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Week 7- Y3(Apr 22nd to Apr 28th) |
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Sunday:
So we've discovered a new breakfast place in Itaewon
called Suji's-- not only does it serve omelettes and
eggs, but pancakes too! Sigh, real breakfast . . .
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Monday:
I had a visit from one of my former students, Deog
Wan, today. He was the best English speaker out of
all the singers, and he basically translated all of my
improv classes last year. Unfortunately, he dropped
out this year to do his 2 years of military service,
but he will finish his degree after that. I really
really can't imagine 95% of my male students in the
military. I think I'd be better suited for the
military, and anyone who's met me can vouch that I'm
not exactly army material! Anyway, right now Deog Wan
is working for a couple months in Busan, and then he
will enter the army in June. |
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Tuesday:
So I was talking to Yoo Oak (Jae's sister=in-law), and
it turns out that one of my students has such a big
crush on me that he talks about it with the other
teachers, and has a picture of me on his web page!
I'm not sure whether to feel flattered or creeped out
(and I'm also curious about where he got the picture)
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Wednesday:
I was waiting for the subway on my way to salsa class,
and I heard someone yell out my name, and it turned
out to be Ah Young, a girl that I used to teach
privately! Turns out that she's working at Starbucks
in Itaewon now, so I'll probably see her every
Wednesday when I go in for my pre-class latte. I also
scored a free drink today . . .
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Friday:
So Jae called me this morning and asked if I'd like to
go on a free trip to China!?! Turns out that not only
do the students have an annual retreat, but so do the
professors of PaekChe. This year, the retreat is in
China. I was intrigued, but Jae didn't have any
concrete details to tell me, and none of the other
music professors can go, so I wouldn't know anyone,
and chances are no one in the group would speak
English, so I'd probably be really bored most of the
time. But still, I can't believe I'm turning down a
free trip to China . . .
Right after I talked to Jae, Kwon Hyun called and
asked if I had time for coffee. I really didn't (going
to Pohang today), but I agreed anyway, and we walked
to The Coffe Bean and Tea Leaf. Kwon Hyun has been
studying English at a "Friends" hagwon-- basically,
the class watches episodes of "Friends", and then
analyzes and learns all the expressions and dialogue.
At first, I was kind of skeptical, but actually the
more I think about it, the more sense it makes: it's a
fun, entertaining way to learn, and it would help
Koreans to pick up American slang in a way that they
wouldn't really be able to otherwise.
The coffee run made me late getting to the bus
station, and I had to wait an hour for the next bus to
Pohang (to visit Jason and Steph). Then, of course
there was the 5 hour bus ride to Pohang (and they
wonder why I never come to visit them!)
Friday nights are poker nights in Jason's circle of
friends, so I was given a quick tutorial on how to
play (I had never played before) and then we were
off. You know what they say about beginner's luck.
Yeah, not so much in my case. I only won 2 hands the
whole game, and we seriously played from 10pm to 4am
before there was a winner. What I've learned: poker
is only interesting for about 15 minutes, then it's
boring as hell. Also, gambling is definitely NOT a
skill of mine.
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Saturday:
Jason's brother James just came to Korea 2 weeks ago
to work at an elementary school, so today, Jason and
Steph took us to the big market in Pohang. Pohang's
market is famous for its huge seafood section, and
rightfully so. There were a lot of fascinating and
disgusting things there. I've decided that I really
really really hate octopuses (octopi?) Not only do
they taste disgusting, but they are the most hideous
slimy looking things I've ever seen. They just kind
of ooze everywhere. There were live octopuses oozing
and attempting escape all over this market, and I
could not wait to get out of there. James, on the
other hand loves octopus-- he even convinced one of
the vendors to let him hold on and take a picture!
For lunch, we headed to TGI Fridays, which predictably
made us all feel crappy afterwards (it always seems
like such a good idea when you're looking at the menu,
and such a bad, bad idea afterwards), so we lazed
around watching movies for most of the evening. Then
Jason and Steph took me out on for a night on the town
in Pohang (Ha. Haha. Pohang is like the 'Shwa of
Korea. There's like, 3 bars where foreigners go).
First stop was Mindy's, where there were only a few
old sleazy looking foreigner dudes sitting at the bar,
ogling both Steph and I. Next stop was Beethovens,
where there were several sleazy men sitting at the bar
ogling Steph and I (every time we walked into a new
place, I got that "Ooh, I haven't seen her before;
fresh meat!" kind of look. Guess that's the trouble
with small towns and foreigners here). And final stop
was Whistler's, where there were lots of sleazy men
ogling Steph and I, including some of the ones we had
already seen at the previous 2 bars! Wow, great
scene, Pohang. I could never never live here. And
once again, Jason and Steph wonder why I never visit .
. . uh, what I mean to say is thanks for hosting me,
Jay and Steph! Thanks for making me pancakes and
providing me with great hospitality! (Reading between
the lines, come to Seoul next time!!)
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