Right Place at the Right Time...and misc. musings

Our lives are full of these types of occasions, where we find ourselves in the right place at the right time.  I've definitely had my share of right place/right time incidents.  


I was being born in the right place (Korea), at the right time (when Johnny and Elaine were looking to adopt a Korean baby).  We were looking to buy an inn just as the former owners were deciding to put their inn up for sale.  I heard about the Holt Homecoming Program, just as they started taking new applications.  I was able to use a canceled airfare to pay nearly all of my fare for Korea. So, these are just a few of the wonderful things that have happened to me.  My glass is certainly half full, not half empty.


I was having a discussion with my homestay folks this evening, and they were talking about living in Africa for four years, talked about Mathias' sister who is still in North Korea, and how difficult her life is there.  I talked about Aunt MaryAnn and her experiences in CAR.  I guess I'm just feeling very thankful for where I am and the life I have, and the wonderful people in it.


Ok...back to the reality show (so to speak).


I was introduced to the three places where I will be teaching English.  Two of the places are daycare centers where the children are quite young...4, 5 and 6.  At the first place, I will be teaching two days of 30-minute sessions, three classes.  At the second place, I will be teaching two days of 20-minute classes, six classes.  I think the timing at the second school will greatly diminish my ability to effectively teach them anything.  The third place is an after school daycare center where the children range in age from 6-8, approximately.  They come to this place after school while their parents work.  They receive help (encouragement) with their homework, play games outside, get fed dinner, and now will will get English lessons. 


These children have the reputation of being difficult to teach and wild.  The teacher that is there now is moving to a different position, but he has finally connected with them and they are learning.  The administrator of that center asked me to find a textbook for them...very basic English learning...so they will have a more structured curriculum.  So, I get to go to a large bookstore here to try to find something that will work for me.  


Food for the Day:  I tried galbitang...beef soup.  It is made with beef (with the bone) and it has the clear noodles in it (which are super slippery and difficult to catch...I asked for a "po-ku" - fork).  When you order an item, it is always brought with the small side dishes.  Today I got a small side of julienned potatoes with sesame...very tasty.  I added them to the soup.  There was also a small bowl of soy sauce (I added that to the soup), two kinds of kimchee...one with radish, one with cabbage (I did not add these to the soup), and spring onion with red pepper sauce (I added that to the soup).  It was very tasty (mas i ta).  

Ms. Seol, on our visit today, said she wanted to buy me a fish cake.  "Oh, that's ok...no fish, please."  She laughed, and said...it's ok.  Uh oh.  Maybe she didn't understand??  Well, she gets these cakes at a street vendor and they are almost like a donut with a sweet red bean filling, very delicious.  Why are they called fish cakes?  They are fish shaped. I was very relieved.  We got five for 1,000 KRW ($1 equivalent), and we each ate two...I gave the remaining one to one of the school administrators.  She in turn gave me a tangerine (Korean like to reciprocate whenever they receive gifts).


Homestay News:  When I told Angela and Mathias about my lunch, they thought it was really funny that I added those things to my soup.  She said they are normally eaten separately.  I asked her if that was wrong for me to add them (if it offended someone).  She said no, you can do whatever you want to your soup.


For dinner she served a warm kimchee with mackerel.  I explained that I was forced to eat mackerel patties (and salmon patties) as a young child and have bad memories of it.  LOL  I took one bite (no fish in the bite).  The kimchee was nice warm, but it had a fishy flavor.  I skipped the little fishes.  She serves salad nearly every night and includes white sesame leaves, which have a very interesting (good) flavor.  She also served raw veggies (carrots, cucumbers, white radish), spinach soup in a miso-style broth, with tofu.  Everything is "good for health."


For dessert, she brought out the candied walnuts that I brought for them, and served them with what looked like a rice krispie treat.  Only, this rice krispie treat was SUPER hard and VERY crunchy.  It was a bit of a surprise when I first bit into it.

Did I also mention she makes homemade yogurt and homemade strawberry jam, that we eat for breakfast.  This morning, she added a "drinking vinegar" to her yogurt, for flavor.  She had me taste it before she ate the rest.  It was a pleasant plum flavor.  Apparently, they add prunes to the vinegar and it's not as strong as our vinegars.  And, she pointed out, vinegar is "good for health."



My bedroom doesn't have a mirror.  They had a boy, so I guess, it never occurred to them that if they got a female guest, she would need a mirror.  There is a mirror in the bathroom, but no electrical outlet.  So, on my travels today I went searching and found a mirror.  Kinda funny.  Oh, and the sinks in the house are very low.  The sink in the bathroom doesn't event come to the top of my leg.  The kitchen sink is a little taller, but I must still bend over to help wash dishes.  Thankfully, there are only three of us, so not many things to wash.


I start teaching on Monday, so I will have more stories about that to come.  We are a day ahead of the US...so tomorrow begins our weekend.  Have a wonderful weekend.