What a week!! I'm back to teaching and life is settling down again. I'm also getting used to the new office mates that have come in, and I'm starting to get back into the swing of school life and lesson planning again. My life changed again at school, so now I'm back to teaching 3rd-4th grade just once a week. I have a comfortable repertoire with my fifth and sixth graders, and it's fun meeting the new third and fourth graders. Their unbridled enthusiasm when the greet me in the hallway never fail to make me smile.
So this week was a little busier as well. I did mention I added my Japanese postcards. I like how full my walls are getting!
On Monday, to celebrate another year of working with Young Ah, I finally caved and went out to get something she'd been trying to get me to try for ages. Dakbal. AKA, chicken feet. Yeah.
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| our plate arrived |
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| we ordered steamed egg on the side as well, to take the edge off the spiciness of the feet |
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| we went not hardcore and got the kind that was de-boned. |
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| still kinda looks like a foot |
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| Young Ah laughing out our funny reactions to the feet |
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| she's also making "fist rice" which is basically rice and seaweed mixed together and balled together with your fist |
The owner was nervous that we wouldn't be able to eat the chicken feet. But we conquered!
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| the birthday banner was coincidental haha |
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| we ate them like champs. I wasn't a huge fan of the texture. It was chewy but also crunchy cause of the joints and cartilage still left in there |
So yeah, I can check that off my list. Man, the things I'm doing in Korea...
Tuesday through Thursday proceeded as normal, with class going alright. Some days are just not good Korean days haha. I'm still really enjoying my class. Next month marks 1 year since I started attending my hagwon. I feel like my Korean has certainly progressed a lot in that time, so I'm super happy.
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| I found this at the store and I'm kind of curious to try it |
I took a lot of selfies this week and I'm not sure why haha.
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| expressing my displeasure at how windy it was after school. Why do I bother to do my hair?!? |
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| I send selfies to cesca a lot. I liked the way my hair looked in this one |
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| How I feel after teaching 5 classes of the same thing |
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| crowded bus during rush hour |
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| row of empty seats next to me... |
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| le sigh |
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| A classmate of Cesca's gave her some of these for white day. They look deceptively like M&Ms. They are not. |
On Friday after school, we had a staff dinner at a kalbi restaurant. I like it a lot more than the buffet, mostly cause the meat is delicious, someone else cooks it and nobody questions my buffet choices. I sat with my office, shared shots of soju with the principal, VP, head teacher and new nurse, and I got to escape with Young Ah afterwards. We went out with some of the other teachers for coffee and just chatting. I hung on for a while, and got to participate a bit, but my Korean still is not at the level where I can chit chat for more than like 10 minutes.
The teachers were envious of my age (especially my international age), they all wondered how it's possible I don't have a boyfriend (especially since I have no particular ideal type in mind) and one teacher also mused that she should give up trying to learn English because my Korean was getting so good (it's not that good haha, and I told her her listening skills are very good, which they are).
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| I got delicious hot chocolate instead of coffee |
On Saturday, Cesca came over and we prepped for going out (we also watched the end of Kill Me, Heal Me)
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| I attempted to use nail wraps, but they didn't stick well... |
We went to our now favorite place, Gusto Taco, for a feast before meeting a bunch of friends in Hongdae for a party
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| Janell and I had matching shirts on haha |
We can't take a normal picture together FYI
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| Ok this one is pretty normal |
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| then Lauren goes into creeper mode |
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| A nice pic of us |
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| Do a strange pose! |
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| It was nice to see some of Cesca's friends, like Cherie |
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| and my friends, like Jennifer |
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| I don't even know what is going on here but this picture is golden |
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| trying to get a cute twin shot |
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| A wild Lauren appears |
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| some other friends brought us Happy Birthday glasses |
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| and ice cream cake!!! So thoughtful!! |
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| haha a "Congratulations, it's a girl" cake |
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| and a Tayo bus cake! |
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| birthday twins! |
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| excited about cake |
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| rockin the birthday classes and our lace dresses. We had a great time! |
We went out to a noraebang after and rocked it out, and then headed home for a looooong sleep. On Sunday, Cesca and I spent the day together relaxing, watching TV and just hanging out, which has become our normal sunday routine. Even when she left, we facetimed just to talk more. I'm loving having her here.
Tomorrow is my actual birthday, and some of my students might remember, possibly. I'm excited to see if any of the teachers remember or say anything, because, even though I normally don't like attention being called to myself, I'm getting used to it here, haha. It's the first time Cesca and I can be together on our birthday in a loooong time, so we will definitely be meeting up for a simple but fun evening. I can't waaaait.
It's finally feeling like spring here (we never got too cold, but just annoyingly not warm weather and wind), and with things settling in for the semester, I'm looking forward to the next few weeks. We have some fun things planned and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that another year in Seoul is in my future, even though I won't know that for a while. Just keep yours crossed too!
Mom and dad, I hope you have a fun trip. Everyone else, have a great week and I hope spring has sprung for you too!!!
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I've been listening to a lot of Donghae and Eunhyuk this week. This is currently stuck in my head, and I wish there was a full version of "Saturday Night." I'd also like a Korean version, since this is Japanese.
Also how do I get to be the girl in these videos?!?
I'm also obsessively listening to the Kill Me, Heal Me soundtrack. It had it's flaws, but it's one of the best dramas I've seen recently, largely owing to the fact that the star, Ji Sung, was AMAZING as a patient with Dis-associative Identity Disorder.
This awesome rap/ballad was thread throughout the drama and was really catchy.
And I fell in love with this song from the later part of the drama. It's my new "calm down and relax song" cause it's so smooth and soothing.
It's a cover sung by the star, Ji Sung himself! brb gonna go listen to it 17 more times.
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