Yesterday my CDI friends and I headed to Hyundae Beach on the other side of town. First, we grabbed some veggie burgers (great find!) and cheese fries (not as exciting, unfortunately). It's off season now, even though the day we went the sun was shining and it was probably in the upper 70s/low 80s and perfect for a day on the beach. We went swimming for about an hour, until my friend and I saw a jellyfish...and then another...and we ran, shouting, out of the water. The area was beautiful, with clean sand, clear water, the mountains and some islets in the distance, and the strip of stores and restaurants lining the water. It was perfect. I was so blissfully happy.
It got even better, too, when we went for a walk along a trail that snakes through the hills nearby along the coast. It was dusk, so we didn't walk too far, but we stopped at a lookout point where you could see the mountains and the rocky coast on one side, and the lights of the strip lining the beach on the other. It was stunning. We stayed until darkness fell, mostly in silence, all of us lost in our thoughts. It's a good group of people I've got around me, and they're all relatively new - 1-3months here - so we're in it together for the long haul.
Afterwards we went to another beach to meet up with one of my co-worker's friends for a birthday celebration on the beach. We went to a bar with a lot of foreigners and met a ton of new people. A few of us decided to go night swimming, and it was great to just dive in the surf, and ride the waves in. We had a small fire on the beach, and people were mulling about, and it felt like a scene out of movie. I had to stop on a number of occasions just to take in the fact that I was really there, on this beach in Busan, in Korea, where I live. I live here. It's crazy when I stop and think about it - crazy and fantastic.
The night hit it's peak there, and things got a bit rocky after that. One of my co-workers fractured her ankle on the street where the ground wasn't level. We split up, and a few of them headed back, but the rest of us stayed out. I hadn't seen the area at all and wanted to see what it had to offer. In the end, I wished I'd just gone back with them, because, like in any city, anywhere in the world, the later it gets the more rude drunks guys you have to avoid, and that can put a damper on things.
Still, the day on the whole was amazing, and I'm very excited about finding more great places to explore in the coming months, and I'm glad I've got a good group of people to do that with!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
One Week Down
Well I passed training, and headed down to Busan last Friday. Today I have my last two classes of the week, and so far I really like it here. My apt. is a slightly different story, but the school is unquestionably a good place for me.
I teach three different classes, with students between the ages of about 7 and 14. I teach in the evenings, from 4:30-10:30pm, which works nicely. I like the kids a lot, and my fellow teachers are very nice and I'm getting to know them better bit by bit. The branch (the school I'm working for is a franchise with branches across the country) I'm working at is nice, the facilities and resources are great, and it's a 30 second (yes, under a minute) walk from my apt. building.
My apt. is nice, but the guy before me smoked, so I've spent a good part of my week cleaning, re-cleaning, and spraying air freshener, including spraying the walls completely with the anti-cigarette spray stuff. Now that I'm cleaned obsessively for a week, things are starting to look up, and I'm beginning to make it my own space.
In general, I'm happy, I'm doing well, and I'm looking forward to settling in more and getting my life set up in terms of internet at home, phone service, TV, bank account, gym membership...all the things that I'm hoping to have in place after a couple months! Then I'll feel like I'm really living here, rather than just spending time here.
That's all for now, because I have to get down to business, but I wanted to post a quick update!
I teach three different classes, with students between the ages of about 7 and 14. I teach in the evenings, from 4:30-10:30pm, which works nicely. I like the kids a lot, and my fellow teachers are very nice and I'm getting to know them better bit by bit. The branch (the school I'm working for is a franchise with branches across the country) I'm working at is nice, the facilities and resources are great, and it's a 30 second (yes, under a minute) walk from my apt. building.
My apt. is nice, but the guy before me smoked, so I've spent a good part of my week cleaning, re-cleaning, and spraying air freshener, including spraying the walls completely with the anti-cigarette spray stuff. Now that I'm cleaned obsessively for a week, things are starting to look up, and I'm beginning to make it my own space.
In general, I'm happy, I'm doing well, and I'm looking forward to settling in more and getting my life set up in terms of internet at home, phone service, TV, bank account, gym membership...all the things that I'm hoping to have in place after a couple months! Then I'll feel like I'm really living here, rather than just spending time here.
That's all for now, because I have to get down to business, but I wanted to post a quick update!
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Training Week
I have now been in Korea for one week, and I'm still very glad to be here! It's been a busy week with training, but I'm enjoying myself even with the stress of training, and I've had some great experiences so far - in fact, looking back, I can't believe how much has happened in a week! I'll try to keep it short- 3 bullet points for each, as we say in Model UN (though we rarely stick to it, haha).
Friday (9/11)
Friday (9/11)
- Training orientation and skills tests - I passed, and I like the other people I'm training with
- Went shopping for food to keep in the hotel fridge, since otherwise I'm living on Bibim Bap for every meal, since it's the one vegetarian meal I'm sure I can pronounce and eat!
Saturday - A Fantastic Day (9/12)
- Went to the park nearby and climbed the mountain overlooking Seocho-gu, Seoul. I sat on a bench and read Slumdog Millionaire. It was the most relaxed I've been been in ages.
- Walked to the Seoul Arts Center, where I wandered through the Seoul International Print and Photo Fair for about 3 hours. I saw some amazing artwork, talked to some very friendly and helpful curators, and enjoyed an afternoon completely on my time, in a setting I love: an art museum!
- In the evening, I joined another IC grad who teaches just outside Seoul, and we headed to the FC Seoul game against Jeonbuk-Hyundai. Another IC grad who teaches in Seoul joined us there, and we had a great time with the most hardcore Seoul fans in the loudest cheering section - and Seoul won, 2-1!
- After the game, the 3 IC grads headed to Hongdae, a university area known for its nightlife. The trains stopped running at midnight, and since it was my only chance to experience Seoul nightlife, we decided to stay out until the trains started running again - at 5:30am! I thought I'd be too tired, but we had a nice time, and I got to meet some of their Korean friends, and some foreigners, too. It was a very dynamic area, with so much to see and do, so I was glad I took the time to explore, even though I was tired the next day!
Sunday (9/13)
- Mostly I just relaxed at the hotel and enjoyed my last day before our intense training week, which was a nice contrast with my busy Saturday.
Monday (9/14)
- First day of training. It was overwhelming, but I'm glad this whole week has been so thorough.
- I found out I'll be teaching Listening and Speaking class to middle school students (approx.) and a fundamental English kind of class for slightly younger students/ older elemenatry kids.
- I popped my knee out after lunch, which put a damper in my step, literally. I've been icing it, putting Tigers Balm (like icy/hot) on it, and trying to stay off of it as much as possible - it's much better now, luckily.
Tuesday (9/15)
- Training went well - my trainer gave me mostly positive feedback, and good constructive criticism, so I've been able to improve each day in my mock teaching, which is great.
- Note: A big shout out to MTTP - thank you so much for more than adequately preparing me for this intense EFL environment, because without your training this week would be completely overwhelming!
Today (9/16)
- I accidentally bit into a piece of ham in my potato breakfast pastry, which ruined my morning. I was totally preoccupied with how weirded out I was, which made for a strange morning training section. Luckily, I didn't get sick, and I ate boring food the rest of the day instead of going out to eat just in case.
- Training is getting really intense, and tomorrow we're being assessed. I'm feeling okay about everything, but some of the other trainees don't have the experience (again, thank you MTTP!) in how to teach EFL, so they are really stressing out. It's making for an interesting and occasionally uncomfortable group dynamic, but overall we're all still getting along - it's just tough to be stressed out with strangers in a small space.
- I received word that my train to Busan leaves Seoul Friday at 6pm, so I'm pretty excited for that (assuming the next two days of training don't put me thorugh the ringer)! I can't wait to settle into my own apartment in my new neighborhood, and to meet the people I'll be spending the next year with. It's kind of hard to think about leaving the other trainees, since I like them and I'd like to stay in touch with them, but I'm so glad I'll be settled and I'm very excited about where I'll be living.
So, in sum, all is well here in Korea, and I'm looking forward to the adventures in the weeks to come as I start teaching and adjusting to life on the coast!
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
An Amazing Start
Well Day 1 was great! There were moments where I felt very frustrated by not being able to speak Korean, but on the whole it was a really enjoyable day. I didn't venture out into the city until after 3pm even though I woke up a bit before noon, because I was pretty nervous about taking a solo adventure into the largest city I've ever seen.
I wrote cheat sheets of Korean phrases to help me, and they did. I was able to get vegetarian bibim bap next door to my hotel, and it tasted amazing - in part because I was feeling famished by 3pm!
I'd decided before leaving that I wanted to try to meet up with the Seoul Veggie Club for a Temple food and a traditional dance/music performance. It was perfect timing, since I won't actually be living in Seoul. Temple food is, according to strangers on the internet, always vegetarian because the Buddhist monks are. I have not fact checked this tidbit, but I'm planning to survive as a veg on the assumption that it is true. It certainly was this evening!
I was lucky because the subway stop for the restaurant was on the same line as my hotel, though it was 13 stops away. It was a fast trip, though, and I was there 20 minutes early to meet people. I had a lovely moment of foreigner stupidity when I tried to wave my card for the subway. At first, I went too quickly, so it didn't work. Then I was afraid that mybe the single pass couldn't just be waved over, but I didn't see a slot to send it through. Since I knew I couldn't communicate this in simple English, and since none of the Seoulites seemed interested in a silly blonde who was staring dumbly at the place where you wave your passes, I proceded to watch everone walk through, my ticket held out in my hand as if I were giving it away, and my face screwed up into a confused grimace. I must have looked brilliant. After about a minute, realized you have to hold your tickt over the place where I tried to wave it - and I made it through. Then I realized I wasn't sure which direction I was headed. I knew I wanted to go north, but I'd gotten through the little terminal and realized the maps were back on the other side. Ha. So again, I stood dumbly, watching people pass me going down the stairs, and finally decided to go down and hope there was a map near the train, or try to ask people. There was a map, and luckily I'd guessed correctly about my direction.
I'd left at 6pm because I was afraid of being late, but arrived at 6:45 and realized I'd left my book in the room. So I sat on a bench, next to a white guy who was listening to his iPod, and proceeded to people watch for half an hour. Since I hadn't said hello right away to the guy next to me, because I'd gotten so used to not talking to anyone on my excursion, I felt silly about introducing myself once we'd both been there awhile, even though I was fairly certain that the only reason for white people to be congregating right there was for the Club. So, we sat in silence for half an hour, until a Korean woman came up to us and introduced herself (having assumed, as I did, that the white people were vegetarians, not weirdos who hung around subway stops for the fun of it). What was oddly coincidental was that, once introduced, the guy and I both turned out to be from Wisconsin - ha! So we got along well, and it turns out he did Peace Corps in Ukraine, which was where I would have been teaching if I hadn't chosen Korea. Then we found out that we both love Verka Serdjuchka, a Ukrainian pop star who is also a drag queen. It is truly a small world. The other people were very nice, too, and most of them were surprised that it was my first day - and that I'd decided to come for dinner anyway. I don't feel like I have jet lag, though, and I'm so glad I left my room and got to have a great dinner with great people.
The food was delicious, and then they had an amazing performance on a stage in the center of the restaurant. The performers were wonderful. My camera battery started to die right in the middle of the performance, but I was able to take some video and some pictures, which I'll post tomorrow. I was particularly impressed with the female drummer. Her drum was attached to her outfit and it was played on both ends, with thin sticks. She was also dancing, in the beautifully fluid, precise manner that all of the dancers brought to their art. I was thoroughly impressed, and thrilled that I was there on my first day! After the performance, they asked customers to come up and dance and drum as well. I volunteered to go up with another veg woman, who didn't look nearly as excited as I did about the opportunity. Anyone who knows me, though, knows that secretly I was hoping all along that they'd ask us to participate! We were both given the large, colorful fans to wave, standing back to back in a square with two other women. We were in the center of the stage while the dancers and drummers walked around s in a circle. At first, with so many amateurs, the noise of the drums and gongs was just that - noise. But after a little while the noise became music, and it was so dynamic and fun to be up on stage with foreigners, Koreans, and the Korean performers, all spontaenously creating a musical event. It was the perfect end to a wonderful first day in Korea.
I wrote cheat sheets of Korean phrases to help me, and they did. I was able to get vegetarian bibim bap next door to my hotel, and it tasted amazing - in part because I was feeling famished by 3pm!
I'd decided before leaving that I wanted to try to meet up with the Seoul Veggie Club for a Temple food and a traditional dance/music performance. It was perfect timing, since I won't actually be living in Seoul. Temple food is, according to strangers on the internet, always vegetarian because the Buddhist monks are. I have not fact checked this tidbit, but I'm planning to survive as a veg on the assumption that it is true. It certainly was this evening!
I was lucky because the subway stop for the restaurant was on the same line as my hotel, though it was 13 stops away. It was a fast trip, though, and I was there 20 minutes early to meet people. I had a lovely moment of foreigner stupidity when I tried to wave my card for the subway. At first, I went too quickly, so it didn't work. Then I was afraid that mybe the single pass couldn't just be waved over, but I didn't see a slot to send it through. Since I knew I couldn't communicate this in simple English, and since none of the Seoulites seemed interested in a silly blonde who was staring dumbly at the place where you wave your passes, I proceded to watch everone walk through, my ticket held out in my hand as if I were giving it away, and my face screwed up into a confused grimace. I must have looked brilliant. After about a minute, realized you have to hold your tickt over the place where I tried to wave it - and I made it through. Then I realized I wasn't sure which direction I was headed. I knew I wanted to go north, but I'd gotten through the little terminal and realized the maps were back on the other side. Ha. So again, I stood dumbly, watching people pass me going down the stairs, and finally decided to go down and hope there was a map near the train, or try to ask people. There was a map, and luckily I'd guessed correctly about my direction.
I'd left at 6pm because I was afraid of being late, but arrived at 6:45 and realized I'd left my book in the room. So I sat on a bench, next to a white guy who was listening to his iPod, and proceeded to people watch for half an hour. Since I hadn't said hello right away to the guy next to me, because I'd gotten so used to not talking to anyone on my excursion, I felt silly about introducing myself once we'd both been there awhile, even though I was fairly certain that the only reason for white people to be congregating right there was for the Club. So, we sat in silence for half an hour, until a Korean woman came up to us and introduced herself (having assumed, as I did, that the white people were vegetarians, not weirdos who hung around subway stops for the fun of it). What was oddly coincidental was that, once introduced, the guy and I both turned out to be from Wisconsin - ha! So we got along well, and it turns out he did Peace Corps in Ukraine, which was where I would have been teaching if I hadn't chosen Korea. Then we found out that we both love Verka Serdjuchka, a Ukrainian pop star who is also a drag queen. It is truly a small world. The other people were very nice, too, and most of them were surprised that it was my first day - and that I'd decided to come for dinner anyway. I don't feel like I have jet lag, though, and I'm so glad I left my room and got to have a great dinner with great people.
The food was delicious, and then they had an amazing performance on a stage in the center of the restaurant. The performers were wonderful. My camera battery started to die right in the middle of the performance, but I was able to take some video and some pictures, which I'll post tomorrow. I was particularly impressed with the female drummer. Her drum was attached to her outfit and it was played on both ends, with thin sticks. She was also dancing, in the beautifully fluid, precise manner that all of the dancers brought to their art. I was thoroughly impressed, and thrilled that I was there on my first day! After the performance, they asked customers to come up and dance and drum as well. I volunteered to go up with another veg woman, who didn't look nearly as excited as I did about the opportunity. Anyone who knows me, though, knows that secretly I was hoping all along that they'd ask us to participate! We were both given the large, colorful fans to wave, standing back to back in a square with two other women. We were in the center of the stage while the dancers and drummers walked around s in a circle. At first, with so many amateurs, the noise of the drums and gongs was just that - noise. But after a little while the noise became music, and it was so dynamic and fun to be up on stage with foreigners, Koreans, and the Korean performers, all spontaenously creating a musical event. It was the perfect end to a wonderful first day in Korea.
Hello Seoul
I arrived safe and sound last night in Seoul, and since I stayed up for the whole flight over, I already feel pretty good about being in a new time zone. I fell asleep around 1am, and I'm feelinf great! I'm about to venture out in Seoul for the first time, in search of vegetarian food. I found an Indian restaurant in my guide book that looks like it's in the same area as my hotel, and I'm just trying to get down some cheat sheets in Korea to use while I'm walking around.
Despite having a wattage converter, my laptop must suck power because the converter and my battery both started to heat up a lot and I got nervous, so I'm trying to use my laptop sparingly on battery. I guess I'll try charging it in just 15 minute intervals, to give the converter a break. Hopefully once training starts on Friday I'll be able to talk to people and see about getting a better quality one for my laptop specifically, or something like that.
I'll write more later, but my hunger is gnawing at me, so I'm off to explore this insanely large city!
Despite having a wattage converter, my laptop must suck power because the converter and my battery both started to heat up a lot and I got nervous, so I'm trying to use my laptop sparingly on battery. I guess I'll try charging it in just 15 minute intervals, to give the converter a break. Hopefully once training starts on Friday I'll be able to talk to people and see about getting a better quality one for my laptop specifically, or something like that.
I'll write more later, but my hunger is gnawing at me, so I'm off to explore this insanely large city!
Monday, September 07, 2009
Farewell
Warning: this is a sappy entry - I promise I will bring back the comedic relief next time!
So I'm flip-flopping between being thrilled about this trip and being torn about leaving when this has been such a wonderful summer. It's always amazing to reconnect with family and friends, and it's hard to be as far away as I already am from the people who surrounded and supported me for the last four or five years. So in the brief moments of sadness and anxiety, I think of all of those amazing people and how much I will miss them. Almost instantaneously, though, I am also overcome by excitement at knowing that those people all believe in me, and do things like drive across the country to tell me that (thank you M and D). They know as well or better than I do that going abroad is the right decision. In the end, as I'm counting down the hours until I leave this country, I'm flooded with gratitude for the supportive and caring people in my life. Thank you all for loving me even though I keep leaving. I already miss you all.
So I'm flip-flopping between being thrilled about this trip and being torn about leaving when this has been such a wonderful summer. It's always amazing to reconnect with family and friends, and it's hard to be as far away as I already am from the people who surrounded and supported me for the last four or five years. So in the brief moments of sadness and anxiety, I think of all of those amazing people and how much I will miss them. Almost instantaneously, though, I am also overcome by excitement at knowing that those people all believe in me, and do things like drive across the country to tell me that (thank you M and D). They know as well or better than I do that going abroad is the right decision. In the end, as I'm counting down the hours until I leave this country, I'm flooded with gratitude for the supportive and caring people in my life. Thank you all for loving me even though I keep leaving. I already miss you all.
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
"Drove to Chicago..."
Yet another visit to Chicago that didn't go as I'd hoped, but turned out to be well worth the trip.
Last night I finished packing my life into luggage. This morning I rearranged for weight. Twice. I was prepared to get to Chicago, have the consulate say, "Why yes, your visa is ready early!", call my travel agent to book an immediate flight, say a teary goodbye to my parents, and depart for my new home in Korea. As my travel agent told me the night before: "You're trying to do the impossible." I was hoping the world would somehow be in sync with me and that everything would work out.
I stayed up all night, thinking that I could sleep during the 14 hour flight. I rode in the car filled with anticipation and adrenaline. I called the consulate as we were arriving in Chicago to see if my visa was ready early, because they told me it might be. My visa was not ready early.
So the deal is this: I need to arrive on a Wednesday to start my training for work. No flights after 3pm would get me to Korea on Wednesday. Instead, I need to wait a week and fly out next Monday to arrive in Korea by that Wednesday. Thus, I am in Madison for 6 more days.
On the not-so-bright side: my life is all packed away and I'll be living out of my suitcases for a week, only to have to repack them; worse, this means one more week of my kids having a substitute teacher and me not bonding with them.
On the bright side: I ended up having another fantastic day in Chicago with my parents! On Friday when we went for my visa interview, we visited the Museum of Contemporary Art, which was great. Today we visited the Art Institute of Chicago and Millennium Park. There was a free music at noon at the park pavilion, and the band was great (JT and the Clouds).
I'd been telling my parents that I thought the art museum was where there was a gallery of miniature rooms, but we couldn't find anything that said for certain if that was true. We headed in and were pleased to see that it was the place! Despite having been to Chicago to other museums a number of times, apparently my parents had never been to the Art Institute of Chicago. I'd gone on school trips, and had fallen in love with the miniature rooms. My interest in interior design and history is sparked by the intricate and painstaking detail of these tiny models. It was great to share the experience with my parents. For the rest of the afternoon we had a wonderful time wandering through the museum. It certainly beat sitting on a plane!
So, even though I've now had two crazy, unplanned days in Chicago, they both ended up being much more fun than anticipated, and helped remind me that there is a real beauty in spontaneity. I often forget to appreciate the decisions we make in the present, and the value of appreciating those moments, because I'm so concentrated on what's coming next and planning the future. It's been amazing to have two great days of appreciating the present with my parents, and I'll definitely treasure these memories once I finally get to Korea!
Last night I finished packing my life into luggage. This morning I rearranged for weight. Twice. I was prepared to get to Chicago, have the consulate say, "Why yes, your visa is ready early!", call my travel agent to book an immediate flight, say a teary goodbye to my parents, and depart for my new home in Korea. As my travel agent told me the night before: "You're trying to do the impossible." I was hoping the world would somehow be in sync with me and that everything would work out.
I stayed up all night, thinking that I could sleep during the 14 hour flight. I rode in the car filled with anticipation and adrenaline. I called the consulate as we were arriving in Chicago to see if my visa was ready early, because they told me it might be. My visa was not ready early.
So the deal is this: I need to arrive on a Wednesday to start my training for work. No flights after 3pm would get me to Korea on Wednesday. Instead, I need to wait a week and fly out next Monday to arrive in Korea by that Wednesday. Thus, I am in Madison for 6 more days.
On the not-so-bright side: my life is all packed away and I'll be living out of my suitcases for a week, only to have to repack them; worse, this means one more week of my kids having a substitute teacher and me not bonding with them.
On the bright side: I ended up having another fantastic day in Chicago with my parents! On Friday when we went for my visa interview, we visited the Museum of Contemporary Art, which was great. Today we visited the Art Institute of Chicago and Millennium Park. There was a free music at noon at the park pavilion, and the band was great (JT and the Clouds).
I'd been telling my parents that I thought the art museum was where there was a gallery of miniature rooms, but we couldn't find anything that said for certain if that was true. We headed in and were pleased to see that it was the place! Despite having been to Chicago to other museums a number of times, apparently my parents had never been to the Art Institute of Chicago. I'd gone on school trips, and had fallen in love with the miniature rooms. My interest in interior design and history is sparked by the intricate and painstaking detail of these tiny models. It was great to share the experience with my parents. For the rest of the afternoon we had a wonderful time wandering through the museum. It certainly beat sitting on a plane!
So, even though I've now had two crazy, unplanned days in Chicago, they both ended up being much more fun than anticipated, and helped remind me that there is a real beauty in spontaneity. I often forget to appreciate the decisions we make in the present, and the value of appreciating those moments, because I'm so concentrated on what's coming next and planning the future. It's been amazing to have two great days of appreciating the present with my parents, and I'll definitely treasure these memories once I finally get to Korea!
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