Seoul, Smog and Soju

The time in Korea is really flying now. I've been here over 2 months already. It almost feels like home now, but with a slight twist - a bit like looking through the looking glass at a world you know to see a slightly skewed version looking back. Sometimes I can forget where I am as most of my friends are westerners over here for the same reason I am, but other times it can seem very alien.

I've been having a lot of fun since I came back from Japan. My school threw a welcome dinner for me and a new American teacher. It was good to get to know some of the Korean teachers better and to see how they enjoy a night out. We had some nice food and then proceeded to get stuck into the soju. It ended up with the woman boss proclaiming the benefits of the female orgasm and the American teacher vomiting in the gutter. Thankfully (as everyone who reads this know well knows) I can hold my drink and was heralded as an 'English Gentleman' by all my workmates... hmm, they'll soon learn!

I've seen a few new areas of Seoul, but not enough really. I'm planning to get out and about alot more in the next couple of months as the weather has lost some of the relentless 100% humidity of the late summer. Apparently it should be nice now until possible December and then it will turn icily cold. I'm also aiming to learn a lot more Korean as up to know I only have the following:

An yan eh seh oo = hello / goodbye
Gam sa han mida = thank you
Hanido Juseoo = one more please
Yogio = here (politely)
Agymar = old lady
Agyshe = old man

The last two might seem weird terms to learn but they are used quite a lot here. Because Korea is a confucionist society there is a lot of respect for the old and they are kind of used to describe someone whose the head of the household. So our landlady is the house agymar, and the shop round the corner is referred to as the agymar shop because its an old lady. Anyway, I'll put some more terms up once I know them!

Last week I had a fun day out. It was a stag do for an aussie bloke I know out here (also called bachelor party or bucks night depending which country you're from). We went to the horse racing track and then out in Anyang where we gave him a few suprises. I can't really mention them here, law of the stag and all that! No stripper though, not really the done thing in Korea.

The job is going pretty well, and I seem to be quite good at it as it unexpectedly turns out! Some of the kids are really cute, but of course on the flip side some are little gits. I'm getting better at being able to control and discipline the kids too which makes the lessons run smoother, and I'm also learning some fun games which helps them to enjoy the lessons, which again, makes it all run smoother.

The week after next its Chusok here, which is the major public holiday in the year and means I get 3 days off, woohoo! I think I'm going to use it to see a bit more of Seoul and do some of the touristy stuff that I haven't really bothered with up until now. I'll report back then with some hopefully interesting info.