In the Kitchen

I (Dori) tend to do most of the cooking. This is primarily because I look forward and enjoy it and Caleb, well, he doesn't. This post may not be of much interest to many if cooking isn't your thing, but for me, settling into a kitchen is what makes a place feel like home. Being able to exist in it comfortable feels important.

We weren't sure what to expect kitchen-wise when coming to Korea, other than small and "sparsely finished." It is those things. Provided by the school was a large skillet, medium-sized stockpot, a wooden cutting board, chef's knife, two spoons, two set of chopsticks, and two plates, bowls, and saucers. Our cooking area is about 1.5 meters wide and includes a sink with a draining board and a counter top with a gas range on top. We extended or work space by buying a counter-height rolling cart from one of the other foreign teachers leaving soon, and it has been incredibly helpful to have another prep surface. Below is a poor-quality shot of our kitchen right now. It's cozy!

We managed to cook several meals using those utensils and Caleb was, in fact, the first to cook anything on our stove: a stir fry of beef, broccoli, onions, and potatoes using chop sticks to stir things in the pan. It was good!

Since then, we've acquired a rice cooker, toaster, off-brand magic bullet, and electric kettle, also from teachers leaving the country, that have proved invaluable. We're still flipping fried eggs with two spoons, spreading jelly with the back of a spoon, and flipping browning meat with chopsticks, but we've become quite comfortable with the sparseness.

One of the most unfortunate things about the kitchen is a lack of oven. Though some people purchase toaster ovens, the investment doesn't make sense for us at this point and we're just managing without. It is a sad thing to have to go without our favorite roasted veggies and the option of baking bread or cookies, but I'm sure we'll survive. I have been surprised at how useful a tool a rice cooker can be. I have managed to "roast" a chicken in it with quite delicious results!

We've grown more and more comfortable with shopping for food at emart, a Meijer-like store just a few blocks away, but recently we've taken advantage of a local outdoor market that is open on days ending with 4 and 9. It takes place just a few blocks away and offers a plethora of fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts, bulk Korean side dishes (including kimchi and other preserved vegetable "salads"), eggs, and just about any other fresh food product one might need. They have fresh seafood, as well, that we haven't yet taken advantage of. Just yesterday we witnessed an octopus trying to climb out of its tub of water. Fortunately, a passerby righted the situation by throwing the poor guy back in just as it was about to fall to the ground.

We'll try to post updates about new and/or fun eating experiences but I'd better run for now. We have a pot of meat and veggies stewing on the stove. We'll see how it turns out!

19 February 2014

A quick story...
The other day C and I were sitting at a bus stop after work. It was about nine in the evening and we were both happy to hunch over our respective books during the twenty minute wait for our ride. I happened to cough while sitting on the bench, thanks to a cold that has been persistent since soon after our arrival. However, instead of the cough just trailing off into the darkness I received an echo cough! I looked up and found that it had been from a little boy about five years old; he was standing nearby with his hand over his mouth, just like me, staring curiously and wondering what I would do in response. When I said hello, he smiled and ran behind his mother, peeking back at me from between her legs. Many children here are unabashedly curious about our Western appearance and it has been fun to interact with them. This little one was bashful, but after encouragement from the mother, we managed to exchange halted pleasantries before their bus arrived.

Who knew? Coughs sometimes make the best conversation starters.

Also...

We had our first experience at a Korean Barbecue restaurant a few days ago. Some co-workers took us there after the opening of our new school. We sat on the floor and were brought different types of meat to grill on the open pit in the center of the table. It was delicious.

Our Wedding

We're finally getting around to reviewing our wedding photos and figured our blog was the simplest way to share them with others. Many thanks go to Cam Matteson for photographing throughout the day.

Continue reading if you'd like to see more...

4 February 2014

Welcome to our blog!

This site is our solution to the dilemma of wanting to maintain connection with family and friends, whilst being frustrated with the distracting clutter of Facebook. Our hope is that people will be able to check in for a quick update, if they'd like, without having to go through other social media. We plan to share stories of our experiences as we adapt to life in another country.

Two days ago we received notification that our tickets to South Korea had been purchased; we will depart from Chicago on February 9 to begin our adventure. Here's to dreaming of kimchi!