Happy Hollidays, Ho Ho Ho, Etc.

So things have been barren around here, I know. The last few weeks have been extremely busy with preparing for my family to come to Korea, and then the trip to Japan. I expect to write upwards of 7 posts about the trip, so make sure to check back often.

Before I get to my Japan trip, I have another exciting story to share. This is the tale of when I dressed up as Santa Claus. Oh what a day!

First, all of the kids wore these corny hats with tinsel on them. These types of celebrations are a lot about good photo opps with the kids to please the parents.

I peeked into the room a few times, but then I had to dress up in my costume and hide so that the kids couldn't see me until it was time for Santa to arrive. This meant that I had to miss the kids' performances of the Christmas songs which I had helped them learn. Luckily the other foreign teacher was able to take some photos for me. This is a class I don't teach but they are really cute kids:

The next photo is of my group of 6 year olds (American 5) who had to learn 'Santa Claus is Coming to Town.' My tactic to help them learn it was to first sing the song as a class, then have each one sing it individually and give them a sticker if they did, repeating everyday for two weeks. It worked pretty well.

Then, all of the lights were turned out and the kids were given candles. They had to cheer out for Santa Claus to arrive (I was just hiding out in an office).

I came out in full getup, my boss is right behind me but his eyes are cut off. If you look closely you can see that my jacket and pants are just a little too short.

I had to give a present to each of the Kindergarteners, 50 in all. Each came up to get their present and had to listen to one of the Korean teachers and promise that they were going to be a good little boy or girl for the next year. At least that's what I think it was because I don't understand Korean. The deal was sealed with a pinky swear and a nice photo.

Last, just a matter of a photo with each class and I was out of the costume for at least another year.

Well, happy late holidays and make sure to check back daily for the next week or so because I plan to do a post a day or so until I finish with the trip. If there isn't a post for a day just assume that the game Grand Theft Auto: China Town Wars for Nintendo DS is a really good game (it was one of my Christmas presents).