Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival

This past Saturday, a friend of mine and fellow EPIKer, Danielle, headed to Jinhae for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival. Since first being introduced to these beautiful trees when I was living in Georgia, I can't get enough! The only downside to these amazing trees is that their blooms only last for a few weeks out of the year...so when they come, you can't procrastinate taking pictures of them! I attended the festival when I was in Tongyeong a couple of years ago, but because of a freak eye problem with one of my fellow travelers, our time was cut short. This year was different...we had a full day of fun!

Here's a look at our weekend in pictures:

Danielle and I took the bus from Tongyeong to Masan, and then had to take the city bus from Masan to Jinhae. (Buses 160-164 run between the cities...bus fare is currently 1,100 won) The city bus to Jinhae was quite packed...as you can see in the picture. It was about a 45 minute trek with traffic, but much cheaper than a taxi!

The 49th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival! The streets are lined with cherry blossoms, making the scenery look amazing!

In the center cirle of the festival, there was a huge performance while we were there. I must admit I didn't pay close attention to the performance, but I did enjoy taking a few pictures!

 A traditional Korean dress...a hanbok. I love these dresses!

Cherry blossom trees everywhere!!

Caitlin met us in Jinhae for the day and Danielle's friend, Junsang, joined us at the festival. Later, we all visited a local tofu restaurant that was quite delish! 

In a strange turn of events, Danielle and I ended up spending the night with Caitlin in Daegu. It turned out to be ok because Danielle knew of an AMAZING breakfast place near Camp Walker in Daegu! I had the biscuits and gravy and an omelet, along with a Dr. Pepper! The biscuits and gravy were SOOO good!! Danielle & Caitlin had the stuffed french toast..which they loved! So if you're ever in Daegu, head to Hami Mami's near Camp Walker and get some awesome breakfast...you won't regret it!! (Just tell the taxi driver Camp Walker, Gate 4...it's on that road, just look for the sign!)

It was a fun weekend and a tiring one! My feet were happy to be home, but I had a really good time, so it was worth it!! Can't wait for the next adventure....soooo glad it's spring!! :)

EPIK Training - Daejeon, South Korea

As you know, I just returned home from a six-day training session for EPIK teachers that was held at the KT Center in Daejeon. I had heard a few things about these training sessions, but I still felt pretty 'blind' going into it.

On Saturday morning, bright and early, I boarded a bus with a few other teachers from Tongyeong and surrounding towns, Goseong and Geoje. We drove for about an hour and picked up another group of teachers in Jinju and after that, it was on to a small town to get the final group of teachers from our area. Once we got to Daejeon, we had a bit of a delay because the other bus that was coming from our province, Gyeongsangnam-do, broke down, so we went to their rescue. When we finally reached the KT training center in Daejeon, we were all hungry and grumpy...but in my eyes, the week only got better from there!

I was a part of Class 2, which contained mostly all teachers from Gyeongsangnam-do. Our class quickly gained a reputation for being an experienced group of teachers, and we were...in comparison to the classes that had mostly teachers that just arrived in Korea for the first time. After our class meeting, we headed to the opening ceremony and it was quite nice. There were a few introductions, 3 different traditional Korean performances, and a wonderful and informational speech by Hyunwoo Sun (who is most famous for his website Talk to Me in Korean...I might just have to start using that!). Here are a few pictures from the opening ceremony: 

The bulk of the days were full of informational classes...starting at 8:40am and going until 8:10pm, the days were long and packed, but personally, I found all of the lectures to be very informative and relevant to my life as a teacher in Korea. I think all classes were presented really well and I really enjoyed all of them! On our final day of classes, we had to present a lesson that we had prepared through the week. I was partnered with 2 other elementary school teachers in my class and we had the topic of "Where are you from?". This was good news for all of us, since the first chapter of the 6th grade English book in Korea is this exact same topic...so we had all taught this just weeks before. The three of us pooled our ideas together and I think our presentation turned out well. We got good feedback from our peers, so I think it was a great success!

On the final full day of our training session, we headed to a nearby farm village to learn a little bit about Korean culture. I love going to these type of things, so it was a great time for me! I'll describe the experience with the pictures:

My group's first stop was this old house. The guide told us that this is the oldest house in the town...about 80 years old. I was surprised there weren't any older houses there...that number seemed a little low for me.

Then, it was off to a lesson in brick making. Our guide is going to be building a Korean treasure, so the bricks our group made will hopefully make it into his structure.

Next, we made some flower rice cakes with edible flowers and leaves. After pan frying them, they take a little dip in some honey and then they're ready to be eaten!

Next, we learned how rice is harvested...starting with cutting our own rice stalks (?) from a field, then stripping the stalks, crushing them to remove the outer husks, and lastly, sending them through a wooden mechanism to separate the rice from the junk!

Our last project was making this ostrich out of a pine cone and some pieces of wood. Mine looks nice in the picture, but in reality, it didn't make it home in one piece. I need to get some super glue so I can reassemble it!

After our full day, lots of the teachers headed out for a night in Daejeon. It was fun getting to hang out with everyone for one last hoorah. I really loved getting to know all of my classmates and building friendships with fellow teachers from around Korea. Here are a few pics from the night:

And on Thursday, it was time to say good-bye and head back to Tongyeong. I had a good time but I was happy to get back into my daily routine and 'normalcy'. I snapped one last picture with our class leader, Juyoung, who was really amazing! She was so helpful and willing to help in any way she could! And I'm excited to see her again in Seoul someday!

Overall, it was a great week and I am really glad that I got to meet some other teachers from around the country. It was so nice to talk with people that are going through similar experience and make some new friends!

So now I'm back in Tongyeong, and spring has sprung and I couldn't be happier! I love spring and all of the beautiful flowers! Hopefully I'll have some pictures of beautiful Tongyeong for you soon!

Training Time

Tomorrow, I'm heading to a 6-day/5-night EPIK training session in Daejeon! It's really an orientation, but since I missed the first one because of sickness, I'll finally be attending with only 7 months left in my contract! I'm excited to meet some new foreigners and see what their lives are like in other places than Tongyeong! Hopefully I'll have some pictures and stories to share when I get back!

And now, a picture to send you on your way! I had dinner with these girls' families last weekend and we had lots of fun playing rock-paper-scissors and other games! So cute!!!

Waygook.org

I've always been a huge fan of Dave's ESL site for resources when it comes to teaching English and living in Korea, but a couple of weeks ago, I was introduced to another site that is amazing for teachers in Korea.

If you're in Korea or thinking about going to Korea, http://waygook.org/ is a site that you should become familiar with. I think it's especially helpful for public school teachers, because there is a great index of ideas for teachers to use. There is lots of file sharing and discussion that is really great for English teachers!

Just wanted to share with my fellow English teachers in Korea!!

What Legacy Do You Want to Leave Behind?

Last week, as I was flipping through the lastest edition of the Wayland Baptist alumni magazine, Footprints, I couldn't help but reminisce about my old days at WBU.

I can remember it clearly...sophomore year...an interview to become a member of the Student Union Board...Dr. Lusk asked me, "Sara, what legacy do you want to leave behind after you're finished at Wayland?" Being the 19-year old that I was and having never given thought to any kind of legacy before, I said the first thing that came to my mind, "I want people to remember me as a fan...a lover of all sports at Wayland and the biggest supporter on campus!" Well, I suppose that wasn't the answer he was looking for since I wasn't selected to be in the organization, but as I look back on my time at Wayland, I think that's exactly the legacy I left.

Almost always, when I see an old friend from my days at Wayland and they're introducing me to someone else, it comes up that I was a sports fan at WBU. I guess I didn't realize it at the time, but sports did take up a lot of my time during my four years in Plainview. Most of my memories when I look back have something to do with working at an athletic event, hanging out with someone involved in the sports world, or traveling to a game.

I guess it all started my freshman year at Wayland. I became really good friends with a fellow freshman, Nicole, and we spent a good portion of our first year at the baseball field. We even drove all the way to Arizona during Spring Break so we could cheer on the Pioneers. I would find any means possible to go to a game, especially when the team played their conference games in Oklahoma...catching rides with friends, riding with players' mothers, getting up at 5am to make it for first pitch. I guess the baseball team noticed my obsession support, because at the end of the season, they presented me with the 'Most Dedicated Fan' award at the Athletic Banquet. I was shocked and very grateful! And from there, my love of sports just grew and grew!

The following year, I started working at basketball games doing stats with Rhane and Jennifer. Little did I know how much I would love being courtside at the table. I have never been much of an athlete, but my new job allowed me to be about as close to the action as I could have been. I was learning about other sports that my high school didn't have, like volleyball and soccer, and taking an interest in sports I hadn't before, like golf. Also, by then, I was starting to become friends with some of the athletes, which made being a fan even more fun!

The next two years were full of countless sporting events...and lots of miles on my car! Whether it was going to Oklahoma for conference match-ups every other weekend, Abilene for midweek games, or Amarillo for golf tournaments, I did everything in my power to support my friends and watch them in action. Between games, Rhane let me start working in her office during the day so I could get a feel of the life of a Sports Information Director, and I started writing sports articles for the university newspaper. Soon enough, my life revolved around the world of athletics.

Fast forward to August 2006, I started a graduate assistantship at Mercer University working in the Sports Information office. It was my chance to get experience in a field of work that I loved and earn a Master's degree while doing so. I spent two years there, working primarily with the volleyball and softball teams, and of course, doing stats at basketball games. I feel certain that I would have never pursued that chance if I hadn't developed a love for athletics during my time at Wayland.

And here I am today, halfway around the world and thinking of the 'old' days. I could have chosen one of many different paths when I became a student at Wayland, and because of the one I did choose, I can surely say that I'm happy I did so. I made wonderful memories, and more importantly, I made amazing friends.

So when people ask me what kind of legacy I left at Wayland, I'll proudly say I was a sports fan...and a darn good one!


(PS...Thanks to my little sister for scanning these photos for me since I'm far from home right now!)