Jindallae (Azaleas)

Last Wednesday, all the teachers at my school hiked a local mountain, Cheonjusan (천주산), which is famous for its azaleas. Every April, one side of the mountain becomes carpeted with delicate purple flowers, called jindallae (진달래). A small festival draws locals and some tourists to the mountain every spring, and since I missed it last year, I was eager to join this hike.

The school outing was meant to be a sort of picnic (소풍) near the peak, but since I got there a bit late, and my hiking buddy, the super-fit earth science teacher, was determined to make it all the way to the top, I missed the picnic part. (It was soju and Korean-style sashimi, neither of which I care for in the least, so no great loss there, anyway.)

But we did reach the peak and were rewarded with a hazy view of the city (much like my previous trip to this same mountain). Snap one photo for evidence, then head straight back down... with a few pauses to get more photos of the beautiful flowers... I really regretted not bringing my camera with me on the hike, but I had headed off right after my afternoon classes, so I wasn't even in "proper" hiking gear (운동의류). All of the other teachers had come prepared; every Korean has a spare sweatsuit and neon-colored running shoes stashed away somewhere handy, it seems.

After the hike, we all went out for dinner -- fortunately the fish and liquor was just the pre-game -- at a duck restaurant. The soup was spicy but it wasn't just my burning tongue that kept me quiet. Although it was nice to be in the company of my colleagues, I find myself talking with them rather less these days. I feel that mealtimes are now just a tinge awkward. After two years, I'm no longer a novelty at school, and only a few dedicated non-English teachers are still willing to strike up conversation with me (though they are consistent and friendly in their efforts to improve their English). The others I just smile at while they speak in Korean, or play volleyball with weekly while they speak in Konglish. It's small stuff, but I've got to cherish it because my time with them now has a clear -- and fast-approaching -- ending date.

Such a gorgeous view, and such a pity I only had my phone on my to capture it!

Blossoms & Stress Baking

Wen Ni and me at Yeojwacheon in Jinhae last week, just before the cherry blossom festival began.

The same stream about one week later, with the trees in full bloom.

The city I currently call home is gorgeous in the spring, as streets and hills turn pink with cherry blossoms (벚꽃) blooming all over. I'm very happy in Changwon now, and I'll be honest: I couldn't bear leaving my city and my school. But graduate school beckons... I have a tough choice to make by mid-April. Naturally, I'm worried out about it: add Decide Future Plans to my huge to-do list, right after Stress Bake All Night, which is what I'm doing now. It's 5:46am and my apartment smells like chocolate chip cookies, maple-walnut bread, and strawberry cupcakes. I'm headed to the Fulbright Spring Conference on Jeju Island in a few hours, and the treats I've made are for a bake sale there. Hopefully I can find some time this weekend to take a deep breath, relax, and ponder the future.

Korean Food List Challenge

List Challenge: How many of these Korean foods have you tried?

My score was 93 (out of 100). Not bad, I suppose, for having lived in Korea for 2⅔ years. I still have not tried 산낙지 (sannakji/live octopus) or 보신탕 (boshintang). The latter of these is the infamous Korean dog soup (개장국), but 보신 is just a euphemism which means "to preserve health". Another name you usually see in South Korea is 영양탕, or healthy soup, while in North Korea you can often find 단고기집 (dangogi jib/sweet meat restaurant).

I don't know if I'll get around to trying these two foods in particular before I leave Korea. On the other hand, I will eat 칼국수 (kalguksu/chopped noodle soup) or 김치전 (kimchijeon/kimchi pancake) any day. And I could go for patbingsu, or shaved ice, right about now...

Also, happy spring! The 추분, or vernal equinox, was yesterday. I did some spring cleaning this afternoon while listening to music. Here's one of my spring favorites: Roy Kim's 봄봄봄 (Bom bom bom/Spring, Spring, Spring)!

성 패트릭의 날 - Saint Patrick's Day

The following short biography of St. Patrick is from the Book of Common Prayer.

Patrick of Ireland (389 – 461)

At the age of sixteen, Patrick was kidnapped from his home by Irish marauders and taken to Ireland, where he was sold as a slave to a chieftain and forced to herd livestock. After six years of slavery, Patrick escaped to his native Britain. Because he believed that his captivity and deliverance were ordained by God, Patrick devoted his life to ministry. While studying for the priesthood, he experienced recurring dreams in which he heard voices say, “O holy youth, come back to Erin and walk once more amongst us.” He convinced his superiors to let him return to Ireland in 432, not to seek revenge for injustice but to seek reconciliation and to spread his faith. Over the next thirty years, Patrick established churches and monastic communities across Ireland. When he was not engaged in the work of spreading the Christian faith, Patrick spent his time praying in his favorite places of solitude and retreat.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day! Unsurprisingly, absolutely no one in my school knew about the holiday. The extent of my students' knowledge of Ireland (아일랜드) ends at its location on the world map at the back of my classroom: "next to United Kingdom." I came to school with my green shirt, green cardigan, green bow tie, and green corduroys and began each period with a "top of the marnin' to ya, class!" in my barely-passable Irish accent. My students said, "Teacher, what language is that?"

No green to be seen! It's not a common color for my students to wear. My co-teacher happened to be wearing a lovely green ensemble, but it turns out she had picked the color because it was a nice spring day (China's yellow dust notwithstanding). Our cafeteria did not serve any green food (and it wasn't even the absence of food coloring; I realized that our school lunches don't do green vegetables very well. They're always either canned, pickled, or drenched in some mayo-based sauce...)

Having expected this lack of spirit, I'd taken on the task of introducing a bit of Irish(-American) culture to my school by hastily repurposing the tail end of my lesson on pipe dreams to talk about Saint Patrick's Day. Fun activities included hiding little paper clovers all around the classroom to have students search high and low for the single four-leafed one (네잎 클로버) and watching some Irish step dance! My students now know that people drink 13 million pints of Guinness (기네스) on Saint Patrick's Day and that the Chicago River is turned an impossible shade of green.

The funny thing is that I've rarely celebrated Saint Patrick's Day myself. The Irish-American community in the States is very large (nearly 12% of the population), but in northern California, I was surrounded by Asians. Saint Patrick's Day for me was just a fun day to wear green to school, drink green milk, and pinch my friends; it never meant anything more. Yet here in Korea I feel a sort of duty to share what little I know with my school community, since I -- who have had nothing whatsoever to do with Irish culture -- represent America to them. Odd, isn't it? Hopefully today's mini cultural lesson will pique a student's interest and they'll want to find out more about the rich history and heritage of Ireland.

Have a safe and happy holiday!

벚꽃 & 비음산

Early cherry blossoms in Tongyeong

Winter is almost over, thank goodness. These past few days have been practically warm. Good weather for hiking -- I climbed Bieumsan with a friend this past weekend. The peak is still barren, but at the trailhead, I spotted purple flowers on the ground and white blooms emerging on the trees. Signs of spring. 드디어!

비음산, 510 meters above sea level. Well, that makes 3 down, 18 to go!

Happy Easter!

Christ is risen!

Happy Easter, everyone. I have not been able to find an equivalent for that English, phrase. However, 부활절 (Buhwal-jeol), or Resurrection Day, is the Korean word for Easter.

I just returned from a fantastic weekend in Daegu, where I celebrated Passover with some Jewish friends, attended the annual concert of a Korean choir featuring a fellow Fulbrighter, made new friends, went shopping, and celebrated Easter at an international church.

It's late now, and while I'd like to write about the entire weekend, I actually have a bit of lesson planning to do. So, I'll be updating with photos and stories over the next few days.

In the meantime, please enjoy this photo of some cherry blossoms (벚꽃/beotggot). Easter is a celebration of resurrection and of life being renewed. All over Korea, the flowers are now in full bloom and spring is definitely here.

Cherry blossoms (벚꽃) in Changwon.

꽃샘추위 - The Winter is Jealous of Flowers, and Other Korean Expressions

This past week in Korea has been characterized by a sudden drop in temperature and an unwelcome haze over every city courtesy of China's Yellow Dust. And I was beginning to think that spring was on its way; the cherry blossoms are actually beginning to bloom all around Changwon.

In fact, this kind of early-spring cold snap is very familiar to Koreans, who have come up with a very poetic expression to identify the phenomenon: 꽃샘추위. Let's break this down:

꽃 (ggot) means "flower".
샘 (saem) means "jealousy". It's also how you pronounce the name "Sam" in Korean.
추위 (sounds like "chewy") means "extreme cold".

So, 꽃샘추위 describes the yearly late-March cold snap as the bitter vengeance of a dying Winter who is jealous of the coming flowers of spring. Perhaps she does not like colorful flowers, baby birds, and allergies. Perhaps she is just incredibly spiteful. Either way, she's holding out as long as she can before spring (봄/pom) finally arrives.

I learned this expression from my host parents but asked my co-teachers at school to explain it. They did, and then wondered if there's any sort of English equivalent. I don't think there is... Actually, my co-teachers have been asking me for a lot of American English idioms recently, mostly because they've realized that they use a lot of Korean idioms and want to express these interesting ideas in English when they speak with me. I'm not quite as well-versed in colorful English expressions as my friend Adam Gann ("Carter's little liver pills", anyone?), but I'm trying to keep up. It's more difficult than I imagined to come up with idioms that fit a specific circumstance!

On the other hand, I've learned many great expressions from my co-teachers, and here are a few of them:

반짝반짝하다 (banjjak banjjak hada): This is an ideophone (kind of like onomatopoeia, but not for sounds) that describes objects that shine, sparkle, and glitter. Pretty things that are 반짝반짝 but not necessarily physically light-reflecting are said to be cleansing to the eyes (I think this is a separate expression, but I can't remember it).

째려보다 (jjaeryeoboda): To look at someone with scorn or anger.

눈 흘기다 (noon heulgida): Either to look at someone reproachfully or to give someone the side eye. I love this one. I also love side eyes. I now present three Gifs of the Side Eye:

Lucille Bluth is judging you.

Oprah Winfrey does not believe you.

Zachary Quinto can't even.

불똥이 튀기다 (bul ddongi twigida): This idiom describes the situation when one event "sparks" (불똥이) a bad consequence or reaction from something else. This can apply to someone "caught in the crossfire" between two friends fighting, but it could also apply to someone who's been left cleaning up another's mess.

꾸어다 놓은 보릿자루 (gguwoda noheun bolitjalu): I described this one in a previous post, and it means a person who feels out of place, like a fish out of water or a "cat in a strange garret" (that one I'd never heard before, but it's what the dictionary gave me...). They would feel or look like a random bag of barley sitting in a corner that someone else mistook for an actual person. Awkward.