No longer sick
I like not being sick. It's pretty fun. It did take a lot of medicine and rest, though. All the kids asked if I had "pig influenza."
So on Saturday I went on a shark dive with my female foreign coworkers. It was a blast. We dove with two other girls and the instructor (there was also another group after us). Apparently the only animal in the aquarium that bothers divers is the green sea turtles, so those were locked up for us. We did some talking, watched a video, and then suited up. The suits were quite tight, and we all had to help each other yank them on, but it was fine. Then we got weight belts and big heavy oxygen tanks. So after that it was hard to move... We shuffled over to the holding/training tank, where we were taught how to breathe, clear our masks, and clear our breathing tubes while being buffeted by spotted eagle rays (super cute!). Then we went into the main tank. It was cold. Real cold. But we saw the sharks, huge grouper fish, and some other fish. We picked up shark teeth and waved to the regular visitors. And took pictures with the instructor's underwater camera. Here's the website with them: http://scubainkorea.com/Gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=7993 I'm in the first... few. But more than a few. I was taking the pictures a lot of the time. When we finished, we stopped for burritos on the way home, because we hadn't eaten in a long time. Mmm...
Then on Sunday I went to what Jenny first described as a Japanese festival. But then Nadia pulled me aside and told me that it was not a Japanese festival, it was a historical Korean festival, celebrating when the Koreans went to bring their culture to Japan, because Japan is culturally inferior. I wasn't sure what to say to that, but I did spend a while hating Nadia for it. But the festival itself was fun. There were some amazing dancers from Hiroshima, lots of cool costumes, a parade, music, a doll exhibit... It was good. We were going to get curry afterwards, but the curry restaurant was closed, so we got noodles instead... I didn't like it.
Monday we had a Childrens Day party at school. I worked with a Korean teacher and a massive volunteer in the 'police station,' throwing kids in jail for speaking Korean, running, or teasing each other. Mostly speaking Korean. I had a good time! We went out to dinner afterwards, and it was... not incredible. But it was okay.
Tuesday we were off for the actual Childrens Day holiday. I caught up on my sleep a little. Then I went shopping in the morning and got some summer tops and some toys. And then I came home and relaxed for the rest of the day.
This weekend... I don't know yet! I'm pondering a hike, but we'll see how the weather is and how I feel. Maybe a movie. I saw the 4th Keroro movie (in Korean) on Sunday morning. It was fun! Worth the early price, certainly. I'm kind of ready to move on from Korea. I did a lot of looking into Japan and Australia on Tuesday. That's the current plan after I finish my contract.
So on Saturday I went on a shark dive with my female foreign coworkers. It was a blast. We dove with two other girls and the instructor (there was also another group after us). Apparently the only animal in the aquarium that bothers divers is the green sea turtles, so those were locked up for us. We did some talking, watched a video, and then suited up. The suits were quite tight, and we all had to help each other yank them on, but it was fine. Then we got weight belts and big heavy oxygen tanks. So after that it was hard to move... We shuffled over to the holding/training tank, where we were taught how to breathe, clear our masks, and clear our breathing tubes while being buffeted by spotted eagle rays (super cute!). Then we went into the main tank. It was cold. Real cold. But we saw the sharks, huge grouper fish, and some other fish. We picked up shark teeth and waved to the regular visitors. And took pictures with the instructor's underwater camera. Here's the website with them: http://scubainkorea.com/Gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.ShowItem&g2_itemId=7993 I'm in the first... few. But more than a few. I was taking the pictures a lot of the time. When we finished, we stopped for burritos on the way home, because we hadn't eaten in a long time. Mmm...
Then on Sunday I went to what Jenny first described as a Japanese festival. But then Nadia pulled me aside and told me that it was not a Japanese festival, it was a historical Korean festival, celebrating when the Koreans went to bring their culture to Japan, because Japan is culturally inferior. I wasn't sure what to say to that, but I did spend a while hating Nadia for it. But the festival itself was fun. There were some amazing dancers from Hiroshima, lots of cool costumes, a parade, music, a doll exhibit... It was good. We were going to get curry afterwards, but the curry restaurant was closed, so we got noodles instead... I didn't like it.
Monday we had a Childrens Day party at school. I worked with a Korean teacher and a massive volunteer in the 'police station,' throwing kids in jail for speaking Korean, running, or teasing each other. Mostly speaking Korean. I had a good time! We went out to dinner afterwards, and it was... not incredible. But it was okay.
Tuesday we were off for the actual Childrens Day holiday. I caught up on my sleep a little. Then I went shopping in the morning and got some summer tops and some toys. And then I came home and relaxed for the rest of the day.
This weekend... I don't know yet! I'm pondering a hike, but we'll see how the weather is and how I feel. Maybe a movie. I saw the 4th Keroro movie (in Korean) on Sunday morning. It was fun! Worth the early price, certainly. I'm kind of ready to move on from Korea. I did a lot of looking into Japan and Australia on Tuesday. That's the current plan after I finish my contract.