A Month of Mustache and Merriment

November has been very exciting! As I've gained a better rapport with my students, I've accepted some additional responsibilities around my school as a mentor and caregiver. This is a photo of my guitar beginners at the "Dream High" talent demonstration for elementary schools. Other schools' acts included traditional Korean drummers, cultural dancing, choral music, and comedic skits. Learning to play guitar while singing in Korean language was a challenge!

November 11th is called "Pepero Day" in Korea. Because the date is 2011, it was an extra special Pepero Day (11/11/11). The "11" is supposed to represent two lovers about to embrace. This unofficial holiday is akin to valentine's day in the U.S. and elsewhere. Everyone buys these candies called Peperos and gives them to their friends and sweethearts. According to rumor, the company that makes these candies started the whole craze to boost their sales. Instead, the resulting consumer trend is to only buy peperos around this time of the year. The company makes about 70% of their annual profit in a three-day period. I received quite a few from my students, and gave a bunch to the members of my badminton club.

This month brought my first serious battle with illness since I have been here in Daegu. The image above is an example of what a round of medication looks like in Korea. Each packet is to be taken with one meal. While I cannot be sure, my guess was influenza. I was running a fever of 102, headaches, nausea, sinus drainage, cough, and congestion. When I visited the doctor, he immediately gave me an injection in my rear end and put me on an interveinous drip (IV) for four hours. While this seems drastic, I can offer this explaination. In Korea, nobody has time to be sick and miss a bunch of work or school. They give you horse's dose of medicine so that you can beat the illness as quickly as possible. After the fact, my coteacher told me that the injection was probably a mixture of immune booster and steroids. All said the illness lasted about one week with the worst 3 days in the middle. Now instead of high fives, my students and I knock elbows to celebrate a job well done :)

Spending a week cooped up in my apartment called for some much needed outdoor fun. The following weekend I visited a theme park in Daegu with my friend Heather. We rode roller coasters and played parlour games for the afternoon. As the sun was setting, we rode the elevator up the 83-story observation tower of Woobang Land. And then...
We JUMPED! It was a very intense rush of adrenaline. Once you're harnessed in and clipped up, the safety attendant leads you to the edge of the platform in the photo. He asks you, "All you leady?" Ready to plummet to your doom? Ready to ride down the elevator in shame? There's no time for clarifying questions. He says, "1, 2, slee!" and then you dive :)

Most of the time when I get together with other English teachers during my free time, it's not as action-packed as the Skyjump from Woobang Tower. My friend Barrington, from Indiana, has gathered fees for entry into a bowling league. Soon enough, I will have a nifty bowling shirt with my name on it.
Thanksgiving was a splendid time! While I DEFINITELY missed the opportunity to gather with my family as well as the sacred American day of football viewing...I got together with some other foreigners. We had a big potluck, and everyone was able to get a good meal. My friend Rawiri (proudly sporting the 'Mo' to raise awareness for prostate cancer) from New Zealand taught me some proper Kiwi toasts, and we burned the midnight oils with belly's full of turkey and foamy apple juice (pictured above) *wink*
Hiking is the national pastime, and it gives me the opportunity to practice putting one foot in front of the other, both literally and figuratively. Walking up mountains on the weekend is a great way to gather your thoughts, practice your understanding of Korean language, escape the noisy city, or muddy your shoes. South Korea is pretty splendid.
To my friends and family who are reading the blog: I love you very much! Please send me emails with ideas for your Christmas gifts. But remember what Korean Santa says. "You must be the good behave if you want I bring you the playthings."