Gwangju International Center

        This month's best donator is Ota Yuriko who donated 11 books in November.      Total 82 books are donated by Ota Yuriko, Kim Ha-neul, Marisa Ackerman and 4 anonymous donators in November.   If you want to donate some books to the GIC, please feel free to bring those to the GIC. Thank you in advanced.      Contact) library.gic@gmail.com 

  2012 Gwangju Photowalk   Speakers: Doug Stuber (German) and Paul Moissine (U.S.A) Reviewer: Jang Yeon-jin Proofreader: Bradley Weiss   The November 24th GIC Talk was about the "2012 Gwangju Photowalk" which is also the name of the gallery which opened right after the talk. This gallery was organized by Joe Wabe, originally from Costa Rica. Speakers Doug Stuber and Paul Moissine, both members of the Gwangju Photography Club, discussed the event and some of the photos with the audience. During the gallery opening, there was a guitar performance by Reghardt de Beer.   Paul Mossine mentioned that taking photos has two meanings: finding beauty by observing and communication. In this point, he recommended people to join the Gwangju Photography Club, which provides a good opportunity to talk about photos and share opinions with the many other members. Also, he said that his brain was stimulated and that inspired him while he took pictures on the walk. Moreover, photography tells the truth in that everybody has their own view points and ultimately will take different pictures. Doug Stuber followed, and offered his opinion that photography is probably the second greatest invention of the modern era. He provided some details for some of the photos which were taken during the event. At the end of the talk, he added that it would be worthwhile for anyone who has a cell phone or camera to join the club. Their talk reached a successful conclusion. Even though it only took 30 minutes to deliver the talk, shorter than many other talks, their messages were presented well. Paul Mossine’s delivery was even and clear so that the audience could understand. Doug Stuber was able to illustrate what he wanted to say by using a number of photos. I think the audience as a whole was satisfied with their talk and it likely stimulated some interest in photography.   Photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/November242012 Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5vRGKr726E  

 Kimchi Farm Exchange   Speaker: Peter Gallo (USA) Reviewer: Kim Sae-rin Proof-reader: Bradley Weiss (U.S.A)     Kimchi Farm Exchange : Speaker Peter Gallo introduced about his program, kimchi farm exchange and he shared his experiences and lessons he has learned during as a life with the audience.    Peter began his life in Korea as only an English teacher, but has since added the role of popular farmer. He is working as a volunteer and advocate for small organic farm projects based mainly in New Mexico. He described his vision for an international exchange program based in both korea and the US. At first he was a little frustrated when he was only working as an English teacher in the classroom, because he wanted to be working outside. However, working as an English teacher gave him a lot of chances to become a more active volunteer for organic farming. He explained about his Kimchi Farm Exchange project with illustrating his explanation with many pictures. He showed various pictures about what he is doing in the program. His presentation included details of his personal experiences including his wedding ceremonies in both Korea and the US. The two ceremonies happened with full support from his family.Therefore it was easy to focus on his speech. Also he included some well-timed jokes.    It seemed that all of the audience felt satisfied with today’s talk. Most people who were attending the talk were very interested in the kimchi farm exchange, even though those people were maybe not interested in farm life in general.        Video: :http://: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TpnYB3_sWI&list=UUw22s4ed3HHu1d7g-teo_yw&index=3&feature=plcp Photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/KimchiFarmExchange_PeterGallo02      

        When silent, we grasp the opportunity of a moment. Removed from the normal surroundings of Gwangju and the crowds of nationals and foreigners walking around, we gain the time to look within ourselves to later look outward. We catch the chance to appreciate what we have become and who we have been blessed by, and we look forward to the continuing adventure that lies ahead. But, in this moment, we are here, relishing the silence and lingering within it for as long as possible.   That was one of many lessons I learned at 4:45 a.m. on Sunday morning at the Hyangiram Temple in Yeosu, South Korea while participating in the final GIC Tour with Warren for 2012. The weekend was an incredible experience, and I was pleased with what I saw and learned!       Before beginning our Temple Stay, our group ventured into Seonso to catch sight of the turtle boat shipyard, consumed warm and tasty Sesame Noodles, and walked around Jinnamgwan shopping, window-shaping, taking pictures, and enjoying our time in the company of friends. Then, we climbed uphill by road and by foot from urban settings to a secluded location for our Temple Stay. The seclusion was a refreshing break from the typical living arrangement in South Korean metropolitan cities: being busy. So getting away from everything was naturally the start of thinking in fresh and creative ways for me.     My second favorite part of this two-day excursion was our group’s conversations with a female Buddhist nun. The Question and Answer Forum allowed us to receive perspective and insight into the life of a devout follower of the Buddha. Any question was sincerely welcomed and then would be conveniently translated, so we plunged fearless into this opportunity by asking quite personal, but thought-provoking questions. Equally, our generous host answered with well-constructed responses by sharing her heart and soul about why she became a Buddhist.     Through translation, our group learned that something within her was leading her to pursue self-education as her initial calling into Buddhism. As a follower, she further explained that she is “moving up steps into [her] next life.” Even if she messes up, she repents quickly (with no regret for her errors) and “continues to pray that the Buddha would be with [her] like he is with [her] in this life. Other questions that were asked were why 108 bows are significant, how she stays in shape with the bowing, how she helps others both inside and outside of the temple, and even how she has been confronted, but valiantly defended, her religious beliefs. This talk-back session showed us a glimpse into the woman who led us in two separate Buddhist practices. And for this time to talk and listen with her, I am grateful for what I gained from a Buddhist’s perspective.     Then, my favorite part of this experience was the dawn of light penetrating through the darkness of night after 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. As much as I enjoyed the time alone reading, singing, and just being in pitch darkness in the temple, the warmth of the sun from an elevated bird’s eye view was appreciated and definitely brought forth a new awakening in me. On a cliff overlooking Yeosu’s cliffs and seashore, another surreal moment came to life, as I became both grateful for the blessings of new friendships and for the simple treasure of witnessing the sun rise. The red, pink, orange, purple, and eventually yellow shades sure gave me plenty of camera opportunities, and those colors reminded me of how all colors come together to form one picture, just like every person in our group came together as one family. Our group members may have been acquaintances or even strangers among us walking into this experience, but we definitely returned to Gwangju as friends, having experienced the same beauty that this experience offered.       As 2012 concludes its final chapter in December and 2013 is on the brink of making history, I was encouraged to take some time to just escape from all-things ordinary in order to be challenged and encouraged by what I saw and felt. I am truly grateful to the GIC for hosting this Yeosu trip, and I look forward to participating in more trips.         Silence is something that we have to search for before experiencing it, and during my time in Yeosu, what I found within the stillness was renewal and importance as I have since returned and continue to live in Gwangju City, in South Korea, and anywhere else I go.   Written by_ Joseph Nunez  

 fdddfdfdfdfdf[p[p[p[   This month's best donor is Dale Friesen who donated 33 books in October.      Total 82 books are donated by Steve Larkin, Scott Findlay, Terra Engler, Greg Narajka, A.Kitson, Dale Friesen in October.   If you want to donate some books to the GIC, please feel free to bring those to the GIC. Thank you in advanced.      Contact) library.gic@gmail.com              dfdfdffdgfdg

        By: Leigh Hellman   The November 11th Gwangju Kimchi Road at Gwangju Kimchi Town was a fantastic experience! During this workshop, we learned how to make Fusion Cabbage Kimchi (양배추 김치). Because Korean cabbage (배추) is difficult or expensive to buy in many foreign countries, Koreans who lived abroad developed this method to make kimchi from common foreign cabbage. So if you want to eat kimchi, this kind of kimchi might be easier to make in your home country!   When I signed up for this workshop, I was a little worried. It was early on a Saturday morning and I was nervous that it might be a lot of work to make kimchi. But it was so much simpler than I expected! Honestly, I think many people (Koreans and foreigners) would be able to learn the basics of how to make kimchi easily. We also watched a very helpful presentation from a Kimchi Factory Chef that gave us a clear idea of what we were going to do before we started making our own kimchi in teams.   The Fusion Cabbage Kimchi was crunchier than the regular Korean Cabbage Kimchi but it had the same delicious Gwangju flavor! And making it was a fun experience to get to bond with other foreigners and learn more about Korean cooking.   The workshop included a brief history of kimchi at the Kimchi Museum and a sample of our handmade kimchi to take home and enjoy—all for free! I highly recommend Gwangju Kimchi Road as a hand-on opportunity to engage with an important and tasty part of Korean culture!         Next Kimchi Road is Korean style cabbage Kimchi Making. You can see the details in the poster below. If you want to participate in more meaningful program, please do not miss this chance.      >> If you want to join the last Kimchi Road, please click here to sing up.     

  VIETNAM AND KOREA: FROM THE NATURAL, HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL SIMILARITIES TO THE STRATEGIC COOPERATION PARTNERSHIP   Date: November 3rd, 2011 Speaker: Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea, Tran Trong Toan   Reviewer: Kim Sae-bom   Proofreader: Eric Banuelos   Have you ever been Vietnam? Maybe some people have visited for tourism. Even if you haven’t had a chance to go there, you could hear about Vietnam from the media. As you know, there are many Vietnamese who immigrate to Korea, so we have a bigger chance of exposure to their culture too. On the other hand, many Koreans have moved to Vietnam, and are trying to settle and spread our culture by adjusting to life there. As time goes by, Vietnam and Korea’s relationship is getting deeper with various exchanges. The topic of last week's GIC talk was   “Vietnam-Korea: from natural, historical and cultural similarities to the strategic cooperation partnership,” and was given by Tran Trong Toan, the Ambassador of Vietnam.  First he explained about similarities between Vietnam and Korea. He mentioned that there is a story for why Vietnam and Korea are so much alike. We can find a lot of common factors in the fairy tales of both countries. Geographically, our land is such an important place that other countries always attack, yet we are still able to protect our own cultures. Moreover, we don’t have religious wars even though there are multiple religions in one country. Second, he touched on two components of the current relationship between Vietnam and Korea. One is the factors that to help tighten our relationship such as Globalization, common interests, and suffering from long time war. Also, he said that our relationship can be special, because we pursue peace and happiness. Thus, both countries don’t want to use this partnership as tool of threat to international society. Finally, he briefly mentioned the future of our relationship. He wants to improve economic trade by making a Free Trade Agreement and encourage Korean business in Vietnam. Furthermore, he hopes to help every immigrant family be happy.  In short, it was an honor to listen his speech. He had a sense of humor and I was surprised that he knew about Korean history. According to him, we had serious adversities in the past years, but we protected our own culture and language. That makes us proud of our countries and reminds us that peace is an important value in our country.     Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9HDBwNgGpU&feature=relmfu Photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/121103_TranTrongToan  

The Journey of English: Some brief discussions on the past, present and future of the language     Date: October 27th, 2011 Speaker: Bradley Weiss Writer: Saerin Jeong Proofreader: Samuel Winters   The talk “The Journey of English: some brief discussions on the past, present and future of the language” was delivered by Bradley Weiss. He guides listeners through the evolution of the English language, from its origins among the Indo-European language family to ways in which the language is changing before our very eyes today.   Bradley has a background in classical languages and linguistics, so his talk is able to go fairly deep into the dynamics of the English language. For example, he uses a comparative analysis, putting English terms next to those of related languages, to highlight the Indo-European language family’s common roots. Also interesting is his explanation of vowel shifts that have occurred and that are still occurring today. Fortunately, Bradley addresses these complicated-looking subjects with an affable and humorous speaking style, keeping the audience glued to him and his impressive Powerpoint.   It seemed that all of the audiences felt satisfied with today’s talk. Most people who were attending at the talk maybe well known about the history of the English.   Photos:https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/121027_BradleyWeiss02 Video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8NZ4c2v54g&list=UUw22s4ed3HHu1d7g-teo_yw&index=2&feature=plcp            

    The Abode of Peace and a Bruneian student’s adventure in Korea       Speaker:  Awangku Muhammad Naqiuddin Bin Pengiran Rahim (Bruneian) Date:Oct 20th, 2012 Reviewer: Nguyen Hoang Quan Proofreader: Eric Banuenue   Traveling is becoming a trend nowadays. Tourists are turning their eyes to Asia, which is considered to be an adventurous and amazing land. That is the reason why last Saturday we were excited to welcome Awangku Mahammad Naqiuddin Bin Pengiran Rahim from the University of Brunei Darussalam. He gave a presentation about his country Brunei under the title “The Abode of Peace and a Bruneian Student’s Adventure in Korea.”   Brunei, a small kingdom in South East Asia, through Naqui’s presentation, was like an amazing trip to us. He showed us every page of the country: the meaning of Darussalam, the country map, the 29th Sultan of Brunei, the 2 official languages, funny comparing facts between Brunei and Gwangju, and the distance between there and Korea. Instead of just showing the numbers and percentages, the presentation came vividly with interesting pyramids and charts, which let the audiences have the easiest look about all things Bruneian. The country, according to Naqui, develops pretty well these years with good economic growth rates, education, housing and taxes supports, and many other positive policies. Our presenter also mentioned some interesting facts about Brunei such as the prohibition of alcohol and the ownership of a cattle ranch in Australia which is even bigger than Brunei itself. Further into the presentation, Naqui shared his very first experiences in Korea through the perspective of an international student, including why he loved Korea so much, and how independent he had to be to adopting a  new life away from home.     Watch the video:http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abSet_KN6xs&list=UUw22s4ed3HHu1d7g-teo_yw&index=3&feature=plcp Watch the photo:http://https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/20121020_PengiranRahim   

  'Jolly Good Show': A brief overview of all things English Speaker: Rosie Hawkins (British) Date: Oct. 13, 2012 Review writer: Yeonjin Jang Editor: Samuel Winters    Today's speaker was Rosie Hawkins, English. She was born in Chester and has grown there. Also, she has studied law in Leeds University and want to be lawyer in the future. Now, she is taking a rest, discontinuing her studying for a while. Almost three month passed since she came to Korea and now, she is working as a teacher in a private academy. Today, her topic was "Jolly Good Show: A brief overview of all things English".   In "Jolly Good Show: A brief overview of all things English", speaker Rosie Hawkins introduces the audience to England in a brief but impressive talk. A native of Chester, England, Ms. Hawkins divides her topic into three parts: History, Culture and London.  She then takes the time to explain each using interesting examples. Some of the insights from her informative talk include which English foods are least likely to bore your palate, and why post boxes in London are painted bright red. Her speech was so interesting that it made all of the audiences be attracted entirely. The reason why she could succeed in getting their attention is not only her contents but also her presentation skills and well-made presentation. She gave us a lecture based on her own experiences and personal thinking, so it made her speak naturally and the audiences could understand easily in comfortable circumstances. Also, she made more interesting presentation by adding some video clips, which are relevant to her topics.  In addition to being informative, the talk is visually interesting as well.  The speaker uses an especially interactive PowerPoint format along with video, audio and numerous pictures, all of which help grab the audience’s attention.  The speaking style is candid and includes many of the speaker’s opinions and personal experiences, giving the talk a cozy and familiar feel that brings listeners closer to England as Ms. Hawkins knows it.   It seemed that most of the audiences felt satisfied with today's talk. The talk made people be interested in England and provided basic but important information about London that normal people did not know well. Watch the video:http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Dg6dRpthLiA Watch the photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/117593299426331932940/121013_RosieHawkins ]