Day 8: Saturday, February 21 - Ho Chi Minh to Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville
On this day we took a flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It was a very tiny plane, reaffirming Bob's phobia of flying, and actually scaring me a little too. The plane had very few seats, and the wings actually had propellers. We felt pretty nervous flying around in this plane.
When we landed we were bombarded with touts for taxi drivers and tuk tuk drivers. We quickly got frustrated with bargaining and being harassed, so we decided to sit down and have a Flurry in the Dairy Queen at the airport, where a rather industrious tuk tuk driver approached us, and with whom we ended up buying his service.
The deal was he'd drive us in his tuk tuk for $5 into town, where we would then meet his "friend" who would drive us to Sihanoukville (our destination for the day, involving an 6 hour drive). For some reason, this sounded like a good idea.
So the tuk tuk driver leaves the airport, and we enter into the most sketchy area ever. Phnom Penh is a very poor and non-industrialized city. He ended up driving us down an desolate, run down alley, which was completely deserted, save for the 2 scary looking characters on motos. Here we would wait for "5 minutes" for his "friend" to arrive. I was scared for my life. They were actually very friendly and made all sorts of chit chat, but I was too nervous to talk much back to him.
Turns out his friend arrived not too long after this, and it was a legit operation. Only 1 company is allowed to offer taxi services at the airport, so we can to leave the airport to meet his friend in the taxi with the different company. I doubt I'd ever do that again though.
The drive to Sihanoukville was incredible. There were palm trees and naked children running around everywhere. We had to slam on the breaks on no less than 2 occasions to swerve around giant lanky white cows, that were wandering all over the place, with no keepers and no restraints.
We arrived at Mick and Craig's just as the sun was setting in Sihanoukville. Sihanoukville is a party town located on the beach on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. It was hot, and there were all sorts of restaurants, selling incredibly cheap drink, right on the beach. We drink like drunkards for under $5. We slept well that night, and the hostel only cost us $5 each.
Day 9: Sunday February 22 - Lazy Beach
The next weekend we woke up early, and headed to the beach in our bathing suits carrying all our stuff. We had to meet at the Seahorse Guesthouse to catch the boat to Koh Rong Saloem Island, home of Lazy Beach.
Our bags floated to the boat in a dry box, where the 4 passengers had to swim. It was only Bob and myself, and a Swedish couple going to the island.
The boat was supposed to leave at 12 pm, but the crew were loading new grass sections of roof on the boat, which took about 1.5 hours, the entire time we were waiting on the boat.
The water was incredibly choppy, and the boat continually rocked. Bob and I started to feel a tiny bit sick, so he jumped off, and swam back to shore to rest on dry land, while I toughed it out on the boat, getting very very sunburnt, little did I know.
Soon we were on our way, and the water was rough. We were sitting on the deck of this small boat, fighting through the waves. The driver and his helper kept giving us a knowing smile as we clung to the sides of the boat, riding the waves. I got feeling really sick.
After about 2 hours on the open ocean, we arrived on our private island, Lazy Beach.
Day 10 & 11: Monday, February 23-Tuesday, February 24 - Koh Rong Saloem, Lazy Beach
Lazy Beach was incredible. The weather was beautiful, and the food was great.
There were ten grass huts on the island, each holding a maximum of 4 people, and then staff quarters and a grass hut restaurant. There were about 25 people total on the island. We had our own private grass hut, right on the beach.
We relaxed and read our book in the hammocks, and enjoyed great food, and their signature drink the Lazy Sunset (2 shots of Malibu rum, pineapple juice and a splash of grenadine). We went swimming and lazed on the beach throughout the day. This was the most relaxing time of my life.
In the mornings we went snorkeling, and saw thousands of beautiful and friendly fish, as well as sea urchins, sea slugs, and a cuttlefish which could change colours. We swam through something called sea lice, which felt like tiny little electric shocks, as well as black squid ink.
One of the days we went on a 20 minute hike through the Cambodian jungle (complete with monkeys) to another beach, with not a living soul on it, or any signs of habitation. The sand was pristine white, and the water was clear and blue. The tide was going out, and we had to save a star fish from drying out, which was quite the episode.
Our first night in the grass hut was crazy. There is no power on the island, so they must run a generator for lights, which they turn on at sunset and keep running until 11 pm, and after that, the only light you have was from a flash light, if you were smart enough to bring one (yay Bob!).
So it started when we saw the gecko on the wooden wall of the hut. He was huge and beautiful. He was orange and covered in little blue spots, and big! The gecko in the Geiko commercial was tiny compared to this guy. He became a regular visitor in our hut.
Next, I went into the little concrete bathroom attached to the back of our hut. I walked in, and looked down. The floor was covered in ants. Millions of teeming ants covered the floor. I almost threw up. I hate ants, especially in numbers such as these. I'd never seen so many in my life. We washed them down the drain, which was a long process, considering their numbers. Well, Bob washed them down the drain, while I hid in the bed covered in the mosquito netting. The island operator seemed to think that a recent rain must have ruined their nest (yuk!) and they were looking for a new home.
So after the ant problem was solved, and the gecko had gone to bed, we thought we would too, and we did. But not for long. We woke up in the darkness, with only our little flash light, to a fluttering noise. We had no idea what it was, until we saw it, from behind our protective covering and our personal Savior, the mosquito netting. It was a bat. A giant, Cambodian jungle bat, about the size of my forearm. I somehow managed to open the window next to the bed, through the mosquito netting, and the bat left us alone in peace.
The peace didn't last long though. After we'd (somehow)fallen back to sleep, we were awoken once again, but this time to a rustling. A close by, terrifying rustling. Turns out a rat, a giant Cambodian jungle rat, had climbed into my bag, (my zippered-closed bag), and was munching on my Lays potato chips, which I had with me even though we were instructed not to have any food in our rooms. But come on, the bag was zippered, and I can't buy those chips in Korea! We scared the rat away and went to sleep, for good this time.
The next night I was afraid to go back to sleep, understandably, but our friends never showed back up. But of course, I got sick. Very very very sick. I had to keep leaving the protection of the mosquito netting, and stumble through the dark, into the previously ant-infested bathroom (aka my greatest nightmare) to use a toilet that you had to flush by pouring water into it from a garbage can full in the dark corner. Worst night ever. Which leads to the next morning.
Day 12: Wednesday, February 25 - Taxi from Sihanoukville to Siem Reap
The next morning, I was still sick, and we were nearing the end of our Imodium and gravol. I had to get back on the rickety boat, and take another 2 hour trip to the mainland, whilst feeling very sick.
From there, we took another taxi, for $110, from Sihanoukville to Siem Reap, which took all day. I won't go into detail, but the first half of the taxi ride wasn't pleasant, and we had to make several bathroom stops. Bob was slightly sick as well, so we had to ration what was left of the Imodium.
The drive itself was beautiful. There is no industry in Cambodia, and people seem to live in shacks that are raised above the ground. We swerved around more cows as we sped along, and drove through some dirty and poor looking towns. Cambodia is a beautiful country, and the dirt is red, just like in PEI.
We found our hotel quickly, and checked in and went promptly to bed.
Day 13: Thursday, February 26 - Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We woke up early, and felt much better. Our hotel room was beautiful, and exceptionally cheap. It was huge, and marble, and had beautiful wood finishings, and a pool, and the lights worked past 11 pm!
We hired a tuk tuk driver for the entire day, for the low price of $17, and headed to Angkor Wat national park. We were so excited, and riding around in a tuk tuk is really fun.
Angkor Wat was amazing, and we found it hard to believe we were actually there. We first headed to the main Angkor Wat temple, and looked around for about an hour. You're allowed to pretty much walk on anything you want, and go anywhere you want. We took thousands of pictures.
There are children at each temple that follow you around trying to sell you stuff. When you tell them they should be in school, they say such things as "School in the morning, please buy a bracelet", which I had to prevent Bob several times from doing such. They were adorable, and its hard not to cave, but they (or better yet their parents) must realize that selling knick knacks is not a good career choice, and they should be in school anyways. Everything you read says you shouldn't encourage them by buying stuff from them, but its hard.
After Ankor Wat, our tuk tuk driver took us to the Bayon, which was my favourite temple by far. Its the temple you may have seen on National Geographic programs, which all the faces covering it. It was incredible, and I have no idea how it was built. To get into these temples, you had to climb the most steep stairs you could imagine, most of which are falling apart.
After this temple, heat stroke hit me, and I felt horrible. My sickness from the day before came back, the >35 degree weather had been taking its toll, and I hadn't been drinking enough water. My face went a weird mixture of deathly white and tomato red patches, and Bob decided to find the tuk tuk driver and take me home. We spent the evening watching Animal Planet in our hotel room, with the A/C cranked. After a while, I stared feeling better, and we went to the mall next to the hotel for some Cambodian fast food before calling it a night.
Day 14: Friday, February 27 - Angkor Wat Continued
We slept in a little, and left for the parks again with the same tuk tuk driver, who was so friendly, and very inquisitive about our lives.
Today we were feeling better, and explored many more temples. We saw the Terrace of the Elephants, the Terrace of the Lepar King, Preah Khan, Bob explored Neak Peah temple while I waiting with the tuk tuk driver and drank water, Pre Rup, and then finally, Ta Prohm. These temples took us all day to explore. Ta Prohm was my favourite. Its the temple you may have seen in the movie Tomb Raider. It was famously left to the jungle to take over. It is falling down, and has giant tress growing throughout it, basically into the temple itself. Amazing.
Day 15: Saturday, February 28 - Siem Reap Hotel
This morning we took advantage of the pool, and went swimming all morning. We then had to go back and shower, and check out of our hotel room. We then spent the afternoon reading in the hotel lobby, before our favourite tuk tuk driver took us to the Siem Reap airport. This time the plane was bigger, and it wasn't AS stressful for us, although Bob still didn't have the time of his life.
We flew from Siem Reap, back to Hanoi, where we had a brief stop over, before boarding another plane to Incheon, South Korea. We were home in Yeonhui-dong by 7:30 in the morning on Sunday, where we slept into the afternoon, and then did laundry for the rest of the day.
Overall, we had a fantastic trip, and would do it all again in a heartbeat, except we'd pack more Imodium.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Vacation days 1-7
Here is a very quick recap of the first seven days of our vacation.
Day 1 -
Hanoi, Vietnam.
The streets were buzzing with millions of mopeds.
Maureen and I spent the day checking out Ha Noi's Old Quarter. The highlight was walking the waterfront at night.
The streets of Hanoi.
Day 2 -
Hanoi, Vietnam
We went to the mausoleum where Ho Chi Minh's body is kept. It was a long wait, and once inside we did a quick circle around the casket and then left. It was cold and creepy.
In the afternoon we enjoyed the Water Puppet Theatre. At the front of the theatre is an aquarium with a curtain blocking off the back half of the tank. During the show, small puppets (boats, men, animals) entertained us for 16 scenes, as the chorus drove the plot forward, and ya... It was fun to watch and is a must do if you are in Vietnam.
Maureen with the Masoleum to the top right.
Day 3 -
Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
This is a bay home to countless limestone karsts. It's easy to fall in love with the place. We took hundreds of pictures, and it was one of the highlights of the trip.
At Ha Long Bay.
Day 4 - 5 -
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).
We mazed our way through a giant indoor market. The locals tried selling us everything from t-shirts to snakes in a jar. They had an agressive sales-pitch; at one point Maureen had six hands pulling at her.
We also went to a war museum. It showed us the other side of the Vietnam war. It was disturbing and graphic and needless to say, it got the point across.
At the market.
Day 6 - 7 -
Mekong Delta, Vietnam
The two day trip to the Mekong delta was worth every penny. We mingled with the locals, witnessed the countries biggest and oldest floating market, and took a ride down a crocodile infested stream decked out in Vietnamese headgear. COOOOL!
Quite an adventure!
Well... that's the first seven days!
I'll let Maureen describe the next seven which takes us to beautiful Cambodia.
Day 1 -
Hanoi, Vietnam.
The streets were buzzing with millions of mopeds.
Maureen and I spent the day checking out Ha Noi's Old Quarter. The highlight was walking the waterfront at night.
The streets of Hanoi.
Day 2 -
Hanoi, Vietnam
We went to the mausoleum where Ho Chi Minh's body is kept. It was a long wait, and once inside we did a quick circle around the casket and then left. It was cold and creepy.
In the afternoon we enjoyed the Water Puppet Theatre. At the front of the theatre is an aquarium with a curtain blocking off the back half of the tank. During the show, small puppets (boats, men, animals) entertained us for 16 scenes, as the chorus drove the plot forward, and ya... It was fun to watch and is a must do if you are in Vietnam.
Maureen with the Masoleum to the top right.
Day 3 -
Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
This is a bay home to countless limestone karsts. It's easy to fall in love with the place. We took hundreds of pictures, and it was one of the highlights of the trip.
At Ha Long Bay.
Day 4 - 5 -
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon).
We mazed our way through a giant indoor market. The locals tried selling us everything from t-shirts to snakes in a jar. They had an agressive sales-pitch; at one point Maureen had six hands pulling at her.
We also went to a war museum. It showed us the other side of the Vietnam war. It was disturbing and graphic and needless to say, it got the point across.
At the market.
Day 6 - 7 -
Mekong Delta, Vietnam
The two day trip to the Mekong delta was worth every penny. We mingled with the locals, witnessed the countries biggest and oldest floating market, and took a ride down a crocodile infested stream decked out in Vietnamese headgear. COOOOL!
Quite an adventure!
Well... that's the first seven days!
I'll let Maureen describe the next seven which takes us to beautiful Cambodia.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Birthday and Bathrooms
Birthday
So, Bobby just celebrated his 26th birthday here, Korea style. Hopefully he'll write a post of his own about it, but I'll summarize the events as well.
On Friday, we had about 10 people over for drinks and some flip cup.
For his birthday, I bought a Betty Crocker box of chocolate cake in Itaewon, for a whopping $6.50. It was delicious, although I've eaten most of it myself.
The Cake:
Bob got several presents from his students, and one from his co-teacher. His favourite definitely came from me though. I got him a shirt from UNI QLO, new ear phones, as recommended by Jerry, the UNO card game, and the last, but certainly not least, the coolest fanny pack ever. Bob will be as prepared as possible for out upcoming travels. He loved it, and now wears it everywhere.
The Presents:
Clearly it's his favourite present:
Bathrooms
The past 2 weeks we've been teaching our Winter Camps at school. My school is absolutely freezing! We have one stand up heater per classroom, and it takes forever to heat up the room to a normal temperature. We teach in our coats, and students wear their coats all class, including their hoods. The remainder of the school is not heated, so you never want to leave the classroom.
These freezing cold temperatures have cause the water in the school to freeze. This was not good. There is a minimum of 90 students at school for these past two weeks, all of whom use the washroom regularly. The water is frozen, so the squat toilets don't flush, and students don't wash their hands. Instead of canceling the camp and closing the school, or even moving our classes to another, warmer building, they simply locked the bathroom doors - only after a week of students using them with no water.
Needless to say, I've been holding it at school, as much as possible. I've also gotten sick, probably from hanging out with kids that don't wash their hands.
Ms. Collins with Erin, one of her Winter Camp students:
So, Bobby just celebrated his 26th birthday here, Korea style. Hopefully he'll write a post of his own about it, but I'll summarize the events as well.
On Friday, we had about 10 people over for drinks and some flip cup.
For his birthday, I bought a Betty Crocker box of chocolate cake in Itaewon, for a whopping $6.50. It was delicious, although I've eaten most of it myself.
The Cake:
Bob got several presents from his students, and one from his co-teacher. His favourite definitely came from me though. I got him a shirt from UNI QLO, new ear phones, as recommended by Jerry, the UNO card game, and the last, but certainly not least, the coolest fanny pack ever. Bob will be as prepared as possible for out upcoming travels. He loved it, and now wears it everywhere.
The Presents:
Clearly it's his favourite present:
Bathrooms
The past 2 weeks we've been teaching our Winter Camps at school. My school is absolutely freezing! We have one stand up heater per classroom, and it takes forever to heat up the room to a normal temperature. We teach in our coats, and students wear their coats all class, including their hoods. The remainder of the school is not heated, so you never want to leave the classroom.
These freezing cold temperatures have cause the water in the school to freeze. This was not good. There is a minimum of 90 students at school for these past two weeks, all of whom use the washroom regularly. The water is frozen, so the squat toilets don't flush, and students don't wash their hands. Instead of canceling the camp and closing the school, or even moving our classes to another, warmer building, they simply locked the bathroom doors - only after a week of students using them with no water.
Needless to say, I've been holding it at school, as much as possible. I've also gotten sick, probably from hanging out with kids that don't wash their hands.
Ms. Collins with Erin, one of her Winter Camp students:
Saturday, December 13, 2008
The Holiday Season
Well, the holiday season is over here in Seoul, and things are starting to slow down. Bob and I are currently in our second week of unofficial holidays, and we both start our Winter English Camps next week, for 2 weeks, before having a final week of unofficial holidays.
Christmas was very different for both of us this year, being away from home, and celebrating in a foreign country. We bought a $10 fake Christmas tree from E-mart (similar to Walmart), and lots of cheap decorations and two stockings. We bought the coolest Christmas lights ever, that do their own little light show repeatedly when you turn them on. Bob and I watched many, MANY Christmas movies to put us in the holiday spirit. These days, in January, Bob still sings "Meet me in St. Louis", and its always stuck in my head because of him.
The most Christmasy thing I saw:
We went to see Christmas lights at City Hall in Seoul:
We hosted Christmas dinner, which really stressed me out, but kept my mind occupied on what was going on here in Seoul, rather than thinking of everything I was missing in Canada. We wanted to eat turkey, but we couldn't find a roasting pan large enough to cook one, since most Koreans don't have ovens, there isn't a high demand for roasting pans (or turkeys for that matter). We decided to go with BBQ chickens from Costco, and no one could tell the difference. I made stuffing, squash, baked potatoes, Caesar salad, and broccoli and cauliflower to go with it. My friend Jen's mom made vegetarian gravy as well. Bob and I had been busy the week before baking about 10 apple pies, for this dinner, as well as for gifts for the staff at our school. Bob is allergic to apples, and broke out in hives while peeling the apples. After giving him some Benedryl and putting him to bed, I finished the pies on my own.
Christmas Dinner (girls):
Christmas Dinner (food):
Christmas Dinner (boys):
Bob and I also continued with our yearly tradition of making a gingerbread house. The most expensive and difficult one yet. Molasses is impossible to find here, so I ended up ordering 1kg of it on the internet, only using about 2tbls worth. Needless to say, I'll be searching for molasses recipes to try and use it all up. Bulk candy isn't popular here at all either, which is good for my waistline, but bad for my wallet...I found some at Kyobo Bookstore, and the tiniest bag cost me around $15. Then after we made the dough, it was too sticky, and wouldn't firm up. When we finally baked the house, the icing took forever to dry, and we ended up sitting and holding the house together for hours, very frustrated. Santa and the chimney kept falling off, so we just pulled it off and propped it on the house later. Together, we made nanaimo bars as well, which were absolutely delicious, but didn't quite look the same as the expert ones made at home.
The Gingerbread House:
Bob's Nanaimo Bars:
Bob and I exchanged stockings and gifts on Christmas morning. I had mailed home a big box of presents to Cannington, which only cost me $50, and my family had mailed me a big box of presents here, which cost them an unbelievable $165. So, after everyone left after Christmas dinner, we Skyped Cannington, and opened our presents together. Bob and I got 2 large and awesome stockings from my family to open, which was really fun (and funny, considering Bob had drank about 2 bottles of wine by this point in the evening). My aunts as well as my grandparents also mailed me many presents - Thank you so much! Christmas was far from the same, but it wasn't lonely or as depressing as I thought it would be.
Christmas Morning:
On Boxing Day, I made some Chicken Soup with the dinner's leftovers, and then that night we went to the Korean National Ballet's production of the Nutcracker. It was fantastic, and Bob's first time watching it. The music was so great, and the costumes were fun to look at. We had a great time.
Making Dad's Famous Chicken Soup:
The Nutcracker:
For New Years, Bob and I went with friends to a wine bar called Berlin, in Itaewon. It was classy, but crowded, but we had a fun night. Later that week, we returned to Itaewon to go to "What the Book", a used English bookstore, which made Bobby really happy. We also bought backpacks - 2 for $100. They are the oldest and ugliest backpacks ever, but they are sturdy, and cheap enough, and I won't mind getting it dirty as we lug it around SE Asia.
We visited a travel agent, the cousin of my co-teacher, and we spent about 2 hours talking with her. We finally decided on our flights and our itinerary, and we're very excited. We fly from Incheon, to Ha Noi, to Saigon, to Phenom Penh, from Siem Reap to Ha Noi to Incheon - all for the low, low price of $1000. Hostels and food are dirt cheap when we arrive, so it should be a fun vacation. We've also booked a hut on an island off the south of Cambodia, for 3 nights for only $25/night. There are only 6 huts and a restaurant on this island, so it should be very relaxing.
So, as far as our current holidays go, Bob and I have been visiting places in Seoul that we're normally too busy to get to. We also took a 1 hour subway ride to the port-city of Incheon, on the West Coast of Korea, where our flight landed. It was horrible - it was cold, windy, and very industrial. I wanted to make it to the ocean, but it was impossible to get to.
Yesterday, we went to the Vietnam Embassy, if you can call it that, to get our VISAs for our vacation. It looked like a run down strip motel off the side of a highway on the I-75. It was crowded, smelly and very unorganized. I'll be thankful if I ever get my passport back from them. The guy is trying to charge us $78 for a VISA, which doesn't sound right, so we're going to have to harass him when we pick them up on Thursday.
We met friends for Indian food last Friday night - and it was delicious, but very, very spicy. Indian restaurants are plentiful around here, if you look hard enough. Naan bread is a secret addiction of mine. Speaking of addictions, I have decided I'm going to give up soft drinks for as long as I can hold out. Day 2 and I'm still successful.
Last night we went back shopping at Costco for groceries. Spam is very popular here, and Costco is capitalizing on it, with many gift sets available to buy. They didn't sell out at Christmas (hard to believe, I know), and are still on the shelves at Costco.
Bob with the Real Stuff:
Maureen with the Knock Off:
Today Bob has to finish planning his Winter Camp, and I'm going to make a lasagna, without cottage cheese which is impossible to buy here, which should be interesting. Tomorrow we're going to go to Sahruga, the local grocery store, and I may try to bake some bread. I think I'm also going to try to plan a group trip to the Horse Races here, for Bobby's birthday, which is coming up fast on the 19th.
It's bright and sunny today, and slightly warm. It's only snowed twice since we've arrived, and it never stays on the ground. We hear Canada has been pounded with snow, so I guess that's one good thing about being here.
Bobby in the Snow:
Here is a picture of my Extra Class I taught. They're a grade 5/6 class:
Bye for now!
Christmas was very different for both of us this year, being away from home, and celebrating in a foreign country. We bought a $10 fake Christmas tree from E-mart (similar to Walmart), and lots of cheap decorations and two stockings. We bought the coolest Christmas lights ever, that do their own little light show repeatedly when you turn them on. Bob and I watched many, MANY Christmas movies to put us in the holiday spirit. These days, in January, Bob still sings "Meet me in St. Louis", and its always stuck in my head because of him.
The most Christmasy thing I saw:
We went to see Christmas lights at City Hall in Seoul:
We hosted Christmas dinner, which really stressed me out, but kept my mind occupied on what was going on here in Seoul, rather than thinking of everything I was missing in Canada. We wanted to eat turkey, but we couldn't find a roasting pan large enough to cook one, since most Koreans don't have ovens, there isn't a high demand for roasting pans (or turkeys for that matter). We decided to go with BBQ chickens from Costco, and no one could tell the difference. I made stuffing, squash, baked potatoes, Caesar salad, and broccoli and cauliflower to go with it. My friend Jen's mom made vegetarian gravy as well. Bob and I had been busy the week before baking about 10 apple pies, for this dinner, as well as for gifts for the staff at our school. Bob is allergic to apples, and broke out in hives while peeling the apples. After giving him some Benedryl and putting him to bed, I finished the pies on my own.
Christmas Dinner (girls):
Christmas Dinner (food):
Christmas Dinner (boys):
Bob and I also continued with our yearly tradition of making a gingerbread house. The most expensive and difficult one yet. Molasses is impossible to find here, so I ended up ordering 1kg of it on the internet, only using about 2tbls worth. Needless to say, I'll be searching for molasses recipes to try and use it all up. Bulk candy isn't popular here at all either, which is good for my waistline, but bad for my wallet...I found some at Kyobo Bookstore, and the tiniest bag cost me around $15. Then after we made the dough, it was too sticky, and wouldn't firm up. When we finally baked the house, the icing took forever to dry, and we ended up sitting and holding the house together for hours, very frustrated. Santa and the chimney kept falling off, so we just pulled it off and propped it on the house later. Together, we made nanaimo bars as well, which were absolutely delicious, but didn't quite look the same as the expert ones made at home.
The Gingerbread House:
Bob's Nanaimo Bars:
Bob and I exchanged stockings and gifts on Christmas morning. I had mailed home a big box of presents to Cannington, which only cost me $50, and my family had mailed me a big box of presents here, which cost them an unbelievable $165. So, after everyone left after Christmas dinner, we Skyped Cannington, and opened our presents together. Bob and I got 2 large and awesome stockings from my family to open, which was really fun (and funny, considering Bob had drank about 2 bottles of wine by this point in the evening). My aunts as well as my grandparents also mailed me many presents - Thank you so much! Christmas was far from the same, but it wasn't lonely or as depressing as I thought it would be.
Christmas Morning:
On Boxing Day, I made some Chicken Soup with the dinner's leftovers, and then that night we went to the Korean National Ballet's production of the Nutcracker. It was fantastic, and Bob's first time watching it. The music was so great, and the costumes were fun to look at. We had a great time.
Making Dad's Famous Chicken Soup:
The Nutcracker:
For New Years, Bob and I went with friends to a wine bar called Berlin, in Itaewon. It was classy, but crowded, but we had a fun night. Later that week, we returned to Itaewon to go to "What the Book", a used English bookstore, which made Bobby really happy. We also bought backpacks - 2 for $100. They are the oldest and ugliest backpacks ever, but they are sturdy, and cheap enough, and I won't mind getting it dirty as we lug it around SE Asia.
We visited a travel agent, the cousin of my co-teacher, and we spent about 2 hours talking with her. We finally decided on our flights and our itinerary, and we're very excited. We fly from Incheon, to Ha Noi, to Saigon, to Phenom Penh, from Siem Reap to Ha Noi to Incheon - all for the low, low price of $1000. Hostels and food are dirt cheap when we arrive, so it should be a fun vacation. We've also booked a hut on an island off the south of Cambodia, for 3 nights for only $25/night. There are only 6 huts and a restaurant on this island, so it should be very relaxing.
So, as far as our current holidays go, Bob and I have been visiting places in Seoul that we're normally too busy to get to. We also took a 1 hour subway ride to the port-city of Incheon, on the West Coast of Korea, where our flight landed. It was horrible - it was cold, windy, and very industrial. I wanted to make it to the ocean, but it was impossible to get to.
Yesterday, we went to the Vietnam Embassy, if you can call it that, to get our VISAs for our vacation. It looked like a run down strip motel off the side of a highway on the I-75. It was crowded, smelly and very unorganized. I'll be thankful if I ever get my passport back from them. The guy is trying to charge us $78 for a VISA, which doesn't sound right, so we're going to have to harass him when we pick them up on Thursday.
We met friends for Indian food last Friday night - and it was delicious, but very, very spicy. Indian restaurants are plentiful around here, if you look hard enough. Naan bread is a secret addiction of mine. Speaking of addictions, I have decided I'm going to give up soft drinks for as long as I can hold out. Day 2 and I'm still successful.
Last night we went back shopping at Costco for groceries. Spam is very popular here, and Costco is capitalizing on it, with many gift sets available to buy. They didn't sell out at Christmas (hard to believe, I know), and are still on the shelves at Costco.
Bob with the Real Stuff:
Maureen with the Knock Off:
Today Bob has to finish planning his Winter Camp, and I'm going to make a lasagna, without cottage cheese which is impossible to buy here, which should be interesting. Tomorrow we're going to go to Sahruga, the local grocery store, and I may try to bake some bread. I think I'm also going to try to plan a group trip to the Horse Races here, for Bobby's birthday, which is coming up fast on the 19th.
It's bright and sunny today, and slightly warm. It's only snowed twice since we've arrived, and it never stays on the ground. We hear Canada has been pounded with snow, so I guess that's one good thing about being here.
Bobby in the Snow:
Here is a picture of my Extra Class I taught. They're a grade 5/6 class:
Bye for now!
Sunday, November 30, 2008
WEDNSEDAY DATE NIGHT
Last month, Maureen and I came up with a geeky idea that we now call WEDNESDAY DATE NIGHT. Basically, we take turns planning a night out for the other, and keep the destination a secret.
I will quickly go over the Wednesday Dates that we have been on.
1) Namsan Tower
I am scared of heights, Maureen knew this and that is why she took me to Namsan Tower on our first date. The toughest part for me was to take a cable car to the tower. The darn thing was filled to its capactity and it shook (as I cursed) the whole way up.
Jokes of vertigo aside, the view of Seoul from Namsan reconfirmed my belief that Seoul is a huge metropolis.
2) Movie Night - "The Last Duchess"
Maureen had been talking about this movie called, "The Last Duchess" and so I decided to surprise her with our first movie experience in Seoul. We went to a massive twelve storey high theatre in downtown Seoul. There are two differences worth noting between Canadian and Korean movie theatres; first, snack foods are much cheaper in the theatre; second, Koreans use an evil thing called assigned seating. As we walked into the theatre (fully equipped with theatre treats) we noticed that there were a dozen people sitting in one big clump. Our ticket numbers recquired us to clump ourselves to the clump, thus adding to the clump. Maureen and I broke away from this pattern of thinking, and decided to choose our own seats. This backfired when the owners of our new seats showed up. We got the boot. Having noticed that Koreans take assigned seating a little too seriously, we proceeded to clump ourselves to the clump. I enjoyed the movie.
3) Cirque Du Soliel
Maureen wrote about this date in her most recent blog.
4) Bau House
Earlier in the week, Maureen mentioned that she really missed her pets. Her comment got my creative wheels turning. I did a little clacking on the Internet, and somehow found a ridiculous solution to her little problem. I took her to Bau House, a cafe packed with noisy, smelly, drooling dogs. There were at least thirty dogs of various shapes and sizes running around Bau House. The tables were chewed, the couches were ripped, and the place reeked of dog. Shortly after the beagle urinated on our table our cheesecake arrived.
5) The Old Tea House
Continuing with the animal theme, Maureen took me to a bird cafe on the next date. The Old Tea House had a quaint setting, littered with candles, old books, paintings, and bird droppings.
This is an example of the type of business that might have thrived eighty years ago in Canada, but still exists and thrives in Korea.
6) E-Mart
Writing this now, I realize that the dates I prepared are kinda lousy compared to the ones Maureen prepares.
Last Wednesday I took Maureen to an E-Mart. E-Mart is this place that is alot like Wal Mart, but it has several floors of shopping madness. The prices are fairly cheap, and the selection is great. We bought a small Christmas tree and some decorations for our apartment.
7) ????
It's Maureen's turn for date night. Where will she take me? What will happen? Ohh... the suspense...
I will quickly go over the Wednesday Dates that we have been on.
1) Namsan Tower
I am scared of heights, Maureen knew this and that is why she took me to Namsan Tower on our first date. The toughest part for me was to take a cable car to the tower. The darn thing was filled to its capactity and it shook (as I cursed) the whole way up.
Jokes of vertigo aside, the view of Seoul from Namsan reconfirmed my belief that Seoul is a huge metropolis.
2) Movie Night - "The Last Duchess"
Maureen had been talking about this movie called, "The Last Duchess" and so I decided to surprise her with our first movie experience in Seoul. We went to a massive twelve storey high theatre in downtown Seoul. There are two differences worth noting between Canadian and Korean movie theatres; first, snack foods are much cheaper in the theatre; second, Koreans use an evil thing called assigned seating. As we walked into the theatre (fully equipped with theatre treats) we noticed that there were a dozen people sitting in one big clump. Our ticket numbers recquired us to clump ourselves to the clump, thus adding to the clump. Maureen and I broke away from this pattern of thinking, and decided to choose our own seats. This backfired when the owners of our new seats showed up. We got the boot. Having noticed that Koreans take assigned seating a little too seriously, we proceeded to clump ourselves to the clump. I enjoyed the movie.
3) Cirque Du Soliel
Maureen wrote about this date in her most recent blog.
4) Bau House
Earlier in the week, Maureen mentioned that she really missed her pets. Her comment got my creative wheels turning. I did a little clacking on the Internet, and somehow found a ridiculous solution to her little problem. I took her to Bau House, a cafe packed with noisy, smelly, drooling dogs. There were at least thirty dogs of various shapes and sizes running around Bau House. The tables were chewed, the couches were ripped, and the place reeked of dog. Shortly after the beagle urinated on our table our cheesecake arrived.
5) The Old Tea House
Continuing with the animal theme, Maureen took me to a bird cafe on the next date. The Old Tea House had a quaint setting, littered with candles, old books, paintings, and bird droppings.
This is an example of the type of business that might have thrived eighty years ago in Canada, but still exists and thrives in Korea.
6) E-Mart
Writing this now, I realize that the dates I prepared are kinda lousy compared to the ones Maureen prepares.
Last Wednesday I took Maureen to an E-Mart. E-Mart is this place that is alot like Wal Mart, but it has several floors of shopping madness. The prices are fairly cheap, and the selection is great. We bought a small Christmas tree and some decorations for our apartment.
7) ????
It's Maureen's turn for date night. Where will she take me? What will happen? Ohh... the suspense...
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Cirque Du Soleil, Ice Bar and Everland!
Hey All! I wrote this blog at school on Thursday, and haven't had a chance to post it until today, Sunday, but I hope that won't matter.
I taught 5 grade 5 classes today, and now I have the afternoon off, so I'm writing e-mails, listening to my iPod (mainly to drown out the religious and off-key singing by my older co-worker), and reading news on the BBC. Yesterday all my grade 6 classes were cancelled due to a field trip, so I studied up on my travel plans, and have been reading extensively on the countries we plan on visiting.
We have 2 weeks off (although Bob's school won't confirm his dates), and we plan on flying to Ha Noi in Vietnam, visiting Ha Long Bay with its karst topography, travelling down the Vietnamise coast to Saigon, hitting some beaches along the way, and then going through Cambodia to see Ankor Wat and the royal places in Phenom Phen, and into Thailand, where we will go to Trat
(beachy), Bangkok to see more royal palaces and shopping, then to Phuket and the Similan Islands to lay on the beach for about 3 days. Sounds busy, but I want to see as much as possible in those 2 weeks, as it will probably be my only chance in this lifetime.
We have another 2 weeks in the summer, which I want to spend in
Today I found out that I'll be teaching 2 weeks of Winter English Camp, from January 5 - 16, 2009. The rest of January I have to goof off in my office, where I'll read several books (that the school will buy), label my travelling pictures, watch movies, write e-mails, and probably do my nails. This job is pretty sweet, but culture shock is starting to sink in. I'm very happy here most days, but other days I go nuts. People constantly push into you, and past you in line for food or the bus. It smells here, and there is no possible way I could eat another grain of rice. I am very cautious around ajumas, old Korean married ladies. They think they run the world. They are noticeable by their comfy shoes, black slacks, and floral print blouses, and are usually wearing a big, black visor. The visor is like the rattle of a cobra - if you see it, you know you're in danger. They are very pushy, and usually pretty grumpy. Watch out, or you'll get an elbow to the ribs.
Last night Bob and I went to see Cirque du Soleil – Alegria, for date night. It was so amazing. I cannot even begin to put into words the description of each act. There were contortionists, trapeze artists, a fire baton twirler, and a hoola hoop girl, and a trampoline act, among many other acts. The set and costumes were beautiful. Our tickets were not that expensive, and definitely worth the money. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take pictures inside the tent, but I tried to smuggle a few.
The Circus Tent:
Some Circus Pictures:
Friday night we went to Hongdae to the Sub Zero Ice Bar. Basically it was a room filled with ice inside a meat locker. For the 15,000 won you paid to get in, you get a parka, mittens, and a free drink. Bob convinced us all that a Jagerbomb would be delicious. Unfortunately, the Koreans don't seem to understand the 'bomb' part of the drink, and instead, we all had to sip away at straight Jager shots, rather than having them with Red Bull. The bar was really empty (and cold!), so we only stayed for about 15 minutes, which made it a really expensive trip. We left early that night, and went home to bed.
Some Canadian Eskimos:
Our Ice Drinks of Jager Shots:
Bob Dancing:
Saturday morning our downstairs neighbour, Ho, and his 9 year old son Kevin, drove us to Everland, the Korean version of Walt Disney World (and a fairly good version at that). Ho told us the drive would be about an hour. Three hours later we arrived. Everland was huge, and pretty fun, although we would have had much more fun if we were there alone. We did one roller coaster with Kevin, Racing Coaster, which was a runaway train ride. The line up was about 40 minutes, and the ride was about 30 seconds, but it was fun, and Kevin has a lot of fun. Due to the immense lines at the park, this was the only ride we did all day, but Kevin still had fun, and munched on very delicious sweet popcorn as we strolled around the park. Everland is currently celebrating Christmas, and has decorations everywhere and is constantly playing Christmas carols. I definitely know where I'll go if I get upset at Christmas time! At night, there were fantastic fireworks, and a Moonlight Parade. We left around 9 pm, and the ride home was about 1.5 hours, and then we went straight to bed.
Maureen in Everland:
Everland Christmas Area:
Today Bob and I toured around Samcheong-dong, which is a very artsy area, relatively close to where we live. We had some really great peppermint tea and a blueberry banana waffle, and strolled around the streets appreciating the yellow ginko baloba trees and browsing the various art galleries.
Tonight we lesson planning like fiends, trying to get ready for the upcoming week. We've been very inconsistent, if not invisible on the blogging front lately, but we're going to do our best to improve.
Miss you all,
- Maureen
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Too Busy To Blog
Sorry folks, on my recent lack of blogging. I have taken a second job in the afternoons, which I've had to develop a curriculum for, so I've had some intense work lately. They let me pick a textbook for the class on Friday, and then wanted my entire curriculum (72 lessons) planned for Monday. Surprisingly, I had it to them by Wednesday, which is not bad. I get $50 for an 80 minute lesson, with only 14 kids, so I really can't complain. I teach Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 3:30-5, so technically I'm getting paid double in my afternoons, considering I'm getting paid both for teaching at Hongeun (my main school, even though I'm not there) and Inwang (my second job) at the same time.
Fall has finally hit Korea, and its definitely welcome. The weather is now in the mid-twenties, and sunny everyday. Mosquitoes are still out in full force though. Yesterday I killed 7 in the bathroom alone. My immune system is still not used to this particular species, and I'm constantly covered in huge, itchy welts.
My birthday was great, and I got all your presents in the mail just in time. Thank you everyone, so much. Bob and I celebrated with a Pizza Hut pizza, and a Paris Baguette chocolate cake. Bob sang me several songs as well, including Happy Birthday. He also bought me a gorgeous ring. It was different not being with family on my birthday, and not something I'd like to do frequently. All my teachers were really great about my birthday. I had an amazing hat, and was forced to wear a goofy hat while they sang to me. My students were so nice as well, and they shouted and squealed "Happy Birthday" all week whenever they saw me. My kids gave me so many gifts, including an awesome pencil case, a pen, a carton of milk, 2 boiled eggs in a container that said "I love you", and 3 pieces of great cake. One class brought me 2 pieces of cake, with candles, and sang to me before class started. I really love my students.
Two weekends ago, Bob and I went to Doksu Gu Palace (or something like that). Its close to City Hall in Seoul. We went just at dusk, and the palace was lit up beautifully. We were able to take some great pictures, although I think we need to invest in a tri-pod, as some of the pictures were pretty blurry, without the flash on. We also ventured to the Yongsan Electronics market - which is a blaze of colour and light, and Koreans trying to sell you electronics. Most are pretty cheap there, and this is where I bought my external.
Maureen in front of the palace at night.
Last weekend, we ventured to the Demilitarized Zone. It was pretty barren and desolate. We went to the Dora Observatory, where our tour guide told us that we could take pictures, but only behind a yellow line. I, of course, forgot, and was promptly spoken to by a Korean guard, in fatigues, who made me delete a bunch of my pictures. Apparently there is top secret stuff going on just over the boarder, but its okay if you look at it, and take pictures 3 feet back from the ledge, but anything closer just doesn't fly. Bob thought my reprimanding was rather amusing, and took pictures of me and the guard - behind the yellow line of course.
The North Koreans have dug several holes towards Seoul, and the South Koreans have found 4 of these tunnels, the last one being discovered in 1990. We went for a tour of the 3rd tunnel, which consisted of walking straight down the tunnel for 73 m, or 25 floors of a building. The tunnel was very narrow, and just over 5 feet talk. I could walk, barely, but I definitely knocked my head on the granite ceiling several times, and once so hard that it knocked my hard hat off. Bob must have had a bad back after leaving the tunnel. A very cool experience though, unless you're xenophobic or claustrophobic.
The exchange rate is killing me. When we came to South Korea, the won was stronger that the dollar, which meant I spent more $ for less won. Of course, now that we're here, and being paid in the won, our dollar is stronger than the won. So if I get paid 2 million won per month, instead of being over $2000, it is now currently sitting at $1500. Just our luck. Anyone have any ideas of getting around this problem? Should I pay my debt using my Canadian Visa, and then try to pay my Visa from Korean won? Can I keep a bank account here, even after I move home? I need all you accountants and financial advisors on this problem for me, stat.
Teaching so far is fantastic. I get such a kick out of all my kids. They are hilarious, and always filled with energy. I can never stay in a bad mood when I'm teaching these goof balls. I think they enjoy my teaching too.
Bob wants to go to a concert this Friday, which I'll probably attend as well, but I have dinner plans with Lisa first. Hopefully we'll hit up a Korean BBQ. I'm not sure what is in store for Saturday and Sunday. Bob and I have been talking about booking our holidays lately. We're hoping for 2 weeks in February (16-28) to visit Laos, Vitenam, Cambodia, and Thailand, and then another 2 weeks during Summer Break (mid July until late August), to travel to possibly Japan, China, and Hong Kong. Any holiday suggestions or tips would be wonderful, since nothing is set in stone yet (although nothing is ever set in stone in Korea).
Here are some other photos from around Seoul:
That's all for now. Please post some comments and tell us what you're up to!
- Maureen
Fall has finally hit Korea, and its definitely welcome. The weather is now in the mid-twenties, and sunny everyday. Mosquitoes are still out in full force though. Yesterday I killed 7 in the bathroom alone. My immune system is still not used to this particular species, and I'm constantly covered in huge, itchy welts.
My birthday was great, and I got all your presents in the mail just in time. Thank you everyone, so much. Bob and I celebrated with a Pizza Hut pizza, and a Paris Baguette chocolate cake. Bob sang me several songs as well, including Happy Birthday. He also bought me a gorgeous ring. It was different not being with family on my birthday, and not something I'd like to do frequently. All my teachers were really great about my birthday. I had an amazing hat, and was forced to wear a goofy hat while they sang to me. My students were so nice as well, and they shouted and squealed "Happy Birthday" all week whenever they saw me. My kids gave me so many gifts, including an awesome pencil case, a pen, a carton of milk, 2 boiled eggs in a container that said "I love you", and 3 pieces of great cake. One class brought me 2 pieces of cake, with candles, and sang to me before class started. I really love my students.
Blowing out the candles on my cake (which we ate by picking at it with chopsticks!)
Mi-young, quiet Korean girl, Sam, Alicia, Sonya (probably not her actual name), and me!
Mi-young, quiet Korean girl, Sam, Alicia, Sonya (probably not her actual name), and me!
We finally have cell phones. For $10 we got the sweetest phones imaginable. It's a camera phone, it has a subway map, it has a Korean-English dictionary (which is somewhat helpful), and, the best part is, it has free TV, which connects almost anywhere! We signed a contract for 1 year, and its $15.50 a month. I'll send my phone number out when I have a change at school. Canada can call me (I don't know how much), but I can't call Canada. Convenient, I know. Canada has to get on the ball in the technology department. I also bought a portable external hard drive. For $120, I got 320 GB, which I think is a great deal.
Two weekends ago, Bob and I went to Doksu Gu Palace (or something like that). Its close to City Hall in Seoul. We went just at dusk, and the palace was lit up beautifully. We were able to take some great pictures, although I think we need to invest in a tri-pod, as some of the pictures were pretty blurry, without the flash on. We also ventured to the Yongsan Electronics market - which is a blaze of colour and light, and Koreans trying to sell you electronics. Most are pretty cheap there, and this is where I bought my external.
Bob in front of the palace at night.
Maureen in front of the palace at night.
Last weekend, we ventured to the Demilitarized Zone. It was pretty barren and desolate. We went to the Dora Observatory, where our tour guide told us that we could take pictures, but only behind a yellow line. I, of course, forgot, and was promptly spoken to by a Korean guard, in fatigues, who made me delete a bunch of my pictures. Apparently there is top secret stuff going on just over the boarder, but its okay if you look at it, and take pictures 3 feet back from the ledge, but anything closer just doesn't fly. Bob thought my reprimanding was rather amusing, and took pictures of me and the guard - behind the yellow line of course.
Bob, with North Korea in the background.
Bob, pointing out the useless yellow line.
The North Koreans have dug several holes towards Seoul, and the South Koreans have found 4 of these tunnels, the last one being discovered in 1990. We went for a tour of the 3rd tunnel, which consisted of walking straight down the tunnel for 73 m, or 25 floors of a building. The tunnel was very narrow, and just over 5 feet talk. I could walk, barely, but I definitely knocked my head on the granite ceiling several times, and once so hard that it knocked my hard hat off. Bob must have had a bad back after leaving the tunnel. A very cool experience though, unless you're xenophobic or claustrophobic.
The exchange rate is killing me. When we came to South Korea, the won was stronger that the dollar, which meant I spent more $ for less won. Of course, now that we're here, and being paid in the won, our dollar is stronger than the won. So if I get paid 2 million won per month, instead of being over $2000, it is now currently sitting at $1500. Just our luck. Anyone have any ideas of getting around this problem? Should I pay my debt using my Canadian Visa, and then try to pay my Visa from Korean won? Can I keep a bank account here, even after I move home? I need all you accountants and financial advisors on this problem for me, stat.
Teaching so far is fantastic. I get such a kick out of all my kids. They are hilarious, and always filled with energy. I can never stay in a bad mood when I'm teaching these goof balls. I think they enjoy my teaching too.
Bob wants to go to a concert this Friday, which I'll probably attend as well, but I have dinner plans with Lisa first. Hopefully we'll hit up a Korean BBQ. I'm not sure what is in store for Saturday and Sunday. Bob and I have been talking about booking our holidays lately. We're hoping for 2 weeks in February (16-28) to visit Laos, Vitenam, Cambodia, and Thailand, and then another 2 weeks during Summer Break (mid July until late August), to travel to possibly Japan, China, and Hong Kong. Any holiday suggestions or tips would be wonderful, since nothing is set in stone yet (although nothing is ever set in stone in Korea).
Here are some other photos from around Seoul:
Bob appreciating some art work:
That's all for now. Please post some comments and tell us what you're up to!
- Maureen
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