Monday 30 May 2011

Let the burning begin!

          Wow, what an amazing weekend. It couldn't have gone better really. Friday we had a field trip for the kids to a stunningly beautiful wild flower garden. Unfortunately (yet not surprisingly) the kids didn't have much interest in the flowers themselves or wandering around the garden but were instead happy to run around on the grass and blow bubbles. All the same I had a great day sitting in the sunshine and laughing with (and at) the kids. The field trip made the weekend seem to begin all the sooner as I didn't have to teach. Despite the morning being warm it was cloudy so I wasn't expecting much sun, however, later the sun broke out and by the end of the day I had slightly red shoulders.
          Then that night (Friday) we headed to Seoul for Teena's birthday! I felt very cool as she had reserved a VIP area in the club and we danced the night away with friends until we could catch the train home.
          After a few hours sleep on Saturday morning I relaxed and read until we decided to have a BBQ..yum. Delicious pork burgers, mackerel, salad, and shrimp kebabs. Good food and good company..perfect. Next morning (Sunday) I got up and decided to go for a walk before it got to hot. I walked for about an hour starting at 10.30am and wow I was wrong about it being cooler then. It seemed like the sun was out in full blast and when I got home I had a lovely pink pattern on my chest and arms and back from where my t-shirt ended. I changed into lighter and more summery clothes and covered myself in factor 45 sun cream.
         Later with the addition of a little more sun cream a group of us headed to the river (beside the English village) to relax in the sun. The water was lovely and before long we were all in swimming... hopping in and out of the water every few minutes. We left after about 2 hours and when I got home I realised my lovely pink burns had spread... as the night when on I got progressively redder until I got to the extent where I think my colour could make lobsters jealous. Thankfully despite my very rosy skin tone it's not painful (fingers crossed it will stay like this...and not peel)! If I am REALLY HOPING for the impossible I might even wish that it might turn to a tan (that way next time we all go swimming I might not be voted as the whitest person anyone had ever seen)! :)

Monday 16 May 2011

Our four day weekend...

        As  Tuesday the 10th of May was Budda's birthday we all had a scheduled day off. The Friday before though half way through the school day I was informed they had decided to give us the Monday off too. Now don't get me wrong an extra day off was wonderful but I was still annoyed because at that stage it was too late to plan anything for my four day weekend. If I had known in advance we could have booked cheap flights to so many cool places around like Malaysia, or Hong Kong. Anyway we still made the most of the start of the weekend by going to DJ Fest on the Saturday. The Sunday we relaxed in the sunshine and ate dinner with Kelly, Sam, Vanessa and Kyle. Monday passed by in the laziest way possible the whole day being spent in our pyjamas and  topped off by watching two sad films one after another. Dee and I were sitting there drying our tears when suddenly Dee suggested we go for a night out in Seoul. It was a fluster to shower and everything at that stage but we managed to catch the last subway in at 11.20 and made it to the bar area by 1am. 
       In Ireland starting a night out at 1am would be madness but as the bars and clubs stay open until at least 6am here we had plenty of time. When we arrived we met our friends Kat and Madonna and danced the night away together. Getting the subway home the next morning is the worst part of it all though because after the club we got food and relaxed so by the time I got on a subway it was 9am and I was very tired; staying awake is an effort. The night was fun though and I'm glad we made the most that we could out of our extra long weekend.

Tuesday 10 May 2011

World DJ Festival.

         Every year Korea hosts a festival called World DJ festival and it has been growing in popularity. In the past the festival has been held in Seoul but this year because of lack of sufficient space in Seoul they decided to move into a more rural area. Luckily for us they chose Yangpyeong, which is only 2 subway stops (10 mins) away from us. Dee and I were very excited about it and the prospect of dancing outdoors and meeting new people so close to home. Most of our friends here in the village though were not so excited about it... I blame old age, haha. Being the youngest teachers here has both its pros and cons. Anyway Chris (the only other teacher our age), Dee and I headed off on the Saturday to party the night away. We had heard that we couldn't drink alcohol inside the festival itself (and considering most DJ music is best with a little alcohol) we decided to have a few pre-drinks!
         The weather was fantastic and the three of us sat in the sunshine drinking and talking. As the night rolled in we decided it was time to actually go into the festival itself. The queue was so long when we arrived and we joined the end. Somewhere along the line though Dee got impatient and decided to skip the line, I was convinced  it wouldn't work so I stuck in my place and ended up chatting to a big group of Irish people. Eventually I made it to the top of the queue and called Dee. While I was calling her I was looking around and saw a girl asleep on the grass. I was laughing until I realised it was Dee... she had gotten tired waiting for us to get in. Somehow soon after that we got separated again and while trying to find each other my phone died. So by 10.30pm both Dee and I were totally by ourselves. Luckily for me while wandering around trying to find her I bumped into the group of Irish again and we danced and talked. After a while I left to search for Dee again and although my search was unsuccessful I talked to so many different people and danced and laughed. A very good night all in all.
          Next morning Dee and I compared stories and she had somehow managed to convince the bouncers to let her into the VIP area by telling them she was the German DJ's wife (while talking in a broken English German accent). After she got in she just wandered around until she accidentally ended up behind the DJ on the main stage. At that point I think security realised she didn't belong and she was shown back to the main area. So a fun night for Dee too. So despite the fact that both of us were alone we both seemed to enjoy our experience of World DJ Fest.

Tuesday 3 May 2011

That Friday feeling....

                              
             Fridays at all times are great, I think everyone agrees with that but Fridays here are extra good. Friday in the Kindergarten is a theme day so every Friday we have activities for half the day which means a half day less teaching and a half day more fun. Last Friday we went on a field trip to a local aquarium, the week before we made cookies and the week before that we had a birthday party. Other Friday days are sports days, bouncy castle days, music days etc. I love Fridays!!



        One of the best parts of Fridays is the fact that I am such a big kid myself. I can't help but get as excited as the kids. I love doing all the fun stuff just as much as they do... whether that be feeding the fish or doing rolley-poleys in the soccer field. If only everyday could be like Friday. Don't get me wrong I love my job and the teaching is fun everyday but its just not the same.