Ruby Tuesday

Note: you're going to have to be patient for the next pictures, for both the last post and this one. Give me until the weekend!

My last class of the day is with a group of five 11-year-old girls. They are an absolute delight to teach and I love ending my day with them. Monday, Wednesday, Friday I have them for 40 minutes, and Tuesday and Thursday I have them for 80 minutes. Next week is the start of a new term and therefore new textbooks. We had their test last Friday and we're done with the books, so this week is song week for the girls! A couple weeks ago I started singing "Ruby Tuesday" in class, for my student Ruby. I've found songs (or artists) for all the girls' names, so each day this week we'll do an activity based on the song. Yey! Monday's song was "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (for Lucy). The girls loved it and were singing along the second time through. Today will be "Ruby Tuesday"...especially appropriate for today! I have an Anne, a Rachel, and a Nina in my class too! I found a song called "Ann Disaster"; as for Rachel and Nina, I think I may have to stick with a Rachael Yamagata song and a Nina Simone song, as I am struggling to find songs with their names. Anyways, songs are fun!

Liang, my little kindie terror who was away last Thursday and Friday was back yesterday. You know what? He was pretty darn good!! Each week I'm noticing more and more of a difference in my class. The change from my first week to yesterday is significant. I can just POINT at the point chart I created last week, threatening to take a point away, to get order in the class. It's a beautiful thing. I will say I'm quite proud of myself! Each day at a time though, eh?

Spent my weekend working on teacher's college applications, and will continue to do so for the next couple weeks until they are submitted and sent off! It was beautiful out - on Saturday I walked to and from Beomgye station area along the river to check out the coffee shop scene there (it's about 40 minutes each way). Got to the gym, did some yoga at home, relaxed. Sunday was similar (but no gym), and instead was at Minto, this cafe by Anyang station, on the 16th floor of a building. I'd only ever been there in rainy/stormy weather. Was nice to be there on a clear day! (You can see forever...Barbra, anyone?) Karen joined me as she had some work to do to. Beats working in my apartment!

Friday night out was great. Again, met lots of fun new people to chat with and hopefully meet up with again!

Romo (Karen's boyfriend) and me

Rob's going away party

One of the Happidas bartenders

Tony Teacher and Hana

Must jet...time for school! xo

This and That

More random comments:
-Some of my little boy students wear jeggings - those (awful) leggings that look like jeans - it's kind of awesome.
-Couples dress the same...I mean beyond matchy matchy...I mean SAME SAME. They wear identical outfits.
-I don't know what I'm eating for lunch most days at school. I'm still standing.

TGIF! Another week has quickly passed. Thursday and Friday were especially smooth sailing. I hate to say it but it was because Liang, one of my little bugger students, was away. It was significantly calmer and less chaotic without his presence. And Julian, who right from the start I nailed as the biggest trouble, has been improving significantly. He is actually setting a good example some days. I've made him my helper with some things too, like passing out books, so he likes that. I've also implemented a points system - when they lose their points they sit in the chair in the corner. Julian had to do it once or twice, and since then, he has been trying to impress me and needs way less reminders than he used to. Nothing is perfect, obviously, but I feel progress. And he loves to give me hugs. I know he's trying hard. I'm so proud!

Brandon

Ok. So in Jupiter class (another kindergarten class I teach arts and crafts to) on Wednesday, we were practicing the meaning of road signs/safety. One of the signs demonstrated cleaning up after your dog. The students didn't quite get the picture, so I acted out a dog pooping. With a dead-pan straight face, Olivia says, "shit?" It was the cutest thing ever and I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Where did she hear that word?

Halloween decorations are up in the school and the classroom, and my little Alvin is terrified of the spider hanging in our class. He cried the first time he saw it (it's a smily green cartoonish looking spider), and still comes to my side sometimes for protection from it.

In case I haven't mentioned it before, I love my last class of the day. It's one of my elementary classes. I teach a group of 10-year-old girls and it's so fun. I've taught them lots of games to review their material. It's great!

Tuesday we had a birthday party. Once a month there is a birthday party for all the kindergarten students that celebrate their birthday that month. So all the classes go to the auditorium, and the birthday kids sit at a table on the stage, and are presented with gifts. Then we sing and dance for them. Then we have pizza for lunch. Woohoo!

Happy Birthday, Christine (Mercury) and Ella (Jupiter)!

Happy Birthday, Chloe (Venus)! Charlie (Mercury) giving a gift. Brother and sister!

Wednesday evening we had taco night at Tony's. That just means we bought all the fixings and cooked and ate together!

I really appreciate the coffee culture here. Last Sunday I was very productive at Starbucks, working on my teacher's college applications. I intend do be doing the same thing all weekend this weekend. Last Saturday Jenn and I had a fun time in Itaewon, just walking around, seeing foreign faces, and hearing English. We ended up sitting at coffee for a while, and then went for Taco Bell (it's the only one in Korea), and haning about outside it for a while - chatting with random people there. Oh! And we went to the foreign food market where I paid a stupid amount for a box of Maple and Brown Sugar Quaker Oatmeal. I'm making it last. It's my treat.

Sorry for the disorganization in this post! It's Friday...I become less coherent towards the end of the week! Heading out this evening with a few people. Ahh. Yey weekend. It's going to be another sunny and warm one!

5am?! On a school night??

Sunny and Charlie (I want them to get married to each other someday)

My Mercury kids in our classroom

Alvin (I'll have to catch him when he's wearing a cardigan and jeans, or his Adidas leisure suit)

Scarlet and Alvin (the gold digger)

Leah? Really? What was supposed to be a drink or two out with the coworkers on Wednesday evening turned into quite the long night out! It was a ton of fun, and come on, how often do I do that? Tony, Jennifer, Karen, Romo, and I went to Happidas for trivia night. Happidas is one of the "foreign" bars in Anyang, by Beomgye station, where the expats hang out. There was a good crowd out for trivia. We came in last place, but that's beside the point. We had a great time playing darts and chatting and relaxing. Met some other people too that I really enjoyed chatting with. Then a couple of us went back to Karen and Romo's around 3:30am, to continue our socializing. It was just a really good night.

On Thursday I was surprisingly upbeat. The three hours I slept were a solid three. We had a field trip that morning with the kindergarten kids - to a magic show! Once again, I may have been just as excited as the kids. It was a fun change in the usual routine. Thursday after work I took the metro to Seoul to meet up with Hunter for dinner at the Loving Hut. It is a FABULOUS vegan restaurant. Oh my goodness, we feasted. We ordered four huge dishes (easily a meal each), and it cost us $16 between the two of us. So really, you could go there for a lot less. Also a nice change in routine, to get out of my city for the evening. And to catch up with a good friend!

Mercury - line up!

Elizabeth (Jupiter) with the magician

Tony teacher, Leah teacher, the magicians, and Jupiter (one of my arts and crafts kindy classes)

Friday was more difficult to wake up, even after eight hours of sleep. After work, both Tony and I went to the gym, then we went out for a quick bite, before I came home to crash. It's a beautiful sunny Saturday, and Jennifer and I are heading into Seoul - to Itaewon. Looking forward to another day trip!

Oh! In one of my elementary classes, I have a student named Ruby. Naturally, on Tuesday I was singing "Ruby Tuesday". In Wednesday's class I had the song in everyone's head and my students were all singing it! It was a delight.

As you can see, I've post some pictures of my students!

Brandon and Leah teacher

Simple things

More observations/comments, because they're fun:

-In my classroom, each student has a labelled cup that is kept on a tray, with a jug of water; when the students want water they just ask. It's so cute because all my students call it "ice coffee", instead of water. "Ice coffee, please, Leah teacher!"
-Did I mention my kids have fantastic vocabularies for four-year olds?
-I will celebrate the day that no one spills their milk during morning snack. Yesterday came close - only one or two spills.
-I still enjoy song and chant class as much as the kids.
-Street lights are just a guideline here.
-Motorcycles act as part car and part bike; they ignore lights and drive on the sidewalks when it suits them.
-Restaurant delivery staff actually drive mopeds or bicycles for their deliveries.
-McDonald's delivers.

The weekend was lovely - sunshine and mid-twenties temperatures. Both Saturday and Sunday I got out walking along the river, and sat on the rocks to read as well. These simple things make me smile. I'm currently reading a pop psychology booked called "Stumbling on Happiness". There are a lot of theories that I know from my studies, but it's written in a relatable context. Some highlights/conclusions (so far) that I plan to keep as regular mantras:
**don't compare with the past...compare with the possible
**we regret inaction more than we regret action

Saturday evening my coworkers and some other friends went to the Seoul International Fireworks Festival. And what a show it was. Korea, China, and Canada all had displays. The shapes and colours and formations were spectacular - among the best I've seen, if not the best. Once we were at the park, we had a good view, but before that, man oh MAN could we feel the population of Seoul. Everyone and their mother was out; the metro stations and streets were jam-packed with people so much so that the only reason we were moving was because the crowds willed us to. NO PERSONAL SPACE. It was nuts! Surprisingly tame, though. And thank goodness. It could have gotten ugly. Friday and Sunday I hung out with Christian and his friends/coworkers. Friday night one of them had a party, and Sunday Christian (an American) hosted Thanksgiving! The company? Four American boys, a Polish Canadian, and me! It was lots of fun - and I made everyone say what they were thankful for. Christian did all the cooking and is a most wonderful host. It was delicious. We even had pumpkin pie (thanks, Costco)!

I'm still having positive experiences with the locals. Friday at E-Mart, a gal working there asked if I needed any help. She proceeded to ask where I was from. As it turns out, she has a friend living in Toronto, and her sister is living in New York. Also, her English was amazing. On Saturday when I was (successfully!) ordering my vegetarian kimbap (Korean sushi), some teenage boys spoke English to me, to help me out with what the owner/cook/waitress was saying to me. It was really nice.

I'm officially a regular at the gym. I see the same people every day, too! I'll post fireworks pictures soon! For now I'm off to bed! Happy Thanksgiving! xo

I survived...

...my first week of teaching! Success! But first, some more observations abour Korea/Anyang:

-People use umbrellas, come rain or come shine. I've been told they use them when it's snowing as well.

-Despite the fact that they use umbrellas, they also wear these ridiculous-looking wide-brimmed visors, to shield from the natural forces as well. I may have to invest of one of these.

-Most people wear t-shirts that have some sort of positive and/or motivational message, in English. Some of them are slightly less-than-perfect translations, and therefore offer endless amusement; i.e. "Reach for the star". I haven't actually seen that, but my mind is drawing a blank for a concrete example.

By mid-Friday last week, I was feeling exhausted. One of my elementary student's grandmother's brought some food for the class though, so that was a little perk. Traditional Korean rice ball stuffed things - they are sweet-tasting and can be filled with various items: beans, bean paste, other grains, brown sugar (we made brown sugar ones for a Chuseok activity during my observation classes). She also brought me some of this rice drink. It's also sweet-tasting. I should add to the list: rice rice rice, sugar sugar sugar. I can't say I wasn't warned. Anyways, another perk at the end of the work day was going for Korean BBQ with my coworkers Jennifer and Tony. The veggies and meat and flavours are so delicious! Wrap it in a leaf of lettuce, and enjoy. I ended up going to bed at a reasonable hour Friday evening, and the sleep was welcome.

Saturday was rainy, so our hike up Suri mountain was cancelled. (I still got out for a walk in the morning before the rain came.) Because we were all free though (Jennifer, Karen, Romo, and me), we ended up being out and about anyways. Decked with our umbrellas, we headed to the Anyang Art Park. It's a lovely forest filled with permanent art installations. We also happened upon the 9th Annual Anyang Festival, and watched some traditional dancing, singing, and drumming, all enhanced by the colourful traditional costumes. I liked the drumming best, and had the urge to perform a rain-dance. I held back (a little). Later in the afternoon we grabbed some food and went to the movies! Eat, Pray, Love was one of the only English flicks playing, so that's what we saw. Though I would have liked to have read the book first, I still enjoyed it. We all did. All having the traveller/nomadic lifestyle, we could all relate to the story in our own way. After the film, we stopped in the stationary store in the same building, for an obligatory photo-shoot, with magnifying glasses. Evening sillies? I think so. We definitely had some not-so-sublte passersby look at us a few times. We were laughing so hard. We headed back to Karen and Romo's place to finish the day. Somehow I didn't get home til 3am!

Sunday I did laundry and groceries. When the sun came out, I decided to go out and do a little shopping. I got home just before it started to pour. Lucky me! I made a CD for my Mercury class, just so the kiddies have some fun tunes to listen to when we're working on things. The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Barenaked Ladies, The Little Mermaid, Glee...lots of fun songs. You know you want to be in my class.

Today I had a really great day! The class was relatively on task and cooperative! Julian really surprised me. I learned his name VERY quickly during my observation classes, as he is the king troublemaker. Last week he was only in class for Thursday and Friday. Sure enough, he was climbing the bookshelves and being a little monkey. I don't blame him, as he's very smart. Today he was an angel! He was telling the students to be quiet, was always the first done his work, and would help out the others. He gave me hugs and held my hand and came over to be my partner during yoga. New week? New day? New Julian? One day at a time...don't want to jinx it! It was a pleasant surprise though, and for the other teachers as well! Did I mention I love my kids? We started a new story book today: Monster Monster. The kids were super into it, especially little Alvin. All day he was pretending to be a little monster and would attack me. At one point, I had a group of about 5 little boys attacking me. Haha I WANT TO KEEP THEM!

I would just like to point out that for arts and lessons, I am quite relieved to be teaching the youngest age groups (I also teach Venus and Jupiter: they are 6 years old, with one and two years experience at school, respectively). Last week's lesson was origami - I can only handle the easiest paper-folding!

Feeling refreshed: showered and fed after a great day at work and a workout at the gym. Happy Monday to all!