Today a student came by the desk and gave me a contribution to my desk art. I love the little mouse with the cheese. Every time I look at him, I can’t help but smile. 
Rose of Sharon… or so I’m told (Day 64)
The flowers of Korea are truly stunning. These were blossoming outside the Office of Education, where I teach my debate class each week, and I had to snap a picture. I was later told by a friend that this is the national flower of Korea. Good choice.
Another fun find outside the Office of Education was this stone path across the river. Usually I walk all the way around the (huge) city block to cross the river on the main bridge, but a friend of mine found this short cut and I was happy to take it. Plus, it’s just really fun to hop across the river stone-by-stone. 
That day when the fish gnawed on my fingers…(Day 65)
These things are just creepy…
I love aquariums. I find them both intriguing and calming. Luckily, there’s a few great aquariums in South Korea. I visited the major aquarium in Busan back in January when my mom was visiting. And then, when I heard that the Seoul aquarium was having a discount for foreigners during one of their holidays, I quickly went on down to see how it compared. They had some really interesting fish, and some familiar ones, so I enjoyed my trip. The aquarium in Busan, however, was more impressive. Still, you can’t beat some of the displays in Seoul.
Now that I’m used to eating octopus, I have a different appreciation for the giant ones.
It was a very active octopus; camera shy?
Jellyfish like this always look just a bit cuddly to me.
It was a light trick, but I liked watching these guys “change colors” as they morphed around their tank.
I really like the looks of jellyfish, though I freely admit that I have little desire to meet them on their home turf.
Barbara Manatee!!
I like watching the people watching the tanks.
My camera had trouble focusing at the aquarium, but I rather liked how this one turned out.
When I look at tanks like this, I feel like I’m living inside of Finding Nemo.
He kept staring at me…
Their tentacle/fin thingys were weirdly mesmerizing.
The things nightmares are made of.
Found him!
My name, in Korean, means catfish. So, this is me with the other maggies.
They aren’t a pretty fish 😦
I don’t know what was wrong with this little guy, but his bloated state-of-being was one of the most hilarious things I’ve seen. And yes, I feel a little guilty about that…
I mean, just look at him compared with his little friend. I half expected him to explode right in front of me. It would have been very Aesop-ian.
Who says you can’t have a computer fish tank?
This little kid was way too excited to have the Doctor Fish gnaw away at his little fingers. His dad had to practically pry him away from the tank.
I was a bit more hesitant, but I did try it. I can see why people would do it with their feet… it was sort of soothing… you know, in the creepiest way possible.
One of my favorite parts of the COEX aquarium was the unique display tanks. The fish were in the vanity, wash machine, and in several different compartments of the fridge.
Because every squirrel needs their own private bathroom…
This was my favorite.
These were the most insane coy fish I’ve ever seen. I suspect someone was dropping some happy juice into their pond.
Fresh water fish from the Midwest! It amused me to see some of the common fish from the US at the aquarium. Large mouth bass and bluegill were among their number. But even in an aquarium with fancy tanks, they’re still pretty ugly.
It’s tucked away in the basement (I think) of a massive shopping complex.
And that was that!
Well, that’s an interesting take (Day 66)
I’m not sure good ‘ole Abe would approve.
One thing that has never ceased to amuse me in Korea is the way that western phrases, sayings, characters, and sometimes philosophies, are co-opted and molded into something else here in Korea. This advertisement is one of my favorite examples. The historian in me shakes her head, but recognizes that there’s a whisper of truth to this, even if this ad is not trying to use satire to give some political commentary on America’s priorities.
Today in unnecessary cute things in Korea (Day 67)
When wandering around Hongdae, I came across this lovely collection of eclectic graffiti. Yep, that’s Miss Kitty, stickin’ it to the man.
I’m not kidding when I say that everything is cute in Korea…
A Korean Wedding Announcement (Day 68)
Because, who knows, maybe you just need some tasty snacks when you find out that another co-worker is getting married during summer break.
Pre-Wedding Snacks 🙂
Korean Tastiness: Chicken Ginseng Soup (Day 69)
Well, I’m really behind on my blogging challenge, but I shall catch up. I know I shall. Here’s a look at one of the famous Korean “health” foods. It’s supposed to be very good for you if you have a cold, but they won’t let you eat it after surgery (or so I’ve been told). Also, it packs a whopping 900 calories per serving… so, for me, I think this will be a one time splurge. Also, note the pickled garlic side dish. I’m not a fan. They tasted okay until I realized it reminded me of what I imagine paint would taste like.
Let’s add some adventure to these dull posts, shall we? (Day 70)
My life is not too thrilling at the moment. Until final exams are over and my last debate class is taught, I’ve been spending my days working and holing up in my apartment. However, my year in Korea has given me the chance to travel around a bit and see parts of the world I’d never even thought to explore. For my winter break, I decided it was way too cold to stay shivering alone at my desk, so I booked a flight to the cheapest warm place I could find: the Philippines. I spent a week exploring some beaches and taking the longest bus ride of my life (but more on that tomorrow). Since I don’t want to overload the post with pictures (I have hundreds and hundreds, of course), I’ll share a few of my favorites from my stay in Puerto Princesa, where I stayed for the first few days of my trip.
Smallest airport I’ve ever been to. It was a bit surreal.
These ladies (and their family) were great. They took me into their family for the day and filled the trip with laughter and way too many great jokes about my height. I’m so happy they found me.
It’s me!
Because sunglasses are a man’s best friend when entering a cave…
The secret entrance. Okay, it’s not a secret. But you did have to take a boat to get there, so that was cool.
I felt like I was in Journey to the Center of the Earth. They didn’t try to eat us, though. Stereotypes: shattered.
Tasty lunch.
So, funny story. On my second day I decided to see the historical side of Palawan, so I visited the WWII museum, the cultural center, and looked around for Plaza Cuartel, where American POWs were held (and massacred) by the Japanese in WWII. I looked for it, and looked for it, and walked around and looked some more. No luck. The signs–literally–pointed me in opposite directions. Not that that was a bad thing, I got to see the city, talk to some adorable children, and feel a great deal of guilt about how much I take for granted in this much-blessed life of mine. While walking around, I saw this great old-fashioned building and had to take a picture of it. Hours later, after I’d hired someone to drive me to Plaza Cuartel, he brought me back here. Sigh.
Read Unbroken. That is all.
Security Guards in every McDonald’s.
I took a trip to see the fireflies. It was really cool, but pictures were, in essence, impossible. However, here’s a picture of dinner on a boat! My dinner companion was a very interesting young man from Amsterdam. He works in a barbershop for men. Women, apparently, should they try to enter the establishment, are kindly escorted out and all the men wear suspenders. But they dabble in amateur tattoos after hours.
Just looking at this picture makes me happy.
Wild Jellyfish! I can die happy.
I do love coconut.
Staring at the ocean is not overrated. The 8 hours I spend on the sunshine-soaked islands were almost totally worth the next five days I spent in agony from the sunburn. Sunscreen needs to work better. For realz.
If I ever get the chance to come a place like this again, I’m bringing my peeps along so we can party it up (you know, pepsi-cola, cake, and maybe a few rolls of Rolos or something) in one of these awesome picnic shelters.
The wires holding up this backboard were truly a feat of sheer willpower and ingenuity.
And then it was off to Manila. I didn’t want to spend the whole week lazing on the beach. Okay, I did want to spend the whole week lazing on the beach, but there was much more to see and do. After much deliberation, and some bravery summoned up from who-knows-where, I decided to do something truly adventurous. But more on that tomorrow.
This may sound odd, but… (Day 71)
The longer that I’m away from home, the more I notice how much I miss. I guess there are just a few things you don’t even think about until, bam, suddenly you just can’t live without the smell of fresh-cut grass or a twizzler. I might hug my dryer when I get home. When people started putting picture of rhubarb pie on facebook, I thought I was going to die… and don’t even get me started about the Culver’s flavor-of-the-day monthly emails that I still get (I could just unsubscribe, but, well, who does that? It’s Culver’s). Today I was walking along the street and I realized that I haven’t had access to a couch in forever. Of course, there are couches in Korea. I’ve been to a few apartments that have had them, but I’m talking about access to a couch where I can just flop down and be enveloped by the fluffiness of too-soft cushions and a sense of little-to-no propriety. In other words, I want my mom’s couch. I’m not sure why I was thinking about that as I walked home, except that it was Friday… and Fridays are really good days to flop down on the couch and not move for three hours. I settled for laying on my floor for a bit, which might sound odd to you, but is pretty normal in Korea. Yeah, it’s not the same.
71 days to some quality couch time.
In today’s episode of Random Things Students Say… (Day 72)
During one of my free hours today, a favorite student of mine came up to my desk. He usually comes in to ask me how to pronounce words (he’s a bit of an English nerd, which I think is adorable), but today he just came up to me and said “Teacher, your hair… it’s natural?” I said yes, and he gave me a thumbs up and walked out of the room.
Odd.
TheTravelingFlamingo 