Pictures. . .

Japan Photos

Happy New Year!

I am going to briefly update you all for the New Year!
Last night we went to a bar called Musk that Tim found. It had the usual combination of locals, expat teachers and military guys. I will spare you the details. We rang in the New Year here and danced the night away. We then took a train to the Dazaifu and saw hoards of people going to give their prayers and offerings. This particular temple is dedicated to scholarship, thus there were many young people offering prayers.
Tim and Eric are still asleep, and it is rather chilly here in Japan.
I will post photos as soon as I get time to sort them. . eventually.
Until then I hope you all have a wonderful new year!

Ｔｏｋｙｏ

We landed in Narita yesterday afternoon. Tokyo is a wonderful city, we covered a lot of territory in two days. Like most major cities it is much prettier at night. Tomorrow we are leaving for Kyoto at 8am. We should arrive there around 11a and procede with our travels. I ｌｉｋｅ　ｗｈａｔ　Ｉ　ｈａｖｅ　ｅｘｐｅｒｉｅｎｃｅ　ｉｎ　ｔｈｉｓ　ｃｏｕｎｔｒｙ　ｓｏ　ｆａｒ．　Ｉ　ｒｅａｌｉｚｅ　ｔｈａｔ　ｉｓ　ａ　ｖａｇｕｅ　ｓｔａｔｅｍｅｎｔ　ｂｕｔ　Ｉ　ｈａｖｅ　ｎｏｔ　ｈｏｎｅｓｔｌｙ　ｆａｌｌｅｎ　ｉｎ　ｌｏｖｅ　ｗｉｔｈ　ｔｈｅ　ｐｌａｃｅ．　Ｉｔ　ｉｓ　ｓｔａｒｋｌｙ　ｄｉｆｆｅｒｅｎｔ　ｆｒｏｍ　Ｋｏｒｅａ　ｉｎ　ｍａｎｙ　ｗａｙｓ．　Ｍｏｒｅ　ｏｎ　ｔｈｉｓ　ｌａｔｅｒ．Ｔｈｅ　ｈｏｓｔｅｌ　ｗｈｅｒｅ　ｗｅ　ａｒｅ　ｓｔａｙｉｎｇ　ｉｓ　ｉｎ　Ａｓｕｋｕｓａ　ａｎｄ　ｉｓ　ａｓ　ｃｌｅａｎ　ａｓ　ｔｈｅｙ　ｃｏｍｅ．　Ｉ　ａｍ　ｓｔｉｌｌ　ｃｏｍｉｎｇ　ｔｏ　ｔｅｒｍｓ　ｗｉｔｈ　ｔｈｅ　Ｊａｐａｎｅｓｅ　ｋｅｙｂｏａｒｄｓ．　Ｉ　ｍｕｓｔ　ａｐｏｌｏｇｉｚｅ　ｆｏｒ　ｔｈｅ　ｃｈａｎｇｅ　ｉｎ　ｆｏｎｔ　ｓｉｎｃｅ　Ｉ　ｈａｖｅ　ｃｈａｎｇｅｄ　ｔｈｅ　ｌａｎｇｕａｇｅ　ａｂｏｕｔ　３　ｔｉｍｅｓ　ｉｎ　ｔｈｅ　ｌａｓｔ　１０　ｍｉｎｕｔｅｓ．
Ｃｉａｏ！

Merry Chistmas from Ellen and Eric!

Yes we are nerds. . . .

Happy Christmas Eve!

Eric arrived on Sunday and we made a trek up to the Seoul Tower last night. The last few weeks have been extremely busy preparing for Japan and indulging in the festive holiday spirit.

This morning was the Poly Christmas Pageant where the morning teachers did a spectacular job coordinating Kindergartners and Pre-schoolers into song and dance. Tonight Poly is hosting a staff party. Sadly the fun will be cut short since we are leaving for Tokyo tomorrow morning. I may be updating during this trip, depending on internet connectivity.

There are many, many photos to be posted. This will have to wait until after the holidays.

To anyone reading this, I hope you have a Wonderful Christmas and I will see you in the New Year!

P.S. I love Andy Warhol at Christmas. . .

Won hits 1325!!!!

I have to admit I have been glued to AP news coverage recently. When I checked my e-mail I was welcomed by an e-mail reporting that the Korean Won hit 1325 yesterday! That means the 1USD is equal to 1325 Won. It was at about 1230 when I arrived in August. At this rate people predict it should be back on track by early 2009.
Value chart for Nov-Dec

Chart source
AP article

Prison for adultery

The Korean legal system has a series of laws in place for spouses that are found guilty of adultery. According to AP the 55 year old statute has largely been used to prosecute philandering husbands. In recent years some husbands have used the charges to pursue their wives.
Ok So-Ri was recently sentenced for adultery.

We're going to the chapel. . .

I was woken up at 5am this morning by Libby who was at the church with the entire family. Danielle and Zane finally got married. . .CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

Santa? In Korea?

Many of the children we teach live in high rise apartment buildings. The apartments therefore lack chimneys. In light of the Christmas season I asked the second graders today how Santa came to their apartments. Many of the responses included through the window, taking the stairs instead of the elevator to avoid CCTV.

My favorite response (as many answers from Korean children have to do with bodily functions) was that Santa delivered toys through the toilet. . .this way no one is able to see him.

The World in 30 Colors. . .

The world is a colorful place.

Kickin' It In Geumchon

This little gem expresses the general attitude of English teachers in this area.

Florence and the Machine

It may not be Korean, but I like.

Korean Class-Vowels

I found this explanation of vowels while blog stalking this evening. Someone was talking about the rotation of the vowels on Saturday. This explains that perspective. Give it a whirl.

Happy December!

Here are some photos of the Korean angels(?) I get to spend my days with!
This is 2s-4, I taught them the chicken dance. . . video is pending.
This is Joey and Jamie modeling their hats. Jamie's is extra popular this winter. On the really cold days children's faces are disguised as polar bears, pink moneys and other woodland creatures.This is the former GT2C2-2. Some of my favorites got moved up, and down we'll see how the new batch turns out.

Korean Class-Picture Day

This is the class photo from Korean class. The instructor is seated three from the right in the front row. She is wearing a greyish skirt and lavender top. She is incredibly patient and skilled at her job. I must admit it is very helpful being in the student's perspective when you yourself are acting as the teacher. Especially to people who are learning your native language as their second language. After sitting through several of her teaching sessions I immediately realized why it is so important to speak slowly when instructing.

Similar to slowing down to eat it is also important to slow down when you speak. First so people can thoroughly understand what you're saying and second so you have a deeper appreciation for your ability to converse using language.