Bamboo and Pandas and More

Here are some more pictures from my birthday - when we went to the Bamboo Forest.  Enjoy.

Oh yes, I'm clearly sooooo grown up... something about the panda bear statues just screamed, "Pose by me for a picture!"

 There were multiple trails throughout the forest.  Each one featured a different theme.  Along one, we kept seeing little huts like this one. Many people stopped for pictures.  I had to duck.

 One of the trails.  They are more "uphill" than perhaps they look.  I was just thankful that my knee can now (sort-of) do the mini hikes.  Praise the Lord!

 Birthday girl... still goofy girl!

 Lots of bamboo.

 One of the trails was named the "love trail", so of course we took it.  Tee he he.  Right in the middle of the forest there was a coverless gazebo type area with cute little benches and this... so we stopped for a picture.  Cheesy cheesy pie.  Oh my!  However, I do think we look cute together...

 I really liked the little benches.

  If you ask the Chinese, pandas are not native to Korea.  However, I am in Korea and went to a bamboo forest.  I know that pandas eat bamboo, so I am likely to think they did live here at some point...  We didn't see any live panda bears, but we saw a few statues like these. Something about the panda statues asks for pictures.  Something about Eric's handsome face makes me want to kiss him.  Tee he he.

 Just a tiny little panda sitting up on the hill.

 Eric climbed up the hill to pose like the panda.  They are both cute.  Silly pandas.

Thankful in Korea

"Oh give thanks unto the Lord, He is good; His mercy endureth forever." -Ps.136:1

  Here is Anna carving the "turkey".  Actually, it was pork tenderloin.  Koreans do not really eat turkey.  We could maybe find it here, but it would be really expensive.  Basically, we could spend all of our dinner budget on one turkey for just a few people OR have the rest of the meal with pork.  We opted for everything else - and pork tenderloin here is fairly cheap and delicious!

My friend Anna hosted out "American Thanksgiving" in Korea at her house.  She also did most of the work for it - which was a ton of work.  Thank you, Anna!  I helped.  The kitchen got really hot, so here is a pic. of me walking away to strip down to a tank and then back towards the kitchen.  Not my best pic, but one of the few of me that day.

Our menu included pork tenderloin, garlic mashed potatoes, salad greens with sauteed onions and cucumbers and croutons, hot spicy carrots, sweet potato pie, stuffing, corn, and, of course, pumpkin pie with whip cream!

 Note that we had to make EVERYTHING from scratch -- first the croutons for the stuffing and salad, then pumpkin pie, everything.  Getting a can of pie filling just isn't an option in Korea.  Good thing we actually prefer making most of the meal from scratch anyway.  We were also working with two stove top burners and a small toaster oven.  We are thankful for these though!

Good food shot.  Delicious food with good friends, old and new.  Thanksgiving in Korea felt a bit strange.  I am still church shopping, so just had my own devotional at home.  There were good friends, but it was not the same as going "home" to my Mums' house.  It was a little chilly, but we didn't have snow.  (yet)  I had to go to work on Thursday and Friday.  I tried to talk to the kids about "American Thanksgiving" and even ended up taking in a pie for one class (long story) - but it was pretty much like any other day here for most people.  Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays (no big shocker, since I enjoy cooking and love to eat) - so I still celebrated it.  I was glad for my "sister" Anna and her efforts.  I am glad for new friends.  We still made a delicious meal.  I am glad to go to a job which I enjoy, even if I feel like it should be a "holiday".
  We all have so very much for which to be thankful.

Great Scenery

More pictures from 11/14/2010

 This is one of my fav. pictures from the bamboo forest itself. 

One of my favorite "tall trees" with me, looking at the surrounding area together.  

This one reminds me of USC campus.

Turning the other way.

More of my "Korean horseshoe..."

Happy Birthday to me!

A year ago, I would never have guessed how I would be spending my birthday this year... but I also can't imagine a better way for me to celebrate my 30th!  The day started with a short day trip to Dam Yeong, which is known for its bamboo.  This meant Eric and I took a bus for about 50 minutes, then figured out how to get from the bus station there to the Bamboo Forest.  We toured the bamboo for a while.  I have a slightly unnatural fascination with trees (which is a whole other blog topic...); so of course I loved this.  

  It was even better because my knee could now (sort-of) do the mini hikes.  Hooray.  Praise the Lord.  

  The day was even better because I got to share this mini adventure with one of my best friends, Eric.

 The bamboo forest is just how it sounds - a forest of bamboo trees.

 30 years young... and only getting better with age... right?

A happy happy birthday girl... 

so much happier and relaxed when I'm standing by Eric.

Welcome to the Big City

Now I live in Gwangju.  This is the 6th largest city in South Korea.  A couple of weeks ago, we (my friend Anna, acting as our tour guide; my guest, and me) went over to U-Square.  This is the the shopping district - like Jefferson Pointe for those of you in Fort Wayne and Harbison for those of you in Columbia, SC.  We were going to the "electronics super center" - Kumho World - which was like a candy store for my guest.  Fun times.  On the way, we walked over a "road bridge"... and paused to snap a few pictures of the traffic here.  Welcome to the big city, and my new home.

A bit more information, finally.

This week is already a bit of a whirlwind.  I have pretty much "settled into" both my apartment and my new job.  Most days, I go to the correct classroom and know the student's (English) names without looking at the seating chart in my book.  Except for a few of what I call "opportunity" students, the most difficult part of my job is usually operating the computer and the a/c in each room.  (Students stay in the same rooms, the teachers move from one classroom to the next.)  So, like any smart American - I ask my second grade students to help.  They are amazing with the electronics; so they help me with that and I help correct their word pronunciations.  It works out well.
  At work, I try to plan ahead as much as possible.  I like to write out lesson plans, looking at each class for the next few months.  This is particularly important because I teach fifteen different classes, ranging from American grades K through 5.  There are a few classes that I see more than once a week, but this is not true for most of them.  I use a variety of books, as well.  Compound this with coworkers whose native language is not English; and I am thankful that I seem to have some mad organizational skills.  However, even "the best laid plans" do not always work out; as my co-teachers and head teachers seem to use the Korean system of organization; which is mostly a mystery to everyone else.  So I am learning to be flexible and, while prepared as possible, also ready to adapt at a moment's notice.  I am also thankful that working with children of any age does not make me nervous.  I can talk to anyone about anything; so even if I am told to walk "cold" into a classroom and I haven't been able to prepare for that class, the students will still learn something that day.  It might be whatever I know best or am studying at the time; but they will learn something.
  Part of why I am trying to work so far ahead is that I have company coming this week.  (more on that later)
  I am not completely healthy yet, as I've been battling a nasty cold/sinus infection/allergy funk for about three weeks now.  Part of that is to be expected, as I had never been out of the US before and now live in Korea.  New food, new water, new environment; and weather that insists upon a 35-40 degree difference from 1:00 PM to 8:30 PM.  I did learn that going to the pharmacy can help significantly.  You just tell (or in my case motion to explain) your symptoms and the pharmacist gives you a box of "magic pills" for less than $5.  They do start clearing up the symptoms; but it still makes one wonder.
  My thoughts feel scattered, as there is so much to "catch up" on the blog here... I had a bit of a situation (my computer translated my blog back into Korean, which I don't actually know yet, and I didn't know how to add a post...) - but it should be better now.  As time permits, I will be filling in some more of the gaps of where I live, what I'm doing here, and the continued adventures of daily life as Hannah.