Kimchi Party

You know, I have to pat myself on the back every once in awhile because I am now able to successfully (and voluntarily!) eat kimchi. As a person who dislikes pickled food in general, this is quite the feat for me. I even had kimchi for breakfast this morning with my roommate!

Last Friday the teachers and staff at my school had a kimchi-making party. It was quite the experience. I knew there were a lot of ingredients, but there were some things I wasn't expecting--like the pickled shrimp, for instance. :) There was also garlic, red pepper powder (in bulk), onion, green onion, radish, some special sauce, another vegetable I don't know the English name for, and a few other nameless things in English.

First you mix these ingredients together to create a paste. Then you spread the paste on some already pickled/fermented cabbages. The most important part of this process is wearing hot pink gloves! :) Anyway, here's a visual for how the creation of this Korean delicacy comes about:

Variations on the Ajumma

I have a secret confession to make. I am an ajumma stalker. Well...that is to say, I am sometimes an ajumma stalker...I mean, rarely an ajumma stalker...ah-hem, what I mean to say is that ajummas can be scary—intriguing, yet very scary. So I keep my distance, even while stalking.

I like to people-watch. Humans in general are simply rather odd creatures, and I think you can gather a good deal of insight into humanity when you merely sit down for an hour or so and watch.

That's how it happened that I became an ajumma stalker and gathered some insight into their world yesterday. I went to the lake near my house where all of the ajummas go power walking. There's a flat rock at the top of some stone stairs above the walking path, so I positioned myself there and tried to be inconspicuous with my brown hair and white skin. Here's what I saw...

Korean SAT

Yesterday was Korean SAT day. It's an interesting day, to say the least. And from what I can tell, it's also full of theatrics... :)

Pepero Day

Tuesday was Pepero Day. Pepero is a cookie that's kind of like a thin non-salty pretzel stick with chocolate coating. You can buy many different varieties of Pepero. There's Pepero with only chocolate, Pepero with chocolate and nuts, big Pepero, mini Pepero, Pepero in special gift boxes—and you can even buy “naked” Pepero (the kind with chocolate in a hollow center)!

Pepero Day is always November 11. That's because the date 11/11 looks like a row of Pepero sticks. The tradition is to buy a bunch of Pepero and then exchange it with your friends. It is also common to give it out at school—at least schools which haven't outlawed the exchange.

The sad part about teaching adults, though, is that they don't usually get into Pepero Day quite as much. Therefore, the chances of obtaining at lot of Pepero at an institute for adults is rather low. I was optimistic, however, because one of my students brought me some Pepero on November 10, and we had a kind of pre-Pepero Day celebration together. But on the actual holiday, no one gave me anything! I don't like to think that I'm selfish (or addicted to chocolate), but it was really quite sad. (Of course, I didn't give out any either, so everyone remains even!) As a result, I was forced to eat the Pepero that other teachers received—which coincidentally, was more than enough to go around.

Now, obviously, Pepero Day is a commercial holiday created by the Pepero company for one sole purpose: to sell more Pepero. And on principle, I don't usually support the commercialism that surrounds holidays, but I feel that Pepero Day may be a little special. I mean, it's all about Pepero! And when in Korea, do as the Koreans do... :)

Challenges

My life in Seoul is challenging. And I hope that's not an understatement...or melodramatic. Life is always difficult, but recently I don't feel like I'm climbing uphill anymore. It's more like the hill has shot up into a steep 180 degree angle from the place where I started. And instead of climbing, I find myself just holding on for dear life sometimes, letting my fingernails sink into the dirt, and praying I don't accidentally slip off.

In Japan this July, my friend Shihoko made me a traditional wall hanging. I put it on the wall of my bedroom next to my clothes rack. It reminds me of my life. I wish I could hang it up next to me on this metaphorical hill I'm dangling from, too. Anyway, here is what is written right to left in vertical calligraphy (Japanese style):

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. ~Proverbs 3:5-6

I'm trying...so hard...

Of Teaching...and Craziness!

Teaching English is an interesting experience. It puts me into a small room with several students and demands that we speak together. We are not allowed to stare. We must talk. And the more diverse the people in that room are, the better.

The simple fact of the matter is that they're not usually normal—and I mean that in a completely complimentary way! In fact, I'd be disappointed if my students were normal. (Besides, I suppose I'm not entirely normal either. But that fact should remain off the record...haha! And as cliché as the question may sound, I must ask: what is normalcy anyway?)

My favorite people in Korea are the most “abnormal” ones. They are the ones who force me to inwardly laugh and outwardly look pensive and say, “Hmmm...that's an interesting point. Tell me more.” When I write my New York Times bestseller someday, these people will be main characters in my novel. Here is one such example:

Mr. Lee is a retired professor of ag engineering and one of my favorite students of all time. I tried to call him by his first name, but I simply couldn't make myself do it. I think that when he was born, his mother must have called him Mister. His personality just commands respect like that; there's no way of avoiding it.

Mr. Lee sounds like an encyclopedia when he talks. For real. I don't know many people who share such a fondness for multisyllabic words. It is rare to come across a person who can truly sound 100% intelligent in a second language, and it is even more rare to come across a person who sounds 100% intelligent and can lecture about any subject at the drop of a hat. That is Mr. Lee. I know he is preparing to “lecture” when he squints his eyes and starts to rub his thumbs together in a circular pattern. In fact, I have learned a great deal about wetland ecosystems and rice paddy fields from him. The only topic he finds confusing to discuss is the non-scientific topic of love. His recent comment to me regarding love went something like this: “I am not sure what to say. One must commonly think rationally about life, but it seems as if such an approach cannot be applied to this topic.”

I am convinced that I ought to just let him teach the class. That way I could start sleeping in in the mornings. :)

Changdeokung

I toured Changdeokung Sunday afternoon and walked through the secret gardens there. It was beautiful with all of the leaves changing colors.