It's so nice to have family visit. Especially when they bring 100lbs of Canadian goodies!! YUM!
Friday, March 22, 2013
Our first visitors
Jean-Marc's parents, Karen and Gary, have come to visit us! They arrive tonight around 9pm and they will be staying in Korea for a month, until April 22nd. For JM's spring break they are going to go to the Philippines, but other than that, they will be touring around Korea. And hopefully, we'll be joining them for some excursions. Stay tuned!
It's so nice to have family visit. Especially when they bring 100lbs of Canadian goodies!! YUM!
It's so nice to have family visit. Especially when they bring 100lbs of Canadian goodies!! YUM!
Monday, March 18, 2013
New Classes, New Office-mates!
Well the new school year has begun and there has been a lot of stress the first two weeks. Rather than just dividing the students by student number, we have decided to divide the classes based on level to give the lower level students more of a chance to participate and learn. This means interviewing all 700 students in 1st and 2nd grade and then placing them according to how they performed in the interview. It was extremely time consuming and exhausting. But we did it and now we have classes that are divided fairly. Hopefully this will mean a better year for the students and me alike!
The other changes included office changes. For reasons that don't all make sense to me, at the beginning of the year (or perhaps every semester) the Boys School teachers change desks and offices. So my previously calm, quiet office got a few new additions. We now have 12 instead of 8 desks. I am beside the window and near the sink. I like being able to look outside! We also had a dinner last week for the new office members. There were 5 of us who joined, one of whom isn't actually in my office but maybe he just like Italian food. It was my first office dinner where everyone spoke Korean. The teachers were all very excited to speak with me and they were quite courteous, translating when I didn't know what was going on, and speaking in English to accommodate me. These men are all so nice and I look forward to working along side them.
The other changes included office changes. For reasons that don't all make sense to me, at the beginning of the year (or perhaps every semester) the Boys School teachers change desks and offices. So my previously calm, quiet office got a few new additions. We now have 12 instead of 8 desks. I am beside the window and near the sink. I like being able to look outside! We also had a dinner last week for the new office members. There were 5 of us who joined, one of whom isn't actually in my office but maybe he just like Italian food. It was my first office dinner where everyone spoke Korean. The teachers were all very excited to speak with me and they were quite courteous, translating when I didn't know what was going on, and speaking in English to accommodate me. These men are all so nice and I look forward to working along side them.
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| My office-mates! Mr. Hwang, (Mr. Shin), Mr. Park, and Mr. Ryu |
Monday, March 11, 2013
A trip to the Dentist
I have been on my own for many year now and one thing I haven't done regularly enough is go to the dentist. Some of you may think it is because I have a healthy fear of characters like Steve Martin's Orin Scivello -D.D.S from Little Shop of Horrors
or maybe Laurence Olivier's Szell from Marathon Man
but you would be wrong. My father was my dentist for a large part of my life. Then when he sold his practice and semi-retired, I was fortunate enough to try out many of the other dentists who came to work at the office. Some were very good, but none of them as skilled as my father.
No it isn't any fear of the dentist, it is a fear of insurance. I have not gone to the dentist since 2006 when I was no longer on my parents dental plan.Now I have great coverage at Bugil, and so, this weekend I went to U.S. Dental in Seoul of a check-up and cleaning.
The cleaning took some time as you may imagine from a hiatus as long as mine. The hygienist was thorough removing the plaque from my teeth and giving them a nice polish. I also got some x-rays to make sure there were no hidden cavities. There a two spots of concern but nothing large enough to warrant a filling. A total success for me, considering I do not floss as much as I should. Now that my teeth a clean my mouth feels fresh. If you are searching for a dentist in Korea I would research U.S. Dental.
Cheers, JaM's
or maybe Laurence Olivier's Szell from Marathon Man
but you would be wrong. My father was my dentist for a large part of my life. Then when he sold his practice and semi-retired, I was fortunate enough to try out many of the other dentists who came to work at the office. Some were very good, but none of them as skilled as my father.
No it isn't any fear of the dentist, it is a fear of insurance. I have not gone to the dentist since 2006 when I was no longer on my parents dental plan.Now I have great coverage at Bugil, and so, this weekend I went to U.S. Dental in Seoul of a check-up and cleaning.
The cleaning took some time as you may imagine from a hiatus as long as mine. The hygienist was thorough removing the plaque from my teeth and giving them a nice polish. I also got some x-rays to make sure there were no hidden cavities. There a two spots of concern but nothing large enough to warrant a filling. A total success for me, considering I do not floss as much as I should. Now that my teeth a clean my mouth feels fresh. If you are searching for a dentist in Korea I would research U.S. Dental.
Cheers, JaM's
Sunday, March 10, 2013
A day exploring museums in Seoul
After JM's visit to the dentist, we decided to tour some museums in Seoul. We had taken an early train in and booked the last train back to Cheonan.
The first stop was the National Museum of Korea. There were many ancient artifacts, including rock tools and jewelery made of jade, and even old graves and bones. JM really liked the paintings. With free entry, you can't go wrong!
Next, we headed off to the war memorial of Korea. Not just a memorial, but a full museum, we were pleasantly surprised with all the information about Korean history and the full sized replicas of the turtle boats. Turtle boats were used to defend against the Japanese invasion in the 1590s. Admiral Yi Sun Shin was in charge of these boats and even though he was severely outnumbered, his men won the battle of the sea because of the innovative design of the boats. Outside of the museum was a display with fighter jets and tanks, many of which were open for the public, especially children, to climb aboard.
We then went to Itaewon to try a new taco place, Vatos, for dinner. While we had to wait 2 hours to get a table (we headed back to the Canadian bar for some cider to pass the time), the tacos were quite delicious. Next time we'll make sure to come on the off hour or for lunch.
We finished our day with a trip to the Lotte Mart right near Seoul station. We were in search of some padding for the spare bed before JM's parents arrive in 2 weeks. We did not find what we were looking for, but, quite fortunately, we did find the massage chair section. With 30 minutes to kill before the train, JM and I took full advantage of some expensive chairs. he he.
Adios amigos, until next time ...
Jennika
The first stop was the National Museum of Korea. There were many ancient artifacts, including rock tools and jewelery made of jade, and even old graves and bones. JM really liked the paintings. With free entry, you can't go wrong!
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| JM with some roof tiles |
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| A really old compass |
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| Room dividers that we want in our apartment |
Next, we headed off to the war memorial of Korea. Not just a memorial, but a full museum, we were pleasantly surprised with all the information about Korean history and the full sized replicas of the turtle boats. Turtle boats were used to defend against the Japanese invasion in the 1590s. Admiral Yi Sun Shin was in charge of these boats and even though he was severely outnumbered, his men won the battle of the sea because of the innovative design of the boats. Outside of the museum was a display with fighter jets and tanks, many of which were open for the public, especially children, to climb aboard.
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| Panoramic view of the front of the war memorial |
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| Turtle Boat |
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| JM hanging onto a rock |
We then went to Itaewon to try a new taco place, Vatos, for dinner. While we had to wait 2 hours to get a table (we headed back to the Canadian bar for some cider to pass the time), the tacos were quite delicious. Next time we'll make sure to come on the off hour or for lunch.
We finished our day with a trip to the Lotte Mart right near Seoul station. We were in search of some padding for the spare bed before JM's parents arrive in 2 weeks. We did not find what we were looking for, but, quite fortunately, we did find the massage chair section. With 30 minutes to kill before the train, JM and I took full advantage of some expensive chairs. he he.
Adios amigos, until next time ...
Jennika
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