King Sejong, Seoul South Korea

Singing her little heart out, Park Ji Min, 15, wowed the judges of KPop Star (and me) as she sang Adele’s ‘Rolling in the Deep’. She switched from Korean to English so fluidly and I was utterly amazed. Check out the video below:

Kim Jong Il

This afternoon, it was reported that Kim Jong Il, the ruler of communist North Korea died over the weekend. He was 69 years old. Below is the official report from Yonhap News Agency, one of the official news agencies of South Korea.

SEOUL, Dec. 19 (Yonhap) — North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, who ruled the communist nation with an iron fist while pursuing nuclear weapons programs, has died, state media said Monday. He was 69.

Kim, who took over North Korea after his father and national founder Kim Il-sung died in 1994, “passed away from a great mental and physical strain” during a train ride at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, the Korean Central News Agency said in an urgent dispatch.

A female newscaster, clad in a black funeral dress, also announced Kim’s death on state TV.

The late Kim had been in ill heath after suffering an apparent stroke in 2008.

THE MENU:

김밥류, Kimbap Ryu, Kimbap selections

1. 원조 김밥, Wonjo Kimbap, Dollar Kimbap, 1,000 won: The most basic of Kimbap, fillings include damuji (a yellow pickled sweet radish), processed ham, carrots, some green, maybe spinach, and cooked egg.

2. 야채 김밥, Yachae Kimbap, Vegetable Kimbap, 2,000 won: Filled with various veggies including carrots and spinach. Little variation from Won-jo Kimbap.

3. 김치 김밥, Kimchi Kimbap, 2,000 won: Standard kimbap fillings (ham, eggs, carrots, radish) with a healthy dose of kimchi.

4. 계란말이 김밥, Kaeranmal Kimbap, Egg wrapped Kimbap 2,500 won: Standard fillings. The kimbap is rolled in a thin omelet, then sliced.
5. 치즈 김밥, Cheese Kimbap, 2,500 won: Standard kimbap fillings including a slice of processed cheese.

8. 참치 김밥, Chamchi Kimbap, Tuna filled kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings including tuna, gagnib (sesame leaf), and mayonnaise.*

9. 소고기 김밥, Sogogi Kimbap, Beef filled kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings including beef.

10. 누드 김밥, Nude Kimbap, 2,500won: Standard kimbap fillings, like an inside out roll, with the seaweed on the inside and rice on the outside.

12. 유부초밥, Youbu chobap, 3,000won: Like inari sushi. Some places heavily season the rice with vinegar.*

]]> http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/a-quick-stop-at-kimbap-world/feed/ 0 http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/santacon-2011-in-seoul/ http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/santacon-2011-in-seoul/#comments Mon, 12 Dec 2011 09:16:24 +0000 admin http://www.cocoinkorea.com/?p=1525 Photo-log from Santacon 2011 in Seoul, South Korea.

Santa Says "Sorry For Party Rockin'"

"Santa Claus is Coming to Town"

Santas in the Sinchon Train Station

Santas Squeezing onto the Train

Santas Taking Over the Train

Santas Causing Traffic at Hongik University Station

Santas Party Rockin' in Hongdae

Wintertime has arrived again to Korea and the return of the cold school hallways, classrooms, and teacher’s room has begun. I still feel strange wearing a coat indoors during the winter but in Korea, it is somewhat of a necessity. Usually, the hallways are much colder than being outside and the classrooms (although the heaters are on) tend to also be on the chilly side. This year I work at a middle school. which means that I no longer sit in the English classroom at my makeshift desk, but I have my own full desk in the teacher’s room.

Upside: I have my own space with a nice set of drawers and moderate privacy and in the summers I am sitting right in front of the air-conditioner.

Downside: I am sitting right next to the window, which is open every day during 6th period while the students come and clean our office. Every. Day. Rain… Sun… Wind… Snow (o.O)

Lately it has been bitterly cold and the cold air has been finding its way to my desk. The heaters remain on, but the windows are open. I cannot say that I am a fan. I just hope that it does not get too cold this winter.

]]> http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/baby-its-cold-inside/feed/ 1 http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/i-want-to-drink-soju-but-i-have-a-stomachache/ http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/i-want-to-drink-soju-but-i-have-a-stomachache/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 07:52:19 +0000 admin http://www.cocoinkorea.com/?p=1513 Recognize this? Those of you in Korea should know this very well.

I learned a great phrase at dinner last night (and for those of you who teach in Korea, this is a great phrase that I recommend you learn for those ‘school dinners’)

“나 소주 먹고싶어요, 그러나, 위가 아파요. 미안해요.” (na so-ju muh-goh-ship-oh-yo, kuh-ruh-nah, wae-ga ah-pah-yo).

This sentence translates to: ‘I want to drink soju, but I have a stomachache. I’m sorry.’

At this point you may be wondering how I came to know this phrase, and why it took me almost two years to learn it. Well, the night went a little like this…

After finishing the semester teaching my adult students, the heads of the various departments of the company I worked for invited me out for a farewell dinner. All of the ‘big dogs’ were there. I greeted each one, many of whom I had never met before, and sat down at the table with the other foreign teachers.

We began talking and soon a live octopus was brought to the middle of the table and set on fire (okay, this is a little dramatic… the octopus was actually placed in boiling water and boiled to death.) I had never seen an octopus that large in person and I was told that in Korea, this was the most expensive octopus that could be found, so it was an important night.

As the octopus boiled in the beef/octopus/vegetable stew on our table, the other teachers and I began to talk, and I was handed a shot glass of soju (the one pictured above, which I never finished… but I will save that for later.) I happily began to continue my chat and set my soju glass down next to my bowl. I started eating the side dishes when the head of the company stood up. I knew I was in for some trouble.

The head (I will refer to him now as Mr. Honcho [as in 'Head Honcho']) stood up and handed his shot glass to one of the foreign teachers (who I will call ‘Park’). Park took the glass with both hands as Mr. Honcho poured a full shot of soju, and beckoned him to take ‘one shot!’. Park one-shotted it and as is customary in Korean culture, Park handed the shot glass back to Mr. Honcho and poured him a full glass. Mr. Honcho one-shotted as well and then handed his empty glass to another foreign teacher (who I will call ‘Wool’). The same give-and-take process that occurred between Mr. Honcho and Park was repeated with Mr. Honcho and Wool. After Park and Wool had entertained the one-shots, it was my turn. In Korea, it is impolite to turn down alcohol when someone elder than you offers. I had no choice but to give in, so I poured, passed, and drank from Mr. Honcho’s cup.

Seeing the ‘happiness’ that was ensuing with the one-shotting at my end of the room, the department heads in the room figured it was the perfect time to get the Native Teachers drunk. I want to remind you at this time, that the soju glass pictured above stayed the same  way the whole night as I was offered shot after shot of soju from various department heads from their shot glasses.

I felt a slight buzz coming on, and I tried to pack my stomach with food so that I did not get sick. Jokingly, another department head came over and told me that soju was ‘Korean water’. What do you think he did next? You guessed it! Poured me a topped-off cup of the Korean water. At this point my stomach felt like it was going to explode with all of the rice, octopus, beef, side dishes, vegetables, soup broth and soju that had been filling my stomach over the course of my meal. I had no choice but to accept.

Then, an angel floated my way (I will refer to her as Angel). Angel sat down next to me, told me about her family and job. She asked me questions about my life in Korea and my hair (of course). She then told me how to politely decline the offer of soju. We practiced saying it over and over again. I was so happy to have met her.

Not long after Angel returned to her side of the room, Mr. Honcho was holding his glass back out again at me. This time I was prepared. In my broken Korean, I managed to get out the phrase I was just taught and at the end of my sentence, everyone started clapping. I had politely declined Mr. Honcho’s shot glass, and I was darn proud of myself.

]]> http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/i-want-to-drink-soju-but-i-have-a-stomachache/feed/ 0 http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/korea-thank-you-for-floor-heating/ http://www.cocoinkorea.com/2011/12/korea-thank-you-for-floor-heating/#comments Tue, 06 Dec 2011 03:57:47 +0000 admin http://www.cocoinkorea.com/?p=1505

 It has been a while since I have posted, and I apologize about that. November was a very hectic month consisting of a lot of traveling and events. My days in Korea are slowly winding down and I am preparing to leave in a few months to travel and to seek out different career opportunities.

When I leave Korea, one thing that I will SERIOUSLY miss is the floor heating (ondol – 온돌 ) . Last night after I returned home from a long day at work, I decided to get in bed and watch television, but it was way too cold. I turned on my ondol, climbed down onto the floor, pulled my blanket around myself and laid there until my apartment warmed up.

There is no snow yet in Korea but the temperatures have started to drastically drop and I am not looking forward to the upcoming winter, but I am looking forward to many nights spent on my floor. #1ThingIWillMissAboutKorea

Pumpkins at Everland

On behalf of Coco In Korea, we want to wish everyone a safe and Happy Halloween weekend! This past weekend in Korea was filled with a lot of fun parties and activities, one of them including a trip to Everland, an amusement park in Yongin, South Korea. Along with my friend T, I created an impromptu tour video of the park. My video camera stopped filming at ten minutes, so I was not able to do a full tour of the park, but I hope it gives you a little sense of Halloween in Korea. Enjoy!