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Some of the first random pictures. Map planning for tomorrow and exchanged some money. Dinner was great. It included cheesecake ice cream. Yummy. I watched "3 peas in a pod" and thought it was great. Its not a big scale movie but still good. Some parts are in english and others in Chinese but there were subtitles. I would recommend it.

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Landed in Singapore safely!

So as some may know I'm in Singapore! I had a vacation and wanted to take advantage of it. I decided to come to Singapore and so far I like it. This place gives a good vibe. I also have an awesome friend in who is housing me for my 5 day stay here. Her family is so sweet. I flew Singapore airlines and my flight took 6 hours. Which was not so bad. My tv screen worked and I ate a good dinner. Watched some shows and a Singaporean movie "3 peas in a pod." This movie was pretty good the ending had a great twist I was not expecting. I think its worth watching. Couple of things that have been noted so far: 1. Its so humid! 2. English everywhere! !! Lol after being in Korea for so long I forgot what it felt like to walk around and understand everything. 3. Singapore is tiny! Tomorrow's plan includes a trip to the zoo!! Yay!!

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Interesting side note: So in America we are used to just throwing out the trash and not having to deal with it again, but in Korea trash is treated differently. To start off with you need to buy your own trash bags!!! If you don’t use them, then your trash won’t get picked up and the building will fine you!  

Every city has their own trash bags. So no cheating! The white ones are for regular trash and the green ones are for food waste. It’s cool to see a different trash system. It’s not perfect but its a good start. The reason its not perfect is because people try to get away with throwing trash on the streets. You will never see public trash cans here. So you can imagine the mess it can be.

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Some pictures of my students. The little ones are super cute. The other three are my middle schoolers during their soccer match.

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Personal Questions???

There are many questions that I get asked here so frequently that would definitely be considered rude at home. Now I just laugh them off, though at first the questions are a little awkward. Like why does anybody need to know my blood type or age? Now I kinda understand it more. Koreans are definitely a little more nosy. lol Not in a bad way! but still a little weird. Even when I talk to my Korean friends about why they ask they tell me they are just being nosy. There you go! Even a Korean said it. lol

Some of the first questions I get asked all the time are:

1. Are you married?

2. Then the follow up, Do you have a boyfriend? One of my first conversations with a co teacher included this talk which was weird for me. To start of, I feel a women in Korea is always pushed to be with someone. There is still the strong mentality that you have to get married before your thirty if not you really are a spinster. Stay at home mom's are also very common. Maybe this would be an interesting writing piece for me?? For example Christmas here is completely different and treated like a couple date night. People don't really spend time with their families on this day. Korean thanksgiving, Chuseok, is when they go and spend time with their families.

Now for those that know me then you understand that I have never been like "I want a boyfriend." So this is what happened:

Co-teacher: "Do you have a boyfriend?"

Me: "No I don't"

Her response: "What? Why? You need a boyfriend."

Me: "No I don't need a boyfriend but I would like one."

Her: "No you need one."

Now this was while she was getting ready to marry. It was interesting to see that she didn't understand the difference between need, would like, or want.

3. How old are you?

Now, I understand this question a little better. In Korean language there is certain way to address someone older than you. Usually they just want to know where they stand with you. Now when adults ask me this I don't have much of a problem. It only gets a little annoying when its elementary students asking.

There are even more personal questions that I get asked but as often.

4. How tall are you? Even

5. How much you weigh? (I've only been asked this once)

6. What blood type are you? - This one is like being asked what horoscope sign you are. I actually got both of these questions asked here. These questions are used to tell your personality type. Out of the two though blood type is used more. I don't know all of the blood type meanings though. All I know is that I am O+ and am supposed to be super friendly??? I could totally be wrong, but I'm sure there is more to it than that.

So any thoughts? I would like to know what you guys think of these questions? Would you be offended?? The weight one threw me off and I didn't answer it. lol

Koreans are a little harsh on others appearances and its all done under the "I care about you" line. I can see that being true but telling someone they are fat is so horrible. So far I haven't been told this except by a kinder student. In her words. "My sister said you are fat." My reaction, "oh really"  but in my head, "She should at least tell me to my face." I have paid a little more attention to how I dress here but I try to not let the bad comments get to me. I haven't had to many problems. Hope everyone is enjoying random topic talks. 

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Itaewon: Going Grocery Shopping

When I was packing for Korea I did alot of research on what to bring. There were a lot of posts saying things like "oh you wont find this or it will be super expensive." Food items were also mentioned in these posts I found. Well the posts weren't completely wrong but there is a way to find popular American products. All it takes is a trip down to Itaewon which is the foreign neighborhood. BUT be warned everything will be expensive and the selection is a lot smaller.

Deodorant and Toothpaste

To begin with, the two things I took for granted in America were deodorant and toothpaste. For some reasons Koreans don't smell as bad as foreigners. Through all the lists I saw online, this was always mentioned so I packed enough deodorant for a year. Sadly I wasn't as smart about packing toothpaste. At first I thought it wouldn’t be a problem but then I found out korean toothpaste has no fluoride! I read online that some people that made the switch had their gums bleed and felt the korean toothpaste wasn't to their liking. So I got scared and looked for Colgate toothpaste the first time I came to Itaewon. After this I found out they were right its expensive! 6,000 - 10,000 won for toothpaste! Ridiculous I say!

Today I decided it was time for me to buy new toothpaste and I got lucky. I found a toothpaste that I like but had to pay 10,000 won! Here are some pictures i took of the selection and you can make out prices on some of them.

Food

As for food its slim pickings here and very pricy. Remember that mac and cheese and hamburger helper you love so much? Well be ready to pay a fortune for it. Also cake mix is expensive here! I remember you can get them for around a dollar at home but here they go for $7. So much for baking. If I want mexican products the selection is even slimmer. I did find some La Costena canned beans and jalapenos. YAY! The hardest things to find here are fresh tomatillos and jalapenos. You can only get these canned. On the other hand you can get fresh Cilantro. Here's more random pictures.

There is also a total of 3 Market I have gone to in Itaewon. Here are some street pictures. The nicer market is a lot more expensive but its always nice to check out all the markets.

High Street Market is really nice and styled a little like a western supermarket.

So now you know of the measures i must go through to get some toothpaste or jalapenos. lol I also went to the English bookstore and explored a completely new mall but I'll post more on that later. Hope you guys like the pictures.

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How I move Around

I guess this is another thing I'm used to now. When I came it was such a big surprise to be able to take a subway everywhere but also very confusing. Everything is in Korean so planning trips was hard. The stations themselves are labeled well with English signs but to plan trips I needed the subway app on a cellphone. Now that was hard to do the first month since I had no cell phone. I had to suspend my American one because using it here would have been too expensive. After the first month, I was able to get a cellphone. If i had to compare RIPTA or LA MTA to Korea; Korea would win hands down for these reasons:

1. Subways and busses are always on time!! In my current city, the bus that takes me to the best places in Korea comes every 15 minutes. Yay! I can go to Hongdae, which is the place where all the university students hang out, in 30 minutes and Seoul Plaza is an 1hr away. Also every bus stop has a screen showing how close the bus is to the stop. It counts down the minutes for you.

2. T-money Cards. These cards are very similar to the TAP cards in LA but better. You just load them up and then tap to get in the station and to get out. Bus fee is calculated by the distance traveled and its way cheaper, in my opinion. You can load them in the machines at the stations in English or at any convenience store. The only bad thing is your payment has be in cash. In LA you can put money into your TAP card directly from your debit card. As for the T-money card you have many selections! There's the plain boring card or the many cute little keychains to choice from. I recently switched over to a Hello Kitty one.

3. Subway Goes everywhere! Koreas subway puts "LA's Subway" to shame. Take a look. I'm by the Gimpo International Airport stop. Theres a mall inside connected to the subway and the airport. It only takes me 25 minutes to get there. If I want to go to Seoul or Hongdae, I will most likely take the bus that also eventually connects to a subway line.

Besides the bus and subway system another great way to get around is by taxi. Taxis are super cheap here! Well at least compared to the ones back at home. Only a rich person would take a taxi in LA but its very common to take a taxi here. I haven't taken a taxi from my new location yet. But when I moved I took a taxi from my old city to my new one and it only cost me 15,000 won. That's $15 which is not bad at all, considering I was moving to a different city. As you can see there I have no problem getting around Korea and thankfully I'm not far from the city.

On a side note, I actually have a funny story about one of the cab drivers. The guy driving tried to talk to me in limited English and he was so funny. He wanted me to call him "oppa" which in Korean is a term of affection for a man that is older than you. (This is only for girls to say though, not for guys! lol)

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Random pictures of the week. Had cupcakes with a friend in a cute café. Bought kpop socks. Went to Hongdae and took pictures of the artsy walls.

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Eating Korean Food Only

One of the biggest changes to get used to here is definitely the food. Now don't get me wrong the food here is delicious but it still took me a while to get a little used to it. I think most of it had to do with the portion size. It also made me realize how unhealthy I was eating in America.

When I first arrived here, I ate lunch with my kindergarten students and then had dinner with my coworkers. Both of these meals were Korean food. Lunch was the biggest difference, portions were smaller and the set up of the meal was the same. The usual lunch meal was rice, some type of soup or broth, and then 3 sides (one of them was usually some type of meat). Now back at home I was used to eating a lot more and it was getting unhealthy. I had so much fast food all the time and it wasn't good. It took my body some time to get used to how much i was eating now.

I am not going to lie I really missed Mexican food at the beginning. I missed salsa, tacos, and even frijoles. lol I would get a lot of cravings and started looking for Mexican food. My conclusion: Korea doesn't have real Mexican food! There are some places I've gone too and I don't think they are too bad. Now this means that if this food were compared to the food back home it would lose. lol Of course I have taco bell, TGI Fidays, and there is also a Baja Grill but we all know thats not the same. 

I did find a place that seems to be authentic Mexican food but out of the 4 times I've tried going it always fails. They were always closed! ahhhh!! The only reason i know its authentic is because it's owned by a person who is from Mexico D.F. Yes there's Mexicans here. Though I think they are mostly associated with the Mexican embassy here.

My every day meals now are mostly only Korean. My school provides us with dinner and it's great. I do sometimes miss a really good hamburger or pizza slice but thankfully I am not to far off from the good places. As for Mexican food it probably requires me to go all the way to Itaewon to look for it. Itaewon is the foreigner area here and for the most part it has really good food but it is considered "a dangerous" area by Koreans. I mostly just think its really sketchy at night and its best to go in the morning. So far I have survived without Mexican food. I think its been about a month since I've eaten any, but i'm surviving so no worries yet. =)

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Some pictures of Korean food I like to eat. Ordering Korean take out is so cheap! A meal is around 5 or 6 thousand won which is roughly 5 or 6 dollars. The gimbak is around 3,000 won and thats the fancy kind with tuna. The big mandu was 2,000 won.

Getting used to the food here was definitely a big change, but since I'm not a picky eater it's been great for me.

So far I've learned of two things that I will never eat here: 1. dog meat 2. fish that is still alive.

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It's raining today and I actually think its going to be raining this whole week.😑 I took these pictures on my way to work. For those that are curious my working hours are from 1pm to 10pm. It's so weird to be on a late work schedule. In my previous job I had a 9am to 6pm schedule but that was because I taught kindergarten. I teach elementary school now which is better for me, little kids are so exhausting. Lol. I do miss my old students though.

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Differences in Korea I've gotten used to...

1. The "hot water" button - In America if you want hot water you just turn the knob to the hot water side, but in Korea you have to push a button before you can use any hot water. The thermostat in your apartment controls the hot water for your washing machine, faucet, and bathroom shower. I am used to it now but I'm paranoid about leaving the button on. I don't want my gas bill to be high.

2. Floor heating - Heating for the winter months comes from the floor. At first I didn't know if it was even working. I lived in an older apartment that was much bigger therefore it needed more gas and time to warm up. My new apartment is much smaller but newer so i use less heat during winter.

3. Crosswalks! You have to wait for your turn. Theres no magical button to make the lights turn faster. So if your running late you have to patiently wait for your turn BUT be careful of delivery drivers and cars.

4. Yes drivers are bad here, but delivery scooters are even worst. I nearly got hit today. You can get delivery here and its great but that means the delivery people are always running red lights, driving up to pedestrian walkways and just rushing everywhere. Sadly that means more car crashes and scooter crashes. Interesting fact: In Korea when you get into a car crash both of the people involved pay half and half regardless of whose fault it is.

These are just some of the differences I remember at the moment. Hooray for starting a blog. lol I want my family and friends who are curious about how I'm living in Korea to see I am ok.