First month here: check; Enjoying myself: check; Teaching English to some adorable (and sometimes demonic) kids: check; Promises to upload to blog: ...um, I'm working on it now aren't I?

I have officially been here a bit over one month; and it has been awesome.

I have been through training, both before school started, and a bit since. Made some really cool friends; my apartment more habitable; eaten some REALLY good food (and some not so good); explored some parts of the city, and started teaching some really adorable kids (and some not so adorable, and quite evil ones).

Where should I begin?

Training/School/My Kids

So my school uses the Meysen system, which was developed in Meysen Academy in Japan to teach kids English. It was developed by Americans so it uses a lot of the songs that I grew up with... but with changes. Some All of them not good. "Itsy bitsy spider" now "Little bity spider" and they changed the tune... I cannot help but do it the way I learned it... I have tried to do it Meysen's way but I still end up doing it my way, and I think the kids like mine better. I know this because when we listen to the CD with the Meysen version and this song comes up my kids sing it my way OVER the CD. >.< opps. Anyways, so Meysen gives sells the school the class materials, which are big with pretty good pictures. This makes my like SOOOO much easier since I do not have to hunt up things to do in my classes. I just pick from the materials available. YAY! So it only takes me about 20 minutes to decide what I want to do, and if/what any questions will be about the material. For instance each unit (there are over 20; but I only teach 4 and 14) has vocabulary cards to flash to the kids before going over something. So if I want to do MacDonald's Farm, I will will flash: cow, pig, cat, and chicken/chick. I can then ask where these animals (or others we have done previously) are on the MacDonald's poster. At first I let the kids point to the animals one by one, but recently I started to have them TELL me where it is (one of the other vocab cards for that unit is near/far). So I will ask: "Is the cow near the chicken? No, it isn't. Is it near the sheep? Yes, it is. When my kids first did it right I felt like a champ. And I still do every time they get it.

So I teach 3.5 classes. I teach a 7 yr old (That's Korean age, subtract 1/2 yrs for American) kindergarten everyday from 10.20am - noon; a 2nd grade class Mon., Tues., Thurs., and Fri. from 3.55 - 5pm; and a 5th and 6th grade combination from 6pm - 6:40 on Mon., Wed., and Fri. That half class starts this week and its only 30 min on Wed., another 7 year old kindergarten class, but they are on a different system, which I will totally save for another post.

So my Kindy classes I teach Meysen Unit 4, and the 2nd grade Unit 14. The 5th/6th graders (who come to our English Academy for MORE English classes AFTER their regular school) I teach the curriculum from our sister school - A Class. I teach them mostly Speaking and Listening, with a smidgen of reading/writing. I also give them a vocab quiz on Wednesdays (our "Listening" day). Again, this curriculum is also set so I don't have to hunt for things to do with them, although I did make a presentation of vocab words they have been getting wrong regularly, they liked this so I will probably do it more regularly, and probably before we do quizzes so I have to correct less (work hard now to be lazy later is my new motto.) ^_^

My kindy kids are really cute, minus all the snot (gooey or crusty) and the constant open mouth coughing, usually ON ME. The older ones are cool since I can have a bit more of a conversation with them. They all are blown away when I say something Korean, or mention a K-pop group or an actor. It makes them giggly really, why? I have no clue.

I promise I will try to take some photos of my kids for you guys.

Friends

So I have one other foreign teacher at my school, if you follow me on FB you know Beau. He has been a godsend. He arrived a week before I did, so he kinda scoped out the area a bit before I even got here. He is from Chicago and he is only 2 years older than me. After work we sit on the patio (where I am now) and drink beer or soju, usually both, and unwind and talk about our day.

There is also Natalie, Ann, Hailee, Kenny, Ryan, Jay and the main boss (we call her wangjangnim - elem. school principle) and her husband (both whose name's I don't know). Natalie and Ann teach English with us... their English is REALLY fluent (before you ask). They are 24 and 27, respectively. Hailee and Kenny are the head teachers, but they also teach English, and yes they are fluent. Hailee is about my age, and Kenny is 39. Ryan and Jay are both wangjangnim's sons. They help out a lot, Ryan was the one to pick me up from the airport both times, and Jay drove me to training before school started. There are two other ladies whose names I have no clue about, but they both are really nice, and don't speak English. >.< They work in the office. There are other teachers at the schools, but they are the homeroom teachers, and don't hangout with us too much. Except Su Jong - she is my saving grace with the 7 yr old kindy kids, since she hangs out during class to help keep the kids in line when I am at a loss to what they are asking for (usually in Korean). During my last training I met Nick, who is the tall kid (you see on FB) Beau and I went to Itaewon and Rodeo Street with, he is really goofy and funny. He is half Korean, half American and grew up in the States. He is also a teacher, and lives about 10-15 min walk from us. He has introduced to a lot of stuff and is wicked awesome. Last week I sent an email to my recruiter asking her if she knew any girl that live in my area. Because lets be honest, Beau and Nick are fab; but as a girl, I need girls to talk to every once in awhile. So she introduced me to Angela and Katy (whom you may also have seen on FB). Unfortunately, Angela left this weekend for Hawaii, and Katy leaves in May. They only were/are here for a year. However, last weekend Angela convinced me to go to her church with her. She promised me it was cool, service is in English and everyone who attends speaks English, and is either American or Korean-American. It was cool. I met a lot of people, I even went to dinner with three of them: Betsy, Cecelia, and Felix. So I will probably go back next weekend (I'm not feeling too hot this weekend).

My Apartment

Where to begin... it is TINY. It is only about 300 sq. ft. And there is no separate shower, which I have come to appreciate since I can clean my bathroom while my conditioner sets in my hair. 2 for 1!! DAEBAK! I will be uploading better (since you can see parts of it in the photos I have/will be uploading) pics of it when I get some additional wardrobe space and some drawers/storage. Seriously, I brought 5 bags of clothes with me (I know, I know - too much) 2 of them are still FULL of clothes... well, one is full of spring/summer clothes, the other is my sock drawer. ^_^

Food

Oh my gods, where do I even begin.... It is all sooooooo good. I'm even eating fish and tofu on a regular basis, something I would never dream of in the States. Samgyeopsal, omelets, kimchi of all kinds, seaweed (although straight up seaweed soup at first was tough to choke down a bit, I can now drink all the broth though!), ho tteok (호떡) (oh gods, ho tteok... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm sooooo good and warm), mandu soup with octopus (mandu, 만두 = dumplings) quail eggs, potato pancakes (Gamjajeon, 감자전), and a whole host of other dishes I have no idea what they are called. ^^ If a plate of it is put in front of me, I will eat it. And not cause I am poor, even though I am (YAY first payday tomorrow!); but because why not? I'm in a new country, I will obviously be fed new foods - I am here to experience new things, not doing so would be dumb.

The City

This place is HUGE. When I had training before school started ____ (Hailee's hubby) drove me over to the training since he worked a couple of buildings down in Pyeongchon. It was a 30ish minute drive. After training I would take the subway, the fastest and most efficient one I have ever seen - sorry London/NYC; it took me 2.5 hours to get home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! To get to city center takes about 30-45 min. I have explored Cheonho, and seen a bit of Sindorim, Sinchon, and of course Itaewon. Where is that you say?? GET A MAP!!! ^3^

*:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧ *:･ﾟ✧
So overall, I am honestly happier than a pig in sh!t.

A friend back in the States (you know who you are) wrote to me & asked 2 things so I thought I would answer them here, so everyone else gets the info too:

What's your favorite part so far about teaching? And what's been your favorite thing about South Korea so far?

My fave part of teaching (besides the kids themselves) is when I ask a question and they answer it in a full sentence, grammatically correct, and it is something they learned from me. That TOTALLY makes my day.

My fave part of Korea so far.... well, this one is a toughie. I could say the food, or the people I work with, but that would be an easy (although true) cop out. I really like the atmosphere here. People are polite for the most part. Not that anyone has been rude to me or anything, but I've seen teenagers and adults sit on the subway when an ancient old lady is being forced to stand, and no one bats an eye... I have stood up for older people only to have people younger than me THEN get up to offer ME their seat, when they had no intention of doing it for the older person. But people smile a lot, and they city has this atmosphere that people are happy, and I like that. Although it may be my own personal feelings giving me rosy glasses. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Not complaining.

That's it for me today. I promise I will try to update more frequently now that I am more settled in and have an established routine.

KOREAN LESSON

맛있었어요 - ma-shi-sos-yo - It was delicious. (I say this a LOT)

*After a scrumpcious bowl/plate of anything* - to the cook/hostess/waiter/anyone who will listen: 맛있었어요!

There & Back Again, a Traveler's Tale.

Don't hate on the title, it was just too perfect to pass up. And I am sorry, but blogger is being a pain in the a$$ and isn't formatting things correctly, so things will be messed up later.

Prep to go to Korea to-do list:
Continue waiting for my visa issue number;
Ensure all my visa paperwork is ready;
Apply for my visa from the consulate;
Wait to get my Visa FROM the consulate in Fukuoka, Japan;
Continue packing/sorting my things;
Sort my computer files;
Get an ex-pat computer program, so I can watch American stuff online in Korea.
Get on a plane from Japan to go BACK to Seoul.

@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@^@

Wow, so things happened quickly.

It is 12:40pm (Central) on Saturday Feb. 22, 2014. And here I am on a plane, flying over Canada, that will will take me to Incheon Airport in South Korea. I am being served a drink as I am writing this; ^_^ and the plane is empty!!! I have three seats all to myself. BUWAHAHAHAHA!! Yes, I have totally taken the other two over; but there are still whole rows empty, so I don't feel bad.

This past week was pretty hectic. I found out on Wednesday that my director decided we were not going to wait for the VIN from Korean Immigration. I would go over as a tourist and whenever my VIN comes in I would go to Japan and get the visa from the consulate there. Which is good, because I can start my training on time.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Fun Story Time:

So I am sitting in MIA this morning waiting for my first flight (to ORD) when I get an email from my new Director "S" saying he JUST got my VIN. LOL So The Plan now is I will still arrive in Korea on the 23rd at 4:50 and drop all 5 (yes, you read that right - FIVE) bags off at my new apt. I will spend the night in my new bed, then at o'dark thirty I will have to go back to the airport and take a flight from Incheon (which is like a hour & a half outside the city) to Fukuoka, Japan; go straight to the consulate, give them the paperwork & my passport; then go to my hotel, spend the night; and at 1:30 pick up my passport & visa. I will then fly out of the airport that night and arrive in Incheon at 10:35pm. So I will be going through Incheon Airport three times in as many days. *le sigh* Good thing I don't mind flying. And don't worry, my boss is picking up the tab for the flight to/from Japan and the hotel. ^_^ (I think... >.<) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Anyways, so back to the past couple of days: the most bittersweet days so far this year. Having to say goodbye to so many people for a year is rough. Especially with my parents and my brother. My parents and I didn't even sleep on Friday night, we just stayed up, chatted and watched the Olympics together. My parents are awesome. They have helped and supported me through this, even when inside they were cursing every minute of it and dreading my leaving. So MAJOR shout-out, with lots of love, kisses, and hugs to them!! <3 I love you & thank you sooooooooo much. You will never know how much it means to me. Packing every last thing I own, either to bring to the R.O.K. or to put in storage was difficult. I am REALLY happy I started that WEEKS ago. Another shout-out to my godfather for shipping 4 boxes to R.O.K. for me. They were huge and it was a VERY pretty penny. I am about to be fed, and then I will pass out. Be back in a bit! ~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Ok, so it is a bit later than "a bit." 10 hours have passed. It is now 10:47pm (Central)/1:51pm (Korean Standard Time). So we are coming up to Japan now, having already flown over Alaska & the Bering Strait. I just woke up, I am now a champion sleeper (Thanks Advil PM!) Why didn't I think about doing this during my trans-atlantic flights?? And this is THE warmest flight I have ever been on... eugh. Even with all the windows closed, which is VERY dis-orientating when waking up. So there are a lot of Americans on this flight... and after talking to some of them when we first got on & during our first meal, guess why they are going to Korea. You only need one. :D +~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~*+~* Ok a LOT has happened since I last wrote. We landed, I went through immigration as a tourist. I met my Director "S," and my Principle's son "R." S and R are both REALLY nice. S had to go home, and he lives in a different part of town so R drove me to the Academy where I met "H," she is going to be the main person I speak to since she has really good English skills. She is like the Principle's Assistant, and also the Principle's daughter in law. You may get confused now. About the Academy - OMFG! Totes adorbs! It is the cutest sh!t I have ever seen. If unicorns vomited, they would throw up my new place of employment. I will take pics of it soon.


So H showed me around the school and then she, R, Beau and I went to eat dinner after we dropped my bags off at my tiny, I mean REALLY TINY, apartment. Dinner was really good, It was Korean family-style where the servers bring out a tabletop on a cart just FILLED with food and put it on the table in front of you. Seriously, no joke. I will take a picture next time I go there!! At this point though, I was starting to hit a wall and get REALLY sleepy.


So after dinner H dropped Beau and myself off at our building where we went to my apt to talk while I unpack/re-pack (for my morning flight) my stuff. I then realized, I brought too much stuff, and I need to buy hangers. After all that fun, I finally tried to sleep on my bed. Problem: I was freezing. So I moved the pillow and blankets my Principle prepped for me to the floor. FOr those of you who do not know Korea uses "ondol." Ondol is floor heating, google it for more info here. It is the best thing since beginning of time! So I slept as comfy as a bug in a rug, but on the floor.

Then at 4am I had to get up, and meet H who was taking me to the airport bus stop. We chatted a bit while we waited for the bus, she is really nice and I think we will get on very well. So I took the bus for about an hour to the airport & checked myself in. I then went through immigration to get out of Korea, but I didn't have to take off my shoes to go through security! Bonus!

The flight to Fukuoka was short, about an hour, but they still served us a full breakfast. (I am REALLY liking these Asian airlines. They know service!) I then got to Japan at 9:15, and then rushed to the Korean consulate via the subway, where I towered over everyone - literally. I was able to turn in my application and my passport before 11 am, so it should be ready in 24 hours. Which is AWESOME. If I had done it via Atlanta, it would've taken a week. I then finally found my hotel - Heiwadai Hotel 5 (thank you random office lady who printed out a map for me!). I then Skyped with my folks and was pitiful enough that the lady at the check-in counter let me get my room 3 hours early. I then passed right out. I had planned to only take a 2 hour nap, but it ended up being a 7 hour nap. So I didn't explore too much today.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Fun Story Time:
I then got up and for 15 minutes I tried to turn on the lights. Nothing worked. So I called down to the front desk and tried to explain what was happening and the lady said "godere?" And I said "Yes." At this point I would have agreed to anything, peeing in the dark with only a tablet to light up the little bathroom was not fun, I can't even imagine taking a shower like that. She then hung up on me and as I stared at the phone (which I couldn't really see) I realized she meant "I will go there" as there was a knock on the door. I opened it and she pointed at a little box near the door, which in my desperation to turn on the lights I heavily fondled. She then saw my confusion walked into my room, grabbed my key (which also had a card attached but was too tired to notice earlier), and stuck the card into the box. My room lit up like a Christmas tree. I profusely thanked her and bowed as she left, since I was feeling like an a$$. I then looked at the little paper she gave me when I checked in and what had seemed as mystical writing then about a "box providing electricity" finally became clear.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

So I finally took a shower (my first in Asia - I have no towels in my apt!), and explored a little around the hotel and then went to a restaurant next to the hotel. No one spoke English, so I pointed at a picture, the waitress then had a pen/wand that she rubbed on the menu on different points to make the order for me. I swear, it was magic. What I got: a hot plate - but with open flame; on it a bowl filled with some broth, cabbage, bean sprouts, green onions, and some pork. It all came to a boil and I put it in a smaller bowl in front of me and ate it all. It was DELICIOUS! I have no idea what it was, but I will order it again tomorrow for lunch. Best part: it was only 6 bucks, no tip. And it was not a small serving.

And so here I am. In the hotel lobby writing this; Skyping with my brother Pachi and others, and messaging with Beau - whose Skype isn't working. HA HA.

After I post this I am going to sleep, then I will explore Fukuoka some more (I saw a cute pagoda earlier), get my visa'd passport at 1:30pm, board a plane that will take me back to Seoul at 9pm-ish, arrive in Seoul at 10pm-ish, have poor R (I feel bad for him - he doesn't even work for the school) drive me back to my home, pass out on the floor ;), then I start my training Wed at 10am and continue that for the rest of the week. I will hopefully give you all an update at the end of the week.

Also, I am sad to inform you that I do not have my cord to connect my camera to the computer, so I can't upload any pictures today. I will do a pictures only post with everything I have talked about today and some things I haven't, but found interesting.



Korean Japanese Lesson*

*In honor of my being in Japan I will teach you a bit of Japanese which I wish someone had done for me before today and I made a fool of myself, since I had TOTALLY forgotten all of this. >.< こんにちは - Konnichiwa - Actually means "Good afternoon" but is used as a general Hello.

どうもありがとう - Domo Arigato - "Thanks a lot," and this is not sarcastic (which is how I originally read that) but a very sincere thank you.

さよなら - Sayonara - Goodbye (but not when leaving your own home). But I haven't heard this while I have been here. I have heard:

ではまた - Dewa mata - See you later. I have mostly been dealing with younger people, so that may explain it.

The Game of...

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Waiting.

That was daebak right?... No? It wasn't??
Welcome to my world.



Prep to go to Korea to-do list:
Continue waiting for my visa issue number;
Ensure all my visa paperwork is ready;
Apply for my visa from the consulate;
Continue packing/sorting my things;
Sort my computer files;
Get an ex-pat computer program, so I can watch American stuff online in Korea.

Am I forgetting anything??

☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆~.:*♥・°☆


Well, Korean Immigration has my documents; it only took a week for my documents to get halfway around the world. *sigh* So I am just waiting on that now.

On to the fun/sad stuff:

I am in the midst of serious packing. I donated all the books I couldn't sell to the library. I cried. A lot. Then my father is lovingly called this moment "taking the kids to the orphanage." I then proceeded to cry more. The pile of clothes to be donated has also increased. This next week I going to be crunch time. I will have to pack my clothes (that I use for work), shoes, and toiletries.

I also found an extension for Chrome that will allow me to use websites that are for US residents only. YAY!!! It is called ZenMate (if anyone if wondering).

News about my future American co-worker: He is leaving, tomorrow, Sat., Feb. 15 at 6 am!!! So jealous! We also found out that our school will be providing us with cellphones, cookware and a kitchen set (for the apartments they are providing us). We also got the exact location of our school and the building we will be living in. Which I obviously will not put here. ^_^

I feel like I am forgetting something, but I do not know what it is... ugh. I hate that feeling.

Oh wells.


Korean Lesson:

진짜 - Jinjja/Chincha = Really?!

"Can you believe I might be leaving in a week?" "CHINCHA!?"

Busy Week!

Prep to go to Korea to-do list:
Wait for my visa issue number (my vin, yes - I will be a car one day);
Then apply for my visa from the consulate;
Continue packing/sorting my things;
Sort my computer files.


Wow, a lot has happened in the past week!! I barely know where to begin. Let me start with the most exciting part: I got a NEW LAPTOP!!! YAY! My folks got it for me as a very early birthday present; along with a portable external hard drive & a bag. We got it today, and I am writing this post with it right now. ^_^

Sorry, I can't take a picture of my laptop... with my laptop - so maybe another day.

The other things that happened: I got a new phone & left Verizon, finally got my FBI crc and sent my documents to Korea, and went to the Swap Shop (a local flea market) and sold some stuff. Let me give you the details.

・。*。✧・゜゜・。✧。*・゜゜・✧。・゜゜・。*。・゜*・。*。✧・゜゜・。✧。*・゜゜・✧。・゜゜・。*。・゜*・。*。✧・゜゜・。✧。*・゜゜・✧。・゜゜・。

So T-Mobile is having a deal where if you leave your carrier they will pay your early termination fees. Since I wanted to downgrade my service and save my number here in the States, I decided this was meant to be. So I got a nice cheap phone (and even though I last had a phone like this in the early 2000’s, I still had to pay for it! *eyeroll*) and moved my number to my mom’s account, so my number has a caretaker. BUWAHAHAHAHA. You may be asking yourself why I have done all this for a simple cell number - if you are, you do not know that I have had this number since I was in high school! This is the one and ONLY phone number I have had. I will keep it like that. At least here in the States. Also, whenever I come back and want to hangout I can just call from my phone. No awkward messaging on FB.

Hot right??

As for the FBI crc (criminal record check) I was waiting for it to come back from being apostilled. I had already ordered and received the actual FBI crc last year, but I sent it off to be apostilled on Jan 7th. I got it back on the 1st of Feb. Ugh. So I had it, and several other papers FedEx’d to Korea. These papers will go to the office of Adventure Teaching ( my recruiter) in Korea. They will give it to my future school/employer, who will in turn give it to Korean Immigration. They will issue my vin. This number will be emailed to me and I will add it to another set of papers I have to give to the Korean Consulate in Atlanta. And they will issue my visa. This is going to be a tight fit since I only have three weeks until take-off. Immigration is taking 3+ weeks for my future co-teacher. I am really starting to get nervous.

And onto the last thing that happened, the swap. I took a lot of stuff: books (aka my babies and closest friends), my shot glass collection, picture frames, DVDs, CDs, PC games, Mardi Gras beads (yes, I still had them), artwork, an old old old stereo, hats, purses, and some other miscellaneous things. I am surprised to say I sold about 25% of the things I took, including the stereo - which was heavy and took up a lot of room. But, unfortunately, I haven’t sold enough, so we will be going back next weekend. bleh.

Don't my folks look excited?!

So, thats what has happened this past week. How was your week?


Korean Lesson

미안해 - mianhae = (I’m) sorry. “It has actually been over 7 days since my past post. Mianhae”

So it Begins.

Hey there! My name is Lisa and I have decided to stop thinking & dreaming and start acting & doing. And so I will share my life with you!

Especially since all of my family will (hopefully) be curious as to what is happening in my life once I leave the USA.

I have been wanting to Teach English (as a second language) in Korea for about a year and a half. I got my CELTA last July and some experience under my belt so now it is time to see the world, starting with Korea, and share my knowledge.

I have signed the contract with my future school in Seoul. I will be in Gangdong - which is on the south side of the Han River, near Olympic Park.
I am SOOO EXCITED!





Now I just need to get my Visa, pack my bags and get on the plane (which will happen on Feb. 23)!! This means I have to: go to the Korean Consulate in Atlanta (for the Visa), and seriously minimize my life (decide what to keep, toss & donate).

This next month is going to be absolutely crazy, terrifying, and exciting!!


p.s.

And since I need to continue learning Korean, I will have a Korean word/phrase for each post so you can learn with me!! [I am such a teacher/nerd. smh]

대박 - dae bak = cool or awesome. "I am going to Korea!!" "Daebak!"