songnisan: round 2 (part 2 of 2)

A step-by-step instructional guide on how to hike: Korean-style.

1. Visit your local sporting-goods store and purchase the latest equipment. A basic package must include hiking shoes, slicky pants, and a wind breaker-all in matching colours. For those more committed, make sure to buy the ultimate package including an underarmor-type shirt, backpack, walking-pole, whistle, flash light, fisherman's hat, and microfiber towel.

2. After being properly attired, locate the mountain you wish to climb. Make sure to go on a weekend when half of Korea (all similar outfits) will be with you.

3. Begin hiking, but do not climb more than two kilometers (preferably one) before stopping at a conveniently located rest stop for Korean pancakes and other refreshments.

4. If you are the group leader, it is your duty to randomly blow your whistle to make sure your group is within earshot.

5. Note to those accustomed to switchbacks: there are none.

6. Enjoy your day!

The hiking trip up Songnisan Mountain was a great experience and the trail looked a lot different with the fall leaves. The weather was cooler and I took the hike at a slower pace than the last time I made the hike. Hiking in, we hiked the same trail I had hiked a couple of months ago. Coming out, however, we took a different path that was very beautiful. For those familiar with Glacier National Park, part of the loop coming out was similar to the Highliner Trail. While there were a TON of other people on the trail (Avalanche Lake on a busy summer day times ten!) I loved being in a different environment with my fellow school-workers. The whole hike was a great seven and a half miles. The pictures will tell the rest of the story.

 

heading out in the morning: the 6th grade 

teacher Kim Gi San), Yuna, and Song Sem

 pretty lake

 

i love this tree growing right out of a rock. i want to 

come back in twenty years and see what has happened. 

 

the view was great from the top

 

just me and nature...

 

if you look closely, you can see all the people 

at the summit (which we did not go to)

 

one of the many rest stops

 

a map of our jouney

 

fall colours

songnisan: round 2 (part 1 of 2)

I was not quite sure what to expect for the teacher's retreat this weekend. All I knew was that it would be overnight and that we would hike in Songnisan. (Quick reminder: I hiked to the top of Songnisan during orientation with other Fulbrighters). So, being slightly hesitant but excited nonetheless, I packed my overnight bag and met the school bus in front of my apartment complex. There were about fifteen school members, including the principal, vice principal, janitor, and a couple of secretaries. I was relieved to see Yuna and Song Sem, the two teachers I am closest to.

The bus ride began with a couple of teachers passing out gallon-sized zip lock bags full of goodies for the retreat. Water, gum, three tangerines, honeyed sliced ginseng, and hand wipes were all included. Then, just as I was settling in for my normal bus-trip nap, one of the teachers cranked the Korean music past the suggested volume level and the PE teacher started dancing and shouting up and down the aisle of the bus. The other teachers clapped with the music (all I have to say about that is two and four, guys, two and four). Not to be outdone, the principal got out a whistle (yes, a whistle-we will touch upon that subject again) and made a strobe light out of his flashlight. I now understand the interior decorations of Korean buses.

After a little over an hour of the bus dance party, we arrived at the Korean president's vacation home. The grounds were beautiful with a lake, fountain, golf course, garden, and jogging track. I am in love with the fall colours and smells. There are not nearly as many colourful trees in Hongseong. We spent a leisurely afternoon walking around and taking pictures.

Once again boarding the buses, we had another musical leg of our journey followed by dinner and checking into the motel. I figured I would have a relaxing evening of games in my motel room with Yuna and Song Sem when I heard a whistle being blown in the hallway. It was the principal, calling us to gather for our trip to the Noraebang!! As we were walking out the door, Yuna asked me if I knew of The Sound of Music. When I responded with, "The hills are alive..." she pointed down the hallway towards the principal and whispered, "The captain." We all laughed.

Now, some may be wondering what Noraebang is: think karaoke on steroids. Flashing lights, loud music, a disco ball, a stage, and extra reverb in the mic. The best part is that a party rents a Noraebang room just for the group. There were even some English songs in the files, so I got to sing with my fellow teachers. This was my first Noraebang experience, but I laughed a lot and had a good time.

The evening concluded with a couple of games of Uno with Yuna and Song Sem followed by a great conversation.

 

the lake on the walk to the president's home

 

Song Sem and me on the bamboo bench

pretty sequoias

sunset approaching

posing near one of the bronzes of a previous president

Alanna and Mary: look closely, apparently someone else wants persimmons

 

evening silhouette 

Yuna and Song Sem

Yuna and me

conquering the thermostat...among other things

I don't do well with being cold. My fingers turn blue, my mind shuts down and I am not necessarily the most pleasant person to be around. This doesn't mean that I don't like winter. I love frosty mornings and crunching snow, just as long as I have access to a warm coat, gloves, a scarf and an occasional warm beverage. Ergo, when my classroom heater started producing a lot of cold air, I started worrying. At first the thermostat was very simple to use. There is a big number with a degree sign that goes up when I push the appropriate arrow and the air flow follows suit. But then, all I started getting was cold air...and lots of it. I think one of my students punched a bunch of buttons while I was out of the room and changed the settings. "That's okay. I will just get my handy-dandy cell phone dictionary and figure out which of these settings is heat." Or not. The words on the thermostat did not correspond with what was in my dictionary. Plan B: push a button and see what happens. Forty-five minutes later, after multiple trips up and down a stool to feel the air coming from the AC unit I successfully had sufficiently warm air to heat my classroom! Success! Welcome to my life as an English teacher in Korea.

change is in the air

I stepped out of my apartment this morning to welcome the smell of snow. Mind, snow has not yet fallen, it just smells like it is coming. Crisp, clean, and freezing the inside of the nose. I love the necessity of a heavier coat and the excuse for a scarf and gloves. And then there are the coloured leaves gathering in piles on the sidewalk. Let's just say that I have been in Southern California for too many "falls" and "winters".

Chaos adequately defines yesterday. After a full day of teaching (six classes), I had a short respite before heading off to Taekwondo for the most intense workout I have had since moving to Hongseong. I worked on a kick that begins as a front kick and then pivots partway through, turning into a side kick. For the whole hour. Exiting the academy happy but exhausted, I then hopped in a cab to attend my first Korean language class in Hongseong. But the driver didn't understand the address! I paid eight thousand won to be dropped off at my co-teacher's house so she could drive me to the language class. Em (my friend who lives in Yesan) joined me for the class, so at least I didn't walk in late alone. (Just as a general note, I would much rather skip out on any given event than walk in late). I was a little weirded out by seeing this high of a concentration of Westerners in Hongseong, but I am really excited to be able to meet other foreigners. The class went well and the journey home was uneventful.

Currently my days are busy but fulfilling, even though I am a bit more homesick than I expected. I keep wondering how cold it will get here this winter. :)

samulnori

The lack of music made me a little nervous as I positioned an hourglass-shaped drum on the carpet in front of me. Nine other people were already striking their drums in rhythm, with a mallet in their left hands and a wooden stick in their right. I did not pick up on a distinct direction before the group changed from one rhythm to the next, just the collective movement of arms and shoulders in the kitchen section of a furniture store. Welcome to Samulnori, the Korean traditional drums.

"Samul" means four parts and "nori" means play. Samulnori consists of playing four different instruments. There is a small and large gong (Kkwaenggari and Jing) a barrel-shaped drum (buk), and the instrument I was playing, the Janggu. It began as a folk music of the farmers in Korea. Within the first couple of days of arriving in Hongseong, I was invited to participate in Samulnori by my co-teacher. The last two ETAs at Galsan Elementary School came to the Samulnori classes. I was excited to begin, but due to scheduling conflicts my first day did not happen until last night when Yuna and I drove out to the furniture store for practice.

I appreciate printed music detailing the time signature, specific rhythms, and where I am supposed to be at any given time. You could say that it is a comfy security blanket. But Samulnori seems to be more malleable. I think the percussionists know which rhythm to move to based off the beating-pattern of the Kkwaenggar (small gong: about the size of a tambourine, held with one hand while being struck with a hard mallet with the other) player. Last night it just felt like they were reading each others' minds. The first instructions I received were not on how to hold the mallet and drum stick, but on how to feel and move with the beat. Because everyone is sitting on the ground, there is no swaying back and forth, just a general vertical motion of the torso and a bounce in the arms; the teacher gave the example of riding a horse.

After a while we worked on a few rhythms. The mallet makes a deep base sound and I was told to say Koom when hitting with it. The wooden stick strikes the rim under the head of the drum and makes a higher, brighter sound, Ta. When both are struck together, I say Tong. The rest was a game of follow the leader. Because of my music background-and once I could feel the beat of the music-I started rapidly picking up the different rhythms. My co-teacher said that I have natural talent :). We were all playing one rhythm and the Tong was so pervasive that it appeared to take over my heartbeat. When everyone stopped at the same time, the unexpected silence was more emphatic than the music.

Regardless of potential hearing damage, it was a splendid evening. I loved the collective pulse and the general camaraderie that comes from being in a musical group. I am definitely looking forward to next Thursday evening.

Samulnori drums:

jonggu

jing

kkwaenggari

buk

along comes Murphy

Monday morning began with my usual carpool to work. Being sick over the weekend, I still had the remains of a cough, but was approaching feeling healthy. Tucked in my purse, I had my ever-so-useful flash drive containing the ten lesson plans and accompanying powerpoint files and worksheets I had written the night before. At least, that was the plan. After greeting my fellow teachers, sampling the boiled sweet potatoes brought for the staff, drinking my two ounces of instant coffee, and listening to the weekly school meeting, I plugged in my flash drive to start printing lesson plans. The frustrations of technology fails!! Two of the documents opened while the rest simply read 0 KB. "That's okay. I know what I am teaching and I can still pull the powerpoints I need off the internet." Back on my classroom computer, I went to retrieve the two powerpoint presentations I needed for the day only to find the internet site experiencing technological difficulties. And then my co-teacher asked me to tutor two students for the English competition this week. And class starts in ten minutes! If I was looking for the proper situation in which to panic, this would be it!!

But I didn't. I took a deep breath, pulled together the lesson plans that I already had and worked through my day one class at a time. I was composed and able to maintain a friendly rapport with the majority of my classes. My lessons would not have won any awards, but I think they allowed my students to take one more step towards learning English. The day did not get easier. I had a student completely freak out when I asked him to participate in an activity, extra behavioral issues in an after-school club class, a dry erase marker become too friendly with my brand new shirt, and a lovely bloody nose to finish off the day. It was hard and it was not always thrilling, but I found that I was able to focus on being a teacher and perform when the time came.

Teaching is not something that I can simply shrug off when the coffee spills or the bus is late or the electricity goes out. Being a teacher means digging deeper and realizing the importance of looking beyond personal comfort and energy levels. Today, I am a teacher.

some days I just laugh...

Every once in a while, I just sit back and ponder the fact that I am in South Korea. The rest of the time, that detail hits me square in the face...generally during an awkward or random moment. The first of these moments (today) came when one of my second graders called me "omah" during class. It took him a couple of seconds to realize that he had just called his English teacher "mom". Then he just smiled. I thought it was rather cute.

The next "moment" occurred during Taekwondo practice. My Taekwondo teacher, changed the practice time from starting at 6.30 to starting at 8.00. This wasn't a big deal for me, so I headed to class expecting a room full of other Taekwondo students. Well....it was just me and the teacher for the first 20 minutes and then another student came part way through. It was great to have the individual instruction, but also a little weird to not have a class full of people kicking and screaming. Then the owner of the academy came along with the four Swiss students. For a good seven-and-a-half minutes, the were just watching me (YIKES!!). We then spent half an hour matching the English to the Korean to the various positions. The time for me to head back to my apartment was approaching when the owner of the academy asked me if I liked to drink soju (the Korean liqueur). I responded with my usual, "I don't drink alcohol but thanks anyway" and he ran into his office and grabbed several bottles of a Vitamin C drink (these four ounces literally contain 1000% of one's daily allotment of Vitamin C). We sat and toasted and talked about my Taekwondo lessons. The owner was unhappy that I will only be in Korea until next July and wanted to know if I wanted to learn Taekwondo with a group of students or have private lessons (remember: all of this is through Noel, the Swiss translator). I was leaning toward the group lessons, because I can watch others and have more interaction with Korean people. Then he started thinking that I should take ninety minutes of group lessons followed by a ninety minute private lesson five days a week (for those who struggled with math in school that is three hours of practice a day-once again: YIKES). With the help of Noel, I convinced him that group lessons would be great and if I was confused on any aspect of the lesson, I could stay after for a couple of minutes. I think we reached a satisfactory conclusion, but we will see how it goes tomorrow.

Just a heads up: I am getting sick with a sore throat again and would love prayer that this passes quickly and doesn't have a huge influence on my teaching. thanks!!

taekwondo

During Orientation, I had a fantastic experience in my Taekwondo course and thought that it would be something I would like to pursue during my year in Korea. Now that I am relatively settled in my placement, I decided to look for a Taekwondo academy near my apartment. The whole process was remarkable simple. On Monday, I asked my co-teacher how to go about taking Taekwondo courses, she took me to three academies within five minutes of my apartment and I signed up for the one I liked the best. On Tuesday, I came for my first session. Class was a congregation of nations. There were some middle and high school girls and boys as well as four guys from Switzerland. One of them, Noel, could speak both English and Korean. He had taken Taekwondo training in Korea for a year about a decade ago and has been coming back for two-month stints ever since. Noel helped translate the Korean to English for me and the Korean to German for the other Swiss guys. We could have formed our own UN chapter... The training was hard, but a great workout. I mostly focused on arm blocking positions. Apparently, I can come to the academy anytime after 1:00pm during the week, but my class time is from 6.30-8.00pm. I am excited about tomorrow's lesson.

seoul, sixtieth, singing, and shopping

This weekend was a bit of a whirlwind, but great all the same. I arose at the lovely hour of six on Saturday and began the train trek to Seoul for The Event. I decided that it was time to see what all the excitement over the KTX (Korea's express train) was and made it to Seoul an hour earlier than I would have otherwise. The express train had more of an airplane feel than the other trains in which I have ridden. Landing in Seoul early gave me the opportunity for a little cultural exploration before my required activities. I met up with Alanna and headed to the Seoul National Museum of History. Now those who know me well are aware of my difficulties with directions. So it was very surprising to walk to the museum without getting lost. Alanna and I were even more astonished when we discovered that the museum was free!! Of all the exhibits, my favourite was a book of harp music that looked nothing like the Elephants Go Bouncing Down Freeways staff I usually read. I couldn't even figure out the different notes being used.

After the museum and lunch at an Italian place, we checked into our hotel and changed for the 60th celebration. Dress code: white shirt, black skirt or slacks, no jewelry of any kind, hair pulled back in a neat bun. One hundred six of us!! "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the waiter and waitress training program, we will commence with a tutorial on wine-pouring. Please drape a towel over your left arm..." We traveled in mass through the subway system to the Silla hotel and received an excessive amount of stares in the process. The evening consisted of waiting, listening to speeches (the wife of Senator Fulbright gave a speech!!), eating a delicious six-course meal (and I am generally very picky about banquet food) and singing the Fulbright Song in front of the audience. It was a long but good evening.

Sunday included coffee, a shopping trip in Myeongdong in Seoul (yay!) and transit back to Hongseong. Once again, Monday is fast approaching!!

[Shout out to Jordan for the great email she sent me :) ]

fulbright song

During the Gyeongju conference, the Fulbright fellows worked on a song that we will be performing for Fulbright's 60th anniversary in Korea. Sixty is a very significant number in Korea and so there will be an excessive amount of hoopla!! Here is a video of our song rehearsal from Sunday last. (And remember that many of these people have never sung/never sung in a choir before!)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ezhz1GPtlsw

Share the Dream

Worlds apart we share a vision we share a common dream

Dare to dream and we discover the cleansing light of peace

We seek reason understanding, all nations as one

When walls crumble down hatred shatters, all ignorance is gone

Worlds apart we share a vision we share a common dream

Dare to dream and we discover the cleansing light of peace

Friends and family we all hope for the day when we shall see

All nations stand together and we share in the dream

Enjoy!!

teaching

This week, teaching has been tough and I have not yet fully ascertained why. The rhythm that I had started to fall into with my students is currently a little wobbly. Maybe part of the reason is that the novelty shine is beginning to wear off. During the week, I have the most difficult time planning and executing lesson plans for my after-school combo classes. These are not quite clubs, for the students are volunteered by their parents or teachers. Mixing antsy kids ready to be done with school, a conglomeration of grades and speaking abilities, and no teacher to assist with discipline has made these classes a challenge. I want my students to be excited and entertained while learning English during the forty minutes they are with me. I search for topics that will interest the students and activities they will enjoy. When I have poured hours into creating a way to present the information and all I receive is the "I'm bored" vibe, it is bitter blow. I need more elasticity, more rebound to be able to approach the next class with renewed energy and excitement. This is not every class and I have had many lessons that have gone over exceptionally well, I am aware of my tendency to focus on negative. I have to look at the small achievements, the incremental steps my students are making toward being more conversant in English. I must draw on a strength not my own in order to survive the year.

On a different note, I had a great time making curry with my host mother today. She has made it several times for the family and it is one of my favourite dishes in Korea. Today, I asked if she would teach me the process and I think she was pleased by the request. She laughed at the onion-induced tears ruining my makeup. It was a great cultural exchange, for I had just introduced her to the perfect British cup of PG Tips tea (one spoonful of sugar and a splash of milk, please). I received my order of two hundred forty tea bags from the UK, so I should be set for a couple of months at least. Life is good.

gyeongju

This past weekend, I met up with the other Fulbright ETAs in Gyeongju for a conference. It was incredible to see everyone after being away at our individual placements and to swap teaching stories. There were two main objectives for the conference: glean teaching information and rehearse The Fulbright Song for the 60th anniversary next weekend. I think both of those were obtained in the discussions and hours of choir rehearsal. Choir rehearsal was especially exciting. We had a group of 106 individuals, many of whom had never sung or never sung in a choir before. By day three, we actually had a decent sound.

On Sunday, those who wished could take the Gyeongju Tour. I was stoked to learn more about Korean tradition and culture. We began the tour by going to Seokguram, a cave that was carved out of the mountain with a twelve foot tall Buddha statue carved in as well. The carvings were beautiful. We then bussed to Bulguksa, a famous Buddhist temple that has been recreated after being destroyed. My favourite part of the day was the Gyeongju National Museum. We only had a few minutes to tour the museum and there was way too much to see. Some friends and I went to the Children's Museum (and got to make our own ink prints!!) and the Archeology museum. I was introduced to a new word, the chestlace, similar to a necklace, but for the whole torso. We took a short walk at Anapji, were some buildings used to stand and then took the bus over to the Cheomseongdae observatory. This is the oldest surviving original observatory in Korea and was used for both astrological and astronomical (okay, so at that time, they were virtually the same thing) observations. The stone structure dates to the seventh century. Near the observatory are the burial mound for the royalty during that time. These are the Cheonmachong tombs. The tombs are all above ground, so they look like giant hills covered in grass. Add a little snow, and king of the hill might not be a bad idea...One of the tombs has been excavated and we got to go inside as the conclusion of our great tour.

Sunday evening two friends and I had a persimmon adventure. Alanna is somewhat obsessed with persimmons and there were several trees near the hotel. I will not confirm or deny whether any trees were climbed by all members of the part and whether any persimmons were consumed...

On Monday morning, before heading back to the train station, Alanna and I decided to venture out onto the lake near the hotel in a donald duck paddle boat. For the mere sum of 10,000 won (less than $10) we got to rent a boat for half an hour. At first, that did not seem like a lot of time on the water; then we started pedaling. We floated around and took some pictures of birds on the water, laughing somewhat hysterically for much of the expedition.

The train ride back to hongseong was uneventful and it is great to know that I will see everyone again next weekend in Seoul.

 

At the top of Seokguram

 

Alanna catching some photos

 

roommates!!

 

A drum in Bulguksa

 

Alanna and Corrie in front of the children's musem

 

making an ink printing

 

Anapji

 

some of the Cheonmachong tombs

 

Cheomseongdae observatory

 

Yes, I rode in a donald duck boat

 

the view out the front

 

a heron

chuseok

Chuseok (pronounced Chew-sock) was a great experience, even though it was a bit of a marathon at times. In Korea, Chuseok is a holiday where the ancestors are celebrated through offering them food and drink. Generally, people go to their hometown to celebrate with their families. I went with my host family to Seoul for Chuseok. My host father has five brothers and there were all in Seoul with their families. We all crowded into five or six hundred square foot apartment for the festivities.

During the day before Chuseok, I mostly ate, played games with all the cousins and listened to people speaking in Korean. Jisu and I though about going shopping in Seoul, but it was pouring outside. That ended up being a wise choice because there was major flooding in the area we would have gone to. We watched on the news as people were walking in water up to their knees and the subway stations were closed.

The families split up for the night and I traveled about forty minutes to another house to sleep. The next morning (the actual day of Chuseok) we got up early and went back to my host father's oldest brother's apartment. All the women worked on making food and set up a table in the living room with the food on it. Then all the males gathered around the table, lit some incense, said a few words, and bowed before the food. Because I am not a male, I was not asked to participate in the rituals, although I did have to refuse the alcohol that was being passed around afterwards. Later, we made songpyeong, a traditional dessert. We took a rice-based dough, made it into a little cup, filled it with this sweet bean filling and pinched it closed. All the "uncles" thought that I made songpyeon very well, and apparently this means that I will marry a handsome man and have beautiful children. I won't object...

My host sisters and I headed into Seoul with the general intention of going to Starbucks. We first stopped at a Korean McDonalds for lunch. The menu is similar to America, although there are fewer healthy options (okay, no healthy options-not even diet cola) and a couple of interesting Korean/American combos. For example, there is the Bolgogi burger-but I did not try it so I cannot report on the flavour. Later in the day we left Seoul and headed back to Hongseong.

On the whole, Chuseok was a great time to get to know my host family better and experience some of the Korean traditions. I also loved catching up on sleep and having a break from my school work.

 Here we are making Songpyeon!