Korea = Serious Business

Last weekend was really fun! On Friday night, I went out to dinner and a bar with some foreigner friends. Saturday night my homestay parents took me to a musical. It was in this outdoor, natural theatre. It was absolutely gorgeous, and really spacious. They had horses in the show and everything because there was so much room. It was a historical drama about a king and his princess who were overthrown by political enemies. There was also a female general who fell in love with a male general, and they died in battle together. It was an absolutely beautiful show, and the singing was gorgeous. I couldn't understand a word, of course, but that didn't matter because the acting and music said it all.

Sunday, I went to an Italian restaurant and then this awesome little cafe with some foreigner friends. The cafe was really cool because you could play board games, and as long as you bought at least one drink, you got all the free popcorn, toast with jam and butter, coffee, and tea that you wanted. We played Apples to Apples and Scrabble, and it was such an amazing time; especially because I had been feeling particularly homesick that day.

Then, on Sunday night my host parents took me bowling. Let me disabuse all you waygooks (foreigners): bowling in Korea is not like bowling in the US. It is serious business, as are all sports. There was not food or a bar in sight, and the place was spotless. It took me about two seconds to realize that this was a legitimate sports arena to the Koreans. Koreans are extremely competitive and somehow (sorry to generalize!) all really good at sports. I had the lowest score by far in the ENTIRE alley, and I had a 100 (best score I've ever gotten by the way, thank you). But, I had a really good time, and my host dad gave me some tips, so each game we played my score improved. Here is a photo of me with my host parents:

My host parents and I at the bowling alley.

 Tonight, my host parents took me out for a walk along the river. It's a very large river, so the breeze was excellent, and we could actually see the stars, which is rare in Korea due to all the big cities and the lights. We walked for quite some time. Along the way we passed many parks, tracks, soccer fields, and random musicians. After about a half an hour, we came to our destination. It was an absolutely breathtaking fountain and light show, set to classical music. I was completely enraptured, and so happy that my host parents took me to see it. It was honestly one of the best moments of my life. The walk home was some good exercise, and my host father dropped this gem on me, probably something I will always remember: "When body sweats, mind is clear."



School is going well, I'm just moving along. I love the students, and they really give me a lot of joy and energy. I have to admit though, I am pretty excited that I have an entire week off soon...

So that's all for updates, but now, for some Cultural Musings by Meghan Thomas:


Being an English teacher in a foreign country is like learning English all over again. Everything you used/knew in college is now out the window, and one must resort to middle school again. Cutting out the slang, contractions, idioms, and other shortenings (wanna, gonna) is an everyday, conscious process. Yesterday I said "obviously" at least twice before I realized that the students probably have no idea what that means. And it's extra tricky because I have advanced students. So I am lulled into speaking in my usual vocabulary and speed, and have to switch back out when I notice it.

I am coming to realize that Korea is the country that never sleeps. People here stay up exercising, chatting, or even working until the wee hours. And then they are up to do it all again at 6:30a. My host father works 7:30a-6:30p every day of the week and half days every Saturday. The other teachers at my school work from 8a until 11:30p every week day. Those are literally the hours that the teachers are in the school. I do not envy them. When I say Korea is serious business, they really are. They are serious about education, about sports, about drinking, about working, and about relationships. It seems to me to be a whole country full of people who throw their whole selves into whatever they are doing.

I believe I can relate.