A Week of Firsts: Faculty, Octopus, Snow and War

The past week brought a number of firsts: the first time I went to a faculty dinner, the first time I ate live octopus, the first snowfall of the year and the first time since the Korean War that North Korea has fired upon South Korean civilians.

As many of you have probably read online or seen on the news, last Tuesday North Korea began shelling a small island claimed by South Korea in the Yellow Sea. This caused South Korea to fire back in retaliation, no more than 100 shells were fired on each side, but it was enough. Homes were burned, people were evacuated, two marines and two civilians were killed. No one knows the casulties on the North Korean side. Since then the Korean news has delievered non-stop coverage of the shelling, the screen showing images of smoke, panic, destruction and soldiers. While no further retaliation on either side has resulted, tension on the penesula is high. While people jokingly said "we're going to war!" I actually believe most people believe, or hope for, the opposite. No one wants a war, especially with Seoul in firing distance of the North. There are all sorts of rumors as to why North Korea fired on the South... In a desperate plead for aid during a freezing winter, in an atempt to illustration the validity of Kim-Jong Il's son as successor (Kim is suspected to be sick and dying)... no one knows exactly why. Currently the South and the USA are engaging in war manuvers in the Yellow Sea, 77 miles south of the disputed border line. The North keeps issuing statements proclaiming any futher movement in the sea will provoke them. In South Korea, the Defense Minister resigned after the shelling on Tuesday, following criticism he did not respond harshly enough, the new Defense Minister warns North Korea that if they provoke the South, they will be harshly dealt with.

We will see what happens. Hopefully nothing. Its hard to imagine something like this happening so close by... its like if the North and South really had become two countries during the American Civil War, families were would be divided, and one side may have ended up poor and the other rich, as with North and South Korea. Everyone wants unification, but at the same time no one knows what really lies in the North. A horribly oppressive regime with thousands in slave labor camps... people fear the USA and South Korea can only bend to the angry will of the North for so long.

To illustrate this news isn't as prevelant in the daily lives of Koreans as one would think, last Wednesday, the day after the shelling, the faculty of Sangji Middle School traveled to Seoul and then had a teacher dinner (we watched the news on the bus.) Thus Wednesday turned out to be another half day I didn't know about. All teachers went to Seoul together on a bus at after lunch at 1:30pm to go to a teaching materials convention. The principal wanted everyone to go. While many teachers told me I should go home and "take a rest" my main co-teacher said he'd like for me to go so that I could feel like part of the group. So I agreed. Everyone fell asleep on the bus. We arrived at 3:00 and left Seoul at 4:30. The convention wasn't all that large so we were able to walk around the entire thing. I hung out with a group of women, all in the mid-30's, whom I usually eat lunch with. It was really nice walking and talking with them. Even though only one of them speaks English, the other two and I would try to talk, even if it was just through gestures, pointing and smiling. They are really sweet women and I was very glad to have been included in the trip. We snuck away for coffee at one point and they refused to let me pay, saying it was Korean custom! They always pay for me, someday I will return the favor!

At 4:30 we all piled back on the bus, fell asleep, and arrived back in Wonju by 6pm, as planned. Then it was time for the faculty dinner, my first one! All 40 teachers traveled to a sashimi resturant. The place was super fancy and contained numerous private rooms for parties. I was told by many different people to guess how much the meal cost, 25,000 won each! When we walked in long tables were set up with about fifteen different appetizers displayed around them. There were shrimp, oysters, vegetables, crab meat, kimchi, etc. It was beautiful and impressive. I decided I would be really brave and try the oysters, thinking of how Dad used to eat them. My coteacher Mrs. Kim, who had driven me over, didn't hesitate pulling the oyster out of its shell with her chopsticks and gulping it down. I, of course, had lots of trouble getting it free of its shell using only chopsticks, but I finally did and swallowed it down. It was okay, but definitely tasted fishy and like sea water.

That was only the first round. I believe there were more than 10 rounds of food throughout this dinner. What came next was the sashimi. Five different kinds of fish were sliced and beautifully displayed on clear noodles that were pilled up into balls. There were orange and yellow flowers addoring the plate. It was the most glamerous platter of food Ihave ever seen. I felt like I was at a kings feast. Afterwards followed: noodles, tempura, seeweed soup, rice, trout, shrimp, octopus, egg, kimchi, vegetables... it just never stopped coming! The waitresses were serving us for over an hour and a half! Somewhere in there the Principal made a speech and bottles of soju, beer and soda were opened. The Principal went around to everyone in the room and did a shot of soju with them, as did a few of the other teachers.

Did I also mention that the octopus was LIVE?! Yes, that's right, LIVE. I ate LIVE octopus! This was something I had read about on the interent before coming to Korea but was sure I would never try. But, after a few shots of soju, lots of good laughter and talk, and a banquet before me, I thought it a great opportunity. Out came the wiggling tenacles. They had been cut off of an octpus, so luckily there was no head and body. I guess its like when you cut the head off of a chicken and the body still flops around. There they were, twenty or more peices, moving around, wiggling, using their suction cups to stick to the plate. Mrs. Kim eagerly ate. Across from me, one of the younger teachers that I had been bonding with over the past week shook her head, indicating not her! I gulped and said I would try it. I was laughing and nervous and so had a terrible time using my chopsticks. I couldn't get the food on them if my life depended on it! Their suction cups were too strong and I couldn't get them to let go of the plate! Mrs. Kim finally helped me and I got one in my clutches. I asked her if you were supposed to chew them or just swallow. She looked at me like I was insane. "Chew them of course!" she said, "otherwise they will stick to your throat!" I was thinking, oh my god are you serious?! I remembered Dad always telling us when we were kids that the octopus he was eating was sticking to his throat and trying to get out (even thought it was dead) -- I didn't know it was a possiblity! What happens if it gets stuck, do you choke to death?! Anyway... I took this advice to heart and as soon as I popped the wiggling tenicle in my mouth, chewed vigerously. So vigerously I would have had no idea it was alive a second ago had I not seen it. It tasted okay... like meat. A shot of soju later I was ready to try another one. And then a third. The third one was a rather large peice. Thinking I didn't need to chew was quickly as I had been it sat in my mouth for a split second. And sectioned onto the roof of my mouth!!! I almost flipped out and quickly chewed it down!

The faculty dinner was a great experience! It was nice to see everyone loosening up and talking. One teacher kept making speeches that no one would listen to. Plus teachers I didn't even think new I exsisted were attempting to talk with me, sit with me, drink with me. One older man who I think is very funny looking came and sat down next to me. He didn't know how to say anything to me in English and I couldn't say much to him. I could tell me liked me and wanted to talk but after awhile of staring at each other he eventually moved on. I was touched. Then the principle plopped down next to me! He was bright red, had clearly drank a lot of soju. He said "how are you?" and then quickly jestured for an English teacher to sit next to him and translate. Mr. Park refused with a smile, and soon Mr. Byeon was grabbed. The Principal went on to tell me how much he worried about me, how he really cares for me, how I must meet his daughter when she comes home for the holidays as she is currently in CA studying English Literature. He told me his nick name is "the problem solver" and if I ever had ANY problem I should just tell him! He also said he was serious about wanting to hike Mt. Chiaksan with the teachers and said we would go, even in the snow. Lastly he proclaimed I should accompony the high school teachers on their ski trip coming up in a few weeks (Jason gets to go!)! Sadly I was informed yesterday by Mr. Byeon that "actually, he was drunk" and it was thus only the soju talking, I do not get to go skiing. That is the difficult part... I don't know what of our talk I should actually take seriously, since he was drunk and happy. In Korea that's how things go, promises do not mean anything, they are just ceremonial words, like so many things here.

Still I felt like I made some more friends that night and two of the younger women said we must go out for beers in December. I hope that is a promise that WILL follow through.

The other first for the week was SNOW! The first snowfall of the year hit Wonju on Saturday. The weather report had called for a "chance of snow" but I was skpetical. As I snoozed the morning away I asked Jason to look out the window and tell me if it was snowing. I was joking, not expecting anything. He said, "well, its not snowing but there is snow on the ground." I was like "what?!?! really?!?! are you serious?!?!?" Immediatly I jumped out of bed, looked out the window and squealed with delight!! In five minutes I was dressed, teeth brushed, hair combed, jacket on. I couldn't wait to go out in it! I was kicking myself for having slept through it all morning as it was already 10am. After a quick breakfast of oatmeal we were trudding through the snow, only a few inches. It began to snow more and I couldn't stop singing "walking in a winter wonderland." I haven't seen a snowfall on a place I've lived in... at least seven years... once a year in Lancaster is not much, and in high school that kinda stopped. Last year I drove up to Big Bear to see the snow, but it wasn't falling and we had to drive to it, and then immediatly were back in the warm OC. This was much cooler! Jason and I walked to the river and continued down its bank. It was beautiful. There were ducks in the water and snow covering everything. We crossed the river using stepping stones that Wonju had installed. Then it started to get really cold and the snow was turing more to sleet so we headed inside.

The snow is mostly melted now and I did not like the freezing and slippery streets it left behind, but I am told not to worry, more will come. We'll see how long I find it wonderful and when I start to long for spring.

Only three more weeks until my family arrives for Christmas!