Well, there were changes; but the changes had nothing to do with me. Sometimes when we are alone there is the tendency to become paranoid. Nothing has changed in my employment. There is something going on in the family of my host and I have no idea what it is, but it has nothing to do with me.
I am going back to Seoul tonight and will be giving English lessons to my English student this weekend. He is a very special student and I want to continue with these lessons.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Changes
Things have changed. I have no idea why they have and no idea in what way they have changed. I think being in a different culture is like a bull being in a China shop or at least for me. I am sure I have broken some rules inadvertently. As for my students, I am sure things are fine between us and the administration of the university where I do most of my teaching seems to be just fine. It is the host family that arranged my stay that is the problem, if that is the word that can be used.
I mentioned at one point that I can't live in two cities at once because it is getting too much to travel back and forth in one week. I think I am too old to live from a suitcase. Still, I thought I was getting along with the families that I was living with. It is hard to know when you upset people and when you don't. At one point I declined a local food because I felt I might be allergic to it and I don't eat as much food as Koreans do. The host cook thought it meant that I did not like Korean food. It took the hard work of a translator to convince her that I love Korean food and that I have allergy problems with some food and that I don't eat after I am full.
I am sure I have pulled some mistakes on more than a few times. I was never meant for the diplomatic corps. I think I did something and am going to be taken to task for it today. I hope I won't be deported for it. Again, I am fine with my students, but who knows what I did with the host family.
I do enjoy Korea and my classes. I enjoy teaching English far more than I thought I would. I have been teaching myself the alphabet and the language. I would hate to give that up. I have learned if you don't use a language that you have learned you lose it.
I will write when I know what is happening or have more information. I owe some money to the host family in an effort to get along here and I have no idea how much. I asked my son help in getting an itemized amount since I have not been successful in this. When my son tried to find out, he discovered that the contract for bringing me out here is changing. They have been asking me to pay for things that I thought they would be paying for. Again, I don't know if this is what is upsetting them. My son doesn't know either. His wife, my daughter-in-law, speaks fluent Korean and is trying to speak to them by telephone. I will just have to be patient and find out what is happening.
I mentioned at one point that I can't live in two cities at once because it is getting too much to travel back and forth in one week. I think I am too old to live from a suitcase. Still, I thought I was getting along with the families that I was living with. It is hard to know when you upset people and when you don't. At one point I declined a local food because I felt I might be allergic to it and I don't eat as much food as Koreans do. The host cook thought it meant that I did not like Korean food. It took the hard work of a translator to convince her that I love Korean food and that I have allergy problems with some food and that I don't eat after I am full.
I am sure I have pulled some mistakes on more than a few times. I was never meant for the diplomatic corps. I think I did something and am going to be taken to task for it today. I hope I won't be deported for it. Again, I am fine with my students, but who knows what I did with the host family.
I do enjoy Korea and my classes. I enjoy teaching English far more than I thought I would. I have been teaching myself the alphabet and the language. I would hate to give that up. I have learned if you don't use a language that you have learned you lose it.
I will write when I know what is happening or have more information. I owe some money to the host family in an effort to get along here and I have no idea how much. I asked my son help in getting an itemized amount since I have not been successful in this. When my son tried to find out, he discovered that the contract for bringing me out here is changing. They have been asking me to pay for things that I thought they would be paying for. Again, I don't know if this is what is upsetting them. My son doesn't know either. His wife, my daughter-in-law, speaks fluent Korean and is trying to speak to them by telephone. I will just have to be patient and find out what is happening.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Messages
I have received two messages and I am sorry to say I can't figure out how to answer them. I will say that my English classes are going well. Everyone at my university are trying so hard to make me feel welcomed. I have two classes and one special student. They are great.
I live in two cities which is hard right now. I also can't get paid because I don't have a bank account and I can't get a bank account because I don't have a resident alien card. I can't get a resident card because I could not complete the physical in order to get the resident card. I did that yesterday and all I am waiting for is the results of the blood work which I should pass.
Although I am running around, I feel great. I am losing weight. I am learning a new language and meeting new people. I am hoping to get paid soon. Things seem to be working out in the US regarding my house although my cat got out for one week and it was the one that was not fixed. I explained to my son that Mary Russell needs to be fixed right away now. Having kittens is not a possibility right now and I doubt if child support is a possibility(joke).
Getting to a computer that has Internet is not always easy. This university is on a green policy which means it is very cold inside the buildings and I have my gloves on and it is hard to type with them one.
I live in two cities which is hard right now. I also can't get paid because I don't have a bank account and I can't get a bank account because I don't have a resident alien card. I can't get a resident card because I could not complete the physical in order to get the resident card. I did that yesterday and all I am waiting for is the results of the blood work which I should pass.
Although I am running around, I feel great. I am losing weight. I am learning a new language and meeting new people. I am hoping to get paid soon. Things seem to be working out in the US regarding my house although my cat got out for one week and it was the one that was not fixed. I explained to my son that Mary Russell needs to be fixed right away now. Having kittens is not a possibility right now and I doubt if child support is a possibility(joke).
Getting to a computer that has Internet is not always easy. This university is on a green policy which means it is very cold inside the buildings and I have my gloves on and it is hard to type with them one.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Assessment
I am now in Korea at my new job teaching not only at one university but at two of them. I even got an early bonus so I can get some needed items and this laptop computer. I will be getting a cell phone and service and will pay for it when I get my first full paycheck next month.
The country is unbelievably beautiful and everyone is so friendly and nice; however with all of the previous exercise that I was getting and the cut down in my diet I find that what I am now experiencing is a huge change.
Koreans eat a lot. Everytime they sit down to talk with each other they have platefuls of food and lots of hot tea to drink. Everyone I have met have cars and they use them a lot so that it is bumper to bumper everywhere. However, this is a very big however, what they eat is very, very healthy. I have never seen as yet an over-weight person whether old, middle-age or young, not even pleasantly plump. When they are sitting and conversing they are eating plates of raw fruit. The world could learn a thing or two from the Koreans on how to eat well and stay healthy.
They may drive around a lot in their cars and trucks but they also walk quite a bit after they park their cars. Many buildings do not have elevators. When I see walking trails in parks, and I see them often, I see many people of all ages walking and biking on them. It is amazing how many hours everyone works too.
I have not realized how much I have stopped moving. I considered going to the store a major form of exercise. I had to assess the plans that I had made so that I could be healthier this summer because they were a pale imitation at what I am doing now. My legs hurt all of the time and not because I am excercising but because of the normal activities that everyone does here.
I am eating what everyone else is eating. This means plenty of rice which is great because I love it, raw vegetable or barely cooked, lots of fruit all day long, tea without sugar. The only thing that I am not endulging is the hot sauces that is part of the Korean diet, but hot spices have never been part of my life. I don't think it is possible for Koreans that I have met to understand that I cannot tolerate even the mildest form of hot sauce. For me, the frozen Mexican dinners that are in the frozen section of your supermarket in the US are too hot for me. As for half and half, I have given up finding it. Just having milk for my coffee is a treat. I brought instant coffee for my mornings and I don't know what I will do when that runs out for I don't know where the stores are yet. There is free coffee in the universities but no milk, just instant stuff.
When I was younger, I was far more active then I had become of late. I slowly slid into a lazy sort of life style that I had not noticed. I used to walk, take the bus and just do lots of things. Then I did a lot more snuggling in my reading chair and I watched television ever so often. Thatwas a mistake too. No one seems to do that here. The television stays off for the most part in the homes I have been in.
My first classes start this Monday. I have an office and eat free there and of course it is Korean. No one has a scale and no one is concerned with their weight. Big surprise! The larger sized foreigners have to buy their clothes in a special part of town and are called the European Size shops. They have special shops for the men too as the Koreans are not as tall or robust as Americans are either even if Americans are not over-weight. For instance, Foreign women are bigger in the hips than Koreans are. One woman who is not over-weight said she had trouble taking baths for the tubs are super small and I, myself, can attest to that.
When I started this blog, I had no idea I would be continuing this blog from another country. I also had no idea that I would be in such a stark change of diet and physical activities. There is no doubt these chances are for the best. Although I ache, I feel great.
The country is unbelievably beautiful and everyone is so friendly and nice; however with all of the previous exercise that I was getting and the cut down in my diet I find that what I am now experiencing is a huge change.
Koreans eat a lot. Everytime they sit down to talk with each other they have platefuls of food and lots of hot tea to drink. Everyone I have met have cars and they use them a lot so that it is bumper to bumper everywhere. However, this is a very big however, what they eat is very, very healthy. I have never seen as yet an over-weight person whether old, middle-age or young, not even pleasantly plump. When they are sitting and conversing they are eating plates of raw fruit. The world could learn a thing or two from the Koreans on how to eat well and stay healthy.
They may drive around a lot in their cars and trucks but they also walk quite a bit after they park their cars. Many buildings do not have elevators. When I see walking trails in parks, and I see them often, I see many people of all ages walking and biking on them. It is amazing how many hours everyone works too.
I have not realized how much I have stopped moving. I considered going to the store a major form of exercise. I had to assess the plans that I had made so that I could be healthier this summer because they were a pale imitation at what I am doing now. My legs hurt all of the time and not because I am excercising but because of the normal activities that everyone does here.
I am eating what everyone else is eating. This means plenty of rice which is great because I love it, raw vegetable or barely cooked, lots of fruit all day long, tea without sugar. The only thing that I am not endulging is the hot sauces that is part of the Korean diet, but hot spices have never been part of my life. I don't think it is possible for Koreans that I have met to understand that I cannot tolerate even the mildest form of hot sauce. For me, the frozen Mexican dinners that are in the frozen section of your supermarket in the US are too hot for me. As for half and half, I have given up finding it. Just having milk for my coffee is a treat. I brought instant coffee for my mornings and I don't know what I will do when that runs out for I don't know where the stores are yet. There is free coffee in the universities but no milk, just instant stuff.
When I was younger, I was far more active then I had become of late. I slowly slid into a lazy sort of life style that I had not noticed. I used to walk, take the bus and just do lots of things. Then I did a lot more snuggling in my reading chair and I watched television ever so often. Thatwas a mistake too. No one seems to do that here. The television stays off for the most part in the homes I have been in.
My first classes start this Monday. I have an office and eat free there and of course it is Korean. No one has a scale and no one is concerned with their weight. Big surprise! The larger sized foreigners have to buy their clothes in a special part of town and are called the European Size shops. They have special shops for the men too as the Koreans are not as tall or robust as Americans are either even if Americans are not over-weight. For instance, Foreign women are bigger in the hips than Koreans are. One woman who is not over-weight said she had trouble taking baths for the tubs are super small and I, myself, can attest to that.
When I started this blog, I had no idea I would be continuing this blog from another country. I also had no idea that I would be in such a stark change of diet and physical activities. There is no doubt these chances are for the best. Although I ache, I feel great.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Los Angeles
I took the Amtrak train to Los Angeles and it was great. I met some very interesting people and saw one dolphin and some seals in the ocean. It was also raining when we got into the mountains. It gave the mountains a very soft and dreamy look like a watercolar painting.
We went by this large men's prison and a line of prisoners just stood there and watched the train go by, hand and arms down by their sides without moving. The train track is higher than the prison so we could look down into the prison yard. It was very sad to me.
I am staying in Culver City and in a house high above the city. Because of recent rain storms, you can see the surrounding mountains and they are covered with snow. It is quite beautiful.
Today as a treat, we went to Los Angeles Zoo and saw some animals in cages and a very nice chimpanese cage. Then we went to Denny's for lunch, but someone from India who could not read English opened the exit door and the alarm went off and it got very cold in there. It was cold in LA as it is. Still, we all had a nice time. There was some Korean students with us.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Leaving tonight
I will be leaving tonight for Los Angeles for a week while I get my passport stamped with a VISA for my new job. While there, I will be working with some students who are in L.A. and then leave for Korea. The semester has already begun, but it could not be helped.
I have food allergies or intolerances and it will not be easy eating there. I suspect I will be eating a very simple diet of rice without any sauces of any kind. I cannot eat soy sauce nor the red paste they have. I also can't tolerate the MSG they have
in Korea as it is based on wheat as it is in Canada. I have been doing some research. As far as I can see, I will be going basically vegetarian with raw vegetables and fruits and plenty of rice. The advice that I got from the Internet is not to trust the list of ingredients on food that I purchase as Korea is not very advanced in that area as yet.The Koreans are big on hiking and walking and that is very healthy for me so I will be going along with that. I am taking walking shoes and my pair of hiking
boots that I never used. I got them for snow that I never used them. I never use heels anymore and I won't. From my reading on the Internet, the Koreans are very conservative in dress which is fine. I am taking a few pairs of jeans and jeans skirts. I am taking skirts mostly since they all have ties at the waist and can be easily adjusted.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
The wait is over
The wait is finally over. I got the job for sure and will be teaching at a national university in Korea at a rate that is surprisingly good. Anyone here in the United States would be happy with such a deal as this and they asked me and not the other way around. What an astonishing turn of events. I will be in the Los Angeles area for a while getting my Visa taken care of and will leave in a few days for Korea. I intend to continue my blogging.
My initial contract says six months. We will just have to wait and see what will happen. I am not taking very much and trying to get a Kindle so that I don't have to buy books which will be very heavy to carry. I can't do without my books. I will be getting some sort of laptop when I am there.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Just waiting and wondering
I am still in an holding pattern although I was hoping that I would hear something today. Maybe, I will hear something tomorrow. I have been ill, somewhat, and it all is related to stress. I am getting better about it though. I don't have this waiting game beat though. It still makes plenty nervous.
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