Hey friends,

This is gonna be a long one so buckle up (or just read the subtitles and look at pictures). It has been relatively eventful since my last post, but I ran out of time to write last weekend. So here goes.


1. Last Weekend

This past weekend was actually eventful! Usually my family has just been chilling at home during the weekends, but this time we did something every day.

Friday night we went to a small music festival near the touristy part of 경주 Gyeongju. There were food trucks in one area and a pretty big stage set up in an area next to the trucks. There were a lot of plastic chairs and a surprisingly big audience. The show consisted of three bands playing followed by an EDM concert of all things. I guess 경주 Gyeongju is trying to keep its young people happy. We just stayed for the bands. The groups that performed were called "위아더나잇/We Are the Night," "몽니/Monni," and "십센치/10CM." I thought I didn't know any of the groups, but it turns out 10CM is the group that sings a pretty famous song "Americano" that one of our Fulbright groups performed to during our graduation ceremony! They were really good! As usual, I got a lot of weird looks for being the only foreigner at this event, but I'm slowly getting used to it.

Food trucks!

Lamb on a stick because why not

Bad pictures (as will be a trend in this blog post) but chili shrimp! Some fancy food trucks up in here

(I told you bad pictures would be trending this post) Here is the stage!

On Saturday there was an annual event to pay respects to ancestors and partake in some traditions surrounding 추석 Chuseok (a holiday I'll talk about in a bit). In 경주 Gyeongju, there are these giant, perfectly sloped hills that are actually tombs to ancient kings and royalty of 경주 Gyeongju. They are similar to pyramids, but look just like grassy hills and are not nearly as big. In order to pay respects to the ancient rules of 경주 Gyeongju, every year people gather to cut the grass on the tombs. My host dad works at city hall and helped organize parts of this event, so on this beautifully rainy Saturday, my youngest sister 민영 MinYeong and I headed to the site to trim some tombs! The event included a marching band with traditional instruments, booths for different activities, performances, and the cutting of the tombs! When we first showed up, we were given a straw hat, glove and some scissors for cutting the grass. It was a good look as you can imagine.

Unfortunately it started down-pouring rain, so the event got cancelled a bit early. That didn't stop 민영 MinYeong from dragging me out to the tomb to do our cutting. It's a good thing she did though, because I made the local news! While we were cutting, a camera man came over to us and said something along the lines of, "Could you please turn to face the camera and cut the grass?" 민영 MinYeong and I kept joking that we would be on the news that night, but then we actually were!

You can find the video here if you missed it on FB:
http://www.phmbc.co.kr/news/night_news?idx=244455&mode=view
(I'm at 1:30 - don't blink or you'll miss me!)

Those hills are examples of the tombs

I thought these girls wearing 한복 traditional Korean clothing looked amazing in contrast with the gloomy weather, so I took a creepy picture. What are you gonna do?

첨성대 Cheom Seong Dae - an ancient observatory from the 신라 Silla Dynasty

The beginning of the marching band!

민영 MinYeong wanted me to take this and turned out adorably

Host dad rocking some traditional instrument

This is a bad picture but look at this precious child attempting to play the instrument 

Precious children trying to play instruments pt. 2

Pt. 3

My tomb-cutting pose

It's a look!

They released balloons that everyone had written wishes on!

민영 MinYeong found a frog

On Sunday, we visited my host father's grave along with my host father's two brothers and his nephew. We had a very traditional commemoration ceremony in which we placed various foods on the tomb (after cleaning it). This represents allowing the dead to eat the different foods, a common ceremony held during 추석 Chuseok, that holiday I mentioned. I wondered if they just throw the food out after until my host aunt started giving us the food to eat! We ate in front of the gravestone after performing the ceremony over the food. I didn't want to take any pictures of the ceremony as to avoid being insensitive or rude, but below are some pictures of the cemetery.

2. 지진!

지진 = Earthquake. Yes, I have never experienced an earthquake in my life, and then I come to Korea to experience the largest one they've had on record. I was sitting in orchestra rehearsal, minding my own business, when the entire building starts to shake! Keep in mind, this was a very old building, and I have no idea what Korea's standards for construction safety are! We all looked at each other, yelled for just a bit, and then went outside. A few of the people in the orchestra had also never experienced an earthquake before.

There were two earthquakes, one a 5.3 magnitude and the other around a 5.9. The epicenter was - you guessed it - in 경주 Gyeongju! Yes, the point of origin of the earthquake was in my hometown, and the earthquake could be felt across the entire country (even to 제주도 Jeju Island!).

I was particularly terrified when the first earthquake hit. This earthquake happened on Monday, 9/12, and I had just taught my students briefly about 9/11 that day. It had been on my mind throughout the day, and then to be in a closed off building that just started shaking out of nowhere really shocked me. Now, \a terrorist attack happening on my orchestra building is completely illogical and unlikely, but so were the attacks on 9/11. I was legitimately afraid for a bit, wondering if North Korea had finally done anything. Thank goodness it was just God trying to shake up my rehearsal a little (I'm almost 100 percent certain there were no injuries during this earthquake so I can say that).

Needless to say, rehearsal ended early and my host family came to pick me up. We all went to an elementary school to sit in their track field because city hall declared it a "safe zone." The aftershocks continued for a few days, and are still something I'm not used to! I'm really living life to the fullest here in Korea.

3. 추석 Chuseok

As I keep mentioning, 추석 Chuseok is a national holiday in Korea, and one of the big ones at that. It is usually translated as "Korean Thanksgiving," and is a day to pay respects to ancestors and loved ones who have passed. Due to this holiday, the students (and I) had a break from Wed-Fri. Can you say PAAARTAYYYYY?

On Wednesday, we went to 교촌마을 (pronounced Gyo chone Ma eul), a traditional Korean village in 경주 Gyeongju. The whole family rented 한복 (pronounced han boke), traditional Korean clothing and we took a lot of pictures! We ate some food and just looked at all the old buildings.

Cutest host parents award

민주 MinJu, Me, 민영 MinYeong

Hi I'm tall

Thursday was actual 추석 Chuseok day, so we woke up at the crack of dawn and drove to visit extended family. First, we went to see my host dad's family in 울산 Ulsan. We went to his oldest brother's apartment. Total, there was my two host uncles, one host aunt, a male host cousin and a female host cousin, and grandma. We did a similar ceremony to the one we performed at the grandfather's grave, but in the apartment.

At one point, 민영 MinYeong wanted to get food, so she, the male cousin whom I had met at the grave ceremony, and I went out to Lotte World. This is where I began getting frustrated. 민영 MinYeong and 대하 DaeHa would say little things about me in Korean, and I couldn't usually understand all of them. Usually 대하 DaeHa would ask me a question in English, and after I answered he would comment on it to 민영 MinYeong in Korean. Similarly, when we were at the apartment, the entire family was pretty much constantly talking about me. I understand that it's different and new to have a foreigner tag along for a major holiday, but the extent to which they were talking about me and nothing else was a bit overwhelming.

The set up for the ceremony

After 울산 Ulsan, we drove to 청도 Cheongdo so see my host mom's family. 울산 Ulsan is a pretty big city (bigger than 경주 Gyeongju), but 청도 Cheongdo is about as rural as it gets! My host mom's parents live in a tiny house in the middle of nowhere. Total there were my two host grandparents, two host uncles and aunts, and three male cousins; however, the uncles/aunts/cousins only stayed for about an hour after we arrived and then left. My host dad expressed to me how in the past the family gathering used to be big and lively. He is upset that so much has changed, and that the family doesn't all gather to celebrate or stick around (he and my host mom both have two sisters who didn't come to either celebration).

As you can imagine, my host mom's family talked about me even more than my dad's because they are less used to seeing foreigners. I would just hear little comments hear and there, and it was beyond frustrating that I couldn't make out what everyone was saying about me. If you don't know me that well, I don't do well with having a lot of attention placed on me (even in America). Having all the attention of this family I just met, and hearing things that weren't always positive ("he doesn't eat very well," "he's like a girl") but that I couldn't understand all of overwhelmed me. At one point, I had to step outside and take a breather. My family was a little confused what I was doing, but I didn't feel like explaining. I feel a bit guilty for how I reacted. I understand that everyone was curious about me, but I guess I just couldn't handle it all at once. I just hope they didn't get a bad impression of all foreigners.

I forgot to take pictures at my host mom's house, but I took this one randomly while I was laying down on the floor:

Fancy ceiling, huh?

While 추석 Chuseok ended up being a bit overwhelming in terms of attention, it was not a bad day. I got to experience a real Korean holiday with two real Korean families, and experience both the good and bad that comes with families!


Finally, last night! Last night (Friday night of break), I finally met up with the 경주 Gyeongju foreigners! I met the other foreign teacher Emily who works at the middle school attached to my high school last week. She said she has been hanging out with the other foreigners in town, and invited me to join. I finally mustered up the courage to do so last night, and it was really fun! Everyone was an English teacher in either a school or 학원 Private Academy (Hagwon), and some Korean friends joined us as well. We went to eat 감자탕 Pork Soup and then went to a bar. I pretty much talked to my new friend, Cadi, the whole time, but it was nice to bond with another American on the other side of the world from our homes! To my surprise (because I am ignorant), most of the foreigners aren't (U.S.) American. Emily is from Canada, Debbie and Portia are from England, etc. Also, most of the teachers are part of a program called EPIK, which is similar to Fulbright but run through the Korean government. I am the sole Fulbrighter!

Of course the only picture I took of my trip with the foreigners was the soup... because food

I hope this caught everyone up a little! I feel like there is still so much I left out! I've found out that one of the hardest parts of writing these posts is deciding what to include and what not to, but I hope you are getting the big picture of my time in Korea. Clearly I'm still adjusting, but I have a feeling that won't ever change!

Until next time,

Annyeong Y'all!

EEK! Sook

Hey friends,

익숙하다 (Eek Sook ha-da) is the Korean word for "to adjust," and boy is that what I've been trying to do for the last two weeks. Sorry about missing a week, I have just been so tired and busy lately! I will try to tell you now what I've been getting involved in, as well as some of the struggles I've been facing to "eek sook."

Activities

1. School

So obviously, I have been involved at my school. I have 11 classes total and see each one once a week. In addition to my normal classes, I teach two lunch classes twice a week (4 days a week), and an after school "Arts and Culture Fair" class. My normal classes are placed into levels from A to D, with A being the highest. I have only taught each class twice so far, but I can already see the vast difference in both language skill and motivation level between the classes. I am trying to treat my students equally while also catering each lesson to the class' skill level. 

The girls are really excited to have a foreign teacher, even though they just had another Fulbright ETA last semester! Apparently I am taller than the previous ETA, so that's just amazing. It is quite entertaining to hear the girls whisper things in Korean without knowing I can understand them. They know now that I speak some Korean, but for the first week, there was at least one girl in every class who would turn to her friend and say "귀업네!" "Cute!" (pronounced gwi-eob-nae) when I walked in the room. One girl was walking behind me between classes once and said to her friend, "나 인사하고 싶다" "I want to greet him," so I turned around, looked right at her and said, "What?" I think I scared her to death to be honest, but I found it entertaining. I'm worried for the day when my foreignness stops being exciting and the girls view me as just another teacher, but I will update you when that happens.

I teach with two co-teachers, 임선생님 Ms. Im and 장선생님 Mrs. Jang. They seem pretty sweet, but I honestly have no idea how they feel about me. They don't give me much feedback on my lessons, so I'm worried one day down the line the will suddenly tell me they don't like me or my teaching style! That being said, they are very helpful in the class and translate when needed. I'm still rather uncomfortable in the office I stay in, but my Fulbright co-teacher 박효정 Hyo-Jung Park stays there as well so that helps. She is the sweetest.

2. Orchestra

Yes, you read that right: guess who's back in orchestra! Since my host dad works at City Hall in the fine arts department, he's got some connections. He told me I could join the 경주시민오케스트라 Gyeongju Citizen's Orchestra, so I looked them up on YouTube. They were honestly not super great, so I thought "Hey, I can sit in the back of the second violins like in college and have a good old time!" When I went to my first practice/audition last Monday, it was a bit of a different experience than I was expecting.

I walked into the room, and about 20 people were sitting in a small room (significantly less than the orchestra from the YouTube videos I watched). The director came over to me and asked to look at my music. I took out some random music, and he just put me in the first violins!! I was pretty nervous, but once we started playing I realized that this must be a different group. Come to find out, there is a professional level group (the one on YouTube), and a real, actual "citizen's" group which I joined. If you know me in any orchestral way, you know I'm honestly not that good at the violin, but in this group I think I may have been the best!! I'm not sure if I want to try and join the other group, because I think my skill level may be in between the two groups. 

Either way, it was a fun experience to pick up my violin again. I honestly didn't think I would get to play much in Korea, so no matter what group I'm in I will enjoy it. The rehearsal felt a bit like high school again!

3. 대금 DaeGeum

Well folks, the violin won't be the only instrument I will be playing this next year! My dad signed me up for 대금 DaeGeum (a sort of Korean, bamboo flute) lessons! When he asked if I would be interested, I don't think I was sure of the commitment I was getting into; but, my dad said he knew a 대금 DaeGeum master and we could get lessons (together!) for a discounted price. So why the heck not.

I had my first lesson last night, and boy was it frustrating. First off, in the car ride there my host dad says, "So, did you prepare the money for the lesson?"

Me: "Um I have some money on me."

"Oh, I didn't tell you!?"

"No, I don't think so."

"Well the instrument will cost about $300."

BRUH! I got scammed into buying a $300 dollar instrument BEFORE I RECEIVED MY FIRST PAYCHECK. By the way, this instrument will be a sixth of my month's pay! At the moment, I don't even have that much money available to me in this country, so my dad said he'd pay and I can pay him back.

Anyway, we went to the lesson and I got my 대금 DaeGeum. Dad and I had our first lesson together. Unfortunately, dad seemed to be a natural pro and I couldn't even make a sound with the instrument! I still can't! It was the most frustrating lesson ever! The teacher said this week we just need to practice making a note on the instrument and finger placement. Needless to say it is very different from the violin.

4. Church

There is actually not much to say here yet, as I am going to my first service tomorrow. That being said, I discovered that there is an English speaking church in Gyeongju! There is a Gyeongju Foreigners Facebook page, and I found out a few people on there have a Bible study once a week. I am hoping that this church can be a good community for me, as it would be very convenient. If I find that it is not a fit, I will have to look to 부산 Busan or 대구 Daegu.

Struggles

1. Korean Education

This has perhaps been one of my biggest struggles in Korea so far, and it is simply a perspective issue. Coming from an American education system myself (that is by no means perfect), it is strange to be in this completely new mindset of education and school. I often struggle to see the benefits of Korea's insanely difficult workload and stress levels. Almost every day at work so far, I have seen a student come into our office and cry. The weirdest part is that all the other teachers just know how normal it is and don't even acknowledge it. The students usually stay at school until 10 PM, and if not, they leave school to attend 학원 Private Academy (Hagwon), in which they study in depth on a certain subject. My youngest host sister 민영 Min Yeong is in middle school, and usually attends 2-4 학원 Private Academies every day after school.

My host father says he is sympathetic to his daughter's workloads, but there is nothing he can do to change it. I agree that if as a parent you allowed your student to work less, they would not make it in this hyper-competitive environment, but I hate that it has to come to that. From my perspective, many students do not have time to discover who they are or explore passions in their lives. The system has done well to bring Korea back from a dark place in it's history, but to me it seems that change is needed.

I know this struggle is due to a culture shock, but I can't seem to bring myself to think how this system might be good. I have seen other parts of Korean culture that are new or shocking to me, but the education system is harder for me to accept. We will see how I adjust as I continue teaching in this system.

2. Language

Let me tell you, the Korean language ain't easy. As I may have mentioned before, certain areas of Korea use different dialects/accents called 사투리 Saturi. My family (and everyone in Gyeongju) speaks with 사투리 saturi, and it makes my listening skills even worse than usual! I feel bad because my host mom will ask me simple questions, and I can't understand them because the endings of her sentences are so different that I get distracted. The same thing happens with the teachers in my office, and I feel like the classic dumb American who can't understand them!

3. Food

Eating Korean food every day has been a bit challenging. I think of it this way: When we are in America, "Korean Food" is a TYPE of food. If I said, "Hey let's go get Korean food." you might say "Oh I had Korean food last night, let's go somewhere else." As obvious as this might sound, here Korean food is just food. Food is Korean food. Besides me just being a picky person, it has simply been hard eating a certain type of food every day that I am not accustomed to eating all the time. Even at breakfast we have rice, soup and side dishes. My host family has said that I'm not eating a lot, and I feel kind of bad about it. I didn't think it would be this short into my time here that I would start craving American (Mexican, Chinese, Italian, etc.) food so badly!

4. Politeness

I have been struggling with ideas of politeness in Korea. I have learned about etiquette and such in the classroom, but it is harder to execute in real life. Since I am usually the youngest and/or lowest position wherever I go, I have to be aware of what's polite and what's expected of me at different times. I went to my first 회식 Work Dinner (pronounced Hwe-Shik) with the teachers in my office. I expected that I have to serve all the drinks and things like that, but then the teachers would say "No no just relax! Don't do that!" The hard thing about Korea is that I'm not sure when people actually mean no or when they are being polite themselves. Obviously being a foreigner adds another layer of difficulty onto these situations.

Pictures

Typical meal at our house

From the students on my first day <3

Joined a book club with dad

He's trying his best

More gifts from students!

My office. I sit in the closest spot on the right

선덕 SeonDeok

Sports Stadium

Where else do you stand when ordering chicken?

Precious 민주 Min Ju at the movies

We went to KFC after the movies. It was honestly amazing

Usually what 민영 Min Yeong does with her hour between school and 학원 Private Academy

Mom must have sensed the Korean food struggle and made this for dinner one day

Food from the 회식 Work Dinner

Given to me by a student... it says her name

The 대금 DaeGeum!

Well I'm sorry this post was as long as usual but particularly more boring. I'm still very tired from work and adjusting, but rest assured that I am enjoying my time in Korea. Updates to come on all of the things I'm participating in! Love y'all!

Annyeong Y'all