2013 - My year in Korea

Today marks the end of what has been one incredible ,  life changing year . I am struggling to comprehend how quickly this year has flown by .This time last year I was  feeling overwhelmed   and unsure of  what lay ahead of me .Trying to pack my life into boxes along with  deodorants, tampons  and rooibos tea  bags. Now , one year later I
look at how this year has turned out and I can honestly say with confidence that  this year has been the most incredible life changing year of my life.

If I had to list all the amazing encounters that I have had  , all the  memories that have been made  and what this year has taught me   , this post would be longer than the entire  Harry potter series. However ,  there are a few  things that I do feel need  to be mentioned as they are the reasons in particular that have made this year so incredibly special.

 The Convent 

First and foremost my incredible school. As I have said many times before I truly believe that being placed at this amazing school is thanks to God.  I cannot explain just how blessed I have been to be at this school.
Apart from my school being known for the incredibly delicious lunches I have been fortunate enough to work with amazing students and teachers .
My students have become more than just  the girls that I teach . They have become my friends . My Co teachers  have become more than just work colleagues, they  have become my mentors and friends . I could not have asked for a more beautiful working environment .  I have indeed been very spoiled  and blessed at this school .


There is one person in particular that deserves special mention . She  has become so much more than a co teacher ,  she has become my mentor and one of my closest friends in Korea. I have never met a more hard working  , dedicated teacher in my life .
She deserves a medal   not only  for all that she takes on at the school but for putting up with me and my never ending drama . From helping me plan holidays , to paying bills  and  even driving me to Ulsan on her Birthday to sort out my ARC card , she has truly been amazing. We have shared so many happy times together and I have finally found someone who takes as many picture of flowers and insects as me ! Yay!  It has been a privilege  and an honor getting to know this very special person

Friendships 

This year has definitely   been the year where my number of Facebook friends has increased dramatically . yes , I know one shouldn't  base their  friendships on how many friends they have of Facebook but still . This year started off with   7 Saffa girls leaving on  a plane together , feeling overwhelmed and dependent on each other for the challenges that lay ahead. Little did we realize that  a couple of months later we would not be depending on each other as much and would in fact form many new friendships.

One of the greatest gifts that I have been given this year is the opportunity  to  meet new people ,  not only from Korea but from all over the world.Living in a small city like Gyeongju  makes it very easy to stick to the expat teachers click ,however clicks have never appealed to me .
I believe that one of the most important aspects of  living in another country is getting to know the local people and to make an effort to make new  friendships.I have been fortunate enough to have this experience. One  of the greatest things I have learnt this year is that friendships have no limits . Age is  but a number ,distance means nothing and cultural differences are what keep friendships interesting. Some of my closest friends are either 10 years older than me or 5 years younger than me.



 I have been welcomed and embraced by an amazing,  incredible group of  young missionaries .Celebrating    
Christmas night  with them . eating home made food and playing games made me feel like I was part of a family . I have so much respect for them.They have given up 2 years of their life to spread the word of God. They are true gems!

 Another person that I have been blessed two meet is Emily Wang  , Angel Emily as I call her. Who would have thought that a friendship could blossom from meeting in a bar right ? Coco's bar seems to have this amazing ability to do that though. Emily comes from China and is one of the most soulful people I have met this year. Her faith in God and artistic talents are really something to be admired.She is a ray of sunshine in my life and my angel !

There are so many more people that  I could name and list that have a special place in my heart but these deserve mention because they are friendships  that come from different backgrounds . They have welcomed me with open arms , embraced me and supported me and for that I am eternally grateful.

Traveling

I think one of the greatest gifts that this year has given me is the opportunity  to travel and meet new people .Not only have I been able to explore the beautiful country of

Korea and Jeju Island but my dream of traveling South East Asia has become a reality. In July I was fortunate enough to go to Taiwan  with my fellow Saffa friends . 

We met the most awesome people from all over the world and despite the distance they are friendships that are still going strong today! 2014 shall begin with a holiday to Cambodia and Vietnam with my   best friend . Celebrating my Birthday in these two beautiful countries will no doubt be an amazing experience .










 Korean  culture 

One of the best aspects of living in Korea has without a doubt been learning about Korean  history  and culture. Asian culture has always fascinated  me  and I have fallen in love with  Korea .  How lucky I am to be living in the  in the historical capital of Korea ! The city that is known for its rich history .  Although there are aspects of  Korean culture that I do not  always agree with or aspects that have taken me a very long time to accept , I truly do love this country . Hard working ajummas in the rice fields , men stumbling around with their bottles of Soju , voices in the norebangs that can be heard on the streets , Kimchi that you can't escape ,  coffee shops  on every street corner with with most
hilarious English plastered onto the walls and  the abundance of tombs and temples that are found all over Gyeongju , these are just a few of the things that make this country the special place that it is .

Seasons in Soko

Coming from Cape Town I have always been incredibly proud of our weather. 4 perfect seasons as many people would say. The weather in Korea has been a challenge for a poor capetonian like me who is used to lovely hot but not humid summers and wet but not bitterly cold winters. Having said that I have a whole new appreciation for the seasons and have fallen love with the season in Soko.

Despite the fact that Korean winters are bitterly cold and that I cant feel my fingers and toes on most days , the  snowfall that has created a white winter wonderland around the country is truly a breath taking sight and has made the icy cold weather that much more bearable. 

The Spring this year in Gyeongju was beyond breathtaking. Endless streets covered in  the most delicious looking cherry blossoms.  Giant trees of white and pink flowers that resemble clouds.  Spring  in  Gyeongju really is magical. 

Summer , by far has been the most challenging season for me this year. The humidity was beyond bearable and as pools do not exist  in Korea , unless you are perhaps living in a pent house in Gangnam  , Haundae beach in Busan became the famous hangout  for the  summer.

 

Autumn or fall as they call it here has been the most exciting  and surprising out of the seasons . I never used to care much for Autumn in South Africa and perhaps its because the  autumn colours were never that magnificent.

Here in Korea it has been sensational.Cycling to school during autumn was just beautiful. I felt like I was in a painting. Being surrounded by the  vibrant colours of red and orange made it impossible to not feel happy.

          Magical Moments in Korea 

I have had some really rocking times this year and have found myself in some strange crazy situations . These have all made this year a memorable and eventful one.  Here is  a list of just a few of them .

Jumping and dancing around in giant animal outfits  in the rain at music festivals

Being on Korean Tv for the  famous    Korean    Music show 7080

Celebrating  Easter at an Indian Holi colour festival on Busan beach.

Busan film festival

Gangnam styling in Gangnam at one of the biggest clubs 

in Asia, club Ellui 

                       

30km midnight walks in Gyeongju  in my  rabbit onesie.

                                       
The beautiful Seoul 

Lantern Festival.

 Being serenaded by  Peppertones , my favourite

Korean indie band at their acoustic gig in Gangnam

Daegu and the many crazy nights in Club Monkey
                                           with Raf                                            

                                        

 

Busan Christmas tree festival        

        Spending St Paddys in 

       an actual Irish pub in the

       famous  Korea the famous 

       Wolfhound

These are the moments that have touched my heart 

and added value to my life in Korea .

Volunteering and falling in love with every single child at theUlsan  Orphanage

 Temple stay at the famous

 Haeinsa temple with my co teacher.

      

 Hiking the magnificent

mountains of Korea

            

    Exploring Jeju  Island and conquering  the tallest

                                      mountain in Korea !

Putting up the Christmas

tree at school with all my students.

Attending the memorial mass for Madiba  in Seoul.

What I have learnt

As I have said ,  this year has been an incredible year  and  I don't think that  it could have gone any more smoothly than it has.This year has taught me a lot about myself . It has taught me the value of having family. Being so far away from home over the Christmas season has been incredibly challenging.  It has taught me how to be tolerant  and respect  things that I may not necessarily agree with . I have learnt how important it is to get to know the people and embrace their culture. I've learnt that it is never too late to try something new. I've learnt that as Westerners we are incredibly selfish and  that we need to learn the Asian  art of giving . I've learnt the importance of having faith in oneself even when you want to give up ,  but most importantly I have learnt to have faith in God. This year I put my entire life in his hands and in return he undoubtedly gave me one amazing year in Korea .

My only hope for next year is that he continues to watch over me and bless me as I enter a new school and a new year in Korea .

Christmas at the Convent

Christmas carols  being played through the speakers echoing throughout the entire school  ,  giant christmas trees  being put up  , masses of colourful and  elaborate decorations being unpacked and  there in the middle of the school foyer ,  a beautiful giant  nativity scene.   Christmas at the convent has arrived !  Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would end up at a school that actually celebrates the true meaning of   Christmas. What a blessing it is to be surounded by people who share my joy and love for Christmas .  My students and I had a grand time decorating the giant Christmas trees .  Wrapping tinsel around our necks as bowers  and standing on ladders in order to put the angel on top of the tree all added to the crazy CHristmas spirit.The magic did not end there . The next evening as I left school  I saw a bright light illuminating from the school foyer . I have never seen such a magical sight . It was like something out of a CHritsmas story. The giant trees were covered in the most beautiful Christmas lights . 

THat sight alone was enough to get me into the Christmas spirit and motivated me to pimp out my classroom  for Christmas. 70 000 won later and  I was very satisfied with my Christmas attire for the classroom . One can never buy too many Christmas decorations.  Although I was disapp ointed that HomePlus could not cater to my needs and supply me with a traditional green Christmas tree  ,  I was not going to let some minor decor drama crush my Christmas spirit . Many students came pouring.into the classroom and were more than happy to dress the Christmas tree . From gold and silver candy canes to giant rudolphs , we pimped out the Classroom. I never thought I would ever  learn to love a white Christmas tree , however I must admit it actually doesnt look so common when its covered in silver and gold decorations . Dare I even say it looks classy.  

For the final Christmas touch to my classroom I decided to embrace my inner elementary teacher  and decorate the classrom board in giant christmas trees and snowmen . Although i realised that my  16 year.oklld students would probably  not appreciate  it ,  I just coudnt resist going all out .  Anyone who teaches elementary will agree with me here when I Say that  you are never too old for decorating, drawing  painting and colouring in. After many extra hours at school my giant snowman  and Christmas tree  was done .  I decided to incorporate my Christmas friends into a lesson .

' A CHristmas wish for the world ' Each student had to think of a  CHristmas wish that was important to people. Something meaningful. I had to explain the term 'meaningful ' very carefully to them as some of the dear flowers were under the impression that a   rich boyfriend , an ipad and  Zara clothes were vital for the world. Each christmas wish was written onto a piece of  paper and then stuck onto the snowman and the Christmas tree . By the end of the week my snowman and christmas tree was filled with the most beautiful wishes for the world. By far my personal favourite
'I hope that everyone gets to eat water '  bless her . ♥ 

Make it or break it - Sooneung , The CSAT

Classroom desks being emptied , staff rooms being cleared of computers and text books, boxes of stationery piling up in my classroom and school ending at 11 am. This is all in preprartion for tomorrow. The day that will probably be the most frightening day that any third grader will ever have to face the day that they have worked towards for the past 13 years and the day that will decide the rest of their lives . "Sooneung " also known as The CSAT.


The background
CSAT which stands for The College Scholastic Ability Test is a type of standardized test that every single Grade 3 student in South Korea is expected to write if they wish to be accepted into a University. CSAT is a government run test and is managed by the Korea Institute of Curriculum and Evaluation.

The subjects that are tested in the CSAT include : Korean, Mathematics, English language, Social Science/Science/Vocational Inquiry, and Foreign language. Students can choose from all or some of the subjects. This exam lasts 8 hours . After the test, the administrators gather the test, they are then marked using machines and the printing of the results usually takes around a month

Each year certain schools are used as CSAT exam venues and students from all over Gyeongju will be placed in various schools to write the exam. This happens in every city in Korea. My school happens to be one of them and as a result we will not have school tomorrow and today will be spent clearing classrooms and ensuring no academic material is in sight .By 2 pm all students and teachers will be asked to leave and the school will be locked until tomorrow morning. This is a very nice change from the usual 11 pm closing time

Some of our teachers will be required to monitor the exams at school tomorrow and will spend the entire day patrolling the hallways and the classrooms to ensure that nothing goes wrong. ( yes they are getting paid large amounts of money to do this).


Why so serious
The test is taken so seriously that The whole of South Korea comes to a halt. Day-to-day operations are grounded and delayed will be delayed.[4] . Tomorrow the stock markets will open late and buses and subways will be increased to avoid traffic jams that may prevent students from getting to the testing sites. Some students will even have police officers escorting them to the venues... it boggles the mind . Younger students and the members of the students' families will gather outside the testing sites to cheer on the students whilst others will spend their entire day in prayer praying for the students. Reporters will gather outside the exam venues to broadcast the event on national TV. All. for. one. exam.


CSAT VS Matric exams in South Africa

In South Africa we regard our matric exam as the most important exam in a student’s high school career whilst the University entrance exam really doesn’t count for much . Although there is a final government examination that all grade 3 students are required to write in South Korea its regarded as almost irrelevant in comparison to the CSAT.
In South Africa each University has its own individual entrance exam , however South Korea did away with that system years ago as it was believed to be a failing system. I find the idea of using the high schools as exam venues as opposed to the universities pretty interesting. The amount of extra work and preparation that it requires from the school is monumental. At this very moment all the students are pouring into my classroom with their school life packed into boxes. My classroom is being used as storage for the next two days.

Unlike in South Africa where the majority of the population do not have the luxury to attend university , 80% of Korean high school students will enter Universities. Yes, 80%!!!!! that is huge and as a result the chances of getting into a good University is made that much more difficult. Many students have worked their entire lives towards this one day and tomorrow it will all be over


Controlling a culture
One 8 hour exam , yet this one exam has successfully managed to take control of an entire culture and the school education in South Korea. Parents invest millions of won in their children’s education , especially in subjects such as English , all in the hope that when they finally get to their final year of school and are faced with the 8 hour hell like exam , all the money and lack of sleep would have been worth it .

For those that make it through tomorrow it will be a day of celebration and relief, but for those that are not blessed with that luxury , tomorrow will be a day filled with a sense of sadness , loss and failure , but an even more horrific reality is that for many of the students , it will be a day that they wish to end and never have to relive again.

I hope and pray that it is the former . Here is a link to a documentary that was made about the CSAT and its impact on Korean culture. I urge you all to please watch it. http://vimeo.com/24642646

The Good luck Geunhwa cirlce

Yesterday we had a two hour school mass service. This mass was to prepare and wish our matric girls good luck for the upcoming and very stressful university exams. I had a very similar sort of service  at my school in South Africa before we wrote our final exams. However, what we  didnt have was a good luck circle. In the middle of the church service all 250 grade 3 students formed a very large circle around the perimeter of the school hall. Then all of the teachers got up from their seats and went inside this giant circle. Feeling utterly confused as to what was going on I joined the other teachers inside the large circle and was informed that we were making a good luck circle , ( a very old Geunhwa tradition) and that we should shake hands and wish each grade 3 student good luck for the exam.

As I began walking around the circle and shaking each girls hand to wish them good luck I noticed many of them desperately trying to hold back their tears. Suddenly I had flashbacks of when I was in my final year of school and how I felt just before the final exams . Stressed , overwhelmed and nervous. Anyone who is an english high school teacher in Korea will back me up here. The pressure placed on these students is incomprehensible.

I realised that they were not crying because they were sad , they were crying because of the pressure , the stress and the fear of failing. As I continued to walk around the circle wishing them good luck my tears soon turned into sobbs as I realised just how important it is for these girls to do well in this exam. Failure to achieve a high grade will result in them not getting into the university that they have always dreamed of going to. With this in mind I attempted to make my " good luck" wishes more encouraging and excititng " Good luck , you can do it" " Keep fighting" "You gonna do so well" .Such simple words of encouragement yet it gave them a glimmer of hope that everything is going to be ok.Some of them held onto my hand and wouldnt let go as the tears came streaming down their faces. Being the emotional person that I am I took it one step further and started hugging all of them. The principal who was watching all of this go down didnt look too impressed. However when it comes to matters such as supporting and encouraging your students I say screw the rules.

I know this post may seem boring or pointless however , I wanted to share it with you because I think it is a beautiful tradition at Geunhwa and something that I never experienced at school. More importantly it illsutrates the importance of ecouraging others and believing in them. Eventhough I have never taught the grade 3 's and dont have much of a relationship with them I know that they will take our words of encouragemnet with them when they write the exam. So lets not forget or take for granted just how influential our few words of encouragement can be for others and especially our students.

x

The good luck Geunhwa circle . Teachers going around the circle wishing each student good luck