MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

16 Fun Korean Christmas Tidbits:

The Famous Korean-Christmas
Cake

1) Christmas cake is AMAZING! Shame on anyone who has ever made fun of one.
2) You can get a cake that looks like a bear head.
3) An Aloe Vera plant makes a good substitute for a Christmas tree.
4) Nothing is closed on Christmas in Korea.
5) If there is no snow for Christmas, frozen cow-pesticide will suffice...
6) We went to an art gallery on Christmas.
7) Picasso and Monet have paintings on display in Seoul right now!
8) NANTA rocks my socks off!
9) NANTA is a Korean performance (similar to STOMP) that combines comedy, drumming, martial arts, and cooking.
10) An awesome Korean family invited us to go see NANTA with them. Definitely worth the Won...
11) Even on Christmas old ladies will occassionally shoo you out of the subway with a broom.
12) There are English speaking churches in Korea.


Our Korean Family and Richard, the
Christmas Aloe Vera Plant

13) Home Alone + Pizza + Christmas Cake + Popcorn = A  wonderful Christmas night
14) If you don't have mom's home cookin' on Christmas Eve, then Dobulgi and Tuna Gimbap will do.
15) Seeing your Principal dressed up like Santa brightens up the Christmas Eve workday!
16) Christmas is always better when you get to spend it with a good friend.





We really, really want to say 'THANK YOU!' for all the presents and cards, it was very special being able to open up some presents on Christmas, even though it made us miss our families back home.  We miss everyone, love you all, and hope you had a Merry Christmas!


Before



After



The Christmas Season is Upon Us!!!

Christmas is almost here!  We have been busy decorating the apartment and getting ready for the holiday season. We have candles, pine cones, Christmas greenery, and even our very own Charlie Brown Christmas tree! 

We found it!

Searching...

Last weekend we hiked out into the mountains in search of a good and sincere tree.  After a little looking we finally found the one for us and cut it down with our kitchen knife.  Then began the long journey to get our tree home without anyone questioning us.  Everytime we would see other hikers coming we would throw the tree in the ditch and pretend to take pictures.  Eventually, however, we could sneak it no further... We "planted" it by the river and waited until the cover of darkness to come back and reclaim it.

"cutting" down our X-mas tree

Decorated with strung
popcorn and reclycled
paper

We also wanted to thank everyone for the cards and gifts!  It is a lot of fun being able to have presents under the tree.  We also REALLY love our stockings we have hanging up!  Christmas will definitely be a lot different for us this year, but it is good to remember to keep things simple and refocus on the things that really matter during the Christmas season :) 

Pig and Kimchi...

Winter is almost here! ...and that means one thing....Time to make enough kimchi to make it through the cold winter months!

Everyone has been getting together with family and making huge batches of kimchi (because there ain't no cabbage around in the winter!)  We even heard that residents of Yeonpyeong (the island that was recently attacked) have been returning because they had to take care of their animals and....make kimchi...

Today we were invited to my school to join in a mini-kimchi making and pork-eating bazaar for lunch.  A bunch of people from around town and even some of my students get together to make kimchi for the poor.  We did our part by going and eating some of the kimchi meant for the poor (we didn't know!!!!).  We also had some cold pig intestines. :)

After the meal we all gathered 'round the kimchi for a picture together.  And, of course, instead of saying 'cheese', you say 'kimchi.'

  

First Snow!

The first snow of winter has arrived! Yesterday morning it started snowing and snowed for several hours- we probably got 3-4 inches, but most of it didn't stick.  Today there is only a little skiff of snow left on the ground.

We had to change our weekend plans... We were planning on spending Thanksgiving in Seoul with Kate, but decided maybe it would be best to lie low for a little while.  We still had some fun though, and went skiing (and snowboarding!) at Taebeck Mtn. with one of the teachers at Teresa's school. It was fun seeing the first snow while being at a ski resort.  It was awful cold though while riding the ski lifts and the wind would really whip the snow around and blow it in your face, it reminded me of the blizzard last Christmas-while out driving (before the snowdrift ended our drive....)with my brother Perry. 

We also went to the market and bought some cheap snowboots, so bring on the snow!!!  Not really though...we like warm weather....


First Snow in the Little Town of Bonghwa



100 Days in Korea!

Today marks our 100th day in Korea and 3 months of contract completed. To celebrate we have decided to share a few pictures of our time here...

     

                                                

                                                     

                                                       

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Our attempt at Thanksgiving decorations...

Don't Worry...

Korea made the news today, so we thought we'd share the news article. Don't worry though, we're a long ways away from it, in fact we found out about it from friends in the US before we heard it here... It is closer to our friend Kate though and millions of Koreans so say a prayer for them...

N. Korea fires artillery onto S. Korean island; 2 dead -USA TODAY
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2010-11-23-korea-artillery_N.htm?csp=hf

Adobe!



Eating Ginko Nuts

 Many people in America think that Koreans live in little Adobe houses in the woods.  Well, they
do...well, one family does. Today we literally ate chicken in an adobe house...well, outside the house.  It was a dream come true.

Cooking Dinner



Buseok Ceramic Store



So seriously...We were invited to eat lunch with a Korean teacher who works at one of Teresa's schools.  Her and her husband built their house three years ago, but not out of wood like most people and beavers...they made it out of baked earth! Adobe!  It was beautiful, very unique, very warm and cozy inside, and just plain neat.  The teacher's husband is a scientist/inventor who has worked to make their house as energy efficiant and 'green' as possible.  They use solar energy, rain water collectors, and wood-burning heaters. 

After lunch we went to a ceramic store nearby and bought our first Korean decoration to bring home! It was a fun, fun day and was great spending it with such friendly and interesting people!

A Very Good and Kind Monk

Have you ever had tea with a monk on a mountain? We have! Last weekend we traveled to Soebeck National Park with another English teacher and a Korean teacher we met here. Next thing you know....There we are on top of the mountain at an old Buddhist temple drinking tea and eating ginseng with a monk.  He was 'a very good and kind monk' and thought that I looked like Clint Eastwood and pretended to shoot fake revolvers in the air.  I told him that he was right, I more or less do look like Clint  :)

Then we ate some duck fat.

Quality Teaching

English class today: My students had to make a 6 word sentence using 'hamster'. The result: "Hamster meat is sweet and delicious."

Our Little Mountain Plant!

Our Little Mountain Plant

While hiking up the mountain by our apartment we spotted a fun little mountain plant growing by the path.  We dug it up, planted it in a cup, and moved it into our apartment! It has been doing well and so far it would appear that it isn't poisonous or anything.....

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

A weekend of "Hiking" and winning apples...

We had our first visitor this weekend!  Our friend Kate made the trip from Anyang City to Bonghwa late Friday night.  Having the 3 of us here definitely set the record for the most Nebraskans in Bonghwa at one time, so we celebrated with some potato soup and a night walk along the river.



Wayne and Jesse hitchin' a ride
up the mountain

 The next morning we caught the first bus to Andong and then on to Cheongsong, "Where the apples are as big as babies heads!"  Our South African friends teach in this little town with a big apple festival, so we spent the day with them.  The festival was a hoot! We played darts, shot paintball guns, threw stick things into bucket things, and won a backpack full of apples, none however "as big as a babies head...."

From there we headed to Juwangsan National Park to do a little hiking.  After waiting almost an hour for the bus we decided to set off on foot instead.  I'm sure that seeing 5 white people hiking along the highway was quite the sight for the Koreans! Fortunately, a nice Korean couple with a brand new van full of apples felt sorry for us and gave us a ride to the mountain (it turns out it would have been a very long walk....)



'Hiking' at the park



The leaves changing colors definitely made the park a beautiful place to be, unfortunately, that's what about 5,000 Koreans also thought.  It was crazy!! We fought our way up the mountain and did get to see some great waterfalls and scenery, but then had to hurry back to catch the last bus to Bonghwa.



Teresa and Kate in Juwangsan



Sunday was a lot more relaxing...we enjoyed a Halloween breakfast feast and went on one last hike with Kate before she had to head back to Seoul.



YES, we also teach in S. Korea!

Jesse's class in Sebyeok...only 4 kids!

The view at Jesse's school Myeongho

Two days of our work week are spent at country schools, while the other three days are spent at the Bonghwa Middle and Elementary schools! 

It has taken a bit of adjusting, but we are finally in the swing of things and adapting to living and teaching in S. Korea.  We both agree, even though we were hestitant about teaching in the country (about a 40 minute bus ride through winding mountains to get to school...) that being at the country schools are a highlight during our week. 

The scenery is BEAUTIFUL and the kids in a smaller school are much more well behaved :)  I havn't taken any pictures of my 3 schools, but Jesse got a few good pics/video of his schools...

Jesse teaches 3-4 classes a day and an adult class (teaching other English teachers) every other week.  I teach anywhere from 3 to 7  classes a day and have an adult class every week.  Our day starts around 8:30 and ends at 4:30.  The schools also seem to always be having random activities and other things...so we get the occasional day off too!

A Weekend of Festivals!

Wayne admiring some delicious pork

This last weekend marked the internationaly-known Andong Mask Dance Festival and the unknown Bonghwa Mushroom Festival.  Saturday we met our South-African friends, Wayne and Christy, in Andong to let the festivities begin! We watched some mask dances, laughed at an alligator-duck-man that blew whistles at people, ate pounds of sample food, visited little shops, and ate some spicy chicken feet.  WHAT!?!?!  Yeah, they were as bad as you'd think...



Andong Mask Festival



Bonghwa Mushroom Festival

For all of you Americans reading this...don't worry I upheld the English language in a slingshot competition against Wayne to see if they are called slingshots (which of course they are) or, as he tried to call them, Katties....  Anyway, we let our slingshots do the talking, and the balloons soon came to fear the name of Jesse Williams.

The view from our apartment

We also hit up the Bonghwa Mushroom Festival.  Although it is a lot smaller, it was a lot of fun.  It is right on the river, they have fireworks, a few free games, Bonzai trees, and no chicken feet.

Mushroom Festival River Crossing

Wonderful Sandwiches and Even Better Temples

Wow! This week we learned that Bonghwa actually has some AMAZING sites nearby.  Two teachers from Teresa's school invited us to head up into the mountains with them to visit Buseok Temple.  This is a beautiful temple that was built over 1000 years ago.  It is a very famous place in Korean legend and has some interesting stories to go with it. 

We watched the mountain sunset, ate some incredible sandwiches, and watched the local monks bid the day goodbye with a drum ceremony.

ZIP Code Update

Hello everybody! We looked up our zip code and it should be 755-805...not what we wrote before.  I changed it on our other blog post too. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! Love you!!

Sorry I am a few days late in posting...

Happy Chuseok!

Our Chuseok Supper of Bulgogi

Over this last week was Chuseok (a mix between Korean Thanksgiving and Memorial Day).  Since school was not in session, we thought it would be a perfect time to visit our good friend, Kate...who is also teaching in Korea, and see the sites of Seoul!

Teresa, Kate, and Nannie

Suwon Fortress

It was a 4 hour trip by bus/subway/and walking from one place to another, but we finally made it and had a wonderful time!  Wednesday we did some exploring in Anyang City (a suburb of Seoul) and ate sushie and bulgogi.  Thursday we went to Suwon Fortress with a Korean friend, after our visit to Suwon we went back to our new friend's house for an authentic Korean meal of squid, curry, eggplant, and some kind of meat. 

Cuttle Fish Pizza and Oyster Soup!

Friday morning started off by eating a GIANT ASIAN PEAR!!  (Be jealous Christina and Andrew...)  After this delicous treat we went with a co-teacher from Teresa's school who took us on a tour of Seoul.  Our favorite stop was Changdeok Palace.  We also visited art galleries, ate some cuttle fish and oyster soup, and walked along Insadong shopping street.

Kate, Ji Haye, and Teresa at Changdeok

This was one of our favorite weeks since we have been in Korea and we look forward to more adventures with Kate! 

This weekend was much needed and a huge blessing to all three of us! 





School Address

Our school said if anyone wanted to send packages or mail, Teresa's school would make sure that we get it....

The school's address is:

Teresa Williams
Bonghwa Elementary School

Teresa's Elementary School in Bonghwa

755-800
Naesung-ri
Bonghwa-ep
Bonghwa-gun
Gyeongsangbuk-do
South Korea

Change of Address

Hey!  We figured out how to correctly write our address...

Junmang Johen Jip 102

755-805
Naesung-ri
Bonghwa-ep
Bonghwa-gun

Gyeongsangbuk-do
South Korea

Our approx. location in S. Korea

Home Sweet Home!

Finally! Some pictures of our apartment!  They finished building our apartment and we are all moved in....  It is pretty much amazing... It is small, but very modern and awesomely Asian.  They are still working on the surrounding buildings, so the construction is a little noisy, but not too bad.