Granny's Paddy Field 논

Geraldine would like to thank Jaekeun오빠 for inviting her, Shuyi and Brianna to his Grandmother's farm in Eumsong 음성, and also driving them all the way there. 수고하셨어요!
The countryside-deprived girls saw a lot of things and they were very excited..

The house..

The boss.. She's 79 years old, but still strong and hardy. The mountains and air are surely doing her some good!Her golden ricebowl.. literally.The animals.. Do you see 한우? 한우 = korean beef = expensive stuff.. yums.
The plants.. veggies!

Lunch. Tea. Dinner. Thank you granny! 잘 먹었습니다!

Gifts for the girls.. aspiring housewifes. hehe~ hehehe~

*Geraldine's mini Korean classroom*
시골 (si-gol) - countryside
초대해주셔서 감사합니다 (cho-dae-hae-ju-syeo-seo gam-sa-ham-ni-da) - thank you for inviting me/us
잘먹겠습니다 (jal-mog-get-sum-ni-da) - literally "i will eat well", said before a meal
잘먹었습니다 (jal-mo-geot-sum-ni-da) - literally "i ate well", to thank the host for the meal
수고하셨어요 (su-go-ha-syeo-seo-yo) - difficult to translate but it's something like "thanks for the effort" <-- correct me if i'm wrong

Ajumma Power~

Geraldine is going to refute the popular belief that Korean girls only like to shop and gossip and doesn't like to play sports. Whoever said that? And whoever told Geraldine that?!

Today she went to Wadong Badminton Hall 와동 배드민턴장 a little away from school with her Hanyang Badminton Team friends and she got quite a pleasant surprise. It felt like a Badminton Hall in Singapore, just that everyone was speaking Korean. Lots of ajummas and ajeossis or what Singaporeans know as aunties and uncles, were playing. At the distant court, some kids will be having their training with the coach repeating the same thing over and over again.

[Photo taken from semsem1004]

Geraldine and her mixed doubles partner for the upcoming tournament next month, played with some of the ajummas and ajeossis.. and lost every single game. >_<

Oh, and Geraldine bought new court shoes! Her 1st Yonex pair.. ㅋㅋㅋ

The ajumma at the shop caved in after she used her sweetest voice and said "깎아주세요" and "더?" So she got a 10000won discount, with a pair of socks thrown in. ^^
After 4 hours of grueling play, Geraldine went to the showers and this is what she saw at 1st. Doesn't it look like a nice, spacious shower room?

Truth is.. it's indeed spacious! It's communal! Certainly not a common thing in Singapore. Geraldine is still trying to get used to it.The above picture is not exactly the best picture but you can see how the space is shared. There were a total of 6 mirrors and shower heads.

*Geraldine's mini Korean classroom*
auntie - 아줌마 a-jum-ma
uncle - 아저씨 a-jeo-ssi
please give me discount - 깎아주세요 kkakk-a-ju-se-yo
more - 더 deo
badminton - 배드민턴 bae-deu-min-teon (don't you feel stupid after spending ages trying to read the korean?
toilet - 화장실 hwa-jang-sil
shoe - 신발 sin-bal
socks - 양말 yang-mal

Toilet = KFC?

Guess what the following picture shows..
a) Window of a Toilet
b) Window of a Fried Chicken Stall

c) All of the above

.

.

.

Answer: (c)

That's where Geraldine and Shuyi got their Fried Chicken from! The delivery culture in Korea is simply amazing! The way students get around the dorm curfew and no food rule is amazing as well.

Here's a step-by-step guide to get yummy chicken when you are locked in dorm at 2am.

1. Call the shop and order.. Duh. (Thanks Jaekeun 재근오빠 for the help here!)

2. Wait for the call from the deliveryman

3. Go to the window of 2nd floor toilet if you are staying higher than that

4. Catch the glove that the deliveryman throws to you

5. Put money into the glove and throw it back down

6. Wait for the deliveryman to secure the chicken

7. Fish it up (Yes the Koreans call it fishing)

8. Unhook the catch9. Taadaa! Enjoy the meal!~

Cool huh?

Coffee Juseyo! 커피 주세요!

It's midterms now and everyone's mugging madly in Korea. Geraldine is so not showing you her panda eyes. Not sure if it's the same with other universities, but at Hanyang Univ, Ansan Campus, midterms hold the same percentage as final term examinations. Ain't it weird? Finals have always carried a higher weightage in Singapore.

It's 3.59am now. Paper's at 11am. Geraldine is barely halfway through her notes. But oh well, thank God design studio session is optional tomorrow. Her flight to ZzZzZzLand has already been booked. Departure's at 1230pm.

Some words associated with that dreaded word that starts with E you might wanna know..
Midterms - 중간고사 jung-gan-go-sa
Stress - 스트레스 seu-teu-re-seu
Coffee - 커피 keo-pi (Yes it sounds like Kopi, my dear Singaporeans)
Arcade - 오락실 o-rak-sil

HAHAHA yes o-rak-sil is associated with jung-gan-go-sa! Because Geraldine needs to get rid of seu-teu-re-seu!

Be A Star! * - extended

Geraldine just received news from her sister that the voting has just been extended till end of this month, 31 October. Please show Geraldine your greatest support! She will love you very much! ^^

***

(Post from August 11)

Geraldine joined a makeover/photoshoot for fun last month (secretly to get the freebies and free subscription to the magazine) and God knows how she managed to get into the final 8. The photoshoot is now out in the latest issue of Kozine, an English-Korean magazine in Singapore. Do have a look and give her your support! You are not obliged to vote for her though, if it goes against your conscience.

(Click on images for larger view)
Vote now for the 3 you think should be on our cover and stand a chance to win a goodie bag consisting of LANEIGE products, food vouchers and makeover packages worth more then $3,000. Only 30 goodie bags up for grabs! All you need to do is send an email to admin@mykozine.com indicating your 3 choices with your name, IC/Passport number, address and contact number by August 31 2009. Remember, it is a must to indicate 3 choices. Good luck!

우 선 저희 Be A Star 메이크 오버 컨테스트에 참여하신 모든 독자들께 감사의 말씀을 전합니다. 생각보다 많은 여러분께서 참여 하셔서 톱 8분을(파이널리스트) 선정하기가 힘들었습니다. 파이널리스트 8명은 The Makeover Inc.에서 재미있는 포토슛을 하였습니다!

다음 페이지에 라네즈 화장품을 사용하여 예쁘고 멋있게 변신한 8명을 소개합니다!

투 표하고 선물을 받으세요 파이널리스트 8명의 사진을 보고 가장 마음에 드는 3명을 뽑아 admin@mykozine.com으로 이메일 보내주세요. 이메일 보낼 시 성함, IC (주민등록번호) / 여권번호, 주소, 연락처를 함께 보내주세요. 투표를 하신 분들 중 30분께 선물을 드립니다. (라네즈 화장폼, 레스토랑 쿠폰, 메이크 오버 페키지 포함)

*이메일은 8월31일까지 보내셔야 합니다.

Publish Post

These are the 8 finalists. If you are lazy to look at pretty and handsome faces, you can simply send an email to admin@mykozine.com with the subject "Be A Star! Vote & WIN" and with the following:-

Choices:
1. BAS05
2. BAS(pick a random number from 1-8)
3. BAS(pick a random number from 1-8)

Name:
IC/Passport no.:
Address:
Contact no.:

If you would like to spam, go ahead! They didn't say we are not allowed to. =]] Spread the word and give others a chance to win the goodie bags too! ^^

If you would like to read the magazine, click on the icon to the right of this blog. Or simply go to http://www.mykozine.com/.

Have a nice day ahead! 좋은 하루입니다!

Green.Red,Orange.Yellow 단풍!

Autumn is hereee! Sorry to all those who are in Singapore, Geraldine knows you guys are still being fried and toasted daily. If you want free aircon everywhere you go, come and visit Geraldine! She still remember what Jihye, her Korean friend said when one of the Singaporeans asked if there was a fridge in our dorm a few months back. Her reply was plainly "You don't need a fridge. The window will be your fridge."

Anyway, it's that time of the year to rummage your cupboard for the climbing shoes and sticks and get out there to enjoy the green, red, orange and yellow.

The following table lists the famous mountains in Korea and tells you when the 1st sign of autumn leaves will appear and when it's the best to conquer that mountain.

For the benefit of those who can't read Korea, Geraldine will romanize it just for you! Don't you feel loved? <3
If you want more information about the various mountains, here's a good site!

Blog Korea! Visit Korea! Camp

Geraldine feels really fortunate. From a person who used to hate blogs, she became a person who is part of a blogging competition and has so far won an iRiver mp3 player and a free trip around Korea. For all you bloggers out there, visit here for more information. There should be a same competition next year as well! Ain't it exciting?

Anyway, during the 3d2n camp, Geraldine met other bloggers from all around the globe. Russia, Uzbekistan, Taiwan, China, Japan, Sweden, Malaysia, Australia, Indonesia, Korea, India. Did I miss out anyone? It was really interesting to see people from everywhere speaking Korean, no matter whether they are yellow, white, brown or pink. Seeing how much influence the other bloggers have on the world and how much they are achieving and contributing, Geraldine feels slightly guilty and she vows that she will try to up the quality of her blog.

How yul-jeong.blogspot.com came about was for simple reasons:-
1. to keep those precious memories
2. to show people how life of an exchange student in Korea is like. Geraldine doesn't want to just show people famous tourist attractions, those you can find anywhere else. She wants to showcase the everyday life, the little nuggets of culture and the struggles of bring a student in Korea. She wants to share something different from those amazing photos you see in tour packages.
3. to let her parents know that she is still alive.

Geraldine is nowhere near what her fellow bloggers are doing, but she will try. Thank you to those who shared on how they operate their blogs because Geraldine did learn a lot and is inspired. It made Geraldine think what on earth has she been doing all these while. Oh man~

Anyway, it's time to start sharing about the trip treat that the bloggers got!

Day 1 (20091014)
Gathering at KTO office, the HQ of it all
Seon-am Village 선암마을(한반도지형) where mini Korea is
Lunch - Grilled Beef at Dahanuchon Village
???
Jeongseon Railbike Ride 정선 레일바이크
Dinner - Goldongban Jeongsik at Unamjeong restaurant 운암정에서 골동반 정식
High1 Hotel
Day 2 (20091015)
Breakfast
Around the Hotel
Buseoksa Temple, Yeongju 부석사, 영주
Lunch - Sanchae Jeongsik 산채정식
Sosuseowon Confucian School & Seonbichon Village 소수서원 선비촌
Andong School of Etiquette
Dinner - Heotjesabap & Haemulpajeon 헛제사밥 & 해물파전
Check-in House of Korean Culture
Recreation Time
Day 3 (20091016)
Breakfast
Bloggers Sharing Session
Lunch - Dargjjim (steamed chicken?) 닭찜
Andong Hahoe Village 안동 하회마을
After-programme Programme
ㅋㅋㅋ Geraldine loves after-programme programme. Some of them went for a nice, warm samgyeopsal 삼겹살 dinner and a rice wine 먹걸리 "dessert". Geraldine wonders when will the next time they will all meet again.. ㅠㅠ

Thank you KTO and Vank for this treat! <333

*PIFF* 14th Pusan International Film Festival 부산국제영화제

It is Geraldine’s 3^rd time at Busan 부산 but she is not tired of it. This time, she went there because of the Busan Film Festival! Woohoo!~~

In total, she caught a total of 8 films over 2 days and reserved the last day for her friends. On Friday, the 1^st day that she was there, she watched 2 films which are a compilation of short films. They were interesting. Some were cute, some touching, some quite impossible to understand and some just fed her to the zee monster.

She also caught Haeundae 해운대. Watching Haeundae the movie at Haeundae the place was quite an experience. This movie was a blockbuster in Korea just a couple of months ago. It was such a touching story that made Geraldine and her friend, Qiuyi, 2 losers sitting at the back of the cinema sobbing. Haha. Currently their favourite movie of all the reason movies they have watched.

That night, Geraldine and her friend caught the Midnight Passion too, which is a movie marathon comprising of 3 movies starting from 2359hrs. Geraldine watched the 1^st, slept the 2^nd and continued watching the 3^rd. The 1^st movie was about vampires in Japan and it was not bad. All the vampires were quite ugly except the king vampire. Obviously this time the humans won but get ready for the sequel. The 2^nd movie was about some police and gang, sorry Geraldine is unable to tell you anything much more. The 3^rd movie was about how evil humans are and some parts were so disgusting it made Geraldine’s stomach stir. The film revolved around 4 prisoners and how a simple poker card game ended up with someone dead. ㅠㅠ

Geraldine wishes that she lived in Busan so that she can attend the film festival every year. This year it is in its 14^th run. Ever watched a movie that puzzled you so much you wished the director was there so you could ask a few questions? At the festival, that’s just what you can do! For some of the screenings, there will be guest appearance of the directors and/or stars. And there will be a dialogue regarding the film.

There was one movie and Geraldine and her friends caught that was so puzzling and confusing and many people stayed behind to bombard the director with questions and it was interesting to hear what the others were thinking after watching the film. Apparently, many film major students were there too and it felt like a literature class at times.

Geraldine really loves the film festival. It definitely exposed her much more to the world of film-making and she for once begin to perceive a film as a piece of art instead of just something you go to with friends and eat popcorn, nachos and coke.

On the 3^rd and last day in Busan, Geraldine dedicated her day to her friends in Busan. She met up with Qiuyi for lunch and went shopping, eating, chatting blah blah blah. In the evening, she was suppose to meet her Korean friend but he had something on last minute so it was just the girls. They went to Dadaepo Beach 다대포, where every night at 8pm there will be free musical fountain show. It was beautiful and much better than the old sentosa musical fountain. At least there wasn’t any lame storyline. Just music, lights and lots of water.

[pictures coming soon..]

Geraldine just wants to grouse. Ain’t it hard when expectations aren’t met? Ain’t it hard when promises are broken time and again? Ain’t it hard when you know what’s left is just a fragment of a chance?

8.15 Mid-autumn / Korean Thanksgiving 추석

The lunar calendar says 15th August and it means eating mooncakes and pomelo, drinking tea and looking at the full moon for Singaporeans. At the parks, kids will be playing with traditional lanterns or those omg-so-noisy electronic lanterns and sparklers. Naughty kids will be burning lanterns, candles, candle boxes and whatever they can find to start their own bonfire. Even naughtier kids will be trying to invent their own fire rockets. Naive kids will be throwing sparklers up trees and make a wish if their sparklers stay up there before burning out.

In Korea, it means everyone will be flocking back home, and school will be like a graveyard with the out-of-place foreigner who is left to fend for himself with supplies from the convenience store. Geraldine wants a little bite of the festive atmosphere too, so she started asking around if there is a house that she could visit. Her second plan would be to climb mountains with some Korean friends. Third plan would be to visit a museum with Chuseok activities. Fourth plan would be to rot in the dorm. Thankfully, Geraldine's friend, Shinho오빠 has a friend who is willing to welcome the both of them to his grandparents' house.

So today, Geraldine woke up at 3am to wash the bedsheets and left the dorm at 5am to catch a cab to the subway station. She managed to book a cab with her nursery school standard of spoken Korean! She had to leave so early because she needed to meet Shinho오빠 7am at Cheonan 천안, to take a bus to Jincheon 진천. All these to avoid the traffic jam around Seoul and reach the house early enough to join in the activities.

When the two reached the house, the family was doing ancestral rites, and they were kind enough to allow Geraldine to take some pictures. They then had breakfast and the food was wonderful. Homecooked! (Geraldine misses her mummy's cooking)

After breakfast, they went to seongmyo 성묘, which would be sao3 mu4 in chinese. Very interestingly, this family decided against the traditional tombstone and opted for a garden tomb. In recent years, it is in vogue and also definitely more environmentally friendly. In place of the intrusive blocks of stone, a tree is planted.

All of them then went back to the house for some gathering and relaxing time. Shinho오빠's friend's (Haeok오빠) cousins like skipping and Geraldine skipped a little with them. Everyone joined in, even the kid's daddy. It was fun. But Geraldine also realized that she has grown old and is not as energetic as before haha. The twenty-somethings also had a little chat after that and Geraldine honestly wished her standard of speaking ain't that of a 5 year old kid. Boohoohoo. She is able to understand most of what is being spoken (unless it's super fast with super difficult words) but it takes donkey years for her to construct what she wants to say and then it breaks the whole flow of the conversation. Aargh~

Then it was lunch time!

And photo-time with Geraldine's lousy phone-camera that kept saying "blink detected" and refused to take any pictures. Geraldine needs a new camera.. Anyone?

Just before they all left, Haeok오빠's grandmother shoved 10000W into each of the 3 kids' hands. According to Shinho오빠, this means that she really loved having them around and wished that they would visit again. How kind! Initially, Geraldine was really afraid of how the whole visit would turn out. Too many scary grannies and mothers in the dramas!

[Photos coming soon...]