Merry Christmas!

If you told me this time last year that my next Christmas would be spent organizing 11 5 year olds, then at a local favorite Korean resaurant, then watching a charlie brown christmas bymyself and NOT at church, then my Uncles', I would have been been sceptical. But that seems to be the case.
Christmas here isn't a big deal. I mean, the cakes are. They're obsessed with cakes. But it doens't feel like christmas, and it shouldn't. Theres no snow, its not even that cold. THeres really no presents, not the way I used to buy them. I'm in my lonely flat and not with my friends and family. It easily the most depressing thing.
I guess it just makes me appreciate traditions and my family that much more.

Merry Christmas to all!!
Happy New Year.

See you in January! (January 4th to be exact :) )

I'm slightly excited for my first warm christmas! :)

<3 you all
Patience and Faith,
ErinJ

Seodaemun Prison

This is back logged about a week.

A few weekends ago Angela and I went on a merry adventure to the seodaemun prison museum in North Seoul. It was a bitterly cold day to be lurking a spooky, fairly deserted old prison. This prison was opened by the Japanese to throw the independence fighters in. you walk though a series of old torture rooms and all sorts of things, some with mannequins and some without. Each one was gorier and more creepy than the last. By the last room Angela nad I were clutching eachother with our eyes closed. The next building was the "jail experience" building. in one room you looked into little boxes to see gory scenes (we declined). you then could walk into a room which set of people who start screaming at oyu in Korean. you could even sit on a box that would start an execution scene, where the box dropped down next to a noose. Did I throw my bag on it to start it, and run away? You bet I did. this place was Creeeepy. Like, outlandishly. You could step behind a wall, and thats where exectuions took place. You weren't allowed to take pictures, but you were allowed to feel creeped out.
The Tunnel which the japanese dragged the dead out of.

Finally we saw the underground prison cells, where one of the most famous prisoners, a student, was held. It was depressing.
This isn't on a major tourist circut, but if you really want to get a feel for how terrible the Japanese were to the Koreans, and really understand what was going on here that everybody seems to forget about, this is the place to do it. I'm glad a saw it, and haven't been that disturbed in quite some time.

Something to look forward to: Great Subway Adventures, everyday life, and teaching 5 years olds how to sing and dance in time. Its nothin' but a good time.

Patience and faith,
ErinJ

Don't lock me up!

Some observations!

Yesterday was the perfect type of cold. My fellow New Englanders (Who I assume make up over 98% of the total reader population) can attest. It was one of those beautiful clear sky type of days where you bundle up in your cute hat, warmest mittens, and chunky scarf before you go out into the cold. SOmething about it is refreshing. Yeah, its cold, but its a reassurring, yes, Its winter type of cold. Its a type of cold before it gets gray, where you're happy to be alive, before you get jaded against it. Maybe its because I grew up in an area where we knew cold was coming that theres a familiarity in it, and I guess in such a far off land, you take any thing familiar you can get.

Also: Kids are growing on me. (This goes for prek, not necessarily for my elementary) Thats not to say, that I love kids. I've never really liked kids, although I've always worked with them. BUt my kids love me all the time. When I'm sick, and look desheveled, they love me. When I go out of my way to look adorable, they say "Pretty teacher" but still love me. When I holler at them for really messing up, they're upset for a hot second, then move on with their day and love me 10 minutes later. Its kind of nice, even though they're five, that theres always somebody excited to see me. Its humbling and endearing. I'm okay with it.

Those are just a few things that I've been thinking about.
Big shout out to Oma, for her package! Her gifts keep my mother's company underneath mini tree! Thanks for the package! Getting boxes really brighten my day, especially since I'm bumming hard about not being home for the holidays (Its pathetic, another post for another day!)

Look forward to a post about a prison museum I visted this weekend!
3 weeks till christmas, THankfully!

Patience and Faith,
ErinJ