Happy Lunar New Year!

My students discussing something very important about their hanboks.

This is the wall that runs around the fortress.

Part of the city.

I just finished up another long 4 day weekend here in Seoul celebrating the lunar or as some say "Chinese" new year. I spent the majority of the time relaxing, but I did manage a mountain hike. It was just here in Seoul which is actually surrounded by mountains and something that frequently gets forgotten about because of all of the concrete everywhere. So my friend Derek and I hiked up this mountain, and the path ran along a old wall which surrounded a fortress and kept invaders from coming south across from what used to be part of Manchuria and is now North Korea. It was a very clear day, but unfortunately this city is very polluted and we couldn't really see too far. The pictures are good though and you can see much of the city. It is disappointing that even on cloudless days, there is a noticeable fog all around the city. From what I understand, the pollution comes from China's extremely successful industrialization. I am told that in April there are some wicked "yellow" dust storms that blow across the Asian Sea from China and create all sorts of havoc here in Seoul. I am sure it will be great for the old Asthma. Anyway, the hike was fun and sort of felt like we were in the outdoors even though there are skyscrapers in the distance.
Other then hiking, I recently purchased a bicycle and guitar. I have no idea how to play guitar, but I thought it should be fun trying to learn. So I am finding many ways to keep busy around here. My language is progressing, much slower then I had hoped, but it is none the less progressing. I am getting into a language class once a week starting Saturday which should help and provide a bit more structure for learning.
I am also strongly anticipating the starting of Spring Training. I have an addiction that needs to be fed. I thought this past season for my beloved Cubbies would be the end of me, but for some reason I continue finding myself wanting more and more from them. I will be purchasing the MLB radio again which is amazing and allows a person to listen to every game of the year online. It should be great and provide me with several more broken items in my householed from listening to them blow leads and continue down the road of futility.
I have posted a few more pictures here. Some from the hike, and a few more of my kids during the lunar new year party in their traditional clothing called "hanboks". I really want to get one made for myself.

My favorite student, Sarah. All of the children are given English names.

My students at the school Christmas party.

My friend Kylie and I at Everland.

A few of the Everland characters.

David, Kylie, and me

Winter Break!

I just am concluding the final evening of a wonderful week off from school. I had planned on going snowboarding up in the mountains, but it fell through because of a blown eardrum by my friend who was my ride out there. This is apparently extremely painful. I told him to suck it up, but something to do with the high altitude of the mountains kept him from wanting to go. He is from England though, so I guess that is kind of an excuse?
So I spent the week relaxing and checking out some more of the city. One of the darker experiences of the week was when my friend Derek, who recruited me to come here and and whom I spent two years with in Samoa, and I went to explore a former political prison and center of torture. It was a wild place. During the Japanese occupation of Korea for the majority of the first fifty years of the 20th century, the resistance fighters who were captured were sent to this 5oo person maximum security prison and house of torture. The English rhetoric, or lack there of, describing the prison was minimal, but the exhibits were intense and left a scar on one's mind. I cannot imagine performing or going through these methods of torture. They showed several different scenes, but the worst was a room where the viewer stared through a small hole in the wall at two mannequins, one of which was performing "nail" torture on the other. Nail torture is where a small piece of metal is slid underneath a person's fingernail until it hits the bone in the finger. Also, there were speakers mounted on the inside of the viewing spot where a ear piercing scream from the victim could be heard. So it was interesting to learn about the Japanese occupation and provided me a bit more insight into the resilience of Koreans and their culture. It explains a great deal about why Koreans feel the way they do about the Japanese. The occupation ended at the end of WWII, which is another of the infinite reasons to be thankful the Allies won.
The other big activity for the week was a trip to the Korean version of Disney Land which is called "Everland" (not to be confused with the molestation camp "Neverland" where Michael Jackson is housed. I thought there was some sort of association between the two but made an ass of myself when I asked). Everland was quite a magical place with several strange looking characters that resemble Mickey Mouse on acid. It is pretty much your typical themepark with a Korean twist on it. The rides were a lot of fun and included three rollercoasters and several other rides that made me really dizzy. It was a cool experience, and I would like to go back when the temprature is above zero.
So all is well in Korea. I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday season. I have attached a few pics from Everland and other events during the past weeks. Notice the horrible Xmas sweater, including the scarf, that I am rocking during the party with the students. I earned a lot of street credit with the kindergarteners for that one.

Boston Campus

So here I am finally getting around to updating this and taking some photos after being here for a month! Time has been flying by, and I really have been enjoying Seoul and everything that it has to offer so far. I am teaching at a school called "Boston Campus". The school includes both a kindergarten, which takes place from 10 am until 2:40 pm, and a afternoon program for older elementary school students to come and learn English after they go to their regular school. It has been challenging for me to learn how to teach and manage a classroom with 6 year-old students and is a far cry from the style of teaching I did in Samoa. I enjoy the kids, but I find the babysitting part of the job to be a bit frustrating. However, I am learning to be patient and really beginning to become attached to my students. The older children in the afternoons are great and really intelligent. I enjoy discussing things with them and seeing their energy and enthusiasm for learning English. Some of them spend nearly 12 hours a day in a classroom setting, so I respect them immensely for their unwavering work ethic. It is really a reflection on the culture as a whole. Koreans are very hard workers and never seem to complain about how much they have to do. It is very different then my countrymen back home!
So outside of school, I have been attempting to speak and learn some Korean which is difficult. I have been bad about making time to study, but I am starting a language exchange with some of the teachers at school once a week. I think it will provide a more structured approach to learning instead of trying to just pick things up as I go. Other then that, life is good here. The city is huge, and I have enjoyed wandering around. I have a week off for Xmas and am planning to go into the mountains for some snowboarding which should be a blast.
Anyway, that is the update for now. I have attached a few pics from my kindergarten class and will put some more on soon. We have a school Xmas party this week which should be a good time for pictures. I hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable holiday.

The supposed Witch Doctor???

Most of you who know me will find this humorous because you understand how much I love baseball and my Cubs. So this picture was taken in March before Spring training began for my beloved Chicago Cubs. I spent the first three and a half months of 2008 traveling in South Africa and Mozambique with my good friend Dane. One day in Cape Town, Dane and I visited a township where we encountered this very powerful witch doctor who asked if there was any sort of illness or issues with either of us or any of our family members. The biggest issue I was having happen to be the amount of time I have wasted watching this god forsaken baseball team. I explained to him that the hat I was wearing represented a baseball team from the United States that had not won anything in a really long time because they were cursed by a crazy fan and his billy goat. He told me to give him the hat and placed his hat on my head followed by some strange chanting. After he took the hat off of my head he explained that the curse had been lifted. I truly believed this man and after watching the regular season thought the Cubs were finally going to win. After they were swept out of the playoffs for the second year in a row I realized I was duped again into believing that they could win. I feel that this year really broke me and I don't know if I will ever watch them again...