It's been awhile!...

So I just realized I haven't posted in like 3 weeks. That's because not much has happened since our eventful field trip with Danny's school! The weekend after that Danny and I both got really sick. I thought I had the flu, but it was just a really bad cold. We went to a doctor that's in the same building as Danny's school, and the doctor actually spoke English. I was really impressed with the office, because it was so modern compared to doctor's offices back home. The doctor used some weird probe to view the inside of my nose on a big screen and they gave me medicine for my cough using this respirator machine. I don't have health insurance yet, but even without insurance the visit only cost me about $10. I had to pick up a prescription, which cost me only another $5. I will try to get health insurance, but I have to wait until my 3rd month here since I'm a foreigner. Most of the country has health insurance coverage through the government, so that's why it's so cheap. And most people seem to be pretty satisfied with it too. Let's see what else has happened in the past 3 weeks....Last Friday my school had a dinner to welcome me and another new teacher and to celebrate the departure of one of our other teachers. We all went out for galbi (Korean barbecue) after work. When Koreans go out together, they tend to drink alot, especially when there's something to celebrate. So naturally I had to be polite and accept toast after toast of soju liquor. Well let's just say I had a little too much to drink that night. I called up Danny to meet me and some of my coworkers at a bar in Hongdae after my company dinner. I didn't feel well from all the drinking and galbi, so my night was cut short. The next day Danny and I went to see another FC Seoul soccer game at World Cup Stadium. It was their last home game, and they tied. It was a good game to watch though. Every day before that soccer game had been unusually warm, but we were freezing for the first time at the game. The next two days after were so miserably cold. It went from being in the 60's/70's to 30's in one day. After only 3 cold days, it went back to 60's/70's. Since today was supposed to be 70 degrees and the last weekend with autumn leaves still on the trees, Danny and I were going to hike Mt. Bukhansan (the highest peak in Seoul) with his friend from work. Unfortunately Danny felt sick again today, so we rested instead. But it rained anyway so I guess we lucked out. I guess we will have to wait for spring time when the cherry blossoms bloom....that's another popular time to hike. Hiking is ridiculously popular here. On any given day you will see senior citizens decked out in hardcore hiking gear on the subway to their favorite mountain. Apparently some of the hiking trails are pretty treacherous, so I'm amazed at the shape some of these older people must be in to hike. Danny and I were going to try a hike of about 10km to a peak of 800+m. It's supposed to be the most popular because there are lots of historical landmarks and buddhist temples along the trail. Tomorrow is raining again, so while Danny is getting better I guess we will be relaxing again. Oh I completely forgot to mention teaching....this past week I had to administer "Level-Up" tests to my students. The poor kids had to take 2+ hour tests to determine which level they will be placed in next term. I guess I felt bad because I couldn't even sit through 3 hours Regents exams or SATS in high school. Anyway we finished week 10 of the term and there are only 3 weeks left for the Fall Term! There are 4 terms at CDI, and each term is 13 weeks. Alright I'm going to bed now...I will leave you with a funny YouTube video that gives you an idea of what a Korean apartment is like for an English teacher...Enjoy!

CDI Hwajeong Field Trip

Yesterday I went on a field trip with Danny for the employees of his school, CDI April. His boss, Mr. Jung, owns the CDI Hwajeong branch too, so the employees from that school were on the trip too. It was a good opportunity to finally meet some of the other teachers that live in our neighborhood. We took a coach bus from Hwajeong to the countryside in the north. First we stopped at this small village, where we made Korean traditional pottery. It wasn't totally traditional though because we got to use a pottery wheel. I made a small vase, which I painted and designed after. The pottery we made has to be fired in a special oven ("kiln") two times to harden the clay and protect it. So we will get the pottery back sometime next week after it has been fired. Next to the pottery house was another small building with hundreds of pottery items on display and for sale. The owners gave us each a small pot with a little plant in it. After we made pottery a woman demonstrated the preparation of traditional green tea. The tea leaves were so fresh and potent that the leaves were only steeped for a few seconds. In Korea, people drink at least 3 espresso-cup sized shots of tea. The first cup represents the past, the second is the present, and the third is for the future.

For lunch, we drove to another traditional Korean place in the countryside. The food was cooked mainly outdoors and they had both indoor and outdoor seating. It started to drizzle lightly, so we sat indoors. It was my first time sitting on the floor to eat in Korea (most restaurants here have floor seating). The heating in Korea comes from under the floor, so it was nice and warm sitting there. The meal was definitely one of my favorite in Korea so far! Everything was so fresh and flavorful. We had so many side dishes, called "ban chan." The side dishes are an important part of the meal in Korea, and they usually consist of vegetables, soups, and rice or noodles prepared in different ways. We had marinated pork that was roasted over a wood-burning stove as well. And we had a whole grilled fish too!

After lunch we went to a small horse stable. The owner introduced us to his horses, which were mainly older horses. He explained that they were from Russia, Mongolia, China, and Korea. Most of the horses were much smaller than horses I've seen in America. He said these small horses are ideal for battle. We each got to ride a horse around a small ring for a few minutes. I've been on a horse only once before in Montauk, but it only walked. The horses that we rode yesterday started out walking and started to move very quickly. I didn't want to ride the horses at first, because I was a bit scared. I'm glad I did though because it was really fun! When everyone finished riding, the owner let us try one or two shots at shooting with a bow and arrow. I practiced archery a few times in middle school gym class, but I was never very good. So yesterday I wasn't successful either. Danny's arrow went flying and just passed by my head though! Some of the people that worked at the stables presented a special show for us afterwards. Two women and one man dressed in traditional Korean clothing from 1,500 years ago and did archery and spear tricks while riding horses. The two women could shoot a target with a bow and arrow while riding a horse! Apparently they are the only two women in the country that can do this.

For dinner, Danny's school owner took us to a galbi restaurant in the neighborhood that we live in. It was delicious! Danny and I sat at the same table as his owner, Mr. Jung. The meal wouldn't be complete without plenty of beer and soju (Korean liquor). I told Mr. Jung that I was Italian, and it turns out that he is a big fan of grappa. He said that he tried it when he traveled to Rome and it reminds him of an oriental liquor. It was still early in the evening when we finished dinner, so most of the group decided to go out to a "norebang." I was excited, because I've been dying to try it! "Norebang" literally translates as "song room," and it is a place that has private karaoke rooms. As I had expected, it was tons of fun. The Koreans in the room sang to K-Pop songs, and the foreign teachers all sang to American songs. It was still really early after the norebang, so a bunch of us went into the Hongdae area in Seoul to go to a bar and dance! Of course I'm exhausted today, but I'm off to go run or play soccer with Danny!

Fun weekend in and around Seoul....

So this past Thursday night I went out to an Indian restaurant near Sinchon with some of my coworkers. I rode on the back of a motor scooter to get there! It was so much fun, and it was a really awesome way to see the city at night. The Indian food was delicious! The owner was so nice...he just opened his restaurant, so he gave us free curries and chai tea. Afterwards, I went out for gelato with some of the my coworkers and their friends.

On Fridays, I only teach one class in the afternoon. Another teacher has that same class on Wednesdays for their first weekly session. This was only my second time meeting with this class, and they were by far my most well-behaved and enjoyable class! After work, Danny and I met up with 2 of my coworkers and 1 of his coworkers from CDI April. We went into Hongdae, which is Seoul's college neighborhood. So there's lots going on there every night. I saw the most foreigners that I've ever seen in South Korea so far on the streets of Hongdae. Most of them were American, Canadian, and British English teachers like myself. We had such a large group, because we met up with my coworkers other friends, Danny's roommate from college and his friends, and even these guys from Switzerland, Sweden, and England. At least 20 of us went to this place called Ho Bar (it means "nice" bar in Chinese). It was just like a western-style bar, except the drinks were only like $2 and I don't think you have to tip the bartenders (you are not supposed to tip anywhere in this country...it's considered offensive). Afterwards we went out to 2 clubs for dancing. One club that we went had lots of American music and strobe lights, so we stayed there awhile.

On Saturday, Danny, myself, and his coworker Scott went to a Korean baseball game. Baseball is really popular here like in America. We took a subway to Jamsil Stadium, which was built for the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. The stadium was really small and intimate feeling though. They definitely sold too many tickets, because hundreds of people were sitting on steps and anywhere else they could find. The most expensive tickets for Korean baseball games are about $30! It's such a crazy experience, because both teams' fans sit on separate sides of the stadium and EVERYONE has those annoying thunder sticks. Well the fans for each team all seem to know these different chants, songs, and thunder stick routines. It's almost like the fans are choreographed. During breaks between innings, these cheerleaders dance on a stage to KPop (it's crazy Korean pop music....look below for links to hear some songs). It was fun, but we left after the 6th inning because we were hungry and the game isn't as exciting when your not a fan of the teams playing. I was craving Indian food from my experience Thursday night, so I brough Danny and Scott to Sinchon to try the same restaurant after the game.

On Sunday, Danny and I took the subway to Ilsan (it's only about 10 minutes from us). We live in Goyang City, and Ilsan is just a smaller city within Goyang. I actually just read yesterday that in 2006, Newsweek named Goyang City as the TOP Most Dynamic City in the world (in a list of 10 cities picked, it ranked #1 and beat out London and Las Vegas!) Well the main reasoning for that is the city of Ilsan, which is only about 15 years old. It was designed to be like a perfect city for young, upper-middle class families. In Ilsan, we went to Lake Park. It is a huge park that is really beautiful and has so many activities. On Sunday, it was packed with families. Danny and I spent 2 and a half hours walking the 3 mile perimeter of the lake. I stopped so often to take pictures though. Also, every few meters there are different gardens and displays. They even had a great saxophone band playing in the park, so we stopped to listen for a bit. After the park, we went in search of food for dinner. The main shopping and entertainment area in Ilsan is called "La Festa," and the dining choices were overwhelming. It's all mainly the same types of Korean cuisine everywhere, but there are just soo many restaurants. We finally decided on galbi, which I had for the first time last week. It's the famous Korean barbecued pork. You cook the pork yourself over a grill built into the table, and it comes with dozens of little side dishes. I'm not a huge pork fan, but it is delicious. And for two people, a galbi dinner usually costs between $5-$10 a person!

So I posted TONS of new pictures from this weekend: http://picasaweb.google.com/lauralipari87

And here are the KPop videos I mentioned:

MC Mong - Indian Boy

Brown Eyed Girls - Abracadabra

2NE1 - Fire

G Dragon - Heartbreaker (Does this one sound familiar? haha)