B-E AGGRESSIVE!

When it comes to taking the bus in Korea, at least in Cheong-Ju where I live, you have to be aggressive! Simply standing at the bus stop is not enough for the bus driver to stop the bus. You have to practically through yourself in front of the bus for it to stop for you. Just because there is a bus stop coming up the bus driver will not always stop there. Even if you think that the bus driver is going to stop because you are actively moving towards the bus, some bus drivers will just barrel on and not stop for you and you are stuck waiting for the next bus that will come.

Every night it is a race between my co-worker and I against the 717 bus that takes us from our schools town back to where we both live. We tear out of the school and run the entire way to the bus stop hoping that the bus has not left. On a few occasions we have both been running for the bus, the bus driver sees us running as it drives by, and does NOT stop at the bus stop for us. It just continues on like no one wanted the bus and we are stuck waiting for 30 minutes for the next bus.

Once you are on the bus you have to fight for a seat. It is a courtesy for younger people to give up their seats for older people. My question is where do you draw the line of who is deserving of your seat? If you are unlucky to get a seat you must stand until a seat becomes open. Standing requires you to also be aggressive with others standing. Handrails are coveted by all and you will be pushed away by any and everyone if you aren't territorial over standing and holding space.

The bus system is a great and inexpensive way to get around the area but it is also a challenge to catch the certain bus that you want. Taking the bus here is an art form but you also must be aggressive on and off the bus.

How do you pack your entire life into two suitcases?

On the eve of my journey to South Korea, I sat in my room and wondered how I was going to be able to put my entire life into the two suitcases and carry on that I had. I sat pondering 'what do you really need?' or 'what do you think you will really need?'. As I sat there, I was truly wondering not what clothes or shoes I was going to bring, but how I was going to stuff my parents and my sisters into my suitcases so that they could be there with me to make sure that I would be alright and be my emotional support throughout my journey and arrival into a foreign country that I had not seen in a decade and one that I had seen with them.

I began my love affair with Asia about 10 years ago inJapan. To me it was love at first sight. Ever since my two year stay in Asia, and vast traveling, I knew that I had to make it back to the lands that captured my heart at such a young age. As the plane touched down in Korea I realized that this next year of my life would either make me stronger or make me go running back to the comfort of my parents home and never leave the safety of all I have known.

After two months, I already know that I had made the best decision of my life by leaving home. Life in Korea is absolutely amazing! Koreans are the kindest people that I have ever meet! My boss welcomed me to her country with open arms and such enthusiasm that I have ever experienced from someone, let alone a boss. My co-workers and her have made sure that my transition away from home is the smoothest it could be. Reassuring me that I was not a horrible teacher and ensuring that I was not sitting at home every weekend wallowing in self pitty that I had no friends or family by my side. In my short stay, so far, I have hiked a mountain, visited a palace, and have eaten a vast amount of Korean food. I could not have been luckier with my placement and the group of people that I have been surrounded with.

Although I have my degree in teaching, nothing truly prepares you for what might await in every classroom that you step into. My first day of teaching I felt like either a celebrity or a zoo animal with all of the stares that I received. Even while teaching I had students peaking through the windows trying to get a glimpse of the new teacher. Later I found out that my boss told the entire school how pretty I was, which I can only assume intensified the stares. The stares have died down and a routine has now been found but it has taken about two months for that routine to finally come into place. Even now, it is still a constant battle of wills between me and my students. There is a constant language barrier and no matter how many ways you try to rearrange your words or the definition of a word something is lost in translation. Standing in front of a class saying one word many different ways, multiple times, sometimes really does not work. To top it off you have your students either staring at you with glassed over eyes or yelling back at you in Korean. It truly lowers ones confidence in teaching and the English language. Though there are those silver lining moments when students will light up with the understanding of what you are trying to convey. Those moments are the ones that reaffirm your desire to teach English and your move to a foreign land.

I have learned quickly that you have to live day by day, sometimes hour by hour, because you never know what the next week, day, hour, even minute in your classroom will bring. 'Slow and steady wins the race', is my daily mantra and keeps me positive about the students learning and understanding of the English language from me.

Dexter Class Fight Night Intro....

Hey everyone,

After much planning and hard work haha... I finally took some pictures of my Kinder Class for everyone to see... So without further adieu...  I am completely stoked to bring you...

Drum Role Please

(Boooom, Boooom, Boooom, Boooom)

Standing in at Avg. Height of 4 Ft 2 In

 At about 50 lbs/kid

For your viewing pleasure

All the way from Bundang, South Korea

 My Little Kinder Angels

DEXTER CLASS

 ALTHOUGH...

Don't Be Fooled

They're Only Angels...

UNTIL

They're 

Not...

:-)

lol... Hope everyone had as much fun with reading this little interlude as I did with writing it... But anyway, till next time... Much love and respect to all.. 

Keith

Teaching Advice

Hey what up everyone.., So I haven't made any new posts in about a week because I have just been really busy with teaching and trying to find my groove hear in Korea. Teaching here is really fun but its tricky... You can't just go in there without a plan because if you do the kids will eat you alive. To this, the thing I have found the hardest about teaching so far is the line between being their teacher and being their friend. Ask any person who is just starting out and they'll all tell you that they want to be one of two things. Either they'll tell you they want to be the type of teacher that all the kids love or they'll tell you they want to be the type of teacher all the kids fear. In my opinion you shouldn't try to be either one of these things, but a teacher the kids respect. Kids in Korea are incredibly smart and in some respects advanced for their age. Its even gotten to the point where a lot of the time i have to actually remind myself that these kids are just kindergartners. Parents expect a lot from their kids in Korea and thus expect a lot from you as their teacher. This is why I think its really important whether you've had a lot of teaching experience or just a little to set up your classroom in a manner that gives the kids chances to succeed rather than fail. This could be a sticker system such as I am using or maybe a monthly prize system... Either way the most important thing is that classroom is organized in a manner that encourages students to want to impress you as the teacher. Additionally, as mentioned earlier the other factor is the parents... You do not want parents calling in and complaining about what your doing in your classroom. I know this sounds really freaky, but the good thing is its really easy to avoid. The best way to avoid having parents do this is just to try and include them in the learning process. 

For instance, for my speech class, every week, I send home a written copy of what the weekly speech is, an audio copy of me saying it, an audio copy of the student presenting it on the day it was supposed to be memorized for, and lastly a teacher assessment rubric for how the student did that week. Now I know that looks like a lot of stuff but its really not. And the important thing about all of it is that it allows the parents to be active in monitoring how their child is doing in your class.. For instance, if was just to send home a report of how they did, some parents honestly might not believe you. This is something that happens all the time because a lot of parents will not want to accept that their kid isn't perfect. This is why its important to provide them with a copy of what the child actually performed in class. Parents in Korea are usually more than willing to help their kids, but only if their given the proper means to do so... But anyway the reason I wanted to talk about this today is because the thing I have found the hardest since actually getting is being a good teacher. Teaching is what you make of it and can the best or worst aspect of your entire experience. So plan accordingly!  

Keith's Taxi Cab Adventure (A Sad Yet Educational Tale)

Hi everyone,

I am sad to announce that my streak of NOT getting ripped off since arriving in South Korea has finally ended.  This past while attempting a trip into Seoul, I was had like a 3rd graders lunch money If 3rd graders brought $70 to lunch by a Seoul Cab Driver.  Although, after telling this story i'll probably lose any small amount of credibility I have been able to attain up until this point, I wouldn't feel right if I didn't mention/explain what transpired at the expense of me and 70,000 won.

Just to be very clear... I had NOT been drinking!  It happened in the MORNING!!! AND lastly, it only happened because of the my naturally trusting nature and fear of getting into an argument with someone who doesn't speak a word of English (at least to my knowledge).  

So now for the story.  While heading into Seoul for what was supposed to be my CIEE "First Step" Orientation, I managed to get lost.  I know!!!  Your probably thinking... "Ha! Ha! Serves that guy right for devoting 2 out of his first 3 blog posts to explaining the public transportation in Seoul." But anyway I digress...  The point is I got lost.  The reason I got lost was that I tried to take a bus into Seoul rather than using the subway.  This was undoubtably the wrong move considering what occurred then after. 

At this point, you're probably wondering why I tried to use the bus instead of the subway.  And it's pretty simple actually... Time... Taking the subway from Bundang to Seoul takes an extraordinary amount of time.  Not only does it add about an hour to an hour and a half (depending where your trying to go) onto your trip, but it also usually involves at least 1 if not 2 transfer stops..  As you can imagine this is incredibly frustrating considering Seoul is really only a 15 minute drive away from where I live in Bundang. 

So I tried to take the bus to save some time.  This wasn't the problem.  

The problem was that I had wrote down the wrong bus number to take.  To this, besides the bus number, the only thing I had really tried to remember was the name of the bus stop I was supposed to get off at. And after being on the bus for about 35 minutes and not hearing the name of my stop I started to get worried and realize that something was just not right. For some reason I convinced myself that any bus station I got off at would have a subway counterpart somewhere near by and got off at the next stop.  I was wrong!!! 45 minutes later and infinitely more confused than before I just decided cut my losses.  I knew I had lost the battle and getting home in one piece meant I'd live to fight another day.  I thought taking a taxi home was going to help simplify the situation.

But once again I was wrong... 

ADVICE ALERT -> -> If using a taxi in Seoul to go somewhere out of Seoul be sure to establish a set price with the driver beforehand.  The reason for this is to make sure that the cab driver doesn't turn on the clock and charge you for the actual mileage of the ride.  In other words, taxicab rates for locations out of Seoul will always be fixed.  This is why I was charged 70,000 Won for what should've been a 35,000 to 50,000 Won cab ride.   My best advice for how to prevent this would just be to be cautious and vigilant when doing things your not fully sure of.  It's a really easy mistake to avoid, but like what happened to me can really ruin your day and leave you in quite a frustrated mood for then on after.

                     (Me & Some CO-workers at my 1st Major Korean League Baseball Game)

Teaching Begins!

So as I prepare for my first day of teaching classes in Korea that aren't summer intensives, honestly, I am feeling maybe just a little (A LOT) stressed out. Teaching little kids is a big deal for me and I am sort of afraid that one of my second graders will pop up and knife me if I don't do a good job (that's a joke.) I guess what i am trying to refer to right now is the level of mystery, which is inherent in all beginnings. In other words, we don't know how things are going to work out at the beginning. We hope. But we don't know. I think what I am fearing is that things work out immediately or to how I spent tons and tons planning them to. Its like when you apply to be a teacher in a another country (no matter who you are). On the one, (usually more dominant hand) you think about how sick it would be to travel somewhere exotic. On the other hand you think about how teaching little kids could be fun even though its the reason for why you'd be going in the first place. And thats ok because no matter what traveling and immersing yourself into a completely new and different culture is and should be a huge aspect of the whole experience. Although, for me it didn't really hit home until I met the kids in my class for the first time during intensives because they look at you like you're an absolute god. Its like I don't even think I am that cool and I've known me for 22 years at this point. And yet, for some crazy reason all these kids want to do is be just like you. For the first time in my life I feel a real sense of ownership and responsibility to what I am doing. And the fact that I am doing/discovering all this while immersed half way across the world in South Korea just makes it all the more special.

Ask Anyone...

If you do, 90 percent of the time you won't achieve the outcome your desiring. This is a case of bad approach = bad outcome.

Here's some suggestions for how to make this a positive one...

Step 1: its best to approach younger aged Korean adults because they're usually the ones who speak the most English and thus will be the most helpful. Do not think it is because older Koreans have something against you because you're a foreigner. This is not the case. But rather, it's just because more often than not they're the ones who speak little to no English. The reason I mention all this because without an understanding of the context some people could misconstrue these actions as being aggressive or anti-foreigner. They're not!!!! South Korea is a country which for the last 30-40 years has been experiencing rapid development within every fasciate of its society. This isn't to say that there aren't many things that still get lost in translation between the lines. But anyway, to this day I have never experienced a Korean person who blatantly just didn't help me. What I have had, is a few experiences a mutual surrender. In others. a situation where it became clear that he/she didn't speak enough english to help me and I didn't speak enough Korean to be helped. People are always friendly here... Whether or not they are always helpful is another story in itself... But again, I think the best way to deal with this is just to approach younger looking adults and your results will tend to improve greatly.

New Subway Advice

Alright everyone, when coming to South Korea (SK) one of the first things you should to is figure out the public transportation system. Public transportation (subway, bus, airport shuttle, water taxi, etc.) is incredibly useful here and everyone uses it. Although, in my experience as a new foreigner to South Korea it can be pretty daunting to use at first. In my opinion, the best way for dealing with this is to approach it in a manner that your the most comfortable with. This could be only using the bus at the beginning or having other foreigners travel with you for the first few times. Either way the single most important piece of advice i can give you about dealing with public transportation and anything else is to approach it in a manner that your comfortable or feel safe with at first.

Remember, no matter how cultured or prepared you may feel or be for the experience, things are inevitably going to feel very new and hard at some point in your experience. At times you will struggle and feel down about things. Maybe it will be a hard day at work. Maybe you'll just really miss home. Either way, thats not the issue... Its how you get yourself back up that really counts. So far, my trick for curing this is just trying to keep myself in check about my life and SK in general. I make myself think remember that for every one "hard" thing I encounter, there are 50 great things, which make it worth dealing with.

But anyway, back to using the subway... One way is just to buy a ticket every time you get on... I DON'T RECOMMEND DOING THIS. Not only will it make every time you ride a complete hassle, it will also annoy everyone around you. My recommendation is to do one of the two following things. (NOT BOTH)

Option 1:

What it is --> The T-Money Card
Where to buy --> Inside the subway station
How much it costs --> 2,000 Won ($2)

Benefits:

1. Only needs to be purchased once
2. Easy to reload w/money at pretty much any convenience store in SK
3. Makes it so you don't have to worry about constantly having change in your pocket for public transportation
4. It can be used as a debit card at any place accepting T-Money as a form of payment around the country
5. Doesn't allow you to make over drafts like other types of debit cards

Option 2:
What it is --> T-Money Keychain Device
Where to buy --> Only can be purchased at convenience stores
How much it costs --> 7,000 Won

Benefits:

1. Exactly the same as the t-money card except it comes in the form of a little device you can attach to a keychain.

What I use --> The Keychain Device. Just because i find it easier to have my pass attached to my keys so i don't need to pull out my wallet every time I use public transportation.

Overall Conclusion--> Its just a matter of preference... Both work great.

 

Using Your T-Money Card/Keychain Advice:
Now that we've talked about how to get some form of a subway card, lets discuss how to use it. VERY EASY... All you do is swipe your card/device at the designated area when you enter and again when you leave. The second piece of this is very important because if you don't remember to swipe again as you leave, you'll automatically be charged the full fair for what it would cost to ride to the end of the line. So... Swipe Twice: once when you ENTER and once when you LEAVE... Doing this will save you lots money and keep you from feeling like a complete idiot when big amounts mysteriously disappear from your subway card. Trust me... I learned the hard way haha..

Until next time,
Much love & peace, to all!!!

- Keith

Hey everyone,

So I am up pretty early right now and feeling sort of groggy. My first week of classes has been pretty crazy between learning names, teaching, and even just finding my way home from the bus stop. ADVICE-> Do not try to figure out the bus schedule on your own or hop onto any random bus you see... In South Korea buses are running pretty much every moment of the day, yet only a handful of them are actually headed towards where you want to be. Be sure to find out what "handful" of buses this is, because it really help you out with not getting completely lost in the first few days like i did. BTW bus drivers are complete maniacs here and don't understand the concept of red lights or signaling. But don't worry they never get in any accidents from what I've experienced so far. Just make a list of the bus numbers you need for "to and from" (they're sometimes a little different) and you'll be fine.