Monday, 17 September 2012

Scavenger Hunt

This weekend we decided to take part in a Scavenger hunt being held in Busan. We didn't know much about it but were assured by a friend who was here last year that it was lots of fun.

We got ourselves into a team of 5 and registered. The first task was having to pick a name, I know Tasha was pushing for us to think of one because we had to register it asap and as a joke I suggested Tasha and the Snuggle Bunnies as no one was putting anything forward, thinking it would scare the guys into coming up with something- but no, the boys liked it and the team name was registered.

Next we had to come up with an outfit, this was pretty easy so Tasha and I went to the fancy dress shop and bought some bunny ears and tales for us to wear. We trawled around Nampo market looking for pink tops, I'm not sure what the guys thought but here is the end result:







When we got to the meeting point on the day we were told that we would have to play flip cup against another team, the team who won would get their tasks, the team that lost would have to go to the back of the queue until they were given another team to challenge. I am rubbish at flip cup so was a little worried that I would let our team down. However, despite swallowing the drink down the wrong whole and it dripping out my nose, and my hands shaking uncontrollably, I managed to flip my cup, after about a hundred tries, and with the rest of the team doing amazingly we won!!

We got our envelope with our challenges, I've highlighted the ones we managed to do:

1. Take a pic of a human pyramid with as many people as possible.
2. A pic of a team mate upto their neck in the sea.
3. A pic of a team mate feeding Baskin Robbins ice cream to a member of staff.
4. A pic of a team member on the back of a motorcycle.
5. Creating the best 'Blackout Korea' picture. 
6. A pic of a team mate handcuffed to a policeman
7. A picture of the team re-enacting the opening scene of the Lion King, using someone elses pet as Simba.
8. A pic of a reflection of the whole team in something other than a mirror.
9. A pic of a team member inappropriately groping a mannequin
10. A pic of a team member jump high-fiving a mascot
11. "I can't believe we all fit in here" shot.
12. A pic of the whole team wearing adjumma visors.
13. A pic of the entire team in a convertible car.
14. A pic of the team recreating The Last Supper.
15. A pic of two strangers hugging while 2 team members make a heart in the background.
16. A pic of a team member photo bombing a stranger's picture.
17. A pic of a team member wearing a fast food uniform, with the employee in shot.
18. A video of one team member slapping another around the face with a fish.
19. Create a soju commercial involving at least 4 strangers.
20. A video of 2 or more team members playing leap frog with a group of old men.
21. Create a one minute instructional workout video using adjumma workout equipment.
22. A video of a round of flip cup with 3 team mates playing strangers.
23. A video of a dramatic earthquake.
24. Recreate the Gangnam style dance video.
25. A video of a team mate buying one grape from an adjumma.
26. A video of 3 team mates taking part in a wheel barrow race with 3 strangers holding their feet, between 2 coffee shops.
27. A video of a team member throwing dough behind the counter of a pizza place.
28. A video of a team member serenading an adjumma with an instrument of their choice.

Here are the things we managed to do:












As you can see, we didn't do too well, by 2pm we'd lost our challenge sheet, so decided to have a beer instead, I liked that our team had the attitude that it was the taking part that counted. The boys got a lot of attention in their fetching outfits and even got a round of applause when we entered one bar that was showing the NZ and SA Rugby game.

When we all got back together in KSU some teams had completed all of the challenges, so unsurprisingly Tasha and the Snuggle Bunnies were not victorious, although I think a good day was had by all.

Thursday, 13 September 2012

Mum on Tour

I hadn't seen my mum for 9 days straight since I left home when I was 18 to go to university, so wanted to make the most of the time we had together in Busan. As soon as my mum had her flights booked I started to make lots of plans and lists. Lists of things she had to see, places that she had to visit and all the food she had to try. I wanted her to see all the best bits of Busan and skip over the rubbishy bits that you experience when you're on your own in a new place and trying to figure things out for the first time. 

It's also really easy to forget how daunting the different alphabet and how alien everyday things can be when you first get here and I was worried that she wouldn't be able to get around as easily when I had to be at work.

But everyday when I met her and Julie after work they'd have a tale of an adventure they'd had that day, of a Korean that had made them laugh or pointed them in the right direction, which made them feel like things weren't so scary after all and helped them to have the amazing trip that they did.

They managed to explore Nampo and its markets, the tower, the cat cafe, Jagalchi fish market, Haeundae beach, Songdo beach, Seokbolsa temple, Yonggungsa water temple and Jeju Island. We also tried BBQ, hotteok, pajeon, mackerel, mandu, bibimbap and the amazing cakes that the Pink Elephant Cafe has to offer...

A lot of the time we get stared at in the street, or people looking us up and down in the subway, old ladies pushing in front of us in queues and taxi drivers turning their lights off at the sight of a foreigner, but with my mum being here it's also proved to me how friendly and helpful they can be too. My co teachers were lovely and bought my mum gifts, the kids were so curious about them, the principal was desperate to take them out for meals and I managed to have the best conversation with an ajumma on a bus in Jeju as she was so interested in who we were. It reminded me that despite the handful of people that aren't happy to see us over in Korea, the majority are so welcoming that it's part of what makes this little country such a good place to live.

Trying BBQ for the first time.

In the park below Busan tower.
Street art in KSU
The ugliest cat in the cafe, despite the collar.
Julie, Mum and I at the cafe.
Trying Makeolli for the first time.
Cheese Kimchi-jeon deliciousness.
On the path to Seokbolsa temple. 

On the floor, I couldn't resist taking a picture. 












Bird cafe in the botanical gardens


Carvings in the cactai in Jeju.
Stone Grandfather. 
Amazing Bonsai tree in the botanical garden.

Wednesday, 12 September 2012

Goodbyes



I've always been rubbish at saying goodbye so this morning was not easy at all, especially as it was so early and I had just dragged myself out of bed to see my mum and Julie one last time. I'll post more about our trip tomorrow.

I was slightly cheered up by the phone call I got twenty minutes later from my mum laughing at the taxi driver as he serenaded them on their way to the airport. Oh Korea!

Back to school today after a couple of extra days off wasn't too bad apart from being told that maybe I'll have a special guest watching my lesson tomorrow...you know what the word maybe means from this post.

So tonight I've cleaned my flat from top to bottom, am going to get some Don Katsu fried goodness with Tasha in a minute then intend to make a start on Mad Men Season 3 until I fall asleep.

Saturday, 8 September 2012

The Weekend's here


I have a four day weekend to show my mum a bit more of Busan. I'm up bright and early as we're about to head to Jeju Island. We went on a nice, long walk yesterday and ate lots of delicious food. All is good!

Wednesday, 5 September 2012

Loot from home

My mum arrived safe and sound early on Monday morning, with a big bag of tricks especially for me. It was nice to see her walk through the doors at the airport. I've missed her after going 6 months without seeing her, which is the longest we've gone without doing something together, so safe to say there were a few tears at the airport.

While she snoozed off the jet lag, I got the chance to properly go through my new treasures, which made me 'ooh' and 'aah' with excitement everytime i picked something up. Galaxy chocolate, Malteasers, Jelly Sweets, Porridge Oats, Gravy Granules (diet staple for every northern girl!), hair dye, foundation, two bottles of Southern Comfort, my favourite face scrub 'The Greatest Scrub of All' by Soap and Glory, and most importantly, orange squash.

Already we've done lots of things, she goes off with her friend, Julie, in the day time and then we meet up at night for dinner, but I have a long weekend ahead so looking forward to showing them around properly!

Monday, 3 September 2012

August


August is over and the Koreans have made it very clear that Autumn has arrived. The beaches are closed, by that I mean there is actually space to move again and you don't trip over a buried Korean or an inflatable tube every few steps. What's even better is that the humidity has magically disappeared.

I tried not to moan too much about the humidity to people from home, as I noticed that the UK's Summer has been the wettest in a century, so I'm sure it's not what you wanted to hear, but it's been unbearably hot and damp for the past two months. It makes your clothes stick to you and kinda sucks all the energy out of you so you just want to stay indoors under the air con. Not the most pleasant, maybe that's why I started to feel so homesick last month, probably feeling nostalgic for the Summer days that you get in England that are incredibly rare, but you're always incredibly grateful for. The kind that makes you wake up and want to go for a picnic, or spend the day in a beer garden surrounded by friends, or the one that sends you to the supermarket for a disposable BBQ...

This month did get off to an incredible start though, with the pirate ship escapade around the coast of Busan to celebrate Katie and Alex's birthday. Eye patches and rum filled water pistols were a plenty. The celebrations continued with food and Makgeolli for Katie's birthday in the week, and banana boating and dirty scrabble at the weekend for Alex's birthday. Fun times.

I got a care package from my sweet friend Hannah who sent me some lovely undies and chocolate, exactly what I wanted!! I loved that the M&Ms were Special Edition Olympic coloured ones, I was so very proud of the UK this time around and can't wait to go home and see the gold post box painted in Sheffield in honor of Jessica Ennis! I also treated myself to a new Hello Kitty purse, which you can admire here.

Summer camp finally finished and I realised I had come to grow pretty fond of some of the monkeys that I had been teaching. I like that now when I see them in the hallway they always make an effort to come and say hello. Although, I did ask one boy if he missed me today and he answered with a 'no', barely audible over the laugh.

The weather took a strange turn last week, which drove me into being a hermit. I got to finish the book I'd been reading The Confession by John Grisham, rewatch My Neighbour Totoro which is perfect viewing for rainy days and I finished the first season of Mad Men. We had a bonus day off due to the Typhoon that was supposed to hit Busan last Tuesday, but skipped us. I was slightly looking forward to the excitement, but also quite smug that I got a day off for no reason at all.

I got to watch my first Korean 'soccer' match, and watched the guys who had made it to the olympic squad get a standing ovation, which was really nice. My kids love to remind me that South Korea beat the UK in the soccer. They also seem to have lost interest in Man United now that Park Ji Sung is no longer playing for them.

Tasha and I decided to be a little cultural this month and took a visit to the water temple, which we had been meaning to do for some time, and also went on the free boat tour of the port, which was so riveting that Tash fell asleep.

I shared some skating inspiration that I watched, which perfectly coincides with the new derby season that started this weekend. I can't wait to put my skates back on, this has been the longest I've been off skates for since I can remember.

Last but not least, I shared the things that I don't think I'll get used to in Korea, although since I've done that post I've thought of a hundred others, so maybe there'll be a part two at some point...

Sunday, 2 September 2012

One More Sleep

Until my mum arrives in Busan. After 6 months of not seeing her.

I'm super excited and have lots planned for her to see and do over the next 9 days.



She's probably going to kill me for this picture from last Christmas but it's the only one I have on my laptop...