Mildly Amusing Street Signs Part 3

Cook Pass Babtridge

Gwangju Biennale

Mildly amusing bikes part 1

Spider-Troy!

I tried to tell them, it's a bad idea to let a kid bring in a radioactive spider for Show & Tell. And would they listen? No. But at least this little 'un has learned a valuable lesson: With great power comes great responsibility!

Wicked, wicked

The Kindergarten Krew get back to their musical roots...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V-IcKbq85ns
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzmUFlUnzso

Mildly amusing street signs part 2

As with many Koreans, our students' English is good, but it could be butter.

When I said, 'Ok, this week, we have to drink 11,000 cartons of milk to make an enormous peacock!' they thought I was crazy. But just look at what we achieved! This, ladies and gentlemen, is an Art Attack!

Look at me Daddy, I'm a farmer!

Now I know how Pharrell or Timbaland must feel! Mere days after producing the aforementioned hit single by The Kindergarten Krew, I'm mobbed in Hamyang by more adoring fans!

Pass the Courvoisier!

Kindergarten Krew debut single!

The cover we made for the CD we recorded with our kindergarten kids. They sing and play xylophone on Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star with a knowingly clever segue into the alphabet song, lovingly murdering both!

'Simply Breathtaking' - NME
'Better than the entire musical output of Korea, ever (which isn't saying much!) - Q Magazine

As well as these wacky lanterns, Jinju is also famous for bullfighting (i.e. one bull scrapping against another!)

(Note the attention to detail in the closely observed cock and balls on this prizefighter!)

Jinju Lantern Fest

They were going to name this cool, exclusive sky-lounge bar with awesome views of Jinju after me, but not having an equivalent 'Ph' sound in the language, 'Bar Pillip' was eventually outvoted. Shame.

Look what I found!

Actually this picture is making me sad because since taking it I've drank all the blessed Broon we picked up in Japan a few weeks ago.

I haven't been able to find it in Korea yet and all this nuclear testing business is making me kinda thirsty! (we're fine by the way!)

Kara and I dressed as the Korean Romeo and Juliet in Namwon.

The story goes he saw her swinging on a giant swing and fell in love. Then later she had her legs chopped off by an evil army officer/would-be suitor. Or maybe Romeo rescued her before that happened, I'm not sure.

This is how they really looked (well, kind of. I don't think they were actually made of wax...)

Corporal punishment gone mad!

Octobear!

...August, September, Octobear!

Yesterday I ate some kind of weird sea slug that was chopped up into tubes, but the tubes were still breathing and wriggling around! Followed by fish-brain soup. Yum! Then later on I tried to eat a bowl of super-hot squid pieces in 15 minutes for money. I failed.

Mildly amusing street signs part 1

Despite the explicit rock n' roll grandeur of this picture, I think I may have actually been singing 'Under the Sea' from Disney's 'The Little Mermaid'...

How d' you like them apples?

Big Buddha's Little Buddha

Day43 in the Big Buddha house...

For capturing fireworks in their full fireworking glory, you just can't beat the Sony Cyber Shot DSC-T30. Buy yours today!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Kara celebrating her birthday in style at a No Reh Bang (karaoke room) with two of our waygokin posse, Steve and, er, Steve.

Happy Birthday Kara!

It was Kara's birthday on Saturday. She thought she was turning 26 but for some reason in Korea, when you are born you are already 1. So actually it was Happy 27th, Kara Teacher!
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Po Sung!

This is me with Po Sung, the hagwon owner's younger daughter, in our (tastefully decorated) apartment. She may look cute (and, actually she is), but she's got a proper violent streak too. She's not content unless she's ripping up our classroom decorations or biting us and salivating like a rabid dog!
Aaaahh.

Another exciting lesson with Kara Teacher!

Hey, look. It's the sun setting on the beautiful Geochang riverside!

Photo credits: Kara Byers image library copyright 2006

Hello, How Are You?

Hello, how are you? Hello, how are you?
...is the song we sing every morning to our kindergarten class of 3 kids! We've been in Korea for just over a month now but have been keeping very poor contact with you folks back home, so have decided to keep a blog where we can post pics and share fond memories of our experiences corrupting the minds of young brats by learning them colloquial English of the Scouse and/or Geordie variety!
Kara and I play good cop, bad cop daily to a trio of precociously gifted 5 year olds (well, 2 of them are precociously gifted and one is a man-faced girl with ADD, but we love them all dearly!), before splitting up to teach elementary classes of older kids a few afternoons a week. We came here via Dubai and Seoul and have so far explored Daegu and Busan in Korea, as well as going to Fukuoka in Japan last week to get our visas. Geochang is a small town in the South East, surrounded by mountains and three national parks. We are something of local celebs here along with the dozen or so other 'waygokins' (foreigners). All the kids stare and say hi, and all the old men ogle Kara (one told her last night at the annual festival/fair-type thing, 'You are what makes Geochang beautiful!' ...I thought it was maybe the spectacular scenery or something, but apparently not...)
Anyway, more to follow soon, with photos and such.
Love to all
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