Korea Life Blog - Fondue in the City



Kind of an odd name for "choco fondue." In the City. Could that be a subtle reference to Sex In the City, maybe? Looks like it. Who are these girls on the cover? I picked up a box just because it looked so funny. Look at that description. Are they telling me how they make the snack or telling me how to?
It says: "Combine sweetened cream of cocunut and 12 ounces chocolate in heavy large saucepan, Stir mixture over very low heat until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth." Thanks for the tip!



The packaging is too funny. Look, there in the sky! It's Choco Fondue!



They don't look like much, but they are surprisingly delicious. I guess I shouldn't make fun of the packaging and the name, since that's what caused me to make the purchase. Now I like the snack and will probably by more. Who's the dummy here?

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Terminal



We're going to see this to see this movie later. Hope it's good.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Off to Work


Feel a little odd in this shirt and tie today. Haven't had to dress like this since, well, since I came to Korea. See you later with a full report on the new job.

Update: I really lucked out with this job. The school is surprisingly nice for the area it's in, very big and new. I have my own classroom AND a large playroom next door where the kids can hang out if they're early or if I finish class a bit early. I was really surprised to find out that both of these rooms will only be used by me, my Korean assistant (graduate student majoring in English Education) and my students. I can decorate them as I please, though the agency will be doing this for me to begin with.

The classroom has an air conditioner, a standup fan, a new whiteboard, a nice TV/VCR combo, a stereo with a tape/CD player, and loads and loads of teaching materials. The playroom also has a virtual library of English resources in reserve, storage shelves and a matted floor (as if for wrestling) for the kids. Some of the materials at my disposal: videos (including a stack of Wallace and Gromit and Sesame Street), a thousand flash-cards, bags full of velcro puppets (clothes, fruits/vegetables, objects, numbers, letters, etc.) games, crayons, glue, boxes of pencils, scissors, rulers, stacks of colored paper, puppets, ESL posters of every kind, story/song books and tapes, and shelves of different teaching books/workbooks. And all of this stuff is there for only for me.

The students are mostly kids whose parents can't afford to send them to pricey hagwons. Little do those parents know how much better their children will learn in this kind of environment, and they only have to pay less than half of the cost (60,000 won, about $50, per month vs. anywhere from 150,000 won on up.) The downside is that these kids have studied English very little and it shows. With only a few exceptions, most of the kids were clueless when I did the oral placement test today. This is good though, as I can start off with the basics and see progress. As to be expected, there were a couple of exceptions. One girl studied English in Beijing at an international school, and talking to her was like talking to an American kid, and one other boy, who, when asked, "Can you say the alphabet?" replied, "Do you want me to say it or sing it?" (Most kids just looked at me and said, huh? duh? eh? molla! until I started saying A, B... and then they would break into the alphabet song).

The assistant, "Kathy," is very nice. She has a meeting twice a week at the agency office and has to develop the curriculum and lesson plans for me to use, though the boss said I can do whatever I want. The plans will serve as a basic guide for me to follow. Kathy's responsible for all the paperwork, calling the parents, recording grades, etc. (My first secretary?) She's also there to explain directions to the kids if they don't understand me, and basically tell the kids to shut-up and listen.

All of this is a big relief. I was really on the verge of accepting another crummy hagwon job, and in this area, that would have meant 8 hours/day. Now I'll be making just a little less money and I'll only be working three hours and in a much more professional setting. This is the first time I've ever been excited about teaching.

I hope I continue to feel this way. As long as I get paid on time, I can't forsee any major problems. But then again, anything can happen in Korea. Crossing my fingers...

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Stats Counter


I had been wondering why I had been unable to login to bStats, the stat recorder for my blog. It has been discontinued for now. I found some free services and have added a regular hit counter to the bottom right of this page. I kind of wish I did that to begin with. Looks like a pretty unpopular blog with 1 lonely hit. But now everyone can see how many people are clicking on the main page and archives. The other pages aren't counted.

I've excluded my IP address from the counting to prevent the temptation to make myself feel more popular. I also added a regular stat counter to record referrer addresses, unique visitors, etc.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - New Job


I start my new job tomorrow. All that waiting finally paid off. I was at the point where I was considering teaching 8 classes/day for basic pay at a hagwon just to start working again. Finally, at the last minute, I got the offer I was looking for.

Basically it's similar to the deal with those shady goons: working at a public elementary school for the new after-school program. The differences between agencies are astounding. I'll be working for just about the same pay (just 50,000 won less), yet I'll only be working 1-4PM, no meetings, no extra duties, no dubious clauses in the contract about firing me without notice and keeping my pay, no unpaid week-long orientation period, no teaching sample lessons in front of the staff, and on and on. Now I'll only have 3 classes, cut and dry, with a Korean assistant and they give me all the lesson plans. I'll also have permission from the employer to teach elsewhere.

The only downside is I have to pay most of the cost for my visa trip, but that's why they raised the pay. The woman has also offered to pay 50,000 won/month for travel (about 45 minutes from here) as well as 70,000 toward the visa, to my surprise, and also she's going to pay me a full day for working tomorrow, which is basically a placement test day and all I have to do is stand around and smile. I couldn't believe the difference between this agency and the other one. The woman I met was very professional and, in my opinion (at least so far), trustworthy.

I signed the contract, now it's just a matter of getting my official transcripts. I've always used the unofficial copies in the past without a problem, but apparently the laws have changed. I called my university to pay for the transcripts, and they managed to pull up a campus parking ticket I never paid from 1996. In order to get the transcripts, I'd have to send payment to the campus parking office. When I explained that I'm in Korea and this is an emergency, the woman explained that it wasn't an emergency for me to pay the ticket...ouch! I explained it was emergency for me to pay the $25,000(and that's without all the grants I had!) to go to college there for four years, but that didn't assuage her.

The agency is now trying to get around the official transcripts, seeing as the government issued me three working visas in the past without them. If she can't, I'll just have to pay that mysterious ticket (this is the first I've heard of it, thought I may very well have gotten it and forgotten by now)...wait, hold the phone! The woman from the agency just called Julie and informed us the unofficial copies will be fine! Great news. Now I don't have to waste money on an 8 year-old parking ticket. Note to self: never donate money to my prior university, never, ever, never, ever.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - The Delivery


I heard from three people who have received Island of Fantasy and all three have sent me very nice compliments. AT (his initials) included three webcam shots:



The box. When I first saw this picture I flipped out thinking this was the book and the cover wasn't there or something.



Ah, there it is. Looks pretty decent. Nice packaging, too.



A happy customer. Here's what he had to say after reading it in only two sittings: Thanks for the great book. The last 10 pages or so I really laughed out loud, too. Hopefully I can get you to sign my copy while I am in Korea :)

Another person, Chris Garson, wrote this:

The book is very nice quality. The paper is very nice as well as the letter printing. The letters are big and very easy to read. As soon as I get my camera up and running, I will try my best to send you a picture.

I just finished reading it. It was a great book by all means. It completely made me laugh out loud as well as feel sorry for you and for your friend Choi. Very much an interesting experience. I'm left speechless. It wouldn't make a bad movie now that I think about it! Good job and I'm looking forward to a follow-up.


Thanks, Chris and the other two people who have left a review on the Lulu page for my book.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Quick Question


Just wondering if anyone's received their copy of Island of Fantasy yet - spefically the second edition, the one with the cover as you see it now. Lulu shows me how many copies I've sold and when, but no information about the customers or when the books were shipped to them (though you should get a notice). If you have received it, please send me an e-mail to kojebook@gmail.com and let me know. It's kind of frustrating having a book out but not even a copy yet for myself. I'd like a photo of it or a description of the quality. I'd also prefer people send any comments about the book, suggestions or any errors, to my e-mail too. Thanks.

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - JongnoGuru Weekend


I hung out this weekend with my friend known in certain prestigious circles as JongnoGuru. He has two homes in Pyeong Chan Dong, a nice suburban area which is right next to Gwang Hwa Mun, just 5-10 minutes by automobile.


Though the bigger of his two homes was an investment and needs some work, the one he lives in now is very nice. I did a poor job photographing the house itself. I'm not sure he would want his house posted all over my sight anyway and he can do that later when he gets his own site up and going. Instead, I took some decent shots of the scenery and the surrounding area. Unfortunately it wasn't a sunny day and my batteries were almost dying, but take a look anyway:



These photos were taken from JongnoGuru's roof. The pictures don't really do the scenery justice. Sure, it still looks nice, but it must look even better on a sunny autumn day.



Yes, some people in Korea still live in houses. With a few exceptions, most people in this area live in them. From what JongnoGuru tells me and Julie as well, some of the richest people in Korea live here including Korean movie stars and foreign diplomats.



You may recognize these mountains behind his place. You can see them from Gwang Hwa Mun. JongnoGuru said Pyeong Chang Dong is the path the North Koreans took during the failed assassination of South Korean President, Park Chun Hee, in 1968. The "Blue House" - Korea's White House is located just over the hills on the other side of The "JongnoGuru House." The 30 NKA army men infiltrated the border (guarded by the US) and made there way through the forested mountains and then were spotted by a woodcutter, whom incredibly was let go. South Korean security forces were alerted and the unit was stopped not far from Park's house. In all, 28 North Koreans were killed, 2 escaped and one was captured alive. In case you don't know, that's the assassination attempt that led to a counter plan to kill Kim Il Sung which became the focus of the movie Silmido. Of course, the attempt was never carried out.



JongnoGuru is the only person I've ever met in Korea who owns a yard, though others do in this area as well. His neighbors used to have a yard but they built an addition to the house to get rid of it. I have a lot of respect for Jognroguru. He's worked very hard to make it to where he is and in a few more years he will control a vast and mighty empire. Perhaps even run for office here. (Click on the photo to supersize this charming photo.)



Not the best shot of me here but I'll leave it in anyway to give you an idea of the magnificent scenery in the area.



He's pointing to this bunch of temples in the distance. As I said, beyond them is the Blue House so there's a lot of armed guards in the hills back there. Lately they haven't had much action, but not long ago a wild boar was on the loose and the guards chased it down and shot it to death. I wasn't surprised so much that they shot it, more by the fact there was a wild animal still around in the first place. Hard to believe this was a land of wild tigers at one time. Now there's very little wildlife left in the country beyond birds and squirrels.



Korean roofs are usually flat like this and they make a great place to hang out. You could have a nice barbecue up here, but after a few drinks you'd better take it downstairs. Not to safe with no railing.



Later we had pizza and sat out on the open patio, drank a few cold beers, talked a lot and looked at this nice scenery. It got to late to take the last subway home so the guru and his girlfriend suggested I stay there, which I did.



The next day JongnoGuru got out the spare *scooter for me (what a nice guy to keep one on hand for his guests!) and we zipped through the hills all day passing by all the rich people's homes. We didn't stop often and my batteries were pretty much gone by this time but it was a great time. This is a shot from a temple atop one of the hills. If you look very closely up to the right, almost directly under the mountain peak, you can see a house which JongnoGuru calls the "Jules Verne" house as it looks like some kind of deep see vessel. We took a ride over there and the house is obviously expensive but gaudy and to me, an eye-sore. In the driveway: a BMW, Mercedes, Lexus SUV, and an Audi, all shiny and brand new. Also a couple of big dogs to scare people away.


*I just thought of something and I should have gotten a picture...I wonder if people who have never been here are imaging us riding through the hills on a scooter like this. (click) Well, in Korea a scooter, or auto bike as they sometimes call them, looks like this (click).



Just one of many temples hidden away in the hills around Pyeong Chan Dong. This was the last stop. There was a free spring water tap here and a mean looking ajushi greedily filled at least 10 large bottles and then a huge plastic barrel.

Well, that's it for now. I had a great time and will be going back soon with Julie. I can't wait to get her on one of the scooters. Thanks JongnoGuru!

written by shawn matthews    -|link

Korea Life Blog - Thanks Everyone


Wow, I'm truly thankful for all of the comments of condolence for Aunt Izzy's departure. I read every comment and was touched and appreciative. Only one heckler!

I spent the last few days with “JongnoGuru”, an occasional poster on Dave’s ESL Café who owns a house (or two) in Pyongchang-dong nearby Gwang Hwa Mun, in northern Seoul. It's a surprisingly unique suburban type "dong" (town) with actual houses and very few apartments, lots of temples and nature and right next to the heart of the city. Lot of comfortable people nestled in the area. Today we spent the afternoon on motor scooters zipping through the hills and viewing the sites.

I took loads of pics, but I haven't checked them over yet. I just got back and probably won't make the update until tomorrow, but I wanted to stop and thank everyone here for all the nice comments of sympathy. It's hard to feel too badly because Aunt Izzy lived to be 89 and had such a warm and charming personality and positive outlook on life. I don't want to remember her as someone I should have written more. She was in my thoughts every day and always will be. I have wonderful memories and am thankful for those.

Just a quick thank you to Joel for this plug for my book. A bunch of other bloggers have mentioned it as well, some of which I added to my links section. It's getting harder and harder to keep up with everybody nowadays. I remember way back when there was only a couple of us, now with the ease of setting up and maintaining a blog getting easier and easier, there's a flood washing over the net. I'm lucky to have such a great group of fans and regular readers. See you soon.

written by shawn matthews    -|link