Summer is Coming

After what seems like weeks, I have finally found a moment to slip away from my adorable, but demanding host sisters, to sit in my favorite coffee shop and try to formulate my thoughts into words.

The oldest and youngest host sisters (8,4) at our day at the park

Let me start by recounting a conversation my host parents and I had a few weeks ago. It went like this:
Host dad: Tessa, we have a problem.
Me: Really? What can I do?
Host dad: Can we fly to France with you in July?
-on the inside, I'm like, "Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm------------"
Me: Yes...but I am not flying to France, I am visiting my grandmother in Germany.
Host dad: Hmm, when are you in France?
Me: August.
-here my host dad and host mom exchange looks and speak non-verbally
Host dad: Can we come in August?
Me: Sure!

And just like that it will be my turn to host my host-family for one week in August. I am excited for this, but I am also aware it will cut my time with my family a bit short, and leave me quite tired, right before my studies at Gordon-Conwell start...especially because my host mom cannot come, leaving me to share my host dad's burden of being sole entertainment providers for my host sisters (aged 8,6,4).

Jeungpyeong country side

My host family's upcoming trip to Europe has left the girls very excited. Every day they ask questions about what life in Europe is like. Often at the dinner table I will get questions like, "Do they have rice in Europe?" "Do they like spicy food?" "Do they have seaweed?"

A trip to the country side with my host family

Just recently the eldest makes me watch baking videos with her. Not just your average muffin, or cookie either, but elaborate recipes of unicorn cupcakes and kakao-talk animal muffins. She asks me after each one, "Can we make this in France?" Since their trip to my home is two months away, and I don't really know what we can and can't make, I don't want to say no yet. But it has gotten to the point where the list of things she wants to make includes:

• kakao-talk muffins
• unicorn cupcakes
• totoro pudding
• Lion (Korean character) cookies
• Spongebob cookies
• Pokemon cake

Now anyone looking at that list could tell that even making one item would involve a bit of work...add to that the fact that my host sisters are all under the age of 10, and don't know how to bake...recipe for disaster...

Lastly, one thing that has been on my mind a lot, partially because of my host family's trip to Europe, is Europe itself. In light of the London attacks that have happened over the past three months my host mom asked me the other day, "Is Europe safe?" Even just a year ago I would have replied without hesitation, "Absolutely. You don't have to be afraid when you visit Europe, nothing bad will happen to you."
Now the answer is so much more complicated, because yes, I still believe Europe is much safer than certain parts of the world, but one thing is clear: It is not the Europe of my childhood anymore. And this makes me sad.

A view of my neighborhood. My house is behind the white one in the middle of the picture.

Travel sketches

Throughout the grant year I have been keeping up my travel sketchbook. have almost filled my journal with sketches of all the places I have visited. Mostly I have traveled in Korea, but I also included some sketches from my winter trip to Japan. Below you can find a sample of the kind of sketches I've done.

I travel sketch for several reasons:
1. It is entertaining. I am never bored if I have paper and pen.
2. It is a way to remember. When I sketch something, regardless of the quality of my sketch, I remember the place better than if I were to take a hundred selfies in front of it.
3. In our age of photography, I find that photos often loose meaning for me. Moreover, I am not a good photographer. My photos are always out of focus, have no objective and lack creativity. My sketches are different, and I like knowing that there is only one of them.

I started my journal with a self portrait, done in September at my desk in school.

This is an old fortress in my city, Cheongju.

This is Seongri-san, about one hour from my city. My host family took me here in October.

Reeds, Suncheon Bay. November 2016

I love going to coffee shops in Korea, and this one is walking distance from my house.

Visiting my friend, Elsa, in Japan. December-January

Mount Fuji was visible from the mountain we climbed to see the first sunrise of the year. January 1st, 2017

The architecture museum in Tokyo

Mixing old with new, in Seoul. Feb. 2017

A visit to Gyeongbukgung (palace) in Seoul, with my mom. March 2017

Fulbright conference in Jeju, April 2017

Jeju

The Bamboo forest in Damyang, May 2017

Beoseong Green Tea Festival, May 2017

Green tea fields, Boseong, May 2017

March update: Mom's visit, and more

This past month has been a whirlwind. The new semester started, and I have been teaching 6th grade for the past 4 weeks. 2 more weeks with 6th grade, then 6 weeks teaching 5th grade, and 6 weeks teaching 3rd grade and I am finished. Time seems to both fly by and crawl very slowly. I see this especially in the fickleness of the weather. One day I am outside with nothing but a light sweater, and the next day it is so cold I am wearing a hat and scarf! At this point I am both happy and sad that I have only 3 more months.

Gyeongbukgung palace, Seoul

Last week my mom visited from France. I picked her up Friday the 17th, to spend a weekend in Seoul. The very day we met, I got the worst cold I've had in a long time. Monday through Friday we spent in Cheongju, where I was able to show her my workplace and introduce her to my vice-principal and principal. We also spent some time with my host family, and then returned to Seoul for the second weekend. Sunday the 26th I brought her to the airport and said goodbye until July.
Below are pictures from our time together.

It was special to have my mom visit for several reasons:

The palace gardens

• I have cool parents who will spend money on an expensive ticket just to come see me.

Cheongju

• It was an interesting experience to be around someone again, for an extended period of time, who actually understands what I say. 

Seoul, Korea National Museum

• It made me realize that I have a tendency to retreat into my own world around my co-workers or others who only speak Korean. It's both a blessing and a curse. At work, when we have a long meeting and I don't understand a single word, I can escape into my mind, and plan the to-do list for the week, or think about a book I've recently read and would like to write a paper on in grad-school. But at the same time it keeps me from actively engaging with the world around me....

The museum

• I realized that I will definitely have culture shock going back to Germany in the summer...it will be very, very strange to understand everyone around me, and I think it will be almost as tiring as NOT understanding anyone around me.

The museum

• I forgot what it feels like to be around family. After almost 8 months with my host family, I consider them to be the closest thing to family that I have in Korea. However, that doesn't replace the comfortable feeling of familiarity you get with your own family. :)

Saying goodbye at Incheon

Settling into a New Life

It has been a little over one week in my new city, which I now call home for one year: Cheongju.

Last day at orientation, our orientation leaders are saying goodbye up front, as most of them are heading back to the States.
We owe them a lot for all the training they gave us! 

Last Friday, my wonderful co-teacher picked me up from Goesan after the Fulbright Orientation closing ceremony, and presented me with a beautiful flower bouquet from my school, Jeungan Elementray School, as a welcome present.

My host school welcomed me with a flower bouquet. 

She drove me to Cheongju and introduced me to my host family: host father, mother, and three little girls (3,5,7). The family welcomed me Friday night with a delicious cake and over the next few days showed me around the neighborhood. Our communication skills are limited, as they speak only a little English, and I speak only a little Korean. But with the help of a dictionary, we manage. I think as time goes on, it will get easier to communicate. My host sisters are full of energy and so cute I can't help smiling even when they are behaving naughty. As is part of Korean culture, the youngest always shares her food with me, and the others include me in their games as well. I don't think they understand that I don't understand them. Or maybe they just don't care. They speak Korean with me, and I think I will learn a lot from them.

My wonderful host family presented me with a beautiful cake, which we proceeded to eat with chopsticks!

Elementary school students don't begin the new semester until September, so this past week I have been helping another of my co-teachers teach the English camp. Tuesday welcomed third and fourth graders for one week. We sung Do-Re-Mi from Sound of Music and especially the boys participated with gusto! I also taught them a short dance from Zootopia, animals sounds and a Zootopia role-play. I had to practice the dance a lot...we all know how great I am at dancing! ;)
My co-teacher and I usually take our lunch hour at a local restaurant, as she is introducing me to various Korean dishes. I have promised myself to be courageous this year, so yesterday I tried larvae, fish liver and some kind of sea snail. It wasn't terrible, although I do not think I will willingly order any of the above again! Korean food has plenty of other delicious choices to choose from!

One of the three English rooms I will be teaching in. My desk and computer are in this classroom. I will have about 25-30 children per class. Overall, I will be teaching close to 400 students! 

There are over 8 ETAs in Cheongju. I am thankful for their presence and emotional support. During the week I do not see them a lot, although a few live in walking distance from me. However we are all trying to spend as much time with our school and host family as possible, to get used to each other and make the transition easier for all of us.

Last Sunday an ETA friend and I visited Sang Dang Church, which offers an English worship service. It was so good to have fellowship with others in a language that I understand! Both of us felt very welcomed and are planning on attending again!

This update has been a bit longer than most, but more has happened in the past week
than in the past six weeks! A new update to follow next week!
Peace out.

Jeju Island Day 2 and 3

Two weeks after the actual trip I finally get around to posting about the last two days of my Jeju Island adventure! Life of a University Student...busy...well, actually not that busy, but I've been struggling with a bit of a cold. Well, really I have no excuses for posting so late!
So, without further ado, here is my last post on Jeju Island:

Day 2 Part 1

After the weather fiasco of our first day on Jeju Island, we decided to go to the opposite side of the Island to see if the weather would be any better! And it was, praise the Lord! We had no rain, and even a little sun! It was beautiful.

The grass of Sangumburi made beautiful music!

 On the morning of the second day, we took the bus to inland south east. There we visited Sangumburi the world's only flat-land crater. It is over 250 meters deep (800 ft) and simply breathtaking! The fields around the crater are some sort of grass that rustles in the wind and turns silver in fall. When we arrived the fog was just lifting, and it gave the whole area a rather mystical air. I will attempt to capture it in a painting one of these days, but I haven't gotten around to it yet! :D

The crater itself. It seemed like the footprint of a giant.

 Day 2 Part 2

My first thought upon seeing Ilchulbong was,
"This is gonna be hard to paint!"

The steps of doooooooooom

After the crater, we took the bus a little farther to the actual coast, and I was not prepared for the sight. It was stunning! The Lord truly is artist of artists! Connected to the island by a thin strip of land rises a dormant volcano. It is over 250 meters high (800 ft) and can be hiked via steep stairs. The hike was tiring, but only took 20 min. (however 20 min. of continuous stair-climbing is exhausting!!!). At the top of the volcano our view was breathtaking.

The now dormant volcano.
You feel as if you are on the top of the world

The view overlooking Jeju Island from Ilchulbong volcano

Before us the blue of the ocean faded into the blue of the sky, creating a palette of hues. Behind us the island stretched out far; mountains rose gently in the distance, and a wall of fog and clouds could be seen miles off. However where we were the sun warmed us in the cold wind. It was magical!

Nature is hard to describe. I think that is why I like painting it. Painting comes closest to capturing the beauty of nature. Perhaps better writers could aptly describe the magnitude and underlying meanings nature holds for us humans. I'm sure Lewis or Tolkien could have done justice to it. However I can't. So I'll stop trying! Let it suffice to say, that I was in awe: In awe of nature, in awe of beauty and in awe of God who created it all.

The cliffs of Ilchulbong  

Day 3

Our last day on the island was once again spent in the southern part. We visited one of the three main waterfall sites on the island (Cheonjeyeon). The creek flows through a deep ravine into the ocean and is split into three waterfalls. The first one, seen below, only flows after heavy rains. 

The second is the most idyllic. I felt like I had entered a cove of the Pirates of the Caribbean! 

The third one took a while to climb down to, and was a little smaller and less magnificent. However it was fun gazing into the blue pool of water below, imagining the 6 foot eels swimming below. Supposedly they are a very delicious delicacy....I'm not sure I'll try that....

(I actually didn't take a picture of the third one....guilty as charged!)

Our last night in Jeju we went out and ate Korean Pork BBQ for dinner. It was very good! Our waitress served us seafood as a treat, including little baby octopus-like fish. I ate them! I am very proud for eating the tiny little tentacles! They were good, however I had to close my eyes to keep my imagination in place...

And that's all for tonight, folks!

The ocean on our second day at Jeju Island, at the foot of Ilchulbong

Insadong

A side street in Insadong

My friend and I set out this morning to find Bukchon Hanok village, where you can see traditional Korean architecture. After getting off at the correct subway stop, we decided to walk around Insadong first, which is a souvenir shopping area. Well...we never did make it to Bukchon! Maybe next time!

Street artists

The film shoot 

Along the way, we ran into a film crew. I'm not sure whether this was for a drama, commercial, or what not, but it was fascinating to watch the director talk to the actors, etc. After stopping in numerous shops, and after spending more money than I had meant to... (hehe..yeah...) we stumbled upon the Insadong-cultural center. Here you pay 3000 won (equivalent to 3 dollars) and get to play dress up in traditional Korean clothing! (Hanbok)

Below: The pictures

Traditional umbrella hat?

Beautiful!! ^^

Deoksugung (Palace)

Thursday, two friends and I went to Deoksugung (gung means palace). It is the smallest one of several palaces in Seoul, and simply stunning!

We ate dinner at a delicious Korean 식당 (restaurant), where an kindly Korean grandfather served us and talked to us in Korean, whilst we nodded our heads and smiled politely, pretending we understood more than we actually did. We then entered the palace. Entry fee is only 1000 Won, equivalent to less than a dollar.

Entrance to the courtyard leading to throne room

Although it was dark by now, the palace was well lit, we walked around the grounds, and entered the throne room. I say throne room, but Korean palaces are very different from any of the numerous castles and palaces in Europe. Instead of one building, with many different rooms and hall, Korean palaces are a construction of several buildings, each serving its own purpose. The buildings are intricately decorated in colors symbolizing various things.

Courtyard infront of the throne room

It was a wonderful feeling to walk where centuries ago people lived and served their king. Because it was dark, and rather cold, we were almost alone on the grounds. It was a little island of calm amidst the rising skyscrapers and traffic choir of Seoul. It was peaceful.

The throne room 

Later in the evening we joined a small audience to watch a Korean traditional performance. It was unlike anything I've ever seen. The dancing and music was more rhythmic than melodic, and several of the older spectators joined the dancing, enjoying the performance very much.

Dancing and drumming

My favorite part of the performance was seeing the expressions of the musicians. They breathed the music. When artists believe in what they are doing, it makes the audience believe. Through the vivid expressions of the musicians, I began to understand a little bit of the great history and love these people have for their country. 

 A short clip of part of the performance. Sorry for the bad quality, my camera does not do well at night! But hopefully you get the idea of what it was like!

S.A.C. Water Fountain and more!

NOTE: I wrote this last week, and completely forgot to publish it...so here it is! A week late....yeah....

Although today is only Tuesday, it was the last day of classes, as the rest of the week is vacation. Korea  celebrates thanksgiving on Thursday. Because of Chusok (as it is called) we get to have the rest of the week off! I'm feeling thankful indeed!
Here's a picture of my lecture notes on todays classes (19th century Brit. Novel and Studies in Post Colonial Lit), just to show that I'm not JUST having fun here in Seoul! ^_^





 Yesterday a friend and I went to the S.A.C. (Seoul Arts Center). The same place I had been hiking at a week before. Because we are students, we get to buy tickets at a pretty decent price. That night a Korean pianist was playing Chopin, and I was so excited to see her! Chopin is one of my favorite composers.

Sorry for the bad quality, I only had my iPod to take pictures!
Here's the outside of S.A.C.

The musical water fountain!

The two of us left early to take the subway, because it takes 45 min to get to the center. The subway was packed, as we accidentally hit rush hour. I can now say from experience, rush hour in Seoul is no fun. However we made it in one piece, with an hour to spare before the concert began. After getting our tickets, we sat in front of S.A.C. to listen to the water fountain. Every night the fountain plays music and the water dances in tune (or so it seems). It is simply beautiful. A lot of spectators were sitting around the fountain, simply enjoying the free spectacle. I am definitely planning on going back soon!
Here's a video of the fountain:

The concert itself was wonderful as well. Chopin has a way of mesmerizing your ears, and watching the talented pianist's hands fly over the keys had a way of mesmerizing the eyes. I definitely am a fan of piano (and not just 'cause I play it myself). All in all, it was a wonderfully successful night. God is definitely good, for letting me experience such a variety of things during my time here in Seoul.