Dinner at Okk's!

Last night, Okk had Aaron and I over to her family's home for dinner!  Yes, she still lives at home.  It's the thing to do in Korea. People live with their families until they marry.  She said this was one of the first time's she'd ever had guests over, other than family members, to eat dinner!  It's really uncommon for Koreans to invite friends over to their homes. They'll usually meet friends for coffee or dinner somewhere else.  I'm not sure why?  Maybe they're embarrassed to show their homes.  Who knows?  Anyhow, I knew this was a big deal for her to have us over, and an even more big deal for her family, who can't speak English!  She said they were really nervous, so we made sure to come bearing gifts, and big warm smiles! :)

Okk cooked her "own special food!"  The main dish was a cabbage, topped with mayonaise, teriyaki sauce, dried fish scales, and strips of bacon.  She said it's a type of Japanese dish. (She lived in Japan for a year!)  Then, she made cabob's with cucumber, tomato, bacon, and balls of rice, seaweed, and cheese!  .... and no meal is served without soup and kimchi! 

Okk lives with her mom, dad, older brother, sister in law, neice (5 yrs old), and nephew (1 yr old).  Unfortunately, her neice, brother and dad were away at her neice's kindergarden talent show, so we only got to meet her nephew, mom, and sister in law, who don't speak English at all, but definitely know how to smile and make you feel welcome in their home!  We had such a great time with her family.

Okk is definitely one of my favorite Korean's I've met since living here! She's funny, quirky, smart, outgoing, sensitive, caring, and like a sister to me!  Not to mention, she can speak fluent English and understands our jokes and sarcasm!  She's a gem and a total blessing in my life!

Silver Town

Once a month, some of my school's 5th and 6th grade students visit a retirement home, which they call "Silver Town!"  ...obviously a ko-nglish term!  So, yesterday, I was asked to come along to take pictures so my school could submit an article (with my pictures), to the city newspaper, about their philanthropic adventures!  Let me think... leave work early, take photo's of adorable kids and old people, that could potentially be published in a foreign newspaper, and help people while I'm at it. Done and done! 

So, we arrived around 2:30pm, and the staff began wheeling in all of the "old folks," which automatically felt really depressing.  I never wanna be stuck in a place like that! 

I immediately had a new respect for my principal, who's idea it was to come here and have a mini talent show to lift their spirits.  The kids were so cute and excited to perform!

But, it wasn't long after the show began that I realized the real reason my principal organized this show. Anytime I would take a picture of the kids, he would run over and say, "Chelsey, only photo of the whole room and me making saxophone with sign! Very important Chelsey!"  It wasn't about lifting the old folk's spirits or helping them in any way!  It was about him getting recognition when an article would be published about what a "wonderful principal he is" in the newspaper! Uggghhhh... I was immediately turned off, and dissapointed with Koreans in general.  It seems that nearly every philanthropic thing that Koreans do (which is a lot) is for their own personal gain... and you better believe there will lots of pictures to prove their act and a professionally made sign, hanging on the wall, to tell everyone who they are and where they're from.  Here's the sign my school paid to have made.  My principal moved it 3 times during the show, just to make sure it was in a good location for the pictures.  Ridiculous, huh?!  I don't know exactly what it says, but I can tell you my school's name is printed on it TWICE!  Recognition, recognition, recognition...

So, there I was, standing in the back of the room, taking boring pictures of the back's of their heads, like this, so they can be submitted in the newspaper and people can praise my pincipal for his acts of service!  SAD!

And of him "making the saxohpone," of course! 



When I got back to my desk at work, my phone rang... which I never answer, because usually as soon as I say "Hello," the person on the other end just hangs up on me!  So, I didn't answer this time either, but I figured it was my principal asking me to send him the pictures!  Sure enough, I was right, because when I didn't answer my phone, he walked up to my office.  "Chelsey, see photo's please!"  I showed him a couple of my favorite shots of the students, but he didn't seem interested at all... He kept saying, "next, next, next"  until we got to the pictures of him, playing the saxopone, with the sign, and the room full of people.  He said "OH, STOP," got really close to the screen and smiled.  His response? "Chelsey, very good!"  I ended up sending him 45 pictures of the adventure... some adorable pictures of the kids performing, old people smiling, and the kids interacting with them... but I can guarantee the picture that will be submitted will be of him, the sign, and his silly little saxophone.  sad...