Venture to Korea with Amanda & Abi

To all our friends, families, and vistors - thank you for visiting. We will be updating this blog as our adventure develops.

Four months and counting

Sorry it's been ages since I wrote but here's the update, at least on my end!

We've reached the eight month mark, can't believe how quickly that time passed. The week before last I was in Thailand for nine days which was amazing and perfect and wonderful! I had a great time, met some fantastic people and thoroughly relaxed. Getting a massage in a grass hut on the beach while the sun goes down isn't too bad of a way to spend the day. It was strange though, leaving Korea and then coming back. It made Korea feel like home. I can tell already some degree of the culture shock I'll have when I get back to the states as I was extremely put off by people smiling at me in Thailand because it usually only happens here if it's spiteful. Sad but true. I've convinced my pal Amanda to go to Thailand with me again when our contract finishes to scrub the kim chi off and relax before delving back into America and before making all those great life decisions that feel so monumental. There's lots more I'd like to see and hopefully we'll make it over to Cambodia for a while as well.

My students were displeased with their substitute teacher who hit them with pencil cases and candy. Not too hard, they say, but they're obviously angry at me for being gone as they were like satan's little worker bees this past week. I never thought I'd have to tell a 13 year old Korean boy to stop teaching the class what "transgender porn" is. Where he learned it I don't know, but I have a whole class of 14 that now know what it means. Near the end of the week they finally calmed down and stopped telling horror stories about Tommy teacher, who they hate. We also had to have the "Abi teacher is leaving" conversation again. They're still upset but they came around when I promised them pizza on my last day. They now want me to leave tomorrow. Sheesh.

Had an interesting experience this week, going to get my hair cut. The things you take for granted, like being able to tell your stylist what you want them to do, just come smashing in your face sometimes. After about 2 milimeters were removed and I tried to explain that I wanted him to cut it however he wanted, what other option did I have, he began trying to blow dry it straight with a comb. Now for those of you who have seen me, which should be everyone, you know how curly and thick my hair is....well he didn't know and after 30 minutes, enlisted the help of his friend and periodically massaged his biceps. Two of them at once and an hour later I had somewhat straightened hair...until one of them decided to spritz a little water on it.......thirty minutes later it was straight again and they began trying to style it. We then had to have an intermission when the stylist discovered that my eyes were blue and told me how beautiful they were. Incidentally, everyone else who worked in the salon also had to come over and get about an inch from my face so as to decide whether I had blue eyes, green eyes, blue and green eyes, or blue and green and yellow eyes. Thank god I had brushed my teeth. I ended up leaving the salon wondering exactly what it was I had paid for but like most things in Korea, you just laugh and are happy  that you get the crazy story to tell everyone.

Back to the grind of daily life here. I'm also teaching adults at city hall in the morning which I love. They had to pick English names so I've got a Bill Clinton and a Nicolas Cage. I tried to explain that they can't take other peoples' names but they either didn't understand or didn't care. They've invited me to go to a flower festival with them and their department which is exciting. They keep me laughing even though I have to wake up at 7 and take three subs to get there. I like teaching adults, much less stress than the little buggers but also much less cuddling and "teacher beautiful" comments. Although, the adults tell me I'm beautiful too...and that I have blue eyes. Maybe they think if you have so many eye color choices in your home country that you might somehow forget the color of your own eyes, and they should help you out by reminding you. Who knows.

Hope all is well for all of you and I apologize for any repeated information from the bulk email.

Much Love

~Abi

posted by: 2SKLadies at 14:21 | link | comments (1) |

Kimchi Madness

It took me months of trying bit and pieces here and there to actually enjoy it. Within the last month I've developed cravings. And just today, I made scrambled eggs with kimchi, finally working the dish even into my breakfast.

So here's the recipe for those of you back home. It's a long process and I haven't tried to make it myself. But, I'm well aware that I'll need to learn when I come back.

From: Flavors of Korea: Delicious Vegetarian Cuisine
Servings: 2 quarts
Category: Side Dish
Ethnic Style: Korean

Ingredients:
1 large Chinese cabbage (2 1/2 to 3 pounds), cut into 2-inch wide slices
1/2 cup salt
6 green onions, green and white parts, finely chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons Korean red pepper powder or 1 tablespoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon grated fresh gingerroot
1 tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup hot water

Instructions:
Wash the chopped cabbage. Drain and sprinkle with salt, and let stand in a colander for 2 hours. Rinse in cold water and squeeze out excess liquid. Place the cabbage in a large bowl. Add the onions, garlic, Korean red pepper powder, ginger, and sugar to the cabbage. Toss and mix all the ingredients so that the cabbage pieces are well-coated. Pack the cabbage mixture in a crock or a large glass jar. Pour the hot water into the large bowl that held the cabbage mixture, and swish around to gather up any remaining seasonings. Pour into the jar of packed cabbage. Cover the jar with a tight lid, and place in a cool room for 2 days before refrigerating. (This will allow the fermentation process to commence and intensify the flavor.) Refrigerate at least 24 hours before serving.

-- Amanda

posted by: 2SKLadies at 21:32 | link | comments |

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