Land of the Free?
We're reading a book about Elian Gonzalez in my one class. As a result, I decided to draw parallels between Cuba and North Korea. To me, they're quite obvious. Both countries are failed communist countries that restrict the freedoms of their people. So I mention North Korea to my kids and say "is North Korea a good country or a bad country?" (In hindsight, that was a TERRIBLE question, since, regardless of whether or not they want to bomb the shit out of Seoul, they're still KOREA). The kids looked at me like I was a dumb shit and said "GOOD!" OK... new tactic... "are the people in North Korea free or not free?" "FREE!"... Hmmm- Normally I might say "perhaps I'M wrong," but in this case I KNOW I'm not. (sidenote: when the HELL would I admit I might be wrong? I'm such a liar). I kind of just stood there dumbfounded, and wondered what the hell kind of crap these kids are being fed in their schools. That was pretty appalling when I heard that.
Speaking of my class, I always like to make fun of myself, since they are always willing to talk when I do that. So I asked them if I was nice, and they all (somehow) said "no." I found this almost as surprising as the North Korea answer. Granted, I'm generally a prick, but I'm super nice to most of these kids. So I asked "what could I do to become nicer?" The kids then launched into this discussion about how I needed "a new nose, new eyes, and I need to get my face fixed." Not sure where all that came from. I think one of the kids also told me my voice was too high? Hmmm... I think I'll send him back to beginner English. Bitch.
I'm starting to think this place may not be so bad. Sure, it has its low points, but what place doesn't? On the flipside, it can be tremendously charming at times. On my way back from work today, I spotted a mother and her two children walking down this steeeeeeep hill. The son was actually on a bicycle with training wheels, and the mother was holding onto the back of the bike, so her son didn't die. Haha. About 2/3 of the way down the hill, she let go and he went FLYING. It was pretty hilarious and looked amazingly fun. It was definitely a bright point in my day. (Is that bad?)
One of the quirks of Korean culture is that these people have NO concept of personal space. For example, I was riding on the bus to work today, and a bunch of people got on at one of the stops. I was lucky to have a seat, but by this point, there were no seats left. At the same time, it wasn't overly crowded. However, this didn't stop this one girl (probably mid to late teens, she was in her school girl uniform, but wasn't too young) from getting basically ON my lap. She was SO close to me, it was nearly uncomfortable. I don't really understand why it was even necessary. And I know she wasn't coming onto me. It's just one of the bizarre things that they do here.
OK, there's more I'd like to put, but I don't really feel like writing much more, so I'll update it again tomorrow. I know, THREE UPDATES IN THREE DAYS?! Insanity. Until next time...
Speaking of my class, I always like to make fun of myself, since they are always willing to talk when I do that. So I asked them if I was nice, and they all (somehow) said "no." I found this almost as surprising as the North Korea answer. Granted, I'm generally a prick, but I'm super nice to most of these kids. So I asked "what could I do to become nicer?" The kids then launched into this discussion about how I needed "a new nose, new eyes, and I need to get my face fixed." Not sure where all that came from. I think one of the kids also told me my voice was too high? Hmmm... I think I'll send him back to beginner English. Bitch.
I'm starting to think this place may not be so bad. Sure, it has its low points, but what place doesn't? On the flipside, it can be tremendously charming at times. On my way back from work today, I spotted a mother and her two children walking down this steeeeeeep hill. The son was actually on a bicycle with training wheels, and the mother was holding onto the back of the bike, so her son didn't die. Haha. About 2/3 of the way down the hill, she let go and he went FLYING. It was pretty hilarious and looked amazingly fun. It was definitely a bright point in my day. (Is that bad?)
One of the quirks of Korean culture is that these people have NO concept of personal space. For example, I was riding on the bus to work today, and a bunch of people got on at one of the stops. I was lucky to have a seat, but by this point, there were no seats left. At the same time, it wasn't overly crowded. However, this didn't stop this one girl (probably mid to late teens, she was in her school girl uniform, but wasn't too young) from getting basically ON my lap. She was SO close to me, it was nearly uncomfortable. I don't really understand why it was even necessary. And I know she wasn't coming onto me. It's just one of the bizarre things that they do here.
OK, there's more I'd like to put, but I don't really feel like writing much more, so I'll update it again tomorrow. I know, THREE UPDATES IN THREE DAYS?! Insanity. Until next time...