Time Waits for No One

Time waits for no one." - The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Japanese Anime

While I was in Taiwan, Ethan and I watched this Japanese anime called 'The Girl Who Leapt Through Time,' and it was absolutely fantastic. I'm a sucker for good quotes or as my Duble S and I like to refer to them as, WoW's (Words of Wisdom). In this anime, there were many memorable quotes, but "time waits for no one," resonated most and reminded me of how true it is. In coming to Korea, one of my goals was to practice and improve my Korean skills and while they have improved a bit, they're not as far as I'd like them to be. Perhaps it's my perfectionist side coming out - though I have toned it down a bit - but I don't want to make excuses for myself anymore. Instead of saying that I don't have time during the week to study, I will make the time, and it doesn't have to be hard core studying where I sit down with a textbook and try to memorize all of the vocabulary and sentence structure. Instead, I plan on turning on the TV and have that playing in the background while I'm at home. With the Korean people that I do know, I'll do my best to speak more Korean with them rather than rely on my English. I came to Korea with purpose and aspirations so I have to take the initiative in order for these to become my reality.

When I got back to Korea from my visit to Taiwan and back in my own apartment, I had my first breakdown since being here. Several emotions hit me hard at once and I collapsed. Part of it was being in Taiwan with my boyfriend who was a familiar presence and someone with whom I'm close to and part of it was a cup of homesickness sinking in. At that moment, I really hated being in that state because I thought I was doing fine on my own and being in Korea. I began questioning myself and the whole night my mind was restless and on a complete rollercoaster ride. The next morning, I talked with S aka Nicole and she helped me to calm down and regain the ground I thought I'd lost. She reminded me that this was simply another facet of who I am and that I should swim with the current rather than against it. I reminded myself that I wasn't alone in Korea; I've met unforgettable and wonderful friends here and I'm so blessed to have met them in such a short amount of time.

I feel a lot better now. I'm giving myself time to readjust back to my life in Korea and I'm feeling like my usual self. I'm not pushing myself to think in a different way because that's now who I am. Maybe I am starting to have some of those self-revelation moments...~

I had a really great time in Taiwan with Ethan and to say the least, the week went by way too fast. We played badminton, went on walks, took the MRT (subway) daily, visited his town (Tai Chung) and met his family. It was exactly what I'd hoped it to be. Maybe I should have done more sight-seeing while I was there, but I was utterly content with relaxing and not rushing to all of the tourist places. I figure that I'll visit there again so I can visit more places next time. I think we both really needed just a chill and calm vacation since we both had been working a lot. In any case, it was marvelous and I had a really good time meeting his mom and brother again and meeting his grandparents, aunt and uncles for the first time. Was I nervous? Of course! If you know me, you know that I was nervous and probably slightly awkward, but it turned out okay!

His mom, Ms. Lin, took us to see Sun Moon Lake and it was stunning. There were different paths we could go on and the fresh air revitalized me.

His mom was kind and hospitable and his brother was hilarious. It was quite entertaining to watch Ethan and his brother interact; there was definitely no shortage of sarcasm and witticism. It made me think of my dad and our moments like that.

My first week back at school went surprisingly smoothly. We have a new schedule for this month, because the students are studying to take the TOSEL test and we're preparing them. I really love teaching the 5-year olds; they're a handful, but they always put me in a good mood. Their excitement exudes in waves through their smiles and animated movements that makes teaching them so enjoyable. They're truly a delight to be around~

I have new elementary students this month so I'm still on a mission to figuring out our communication system and what I can do for them to ensure their level of comprehension, but also their level of enjoyment and fun. I want to try and make studying for the TOSEL exciting for them, but I'm a little stumped. I'm still learning a lot as a new teacher and I'm trying to ask more question to experienced ones like Ann and Rachel. Hopefully by the end of my time at this school, I'll have a better sense of how to teach and how to better engage students.

Also, this month - January - Ann and I are having our month of healthy food indulgences. Let me explain please~ we're dedicating this month to trying new food and eating out. You'd think that eating out would be expensive, but in Korea, it's not bad at all. For us, it's probably just as cheap or maybe a little cheaper to eat out than to cook. We did go grocery shopping yesterday though which upped our cooking excitement! I can't wait to start cooking again. I'm going to try and broaden my cooking skills. Keke. Wish me luck! Anyway, back on track about the healthy food indulgences!  We're going to try new Korean foods and open our taste buds to the many different dishes here. Thus far, we haven't ventured far from Bibimbap, kimchijjigae and Juk (rice porridge), so we're going to experiment and try new dishes.  Sounds fun, huh? ^^

Here are some pictures that I should have posted a long time ago and ones that are recent.

Ethan and his mom, Ms. Lin - we are at Sun Moon Lake

These are the cable cars we rode to see a higher view of the site. It was beautiful and I really wanted to shake the car to make Ethan nervous, but alas, I didn't.

Nice expression

All smiles~

Woohoo!!!

Just one of the streets we took on the way back to his place in Taipei

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On this day, it was Pajama Day!!! The kids looked super cute!! 

It was pillow fight time and two of our foreign teachers, John and Scott, were the lucky victims

This is a fortress we visited in Cheongju. Next time, we plan on bringing kites, frisbees and a picnic.

I love this tree. It reminded me of the tree in one of my favorite Korean movies named 'My Sassy Girl.' I couldn't help myself and took a picture of it~

Shortest to tallest

this wall is from a cafe called Hi, Hello. The interior design was unique and clever.

my foster mom made Japchae

my Korean niece and nephew, Ah-in and Hyun-bin

Rachel and the very friendly and cute dog we met at the guesthouse.

Pho (Vietnamese noodle soup)

This guy was really cool. He stood perfectly still until you put a little money in his bucket and he would start dancing. He did isolation movements that were amazing~~~

This is a site from Taipei 101 which is the 2nd tallest building in the world. It used to be the first until the one in Dubai was built~

I love nighttime photos like this one~

Someone's excited for the MRT ride

Thai curry

Food at the night market

Stinky tofu...it was mighty stinky!

Muahaha...I love shooting. It reminded me of my brother taking me to the shooting range.