Great Stuff about "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal"

A hectic day. A busy day. A sad day. A nice day.

After almost a month's vacation I went back to work today. It was of course hectic because I have gotten used to a schedule that basically involves hanging out with my family, going for a run and working a bit on my book or now, public relations/marketing for my book.

It was a sad because I have been with my young son every day for almost a month. I have watched him grow and develop so much, but now.....back to work. I am not complaining about my job, it's a good one. I just get a little spoiled with so much vacation time. 

GREAT day because of two great reviews of my book, Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal. 

An amazing written look at the book on Dimitri's blog. He is a university professor who was based in Japan last year.

Next, a nice review from You Tube video blogger LaurenNIHON:

REMEMBER....you can buy my book right here!

My Book - Featured on the Qiranger Adventures Podcast

Each week I listen to the Qiranger Adventures Podcast. This morning I was listening to it while making my breakfast and swilling my morning coffee. I was a little more than happy when I hear him, unexpectedly give a great review of my book!

Listen to well known travel blogger Steve Miller discuss "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal."

Tips For New Teachers: Rules and Consequences

Tips for new teachers......

Rules and consequences

As a new teacher it is extremely important that you set very clear rules from day one with your students. You might want to ask the manager or owner of your school about this, but normally, one of the best ways to inform students about the rules is by posting them on the wall. Students will of course need to be constantly reminded of the rules orally, but a visual reminder often makes the rules more tangible.

Of course, what would rules be without consequences? You might not be able to make these up yourself because the school you work in may have certain policies already in place. On the opposite end of things, you may find yourself working at a school that is chaotic and prefers not to have rules for fear of “scaring off students.” The school I talked about in my “Disorganized School” story was one such school. The owner of that school in Korea didn’t want us to consequence students in any way, even if their behavior was bad because he was afraid the school would lose customers. Luckily not all schools are like that.

The consequences you choose to go with your new rules will of course have to be fair and not extreme. The most important thing for you as a new teacher to remember is that you must always maintain those consequences. Sometimes a teacher may say something like, “If you speak during quiet reading one more time then you will have an extra homework page.” The student then does speak again, the teacher tells them to be quiet, but forgets to give the homework page. Those students, as well as the others in the class, have just learned something very important about the teacher. They’ve learned that the teacher’s threats are hollow. From that moment on, the students will continue to probe and push, seeing how far they can get with their new teacher.

Many years ago, the first mentor teacher I had during a student teaching practicum in Canada told me, “Kevin, if you talk the talk you better walk the walk. If you tell students they will have to stay in at lunch as a punishment, be prepared to give up your own lunch to watch them.” Valuable words. If the kids in your class (this of course doesn’t apply to adult learners) know there will always be repercussions for breaking rules, most of them won’t break the rules or at least not as often.

This is a small excerpt from my eBook "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal." For more teacher tips like this as well as stories and job hunting ideas, download the book for only $5.99.

You can also read an interview with me about self-publishing on the Our Man in Abiko blog! Check it out today.

Good Reviews of "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal"

It has been more than 24 hours since my first book was published on the Amazon Kindle store. I am very happy that I was able to finally see this writing project come to fruition and so happy that people have been downloading the book.

I plan to work hard in the coming days, weeks and months to promote it and make sure it gets a wide audience. So far, many people having been saying kind things over Twitter and on Facebook. People have also been writing some AMAZING reviews on the Kindle Store itself.


Here are just some of the great tweets sent to me (@jlandkev) on Twitter:

There have been many other amazing tweets and I am saving everyone of them!

This morning I woke up to find an email from the well-known Korea-based blogger Steve miller, aka "qiranger" who already did a review of Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal for his blog and You Tube. Check out his review video!



I appreciate all the great feedback! Thanks everyone.

When new reviews or interviews about the book occur, I'll post all the information right here!

My First Book for Sale!

The day has finally come. After a lot of hard work, a labor of love is complete. After many years of receiving questions from hundreds of readers and You Tube viewers about teaching in South Korea and Japan, I have written a book about it!

If you are interested in coming to Japan or Korea to teach, this is the book for you. Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal is a great starting out point for your research!

Even if you do not plan to teach abroad, but have an interest in Asia, you may find my stories about life inside and outside the classroom entertaining.

Download it from the Amazon Kindle Store TODAY!

If you don't have a Kindle, you can read it on your PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad or Android device! Download the free Kindle Reader here.

The "Teaching in Asia" Home Stretch

Yes folks, we are on the home stretch. Just days away from the release of my first book, "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal", I have to admit, I am having trouble sleeping at night. Why am I have this trouble? I suppose that is pretty simple. My mind is racing with thoughts of excitement, nervousness and some anxiety. I have put so much of my energy and free-time into this project and I of course hope it is a success.

I suppose the fact that, as a blogger, my first book will be published period, is a huge achievement itself. Now I know what I am capable of and what I need to do in order to improve. Now I am excited for the next writing project! Hey, if I can write one book, why not another after that? Ideas are already darting around in my brain and I have been jotting down notes.

As I have explained before, "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal" is a "how to" guide for people interested in coming to Japan or Korea to teach. it is a great place to start your research. if you are not directly interested in coming abroad to Asia, I think you will sill find the stories entertaining. If you enjoy my writing style and are a regular reader of this blog, then it is basically my blog on steroids!

A question many people ask me is, "Kevin, can I read your eBook if I don't have a Kindle Reader?" Of course you can!

Amazon has a free Kindle reader app for iPhones, iPads, Android devices and of course, PC's and Macs. There is even the Kindle Cloud Reader! If you have a computer, you can read my book!

You can download the free Amazon Kindle readers here: Amazon Kindle Reader


I will be uploading the book to the Kindle Store early next week. If all goes well and there are no technical issues (I have never formatted a book and ePublished before), it will be good to go late next week!

I will make a series of You Tube videos on all my channels and announce it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and here of course!

Stay Tuned!

Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal (My FIRST book)

A month has passed since my last post and a lot has happened in that time. Most of what I have been doing is work related. Teaching and all of the other administrative things that go along with my job have been keeping my days and evenings full.

The school year has ended for me and I am beginning to enjoy a three-week vacation. I plan to stay in Kobe and finish up my biggest personal project to date.

Now, I haven’t been writing posts for this blog, but I have indeed been writing, rewriting, editing and revising.

Last summer, while out for a walk during a break at work, I was reading a blog I follow. I read that the blogger has just published an eBook about travel. My interest was caught. I went back to work and for the remainder of my break read about self-publishing. Seemed pretty straightforward as long as I had something to publish.

I decided I would write a short eBook about teaching in Asia. I have experience teaching in both South Korea and Japan. I worked as an ESL teacher for several years and then returned to Canada to get my teaching certification. After gaining some experience in Canadian classrooms, I then came to Japan where I have worked as a homeroom teacher at an international school since.

Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal is a “how to” guide of sorts. It is mostly for those interested in moving to Asia to teach. It will definitely be a helpful source of information for university students hoping to make the move abroad or professional teachers thinking of moving to Japan or Korea.

The “how to” aspect of the book is only part of it. The rest is filled with stories from the classroom as well as many stories about adventures and inspirational moments I have had outside the classroom. If you are a teacher or thinking of becoming one, Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal will be for you. If you simply have an interest in education or life in Asia, you’ll enjoy it too!

Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal will be available on the Amazon Kindle store soon.

For more information about the book, check out the new companion blog, TeachAsia. Loads of informational about the book and the topic are there.

Listen to my Teaching in Asia update podcast on Sound Cloud:

Here is the working cover for the book! Looks great, but there may be some changes in the next few weeks. 

Life in Japan and Korea: Myth vs Reality

I am not an angry blogger; I promise. I am not a bitter blogger; I mean it. Sure, there is a virtual poop-ton of bitter people who are fed up with living in Asia, but rest assured, at the time I write this blog (meaning never say never) I am not one of them. I am making this clear because I want all you out there reading this post to know that I am not trying to be a grumpy old fart raining on your parade for the sake of being a grumpy old fart.

This blog post is based in reality. I am being a realist. If you are an obsessed Japan or Korea fan you may not want to read what I will write, but tough, this is how it is!

I wanted to address some of the false images people have and false assumptions people make about life in Japan and Korea.


1. If I move to Japan or Korea, my life will be better: Maybe, maybe not. There are millions of factors that will cause this to become a reality or not.  Did you come to Asia to teach or live with a massive financial debt hanging over your head or were you running away from a messy divorce? If so, maybe life won't be better for you with a simple geographic change. For many out there though, life does become better.

Simple reasons for this: A massive geographic and cultural change is exciting. It is a sensory overload and an amazing learning experience. Moving to a culture completely foreign and learning to navigate it can be fun. Also, living in a place that may have a deeper history than where you came from may also seem interesting.

2. I want to live in Japan because I love anime and manga: Japan isn't a comic book or a cartoon. it is real and life here is real. It is very different than in Europe and North America, but it is real. People eat breakfast in the morning and go to work. They drink coffee during their coffee breaks and fall asleep with the TV on at night. Life in Japan is certainly cool, but it isn't like a manga or an anime. Sorry!

3. I hear everyone in Japan does Cosplay and I wanna see it: No they don't! To be honest, it is pretty rare to see people doing Cosplay in Japan. It only happens in specific places and only sometimes. Although, as a Canadian, it is interesting and amusing to see people dress up in costumes, it isn't that common. According to my wife and many other Japanese people I have talked to, the regular everyday Japanese person thinks Cosplay is pretty weird. It is a subculture. Sorry folks!

4. If I move to Korea or Japan (some younger readers say this) then I'll never be bullied: ARGH! Please don't think that. Bullying is rampant in these two countries. Their teen suicide rate is through the roof. If you think bullying is bad where you are from, try being pushed to the outside in a group culture!

5. I love Korean dramas and want to move to Korea: Sort of like the anime thing. Life in Korea is interesting, but it is real. Dramas (soap operas in North America) are anything but real. That prince charming way that guys act in those shows...well....they're just TV shows. Nuff said!

6. I really want to move to Japan and Korea because I love the food: Good reason. The food in both countries is outstanding and a fine reason to set up shop there!

7. I wanna move to Korea or Japan cause all the ladies will want me: Did the ladies want you where you came from? If the answer is "No", than maybe you may have trouble here as well. If you go to a club and someone throws themselves all over you right away, either you look like Ryan Reynolds or they've done it many times before. To be honest though, you get a good lady here like you would anywhere else. Be interesting, charming and have some luck on your side!

8. I want to work in Japan or Korea, but I don't want to teach: That is cool. What is skill set though? Do you work for a large multi-national company that will transfer to Japan or Korea. Are you so fluent in the language that you can compete in the local job market? Are you a freelancer who can tele-commute from anywhere in the world? Will you be a language or university exchange student? If not....not sure what you will do?



I lived in Korea and I now live in Japan. They are very interesting countries to call home. They can at times be frustrating though. You will face many of the day to day living problems people all around the world face. You will also get to enjoy many of the benefits of life in such interesting cultures with rich histories.

Follow me on Twitter: @jlandkev

Teaching in Asia

Earlier this evening, an online and "real life" friend of mine asked me, over Twitter, "what exactly is your book about and how can I get it when it is finished?"

That's right folks. I'm in the midst and in the home stretch of finishing my first book. Well, at least the first draft of it at any rate. I have mentioned this before here on this blog as well as on my You Tube channels (from which I am taking a hiatus), on Facebook, Google+ and on Twitter. Some of you are aware of my writing project and many of you are not. 

Long story....not so short. I was an ESL teacher in South Korea for more than five years. I then went back to Canada, got my elementary school teaching credentials, taught in Canada and then came to Japan where I now teach at an international school. I have been a teacher for ten years now, taught in three countries and have worked in language schools, Canadian public schools as well as the international school system. All the while, I have been a blogger and for more than five years, a You Tube video blogger. 

In those years, I have received hundreds of questions from people all around the world interested in coming to Asia to teach. Some questions have been thoughtful while others, not so much. I have written many a blog post answering some of them and have made even more videos. My videos about teaching in Korea and Japan have received hundreds of thousands of hits. Some of my most popular ones are not so much about facts and advice, but stories from my time in Korea and Japan. 

I am a teacher and I am a story teller. I'm honestly not sure which one I like being more. In a way, they both go hand in hand. 

Last September, while out for a lunch time walk at work I came to a conclusion. There was no way I could ever truly explain everything I want to about working and living in Korea and Japan in a blog format. There's simply too much to discuss. Likewise, I could never do more than scratch the surface with a You Tube video. That's when the idea was born.

I began writing "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal" that same evening. A book that would be both practical and hopefully entertaining. A book aimed at those around the world who were interested in coming to either South Korea of Japan to teach. It would be a practical "how to" guide as well as series of stories about my experiences in Asia, both inside and outside of the classroom. People really seemed to enjoy my stories on You Tube so I thought a lot of people out there would enjoy them on paper as well. 

The book started to almost write itself and by November, the bulk of the first draft was completed. Then my work schedule increased and I started video blogging on You Tube more than ever before. With all the time I was spending on You Tube, I had little or no time to write. The book basically got put on the back burner. 

The new year came along and I decided that writing was far more meaningful to me than video blogging. I decided to stop video blogging all together until I could get this project finished. My priority is to get this done and self-published. In 2012, that is a pretty easy thing. My book, once done will be available on the Amazon Kindle store for a small sum. At the moment I am in the midst of adding a few more stories to make it more worth while and fun for the "future readers" out there. 

If you have any thoughts of coming to Asia to teach, this book will help you find a job and hopefully the right one for you. it will also help anyone out there with no classroom experience and for those who do, hopefully offer you a few new perspectives. 

Even if you have no desire to ever teach in Asia, I think you will still find something interesting within it's pages.

Close to launch time, I will let you know about the website for the book itself.

Stay tuned for more!

Check ut a story from my BusanKevin You Tube channel. I shot this one more than 3 years ago. It is about the first time I stepped foot in a classroom. This story and many others will be in "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal."

Don't Step in the Shit

Don't step in the shit! Why not? Isn't the shit the stuff that's going to get you all the viewers on You Tube and al of the readers on your blog? Well, what I mean by "shit" is controversy. Controversy is something that gets people watching videos on your video blog or reading your blog posts. Being edgy and controversial is interesting if done well. It is exciting if thought through. Controversial views are often the key to success in the world of content creation. Being a hot young lady also works if you are on You Tube!

As a mid 30-something guy, my hot lady days are far behind me. Come to think of it, they never existed. So, what is a mid 30-something Canadian blogger with a receding hairline to do in order to get tens of thousands of people to read my posts and millions to watch his videos? I could take my shirt off! Wait a second...that might cause a violent physical reaction known as "vomiting." I could simply show more cleavage! Wait a second....my chest hair might impede the view.

What's a guy to do?

Ah....that's right. I can get edgy and controversial. BUUUUTTT...I don't want to. I don't want that sort of attention. Don't get me wrong. I love attention. If I didn't love attention I never would have become a drama freak in university or done improv theatre after university. I never would have played music in so many bands. If I didn't love attention I wouldn't have three You Tube channels and this blog. I wouldn't be such a Twitter whore (btw...you can follow me here)!

In the past I have made some edgy videos and they have done well. A lot of people watched them. On a former blog, I used to write some edgy posts and many people read them. The problem was and I'm sure still would be that I attracted negative attention. I was noticed by normal readers and viewers, but at the same time I was noticed by internet trolls.

More than fours years ago I was in the Canadian capital city of Ottawa and there were duel protests on Parliament Hill (Canadian houses of government). There were are very large number of pro-China supporters and some Free-Tibet people (with heavy police protection) a block away. This was just before the Beijing Olympics. I shot a video of each group and as I did, shared some of my thoughts on the issues at hand. That night I posted the video and went to sleep. The next morning I awoke to thousands of hits which I initially thought was very cool. Then I noticed that I had dozens of very insane/nationalistic/threatening comments on my page by Chinese netizens. Some of my loyal viewers tried to support me in the comment section and then they were attacked by large numbers of netizens. After a few days of FAR TOO MUCH ATTENTION, I decided it would be in the best interest of my You Tube channel to just pull the video down. I didn't post another video for a few weeks and by then, the storm had calmed.

A few years later, while here in Japan, I made a video defending English teachers in South Korea. I worked there for more than five years and it is pretty common knowledge that there are certain nationalistic segments of society there that like to use teachers as scapegoats. There has also been a history of tabloid journalists there doing the same. I made a very frank and abrasive video (I was pissed off at the time about the topic) defending teachers and "poo pooing" their detractors. I posted the video and it immediately began to get lots of hits. Soon after that though, I started to attract the trolls. I left that video up for more than a year though. I didn't care, but every once and awhile a very nasty and persistent troll would rear his ugly head.

Fast forward to now. In 2012, I am still an attention whore. I would love for my videos and blog posts to all be popular and viral. Heck, I'd love to even be able to make a living doing this hobby that I love so much! BUT….I now refuse to be controversial. Well, a little edgy is ok. Some bloggers and video bloggers obviously pander to their audiences and only say positive things. Some never speak their minds freely.

I intend to speak my mind, but I never go looking for a fight. What is the point? I am not a very angry person. At times I become a little disgruntled about things in life, but we all do. I don't want to get myself noticed because I am negative or angry. I'm just not that sort of person. I suppose I could pretend to be angry and that would probably get some hits. Many people have online personas and it works for them. In my case though, that just isn't the "angle" I am shooting for. In fact, I don't have an angle. I'm just Kevin sharing his non-angry thoughts with all of you folks out there.

Being controversial definitely works if you want to be noticed online. BEWARE though. With all that attention, some negatives are bound to be included!

How Blogging has Kept Me Sane!

Blogging isn’t for everyone. Video blogging is even more “not” for everyone.

When we blog we sit down in front of our computers and pour out our thoughts and feeling on various topics. When blogs first started to emerge in the late 1990’s they tended to be an almost diary style form of online writing. Even in 2012, many people who write bogs follow a similar style.

I began writing blogs in the late 1990’s. My first blog was a fan page for an indie musician based in Canada. I stopped maintaining the site and stopped doing the “blog thing” by 2000. Just a few years later, I was living and working in South Korea and I decided to jump back into my old hobby. It had become so much easier. I could simply write something in Blogger and hit “post.” In the 1990’s I would write all of my web page language in HTML using Notepad on my Windows machine as my main editing tool. I would upload all text and photos using a File Transfer Protocol app called Cute FTP. I thought it was a lot of fun at the time, but it was also a lot of work.

Jump ahead to 2006. I began to make video blogs on You Tube. I now had a blog and vlog presence on the Internet. It was a fun way to let off steam, complain about stuff that annoyed me in Korea, play around with technology and be a little creative.

Jump ahead to 2012 and I have three You Tube channels, two blogs and have tried my hand at podcasting. I would probably attempt to do more, but having a family and “non-online” life luckily keeps me from attempting to take on more.

I’ve been in Asia for almost ten years now. While I’ve been here I’ve made some amazing friends and then inevitably said goodbye to them. Once I became married and started a family I became even more cocooned I my little world far away from home. Sometimes I miss communication with other native English speakers and those who share a similar cultural understanding. Luckily, blogging and vlogging have given me an outlet. They have given me a way to reach out to like-minded folks around the world.

Through this amazing hobby I have been able to share my experiences in Korea, Japan and as a teacher with those around the world who are interested in those very things. Not only have I been able to meet amazing folks from all over the globe, but also I have been able to meet so many wonderful people in person right here in Japan.

Blogging has given me the chance to meet new people as well as share my thoughts, feelings and knowledge.

If you have the ability to read this blog then you have the ability to start your own. I highly recommend it. It’s been lifesaver for me!

Some of the great things you can see while living in Asia...worth blogging about!

Things I Shouldn't Have Done in Korea

I received an email today from a You Tube viewer who is soon heading to South Korea to be a teacher. They asked me some questions about getting prepared for their big move. Obviously there are so many things one can do to prepare in advance of such a life-changing endeavor.

The question I liked was along the lines of, “Looking back on your time in Korea, what would you have done differently?” That is a great question. It immediately got me thinking about some of the bad choices I made so many years ago when I first went abroad to teach.

Now, I have of course made some great choices over the years, but I had had my fair share of “bad calls.” Writing this post in 2012, I am a dedicated and hard working teacher. I love what I do and really feel that I’m good at it. I take what I do seriously and love helping others who hope to become teachers or current teachers who wish to become better ones.

In 2002 I wasn’t the teacher I am now. I wasn’t even the same person I am now.

Let’s just jump into a short list of some things I would have done differently during my first year in South Korea:

Taken my job more seriously! I know for a fact that I wasn’t a very hard worker and didn’t really care much about my teaching. I was having an “adventure” in Korea. I was drinking and having a yearlong party. I was the type of “teacher” who annoys the Hell out of me now. I was the sort of teacher that in my current position in 2012, I would probably fire!

I wouldn’t have partied so much. I was so excited to be so far away from everything I knew. I was having too much fun in bars, pubs and clubs with other like-minded “party animal” teachers. As I look back on those days, I lament all of the amazing things I could have or should have done while in Korea. I was too busy going out and drinking beer to travel extensively or really learn about my host country.

I would have avoided the “human train wrecks.” I associated with too many people who were out of control. I met too many teachers who simply went overboard and felt that there were no boundaries for them. I was hanging around with men and women who drank too much, got into fights and generally gave foreigners in Korea a bad name. I wish I hadn’t spent any time with people like that.

I wish I had traveled more. I lived in three different cities in Korea and explored them extensively, but really wish I had spent more time exploring the more rural areas of Korea and the culture they had to offer.

I wish I liked seafood back then. I like seafood now. I didn’t eat it in 2002. Now that I think about it, I missed so many amazing culinary experiences. Korea has amazing food and I should have eaten more of it.

I wish I spent more time becoming a better teacher. I wish I had taken the time to learn about being a better teacher. I taught some great kids during my first year in Korea and I wished I had done a better job educating them.

Now of course I had many wonderful experiences in Korea during that first year. I went on to spend five years in total there. In the end, I made more good decisions than bad ones.

If Korea or Japan is the place you want to go, there are countless ways to research them these days. Spend time on blogs and watching vlogs. Take your time though. It’s never a good idea to rush into anything and remember, try to do things the “right” way!

Cold Turkey from Vlogging!

It’s time to go cold turkey! That’s right. I have to quit. Well, maybe not quite, but at least go on hiatus for a while. Yup, I just can’t get things done if I keep going at the same pace as I am now.

If there is one thing that I am absolutely amazing at, it is spreading myself too thin. Jumping into too many projects all at once is something I’ve always been a little more than proficient at. Let’s see. What are the various projects I have on the go at the moment?

• youtube.com/busankevin – my main video blog (or vlog) channel that I’ve run for more than 5 years. Videos about life in Asia/Canada/food/ranting/ramblings/travel destinations and more. At least one edited video (normally more) posted each week.
• youtube.com/jlandkev –my unedited, usually uploaded directly from my iPhone vlog channel showing snippets of my every day life here in Japan. Normally I upload 2-3 videos a day. Sometimes more, sometimes less.
• Youtube.com/runcauseitsfun – a new vlog channel all about running. More than a dozen videos about running uploaded since Christmas.
• Running – I have run on average, about 40km a week this year and plan to ramp that up to 60-80km a week soon.
• Blogging – I have this blog (not very active and sorry about that) as well as my “Running to Help Japan” blog.
• Hair brained fundraising schemes to help children in need in northern Japan.
• My BOOK! “Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal.” The first draft is a hair away from completion.
• Wonderful wife and son.
• Full time job as a teacher at an international school.
• Nothing to add here…..just wanted 10 things…

As you can see, there is a reason I average four hours of sleep a night. Seriously, that is all I normally get and some things are starting to bother me (aside from my ever-present dark circles under my eyes).

I NEED to get my book completed. I am so close to being finished and so excited about that fact that I have to wrap it up ASAP! There is nothing ground breaking about my written work, but I know it will be an entertaining read and have a lot of useful and fun information for those out there interested in coming to either Japan or South Korea to teach.

Originally I intended to have it completed by October and ready to hit the Amazon Kindle store before Christmas. That didn’t happen. Why not? Well, I started to get obsessive about my video blogging once again. That’s the issue with me. My You Tube presence gets me so excited that I forget about all of the other important projects I have on the go. Those important projects get put on the back burner and don’t seem to move forward.

I’ve decided there’s only one thing I can do to make sure I get my first draft of “Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal” finished, proofread and sent off to some other editorial eyes in the next month or two. The only way is to go You Tube cold turkey! That’s right. No You Tube for the entire month of February. I have done this sort of thing in the past when I was feeling “You Tube” burnout, but this time it’s different. At the moment I am having a great deal of fun with You Tube and video blogging, but I am spending too much time focused on that and not enough time writing.

I have to post several planned videos in the next week or so, but come February 1^st, I will not log into You Tube for a month. In that time I will set aside at least an hour or two each day to work on my book and maybe write some blog posts here. I will also remain active on Twitter. I won’t be going into a tech blackout, just a You Tube hiatus.

When I return in March, hopefully, I’ll have a book close to completion and an accompanying website to promote it! I’m looking forward to getting this big (for me) project wrapped up!

Stay tuned for more!

Arghh...I can't eat that!

As many of you know, I am currently working on my first book. "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the real deal." will be released as an eBook later this year. It will be a great resource or anyone who is interested in moving to South Korea or japan to teach. It is practical advice from a certified elementary school teacher someone who has lived and worked in both countries (that's me by the way). It will be a mix of entertaining and useful stories as well as advice on how to find a job, prepare for your move and successfully adapt to the culture.

The best way to find out about the book, my progress putting it together and release information, keep an eye on my Facebook page. I will be setting up a website for the book just before the release.

I wanted to give you guys a little taste of what I am up to. This is a

small section form one of the chapters in the book. "Argh...I can't eat that!" is part of the Culture Shock chapter.

Argh…I can’t eat that

You are now in a very different culture and with the different culture come new culinary experiences. The food typically eaten on a daily basis by Korean or Japanese people is obviously quite a bit different from what a typical Canadian, American, Australian, etc. might eat. You are going to have to try your best to get used to it because when you are with your Korean or Japanese friends, students or going to most restaurants, that’s what you will be eating.

To be honest, when I first landed in Korea in 2002, I was anyt

hing but an adventurous eater. I grew up in Eastern Canada and although had a family that was open to new food experiences, I personally wasn’t. As a young man, I was more of a Subway sandwich and pizza sort of guy and freely admit that I feared the unknown when it came to eating.

When I arrived in Korea, I knew nothing about Korean food. I suppose most people who go to Korea to teach find themselves in a similar situation. Luckily, I really enjoyed most of the new dishes introduced to me. I became a big fan of the food Korea had to offer. Generally, Korean food is spicy. A main spice used in many dishes is “gochu” which is a red hot pepper. Korean food also consists of a lot of vegetables. It’s definitely healthy, but for some, it can be a little too much. Some people don’t like the strong smell of the garlic and sesame oil while others tend to find it too spicy. I have met a few teachers in my time that had a history of stomach ulcers or were in general just sensitive and couldn’t handle the “heat” of Korean food.

Again, I took to it pretty quickly and enjoyed it. My advice to those out there who have never had Korean food and are coming to Korea is to be open-minded. You never know what something is like until you try it. Korean food is extremely healthy and packed full of flavor. It is also extremely affordable if not down right cheap to dine out at most restaurants in Korea. Many teachers will prefer to eat out most nights of the week as opposed to cooking at home because it can actually be cheaper to do so.

Japan also has some great food and aside from sushi and sashimi, I had basically no knowledge of the cuisine before I met my wife several years ago. Now I am absolutely in love with Japanese food. There was one stumbling block for me though, seafood. While growing up I never liked fish and since it is a major element of Japanese food, had to really try hard and learn to like it. Luckily I have, with the exception of eel.

Like Korean food, Japanese cuisine contains far more vegetables and a variety of them than a typical Western dish. I suppose what I love the most about Japanese food is the fact that in one typical meal you will find so many flavors on your plate.

Now eating out in Japan sadly isn’t as affordable as in Korea, but it’s always worthwhile. Since coming to Japan, I tend to eat most meals at home, but since my wife is Japanese, the vast majority of them are Japanese food.

Most people will enjoy the local “eats” when they come to Japan and Korea, but some may not. Again, my advice is just to give things a try. Even if a “mysterious” dish doesn’t look appealing, it may be extremely delicious.

If for some reason you just can’t wrap your plate or stomach around some of the local dishes, if you live in a larger city, there are plenty of restaurants that would probably cater to your needs. In Japan, there are Italian and Indian restaurants on almost every corner as well as fast food restaurants and pubs that serve “American” style food.

The same goes in Korea as well. You can find McDonald’s and Starbucks almost everywhere and family restaurants such as Bennigan’s and TGI Friday’s are very popular, although expensive. Many large supermarkets carry a variety of foreign food products and there are even specialty shops that deal specifically in food from abroad.

If you aren’t in a major urban area you are probably going to be out of luck when it comes to finding comfort food from home. You may just have to suck it up and learn to like what’s around you. To be honest, it’s not very hard!

Some kimchi, one of Korea's most famous dishes.

Remember to follow me on Twitter: @jlandkev

Teaching in kindergartens

For many people heading to South Korean and Japan every year to teach English, kindergartens are their first jobs. Some are good places to work while others are not always. Some kindergarten jobs offer decent salaries and teachers are treated well. Some involve long hours and a relatively low wage compared to other ESL jobs.

Here is a little more about working in kindergartens in both Korea and Japan (my latest video):

Teaching in Asia: Private Lessons

If you ever have the opportunity to teach in Asia, you will quickly learn that a great way to supplement your income is with private lessons. There can definitely be benefits to teaching them, but depending on where you live and what sort of visa you have, there may be risks as well.

Watch my "Teaching in Asia: Private Lessons" video to find out more!

Teaching in Asia: Recruiters

Some are good, many are not so good. The reality for many interested in heading to teach in Asia is that they will have to deal with a recruiter.

Here are my two cents on the subject:

I'm Always Sick in Japan

Is it easier for a foreigner to get sick while living in Japan? I suppose there are a lot of factors. Where do you work? Are you a teacher? If so, what age groups are you dealing with? Are there allergens in the air that you might not have to contend with in your native country? What are the pollution levels like where you live? Do you take care of your own health?

I think about this a lot because of the fact that in the past few years, since coming to Japan, I have been constantly sick. I am really tired of it, literally and figuratively.

I suppose I can point the finger of blame in many directions. I can also probably point it at myself.

First of all, I am a teacher. I am in direct contact with a large number of children everyday. That’s nothing new though. I’ve been a teacher for about ten years now and have worked with thousands of kids, but have never been so consistently under the weather. A factor may be their age. I have been teaching very young children who have yet to fully develop their immune systems. That means they are sick a lot more than their older counterparts. Long story short, there are a lot more sick little boys and girls hacking and sneezing away in my presence.

In 2002, when I first moved to Asia to teach, I had a job at a kindergarten in Korea. Most new teachers, including myself were sick for most of our first year there. Many veteran teachers referred to it as the “Korean Cruds” and said most new people to the country got it. Basically, due to environmental reasons as well as new food, illnesses, etc., newbie’s were sick a lot!

I think geography has a lot to do with being sick a lot as well. With living far away from where you grew up, you are now being introduced to an entire new set of viruses and illnesses. For example, right now, there is something called “hand, mouth, foot disease” (it’s not very serious) sweeping through kindergartens and day cares in Hyogo Prefecture where I live. Even my son had it last week. It is an illness that is rare and almost unheard of in Canada and America, while quite common here in Japan.



Now I’ll turn my finger of blame towards myself. I simply do too much and don’t rest enough. I work six days a week, run, blog, video blog, am writing a book and of course am married and have a one year old son. I honestly sleep no more than five hours a night. My schedule has definitely led towards my immune system not being what it should.

Time to slow down a bit and get rest.

Problem is, I don’t want to slow down!

They made you eat poop?

Kids are funny. There is no other way to put it. Kids are funny because kids are honest. They are far more honest than you or I will ever be. They have yet to learn about social norms and boundaries. They have not yet learned that one might offend another or hurt another’s feelings by telling the truth sometimes.

Kids are innocent and kids are honest. Kids call it as they see it.

Here’s a story about that:

Teaching in Asia: Private Language Schools

It's been a crazy week so far. A typhoon almost hit us and then crawled away in a wimpy fashion. Also, I had a birthday. Today was actually my birthday.

I suppose I can (this being a special day to let my hair down) let you know what I am working on. I have from time to time eluded on my Twitter account that I am in the midst of a "big" writing project. Well, I am. I am writing a book. more specifically, an eBook that I will be self publishing. This book will be about teaching in both Korea and Japan. I have a lot of experience working in both countries as well as Canada. I have been writing for some time now and have been asking amazing members of the teaching community for information and help on the project. You can expect the finished product this Fall sometime.

My new "Teaching in Asia" series is something that I going to compliment this book. I plan to make dozens of videos in this series. I think it will be a great resource for anyone out there interested in becoming a language teacher in Asia.

Here is the latest installment.

Teaching in Asia: Private Language Schools



Teaching in Asia! I plan to have a new and interesting thumbnail for each video.