Rakhi: IT’S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN!

I had my last grade 5 lessons today. At the end of every class I did a little spiel about how sad I was to be leaving and how much fun I’ve had teaching the students. Since then, I’ve not been left alone! I’m like a celebrity around here anyway but now the students are being more affectionate than ever. The blackboard is covered in adorable messages telling me not to go, there are drawings and I’ve been given lots of cute letters as well. Also, this lunch time, I was cornered in my little room by about twenty grade 5 kids mauling me and begging me to speak Korean. It all started with one boy. After a lot of cajoling on his part, I spoke a few sentences. He ran off only to return with another three or four student’s in tow begging me to speak ‘one more time.’ I did my little clown act and told them that it was the last time. They left and came back with more students. Each time I said it would be the last but each time more and more students came and pleaded with me. Bless the little blighters; since I’m leaving soon I thought I’d appease them but it was endless so I finally had to run away to the staff toilets to escape them! I’m definitely going to miss them.

On Tuesday night, Joel and I went over to Hanee’s house for a farewell dinner. She taught me how to make one of my favourite Korean dishes, ‘duenjang jiggae’ which is a spicy soy bean and tofu stew. I loved spending time with Hanee outside of work, she’s really good fun. It was ace to get a one on one Korean cookery class too! Tonight, it’s our turn to say goodbye to Bo Hyun. She has been amazingly kind to us ever since we landed in Korea, I’m so grateful for all her help.

With all these goodbyes, it’s really starting to sink in that we’re going. Also, our apartment’s looking pretty bare now and doesn’t feel so much like home anymore. Last Sunday, Joel and I made a start getting rid of some of the clutter and junk. We’ve collected (though not intentionally) so many leaflets, magazines and tickets from things that we’ve done this past year. Sorting through them bought back many fond memories. We’ve done so many things. I’ve also culled a lot of my clothes and shoes which Joel is very pleased about.

And, now it’s official- we’re going to Thailand! Sam picked up our passports from the Thai Embassy yesterday and pasted in each of them is a Thai Visa! There’s no stopping us. This week may be full of final times and farewells but next week is the beginning of another adventure. I can’t wait!

Joel: Today brought the opening the "English Village" in the classroom next to mine. It's essentially a private English academy that's been set up to provide lessons in smaller clases for kids whose parents can afford it. At lunchtime, I bumped into Joe, a guy from the states who will be teaching these classes. Pretty strange to no longer be the only non-Korean working in the school. Then, this afternoon, Seon Yeong was called downstairs to greet her new co-teacher, Laura from Cheshire who, amongst other things I noticed on her CV, once worked in the Frog and Ferret in Nantwich, a pub I've been to a fair few times. I met her when she came up to the classroom but didn't have much of a time to chat. We've got quite a few household things to pass on that she might find useful.

I'm still not sure what's happening with our apartment. The new native teacher has been put up in an officetel and my school have told me that the new teacher from Rakhi's school will be living here (although Rakhi assures me her school don't have a new teacher lined up yet). Now, get this. Instead of just leaving the furniture here for the new teacher, I've been told that, because when we arrived, my school bought the furniture, it belongs to them and they will be moving everything out even though they have no use for anything - the new teacher's officetel is furnished. So then Rakhi's school be have to kit out our appartment with brand new furniture. They're both goverment schools! It's beurocracy gone mad. They're hapy to shell out for all new stuff rather than allow one school to give or sell the furniture to the other. Bonkers.

This time next week we'll be boarding a plane for Bangkok. This last week, I've really started to come to terms with fact we're reaching the end of our Korean journey. We've been busy sorting things out, throwing lots of thing away and trying to be brutal. We were stung by being over the weight allowance on the way out here and I'd hate for the same to happen again. Unbelievably, Rakhi's got her wardrobe down to a decent size although she's made it clear she thinks I'm being a bit obsessive. We have still got a fair bit of stuff.

I managed to get to the Thai embassy on Friday and our visas should be ready on Wednesday, Sam's going to pick them up for us. Last Wednesday, we went over to Jeff's for his house warming. He had been living with a Korean family until recently (which turned out to be a bit of a nightmare for him) and his new place is pretty nice. He cooked all authentic Korean food which was pretty impressive. Then on Friday, we took him and his friend Min-Ji to our favorite Indian restaurant, "The Himalayan", in Dongdaemun - a place that never fails.

On Saturday, we did some shopping in Myong-Dong then met up with Barry in the Irish bar for a few farewell drinks. He left today to spend a few months travelling around South-East Asia. Everyone we spoke to about our jobs seemed to think we'd landed a pretty good deal. Last week, Rakhi got an e-mail saying that the school wanted us to start a week earlier but in exchange would give us two weeks holiday together mid-contract. I think that more than makes up for it.

I'm so excited now about moving to Thailand. I'm a bit concerned about how I'm going to handle the heat and the bugs but I'm sure I'll find a way of coping. Rakhi's instructed me to stay awake every night to guard her and make sure nothing attacks her, so with only being able to grab bits of sleep here and there through the day, I might be a little tired most of the time.

We've still got so many things to do this week we'll struggle to get a moments rest. With packing, bank accounts, bills, farewell dinners with our co-teachers and a wine cruise I'm hoping that by Sunday we'll be able to relax knowing that everything is sorted. Fingers crossed.

Joel: It's nearly a week since Neal and Lyndsey left and I feel almost back to full health. After our final action-packed pack weekend with them I really needed to spend a week doing NOTHING (apart from working) in order to give my weary bones a rest. I think they coped pretty well with the unexpected trials and general bizarreness that make up everyday life in Seoul. I haven't actually been on a holiday with my brother since we were kids and soon discovered that very little had has changed. With his purchase of a "Keroro" (a Korean cartoon alien) watch and set of giraffe ears, his desperation to beat me at pool and "A Question of Sport" and his excitement at meeting his spongy hero it was like being transported back to a 1980's family holiday! Only I'm begining to feel like the older brother.

Apart, of course, from the times I'm still prone to make apaulling judgements, like deciding to wake my dad up on April 1st and tell him I'm in a Korean jail and don't know how I got there. When Jokes Backfire! indeed. I think he's forgiven me, regardless of the fact it was clearly a pretty horrible thing to do. I'm going to have to be on the ball next year though. I can't help but think he'll be out for revenge.

The trip to "Everland" was well worth it. I'd say it's the best of the three theme parks here, closely pipping "Seoulland" at the post but blowing the pathetic "Lotteworld" out of the water. Neal and Lynds seemed to be well up for the safari zone and all the rides we went on were top - particularly the hanging "Eagle's Fortress" rollarcoaster which was without loops but incredibly fast and meandering for the whole run.




The DMZ trip was also incredible. We've now actually been to North Korea! Only for a couple of minutes, but I don't know many people who can say that. Rakhi wasn't the only one in our party to step out of line, although her misdemeanor was by far the most obvious. One guy on the coach turned up in camouflage pants (doh!) and I saw one guy accosted for trying to take photos of the North over the wall outside the observatory building. Rakhi was a bit shaken after nearly being sliced in two by a Taekwando black-belt in shades and full military attire - the whole visit was a pretty tense experience. Pretty funny looking back though.

It was great to have Neal and Lyndsey here with us after so long. It will probably be Christmas before we see them again so I'll have to borrow Neal's trick and buy an "A Question of Sport" interactive DVD, learn all the answers and then take him on with no chance of defeat. Ha ha!

This weekend brought about the reunion between Rakhi and my co-teacher Seon-Yeong, their only previous meeting being last week when she turned up at our apartment after I'd phoned in sick demanding to take us to the hospital. She only came on orders from the principal, but I'm pretty sure it came from them wanting to take care of us, not check up on us. She expressed her regret at the whole saga - it's all under the bridge now - and we had a fun afternoon with her and her family. The show, "JUMP", was best show at the Edinburgh festival in 2005 and has been a big hit on the west-end. It's a slapstick martial arts comedy that's been superbly choreographed and acted out by fantastically skilled performers. A couple of audience members were pulled up onto the stage to be part of the mayhem and I kind of wished it had been me. It was a really impressive production.

I now only have ten school days left here before we fly out. My school still hasn't found a replacement and tried again today to get me to conder resigning. It's nice to feel wanted but I know it's partly because, if they don't find a replacement, they're in a spot of bother having already charged parents for a term of extra classes with a native teacher. Occasionally, the last-minute-ness really comes back and bites them in the ass.

So we really are approaching the end here. We've only four more free days. For our last Saturday, we've booked places on a wine and cheese cruise up the river with Shano and Sammy. I'm hoping it will be a good send-off for us. The cheese board Neal and Lyndsey brought over for us was devoured in a frenzy on Friday night leaving us both unable to move at any speed and it served as a catalyst for some very trippy dreams. I'm hoping the cruise brings about similar feelings. I reckon (apart from friends and family) cheese is the thing I've missed here most. After Thailand, it's going to have to be northern France I reckon, to play catch-up!

Rakhi: Despite me, Joel AND Lyndsey all being a bit run down with colds, we still managed to have an action packed couple of weeks. Neal and Lyndsey couldn't escape from the norebang experience while they were here. Like others before them, they totally got into the spirit and once they got going there was no stopping them! Everland was great, the cherry blossom festival was nothing special, the atmosphere at the football was electric, but I'd say that going to North Korea was my highlight!

The DMZ (Demilitarised Zone) is the most heavily fortified border in the world and has thus been said to be one of the most dangerous places on earth. If ever there was another war between the two Korea's it’s most likely to kick off here. Our first tour guide was very knowledgeable and helped us better understand the fraught history of this divided country. One particularly sobering fact that she shared with us was that North Korea’s obligatory military service for males over 17, is ten years long. She also told us that it is compulsory for everybody over the age of 15 to learn how to handle a gun and twice yearly there are drills in order to practice this skill. No wonder North Korea has one of the largest armies in the world- nearly everybody is a potential recruit.

The first stop, the Third Infiltration Tunnel (the biggest of four tunnels built under the DMZ), was built in order to launch a surprise attack on Seoul which is only 44km away from the DMZ. When questioned about the tunnel, North Korea said that they were mining coal but when the black walls were tested black paint rather than coal was discovered. En route to Panmunjom, the truce village where the ‘Joint Security Area’ between North and South is, we stopped off at the ‘Freedom Bridge’ where POW's were exchanged, the observatory and Dorasan Station. Dorasan Station is connected on a train line that used to run between north and south before the country was divided. The northernmost stop on the line in South Korea is Dorosan. The hope is that it will soon be used as the first station into North Korea rather than the last station in the South. We all got our passports stamped at the station which at the time I thought was quirky but in hindsight I'm worrying that having a North Korean stamp in my passport may cause some problems!

The Joint Security area is the only place where North and South Korean soldiers stand -off face to face and is used for diplomatic engagements. In the JSA, there is a building where both sides hold talks and half the room is in North Korea and the other half is in South. Once inside the room, you're allowed to cross into northern territory. What I didn't know though was that you could only go one way around this massive table. This is where I commited my now infamous faux pas; I stepped in front of a soldier and he nearly karate chopped me in half and deported me! Whoops! There are so many rules and regulations you have to abide by on the tour; I can't believe that I was the only one to make a such a sizable mistake! It was extraordinary being so close to the North, we could see the city of ‘Gaesong’ and the North Korean flag so bulky and heavy that unless there's sufficient breeze it hangs limply. Very eerie- particularly because it’s only an hour away from Seoul.

It was so nice to see Neal and Lyndsey we had a lot of fun with them. I'm eternally grateful to them for lugging our belongings half way accross the world- sorry for all the bother guys!

Last week, Joel and I were both off sick from school. We phoned our respective institutions early in the morning then climbed back into bed. To say that I was shocked to have Joel's co-teacher banging on our door and angrily shouting and demanding that we go to hospital with her is an understatement. Consequently, I was more than a little nervous at meeting her yesterday for an arrangement that we had made prior to the above events. She had managed to get tickets for Joel and I plus her husband and daughter to see this martial arts performance called 'Jump.' I really was in two minds about going since she had been so rude to me but I decided to be magnanimous about the whole thing. As soon as we met yesterday she apologised profusely and we ended up having a really nice day with her cute French-Korean daughter and her French teacher/magician husband who kept us entertained with his endless card tricks.

So, now that the last of our guests have gone and some of our belongings have been packed up and sent back to Manchester, it’s starting to feel like the beginning of the end. We only have two weeks left in this weird and wonderful country so we have to make sure we spend them wisely.

Neal: What a strange place Korea is! The fishy smells, noribangs on each corner and dogs wearing jeans make this an alien world but one in which we had an amazing holiday. We had 10 days of 'full on' sight seeing and overall fun. With the usual touristy trips to palaces, folk museums, Olympic parks and towers out of the way, (Which were all a lot of fun I might add) the last 3 days were set up to be the highlight of the trip.

On Friday we dragged ourselves out of bed with sore heads and gingerly made our way by tube and bus to the Everland theme park. With none of us up for the high speed rollcoasters at such an early hour ( around 2pm ) we headed to the safari zone. There we started off with the relatively tame rapids which were jazzed up by a 3, and then 5 piece dance routine by the stewards who were as camp as a row of tents. They were very funny. Then on to the safari where I couldn't contain my excitement at the chance of meeting some of my favourite animals, giraffes. They could only be seen from a distance but the sight of a 4 meter tall brown bear at full stretch in front of us made up for the lack of giraffe action. After a lunch of pizza & a German beer, in a very weird European zone, it was finally time to hit rollercoasters. Lyndsey was very brave going on the log flume but would probably have abstained if she'd seen the hidden drops that waited. They made Alton towers log flume look like a slide in a park. The Eagles Fortress was next, a hanging cart which contained no loops but was faster than any coaster that I had been on. The other roller coaster, with 4 loops gave amazing views from the highest point of Everland. A long journey home but a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Saturday we had to rise early for a coach trip to the Demilitarized Zone and the Joint Security Area near the North Korean border. The morning was spent going down a 300 metre shaft to a tunnel 73 metres down. This had been dug by the North Koreans as part of a plan to invade the south and had been the 3rd tunnel discovered by the South in the 70's. We walked along it heads bowed, till we were just metres away from the border with the North. Later we were taken to an observatory where the sight of the South's giant flag on a 100 meter high flag pole was only bettered by the North having a larger flag on a 160 meter pole, towering over a propaganda village. The village had never been lived in and looked like a Spanish apartment complex. It certainly didn't make me want to do a runner over the border! In the afternoon the intensity increased as we were escorted from a debriefing room by Korean and American soldiers to the Joint Security Area.

This is a place where the North and South could meet and thrash out their differences. Guards from both sides stared each other out as we led from the bus in 2 military style lines, hands by our sides, to a building which sat directly on the border. Here we could cross to the North, but Rakhi, in her eagerness felt the wrath of the guard as she tried to cross in front of him.

Back on the Bus we went back to Seoul for a night in the University area of Hongdik. Lyndsey met some shaggy looking Korean cats for the first time, who had full run of a bedroom styled bar. Sunday was our last day and started off a with walk round the Blossom festival which we found a little disappointing. The free beer tent could not be found and on the main stage were a trio of Mexican piccolo players, playing over a backing track. I did get to meet one of my heroes though, Mr Sponge Bob Square Pants, see picture.

Later we went to the World Cup Stadium to watch FC Seoul play rivals Suwon. After the week before's 4-1 win and it being a lovely sunny day, there was a K-league record crowd of over 55,000 people. A 1-0 defeat for Seoul could not dampen the party atmosphere inside the Stadium.

So yes, both me and Lyndsey has a great time, and we'd both like to say a big thank you to Joel and Rakhi, for letting us stay at their apartment, and being such good hosts and guides. Finally I have to say that Noribangs are great fun. Even if it had to take Nirvana's Lithium to get me up. I needed a song that would hide my dreadful singing voice and this song was perfect.