comfort women in college but to see, meet, and learn more in detail leaves me wordless. If you are interested to learn more or about visitation, you can check their site at http://www.houseofsharing.org/

Here is an art piece that the grandmothers now do (painting) as a way to express their past, future, and self to the world.

2) Another friend and I stop at the East Gate of Seoul (Dongdaemun) to check it out. As we walked out of the subway exit, I thought we would have to walk a few minutes before we can see the gate clearly but nope, to my surprise, it was right in front of us, looking like a big gate as a part of the palace. If you don't know, when Korea was still ruled under an emperor, Seoul was where the main palace was located and to enter Seoul itself, one had to enter in one of the four gates of Seoul (north, south, east, and west). 

A couple of years ago, when I first came to South Korea, a crazy fellow citizen burned down the East Gate (Namdaemun) and that gate is currently being rebuilt. Dongdaemun market is very near by and there are many shoppers hoping to get many supplies and items at great bargain prices. It's just too bad that when my friend and I went there, we were too early (7pm) so none of the shops were open yet. Anyone looking for good places to bargain, Dongdaemun is a place you should go ^^

3) I was shopping in Idae with a friend and had to stop, look, and check. Doesn't the name of this cafe catch your eyes? It certain caught my eyes. I had to look more than twice  to make sure I was reading and seeing it correctly -- I was. Things like these are one of the great things and fun part of living and being in an EFL country. LOVE IT! 

I'm off, till next time -- keep rolling. 

A series of unfortunate events

A series of unfortunate events had taken place within the past few months in our home. 

These events are like a domino effect; unfortunate events taking place one after another...

But even though these events has happened and left myself and my family scared and scarred it has taught us a big lesson about life. 

For myself, I have learned and seen the preciousness aspect of life. I have seen the simplicity of taking away life; coldness of sickness and death, and the process of aging...life, just as it is.

In my heart, I grieve silently but I know I don't grieve alone. 

For those who lost a loved one or a love one who is sick, my heart goes out to you. 

A silver lining is not far...










image found on Google.com 

Eat Pray Love (the movie)

I watched Eat, Pray, Love with my sister today and I think that the movie was decent. It had some humor that is actually witty and funny.

After watching the movie, a line in the movie got me thinking about individuality, love, and balance.  The line  in the movie goes something like this:

'I don't need to love you, for me to love me.'

So what do you think? What are your thoughts about the line?