Blogs from Jeollanam-do, South Korea, Asia - page 8

So... I'm back in Korea! Surprise! Well, not a surprise for all of you. I took a position for the summer working for Fulbright to train new ETAs (English Teaching Assistants--what I was). I'll basically be leading the same summer training program that I went through in 2006. Pretty cool, huh? Anyway, coming back to Korea has kind of been like a dream come true. It's all so familiar, it's practically like I never left. And yet, it's so hard to believe I'm back in a place I called for a year, that I came to know and love so well--though, of course, I had my ups and downs. (By the way, I have a couple blogs to catch up on--including a mission trip to Peru with MSN and some New Orleans relief work I did ... read more

So now I am back on the mainland in Gurye, a small county in the heart of Jeollanamdo province (southwest corner of Korea). The province gets abundant rainfall and is also home to the warmest weather on the peninsula. This helps to produce large amounts of agricultural produce, mainly rice, wheat, barley, pulses and potatoes. Vegetables, cotton and fruits are also grown in the province. This, I have to admit, I copied striaght from Wikipedia but it's totally true, I am in the Korean heartland of farming. I left Jeju on Thursday with the original intent of taking a ferry but I somehow managed to mix up departure time of the destination port with Jeju's. So I headed to the airport knowing that all flights that day were booked out but I was hoping my Start ... read more

I know I’m a few months belated, but July and August were quite whirlwinds for me. It was hard to say goodbye to my students, the teachers, my school, my host family, and everyone else who’d meant something to me in Korea. Let me try to catch you up. June and July flew by. At the end of June, I went to the final Fulbright dinner. It was nice to catch up with everyone and find out what was next for everyone. About 7-8 are staying in Korea for a second year, I think, which I’m impressed by. A lot are going to grad school, and many others are going back into the work force. I, also, am currently working while applying to grad school—I’m working at the Wesley Foundation (the Methodist campus group) at my ... read more

These are all the class pictures I took the final week(s) of classes. I can't find my old class schedule, so they're unlabeled (I told my students they could download them from this site). So, if you're my students, check out the pictures, and find whichever one is your class. Sorry! :-)... read more

Hello all, In April, myself, Larry, and our friends Ben & Kim, decided to go to a big traditional Korean festival down on the southern coastline: The Jindo Mysterious Sea-Parting Festival. This world-famous festival occurs only once a year, when the sea parts and reveals a path the length of 2.8 kilometers and the width of 40 meters. It is exposed between Hoedong-ri, Gogun-myeon and Modo-ri, Uisin-myeon because of the tide differences in the morning and evening. According to the legend, an old lady, who was left alone after all the Jindo villagers took shelter in Modo when dangerous tigers showed up in Jindo, eagerly prayed to the Sea God hoping to meet her family again, and the Sea God listened to her prayer and opened up the sea. Later, this magical parting of the sea ... read more