seoul vol. 4, iss 4

last weekend was another good weekend..i love my weekends..school isn't bad either, especially because i really only teach 4 days a week..since fridays are special days, it's kinda like having a four day work week, with a guaranteed funday each week..when we go on field trips, i'm never sure why i have to go, since they're always in korean, and i do absolutely nothing, but hey, i'm not teaching, yet still getting paid..the korean teachers get the kids on and off the buses, keep the kids corralled, sheppard them around, etc..i get massively motion sick everytime i set foot on a bus, unfortunately, it usually takes a while to get anywhere in this city..i do a lot of deep breathing and closing my eyes when we're on buses..last friday we went to a theatre where the kids saw a puppet show..cute..i had my eyes closed most of the time, trying to get the nausea from the bus ride to go away..afterward, each class had it's picture taken with the puppeteers and their puppets..i posed with wisteria class, which is considered my homeroom class, even though i teach all the classes in the school for at least an hour each week..

saturday weather wasn't as nice as what we had during the week (and why would it be, since i didn't have to work??!!) but it wasn't raining, and that made it good weather..i went to touch and contact practices again..our first touch tournament is in a couple weeks, or at least it's supposed to be..i'm really nervous, i don't want to let anyone down..during contact practice the original plan was to split into forwards and backs after warming up with basic drills, but our coach had food poisoning, so she wasn't at practice, and a chick who has been acting as assistant ran everything..even though we're all ready to learn more specific position skills, we're even more ready for real contact..we all want to learn to tackle properly, and really get to hit..even though we didnt get to do that, practice was still fun..again, we had good numbers, and that makes it that much more fun..exec folks also talked up the tour to shanghai, which i won't be joining..i'd like to, but right now i can't afford it..the visa for china for americans is ridiculously expensive, ugh..WAY more than other nationalities..instead, i've signed myself up for two half marathons that weekend, which ought to be interesting..(painful too, probably)..everyone decided on a tour theme, and i can't wait to see pictures and hear stories when they come back..after practice, over half the girls went to indigo's, a restaurant in an area where a lot of foreigners live..it has yummy sandwiches and breakfasts..
when i got home i ended up almost falling asleep..luckily, cheryl texted me about going for dinner at a galbi place..i wasn't particularly hungry, but i knew i needed to get up and move at least a little..galbi is one of my favourite korean meals..pieces of meat (usually pork, but it can also be beef or chicken) you put on a grill in the middle of your table..when the meat is cooked you put it in a lettuce leaf, add some spicy paste and other side dishes, fold the lettuce leaf around everything, and eat the whole thing as one bite..the lady who runs the place we went remembers us, and each time we go we get something for free...sometimes it's an extra soup, sometimes it's a drink..it's nice..a large amount of food, all very healthy, and really really good..(as long as you aren't vegetarian)..cheryl went out that night, i went to bed..(which is normal:)
i meant to go to church the next morning, and even got up and took a shower to get ready..but when i got out of the shower, i couldn't be bothered to get dressed, then get on the subway..so i stayed home, and did fun chores like laundry and cleaning..i know it sounds lame, but it's been really nice to settle into a domestic routine..even though i've lived here before, i hadn't done so much cooking for myself, and i hadn't been very regular about cleaning..
sunday afternoon i went to a birthday party..i met mary through rugby, and her flat has access to a rooftop..so she invited a bunch of people and had a barbie..as often happens at these things, there was too much food, but that's not a bad thing..i brought fruit, everyone needs some of that, right? it was a really calm party..mary has a bunch of stools, so most of us were sitting down chatting most of the party..not a lot of moving around..natalie is determined to set me up, i don't see that happening..instead, i find it amusing..
after 4 hours or so, i left..a quick (30 minute) subway ride home, i picked up ice cream along the way..cheryl and i had arranged a date with ice cream/other not so healthy food and bad reality tv..the last season of the hills starts later this month, so we figure we have some catching up to do..hee hee..it might be called a reality show, but in no way is it really the lives of these people..parts of their lives sure, edited into a story line that isn't really accurate..but it's entertaining, and i suppose that's why it's been so successfull for the last 5 years or so..but since lauren conrad left the show, it's gone downhill..it's fun to make fun of the "actors" especially since at least one of them thinks they actually have talent..
and so ends another fun weekend..i know it doesn't sound like much, but it's my life and i love it..