Morning Movies: Korea's Answer to the Matinee

As a child, I remember being sent to the movie theater on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon for a free matinee (at least I recall it occasionally being free, however, as a child all things appear to be essentially free thanks to the pocketbooks of one's parents). Regardless, weekend afternoons in small-town America provided cheaper-than-usual-if-not-free access to entertainment (if I recall correctly, the free show was always an older movie of sorts). 

Having now grown older, however, I generally view movies as a pricey form of entertainment especially since our small-town America still posts 'cheap-seats' at an old, run down theater. Alas, there is always an itch and a desire to head out for a movie, enjoy the smells of popcorn and lounging in expensive theater seats with surround sound and big screen action.

Yet, this Spring, after nearly two years of living in South Korea, the man and I learned about Korea's gift to the early bird in the form of Morning Movies. Most theaters will open around 8:00 or 8:30 and until roughly 10:00 am all movies are offered at the discounted price of 5,000 won! The man and I enjoyed our first morning movie on my birthday and recently headed to the theater again where we enjoyed watching The Dark Knight Rises on opening weekend in a full-theater for a discounted price!

If you're new to Korea or just arriving, be sure to drag yourself out of bed early a couple of times on the weekends because honestly, Morning Movies are just friggin' awesome and leave you the rest of the day to do as you please!

Good-bye Dear Samcheon. It's been a Year!

As July rolled around last summer, Melissa had the difficult and relatively unenjoyable task of saying good-bye to a number of dear students at both Seongcheon Elementary School and Bongam Elementary School.

At that time, Melissa Teacher was nearly certain she'd enter the world of Korean middle or high school. However, mid-August 2011 revealed that Daejeon Ministry of Education had other plans and would be sending her to Samcheon Elementary School. From the moment she learned of this teaching assignment throughout the following year, Melissa Teacher has experienced the roller-coaster of emotions typical to working in South Korea. Frustration. Elation. Surprise. Apathy. Understanding. Anger. Gratitude.

Bluegrass and a B-Boy

You already know that the Harrington's enjoyed the combination of Ballet and B-Boying and that they enjoyed their recent trip to Seoul where they watched the R-16 2012 Solo B-Boy, Popping and Locking competitions.

And perhaps you remember that they have a deep felt love for bluegrassy tunes.

And if you're real close to them, you may know that they've been wanting to make a stop motion video for some time now.

And, if you're not too critical of things that don't really go together and relatively unimpressive video editing skills, it's possible you'll enjoy the following video which is a B-Boy Stop Motion set to the tune of John Hartford's Indian War Whoop [Instrumental] from the Oh Brother Where art Thou? Soundtrack

Enjoy ^^

From Bluegrass to Hip-Hop: R-16 B-Boy Competition Road Trip

The Harrington's are always up for an adventure and checking out new things, including things which may be unusual to their specific leanings. On July 7th, the couple embarked on such an adventure, singing along to Nickle Creek and Jalan Crossland on the two hour drive to Seoul's Olympic Park where they were set to enjoy an evening fully immersed in the best of hip-hop, b-boy, popping and locking culture.

Aside from bluegrass blaring from the speakers, the days trip was additionally highlighted by driving through Osan, South Korea where none other than Chuck Norris began his martial arts career (Melissa brought in July by working through Chuck Norris' autobiography/biography Against All Odds and was filled with legitimate Chuck Norris trivia on this recent road trip).

Fine Dining in Daejeon: Tips for the Meatless

While Korean food meets a deep satisfying need for many expats who find themselves in South Korea, there is a dependence on meats and fish sauces and broths in Korean cooking that can create a challenging situation for expats who would like to experience Korea and their lives in general, with the absence of meat.

Earlier this year, the Harrington's informed their reader's about one popular Daejeon Alternative, Machera Well-Being Vegetarian Buffet at the end of the subway line at Banseok. However, it's quite possible local or visiting vegetarians are a bit tired of the selection and location of this option and are yearning for a bit more variety.

Fortunately, the Harrington's are decently connected and have had the pleasure of meeting a long-time vegan in Daejeon who graciously shared his knowledge and experience of eating out in Daejeon. The following are locations and dishes and tips from this friend regarding meatless eating in Daejeon. Details are given to the extent THT can provide. THT hasn't sat down at all of these eateries and cannot attest to location or deliciousness. However, readers who are meatless and adventurous should enjoy the challenge of hunting down these alternatives to home-cooking and Machera Buffet.

PSA's and Pictures of Lady:Edition Four

Not so much of a PSA in the same sense of previous PSA's, but perhaps some helpful information nonetheless. Many of the following 'service announcements' may warrant a more full-fledged blog regarding the ins and outs of how the Harrington's accomplished the following tasks, but for now, this is more of an area to find some helpful links when preparing to leave Korean Public School and/or travel from Korea to the USA with a dog.

Speaking of the dog, the above photos are bit old and the Lady is now sporting a much more cropped hairstyle allowing her to feel a bit fresh in this humid, Korean summer heat!

Preparing to leave Korea is filled with the need to sell, pack, apply, meet for final dinners, say good-bye and try to organize something that resembles life after departure in whatever corner of the world you've decided to tackle next.

In the Kitchen: June 2012

June ushered in the need for cold and fruity things as well as things which help motivate one to finish out the work day and enjoy the type of indulgence which is not guilt-inducing. The primary source of the fruity indulgence for the Harrington's during the month of June was Banana (n)Ice Cream Sandwiches - an impressive way to beat the heat, feel like your being spoiled but ultimately to simply eat a banana. 

Heading up North: Paju, South Korea and the DMZ

Being unsure of what the future has in store, but feeling ever more certain that they'll be leaving South Korea, the Harrington's have done their best to enjoy the peninsula and more importantly the friends they've made.

So it was, the couple found themselves boarding a KTX train at 10:48 on a Saturday morning with good friends Hyunhee and Hakcheol en route to Paju, South Korea, the residence of Hyunhee's sister and Melissa's friend Uni.

Now, generally speaking, being ready at 10:48 on a Saturday morning is hardly problematic. Unfortunately, for Mike, something wasn't sitting so well in the digestive tract and the heat and humidity of the morning, plus the confines of a subway and the sporadic movements of an escalator soon had Mike desperately searching for a place to release the contents of his gut in hopes the rest of the day would carry on in a much more pleasant manner.

With minutes to spare, Mike re-joined the crew and was able to board the train feeling better, although not entirely 100%. A few hours later the crew of four arrived just north of Paju and were holding on tight for a quick and speedy ride to Uni's home.