Kids are funny in any culture...

I have had many funny moments in my classroom over the past few months.  Most of them involved kids being, well, kids.  For example, last week I gave a test to a group of 11-12 year olds that covered a story we had been reading for a few days.  Like most of the "story tests" I give, it contained mostly multiple choice questions and a few short answer questions. 

As they were taking the test, one girl said, "Teacher, question 2 is too hard.  Please give us a different question." 

Therefore, trying to be funny, I said, "Okay.  Instead of question 2 on your test, answer this question.  Explain how entropy changes in a Rankine Cycle as a dry saturated vapor changes to a wet saturated vapor."  

I received a few confused looks and a lot of blank stares.  However, one girl, Sally, looked like she was very annoyed, bordering on angry.  She replied, "Teacher, don't joke!  This is serious!"

All I could do was laugh.

Another thing occurred today.  I received a package from home so I could have a few more copies of my transcripts and some more fajita seasoning.  My parents included a nice little stash of black licorice.  I love the stuff and I know that many people do not.  I figured that I would test some Korean taste buds.  Therefore, in my last class today, I gave each of the 6 students in that class one piece of licorice telling them that it was American candy.  I had a really hard time not laughing when they all just popped the licorice into their mouths without a single thought.  They all shared one thing in common; their smiles faded and were replaced with a grimace.  Only one kid spit it out, but none of them liked it.  However, after their own experience was complete, each one of them wanted a couple of pieces to give to their friends and family.  I'm guessing that there will be some unhappy Korean taste buds tonight.

New Phone Number

I have decided to change phone services.  Vonage is much more expensive than Skype and I was having major call quality issues with them.  My new number is (920) 351-4890.  The nice thing about Skype is that it will forward calls to my Korean cell phone for just 7 cents per minute.

A Few More Pictures

January 10 provided views of the brightest moon of 2009.  The first picture is from that Saturday night around 8 pm.  The second photo is from Sunday night around 6:30 pm. 

Hmmmm...

6 Weeks Later...

Well, I have now been in Korea for over 6 weeks.  It is incredible.  In some ways it feels like I just stepped off the plane yesterday, but in many other ways, it feels as if I have been here for months.  Things are becoming busy now that we are into January.  In January, the public schools are on break which means that the academies begin intensives.  This allows kids to quickly advance in their English studies, coming to my school 5 days a week for 3 hours per day.  Of course, this is on top of my normal class schedule.  Right now, I am teaching from 9-12 in the morning and from 2-8 at night.  That is a total of 45 hours in the classroom per week.  I have enjoyed it so far, although it is much more difficult to get to the store.  The biggest benefit is that I get paid overtime for 15 hours per week.  It will be a nice paycheck at the end of the month.

However, intensives are making one of my other goals more difficult.  Due to the fact that I teach in the morning, I am unable to begin my Korean language studies.  I have taught myself some and my kids always seemed stunned that I can read Hangul, the Korean system of writing, but they are always excited to teach me new things.  However, I cannot understand very many words yet and I have not even begun to start learning the structure of the language.  Hopefully, I will be able to enroll in a class at a university in February that meets 3-5 times per week in the mornings.

I have been going to a church in Suwon, a city about 40 minutes south of Anyang.  It is an international church that is connected to a Christian international school.  It is a mix of Americans, Canadians, Britons, Australians, and Koreans.  I really enjoy the missions focus of the church.  The pastor's vision for the church includes being a kind of way-point for short-term trips to Asia and training for long-term missionaries going to Asia.  It definitely helped me connect with a few people when I mentioned what I felt God was directing me to do in Mongolia.  God has also provided easier transportation to the church.  The first day, I took the subway and a taxi to get there.  It took about 50 minutes but cost about 5 dollars.  However, I met a friend who lives in Anyang, just a short distance from my place.  She has given me rides to church each Sunday, making it much cheaper and easier to get to Suwon.

I am really enjoying my time in Korea and am looking forward to the coming months.  The evidence of his work here is obvious and I am excited to see and experience what he has in store for the future.