Dr. Fish

Okay, so we have officially entered the start of Monsoon Season- and I have officially witnessed my first "Monsoon". It really wasn't more than massive droplets of liquid pouring down from the sky heavily and steadily; accompanied by an incredibly loud thunderstorm that, when I found myself running toward the door away from the window- heart pounding, I realized had awoken me from my sleep. I don't know if I was running because I thought it was gunfire, or a chopper trying to make it's way into my building to spread an unknown virus of mass destruction into the airways. But what I do know is that I have been watching entirely way too many episodes of 24 before I go to sleep. 

So, Monsoon Season created the necessary mission of obtaining rain boots. While on that mission we stopped off at the Dr. Fish tank for a feeding. Very, very interesting, indescribable ticklish, weird, vibration type feeling- picture little tiny toothless fish furiously sucking the dead skin cells off your nasty feet (because that is exactly what was going on there). They definitely did some damage, I just feel like they started something and now they need to finish the job. 

Oh and mission accomplished, with polka-dotted colors.

One Month

After one month I finally set up a bank account, with the assistance of Lucas aka Shine aka Avalon Bitch. Poor guy doesn’t even get a break to take a piss, let alone eat. He also helps us research phone plans. Lynn, Shine and I walk from one phone place across the street to another across the street to another to compare non-existent International cell phone plans in the dripping humidity. I can’t take it anymore, I’m about to squander my entire first months pay and purchase the new 4G iphone, or… Giorgio Armani phone, I can’t decide. Instead we just head back to work to do more research on the matter and deal with it later. Turns out, the best deal is to get a cheap Korean plan and use a special code or calling card to call internationally. Or… get a smart phone and download Skype for $5 bucks a month and use that to call home, but then you would have to pay for the smart phone plus an additional fee for Internet. This is what I gather on the phone situation. Tomorrow I will make the purchase and sign the papers. I’ll let you know how it pans out. I guess cell phones are just a pain in the ass all over the world.

As for Internet, it has been one month and I still do not have this wonderful invention available for use within my humble abode. Is it 2010? I don’t care where I am, it’s the Interweb for Christ’s sake, and it goes everywhere. I was blessedly picking up a signal in one spot of my little studio for about two days, but that quickly ended. Internet will come soon though, I am sure of it. One small step at a time.

As for teaching I think I’m settling into and getting used to the routine… or lack there of. I have one particularly troublesome class of boys who I moved around the other day, I think they hated me for it at first. But then they behaved, so I enforced their positive working habits with candy of course, they will do anything for candy and hangman. ADHD Jenna is so cute I can’t stand it, silly Cindy has taken to patting my butt every time I walk by her, or walking her fingers up my back when I am helping another student. I discovered the “HelloKittee” culprit, writing all over the desk in blue permanent marker… Sally. And I can’t forget Kevin’s story about his last birthday where he made sure to thank his mother for “birthing him hard”. Yup. They close school for almost nothing, but tonight the last class of the evening is cancelled due to the World Cup. HUGE thing Here. Go Red Devils!!

Oh and PS- SPAVIS… you gave me my first ever case of the athlete’s foot. I knew you were too good to be true. Don’t worry though, I am taking care of this lovely fungus. For only 5,000 won- ughhh… first medical ish, in Korea. My epidermis always fails me.

SPAVIS.

The I-Chung weather report has been calling for rain for the past week and it has been nothing less than sunny and hot- maybe a few hours of overcast, but still... no rain. I guess that even on the other side of the world the Meteorologists still don't really have to know what they are talking about.

So this past weekend, our first with no work really, we were bummed by the prospect of rain so upon waking on Saturday morning, with our first ever Soju hangover (I am told these can last up to two days) we were really excited to see clear skies. We decide to go on an adventure and explore the area around us.

Task#1- Figure out the public transportation system. We decide to go to Asan, famous for it's hot springs, spas, botanical garden, large lake and raw fish restaurants; and only a 25min train ride away. When we get to the station, with an abnormal amount of stairs, we are told to take the subway, it's comes more frequently then the train. A man helps us purchase tickets at the machine and points to the track we need to wait on. We board the very nice, very clean, very spacious subway. Then the one other American in sight comes over to us to make sure we know what we're doing... because I guess from the looks of it we don't at all. He tells us we need to transfer. Thank you, nice man. Anyway, we make it to Asan.

Task#2- Where do we go and how do we get there? There is a rather large map with beautiful pictures of all the different tourist destinations; Buddhist temples, hot springs, waterfalls, spas!! I am so excited I want to go to every place on the map. We are bombarded by taxis everywhere we turn. We jump in one with no real plan. We manage to tell the guy, through excessive miming, that we want to swim, I think. He seems to get it and seems to know where we want to go... so, we are on our way. A lake? A hot spring? A spa? We're not quiet sure. But... we did bring our bathing suits! ^^ 20 mins and 20,000 won later we are dropped off, seemingly, in the middle of nowhere. When we look up, we see we are at ... SPAVIS spa paradise.

Let me just tell you a little bit about this experience: it is... interesting. pretty cool. definitely different. Once we pay our admission fee we are given a bracelet to wear with a number on it. The number will correspond to our locker numbers. A separate locker for our shoes of course, and then the main locker- in the giant locker room. The bracelet is used to scan, to unlock the lockers and we find out later, to charge things. Genius. So... the locker room and attached amenities; indoor spa with a steam room, a hot coal sauna, an even hotter coal sauna, and at least 5 or 6 hot baths filled with different aromatic things, jets or no jets. Of course we don't know exactly what these things are or what they do to you because we can't read what is says on each sign next to the baths. There are showers everywhere, and a massage room. It is very nice, and big, like a very expensive country club.... an expensive, nudist, country club. I always wanted to see what it would be like to experience a nudist colony. Now I know. Except, men and women are separated here, of course. Lynn and I feel modest with our bathing suits on. But outside... you can't have enough clothing on. I don't know if it is because of the sun or because outside men and women roam together. But jees... fully dressed, in the pool. I'm talking long sleeves and all. Not everyone of course, but most women are well covered. Now I need a shirt.

Outside there is a wave pool, water slides, more hot baths with minerals in them, a water park for kids, food stands, a lazy river, a bade pool and a fish therapy pool... we don't try this yet, but we definitely will at some point. Everyone MUST wear a life-vest also. We find this out by getting chased by a scantily clad lifeguard into the 4 foot deep wave pool. Common. But, we go with it, we're already here right. We obtain a life-vest and a bathing cap and go play. We looked awesome, sorry no pics- no cams.

Task#3- Getting home. We decide to try and catch a bus thinking it will be cheaper than the taxi, plus, we're not really sure how to get a taxi out here. The woman at the front desk kindly writes down the bus times for us and directs us to the nearest stop. After waiting 30mins for the bus to arrive we are promptly told 'no' by the driver. I don't know if there was just a miscommunication, something lost in translation, or if we needed a special card, but we didn't get on the bus. We have a good two hours of sunlight left, so.... we truck it. It was a nice scenic walk

in the country and at times I really felt like I was upstate New York- mountains in the distance, random shacks off the road, piles of tires and roaming chickens... and random roadside chopper/bar establishments. Eventually we hail a cab and get dropped off at the station. We make it back around 10pm missing the 'meet-up' dinner we were planning on attending. I'm pretty much shot anyway and plus, we have a year to meet people, right? Sunday consists of basking on the roof, reading and of course... Jack. xo

Jack

I am in love with a man named Jack, Jack Bauer.

Health Check

This is what happens when you smoke... in Korea.

5.29.10  

Yesterday we are taken to get our health check. Eyes, ears, chest, blood, urine, height, weight and…. bust measurements?! Odd. No hip or waist measurements, just… bust. I wonder why. The hospital is a tad on the dirty side, but; I guess that is what you get when you aren’t feeding millions into the healthcare system- but guess what, if you are sick and broke someone will actually take care of you! AND you won’t have to take out a loan or sell your sister if you happen to break a bone. That’s comforting. There is a porcelain hole in the ground of one of the bathroom stalls, I am told this is common but this is the first one I come across… in the hospital. BUT there is an above ground commode as well, and I opt for that one, it is 

hard enough aiming into the tiny cup they give me, but then again, what isn’t tiny? Oh, the needle, the only larger than American item I have come across so far. Abnormally and unnecessarily large. Figures.

6.02.10

I have been here two weeks.

 

The director of our school says that Lynn and I look the same….WE look the same? Really??? Ha.

We have also begun our first week of teaching. So far so good. We are given the books to teach from and a weekly syllabus so no lesson plans for us! Awesome. My favorite part… we get to give our kids English names if they can’t think of one themselves and don’t already have one! So far I have a few Jenna’s, a Cara, Sara, Jill, Jeff, JoAnna, Lynn, Lindsey, Rocco and Phil. Sorry- Eva and Rusty didn’t work out too well.  They have to like the name I suggest.

 

6 Year old Jenna needs some Adderall and Rocco and Phil need to be separated already, JoAnna looks just like Dora the Explorer, Sara is super smart, Cara is super stylish and Jeff is cute and nerdy. Oh, and Phil has highlights. And Cara gave me a gift of sweet yogurt nectar.

 

Lynn and I go out for some fried chicken and beer and stumble upon THIS right here.

 

 

We spend the rest of the night cheers-ing to: Obama, Hip-Hop (Eminem in particular), CSI Miami, American Idol…. and Lynn’s Russian Gangster Jujitsu boyfriend of course. I caaaan’t.

 

Oh. I also spot my first gay Korean couple. Very cool hair.