The English Club

Yesterday was the second after school English club meeting...for teachers. Here is the most awkward thing about teaching a class for co-workers in Korea--navigating the social hierarchy.  I am the youngest person at my school (except for my lovely co-teacher who is 9 days younger). Korean social rules dictate that certain titles/names be used in addressing each other, particularly with people who are older than you. It's really where a huge amount of foreigner faux pas are made. Now, if you are trying to have an English conversation club where you only speak English and these titles don't translate and even sound incredibly awkward or even rude in English. Not to mention that the over use of 'you' in English is also considered pretty rude in Korean. 

I spoke with my co-teacher about it before class for about 15 minutes before giving up and deciding to spend 5 minutes discussing the cultural differences and asking each teacher what they preferred to be called. A few of them had English names (perhaps from their hagwon days?) and another one decided that she wanted to be called Meg Ryan. I love it. 

Of course, I was super stressed before the first meeting but as usual, my stress was for naught. So far we have discussed our shopping habits and the current kimchi cabbage scandal. Next up: the Busan Film Festival. I think I'm going to try for a youtube clip of a movie (maybe just a couple of minutes) and then chat about it. 

Spaz update: NOT SPECIFICALLY MY FAULT! Though I definitely blame my inferior genetics...I appear to be allergic to every brand of band-aids in this country. The adhesive makes my skin get a lovely, itchy pink rash that apparently normal people don't get. So when I put band-aids on my mosquito bites in an effort to not pick and scratch at them, I am ultimately defeated. I give up. Mosquito bite scars, here we come! 

Dear Frost,

Please come early for a night or two and kill of the blood sucking fiends in my life. 

Love,

Alex