A Week in Korea

 Downtown Daegu

 Korean take-out (bagogi-bop - rice, meat, seaweed, and noodles)

 bedroom/kitchen

kitchenette 

bathroom/shower (disco light coming through) my washer

Well, I made it a week!
Here's the catch up...

On Thursday October 27, with barely any sleep, I said goodbye to my house for a year and drove with my parents to LAX. I was doing really well until we were at the airport and I lost it. I really did not want to leave. Everyone in the airport could see my emotions were high, and so the check in counter let my dad come to the gate with me, which helped tremendously. I then flew from LAX to San Francisco. On that flight, I literally sat there with one thing running through my mind, "What the hell am I doing?"
When I landed in San Francisco, I felt like a ghost. I just wandered through the airport crying and wanting to go home. I called my parents every 5 minutes and couldn't seem to shake the feeling that I was making a mistake. After a phone call with my grandma (thanks Grams) I felt better and made my way to my gate in the international terminal. When I got there, I was actually surprised to see other people that looked like me...scared. There was a girl who looked about my age and so I went and sat next to her and struck up a conversation. Grace and I became instant friends! We talked to the airline, and luckily our flight was not full at all, and so we had our seats changed so that we could sit next to each other, even with a seat in between us. Our flight was long, but good. Singapore Airlines is incredible, and I wish I could fly them all the time. I watched movies, tv shows, and listened to music - then all of a sudden, we were landing in Seoul.  I turned to Grace and we both were terrified, but I was really glad we had each other. When we got off the plane, we stayed together to make sure we had our bags and walked together. Luckily for me, Grace had a friend who was from Korea who met her at the airport. She helped me find my bus ticket and bus stop and explained to me when and where my bus would take me (to get to Daegu). I hugged Grace goodbye and we promised we'd see each other soon.

When I got on the bus, a girl who was on the same plane with me came up and asked if I was going to Daegu as well. Turns out, Alma and I are both from the same program Geovisions, and therefore, another instant friend. :)

When we got to Daegu, 4 hour bus ride from Seoul, we were both disoriented and tired. But, my director, Mr. Do, and an American man, Michael, who teaches at my school met me. They were incredibly nice and took me straight to a motel. The girls I replaced at my school, Seongseo ECC, were still in the apartments and therefore I couldn't move in. I was completely fine until they left me and I was alone. I cried and freaked out and just wanted to go home. I didn't have internet the first night and so that added to the hardship. I was convinced I was going home...until the next morning when a Korean teacher from my school, Belle, met me at my hotel and took me to the school. There, I got to meet the 2 girls I'm replacing (Megan and Tara) and I felt instantly better. These girls helped me so much and they were so kind. For the whole day I observed them in their classrooms and took mental notes. After work on Friday, the whole staff went out to a traditional Korean barbeque restaurant where you take your shoes off and sit on the floor. I was handed some chopsticks (which is a sink or swim business here, so now I'm very good at them) and you eat off of a hot plate in the center of the table. It was very delicious, but I was so jet-lagged and ready for sleep. After Megan and Tara showed me the apartments and how to get around a bit, I went back to the hotel and slept.
On Saturday I met up with the girls again for Halloween weekend. They promised me that they would introduce me to many people and that I would be shocked at how many foreigners there were here in Daegu. They were completely right. When we got to downtown, I felt like I was back in America. Everyone there was from a native English speaking country and they were all doing the same thing. It was wonderful to talk to so many people, and very comforting. It was also SO much fun. I have now celebrated Halloween in 4 different countries in my life : USA, Saudi Arabia, England, and now South Korea. :)
On Sunday, I got to meet up with a friend of mine from Manchester, Kate. She is here in Korea on the Fulbright Scholarship and it was just so wonderful to see a friendly and familiar face. I will never be able to repay her for the kindness she gave me that day. We got coffee and just talked and it was so nice to just "know" someone. After I got home from my morning with Kate, I met up with some of the girls I've made friends with and we went to Starbucks and then a DVD Bong. (Bong means room) These are everywhere and pretty much are just like Blockbuster or any video renting place, but you watch the movie there! They have little rooms they rent out and it was super fun. In honor of Halloween, we watched a scary movie. It was really fun.
On Monday, I observed Megan and Tara at ECC for the final time. I even taught a class by myself because Megan had to run errands. After work, Megan showed me how to navigate the subway system and get downtown. We then met everyone, about 15 of us, and went to dinner at a Korean bbq place again. This dinner was so wonderful. I got to really talk to the others and really had a good time.
*One of the coolest things about the night was during dinner, the owner of the restaurant brought over a live octopus and put it on the hot plate. We watched it sizzle and die before she picked it up and cut it into a lot of pieces. I really did not want to try it, but they all made me...and it was nasty. But, I can cross it off my list. :) After dinner we went to a place right across the street from my apartment called a Norae Bong, or in other words, a karaoke bar. Like the DVD Bong, you rent out a room and sing to your hearts content under a disco ball. I can see the lights from it flash outside my window right now.

Tuesday was my first official day of teaching on my own - and I made it. The kids didn't hate me. I was nervous to replace Megan and Tara, because everyone loved them, but this happens all the time, and I think I'm really starting to fit in now. My hours are weird, usually 3-9 pm, and so my sleeping and eating schedule is all turned around. In all, I have 16 different classes that I teach, usually 7-8 a day.  It's tiring, but I really enjoy it at times. My younger kids are absolutely adorable and I'd probably let them get away with murder. The students are technically not allowed to speak Korean at ECC, and so we have to get on them if they do...but I let it slide with the babies - they're just so cute. The older kids are another story...but, I'm working on it.
I also moved into my apartment on Tuesday, and I love it. It's a place to call home. This is what I needed - a place to my own. Having my apartment definitely made an impact on my feelings here, and I've started to decorate and make it cozy. :) It's tiny - but I love it. I have a washer that sits outside the apartment in a covered balcony sort of thing and a drying rack, a tiny kitchenette, a bathroom that doubles as a shower, and a bed with an ugly but comfortable blanket - the pictures show it all.

-I've gotten lost once, but it was good in the end because I have familiarized myself now. I've started to memorize different food names so that I can eat. I'll never go hungry because rice = bop. :) I have memorized a few Korean phrases so that I can be polite, hello and thank you. (hello = ahn yan ha say yo / thank you = come se mi dah)

I'm still adjusting, and I'm still homesick ... but things are getting better. :) My friend Sam is coming to visit this weekend and so I look forward to another familiar face.
I know this year will fly by, but there are still times where I question my sanity...but then I rethink what I would be doing at home and then I realize I'm happy to be here. :)

Thank you everyone who has supported me. You all are so wonderful. I love you all. Enjoy the blog and the photos...

Until next time.
Love,
  Cam.