
The pic of the week shows me with Joan from Scotland and Stephanie from Kilkenny. We were attempting to do the 12 pubs of Christmas, but didn't make it beyond 7!
University applications
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Well, I've been put back in my box regarding the university applications. I was so impressed with my own CV, but I haven't been called for so much as an interview. I was even wondering if the postal system is working, but I did get two calls for clarification! Talking to people, I realised that there is a lot of competition for university positions. People who are in Korea for a few years often want to transfer, or people from universities in the country want to come to Seoul, and obviously they will have Korean or university teaching experience, or both, which I lack. There are still ads being put up, and I'm still applying. I'm not giving up yet, but I think I'll have to resort to plan B after Christmas if I still haven't got anything.
The 12 pubs of Christmas
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Two of Clara's friends, Joan and Stephanie (in the picture above), have returned to Korea, and now live close by. We decided that the four of us would do the 12 pubs of Christmas around Itaewon last Saturday night. I was surprised when the plan was to start at 8pm, because I thought we'd need to start earlier. By the time we eventually got going, after wine in Joan and Stephanie's, it was 9pm. We all managed to get to six pubs. At that stage people were phoning home to Ireland and Scotland, there were tears, and a lot of slurring and falling. Only two of us managed to get to the seventh pub, and then we abandoned it when we couldn't find the others. We were hopeless.
Adultery case
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I was surprised to learn that adultery is a criminal offence in Korea, punishable by up to 2 years in prison. I discovered it this week, when there was a case reported of a well-known actress Ok So-ri (I know that name looks like it's made up, but it's true) who was sued for adultery by her husband. She challenged the law, saying that it's original intent was to protect the institution of marriage, but is now in effect just a method of revenge. She lost her case, and was sentenced to 8 months suspended, with her lover, a pop singer, sentenced to 6 months suspended. Apparently there are in the region of a thousand cases prosecuted a year, but jail sentences are very rare.
White Christmas
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We've had snow a few times over the past month, and when it started snowing last night we wondered if we might have a white Christmas. But it's unlikely. The weather forecasts here are very accurate. Coming from Ireland I usually avoid planning anything around a forecast, but I've learned that they have a high degree of accuracy here. Christmas day is forecast as 'breezy and colder with sunshine'. The forcast high is -4c (that's the high!), and the low is -14c. So it'll be a cold and sunny one.
Christmas plans
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Clara is in full Christmas planning mode. She's planned a traditional dinner, and we have a turkey, ham and all the trimmings for Thursday. There are between 8 and 10 people coming over for Christmas day. The biggest difficulty will be not having an oven. Most houses here don't have one. Clara has a little one that looks like a microwave, and is way to small for the turkey. So we'll be off over the hill to Joan and Stephanie who have a full Irish-sized oven in their apartment.
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Well, that's it for now. I want to wish all of you a great Christmas. I know the weekly emails have of late been weekly only in name, but rest assured they will continue through 2009.
Nollaig shona daoibh.
Éamon
Today's headline from The Korea Times: Shipbuilding, Construction Firms Targeted for Restructuring