Minbangui (Civil Defense Drill)

by Betchay on March 14, 2010

MinBangUi

March 14 is White Day and it’s also the day (in this part of the world) that Manny Pacquiao won against Joshua Clottey in their match in Dallas, TX. Traditionally, men in Korea give candies to their partners. My husband didn’t but he made “ho tteok” for us instead. It was good!

March 15, Monday, will be a rainy day. We should also be expecting “hwangsa” or yellow sand from China. It’s really spring! This season in Korea is characterized not only by beautiful flowers but also with rainy days (and a number of them fall on weekends) and yellow sand or dust. Bring a mask!

Also on March 15, Monday, don’t forget to bring your camcorder with you. It’s a special day ;) Around Seoul, one would find white flags with the characters “민방위” written on them. What should be expected on this day? I wrote about it last year – civil defense drill on March 15.

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Teacher Training at the Women’s Center

by Betchay on March 14, 2010

I’ve been attending classes intermittently at the Women (Im)migrants Human Rights Center in Sungin-dong in Seoul since 2006. I haven’t been there since I started working last year but the Korean staff still call or send me messages from time to time whenever they have a special program.

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The last time I was at the Women’s Center, I was training to teach Filipino culture to young Koreans and Korean language class for beginners. Too bad I was forced to work full time (I originally intended to work part time but my “wonjangnim” or school director talked me into accepting a full time job). I was cornered!

Anyway, I attended three or four sessions of the classes mentioned before I stopped. The teacher training for culture classes were only available to Filipinas, Vietnamese and Chinese; while intermediate students were invited to attend the teacher training for the Korean language class.

Last Thursday, I received a message from the Women’s Center inviting me to attend the training once again. The teacher training started last Friday at 10:30 AM. I might just visit the Center once again since I’d like to continue their free Korean classes. If you’re a Filipina married to a Korean and hoping to get a teaching job, it would be helpful if you can somehow speak Korean.

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Korea’s Top BB Cream

March 12, 2010

When it comes to Korean cosmetic, I get asked most about the best BB cream. I’m not an expert on BB creams. I’m not an expert at all when it comes to make-up, as I’m not really “kikay”. If I could get away without putting on make-up at all, I’d do that. However, I have [...]

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2010 Korea’s Best Cosmetic (Part 2)

March 12, 2010

The brand “Sulwhasoo”, manufactured by Amore-Pacific, is currently the leader in skin care products based on market share. This is according to the article posted at CMN on the “2010 Korea’s Best Cosmetic”. Here’s a more detailed info:
Best Face Cream:
1. Sulwhasoo
2. Hera
3. History of Hu
3. Kiehl’s (American brand)
4. IOPE
- History of Hu and Kiehl’s tied
Best [...]

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2010 Korea’s Best Cosmetics (Part 1)

March 11, 2010

I sometimes get asked what Korean cosmetic would I recommend? What’s the best BB cream for them to buy? What is the number one Korean cosmetic brand to try? And so on…
I found an article on the Korea’s best cosmetic brand based on market share. (It’s more like top cosmetics but the report says “best”) [...]

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Snowfall in March

March 11, 2010

Winter is not officially over and proof of that is last night’s snowfall. It rained here yesterday and in the evening, it also snowed. The snowfall continued until the wee hours of the morning so we woke up in a winter wonderland once again. March 9th isn’t too late for ice. I remember that we [...]

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Jang Dong Gun and Go So Yeong’s wedding

March 10, 2010

May is family month in Korea. We celebrate Children’s Day, Parents’ Day, Teenagers’ Day and Couple’s Day in just a month. It is also the season of weddings. I know more Korean couples who got married in May than in any other month. Oh, I had my Korean wedding in May (2005).
This year, the “Wedding [...]

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Watch “Rated K: Biyaheng Korea”

March 8, 2010

Rated K, a show hosted by Korina Sanchez on ABS-CBN, did a special episode on Korea. “Rated K: Biyaheng Korea” was finally shown on March 7, Sunday. They featured a few famous tourist spots and Filipino “celebrities” in Korea: Prof. Abagat, Regina, Beverly Tamago of Arirang’s Talk Around and Cathy Garcia of Korea Times. One [...]

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Cheaper Internet plus Shopping Money

March 8, 2010

Every year, my husband and receive insurance products offered by different companies. We have several insurance plans and I don’t know why we have more than one. The insurance marketing skills those agents possess must be working really well on us. We spend a nice percentage of our salaries paying for premiums. Hopefully, they will [...]

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Airplane Movies

March 7, 2010

In two weeks’ time, I’ll be meeting my mother as she’ll have a 9-hr stopover in Incheon on her way to Los Angeles. She just arrived in the Philippines yesterday for a short vacation. She was lucky to get cheap flights whenever she travels from LAX to Clark Airport. The latter is just a 15-minute [...]

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