Halfway - Personal

This post is a personal one – no exciting trips or photos. It is more a reflection on the past six months, or rather, my mental state at the six-month mark.

I have been growing in frustration during work, so after work tonight I took a very long walk. The summer weather this past weekend has quickly changed into fall weather- windy, rainy and cold. As I walked, I breathed in the crisp air trying to wrap my head around my thoughts and emotions. It dawned on me that my teaching experience in Korea has become a mental/emotional mountain that I’m climbing. And while the peak of the mountain may not be the conclusion of my time here, at this point, I realized my thoughts can easily be compared to my hiking experiences.  Let me back up:

My school, as I have previously mentioned, is very small. It has its benefits and downfalls; overall I am satisfied in my situation. One of the biggest downfalls is the lack of an established curriculum. I am given the flexibility to do what I wish with my writing classes. And as goes the famous quote, “With great power, comes great responsibility,” I have found myself on the educational mountain trying to figure out the best teaching style and curriculum for my classes. Unfortunately, with my lack of actual teaching experience, my curriculum has been somewhat trial-and-error. I have organized as best I could, but no matter what, there will inevitably be some tweaks.

My bosses and coworkers are incredibly helpful and respectful to me. Unfortunately, this can backfire in that they don’t want to put too much pressure on me. In other words, if I’m not doing something they would like, they don’t typically tell me. I can feel the vibe in the office that something is wrong, but no one fills me in. It has created an awkward environment at times (for me at least).

So, with my curriculum and with my Korean life, I am feeling as if I’m at that point in a hike where I’m a bit lost amidst the trees. I’ve been climbing for hours, up and down, and at this point, I’m pretty thick in the forest, and I can’t see any of the peaks. With some difficulty, and a plethora of inspirational quotes, I am staying positive, remembering the great satisfaction upon reaching the peak of the mountain and drinking in the magnificent views.

Teaching has been my mental mountain this year- super pumped at the beginning, cramps and fatigue at points, and while I’m still feeling exciting about completing the hike, I need a change of scenery or rather, some new motivations along the way. It’s as if I’m going through work each day wondering if I’m going down the right path, will this teaching method/lesson lead my students to success.

One of my favorite quotes is: "Only three percent of adults have written goals, and everyone else works for them."  In my efforts to get my thoughts together, I have written down my goals and I carry them in my wallet at all times. I might not reach the peak of this mountain any time soon, but I will continue to go step-by-step, some may be smaller than others, but all moving forward.

Penn Stater, McCurry

WE ARE ... PENN STATE! In honor of the upcoming Blue & White Alumni Weekend in Happy Valley, we decided to support a fellow Penn Stater. We went to the Steve McCurry exhibit, "Unguarded Moment," at the Sejong Center in Seoul. For 8,000w it was definitely worth the visit. It was a larger exhibit than I initially thought and I was pleasantly surprised by his photographs. His most famous photo was there, but it didn't overshadow the exhibit. There were two pieces in particular that I enjoyed.

 India, 1996 by Steve McCurry

We found ourselves creating the dialogue for this picture... their looks say it all. I'll give credit where credit is due; Austin sealed the deal with, "An umbrella. Really, honey, you grabbed an umbrella." Not to make a joke at something as devastating as a flood, however, the irony is there- we just said it out loud.

The other photo/piece I really was drawn to was an interaction between a grandfather and his grandson. The photo was also India, 1996. The grandfather is giving his grandson a lesson, or possibly the boy is getting in trouble... I can't seem to find the image online (other than on McCurry's site)... but, it's a great shot.

Notes on my apartment

I'm not sure if I made it clear about my living space, so I'd like to write a bit...

While most foreign teachers in my neighborhood live in a nice officetel  in the 'downtown' area, I am residing in an elderly apartment complex. While not every resident is above 75 years old, the majority I have seen are. Now I am not complaining about this, in fact I quite enjoy having my neighbors look at me, smile, attempt to have a conversation, then laugh, pat me on the arm and walk away.

When the warm weather arrived in Incheon, my neighbors came alive. It brightened my day seeing the groups of women sitting in the sun, chatting away, complimenting each other on their new beige spring jackets. The joy on their faces could be seen from across the street. The cold weather was excessively bitter this year, so with the warmth of the sun and the new flowers, it was obvious they had been waiting for these days to come for quite some time.

So, while I won't be having BBQ's (or doing keg stands) with my neighbors this summer season, I will be awkwardly watching them enjoying the weather. Looking back, it was probably creepy the way I walked by them, stopped and smiled, wiped away a single tear, and continued on my way with a grin, ear-to-ear. But one of my resolutions this year is from a chain-letter Handbook: "Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6." Teaching the little ones and living with the older ones. I think I'm covered.

Now to check if they have weekly Bingo...

Cheong-gye-san, Seoul

April 17, 2010- Hiked Mt. Cheonggye (Cheonggyesan) with Erin, Patrick, Devin, and Austin

my new 'friend' who kept saying, "Crazy!"... him or me??

Buddha figure, lying down, at Cheonggye-sa

Cheonggyesan, April 17, 2010

Gyeyangsan (Mt. Gyeyang)

Sunday, April 11th was spent at Mt. Gyeyang (Gyeyangsan in Korean) with Hannah. It's a small mountain, peak of 395m, in Incheon and it was an easily pick for a short day trip from Yeonsu-gu. The weather was warm but very hazy and as we neared the bottom, it started to sprinkle- although, the rain was very refreshing so we didn't mind one bit!

a group of hikers enjoying the peak with some snacks and makgeolli

it was a warm day to say the least - Mt. Gyeyang 4/11/2010

Spring - Gyeyang gu, Incheon, S Korea, April 2011

 One of the beautiful things about Korea is the randomness...

table tennis - Gyeongin Nat'l Univ. of Edu. Subway Station

Chungryang Mountain, Yeonsu-Gu

The beautiful Easter forced me to get my exhausted behind back outside for another hike. This time, a smaller mountain- Chungryang Mountain in Yeonsu-Gu, Incheon (a 15 minute walk from my apartment). I joined Becky and her mother, who is visiting from Ireland.

Becky and Pam Noonan

At the peak of the mountain, there is a beautiful view of Songdo, the new city.

New Songdo

One of the wonderful things about Korea is the obsession in staying fit. The majority of public parks have exercise equipment, which most often will be in use. We tried a few of the machines!

Clash of the Titans

Happy Easter

This morning I took my high school conversation class to see a movie at the Incheon CGV in Arts Center. Because of how busy they are with academies and studying, the only available time was the earliest showing (9:20am). This isn't particularly early, but I can't imagine a group of American teenagers willing to get up at 7:30am on a weekend to attend a movie as part of a school function. And actually, I was surprised in general at how many people were at the theatre that early in the morning.

They chose the movie "Clash of the Titans" and it was pretty good. I don't want to spoil it, but the main character is Sam Worthington from "Avatar" and there are definitely "Avatar"-esque scenes. The plot involves a son of Zeus embarking on a journey to stop Hades from spreading evil. All-in-all, it was a good action flick with pretty cool special effects.

"Clash of the Titans" (2010)

Bukhansan (Mt. Bukhan)

Melissa, Hannah and I climbed up Bukhansan today (April 3, 2010). The weather couldn't have been more perfect- 50 degrees, sunny, clear = amazing. Halfway up we stopped and enjoyed a snack of tteok with red bean paste inside, crackers and Yujacha (traditional Korean tea made from thinly sliced yuja fruit with the peels and honey or sugar, mixed with hot water). 

... almost there

we made it!

When we reached the peak, it felt like such an accomplishment. It was packed with people of all ages taking advantage of the beginnings of Spring. Check out our video as proof.

it was cold and windy, but so worth it

some gentlemen from the Korean Ministry of Labor
(They also gave us some hard-boiled eggs and apples!)

the tiny specks are rock climbers