Korean Folk Village

Last weekend I went to the Korean Folk Village. Here you can see the Korean traditional way of life of the Joseon Dynasty and experience the traditional housing and food, along with many songs and dance and other forms of entertainment. Later that evening, we were not so traditional when we roasted marshmellows over a campfire!

Quilt

Newfoundland is a unique province of Canada that is rich in its tradition, culture and pride. Mama had made a quilt that protrays a few of the many symbols and reminders of Newfoundland. Beginning at the upper left hand corner: 1) The Pitcher Plant, Newfoundland's provincial flower 2) The Newfoundland pony, bred for its strength, there are only a few of these animals left. 3) The isle of Newfoundland 4) Bakeapples, found in Newfoundland's marshes.
5) The Newfoundland dog, recognized for its loyality and resucing abilities 6) The Newfoundland quilt, made to bundle up in those cold winters.

The Thought Process

Flashback from the weekend: Wine, Beer, Tequila Shots........

Oh what fun!

Pictures are not good at this point!

The Sliding of the Kinders

On Friday, the kinders went for a field trip to go sliding. Right now, Korea has zero snow, so we went to an amusement park, Seoul Land, where there is man made snow. It seems like all of the other schoools in Korea had the same idea becuase there were so many kids there! I was in charge of two classes and we first went on a ride. Not too massively scarey for the kids, but fun all the same. The little boy who was sitting next to me is really small and he kept sliding back and forth on the seat. Next came the sliding! My first few runs down the hill were with kids that were scared to go, so I went with them. Once they got more comfortable we started having races to the bottom. I almost wiped out a few kids..... opps!

Ice Fishing Pics

The accident and my sore shoulder put a damper on things. But that did not spoil the weekend. Afterall, I am not totally crippled! A few friends and I went on a tour group to Hwacheon in Gangwon-do province this weekend for the ice fishing festival.

We first started out ice fishing, where it was fun looking for a hole with like 10 000 other people on the ice. I wasn't worried about stealing some one's hole (It reminded me of the Tales of Pigeon Inlet). So after an hour of just watching the fish swim by, we decided to get right into the action of things. Suited up in a tshirt and shorts, we dove right into knee deep water to catch the trout with bare hands. These are slippery suckers and they swam right through my hands. Seriously, I did not care about not catching a fish. I was just so numb from the cold I couldn't feel anything!

Back at the cabins, we had a delicious dinner of roasted pig. Not only did I eat pig but I felt like a pig for the amount that I ate. There were four of us at the table and we had three servings, plus two servings of leftovers from the table next to us. Talk about delicious, I'd say! And after that, I still managed to eat grilled fish from the day's catch! The beer and soju went down good that night and helped keep me warm next to the bonfire raosting marshmellows. Although I think some people had a little too much to drink, because a guy peed in our fridge and he doesn't remember it!

On Sunday morning, we awoke to a crisp cold that we could see our breath in. Perfect for a morning hike! Everyone was playing on the pond before hand and we gathered in the center for a group picture. While posing, we heard this big "boom" and everyone darted off the ice! But that was not the only cracking noise heard that day coming from the ice. While ice fishing later on, there were several more creaking sounds coming from the ice. Hiking was so much fun though and it was a great challenge to get to the top as the trail was snow covered and slippery. Once at the top, we adored the view and got ready to return to the base. Much too slippery to come down by foot, so what did we do but slide down on our butts! Hilarious! It was an awesome amount of fun. And my pants were made for sliding too because they are of a slippery material, so I was going fast, taking the turns with ease. It was awesome!

Good times and good friends make for a great weekend!

Crash

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 started out as a pretty good day. I got a package from a friend back home, got an awesome text message from another friend and I found some books for my kinders as graduation gifts. Add a sociable beer on top of that and what could be more better?

And then the day tumbled downward... and fast! 3:00 am was my very first ride in an ambulance. My friend and I were coming home from the pub and while in the taxi another car ran through the lights and hit us. The taxi driver swerved to avoid a collision, but it was too late. The car hit on the back passenger side right where I was sitting. There was the inital hit and then a bounceback and the door dented inwards to hit me. After the screams and the shock, I remember shouting from the Korean drivers and lights and sierns from the police and ambulance. I don't know the condition of the cars as I didn't look and at that point I wasn't much concerned. At the hospital we both got cts and xrays and nothing was found to be broken. We got some medication, and also some grandma cream (smells like old ladies do!) to rub on the sore spots. A few scratches on my face and leg, but my main thing is my shoulder, as it is sore, swollen and tender and I cannot lift it or barely use it. But I am a trooper and I trooped on to school the next day feeling tired, dragged out and sore. The rule for my kids is that they are not allowed to touch teacher as they are all the time jumping and climbing on me. And I as I cannot write on the whiteboard, the kids are now doing it and they enjoy being the teacher. I had acupuncture on my shoulder today, and in addition to my other medication, I now have Oriental medication as well. The acupuncture was relaxing and did not hurt at all as I would have thought. More acupuncture is due next week. And I will be doing some excersies as suggested from my personal physiotherapist. But for now I am going to rest with my best friend, Mr. Icepack!!

My Oriental medicine that is taken as a tea.

And how many pills are in here!? Not to mention this grainy stuff in the siver packet that has to be mixed with water!

Corny Spectacle

Oh yeah, New Years... I forgot to post! Fun times were spent in a few bars in Seoul. I don't know what these people are doing, but a bottle of tequilla and sparklers do not mix! The new year rang in with kisses and hugs, dancing and alcohol. Can there be any better?

Winter intensives began this week at school. Not too bad, as I only have one extra class. But my afternoon schedule got switched about and so now I have a couple of new classes and many names to learn. But I enjoy all of my classes and the day just flies by!

This weekend I got new glasses. Yes ladies and gentlemen I now look even more intelligent! Still not as cheap as my glasses that I got in China, but a steal nonetheless. The nice man there helped me choose my glasses and and was truthful in what ones suited me. We had a grand ol' laugh at some of the spectacles that I tried on and in turn, making a spectacle out of myself! But in the end I came out happy! And I can see!

So Korea does not do cheese. Neither does it do gravy. But we did manage to scope out some poutine. It's not the greatest poutine ever (The muchhouse at rez grabs that title!) but it hit the spot. Tomorrow, it is back to the kimbap, which I am always excited about. I have decided that the kimbap should be packed tight with corn. Did I mention I like corn? Actually, I love corn!! Does that make me corny??

Okay let's make this week zoom by. I have an adventure to fulfill.....