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Life in Korea: 10 things to do instead of being jaded

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Define: jaded – “dulled or satiated by overindulgence”, “worn out or wearied”

It’s easy to get jaded in Korea. It can be a fight to get to work, a fight at work, a fight to get home, and a fight to get some food. Add to that a biased mainstream media and being thousands of miles (and thousands more kilometers) from your friends and family. What’s a waygook to do?

Last month I celebrated my three-year anniversary in Korea. With the exception of a visa run to Fukuoka, I haven’t left Korean soil. Life in any country has its ups and downs, but there are definitely some things you can do to beat being jaded.

1. Get off the main road. The streets of Gangnam, Hongdae, Itaewon, and Sinchon are full of expensive shops and more people than the sidewalks can handle. While those areas are fun, they all have side streets that receive a fraction of the foot traffic. The side streets are the historic result of people not wanting to bow every time the royal entourage came through on the main road, and are good for food or just meandering through a different slice of life.

2. Check your apartment – how Koreanized is it? I would argue that your apartment is more than just a place to live – it’s a little bubble of your preferred way of life. If you want to get away from it all, your apartment should be a refuge from the outside world. Hang up your own posters, pump up the AC/DC (or your favorite music), and leave the outside world outside.

3. Remind yourself you’re a millionaire (in won, at least). Consider telling that to your unemployed friends back home – and remind yourself that your job prospects are probably a lot better here than at home. Start stockpiling that money for #9 below.

4. Jimjilbang! Go get naked and soak in some hot water. Admire (or ignore) the naked Koreans around you, and try hard to relax.

5. Pull a Seoul Sub->urban and get off at a random subway or bus stop. Go explore an area you’ve never seen or stopped at before.

6. Buy a pirated DVD from the Western world and turn off the Korean subtitles. Go get some microwave popcorn from your local convenience store and make it a movie night.

7. Go take a dance class – belly, salsa, swing, or tango lessons are all available in English around Seoul.

8. Find a way to make your favorite dish from home (or an acceptable substitute) – I’ll never forget my mom’s recipe for chunkies.

9. Consider how to make the best of the 4 months, 17 days, 5 hours and 39 minutes until your contract is up. What have you wanted to do in Asia that you won’t be able to do once you get home? You could also start researching for that trip to Laos, Vietnam, China, Malaysia, Singapore, or wherever else your summer vacation might take you. It’s not too early!

10. Check your friends – it’s often said that your friends affect your attitude and outlook far more than you might realize. If all they do is complain about one thing or another, that mindset rubs off on you as well. Do something with your foreign friends – and prohibit talking about work or bitching about Korea for this one night.

The cure to being jaded is to get out of your normal routine. For some of you, that’s as simple as venturing to a new drinking establishment or trying a new restaurant. For others, it might be time for a more drastic change – a job you actually enjoy, a new location, or even getting out of Korea.

Author’s note: a version of this article was written as a guest post for Kiss my Kimchi!

Creative Commons License © Chris Backe – 2011
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

This post was originally published on my blog, Chris in South Korea. If you are reading this on another website and there is no linkback or credit given, you are reading an UNAUTHORIZED FEED.

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Spinach Tortillas

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for 8 tortillas

4 C chopped fresh spinach
1 tablespoon water
2+ cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt or garlic salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
dash of pepper or seasoned pepper
1/4 cup oil

Instructions:
1. In a large pan or skillet over medium to medium-low heat, cook spinach in water. Cover, stirring occasionally, until spinach is wilted and soft. This will probably take about 5 minutes after the pan is hot and the spinach has started to cook. (You can also leave spinach whole with stems and cook down, then blend in blender)
2. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder,pepper, and oil. Stir until crumbly.
3. Add the (hot or warm) spinach mixture, including the water left in the pan from cooking. Knead or stir, adding additional flour as needed (may take a cup or more of extra flour) to make a smooth dough. Knead dough for about 5 minutes, which will mix the spinach in better, and give the dough an even consistency.
4. Divide dough into 8 parts with knife.
5. Pre-heat a griddle or large skillet over medium heat.
6. On a lightly floured surface, roll each dough portion into a thin circle ( don't get flustered if they are not perfect circles... it takes practice and sometimes just plain luck!).
7. Lightly brown tortillas in pre-heated pan for about 5 minutes on each side, just until cooked. A few light brown spots should appear.


I usually start cooking the tortillas while I'm still rolling out the rest of the dough. Stack cooked tortillas on a plate or in a bowl with a clean towel around them, until all are cooked. Serve warm, filled with your favorite fillings! :)

Slightly modified from: tammysrecipes

Weightless

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Beomeosa Temple

Busan, KOREA

May 8, 2011

celebrating Buddha’s birthday early

Everybody gets their day

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May 8th in Korea is technically called Parents Day, they sell small baskets of flowers and children who were just spoiled on May 5th for children's day show their parents a little love. I really wish I had children's day when I was a kid but my mom used to say, "Everyday is children's day!"  Kids here got the day off school (and so did I so no complaining here) and were spoiled with fun activities and gifts and today families were out celebrating in the sunshine. It is a beautiful week to be in Seoul.

Being an American traditional gal, I still celebrate mothers and fathers on separate days. Inspired by a friend, I decided to make a video for my mom for her special day this year. It was a fun project and I was so excited with the final product, I have to share. Happy Mother's day Mom:)



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Ellie Teacher

onedayillflyaway.com

abandoned amusement park

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on the way back to busan from geoje, we had to stop at the abandoned amusement park.

replete with graffiti, garbage and vines, it was a creepy place.

and of course, matt had to find ways to put his life in jeopardy.


and we played with the big toys.

i think the hobos live here. every room was filled with trash and ashes.

there are a few things i think are quintessential asian experiences. for example, dodging traffic on the back of a motorcycle. one more i can check off the list after today: sitting in the aisle of an over-crowded bus.

glad to be home.


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geoje camping

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things started foggy at the beach.

but we kept ourselves entertained by breaking firewood with big rocks, a.k.a. “practice rocking.”

folks kept wandering through our campsite to fish while holding infants. seems like a good time for a portable play pen or something.

we made up games.

which our team totally won, though admittedly with the help of some dumb luck.

the morning’s yoga class was a good way to shake off the cramps of sitting on rocks and sleeping on sand for two days.


Dream Forest (북서울꿈의숲) Video

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Before I launch into the photographic story of my visit into the Dream Forest, first let me share with you the video.

Also, I want to note that inspiration for the editing and direction of this video comes from another video creator in Korea, named "GreenEggsandHamster." I was especially influenced by the following video of his...
 
Check out his youtube channel for more, and stay tuned for the photographic journey of the Dream Forest in Seoul.
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More questions answered

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As a follow up to a previous Q & A post we have been asked more questions and here we will answer them, in case you were wondering the same. Yesterday, Nikki happily chatted with two good friends Amanda and Kelsey on the phone. They had similar questions to ask and so we decided to publish another Q & A based on our conversations.  N=Nikki  S=Steve

Q: Do you feel like time is going fast?

N: Yes and no. There is a weird time warp happening here. Sometimes I can't believe that we have been here almost four months, but other times a day can feel like a week. Our brains are always overloaded and over-stimulated so time can be a strange concept. But, it has been almost 4 months and I can't believe it!

S: Time is going incredibly fast.  The workdays go by in the blink of an eye.  One minute I'm stepping on the school bus in the morning and the next minute I'm walking home.  Our weekends that are spent traveling go by fast too.  I guess it depends on how much we sit back and really enjoy the moment, that seems to slow time down.  But, that is the same anywhere I guess.  

Q: Do you like your job? How are the kids?

N: I do like my job. There are definitely trying times, but working with young children can be like that. The kids are so adorable and really sweet. It is hard not to like the job in that sense. The frustrating part is not having a Korean co-teacher and not being able to effectively communicate with the children at times.

S: The job is good.  I didn't think that I would enjoy these younger students as much as I do.  Think of doing a job in which you need absolutely no training whatsoever, you just teach others something you have a total mastery of.  I've been speaking English for going on 30 years now and teaching it doesn't stress me at all.  Most people need to go through college or other training to be able to do their job, but we just teach kids things we have been saying our whole lives.  I don't prepare for more than 5 minutes before teaching a class.  I can walk in, pick up the book, and teach from there.  No one questions my methods or worksheets or books, and I'm free to decide how to teach the material.

Q: What will you do when you get back?

N: I really don't know. It seems like we are always searching for something, greener pastures, the next great thing. I just don't like to think too much about the future right now. I want to enjoy the here and now. The thought of moving back home does scare me though with the economy and prospective jobs for teachers. We have such a good thing here with jobs and finances that it will be really hard to leave. We are able to travel easily and that will be hard to move on from. At the same time, being so far away from family and friends is really hard. I just don't have an answer for this question right now.

S: That bridge will have to be crossed when we come to it.  There are many things that I want to do in many different places in the world.  Bottom line for me: I want to live in a place that is kind of similar to here.  A smallish town with good public transportation, no need for a car, work close to home, low cost of living, and interesting things to see and do on the weekends.  I don't ask for much.

Q: What is the culture like? What are the people like?

N: The people and culture are beautiful. We have had such amazing experiences so far. Many Koreans have been incredibly kind to us. There is also the downside of people that will just push you out of the way, as if you don't exist. This is just the culture though. Most Koreans are really kind and generous people that want you to have a good experience in and fond memories of Korea.
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teaching english in korea. 
blogging here: www.teachingintherok.blogspot.com

Our quiet place

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Steve and I set out today for our "quiet sitting place". There is a park near our school that has become quite beautiful with the spring bloom. Shortly after we arrived in Jinyeong we found a path off the side of the park that leads to a secluded overlook amidst burial mounds. It is a very peaceful and quiet place indeed. We have gone there several times, mostly when we are feeling upset or need to gain perspective on why we are here or, like today, to seek peace and quiet. South Korea, like other places in Asia, can be an overwhelmingly loud and bustling place. Steve and I live in a small town and still become overwhelmed with the fast pace of South Korea. Cars and scooters that zoom past you within inches of your body, crowds of people (even on mountain hiking trails), loud speakers blaring K pop on every corner. Sometimes it just gets to be too much to deal with. We seek solitude, quiet, and wide open spaces. There are none, it seems, except for our quiet place. We went there today, on Mother's Day. We took some drinks and snacks and books. We sat in silence, no need to converse. As I was writing, Steve stated, "this is heavenly" and it was. There were no other people in sight. We could actually hear the songs of birds and the buzzing of bugs. The cars and the voices of people were distant. The sound of a motorbike, the crow of a rooster, a child crying, all out of sight and pleasantly distant. Our quiet place, our escape.
See some photos of our place. It's not exceptionally beautiful, but it's quiet!





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