Hello all!
I'm a little late in getting this post out today - I've been working like a Santa elf to get my Christmas package shipped home today - it's a relief to have that done.
I hope you all had a great weekend - I actually don't have too much to write about today, as I enjoyed another low-key weekend (I'm getting better at them.) Friday night I headed to a nearby coffee shop to study for my Korean test on Saturday (which went fine...though I studied the wrong chapter...) and then after doing some banana bread baking for an upcoming bake sale, I headed to bed. Saturday after Korean class I headed to the orphanage, which was a ton of fun. We are trying to implement more of a proper ESL program for the girls, so the Korean high school girls who volunteer with us have sort of taken charge and provided activities for the girls, like ABC worksheet and word puzzles, etc. They administered a skills test a couple of weeks ago, and now are organizing the girls by skills at different tables. Our job now as volunteers is to sit at the tables with them and help them along, either by providing clues or adding on to their basic knowledge. We sang the ABC song and helped them work on their penmanship, along with other activities. There ended up being so many volunteers on Saturday that the kid to adult ratio was nearly one to one. It was a lot of fun for everyone, and as always the time flew by.
After volunteering my friend and I made ourselves slow down a bit and enjoyed a nice afternoon sitting and chatting at a coffee shop downtown. Most of the coffee shops here (since they have English names and Western influence) are decorated for Christmas, and they usually have some sort of Christmas display. So between the Christmas tree display that I conveniently planted myself in front of and all of the busy shopper people watching (yes, that's a term...I made it up) I got to do from the window, downtown Gwangju definitely had the feel of Christmas in the air. I must admit, I had been a little skeptical about Christmas in Korea, since they don't celebrate it nearly to the extent that we do. (About 25 percent of Korea is actually Christian these days, so they celebrate it as a church holiday, but now western influence has infiltrated it enough so that most Korean families have a tree and a big family meal on Christmas...but still not like most western countries.) I purposely avoided playing Christmas music in my apartment, and I tried to brush it off, as I figured Christmas would just have to be something I look forward to upon my return home, since thinking about it made me sad for home. However, I can't ignore the days on my calendar as they draw me nearer and nearer to Christmas (I also can't ignore the excitement of my students for their winter vacation, which starts Christmas Eve.) So like it or not, Christmas coming fast and furious, even here in Korea.
We met up with two friends of ours who were in town for the day and had a nice dinner out at an Italian cafe - we got our pizza fix and got a lot of chatting in. After dinner they all h
eaded back to their respective towns and I headed over to Art Street to pick up a few Christmas supplies. I've mentioned Art Street before - here is a picture to the right. It's one of my favorite places to walk through, especially at night - much quieter and less busy than the nearby downtown streets, and the cute little galleries and shops tucked in among the narrow, cobblestone street give it almost a European feel. The entire street is decorated with these lit up archways, giving it an extra special experience. It was a nice quiet end to my busy day.
On Sunday I woke up with absolutely nothing planned, but I had two goals in mind: to clean my apartment, then make my Christmas cards and get everything packed up and shipped home on Monday. If you would have seen my disaster of a room you would have been very impressed with my ambition. I'm continually impressed with my skills for making such a small room so messy when I have a busy week - I'm barely ever home, and when I am I'm usually getting ready to go somewhere again. This particular week it looked like Christmas presents and card making supplies were thrown into the tornado that swept through my room, in addition to the usual clothes and random books/notebooks. It was quite the mess. I always seem to find something better to do than clean...but I put my foot down yesterday morning, played a BBC documentary about Indian history on my computer to keep me company (did I mention I'm going to India next month? More on that later.) and got started scrubbing.
Later that day I decided to do some Christmas shopping. I was Santa Claus on a mission when I finally reached my destination: the huge bookstore/stationery store in the bus terminal. I knew what I was looking for, and I was quite pleased with my purchases by the time I checked out (somehow some
other cutesy little things not on my list found their way into my bag too...I wonder how that happened?) Then I spent some time wandering around Shinsegae, a fancy department store with brand names like Louis Vitton and Gucci that currently has a fantastic Christmas display up. There were many parents and children admiring the display - it was fun to see their oohs and aahs. The picture above is more to capture the adorable little girl on the right than the display itself! Between shopping for Christmas presents and taking the time to admire the Christmas displays, I was definitely in the Christmas spirit.
The picture below is an interesting con
trast - there was some sort of Korean celebration happening right across the hall from the Christmas display at Shinsegae. I've seen a display similar to this for a Korean wedding celebration- much like we send flowers for a funeral or special event, they send flowers with either the event or some sort of good luck saying written on it - I've no idea what they say, but they were pretty to look at and they smelled really nice.
After getting back home, I worked on my Christmas cards at a nearby coffee shop. As I wrote my many holiday greetings to my friends and family back home (sorry, my handwriting is still messy - Korea hasn't changed that,) which will be on their way to the States very soon, I was reminded that no matter where you are in the world, you can still have Christmas. I was expecting a non-Christmas this year due to the lack of red and green merchandise in all stores, the lack of cold weather/snow, and especially the lack of my friends and family. However, that night in the coffee shop it really hit me: the Christmas spirit doesn't come from Santa displays or loudly blaring Christmas tunes that bombard you wherever you go. It comes from the spirit of giving and the universal idea of caring, sharing, and spreading joy to those you are close to, or even to those you aren't. Though I'll miss being with my family a
nd friends so much this holiday season, it's nice to know that I can still send them Christmas cards and little sticker packets with random Korean sayings on them just to show that I will still be thinking of them. It's also nice to know that being so far away takes the pressure off of other people feeling obligated to get a present for me and instead I can just fully enjoy Christmas by giving to others. (Plus there aren't any Barnes and Nobles in Korea - I'd be kind of hard to shop for this year, hey? )
So, though I take the risk of sounding like a Hallmark card, this year I ask you to make sure that among your crazy busy holiday schedules, weekend mall avoidances (sometimes necessary to preserve sanity) and last minute Christmas Eve shopping runs (you know who you are) you take the time to remember that Christmas is all about giving and bringing joy to others, whether in a card, a Christmas cookie, or even just a couple quarters in the Salvation Army bucket. I guarantee you I'll be trying to do the same, all the way over here in Korea as I prepare for my first Christmas away from home.
Wishing you all a happy and blessed holiday season! Have a great week!
I'm a little late in getting this post out today - I've been working like a Santa elf to get my Christmas package shipped home today - it's a relief to have that done.
I hope you all had a great weekend - I actually don't have too much to write about today, as I enjoyed another low-key weekend (I'm getting better at them.) Friday night I headed to a nearby coffee shop to study for my Korean test on Saturday (which went fine...though I studied the wrong chapter...) and then after doing some banana bread baking for an upcoming bake sale, I headed to bed. Saturday after Korean class I headed to the orphanage, which was a ton of fun. We are trying to implement more of a proper ESL program for the girls, so the Korean high school girls who volunteer with us have sort of taken charge and provided activities for the girls, like ABC worksheet and word puzzles, etc. They administered a skills test a couple of weeks ago, and now are organizing the girls by skills at different tables. Our job now as volunteers is to sit at the tables with them and help them along, either by providing clues or adding on to their basic knowledge. We sang the ABC song and helped them work on their penmanship, along with other activities. There ended up being so many volunteers on Saturday that the kid to adult ratio was nearly one to one. It was a lot of fun for everyone, and as always the time flew by.
After volunteering my friend and I made ourselves slow down a bit and enjoyed a nice afternoon sitting and chatting at a coffee shop downtown. Most of the coffee shops here (since they have English names and Western influence) are decorated for Christmas, and they usually have some sort of Christmas display. So between the Christmas tree display that I conveniently planted myself in front of and all of the busy shopper people watching (yes, that's a term...I made it up) I got to do from the window, downtown Gwangju definitely had the feel of Christmas in the air. I must admit, I had been a little skeptical about Christmas in Korea, since they don't celebrate it nearly to the extent that we do. (About 25 percent of Korea is actually Christian these days, so they celebrate it as a church holiday, but now western influence has infiltrated it enough so that most Korean families have a tree and a big family meal on Christmas...but still not like most western countries.) I purposely avoided playing Christmas music in my apartment, and I tried to brush it off, as I figured Christmas would just have to be something I look forward to upon my return home, since thinking about it made me sad for home. However, I can't ignore the days on my calendar as they draw me nearer and nearer to Christmas (I also can't ignore the excitement of my students for their winter vacation, which starts Christmas Eve.) So like it or not, Christmas coming fast and furious, even here in Korea.
We met up with two friends of ours who were in town for the day and had a nice dinner out at an Italian cafe - we got our pizza fix and got a lot of chatting in. After dinner they all h
eaded back to their respective towns and I headed over to Art Street to pick up a few Christmas supplies. I've mentioned Art Street before - here is a picture to the right. It's one of my favorite places to walk through, especially at night - much quieter and less busy than the nearby downtown streets, and the cute little galleries and shops tucked in among the narrow, cobblestone street give it almost a European feel. The entire street is decorated with these lit up archways, giving it an extra special experience. It was a nice quiet end to my busy day.On Sunday I woke up with absolutely nothing planned, but I had two goals in mind: to clean my apartment, then make my Christmas cards and get everything packed up and shipped home on Monday. If you would have seen my disaster of a room you would have been very impressed with my ambition. I'm continually impressed with my skills for making such a small room so messy when I have a busy week - I'm barely ever home, and when I am I'm usually getting ready to go somewhere again. This particular week it looked like Christmas presents and card making supplies were thrown into the tornado that swept through my room, in addition to the usual clothes and random books/notebooks. It was quite the mess. I always seem to find something better to do than clean...but I put my foot down yesterday morning, played a BBC documentary about Indian history on my computer to keep me company (did I mention I'm going to India next month? More on that later.) and got started scrubbing.
Later that day I decided to do some Christmas shopping. I was Santa Claus on a mission when I finally reached my destination: the huge bookstore/stationery store in the bus terminal. I knew what I was looking for, and I was quite pleased with my purchases by the time I checked out (somehow some
other cutesy little things not on my list found their way into my bag too...I wonder how that happened?) Then I spent some time wandering around Shinsegae, a fancy department store with brand names like Louis Vitton and Gucci that currently has a fantastic Christmas display up. There were many parents and children admiring the display - it was fun to see their oohs and aahs. The picture above is more to capture the adorable little girl on the right than the display itself! Between shopping for Christmas presents and taking the time to admire the Christmas displays, I was definitely in the Christmas spirit.The picture below is an interesting con
trast - there was some sort of Korean celebration happening right across the hall from the Christmas display at Shinsegae. I've seen a display similar to this for a Korean wedding celebration- much like we send flowers for a funeral or special event, they send flowers with either the event or some sort of good luck saying written on it - I've no idea what they say, but they were pretty to look at and they smelled really nice.After getting back home, I worked on my Christmas cards at a nearby coffee shop. As I wrote my many holiday greetings to my friends and family back home (sorry, my handwriting is still messy - Korea hasn't changed that,) which will be on their way to the States very soon, I was reminded that no matter where you are in the world, you can still have Christmas. I was expecting a non-Christmas this year due to the lack of red and green merchandise in all stores, the lack of cold weather/snow, and especially the lack of my friends and family. However, that night in the coffee shop it really hit me: the Christmas spirit doesn't come from Santa displays or loudly blaring Christmas tunes that bombard you wherever you go. It comes from the spirit of giving and the universal idea of caring, sharing, and spreading joy to those you are close to, or even to those you aren't. Though I'll miss being with my family a
nd friends so much this holiday season, it's nice to know that I can still send them Christmas cards and little sticker packets with random Korean sayings on them just to show that I will still be thinking of them. It's also nice to know that being so far away takes the pressure off of other people feeling obligated to get a present for me and instead I can just fully enjoy Christmas by giving to others. (Plus there aren't any Barnes and Nobles in Korea - I'd be kind of hard to shop for this year, hey? )So, though I take the risk of sounding like a Hallmark card, this year I ask you to make sure that among your crazy busy holiday schedules, weekend mall avoidances (sometimes necessary to preserve sanity) and last minute Christmas Eve shopping runs (you know who you are) you take the time to remember that Christmas is all about giving and bringing joy to others, whether in a card, a Christmas cookie, or even just a couple quarters in the Salvation Army bucket. I guarantee you I'll be trying to do the same, all the way over here in Korea as I prepare for my first Christmas away from home.
Wishing you all a happy and blessed holiday season! Have a great week!
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