Basil Adventure!

Aaron and I rode the scooter around town, in search of some Basil and Thyme seeds to start a little garden in the sunroom at my apartment!  We had heard of a seed store in Nampodong, so we started there.  NO LUCK... so we tried another place, and then another... until finally, we landed here, at a family run gardening shop!  

NO LUCK again. :(

But the old man running the store jumped on his scooter and made a "follow me" motion with his arm, and off we rode behind him down the street!  (I love that he left his store, un-manned, just to help us!) 

 

He ended up pointing us in the direction of a store called 한 일 사!  We were so excited...  until we realized he had sent us to a pharmacy, who as I'm sure you've already guessed, did not sell basil seeds!  The language barrier can sure make for some interesting little adventures around here!  

*** As a side note, we did end up finding basil and thyme seeds at our local dollar store: 다이소, which I go to at least once a week!  They were right under my nose this whole time!  Go figure!  So... my teeny tiny garden has begun!  

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No more nasty flowers!

I've been dying to paint over the ugly 70's style, orange and gray flowered, wallpaper in my apartment for, well... about 18 months now!  Problem was... Koreans don't paint!  They only wallpaper, and I have no clue how to wallpaper!  But, I decided, with my sister coming to visit me this week, it was time to bite the bullet, and find a store that sold paint and buy some!

So, this morning, Aaron and I scooted around until we found a paint store, where we were met by a groggy old korean woman, who didn't speak a lick of English, and who didn't seem too excited to see 2 foreigners in her hole-in-the-wall paint store. (Yes, this happens once in a while).  Long story short, she haphazardly poured 4 different colors of paint into a can, stirred it around a couple times and then handed it to us.  We crossed our fingers that it was the color we asked for, and off we went!

I may be smiling in this picture, but don't let it fool you.  This was a there's no going back moment, which typically bring on an anxiety attack! 

While I'd like to say I'm thrilled with the outcome, unfortunately the latex paint feels more like I covered my wall with a glue stick!  It's sticking to everything, and the color is much darker than we had anticipated!

So, tomorrow, we're heading back for more brushes, another roller, and we're painting it white!  I guess anything is better than those nasty flowers! :)

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I saw a PIFF Film!

Last year, when I enquired about how to buy tickets for PIFF (The Pusan International Film Festival), my co-workers ALL told me, "Tickets for films are sold out weeks in advance," and you can only buy them these ways: 
1. online, on a korean website.
2. at Busan bank (which closes before I get off work) 
3. participating GS25's (Korea's equivalent of a 7/11) 


Needless to say, I never got around to buying tickets last year!  

What they neglected to mention is that 80% of the tickets can be purchased by the above options.  The other 20% of tickets can be purchased at the theater, just like when you go to see a regular movie!  gggrrrr.

So last night, after work, I took a bus over to Nampodong and walked myself up to the ticket booth and asked for 1 ticket for "Illegal," (a French and Russian language film, directed by Olivier Masset-Depasse, which won the SACD Prize at the 2010 Cannes Director’s Fortnight) which was starting in exactly 30 minutes...  and would you know it - there was a ticket available!  

That wasn't so hard now, was it?!

What was even better was, after I bought it, I ran into my friends Jenna and Annie who had purchased tickets to the same film!

I'm happy to say my very first Pusan International Film Festival experience was a success!   Here's the trailer:

Aaron and I are going back tomorrow to see a film!  We're still debating between "Inside America" and "If I want to whistle, I whistle."   

   

PIFF

The Pusan International Film Festival started 2 days ago!!  Truchen and I had planned to meet in Nampodong for dinner that night, and ended up stumbling upon the opening ceremony, which was a concert from some of korea's most beloved performers!

This video is of Kim Tae Oo!  The sound is horrible, but you can still get a good look at what it was like that night, and how close Truchen and I were able to get to the stage, without being completely trampled!!

Me and Truchen, in the taxi, on the way home!  There was no way we were going to be able to get on a bus!  They were packed with fans all trying to get home!

Then, last night, I heard what sounded like gun shots, so I quickly ran over to my window, looked out, and saw a beautiful FIREWORK SHOW out my window, which was coming from Nampodong!   Unfortunately, I didn't catch pictures of the fireworks in time!  Literally, as soon as I got my camera ready and turned it on, the fireworks stopped... So, you'll just have to imagine how beautiful they were (in this red circle that I drew)! 

Tonight, I'm headed to the Film Festival to see a Russian independent film at 5:30pm!   Cheers to the Film Festival!
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Storytelling Contest!

My school held auditions for the city-wide storytelling contest this afternoon!  I, along with 3 other teachers, sat and listened to (14) 3rd and 4th grade students tell a story from a book that they had memorized!  What's incredible is, most of these students can't speak English, but they can memorize an ENTIRE english story book! 

This is Steven!  He's been one of my favorite students since I arrived in Korea!  When I found out he had entered the contest, I couldn't wait to video tape him!  What a little schmooch huh?!  I've added the words that he's saying, down below the videos, so you can follow along!  But, in my opinion, it's much funnier to try to dicipher what he's saying!

Introducing, STEVEN!

INTRODUCTION in Korean:

It’s bath time Jack, called Dad.

I hate bath, said Jack.

Go and have your bath right now, said mom.

You can’t catch me, Jack replied… and he set off down the garden.

They are coming. I will hide in here, thought Jack.

He’s in the shed, shouted Mr. Crabtree.

Jack slipped nimbly out of the window.

Mind my vegetables shouted, yelled Mr Crabtree and he joined in the chase.



Even worse, Jack couldn't movie on him. (????)
The grown ups had passed.
Still, they can't catch me, he whispered to his new friend, the pig. And he was right!
No one saw him go home, or what he did when the got there.
Hello, said Jack. You can't catch me!
But this time, he was wrong!
THE END!
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