New Year, New Place

Happy New Year, everyone!! I hope you've enjoyed January so far~

Also, it's very strange that we've had such a mild winter. I mean, I know it's only January, but we haven't really had any snow. It hasn't been nearly as cold as it was last year, either. But who's complaining? Not this girl!

You know, I was really excited to go to the south this time because Detroit was about the same temperature as Korea last time. But. The weather... It got so bad!! What is happening to the Midwest?! Can't I just go someplace nice and around 50-55 degrees?

Oh well. It will be so lovely to see my parents and best friend again! I'll be in the Carolinas the last two weeks of January. It'll be interesting to see what there is in terms of entertainment and shopping/thrifting. And food! New Years diet resolution doesn't begin until AFTER I get back from the States.

This year is full of new places, it seems! This week I'll go and sign a contract with my new school in Seoul, which means finding an apartment in the city. New school, new home. Moving... I've already started to sort through my things and I've thrown out a mountain (or large desk drawer) of paper. I am a pack rat. I have been saying this to myself out loud in order to curb this behavior.

I am a little nervous about finding a place, though. The rental system here is a little bit different. You pay quite a large sum for deposit ($5,000 - $10,000) and then the usual rental fee of $500 - $800. Of course the type of apartment you have and its size dictate how much rent you pay, too. And the area. I will start looking soon. I feel that it's best to go visit the area I want to live in and see which neighborhoods I prefer. Then I'll go to a realtor and have them show me around. I actually found some helpful articles about renting in Seoul, so here's the first and the second. There's a pitch in both of them for some "helpful" what-have-you, but it costs money so I wouldn't bother. I didn't.

I'll post again after I've gone through the process. I'm curious to see if I can find a nice place with a low deposit. Paying off my student loans feels awesome, but it also means I don't have the cash lying around to pay such a huge sum. And my Macbook went and black-screened on me. Living is so expensive. At least my healthcare here is socialized- efficient and cheap.

I had to go to the hospital last week for a health check, actually. But it's very different from getting one back home. For the hospital I went to, which is seriously quite large, you go to an area and fill out part of a form. You pull a number and walk up to the counter when your number shows on the screen. The you go and get changed in the women's area, leaving your stuff in a locker. It's not a gown, either. Just a wrap-shirt. Then you proceed to go around different stations in the hallway-like area and the people at each station fill in the results on the rest of the form you started earlier. You put the form in a box near each station for the busy ones and they pull the forms when their pile runs out and call you up to that area based on when your form was put into the box. Then you hand in the form and change. Then you're done. Simple, fast, and not unpleasant. I need to call them, though, and make sure I paid.... Haha, I still hate hospitals. Took them three times to check my heart rate and get a result that didn't make them think I needed to be on hypertension medication.

It's been a busy month, this January. I'm currently halfway through teaching English Camp. Just the rest of this week and next Monday left. The first five days were monster-themed. For the last five days I'm going to do a mystery-spy theme. It's been a lot of fun :)


Anyway, I should get back to planning. I have a PowerPoint to make!


Take care, everyone! And I'll see you soon, America~ (Please ease up on the weather. xoxox)

Job Hunting

With November approaching, it's time to start looking for jobs in Korea! I know Japan typically posts jobs and ends deadlines during the month of October, and while there are a good deal of jobs posted for Korea during the month of October, many of them are for positions beginning in November/December. Still, since I've decided to move to a different school, I've been looking at several job boards trying to nail the perfect job!

And so what I would like to do is share with you the sites that I've been looking at. Two years ago I went through a great recruiter, Korvia Consulting, and I'm so happy I did! But now that I'm trying to get a job with an international school, or a school with an English immersion program, I'm taking to the job market alone.

If you are in Korea and looking for a new job, maybe these boards can be of assistance to you. The same goes for those of you outside of Korea, too, of course! Many recruiters also post on these boards in case you decide to go through a recruiter to find a job.

Happy hunting! :)


First- here is a great site I found for Japan:  GaijinPot - You can search by industry and location! You put all of your information on the site to make your CV, and then apply to jobs directly on the site simply by choosing to send them your already made, online CV. So nice~


Now, on to Korea:
Dave's ESL Cafe - I look under the job description link for who is posting the job (school, recruiter). There is also a section where you can post your resume!

I Love ESL Korea - This is one of my favorites to look at because the website design is clean and organized. You can search for jobs by age (adults or kids) and location, as well as post your own resume.

Planet ESL - This site lists jobs with their start date right next to the header, and I find that really convenient.

Korea Job Finder - I'm also quite fond of this site. It's updated frequently and the presentation is nice. You can also post your resume on the site, and search for jobs by location or full-/part-time.

ESL Fish - Now, this site is not updated as often and that is really too bad because the site functions are pretty cool. You can refine your job search by location and pay, as well as post your resume.

Here are some others, though they are not updated as frequently as the above. I still like to check them all ;)
Work N' Play
ESL Jobs Korea
ESL Jobs Now

There's also this one - ESL Employment - but I HATE the website layout so I never use it.

And Online TEFL, which allows you to check available jobs throughout many different countries.



I've tried out some others, but they didn't work as I wanted them to, or they sent me emails for jobs in Utah. And I have absolutely no desire to teach in Utah.

With some of these sites, however, your email is visible as it is how potential employers can contact you. So I take that into consideration when choosing which email address you supply :) (The plus side is when you get funny messages from people asking you to move to a different country and be paid six grand every month to teach a family.) Still, some of them keep your information hidden until you're interested in contacting someone!

If you have any other job sites for teaching abroad, please share them!!

Kyoto and Osaka 2013

Japan, Japan! I finally went to Japan! Two weeks ago...

But we saw temples, shrines, and statues. We ate takoyaki, okonomiyaki, ramen, yakisoba, and sushi. We drank beer and sake and danced with some cool kids to The Flaming Lips and Pavement. Oh, and we saw a couple of national treasures that I studied at university. It was a pretty awesome trip.

Since I left work early and my work is near Gimpo Airport, I just hopped on a bus to Gimpo and took the airport express train. It's fast, clean, and quiet! I took Peach Airlines over to Japan. Anyone who has lived in Korea and looked into traveling to Japan can attest to the fact that they're consistently one of the cheapest airlines available. And they're no United, either. ;)

It's a pretty quick flight, too. You're up in the air for about an hour and a half (Incheon Airport to Kansai International Airport). Kansai International is on a man-made island with a few hotels and a shopping plaza. While on the island you can purchase train passes from 2 to 4 days unlimited on the JR line trains, or something called an ICOCA pass, which honestly I have no idea about. If anyone can enlighten me on the matter I'd appreciate it! We went with the 4-day pass, which runs 6,000 yen (a little over 60 bucks). Unfortunately, travel in Japan is expensive. Thankfully, though, we only needed trains that cost 210 to 250 yen. There were some that cost 700! I mean you might as well take a taxi at that point.

We spent two days in Kyoto and walked around a lot! Kyoto is such a large city. And a really awesome one, too. It so easily and beautifully blends the old and the new. You could be walking on a main street with a bunch of shops and a convenience store, look through a break in the buildings and catch a glimpse of a pavilion. There's the food market, Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion), Ginkaku-ji (The Silver Pavilion), Fushimi Inari, Todai-ji, and so many more famous, outrageously beautiful places!

Here are a few Kyoto photos:

In Kyoto we stayed in a really cute, cozy, and friendly hostel just outside of the city near Uzumasa Station. The hostel's name is Bola Bola, and I definitely recommend it! Here are some pictures:

After two days in Kyoto we headed to Osaka! Osaka has an even more modern feel, with tall, elaborate signs and advertisements adorning the streets. You can escape it and tuck into the side streets where the billboards disappear and find yourself a few clubs, strange bars, and more kind people. That's one thing I really loved about going to Japan; the people are so nice! Anywho, this is what I mean about Osaka:

Banaaaanas. Now. The food. Regrettably I did not take pictures of everything I consumed, only of the okonomiyaki, which was quite delicious. The food in Japan was really great! And mild. The spiciness of Korean cuisine was absent in most of what I tasted. Like how Korea uses the pepper paste in a lot of foods, there was something similar in the sauces for the takoyaki and okonomiyaki. Takoyaki is a ball of batter with some octopus inside, which is then cooked in a special pan and topped with this sauce, some tempura, and green onion. Okonomiyaki is like a pancake, or 전. Looking into it I learned that okonomiyaki can be translated to "as you like it". There are many ways to make this pancake, so it seems quite fitting! But at the base of every okonomiyaki is some cabbage and some batter. Then you can add some egg, meat, seafood, bean sprouts, or even throw some noodles on top! Yakisoba is the fried noodle dish, and also really delicious. Apparently it migrated from China to Japan, but I'll eat it and enjoy it either way! Since it's the only food picture I have, please enjoy looking at this picture of a piece of okonomiyaki:

It was a really nice trip! I want to go back and see so much more!

I'm sure I'll visit again soon <3

Fall Sentiments and Job Hunting

I've been putting off admitting it for years, but now I must. Two weeks ago I was complaining about how hot it was, and now I want to comment on how cold it's getting! Granted it's not particularly cold, but there has been a 15 degree (F) drop between these two weeks... So here we go: I am sensitive to temperature. My younger self that ran around in the snow wearing flip-flops would be ashamed.

But I don't mind too terribly, sitting here eating a donut and sipping on hot coffee. Although walking into the bakery as they pulled the donuts out of the oven and smelling that delicious smell more than tempted me into buying one- it made me wish I was back home on my way to a cider mill. Orange and red leaves, hayrides, caramel apples... Oh, what I wouldn't do for an actual donut and some hot cider right now!

That will have to wait a while longer, though. I've decided to stay in Korea for a third year. I know telling people this has prompted the question of if I'll ever leave, but I still think my answer to that is a definite 'yes'. I would, however, like to try working at a different school. I have loved working here! Everyone has been so kind to me and so considerate of me, but because I am a foreigner with only so much time here I want to try living somewhere else. Not too far away, though! I'm looking around Seoul, which is going to be a bit difficult with the public school job cut-backs, and the influx of highly qualified teachers. I wouldn't mind working in other parts of Korea (in fact, sometimes I think I would prefer it), but the type of job I want is more abundant in Seoul.

So, of course, I've been working on my resume like crazy! I've had some friends and my folks look over it, too. Do you ever feel like a child when writing your resume? The first time I re-opened my resume I think I laughed... Here's to hoping it's improved.

Another gem of job-hunting is the professional photos! My co-teacher is so sweet and searched for studios around my house where I could have my picture taken. I went to Cle Studio in Bucheon near City Hall, and they did a great job! After sitting down and taking your picture they have you sit down in the front where you can watch the person photoshop your picture. It was like watching magic. I mean, I knew that such people existed, but to actually watch the entire process was so impressive. She was so, so fast! I came out looking quite a bit different, and I'm not sure how I feel about that in a photo that's supposed to represent me for a job (It's normal to attach a professional photos to your resume here), but it's most certainly not an ugly photograph. The entire process took maaaybe 30 minutes? Taking several photographs, choosing one, editing it, printing it, cutting them, paying for the services.... All of it. 17,000 won (~15.50 USD). The girl actually spoke really great English, too...

With my shiny new resume, super shiny new professional photo, and a heart full of determination, I go out into the job-hunting frontier once again. Keep your fingers crossed for me! ;)



xox

I Love Busan (Part 2 with some Daegu)

It's September already!

Haha, I think that every time I wake up, it's a different month. For those who've been wondering, I am alive! I haven't been showing my face much these days, but the weather is no longer a weapon of destruction so I'm crawling back out :)

But, man, does time fly. I went to Busan and Daegu during my summer vacation, but now it's already getting close to Chuseok! Still, I was able to see new things this Busan trip AND it was my first time visiting Daegu. So even though it's been a little longer than I'd like, I'm going to write up a post about the trip.

Firstly, there are a few ways you can get to Busan. By bus, by normal train, and by fast train (KTX). The bus and the normal train cost about the same from here in Bucheon, and the supposed time it takes is about the same, too. This time we went with the train. Firstly because my boyfriend, who I traveled with, lives in Seoul and getting to the Bucheon terminal takes him longer than it takes me to get to the Seoul terminal. Secondly because trains don't have traffic. (The KTX may be nice, but it costs twice as much so we passed on that option, too.)

During my last trip, my friend and I traveled along the coast, essentially. We hit Gwangali and Haeundae beaches, saw the Busan Tower and the markets.

But this trip we kept inland a bit more. We visited Beomeosa Temple, which is gorgeous and located next to Geumjeong Fortress, which we weren't able to see, regrettably. There are so many well-preserved (and newer) temples to see. If you happen to go here, you will likely see those doing a temple-stay, children with some group being instructed by the monks, and people giving their prayers. It's such a serene place, covered with Korean pine trees and bamboo. There is also an area of large rocks you can climb up to the northern fortress gate, or if you're like the people we passed, you can stop when you've found a nice rock and have yourself a little picnic. We stopped climbing when we realized it was getting darker and that we would like to get back down. The view is stunning, too. You can look out and see beautiful glimpses of mountains and the surrounding area.

We did venture back out to the coast afterward for the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple, another gorgeous temple but quite a bit smaller. There were also tonsssss of people at this temple. The best things about this temple, in my opinion, are the round pigs, the giant golden Buddha, and the view looking at the temple from a little farther away. There is a path along the shore starting from the foot of the temple area that leads you away toward a fisheries museum. In getting here, we took the subway as far as we could and then hopped on a bus that brought us close to the temple. From there, you walk for about 10-15 minutes, and then you're golden! I wanted to mention the directions, because we happened to walk along the coastal path, up to the fisheries museum. Then we kept walking up and turned left out of the area, somehow leading us right back to the bus stop. Somehow we managed to make a circle, but I was so amazed and so thankful. I made the mistake of wearing peep-toe flats on this trip, so the walking and large rock journeys were quite hard on the tootsies.

We did go to Haeundae beach that evening, and it was clothed in its usual company of buskers, magicians, couples, friends, and families. I always love the beach until I'm covered in wet sand. Well, I always like the idea of going to the beach more than actually being at the beach. It's a beautiful area, though, and that makes up for the awful magic tricks and sand in your shoes. Complaining about sand in my shoes always reminds me of Rocket Power...

Anywho, after the beautiful Busan adventure it was time to hit Daegu! Again, you can take a bus or a train from Busan to Daegu. Againagain, we took the train! It wasn't a bad trip at all from Busan to Daegu... Although it was really hot, I liked Daegu. Daegu is my boyfriend's hometown, so we were able to navigate it easily and meet up with some of his friends. Around city hall, there is a shopping area with a wide pedestrian-only street running down the middle. I was particularly fond of this because they had organized the street into districts based on what shops sold. All the jewelry stores were grouped together, all the shoe stores, all the make-up stores... You didn't have to run to opposite ends to check prices and availability at a different store. Sooo nice!

We spent most of our time in a different area, though, where there is an abundance of art supply stores and music stores. Heaven. Not to mention the coffee shops! We also visited a really lovely university campus, as well as the Catholic church in the area. They are both beautiful areas that are great for a stroll, especially when school isn't in session.

Another famous area we went to was the Kim Kwang Seok (a wonderful musician) street behind the markets. Unfortunately the markets were closed, but the murals were really cool! We sat down on the prettiest bench and listened to one of Kim Kwang Seok's songs. Some of the murals were funny, inserting him into a classical painting, while others were portraits or lyrics.

I had a really nice trip! I think it's always good to see different parts of the country I live in. Although the Busan accent really hurt my brain if I tried to listen while people were talking. But hearing my boyfriend speak to his friends in a Daegu/Gyeongsan-do accent was one of the cutest things ever.


So that was my trip! If you have any questions, feel free to ask :)

xoxox

Song Time

Hello, everyone! It's been a long time!!
Right now I'm on vacation :D

Summer camp was fun, but I'm happy to relax~

This blog post is going to be dedicated to a song, though.
I was looking up the lyrics so that I could sing along when I found a site that had them in Korean and English. But the translation just seemed so off.. So, like any curious and slightly over-confident person, I attempted to translate them myself.

I know my Korean skills are a little lacking, though, so if you have corrections, pleeeease share :) There are a few lines that could use some help.

..And I must admit that those few lines baffled me quite completely. One being the title of this beautiful, mysterious, and slightly sad song: 그 어떤 말로도. I've seen it translated as 'I have no words', but I knew that wasn't quite right... So I asked my boyfriend :3

So without any further rambling, the lyrics (followed by the song):

 그 어떤 말로도 by Vodka Rain (보드카레인) ft. Jang YoonJu (장윤주)

그렇게도 빛나던 그대..

So too do you shine...

어디론가 떠난 밤
A night to leave for somewhere

모든 걸 잃은 하루는 지고...
The day you lost everything ends...

창가에는 어둠도 빛들도 사라진 채
At the window, the darkness and the lights have vanished

난 아무것도 보이지 않아
I don't see anything

난 아무것도 보이지 않아

I don't see anything

그 어떤 말로도..
I can't convey it with words...

어둠 속으로 세상지고
Beneath the darkness the world falls

눈물로도 어떤 수 많은 기도로도
And even with tears and a great number of prayers

다시 볼 수 없는 사람
Again I'm blind    (or: The person I can't see again?)

여기있어요 나 여기있어요
Here, I am here

이렇게 그대곁으로 찾아왔어요
To be there for you, I came to find you like this

볼수없나요 너무추워요
Can't you see? It's too cold

시린하늘이 싫어 옆에 왔는데
I hate the cold sky. I came to your side

짐작조차도 할 수 없나요
I can't even guess

이렇게 보는건 그대 아닌가요
How you can't see anything this way

울지말아요 미안해요 그대...
Don't cry. I'm sorry. You...

아무것도 보이지 않아 ...
Don't see anything

 그 어떤 말로도 by Vodka Rain (보드카레인) ft. Jang YoonJu (장윤주)

There :)

Again, just my best stab at it. I'm by no means proficient...
Let me know if you fancy the song as much as I do!
Or even if you don't care for it at all, I guess...

I just wanted to see what I am capable of... But againagainagain please share your corrections with me if you have them. Different translations or interpretations, too! :D



Take care, all! xoxox

Ad Theory

So I'm standing here on the subway next to a plastic surgery ad featuring some sad, average looking male who was transformed into a dashing Prince Charming. My thoughts that were sparked after viewing the gigantic ad earlier which featured a female with a terribly long chin have hence continued. And so I now have a theory which I am about to share with you.

Have you ever wondered if maybe the people in the before pictures didn't really look that bad? Let's keep our strict judgement of beauty intact, and merely hypothesize about whether or not they could have been made to look worse off than they actually were. The recent Korean beauty pageant has shown us, if nothing else, the power of Photoshop. So here is where I will share my theory:

Photoshop has a hand in the transformation. Yes, the plastic surgery here is fully capable of turning you into a different person, but after how many times? After how many years? And so my theory is that maybe some photos are edited to make the before less fortunate looking than they actually were. And then, after all desired surgeries have been performed and have healed, the beauty of make-up and photoshop is yet again introduced.

Now, I know this is a bit of a stretch. A big mishap was created in China when a woman produced children who looked nothing like her. Unfortunately for her hideous children, the gorgeous woman had undergone extensive plastic surgery. So yet another example of the scary power of plastic surgery.

But what is the likelihood that each of these people featured in such ads went through so much?

I guess this post is more of my thought rambling, but I'm curious to hear other opinions on the matter. Not so much on the validity of getting plastic surgery or your belief in whether it is right or wrong, but more on the advertisement of plastic surgery. Do you think it's all because of a skilled team of surgeons, or could photoshop in the before and after images play a bigger part?

Food for thought.

Though, maybe for those times you've nothing better to think about. Like when you're riding the subway home facing a silly ad.