The Jersey Shore - Korean Style

July 15 - July 17

So this weekend, we shipped off to Donghae Beach for an all-expense paid mini-vacation.  It was an absolute blast!  The KAEC put us up in a swanky hotel, fed us way too much food, and basically laid out the red carpet for us.  The hotel, owned by the same guy who owns Jungwon University, was another marble palace with Grecian columns and luxurious decor.  But it proved to be a serious upgrade, when we found out it was connected to the beach by an over-head walkway.  Here are pictures of the hotel, the walkway, a delicious mystery stew that we had for lunch, and my roommates for the weekend, Korena and Meredith.

After lunch, we were given time to unpack a bit and got settled into our hotel room.  Much to our surprise, there was a Western-style bed waiting for us.  This struck us as quite odd, since Koreans typically sleep on floor mats .  But we surely didn't mind and later, we found out that we got the pimped-out room; while everyone else was left to complain of a stiff back the next morning.  After that, we attended a cultural workshop on Buddhist traditions and then hopped on a bus to visit a Korean Buddhist Temple in the stunning Samhwasa valley.  It was absolutely beautiful there and I took a ton of pictures of the giant boulders, lush greenery, and gentle streams.

We were given an hour to wander around the temple and relax.  However, I and several other adventurous folks has other plans.  On a city map, we saw that there was a waterfall rather close to the temple.  And of course, we just had to see it.  Despite the fact that it was 2.7 km directly uphill and my wardrobe choices, were, in NO WAY, conducive to hiking (A Ralph Lauren button down, slim black ankle-length trousers, and chic little black sandals are not intended for roughing it), we decided to set off on an adventure.  At the end, it was I and three other guys who made it up the whole way.  Here's me in front of the waterfall (Please excuse my grossness), and a photo of the hiking team once we reached flat ground.

Before leaving for the weekend, I checked the weather forecast and was disheartened to learn that it was supposed to rain the whole time, with a tsunami warning for Japan and the southeast Korea.  However, the all-powerful Mrs. Shim worked her magic and it was sunny for our entire trip!  On Saturday, July 16th, we woke up rather early and headed straight to the beach.  There, we stayed for several hours, swimming in the East Sea and catching too many rays (Painful sunburn and leper-like peeling commenced later that week).  Afterwards, we ate PIZZA for lunch on the boardwalk and then quickly went back to the hotel to shower.  Lactose intolerance, be damned.  Nothing will stop me from enjoying a delicious cheesy slice of pizza (maybe unless I run out of lactard pills - now that would be tragic).

 

In the afternoon, we headed to the Cheongok Cave in the heart of downtown Donghae.  It was only discovered in 1991, while city officials were working on a development project.  Upon arrival, we were required to strap on bulky helmets.  Initially I scoffed at the idea of helmet hair, but it certainly proved useful when we were squeezing through narrow passageways and low clearances.  After that, we walked through a nearby park and ran into a group of ajummas, a.k.a. old, little Korean ladies.  They were super excited to see foreigners and demanded that we sing a song for them.  We ended up serenading them with the National Anthem, as it was the only song that all of us knew.  Then we took a picture with them, and I tried on one of their epic visors.  I'm sure that's what the Fulbright office was referring to when they stressed the importance of cultural ambassadorship and mutual understanding!

Then, we began a two-hour walk back to our hotel.  It was a lot of walking, but a great way to get out and explore the quaint city center along the waterfront.  I took several photos, which I think capture the essence of small-town Korean culture.  Here are some of my favorites. 

Along the way, we worked up quite an appetite and were greeted with mounds of 삼겹살, a fatty three-layer pork belly meat for dinner.  I'm still drooling from that meal.  On Sunday, July 17th, we stopped by at a museum before we headed back home.  The museum had an eclectic mix of odd cave-like art, ancient pottery, fossils from all over the world.  No surprise, it was the private collection of the wealthy owner of Jungwon University and the Grand Tourist Hotel.  One has to wonder - did Fulbright get a package deal?!  Frankly, I think that some of those artifacts were fakes.  But that's beyond the point.  It was an amazing weekend and so wonderful to get away from the monotony of Goesan and Orientation training.

I feel like I'm learning a lot about myself every day.   For example, after the hike, I was dripping in sweat and nearly ruined my sandals.  But I didn't care.  I felt proud for keeping up and overwhelmed with a feeling of nostalgia.  While I was abroad in the Netherlands, I definitely caught the traveling bug.  I visited 13 countries in Europe in five months and loved every second of it.  Whenever I travel, I make it a priority to see as much as possible and try new things.  To some, traveling is a relaxing pastime, which presents an opportunity to simply sit back and take in the scenery.  But that's never been the case with me.  I need to be in the scenery, get my hands dirty, and soak in everything around me. 

Plan for the Worst, But Prepare for the Best

July 11 - July 14

Life at Jungwon University has been pretty wonderful.  They're keeping us insanely busy but I'm certainly enjoying myself.  The best part so far has been the people that I've met.  A group of us got together and did morning yoga outside on the veranda.  It was beautiful and a great way to start the day.  Here are some pictures of my dorm room and the aforementioned yoga session.  Kindly note that the bathroom doesn't have a separate shower space, and there's a little step where you must take off your shoes before you enter your room.  Yup, subtle reminders that Korea is a long way from home.

 

Week 2 started off with a bang.  Oh right, you're still jet-lagged and have had only three Korean classes?  No big deal, here's a test you must take first thing Monday morning.  And did we mention that it's entirely in Korean?!  As you can imagine, after I got back from the Fortress visit, I stayed up 'til some ungodly hour and crammed in as much Korean as physically possible.  In some ways, it feels very much like being in college again.  Late nights studying, chugging coffee to make it through the day, and going out after-hours.  Except, we have very little down time.  From 9am-9pm they have us committed to 4 hours of daily language classes, mandatory cultural/teaching workshops in the afternoon, extracurriculars in the early evening, and then tedious assignments with strict deadlines in the evening.  I can't wait until I have a permanent school placement for the year.  From the looks of it, relaxation will have to wait until then.

On Tuesday, July 12th, our first lesson plan was due.  From July 18-July 30, Camp Fulbright will take over Jungwon University and our already hectic lives.  CF is an intensive English immersion program that the best and brightest Korean students attend over their summer break.  As part of Orientation, each of us Fulbrights are required to teach 3 CF classes.  For the first two classes, I will be teaching the Low Advanced class (the second highest level);  but for the third class, I will be team-teaching a Low Beginner class (the absolute lowest level).  Talk about one extreme to another.  The overall theme of the camp is "Heroes" and each day has a subtopic, which must be reflected in the lesson plan.  For my first lesson, the daily theme is "American Heroes" and I wanted to use this opportunity to share my passion for American politics and the electoral process.

As many of you know, I'm an absolute political junkie, who devours online blogs and newspapers by the dozen.  So naturally, I designed my lesson around Barack Obama and his 2008 Presidential Campaign.  For my lesson, I wanted student to brainstorm why Obama can be considered an American hero, evaluate political platforms, and lastly, write campaign promises, as if they were running for President of the United States.  I am meeting with a Camp Instructor (a former Fulbright) in a few days to get feedback about my lesson plan.  I am hoping that this lesson will be success.  If all else fails, I will be overly enthusiastic and convince my students that Barack and I are best friends.

On Wednesday, July 13th, we were visited by some important people from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul.  They had a ton of fascinating stuff to say and told us what to do if we had an emergency abroad, e.g. medical problem, incarceration, lost travel documents, etc.  I surely am not anticipating that any of these things will happen.  But as Mama Kim would say, it's always better to be safe than sorry. 

Catching Up

Okay, so I will be the first to admit that I've been an utter failure at blogging the last 2 weeks.  I blame the fact that organizing and editing photos is such a time-consuming chore.  I've been putting it off as much as possible, but now it's time to catch you up.  So much has happened that I can barely make sense of it all.  Yet in retrospect, it's kind of nice to sit here and reflect upon my first couple weeks in Korea.

They've been full of momentous occasions, first-time encounters, and the early stages to some great friendships.  From now on, I will try to be more diligent with blogging.  My family and friends back home deserve to know what's going on in my life, and I want to look back at this experience and remember all the precious details.  Thanks for sticking by me, procrastination and all.  The next couple blog posts will provide a recap of everything that's happened the past two weeks.

July 6 - July 10

On Wednesday, July 6th, we received a visit from the all-important folks at the Korean-American Educational Commission (KAEC), a.k.a. the people who run the Fulbright Korea program and personally chose me as one of the grantees.  As you can imagine, this was a huge event and everyone looked super classy. 

On Friday, July 8th, we had a day off from Korean language class and got to observe an English class taught by a current Fulbright.  So I woke up at the crack of dawn, chugged a cup (likely more) of cawfee, and boarded a bus to Daejeon, the fifth largest city in Korea.  There, we were greeted by the lovely Rachael who works at a co-ed high school, with gender-segregated classes.  As soon as we arrived, we were swarmed by tons of energetic Korean students, who waved at us, screamed "hi," and then ran away.  The kids weren't too interested with me, as I look just like them.  But they were fascinated with the blondes, told the token black kid that he looks like Will Smith, and bombarded the boys in our group with choruses of "Awh my gadt, he so hahndsum!"

We observed both a high level boys class and a low level girls class.  I was most struck by how difficult it was, at times, to get the students to participate.  While the boys were at an advanced level, their shyness and hesitancy hindered their ability to demonstrate their knowledge.  Consequently, it seemed that levels of the two classes were reversed.  Built only five years ago, the school is likely one of the nicest that I'll ever see in Korea.  There's even a beautiful roof top garden where students like to hang out between classes.  But this peaceful haven cannot mask the overwhelming stress that Korean students face.  Students arrive at school at 7:30am, have class until 4pm, participate in extra classes for another couple hours, have a quick dinner break, and then have mandatory study time until 11 or 12, where they cram for exams.  And when the students finally get to go home for 5 hours of sleep, the last thing they see is a clock that counts down how many days are left until the National College Entrance Exam - a ticking time bomb of sorts.  Whew, I'll never complain about my workload again!

On Sunday, July 10, I got to go on an excursion to Sangdang Santseong Fortress Wall in Cheongju with twelve others.  We took the public bus directly from Goesan to Cheongju.  It was an hour ride and only cost ₩5600, or about 5 dollars.  Public transportation is ridiculously cheap here.  I can't wait to take advantage of it and see as much of Korea as I possibly can!  It was cloudy and drizzling all day but we had a fantastic time.  The hike up the hill was more intense than I thought it would be.  Yet it was totally worth it when we got to the top and had a picturesque view of the city and nearby mountains.

After the long hike, we were all 1) exhausted, and 2) HUNGRY!  So we ended up a a little restaurant by the fortress entrance that serves mountain food, which uses very fresh vegetables.  The food was absolutely delicious.  We sat there for over an hour gorging ourselves on scallion pancakes, tofu, kimchi, and lots of different vegetables.  But the star of the show was definitely the 순두부 (soft tofu stew).  It was so spicy that my eyes were tearing up but I was in food heaven!

All in all, it was a wonderful first week in Korea.  I am so happy I'm here and I'm already anticipating my next culinary journey!  ∧∧

안녕하세요 (Annyeonghaseyo) !!

So after a 13 hour flight from JFK to Seoul, a 2.5 hour bus ride to Goesan, and 7000 miles of travel, I finally arrived at Jungwon University for Orientation.  The flight felt must shorter than I expected: stayed awake 3 hours, slept 6 hours, spent the last 4 hours getting the high score in Tetris on my little TV monitor!  For dinner, they served bi-bim-bap, which was a wonderful start to my culinary journey in Korea.  Once we landed, we had to wait a couple hours for the other 2 flights of Fulbrights to land.  Eventually, our Orientation Team Coordinators arrived and we loaded up the buses with our massive suitcases (See below).

The orientation site is absolutely exquisite, a perfect mix between a vacation resort and a swanky marble palace.  Jungwon University is a super small private school in the middle of nowhere.  Although less than 1000 students attend the university, the facilities are amazing and the campus is sprawling oasis with multiple pools, saunas, and a golf course. 

We are seriously spoiled here.  I can't wait to spend time in the massive pool area, which I my bedroom window overlooks.  And with all the water slides and that crazy hamster wheel thing, it feels, at times, more like an awesome summer camp than a grueling training program.

The first couple days have been a blur.  Mostly, they have consisted of overcoming jet-lag, meeting 87 other Fulbrights, trying not to get lost around campus, and eating lots of yummy meals in the cafeteria.  Fortunately, I love kimchi and Korean food so the adjustment has been relatively easy.  It's only been four days, but I've met a ton of amazing people, who are all so accomplished and dignified in their own right.  It's humbling to be in their presence and I'm honored to be considered one of them.  Here's the first photo of me in Korea, and another with my roommate Lauren.

The Fulbright Korea program is considered the gold standard of all Fulbright programs, largely due to it's rigorous Orientation program.  Mornings are consumed by four hours of intensive Korean language classes.  The language program is run through the Institute of Foreign Language Studies at Korea University, which is the second most prestigious university in the country.  In the afternoon, we have four hours of teaching or cultural training.  I also signed up for extracurricular activities: taekwondo, archery, the Global Language Educational Exchange (GLEE) club [where we meet Korean students], and traditional tea ceremony.  They keep us busy here but I'm loving every second of it.  More pictures of the gorgeous campus (Please note the epic dinosaurs)!

Goesan is, by Korean standards, a super small and remote town.  But yesterday, we got to explore it in teams of four on an epic photo scavenger hunt!  Here are some of the highlights.  Well the dog wasn't one of the items on the list, but I thought he had the fiercest eyebrows!

Well so far so good.  Tomorrow is the second day of language classes and in the evening, Mrs. Shim Jai Ok, the Executive Director of the Korean-American Educational Commission is visiting us.  Apparently, this is a super big deal and we've been practicing our 인사 (insa = formal bow) like crazy.  Time for a shower and then bed.  Miss you all!

A Shameless Request for Mail

"Or don't you like to write letters. I do because it's such a swell way to keep from working and yet feel you've done something." - Ernest Hemingway

Need a terrific source of procrastination?  Find yourself missing Danielle?  Well, consider writing her a letter or sending her an (ideally edible) care package!  Yes folks, in the age of cyber space and email galore, letter-writing has become a lost art.  But it would make my day and I would happily return the favor.

Between July 3rd and August 18th, I can be reached at the following address.  Please keep in mind that most mail will take approx two weeks to arrive in Korea and once I leave the Orientation site, mail will not be forwarded to me.  So if you plan on sending me something in August, wait until I know the address for my permanent placement.

Danielle Kim (Fulbright ETA)
c/o Fulbright ETA Office, 2nd Floor
Jungwon University
5, Dongbu-ri, Goesan-eup, Goesan-gun
Chungbuk, South Korea 367-805

Whew, that's a mouthful.  Speaking of staying in touch, my primary email abroad will be kim.daniellej@gmail.com.  I will still check my other accounts, but on a less frequent basis.  Also, my Smith email address will expire soon, so please stick with Gmail.  Lastly, I urge you to create a Skype account and add me: danielle_j_kim, so that we can video chat!

Ahhhhh! I'm leaving tomorrow and I'm too wired to sleep! :D