Teachers are famous!

When I first saw these huge cardboard sized posters, I thought it was for some local political campaign BUT in fact, they are posters of private school teacher portraits and their teaching qualifications! I thought this was hilarious!

Apparently, private schools in Seoul are run like businesses and must stay "competitive". To do so, they advertise teacher qualifications during enrollment season, which we are currently in. I can't read Korean, but I can infer that it talks about where they went to school...blah blah blah...the way they pose and gesture also alludes to their personality and perhaps even their teaching strategies. For the most part, I infer that they are serious and strict...not a sense of humour in the bunch except for the one guy that is doing the "gun" gesture haha Angela said she wanted to learn with that guy I think haha

As for me, I would not want to go to school ANYWHERE IN ASIA! I thank God that my parents moved our family to Canada where learning is completely different...If I stayed, I would have died. So as you can see...there was a great plan in placed!

But yeah, can you imagine my face on one of these things?!

If you examine closer, they are doing awesome poses with their fingers pointing all non-chalantingly haha...some are funny because you want to study there JUST BECAUSE OF THE WAY THEY POSE! I wonder how effective these posters are and why there are so few qualified women teachers?

We half-jokingly asked our liason when our posters would arrive near our sidewalk haha...But seriously, I would not want my face blown up to that size...

This also reminds me of an errand that I had to do when I first arrived. It's stupid that I'm writing to you about this because I can't scan it on here to show you...but the passport photos here are photoshopped by the photo guy. He is very pick about the shots he takes and makes you take four or five to get the "best" one. For the last shot, he makes you pose with your arms crossed on a table and you get this modelled photo of yourself. What I ended up with was this perfect looking Heidi without blemishes and freckles. He changed and added a sparkle in my eyes that made me look....alien. At least that's what Angela calls it...no one should look like that....NO ONE!

If I manage to find someone with a scanner, I will definitely show you.


MORE TO COME: pictures of the school when classes resume

TRAVEL PLANS: a beach trip to Mokpok or something if it doesn't rain; if it does rain, we will do a run through of the museums.

Touring the town on our own...

...was much easier because the Korail operates much like the subway in Hong Kong. You pay based on distance traveled and scan the card before and after you board your bus and/or subway train. It costs 700 won or 70 cents to ride on the bus and cost us 1900 won or $1.90 to get to Itaewon Station. Above ground, there is a strip of quaint shops and services that can be interesting to North Americans...for Angela and I, Itaewon was a tad boring. The two Starbucks helped us feel more like home but we already felt settled or whatever given our apartment and things so yeah, it was sort of a waste of time so we headed back to MyeongDong where the shopping was SUPER AWESOME!


Here are some photos of us getting ready to leave, in transition from Itaewon to MyeongDong and the views:















Angela eats what I made: miso soup with seaweed...and grape juice















Mom: I made that!!!




















First real day with sunshine: we are squinting with pleasure















We did not dress alike on purpose but we did receive some compliments for being so pretty about our outfits



















GS25: A convenient store where Angela bought her bus card




















The view up our hill















We rely on pictures and sign for our understanding of EVERYTHING
















One of the two Korean churches in our neighbourhood















Inside the bus...















Our neighbourhood is lined with beautiful trees. They are only around 6 to 7 years old.
It's nice to see our neighbourhood for the first time without rain.




















Different use of space in Korea...they build upwards not outwards like we love in Canada.















The intersection before our stop at Boemgye Station






















Home group? HOME STATION!















I made her stand there to take a wider view of the subway car

















Sometimes we don't understand...so we do without...
















...and then there are those "aha" moments...
















...and they keep us going for HOURS!























Itaewon shops spill into the streets


















We took a road less traveled...even "real" Korean people turned back haha

















This is where Angela was grabbed by one of our Korean teachers. I think they thought we were smart to take the subway all by ourselves without supervision haha






















Angela is SMRT! She ordered her food!























The soft tofu soup was better at the "Cockroach Motel". I like how we are getting picky with the type of Korean foods we like.























Better shopping: MyeongDong




















The other side of what I was looking at...






















Screaming for my life: I was kidnapped by this crazy looking pelican






Stay tuned...that was only the first day of our holiday.




Adios!

More firsts in Korea...

...meant our living arrangements would be different from those in Canada. Anyang is a highly populated and dense suburb (yes...SUBURB!) which means that our living spaces are often small.

The motel where we stayed before moving into our apartments was such that...it was called the Bobos Motel.

Here are some photos of the motel room.




















The Living Area...where we did not do much living in...















My view of the flat screen tv from my king size bed :)




















The thing about the shower area was this: it was made of glass. Now, this wouldn't be a new thing because there are glassed shower stalls in Canada. The thing that was different was that there was a WINDOW into the bathroom. We understood this better when we realized that it was a love motel haha Angela and I are close--BUT NOT THAT CLOSE hahaha so we promised not to watch tv while someone was in the bathroom. You can see into the bathroom because the tv is place in front of the bathroom...nice going if you are there with your spouse or something...















View from the corner: Angela thought I would be more comfortable with the larger bed. She's so nice to me.















There is a toilet seat heater on this toiler...it took some time to get used to it. In Canada, if it's warm....


On our second day in Anyang, we thought we would be adventurous and venture to the local Lotte Mart (aka Walmart for us) to buy some fruits and snacks. Our plan had holes because it was pouring...we totally forgot that it was typhoon season and it rains for days at a time. It's funny thinking about it now, but thinking back, we were horrified and scared out of our minds...we didn't know where or how to get food.

So like most people, we thought to wait it out. Only it didn't stop...FOR FIVE HOURS! We were so sluggish...Angela said she saw spots when she tried to move her arm. Long story short, if it wasn't for sure...I would be starving right now. So thanks God for her!

Our treasures from our food hunt included some instant noodles (sorry Mom, there was no stove for cooking...), the most expensive apples on the face of this planet (four for $5!!!!), a huge pack of seaweed and some necturines. They also have really good RED BEAN BUNS! The beans are WHOLE BEANS.




















Sorry that they picture is crooked...the formatting for this thing is new.


Angela and I are heading out to Itaewon now...going to track down some NORTH AMERICANS!!!!!

Hope you are all enjoying your rainy weather because we can't go anywhere without our trusty umbrellas or usans for us.


Hasta la vistas babies!

Love Heidi

First week of Korea...

...has been filled with many ups and downs. Let's do a photo review of this week!

First, I met an awesome teacher en route to Chicago. She is an international teacher who is settling down in Singapore as we speak. We began talking because she was saying about about my bag and from that point, we were talking and discovered that we shared many things in common. We both wanted to experience teaching on a new level and were both searching for something MORE. In a few years, we want to write books and find different learning opportunities. To top it off, we both like to take photos and make photo essays haha...There was something really creepy but comforting to know that someone else other than myself had these aspirations and it is not stupid to dream for something bigger for myself as the succession of a goal...I am very blessed to have met her. She totally took the angst out of traveling the first part of my race to Korea. Thanks Nadia!!!

Once Nadia and I arrived in Chicago, we had to take a tram or whatever it's called to Terminal 5. It was a huge airport that stretched along the tracks and more because of the runway. Nadia and I said our goodbyes at the gate and thankfully, Angela was waiting! We checked in together and did all the security stuff.

Here are some photos from our flight:















Angela tries out her new MACBOOK at the
Chicago O'Hara Airport. O'Hara is nicer than
San Francisco's airport...no construction!
















YES! This is our 747 airbus to KOREA!!!!















Heidi and Angela in our seats...H64 and J something?

We requested seats together and "more" leg room. We were near the bathroom but that came in very handy because we didn't have to walk that far AND there was a good stretching space behind us. There was a cute little Korean baby that fussed the whole ride there...but she was
so cute we made friends with her haha














We love Korean Air because they give us free things: eye thingys, toothbrush and toothpaste set AND a pair of socks. Their blankets were a nice purple colour, too.

In the photo, we are wearing everything they gave us haha




















This was a very important sticker. We pasted this to our seats as soon as we boarded.



Stay tune for more...I have to get ready to venture off to Itaewon this afternoon. There is a week long holiday so we are going to do it up even though I am not in Hong Kong (more about that later...)

I will have photos of our "love motel" stay...

Annyong hi kaseyo!

so....

...the practices never materialized. Surprise...surprise...