First Blog Post From Korea

Well, Hey to all of you who read this blog...which is maybe one, two perhaps? Sorry I haven't updated in awhile. Getting over jetlag and getting used to the crazy schedule of teaching has taken some time but I think it's getting better. I am in the Dalseo Gu (or district) of Daegu, South Korea which is towards the outer perimeter. I am right by several mountains, one of which I am planning on hiking soon, but even being on the outskirts of Daegu doesn't mean a lack of "citiness". From what I've observed, Korean cities are so much more brightly lit. I mean, they use almost every color imaginable in their shops and signs. When you walk down the streets in the evening, neon lights blink and flash everywhere. And you've got all these little street vending things and fruit and vegetables laid out along the sidewalk. I walked out tonight and got some apples from a fruit vendor and "bul mandu" (boiled mandu-korean dumplings stuffed with yumminess) from one of the myriads of tiny shops. There's not a lot of big shops here, but you will have smaller shops devoted exclusively to one thing or brand like the Adidas shop, or the Nike shop, or there was one shop which sells boyfriend and girfriend matching t-shirts (its both fashionable and a statement like "he/she belongs to me". I find the Koreans seem to like just walking around shopping, talking and being together. I don't usually see people walking around with a lot of bags.
Anyways, about my school. It's located on the 2nd and 3rd floor of a building right across from the apartments where I live. It takes like 2 minutes max to get there everyday. I am one of four ENTs (English Native Teacher), the other three being guys, two from Britain and one from the US. There are five KTs (Korean Teacher) who work with us teaching one half of each of our classes. I have six classes altogether which take place about 3 times a week. 3 are on M, W, F...2 are on T, Th, F...and one is on M,W, Th. I teach either the 40 minute session before or the session after the KT. Its fairly easy to teach the material, the main problem is classroom control. Maybe problem isn't exactly the right word...it depends on the class you have. One of my classes, R2, has two boys and four girls, all of which are fairly smart and always want to answer all the questions. They get so hyped up and excited about getting points (they get points for right answers and winning) and playing games. I have to frequently quiet down the incessant cry of "Teacher, Teacher!!" when I'm asking questions and tell them to sit back down when they get too worked up. But they are a fun class. Oh, let me explain about the names of our classes. All of the classes are assigned a letter and number so my classes are A1, R2, B3, T4, T3, and C3. T4 has the opposite problem of R2. They are so quiet I have to practically force the answers out of them. Last time though, I got them slightly animated with a game of sticky-ball tic-tac-toe. C3 is the highest level class at the school so the students are more advanced in their English skills and yet it seems that I have the most trouble with them speaking Korean during class (mostly the boys though). One girl in paticular named Sue is very smart though and has a lot of potential. In fact, most of the students in that class are smart and funny too. Its hard to keep a straight face at Bart and his antics. All in all, I really enjoy all of my students and they seem to like me too.
I went for my first Korean class today in downtown Daegu. It was funny to be with all these grownups making such weird sounds and faces. I got a start on reading the Korean or Hangul alphabet. Its really fairly simple and I found myself being able to make out a few of the words on shop signs. I found out my name in Korean is 바 네 사, literally "Bah-Neh-Sah". Aftewards, I went to the downtown shopping district and wandered about for a good bit. Then I took the subway back (I used the subway for the first time and it was crowded like expected but fun). To give you and idea of how big Daegu is, it takes about 20 minutes by subway just to reach downtown and thats only halfway down the subway line! The Koreans take every opportunity on the bus or train to nap so half the people on the subway were dozing.
I've been keeping myself well stocked with milk so that my stomach doesn't do what it did in FL. So far it seems to be working. Even with all the spicy food I've been consuming, the tummy seems to be doing just fine.
As for finding a school at which to continue my Taekwondo, I have been frustrated and discouraged. I can't seem to locate any schools that are the Chang Do Kwan style I was learning back in the states. None of the Koreans I've met so far have been able to help and research on the web hasn't come up with anything either. I know there is a big school in Seoul but that's two hours away by the KTX train which isn't practical at all. I guess I'll just have to keep on trying.
Well, I better wrap this post up. I think its long enough to justify my absence and satisfy all (if any) curious minds.

갈채하다, 환성을 지르다; 기운을 북돋우다 !!!!!!