BAR SIGNS YOU SHOULDN'T MISS

Lately we've stumbled across some stellar bar signs that deserve a spotlight. How can you not be tempted to peek your head in?

Korean Kiddies bounce to Soulja Boy!

Talent shows in Korea are no joke. With two weeks of prep, my sixth grade smooth talkers performed a jazzy dance to Abba's "Dancing Queen." The boys spun one another with glee while the girls rocked their glitzy crowns and belted the beloved tune.

Another highlight included a hysterically accurate rendition of the "Fresh Prince" theme song. A boy in oversized sports gear "shooting some bball outside of the school" ran into some boys "up to no good, started making trouble in the neighborhood."

Jake's troublemakers retooled several "Annoying Orange" skits. Their comedic genius peeked with a pun on Lady Gaga when five girls dressed as Lady Pasta screamed, "Pa-pa-astaaaaaaaaa, ro-ma, to-ma-ta."

The best performance came from an awe inspiring class who rocked a drum and flag show to the Fifa World Cup Anthem. The comradery felt when waving national flags to the pounding beat of plastic bottle drums united the crowd.

Following the two week camp, Jake and I coached a joint talent show class for the one week camp. We happened to have two classes that didn't know too much English, but man were they a quirky group. When we initially played a youtube video of "Crank That" by Soulja Boy the kids couldn't stop laughing. We were a bit confused until one lil' guy blurted out, "Teacher, SOJU BOY dance????" ke ke ke. After 4 days of corraling them together, this was the outcome....

Attention all shoppers - PET LOCKERS at the store near you!

Little dogs are the craze-du-jour in Korea. This is logical given that the majority of the population lives in endless stacks of apartment complexes sprawling across the city. Nevertheless, Jake and I were a bit shocked to encounter "PET LOCKERS"  at the entrance of Lotte Mart (the local jewel or super K).  Go ahead, shove that puppy in next to your backpack. There are breather holes.

FUNFOODFEATURE

It is no secret that Korea is making great strides to integrate English. We find this both convenient and entertaining. Why you may ask? Well, mispelled signs often contain simple errors that drastically alter their meaning. Let it be noted, that I'm not trying to be offensive-- I can't even imagine what bullox I would write when translating information. But these minor details give us a chuckle and remind us that are jobs here are not quite finished.

Some common examples:

Enjoy Kimchi Fried Lice!

Forget lozengers, ease that throat itch with Rozengers.

Thirsty? How about a cafe Ratte?

Tonight, the the craP salad is succulent.

While mispellings are common, sometimes the mere layout makes English seem like a foreign language. Check out these SPAMCHESSESANDWICHES!

BACK TO KOREA

Ah yes, we've returned. It appears that this year will be a lot busier and we apologize in advance for lack of communication. We essentially wake up and go straight to work around 830am. At lunch time it is nearly 1030pm in Chicago and 830pm in Portland. By the time we finish work at 530pm, it is the middle of the night in the states. So while we love you, expect less talk time ; (

Work is picking up quickly. We did a week and a half of observations that got tedious, but the next three weeks are jam packed with camp. The camps are entirely created by teachers and focus on new content than the other weeks of the year. Lots of the kids are returnees who are coming on their summer vacation for enrichment learning.

Jake hit the jackpot when it comes to camp lessons. He will spend his days extracting dna from strawberries and making lava lamps in science club. Meanwhile, I'll be teaching the "nurture" section which focuses on saving our planet and the occupations that coincide. Luckily, in the afternoon I have cooking club - tortilla pizzas here I come.

We snapped some pictures of our neighborhood and le petite dorm. Get excited....ha, ha.

For the extremely curious, here are links to our city and school.

Bundang: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundang

SNET: www.snet.or.kr/english

Goodbye to Daejeon

We spent the last several days in Daejeon saying goodbye to students, coworkers, and friends. I felt really lucky because one of my elementary classes threw me a surprise party. They taped balloons on the board with their names, hearts, and farewell messages. Each kiddo brought me a gift too- how adorable. Jake and I even received couple-set cellphone charms with yorkie dogs-priceless. Later, I found a seven year old girl crying hysterically in the bathroom because "you are go go go to AAAmerica..." It was so sad. But have no fear, I gave her plenty of candies and toys.

The peak of farewells was at our Friday night dinner. About 15 coworkers joined us for twaegi galbi (pork ribs) and they kept chanting for Jake to make a toast. Not only did he make a toast, but he had a shout out for each coworker which ended in a soju shot. Needless to say, 15 soju shots later, Jake forgot the going away party. Cheers to Korea and see ya soon.

Oh Yeosu!

Buddah's birthday left us with a pleasant Friday holiday and we jumped on the opportunity for a three day getaway. All of our apartment crew joined us on a train expedition to a small coastal city called, "Yeosu." This quaint port town lies at the central tip of South Korea in Jeollanamdo province. Our entire goal was to enjoy a lazy beach trip before the stress of packing. Due to ceaseless rain, beach time = not so much. Luckily, adventures can be had in the rain.

On Friday, we were fo

rced to stand on the first bus for 1.5 hours due to traveling hoards. Despite endless planning, we could not get a bus ticket ahead of time for the first leg of our trip.It is one of the few holiday weekends not tied to family in Korea; just like how everyone and their mom goes camping on Memorial Day.

We arrived around three and popped over to Odongdo Island. This scenic island is covered in craggy cliffs, caves, and gardens. We enjoyed outdoor rock acupuncture and musical fountains as we bobbled around the hills. The highlight came when we stumbled upon a group of elderly women having a shindig in a shady pathway. We joined in the clapping and got invited to their jamboree. After a few traditional tunes, we got summoned to sing. Forrest (the musical talent) busted out, "Stand by Me" and they loved us in no time. Apples and beer for all!

On the way back, we found a makeshift restaurant vending live octopus on the cement aside the sea. Of course Jake jumped at the chance for the freshest food possible and we plopped down on the mats with a half a dozen Korean families. If you haven't eaten octopi before, you should know that the squiggly creatures are literally chopped into one inch pieces, yet wiggle relentlessly until you chew them to death. Want to try?

Saturday and Sunday were filled with endless rain. We journeyed to a mountainous temple and a black sand beach. The area was talked up quite a bit on wikitravel, but didn't exactly exude the lively cafes it boasted. Instead it was an abandoned, small town beach with dirty shores -we'll blame it on the weather. We managed to find one seaside restaurant ope n named, "Carp Island." This place blew our mind by serving sandwiches with the ultimate side - whip cream! Everyone was looking for the four-year old cook to surface - no sightings thus far.
The evening adventures started with an arcade where I finally tried dance, dance revolution. Jake won- unbelievable! Must have been all those years of video games. Next, we rounded up some soju and ordered colas in the basement of Lotteria (like McDonalds) to get out of the rain. A gaggle of 15 year olds provided an hour of entertainment with pestering questions and giggles. They especially liked when Michael hit his head on a tv - snap.

Later we hopped on a bus to a bar with free pool, fooze ball and wii. The Canadian staff alerted us of holiday specials and we stayed for the long hall. We learned a Canadian coin game using a Tooney. Everyone gets a shot of beer to start. You flip the coin, bear = drink and queen = pass the shot. Now, the odds seem decent, but some how it stacks up against certain people and they end up with 5 shots at once. If everyone flips a queen for one round straight, a whiskey shot is added. Kim and Jesse were the big winners, or losers, depending on how you view it. I recommend trying this ONLY at home and ONLY with beer.

Enjoy some pics and visit Yeosu when there is less chance of rain.