Year 1 - 1st Free Talking

Hi

It was an interesting weekend. A long weekend because Monday was a preparation day for all the teachers. Which means we had it off. ;)

Due to my hours as a teacher I don't see a lot of bicyclists. When I go to work it is around 6AM and not many people are on the streets. Traffic is just starting. When I leave after my final class of the day it is 9PM and they are all gone. (I do have time off in between but people are all at work.) However, there are the omnipresent bicycle stalls. Rows of places to park and lock your bike. While a lot of people use their bikes, the numbers pale in comparison to the number of drivers and people on the bus.

Speaking of buses. They run on time here. And they are efficient. Something I would never have believed possible having lived in Dartmouth. Mind you, as I mentioned previously, taxi's are so cheap it isn't funny. It is actually cheaper for 3-4 people going downtown to take a taxi instead of the bus! To go from here to E-mart cost me about 3500 WON, which is around $3 CDN. For those who know Dartmouth the distance is comparable to that from my house to Penhorn Mall, which would cost at LEAST $10 CDN.

Monday I bought my first ever cell phone. Which is kind of funny when you think of it. I worked for AT&T Wireless for 2 years, but never owned a cell phone. The phones are tiny compared to what we have in Canada. EVERYONE has a cell phone here. Mine was 2nd hand and only cost about $48 CDN. People change phones here like we change underwear. As soon as a new model comes out they HAVE to have it. So they trade in their old phones, which then get resold at a low price.

I still haven't gotten used to the driving habits of most people. While it is interesting to watch the traffic jams on the side streets, sidewalks can be dangerous. I almost got clipped by a motorcycle that was driving on the sidewalk. That is common, but dangerous at times.

My classes have been very interesting. Last Friday I held a Free Talk in every adult class. Free Talking classes are very advanced. The class is expected to do the talking, not the teacher. You just provide topics. My topics were fairly ecclectic.

My 6:30 AM class chose to discuss the culture of drinking in Korea, and abroad. What you choose to drink can somtimes make people think you are in a certain class, or wage range, or a certain type of person. What made the topic even more appropriate is that 1 student showed up drunk, and another hung over.

At 7:30 AM we were scheduled to discuss Blind Dates. Blind Dates are not common in Canada. However, in Korea they are VERY common. People even go on group Blind Dates. It has become an intrinsic part of their culture, as has internet dating. We also discussed relationships between men and women.

At 8:30AM the topic was relationships between men and women. Can a man and a woman just be friends? Is platonic friendship possible? The consensus seemed to be yes. However they would not want their spouse or mate to have a best friend of the opposite sex. Too much temptation.

My 5:00 PM kids class didn't get a free talking subject. they always try to talk about things other than the class material. ;)

My 6:00 PM class discussed cultural differences between Korea, Canada, and the USA. What do we need to be happy, what society tells us? Do we have to have a wife and kids to be happy? It was an interesting discussion. (As were all of them.) The consensus seems to be that although we don't need what society tells us we need to be happy, most people WANT it. See, brainwashing does work.

At 7:00PM the topic was Marriage and Divorce. Why is the rate high in Canada and Low in Korea? Korea is the most conservative of the Asian countries, and places a very string emphasis on the family unit. Divorce is not as easy to obtain, and contains a powerful social stigma. While in Canada it is acceptable, and a lot of people live together and have families out of wedlock. A Korean would be ostracized for being a single mother. Interesting differences.

The 8:00 PM class, last of the day, choose to compare Korea and Japan. If there was time left over they wanted to discuss the culture of drinking. While I enjoyed all the discussions this was the best. I learned a lot about Korea in this one. The differences range from historical, to geographical (an island is harder to invade), to cultural and economic. A lot of Koreans see Japan as being more advanced and a better place to live, whether that is deserved or not, but do not like them very much. The Japanese tend to look down on Korea, many still consider it a possession. Japanese businessmen will come over on sex junkets, whether it is with local girls, or Russian whores. It was interesting and enlightening.

Considering that my classes are either beginner or just after beginner they did amazingly well at free talking. Some of them will have no problems advancing. They all talked, gave ideas and opinions, and had fun. I will probably do it again in December or late November.

That was my friday, my weekend, and another little snippet of life in Korea.

Take care

Flint

*****

Damn ... I sounded kind of pretentious didn't I? "It is a very high level activity".

It was kind of funny that all the students in the 7PM class went on about how low the divorce rate in Korea was, and I drank their kool-aid, when it was really one of the HIGHEST in the world. The next year Korea's divorce rate would be the SECOND highest in the world. Yet Koreans, Koreanphiles, and apologists would drone on about how low the rate was and how sad it was that divorce was so common in the west.