SMOE Orientation in Seoul, South Korea: my packing list for the orienation-quarantine-24/7 lock down . . .

Yesterday I had an interview with SMOE (Seoul Metropolitan Education Office). It went well, and I think I got the job.

During the interview I was asked if I had any questions. My only real question was about how SMOE intends to manage the mass influx of foriegn teachers fresh off the plane and packed into one location for an entire week with H1N1 making its global rounds . . . all it takes is one infected person and things begin to get interesting . . .

My sense of what I heard is that the orientation is going to double as a quarantine. That the foreign teachers attending the orientation will be under a 24 hours a day lock down . . .

I also learned that there will likely be Korean medical staff present at the orientation to do medical checks for all the foreign teachers (instead of later after the orientation, though I'm also betting that some schools will still try to force their teachers to get another done anyway) at the orientation. The medical staff may also be staying for the duration of the orientation to do daily temperature checks of the foreign teachers to see if anyone is getting sick . . .

I imagine that a fair number of the foreign teachers at the orientation will be people who have already been living and teaching in Korea for a while so they won't be too shocked by the differences in medical treatment culture . . . but for the newbies I wonder how they'll react when they're still jet-lagged and suddenly get to experience the very open and very public style of medical checks that usually happens.

With all this in mind I've begun making a mental list of what I'm going to bring with me,

1. lap top
2. movies and TV shows on DVD
3. snacks: chocolate, crackers, etc.
4. a ton of books: novels, and a few academic books to exercise my brain
5. hand sanitizer
6. cans of tuna, ramyeon noodles
7. my camera
8. meds: tylenol, gravol, etc (though from other foreign teachers postings on quarantine it seems like they might not let me use them . . . we'll see about that)
9. decks of playing cards
10. my Xbox .. . maybe ....

And the brainstorming continues . . .

If hundreds of teachers fresh off the plane are packed into an orientation . . . I think we can pretty much expect that at least one of them is going to be an H1N1 carrier . . .

I'm sure I'll have some pretty interesting posts during the last week of August . . .

J

Anti-mosquito white chemical fog truck (thermal fogger) in South Korea -- Ah, to be young and free and run and frolic inside poisonous clouds

When Julianne and I headed out to get dinner tonight we ran into the infamous anti-mosquito fog truck.

I've been wanting to get good quality video of this vile scourge for a long time. Usually what happens is the thing has already driven by when I notice it's in the neighborhood, or it's too far away by the time I get my camera out to film it.

Tonight, the timing and location were perfect. I got an excellent close-up of the rig itself, the truck, and the kids running after the truck and playing in the chemical fog . . .

Here it is,

I decided I should do a bit of reading cause I'm no expert on pest control and don't know much about chemicals and mosquitoes . . . an excerpt from the wikipedia.com's entry on mosquitoes has some relevant info.

Mosquito control (from wikipedia)

Adulticiding

"Control of adult mosquitoes is the most familiar aspect of mosquito control to most of the public. It is accomplished by ground-based applications or via aerial application of chemical pesticides. Generally modern mosquito-control programs in developed countries use low-volume applications of pesticides, although some programs may still use thermal fogging. DDT was formerly used throughout the world for large area mosquito control, but it is now banned in most developed countries. Controversially, DDT remains in common use in many developing countries, which claim that the public-health cost of switching to other control methods would exceed the harm caused by using DDT. It is sometimes approved for use only in specific, limited circumstances where it is most effective, such as application to walls.

The role of DDT in combating mosquitoes has been the subject of considerable controversy. While some argue that DDT deeply damages biodiversity, others argue that DDT is the most effective weapon in combating mosquitoes and hence malaria. While some of this disagreement is based on differences in the extent to which disease control is valued as opposed to the value of biodiversity, there is also genuine disagreement amongst experts about the costs and benefits of using DDT. Moreover, DDT-resistant mosquitoes have started to increase in numbers, especially in tropics due to mutations, reducing the effectiveness of this chemical; these mutations can rapidly spread over vast areas if pesticides are applied indiscriminately (Chevillon et al. 1999)."

I guess for those of us expat/foreign English teachers that come from home countries/regions that don't have a serious mosquito problem, and where we haven't seen trucks spraying chemicals every spring/summer/fall, we tend to react rather harshly and condemn the act.

I'm trying to open my mind up to the idea of chemical spraying being the better of two evils . . . not fogging resulting in health problems (diseases spread by mosquitoes) and costs that South Korea might not be able to deal with, etc. I can do it, but I still get stopped by the outrage that nobody (i.e. adults, parents, etc) stops the kids from playing in the chemical fog.

I include this next video from youtube cause it shows a guy using the fogger in full protection gear . . . something that I have yet to see in Korea.

This next video shows a guy using a hand-held fogger and spraying INSIDE people's homes--wow.

And then you have this guy back in America making his own custom-design fogger that can be attached to his lawn mower . . .

I did a quick Google.ca news search for "mosquito fogging" . . . and found some articles . . .

Conditions ripe in Winnipeg for surge in mosquito numbers

Mosquito fogging set for this week

Va mosquito pool contains equine encephalitis

Anyways, I'll continue to cover my face with my t-shirt, and close the apartment windows whenever I hear the brrrrrrr of the approaching fogger truck . . . and hope that Korean parents are one day educated to understand that the fog truck is a health hazard for their children--and that they'll STOP them from playing in the fog . . .

J

New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Kim & Johnson Bookstore, Gangnam, Seoul

Another bookstore you can check out that I haven't been to was recommended to me by Joe Seoulman who recommends "Kim & Johnson" bookstore . . . especially for ESL/EFL books.

"For English teachers looking for resource books, you cannot beat Kim & Johnson, right at Kangnam Station. It is a whole bookstore dedicated to EFL/ESL teaching. They've also got a pretty good section of novels. Otherwise Check out What the book used book store in Itaewon (online at whatthebook.com) which has everything you can find at Kyobo for cheaper."

I probably won't get to check it out until September . . . when I do go I'll take a few pics and check out the store for myself--but based on Joe's recommendation alone you should go and take a look for yourself.

J
p.s. Kangnam Station can also be spelled "Gangnam" with a "G"

Couplehood taken to extreme levels in South Korea--the horror, the horror!

While Julianne and I were eating lunch in a major department store's food court we suddenly noticed this girlfriend popping her boyfriend's zits . . . and just when we thought it couldn't get any worse she picks up two TOOTH PICKS and finishes the job.

NOTE: This may have nothing to do with 'couplehood' culture in Korea. It may be more about individual personality traits and relationship eccentricities . . .

BUT SERIOUSLY! Pop your zits in private!

PLEASE!

J

New Foreign English Instructors/Teachers in Korea: Bandi & Lunis Bookstore in Jonggak Station, Seoul

Bandis & Lunis bookstores are probably the biggest bookstore chain in Korea (if that's wrong, please let me know). They have multiple locations, and each of them is pretty big (especially the one in COEX Mall).

In Seoul, go to Jonggak Station (Line #1), and head for Exit #3.

Just past Exit #3, look for an opening on your left that has stairs leading down to a large open area where exhibits and performers and tables of books are located.

This is a nice area to just sit and relax while watching live performances . . .

The main entrance to the bookstore is located in the center-back area.

Once inside you'll see two cash desks and different directions you can choose from . . .

Head to your right and you'll find the Foreign Books section.

Another shot of the section (the first makes it seem smaller than it really is).

For public school teachers there is a large selection of conversation and speaking lesson books--though it can be difficult for new foreign teachers to find good books that are level-appropriate for their classes with interesting and well put together content. (Watch for my up-coming post about the top books I recommend for new teachers).

Two other sections you might want to check out: Teaching and Linguistics.

If you're a university or training center instructor/professor you'll also want to take a look at the other language skills sections; Korea isolates each of the four English language skills so if you're teaching a course/class with a specific language skill focus you'll find the sections divided in a similar way (again, watch for a future posting about my top recommended book titles for each type of language skill course).

For those new teachers coming to Korea with specific interests in Korean language and culture Bandi & Lunis' offers pretty good selections on a wide range of Korean topics.

After you finish shopping head upstairs to the food court and check out Namaste and their excellent Indian food.

After exiting the escalator head off to your left . . .

I've eaten here about 5 times now and the food and service are excellent. It's a little pricey, but I think it's still worth it.

Enjoy,
J
p.s. There are other locations of Bandi & Luni bookstores in Korea. The biggest one, for example, is in COEX mall.