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The Daily Kimchi - My Korea Blog About Living and

The Daily Kimchi - My Korea Blog About Living and
This is my blog experience on teaching English in Seoul, South Korea. As a first time teacher in Korea, my experiences will be valuable to future teachers and fresh grads that are considering a career in South Korea. I will also be documenting my tra

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A Long Awaited Kimchi Update
2008-01-11 06:27:00
Hello there, my name is Gdog and I currently am teaching English in Korea...errr...umm...wait a minute, that just doesn't sound right anymore! For all you patient people out there, I do apologize for not updating daily anymore. I wish I could, but now that I am busy working I don't have much time. Well, I have time now so tonight I'm going to give you a kimchi update--literally!When I was in Korea, no matter where I went I always thought about "hmm...this could be a potential blog post!" Well, the same thing still comes to mind back home. Just yesterday I was at a local Asian supermarket chain, T&T Supermarket in Richmond. I was roaming down one of the refrigerator aisles and what did I see? You guess right--KIMCHI!I've seen this kimchi/Korean aisle before, but today I decided to snap a few pictures. Man, Koreans who are living here must love being able to buy pretty much anything from back home in Richmond (and Coquitlam). I visited an Asian specialty shop and was able to f...
More About: Update , Long , Kimchi

New E-2 Visa Regulations for Teaching in Korea
2008-01-06 00:04:00
If you haven't heard already, the application process for teaching English in Korea has just gotten a bit more complicated (before, it was just too easy). Anyways, the Korean government is now requiring all candidates to:submit a medical health check,submit a criminal background check,and have an interview at the nearest Korean consulate (near your hometown)On top of that, the ever popular visa runs to Japan will no longer be a possibility. These changes are a result of the recent problems that have plagued the education sector (note, the apparent pedophile that taught in Korea), such as fake degrees by so called "graduates". This is more common than you think, as we had one teacher from our campus fired because he lied about having a degree...way to go, buddy!Anyways, I was surprised myself at how easy the application process was to teach in Korea. All we did was send in our resumes, a picture, and original copies of our degrees. Foreign teachers in Korea who have stayed in the co...
More About: Teaching , Regulations , Visa

Top Posts of 2007: Part Deux
2008-01-04 08:21:00
The last time I posted about the Top Posts of 2007, it was only the months January-June. Today you are going to see a list of the most popular posts from the last half of 2007, either the ones that had the most comments, or posts that I just enjoyed writing about. Let's get on with the show!JulyNintendo DS Lite: Bonding with StrangersCampus Couples Yet Again & MirrorsNaengmyeon Weather is BackTransformers the Movie+Corn Ice Cream= WOW!Pepero Sticks Can't Take the HeatPeople Watching at the Shinsegae Department StoreThe Ultimate Packing List: What to Bring to KoreaIs This the Work of Flying Cows Consulting?Mexican Food in Korea: Dos Tacos in GangnamEating Live Baby Octopus in KoreaStaying at the Best Western Niagara Hotel in SeoulGangnam: More Korean Fashion PicsI'm Home! Eating Vietnamese Subs @ 4AMAugustA Birthday Part y and Going Away Party Ohmokgyo CO-OP Residence in Yangpyeong: Checking InReverse Culture Shock Returning From KoreaSaying Farewell to my StudentsClosing Our B...

Welcome to 2008 Everybody!
2008-01-01 23:15:00
Just like that, another year has come and gone. Man, as you get older these years sure do whip by like lightning. Anyways, 2007 was an especially important year for us, as we both had so many fantastic travels. Thanks for reading up on my endless food posts and some other Korea-related posts too. Let's hope for an awesome 2008 ! Wishing you the best wherever you are. This blog will continue to be updated!Anyways, I haven't finished compiling the top posts of the last half of 2007. That will come in the next post! So instead, I am going to leave you with some pictures of the Christmas lights from the 2007 Festival of Lights held at the VanDusen Botanical Garden in Vancouver. We went there an hour before closing, which meant it wasn't very busy. That meant perfect opportunities for pictures! These were taken with my Canon Digital Rebel XTi/400D. Enjoy!
More About: Everybody

The Daily Kimchi: 2007 Year in Review
2007-12-31 05:13:00
Can you believe how fast 2007 has gone by? It's like the older you get, the faster time flies. Anyways, 2007 has been an awesome year for us. Let's see here...we spent the first half of the year in Seoul, South Korea. We were happy to come home in the summer. We got engaged in the fall. I got a job in the winter. What's next?? Anyways, thanks to everyone out there for still kickin' around and reading my blog. Cheers to you for a happy new year!Anyways, let's take a look at the top posts of 2007, shall we? Let's go month by month...this will be a great recap to a fantastic year.JanuaryInside a Korean Pharmacy: VideoUAE: Flying Aboard Emirates Airline--food!UAE: Arriving in Dubai--wow!Starbucks in Ras Al-KhaimahEating a McArabia from McDonald's at Manar MallThe Hilton Beach Club in RAKMy Famous Toilet Paper Tie--Finally Recognized!Chocolate in Korea: Dream Cacao 72%"Solleyball": Loved by Firefighters in KoreaOur New Officetel: View at NightHealthcare in Korea: Getting DRUGS!Feb...
More About: Daily , Review , Kimchi , Year , Year in Review

Win A Free Ruff PC Laptop!
2007-12-31 03:33:00
The Thinking Blog is currently running a contest that is going to giveaway a free Ruff PC Notebook. One of the finalists, the evil John Chow has made it into the final round of voting! John has decided to GIVE AWAY the notebook to one lucky reader that posts a comment on his blog! The only way you can win, is if you vote for him in the poll. If he wins, you win!Yes, you read that correctly. Make a comment on this post and you will be eligible to win a free Ruff PC notebook. Given my prior luck with online contests (512MB flash drive, FOREX Trading book, Halo 3 Legendary Edition), let's hope I can bring home the bacon yet once again! Get voting!
More About: Laptop , Free

Merry Christmas Everybody!
2007-12-26 01:31:00
Just thought I'd take a moment to wish everyone out there a Merry Christmas ! 2007 has been quite the year for us! If you've been a long time follower of this blog, thanks for sticking around. I recently surpassed 600 posts, which is hard to believe! Anyways, thanks to all my readers for visiting and leaving comments. Wishing everyone a happy holiday season--be safe!Christmas lights at City Hall, from 2006:
More About: Merry Christmas , Everybody

The iPhone is Coming to Korea...
2007-12-22 20:41:00
...that is if Steve Jobs allows it! Recent headlines in South Korea mention that mobile carrier KTF is looking to secure the rights to the iPhone in Korea. Seeing that Canada doesn't even have the iPhone yet (the USA's largest trading partner!), if Korea gets the phone before us Canucks, that ought to make some people irate here (seeing that Europe already has their juicy hands on the iPhone)!Korea has some pretty interesting cellphones. Too bad I never got to experience the fully loaded models as I chose to go with a simple flip phone on a pay-as-you-go plan. Why buy a cellphone in Korea when it can't be used anywhere else in the world? You've probably heard about the Apple iPhone by now.Remember when I posted about my brand new "Jesus phone"? That was a glorious day in my life as the iPhone is one incredible device. Unlocking the iPhone myself was a nerve wracking experience. However, once I was successful it has been smooth sailing since. Too bad the majority of Canadians can...
More About: Iphone

Watch Full Streaming TV Shows Online For Free
2007-12-15 20:28:00
Wow, this has probably been one of the longest stretches without an update to the blog. I've worked everyday this week so I'm no longer sitting at home surfing the internet all day (and night, haha). Anyways, I just stumbled across something that might help all those TV junkies in South Korea right now (and Canadians as well).As you are probably aware, all the major US networks now stream full length TV shows on their websites. However, this is limited to residents of the US, so if you're elsewhere, you're SOL (Google if you don't know what it means), unless you know how to circumvent this problem (yes, I'm speaking to all you computer nerds out there).Sure, you can download the shows using Bit Torrent but that takes a while. TVLinks has been shut down. To bypass this, you need to "hide" your IP so you can access the full streaming shows from FOX, CBS, ABC, MTV, etc...how to do this?First, download the HotSpot Shield from Anchorfree.com ...install it...and that's it! You're ...
More About: Watch , Free , Online , Full , Streaming

Finger Skateboards: Coming to a Classroom Near You
2007-12-11 04:33:00
Sometimes you spot the neatest or weirdest things when you're teaching English in Korea. It could be a box cutters for kids, clumped up Pepero sticks, and middle school stress. I've been waiting to post the following videos of the latest fad (maybe it's old school now) that was hitting up my classrooms. What am I talking about? None other than "finger skateboards"!I had so many kids bring these things into class. Just a regular skateboard that could be manipulated by your index and middle finger. Kids were doing jumps and and all sorts of crazy stuff. The skateboards reminded me of the pink skateboard that came with Kermit the Frog that McDonald's gave out 20 years ago (anyone remember that thing?). Anyways, check out some of the tricks below...Video 1:Video 2Video 3Man, now I know how the rest of you feel out there that have morning jobs! Today I got called and worked my first shift, it was a half day in a grade one class--which started at 1pm! The kids were pretty interesting ...
More About: Finger

How to Sell Used Stuff in Korea
2007-12-08 02:58:00
For those that are near the end of their teaching contracts in Korea , there is always one big question that stays in the back of your mind: "How am I going to get rid of all my stuff in my officetel/apartment?" After living in a country for a year, you tend to accumulate a lot of "things". These could consist of plants, kitchen utensils, furniture, books, clothes, kimchi cutters, chairs, etc.Well, I'm going to tell you what I did to get rid of our stuff after our year of teaching English in Korea came to an end. To start off, we didn't really need anything in our officetel as it came fully furnished. We did end up acquiring some "things" over the year and by the time it came to sell or give away our stuff, we realized we had some work to do!There are a few ways for you to sell your used "junk"...they've worked for me in the past so they might work for you too.1) Dave's ESL Cafe: Buy/Sell /Trade Korea Forums - if you haven't registered for an account with these forums, I suggest ...
More About: Stuff

Vegetarian Restaurants in Seoul
2007-12-05 17:06:00
Any vegetarians out there? Any vegetarians out there in South Korea? Recently, one of our coworkers asked us if we'd want to join her at a vegetarian restaurant located at Sinsa Station, near Apgujeong. We decided to make it an adventure and last weekend we made the long trek to eat some...veggies. I have never visited a vegetarian restaurant before, as I am a pure carnivore at heart (Veggies have feelings too when you cut them up...)!Anyways, we finally made it to our destination, a vegetarian restaurant that was recommended by one of the Seoul tourism websites. What we saw when we went in was not very appetizing. We either came at the wrong time of day, or they just weren't busy enough to keep their "buffet" stocked with fresh items. It was not a memorable meal, but since it was only 6000w per person we decided to give it a go anyways!There were four of us in this restaurant on the second floor of a building...along with three others:Here are some pictures of the buffet...you kn...
More About: Vegetarian , Restaurants

Eating Beard Papa's Fresh'n Natural Cream Puffs
2007-12-02 19:39:00
Everybody loves dessert and sweets, right? Well, if you ever venture into Aberdeen Mall in Richmond, as "Asian" mall, you will find one of the hottest franchises that have touched upon the shores of Vancouver. Some of you may have already heard of this chain, especially you foodies out there. It's called Beard Papa's, the makers of "fresh'n natural cream puffs" or also "The World's Best Cream Puffs".The franchise started in 1999 in Japan. Since then, its popularity has exploded and there are now over 300 locations around the world, including stores in China, Hong Kong, Korea (I don't know where the location is--someone fill me in), Taiwan, Indonesia, Australia, the USA, and others. The location at Aberdeen Center has been constantly busy, with long line ups on the weekends. We were lucky enough to find the Beard Papa's location without a line up during the week. Let's take a closer look to see just how good these cream puffs really are.Here's the front of the Beard Papa's l...
More About: Natural , Eating

Eating Korean Food in Coquitlam
2007-11-29 03:16:00
Remember how at times I felt like I was still in South Korea back home? Well today you're going to see us eating our first Korean meal back home--something we decided to do on the weekend! Yes, that's right, we had some Korean food --by choice! ;)Vancouver is home to a large Chinese minority, with the majority of them congregating in Richmond (I like to call it Ricemond or Hongcouver). Well, there is also a well-sized Korean population that has populated Coquitlam, which is 45 minutes east of Vancouver. Here, as you will soon see we were dazzled by signs in both Korean and English. It was pretty neat being able to read some of the signage!The intersection of Lougheed Highway and North Road is where all the action is. Running along North Road you can see the Korean-inspired lamp post banners.Here we have a small shopping village, Korean inspired of course! Let's see if we can decipher the text here...the 3rd banner down says "meg she gen chee ken; hop-uh" which is "Mexican Chicken ...
More About: Food , Eating

Monday Madness: Reader Emails Answered
2007-11-27 03:28:00
I had a reader ask me some questions on finding a job in Korea. If you haven't read my post on finding a job teaching in Korea already, click here. Hope these questions help those who are looking for jobs in Korea!! Hope my tips help you out, "J"! Did you typically work a 35 hour week? Any overtime? Is the overtime optional?- We had a 30 hour work week, consisting of 6 teaching hours a day. However at my school we had to show up two hours before for prep time, which was unpaid. OT was optional the first time around, but the second time we had to work it (8:45am-8pm) because registration was high. How long did your application process take from submission to placement to arrival?- It was really quick, we applied in May 2006 and we had everything ready by the time we left at the end of July! Did you keep your work hours to Monday s-Fridays?- Monday to Friday What age group did you teach?- Ages 9-17...no kindergarten. Most classes lasted a month, and the next month would be the same ...
More About: Reader , Emails , Madness

Riding the AREX Incheon to Gimpo Airport Line at 5:30AM
2007-11-24 07:42:00
Remember when I took a "mini" food vacation to Hong Kong back in May? Well, on my way back to Seoul my flight landed at 4:45am local time. I had to make it back to Mokdong and work later in the afternoon at 2pm. I was already dead tired at the time and I needed one last trek until I would get a chance to sleep! Too bad I couldn't waste some money in the Incheon Duty Free!At first I contemplated taking a taxi, but it would've been way overpriced (about 50-70,000w at the bare minimum), thought about taking a bus (it was leaving in 15 minutes), but in the end I decided to wait at the airport until 5:30am to catch the first train aboard the newly constructed AREX Incheon to Gimpo Airport subway line. I first saw pictures of the station through Jon Allen's blog.Man, the arrivals area of Incheon is pretty dead at 4:45am...I felt like I was walking through a ghost town. On my way down to the AREX line, it was so empty and bare it led to an eery feeling (which is unusual because Seoul is...
More About: Line , Riding

Eating At Tropika Restaurant On My Birthday
2007-11-21 20:39:00
It's amazing how time flies as you get older. It seems like it was just yesterday that I celebrated my birthday in Korea at the human deathtrap attraction, known as Lotte World. Thinking back to my birthday last year, I had an eventful day that consisted of eating Nepalese at Everest in Dongdaemun, and on another occasion king crab at the shack downstairs from our officetel.Well, another year has gone by and here I am back home in Canada. This birthday was similar to previous birthdays because it was another day of consuming delicious amounts of food. For lunch I met up with one of my best buddies downtown and we had a chicken shawarma plate at Babylon on Robson Street, one of the best joints downtown:Fast forward to dinner and I ended up at Tropika Restaurant at Aberdeen Mall in Richmond. Tropika is a Malaysian/Thai/Singaporean/Indonesian restaurant that is one of my favorites in Vancouver. They have two other locations, with one on Robson (1128 Robson Street; 604-737-6002) and an...
More About: Birthday , Eating

Winning Another Contest: Halo 3 Legendary Edition
2007-11-19 08:07:00
Man, all I gotta say is I must have some kimchi flavored horseshoes kicking around because I keep on winning these sweet contests! Think back to my 512mb USB flash drive courtesy of Stephen Fung. That was pretty neat. Then, I also won a copy of a 7 Winning Strategies By Trading Forex courtesy of John Chow. Well, my last minute Halloween entry into Leo Chiang's Halo 3: Legendary Edition giveaway has turned out to be the coolest one yet.After lunch at Pho Lan (and smelling like it afterwards), Leo handed me my coveted prize. I didn't realize how large the box was when I got it. But anyways, I am grateful to Leo for putting on the contest and drawing my name--thanks dude, lol! There is a funny part to this story. A long time ago (it's been almost 3 months) Leo sent me some really cool tshirts, under the assumption that I would be posting pictures of them online (today is the day). One had a London Drugs logo (I requested this--so random) and the other was from his own personal line ...
More About: Contest , Halo 3

Giving Away Free Stuff to Students
2007-11-17 05:51:00
When you're about to complete your one year contract teaching English in Korea, and you have a bunch of stuff leftover, what should you do? Heck, the easiest way is not to throw it in the garbage or recycle, but to give it way in class! Children love giveways (adults too)!This lucky class of mine (probably one of my best classes; former ex-pat Korean students that learned English overseas!) was the lucky recipient of some random things leftover in my classroom. Remember these pictures on the wall from our officetel? Well, I kept the photos but gave away the empty frames (autographed with a personal message of course)! LOL! A plant given to me from work? Give that way too! An extra picture of me from work? Might as well throw that in! A random organizer? Oh yeah! Some of my other classes received pens, binders, Post-It notes, paperclips, note pads, misc. candy, etc...The process? A random lottery draw! Everybody loves prizes, right? First things first, put their names on a piece of ...
More About: Free Stuff , Students , Free , Stuff , Giving

The Breakdown of a Chinese Dinner in Richmond
2007-11-15 07:47:00
It's been a while since I've posted about food back home, so why not take a look at what we had for my dad's recent birthday dinner in Richmond ? For the past two months he's been coming over from Victoria to practice for his entry in a Pro-Am ballroom dance competition! He placed 1st and 2nd in the two heats he entered...way to go dad!Let's break down what happens at a typical Chinese dinner (well in my family anyways). Since it was a birthday celebration for my dad (and my sister's BF), we decided to have some king crab (read about my king crab in Seoul experience here). First things first, the waiter will always bring you a crab to "display" it at the table. It's like deciding on a bottle of wine and having the server show you the bottle before he opens it--except sometimes I wonder if the crab you picked is the actual one they serve you! Next time, I'm going to initial each leg and the shell with a Sharpie to make sure...Our appetizer consisted of BBQ roast pork surrounde...
More About: Dinner

Watching Drum Cats Near Cheonggyecheon
2007-11-13 06:17:00
Cheonggyecheon, or Cheong Gye Cheon, or Cheonggye Stream has played an important part in the history of Seoul's downtown core. However, after years of neglect (don't forget something called the Korean War too), this 6 kilometer stream was covered with concrete and eventually a raised highway was built over top as well.It wasn't until July 2003 that the current Seoul mayor decided to embark on a mammoth project to restore the Cheonggyecheon to its original glory. At a total estimated cost of 900 billion won (about $900 million CDN; the CDN dollar is hot hot hot!). What makes this project mind-boggling is that they had to demolish a massive highway in the process, which was a major artery to the downtown core. Diamond saws were used to cut the enormous slabs of concrete which were dismantled block by block, since the public was at risk due to the density of nearby buildings. You really have to watch the video made by the Discovery Channel's Man Made Marvels series, "Seoul Searchin...
More About: Cats , Watching , Drum

Heinz Korea's New Marketing Campaign
2007-11-09 22:45:00
Heinz Kore a just launched a new marketing campaign to target the consumers of South Korea. Since everybody and their grandma loves ketchup, the Heinz marketing team came up with a catchy new slogan. To spread the word, they would print their ad on tshirts and distribute them freely on the streets of Korea.Here is the tshirt...did you know Heinz was ESIP in 1869? ...and here is the catchy line/jingle that I can't get out of my head:"Americe's Flrorlis Kreep up...IT WE11-02-77 GIVES"To add some clarity on the main ingredient in Heinz Ketchup, a silhouette of a hot pepper was added to the shirt, instead of a tomato. Recent reports have indicated that ketchup sales have been through the roof, and the back order that has resulted has made consumers angry and irate--they want their ketchup! This is just an example of some of the wacky tshirts you'll find within the realm of Korean fashion! The key to designing a killer tshirt is making sure that there's some sort of English phrases or...
More About: Marketing , Campaign , Heinz

An Exclusive Tour Inside Beauty Credit
2007-11-08 22:05:00
I did not know what to expect when I departed on my journey to teach English in Korea for a year. When I arrived, it was quite refreshing to see the change and differences compared to my life back home. However, as time went on I soon realized a few themes that you will easily notice when you visit South Korea.One of those by now, is the importance of looks in Korean society. How you look and how others judge your appearance is something that comes to the mind of all Koreans. For example, in North America when we go buy groceries you might just slap on a pair of sweats and some old runners while you run to Walmart. But in Seoul, it's a whole different story. You see moms dressed up to the nines shopping late at night inside Homever. When I say dressed up, I am talking about full on make up, a nice outfit and high heels!Now this importance placed on beauty starts at a very young age. All my students came to class dressed up in cute little outfits, even the young ones (living in Mokd...
More About: Beauty , Exclusive , Credit , Tour , Inside

How To Monetize Your Travel Blog
2007-11-06 09:04:00
When I first started this blog, its purpose was to let my friends and family back home keep an eye on our lives teaching English in Korea (and to track my calorie intake). Also, this is going to be one heck of an online travel diary when I want to look back on our experience in Seoul. There have been many interesting things I wanted to post about. Well, today I'm going to talk about how to monetize your travel blog. This could be the post some of you have been waiting for...or not!I did not have any intentions to monetize my travel blog in the beginning (probably because I had no clue what I was doing) but as I learned more about the online world of blogging (ie ProBlog ger and John Chow) the notion of making money online peaked my interest. So, to answer your questions and emails I am going to explain a few pointers on how to monetize your travel blog should you wish to do so! Here are some of this blog's best moneymakers.Google AdsenseWhen Google's shares aren't hovering over $...
More About: Travel , Monetize

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