Relaxing After Work Watching Ring Ring Bell

Today was my first full day of work at my company and it felt like a really long day. I had 7 classes, 50 minutes each starting at 7:40am and finishing at 5:00pm. During the day I have 10 minutes between each class and 2 x one hour breaks. I don't mind this. The first break is good to eat during and the second to get my photocopying and planning done for the next day.

The first three days of term are not set. Students can change classes if it is too hard or easy for them so I could end up with different people by Thursday. Having said that, I have some really amazing and funny people in my classes who I don't want to see go. Once I know what my classes are like I'll blog about my schedule then. Until that time I want to sleep in this cold weather.

Coming out of work tonight all I wanted to do was go back to my apartment and curl up in bed with the internet and watch tv. Over the past week I have had more of a tolerance for the cold. Maybe because I was out and about the other days and was used to it, whereas today I had been in a heated building for 10 hours and tired after the first day of work.

Anyway, I did just that. Came home, got into my pjs and have not gotten out from under my quilt for 3 hours. I am currently watching a Taiwanese Drama called Ring Ring Bell.

It's a romantic drama about a woman who was infected with some virus and quarantined in the hospital. This guy goes into the hospital and photographs the people who are not allowed out of quarantine. She is one of them. They start an unusual friendship. She had only ever seen him with a medical mask on so they never really met properly. Coming out of hospital, he invites her to his photography exhibit and they meet again. There is an interest from both sides in the opposite person but due to a misunderstanding they end up with different people.

Cut to a few years later, he is getting a divorce and she has split from her long term boyfriend and raising her daughter by herself. It's not really her biological daughter but a girl who was orphaned as a baby who she raised with the boyfriend. Needless to say they meet up again only he does not know who she is as she is meant to be this ugly, bedraggled, unkempt single mum. Of course, this is an Asian drama so even though she is meant to look horrible, she's actually gorgeous. Anyway, she recognises him but does not reveal her identity.

It's a typical drama, I am sure she hides her identity, they fall in love, the exp-partners come back in to try to get back with them, they refuse, he finds out who she is and they think it is fate. I am only up to episode 4 but I think I have seen so many of these dramas I should be writing them.

1, 2 or 3? Pay in Installments.

Today when I went to Mega Mart to buy a few things for the apartment and some groceries the bill came to about 60,000 won. In Australia dollars that's roughly $50. When I handed the girl my eftpos card she asked me '1, 2 or 3?'. I had no idea what she was talking about so I just said '1'.

As I was walking home some guys helped me carry the stuff I had bought and they explained that you could pay in installments. You could pay all at once as I did, or they could charge you installments over 3 months. I guess they just halve the bill if you want to pay it over two installments and so on. I don't know if they charge interest or some fee for the service.

I don't quite know what to think of this. I guess for some people it would be better for them to spread their payments out over a few installments so they don't have to use a credit card and ring up a whole lot of interest. On the other hand, if you started asking for them to break the bill down over a period of time, how would you ever remember what was coming out month by month?

Japchae Recipe 잡채

A couple of months ago my friend gave me her recipe for japchae - I don't think it's a secret - at least there's no secret ingredients in it. I love it so much and I think it is definitely better than what you can get at a restaurant. In Australia that is, I haven't tried it since coming to Korea because it's easier to make it at home than walk to the local 'Modern China' restaurant that sells it two alleys away.

Here it is. So yummy - give it a try. If you are making this in Australia, all the ingredients are available in Korean grocery stores. There is a pretty good one in Strathfield Plaza across from the checkouts at Woolworths, next to the chemist.

1. Boil the rice noodles, I just used charm vermicelli.


2. Rinse the noodles in cold water and let stand.

3. Thinly slice the vegetables. I use carrots, green capsicum and onion. Cook the vegetables with a little splash of sesame oil. Take out of fry pan. I don't cook my vegetables until they are soft because I like them hard.


4. Cook some beef strips - about 100-150 grams is enough. This is optional - it tastes good without meat if you are a vegetarian. Take the meat out of the frypan.


5. Put the noodles in the frypan with 7 spoons of soy sauce, 1 spoon of brown sugar, 1 spoon of 요리당 and 1 spoon of 미림. (I had to google it - 미림 is a cooking wine that takes away a fish smell and 요리당 is a cooking syrup). When I mix this I just taste test it and usually add a splash more of each of the three liquids.


6. Add the vegetables and beef strips and mix until hot.


7. Put on a plate and add sesame oil to taste - about 2 spoons.

This was enough for 3 meals.

NOTE: In the one I just cooked I used beef mince instead of strips of beefs and it was just as good. You can add sesame seeds at the end but I don't.

Busan Transport Card

Busan is pretty easy to get around. There are 4 subway lines connecting different parts of the city with a few major stops where the lines cross and you can connect to a different line.

The four main lines are:

Line One: Sinpyeong to Nopo-dong
Line Two: Hopo to Jangsan
Line Three: Daejeo to Suyeong
Line Four: Minam to Anpyeong

A really good map can be found here with both the English and Korean station names:

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My station is Kyungsung University/Pukyong National University station (212) on line 2 so it's really convenient if I want to change lines at Seomyeon or Suyeon.

In addition to the subway, there is an amazing bus system here. I have not caught it by myself yet. I've always been with other people so I haven't had to rely on myself to figure out which bus to take. One day I'll plant myself in front of the bus stop and check the routes.

I originally thought it would be difficult to figure out how to get around between the subway and the buses, particularly the buses. It's pretty easy actually.

1. Buy a Hanaro card from a subway station vending machine (6, 000 won).

2. Add value to it at the recharge machine.
3. When you catch the subway/bus you just place your card near the sensor - no need to take it out of your wallet if that's where you keep it, it'll read it through your bag. It comes with a strap so it's just as easy to attach it to your mobile phone.
4. If you need to transfer or will catch another form of transport within 30 minutes the fare is reduced. Eg. Catch the subway and swipe your card then hop on a bus and swipe it again and it'll be cheaper. If you plan to catch 2 buses or a bus and then the subway just swipe the card when you get on the bus, swipe it when you get off the bus and then swipe it when you get on the next one or at the subway.
5. If you only catch one bus or if you finish catching the second bus there is no need to swipe on the way out.

When you swipe the card on the bus the machine talks to you. My friend told me it says 'welcome' if it's the first form of transport and 'transfer' if it is your second.

It's so convenient here; unlike City Rail in Sydney!!!

Korean Style Work Party

I haven't officially started at my company yet but I dropped into their party tonight to meet everyone and have a good time with some workmates. It was very different to what I expected. I thought it might be uncomfortable with the boss and his wife as well as the director and managers. I was completely wrong.

I have found that at this workplace, rather than just being coworkers, it's like they are family. Everyone is so welcoming and wonderful.

The night started off with Ollie and I meeting Bianca on her 'special class' at Dive Bar and then we headed back to the company before heading to the party venue. The company had booked a restaurant/bar for us to go to and we all paid 10,000 won (under $10) for food and alcohol. They had heaps of food; camp stew, patbingsu, fried stuff, noodles... who can even remember!The tables got rearranged 3 times to suit the number of people that were there, finally ending in this massive long table with the boss at the head. Every now and then he would stop the party for speeches and cheers to which we were all to drink. Obviously not knowing this, it was a big night!

It was a great time and at the end we were all given a small package with 10,000 won from the boss and his wife for taxis. Everyone is so nice. I can't wait to start working with such wonderful people.

With Co-workers Bianca and Angela

Even though it was blurry, I couldn't not put up a photo of the first time I have ever seen people eat cake with chopsticks!

Level Test Day

Level testing has been going on at work for the past few days and today I had to conduct it. Basically it just requires talking to the new people coming to the company to see which class they should be in. Considering I had observed 3 lessons; a level 6 which apparently are really CC level, a level 5 where only one person turned up and that person was also really a level CC and a level 4, that made it a bit difficult.

They were lovely. One was scared of me and the other wanted me to help him find a new English name starting with R because he didn't like his old name Peter. I chose Robbie for him. Unfortunately neither of them will be in my class because I have morning classes and they both wanted evening classes. They don't wake up before noon! I wish. I will be starting at 6:40am for the next 3 months which I am happy about because that means I finish at 3pm. I don't really want to start at 2pm and work through to 10pm.

Tonight there is a staff party at 10pm and no work tomorrow. Thank goodness... I can sleep innnnnn!!!!!

I Love Free Samples

It is winter in Korea at the moment and my skin in drying out like nothing else. I can't stand having scaly skin so I stopped by Nature Republic to buy some skin products. I picked up an oil face cleanser and it literally is like putting oil on your face. I hope it works because it feels gross.

What I love about Korean cosmetic stores is that you walk out with a whole bag of free samples. They don't just pick a few to give you either. Most stores have pre-packaged bags full of different types of sample products. For example, when I went to Nature Republic, this is what I bought. (They were having end of year sales so I stocked up while it was cheap!)


And these were all the free samples I came away with.


I definitely think Australia needs to start doing something like this.

Something I have noticed is that we don't take care of our skin back home as much as they do here. Everyone looks so young here. One lady I met here looks the same age as me, only I found out later she is 40 years old with 2 children. Yikes! I wish I could have skin like that at 40. I'll keep dreaming!