Wet Sweat Sweat

I've been officially hit by the mucous train. I hit the sauce a bit too hard this weekend (sorry mom) to send off a friend (a commonplace event these days). Needless to say, my body has had enough abuse and is letting me know.... no more soju, no more dancing, no more late nights- time to sleep ya jerk! I've been subjected to sweats/chills, fever dreams, muscle ache, constant fatigue, and a lovely wet cough that just won't go away. Thankfully, today I don't have to do anything at work besides look busy... although I'm bummed the nap room is closed (among my biggest problems in Korea, the nap room that I get paid to use at work is not open today). Juheon has been taking excellent care of me- yesterday he brought me a pizza in my delirious, sweaty/cold stupor- and today we are going to to the hospital this afternoon so I can get a "miracle shot," or super anti-biotic. If I don't feel better by Thursday (the day before Ian gets here), I'll try going back to the jjimjilbang to cook all it out. Immune system don't fail me now!

Despite my ridiculous state, yesterday was a fabulous lengthy band practice- I feel pretty solid about my involvement in The Gay Sexyz.Our drummer's girlfriend recorded a bunch of the songs yesterday, and if he sends me the appropriate links, I'll post some of the music here. It looks as though we'll be playing 3-5 shows in March/early April! 
In other news, today was the first measurable snowfall here in Jinju (maybe 1 cm, which has already melted, haha)! I must admit, it has been a strange winter without snow (my first ever)- even though I know Buffalo is experiencing something similar this season.

Tomorrow is Graduation, which will warrant at least 4-5 hours of general confusion! I will try to stay out of the way/hide as much as possible. There are guaranteed to be at least 50 parents present, which means I must at least comb my hair in the morning. Pictures to come!

<3M

Goodbye Ellen; Back To School... Sucks

School is back on this week, and things are changing quickly. Yesterday morning, Ellen (my co-teacher) approached me with the news that as of March 1, the Principal is retiring, along with three other teachers. Additionally, the bombshell that as of March 1, she is transferring to another school. That means this is our last week teaching together... and when I come back from Thailand, there will be five new people in my office. My heart sank for a number of reasons:
1. Ellen is the ONLY person at my school who speaks English well enough to hold a conversation with; she is my only connection/interpreter to the rest of the teachers here. Yes, she will be replaced, but maybe not right away. During that time I won't have anyone to go to with problems/emergencies. There will be no one to inform me of the (daily) schedule changes, upcoming events, staff dinners, problems with students, etc. With three other new teachers and a new Principal, there will more than likely be a lot of kinks to be worked out the first couple of weeks, sudden changes in plans, etc. It worries me.
2. Ellen and I have an excellent working relationship. She has been of enormous help to me in and out of the classroom, and it took some time to get there. Over the past months, she has been there for me when I needed her- when I lost my keys, when I missed the bus and needed a ride to school, when my hot water heater broke, when my internet was broken. Plus, I genuinely like her. I'm very thankful to now have a few Korean friends outside of school that I know I can always count on if I need help, but it was nice to know I had someone on my side at work, too. I've heard plenty of horror stories of people who don't get along with their co-teachers, and I'm pretty nervous anticipating who her replacement might be.

It doesn't help that this week, everyone (teachers and students alike) is less than excited about being back in school- graduation and end of semester break happen in exactly a week, so we are in this weird no-man's land kind of area where we're expected to teach something, but nothing important/anything the students will actually care about. After not seeing my students for almost six weeks, I thought I would be happier to see them, haha. A bunch of the boys came back with perms, which I find hilarious.
Anyway, I planned a bunch of (I thought) pretty fun filler lessons to eat up a week of time. My third graders (who are graduating next Tuesday) have been absolutely uncooperative brats! I didn't expect to really care either way, but I actually can't wait for some of them to graduate. I just have to get through four more teaching days until spring break begins, Ian gets here, and Juheon and I cart off to Thailand... but what comes after spring break is pretty scary.

Trying to stay optimistic!! More soon,
<3M

Bugok: Hawaii

Having fun in Horrorland! Note: Squirrel, bear (?), horse (?), tank. 

one of the three ice slides!!!

This weekend was an absurd whirlwind, I'll try to compress the events into a palatable format.... though so many insane events warrant a novel. Anyway!

Friday night, I met some friends at the bar for a night of rummy. By some crazy (drunken) series of events which included an accordion and a lot of soju, I agreed to play keyboards in an already-established band of four other foreigners called The Gay Sexies. (?!?!) I'm not sure where this will lead, or even what kind of music they (we?) play, but I agreed to practice with them at their studio later on this week. Hopefully I can please them enough to get through the 4-5 shows they have planned for March... haha.

Saturday morning, Eve, Elliot, Juheon and I made the two hour trek to a town called Bugok to visit "Bugok: Hawaii," quite possibly the craziest/best place in all of Korea. When we arrived in the early afternoon, the town was mostly deserted. The resort, at first glance, looked like something pulled out of 1970s Vegas and dropped (completely out of place) in the mountains of Korea- an empty, grand, old, rickety hotel. The atmosphere was initially creepy, but walking past the hotel, the grounds opened up to a beautiful landscaped park and a complex of specialized buildings.

The main draw to Bugok: Hawaii is, of course, the natural sulfuric hot springs, promising bubbling hot luxurious outdoor pools. (In some spots, the water is hot enough to softly boil an egg- which, they do, and serve in an attached restaurant.) We first explored the grounds a little, then went into "the pool building" which housed an enormous set of pools, pirate ship and slide. We went down a hallway and into a different room- the hot springs entrance. Inside, there were three shallow bubbling pools (using the hot springs water): one containing lemon water, one with wine water, and a massage pool. Through a set of doors (to the outside) was the main attraction: a huge, natural pool that can only be described as a mermaid's lagoon. It was amazing- and so hot! It was really strange to be outside in 30 degree weather, swimming and having to get out of the water to cool off. We really enjoyed that, and I will DEFINITELY go back in the spring time!!!

After we finished with the hot springs, we explored the rest of the park, which included a sledding hill (real snow!!), a surprisingly difficult military style obstacle course, a botanical gardens, an amazing ice sculpture festival, a rabbit petting zoo, and, best of all, a SUPER creepy dilapidated amusement park, complete with rusting rides. A couple of the rides were functioning, including a roller coaster that people have to propel themselves using bicycles (it doesn't go upside down, or very fast, haha). We got the biggest laugh out of walking through there, though none of us felt very comfortable walking through. 

completing the military obstacle course!

the view inside hawaii

eve, elliot and juheon feeling happy and refreshed right after the hot springs

We left Hawaii in the late afternoon, and headed to the equally creepy/time-warp/desolate bus station to head to Masan (about 40 minutes away) to meet Tony and Jenna for dinner at a place aptly named "Mexico." Yum! We spent the evening smoking hookah and partying at the local bar popular with foreigners, followed by norebang (karaoke) and topped off with a late night McDonald's run. Tony and Jenna have a fantastic apartment, and since they had plenty of room for four house guests (absolutely unheard of here... I barely have enough room for ONE extra person), we stayed there. We woke up and had ibuprofen for breakfast :)

enjoying the hookah at jazz.
note: my shirt was a recent gem discovered at the dungeon, it says
"sensitive chris and luscious christy. luck come with smile
the wealth of god start to stop the keeping. gargoyle." ?!?

elliot, jenna, tony, juheon eve and me loving our mexican meal :)

It was 100% a fantastic time, but far too short. Last night when we got back, I was rendered completely useless, and decided an early night of sleep would do me some good. SO many things are happening this week, and I have much more to say... so stay tuned. More soon!

<3M

All Good Things...

Well, my five weeks of getting paid to do nothing has finally come to an end. Today is the last day where it will be acceptable for me to spend hours on end playing Words With Friends and reading backlogged Jezebel articles. I have to say, it was a lot easier for me to waste six hours every day than I ever thought it would be! In a way, becoming sedentary at work has been good for me, motivating me to go out and be more active AFTER work. I've started a yoga class, I found the public pool, and have had dinner with girlfriends every week since the inception of my deskwarming. 2012!

In incredible deals news, things I bought for a total of about $85:
1. Prescription Sunglasses!
2. An awesome waterproof digital camera
3. A delicious Japanese dinner for two!
Some things are absurdly inexpensive in Korea, ie- electronics, optical care, public transportation and dining out. Other things are absurdly expensive, ie- fresh produce, new clothes, and beauty products. I quickly learned to enjoy the cheap stuff while I can!

This weekend I will go to Bugok, a town about an hour and a half north of Jinju, to enjoy the natural hot springs. I am so excited for this! Currently, Bugok is also running a winter ice sculpture festival which we will hopefully be able to see from our perches in the water. It has been so cold and windy here, sitting in a natural hot tub outside with my friends just sounds too perfect. Afterwards, we're gonna go get "authentic Mexican food" at a place not far from Bugok aptly named "Mexico." We'll see how authentic it is, haha.

Things are beyond good. In just under two weeks, Ian will be here and our Korean adventure will begin. And then.... Thailand!!!!
More pictures soon!!!
<3M