Caribbean Bay

Michelle and I went to Caribbean Bay water park this last Saturday. On of our best friends here, Magan, is leaving this week so for her last Saturday we hit up the water park. Ji-Yun, James, Peter, Michelle, Yu-Mi, Magan, and I all drove down in the middle of the day. It took about 30min and because there wasn't enough room in the car I got to ride in the trunk of the SUV. It has been a while since we have been in a legit car(not a taxi) and it was pretty nice. We lived it up in the wave pool, lazy river, tube rides, and stood under a huge water filled skull that dumps about a million gallons of water on you. All in all it was another successful day in Korea.

Dak Galbi

Michelle and I went out this week for our favorite meal in Korea. It is called Dak Galbi and is delicious. Dak means Chicken and Galbi is BBQ. It is pretty much grilled chicken mixed with cabbage, greens, and duk(a chewy rice stick) all mixed together with an amazing spicy red sauce. They have a self serve side dish bar that has Kim Chi, salad, and this creamy macaroni thing. The waiter cooks it for you on your table which totally adds to the ambiance. You also get these really fashionable aprons to wear. Going out for Dak Galbi is one of the best things about being in Korea and will be missed when we come home.

WORLD CUP!!!

This Saturday Michelle and I experienced the World Cup like we never did in the USA. We left our house at 2pm and arrived back home at 6am the next morning. The day started with us meeting friends in Seoul for the official Korean watching party. Before getting our spots to watch the Korea v Greece game we got a drink and a bite to eat. I can happily say that after 4 and a half months I can read Korean. Unfortunately, my vocabulary still needs some help. So when I tried to order some peanuts and chips to munch on, I accidently ordered dried fish. Here is a picture of me studying the food I am about to hesitantly eat.

After our snack we went out to the street to find a spot to watch the game. They shut down the street and put up a bunch of screens for people to watch the game. The estimate was that somewhere between 200,000 and 400,000 people were there. It was crazy. A funny side note is that when the game started everyone sat down so that everyone could see. Don't get me wrong they were still going crazy; they just did from the ground. I found this an interesting window into the respectful nature of Korean culture. Korea's team name is the Red Devils so that is why there are so many people wearing red horns. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that it was absolutely pouring outside. This however did not detour the Korean fans at all, in fact it added to the crazy atmosphere.


We also uploaded a video of everyone singing Korea's soccer chant song at half time. It pretty much is saying shout loud for the Republic of Korea.
AND KOREA WON 2-0!!!
People were dancing and singing in the streets for hours. In case I left some doubt about how crazy they are for the World Cup; our school just informed us that we will be ending early on Thursday so everyone can watch Korea's 2nd game.

Here is a picture one of our friends took of their TV during the game. They showed the the viewing party on TV here in Korea throughout the game.

After the Korea game we made our way back to Suji where we watched Argentina beat Nigeria, which ended at 1am. We then went out for a little late night Korean BBQ which kept us awake for the USA v England game at 3:30am. We watched it at a bar with all of our foreigner friends. There were 4 people from England and 2 from Canada who wanted England to win. There were about 10 Americans who had stayed awake hoping that the US wouldn't get embarrassed. To set the tone the 4 English people sat in their seats and sang quietly along with their anthem. To not be out done by the Brits the Americans all stood up arm in arm and belted out the Star Spangled Banner at the top of our lungs. Even though it was a tie, to the English it was not only as good as a loss but an epically depressing loss. Unsurprisingly, the Americans in the bar were more that happy to pour salt on the Brits open wounds. Then Michelle and I made our way back home to fall asleep as the sun was rising.
That was our very long day of the World Cup in a Nation that actually cares about soccer.

Retreat to the country

Michelle and I found a Church that we like about a month ago. It is really cool because just about everyone there is our age and works with English. They are either American, English, or Canadian English teachers or they are Koreans who are studying English. So, pretty much everyone is in the same life place which makes it a really good time.
Last weekend on Buddha’s Birthday(a Korean holiday) they had a retreat to the Korean countryside which we went on and it was a ton of fun. We are finally really connecting with people here which has made missing the Blackhawks way to the Stanley Cup a little more bearable.
Here are some pictures of the retreat.
You will see some soccer playing, fresh homemade Korean Bi Bim Bop, the beautiful countryside, playing the biggest game of cards(literally), human volleyball, Some of the lanterns for Buddha’s Birthday, a killer hike, and people just hanging out.
Michelle took most the pictures so sorry you have to see my face so much.

Sports and Hongdae

We had our first sports experience a couple weeks ago. We met a group of Americans about a month ago who all teach in the same area that we do and we have hung out with them quite a bit since. James, the one I (Kyle) get along with best, works for a Korean baseball team here. There are perks with having a friend who works for a team, like tickets whenever we want. Bellow are pictures of our first game. (the Nexen Heros are the team we root for by the way)


The game is a mix between American baseball, college football, and English soccer. People are crazy. They sing and chant throughout the whole game. The most interesting part are the cheerleaders. They dance and follow a whistle man in cheers while standing on the dugout throughout the game, even while the game is being played. Here are some pics.


After the game we went out to this area called Hongdae. It is the artsy area of Seoul where there is a lot live music. It is especially know for its indie rock scene. When we got there we stumbled upon a performing arts school putting on a free show in the park. They had all their top students perform. (tap dancer, base, guitar, drummer, singers, and beat boxers) It was honestly one of the coolest things I have ever seen. We then went to a club called FF which is a really well know indie rock club.



To finish it off we went to a Suwon Bluewings soccer game the next week. James (the one in the blue) used to be an English reporter for the team so he was able to get me a media pass to get onto the field. All in all it was a good couple weeks.

JeJu Island!

Here is our vacay to JeJu Island! Beautiful and Relaxing.
















































Here are some pictures we took while hiking around the Island.






The Island has many beautiful waterfalls. Here is two of them that we visited.


Some of Jeju's Beaches are lined with volcanic rock. We read that " The island's mixture of volcanic rock, frequent rains, and temperate climate, make it very similar to the Hawaiian Islands in the U.S."











Here are some photos of views of the Island from our hotel