There's an increase in noise outside as the people are rushing in before curfew. This is the last night here in Jeonju. The last night of orientation. The last night belonging to something that feels less like a minority. We are the minority here, and tomorrow we start feeling like it.
I didn't go out. I stayed in and packed my bags full and scooted them down to the lobby and then sat here replying to email and going through pictures. I'm uploading some photos and it's taking a while. Should have uploaded in smaller chunks. Oh well. Not like I'm any more or less tired.
God is good, even in a place where everything is unfamiliar. I've survived eating all kinds of things, and narrowly missed crunching into fish bones. (i shudder.) Many people were scarred for life.
I've eaten pickled radish, beet, and who knows what other vegetables. I've had calamari, fish, fish cake (soup omyword it's delicious!), samgyetang (so so so good), and so many weird foods I can't remember them all. I admit to praying and asking for some foods. It's not to say I dislike Korean food in any way - but in the process of changing my diet, it's hard to go from low fat, low fiber no dairy to.... higher fat, high fiber, and some things are sneakily dairy. I eat kimchi 3 times a day (and enjoy it!).
But it's bedtime.
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
Busy
It's 9:21pm as I type this. That's KST - Korean standard time. We're 14 hours ahead of EST, my native time zone. Shall we translate this? It feels like 7:21am and I've been awake since 5am (16hrs). So yes, I'm tired.
Day 2 of classes done. They keep us super busy, but the lectures are great and our "homeroom" teachers take good care of us. They even give us a small snack between class in the afternoon. ^^;'
This is what it looks like outside my window right now. (prettier in person..camera doesn't do looowww light well).
But to catch up, this is my first hour in Incheon Int'l Airport. It was sunrise, and a very pretty one.
From there I got on a bus. I should say that the flight I was on had two other teachers from the program/group. We met getting off the plane and stuck together through customs declaration. But they were in team 2, and I'm team 1 so we parted ways after talking a bit (and after making sure i could get the right bus). The bus was an interesting experience.
So you may read online that Seoul is easy to navigate because signs are in "English" - and yes things are labeled. But sometimes it's not as apparent or your eyes gloss over. You have to be quick and watchful. The airport does have English speaking staff, but at various levels of ability. So one guard was helpful, one less so, and the bus info person changed shifts so decent speaker left, less skilled came. But I digress. I decided to stand at the bus stop earlier than the departure time and it was cold, so I huddled in the little station/stop thing (what is that called in English?) with ALL Koreans. Not a white in sight. Nbd. I stand as out of the way as I can though it is crowded. A minute or two later a bus came up and was loading. It seemed too early to be mine, so I asked in Korean "Where is this bus going?" to this older lady. She told me, and then began to tell me which bus went where. It was a lot of place names and details. I only caught the names. I nodded and bowed, like I should and thanked her. After a bit I asked what time it was. Tbh, I couldn't understand times, but I hoped someone would flip up a watch and I'd catch a glimpse. (no, my cell phone does not do a contemptible thing here. it wont keep time, even on airplane mode.) The same lady responded, but I didn't totally understand her, and couldn't see her watch. However another man commented and I caught "ship bun" which I knew! 10 minutes. So I assumed 10 before 8. *victory trumpet*
In all that, one gentleman spoke up, in English, asking where I was going, and I told him. He said he was going to the same place and would help me get on the right bus. He also told me basic information about the trip. I thanked him. excitedly. He helped me get my bags onto the bus too. So kind!
So from the airport to the uni, it was a 4 hour ride (due to heavy traffic around the city). It was a fun/crazy ride. So much to see out of the windows. The sun was shining and warming things.
There was this cool bridge we went over.
And the best part.. the bus had heat and a satelite tv (flat screen, HD). I was torn between watching a talk show and looking out the windows. A drama came on after a few hours too. I forget the name now.
Oh, here's a picture of water and boats. I can't remember if this is part of the bay there or what. Landing in Incheon at night was fantastic, btw. So pretty!
At the final stop, I got off and started getting my bags. The man from before helped some, and asked who was coming to pick me up. I told him in bad grammared Korean I was taking a taxi. And he said, oh no no, I couldn't get a taxi to carry all my stuff. His wife was picking him up and he offered me a ride. He asked where I was going, and I told him in Korean. He understood. Oh yes at the bus stop the woman asked if I was a teacher (in korean) and I said I was an English teacher (in korean). We talked a little more in English than Korean, (i had asked if he wanted any money for the ride, and he declined... in korea, it's they don't expect that sort of thing - something i had forgotten in my tiredness) and waited for his wife. Yes, it did cross my mind "What if I just got picked up by some dangerous person?" But I really wanted to get to the uni and his mannerisms were kind and not creepy (i said a short prayer for safety). I've been told Koreans are very kind and service oriented. This man was a beautiful example of kindness. He told me "I've traveled a lot, and I know what it's like to be in your position."
When his wife arrived, he helped me load the car. As soon as I opened the door, his wife greeted me in perfectly enunciation English, "Hello how are you?" She was very warm and friendly, and although it seemed that was the only phrase she knew, she was excited. She asked me lots of things in Korean, and I understood a tiny bit, and her husband translated. I tried my best to give Korean answers, but used a lot of English. As we got down the road, they turned on the GPS and started typing in the name of the school. So I knew then we were definitely going to the right place. His wife gave me a choco pie (delicious thing! it's like the little debbie marshmallow supreme except a sandwiched cookie) and I thanked her a ton. I probably looked silly. I couldn't believe their kindness. As we got to the gate and I saw up the street, I saw the building I recognized from the pictures in my info email. I was definitely in the right place. I said in Korean, "That building" something.. I forget now but essentially "that's it!". XD
So we stopped at it and the man got out and wanted to check and make sure it was right. It was. I knew. But he was being nice and not just dropping me off irresponsibly. As he got my bags out of the back, I was on the sidewalk bowing into the car thanking his wife (like an excited foreigner). He helped me get the bags to the door and I thanked him and they left.
When I got in, other teachers helped me with my bags and got me up to the main office. From there it was a whirlwind of info and the only important part was they knew who I was, kind of, and were waiting for me to show up. The sentence was "Oh Kelsey (my coordinator) was worried about you, and will be glad to know you made it." She walked in a minute later, and she knew who I was.
So after all the travel frustration - I had made it, safely, and was shown so much kindness. (God is good, ne?) Of course, I also hit the ground running and was thrown right into the busy schedule.
We eat early, attend classes 8 or 9 hours a day, and climb stairs...lots of stairs. So I'm tired. It's almost 11pm... so goodnight!
Day 2 of classes done. They keep us super busy, but the lectures are great and our "homeroom" teachers take good care of us. They even give us a small snack between class in the afternoon. ^^;'
From there I got on a bus. I should say that the flight I was on had two other teachers from the program/group. We met getting off the plane and stuck together through customs declaration. But they were in team 2, and I'm team 1 so we parted ways after talking a bit (and after making sure i could get the right bus). The bus was an interesting experience.
So you may read online that Seoul is easy to navigate because signs are in "English" - and yes things are labeled. But sometimes it's not as apparent or your eyes gloss over. You have to be quick and watchful. The airport does have English speaking staff, but at various levels of ability. So one guard was helpful, one less so, and the bus info person changed shifts so decent speaker left, less skilled came. But I digress. I decided to stand at the bus stop earlier than the departure time and it was cold, so I huddled in the little station/stop thing (what is that called in English?) with ALL Koreans. Not a white in sight. Nbd. I stand as out of the way as I can though it is crowded. A minute or two later a bus came up and was loading. It seemed too early to be mine, so I asked in Korean "Where is this bus going?" to this older lady. She told me, and then began to tell me which bus went where. It was a lot of place names and details. I only caught the names. I nodded and bowed, like I should and thanked her. After a bit I asked what time it was. Tbh, I couldn't understand times, but I hoped someone would flip up a watch and I'd catch a glimpse. (no, my cell phone does not do a contemptible thing here. it wont keep time, even on airplane mode.) The same lady responded, but I didn't totally understand her, and couldn't see her watch. However another man commented and I caught "ship bun" which I knew! 10 minutes. So I assumed 10 before 8. *victory trumpet*
In all that, one gentleman spoke up, in English, asking where I was going, and I told him. He said he was going to the same place and would help me get on the right bus. He also told me basic information about the trip. I thanked him. excitedly. He helped me get my bags onto the bus too. So kind!
And the best part.. the bus had heat and a satelite tv (flat screen, HD). I was torn between watching a talk show and looking out the windows. A drama came on after a few hours too. I forget the name now.
At the final stop, I got off and started getting my bags. The man from before helped some, and asked who was coming to pick me up. I told him in bad grammared Korean I was taking a taxi. And he said, oh no no, I couldn't get a taxi to carry all my stuff. His wife was picking him up and he offered me a ride. He asked where I was going, and I told him in Korean. He understood. Oh yes at the bus stop the woman asked if I was a teacher (in korean) and I said I was an English teacher (in korean). We talked a little more in English than Korean, (i had asked if he wanted any money for the ride, and he declined... in korea, it's they don't expect that sort of thing - something i had forgotten in my tiredness) and waited for his wife. Yes, it did cross my mind "What if I just got picked up by some dangerous person?" But I really wanted to get to the uni and his mannerisms were kind and not creepy (i said a short prayer for safety). I've been told Koreans are very kind and service oriented. This man was a beautiful example of kindness. He told me "I've traveled a lot, and I know what it's like to be in your position."
When his wife arrived, he helped me load the car. As soon as I opened the door, his wife greeted me in perfectly enunciation English, "Hello how are you?" She was very warm and friendly, and although it seemed that was the only phrase she knew, she was excited. She asked me lots of things in Korean, and I understood a tiny bit, and her husband translated. I tried my best to give Korean answers, but used a lot of English. As we got down the road, they turned on the GPS and started typing in the name of the school. So I knew then we were definitely going to the right place. His wife gave me a choco pie (delicious thing! it's like the little debbie marshmallow supreme except a sandwiched cookie) and I thanked her a ton. I probably looked silly. I couldn't believe their kindness. As we got to the gate and I saw up the street, I saw the building I recognized from the pictures in my info email. I was definitely in the right place. I said in Korean, "That building" something.. I forget now but essentially "that's it!". XD
So we stopped at it and the man got out and wanted to check and make sure it was right. It was. I knew. But he was being nice and not just dropping me off irresponsibly. As he got my bags out of the back, I was on the sidewalk bowing into the car thanking his wife (like an excited foreigner). He helped me get the bags to the door and I thanked him and they left.
When I got in, other teachers helped me with my bags and got me up to the main office. From there it was a whirlwind of info and the only important part was they knew who I was, kind of, and were waiting for me to show up. The sentence was "Oh Kelsey (my coordinator) was worried about you, and will be glad to know you made it." She walked in a minute later, and she knew who I was.
So after all the travel frustration - I had made it, safely, and was shown so much kindness. (God is good, ne?) Of course, I also hit the ground running and was thrown right into the busy schedule.
We eat early, attend classes 8 or 9 hours a day, and climb stairs...lots of stairs. So I'm tired. It's almost 11pm... so goodnight!
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Um, wow?
I'm sitting in my dorm room at orientation in South Korea. *big breath* howmuchcanisayrealfast?
I will save the "how I made it to Korea" story for later. It's long and I like telling it. Ha.
Today was the first full day of classes and so yeah. Ho boy. I go back and forth between "I can do this" and "Hmm. Yeah? What did I get myself into?"
The food is great. Kimchi is something I've missed eating - though I will admit I've had kimchi at every meal except breakfast.. 4 meals total. It's not like french fries - the food I can eat every. single. day. and not get tired of it. But that's alright. I hear Koreans can and do eat kimchi every day.
The school we're staying at is pretty big. It's much bigger than my alma mater. 12,000 students.
Cool story - My roommate got in last night and was looking through her storage/cabinets here. She goes "There's a Bible in here." And I said "In Korean?" "Yeah." OOHH. So I have it sitting near the head of my bed. It's a bilingual New Testament and Psalms. So I think I will be learning the psalms in Korean. :D
We did taekwondo class today. I'm beat. I hate to admit it, but I'm like Gimli the dwarf - "a good runner, but only fast over short distances". I have no stamina, at least not for exercise. But after failing miserably at counting reps while doing jumping jacks &etc I really got into some of the other stuff. The stretches and warm up for it are intense. The taekwondo team and coach here are impressive. *_*
I want to try to do some of the exercises from now on.
Oh. I met another girl from Pittsburgh. I wore my Pittsburgh Penguins shirt today and she looked at it and goes "How come you're wearing that?" She herself was wearing black with gold accents. Pretty dang awesome.
I have Korean lv 2 class in 17 minutes so I should get ready now. (it's just after 7pm) Just a little more til I can sleep and get up to learn more stuffs!
I will save the "how I made it to Korea" story for later. It's long and I like telling it. Ha.
Today was the first full day of classes and so yeah. Ho boy. I go back and forth between "I can do this" and "Hmm. Yeah? What did I get myself into?"
The food is great. Kimchi is something I've missed eating - though I will admit I've had kimchi at every meal except breakfast.. 4 meals total. It's not like french fries - the food I can eat every. single. day. and not get tired of it. But that's alright. I hear Koreans can and do eat kimchi every day.
The school we're staying at is pretty big. It's much bigger than my alma mater. 12,000 students.
Cool story - My roommate got in last night and was looking through her storage/cabinets here. She goes "There's a Bible in here." And I said "In Korean?" "Yeah." OOHH. So I have it sitting near the head of my bed. It's a bilingual New Testament and Psalms. So I think I will be learning the psalms in Korean. :D
We did taekwondo class today. I'm beat. I hate to admit it, but I'm like Gimli the dwarf - "a good runner, but only fast over short distances". I have no stamina, at least not for exercise. But after failing miserably at counting reps while doing jumping jacks &etc I really got into some of the other stuff. The stretches and warm up for it are intense. The taekwondo team and coach here are impressive. *_*
I want to try to do some of the exercises from now on.
Oh. I met another girl from Pittsburgh. I wore my Pittsburgh Penguins shirt today and she looked at it and goes "How come you're wearing that?" She herself was wearing black with gold accents. Pretty dang awesome.
I have Korean lv 2 class in 17 minutes so I should get ready now. (it's just after 7pm) Just a little more til I can sleep and get up to learn more stuffs!
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Last Day Home
Okay, so I successfully checked-in online for flight 1. I have to call airline 2 and reconfirm, and ask if they know their location in Chicago. They probably don't, I'll probably be talking to San Fran or LA.
Scratch one thing off my list, and add another.
So far, it doesn't feel real.
I need to finish packing, and then weigh my bags. Eek! Fitting less than 100lbs of stuff in 2 bags, and having less than 22lbs in a carry-on is going to be tight. ><' I can't help but think that my luggage will weigh more than I do!
(called asiana. oh my gosh! i like talking to them. the recording is in korean, and then you hear english help press 2. XD you get an operator, and they all sound asian. today's was definitely korean, i could tell by accent. she was very helpful and polite.)
Scratch one thing off my list, and add another.
So far, it doesn't feel real.
I need to finish packing, and then weigh my bags. Eek! Fitting less than 100lbs of stuff in 2 bags, and having less than 22lbs in a carry-on is going to be tight. ><' I can't help but think that my luggage will weigh more than I do!
(called asiana. oh my gosh! i like talking to them. the recording is in korean, and then you hear english help press 2. XD you get an operator, and they all sound asian. today's was definitely korean, i could tell by accent. she was very helpful and polite.)
Monday, February 11, 2013
Crazy freak out time!
I'll arrive on Tuesday.
Did I mention Korea is 14 hours ahead of US's EST?
Lots of things to do! Now if only I could remember the thing I wanted to add to my shopping list.
When I feel a bit overwhelmed or wonder if I'm nuts, I just watch We Got Married for this guy.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Nalshi ga chuwo yo
It's cold. I'm sitting in my house with a Pittsburgh Penguins snuggie and a hot cup of coffee. It's a warm 38 degrees (3.3 C) outside. Unheard of, I know. ;)
11 days to go. I've got some shopping to do, some copies to make, and a bunch of small things to do, like figure out where to put my house plants for my mother to care for them.
I need to also figure what emergency contact numbers I should know. I guess I should visit the US Embassy website.
These things are all those "which should I do first? it doesn't matter" type things.
So it turns out the plane ticket I booked is quirky. Two different carriers, and the one that takes me to Korea from the States does not allow issuing online boarding passes. So I have go to the ticketing counter in that airport after flying in from PIT. Sounds like I'll have to leave the secure area to get the ticket, and have to go back through security so I can go back to the gate. What a pain in my butt. Prayers for a short line to get my ticket and a short line to go through security at airport #2 are appreciated. My layover there is only 1hr 40min. Oh and prayers that my first flight is on time or even early would be nice. :D
11 days to go. I've got some shopping to do, some copies to make, and a bunch of small things to do, like figure out where to put my house plants for my mother to care for them.
I need to also figure what emergency contact numbers I should know. I guess I should visit the US Embassy website.
These things are all those "which should I do first? it doesn't matter" type things.
So it turns out the plane ticket I booked is quirky. Two different carriers, and the one that takes me to Korea from the States does not allow issuing online boarding passes. So I have go to the ticketing counter in that airport after flying in from PIT. Sounds like I'll have to leave the secure area to get the ticket, and have to go back through security so I can go back to the gate. What a pain in my butt. Prayers for a short line to get my ticket and a short line to go through security at airport #2 are appreciated. My layover there is only 1hr 40min. Oh and prayers that my first flight is on time or even early would be nice. :D
Monday, February 4, 2013
Pre-pre Travel Post
Hello! Annyeong!
If you're here, you've probably heard that I'm going to Korea, or Hanguk, for a while. (no, not north korea. get this straight - north korea welcomes no one, especially not americans. in this global age, there are still closed countries. wrap your mind around that.)
I don't know how much time I will have to dedicate to this blog just yet. I'm finishing preparations for travel, doing online pre-orientation and trying to see family in less than 2 weeks' time.
I'd like to make this page pretty and stuff, but we'll see how it progresses. I've used three or four blogs in the past and never made a blogger so I have to figure out how to use this one. I also have to decide on content! XD
The aim of this blog is to update anyone interested on my life and experiences while living in Korea. I will probably write about what it's like to teach English as a second language, to live in a non-western country, funny communication mishaps, and whatever strikes my fancy.
If you're here, you've probably heard that I'm going to Korea, or Hanguk, for a while. (no, not north korea. get this straight - north korea welcomes no one, especially not americans. in this global age, there are still closed countries. wrap your mind around that.)
I don't know how much time I will have to dedicate to this blog just yet. I'm finishing preparations for travel, doing online pre-orientation and trying to see family in less than 2 weeks' time.
I'd like to make this page pretty and stuff, but we'll see how it progresses. I've used three or four blogs in the past and never made a blogger so I have to figure out how to use this one. I also have to decide on content! XD
The aim of this blog is to update anyone interested on my life and experiences while living in Korea. I will probably write about what it's like to teach English as a second language, to live in a non-western country, funny communication mishaps, and whatever strikes my fancy.
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