Christmas Party!

Avalon Academy threw all of us a wonderful party in the Gwangju Ramada hotel. It was a big event, all of the Avalon Academies were present. Over 90 of us met in a spacious event room and enjoyed awards entertainment and of course fantastic food!


When we first entered the event center lobby we were presented with name tags and gift (both were most welcome!)






Here is me with Adam:






The room was very nice, it looked like no expense was spared!



Now let's cut to the chase: The food.

The food was amazing! Never have I been so excited to eat such a feast of variety!



Now this is only a shot of about 2/3rds of one table. They had FOUR tables. Salmon, pastries, shrimp, an entire table of diverse hot sauced meats. Take a look at my plate:



The green dude at about 12:00 was like sushi, but packed in bamboo and baked. Massive prawns along with salmon (draping over at about 5:00) made me a happy man as well. My fears that I would be seen as first for seconds proved to be completely unfounded, as many went up a second and third time before me. Who am I kidding!? Their plates must not have been that full. But seriously DUCK! I commented to Koreans that I hadn't eaten duck since I shot it (or maybe since you did dad). It was another subtle reminder that made me think of the different world I come from.

Ok, now that I have expounded about the feast, let's gently roll back to the beginning. I had to chuckle to myself a bit when told of our assigned seating. Assigned seating for tables is A OK, but I was completely alone at the table for 10-15 minutes (don't worry, got up and mingled).



Apparently the members of my table were all getting ready together, and showed up all at once fashionably late.

The tables all looked great!:






After we were all pacified by decadent food, the introduction commenced. There was a slide show recapping the year, and then the awards!
I received two, one I expected, and one that took me by complete surprise.

First, I won "who can eat the most" this was was no surprise. None whatsoever.

But here's the real kicker. Not 15 minutes before I left for the party I asked my Canadian neighbor the same question I ask my sister and mother all the time "Can I wear these brown shoes these dark gray pants and black shirt, or should I wear black dress shoes?" The answer of course was "BLACK." accompanied a quizzical look, along with a tone that seemed to ask if I was joking. I was not, my brown dress shoes are really nice, and kind of dark so that could work....right?

Anyway I won "Best Dressed Man" at the party. I did not see this coming at all.




It had to be some bizarre combination of me "cleaning up pretty good," and generally wearing a well planned outfit.

My family can rest easy, for I did not win "funniest person to drink with." I was only second place. Only three of the people on this board are Western, the other 6 are Korean.



The votes for me must have been cast on the basis of assumption. I have been skilled at cloaking my debilitating and crippling alcoholism from the world by only drinking alone in my apartment... in the dark, gazing at photos of the life I left behind. In my opinion this should exclude me from said category entirely.

Then arrived the second highlight of the evening. The Skits!
I managed to film some of the more entertaining ones.

Here is a preliminary photo introduction to the first video.
This will help you understand when you watch it.

There is a prince and a princess:


Then a witch comes and steals the prince:



Many Santas show up to console the weeping princess.


"Have you seen this prince?"


Then there is a "Dance Battle"






The princess wins the prince back by being "hotter"
and then there is a big "Merry Christmas Dance" at the end.




The next skit was just as funny. The Korean teachers aides wrote a skit making fun of meetings with our schools manager...just watch and imagine this happening before your own eyes.






If you listen, you can hear me ask my Korean co-teacher Grace, to explain to me what is happening before my eyes
The sign saying "KENYA KENYA," has a meaning. It is the name of the coffee place right below our school.

I know this video was very long. I am just laughing at giving you a little taste of what life is like not understanding anything. This was only 3 minutes, try all day!


The school on the floor above us made human snow-people.


Our skit was a laugh riot (for us) We printed off a card for each one of the "12 Days of Christmas."
Each table had a day. We had one together and I sang "5 Golden Rings" in my best tenor voice.


There were numerous problems and setbacks. I loved every one of them, that's what made it so fun!


Here is another westerner skit. Each person came to sit down (one by one, adding to the song), playing a new percussion instrument each time, only to be lured away one by one by another teacher offering Korean adult beverages.


A few more photos for you:



















After the crowds enjoyment of my solo during our skit, I was invited by John (the manager they were poking fun of in the skit) to sing a Karaoke song.

Here is the song I sang...much better than the original ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGZeqwdWoeo




I rapidly perused the ailing list of English songs and selected "White Room."
It was the icing on the cake of a wonderful evening.

Here is our group picture, guess where I am?


I went to Seoul this weekend, so that will be the next post!

OMG SNOW!

The title of this post is what everyone was saying two nights ago when this happened:



There is about twice as much now as there is in this photo. All the foreigners are going absolutely nuts. The only ones here who have had a real winters are the two Canadians.

I don't get excited because this is what I think of when people say "Winter":



And sometimes this:



The snow certainly jolts me into a certain state of mind. Several days ago, before the onset of the snow, I received uncomfortable looks from my Korean and Western co-teachers when would grab them forcefully by the shoulders and get real close to their faces and whisper intensley:

"Do you smell it!? DO YOU SMELL IT (insert korean or western name)!?!? SNOW IS COMING!"

The snow is fine, but I am now realizing fully that I was born and raised to generate body heat. On average it is about 5-10 degrees F .

I just started to wear my winter coat and still don't use the heat in my apartment. Everyone is seriously getting disturbed. This is a double-edged sword mind you. They like to keep in about 78 degrees in the school and most of the Koreans wear sweaters, some even still wear their coats.
My students are appaled when I tell them : " I just talked to my dad last night and it is -20 degrees in my home town.

Korea will be showing two of the movies I have been pretty excited for, Avatar and The Princess and the Frog.



There is an IMAX screen in my city, which is awesome. However, the subtitles may be an issue. For example, when we went to go see Inglorious Basterds we could understand everything fine....until they were speaking German, Italian or French. There were no english subtitles for those sections, only Korean.

District 9 however, worked out very well, because when the aliens spoke in their insect-bug tongue, english subtitles remained, and the Korean subtitles were moved to the side.

I can only hope to be so lucky with Avatar.





The Princess and the Frog is the first hand drawn theatrical release for Disney since Home on the Range (...that cow movie with Roseane the cow voicing the cow...)

I hope it takes me away! I still remember that every Christmas mom and dad would give Becky and me the yearly Disney movie on VHS.

We are having our staff Holiday party this weekend, so there will most certainly be some fun (and dignified) photos of the event!

New Camera and Two Turkey Days!

"Deep Fried Turkey?!?!"



I love turkey. There was never a horrible fear that I would not be consuming any of it this Thanksgiving. However, when I overheard conversations involving deep fried turkey, my ears immediadely perked up and my heart began to race.

"Can you do that?!!!!!"

"Deep fry a turkey?!!!"

"What does it taste like?!"

"What color is it?!"

"Do you have to buy a special bird?!"

"When can we eat it?!"

All of these questions raced through my churning mind and spewed from my stuttering mouth.

Apparently it's something many people do this time of year. It had just never occured to me, but the notion was very...arrousing.
We were all assigned (or volunteered) certain Items to bring. I volunteered veggies. After several days numerous co-workers agreed that perhaps pizza would be best.



Joe and I enjoyed a little pre-party prior to our arrival. I cooked up several petite steaks for us and we watched some episodes of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

When we arrived just after four (our orignal arrival plan was for 3:30, but Joe and I are lazy. Also, I received a desperate call from the host Kelsey: "Please stop by Lotte we need more OIL!!!") When we arrived in their parking garage, we saw everyone waiting desperately urging the oil to heat up to 170 degrees celsius....it took about another hour and 20 minutes to reach optimal conditions. 160 is pretty much 170...right?



All were pleased at the pizzas that were brought. The pizza along with some rolls and an assortment of wines kept us at bay. The blow of a hour and 30 minute wait was somewhat lessened. I have never seen a more resulute group of people. We all new the grandeur that awaited us!

Some could not brave the cold (or didn't get unhealthy pleasure waiting right by the cooking turkey, smelling every sizzle and pop!)



It was the best turkey I have ever tasted. Even the white meat (I am normally predisposed to dark) was so incredibly juicy and satisfying! There were also two wonderful bowls of creamy mashed potatoes. Stuffing veggies, wontons and fried pork was aslo available.



This was all on Saturday. As you could expect, I had a very full social calendar for the weekend. Sunday was spent with Joe again, but with several teachers from other schools I have met on my travels through this city. We enjoyed many fine meats. The original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie was on the itinerary as well. They were elated to know that I bring it with me wherever I move (seriously, I do).




We spend the day gorging and lying around wathcing other classics. What a fine day to spend my favorite holiday!

"Comedy"

Well, there really isn't anything funny about this picture. I guess it does make me laught that the leaves just started changing last week and I can still just wear a light jacket or t-shirt!

My current digital camera ( a sturdy old gal the size of a brick ) has a current battery life of about 5 minutes. It's more than ample frame makes it a cumbersome addition to any trip or outing. Tomorrow I will be picking up a new one. I will then be able to start documenting my time here a little more.


So I thought it was time I gave all of you a little taste of Korean pop culture. When I described this show to my students, they told me the name...I forgot it almost instantly.



Apparently, the woman in the bald cap with the side-ponytail is supposed to be Gollum.

We all know that Gollum has a side-ponytail and a brush and a stick for hands. I don't know why her stick hand is holding a cup, or why Gollum is with an evil Raggedy Anne.

This is not even the most disturbing part. This is a SHOW, meaning there are multiple adventures and routines for these misguided representations.

I am a passionate lover of absurdest comedy but some things seem to be a bit too much, and it is not just the language barrier.

It takes a lot to make me do a double-take, so I have to appreciate the truly demented and random stuff!




Here is Hugh Jackman and his Wolverine co-star Daniel Henney.


For your ultimate amusement here are links to some of the biggest K-Pop (Korean Pop) stars.

G-Dragon


Mc Mong's "Indian Boy"



Bubblegum Music is HUGE here!


Here, I have saved the best for last!

A link to my sketch blog!

Since I have not traveled or done anything of note, I will refer you to my sketchblog!
I now have a drafting table. It has been heavenly to start immersing myself in work again.

I WILL get to making a post on my boring domestic happenings this weekend.
Also, a virtual video tour of my apartment will be posted.

Enjoy the Art!

http://petergulsvig.com/sketch-blog

Korean Gym

The day started like any other. I woke up at 9:30 and enjoyed a trip to my Korean gym. My gym is a good gym. The membership was very cheap, about $115 dollars for four months membership. I have to adjust the weights in my head, most are only labeled in kilograms. I usually have to move the pin on the machines all the way down. It makes me fell a lot stronger than I am. The treadmills are designed more for mild body toning than complete max-cal fat burn workout. There is no incline option! Instead I must go by time and speed to get a good workout. It has been like training a Clydesdale to run like an Arabian Stallion (Thanks Anne and David!).

But I am getting ahead of myself. I was hit by a truck today.


That’s right, I was hit by a truck.




Those have who have spoken to me are familiar with my opinion about the approach Koreans have to driving. Some have TV’s on their dashboards that they watch while the drive. Attention while driving, even appears to be a very low priority for some.

I never hesitate to ride in a car here. They are very skilled drivers. Only two car/motor bike accidents have been witnessed since my have arrived. I am just an odd foreign variable in a very sensitive (albeit chaotic) equation of vehicular and pedestrian travel. I come from a different society with different driving rules. A society that drives defensively, a society that doesn’t use traffic lanes to park, a society that slows down and looks both ways, and a society where red really means STOP. Regrettably also a society that texts while driving.

At 11:56 am a truck came pouring out of an ally way while I was biking home. He did not stop for the sidewalk. He did not stop for any cars that may have been coming. Eventually he stopped for me.

In the two seconds prior to collision, the surrounding Koreans (men, women children) did not need a translator to understand the terrible English that poured from my mouth. Some words are universal.

Peter 1, truck 0.

He put on the brakes but not soon enough! My arm took off his mirror, and my left shoulder and torso left its mark on the front of his vehicle (my broad Grecian shoulder and sturdy bike handlebar taking the brunt of the blow). My bike was fine, my body was ok.

I repeat (Mom Dad) I AM OK. I AM OK!!!

The driver was very polite, but terrified (I was told Koreans here are just as sue happy as us Americanos). Aside from extremely mild whiplash and body tightness ( Like a jungle cat, my whole body becomes tense and readies for action during trauma) I feel fine. After all, the mind sometimes takes longer to get over these things!

I felt healthy enough to ride my bike to work and hour and a half later. Of course, I looked a little like a scared rabbit the whole way there!

p.s. Mom, Dad, I’m OK!

Halloween Part 2

I found a party store downtown with the help of a friend, but there wasn't much there. But a block away there was a fabric store! I basked in being able to find plain white cloth. My crusader costume was off to a good start.

This was what I dressed as two years ago, but it had all the features of a successful party costume: freedom of movement, no mask or hat to lose and the costume would allow me to "breath."

The night however, belonged to my buddy Joe:



He managed to find a dress to fit his build...even though the back of his gown was not cooperating:


Getting him ready was a full time job, so we spent some pre-party time over at Anna and Rachel's apartment (which is shockingly spacious).







This is my best kitty friend, Mondu. He loved to scratch at the tassels on my costume, and my bare muscular legs.

Most of the evening was spent at the two foreign establishments. Karaoke was kept everyone rocking.



I think this song was something by "Deep Purple."