Yongsan Electronic Market

YO BABIES live it up. I'm tired but here are some photos of last weekend. I headed to another electronics market. I know, S. Korea is turning me into a techie. not really... two weekends ago i went for my friend andrew and then this weekend i went to get an MP3 player. it is fun--i am a bonefide korean commuter. i rock out on my subway commute every morning. and let me tell you, this morning i stopped by the bakery in the subway station where the guy that owns it always tries to teach me new korean words and got a little apple treat. then i rushed down to the platform and it was about 9:30 am--rush hour. i tried to hop on the subway last minute behind all the commuters and almost got crushed in the door! i yelped and then rambled off some obsenities and ended up getting part of my backpack stuck in the door. i was just stading there like a little kid who was hung on a coat rack by some bullies. except, my feet were touching the ground. so i took my arms out of my pack and it just hung there. i grabbed it before it thudded to the ground and got trampled by all the people who wanted off at jeonga yok (jeonga station). i was considering walking to the next car b/c i felt like an ass standing by people who saw that all paly out, but luckily most of them left. some had a look of mild terror throughout the whole experience!

let me also tell you that yesterday i sent four kids to detention for rough housing in my classroom. one of them, after he heard that he had to go to detention, started crying and bowing profusely while rubbing his hands together and saying over and over and over and over "I'm so sorry teacher. Teacher, I'm so sorry."

There was something else i felt i should tell you but now i am so tired it has escaped me. Ahhh, yes, last night I went running on the river trail that is nearby my house. I had to run off the negativity i gathered from six straight classes (8 hours of teaching, ten hours at the school). we have started the intensive month of our school--some kids elect to come 5 days a week (i'm sure many of the kid's parents elect for them with $$$). this means i have to come early to teach more classes in the morning. i was really enjoying working from 3-10. now that i have to wake up at 8 i am a bit more cranky with life. it is probably also just setting into actually working. sooooooo... i was running on this river path and man, it was like a game of dodge the koreans. it was 10pm at night and everyone's grandmother and kids were out on this trail. and the thing is, when ppl walk here, they weave so it was v. difficult and frustrating, but after an hour and half, i was like brand new.

a side note--i keep forgetting to say that the first thing i saw when i landed in s. korea... as i was de-planeing. i was walking up the ramp from the plane, and i look down and on the metal ramp i see a little OTIS emblem. i just cannot get away from those guys.

additionally: let me tell you about some of the characters i have come into contact with:

a) one english teacher asked me, "Have you teached English before?"
b) another teacher said, "the thing that gets me is the kid's pronounciation."
c) the third teacher said, "you should have came last night (to the dojo)."
not that i'm perfect,... b/c i'm sure i use tons of improper grammer both on my blog and everyday life. it's just that it's hilarious.
d) another teacher stayed after class to write 100X "I will not use profanity in class." he said he wants to set a good example for his kids.
e) another teacher refuses to eat korean food and is trying to subsist off of mainly McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, and Sochu (liquor).