1 month in Korea

It's been about 1 month since I arrived in this country. I must say, it doesn't feel like that at all. I feel like I arrived yesterday. One thing I notice about this country is how global it is. It's so fascinating to see how many foreigners come here, to hear about their walks in life and why they are here now. I really like it. I've met handful of people from across the globe that I would have never met back home.

It's definitely refreshing to be able to find that one connection that makes communication here easier. That connection is English. My friend Ashley told me that it is luxury for Koreans to be able to speak English. In some ways, it's like a privilege I never realized. But even though it's a luxury for Koreans, there are some road blocks along the way for foreigners. Being in a country where your home language isn't the main language can be so difficult. During the week, I definitely notice how easy it is to be silenced from the communication pool if I'm not around Koreans who speak English or around other foreigners. I think because I'm Asian that some Koreans may mistake me for being able to know the language so they approach me and talk to me if they need help for directions or are looking for a particular place. This usually happens when I'm around the subway. I feel bad having to say "Oh I'm not Korean" in English and seeing their confused expressions as they walk away. It's moments like those where I really wish I knew the language. But with that, I've definitely taken an interest in trying to learn it. I'm in the beginning stages and who knows how much I'll be able to get. Currently, I'm learning how to read, which hasn't been too difficult - I just don't know what over 98% of what I read is haha.

This month has been a lot of learning and taken a lot of patience to adjust and go with the flow. I don't think you can really know what patience is until you've actually been here.

Another thing I wonder about is how my English speaking is going to change through the course of the year. Since I'm teaching English as a second language, the pace in which I speak to Koreans is much much much slower than how I would normally carry on a conversation. I enunciate more and find myself saying sentences I wouldn't really say to another native English speaker. While not normal, as a daily practice it's more and more becoming normalized for me to talk like that. To slow down, repeat myself, stutter through sentences is becoming a habit. I still think I talk too fast for most of the Korean teachers and students to really understand me.

But anyway, Korea has been absolutely amazing! I truly am glad that I am here right now soaking in every moment. Within this month, I've experienced the never ending night life, bartering at the shopping districts, seeing a fabulous Asia music concert (KPOP <3) for free, a global bboy competition, noraebang, and visiting local tourist spots around the area I live in. I definitely want to do more toursity things here. I plan to spend my Korean thanksgiving, Chuseok, going around the city and seeing what's around. If possible, I'd also like to travel to Busan - but that's very tentative due to time, travel, and money. I'm more than likely going to stay in Seoul for my 5 day weekend. Yep, 5 days!! So exciting! I shall post some pictures of things I've done soon!

Oh, the things I miss

Maybe it's just one of those days. I think it is. There are certain things I'm starting to realize that I really miss. One of those things was living the life an RA in Mesa Court.

Don't get me wrong, I love being in Korea right now and I wouldn't want to change that at all. I've learned a lot in my short time here and I'm continuing to learn more as I go.

I think I just hit a point though where I knew I would eventually be. My RA experience was definitely a challenging and tough position. When it was over, I felt relieved, happy, and appreciative of a chance to be "stress" free. No more duty. No more paper work. No more proramming. But now, I realize how much I miss it. I miss those 66 beautiful faces I saw everyday. I miss being a walk away from those RAs who I knew I could lean on.

We are all on our separate paths now, doing our own thing - making the next chapter in our lives. I hope everyone is doing well and you all know that I truly miss you! Mesa love '08-'09 <3





P.S. A Korea update will come soon. Things have just been suuuper busy, but in a good way :)

Whose boat is this? It's mine! It's mine!

Teaching. These past few days teaching have been quite the experience. It's easy on some level and very difficult on other levels, but it's genuinely been a good experience. During my first lessons, my co-teacher lead most of the activities, while I explained directions and helped with pronunciation. It was pretty easy and I was able to get comfortable doing this routine. I can see why other foreigners think that 5th/6th grade is difficult. Some of the students can get pretty rowdy and restless, especially during the after lunch hours. I truly feel that Korean public education is lacking in some sort of discipline practice, but I guess that's why they invite foreigners over.

I absolutely adore my 5th graders. They are incredibly cute. While they get rambunctious, they are willing to listen and be obedient when you tell them to be. They are also much more curious about foreigners than the 6th graders. Don't get me wrong, I like my 6th graders too. They are definitely in that puberty phase and transitioning from little kid to early tween and they start developing this sort of attitude toward school. I guess we all went through that at some point.

My co-teachers are really friendly. Honestly, I don't know most of their first names ... I'm not sure if it's because Korean names are so difficult to learn or if they just never told me. But my teachers are Ms. Jeun, Mrs. Ko, Ms. Jeung, and Ms. Choi. They are all really nice. I would Jeun and Ko have better English speaking abilities than the other two. However, two of them are embarrassed to speak English when the other teachers are in the subject room. It kind of sucks having to plan lessons after work with them, but if it makes them feel more confident then I figure why not.

It's funny being one of the new teachers on campus, especially a teacher who is not native to Korea. Honestly, it's sort of like a celebrity type atmosphere with children running around you saying "hi!" just so you can say "hi!" back. It's very cute. Every now and then, I will get a "You are handsome!" or a "handsome boy" from the girls and even some boys haha. I guess I should enjoy this type of fame while it lasts and the kids realize I'm just an average guy.

Overall, Korea has been treating me very well. Beyond the classroom, my adventures outside the school have been very entertaining. I was able to attend a free art show in Yeoksam the other night. It was pretty amazing because it was free and they had free snacks, free buffet dinner, and free drinks! It was glorious! I enjoyed that they had meat and cheese trays. I haven't had that food in so long!!! The following night, I went to Dongdaemun for dinner. Dongdaemun is an area in Seoul that is very popular for cheap shopping and finding brand name knock offs. I didn't do any shopping, but the food was delicious (and cheap!) and they had a TON of places to go and shop and places to sight see and take pictures. I really like Korea so far. Even though after work, I'm incredibly exhausted - I truly enjoy venturing out into the city and soaking up as much of this experience as I can.

Things I want to eventually do here: Go on a hike, Visit Everland/Lotte World (the ... Disneyland of Korea I guess), See a baseball game, shop shop shop, see a KPOP concert (OMG!), etc etc etc

I WANT TO DO EVERYTHING!!!

The City

So I have just finished my first week of full time teaching. Although, I would have to say it was more a week of adjustment and waiting. I still have not taught a class or prepared a lesson with my coteacher, but I guess that is for next week. It's been very interesting adapting myself to Korean culture. On Saturday evening, I was bussed off to Kangdong-gu where I met my manager teacher and main co-teacher. They were very nice and welcoming to me, but they were nervous to meet me. I think they were suprised at how young I am - I'm probably the youngest in the whole school. All in all, I have 4 Korean co-teachers that I will be working with. It's very difficult for me to try and remember all their names. I never expected Korean names would be sooo difficult.

Life in my new place was definitely challenging. I never realized how hard it was going to be all by myself with no cell phone or internet to get in touch with people. Plus, it was scary to start to realize that you are running very very low on money. It was super scary and intimidating for me to venture out into the city because of the language, the culture, and realizing my dependence on others. However, I was able to get through it and I eventually got to see my friends. I live in Amsadong and I really like it so far. There is a good number of shopping marts, grocery stores, food stands, a gym, a shopping mall, etc that are all within walking
distance from me. There is even a Burger King open 24 hours if I ever crave Western food.

This week has been a whole lot of learning for myself. Adapting to Korean culture and really trying to present myself as best I can has made me very stressed, but everyone I work with is so kind and caring towards me. It's very family-like in Korea where they want to ensure that you are healthy and happy. The vice principal, Mr. Chun, has also been pushing me toward being more independent by making me venture to the other side of Seoul and back for all the immigration paper work. It was actually a fun experience to go about by myself and see different areas of the city and learn the ropes of the subway.

I'm currently teaching at Cheondong Elementary school. It's about a 20 minute subway commute and walk from where I live. Overall, I really like the school. While not everyone is well versed in English (in fact, no one really is), all the teachers are very welcoming and want to talk to me - they are just shy about using English because it takes time and can be difficult for them. Everyone seems so curious about me and what life is like from a Western perspective.

The children here are so unbelievably adorable. While the discipline structure may be lacking in Korean education, their spunk and energy is so refreshing. I've observed a 3rd and 6th grade class and it was all very cute. The curriculum does not seem to be difficult to teach at all so I'm excited about that. Many of the students are so fascinated that I'm a foreigner. They like to stare at me and every now and then one will say "Hi". A lot of girls also go crazy when I walk around the school. They shout and scream and it is all very awkward for me. I guess I should enjoy the mini-celebrity status before it all ends and I just become a normal teacher.

Anyway, I feel like I've learned a lot already and it's only been two weeks so far. I'm so antsy to go out and explore/travel around the city and really soak up as much as I can from this whole experience.


Dongdaemun!


Dongdaemun stream!


Ashley! my RA friend!


Fun art in Hongdae!


Fun art in Itaewon!