A New Leaf

Okay, I know, I've done a horrible job of maintaining this blog. Who can blame me though? What an incredibly busy season of life that I'm in. OMG! Well, I don't always have the time or energy to update, but I'm going to start putting some pictures up because I think you all need to see Korea.

 We are now seeing the beautiful colors of Fall. The colors in these trees are unlike any colors I've seen with my own eyes. I've only seen these colors in pictures, but they are BEAUTIFUL. The weather is consistantly below 60 degrees, and it's chilly in the morning and evening and warmish throughout the day. There's also a nice breeze.

 All of these pictures are on my walk to work in the mornings.

 This is the homestretch to my school. That grey/white building on the left is my building. The red building on the right is Mokdong Middle School.

 The view from outside of my classroom window. There's a little sitting park down there that I use to watch the seasons pass. I love Trees :-)

 A view from the street in an LCI bus. Look at those red trees!

 We went on one of the coolest field trips yesterday. We visited the famous 63 building, one of the oldest skyscrapers in Seoul. There was a really neat aquarium there called "Sea World" that was better than the one Kristen and I visited in Jeju this summer.

 After Sea World, we saw an Imax 3d movie called "Sea Rex." I'm sure it was a film from America that had been completely dubbed over in Korean, so I couldn't understand anthing were saying. But I had one of my sweet hearted girlies curled up like a baby in my lap because we were on the second row and she was scared. The film was about dinosauric sea creatures, and it was really cool, though big. I understand why she was a little scared.


Here are a couple of overall pictures with my sweet class. They are so well-behaved, exciting, fun, enthusiastic, and eager to learn. We have so much fun together, though we still get on each other's nerves occasionally. I will never forget them, and I love them so much!

 

There are more pictures to come, but I needed to start you guys up on my journey again. Sorry for the delay, but I'm working on committing to doing this again.

 

~Madison

Cultural or Primal?

I realize that I’ve made a lot of promises to upload photos and such, and been unfaithful with them. For that, I am sorry. I’m experiencing several time conflicts, and well, I’m a full-time, 40 hour a week teacher of 3 different ages, beginning to get involved with a church, and still trying to develop and foster relationships with those around me and far away. What can I say?? Oh My! Today, I had this thought, my life looks very primal right now. It’s actually really fun! For me, God has really opened up the revelation to me that my body is His Temple along with my spirit being His Dwelling Place. I want him to be honored and respected with every part of who I am, and with how I treat myself. I am perfect just the way he has made me, and I want to love myself the way He loves me. For me that means choosing to eat gluten free, and taking very good outer care of my body with natural products. Emotionally, I want to be alert and active, and physically I want my body to do what I want it to do, when I want to do it. Being here has really showed me the value in doing things at a slower pace too, and even working a little harder at certain tasks than I normally would in America. Taking some more time to be sure that things are done thoroughly. It's such an interesting thing, but there really is so much efficiency in America and I am so thankful for it! But I'm starting to see that it is so much more satisfying and valuable in certain areas to live simpler and work harder. Who would have thought?

Some of you may know that last October (2011) I decided to begin a Gluten Free lifestyle. Basically what that means is that I try my best not to eat any type of wheat, corn, or rice on a regular basis. Kristen began this lifestyle about two years ago by the influence and wisdom of a mutual friend of ours. One of the best resources for her in this decision is a book called The Primal Blueprint, by Mark Sisson. This book outlines the differences from today's American lifestyle, and that of the Primal people back in BC. It can be quite a stretch at times, but it's an excellent illustration of what our bodies should do and could do if we treated them with the utmost respect in what we put inside and outside. I am still in the process of becoming as close to 100% Gluten free as I can be, and moving to Korea has honestly been a REAL test for me in this. It's been very difficult for me to get my eating under control, especially with the copious amounts of bread products, sweets, and rice people eat here. But I have finally begin to get myself into a rhythm, and have experienced the negatives on a higher level of what gluten and lots of sugar do to my body. Some of you may say "Wait a minute! Rice, that's gluten free right?" According to Mark Sisson's research (heavily backed by numerous scientific studies), corn and brown rice (yes, corn is a grain) still have gluten in them, and white rice is gluten free, but has very little nutritional value and is mostly an empty carb. The point of eating Gluten Free is to stabilize insulun and sugar in the body, reduce inflamation, and maintain energy levels throughout the day no matter the activity. If you're at all interested, I highly suggest just reading the book. It's if nothing else, a very interesting medical and scientific read.

I have been interested in living naturally for many years now, and last summer I finally was able to begin taking steps toward making this a core value in my life by purchasing hair, body, and face products that are organic and chemical free. Joining it was my decision to eat Gluten Free, and it has been very beneficial for me. Josh is now beginning to eat Gluten Free, so one day we will be this Cute, Gluten Free, Healthy family who honors God in everything! ^_^

My perspective of time and treats is completely different than what it was in America in so many ways. It takes me 20 minutes to walk to work, 25-30 minutes to the big weekly grocery store, and 10 minutes to the subway. If I only travel 30-40 minutes by subway to get to a big shopping mall, a Zumba class(Which I do!), and church—that’s pretty great time! Everything timewise is relative here, and because I don't have a phone, meeting up with people can be a challenge if last minute things arise, or the subway runs late. Likewise, if I can get to bed on time (between 10 and 10:30), WHOPEE!! I'm set for the next day! 

I shop for a large quantity of fresh food once a week at the HomePlus or E-Mart, and can make trips to a smaller, local market to pick up anything extra I may need throughout the week. I don't have a hair dryer, but I have a straightner that I use maybe once every 2 or 3 weeks on special occasions, or when I feel like it. It's funny, but I haven't been able to regularly find time to actually cut, paint, and wait for my fingernails to dry before it's time to move on to the next activity or hit the sack. Which again is one step up from concrete, even with a bedquilt underneath two layers of the same twin sized sheets that are fully stretched and still folding over themselves on my double sized bed. I wear natural make-up every day and have a very extensive beauty regimen, but I love it because it makes me feel pampered. 

I do laundry once a week washing clothes in an all-Korean washng machine that I looked up online translations for and how to use, or I handwash clothes with a bowl and washboard. Yes, a washboard. All of my clothes air dry which FYI, if you don't put enough fabric softner in the wash will stand up on their own post-drying. I’ve been rotating the same outfits and food dishes for the last two months. I was finally able to go shopping last weekend, but I'm nowhere near ready for summer.

But you know what, I LOVE my life! I love getting back to the basics and simplifying the way I do things. I really enjoy taking in the culture on the subway, fighting the bedtime clock, shopping differently, and doing laundry and dishes manually not having every human convenience at my disposal. I love cooking nightly, though sometimes by the time I get home from work I’m exhausted.  I have found that I can spend more time connecting with people, exploring, and honestly just Being with God through some of these activities, and they make such fun stories! Ironically, though my weeks are extremely structured, and my weekends are beginning to get even more full of enriching and fun activities, I am learning to de-stress in many different ways. All that to say, I thought I’d let you in on my life a little bit and how I do things here. And yes, there are pictures ;-) Come Along!

HOMEPLUS Adventures

This is the gigantic display of Tuna. There's mild tuna, hot tuna, barbecued tuna, tuna for kimchi jigae (a hot kimchi, tuna, and tofu soup), and regular tuna in vegetable oil.

You can get carrots several differen ways, unwashed, partially washed, or fully washed and bagged. Each carrot is at least an inch and a half thick, and about 6-7 inches long. That's a big carrot!

Oh, I'm so in love with the produce here! Mostly seasonal, and BEAUTIFUL!

Check out how big it is! Each floor alone is about as big as a grocery store in America. This HomePlus has 5 stories.

Here's the fruit, nut, and "Glutious Rice" aisle. So fun to explore what they have and try and figure out what they are from the Korean on each bag!

The "antipasta" aisle, order just how much kimchi, lotus root, or squid salad side dish you want! They bag it right there for you :-) 

2 aisles of about 50 types of seaweed.

Fresh, and I mean, FRESH seafood! Some of it is still floating in the tanks next to the iced fish. They also have dried fish hung on lines that you're welcome to purchase, as well as fish chopped up into many sizes and cuts. Not for the faint of stomach to try and cook with.

They pride themselves on offering "Real American Beef!" Most of the beef is imported from Australia because there is nowhere for cows in Korea. Beef is a specialty.

Oh yeah, Ice Cream!

Your choice of coffee's to go, as well as flavored milks. With strawberry, banana, and chocolate to choose from, who would go for regular?

Look at that invalid! She's a dangerous one!

We got real chinese massages from a place called The Foot Shop. The ladies went full force from minute one. I was caught up in so much laughter at how they slapped, pounded, stretched, an contorted my body, but I left feeling more relaxed than I remember. I'm definitely going back!

We had so much fun.

To be continued.....

Woweee!

Man, it's been too long since I've posted...I've been a teacher in Korea for almost a full month! Woweee! I honestly don't remember all that I've wanted to post about since I posted last. I do remember that I've got some pictures that will help me though!

Little Update before the pictures: I've now been teaching for a month, and have gotten great reviews from my students and their parents. I've got 3 great classes! They are fun, learn well, work hard, and have supportive parents. I don't really have any of the infamous "Tiger" parents, but I do have a couple of parents that just care a lot and call about the smallest things. Quite a refreshing aspect of my job here :)  I now forget that I am not Asian quite often. Especially when I walk to work. I've gotten it down to about 20 minutes at a slower pace, 15 if I'm booking it. I've got a routine down for arriving and leaving work; I'm finally beginning to get into a rhythm of grading and organizing, and man is it nice! I am getting to where I leave work on time, and never do work at home (even when I take it with good intentions). I really love not taking work home, and having a life (a very small one, but still a life)outside of my job.

After moving here and being in the constant transition for the first 3-4 weeks, I gained a little weight and lost the hard-earned muscle that I'd built up. But, I'm finally beginning to handle going back on my gluten free diet, and I am overall eating healthier than I was in America. (I get more nutrients, and eat more natural and fresh products than I did in America) The school lunches are made daily by the sweet cook, and are generally very nutritious with many different food groups. I'm learning a lot about what is healthy here and what is not, and I'm finally able to say "No!" to the unhealthy things. I am also finally beginning to do yoga more. Even if it's by myself, I'm getting in at least 2 good half-hour yoga sets a week. I'm trying to hold on to some of that muscle! Kristen also has been contacting this lady who is a Christian and a Zumba instructor in an area of town within walking distance. Praise the Lord!!! Hopefully we'll be able to connect with her as well as our fellow Brother Yoon (Met him at a prayer meeting, and God divinely set us up for relationship).

I've met several new people here, two of which being German guys who are living in the hotel that I was staying in when I first got here. They are very nice, and Kristen and I got Korean BBQ with them one night a couple of weeks ago. So interesting to meet Germans in Korea! What's more interesting, they go to church, and one of them is a hard-core believer! One of 6 from his University in Germany. How cool is that?!? We've also met a couple of other believers at work: the man who is our caretaker, Samuel, and one of my partner teachers, Stella. Both of them are very sweet, and generally the Korean staff seems to work well with us. It is truly a blessing to be so taken care of :-) Thanks, Papa.

We have also found a church that we Love! We have taken the required membership class, and are going through the process to become members of it now :) I really feel like this church will challenge me in so many ways, but the most clear way is just by calling me to trust God and trust the people around me more than I've ever been asked to trust. Everything about Korean culture is so intimate, and the church we've found isn't any different. The church is called New Philadelphia, and it's just that--a place of New Brotherly Love.

We got our first authentically asian massages from this chinese place called the Foot Shop. It was such an interesting experience! We dressed in these really drab UT/Avatar Air Bender orange shirts and shorts and felt like inmates...then they soaked our feet and then took us back to this room with 3 beds where for the next 60+ minutes they massaged, slapped, pulled, and elbowed every muscle in our entire bodies. Including that one called the Glutious Maximus. haha! The girls and I caught ourselves up in some really riotous laughter at various parts because of what they did to us, but it was seriously the best massage I've ever had. I'm definitely going back...

I'm becoming an expert at food stuffs at the near-by Homeplus, and I managed to find Salmon very reasonably priced at the E-mart the other night....using my Korean Dictionary and translating symbols. You should totally be impressed. I felt like such a grown-up. I also bought my first authentic Korean outfit, a dress and boots....then I got a blister from the boots that is almost totally healed now, three weeks later. I've bought my first Korean Make-up and Skincare products, and am almost out of my American products. I'm going to be a Korean convert soon! I've had quite a selection of Korean foods, some I will eat again, and some I won't. And, I've learned certain key phrases and words in Korean which my students commonly call me out on whenever I speak them. (Classroom Rule #4: We Speak in English Only.)

Through all of these adventures, I do feel as though I've lived here my whole life. I am also beginning to feel that certain homesickness which only comes with the realization that I won't be able to just go home for the weekend, or head to Josh's house whenever I want to see him. I'm learning a lot about companionship, relationship, and longing in every area of my life--and God has been so good to me by giving me a best friend here to learn it with. Kristen has honestly been one of the biggest sources of strength and encouragement for me here, and I know I have been for her as well. We have really leaned on one another, and it is a beautiful picture of what healthy relationship can look like :-)

Anyway, hope that's enough for now, please send me any questions that you have. I love answering them, and I'm so sorry that I haven't posted in a while.

More to come!

Love,
Madison

Pictures 2

Here are some more pictures. I believe this is the easiest way to blog about stuff. Then I can remember it, and I don't bore some with so many details.

Just needs a "Ra," and it's my dream! This was near my hotel when I lived in Yeongduengpo-Gu Office.

My school is on the fifth floor of this building, see?

Here is the street level entrance to the building. :)

7-11's are SO popular! Right across from my school, Josh!

Another cool coffee shop called Tom N Tom's. They had a fantastic Hazlenut Latte. The Korean milk is so interesting! Culture Tip: Until about 40-50 years ago, Koreans didn't have milk. So most of the ajuma's (or grandmother's) and grandfather's (don't know what they call them) are still short with bowed legs. Their bones didn't grow very well. Since the introduction of milk into Korean society, the people have consistantly gotten taller and stronger. Some Korean parents will even make their children drink milk even if their lactose intolerant so that they will be tall. It's all for beauty purposes and to 'keep face.'

Such a funny way to do Bathrooms, but I guess you won't get confused this way. :)

Looks just like your starbucks!

Tiffany's favorite snack!

This was the last day of school, and two of my students' parent's brought them these chocolate cookies, another type of sugary cookie, kiker bars (kitkats), pizza, and chicken. All before lunch!

Culture Tip: Like most foreign countries, Koreans eat pizza differently. They can put normal things to us on them such as sausage, ham, pepperoni, cheese, pineapple, and veggies, but then they also put fries, potatos, and other Korean specialties on them. Every food and sauce in Korea has sugar in it, and the pizza sauce is no different. It's not the salty tomato sauce we see in America, it's a sweet sauce, sometimes even sweeter the ketchup. And instead of stuffing the crust with cheese, this pizza's crust was stuffed with Sweet Potato! It was even mixed with sugar, and tasted much like sweet potato pie inside of the bread crust! Some pizza's are even made on a black bean crust--this stuff will mess with your mind through your mouth, but it is DELICIOUS! I don't think I'll ever have pizza the same way as in America knowing about this now.

The classic Beef Bulgogi cooked in my kitchinette at the hotel. You can buy this at E-Mart (Bigger than a Super Target, but along the same lines) from a woman who will actually measure the amount you want from this gigantic tub full of marinated bulgogi and onions. Such an interesting experience to buy some.

And you cannot forget the salad.  The lettuce here cannot be beaten. It is simply delicious even by itself and SO GREEN! Sometimes it still comes with dirt on it, which is so cool because that means it's even fresher.  :)

My cool slippers that I bought from Daiso, the Big Lots of Korea. There's one about 10 minutes from our apartment, and I ended up seeing one of my students there just last night! He's such a flirtatious little boy.

Those are some photos from my experiences, and I do regret not taking photos of me and my classes on the first day of school. But I will ask my partner teachers to take photos of us tomorrow, because I feel like it will be much easier then to get some time. If none of me teaching, at least class photos of each of my classes for you to see.

I would like to share a couple of experiences that I've had with a few stores. The first store is E-Mart. You've heard me refer to this a couple of times, but it is essentially the equivalent to Super Target in America, but so much bigger. It is about a 20 minute walk away from our apartment building, and fills up two floors of a very tall building in buzzing Mok-Dong. The top floor has all of your non-grocery items such as clothes, shoes, housewares, appliances, photos, it actually reminds me of a Sears or something like that with all of the different departments. They even sell golf clubs, and large appliances. I mean, the large stores here literally have everything! The bottom floor has all of your food items as well as cleaning supplies, laundry supplies, make-up brand sellers (Skinfood for Life!), and a food court! E-mart can be a little more pricey than HomePlus like Target vs. Walmart, but the quality is really good. The store itself is kind of hard to navigate, understand, a little unorganized, and it is always packed. Which makes me feel overwhelmed, especially since I'm still in Culture Shock. But it is a good place to get stuff fast.

The other big store is HomePlus. Kristen has some great pictures of this store, and it basically looks like a big square business building with a red sign heralding the name HomePlus. It has 4 or 5 stories, and a food court as well as several different food and random vendors throughout the store. You could easily spend all day in HomePlus. I like this store much more than E-mart after having been to both. HomePlus is about a 30-35 minute walk (basically we walk everywhere here, which is great exercise!), but it's a very interesting one, and you see lots of cool shops and restaurants on your way. We even passed by some very nice business buildngs with large art structures in gardens out front, and a park with a track and some different play things for kids than you find in America. I'll try and remember to take pictures on my walk  next time for you to see. The entry floor is full of really nice clothing vendors in the middle, and several food shops and a food court surrounding the perimeter of it. I don't know what's on the upper level, we didn't go there...but on the first basement level is all of the home stuff. Electronics, school supplies, some lingerie, sporting equipment, a guitar store (what? Krazy Koreans), and home linens and things. Then on the second basement level, the lowest level, is where you find the grocery items, cleaners, and make-up lines.

After the lovely 35 minute walk, Kristen and I arrived a HomePlus at about 12 or 12:30 with hungry bellies. We walked around and searched for a place to eat on the entry level, but got overwhelmed and I faced my first strong bit of culture shock after visiting the food court and not understanding what was what exactly, how to order it, and that we were tired of eating the same things over and over! We had to sit down in a familiar environment, so we walked back to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf cafe, took a seat, and gathered ourselves. We concluded after 20 minutes that we would just satisfy ourselves with samples from downstairs, get our groceries, and get a cab home. (another story for another entry...) So we walk into the produce section and I look at one of the racks of vegetables. I recognize the brands, I can see the prices, it's clean, and I start to cry right there. I was so happy to see and feel something like home, especially after such culture shock maybe half an hour before! So there I am, standing among Koreans, looking at the salad dressings and salads, crying my eyes out and praising God for being so sweet to me. I've never cried out of Joy before, and I pray it's not the last time. I'm sure it won't be ;-)  So then we shopped, I got so many things that I needed, wanted, and thought were interesting, found some great body wash and make-up from Skinfood (my favorite!), and we busted a move out of there. I think it was about a 5 or 6 hour venture by the time we got home.

The last store, I'll make this quick, is called Daiso. Like I've said, it is like the Korean version of Big Lots in the states. It has really inexpensive EVERYTHING. Some of it is very cheaply made, and sold for 1,000 won (less than $1), but hey, I'm only here for a year right?? And just because it's inexpensive doesn't mean it has to suck right?? I got a pretty little flower that has just started blooming in my apratment. It makes me so happy!

So anyway, those are some of my stores. More about coffee shops, church, and other funny stories and culture tips to come soon! I've found that blogging on the weekends works so much easier than trying to blog during the week. I love your questions, and if you send them to me, I'll do my best to answer them in the next post. Thanks so much for reading and following me on my adventure!

Love and Grace,

Madison

I did it!!!

Well, I feel so accomplished! I have been very successful the last 48 hours...from the process of cleaning my room, to grocery shopping, to making things feel like home, to starting my first real job, to officially moving into my permanent housing for the next year...oh my! (BTW, Josh, you were right, I do miss not having a picture of my first day, at my first real job, and in my first real classroom ;-))

Seriously, the first day of school was extremely busy, but I managed to contain myself and not become stressed like all of the other teachers around me. Here's how it went down...We got to school at about 8:40 (15 minutes early because I had some things I wanted to do before school started), when we arrived, all of the Korean staff was in a tizzy. They were running around and speaking so quickly in Korean. They all had this look in their eyes that said "Oh No, can we do this?? We're not ready!" I'm serious, every single one of them! It was actually kind of humorous. So, as soon as I got there, my Kindy partner teacher Hannah brought me the final draft of my lesson plans for Friday and next week, along with the "Theme Box" which had the whole first period's worth of stuff in it that I should have made copies of before class. Then she asked me if I would help her get the books from the playroom. So I got my lesson plans and the un-named books for the class less than 45 minutes before the kids were scheduled to arrive to learn. No worries, I just looked over the lesson plans, ditched the copies, and started labeling the books with the kids names, all while listening to Bethel Worship music. Praise God!

As I'm labeling the books, (side note: I did get one of the three or four tasks that I initially came to do finished before the day...) my supervisor Nicole rushes by and sees that I'm in my classroom. She stops and asks, "Are you busy? Could you come help me get the clean toys to the different classrooms?" You see, Wednesday when we were prepping for school, we had some helper teachers (they don't actually teach, they just help during the day with snack, lunch, etc.) come and clean all of the classrooms and toys in preparation for the new year. Again, they clean with water only, no chemicals. Seriously, Koreans don't get the concept of germs making people sick. Nicole was shocked when we told her that door knobs were one of the most infected surfaces out there. And they wonder why the kids and teachers keep getting sick? I really think Koreans have such a community oriented society that they believe 'your germs are my germs, and my germs are your germs.' and have no problem with it. Unfortunately, I do. Hence the multiple days of cleaning my apartment...(story to follow) Where was I? Oh yeah, Nicole! So she breezes by my class, and asks me if I could help her. I replied with "Let me finish putting names on my books, and I'll be in there shortly." (Madison's Boundaries: 1, Korean Teacher Pressure: 0. Score!) So when I finished I went and saw the PILE of toys completely unorganized that had been drying on cardboard for a couple of days. We quickly dumped them into the bins and gave each bin to a classroom. So check, my classroom was complete. Lesson Plans, books, and toys; and then the bell rang!!! At the last possible minute everything came together. Whew!

So then the rest of the day was a blur. Kindy was difficult because the students were very talkative. Understandable, it's their second year together. But I'm going to have to figure out how to help them come back under a structure, because that's not acceptable in Korean Elementary School. They'll get eaten alive by a teacher who may or may not use some sort of capital punishment. (Which some of us still wish was allowed in the U.S. haha!) So, I didn't really know what I was supposed to be doing, and I felt like a failure standing up there because I wasn't fully prepared and secure in what I was supposed to be doing. So we just went through the lesson plans, which actually consisted of work. So different from American schools. Good news: my kids are very fast workers, very independent, and they speak English pretty well. I love getting to see their little personalities, but I don't know how to do that and maintain authority and control of the classroom. I don't want to be controlling, but I need to know that when I lead, they will follow. Dunno how to do that yet...but I'll find out! After all of the morning classwork, we had lunch, then a half-hour break that I used to look over my special activity lesson plan. The whole lesson plan right before I teach thing is so different, and it makes me uneasy. But I taught situational english about going to a convenience store to Kristen's class. They were well behaved and sweet, and I really enjoyed it! They got so excited to learn about what to do at a convenience store, but I can tell I'm going to have to beef the conversation up a little bit because I ran out of stuff to do with them. So I sang songs about food. I wasn't sure if I could sing the "Fruits of the Spirit" song, maybe I'll just do it next time and say 'whoops!' ;-). It was quite enjoyable :-)

So then the kids left, and we switched to the afternoon Trophies classes. Trophies is just a reading program that LCI uses to help the students learn English. My first Trophies class just graduated from LCI kindy on Wednesday. They were so cute, when it was time to go, they were so puzzled because they had no lunch, special activity, and that the class was so short! But they are very sweet, and catch on quickly. Then my second Trophies class came in, they are 10 years old. They have two sections to their period because they only come on MWF. Their previous teacher wasn't very exciting for them, so they were nervous having me. But I just goofed it up and acted silly and when it was time to go, they were chatting and playing with me. I really enjoy that freedom :). So by the end of the day, all was good, I have lots of stuff to still learn and figure out before school next week, but that will come. I am sure of it! I am nervous and excited to teach this year. Nervous because I don't know how I'm going to do it, and if the kids and parents will like me, but excited to figure all of that out and have even more experience than I already do. I know I'm a good teacher, and I know I'm creative. It's time to see it now.

It's late, I'm tired, and we're going to a church tomorrow that's supposed to be really great! I'll blog about cleaning, HomePlus, Daiso and church tomorrow. Be looking for it!

Love to All,
Madison

In honor of...

The First Day of the New Korean School Year, I have decided to show you all my classroom, and a few of the other adventures that I've been on so far. I have also decided to do this in just a picture post form. Too much to write about, so I'll just describe the pictures and maybe put a few little blurbs in here and there.

I will start by saying that I have been VERY emotional the last 24 hours or so. The stress of preparing a classroom for 3 different classes (10+8+6) of students on three different levels of instruction in less than 2 work days (emphasis added for dramatic effect), along with moving from a really nice hotel to a not-so-nice apartment building with the other teachers, and my internet wouldn't work this morning so I missed a very special Skype date with the One and Only Josh. :-(   But, the classroom is almost completely done (done enough for the First Day), and my bags were moved and placed in my room for me (finally got a desk today). The room was Filthy even after a lady came and 'cleaned' it (completely different standard of clean, not containing chemicals at all), but I have now cleaned almost all of the important things (the rest will come Saturday when I can get more cleaner) such as the fridge, the dishes, some of the cabinets, under the cooktop, inside of the wardrobe, behind the bed, and all over the night stand. And last, but most Important, I got to borrow Kristen's internet connection and chat with The Man before shopping for more "Homey" things. I got my own personal pair of slippers for my room, and a sweet little plant that is full of buds and will flower in just a couple of days!!! So Princessy :-)  Anyway, Are you ready? Here we Go!

All of these were shot after I cleaned the room from the other teacher who had it before me. This was the Skeleton I was given to work with.

These are after I got finished working on it!!! Presenting Madison Teacher's Classroom E:

Here's my desk in the Teacher's Room: Pictures include Tiffany, Ashley, and Josh :)

(Catie is on the way)

Now for some pictures of some of the various adventures I've been on :) Some of these are up on Facebook, but most, are coming out here first. Enjoy!

These are the incredibly clean subway stations. This one entered where my hotel was, Yeongduengpo-Gu Office.

These machines help you refill your T-Money card, or subway pass...in four different languages.

Inside of the Subway station :)

Myeongdong, the biggest shopping town in all of Seoul, I think.

Four Story Forever 21! And so many other stores in this one building. Seriously, shops just line the streets and you can get ANYTHING you want here. It's so Amazing that I'm going to have to watch my money more closely because I will have some now!

My first encounter with a Squatty Potty in the Itaewon (foreign town) Subway Stop.

Itaewon, the place where all of the Foreigners go to get Foreign stuff. The equivalent to a Korean Market in America.

Just for Colton...

Bella, one of the Korean Teachers, was so shocked when I told her that we had 7-11's all over the US. She thought it was just in Korea! But, Joshua, they are EVERYWHERE! Its like Starbucks in America, literally on every street corner.

Okay, deep fried potato spirals, or deep fried potato spirals around a sausage...K & I ate #2. Delicious!

The yummiest little nuggets that you find in the most random of places, including the subways! They sell lots of stuff in the subway, really inexpensive too. But this is rice-waffle dough in a mold shaped like a corn husk containing about a tablespoon of vanilla custard/pudding in the center. You can smell them from about 1000 feet away. Sooo Good!

Chicken Galbi (or BBQ) in Myeongdong, one of our first authentic experiences.

Culture Fact: All of the Waiters and Waitresses at a restaurant in Korea take care of you. If it's BBQ like at this place, they stir the pot for you. If you do BBQ yourself, they leave a tab and then if you need something, they check it out. At every restaurant, the staff never actually comes and checks on you during your meal, so as not to bother you. It's your responsibility to get their attention when you need something. Usually, there is either a button, or you say "yuh-boh-seh-yo," which is essentially a polite "Excuse Me!" Also, there is no tipping wait staff, and no taxes...on anything...even clothes. Which makes payment really easy. Oh! Korean currency also doesn't have anything equivalent to a penny, which K & I found out whilst at the bank. We each had a statement that had a penny amount, asked where it was when we recounted all of the bills and coins, and Samuel (our Daddy-Go-To-Guy) told us there wasn't a coin for it...We all laughed, and so did the bank clerk. (below picture is at the Korean Bank)

Well friends, that is all my blog is allowing me to post for one post. I'll try to blog tomorrow night about how the First Day went. If not, definitely some time this weekend. Along with pictures of my new Home when I finally get settled. Thanks so much for reading, and I'm so glad I get to share this Adventure with you! I re-read some of the encouragements given to me at our send-off prayer night back in Texas, and wow-I was so encouraged!!! Thank you so much, and PLEASE feel free to keep encouraging and listening to the Lord for me. I Love every piece of support I get :-)

With Love and Grace,

Madison