Australia

Australia! Somewhere I had only dreamed of going. It was everything I had hoped for and so much more. I went in January of this year and am only now posting some pics! I am so bad at this blog thing.
One of the reasons I started to write a blog was to keep a history of my time abroad, but also to keep my family up to date on what I am doing.
While in Austrailia, I went swimming/snorkerling in the great barrier reef, I went in a helicopter, went 4 wheeling in the muddy rainforest, soaked in the sun at the beaches, went to one of the worlds most beautiful beaches (where the sand is so white and made of a substance that does not retain heat...so nice on the feet) , camped on a remote island, went to Fraser Island, a place that has no roads so only suv's and 4 by 4 trucks allowed, went hiking through the rain forest, swam in 2 remote lakes (one of which was green), ate kangaroo steaks, and played on a jet ski.....to say I love Australia is a gross understatement. It was the most amazing place, however, I had no idea there were so many things that could kill you! It seemed like every time you turned around there were warnings about snakes (that could kill you), jellyfish (that could kill you), spiders (that could kill you), sharks (that could kill you), dingos (they attack so watch out, they could kill you), sun (so hot, it feels like it could kill you)...lol you get the theme.... I did not care though! It was such a fantastic place, and I could take a year exploring it and not have seen all there is to see in Australia. I will write more soon about this fantastic place, but in the meantime, here are a few photos, and some postcards....

Taiwan and learning lessons

Hi there....have not posted in some time so I have a lot of catching up to do this month......
I will start with a vacation I took during a 6 day break I had at school...Taiwan.....

Now, to start with I did no research on this destination (which is strange I know), but I was studying for my GRE's (grad school entrance exam) and a friend was coming with me that lived in Taiwan for a year. So, I relinquished control and told her to have at it! I cannot tell you how much I appreciated all of her hard work, and she did a great job (Nina, you are wonderful). However, I would not go back to Taiwan. Some parts of it were fantastic, and I am glad I went, but there were some difficult times that challenged me. One of which was my back. As most of you know I have back problems, and at times it is of no concern in my life and at other times it is so painful that it is difficult to stay upright. Unfortunately, in Taiwan I was having trouble staying upright (that sounds really funny). Anyway, Taiwan was a very concrete (and I mean literally concrete everywhere!) place. I thought I had gone there will no expectations, but I guess I did. I expected something tropical and beachy with lots of water to swim in (here is where research would have came in handy) but unfortunately the only clean water to swim in in was a pool (a beautiful pool, but a pool nonetheless).

My friend took us to so many amazing places (once again, thank you Nina!!), but I am the kind of person who re energizes herself through nature. I go for a ride in the country here in Korea, and I feel better just getting away from the concrete buildings for an hour. I love nature and hate big big cities.

Even thought this trip was different that what I had anticipated, I learned some valuable things about myself and while I am still trying to figure some stuff out, I do feel stronger because of it.

Laughing all the way

Well, as many of you know, I had my motorcycle stolen, only to be found again. I enjoyed riding 2 motorcycles for awhile and then I recently sold one to my friend Neal. I love my new bike, but miss the old one...got used to the old girl....anyway so I am driving along the other day and the gears on the bike stop changing...just will not go into gear, so I hop off and take a look and I see that the chain had fallen off (much like a bicycle only more difficult to physically put back on track). So I am on the side of the road getting grease all over my hands trying to put this damn chain back on track...to no avail. Good thing I was only 8 blocks from my mechanics
:( . So I start pushing that bike, huffing and puffing all the way. I am about 1 block away when I am stopped by a lady and man sitting outside on a bench. They ask me "what is wrong?" So I proceed to show them the chain problem, only to discover that somehow on my long walk the chain had popped back on (knowing me it happened within a couple of steps). I am sweating and I guess they felt sorry for me because they ran and got me a facecloth and a coffee. That is just so Korean of them. Sweet sweet sweet.
Other than that the bike is working great, and we have formed a "biker gang" here in Mokpo. The thing is that when you have a bike, it is not just a mode of transportation, it is a "think to do"....it is a pleasure. The "Biker Gang" consists of a scooter, a couple of motor bikes (that are only 125 cc's and will hit a whopping 80 km/hour...yes, mine is one of those) and a beautiful 650cc BMW motorbike. I went out "cruisin" with my friends the other night (minus the BMW guy) and it was so fun, but I have to say we are probably more like a "geek" squad than a biker gang! Randy, my brother, would just laugh and laugh at me I am sure...but I got to tell you, I love love love it! My bike felt so "powerful" next to the scooter! LOL... but then the next day I went out with the BMW guy...and he just blew past me like I was standing still! I felt like I was the one on the scooter! Now....I just want something faster! I think I will have to wait until I get back to Canada though...no sense investing in something more expensive...resale is unlikely with new foreigners who don't want to buy something that is more than 500 bucks...
oh well, I still love it and am so glad I have a motorbike (now equipped with 2 locks).

some things I have learned

Hi everyone,
A friend of mine mailed me a great letter and I think it may help all of you who are home-sick:

...your time there will be up before you know it. Take advantage of each and every day.
...don't bother missing home too much. Nothing will have changed much.
...people are amazing everywhere in the world. And there are some odd ones everywhere too :)
...my world "grew"in ways I never expected. Living abroad is such a time of self discovery.
...take advantage. Put yourself out there.
...The friendships you'll make are ones you'll carry with you for the rest of your life.
...take a lot of photos. Especially of the everyday stuff. This serves two purposes:
1. to show people at home stuff.
2. to help you remember when you start to forget the details. And I promise you will.
...don't expect to ever get back to where you are right now. Take full advantage of being there, explore see as much as you can.
...the kids you work with will always be a part of you.
...when you get homesick. Know that there are people here missing you too, sending their love and saying "I am so jealous of Christa"!


Thanks Angela, your words have really helped me when I needed to get perspective...see you in July.

Photos Korean Style

Myself and some friends went out to the photo shop today and had so much fun! We just giggled our butts off! A great time was had by all...check out the photos!

Out and About

Well, I took the old girl for a ride out to the country today. It is amazing how much my world has expanded since getting this bike. A 10 minute drive outside of the city and everything changes. People stacked on top of people quickly changes to vast fields of rice and small mountians.

I truly love driving this motorcycle. It is truly a feeling of freedom, and power and well....I just feel tougher somehow (sometimes I even snarl lol ).

Spring is here in Mokpo, and everything is blooming and beautiful. Sometimes I miss home, and I will see something that looks a little like home and just for a second I pretend that I am in Nova Scotia, on my way out to my sisters to visit.... I am really looking forward to my visit home in July. I am happy here, but Nova Scotia is home.

To get a clearer image, just click on the pictures.

Meet the Girls

Well, after careful consideration (and 3 weeks of waiting) I decided to say goodbye to my old stolen motorcylce and move on. So I bought a new one. Very nice bike, love to ride it and then yesterday I got a call fom the police in Gwangu (about 1 hour from my home) it turns out they found my old bike! I cannot believe it! I took the bus to Gwangu and went to the police station, and there she was! Very dirty, missing her mirrors, but she started up and I took her home. It was the longest I have ever been on a motorbike, and the fastest I have ever gone (a pitiful 80 km per hour). I had such a nice drive though. The country side is so beautiful, rich with the aroma of spring flowers. Everything is turning green and the mountains and stretches of rice fields are so amazing to look at. It is very different than living in the "city" of Mokpo (Mokpo is considered the "country" by people in Seoul). It got me to thinking, I would love to do a road trip around Korea. A few friends of mine here have motorcycles and they may be up for the adventure. October is a beautiful time here in Korea, and we all have at least 10 days off. It would be a great photo opportunity and a chance to really explore Korea. I will keep you posted on my next move. For now, I am going to rest my weary legs (feel like I have been riding a horse.... and not in a good way lol ).

Shit and other funny stories

I have, as many of you know, the tendency to attract series of unfortunate events. Sometimes they are my doing, sometimes it is just fate, but all the time (eventually) they are funny, and it leaves people saying "that could only happen to Christa". So I thought I had better write down some of these funny stories to entertain all you folks at home.

There are not very many western people here in Korea and they are so curious about me! Sometimes I feel like I am "representing" the western world when I am out and about. So, I try to put my best foot forward and make a good impression wherever I go. Well today before work I went swimming, and after my swim and shower I went to get changed. Well to my dismay in my early morning fog instead of putting my brown towel in my backpack, I put my brown PANTS in my backpack. So I had nothing to dry off with. So there I am (a spectacle on a good day) drying myself off with a pair of pants. I am sure that the women in the changing room now think that people from the western world do not use towels, they dry off with pairs of pants. Sorry Canada....not representing very well today!

So a funny story...
When I first arrived here in Korea (within a month or two) a bunch of us got together to go to Costco (a 2 hour train ride away). I don't know what I was going through, but I ended up buying over 300$ worth of Costco stuff. I had brought my suitcase so that was helpful. So I get to the train and cannot lift my suitcase so I sweet talk a man into loading it onto the train for me. I hop on the train and bend over to pull it the rest of the way in. I now have the suitcase with 300$ worth of food in it and I start moving backwards but suddenly I start slipping and sliding. I don't know why, I assume there is water on the floor or something like that so I don't really mind that much. But then I realize, "man I am really sliding around here, that can't be water". Thankfully I don't fall because what I am in fact sliding around in is human waste.....no not pee....I go off to the bathroom to clean up and there is, of course, no soap (very typical in Korea). So I have to steal some from the guys washroom. I am in there gagging and gagging, trying to clean my brand new crocks without throwing up. If my buddy Kim was there she would have been weak with laughter. So eventually, I am cleaned up and relatively sure I don't smell like shit so I head to my seat. All my friends are saying "where were you, what happened?" but before I could inform my friends a train employee came over to see me. What for? you ask Surely it is to ask if I am okay, or to bump me up to first class, or to give me a free drink....something, right? No, she is just making sure I actually have purchased a ticket to go for a slid on the shit train.

Back to Good

Well, things are MUCH better this week. No burns, lost money and nothing stolen. I wish I could say that my bike has been found, but no luck there. I have recently been asked to help create a curriculum for a workshop this summer. The people running it have 1/2 million dollars (American $) to spend on it. It will be unlike anything done before. I am so happy to partake in this, not only for the money ( it is ALOT!) but for the opportunity to make some much needed changes to the way English is being taught in Korea. I am "in charge" science. So I am putting together a very cool program that will show kids really fun and exciting science experiments. I am really looking forward to it. Another bonus lately, is that I have been offered extra money to teach extra classes. It will be a lot of fun I am sure. I will be teaching the same kids four times a week, and the classes are small. It is a great opportunity, and the money will be my travelling money this summer.
I am also doing very well with the exercise and eating well...more to follow.
I went out with the teachers this afternoon for a picnic. It was great. There are a lot of cherry trees here and they are all in bloom. It is so beautiful to see. There are so many blossoms that the trees look like they have just been covered in snow! It is really amazing to look at. After the picnic, we all went out to dinner. It was great, except one part....let me digress....
I went out to dinner with a friend once, and it was a restaurant that you cook your own meat...(very usual in Korea) an all you can eat kind of place. And there was the option of chicken. Well this person was totally turned off eating the chicken because there were chicken feet mixed in with the meat. I can understand that, but it would not keep me from eating it. Well, it got me to thinking...are we so removed from the fact that the meat we are eating was once alive? Does the nice little packages in the store help us to forget that the chicken breast was part of a living animal. I think that is sad. I think in order to really appreciate the meat we have, we should have to partake in the killing process once in awhile. You know, so that we don't forget that an animal gave their live so we could eat.....so back to the story....
We went to a chicken restaurant (I know, you did not see that coming) and I went around back to use the washroom. In the back is a chicken coop, and the chickens are in there clucking around thinking, "man this is great, all I have to do is sit here and someone brings me food!" I bet they are bragging to all their friends about the sweet setup they have. And then along comes a guy who drags one of the chickens out...and I know that that is going to be my dinner, and it is. I did not fall to pieces or anything, but it made me think about what I was eating. Unfortunately the teachers failed to tell me that the chicken (covered in a red sauce) was RAW!
There goes my appreciation for chicken.....