Bo Shin Tang

Bo Shin Tang = Dog Soup

Pretty delicious.  Kind of like a roast beef stew.  Supposedly it is very healthy for you.

Summer Camp + Stacie's arrival

The summer is hot and humid here, but not as hot as the recent heatwave in the American Northeast.  My friend Stacie came to visit me for a few weeks.  While I am dreading this weather, for her, it is a pleasant break from 100+ degree days in Philly.

In Korea, students go to school almost the entire year.  The students' "summer vacation" is nothing more than a change in their schedules and a slight decline in their workload.  For me, my job was to create a small 2-week unit for the students who wished to work on their English.  My class included games, cooking, mystery reading and writing, music, and a Disney movie.  

My afternoon class only had a handful of students.  The students were 2nd graders, a nice change from my 1st graders.  At night, I would go to the school dormitory and have conversations with the students.  

Stacie is a guacamole expert.

Mixing up some guacamole (Salsa on hand just in case)

School Field Trip

Two weekends ago, I was invited on a school field trip to a Buddhist Temple and mountain park.  It is called Songnisan.  The field trip was organized to provide an outing for the students' mothers.  This was an opportunity for them to spend time with their children and fellow parents.  The trip took about one hour to reach the destination.  After exploring and eating a buffet lunch, we returned to Daejeon.  Along the way we stopped by a traditional Korean home where we were given another short tour.  The weather was extremely hot and humid, but also sunny and beautiful.

Semester-end luncheon/ceremony

Today we had a lunch/ceremony to celebrate the end of the semester.  We had a kind of stuffed chicken soup.  We honored 3 teachers who will be leaving Daejeon High School.  Unfortunately, they are all in my small circle of close office friends.  The picture shows our current cafeteria.

Pizza Party

Each Thursday, I have a small group of night students I teach.  They live "on campus" and are very bright.  We enjoy our time and since they are high-level English students, it is extra fun with them because I can be much more creative in my lesson planning.  As a reward for their hard work, I invited them (14 students) to my small apartment to watch a baseball game during our final class.  I surprised them by ordering pizza.  Now every student in school wants to be selected for my future night classes :0).

Dalk Galbi (Chicken meal)

One of my favorite meals in Korea is a large chicken dish called Dalk Galbi.  It is chicken, cabbage, onions, sweet potatoes, rice cakes, other greens, and of course, red pepper sauce.  As always, other side dishes are provided as well.  Spicy, but delicious!

Korean BBQ with fellow teachers

Three times a week, I hold a conversation class with some fellow teachers.  One of those cohorts is a group of non-English teachers.  We have a great time together and last week they offered to take me to my favorite Korean BBQ restaurant near my home.  We grilled up copious amounts of pork and beef that meal.  Here is a photo with those "students" (some of my favorite people in Daejeon).