Valentines day, Street chairs and goodbyes.

I cannot believe I have been here for over 2 months now. The time has flown by! I continue to learn things about the Korean customs and language. It feels pretty neat to be able to get in a cab by myself and be confident in how to tell the driver exactly where I need to go. That is a world of difference from the first attempt at solo cab rides!

February has been filled with so much fun! Valentine’s Day was quite interesting! Here in Korea Valentine’s Day is for the men instead of the women. The men get candy and chocolates and dinner dates. I had many small valentines, though, as the children surprised me with candy and Valentine’s Day drawings. It was super cute to see the littler girls in my first grade class color and make pictures and upon completion, bashfully give them to the boy they liked. A boy named Harry made out like a bandit; however the boys in that class were slim pickins! Korea celebrates more than just Valentine’s Day. In fact they have 3 days devoted to relationships or the lack there of. On March 14^th they have White day. This is the day that the men give the women gifts and profess their undying love for them. I have also heard this is the day of many tears and shouting as the women are unhappy with what their significant other have put together. On April 14^th they have a black day. This is for the single people of the country (Holla!); all of the single people eat black noodles on this day signifying their lack of a relationship filled with love. I don’t think I will partake in this black noodle eating day because I don’t agree with what it represents and I heard that the noodles are less than appetizing. I think that being single is not always a bad thing. It has helped gain stronger independence and love for myself and the relationship with myself is one worth celebrating.

February is also the month that many teachers leave and new ones come in. I found myself sad to see my coworkers go even though I only knew them for a short time. They were nothing but kind to me and they thought I was funny and entertaining and come on... I can get into that. The only good thing about them leaving is that I would get new and cheap stuff for my house. They were all selling a bunch of things and I furnished my place with hand me down goods. I am more than happy about my purchases which include a bike equipped with a basket in the front and a rubber horn which you KNOW I will be using even when it is not necessary. I want to mention, because it goes along with the whole furniture and hand me down topic that here in Korea picking up household items (such as couches, tables and chairs) from the street is not as looked down upon as it may be in the states. Many things that people throw out for garbage is like what one would find at Goodwill. They don’t have stores like that here so all those items are free for the taking! I saw an awesome street chair blocks from my house last week and I wanted it so bad, but I couldn’t carry it because it was so big! I am trying to find a couch or something for guests to sleep on when they visit!