It's cold.
And don't get me wrong, I would rather be really cold that really hot. But not when I am trying to get over a cold. I have been sick for over a week now...and while it is definitely getting better, it just won't completely go away! And it is worst in the morning and night, which I can't remember if that was the case when I was sick in the States....but anyway. I should just suck it up and go to the pharmacy again and get some medicine, because last time I did that it worked pretty well. But I'm lame and scared. But I think today I will try to make another visit.
Tuesday was my first open class, which means that the Vice Principal and other teachers were going to come in and watch me teach one of the classes. It also meant that we had to submit a very detailed lesson plan almost a week in advance, so that took a lot of extra time. The day of my open class was quite an interesting day. First, I woke up to a text from my coach saying 'Good luck today! I'll be there for you." !!!! That made me sooo happy :)
The open class went pretty well overall. The Vice Principal was not there for the entire class, but she was there for the part where we dictated sentences to the kids as part of a future game...and as she walked around and looked at the kids' work I started to get nervous. First of all, dictation in a foreign language is not easy for many people despite the age, and I knew that many of the kids wouldn't get everything. But as she walked around I realized that more kids than I thought weren't writing anything at all...which does not bode well for me and me activity-choosing skills (or my ability to teach dictation skills). But apparently after the class, the VP told my co teacher that she thought the dictation (she singled that out) was a really great exercise, which I was really excited about - because although I took the 'Speed Speech' game from another teacher (that was what we used the sentences from dictation for), I added the dictation part myself. So, yay.
The weather in Busan has been pretty warm up until Monday, and on Tuesday it dropped significantly. It's weird, I actually think it is colder inside than outside since there is no heat in the schools and you can't really move around much inside to keep warm. Anyway, so my friend C knew I was still a bit sick, and that I had practice today, so he called me during lunch to say "Hey! It's cold out there! Take care of yourself." etc. Which I thought was really sweet also :)
At lunch, my co teacher told me that the VP had asked her to go to another school to teach/watch another class. However, she wanted her to leave right after lunch, even though we had one more class after lunch. My CT (co teacher -I'm getting tired of writing it out every time) was really nervous and apologetic, saying that she didn't want to have to go - because this meant that I was to teach the kids on my own. I was a little nervous, but I told her, 'don't worry! I can handle it - they may not understand everything that is going on but I can definitely handle it.' She still didn't like the idea of me having to teach by myself without a Korean teacher there, so she called up another teacher (the homeroom teacher of the class that was supposed to come) and told her the situation, I think asking the homeroom teacher to come and be there for disciplinary purposes if needed. But the homeroom teacher said that she could just keep the kids for that period, that it wasn't a problem. So I ended up not having to teach that class at all. I'm not gonna lie I was actually kind of excited to teach by myself to see how I would teach differently and how I would handle things, but I was also relieved. Anyway, I got the rest of the afternoon to myself because my CT was at another school, so that was nice :) Later on that afternoon I got a text from her saying 'I really appreciate all of your help. I am very happy to be teaching with you.' !! The third really sweet message of the day. Wow. I'm so lucky!
After school I went to practice. It was the perfect weather to be running...after running for about 20 minutes and the body is warmed up :) After our warm up, Coach took off 1 of his 5 layers...hahaha...he actually had a sweater vest as one of his layers...I thought that was amazing :) He also told me the exact date of the marathon in January, and I'm pretty sure I am going to run it. Apparently it is a really big race, like 6000 people run in it, although there is a full marathon, a half, and a 10K. But still, 6000 people is 6000 people. That will be interesting.
There is more to tell about another hospital visit (by myself...), a breakthrough in running, and perhaps some school stuff (although it might not be appropriate for the blog) but for now I'm going to rest.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
One of the Best Days of My Life
I wake up Sunday morning feeling about the same as I did on Saturday, aka with a sore throat and congestion. But since I skipped swim practice the night before to rest, and also since we would be riding with the younger kids and thus not at a super high intensity, I didn't think twice about going to practice, although I was debating whether or not I would swim and/or run. Anyway, I woke up early because I had to meet Coach at the subway at 7:20. We started riding aroun...maybe 8:30a when everyone had gotten there and put bikes together and whatnot. Coach assigned the older kids to ride with each group of younger kids, as always. I'm standing over near the Cs, thinking he would definitely put me with them since I told him I was feeling the same as I was the day before, which ended up turning out to be a horrific bike performance. But for some reason, he puts me on As...I looked at him in shock...!! What?! But Coach knows best. Naw but I wasn't feeling absolutely horrible and I knew that even the As wouldn't go super fast, so I was cool with that. Just surprised.
The first hour was pretty chill - I was riding up in front and one of the kids' fathers was riding with us as well as the second older person with the group. When kids ride in a group with elders though, I often see them leading and setting pace and the elders in the middle or right behind the leaders. But today they were all staying behind me...kind of in a straight line (pacelining)...so I'm not sure if I am going too fast, too slow, or what. Eventually I had some of the kids come up beside me or take the lead because sometimes I would end up dropping them not knowing it...and other times I think I was just going too slow. Anyway. Towards the end, though, two of the kids in the A group started doing sprint intervals...and then were actually really fast! But at this point I'm not thinking 'ah, my body can't handle this' but rather my mind is automatically thinking 'keep same pace because you need to make sure that everyone is safe', so I wasn't really focused on the amount of energy I was exerting. To make a long boring story short (or at least shorter), towards the end most kids had already finished (we were doing loops so As just did more), so some of the older kids started hauling (Coach was behind making sure everything was ok), so I went ahead with them and tried to push it for the last few kilometers. At first I felt like I was going to get dropped, but once we hit the top of the hill I started hammering (I don't know where I got the energy from) and hammered it in most of the way back, hitting about an average of 28mph. It was sick.
After riding, the older kids (like the coaches for the kids' team) and the adults - like the people who bring the van every weekend for technical support if needed, as well as some food and coffee - went to lunch (like the last time we biked in this area). Delicious food, as always. I was wondering whether or not we were going to swim and run, and Coach said that S didn't bring his wetsuit so he wasn't going to swim. Also, Coach said that he knew I was tired so we didn't have to swim or run today, but since I didn't swim Saturday I wanted to at least swim a little bit, even if just for a few minutes. So Coach said that was cool, and that he would go with me. So he, his wife, his son and I went to their apartment to rest first and to change. Then we went off to a 'special place' to swim...
We went to the place where Coach took me the first weekend that I trained with them...I remember writing in my blog that that was one o the best weekends on my life, so I think it is safe to say that this place, Igidae Park, is one of my favorite places in the world. We got there, got into our wetsuits, and jumped in the ocean/bay water. We entered through a rocky "beach" type of area which had a big sign saying "No Swimming" (even in English)...haha...(I love the fact that I train with the first triathlete in Korea (at least first documented) because I don't have to worry about warnings like that...haha), quite similar to the beaches in Hvar, with no sand at all - and started on our way. Ok. Even aside from the view, the swim was the best I have ever had. The water was just amazing - open water, like I like it - not completely serene, but not too wavy - definitely not like Haeundae has been lately. There were a few small swells somewhat frequently, which was very pleasant. And I was just gliding through the water - I think swimming alleviates all negative things that are going on, because I didn't feel sick at all in the water. And occasionally I would stop so Coach and I could reconvene from our respective routes taken, and we would take a look around us (oh this is all deep water by the way, which does make a difference I think - I think its more enjoyable, more at-one with the water)...oh my goodness. Breathtaking. Honestly, I felt like I was in a dream. I cannot explain it.
After swimming, we were going to go for an easy run, which turned into a really hard hike, around Igidae Park. Again, breathtaking. Amazing. I'm glad Coach takes so many pictures! (I really should buy a camera that works and start taking more pictures...) Before hiking, we changed on the beach...they brought a tent and we took turns going on and changing...haha awesome...and had some healthy snacks, and then dropped off his son (whom I will now refer to as T) at his grandparents.
Hiking was amazing, and the company was even better. Every time I am with them I am so thankful to have happened upon this amazing bunch of people, over the internet mind you, who give me motivation to train, great training partners, and help with pretty much anything I need - and just knowing that there are people out there like them gives me so much comfort. Ah. :) So after hiking, they asked me if I wouldn't mind going to their house for dinner... :) :) So we went to the market to pick up a few ingredients, and Coach's wife taught me how to cook this delicious (and very nutritious) meal called Samgetang, which consists of a small chicken stuffed with jujubes, garlic, and ginseng. Oh my goodnesssss. And then she took the excess water from the pot after cooking to make the rice that goes with it - I forget what it is called - but its like a thick rice soup with a really delicious flavor to it...wowwww. Oh and then they send me home with like 50 packets of a drink called Baejeup - (I think, that is what is written on the packages), which is made from pears and is also really healthy for you - and a bunch of kimchi. :) :) :) Then they drove me and my bike home because it was too dark to ride safely. So...yea...amaaaazing day. I think I will be happy all week just from the memories.
The first hour was pretty chill - I was riding up in front and one of the kids' fathers was riding with us as well as the second older person with the group. When kids ride in a group with elders though, I often see them leading and setting pace and the elders in the middle or right behind the leaders. But today they were all staying behind me...kind of in a straight line (pacelining)...so I'm not sure if I am going too fast, too slow, or what. Eventually I had some of the kids come up beside me or take the lead because sometimes I would end up dropping them not knowing it...and other times I think I was just going too slow. Anyway. Towards the end, though, two of the kids in the A group started doing sprint intervals...and then were actually really fast! But at this point I'm not thinking 'ah, my body can't handle this' but rather my mind is automatically thinking 'keep same pace because you need to make sure that everyone is safe', so I wasn't really focused on the amount of energy I was exerting. To make a long boring story short (or at least shorter), towards the end most kids had already finished (we were doing loops so As just did more), so some of the older kids started hauling (Coach was behind making sure everything was ok), so I went ahead with them and tried to push it for the last few kilometers. At first I felt like I was going to get dropped, but once we hit the top of the hill I started hammering (I don't know where I got the energy from) and hammered it in most of the way back, hitting about an average of 28mph. It was sick.
After riding, the older kids (like the coaches for the kids' team) and the adults - like the people who bring the van every weekend for technical support if needed, as well as some food and coffee - went to lunch (like the last time we biked in this area). Delicious food, as always. I was wondering whether or not we were going to swim and run, and Coach said that S didn't bring his wetsuit so he wasn't going to swim. Also, Coach said that he knew I was tired so we didn't have to swim or run today, but since I didn't swim Saturday I wanted to at least swim a little bit, even if just for a few minutes. So Coach said that was cool, and that he would go with me. So he, his wife, his son and I went to their apartment to rest first and to change. Then we went off to a 'special place' to swim...
We went to the place where Coach took me the first weekend that I trained with them...I remember writing in my blog that that was one o the best weekends on my life, so I think it is safe to say that this place, Igidae Park, is one of my favorite places in the world. We got there, got into our wetsuits, and jumped in the ocean/bay water. We entered through a rocky "beach" type of area which had a big sign saying "No Swimming" (even in English)...haha...(I love the fact that I train with the first triathlete in Korea (at least first documented) because I don't have to worry about warnings like that...haha), quite similar to the beaches in Hvar, with no sand at all - and started on our way. Ok. Even aside from the view, the swim was the best I have ever had. The water was just amazing - open water, like I like it - not completely serene, but not too wavy - definitely not like Haeundae has been lately. There were a few small swells somewhat frequently, which was very pleasant. And I was just gliding through the water - I think swimming alleviates all negative things that are going on, because I didn't feel sick at all in the water. And occasionally I would stop so Coach and I could reconvene from our respective routes taken, and we would take a look around us (oh this is all deep water by the way, which does make a difference I think - I think its more enjoyable, more at-one with the water)...oh my goodness. Breathtaking. Honestly, I felt like I was in a dream. I cannot explain it.
After swimming, we were going to go for an easy run, which turned into a really hard hike, around Igidae Park. Again, breathtaking. Amazing. I'm glad Coach takes so many pictures! (I really should buy a camera that works and start taking more pictures...) Before hiking, we changed on the beach...they brought a tent and we took turns going on and changing...haha awesome...and had some healthy snacks, and then dropped off his son (whom I will now refer to as T) at his grandparents.
Hiking was amazing, and the company was even better. Every time I am with them I am so thankful to have happened upon this amazing bunch of people, over the internet mind you, who give me motivation to train, great training partners, and help with pretty much anything I need - and just knowing that there are people out there like them gives me so much comfort. Ah. :) So after hiking, they asked me if I wouldn't mind going to their house for dinner... :) :) So we went to the market to pick up a few ingredients, and Coach's wife taught me how to cook this delicious (and very nutritious) meal called Samgetang, which consists of a small chicken stuffed with jujubes, garlic, and ginseng. Oh my goodnesssss. And then she took the excess water from the pot after cooking to make the rice that goes with it - I forget what it is called - but its like a thick rice soup with a really delicious flavor to it...wowwww. Oh and then they send me home with like 50 packets of a drink called Baejeup - (I think, that is what is written on the packages), which is made from pears and is also really healthy for you - and a bunch of kimchi. :) :) :) Then they drove me and my bike home because it was too dark to ride safely. So...yea...amaaaazing day. I think I will be happy all week just from the memories.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
