Joel: Today, I was hit with a bit of a bombshell. Halfway through first period, Bo-Hyun was summoned for a talk with the principal. She returned after the lesson with some pretty miserable news. With immedite effect, she'd been asked to take over as a form teacher for a grade 6 class, leaving me to teach English alone. The old form teacher began her maternity leave two months ago, and although two replacements were found, both have caused problems. I don't know the full details but they were both older males and I know the first one was forced to leave after parents complained he'd been hitting their children. Because the school needed someone reliable and experienced fast, the job has fallen to Bo-Hyun. Of course, she has no choice about it and she was pretty upset. She'll be doing it until the original teacher returns in February. They're trying to get a temporary co-teacher in to begin working with me, as soon as they find one, but for now I'm on my own.

So it was a bit of a strange day all-in-all. As I expected, some of the kids thought it might be easier to piss about with just me taking the class. It's quite difficult to keep the attention and interest of forty rowdy kids when you speak so little of their language and they so little of yours. I was happy with the way I coped though. I only had to dish out one set of lines (for one whole class). I just hope that whoever they get in to work with me is okay. I know that some native teachers have had a difficult time with their Korean teachers but then I suppose lots of Korean teachers have to work with idiot native teachers - I've met quite a few. So really, I know I'm okay, and there's a good chance he/she will be too. Hmmmmn.

Other than that, all is well. The weeks are flying by. New discoveries include - a top new takeaway pizza place by the station, Jarvis Cocker's new album and the fact that a huge ice-skating ring is opening up at City Hall at the meagre price of 1000won (60p) per go, including skate hire. The first test of the Ashes was a disaster. I can get an audio feed from the Stan James Bookmakers website and have been listening to it at school in my free periods - trying not to get too downspirited. On Saturday, after a day making kimchi and shopping in Seoul, we headed up to Jung-Dong, not too far from our place, to meet up with Shano and Sam who are both Aussies. Luckily, and as statistically unlikely as it is, neither is that particular brand of Aussie that loves to gloat. They took us to a cool little Italian place where you can 'bring your own' wine. The food was great and we ended up in a new Candian owned bar where they take requests and download the music on the spot.

At far as the plumeting temperature is concerned, I'm okay, but Rakhi has now invested in thermals. She looks absolutely fantastic in them and I've had to nickname her "Long John Sinha". We're seeing plenty of Christmas stuff in the shops and supermarkets now and today a parcel arrived from my Nan and Grandad. I've checked all the seals and given Rakhi a stern warning not to peek. It's going to be a bit odd being away from family and friends at Christmas. We're planning on having a Christmans party at our place and will definitely be cooking a proper dinner. Also, I've already been hearing how the Christmas market in Manchester is so much bigger and better this year, so in order not to miss out, we'll be re-creating it with plenty of mulled wine and Bratwurst in our appartment. Best download some Europop remixes then. Where's that singing moose!

Rakhi: After returning from school last Wednesday, Joel and I discovered that our gas had been cut off. We had no hot water and nothing to cook with. Confused by the situation, Joel took a notice that had been posted on our front door down to the guards to try and work out what had happened. It turns out that ever since we have been here, we've not paid any of our gas bills. We were under the impression that the only bills we need to pay each month are electricity, phone and an apartment maintenance fee. Joel and I have always presumed that gas fees are included within the maintenance fee. After Joel's co-teacher kindly spoke to guards at our apartment and the gas was reconnected, Joel and I searched through a pile of old mail and found 6 bills which, after deciphering the hangul, we realised said 'gas!' Whoops! The joys of living in a foreign country with a strange language and writing system!

What with the extra teachers classes that I am doing and preparing for my open class tomorrow, the past few weeks at school have still been quite busy.
The teachers classes are going well; Yeonhae (my co-teacher) has told me that a few teachers have commented to her that they really enjoy my lessons. It's good to get some positive feedback and I'm glad that the teachers find my lessons useful and interesting. Last Friday, I went for dinner after school with all the teachers and the principal. Luckily for me, we went to a raw seafood restaurant! There really wasn't much that I deemed edible although there was some sashimi which was delicious. Thankfully, I was excused from staying for too long because I had to get to my Korean class. Just as I was about to leave, a plate of wriggling tentacles fresh off an octopus was placed before me. One of the teacher's tried to encourage me to try one but I was having none of it! Another teacher told me how delicious they were, especially when they use their suckers to stick to the inside of your mouth!

Today at school, we had a chance to practice the lesson that we will teach tomorrow for our open class. I wasn't nervous but I am now! In true Yeonhae style, everything is totally messy and chaotic, since she has changed her mind about things so many times. Hopefully it'll all come together tomorrow.

Our Korean classes are going well even though our teacher does go through topics as fast as lightning. I suppose the emphasis is on personal study rather than being spoon fed everything. Our lesson last Friday was actually the last class in Beginners 1, next Friday we're moving up to Beginners 2! Yeah (nearly fluent)! We were given a 'surprise' test on Friday to determine whether we were eligible for the next level. I actually found the test okay even though it was two pages of eye bending hangul. Jeff, our friend, struggled a bit and later confessed to copying my paper! What's funnier is that only that day he had been discussing the morality of cheating in one of his lessons.

The place where we learn Korean also organises cultural trips. Since it's 'gimjang' season, on Saturday, Joel and I took part in a kimchi making class at a cookery school in the city. Gimjang is the age old practice of preparing kimchi for the winter as few key ingredients are grown during the winter months. Actually, with the advent of kimchi fridges which can store kimchi for prolonged periods, during this time of year, people use over 30 cabbages to make kimchi for the entire year. On Saturday, we made kimchi out of one cabbage each. It was really interesting and fun to see how the nations favourite food is prepared. As part of the deal we both got to take our kimchi home with us so we now have lots of kimchi sitting at the bottom of our fridge. I wonder if it'll ever get eaten...

Tempting eh?!

Joel: Never, never, never, never, never, never again!!! Organised coach tours. Unbelievable! If it hadn't been our last chance to spend time with Ryan and Kristen, there's no way I would have even entertained the idea. Our experience only confirmed what I'd always suspected - organised coach trips are a complete nightmare. One particular guy who was sat in front of us on the journey to Seoraksan stood out in particular; an Aussie who we nicknamed Frank after the psychopath in the Japanese novel "In the Miso Soup." This man was the most relentlessly boring, conversation-hijacking buffoon I've met for a long time and after our arrival, I had the misfortune to be cornered and questioned by him whilst sat naked in an underground spa with no escape. When it came to the journey home, our priority was to be on a different coach from him (there were three). To be stuck behind this twit for five hours was excruciating. However, as Rakhi said, the trip was made worthwhile by the stunning scenery. I've heard it said so many times that this is the best time to visit the area due to the tremendous display of autumnal colours. Also, it was ace to spend a bit of time with the Canadians before they departed. It's really sad that their adventure here has been cut short and it would be nice to think we'll see them again.

I've also had an action-packed couple of weeks. Last Wednesday was the inter-school sports competition and after a couple of hours practice with our volleyball team on Tuesday evening, I was thrust right into the action. At the gym we go to, there are monitors on the running machines so people can watch TV whilst working out. Since almost all the programmes are in Korean, I usually settle on a sports channel and more often than not, one is showing volleyball. So, although I've never played before, I've watched a fair bit of the game recently and got my head around the rules and tactics. The thing that stood out the most to me was the way players at the net timed their jumps to coincide with a player on the other side of the net who is about to smash the ball (is this called a spike? I dunno). When it came to our captain (my Vice-Principal, who had clearly never heard the motto "There's no "I" in "Team"- he was desperate to be the star) organising the positions I was quite glad when he directed me towards the net on the right of the court. As the game got underway I knew what I had to do. In my mind the "Eye of the Tiger" theme began to play. Ha ha! Anyway, I jumped for everything. Some balls I blocked only for it to fly out of court, some I sent back into court with unstoppable power and trajectory. I made a block to win the first match, two sets to one. We were in the final. During the break, my Vice-Principal and the other Koreans were drinking lager. Not for me I'm afraid. This was beginning to mean something.

The final was against a combined team of teachers from Rakhi's school and my friend Shane's school. Shane was playing aswell- and he's an Aussie. I couldn't let them win; It's almost Ashes season! It was a fiercely contested game, so much was at stake. A two-minute delay broke-up the flow when my afore-mentioned VP wasn't happy with an umpiring decision. He took this game far more seriously than me if that can be believed. Anyway, we won! We did it. But due to results in other events (our skipping team was dreadful) we came second overall out of eleven teams. The trophy slipped through our fingers. Rakhi did fantastic for her school. At the last minute (surprise, surprise) she was asked to compete in three of the four events - skipping (which she hated for being so bloody girly) the relay (in which she ran first leg) and stick throwing (in which she demonstrated peculiar deftness for a non-Korean). It was a great afternoon. One I'm sure I'll dream about for years.

The week before last, we invited our co-teachers, Bo-Hyun and Yeon-Hae, over for dinner. Ideally, we wanted to make them something English, but I'm pretty used to hearing Bo-Hyun complaining at lunchtime that the soup that has just burned a hole in my mouth is not spicy enough, so we didn't think they'd appreciate the blandness that is bangers and mash or hot-pot. So, we cooked up a Mexican for them. Non-Korean ingredients are easily available since we discovered Cost-co, so we treated them to burritos and tortillas with all the trimmings. I think it was quite an experience for them both. They took photos of the table setting in the same way Rakhi takes pictures of the food in Korean restaurants. I think it was even pretty novel for them to be eating dinner while sat on chairs. Bo-Hyun compared the experience to eating in a romantic restaurant. We warned them in advance not to be disappointed but there wasn't going to be any Kimchi. There was wine though. After dinner they taught us a traditional Korean (gambler's) card game. I'm really glad that Yeon-Hae is now so different from the person who failed to make Rakhi welcome at her school when we arrived. I think the relationship you have with a co-teacher has such a massive bearing on how much you enjoy your experience when living and teaching in a different country. They're both now really friendly and lovely to spend time with. I think we're pretty lucky in that respect.

We stumbled on our Korean language course in quite a fortunate fashion. A few weeks ago we were discussing how we never see any other non-Korean looking people in our area and no sooner had we mentioned it than, on our return home one night, on the main road right by our appartment, we clocked a young western-looking white guy. We stopped and said hello and discovered he lives just a short way from us, near the next subway station, so we swapped numbers and arranged to meet up. Turns out, he's a really interesting guy called Jeff who harks from California and has a really peaceful, positive outlook on life. And luckily for us, he tells us about a free Korean language course he's planning to start where we just need to go and take a short test to determine our level then we can start that week. Great timing we think. So, we went along, took the basic reading test and both scored 9/10. We were able to skip the first part of the course and join the Beginners 1B group starting that Friday. So, this Friday will be our third class and I'm really enjoying it for so many reasons. Language learning is so challenging and stimulating, I feel as though parts of my brain that have lay dormant for years have been woken. And , of course , it gives me such a new perspective on my own teaching. I get to experience exactly how my students feel when they're sat at the wrong end of an assertively-put question and wished they'd spent more time studying last weeks class at home. It's great. And here we have the fantastic oppurtunity to put the new language we learn into immediate use with people around us - surely the best way you can learn a language. After only the first class (and a few beers) Rakhi was approaching people late at night in the local dumpling caff and introducing herself. That, surely, is what it's all about.

Rakhi: Life is so busy at the moment, there always seems to be something on the horizon. Last Tuesday, there was a sort of bazaar at my school with a makeshift bookshop to encourage parents to buy books for the school library. For the bazaar, all teachers were asked to have the students make things to display. During some curriculum classes my co-worker and I got the students to colour in different English type things and in my after-school classes I had the students write and illustrate things such as their daily routine, what they want to be when they grow up and a magic spell book. The time consuming part was actually cutting, mounting and displaying everything. At the last minute (as everything goes here), I was also asked to direct an English play. I think my principal heard about Joel's success and expected me to be able to pull off the same. I point blank said that not only was it too little time but I'm not a professional like Joel is. I wouldn't know where to start. Instead, some of the students sang three curriculum songs and did a little dance, they looked pretty sweet!

Recently, I've been asked to teach extra teacher's classes. This brings my total teaching time to 29hrs with 7hrs being classed as overtime. The week before last the Office of Education ordered that all teachers who have native English speakers at their school, take a mandatory 32 hour English course. The course has to be completed before Christmas in order for them to gain a certificate and as Korean teachers get jobs based on the number of points they accumulate, they earn points for taking the course aswell. In order to finish before Christmas, I'm teaching two 2hr lessons twice a week. Since there is not enough time to stream the teachers according to their ability, the level in my classes is really mixed. There are beginners alongside intermediate and advanced level (like my co-teacher and Hani). As I have to plan all lessons for the course myself, it's difficult thinking of ideas and topics which will not ostracise anybody by being too easy or too difficult. I'm sure more experienced teachers can deal with this kind of thing easily but I think it's quite a responsibility. I don't want to waste anybody's time. Some teachers are really annoyed about the English classes as they are incredibly busy already and have no desire to learn English. On the other hand, a couple of teachers now go out of their way to ask what a particular word is in English whenever they see me. I think the teacher's who have attended have enjoyed the classes so far, they're a nice bunch and they've all been pretty enthusiastic.

Another major upcoming event at school is my open class. The week after next, Korean and native English teachers alongside members from the Office of Education will be coming to my school to watch my co-teacher and me in a demonstration lesson. I'm not too nervous, I'm sure we'll be okay and we've selected one of my favourite grade 5 classes to do the demonstration with. We really need to start preparing for it soon though. Judging by open classes I've seen previously, a lot of effort goes in. We'll have to come up with lots of ideas and make interesting, stimulating materials.

Last night, Joel and I said bye to our friends Ryan and Kristin. This weekend just gone, we went to Seoraksan with them as it was their last weekend in Korea. Ryan's dad is really ill so they've had to terminate their contract early to return to Canada. I feel so bad for Ryan, it's a horrible thing to have to go through. Ryan's school have been really kind to him, even putting together an emergency collection in order to pay for his airfare. Kristin's had a hard time at her school on the other hand, I'm not sure their convinced she's telling the truth. It's a shame because she's ending her experience in Korea on a real sour note because of the way her school are behaving towards her. Joel and I are really going to miss them. It was great to go back to Seroaksan with them, apart from the fact that we were on an organised tour. Ryan and Kristin have been to Seorkasan with a company called 'Adventure Korea' before and they said it was pretty good. Joel and I are not normally one for organised tours and prefer the freedom to make our own decisions but since we wanted to spend time with Ryan and Kristin and they were going on this tour, we thought we'd do the same. Most of it was a farce, leaving late, being treated like a child, having a tour leader who was a dictator who made illogical decisions, being surrounded by an excessive amount of foreigners, waking up for the breakfast we had already paid for to find out there wasn't enough, getting stuck in traffic for 7 hours, I could go on...! There were a couple of redeeming features to the trip though. We stayed in inner Seoraksan right in the mountains in a tiny village called Osaek famous for it's hot springs. Unfortunately, a lot of the area was seriously devastated by torrential rains during the monsoon season; the hot spa place we were supposed to visit was covered by a landslide. On Sunday, we went for a beautiful walk through a valley up to a waterfall. A lot of the path was wrecked and instead we had to pick our way across huge rocks and boulders. Heavy duty metal staircases and bridges had been torn of cliff faces and twisted into heaps in the middle of the stream and there were enormous rocks which had slid down mountains and taken away all the trees in their paths. The scenery was still utterly awe inspiring though.

This week and this weekend, I really just want to take it easy and catch up with some stuff. The week before last, Joel and I (finally) joined a Korean language class. Our teacher is really nice and as she speaks wholly in Korean I have a re-appreciation of what my poor kids have to go through with me! The first lesson was quite straightforward greetings but the second lesson last Friday was difficult grammatical structures; after two and half hours my head felt like it was going to pop! It's great to be taking these classes, they're every Friday for 2 hours so hopefully my Korean will come along enough for me to be able to have an actual conversation with someone! I'm definitely going to have to spend some time going over what we learnt in the previous class before this Friday though!

Rakhi: My legs have been so sore this week, I've hardly been able to walk! On Saturday, Joel and I woke up at 6:30am to travel to Bukhansan National Park in the north-west of Seoul. A significant section of the capital is bordered by the park which is a major landmark easily visible from most areas. We made sure we got an early start in order to beat the crowds as the park gets notoriously busy due to its central location. The early start was tough and when we arrived at the park entrance at about 9am we were still half asleep. The crisp air and immediate steep ascent soon woke us up though! Initially we had decided that we were going to tackle ‘Baekundae’ which at 300m above sea level is the highest mountain in the park and takes a total of 6hrs to climb. After an hour or more of strenuous hiking we came to a crossroads, one path lead up to Baekundae and the other path to Bukhansanseong fortress wall (which was originally built in the eighteenth century to protect Seoul from foreign invasions) and to the summit of another of the mountains. We decided to go with the fortress path which we envisaged would be less gruelling than Baekundae. However, the rock faces were so steep that at times we had to haul ourselves up using metal cables secured into the rock. In total, it took us nearly two hours to reach the fortress wall and then another 10 minutes or so to the peak. Although it was already crowded with hikers the view was incredible. After finding a semi secluded spot on a stretch of jutting out cliff, we settled down to take in the scenery and a spot of lunch.

The descent was nearly as strenuous as the ascent but thankfully more peaceful with hardly anyone around. Part of the route back down guided us up, on and over a little ‘nodule’ which poked out of the side of one of the mountains. Again, we had to use a metal cable to hoist ourselves up but once at the top the view was even better than the last peak. We were surrounded by forests of beautiful autumnal leaves of reds, yellows and browns. Far off in the distance you could make out a huge stone Buddha statue and in the background were other mountains. The rocky path back down to the base also included walking on top of the fortress wall, along a river bed and past two ornate buddhist temples. Next time, we’ll take on Baekundae! From the top you get a 360° view and you can see most of Seoul and the Han River. I’ll wait until my legs have thoroughly recovered first though!

On Sunday, Joel and I attended Hani’s wedding. Like so many Korean weddings, it took place in a garish wedding hall. Marriages in wedding halls are like marrying on a conveyer belt; the wedding ceremony takes only 30 minutes because other couples are waiting their turns. Hani’s wedding took place in a hall on the 6th floor of a building which had weddings going on on 3 other floors. When we arrived on Hani's floor we were lead to greet her and have a photo taken with her. She looked stunning:

It's customary to wear Western wedding attire for the main public ceremony and then change into traditional Korean Hanbok for a private ceremony which only immediate family can witness. After all the initial photo's, the bride is lead down the aisle by the father, then the ceremony begins. During the vows, all the guests were chatting and walking around, hardly anybody watched closely and I'm pretty sure nobody cried. It was all very informal. After the ceremony, photo's were taken. First of the immediate family, then extended family, next was close friends followed by co-workers. Check out 'our pictures' link for the 'Where's Wally' style picture of me and 50 other Koreans! After my photo was taken, it was time for lunch. When we first arrived at the wedding hall we were taken to a desk to hand in our 'gift money' and in exchange we received a lunch token; in effect we were paying for our food. It's not as personal or exciting as receiving a gift but I suppose it is very practical as weddings are huge, expensive businesses in Korea. We went to the fifth floor to the self service style canteen for lunch. There was so much food and most of it was absolutely delicious although there was baby octopus and other raw fishy delights on offer. Joel wanted to get his money's worth but as we were sat with my co-workers he didn't feel comfortable doing so! After lunch it was home time. All in all we were at the wedding for 1hr 3omins. Slightly longer and a helluva lot pricier than a quicky chapel!