Busan, not Seosan

Well, the last few weeks have been tumultuous. First, I found out that the job in Seosan, where I'd accepted the contract, couldn't hire new staff after all because of low enrollment. I took that chance to try applying outside of Korea as well again, because I figured I may as well try all of my options. Thus, my last post about Ukraine, Poland, and Ghana. Well, Ukraine offered me a job the same day as a school near Busan did. I took two days to decide, all the time weighing whether to continue with my Poland application and waiting for Ghana to set up an interview (they said they would, then never called...).

In the end, I chose Busan, because the school there seemed more professional and because I'd gotten so used to the idea of going to Korea (not to mention I'd spent hours pouring over Korean guidebooks, cookbooks, language books, plus the hours spent online looking up folk music and national parks, and reading other FTs' (Foreign Teachers) blogs). Now I'm two weeks away from hopping on a plane to Seoul for training before moving down south. Busan is a port town, with lots of Russian immigrants. It has a huge outdoor market, and there is a ferry there to visit the Jeju Islands (the Hawai'i of Korea). I'll be living in a suburb, which I'm glad of, as I've never lived in a city as large as Busan! I am glad that I'll be near enough to explore the metropolitan area, though. I think I'm most excited for this, though, right in my suburb: http://eng.changwon.go.kr/tour/top.jsp

I still have to get through my interview at the consulate in Chicago, and I'm still dealing with paperwork, but I'm really excited and looking forward to getting on the plane...okay, actually, the plane is my least favorite part, and I'm not looking forward to it at all (though I've heard Korean Air is lovely). I'm looking forward to getting OFF the plane in Korea : )