Ctaching Up On the Last Two Months

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(Jen writing…) Well, it has been a very long time since we’ve been able to login and update this journal. I assure you it was not because we’re lacking stories to talk about. There have been a bunch of hysterical things that have happened to us over the last two months so we will try our best to recollect them now.

The Beach:

We have spent a good portion of our weekends at the beach since the weather has been so nice. This is a completely different experience from that which we were accustomed to. First of all, because I grew up in Florida right on the beach I have taken it for granted until now. I loved going to the beach because it was relaxing and peaceful. Here, it is almost completely opposite from that. The beaches are more crowded than the Disney theme parks. By mid afternoon there is literally no place left to sit, let alone lay, on the beach. Every person rents an umbrella and spends the whole day lying underneath them and eating. There are dozens of vendors that walk up and down the beach selling fruit, chicken, beer, soju (similar to saki), and many other things. A popular choice is to have pizza delivered to your umbrella on the beach as well. The Asian population refers to being tan as “dirty”. When they go to the beach they slather on so much sunscreen that they look like ghosts. Then with their hats, shirts and pants on, they lay underneath their umbrellas until it’s time to swim. No one knows how to swim here. Instead, every one rents an “O” or an inner tube. Still dressed in their hats, shirts, and shorts they float aimlessly within 15 feet of shore, which is as far back as the lifeguards on duty allow anyone to be. There are no waves, but on a rare occasion there will be a slight increase in water depth due to an influx of water. In unison, the entire beach yells as they ride the gigantic wave an inch closer to shore. It is so crowded that there is literally no place to swim. When Jeremy and I arrive there (usually around 11:30 or 1200) we often cannot find room to lay our towels out. We are forced to sit in our chairs, literally 8 inches back from the water line. We are completely surrounded by people on all sides and the walkway for those attempting to swim is quite often our towels. Adults and children alike tromp over our towels and kick sand in our faces without hesitation. Then to add insult to injury, they openly mock us for wearing bathing suits and not hiding under umbrellas. As usual, we are a spectacle. Especially when we congregate in large herds. Many will do the “drive by photo” where they dart past us braking for only a second to take our pictures. They also do the “fake out photo” where they act like they are photographing a friend who just happens to be right near us. However, upon closer observance the lens is most often aimed slightly to the side of them and at us. Then, of course, there are some who don’t care what we think or feel and will blatantly take several pictures of us. I have become accustomed to this happening almost every time we go out, but I have to admit I hate them taking pictures of me when I’m in my bathing suit. They have a lot of lifeguards on duty and because it’s so crowded they also have many police working the area. It seems their main task is watching the girls on the beach. In two months, we have yet to see any of them actually do anything. Of course their uniforms don’t indicate that there is a large problem with crime. They wear t-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops. I imagine it’s very rare for them to have to run after anyone.

Movies:

Jeremy and I went to see our first movie in a Korean theater recently. It’s been very interesting to see which movies play in theaters here. Currently, Fahrenheit 911, Harry Potter, and The Terminal are playing. They also just started showing Mean Girls and Freddy versus Jason. They often select pretty bad movies. For instance, The Day After Tomorrow was a huge hit. Their setup is almost exactly the same, except that they have assigned seating just like in Europe. They sell the regular nachos, popcorn, hot dogs, and candy. Instead of pretzels, they sell fried squid treats. Talking during the movies is very common as well.

Advertising:

Advertising has a slightly different and quite entertaining twist to it here. Whenever a new store opens they hire young girls to dress in ridiculous clothes and dance out front for the day. Usually these outfits consist of a tight, shiny, polyester halter-top. They wear dark tan pantyhose that go up very high so as to cover their stomachs as well. This is paired with a short (for them short is mid thigh) shiny polyester skirt. No outfit could be complete without the final touch; huge, puffy leg warmers.
On occasion, these girls will not only dance in front of the stores, but also ride around in the back of a truck. They are driven through the busiest of streets where they enthusiastically tell everyone about the new “it” restaurant or a huge sale that’s going on.

On the Job:

In many cultures a siesta is allowed daily. We have found that for the Korean population here, it’s quite popular to take a nap. There is not a time of day where everyone is allowed to take nap. Apparently, if you do become sleepy you may take a nap at your desk or find a good out of the way spot to lie down. It seems the rule of thumb is that as long as you jump up and do what is asked of you when you hear your name called, it’s a-ok. Almost every day around 5pm, our director sits in his chair with his head back and gold filled mouth gaping open in slumber. The receptionist tends to favor the Kid Zone room that is set up for our students who become ill. I bet the bunk beds are really comfortable!
Another interesting tidbit about the workplace is the bathrooms. In most companies, there is one bathroom that is coed. Everyone keeps their toothbrush, hair gel, makeup and whatever else at the workplace. It looks more like a person's apartment than place of work.
At the school where we are the girls' and boys' bathrooms are separate. However, there are no doors on them so when we pass through the hallway, everyone gets to see the boys at the urinals.
In most of the public bathrooms, toilet paper is not provided. Whenever we go out, I have to make sure to bring some with me. Also, the typical toilet is not that which you find in the U.S. Instead, they are squatting toilets. There is a large ceramic, oval toilet that is slightly raised from the ground (perhaps two inches). We have to squat down and hover over them to use them. The custom here is to knock on the door of the stall to find out if it’s in use. If you are inside, then you knock back to let them know you are there. In nice places, like the Marriott for example, there is a doorbell inside that you use instead of knocking. They also have small speakers on the side of the stalls. If you push the button on it “water sound” begins. At first I thought it was in case you were having trouble going to the bathroom (same idea as turning on the faucet), but then I read that it’s because the women here are very self conscious about others hearing the sound of them peeing. They press this button to cover the sound.

English Skills:

Another amusing slice of life for us is the constant misuse of the English language. Many signs and clothes have very poor English writing. Some of the bars here include: Club Doggy, Join, Couch, and many other random English words. The clothes usually have things written in English on them and more often than not, there are grammatical errors and misspelled words such as: athletk, cooky, tomatas and many more. One of my students has a t-shirt that says “Inside this birthday card you will find 50m bucks”. Yep, that’s it. Nothing on the back, no further explanation. Our coffee mugs read “My Heart leaps up when I he Hold A Rainbow in the sky…” It doesn’t get much more poetic than that.
Returning to the U.S. for my Mom’s wedding last week gave me a lot more perspective on just how different things are. I had become rather accustomed to these changes and found myself going into a culture shock of sorts upon entering the U.S. I flew into Newark airport and while waiting to go through customs, surrounded by dozens of people who find deodorant an unnecessary part of hygiene, I found myself shocked at how many white people there were! Now for any of you who have been routed through Newark airport, you might say there aren’t many Caucasians there. This is true, but imagine seeing about 10 Caucasians at most per week. I also forgot just how friendly everyone is. Everywhere I went, everyone talked to me and for once I could actually understand what they were saying! I couldn’t believe how easy everything is when the language comes naturally and you don’t have to play charades with every person you encounter.

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