Last week was our final week of the term. Our terms are 13 weeks, and I came in at week 4 of the previous term. It was hard saying goodbye to my students, because I'd really grown to adore some of my classes. I got every class treats, ranging from candy to pizza, which was fun. On the last day, in my high-beginner class, the Korean staff surprised us by coming into class with pizza - for being the "best class" apparently. I was so excited, because they were a really wonderful group of students (14 kids, which could have been crazy if they hadn't been good students), and I had no idea that we were getting pizza, so it was a fun surprise for everyone!
After work on Friday we went out to dinner as a whole office, which was a lot of fun. I sat next to two of the Korean staff person for the "best class" I had, and I told her how nice it was to be surprised with pizza, and that I'd really miss that class. Then, she told me that when she spoke with my students' parents, they told her that my kids had talked about me at home, and about how much they liked me. Some even said they didn't want to move up to the next class level (most of them passed their level-up tests) because they would miss having me as a teacher. I was so touched, I almost cried right there at the table! I knew from meeting with some parents that a few kids had said nice things, but for my co-worker to tell me that kids were really going to miss me - that was about the best thing I could have asked for. In fact, this week many of my students from that class have come to hang out in my room during their break to say hi and see what I'm doing. It really helped me feel more confident and prepared going into my new classes this week.
The verdict is still out on my new classes. I have the same high-beginner level class, but most of the students are new. I had 26 kids combined from those classes last term, and only 6 of them are still at the same level with me now - which is good, because it means 20 of them improved enough to move up! I also have a listening class at a higher level than last term, but with some of the same students who leveled-up to this class. I teach that level three times a week, and so far it's ok. I'll have to wait to see what happens next week, because many students missed this week for middle-school exams. Today and tomorrow I'll have two new reading classes. I've never taught reading before, so I'm a bit nervous, but I've prepared a lot, so I think things should go well. Besides, unlike listening, in reading class the students can see what we're talking about; in listening I just have to hope they are catching enough from the CD. Overall, though, I think this term will go well, and I am looking forward to the challenges of teaching more classes, and also the greater variety of students each week (listening and reading classes only meet once a week, so I have 5 different classes for those, and 2 different high-beginner classes).
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On a more fun note, I went on a trip this past weekend to visit my friend Allina from Ithaca College. She lives up north in Pyeongtaek, and we also went to Seoul and met up with another friend from college, Shana.
When I arrived in Pyeongtaek, Allina and her dad took me to explore Camp Humphrey's, the second-largest (soon-to-be largest) US military base in Korea. It was huge and very surreal. I felt like I was in a different country - and technically, I was on US soil. The shops and cafes used US dollars, the people were wearing sporting US-styled clothing, Koreans were in the minority, and I heard almost no Korean spoken. It was the strangest experience, and very interesting to experience. I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to see that. It reminded me a little of the base I was at with my grandmother in Virginia last year, and that similarity was almost jarring, knowing that I was in Korea, an ocean away. It also made me really miss my grandparents, since I spent last Thanksgiving with them - which is when I visited the base near them. I wonder what US military installment I'll visit next Thanksgiving!!
Later, at Allina's, we cooked a real Thanksgiving dinner, with some twists. Her family has a real oven, so we baked a delicious zucchini quiche, and had stuffing, gravy, a mushroom-pepper saute, mashed potatoes, and green-bean casserole. It was fantastic, and I stuffed myself until I was pleasantly full and feeling the holiday spirit.
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The next day we headed to Suwon to meet Shana, and had hoped to check out the UNESCO fortress and Traditional Folk Village there, but it was a cold, rainy day, so we hopped on a train to Seoul instead. We decided to go to COEX, a huge exhibition hall with a giant mall underneath, where one of the largest bookstores in the country is located. I bought a Korean textbook/workbook for myself, as well as a handy phrasebook with more casual Korean to use with my friends at work. After that we headed to Lotte World, the Korean version of Six-Flags - indoors. There is also an outdoor part, but since it was raining we stayed inside. We started out watching a really well-done musical theatre show of Cinderella with acrobatic reindeer and Santa as the fairy godmother. Bizarre? Yes. A good show? Yes. We spent a good portion of our time in Lotte World just oooing and ahhing over the cutes
t Korean babies and toddlers I've ever seen.
t Korean babies and toddlers I've ever seen. The kids in this picture were having a semi-miserable, yet hilarious time on the mini-drop. If you've ever been on the Giant Drop, you can get the picture - imagine little kids bouncing up and down in a jarring fashion as the bench suddenly goes up and then drops slightly every so often. We were laughing, but it was kind of sad, too - one girl was leaning into her mom's shoulder and bawling on the other one, but they couldn't stop the ride : (
We went on some rides, including the rollercoaster, and I bought the picture of us that they took while we were riding, but I don't have a way to upload it yet, unless I take a picture of the picture. After Lotte World we headed to an Indian restuarant, which made my day. Indian food is my favorite, and it's so hard to find here, so I hadn't had it in three months - since leaving the US! It was pricey, but very worth the cost. I got Palak Paneer with Naan, and it was fabulous. Just thinking about it makes me hungry!
When we got back to Pyeongtaek, Allina and I decided to head to the jimjilbang/sauna near her house. I've been wanting to go to one since arriving, but my friends are more modest than I am, and I've been too nervous to go alone. The jimjilbang is basically a public bath-house with a common area, and sometimes also a restuarant, sleeping rooms for men and women, an exercise room, a norebang room (karaoke), a hair salon, a waxing salon, a PC room, and a TV area. They can be small, with only a few or none of those, or they can be decked out with the whole 9 yards. This one had it all.
On the floor above, there is a sauna for each sex. You start in the shower, where you rinse off briefly, so you're clean for the other sections. Then there are sauna rooms - one with dry heat and wood interior and one with humid head and quartz interior, which Koreans think brings good health when you breathe in the wet, hot quartz air. After the sauna, you can choose from the hot tub, the medium tub, or the cold tub (which had strong jets so you could swim against the current even though it was a small). Unfortunately, we went late at night (jimjilbangs are open 24 hours a day - hence the sleeping rooms) and arrived during cleaning time, so after they cleaned the tubs were still filling, and the water was far too hot to sit in. So we went from the sauna to the second set of showers, where you exfloiate. I had to buy a little scrubber when I arrived (1,000won = .80 USD) and you use a special soap to scrub yourself pink - or, in my case, red. The Koreans, Allina included, all have lovely tan skin that only turns a little bit pink. But of course, with my ivory skin, the scrubbing left me as red as a strawberry. The important thing was that I felt great! Refreshed, relaxed, and rejuvinated.
When we left to get changed, I also had a lovely little encounter with a hamoni, an older Korean women, who had kindly smacked me on the leg earlier when she first saw me, laughing as she went. Again, she smacked me in a good-sported manner and apparently told me I was pretty. I said the only thing I knew to be appropriate: komapsumnida (thank you), repeatedly - so she laughed and asked Allina if I knew any other Korean words. I laughed, too, and said, "Meanhamnida, aniyo Hanguk" (which badly translates to 'sorry, no korean'). She laughed and said "good girl" (or so Allina says - she could have called me a cheeky American for all I know.)
Anyway, all in all, it's been a great week, from the end of term, to visiting friends, to coming back to new classes and familiar Busan. It felt amazing to step off the train and feel like I was coming home - back to a familiar subway, names, places, and, of course, my cozy little apartment.
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