Mapping the Madness: Another teaching guide to South Korea..

I'm not usually keen on blogging about other people's blogs, but this one caught my eye. I think it's a pretty good low-down for those of you considering coming to work/teach in Korea. Check it out!

Mapping the Madness: Another teaching guide to South Korea..., Work in South Korea

As always, eat your pickles!
~ C

Monday Madness: Follow-up to the Mogyeoktang & our Weekend!

Alright. It's Monday, already. Where did the weekend go?

I know, we were home all weekend because the kids were sick! Ack! Well, ok, not quite.

Now mix a little 'cabin fever' being stuck indoors most of the time with some videos, and you get this video! {so, click it!} Just one of many posts forthcoming of videos and pictures taken during this oh-so-long weekend (indeed, we desperately tried to amuse ourselves with limited space, no t.v. and only ourselves and the computer for company!)

I'll tell you what though. For all those spicy mommas in foreign lands like me, one quick solution lead us out out to the local coffee shop. And it's only about a 5 minute walk from our villa. Now, you ask, how do you occupy young kids in a coffee shop? I've got the solution. It's called, you bring games! Indeed. One particular game we brought was a Korean style balancing game using green, orange and yellow wooden stars on top of a 'moon' block. It was quite fun! And yes, it helped to buy the kids their favorite 'snack' on the way over there: gum!

So as you can see, Ayden & Zynia did a fine job chilling when their momma so needed a little coffee-chill time. They were bundled up quite well, and they even listened to me when I told them they needed to hold hands and walk together on the way home (check out picture; cute, huh?) We even ran into an old co-worker of mine way back in the day when we worked together at Yeungjin~ Julian! So good to see old acquaintances, especially this holiday!

Boy, isn't it getting so cold lately? Even a trip out to the nearby tree-a-la-garbage-pile to dispose of daily waste gets to be a fingertip-numbing experience! And we're in Daegu! Gadzooks..imagine how much colder it is up in Seoul!

Ahem, side note. {Mom, are you reading this? Yes, I bet it's warm in Alabama where you are now. Sitting by the fire. Under Brandon & Amy's wonderful Christmas tree. Watching Carson and Camron, running around in joyous play, giggling and laughing, while Amy nurses Calen and Brandon sips on a beer. Lucky you! And Chelsea, the black sheep of the bunch, is sadly stuck in colder than a tit on a boar in the forrest, Daegu...Boo! Hoo! Well, at least my butt is warm with our floor-heating system! Sheesh!!} Now, what was I saying..

Oh, yes, yes..today. What's on the agenda today? Well, my Monday-off has been filled with working on my TESOL lesson plans (this is the last week, thank goodness!) and preparing some comedy-skits for my crew at Yeungjin to perform on Thursday's Christmas year-end party. This should be something--maybe a knee slapper or a sympathy clapper. I'm hoping for the former! We'll see. Stay tuned for an update on the matter! Until then, I'll be silently wishing I were home & with family for Christmas! :)

Until the next post, eat your pickles!
~ Chelsea

Three Korean Syllables = One great CLEAN weekend start!

So here it is. The weekend. Classes are over. Kids will be picked up from their Korean daycare soon. And you know what's on my mind? It includes getting naked, getting into something hot AND cold, and it costs roughly 9,900 Won for us to go. Any guesses?

Here's a hint: It involves doing something us Western folk would normally think of an activity we consider a private matter. Now you give up?

Ok, no more torture, my little pickles. It's called the mo'gyoek-tang(모굑탕). Otherwise, the public bath. And it's the kids' favorite Saturday morning activity! Who would have thought! And no, it's not quite the 'spa' experience, either. It's seriously a cleaning fest!

Check out this funny video I found on Youtube concerning Korean public baths. The animation is quite dead on with what you'd find in the women's bathhouse!

A lovely little thought back to when I posted about the Korean public baths  back when I was quite the newbie to Korea and Korean culture (and as a side note, I can't believe I posted that in 2005, well-over 6 years ago!) Rereading it made me snicker (and somewhat shutter!) from the memory of it. So, happy reading down memory lane :)

What is boils down to is that Korean absolutely love the idea of getting clean. In fact, I would almost call it a sacred, cultural act. But you don't have to take my word for it. Check out the following articles for some interesting reads about Korean Bath culture: the KNU times, fellow blogger, or even the LA Times.

Until the next post, happy scrubbing, and eat your pickles, kimchi and coffee!

~ Chelsea

Time for a REVAMP!

Zynia can't believe it either!

Indeed, it's about time. What, you're back? The lowdown? Yes, we're back. Daegu it is. And it's parte deux, yo!

So here's the scoop: my 2nd blog-in-waiting, In a Giant Pickle, will house photo opps, pretty things, and whatever catches my fancy. Yes, yes, double yes. Pictures of the kids too!

And (drumroll, please!), I finally get myself signed up with Tumblr. Oh, yes, my little pickles, we're getting this show back on the road with the korean experience at Tumblr. Fun times..

This time, with a little more coffee, kimchi and not to mention, some pickles. Did I mention I love pickles?

It's all slow to come, but don't lose hope! We're gearing up for the holidays.. and there's LOTS of fun to be had!

Enjoy your pickles,

Chels & the kiddos

It may be April 1st, but it's no joke..

C'est le grand adieu!

Well, my friends.. it looks like the time has come! It's been over a year since my last post, and according to my close consultation with the internet (we still discuss, you know, from time to time), it's only obvious that that would put this blog in the dead zone! No updates, no following, yo! So what does that mean for The Korean Experience?! Drum roll, please.

As you've probably seen--or happened upon (thanks to Google)--I've slowly been writing less and less since becoming a momma. Yeah, well, I can blame it on the birth of my son, Ayden, how life takes a huge, dramatic turn (sometimes for the better, sometimes the worse) and us parents know that when you've got a moment to spare, it ain't gonna be updating a blog: it's gonna be sleeping (or breast pumping, or snacking, or finally showering since you can't remember when was the last time you did so...am I right?) Sure, there are mommas out there, Miss Suzie-homemakers, juggling life with a zillion kids, working AND going to school, and yet they still blogged.. but I wasn't one of them! lol. What I was doing was better. I was raising my son and daughter, speaking 2-3 languages daily (counting French, if I was up to the head trauma!), pounding pavement and fighting the local adjummas in the nearby markets for my share of cheap food, healthcare and education-related activities! Oh, and I can list another 100 pages or so of things I settled for, and what I wanted to do but didn't, or couldn't, cuz of some significant 'other' that had his thumb placed on my head for way too damn long.. and now that sweet baby Zynia is nearing 5 months, and my amazing Aydenbear (..still in awe) is almost 2 and 1/2 years old.. I've finally realized it's time to lay The Korean Experience to rest. At least, for now, since...

We're no longer in Korea (wow, I never thought I'd be saying that... so, let me pause a moment and soak that in.)

....and so (deep breath, wipe tear, clear throat), it doesn't quite make sense to continue talking about the experience of living in Korea if we're not there, right? It's almost like the name of my blog was a forethought to having lived in Korea, as if I should be writing about it, about the experience, after having lived there (wrap that one around yer head!) Because, let me just say, the experience was far greater and far more life changing than I ever would have imagined! Thank God for closure. And not necessarily, a closure to an entirely good experience one would consider by 'western thought,' if you will. But that's another great story waiting to be written. Nonetheless, I cannot quite live with the idea of throwing this blog away, either. I guess it would nullify every damn thing I went through; and that, my friends, is not an option!

So here's the plan.

I still can't believe it's been almost 5 years since the inception of this blog (back in 2005, huh?), and there's quite a few resources on this blog that have been/will be useful to future ESL teachers. So, lucky for you, I'm leaving this blog up. AND, I'm extending the invitation for you to write me* (my loyal or passing readers) for questions, concerns, inquiries, wise-crack jokes, or the like (here's your que to slap your knee...) should you choose to do so. Mind you, I was an ESL teacher for nearly 5 years in Daegu, and I recruited teachers as well as networked within the Daegu community (although, once you have kids, your focus on life changes quite a bit, and I migrated to the "not quite a foreigner any longer, but yet not quite Korean either" spectrum of local expats). Sure, there are still 'lifers' in Korea (or about Korea, and my blog has long since stopped ranking anyway), plus a few of the well-known faves, but I'm the *lucky one* who said auf wiedersehen to my Nazi boss and got out (!). You can send all correspondence (and money?!) to kimchiandcoffee (at) gmail (dot) com*.

On the other hand, I will be Vlogging/Blogging vicariously, but where and with whom, is yet to be determined. There is so much to talk about back home in the Pacific Northwest (and man, is it GREAT to be home!), my creative momma skills are just waiting to be put on display for ALL the world to see! So make sure you check back on this post for an update!

To all my experiences, all the people I've met, all the places I've been---and to Daegu, my 'home away from home,'.......

Adieu!

~ Chelsea