Yesterday I was bored teaching the same old material to one of my higher level classes. So I said, "okay, today is open discussion...I want your opinion on Korean politics and social life." It was SO SO interesting. These kids (middle schoolers) know way more about these things than I ever did at their age. They discussed past and current leaders, social issues, and the dichotomy between North and South Korea. Things like, if N. and S. Korea united, everyone would end up having less material wealth, since S.K. now has more than N.K. And that they were excited about Obama's recent tour throughout Asia, promoting a "nuclear-free world." We talked about North Korean refugees in China, and their plight. We talked about the philosophy of education in Korea...and the pressure they are constantly under. The fact that it is a law to learn English in the public schools upsets them; they don't understand why it has to be mandetory. We talked about the history of Korea...the Japanese invasion, and its cultural economic effects.
I learned a lot from them yesterday. It made my week!
Tomorrow I'm going to Busan...a little solo trip. I feel like getting lost somewhere. I've been guided SO much since I've been here (which I am SO thankful for...), but it would be nice to try a little adventure on my own for once. I'm going to the park across the street in the morning to read a bit, then hopping on the bus to Busan where I'll visit a cool historic temple and go to Korea's most famous fish market. Will post pics soon!
I've officially gone vegg-o. BUT...I still eat fish. So, I'm not technically...I'll let you know the name for what I am when I find out. And I have a confession. Two days ago I ate chicken. We were having a little "level-up" party in one of my classes, and one of my most ADORABLE students, Moses, 8 years old, with his button nose and glasses sliding down, and a massive grin, shoved a popcorn chicken piece into my mouth. "Teacher!! Eat!!" How to refuse such an offer??
Time here is flying by. It's looking like it's going to be a good year.
Tonight I'm going to eat dinner on my roof with a view of Ulsan's ferris wheel and decadent motels. :-)
Happy Friday!
3 comments:
Hi, fun to see and read. Your students sound special to you. Isn't it fun to find yourself deeply caring for other people? And I love learning from others too!
So you're in Ulsan, and you are going to visit Busan? Neat. My nephew is from Busan.
Hi! You sound like you are thoroughly enjoying your time in SK! Good for you! I loved all that you wrote about food and becoming a vegg-o. For quite some time now I have insisted on only buying and cooking with free range chickens (organic is my preference) and haven't had red meat since 2006. I've seen too much on the abuses of animals that I too cannot swallow chicken if it comes from those terrible plants. I buy my pork and chicken from a small co-op market so we know what farm the meat comes from and how it is processed. I've considered and even tried a modified version of vegetarianism (no meat other than fish) earlier this year and I felt fantastic but being the cook of the household got a lot of gruff from the rest of the family so I gave in. I've often felt guilty about how I consume food - the words on your page really hit home for me. I don't appreciate it - I don't even enjoy it sometimes and looking at me you can tell that I consume it for all of the wrong reasons. Thanks Rochelle for sharing your passion on the subject. You have encouraged me and impassioned me to make some better choices. LOL - I'm the old lady that should be doing that and instead a beautiful young woman - my special niece - has done that for me! Thank you!!! Love you! (P.S. Uncle Ken, Justin, Beth, Faith & Chris all say hello!!)
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