All Good Things...
So this is where Korea and I part ways for the time being. It has been a wonderful month, made some good friends, had some good times and made some good money. As I sit here looking at my stack of 2 Million Won ($2000 USD) I feel extremely grateful to this place. The last week was very bitter sweet, it's funny how much you can bond with people over a short period of time. On the last 2 days there was a lot of crying by teachers, workers and kids. None of my kids cried though... ungrateful little shits. Just kidding, I love my kids even if they don't care enough to cry at our farewell.
On the last two days we had our completion ceremony where the kids did the performances that we prepared with them. My first class did the original play that I wrote for them entitled 'The Amazing Transformation Machine', once I get the video I will post it online for you all to enjoy.
The basic story is about a Mad Scientist who builds a machine that transforms people into different shapes and sizes and other objects too. So he pays this dude a million dollars to get into the machine; he then changes into a girl and gives the scientist his money back to transform him back into himself. We then go through the whole class having their turn of coming out of the machine and saying something like "now I'm too short, try again!" and getting progressively angry at the scientist. The kids loved to get to yell and push the funny fat kid who was the scientist. Then at the end the original kid gets out and pushes the scientist into the machine, then after the machine beeps and does it's thing the whole class runs out from the machine making lots of noise and takes a bow. Genius. I thought I should have got some sort of screenwriting award, but apparently only the kids get awards here. It's all politics man.
My other kids sang the Rudolph song. Their singing wasn't great but when you make little kids wear antlers and give them little red noses they are so cute noone cares what they do. I wish it didn't have to end so soon, but perhaps if I stayed much longer I wouldn't love it as much. It was also sad saying goodbye to our coworkers, they are a good group of girls and it was fun working with them. Especially one in particular who I have a not so secret crush on, but she is spoken for by her boyfriend and Jesus... stiff competition. So it's not to be right now, but after all the good things that have happened here I'm sure I'll come back one day... not soon but definately one day; so all is not lost.
It has been very nice to be settled in one spot for a while, it's given me the time to do the things I like to do. Downloaded some new music; been digging the new Wolfmother & Maddonna albums. That Jacques Lu Cont production is killer. So is the new Gilles Peterson cd; its all live recordings of the guests he gets on his radio one show, needless to say some amazing artists. Also been reading Harry Potter 5 which is entertaining. Also bought some cool Korean films. They have an incredibly strong movie industry cause there is a local content rule that means that more than half of the films at the cinema are Korean made. The films are all melo-dramatic, stylistic and have an element of tragedy to them. The coolest one I've seen is called 'Old Boy' about a guy who gets kidnapped/imprisoned for 15 years and doesn't know who or why it was done. The film real twisted and some hardcore stuff goes down, it is very well made and if you can find it check it out.
Tonight it's club night in Hong Dae where you pay a cover at one club and you can club hop into all of them. One last hurrah before heading to Japan tomorrow, I've got my fake Bathing Ape sneakers so I should fit in just fine, but I do feel foolish heading to the most expensive city in the world with no job and no place to stay. But I have confidence that it will all work out. Wish me luck my people and write to me with your trials and tribulations, I would like to hear from home.
On the last two days we had our completion ceremony where the kids did the performances that we prepared with them. My first class did the original play that I wrote for them entitled 'The Amazing Transformation Machine', once I get the video I will post it online for you all to enjoy.
The basic story is about a Mad Scientist who builds a machine that transforms people into different shapes and sizes and other objects too. So he pays this dude a million dollars to get into the machine; he then changes into a girl and gives the scientist his money back to transform him back into himself. We then go through the whole class having their turn of coming out of the machine and saying something like "now I'm too short, try again!" and getting progressively angry at the scientist. The kids loved to get to yell and push the funny fat kid who was the scientist. Then at the end the original kid gets out and pushes the scientist into the machine, then after the machine beeps and does it's thing the whole class runs out from the machine making lots of noise and takes a bow. Genius. I thought I should have got some sort of screenwriting award, but apparently only the kids get awards here. It's all politics man.
My other kids sang the Rudolph song. Their singing wasn't great but when you make little kids wear antlers and give them little red noses they are so cute noone cares what they do. I wish it didn't have to end so soon, but perhaps if I stayed much longer I wouldn't love it as much. It was also sad saying goodbye to our coworkers, they are a good group of girls and it was fun working with them. Especially one in particular who I have a not so secret crush on, but she is spoken for by her boyfriend and Jesus... stiff competition. So it's not to be right now, but after all the good things that have happened here I'm sure I'll come back one day... not soon but definately one day; so all is not lost.
It has been very nice to be settled in one spot for a while, it's given me the time to do the things I like to do. Downloaded some new music; been digging the new Wolfmother & Maddonna albums. That Jacques Lu Cont production is killer. So is the new Gilles Peterson cd; its all live recordings of the guests he gets on his radio one show, needless to say some amazing artists. Also been reading Harry Potter 5 which is entertaining. Also bought some cool Korean films. They have an incredibly strong movie industry cause there is a local content rule that means that more than half of the films at the cinema are Korean made. The films are all melo-dramatic, stylistic and have an element of tragedy to them. The coolest one I've seen is called 'Old Boy' about a guy who gets kidnapped/imprisoned for 15 years and doesn't know who or why it was done. The film real twisted and some hardcore stuff goes down, it is very well made and if you can find it check it out.
Tonight it's club night in Hong Dae where you pay a cover at one club and you can club hop into all of them. One last hurrah before heading to Japan tomorrow, I've got my fake Bathing Ape sneakers so I should fit in just fine, but I do feel foolish heading to the most expensive city in the world with no job and no place to stay. But I have confidence that it will all work out. Wish me luck my people and write to me with your trials and tribulations, I would like to hear from home.
posted by Dave Tran at 5:57 pm
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