Christmas 2008

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! God bless!

Eric

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On the Streets of Seoul

Here I am outside the building where I teach. Seoul doesn't get snow
too often so this was a nice treat. But I am a Florida boy so I was
COLD!

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Fast Food in Korea

Here's a KFC in Korea. I go here a lot :) It has some of the same menu items but they also have stuff like shrimp burgers and potato burgers. I haven't tried one yet but maybe I will. The one thing I really like is the tax is included in everything so if something says 1,000 won it is 1,000 won (thats about 70 cents).

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Around Seoul City Hall

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Out to Eat in Korea!

My boss was nice enough to take us out to eat at an authentic Korean restaurant. They served a ton of food and a lot of it was really weird. It is very spicy and they use a lot of seafood. It was a good night out but most of them drank a lot (they are a big drinking culture). These are some nice folks and pray for them that I can share the Gospel with them throughout this school year.

For His Glory,
Eric

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Eating Out

Here's a pic of me eating out in Downtown Seoul. I can't remember what this is called that I'm eating but its rice noodles in a hot sauce. It was really hot too. I'm not use to this spicy of foods. It was good but I drank a lot of water too! It was cheap too (about $1.50). The street food is really good but I don't think its all that great for you. A lot of fried foods and stuff like that. But thats why it tastes SO GOOD!

For His Glory,
Eric

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I thought I would make a post on some interesting observations I have noticed over here in Korea.

1. Koreans are workaholics. A lot of them will work 7 days a week.
2. There is a pretty intricate garbage system going on over here. You must buy certain bags for separate garbage such as recycled stuff, food, and regular garbage. Every time I go to throw something away I have to do PH D. level research to find out which bag it goes into :)
3. I live less than 20 miles from a Communist nation.
4. Koreans have an interesting rivalry with the Chinese and the Japanese which I still haven't figured out.
5. Who are the two most popular American pastors that the Koreans have heard of? Joel Osteen and Rob Bell (sigh)
6. there are many American fast food places here including Mcdonalds, Burger King, KFC, and Dunkin Donuts. They also have Starbucks, Outback Steakhouse, Bennigans and TGIFridays.
7. One thing that really freaked out the kids in my class was when I told them in the US you can carry a gun around with you. (No civilians over here can own a gun) They thought that was really scary. I told them its not, if you have a gun of your own LOL
8. The US show, The Biggest Loser, is called FAT over here. Thats it: just FAT.
9. Watermelons are around $15.00 each over here
10. Gas now is around $6.00 a gallon
11. Kimchi is the food that ALL Koreans eat and love. Its fermented cabbage and I have tried it a few times and (shocker) I think its gross. To me, it tastes like detergent.
12. $1.00 US = 1,260 Korean Won

PS: The photo is a panorama I took at a busy intersection. I spotted 2 areas where you can tell the pictures were merged together. Can you find them? Also, the guy on the far left is my friend, David, who I work with.

For His Glory,
Eric

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My Walk to the Subway Every Morning

He's my route to the subway each morning. It takes about 5 minutes so if your interested, here it is. It starts at my apartment and ends with a cool shot of the subway car arriving! This was actually on a Saturday when I went to a festival of American vendors and services for us Americans now living in Seoul. It was cool, because I got to hand out a lot of tracts (million dollar bills). People loved them. I should have brought more. Mom, can you send me some? thanks!

For His Glory,
Eric

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My Students

This is one of my students. Her name is Sunny and she is very smart. Almost all of the children have English names like Jessica, Tom, Sam, and Irene. I think it's so they will be more accustomed to the language and also if they end up traveling overseas later in life.
Back to Sunny. She is 7 in Korean age. In the US she would be 6 but in Korea they start counting your age from conception which I think is kinda cool. This picture was taken at a birthday party we had for her at the school. Her mom brought in a cake and the other kids in the class gave her presents. It was fun!
I made the picture look kinda old on my phone just for fun. We will see what opportunities I have to share the Gospel. It's always exciting to here the students improve on their English and I think they are getting more and more use to me as their teacher.

For His Glory,
Eric

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Getting Around

Well, I've been in Seoul a week and I've already learned some valuable traveling lessons. Here they are:
#1. Don't even bother buying a car here. The traffic is horrible and it might even be faster to walk
#2. A motorcycle is still not the best idea. There are few places to park around the city so you will be spending a ton of time trying to find a parking spot for you vehicle.
#3. From what I've seen, a bicycle is not too bad. There are places to park it but the street traffic and pedestrian traffic is tough to get through still.
#4. The bus is a better idea. It's always best to take the public transportation and not worry where you parked. They are clean and usually on time.
#5. The very best way to get around that I've found so far is the subway. They are FAST and on a set schedule. I heard the Seoul subways are in the top 3 in the world. They are very clean and modern and you can get to just about anywhere in Seoul (and other cities also) with no problems.

That's my traveling assessment so far. Maybe after being here a year it will change but with gas at $8.00 a gallon over here, I doubt it.

For His Glory,
Eric

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My Class of Korean Kids!

Here is a picture of my class. The two boys are Tom and Seng Whan. The girl is Anna. They are a rambunctious group but they are learning more and more everyday. My morning class (not pictured) has 2 girls: Sunny and Rina. They are good girls but they have trouble listening to me. Pray I can learn to communicate with these youngsters and be a good witness before them.

For His Glory,
Eric

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My Apartment

Ok, my first impression of my apartment was "this thing is really small!" Its basically just one tiny room with a separate bathroom. After living here for a few day, though its really not bad. in the states this would be considred low income housing but over in Seoul, I think this is more middle class level. It definitly could have been worse trust me! I think God knows just what we need and He provides those things for us. So this apartment is a real blessing to me! Next time, Ill let you know about the School I am teaching at.

For His Glory,
Eric

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Toughest Thing I've Ever Done

Going to South Korea was the toughest thing I have ever had to do. It was tough leaving home and the flight over was long. Ever stop I was thinking, "ok, how can I back out of this." I think the point of no return was the plane flight from San Francisco to Seoul. Once I got on that, then there would be no turning back.
God really provided lots of grace and mercy for me on the way over. Although it was difficult and long, it wasn't unbearable either. I got in to Incheon International airport about 20 hours after I had left Springfield, MO. That night, I got a chance to see the school I would be teaching in and they took me to my studio apartment. I was very tired and just went right to sleep.
My first night in Seoul was tough but God uses these things to strengthen us so He can use us for His purposes. I think the thing that really sustained me was the prayers of others. Thanks mom and dad!

For His Glory
Eric

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