Students are funny

I had my hand on one of my student's desk because I was writing something for him. He pointed at my watch and said, "Nice-uh." (Note: if a word ends in an "e" Koreans either add an "uh" at the end or pronounce the "e", like orange-ee.)

The boy sitting behind him commented as well: "Teacher, watch style is good. Fashion of watch is delicious."

End result: An explosion of laughter from me and a few other students who realized what he had said.

The Tower

On Saturday I climbed a lot of stairs. I have to climb stairs everyday, because I live on the third floor, or I'm coming out of the Metro station. But Saturday's stairs were a lot longer. I went with some friends to Namsan (or Seoul) Tower. It was humid, we climbed, we sweated, we finally made it. It was pretty, lots of green trees and foliage. Unfortunately it was cloudy and hazy that day so the view wasn't as great as it could have been. But it was still a good time.

Brendan, Jessica, and Erin taking a break on the way up.

The Tower.

Part of the view on a hazy day.

Mommy - I am far, far from home :(

There are these fences covered with locks - I think couples put them up to "lock" themselves together, or some such nonsense. I guess it's kind of sweet.

A conversation with my manager

Manager Yang: They come to put in air con in your house tomorrow.
Me: Okay, what time?
Manager Yang: 1:00 p.m.
Me: So I need to be there at 1:00? Will I be late for work?
Manager Yang: No, Mr. Kim will come to help. You know Mr. Kim?
Me: Uh... (note: 80% of the Korean population has the last names of Kim, Lee, or Park - I wasn't quite sure who he was talking about)
Manager Yang: Mr. Kim, you know, the ugly one.
Me (laughing): Right, okay thanks.

Lanterns, Buddha, and Parades

Last weekend they had the Lantern Festival in honor of Buddha's birthday. (I get Friday off for Buddha's birthday - so thank you Buddha, for being born!) I ventured out to a Buddhist Temple, saw lots of gold Buddhas, people bowing, and lanterns, lanterns, and more lanterns. Then we made our way to see the parades. What an amazing and interesting experience. I now want to learn how to make paper lanterns, and read up on Buddha. They had some information on him at the Temple, but sadly in was in Korean and although I can read the Korean alphabet, I mostly have no comprehension of its meaning. Sigh.

Bongeunsa Temple, adorned with many lanterns.

There was a super awesome lantern exhibit at the temple. This is just one of many, but probably my favorite - all made of paper!

More lanterns at the temple. They were everywhere.

Dragon - see the dudes legs. It was so cool.

Another of many amazing lanterns.

Enjoying the parade with Jessica.

Some things

So, I've been lazy the last little while about posting. I was in charge of singles' conference and after it was over I heaved a big sigh of relief and then vegged. On the bright side, singles' conference was a success! It ran smoothly and everyone told us they had a great time and it was well planned.

I have been meeting with friends and exploring on the weekends. Here's some proof:

On May 5th was Children's Day here in Korea, which meant we didn't have to work! Some friends and I went to Suwon to climb the fortress - a big, old wall that surrounds part of the city. We had to climb about a billion stars but it was worth it. This is the view.

Friends on the Fortress.

Me and Ben - that's how we roll.

On Saturday, I got together with some other friends for bike riding along the Han River. It was a perfect day for it. The weather was nice and clear. We had a lot of fun.

Taking a break along the path.

Haejin managed to escape the office for a few hours and came with us. It was good to hang with him for awhile.

School dinner

Last night the director of my school took all of the teachers and employees out for sushi. I'll be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of sushi, but you can't refuse a free meal. And besides, I'm always up for new things. The meal started out fine, I ate some raw fish, some was not too bad, some was really strange.

All was going well until the director put a plate right under my face, and whatever was on it was still moving. I may have squealed like a little girl - okay I really did squeal like a little girl. I couldn't help it. I wasn't expecting it, and really, how often do you see your food still moving? All the Koreans laughed at me and then I started laughing. It was funny after all. It turns out it was really fresh octopus. I refused to try it for a bit, but then I finally sucked it up and put a piece in my mouth. It was . . . interesting. That's the best way I can describe it. The moving on the plate settled down after awhile, until someone prodded it with a chopstick and the moving would start again. Disturbing.

It's also a phenomenon to see typically serious, straight-laced Koreans (including the director), come loose with some alcohol. The director even made the employees play a drinking game that I will call "down the beer in one gulp." He'd pour them a glass of beer and they'd have to drink it as fast as they could. He tried to talk me into doing it, but after I refused three times he finally said, "Okay, I respect your decision." Although I had a sneaking suspicion that he didn't really - more disappointed. Ah, life in Korea is grand.

My two boyfriends and my new roommate

Introducing the two men that completely own my heart here in Korea.

My first love is Gong Yoo:
See how lovingly he smiles at me (please ignore the pretty, skinny, Korean girl in the background - she means nothing to him). I'm the only one for him. He just doesn't know it yet. I've had a crush on Gong Yoo for awhile now; I knew about him even before I came to Korea!

My new crush is Choi Si Won (pronounced Chay She Won):
He, apparently, does not know of my existence, but I'm hoping that changes soon. He sings beautifully, has a killer smile, and awesome abs. And I think he speaks English, which is highly beneficial for our soon to be blossoming romance.

I'll keep you posted on my progress with these two. Now on to my new roommate.

His name is Louis:
He's a manly man, but not afraid to wear purple (or pink, depending on the lighting). He brings color, youth, and vitality to my drab little apartment. Thanks Louis!