Blogs from Taejon, South Korea, Asia - page 5

On the second last weekend in September we took a trip to Danyang, a city north east of Daejeon. The bus ride took about 4.5 hours since we accidentally took the intercity bus which stops at all the tiny towns along the way. We did get to see some of the countryside which was beautiful. The caves were 1.7km long and followed narrow twisting metal staircases and catwalks, some of them which we could barely squeeze through! We stayed the night and the following day Jeff woke up at 4am to hike a mountain (Mt. Birobong, 1439 meters) while I opted to sleep in a few extra hours then headed up to Guinsa a Buddhist temple complex nestled in the mountains. Both the buildings and the people were fascinating. We were able to watch the monks ... read more

Photos taken on our hike up Mt. Bomunsan.... read more

I wish I were a better writer. If I were a better writer, I’d be able to share the beauty of the Korean countryside with you. Since I cannot do anything to magically improve my writing at the moment, I will just do the best with the ability I was given. Tranquility and retrospection. Those are the overwhelming feelings that I have while I am traveling through Korea. I live in the middle of the country in Daejeon, the fifth largest city. To get to Seoul at the northwestern region or Busan at the southeastern tip of the country, you take the KTX train through the heart of Korea. And in whichever direction your weekend takes you, there are lush green mountains the entire way. Peak upon peak, each rolling hill or mountain is covered in ... read more

As Americans, we really take our freedoms for granted. Growing up, we are constantly told that we can do and be anything that we want to be in life. We are encouraged to pursue educational and recreational pursuits of our own - things that interest us. Social sciences, theories, art - the “soft skills” - are all highly regarded in our society. This could not be more different than in South Korea. The children here are extremely intelligent. Like I said, they go to school for 95% of their day. They play multiple musical instruments. Some play sports, some are really into computer games (online gaming is a sport in this country). However, the overwhelming majority of the child’s life and activities are not of their own choosing. The things that kids learn in school are ... read more

I’m finally getting accustomed to this new schedule…waking up late (which is still before noon for me) going to work from late afternoon through the evening, and then staying up until the wee hours of the next morning…and doing it all again. At 4:20 PM, I addressed the first group of students in my ESL career as their teacher. The small classroom seemed even smaller, as all the desks were occupied by the 14 studious faces before me. It was much less nerve racking than the demonstration teaching class that I experienced last week - in front of 12 of my colleagues and the school directors, but it was still a first for me. The first class of the day, the first group of Korean youth that would look to me as a guide, the first ... read more