The 43rd day of the new year

So this is 2012. I'm into my second year at my third school and my 3rd year in Korea. All  is well.

My initial desire was to leave at the end of this contract but I've decided to continue on for at least another year. I'm still working out some financial concerns.  Although I must say over this 3 year period, I have managed to resolve many of the major items on my list that sent me this way in the 1st place.

I do enjoy being here. For the most part,.living outside of the country has it's advantages and especially if you're in the ESL game.  The free housing is a plus. I've always seen it as a job with an added adventure of experiencing the culture of another on a daily basis; much unlike taking a long trip to a foreign destination with a designated return date.
 I had the opportunity to see Stevie Wonder in concert the summer of 2010

and last year, around my birthday I caught Keith Jarrett in concert. That was my present to me.

 Camera's were not allowed at the "Jarrett" concert.  I did manage to get this shot of myself in the concert hall once he left the stage.

The musical "Wicked" will be here this year and it happens to open on my birthday so I definitely plan to go there for sure! 



I even found my own self singing on stage last year! How cool was that!  I happend upon some guys from Texas looking for a third person to harmonize with. So we huddled up in the backroom of a coffee shop and jammed for a few hours to rehearse, then went to a bar down the road and gigged. 
Each of us sang solo backing the other. They were more into Beatles and Paul Simon type songs which has great harmony and of course I sang a few Marley tunes and The Girl From Ipanema.  They were both very versatile musicians vocally and instrumentally and the crowd loved us.  The crowd even made request and asked for 2 or 3 encores, it was a fun night.

But for the most part I keep to myself. Sometimes I'll catch an English movie but most of my free time is spent exploring the city of Seoul, museums, sculpture parks and the myriad of outdoor events as well as biking and hiking in summer and hibernating on the internet in the winter.

I must say I also go for a full body massage or even to a Korean bath house on occassion; Jim Jil Bang, as they are called. It's really great after a long week.  The environment in the Jim Jil Bang is initially, quite unconfortable for most from the West, as people go about from one hot mineral pool, shower, sauna, or steam room, sans a towel, bathing suit or wrap, er with the exception of  "moi"; I still wear my terri wrap from station to station. But this is some of what I enjoy about Korean people.  The soaking and soothing not the "birthday suit" parading. They are conscious of the necessity of caring for the body. They really enjoy a life of fitness.

I will save the Jim Jil Bang topic for an entire post and will add photo's, proper ones of course, so that you can get a better understanding of the family oriented place.