Message from Flo

A Visitor's View of Sparkling South Korea (that's actually one of the country's slogans)

After two very smooth flights, including a short and sweet reunion at the SFO airport, I arrived in Seoul! In true comedic form, Darren was waiting for me with a big welcome sign at the wrong gate entry. Luckily I sat next to a very friendly Korean (Mr. Park #1) who let me use his cell phone to find Darren! Needless to say, it was a good first impression of the Korean personality: warm, generous and helpful.

We spent the next four days exploring Seoul. We hit a lot of the major tourist attractions:

1. Gyeongbokgung Palace: Full of ornate, traditional Korean color and architecture. We checked out the National Museum within it and saw the colorful changing of the guards-like ceremony. I took way too many pictures of these guys, but I thought it was awesome to figuratively take a step back in time (like 700 years ago). This palace was part of the Joseon Dynasty and thanks to these folks Seoul became the capital city.

2. Namdaemun Market: We loved walking around this bustling, traditional market. They sold everything from Laver (dried seaweed) to fake designer bags. Hot foods, clothing for all, houseware, shoeware, knickknacks, stuff you don't even know you need or want, and so on and so forth. I loved just watching the people and taking in what seemed like a very average day in the lives of the hustling locals.

3. Myeong-Dong: We stayed at Mr. Park's Guest House (yes, that's Mr. Park #2) where I was introduced to the Korean customs of removing shoes before entering rooms, drinking lots of green tea from convenient hot water dispensers (everyone has one, even hotel rooms and saunas have them) and taking showers in plastic slippers.

4. Seoul Tower: Darren and I took a very late night stroll up to the tower, knowing we wouldn't make it on time. It turned out to be one of my favorite moments. Nothing like a midnight hike up a long hill... We actually encountered a few ambitious Koreans, doing what I assume were intense training regimens. Who knows, they impressed me, though, especially the midnight runners. The next night, we actually made it to the Tower and enjoyed the spectacular views. Apparently, on a really clear night, you can see as far north as North Korea.

5. Korean War Museum: I was a little sick by this point, but Darren was stoked about this museum. His great enthusiasm propelled the day. We spent most of the visit learning about the Korean War, watching interesting video footage and listening to our audio guide. There were also other sections dedicated to dynastic wars and such. I was a bit embarrassed to have known so little about the Korean war. We could have spent more time there, but we stayed until it closed.

6. Itaewon: We stayed at another guest house, motel-ish. This is a slightly seedier, more western, more club-ish part of Seoul. We ate at a nice Thai restaurant where the manager bought us dessert. He was impressed that Darren was teaching me the Korean alphabet. Darren was fearless at asking questions about the pronunciation and definition of certain words.

7. Our traditional Korean home stay! Sleeping on heated floors was actually comfy. We stayed here after my first night at a Jim Jil Bang. It's like an over night sauna, bath-house. Hard to describe, really, but so cheap and relaxing. I joined the other Korean women and just relaxed, enjoying the different pools. Going from hot to cold and then jumping in the steam room or the sauna. I loved watching the women preen each other. It was so communal. Westerners have managed to make spa treatments very private and very expensive. I really enjoyed the Korean sensibility that taking care of your skin and your stress is part of a healthy well-being. And it wasn't expensive at all. We've gone backwards in the arena of health and well-being in the States. Enough said. And after my relaxing, I was given a set of shorts and a tee and I would go to the communal sauna area to meet Darren. Here we could sleep on the floor, or buy some food, or enjoy some massage chairs, or go on the internet, or read, or even watch TV, if it wasn't too late. We took advantage of the saunas.

We took the train back to Darren's home in Miryang. Here we visited many Buddhist temples. This proved to be wonderful because every temple was on a hill, so a nice trek was always part of the plan. We actually went on a three hour hike in Pychungsa, a nearby mountain. Here I met a lot of Darren's international teacher-friends. But even more impressively, I met his Korean buds, who exercised their hospitality and generosity by taking us out to dinner on many occasions, cheering us with soju and coca-cola to future reunions and Darren (very handsome boy, as they liked to call him. They wanted me to be sure I knew about these qualities before I left!) Even though both parties couldn't speak either enough English or Korean to be fully understood, we communicated beautifully. Eating dinner with them always proved endearing and entertaining! A lot of guessing, a lot of physical expression goes a long way.

On to Busan! We spent a couple days in bustling Busan. One night at a cheap love motel (which sounds like it might be sketchy, but was actually very nice and accommodating) and one night at a very high end hotel, the Westin Chosun. Darren treated me big time here. We went out dancing, dinner, played a little blackjack at a casino in a shopping mall! It was a very high end shopping mall! I just watched Darren win $175...his winnings were enough excitement for me! We went on to the aquarium, we got our picture taken by some very eager Jehovah's Witnesses, we strolled Haeundae beach... We had a lot of fun.

Alright, some quick highlights:

On Korean food:

It was all excellent, in my opinion. Kimbap, kimchi, bulgogi, korean pizza, cold noodle soup, galbi and on and on. I loved all the veggies and the BBQs. The sesame leaves, and sesame paste and hot peppers and fresh garlic and quail eggs... It was always interesting and tasty to me, but as Darren says: "sometimes you just have a craving for pasta and burgers". I was only there for 15 days, after all...

On Korean compliments:

"So beautiful", all of the elementary school kids liked to say this to me. Ego boosting as this may have been the first 30 times, it lost its meaning after a while.

"Best couple", cute teenaged girls told us this at a bus stop.

"You look alike", apparently looking alike is a good thing because we heard this a lot.

On Korean logic:

"She has big eyes. Good vision", seriously, someone said this about my eyes.

On the Korean alphabet:

Konglish. Many words I read on store fronts were actually English words spelled out with the Korean alphabet. My favorite ah-ha moment was deciphering Ma-ra-ton Luh-ning = Marathon Running. I must have looked like a western fool, jumping for joy that I read this out loud and got it with Darren. Konglish, indeed. I called Darren a master in Konglish!

On Korean pastimes:

Bowling, tea-time, volleyball, saunas, hiking, karaoke rooms, dvd rooms... We did them all. Like I said, fun, fun and more fun. It was a great vacation.

Darren was a great traveling partner. He navigated us through all the metro stops and train stops. He had his trusty and true Lonely Planet guide handy and ready for our many adventures. We managed to plan our days as they came and more often than not our days became jammed-packed with activity. His students were very polite, very respectful. They even called me teach-ah, even though I was merely visiting. All in all, a bunch of very welcoming, warm Koreans. It was a great traveling experience, while also being a bit of a home stay in the smaller city of Miryang. A fruitful combination, to say the least.

I know I am leaving stuff out, but this gives a good overview of our fun two weeks together. I highly recommend checking South Korea out. Darren would love the visit and now you have an idea on how well you'll be treated by the natives!

Whirlwind Travels

Well hello everyone!!!!

Right now I'm sitting at a computer in a lovely Sauna/Spa/Restaurant, resort-like paradise spot near Incheon Airport in Korea. I'm waiting the much anticipated arrival of my girlfriend Flo to arrive from her long day of traveling from Newark, NJ. I've been really enjoying my day here today. Just lounging around in the hot bath tubs, steam rooms, saunas, sleeping rooms, internet cafe, etc. They have everything from massage services, eating place, coed hot rooms to relax in; and a men's only sleeping room. Right now there are so many cute Korean boys & girls running around having fun, playing games on internet. Some of them are saying, "Hi, How are you? Nice to meet you!" Really cute & endearing.

So I just back from 4 days in Thailand. Thailand was OK. But due to the fact that I had to fly into Bangkok, it made the trip as little less than desirable... Bangkok is the MOST disgusting city I've ever been too. It is SO DIRTY, smelly, crowded, filled with people who are constantly "in your face" trying to sell you something or take you somewhere. The smells of garbage, urine, food, perfume, incense, etc. wafting through the air made for of most unpleasant scenario. The first night I arrived very late on Friday, I went to a restaurant for soup, salad, and a young coconut shake... It was decent, but apparently didn't agree with my stomach because I became sick and was vomiting all next morning. Also that first night while walking back to my room, I saw the BIGGEST, most MASSIVE sized rat ever stumbling through the street. I don't know if this Rat was left over from the 2008 "Year of the Rat" celebration of few weeks earlier, but it was a most disturbing & gross sight to see nonetheless.
Bangkok was hot, and lil humid & muggy, and just way to crowded, filthy....oh and did I mention dirty??? It had no appeal, no charm, no niceness about it whatsoever. The only thing I enjoyed was going to a HOT Yoga class and a very nice, modern, clean studio, then I stayed in that part of town, went to the park to see some trees & grass. I also enjoyed watching a few hundred people doing dance aerobics in the park along the lake. That was a crazy site to see. I stayed in the park, rested on the grass and did some reading. At 6pm everyone (all the Thai people) stood up and stood at attention for 5-7 minutes to honor the King. This is something they do everyday at 6 o'clock in Thailand. I was in no rush to go back to my hotel which was 2 blocks away from the "famous" Khao San Rd. that they always talk about in books & movies (The Beach, Miss Saigon, etc). To me I felt like I was in a third world country. A cross between India (Bombay), Mexico, Pakistan, Morocco, etc. I've never been to India, Pakistan, or Mexico, but to me it felt as if Bangkok could have been anyone of these poorer countries.
Later that night, I went to the BIG, HUGE, modern shopping mall where I bought a ticket to see American Gangster. I had already seen most of this movie from a bootleg DVD my neighbors had in Miryang. The movie was so so great to see again, esp. on the big screen!!! Denzel did such a great job playing Frank Lucas, legendary mob boss who ran Harlem & most of NYC with major drug trafficking back in the 1970's during the Vietnam War. They showed many, many coming attractions which tested my patience and then before they actual movie started, everyone in the movie theater stood up as they showed a picture of the King & Queen. This is evidently a BIG thing in Thailand, showing constant reverence and homage to the king. I felt like I was in the moving "Coming to America" with King Jaffy Joffer from Zamunda, Africa. (Did anyone see that movie with Eddie Murphy & Arsenio Hall?) It was a pretty funny movie.
The next day I met up with my friend Christina & we took a "tuk tuk" (crazy 3-wheeled) taxi like car over to the Grand Palace. This was the other only nice thing to do/see in Bangkok. This Palace looked like it was something out of the Wizard of Oz, with it's ornate, golden tiled facade, it's unique, colorful statues, buildings, etc. To me it was a cross btw. the Wizard of Oz, the Kremlin & Willy Wonka's Chocolate factory. It was so ornate & over the top that it seemed almost fake in a way. It is such a high (holy) place of worship that you must wear long pants (no shorts) and not have sleeveless top. They gave me a pair of long pants to wear over my shorts as to be able to enter the palace gate. They loan it to you for a 100 Baht deposit which you get back when you return it. Christina was wearing jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt & I was getting hot just looking at her. I had sandals, shorts, and a t-shirt. The Palace was nice, I really enjoyed going inside to view the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. That is one thing there is no shortage of in Thailand, Buddhas, temples, elephants, and pictures of the King. After being in Thailand, if I don't see another Temple or Buddha, I'd be fine.... It was also quite amazing to see how loved, revered, honored and praise the King of Thailand is. He's been on the Throne for over 61 years now, and is turning 80 years old this year. Literally on every corner (practically) you can see a picture of the King, sometimes with his wife (the Queen); but many times just of him (often times he's pictured with a camera around his neck (he must be an avid photographer).... I've seen Thai people driving in their cars and they would salute (with their hands in prayer position just under their nose) while driving by a picture of the King. At firs this was kinda odd to me that they would be so fanatical, but as time went on, I got a feeling that the maybe the King really is a great guy after all.
Anyway, after 2 nights in Bangkok, I was yearning to leave for destinations further south to head towards a beach. I took a 4 hour local bus to Hua Hin which is supposed to be the neatest, most tidy town in Thailand. So I was most looking forward this destination. Well, needless to say it was no bargain either (not like Boca Raton FL, Avalon, NJ or Sea Girt....) it was more like Point Pleasant or Seaside Heights....rather touristy, with lots of shops and overpriced restaurants. The only difference was that that had Thai Massage Parlors on every corner. Maybe that's a "new" untapped market for NY/NJ to tap into...these cheap as dirt Thai massage places where they charge you anywhere from $3-$9 for a 1 hour massage!!!! I got one the first night I was there in Hua Hin. I was ok, more like stretching & twisting than deep relaxation. The hotel I stayed at said it was apropos of Brighton Beach, very outdoorsy, open-air deck, right on the ocean. Again, it was OK, considering I paid only $10.50/night for a room that didn't have a flush toilet, and barley had a normal sink. I was kinda appalled at first with the shocking fact that I had to fill up a bucket (pail) of water to "flush" the debris down the toilet. This, coupled with the fact that their were tons of ants crawling around on the floor near my bed, didn't really give me feelings of "clean & tidy". But after 2 days, I got used to toilets that didn't flush, and going to the bathroom with no toilet paper and having to use water to wipe myself.... Needless to say I was most delighted to leave Bangkok at the grueling time of 1:40am. I now consider this cruel time departure to be harsh & crude. I barely slept on the flight, and just when I began to fall fast asleep, they turn all the lights FULL BLAST to serve us breakfast at 4:30 am....This is so unfair... To wake me up to serve my eggs, a muffin, fruit & yogurt....My eyes were burning, my head was aching, etc. When we landed at 6:45am Thai time (8:45am Korea time) I hopped a bus and went immediately to a Jim Jil Bang which I am now convinced is the GREATEST contribtution Korea haas given man/womankind!!!! Forget LG, Samsung, Kia, Daewoo, Hyundai, kimchi, bulgogi, etc....to me it's gotta be these 24 hour, open all night, all year, round the clock lil mini resort villages. To me at 8:45am it was a lil slice of paradise!!!!! I took a deliciously hot shower, soaked in a steaming hot tub/sauna & then changed into shorts & a t-shirt for a wonderful 3 hour power nap. There is something so relaxing, special & fun about being in one these place all day. With the internet, a restaurant, massage room, massage chairs, hot "green tea" & jade rooms, etc....You can make yourself very comfortable. They should have these places at every Holiday Inn in America. (another new idea that is sure to be very popular in America).

OK now for a brighter update on my former trip to Japan. Now visiting Japan was a real treat, honor, and privilege. It was so nice, so modern (ultra-westernized), new, clean, professional, etc. It is a very "smart" country. Tokyoites are very hip, cool, chill, laid back people. They are very fashionable, sophisticated, unique, alive, dynamic & expressive people. This was honestly a breath of FRESH AIR for both Christina & I because Korea (in comparison) is SO SO quite, calm, reserved. So conservative, prim & proper, homogeneous, boring, dull, plain vanilla. Honestly to me, being in Korea in 2008 is like being in America in the 1960's. Things are just a lil slow, and old-fashioned here. I have not been to Seoul yet, but I'm hoping to see if it has a lil more flavor, color & self-expression than the rest of Korea. I will be spending 4 days here with Flo and will let you know.

But Tokyo was SO DYNAMIC, so metropolitan, very trendy, clean city. We went to the 5th Ave equivalent of Tokyo, visited lots of high-end shops, toured the Toyota & Sony rooms. Went to old Temples, museums, etc. Went to the downtown areas with all the glitzy neon & bustling crowds of people. Ate Soba noodles, tempura, sushi, crepes, etc & drank Sapporo, Asahi beer & warm Sake...... It was a very high-end city, classy & unique with some parts that resembled Paris. All in all Tokyo & Japan was an exquisite & enjoyable experience.

But with all this traveling I've been doing over the past 4 weekends, I'm definitely ready for a break and am looking forward to being able to staying home in my quite lil town of Miryang and not doing much of anything (except riding my bike around town, hanging out by the river, going to the local bath house, etc). So simple, fun, quiet & relaxing.

Tales from Winter Camp

Well, well, I must say that I am rather excited to finally be able to share with everyone all the amazing experiences we had during the intensive Winter Camp in Changwon (the capital of the province where I live).
Being an instructor at Winter Camp allowed me to really get to know and understand a lot more about Korean culture, lifestyle, attitude, philosophy, etc. It was really rather funny and amusing to learn about some of their traditions, customs, beliefs, etc. For example, do you know that Koreans believe there are 2 rabbits pounding on a Chulgu (big bowl for making rice cakes) on the moon. It's apparently an old legend/story that the Koreans tell their children when they are young. My group actually got to "act out" this story as a skit on stage about this story. The story tells a tale of two powerful "farters" that decided to have a Fart Competition to see who's farts are the strongest. (I swear this is really a true Korean folk story) I know, I know, I could hardly believe it myself, but it's true. So one day the one Fart Woman comes over and farts on the other Farter's child (played by me). My mom gets mad and decides to aim this huge Chulgu (big bowl) at the other Fart Woman....then the other woman takes aim & shoots (farts) it back toward me & my mom, back & forth they go until finally they let out one final last SUPER FART at the same time and with that blast, the Chulgu shoots up to the moon where the 2 rabbits start to play (pound) on it. Please don't ask me how/why or what the 2 rabbits got on the moon in the first place.....that make be another story in itself.
OK, that is just one of many silly myths (urban legends) that they believe. Some others are as follows:

• They believe in "Fan Death" which says that if you fall asleep in a room with the windows and door shut and you have an electric fan running, you will choke (b/c of lack of oxygen) and die. This is a ridiculous fallacy that some Koreans really believe is true because they "saw it on the news" Come on please. You can even do a search for "Fan Death" on Google or You Tube to see more info. on this. It's really silly.
• They believe that you should never clip your toe/finger nails at night because if you do, mice will come out when you are sleeping and will eat your nail clippings and they will eventually turn into a clone (copy) of you. And no one will be able to tell the difference between the real you and the clone. What a serious predicament to be in huh??? So do you know how these clever Koreans solve this unique dilemma??? Yup, you guessed they get a cat to see which person it chases, and the one it chases is "obviously" the copy b/c cats love to chase mice!!! I'm serious folks, these were grown adults that were (proudly) telling me these stories of their people's folk tales
• Another story says that if you find/bite into a stone while eating your rice, you should keep it and put it in the shoe of someone you like. This will eventually cause them to think of (be attracted to) you, and allow you to marry them. OK, now I can see the sweetness, the cuteness, and the innocence of the mythical legend. I'm sure we have plenty of silly, ridiculous, off-the-wall myths, legends, and superstitions that we believe in back home.
• They also believe in the strict need to rest for at least 21 days after giving birth to help their bodies and their bones heal & repair. They are advised not take a shower (only a sponge bath) b/c the cold air will weaken their bones; They are so radical that they believe you should not leave the house for the first 7 days. All kinds of weird notions like this.
  
• Some other things that Koreans believe in (swear by) is the potency of their rare, exotic, unique and different types of food and delicacies. For example they like to eat "Bo shin Tang" which translates into "healthy body soup" This soup is actually made with dog meat!!!!!! Yes, that's right it is supposed to be very good for your throat and is cooling in summer time. But keep in mind that the types of dogs they eat are completely different from the domesticated types of dogs we raise as pets. They breed a certain kind of "field dog" that they raise like sheep, cows, or any another livestock. Because they were such a poor country and never really had access to much meat.... they decided to copy the Chinese and raise dog for food. It just cracked me up to hear that they call dog soup "healthy body soup" Who knows, I just may need to try it this summer!!

Everything in Korea is either good for your health, or good for stamina (in case of a man). Like they eat "bon day gee" which is silk worm larvae. I personally think it's kinda gross, it smells awful...but it is supposedly "good for men's stamina". They drink this hot black colored tea from the root (bark) of a tree that tastes God awful, but it's supposed to fight off colds.
There is another rumor (fact?) that Raspberry Wine gives a man stamina b/c of the story of a man who drank lots of it in the winter time & went to pee in the pot (metal or ceramic) which was outside and his pee was so strong, that it actually shattered to pot!!!! Come on now people!!! I guess if it was really cold, and his pee was really hot, this could happen, right? So no matter what type of Korean foods you eat or drink, most will undoubtedly say: "Oh yea, ...... that's "good for your health" or in case of man: "good for stamina".
Just too funny. These are just some of the preliminary incidents I can recall from Winter Camp. I will be back next time with some more anecdotes.
Until Next Time,

LIVE with PASSION!

Japan Here We Come!!!

Yes, that's right, because we have a 5 day weekend for Chinese (Lunar) New Year, my friend Christina and I decided to take advantage of these 5 days and booked a flight to Nagoya Japan. Does anyone find it ironic that I'm going to Japan for "Chinese" New Year?? Oh well, I guess I could think of stranger things...While planning our itinerary, as to where to spend our 4 nights, we considered, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka & Tokyo. Since Nagoya is on the eastern part of the country (the archipelago as it's called) we decided it best to take a train or bus (5.5 hours) from Nagoya to Tokyo where we will stay for 3 nights. We already have reserved a place to stay for only 29,000 Yen ($29 per person/night) what a friggin bargain, esp. for Tokyo!!! I am so excited to be going to Japan and especially to have to excitement & pleasure of being in Tokyo. I've packed my bathing suit because they have over 3,000 natural, hot springs (Onsen) there!!! Some are co-ed, some are segregated. I wanna make sure I'm completely prepared for this trip!!!

I have so much to write to catch you up on the WONDERFUL time I had teaching at an Intensive English Camp for Korean HS & Middle School teachers. We worked long, hard hours each week for the entire month of January. Starting with our first class at 9am, and ending the last class each day at 8:30pm. We would teach each teach about 8 - 9 50 minute classes per day!!! But it was so much fun b/c I got to teach English to grown-up adults who actually WANTED to be there. I mean, these teachers voluntarily "gave up" their entire month long winter break to enroll themselves in this INTENSIVE English course to help improve their English. I tell you, this was most intriguing, impressive, and admirable thing to see & experience. To see the extreme dedication, commitment, and focus these teachers have to improve their English speaking and to help them gain the confidence that they need to be effective English teachers. This was quite a unique privilege, honor, and treat for me to be a part of this process. I feel very lucky,grateful, and appreciative (once again) to have been selected (1 of 8 Instructors) to teach at this camp. We even made it onto the evening News Channel KBS one night which featured the nature of the English we were teaching at. I am becoming even more of a celebrity in Korea these days because people from all over town are recognizing me from the TV News report. Who knows, I just me run for mayor of Miryang one day!! I will write more on this experience with my next entry. Right now I need to head off to bed b/c I have to catch a train to the airport tomorrow morning. HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!

2008 - Year of the Rat!!!!!

Happy 2008 Everyone!!!

Well the clock struck midnight here in Korea just over 1 hour and 42 minutes ago. It's still about 12 hours away from 2008 in NY & 15 hours away in CA where my girlfriend Flo is right now. I spent a wonderful evening hanging out locally in Miryang. I went to the Sauna/Bath House, and enjoyed lying down in the Steam Room & Sauna as well as dipping myself in the hot and cold bath tubs. Then I went to yoga class from 7:30-8:30pm (no Judo tonight b/c of New Year's). Then I rode my bike to the DVD Bang (room) where I met Orion and his girlfriend Theresa from Minnesota. He bought a pizza, I bought french fries & apple pie from McDonald's along with some beer & Korean plum wine. YUM YUM!!!! We "rented" watched DejaVu with Denzel Washington & Val Kilmer. It was a fairly intense, mind-boggling action thriller which we enjoyed. It's fun to be able to bring in food & drinks into a semi-professional movie room to enjoy while watching the movie. After that, there was still 35 minutes left until midnight & we decided to go to the local pub for a pitcher of beer. At the bar were many Koreans there with their families (wives, children, etc) A few (of the brave) Korean said "hello" to us and "happy new year" I proceeded to grab 3 tambourines from the karaoke section of the bar and shake them vigorously to make some noise, since it was only 10 minutes till New Year's. But evidently the owner didn't appreciate that gesture & took the tambourines out of my hands. I don't know why he did that. Maybe it wasn't appropriate thing to do. I don't really know. But we did end of making friends with these very nice Korean people who came over & introduced themselves to us. Gave us some of their beer, and welcomed us to Miryang & to Korea. It was great!!! These young couples were their with their precious lil, adorable children, who were visibly tired & cranky at well past midnight. It was really fun

Then I rode my bike home to my apartment & proceeded to stare in awe at all the beautiful twinkling stars in the sky. They really do twinkle, have you noticed that?" I was standing there in the cold, dark night, in awe at the beauty of the night sky. Since Miryang is a small city, without many lights, the stars are much more visible then they are back home. It was nice to stand there and reflect on the huge vastness & magnitude of this great universe (one song) of ours. Uni = 0ne and Verse = song. And just think that the same moon I see here now is the same moon that my mom & dad will see 12 hours from now in New York & is the SAME moon that Flo will see 15 hours from now in California!!!! That is just so cool to me!!!

So the holidays have come and gone. Did everyone get what they wanted? Here in Korea the favorite items on all the children's wish list seemed to be:
Nintendo DS
MP3/mp4 Player
Play Station 3
Money
Soccer Ball/Soccer Shoes
Puppy
Cell Phone (hendapone (hand phone) in Korean
Computer
Books
toy doll
WWE (wrestling) tickets - the kids (boys) LOVE WWE wrestling out here. They always talk about John Cina, Batista, Triple H'ee', Undertaker, etc. It's actually quite amusing to talk about wrestling with them & they just love when I mention Hulk Hogan and some other names with them!!
Some kids joking asked for a car, a house, airplane, etc. BIG Thinkers, I'll give them that much.

It's simply amazing to see how curious and wonderfully fascinated the elementary school kids are by me doing, what I would consider the most simplest things. For example, it's precious to see the way they all clamor around my desk in the morning, or before class begins to peek over at my computer screen to see what I'm doing. Most times it's just writing an email or chatting with a friend in Korea or back home via IM. They just stand there for several minutes looking with wide-eyed wonderment at what I am doing. It's really quite flattering but I must admit, it can be quite annoying and bothersome as well. It gives me the chance to practice LOVE, PATIENCE, COMPASSION and UNDERSTANDING rather than anger, upset, violation, etc. Instead of looking at them as being "nosy, rude, or inconsiderate," I remind myself that they are 8, 9, 10, 11, & 12 year old Korean students who have never had this much interaction with a real, live Westerner before. They are fascinated & intrigued by me & that is exciting to them. I must also admit that it can get a bit annoying and quite old after a long while of the same old repetitious/admirable/adoring behaviour. As much as my ego LOVE the attention, after all day of constantly being bombarded with waving, hugging, bowing, saying "hello" it can get pretty old very quickly. Now I know a little bit of what celebrities go through everyday of their lives being constantly bombarded with raving fans who want to touch them, grab them, say "hi" to them, be introduced to them, etc. I really can see & feel what John Travolta, Billy Joel, Micheal Jordan, and Madonna must go through everyday of their lives. No wonder why Princess Diana's car sped away from the paparatzi the night of her fatal death. They just want to live normal, simple, quiet and peaceful lives away from all the craziness that their stardom creates. I'm not saying I'm anywhere near thew status of these people, but on a very small, microscopic scale, perhaps I am.

Well it's good to be able to update everyone back home as to what my most recent thoughts and feelings are. It's been a long while since I've consistently had the chance to update my Blog. That's mainly due to this long and arduous manuscript that I had to write and hand in on December 8th. My paper ended up being 58 pages long and took an enormous amount of time for me to complete. I wrote this manuscript b/c I have been assigned (along with 7 other English teachers) to train approx. 50 Korean Middle School English teachers. The main purpose of the 5 week Winter Camp is to help enable these teachers to gain confidence and practical skills with their English speaking ability. We will be training with them from 9am-8/9pm Mon-Fri in Changwon (the capitol of my Province). They put all of us up in a dormitory, feed us, and pay us an extremely nice salary above & beyond what we are currently getting paid to teach English regularly. So all the is work and preparation is definitely worth it.

Stay tuned for more updates from Winter Camp in Changwon which starts on Wednesday January 2nd and runs until January 31st.

Good Night & God Bless one & all with the BEST & BRIGHTEST year ever!!!

With Purpose & Passion,

Darren

Today it Rained in Miryang - Thank Goodness!!

I don't think I've ever been so happy to see rain as I was today when I walked outside my apartment. It's been so extremely dry here that I had to go out and buy a humidifier. During the past two plus months, it's rained all of two days. I get so happy now when it's cloudy, overcast, and rainy. It's a much welcomed change from the bright sun, clear blue skies and puffy white clouds. Like Bijan (another mentor of mine) says: "I like the rain on rainy days and I like the sun on sunny days." That way you are ensured to have an enjoyable, great day everyday regardless of what the weather is like; pretty cool huh?

I had a great evening tonight. I left school early (3:15pm) because we did not have our weekly volleyball game. We had a very fun volleyball competition between 4 different elementary schools last Wednesday. Our school held "emergency" practice on Monday & Tuesday in preparation for the big tournament!! Our school did not do so well, both our women's and men's team lost the Best 2 out of 3 match. I went to accunpuncturist from 3:30-4:30, went to Judo class (which is actually starting to get fun now). After the first 4-6 weeks of getting my ass kicked all over the place by these really big & strong Korean men, trying to learn "how to fall safely" and trying to learn how to do this one particular flip/throw that, if landed properly would automatically win the match in one shot. I'm just now finally starting to enjoy practice only because I'm engaging in "live" action with these younger, smaller middle school students (who are a lot easier to throw than these 220+lbs. men). I was actually able to land some effective takedowns/throwdowns; I was excited to be able to successful land a few headlock throws, armbar flips, etc. Then my Judo teacher asked to spar with me. He is a Black Belt Judo Master who is a very quick, powerful, middleweight guy. It was my first time in live action with him. I am very pleased to report that he was not able to easily throw me around like a rag doll (like my previous partners have). I was able to get some throws and takedowns in against him. I put up a good fight and was very pleased with the results I produced against him. It kinda feels like it did when I used to wrestle in high school and college. I was a very good workout!

After Judo, I rode my bike to another elementary school where I had the absolute pleasure of enjoying an amazing performance of Yerim Elementary school wind orchestra. I must tell you that ever since they played the first note, I was blown away with how AMAZING they sounded!! I must tell you how brilliant, how robust, how moving and how professional they were!!! I mean these kids consisted of 3rd, 4th, 5th & 6th grades. They all came out with white shirts with red vests & bow ties, and just dazzled the audience with their song selections. they played somewhere over..... you were very good "i know"

I am TRULY BLESSED!!!!

I feel as if I am so so lucky, fortunate, & truly blessed with so many of the things that I have going on for me here in Korea. First of all I teach at a really great elementary school which is only a 10 minute bus ride (15-20 min by bike). I teach at the SAME school 5 days a week, I have 1 main co-teacher who is the greatest!!! She is so nice; very warm, sweet, helpful, supportive, and is very active (hands-on) with me in the classroom. We have so much fun teaching together in the classroom. I've learned to become comfortable with the basic, simple, monotonous, (in my mind boring) routine of the English text book lessons and have decided to "go with the flow" and add my own little bits of creativity in the beginning of each class for warm up. I have the kids put the hands in the air, clap 5 times, touch their head, shoulders, knees and toes, etc. My co-teacher usually pulls up this song and other cute kids songs from the Internet & will play this song, all with "If you're Happy and you Know it, Clap Your Hands!" on the TV screen. I have 4 other co-teachers that I teach 4th grade with and they are all so fun and great as well. I have a great relationship with many of the other faculty members here as well as with the Vice-Principal (we are on the same volleyball team) "B TEAM, B TEAM Pieting!!!" (fighting). He is the most enthusiastic, supportive & encouraging guy you will ever meet. It's so much fun to see many of these teachers playing FULL OUT on the volleyball court. We usually have food & drinks in the gym afterwards!!!!
I love Miryang, the town I'm living in, it's small, quiet, quaint and centrally located in btw. 2 major cities. I am especially thankful & most grateful for the 15 other English teachers that live here as well. We all keep in touch weekly to plan activities together. Whether it be bowling, dinner, hiking, traveling, rugby, or going to the bar for drinks, etc. everyone treats each other like one big family. There is a great sense of community here and is no wonder that many of these teachers here are re-newing their contracts and will be staying an extra year. I have a nice, new, clean apt. with 2 great neighbors who live next door to me. I feel as if I have been truly blessed by the grace of God, and I know that He has been looking over me, and taking care of me ever since I left NY on August 28th. I knew it was a good omen when we left on the day of the Full Moon of Virgo.

Unfortunately I can not say that about many of my other teacher friends. Many teachers teach at 3, 4 or 5 different schools, having to drive 30 min to each school. Some of them have co-teachers that do not even stay in the room, and who leave them alone with the students in class. Some of my other friends teach in schools where the children are wild, loud, and very disrespectful. They scream, curse, and say all kinds of rude, nasty things to these teachers; and they are challenged with how to elicit help from the teachers or from people at the school. One guy teaches in most rural town where he has to walk 2 miles just to get to the nearest store & their are no taxis available either. It baffles me has to the crazy and absurd conditions some of them have to go through. I feel as if I'm living in a dream world compared to them!!!

I am especially excited that I've booked my ticket for Bangkok, Thailand and will be spend 6 nights down there enjoying the beautiful warm weather and gorgeous beaches at the end of Feb. for my winter break. Then from Bangkok, I fly directly to Seoul where I will be picking Flo up at the airport that evening as she will be flying in from NJ!!!!! She will be in Korea with me for 14 days and will travel all around the country during that time. I am so so excited!!!! My first visitor!!! Yipeee!!!!!! My mom wants to visit here as well, but my dad doesn't seem to have any interest. Anyone else wanna come visit me? I picked up a used sofa from Dan & Kim that you can use to sleep if you choose. Just a thought.

I'm learning to speak Korean a lil more each day, and I can pretty much read everything I see in Korean. The alphabet is really cool and easy in the sense that each vowel (letter) only has ONE sound. Not like in English where a letter like "o" "e" "a" "g" can have a different sound based on the word. Like George & gum. Or like all the difficult and different sounds vowels make in English.Vowels like "a" and "u" can sound several different ways such as "uniform" "umbrella" "put" etc. But in Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, each vowel only has ONE distinct sound and it never changes. So once you memorize the sound of each letter, (vowel or consonant) you can easily start to read signs, menus, cities, etc in Korean. It took me a while to actually get the 'correct' pronunciation of some of the unique Korean sounds, but after listening to them over and over, I finally got it correct. I was pleased to get a nice compliment from a few of the native Korean teachers here. When they asked me where I lived and told them the name of my apt in Korean (Haeng bok Villa) they, replied: "Darren, this is not your first time in Korea, right? You have been here before haven't you?" I was proud to say, "No actually, this is my first time, I've nearly been here 3 months now." They just assumed that b/c my pronunciation was so good, that I had been here before. I was very flattered to receive such a nice compliment from them because it made me feel good and helped boost my confidence that I'm actually learning more than I think. It has been several weeks since I've actually listened to one of my Korean Language lessons I have on my iPod and this compliment, has actually encouraged me to continue listening to more lessons this past week.

I'm also starting to realize how much I doubt myself and "beat myself up" for "not being good enough" not preparing lessons well enough, not doing enough (as much as I know I can do), etc. But what I'm also getting, is that I am a pretty darn great guy, person, teacher, friend, etc. And I'm also finally starting to realize that I can very easily use my good looks, charming personality, and my GREAT attitude and outlook on life to take me pretty far in life, and especially far here in Korea. This could be looked at as both a good and a bad thing. I guess it is good for now because I don't have to try so hard to do well here, and I can just relax, take it easy and enjoy the "easy" life here. This can be looked at as a bad thing if I allow myself to get lazy, complacent, and just rest on my laurels instead of challenging myself to STEP UP and demand more of myself. For now I look at it as a good thing. It's nice knowing that I'm liked, respected and well-received just because of my great attitude, my humble & grateful personality, and my thirst, passion and curiosity to learn about the Korean language and Korean culture.

If you come to Korea with the right attitude, you will no doubt find yourself having the time of your life here. If you come to Korea expecting things (the way they run/handle business) to be exactly the same as it is back home, you are undoubtedly setting yourself up for failure. I just can't understand understand some of the ridiculous and petty little things some of the English teachers here complain about. YOU are the one who voluntarily chose to come to Korea... don't expect them(Koreans) to change the way they do business just because you come from a country with different standards and a different set of values. So what I think I'm trying to say is that maybe the reason that I've been BLESSED with the fortunate situation in which I've been placed is because of my open, humble, grateful attitude in which I've approached this whole trip. Even when I was first told that we were being assigned to a 'rural town' in a 'rural province' in southern Korea, I was like, "OK, I guess that is where I'm "supposed to" be teaching English." By totally being open & trusting God, I have created lots of good karma that has been coming back to me ever since. Maybe that's why I get these most beautiful, adorable, and precious children running up to me at school with their arms wide open, wrapping around my leg saying, "Darren, teacha, Darren teacha, I love you!" My heart just melts when I see this beautiful expression of love and gratitude towards me. As Tony Robbins, one of my first mentors always reminds us:

"Live everyday with an ATTITUDE of GRATITUDE!"