Medical Checks: "Rural" vs. Urban

I went and got my medical check today.

Perhaps I should provide some background first.

About 2 years ago, it was discovered that an American teacher in southeast asia (Thailand, I believe) was a primary suspect in a sexual molestation case in the U.S. It was subsequently discovered by the Korean government that this teacher had previously taught English in South Korea. Also, at around the same time, several cases of English teachers being arrested for illegal drug use (especially marijuana) in Korea received widespread national news coverage here.

So, in what was widely viwed by the foreign English-teaching community here (numbers vary, but maybe 10,000+) as a knee-jerk reaction, the Korean authorities decided to institute both criminal background check and medical testing requirements for English teachers on E-2 visas.

Last year, when I worked in a small city (app. 130,000), I was required to get a medical check for the first time. I went to a hospital, had a 2-minute chat with a doctor, and was given urine and blood tests (HIV, TB, drugs).

Today was a bit different. I am now living in the Seoul area ( 10 million +), so I wasn't too surprised, but the testing was definitely quite a bit more thorough.

This was the process:

*Initial blood pressure test

*Hearing test

*Height/Weight check

*Vision test

*Urine test

*Blood test

*Chest x-ray

*Final blood pressure test

Whereas before the hospital simply mailed the results, this time I have to return (no big effort as the hospital is two blocks from the school) with two passport photos to retrieve my results.

Maybe I should be relieved that they are more thorough here, since, in the case of an emergency, such might translate (no, not literally) into better care.

Yet, since they are essentially looking for a reason to kick me out of the country, it makes me wonder if they could turn up something I am not aware of; then again, that could be a good thing.

Oh well, I'll just have to wait for a few days to find out.

The Ride into Town

Here are a few pics of the "subway" . . . out where I'm at, Seoul suburb and all, the rail rises above ground. As you can see, I get off at an elevated station. (There's a department store and a grocery store, along with other shops, in that station building.) Some of the stations in Seoul proper are a ways down and it takes several escalators to get to the surface (they remind me of the Dupont Circle metro station in DC, though I've yet to see a single escalator that long/high anywhere else).

Goin' to Market

A co-worker at my new school was nice enough to take a walk and show me how to get to the closest market. It's about a 15-20 minute walk. (The last pic is the front entrance.) I do plenty of shopping at grocery stores in Korea, but--as you might expect--most of the food in market areas is both cheaper and fresher. Tomatoes and lettuce are two of the things I like to buy from locals . . . and that's another thing--I'd much rather give my money directly to the people who grow/make the food rather than to some large supermarket chain.

Anyway, this one is similar to the others I have shopped at, except that the stalls are mixed; instead of most of the produce being grouped together, and then the seafood, and the ready-to-eat stuff, I saw one followed by the other in some seemingly random order. In a way it makes it more interesting though. Also, this market area, while not huge, is covered. That's a plus.

We saw three kids from our school with their mom as well as a basket full of chickens' feet. Both were market firsts for me. So was the dog carcass (skinned) at the butcher's stall. I avoided taking that picture. I've eaten it (once), but don't feel the need to have the pre-meal image.

The Nice Class

When I started teaching at my new school last week I wasn't sure what to expect. I knew that I would have roughly the same age groups--elementary and middle school--that I have had in the past, but beyond that my knowledge was cloudy.

Looking back on my first week, the classes I taught were good: well-behaved, higher English skill levels than I am used to, and interesting. I had several classes that were quite enjoyable, in that the students were eager and vocal. This might not seem surprising to some, but think that these kids come from a full day at school; last week was hot (28 C), so their bodies and minds were also adjusting to the seasonal weather.

Overall, I was impressed, which made me happy. Good kids = good classes. Stands to reason.

One class, over all the others, imprinted itself on my mind. It only had three young elementary students. The lesson was partly about practicing the qualifier "some" (as in "not all" or "not every") and so I asked them what foods and animals they like, assuming I they would say "I don't like this . . . and "I don't like that . . ." But the two girls insisted that they liked all foods and all animals. Even bats and hippos are cute, they asserted. They were so sweet and such good students. They hugged me at the end of the class, which is a bit unusual. Wow! Unfortunately I only get to teach them on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

I look forward to week 2 . . .

Natural Animals [sic]

Something that was said to me about animals this weekend triggered a thought. When I was in graduate school I moved into an apartment that bordered the university campus. A tree-lined fence served as the border. One day I saw a not unfamiliar sight: a big bird was beating up on little birds. A large crow was antagonizing a bunch of little sparrows, annoying them mercilessly. Then, suddenly, in the blink of an eye, the sparrows, tiny as they were, turned on the crow and pecked it to death. It was over in a second or two. Stunned, I wondered at the viciousness of the sparrows, but quickly decided that they had only been protecting themselves. Still, it was a moment in nature that was powerful , perhaps for its spontaneity.

Microwave Rice

A few years ago some students told me that microwave rice was good, and I was quite shocked. First, I did not even know that such a food product existed in Korea, and, second, I immediately thought that no self-respecting Korean would eat such a thing. Rice cookers (simple kitchen machines that steam rice) are so ubiquitous here and fresh rice is such a standard part of meals (often 3 a day) that it seems like a crazy adventure into the "fast food" world to consume microwave rice.

So I gave it no more thought.

Until last week, when I discovered that my new apartment has a microwave, my first such machine in Korea.

Right away I remembered the past conversation, and so I bought some microwave rice to try.

Rating: damn good.

I was shocked once again, but I guess that in a rice-consuming nation if you are going to put out an "instant-rice" product then it has to be good.

I tend to think that microwaves are not natural and therefore that I should not use them much, but, dammit, they are so convenient. And rice cookers can be messy and take time to clean.

So, pop a rice package in for 1 and 1/2 minutes, toss some kimchi on top, and there is breakfast . . .

Feels Like a New Beginning

Aside from the fact that it is sunny and warm out, it feels like the beginning of a new year. I'm in a new location in South Korea, and tomorrow will begin teaching at a new academy. This time, instead of being the only foreign teacher, I will be working with two other native speakers and several Korean teachers. One of my employers is a foreigner, and both of them are committed to providing a sound educational environment. I wish I had found this place last year, though I am content to be here now.

My living environment is also very different, and some aspects of it will take some getting used to. I will post some pics later, but today just want to note feelings (as visual images often draw too much attention).

I am living in a large/tall (18 story) apartment building, in an efficiency-style apartment. It is comfortable, and is really not such a big change. What is profoundly different is the atmosphere outside. My old apartments in Korea were in smaller cities, whereas I am now living in a Seoul "satellite" city (essentially a new suburb, purposely built, connected by one of the subway lines). My old apt.s were in neighborhood areas, whereas now I step out into a metropolitan pedestrian area.

I think it will take some time to get used to the crowds of people. There are many restaurants, bars, shops, etc. in this area; I am essentially living in the center of a crowd of high-rise apartment buildings, and many of the people from those buildings come to this central area to eat, drink, and shop. One indicator is that my building has 7 (yes, seven) basement levels of parking (I'm not sure how big each level is, but still . . .).