Entries in April 2009
Buddha's Birthday Bash
Written by Bessie on Sunday, April 26, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' normal
Every year Seoul has a big street festival & parade in honor of Buddha's birthday: the Lotus Lantern Festival. I'd never been into a Buddhist temple before this weekend, and I was pretty excited to check a few out. We weren't alone as foreigners curious about Buddha's birthday, and in fact the organizers made us pretty welcome. There were booths galore and they made this pamphlet that if you visit so many booths they'll give you a free t-shirt. We wandered in and out of temples and watched festivities. Feelin' normal
making lotus lanterns; Shauna, me, and Sarah (also teachers) posing with our lanterns
What exactly is the Moral of This Story?
Written by Kyle on Friday, April 24, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' confused
So, a teacher asked me to record my voice reading the following story for one of the parents of a kindergarten student. I figured it was so that the parent could then read his/her child a story in English, thereby reinforcing the English he/she is learning in school. While that initial assumption is probably correct, I found the contents of the book to be quite odd. Here is the story in full: Feelin' confused
It's a 1950's World Fair and a Zoo and an Art Museum and...
Written by Kyle on Sunday, April 19, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' confused
Looking for a nice, quiet day, we went in search of Seoul Grand Park, the closest large park to us. We imagined nice paths surrounded by trees and people having quiet picnics with their families. After a week of dealing with kids, it seemed like a good way to wind down on a Sunday. What we found, however, was really nothing like that.Feelin' confused
Instead, it looked like something you would see advertising the World's Fair in the 1950s. With the ski lifts taking people from one side of the park to the other and the odd futuristic building in the background, I half expected to see a sign advertising "The Wave of the Future: Nuclear Powered Ovens!", or some other equally incorrect prediction about future life.
My Kindergarteners!
Written by Bessie on Thursday, April 16, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' normal
I spend 25 hours a week with these little cuties! I teach them English through subjects like Phonics, Math, Story Telling, and Dictionary. They take a lot of patience sometimes, but they're really great. They all use English names like Sarah and Harry.Feelin' normal
my classroom w/ dry eraseboard; playing Musical
After lunch the kids have about 10 minutes of play time. We go to the playground once or twice a week, and other times we stay in the room. They love playing this game called Musical, where they set up a stage, and 2 people "perform", while the audience watches. Adorable, right!?
Good E-Mart Karma!
Written by Bessie on Wednesday, April 15, 2009 in Korea, Republic of
Feelin' normal
E-Mart is sort of like South Korea's Super Target mixed with a classy department store. The story I've gotten from a few Koreans is that it used to be WalMart, and this is the only country that it couldn't compete because you can buy things so cheaply in Korea, and people are such bargain hunters, that WalMart went out of business. I was even told that Koreans banded together and stopped shopping at WalMart so that it would have to close. Feelin' normal
E-Mart near our apartment, at Pyeongchon Station
