Sunshine and Roaring Pandas

The last weeks in Seoul

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 05:58:00 +0000

Took me awhile, but here's my final post for my adventures in Korea. Nelson and I explored Seoul and had a blast!

Outside the amusement park, Seoul Land.

According to a couples' tradition in Korea, if you put a lock at the top of a mountain with your significant other, your love is supposed to last forever...something like that :).

We have 2 locks on top of Nam Mountain in Seoul.

Namsan or Nam Mountain has an observatory tower on top, where you can see all of Seoul.

One view from the observatory tower.

Sticker photos!

Doctor fish.

Soooooo ticklish.

All of the lights

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:08:00 +0000

I went with some friends to a Lantern Festival in Seoul's Downtown stream. Then Nelson and I went again. There were amazing traditional lanterns that were life size and larger.

I need to catch up on my Korean history, but a lot of the lanterns were based on old Korean kings and their entourages.

Yup, that's Batman.

I also need to catch up on my Korean folktales. The tiger and grandma battle it out and grandma wins. Love it ^^

Another folktale. The girl gave her life so her blind father could see. So impressed by her selflessness, some god gave her life back. And she was reborn in a lotus flower...(the last part I might have made up lol).

Year of the Rabbit

Mash up of videos Nelson and I have recorded in the past 2 weeks.

Fun bar Nelson and I found in Hongdae.

Little Dudu, my new friend.

We also found some cool street art in Hongdae.

More pics and the Thanksgiving feast Nelson and I dished up on Nelson's blog.

The good, the bad, and the ugly

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:57:00 +0000

The good: Nelson is coming to Korea in exactly 2 weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We went on our monthly field trip this past Thursday with the kindergarteners to a sweet potato farm. It was the shiiiiiiz, especially considering how much I love Korean sweet potatoes. I picked a couple of sweet potatoes and one of my coworkers gave me a bag full that she got.

The teachers helped the little ones pick their own sweet potatoes.

The students were shouting, "Teacher, teacher look!" every 2 seconds. Very entertaining.

My Korean son picked many.

The pre-kinder students brought so much food; it was a junk food feast. Of course no one wanted to eat their lunch.

The bad: Ownership has changed at my school. I want to be optimistic about this change, but so far the transition has been really rough. I missed picture day with the kindergarteners and got dressed up for nothing because of poor management and idiocy. So...I took pictures for myself. Not as professional and not very well posed, but I like these better.

I don't know how professional photographers get these kids to sit still!

They love photobombing! Hahaha

The ugly: I made banana bread with my coworker, Samantha, and her Dutch Oven. She showed me how to use this contraption that she learned to use while in the Peace Corps in Mozambique. A dutch oven is basically a pot inside another pot, like a rice cooker, but without the steam vent so no heat escapes. I was extremely impressed. Although this banana bread doesn't look particularly appetizing in the picture, it was SLAMMING! I will be making this again...many times.

At the end of the field trip, one of my pre-kinder students decided she wanted to use my camera.

I was really tired because I just let her do it.

She took many funny shots of her classmate, Kevin.

Goofball :)

That's the photographer on the right, Dionisia.

Tofu is amazing

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 15:57:00 +0000

Ever since forever I've been wanting to learn how to make soft tofu stew or soondubu jjigae (순두부찌개). So I tried it for the second time today and it was delicious! (The first time I tried it in Florida and was unsuccessful. I now realize that not all tofu are the same and I was using the wrong type of tofu.)

My stepdad loves this dish. I secretly loved when he bought it from H-mart.

New phone, New recipes, New appreciation for Halloween

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 16:50:00 +0000

I've finally joined the touch phone world! I was reluctant and fought it for years, but I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 and I'm loving all the fun apps. Sorry, I can't play Words with Friends or Hanging with Friends because there is no Droid app for those games in Korea. I'm learning so much about phone technology with this phone. The best thing about this phone is it has an 8 megapixel camera! So I will probably be posting a lot more pictures :).

Some new recipes I've tried with success:

Spicy rice cake or ddukbokki (떡볶이). It came out well, but I made it wayyy too spicy. Burned my mouth. I'm sure Resa would have loved it. :P

Beef and quail eggs in soy sauce or jangjorim (장조림). It also has garlic, peppers, honey, and kelp. I believe I've had this dish before back home, but I never realized how much I liked it until I bought some from a butcher's shop in Korea. It's sooooo tasty and a new favorite.

I was dreading Halloween at work, but the little ones reminded me how much fun Halloween could be.

Already fighting over a man (*shaking my head). Actually those two girls are always fighting over something.

Alex is feeding Brody one of the ghosts we made out of a dum dum, tape, and tissue.

We made chocolate muffin crumb dirt and sour worms the kids ate.

The little one hanging on my neck is Ted. He's my favorite pre kinder student and I wish my future son will be just like him. He's so sweet and has such personality! He brings me a sticker or candy every morning. He often carries my basket to the classroom when I teach his class. He always tries so hard to read and remember what I teach him. He also tries to punch or molest me at least once a day, but he's 5...all is forgiven after a stern look is returned with a smile and a giggle. He's obviously not afraid of me. I'm in love...sigh.

I was a twin for my Halloween costume. I know, very cheap. LOL. We had matching headbands!

There's my darling again! I <3 Ted.

We had at least 3 different Snow Whites. They were all adorable.

Check out the video below. We had a mummy contest...it was intense.

Longest day and week ever! My desk space hasn't looked this bad at work in a minute.

Fireworks and Crowds

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 09:17:00 +0000

On Saturday, Seoul hosted an International Fireworks Festival in Yeouido Park (next to the Han River and the 63 Building I visited previously). It was the first festival I've been to in Seoul and it was insane. I went with my coworker. Even though we had heard it was going to be super crowded, I don't think we imagined the extent of it (we never found the other coworker we were supposed to meet up with). My coworker, Daniesha, took a video of us lining up to get on the subway on the way to the park (check out her video). We were pushed on just like you see the Japanese have to do on their Tokyo subway! There was nowhere to turn or any space, just bodies. I was laughing so hard I started crying. Ridiculously crowded. We actually got pushed off the train a stop too early because we were too close to the doors and too many people behind us wanted to get off. So we followed the mass of people walking to the park.

There were 3 different fireworks shows, 2 different countries went before Korea. Korea was 최고 - the best! Each show was about 20 minutes or so long. AWESOMENESS!

Many thanks to the best cousins ever, Tina and Resa! This camera rocks!

I love the colors! Can I design fireworks as a career? I think it could be an awesome job. Darn, I just googled it and it starts off with being familiar with chemistry. No thanks.

Check out the heart!

Cultural Differences: USA and Korea, Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 17:15:00 +0000

This is for Luigia. I promised to describe some of the cultural differences between the USA and Korea. (The pictures have nothing to do with the topic.) So far this is what I've experienced...

I have a great view from my studio and sometimes it rewards me (like the above traditional dancers). Mostly it's just annoying to hear a loud game announcer for an 8am soccer game on Saturdays.

I reward my students with stickers.

I really like the eye stickers because they're interactive.

Shoes. (I love shoes, I couldn't help noticing this first.) I immediately noticed all the ladies wearing sandals or heels of some sort in the airport. The few chicas I've seen wearing sneaks were young girls or women about to go hiking. All the ladies have small feet. My size 7.5-8.5 is the largest shoe size.
"Excuse me." When do I say it? After a burp, fart, to get around someone in the way? My aunt told me that you say nothing. Just move on (or past). I think there are a couple of phrases you can use to get past someone or get someone's attention, but I've haven't heard them used in public venues.
Even though Koreans stand in line for many things, the subway, hiking trails, etc; they are also infamous for cutting the line with no guilt whatsoever. LOL they're true ballers.
You have to buy specific trash bags for regular trash and food trash (not all food goes in the food trash bag, only what is edible to an animal). Each neighborhood has different prices for the trash bags, which are based on the amount of trash that area produces. Basically, you pay according to how much trash you create. Then you have to sort your trash. I like this. Maybe the US should adopt this method. I read on the Internet that this innovative policy cut 40% of waste in comparison to the pre-policy waste collection (don't quote that statistic though).
To get hot water, you have to turn on/off the heat on the hot water heater. This is a great energy saver and probably increases the longevity of the heater.
Most Koreans do not have a clothes dryer. Clothes lines and drying racks are the norm. Some people don’t even have a washer. I have a washer/dryer combo, but I rarely use the dryer.
All guns are illegal in Korea, unless you’re police or military. So there is less violent crime.
No tipping...really! The service overall is wonderful. You get a grumpy or lazy person now and again, but it’s rare. In fact, I’ve heard some business owners take it offensively if you try to tip their workers; they think you believe they don’t pay their workers enough.
No taxes need to be calculated because it's included in the advertised price. You don’t have to add anything or worry about it. However, you can get discounted prices with many merchants when you use cash (this is true in the US too, but only with gas stations). I payed 310,000 Won instead of 340,000 Won for my yoga classes because I payed in cash.
Clean subway! I’ve seen ladies not only mopping the subway as we ride, but they actually clean the walls of the subway stations too. And there are clean public restrooms at some of the bigger stations.
No need to buy gym membership here (except maybe during the winter) because almost every park has basic mechanical gym equipment. Hiking is a national pastime in Korea. Everyone does it: kids, families, couples, grandpa and grandma, etc.
Metric system.
It's perfectly acceptable and normal to see a 6 or 7 year old with dyed or permed hair. No, they are not child stars or beauty pageant princesses. Many Koreans' are super obsessed with physical appearance, especially skincare. I thought I was overly concerned with my skin, but I regularly see older ladies walking around with umbrellas and with no rain in the forecast. They want to protect their skin from the sun. Some ladies wear really unattractive, long visors. People of all ages and sexes get plastic surgery because Korea has very cheap plastic surgery.

They copied me one day and put them on their faces and eyeglasses. I love the silliness ;)

Traffic rules are considered only suggestions by cars most of the time. Almost every taxi cab I've been a passenger in has run a red light. Mopeds and similar vehicles never follow traffic rules, they ride on the road, sidewalk, run red lights, anything they want. I don't think it's as bad as other countries (for example, Peru was nuts!), but it's still different from the US. I read somewhere on the Internet that Korea has the highest number of car accidents in the world...not sure if this is true though.
Koreans LOVE to work. They become very dedicated to their companies. It's not unusual to be expected to work on a weekend with no complaints. No one takes a sick day unless they're completely incapacitated and in the hospital. You better return to work with a doctor's note. Coming to work sick is considered to be showing your commitment to your company and to your fellow coworkers who will have to pick up your work (therefore you're probably more likely to get a promotion).

Naksansa, Seoraksan, Jumunjinsa

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 14:47:00 +0000

I had a three day weekend for Foundation Day this past weekend. Foundation Day is a national holiday in Korea and it celebrates the mythological origin of Korea. I decided to visit literally one of the biggest attractions in Korea. I'd been wanting to do this ever since I realized why my favorite Korean restaurant in Northern Virginia is named Seorak Garden.

First we hung out at Naksan Beach. It was the first time I saw pine trees at the beach.

Naksan Beach is on the west coast of Korea, which is where the best beaches are supposed to be because they're blue and much clearer than the east coast beaches. Naksan Beach had really big waves because the water is very deep.

I made new friends, Laura and Lia, who took this fun photo.

Right next to the beach was a Buddhist temple. Can't remember the name, but it had beautiful views of the sea.

There were several fountains like this one of fresh mountain water. I tried some and it tasted clean, nothing spectacular though.

I guess every temple has to have some kind of water feature.

Traditional Korean building designs are beautiful.

And everything is handmade and handpainted.

I learned the Nazi's copied the Buddhist symbol for peace and made it into the swastika.

This temple was more like a complex. There were a lot of buildings and pathways.

Afterward, I bought toasted dried squid and dried fish, both of which I hadn't had in awhile. It was just as chewy and yummy as I remembered.

We ate a late lunch, I ordered a variation of one of my favorite seafood dishes - raw squid mixed with rice, vegetables, and hot sauce. Also known as hwedubbap (회덮밥). It was so fresh tasting because the cook fished the squid straight from the tank in front of our table.

Sunday, we went to Seorak Mountain! I believe it's the largest and most well-known mountain in Korea.

Beautiful waterscapes and landscapes left and right. I took so many photos.

AFT - apparently it's a tourist acronym for Another Farting Temple. Well, I'm still enjoying them. The same fellow hiker that told me about AFT said Buddhist temples are all tucked away in Korea (in mountains or at beaches) because originally Buddhism was not well accepted in Korea. Other Asian countries often have as many temples in the cities as they do in the country, but Korea is different.

About halfway up.

My sore legs are in payment for these beautiful Kodak moments.

We were hiking up the Ulsan Boulder trail. If you look closely, there were many rock climbers too, which was amazing because those boulders were really smooth. They were using the crevices of the rock to climb up.

Toward the end of the trail there was a mad number of people on the trail and we had to form lines. Traffic while hiking!

I was actually happy for once in traffic, maybe because I wasn't confined to a vehicle.

We made it to the top!!!!

You can't escape the couple's traditions in Korea even many thousands of meters up in a mountain. Each lock represents a couple that climbed the mountain together and it means that their relationship will last forever. They carve or write messages on their locks. So adorable!

Next day, we went to an even better beach called Jumunjin Beach. The water was more shallow and the waves more reasonable. I could see through the clear water and I was looooving it. <3

I went on a Zipline! I couldn't believe how much fun it was! I can't wait to do it again!

Couples and families dress alike in Korea. I used to think my mom was weird for buying us matching shoes or clothes, but now it makes sense. Sorry mom, I'll wear matching outfits with you, but only in Korea. LOL

Our final meal before we returned to Seoul was fresh sea snails or whelk (골뱅이). I love whelk. Yumyum.

I love science class

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:00:00 +0000

I teach an American elementary school curriculum at my school. We mainly use American textbooks and workbooks. I don't get to teach all the subjects at one time, but the students (depending on their grade level) get the same core classes an American student would get: reading, science (it's actually called non-fiction), grammar, phonics, writing, speaking, social studies, and even math.

My favorite class is science! (Then math.) I love all the fun experiments there are in our science book. Today, my kindergarten students learned about shadows. We had a blast!

I think this is supposed to be a monster

Crab.

And the one everyone knows how to do: a rabbit.

The camera is out of order

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 16:58:00 +0000

My camera is out of order. I can't see what I'm taking because the backlight of the viewfinder doesn't light up anymore. Thank goodness Koreans love to fix their electronics (instead of disposing of hardware as Americans often do) because I am not trying to buy a new camera. I got this camera 3 years ago and it still works lovely. I plan to go to Yongsan, the electronics market in Seoul, to see if I can get a cheap repair.

I took a couple of photos today despite not being able to see what I was doing...

I attended a workshop for my school in Incheon today (on a Saturday 0_o). Incheon is supposed to be the up and coming business district of Korea. There is a lot of fancy new construction going on, including this towering building.

After several delays and getting confused making a transfer on the subway, I was able to meet up with Jihye for dinner. We were supposed to catch a drum festival but that didn't work out, darn my job's workshop. I got a very fulfilling dinner though in good company.

One of my stepfather's favorite dishes and one I have to agree is delicious is the one on the right, soondubu jjigae (순두부 찌개). I tried making it a long time ago with little success. On the left is the burnt rice dish that I LOVE called nooroongji (누룽지). I might try to make both dishes later this week.

After dinner, Jihye showed me to Insadong, which is just a short walk from the soondubu restaurant in the Jongak area. Insadong is a known touristy spot of Seoul because it has traditional Korean items for sale. I browsed a bit, saw some really interesting things, and purchased some postcards. (Keep an eye out for something in your mailbox in the next couple of weeks.)

I finally got to see my First soju tent (basically a plastic tent/tarp structure that covers a small number of people getting drunk and sitting on plastic furniture...a temporary bar of a sort). I've been hankering to see one after all the Korean dramas I've watched...that orange thing in the back is it. LOL. Jihye thought it was funny I was so interested in taking a picture of such a commonplace thing. I wonder if Korea requires liquor licenses...

I also bought a handmade, mini-wood Othello game in Insadong! I am soooooooo happy about this purchase. Best thing I've bought in Korea so far. My pieces are dark blue and orange, which is an interesting difference from the traditional white and black. I taught Jihye all the tricks and strategies I know, and we giggled away as we had fun playing. I can't wait to play this with EVERYONE haha.

Today was a good day, tomorrow...Yongsan for camera fix, some Korean-English language exchange, and fried chicken. :)

Dinner with new friends

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 13:24:00 +0000

I made dinner for two of my new friends today. Normally we meet at a coffee shop on Sundays as conversation partners, but I offered to cook 'dakjjim' because I wanted to test my skills on a native Korean.

This dish has lots of veggies.

Seriously, it was soooo good!

I made about half of the side dishes, my aunt gave me the rest. Lauren and Daniesha brought dessert, ice cream and Asian pear.

It was a success. I was really proud of my braised chicken and I'm going to continue to use www.Maangchi.com as a source for simple Korean recipes. Lauren, my Korean friend, guided Daniesha and I to a bookstore after dinner.

I bought a simple Korean cookbook with Lauren's help. Hopefully it helps me learn Korean and how to cook at the same time. I'm excited :)

Happy mistakes

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 16:55:00 +0000

I really enjoy cooking here. Every dish I've made so far has been easier than I expected. Today, I wanted to find a new supermarket, E-Mart, I heard has slightly lower prices than the one closest to my apartment. I climbed the hill my building sits on, went down the other side, and came upon so much more to Gwangmyeong than I realized existed! There were shops galore and many side streets with more stores...clothes (I bought a jacket on sale), shoes, pet stores, florists, etc.

As I got to the area where the supermarket is supposed to be, I stumbled upon a HUGE open market. I walked in and didn't leave until I found everything I needed (I never made it to E-Mart).

The market was a maze of more than fresh produce and meats; it had kitchenware, blankets, clothes, etc at discounted prices. Tomorrow, I plan on returning to purchase a low dining table.

I took a shopping list I translated into Korean in order to make sure I purchased everything I needed to make 'dakjjim' or braised chicken with vegetables (닭찜).

When I got home the persimmons I bought to eat as a fresh dessert were smooshed! I was a little disappointed because I was so happy to find ripe ones.

Another happy mistake - I made a soup out of the mashed persimmons and other random ingredients in my fridge. The combination of the caramelized onion, dates, and ripe persimmon made it sweet like a dessert. I think I added a little too much onion though. Next time, I will add less onion and I won't caramelize them for long.

I also wanted to make potato pancakes; I recently watched a Korean drama and the main character made them look easy and delicious. I don't have a food processor though, so I tried to think of a creative way to puree the potatoes...

I used this awesome Korean kitchen tool (hey mom, what's the Korean name for it?) to shred the potatoes down. Then I tried to mash them with a pestle...that didn't work. I think I'm just going to have to go buy a cheap food processor soon. So what to do with all this potato?

Happy mistake #3: I made 'gamjajorim' or braised potatoes (감자조림). The first batch I overcooked a little because the recipe is designed for larger pieces of potato, but the second batch I adjusted and it came out tasty.

Tomorrow, I'm making the braised chicken!

Tofu and Gingseng Chicken in Broth

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:27:00 +0000

I'm already tired of eating out, even though it has all been my favorite type of food: Korean. One of my goals while I'm in Korea is to learn how to cook more Korean dishes, especially since the ingredients are easily available. Last night, I was hungry but all I had in the fridge were vegetable side dishes. For protein, I made tofu. It's a simple side dish my mom makes frequently (probably every Korean person knows how to make it), but I had never tried.

The tofu had dots that were perfect for helping me make even pieces.

The sauce: garlic, soy sauce, green onion, sesami oil, honey, dried red pepper flakes.

Fried tofu.


I think its called 'dubu buchim yangnyumjang' in Korean. I'm going to call it 'dubu' because it means tofu (두부). It was juicy yumminess sprinkled with roasted sesame seeds.

I've been craving chicken lately because I've been eating tons of pork since I've been here. I don't like a lot of pork, but usually I don't have a choice as a lot of Koreans consider beef to be too expensive. Tonight, I made a ginseng chicken in broth. It's called 'samgye-tang' in Korean (삼계탕). 'Tang' means soup.

The soup was really easy to make. The recipe I used didn't have potatoes, but I love potatoes so I tried it out and it was delicious.

This is the best colander I've ever used! The size adjusts and apparently I can also use it to steam things because it has high stilt-like legs.

It was savory and delicious; I wish I had used more ginseng though. I wasn't sure how strong the root would be since I've never used it in cooking before.

Dessert was Oreos. Lol.

Kimchi and Kkaennip

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:28:00 +0000

I made kimchi and kkaennip today. I'm especially happy with the kkaennip because it was the first time I made it. My halmuni (grandmother) used to make it alllll the time, but it's difficult to find perilla leaves in American grocery stores. And when I'm near Korean grocery stores it's easier to buy it already made.

I used almost all of the same ingredients to make the kkaennip and the kimchi, except for the ginger.

My secret ingredient to kimchi is the Asian pear. I love the sweet flavor in contrast with lots of the spicy red pepper.

Here's the red pepper paste before I mix it in with the cabbage.

Ole, kimchi!

Here's the red pepper paste for the kkaennip. The recipe said add honey which I was surprised to read.

Kkaennip!

Now I'm so hungry and ready to eat a late dinner.

Happy Chuseok!

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 13:59:00 +0000

Korea has a holiday similar to America's Thanksgiving called Chuseok...and it's this weekend. I believe Chuseok celebrates a good harvest (summer is almost over in Korea), but mainly it's a family holiday. Because it's a 3-day holiday, I get a 4-day weekend! Most of the kindergarten students at my school wore their Hanbok (Korean traditional outfits) on Friday. They looked so lovely I had to take photos. I want a Hanbok so bad, but where would I wear it?

Silly kids :)

They look like little people. All grown up.

We made fake 'songpyeon,' which is a traditional sweet Korean rice cake with a sugar filling made every Chuseok. The kids had a ball making it even though we couldn't eat them.

First, you mix the rice dough.

The students watched the Korean homeroom teacher, Sunny teacher (I love her English name :P), demonstrate the first step. She added a little bit of sugar into the rice dough mix.

Then you roll the dough into small balls, make an indentation in the middle, and pour a little brown sugar in the indentation.

Finally, you pinch the dough closed into half circles and you have 'songpyeon.' The students said they looked like 'mandu' (Korean dumplings) and I have to agree they do.

Our head English teacher, Chris, made a 'songpyeon' that looked like Hello Kitty. Hello Kitty should be an international ambassador for cultural exchange because kids everywhere seem to love her! The class was fighting over it, so what to do...? Rock scissors paper, of course!

Family fun outdoors

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:32:00 +0000

I spent my first weekend with my Korean family (my aunt, uncle, and 3 younger cousins) this past weekend. We did normal family stuff...went out to eat, went to the playground, and for a walk around this huge wetland reserve nearby their town. I had the best weekend I've had so far in Korea!

My uncle, my cousin Eu-hyun, and my new baby cousin, Bo-hyun.

Remember these? I don't know why I don't see them in American parks anymore...

...but they are so much fun!

I'm holding a live dragonfly! Or, a 'jamjari' in Korean.

My cousin, Eu-hyun, caught so many of them that weekend. Don't worry, he took care of them and let them all go.

The view from my aunt's apartment is even more spectacular at night.

We went to the school park after dinner on Saturday. I actually exercised! I did 3 pull ups, took a ride on my cousin's bike (the ground was sandy so it was kind of difficult), played soccer, jump roped, and used the exercise equipment you can find at every park in Korea.

On Sunday afternoon, we went to Gyeongan Cheon Wetland Ecological Park. We walked on a trail around the park and ate roasted chestnuts.

All that green grass is rice!

There were some creatures too, but not many because the park was really dry according to my aunt.

Korean women are obsessed with their skin (I thought I was bad, nope not in comparison). I see them using umbrellas on the sunniest days, so they don't get skin damage. Makes me thankful for my brown skin. My uncle doesn't like the heat of summer though.

GORGEOUS sunshine and happiness! I love the mountains in Korea.

These giant plants were strange looking but I liked them, I think I'm going to do a watercolor of this photo.

Baek Soondae and My First Night OUT

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 15:55:00 +0000

Yesterday was another busy, fun Saturday. I met an old friend I hadn't seen in over 2 years. Jihye and I were originally conversation partners at VCU and then we became friends. We both thought the same thing: it's unbelievable that we are able to meet each other in both of our native countries...a true cultural exchange. I'm very lucky. Plus, she lives only one stop away on the subway! I hope we get to spend more time together while I'm here.

Jihye suggested going to Soondae Town next to the Sillim subway station because she knows I like 'soondae' (a Korean blood sausage with rice and other ingredients mixed in). I happily agreed. I didn't know there were so many ways to experience 'soondae' until I came to Korea. I usually eat just the sausage with a dip. Yesterday we ate 'baek soondae,' which is noodles, veggies, and 'soondae' fried together on a large pan. A special sauce and perilla leaves to wrap the mixture are on the side. It was the bomb.com!

Before the 'baek soondae' was fried. Note the lovely apron they gave us to wear. I was so happy to see Jihye.

Here's the food after it had cooked for awhile, the aroma was savory and yummy.

Later on Saturday I made my first real visit to Hongdae, a popular night spot for young people in Seoul both Korean and foreigners. I went out to celebrate my coworker, Channey's, last weekend in Korea with her friends. I'm not sure what this group in the photo were doing, but it was interesting. They reminded me of Asian mimes because they weren't saying anything, just moving around and making gestures. Asian performance art is coool.

Channey and I at the Hawaiian restaurant...after dinner we did some hookah, then checked out a couple of clubs. It was a long, fun-filled evening and I'm glad I went.

My first field trip with the kiddies

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 16:32:00 +0000

Every month we are supposed to take the kindergarten classes on a field trip. This month we went to a big park 10 minutes away from the school. The park has fun, child-friendly water fountains and an inflatable pool set up in the middle of the fountain area. The weather was gorgeous! I've been feeling sick so I wasn't able to play with the kiddies because I didn't want to get wet. I was super disappointed, you all know how much I love water.

The head foreign teacher, Chris, and I with my homeroom class. I love these kids already. <3

This is Estel, she's a sassy one and cute. Look at her styling those shades! She's definitely one of my favorites.

I wanted to play with them so bad!

Almost everyone brought a watergun, including the teachers.

Another one of my favorites, Lucia. I had to tickle her to make her smile. She was sporting the wet, sad puppy face because she left her extra set of clothes at school...and I wasn't having it. Smile darling!!

My homeroom class again. Their Korean homeroom teacher got them to lay down and pose. I'm impressed at how skilled Koreans are at making cute photos lol.

Meet my new students

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 16:11:00 +0000

On Monday, I was surprised to learn that our kindergarten students were going to watch a puppet show during second period.

That's Clara, she's a sweet, adorable, chatty kindergarten student.

I don't remember watching puppet shows when I was younger, but these little ones were enraptured.


The students learned about strangers, bad touching, and the real names instead of the kiddie slang words for the different parts of the body that shouldn't be touched. It was intense for 5 or 6 year olds. Although Korean is not allowed at school as a general rule (so they're constantly practicing their English), the puppet theater was in Korean. I understood about 60% of the Korean the puppets were speaking.

Here's a short video of the puppet show. It starts off with bathroom humor, which I loved and so did the students :).

So cute. Really. Makes me want to pinch their cheeks.

63 Building, Big 3 Deal

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 19:36:00 +0000

Made 2 new friends and enjoyed 3 attractions in the famous 63 Building in Seoul (yes, it has 63 floors) on Saturday. I took many photos, here are most of them. Sorry if it takes awhile to load.

Rogelio, myself, Daniesha, Ademir

63 Building, Seoul

That's the Han River and the park that parallels the river.

A view of Seoul and the Han River from the top of the 63 Building.

Sky Art Gallery, the highest art gallery in the world, located on the 60th floor of 63 Building.

This exhibit is called Faces or 'ulgool' in Korean.

They had faces of all types, from different artists, and using different media. This one is a HUGE print, I was very impressed by the largeness and variety of prints.

Interesting.

No face, but I like the simple lines.

Loved this one, there was a whole series of this chica and her cigarette.

This artist used all kinds of color and media on these robotic, cyborg girls that had no character, color, or defining features.

But they are smiling...something about disguises, camouflage, public versus private images, self-image, ego.

The cyborg girls in costume.

This was one of my favorites. The colors!!!!

Fantastical.

I liked the color combination in this one, it's another of my favorites. I'm feeling even more inspired to find an art supply store soon.

I know the girl is Asian but she reminds me of Nicki Minaj in her presentation of herself.

There was an elevated room full of mirrors and reflective surfaces. It was a little overwhelming but cool.

My color science: Mango Lhassi yellow always makes me smile. Plus the drawing is lovely.

We watched an excellent 3-D IMAX movie about Tahiti. I'm generally not impressed by 3-D movies (except for Avatar), but this one was so good I now feel the need to go to Tahiti.

After IMAX, we went to Seaworld (an aquarium on the first basement floor of the building). Here is an x-ray image of seahorses.

Not the best picture, but it's a bat fish!

Real seahorses; this aquarium had adorable-themed tanks.

Rock fish, don't see them? Look below.

Yup, that thing in the corner is the fish. Amazing camouflage!

My camera doesn't work well in dark settings, so this is the clearest photo I got in the aquarium. Isn't it amazing?? Haha

Love birds.

I don't remember the name of this fish, but they were transparent. We were all impressed.

Happy at the aquarium.

Usually frogs at the aquarium or zoo are brightly colored (and poisonous), these frogs looked dead. Maybe they're a species of albino frogs.

You could put your fingers in a small tank full of Doctor Fish! They nibble at your fingers and it tickles. At first it freaked me out, but then I enjoyed it. Doctor fish eat dead skin (they're herbivores in their natural setting) and are used for people with certain skin conditions and in some specialty spas. I love hands on exhibits!

I always enjoy looking at octopi; they're one of the most visually interesting sea creatures.

Underwater ballet show...with the fish swimming right by unconcerned. Entertaining.

The dancer was doing moves that vaguely resembled ballet (I'm no ballet expert), but I was more dazzled that she didn't have a breathing apparatus!

Public art on the pillars holding up a large bridge over the Han River. It looked like tiles of African-inspired masks and designs. I love all the public art in Korea. The colors on these tiles are nice.

We saw a lot of people setting off small fireworks next to the river. Looked like fun.

For my next visit to the 63 Building, the plan is to see the B-Boy performance (what Koreans call break dancing) and set off fireworks. I can't wait, I had such a good time on Saturday. I also took some video I will try to make a small clip of soon. Later gators!

Sticker addiction

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:40:00 +0000

I used to be addicted to stickers when I was younger. I've upgraded to sticker photos now. Some I've taken so far..

Classic pose for Korea.

Trying to make a fish face, but the camera was too fast.

I love this one!

Muah!

The 2 peace signs are another classic Asian pose.

'it ain't where you from yo it's where you at'

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 13:16:00 +0000

First time on the subway. That thing was sparkling clean; big difference from US public transit.

Daniesha and I were entertained by the men holding their girlfriend's purses. Chivalry is still alive in Korea haha ;)

Daniesha' friend showed us a 'shilgaechun' in Seoul, basically a glorified brook or stream in the middle of the city. I tried to take a video but it was too dark.

There were colorful-changing lights in the shape of geometric flowers on one part of the wall lining the stream. I really enjoyed them.

More art on the wall: a long strip of tiles illustrating the royal entourage of one of Korea's famous kings.

The 'shilgaechun' also had stepping stones people used to cross. It's less than a feet deep.

Night life around the Jong-gak area in Seoul.

Lots of street vendors in Jong-gak selling all kinds of cute things and *knockoffs. (*thanks Brandon lol!)

First days...

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 16:14:00 +0000

Dinner with coworkers at Korean BBQ.

Garlic, kimchi, spicy pork, and eggs with kimchi on the grill.

My new boss at Kaaaaraaoke.

It's even more fun than it looks, I promise. Some Koreans take karaoke seriously and practice karaoke by themselves.

View from my huge apartment window. High school soccer field/community track.

Note to self: do not reveal shoulders, cleavage, or my back in Korea.


Lots of public art in Korea. The benches are always interesting. I like this one.

Just because there were "McDelivery" mopeds.

Found an entire section of Couples' cell phone charms at one of many accessory stores. Cute!

No time to reflect yet, but made a quick trip to the bakery today

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 13:08:00 +0000

Sweet hearts (tasted pretty good too)

Looks like a sad raccoon caught red-handed

Korea

noreply@blogger.com (Roarin' Panda) — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 21:06:00 +0000

I've finally arrived and I am sort of settled in South Korea. Stay posted...

The view from my aunt's apartment in Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do