Friday was a bit of a wash. It started on a pretty average note, and my boss decided to surprise me with one more student. The only issue here is that this student is a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT.
I teach three age groups: Elementary, Middle school, and Adults.
Why?
Because high school students have to take career dependent exams. In smaller countries, the job field is even more competitive and having a college education is dire for business and other high-end pursuits. So when it comes to being a teacher for that...
I DO NOT NEED THAT KIND OF PRESSURE.
But alas, I know Jenny (my boss), had only my best interest in mind and figured she was helping by adding on a little more income. In the long run, yes. Thank you, Jenny. But there was one more issue.
민석 (Minseok) can NOT speak or understand any English. So its like trying to talk to a dog. And I feel awful because I only want to help the poor kid.
After work, exhausted, I sauntered home. I stopped into Paik's coffee for one of their ridiculously inexpensive lattes, knowing I'd suffer plenty from the major lactose intake I was challenging. But hey, who can beat 3,200 원?
The other downside to Paik's is they don't have cinnamon powder in their self service bar. Life hack: Remove the sleeve, walk to the nearest Starbucks or Twosome Place (particularly if its a high traffic location) and use theirs, then walk out like its no one's business. Yeah baby, cinnamon latte.
For days I had been craving the spice of 김치비빔국수 (Kimchi bibimguksu), a bowl of cold noodles with kimchi and 비빔 (bibim) sauce. I found a small ma and pop restaurant bustling with all sorts of people one their way to and from work, academy, etc. I sat alone and looked over the menu, but found myself more interested in the 쫄면, which is essentially the same but with chewy noodles instead.
At home, I enjoyed a relaxing evening watching movies on Netflix, assuming that would be the finality of my night's excitement.
I was wrong.
My friend from 대구(Daegu) was in town, and wanted so badly to see me. Unable to disagree, 재희(Jaehee) and I met near my home in 신촌 (Sinchon) station. She wasn't able to arrive until 11 pm, so almost all of the restaurants were closed for the evening. We wandered about, trying to find 사시미 (sashimi) or 쭈꾸미 (jjuggumi: stir fried spicy baby octopus). We finally ended up at a 낙치 restaurant. 낙지, meaning octopus, is used in a variety of dishes throughout Korea. One of the best being 낙지 볶음 (Nakgji bokgeum), or, spicy stir fry with octopus. Pretty much anything with the word 볶음 (bokgeum) in, you can expect to be doused in a spicy red sauce with plenty of veggies and sesame seeds. Alongside our meal we enjoyed a plethora of 본찬 (bonchan), which is the number one thing I will likely miss in the US. 본찬 are side dishes meant to compliment your meal. They are necessarily meant to be eaten with your meal in one bite (such as naan and curry), but certainly do not hesitate to do so. Many Koreans do this, I personally enjoy adding kimchi to my 비빔국수 (bibimguksu). Here, I had to choose from:
숙주남물: Sukjunammul, bean sprouts in sesame oil
뮬치볶음: Myeolchi bokgeum, dried anchovies
김치: Kimchi, pickled spicy cabbage
돌자반무침: Dolchaban muchim, dried seaweed flakes
부추김치: Buchu kimchi, marinated Chives
셀러드: Salad, fresh cabbage with a mayo based dressing - please note I legitimately looked everywhere for the name of this and could not find it.
무생채: Musaencha, tangy pickled shredded radish with carrots
and also soup and a heaping boiled of white rice. You'll see just about any native add 숙주남물 or 뮬치볶음 to their bowl, but I like to add in the sweet and fresh mix of the cabbage salad. The 날치 is cooked over a grill in the center of your table, and it sizzles among various vegetables and other seafood such as shrimp and fish. When its done, you may take it right from the grill if you're eating among friends, or if you don't know your table mates as well you can use a spoon to dish out the octopus onto your rice. Per choice, you can either eat the octopus alone or mix it into the rice. It comes in many levels of spice, so we challenged ourselves with the highest.
My mouth was on fire. (:
But that's okay! Because the restaurant luckily served Heineken beer to wash it down.
After dinner, we ventured on to karaoke, where we both had a great time fighting over who was the better singer. In the end, we both scored pretty high, and gave up after our last round of popular meme songs.
I said farewell to 재희 as the night rolled over into day 13, where I would spend a wicked night in 홍대.
I teach three age groups: Elementary, Middle school, and Adults.
Why?
Because high school students have to take career dependent exams. In smaller countries, the job field is even more competitive and having a college education is dire for business and other high-end pursuits. So when it comes to being a teacher for that...
I DO NOT NEED THAT KIND OF PRESSURE.
But alas, I know Jenny (my boss), had only my best interest in mind and figured she was helping by adding on a little more income. In the long run, yes. Thank you, Jenny. But there was one more issue.
민석 (Minseok) can NOT speak or understand any English. So its like trying to talk to a dog. And I feel awful because I only want to help the poor kid.
After work, exhausted, I sauntered home. I stopped into Paik's coffee for one of their ridiculously inexpensive lattes, knowing I'd suffer plenty from the major lactose intake I was challenging. But hey, who can beat 3,200 원?
The other downside to Paik's is they don't have cinnamon powder in their self service bar. Life hack: Remove the sleeve, walk to the nearest Starbucks or Twosome Place (particularly if its a high traffic location) and use theirs, then walk out like its no one's business. Yeah baby, cinnamon latte.
For days I had been craving the spice of 김치비빔국수 (Kimchi bibimguksu), a bowl of cold noodles with kimchi and 비빔 (bibim) sauce. I found a small ma and pop restaurant bustling with all sorts of people one their way to and from work, academy, etc. I sat alone and looked over the menu, but found myself more interested in the 쫄면, which is essentially the same but with chewy noodles instead.
I was wrong.
My friend from 대구(Daegu) was in town, and wanted so badly to see me. Unable to disagree, 재희(Jaehee) and I met near my home in 신촌 (Sinchon) station. She wasn't able to arrive until 11 pm, so almost all of the restaurants were closed for the evening. We wandered about, trying to find 사시미 (sashimi) or 쭈꾸미 (jjuggumi: stir fried spicy baby octopus). We finally ended up at a 낙치 restaurant. 낙지, meaning octopus, is used in a variety of dishes throughout Korea. One of the best being 낙지 볶음 (Nakgji bokgeum), or, spicy stir fry with octopus. Pretty much anything with the word 볶음 (bokgeum) in, you can expect to be doused in a spicy red sauce with plenty of veggies and sesame seeds. Alongside our meal we enjoyed a plethora of 본찬 (bonchan), which is the number one thing I will likely miss in the US. 본찬 are side dishes meant to compliment your meal. They are necessarily meant to be eaten with your meal in one bite (such as naan and curry), but certainly do not hesitate to do so. Many Koreans do this, I personally enjoy adding kimchi to my 비빔국수 (bibimguksu). Here, I had to choose from:
숙주남물: Sukjunammul, bean sprouts in sesame oil
뮬치볶음: Myeolchi bokgeum, dried anchovies
김치: Kimchi, pickled spicy cabbage
돌자반무침: Dolchaban muchim, dried seaweed flakes
부추김치: Buchu kimchi, marinated Chives
셀러드: Salad, fresh cabbage with a mayo based dressing - please note I legitimately looked everywhere for the name of this and could not find it.
무생채: Musaencha, tangy pickled shredded radish with carrots
and also soup and a heaping boiled of white rice. You'll see just about any native add 숙주남물 or 뮬치볶음 to their bowl, but I like to add in the sweet and fresh mix of the cabbage salad. The 날치 is cooked over a grill in the center of your table, and it sizzles among various vegetables and other seafood such as shrimp and fish. When its done, you may take it right from the grill if you're eating among friends, or if you don't know your table mates as well you can use a spoon to dish out the octopus onto your rice. Per choice, you can either eat the octopus alone or mix it into the rice. It comes in many levels of spice, so we challenged ourselves with the highest.
My mouth was on fire. (:
But that's okay! Because the restaurant luckily served Heineken beer to wash it down.
After dinner, we ventured on to karaoke, where we both had a great time fighting over who was the better singer. In the end, we both scored pretty high, and gave up after our last round of popular meme songs.
I said farewell to 재희 as the night rolled over into day 13, where I would spend a wicked night in 홍대.
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