One more thing...

Graduation!

The kindergarteners had their graduation and boy were they cute and so excited!  Here are some photos from the day:

There are pictures of each of the graduating kids on the back wall.  They are wearing graduation gowns that look like they are from the 1700's.  One of the other teachers told me they made her think of Harry Potter.  Boy, was she right!  Sorry i don't have a closer view of them.  

So happy!

Phinisheeeeeeeeeee!

Well, It's over.  The last two weeks were kinda a blur.  Saying goodbye over and over again to friends and co-workers.  And packing up and getting rid of all of the crap i had acquired.  I didn't realize all the stuff i had gotten until it was time to go.  Mainly just little things like dishes and clothes.  I had to clean out my entire apt, which isn't really big at all, thank God, but it was enough stuff to fill a number of huge trash bags.  

I am sad to go, I don't think i ever realized how invested i actually was over there.  Life starts to move forward and all of  sudden you have your friends, church, your job and you're comfortable.  It was a great year, and i would do it all over again if i had to.  I would love to live abroad again, but not really in Korea, kinda been there and done that.  I don't really want to teach English again either.  I rather teach art abroad, mostly to kids who would never get the opportunity to.  

Now that it's over i find myself wanting to respond in Korean, mostly, "yes" and "thank you" and directions.  I also want to pay with two hands.  Or giving anything to anyone you give it to them with two hands.  I also find myself wanting to have mini conversations with people, just because i can.  Its nice to be able to have small chit chat.  I also have found that things that were funny in Korea aren't really funny here, because people have no idea about the context.  

"Pinshed" with one adventure and now off to another.  Who knows what will come around this time.  :)

The New Normal

After living in what was a foreign land for a year, some things become normal.  Not all but most.
I now have many new normals.  Sometimes these new normals, still were amusing, but you get used to them.  So here's what i am now more comfortable with than i was before:

children
sitting close to people
linking arms when walking
super skinny pants (not on me, but on everyone else)
men with purses (whether it's their own or they are carrying their girlfriend/ or wife's)
using chopsticks
eating rice everyday
not eating a whole lot of meat
sharing food/eating off other people plates
smaller food portions
walking instead of driving
hot and humid weather
aggressive old ladies

The Next Chapter or Volume

Things I can't wait to enjoy:

the smell of Santa Barbara and the Valley
farmers market, especially the fresh oj
champagne and good wine and good beer
Mexican food
reading signs and talking to people in English
chicken fried steak
in-n-out
friends and family
my little birdie
the beauty of home
driving (especially with the windows down)
hot tubs, swimming pools and the beach
not being stared at or gawked at
hearing other languages besides Korean
Knowing what's going on and understanding things

Things i will miss about Korea:

not tipping
the ding dong button at restaurants
being able to call the waiter over and it not being rude
pa-john (like a savory fried pancake with veggies)
chop che (clear noodle dish)
Korean bbq
bulgogi (a stir fry beef dish)
my students and them always calling "Teeeachhhaaaaaa!"
making jokes with my students
my boss and my co teacher
not needing a key for me apt (we just had a door code)
automatic doors
not having many bills to pay (and cheap bills)
heated floors
super fast internet
using chopsticks
taxi drivers who think they are race car drivers

Things i will not miss:

being lost half the time/ not understanding whats going on
spitting, like loud nasty spitting
cars driving on the sidewalks
people making loud noises with their mouths while eating
children picking their noses
the dirty city
fitting 20 people into an elevator when there should only be about 10

Konglish and other silly phrases

The Korean alphabet is a little different then ours.  Maybe you're thinking "Duh!"  With that said, things can sound a little weird, or just a little awkward.  Also their sentence construction is quite different too.  SO sometimes you have to almost decode the sentence to find out what they are really saying.  And then, after being in Korea for so long, i kinda forget what the correct things would be to say, or i forget the popular phrase that would be used for what they are talking about.  For example, i made a card for my co teacher because she wanted to leave the school early because she had to go get surgery (long story), so i made her a card.  She told me that "I made an impression on her heart."  And i could understand what she was trying to say, but then she wanted to know what i would really say to her in "normal" English.  I sat there thinking for awhile, "maybe i made a good impression," and i told her what the definition of "impression" meant.  After thinking for awhile i told her that she could say, "this means a lot to me," but even then that doesn't really give the full meaning or feeling.  English is pretty weird and stupid sometimes.  That and i can't remember half of it.  I don't really know what's "normal" anymore.  I feel like I am in a weird limbo speaking world.  I'm sure I'll pick it all up pretty quickly when after a couple weeks of being home.  But for now, bear with me and my weird sentences.


Also, here are some fun phrases I would hear on a daily basis.  There are some phrases that have become common to me because I hear them so often, yet they are not correct! Sometimes they use Korean and English together, shorten the English or just use an English phrase incorrectly. This is not a comprehensive list...but it is what I could think of.  I put what they say on the left side and what they mean on the right...you can guess before you look at the answer.

"Teacher, game?"

 Teacher, will we play a game today?

"Teacher, pinisheeeeee!"

Teacher, I am finished

"Teacher, yogio?"

Teacher, do I sit here?

"Take a rest"

Take a break

"Teacher, waaaaaayyyy?"

Teacher, why do I have to do that?

"I'm so-so"

I'm ok

"How about eat?"

Do you want to eat lunch now?

"Can you eat it?" (or they would just say "Try.")

Do you like it?

"Teacher me!"

Teacher, please give it to me!

"Teacher, cunning!"

Teacher, he is cheating.

"Go pageee...."

Turn to page...

"Let's go together"

 Let's go

They will also commonly say "why" instead of "what" and use the word "sick" instead of "hurt." They will say, "Teacher, finger sick."


I'm sure there are more funny things, but this is all i have for now.  More things will probably come up later in conversations.  Also, my kids are so little that usually i get just really short phrases, or like a sentence with one word, some pointing, some Korean and then more pointing and a name or something.  This usually happened when one kid got mad or did something mean to another student.  They also have their normal name, and then an English name, and half the time they can never remember each other's English name.  Which makes for some funny moments.  


Or they just come up to me, and rattle off some large story in Korean and  just look at them and say some "uh, uh" and then say "really?!" and then they say "ya" and walk away.  THey could have just told me, "Alissa teacher, you look like your pregnant and about to explode, and you have a funny smell."  and I would have just agreed with them.  lol.  

Why?

So the word "why" is kinda a big deal.  You will ALWAYS here it.  Usually they use why instead of what.  So if a kid is crying the teacher will walk up to it and just say, "Why? why? why? why?"

You say why in Korean like "whey"  Then, if someone doesn't like something they get really whiny  and say, "Whhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeyy?"  Oh boy, even adults will say stuff like that.  Usually, like 20-30 something year olds will still sound like an annoying child.  You'll be walking down the street and hear a "Wwhhhhhheeeeeeeeyyyyyy," in the distance and roll your eyes.  You'll do a double roll if you hear the guy saying it and not the girl.

Usually my friends and I will say it mockingly, but really the joke is on us because it's stuck.  Now we too, sound like a little annoying child.  Im going to have to control that.

Dong

Why?

Why was this created? For what purpose?  And what does it say?

For some reason Koreans love poop.  Mostly the kids.  When ever the little kids and i use play dough they always say, "Here teacher, dong (aka poop)"  

Oh, thanks kids, i can't wait to take your dong.

Then i make an ugly face and make a big deal.  And without changing the shape of the play dough they say, "Teacher, cookie!" 

Oh, ok. 

Silly kids.

Little angels

Every Thursday in the afternoon our kids would have ballet practice.  One Thursday i wasn't watching them at all.  Usually, i work at the table and glance over from time to time, but this time, i never looked over until the very end.  And boy did i stumble upon something good:

they were wearing angle wings!  even the boys!! so cute.

Pork Spine Soup

This is pork spine soup.  It's delicious.

It's kinda like a crockpot meal.  A little spicy, and yes, there is a huge chuck under all those vegetables of a pig's spine.  Maybe it sounds weird, but its so good.  The meat just falls off the bone.  Mmm mmm good.

We went shopping and found these funny water bottles.  Clever thinking.

Ultimate Couple Wear!

Florescent jumpsuits!  Best couple wear ever!  Made my day.