봄 is here!!!

봄 is the word for spring in Korean and happens to also be my given Korean name: 봄이 which is pronounced (bom ee). My Korean name was given to me by my wonderful co workers and good friends at bonggok middle school!!

But back to spring! Spring is finally in full swing in Korea. I have to say this is my favorite time of year in Korea because unlike in Texas there is actually a spring!!! The flowers are in bloom, the weather is warm with a little breeze and my allergies are in full flare....with the exception of the last one this is the perfect time of year! I just happen to be training for a half marathon at the same time! Which going for a run in 60- 70 degree temps make them even more enjoyable!!

Another thing about Korea when spring comes around everyone starts to go outside....which is so lovely! In Texas we run and hide at the first sign of the sun shine because we know that with it comes blazing heat and humidity! But spring time in Korea last about 2 or 3 months and the weather is just perfect!! Everyone goes hiking, riding bikes, playing soccer, walking, running, or even badminton on my street (which its really sweet to see a family of 5 playing badminton on a sunday afternoon). I have to say I wish my parents could have come during the spring time because what an amazing site even just the Changwon house (a landmark located near my home) is right now!! I will later post some pics but it is absolutely stunning!!

Besides the weather I am currently busy studying hard...I am learning Korean and my studying was kind of a stand still. But now I am studying every chance I get and its improving.

안녕하세요? 저는 제시카예요. 저는 미국 사람이에요. 저는 선생님이여요.

This means "How do you do? I'm Jessica. I am from America. I am a teacher."

Sounds silly but I have finally mastered writing this with out the aid of books. I also know how to order at a restaurant, count to 1,000, go shopping and have a short daily conversation (where are you going, what are you doing tomorrow?, etc). I have to say I am pretty proud of myself! I am working on vocabulary everyday and it tickles my co teachers to see me studying. they usually stop and say things like "제시 뭐 해요?"  which means Jessi what are you doing? or "제시, 이거는 뭐 예요?" which means "Jessi what is that?"! It's fun for them to quiz me on the spot and make me practice!! The other thing that makes them giggle is when I spell something wrong....they think it is so cute that I don't know how to spell something or if I use the words out of order! Which is really nice and I am really enjoying learning everyday! I also surprise my students sometimes when I will ask them questions in Korean and it takes them a minute to realize that I was speaking korean and then their eyes light up and they are so excited!! Makes for a fun class! I also let them teach me sometimes! It makes it really fun!

Other than that there is nothing really new going on! It's my birthday soon and I am getting excited to have a fun birthday weekend!! I will try to post pictures soon!! :-) XOXOXO

Two days of no teaching!!

So, it is Thursday and I am at Bonggok Middle school today....I am trying to pass the time because the 2nd and 3rd graders (and the homeroom teachers, vice principal and principal) are all out today and tomorrow because they are on a school trip!! I only have one class today and it is last period. Tomorrow fortunately I don't have any classes so I will get just get to sit here and play on facebook, shop or blog..... There is not too much going on in my life right now just the same old same old. I am about 5 weeks away from my half marathon and I am feeling ready. Although my 5 mile run yesterday was a little rough I ran it at about a 8:45/ per mile pace. So I am feeling pretty good about that! :-) Also, I have officially not had any alcohol or animal products in a month. About the animal products, I have been cleansing my body of all the toxins and nastiness that was in it so I have been very careful what I am putting back in. I am trying to whole vegan thing for now but I am not saying it is forever. I have become obsessed with iherb.com because I can get so much stuff on there and it ships in like 3 days to Korea. I have also been going to the outdoor markets every 3 days or so to get fresh produce, nuts, and beans. WOO HOO!! I am also saving so much money by eating at home and not buying WINE!! :-) I think I saved over 200,000 won because I didn't buy wine last month! that is insane but wine is expensive here!! I have used part of that money to buy herbal teas, vegan snacks, and vitamins on iherb!! You tell me what you think is better for me ;-). I have still been juicing everyday only in the morning or before workouts because I don't want to waste so much produce because it is not that cheap!! 

Besides food (because I feel like that is all I write about) I went on a long bike ride with my bike friends last Sunday! We went to the Cherry Blossom festival in Jinhae (near the navy base) and it was so much fun!! I can tell I am getting in better shape because I was able to ride almost to the top of the hill....I was even 4th out of everyone and the only girl!!! :-) I was proud of myself!! I love hanging with those guys....with the exception of one who always tells me I need to diet (but I just ignore him instead of saying something mean back"). I always have so much fun when I am around them. I am hoping that I can go on another ride with them soon!! This weekend is Jo's birthday so I will be baking her a cake tomorrow and we are going to a DVD room to hang out for her bday!! I am excited about it!! I have never been to a DVD room and I am excited I will get to go with everyone. A lot of my friends are leaving Korea in the next few weeks and it is really sad!! :-( I am glad Lecia and Jo are staying for the same amount of time as me!! Also, I will be staying for another year most likely!!

Which brings me to my next topic...North Korea. I know a lot of things are being said on the news about how nuts Kim Jung Un is and I don't disagree with you. However, South Korea and North Korea have been at war for a long time now. I know he is threatening a lot of things, but no body in Korea is really worried.....So when they start to worry I will too. This is probably the worst it has been in awhile but this has also happened in the past. So please don't worry about me and just pray that we are safe and that the situation gets better!! :-) But for now I am safe and happy!! 

So there is my life in a nut shell.....If you want to talk to me more you should get a Kakao talk account and then we can send messages to each other!! :-) 

XOXOXOX

Day 6

Happy Monday! Today is day 6 of my juice fast (feast as one website called it) I am still going strong! I had one of the best runs I have ever had this weekend! I also have been going to bed at 9 or 10 and being completely exhausted! I wake up at about 7 or 730 by myself and I dont even need coffee to clear my head! It is fantastic! I have my morning warm lemon water and get going! It feels great! I can't believe I have lasted this long! I am proud of myself for the accomplishment. This weekend was fun and full of activities! Friday I went rock climbing....well it was more like scaling a wall on rocks. but it was so fun! I was really sore saturday morning when I woke up! Saturday I had to run 5 miles so I got up and watched an episode of Desperate Housewives (yes I am finally catching up with the seasons) and drank a juice and lemon tea. Then I went for my 5 mile run! I did a 8:40/mile and the best part was....i wasnt even tired! :-) I had planned on meeting Jo at the open market at 12 to uy more produce to juice because I had run out. So my post run juice was not as tasty as the other and went down kinda hard....hahahaha! She was running late so I decided to walk to home plus and get some tea I had been wanting to get and that they only sold at home plus. So I walked about another 4 miles on saturday and met jo at the market for some delicious produce! After leaving the market I was feeling kinda grumpy because I needed to have another rush of calories so I went home and juiced. I invited my friend Jessy (korean name jeongbae) to enjoy it with me. I blended in some forzen pineapple and spinach to make it a little thicker and it tasted like ice cream! it was so so so so good! After drinking that juice I went to Big sale mart to pick up some celery and greens that I couldnt get at the market and then hung out at minsus shop for awhile! It was great! I went home and had another juice and decided to go to the sauna! It was fantastic! I got a full body scrub and facial! (of course it cost only $25) I also sat in the steam room and hot pools....it made my body very very very happy! I went home and went to bed because I was completely dead!! When i woke up on sunday I felt energized! It was my cross training day so I decided to take a walk to the lake and starbucks to have some herbal tea! I walked 4 miles and journaled at starbucks for about an hour! It was a beautiful morning! I then went with Jo to cafe Hau so we could show them how to bake the cupcakes!! :-) It was a fun day! I really enjoyed being there and making new friends! The best part is they had an amazing juicer! So I made some delicious juice and could enjoy the day with new friends! Around 7 I was starting to get really hungry and being around baked goods and watching people enjoying them was starting to get to me so I decided it was time for me to go home! I went home and made some delicious rainbow juice (actually I drank 2 because I was feeling extra hungry) and then drank some bed time tea. I tucked myself into bed at 9 and I was out by 915! What a great weekend! I woke up this morning with a massive head ache but I got out of bed and drank somelemon water to wake up and had some juice. It was good and energizing. I took a shower and actually had time to facetime with mom and dad before I left for school! I have to confess I am wearing my workout pants at school today but the best part is today I have been complimented on being fashionable because I am wearing my north face jacket! I love Korea! After school today I think I am going to go to boxing! I am looking forward to that. I haven't been in awhile and I was going strong for a month and hoping I can get back into it! Ah there is a test today! Rice cakes...my co workers have just put out some fresh warm rice cakes and they smell amazing! I decided I am going to go home during 4th period and make some more juice. So now I am sipping on my lunch juice so that I am not tempted to eat any of these delicious cake!! :-) I watched a documentary called "Fat, sick and dead" about a man who did 60 days of straight juicing and how he changed his whole body and is now leaner and healthy! :-) I am downloading another documentary called "food inc." and I am going to watch it today! :-) OK time to get back to work! xoxox

Jessi

Day 2

Today is day 2 of my juicing cleanse! I am feeling full of energy! I am drinking more greens than I have eaten in a while! This is great! I have had at least 2 green smoothies or juices a day! I am trying to mix it up with the carrot juice so I am not just having so much sugar! I am afraid of my blood sugar spiking. The people said to blend in spinach into the fruit juice to keep you from having a blood sugar spike. :-) But so far I am feeling really great! I ran 4.5 miles last night and was only supposed to run 3.5. I am getting there! I have also been drinking a ton of water. I increased my water intake and making sure I am hydrated. I am going to make some V8 juice tonight. I think with all the running and stuff I will need to get a little sodium in my diet. This way I dont have cramps or anything!

Besides the cleanse today is white day. This is the day in Korea where men give women candy. Valentines day is for women to give men candy and so on March 14 the men give to women. It is kinda cute but I think if you dont have a girlfriend than this time can be very depressing. I got some candy from my students and some of the male teachers at school which was really sweet! Everything else is going well. I have 7 classes on thursdays now which means that I am teaching every class on thursday. This is a lot but luckily there a one hour break for lunch everyday so I dont have to work all the way through the day! I have 15 minutes left of school and I am writing this before I leave. Today is volleyball and I am actually really looking forward to getting back in the gym and playing. It has become my strength and conditioning time. :-) any way it seems as though it is time to go home! :-) I wasted enough time writing this so that I can go!! Running and volleyball time!! :-)

Miss all of you and love you very much! xoxoxox

It's been awhile!

It's been awhile since I wrote on here! I am back in the swing of things at school and I have little break time this semester! Which is actually a good thing because the school day is going by faster and I actually feel like I am working instead of just sitting all day! :-) Today is the first day of my 10 day juicing cleanse! I am feeling good, but is only 10 am! Ha! I have been reading a lot about healthy living and cleansing is a big part of maintenance in a healthy lifestyle. So I am challenging myself to a 10 day juice cleanse. I am also in my 3rd week of my half marathon training! I am feeling good I had a good 6 mile run on saturday! It was encouraging. I am so glad it is wednesday and I have finished the big part of my week. I am teaching 14 hours at my first school and so that usually means easier days on thursday and friday at my second school. Also, when I was at school last week they told me every friday there will be club activities during 5 &6 periods. Which means no matter what I will have off those classes! :-) Last week I only taught one class on friday! It made for a very great end to the week!  Now I finally have a break! I can finish typing this post!

Let's see....News..... I am starting to sell my cupcakes at a bakery in Busan. My friend Jo and I made a tasting menu for Cafe Hau in Busan. They are actually looking to sell vegan items on their menus and so I tweeked a few recipes to make them vegan friendly! I made double chocolate cupcakes with 4 different flavors of vegan frosting. I am also going to make the pumpkin spice muffins or cupcakes if we decide to put some frosting on top. ;-) They really liked the baked goods and so Sunday morning we are going to Busan to teach them how to make these items in their kitchen. I am so excited about this! I can't wait! I am hoping this will further my hopes in opening a bakery in Korea.

I have to go buy some cleaning supplies in a few minutes because I have a girl coming to clean my house this afternoon! I couldn't be more excited about it. She is charging me 30,000 won ($30) for 3 hours of work. She will even do my laundry! I think that is a pretty sweet deal! :-) I also could use someone to really scrub my apartment about twice a month. I think I could spare 60,000 won for a sparkling house and help with my laundry. Also, I am hoping after today she can come during the day so I can come home to a clean apartment and clean laundry! That would be a dream!

It looks like the rain has cleared up a bit and hopefully it will be clear by the time I leave school! I have a 4 mile run today I am going to do while she is cleaning. I am then going to go to the jjimjilbang (public shower) and get a scrub to relax so that I am not in her way! ;-)

I had a volleyball tournament this last weekend. It was really fun to hang out with volleyball people again! I had not seen them in a long time and I got to meet Joonhan's (the pe teacher) niece! Mingyeong! She was so precious! :-) Even though her and I couldnt really talk to each other we had a wonderful time playing with the ipad and she colored some pictures for her uncle! It was really sweet! I know I say this all the time but I really love how involved families are in Korea. It is just so wonderful! Makes me really happy! :-) OK I have to get my cleaning supplies and then finish up some lessons for next week so I am prepared come Monday! I miss everyone at home and hope that everyone is well! XOXOXOX

2013

So 2013 has been a crazy time! haha! I haven't posted in awhile....I have since celebrated the new year and been to Thailand! Thailand was absolutely magical! I loved being in the warm environment. Also, because I have been in Korea for so long I didn't realize how different other Asian countries are! I plan on going back and traveling in Cambodia and Vietnam. I also would love to go back to the Islands. I liked inland Thailand but I fell in love with Phi Phi island! It was fantastic! I think I could live there for sure! I could run on the beach in the morning, eat fresh fruit everyday for less than a dollar, the weather was perfect and the people were so welcoming and fun! Needless to say I had the BEST vacation!! When I returned to Korea things got crazy again as i returned to work! Today marks the first day of my Spring vacation! I am very excited about it! I just attended my schools graduation ceremony! It is so interesting to see the differences in culture during ceremonies I have participated in at home! For instance we don't have middle school graduations where I am from but I am sure they have them somewhere....but at a normal middle school I don't think you would ever see middle school boys dancing to a pop song with the moves made up by their teachers....but they did and they had won at the school festival. :-) It was sweet....I guess it could be compared to a pep rally skit at one of our middle schools. I am kinda sad though because I loved these groups of 3rd graders. They are so stinking cute and sweet! It will be sad to be here without them!

On a different note mom and dad come to Korea in ONE WEEK!!! Next friday they will be in Korea! I can't believe it is finally here and it is actually happening!! What a great feeling! I am going to get my hair done on monday and at this hair salon there is a tanning bed....YES I am going to tan while i am there...I know it sounds dumb but there are a few things that I love and tanning is one of them! It makes me feel good about myself so I am going to do it! :-) haha! I have only made a few plans for when mom and dad are in town and I am coming up short on things to do while they are here! haha! I am thinking about going to daegu with them I think mom would like the shopping~~ I am going there on tuesday with Gayeon. Also, while mom and dad are here her family is taking us to eat at a restaurant near by my house! I am so excited for them to meet my parents! :-) One night too my girl friends are going to go to a wine bar and then to eat shabu shabu (spring rolls) with mom and dad so they can meet them! :-) This makes me really happy! There are a lot of good things going on right now and I am so happy that I can share my life with mom and dad!

Tomorrow I will start a no coffee week. I am challenging myself to only drink tea and water for a whole week! Let's hope I can stick with it! :-) I hope all of you are having a great week and I will blog from home this week and post pics from my trip! :-)
XOXOX

monday and tuesday!

I think I have a case of the Mondays today.....I woke up really late and barely made it to school by 830. (I woke up at 8 am and it takes about 15 minutes to walk to school) I had a nice but exhausting weekend! Friday night started by going to boxing and then to dinner with the girls in Masan. When I say girls I mean my 2 close friends Rebecca (Bex) and Kelly. They are both from England and I have gotten very close with them. We are like a family and we meet every Tuesday night for drinks and dinner just to make sure we socialize during the week and can see each other! :-) I find that it has really been something I look forward to and enjoy having the quality time with some really great girls! Anyway, we went out for a nice meal on Friday night and then we ended up staying up really late just laughing and talking...but Kelly and I had to get up really early on Saturday because she had an eye appointment (she had Lasik about 3 weeks ago so she had to have a check up) and I wanted to go to H&M because they now have one in Busan!! EXCITING!!! So we got up a 8 am (we went to sleep at 4 am) and got our selves on a bus to Busan. The bus took FOREVER because the traffic was really terrible! I also had to be back in Changwon at 1 pm for my dance practice (yes I had dance practice on Saturday). So Kelly went to her eye appointment while I went to starbucks to buy us some fuel for the day and then we went to the big department store and to H&M. I have to say I am so excited they are there! I can actually buy clothes and SHOES there! This is very exciting to me! I had adopted an orphan to buy Christmas presents for and so I went to H&M because they have a lot of low priced and nice looking scarf and glove sets. I bought her a hot pink scarf and some matching gloves. I think she will really like it! I also bought her a few little cosmetic things that all the little girls like over here so she can feel pretty and special! :-) After running around in Busan, Kelly and I took the bus back and made it to my dance practice only 40 minutes late! I practiced for about 4 hours and then Kelly and I went to have something to eat since we hadn’t eaten anything really that day! So we ate some hot stone bibimbap and then went to my house to get some shoe because we had to hurry to her house to get ready for our night out. Bex was in a Choir performance with some other artist hat she works within the Art district. So Kelly and I went to watch the performance and then take her to dinner to celebrate! We went to Mexico (the Mexican restaurant in Masan) and had Sangria and chips. I had  a Mexican Salad that was really nice! It was a great evening We then went to my friends Café and had some drinks before heading to a foreign bar near Bex’s house to meet a few people and play some pool. After that we were all really tired so we decided to call it a night! I was so exhausted because I hadn’t slept much the night before and I ended up sleeping till 11:45 on Sunday! Haha! I never do that!! I was so happy but it took me awhile to wake up and actually get out of bed! But after getting out of bed I cleaned up my apartment and got stuff ready because Joanna and Lecia were going to come over to bake and eat dinner! We had decided to make those Vegan adventure cookies but ended up making, vegan adventure cookies, vegan oatmeal bars, vegan zucchini muffins, vegan mac &cheese and I made chicken breast with veggies and white wine in the crock pot. I had invited Bex and Kelly to eat with us and so I wanted to cook some meat for them and Lecia! It was so fun! We had everything cooking at the same time and we were sipping white and Lecia made some mulled wine! It was fabulous! It felt like Christmas time! I am so excited for next weekend too because I will be prepping for Christmas dinner! 

 

This week is going to be pretty great...I have a day off on Wednesday and Thursday is the school festival.  I will teach only 8 classes this week! That is EXCITING! I have dance practice on my day off which makes me unhappy but at least I don’t have to go to school! Today I am teaching 3 classes and we are watching The Grinch still so it should be good!

 

 

Since I haven’t posted this yet I will continue on and tell you about my Tuesday as well! Since we have off school tomorrow I probably won’t be updating my blog! So last night I didn’t make it to boxing because I had planned to meet Gerrard at 7:30 and our dance practice ended at 7:30 I had no time in between! Our dance practice went amazing! I remember all of the dance and actually the costumes are inappropriate but not as bad as I thought! Also, I actually felt like I had a workout because we did the dance full out like 7 times and I did it in high heels (man that was hard!). So I am kind of looking forward to the dance practice tonight and to get even better at the dance! After dance, I went to meet Gerrard and we talked for awhile and I had forgotten my Korean book so we couldn’t study! I learned a lot about him though! He was a Prison guard as his military service! I think that is so cool! What a way better job than a lot I hear about for these guys! He was picked to do that and he worked there. I also heard him play guitar and he is really good! It was nice to get to know him better and he is a very nice guy! I am glad to have a new friend! After I left him my friend Jessi (Korean name jongbae) and I asked if he wanted to come to my house for dinner. I was going to be making quinoa and kale salad with persimmon and a citrus dressing and stir fried veggies. I also heated up some chicken I had made for the girls on Sunday. He came over and we chatted for a long time! I even tried to make pudding with chia seeds and soy milk but it never set…I need to find a better recipe I think! After he left I was so tired so I went up to bed after washing my face (it took a lot of effort for me to do that and brush my teeth). I set my alarm but I could tell I would sleep really well. Which was the problem today! I over slept my alarm. I woke up at 8:40 and I am supposed to be at school at 8:30. I freaked out and I couldn’t figure if I should take a shower or not, but finally decided in my half sleepy mind that taking a shower would be worth the extra 5 minutes I would be late because I would be clean for today! It was a good thing I did because I finally got to school at 9 am…which I have to say waking up at 8:40, taking a shower and having to walk about ½ mile to school is pretty good! Today I didn’t really walk….it was more like running! I get to school and my co teacher was very sweet to me and was like “Jessi, please stop worrying its ok, take your time, calm down you are not in trouble!” on the phone because I was in tears bc I felt irresponsible! Anyway, I get to school and I take a moment to collect myself. My co-teacher put her hand on my shoulder and gave me a little pat and said “today is your lucky day. We are doing Friday’s schedule and since you don’t come to this school on Fridays you don’t have any classes today!!” I was so happy I almost cried again! J So here I sit at my desk and I can gain my composure and get ready for a night out with Kelly tonight! We are going to eat mussels at this fantastic place in Masan and have a little red wine because we don’t have to be at school tomorrow!! J Anyway, I am going to practice my dance now so that I can be even more ready for Thursday!

 

XOXOX