Rodriguez

I first heard of Rodriguez through social media back in 2010. He was a great find, a folk-rock musician from Detroit whose 1970 album "Cold Facts" spoke true both melodically and lyrically to my counter-culture student mind.

I felt he was on par with the legendary Bob Dylan both in terms of his song writing ability and what he spoke for, however I was left astounded when I couldn't find anyone else who had heard of Rodriguez, let alone someone who had taken the time to listen to the singer-songwriter. Even amongst my friends who were involved in the music industry whenever I would mention Rodriguez as a recommended listen, I was given replies of "who the heck is that?". I would stick on Rodriguez's "Sugar Man" and they were happy to be introduced to this man's music.

More than four years on, Rodriguez now seems to be gaining the recognition he has deserved for the past forty. This is largely due to the Oscar winning success of the film "Searching for Sugar Man". The 2012 documentary film that follows two fans in the search for a man who, unknown to Rodriguez himself, was a celebrated and renowned counter-culture artist in apartheid South Africa.

Never acclaimed in the USA or Europe for his early 70's albums, and perhaps cheated and hidden from the success he was gaining in South Africa, Rodriguez slipped from the fame-ridden world he had in the palm of his hand.

When those two South African fans finally found Rodriguez, working as a labourer in his hometown Detroit in the late 1990's, the father of three reunited himself with a mic and guitar and has since played out over 30 arena shows in South Africa. With "Searching for Sugar Man" receiving such great reviews in 2012, his music has finally found recognition in his home country as well.

Despite Rodriguez's new found fame, the man still resides in his same Detroit house that has been his home for over 40 years. Now there's a proper music man who has finally received the success he no doubt deserves. It makes you wonder, how many other Rodriguez's are there in the world, yet to be found again?

"While the Mafia provides your drugs,
your government will provide the shrugs,
and your national guard will supply the slugs,
so they sit all satisfied."

-Rodriguez- 

5 Reasons Why You Should WWOOF

I first came across WWOOF when I was searching through the internet for ideas or opportunities to spend my summer doing something a little bit different than just general travel. WWOOF, which is an acronym for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, was the perfect find.

WWOOF is a non-profit organisation which allows willing volunteers from around the world to work and live on organic farms. There are farms available in all four corners of the world, from Australia to Japan to Togo to Belize to Bangladesh and to Sweden. Whatever country takes your fancy, the chances are you can find a farm there to go work on.

There is no money exchange in WWOOF. The volunteer works unpaid but in return you will receive accommodation and meals provided by the farm itself. You will be asked to pay the WWOOF organisation a small fee to receive a list of available farms and their contact details and then the opportunities await you! Here are five of the best reasons why you should WWOOF.

1)

Free Travel

Or as close to free travel as you can get. You will have to pay for the transportation costs to get yourself to the farm however after that you will be provided with food and accommodation completely free of charge. This is your reward for 5-6 hours of work on the farm each day.

In your free time you have the opportunity to change out of your grubby work shoes and go and explore the local area. The chances are you will be in a rural location so this provides a unique opportunity to visit some small, tourist-free villages that you may never have seen otherwise. When I was working in Oberndorf, a small settlement in the German state of Bavaria, I took a 45 minute train journey to the small town of Nördlingen. This town of about 20,000 people is what you can see towards the end of the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movie when Charlie is looking down through the glass elevator as they fly above the settlement!

I was welcomed like a new member of the family on each farm I stayed.

 

2)

Cultural Experiences

You'll be living with the locals. Forget about the tourist ridden cities for the time being and start immersing yourself in the local culture. It's impossible to not do just that when you're enjoying traditional, local food with the local people themselves! If you're working in a country that speaks a different language to your own then you'll inevitably start learning a few words and if you are already learning their language then this is a great way to improve.

During my stay on my first farm, in Oberndorf in Germany, I was living with a family and their three daughters. It is tradition in this part of the world for the boyfriend of the girl to buy her a small tree to plant in their garden when they first become a couple. On the tree there will hang a red heart with the initials of the couple painted on. This is to show that the girl in that house has already been courted and to warn away any other male suitors of the village! As each year passes the couple will hang one ribbon from a branch off the tree. When the third year comes, and the third ribbon is finally hung, then the couple must get married. At least, that's how it should be traditionally. One of the teenage daughters I was staying with, who was just approaching her third year with the same man, was not too keen to follow that tradition just yet!

3)

Local Food

After a good amount of physical farm work in the morning there's nothing you want more than a good, tasty and filling meal. Farmers love to eat to keep their energy high and you'll understand exactly why this is after just the first few hours of work. Farm work is hungry work and you'll be rewarded with endless amounts of food for when you return to the house for lunch. This is not just any old food though. You'll be trying some new local food that is home cooked and, of course, organic. When you return home, your supermarket meals will never taste quite the same again!

A traditional Bavarian breakfast consists of sausages, pretzels and a beer!

4)

Local People

While you're enjoying the local food of your host country you will also be enjoying the company of the local people. This is especially helpful if you are traveling alone as it's impossible not to meet new people and build friendships when WWOOFing. Whether it be other volunteers on the farm, the farm owners or their friends and neighbours - you are sure going to leave the farm with many new friends.

One of the benefits of meeting the local people is that they know the best local places. Get them to advise you on the best local bars, restaurants and attractions and then invite them along with you. On one Friday during my time on the farm I was invited to a party on one of the fields the farmers owned. At the party I was introduced to a group of typical, German metal heads! They wore denim jackets with sowed on metal head badges, had long hair and loved a beer and loud music. They were also some of the friendliest people I've met on my travels and they invited me to the join them to a local bar that they were heading to after the party. I took them up on their invitation and was taken to a bar, in the middle of the countryside, that specialised in the rock music of the 70's and 80's - right up my street! Some wonderful German beer, music and company - a great way to spend a Friday evening.

5)

Get Fit

WWOOFing is definitely not slave work and you won't be expected to work from dawn until dusk however 5-6 hours of physical labour a day is enough to get you losing weight and building those muscles. It may be hard work but after just a few days you'll notice your physical body getting fitter and the warm sun will certainly give you a good tan. When I returned home from my first 2 week trip to Germany many people at home had thought I had returned from a month long spell sunning myself in the Maldives!

Enjoying the work in the sun!

So whether you're stuck in a office job, want to travel but have little funds or just want something to break up the gap year - WWOOFing will provide you with many great memories, experiences and stories to last a life time.

You can find the WWOOF website here.

Getting The Ball Rolling... Again

As I wrote on this blog a month or so ago, I had to put off moving to South Korea to teach English until after my Australia trip in March. I was therefore advised by a couple of different recruitment companies that I was best off waiting until the new year before re-applying for positions.

I've decided to be a little pro-active and have therefore started getting in touch with recruitment agencies again, in the hope that perhaps a job can be found sooner rather than later. I'd love to get a job nailed down as soon as possible so I can relax and start planning myself for the move. I also have to consider that, from the end of February to the start of April, I will be out of the country so arranging Visa documents etc could be a little trickier during that period. It would be good to get it all sorted in the next three months or so.

So an email has been sent to the guys at Reach to Teach Recruiting. I was in contact with these recruiters before and said I would come back to them when I was ready to start applying for jobs again. The guy I was talking to was very knowledgeable and friendly and their website is very up to date and contemporary. There seems to be hundreds of recruitment companies out there but those that have a dated website or none at all just don't seem quite as inviting to go through - although if needs be, I will do.

Lonely Planet, one of the biggest travel guide companies in the world, has an interesting section to their website. It's called LP Pathfinders. It's an initiative Lonely Planet has set up that helps travel bloggers get their blogs noticed. There are three stages to the program and as you progress up the stages the blogger will find themselves having more opportunities to get noticed and receive paid work from Lonely Planet.

It's a brilliant opportunity and one that I'm going to enlist this blog on. It apparently helps to specialise in a certain niche in order to improve the views on a blog. So in the next few months, as a move to South Korea gets closer and then when it finally arrives, I will start specialising this blog on Teaching Engish as Foreign Language (TEFL) and focusing it on Seoul, South Korea. As I gain experience I will share advice and knowledge while continuing to document my adventures as they come. I will continue to be blogging about various other interests and will of course be blogging regularly when I am in Kuala Lumpa, Singapore and Australia early next year but the focus will now start to be narrowed to TEFL and Seoul.  

I have also, as you may have noticed, changed the blog name back to Boormania. Don't worry, this is the last time it'll be changed... unless I think of something better!

A Trip to London

On Monday me, myself and my camera headed into London to do a spot of wondering, capturing and listening.

During the previous few days I had planned to catch the 10:37 train into London. As I lay in bed on Monday morning, at approximately 8:00, that plan got delayed. The new plan was to catch the 11:37 train. However as I fell out of my sleeping location, otherwise known as my bed, at approximately 10:30 my plan was once again revised. I eventually arrived in the capital at approximately 14:00 and immediately wondered off to the home of football - Stamford Bridge.

It was the first time I had been back at the Bridge since I went to my last game there, a good 18 months ago. Being back there made me realise just how much I miss going to the games. I'm sure that once I get the travel bug out of my system I will once again be a season ticket holder there - I just wonder what the Bridge will look like when I do!

Renewed speculation of ongoing talks to increase the capacity of the Bridge hit the papers once again in the last week and it is with more relief, than excitement, that the men in charge are focusing on expanding rather than relocating the Fulham Road club.

I captured a few snaps and then headed back down Fulham Road to Earl's Court tube station to take the short ride to Westminster. The next "projects" in my Photocrafty book are entitled "Do Your Lines" and "Framing". As the title's suggest, the "Do Your Lines" asks the reader to take creative photos that involve lines and "Framing" is all about...well...framing your photo - but not in a frame, if you get me? Westminster and its surrounding area provided me with the opportunity and the results are below.

The final part of the day, and the real reason I went to London, was to go to a Wilbur Smith book signing and talk in Piccadilly's Waterstones. Smith writes adventure stories that both myself and my dad are keen on and seeing the man in person was a real privilege and a great experience.

A few days previous I booked my flights to and from Sydney. I will fly, in late February, to Kuala Lumpa where I'll spend a few days before flying to Singapore (for the price of two London pints). After a few days in Singapore I'll catch another flight to Sydney on 10th March. Catch ups, beer, sun, koala bears, sightseeing, DVD vending machines and a wedding will commence before I fly directly back to London Gatwick on 1st April.

Stamford Bridge

 

The old Shed End terrace wall.

Peter Osgood - "King of Stamford Bridge".

"Do Your Lines" - The London Eye.

"Framing" - Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament.

"Framing" - again.

"Do Your Lines"

Wilbur Smith

Photocrafty

Over the last couple of weeks I have had to make the decision to delay my move to South Korea. It's a bit unfortunate as I'm incredibly impatient when it comes to things like this. If I make a decision to do something I like to do it as soon as possible. However, postponing Korea is the sensible decision in the long run. It means I can spend a good amount of time in Australia for my friend's wedding without the pressures of having to return for work commitments and, of course, I can save up a good amount of money. My plan now is to try and find a job in a Korean Hagwon starting around April 2015 and I have been advised by a few recruiters to start looking for these jobs in January.

So while Korea is on the back-burner for a few months it does mean I can start nailing down my plans for Australia. Having done some research online it appears it will work out cheaper to buy my flights as early as possible so I would like to get these bought in the next couple of weeks. I have been contemplating stopping off for a few nights somewhere to break up the 24 hour flight to Oz. I considered the following options - New York, Los Angeles, Moscow, Amman, Dubai, Beijing, Singapore, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpa.

NY, LA, Amman and Dubai were immediately ruled out due to the flight prices almost doubling with a stop in either of those locations. Beijing was ruled out for visa reasons and Moscow, despite being a interesting and cheap option, was also ruled out due to their uneasy political situation at the moment. This leaves Singapore, Bangkok and Kuala Lumpa and I think I am leaning towards Kuala Lumpa - it just seems more appealing for a brief stop over location. The stop over will add a few extra hundred pounds to my flight but it'll be worth it to see one of the most developing cities in the world. Plus, the average cost of a hostel bed in Kuala Lumpa appears to be under a fiver! Not bad!

Meanwhile I bought myself the book "Photocrafty" by Sue Venables - "75 creative camera projects for you and your digital SLR". It seems a pretty good book to improve my photography skills and looks like it might guide me into thinking a little outside the box when I'm capturing my images. One of the first "projects" is all about the rule of thirds. This is a simple photography technique to make most pictures just slightly more interesting. Basically, just place the object of the image slightly off centre. I had a go...

There's only a subtle difference, but I think the above image is better composed than the one below.

An example of the rule of thirds in Barcelona.

And another on the Rineck farm.

South Korean Schools and The Soil Association

Two blog posts in two consecutive days can only mean I have two consecutive days off work. A rare occurrence that I like to make the most of. Catching up with family and friends has been what has made up the majority of my "mid-week weekend" but I've also spent a lot of time researching different teaching opportunities in South Korea.

It seems there are two types of schools to choose from when wanting to teach English in South Korea. The public school and the Hagwon.

We can start with the public school. This is very similar to what we have in England. Daytime classes, 30 kids in one class, most of the time the teacher will have an assistant Korean teacher and they are run by the South Korean government.

These are also, (according to my research) the schools where the jobs are the most secure. They pay around 1.8million Korean Won per month (£1,100), reimburse the flight tickets (to Korea, however if you see out your contract they would pay for your out flight too), on completion of your contract they give you an extra months pay and they provide fully-furnished, private accommodation.

The second option is the Hagwons. These are private schools that teach after the normal school hours so classes seem to run from around 4 or 5pm to 10pm. The advantages are they typically pay slightly higher compared to public schools and the classes are a lot smaller (under 10 per class). Although most do provide accommodation they don't seem to be to the same standard as the public school's housing. They also appear to give less other benefits and their holiday allowance is a lot less.

As Hagwons are private schools they are therefore run as businesses and the government have very little control over them. They are, apparently, just as much a business on the high street as a local supermarket, the hairdressers or a take-away shop. While I'm sure most Hagwons are run very well, I feel like it would be more of a risk going to a Hagwon than a government-run public school.

I am therefore leaning towards applying for public schools ahead of Hagwons but I am certainly not ruling Hagwons out just yet. I am very much keeping an open mind on where in Seoul I am based, what level of students I teach, the age of the students and the type of school I work in. I have no experience of any of those things so I am not in a position to drastically rule one type out ahead of the others. My gut feeling is that teaching 7-8 year olds, at elementary level in a public school is the best option. But if I were to teach teenagers, at intermediate level in a Hagwon, I'm sure that would be an equally rewarding experience.

On a different subject entirely, I have started a monthly donation to the Soil Association charity. This charity promotes organic farming, fair trade, healthy food, biodiversity and animal welfare in the U.K. They also fight against genetically modified farming and other harmful farming methods.

With their introduction pack that they sent to me a few weeks ago came a pack of seeds. I can't remember the name of the bush that the seeds produce but apparently they help sustain our bee population here in the U.K. I dug out a small patch of grass from our garden and laid the seeds on the bare soil, not really expecting too much from them. The other day I was in the garden and checked on how the seeds were going and to my elation, and surprise, a bunch of green sprouts were arising from the ground. "Mother of God" was my initial reaction.

The green sprouts kind of looks like weeds but I'm going to ignore that thought as my inexperience on planting bushes means I am not in a position to judge. I'm sure the sprouts look just like what they're supposed to. I hope.

The First Tentative Steps To Seoul

This morning at approximately 9:00 U.K. time (17:00 South Korea time) I was interviewed for the first time over Skype. Choosing to use my home internet's connection is never the most wonderful experience as it is slower than Louis Van Gaal's start as Manchester United manager and the constant connection drops make it more unpredictable than Mario Balotelli.

I signed into Skype at around 8:50, turning up just a tad early for my appointment. I waited for around 9minutes and then realised my connection had inevitably dropped. Fortunately, it came back rather swiftly and I was then left with a decision as the clock swung to 9:00. Do I make the call or does he? The drama is bigger than a Jim White-fueled, last minute, transfer Deadline Day saga!

Also very much like a Jim White-fueled, last minute, transfer Deadline Day saga the drama produced at 9am this morning was superficial and insignificant. The interview, I believe, went fine. I was asked about what my preferences were in terms of the type of school I was working in, the type of students I am to teach and how central into Seoul do I want the school to be? He also asked me, why I wanted to come to S Korea and he gave me further information on the documents I need.

As of today, I have the following document checklist:

• Criminal Background Check (Apostilled) - currently in the process of obtaining.
• My degree certificate needs to be Apostilled - I will have to contact Brunel University to ask them about this.
• Get a reference from my current work place - to do when I am next in work.

These shouldn't be too difficult to get and I have a few months to sort it out anyway - although I will try and do it as soon as possible.

In other news Chelsea are bossing the Premier League. It's only been three games into the new season but there's a special feeling this year. We have stability, a successful transfer window behind us and such a good quality squad with depth in every position. There's a motivation to win the title after a gap of four years and we feel this year could be ours. One game at a time, keep our feet on the floor and battle through every second of this season, and who knows!? Maybe we can start dreaming again.

A special shout out to my main man, I know you read this buddy! Diego Costa. Four goals in three league games. The last man to do that for Chelsea was a certain Adrian Mutu. Adrian Mutu was a cocaine user. Costa looks like he sells it.

The ALS Ice Bucket challenge

I just threw a bucket of iced cold water over my head. Normally, you would read this and be shocked... so shocked that it would grip you into reading more. However, with the latest craze that is the ALS Ice Bucket challenge, this is probably the fourth or fifth time you've come across this statement today!

Thanks to my mate, Ben, I have jumped on the bandwagon and done my bit to raise awareness of the motor neuron charity. It was a great idea by the ALS charity to get this initiative underway. The power of the internet and social media can bring unprecedented results.

Videos of celebrities doing the challenge spread like wildfire around 10 days ago and then died down late last week. It was then picked up by the "normal" population and the baton has been passed to every Tom, Dick & Harry in the social media world over this Bank Holiday weekend.

It has been refreshing though - at last I have something other than internet memes on my Facebook! I just wished it wasn't such a cold and wet day when it was my turn...

This is all fun and games - especially for those watching who have had the good fortune not to be nominated... yet (watch out, it'll happen!). But at the heart of it we have a charity who are naturally promoting a very good cause. I didn't know too much about the charity before this craze but it sounds a horrible disease to suffer so any money the charity can get to fund a search for prevention and cure is very worthwhile.

From the charities website...

"Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as "Lou Gehrig's Disease," is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed."

According the website the Ice Bucket challenge has raised over $70million which is incredible. I imagine the charity could do with every extra penny so if you have not yet donated, I encourage you to do so. And maybe use this time to set up a monthly Direct Debit to some charities that you can relate to. It feels good to give and, needless to say, the charities will be very grateful for anything you can hand over.

If you believe in rules of Karma (what comes around, goes around) then by giving money you are setting yourself up for some potential good fortune in the future. So everyone wins.

John Terry's Ice Bucket challenge - nominates Rafa Benitez! 

Finally, Ben, the bast*rd who nominated me has started his own blog. He lives in Sydney, supports Man City, is a fan of Apple products, beer and gaming. He's also getting married next March. If you have mutual interests or are just a fan of eloquent writing with a sprinkle of wit then head over to his blog here.

Barcelona Photos

I don't think I had an opportunity to blog about Barcelona and because it's not the same blogging about something that happened over 2 weeks ago, I'll keep this short.

Barcelona was my favourite city of this trip and is my second favourite place in Europe behind Berlin. It had everything. Hot weather, sandy beaches, luxurious harbors, vast shopping centres, good beer, great restaurants, wonderful architecture, an exciting vibe, a unique culture and of course the Nou Camp and Sagrada Familia.

The Sagrada Familia was the highlight of my whole trip. It's impressive from the outside but when you go inside (I strongly recommend buying your ticket online in advance) it is simply jaw dropping. As you walk in, it is hard to keep a "wow" slipping from your lips. Beautiful doesn't cover it. It's hard to capture the wonder of the place through a camera lens but I have tried and you can find the photos below. I'll have to do a separate post one day on the cathedral as the audio guide I listened to told many interesting facts that make the design of the cathedral even more astonishing and I would like to share what I remember.

Barcelona is a very vibrant city with the Catalan identity very much at the forefront of their culture. It's a place I would love to explore more of and is one of a few European cities I would like to stay in for a longer period of time.

Here are the photos. You can click on them to make them larger.

Click here for more 

La Rambla.

A street artist on La Rambla.

The Nou Camp - the venue of the 2-2 draw that put Chelsea through to the Champions League final.

The tunnel.

One for the Arsenal fans.

The Sagrada Familia in the distance.

The Sagrada Familia.

This used to be a school outside the Sagrada Familia - notice the curved roof.

Other Gaudi architecture throughout Barcelona is also very impressive.