This is the Beginning of the Rest of Your Life

OVER AND OVER, OVER AND OVER!

Does anyone know that song? It's by RuPaul so probs not. Anyway go give it a listen.

Hey y'all!

Guess where I am right now! I am on a couch in my new apartment in 경주 Gyeongju! Woah! But since it's been a whole week since my last post, I'll get to that in a minute.

1. 서울 Seoul Round Two

Near the end of our orientation, all of the ETA's went to 서울 Seoul for graduation, but we also had an entire day of free time. If we are being perfectly honest, it was not an ideal trip. Like I mentioned two posts ago, I want to keep it real on this blog and not mask my experience here.

Graduation was held at 연세 Yonsei University, which I believe is the oldest university in Seoul. 연세 Yonsei, unlike 중원 Jungwon where we had orientation, is a large, prestigious and beautiful school. We didn't spend much time there, but you could instantly tell the difference in college atmosphere. Our graduation consisted of each class performing different things (my class just made a video), getting our diplomas, and awards being given out. I did not get an award because I looked "bored" in class according to my teacher, but what are you gonna do? After the graduation we had 비빔밥 bibimbap for lunch, a Korean dish consisting of rice and a bunch of mixed vegetables and meat. After that we went to our hotels to check in and commence FREE TIME.

연세 Yonsei 

My amazing roommate Jason (and Mika) MCing our graduation ceremony. Good quality picture too

Mama Shim, the director of Fulbright, doing her thing

The teachers! Mine is holding up the hearts

Another quality shot of my friends, specifically Rachel and Josh

Love taking pictures of people when they don't notice

I capitalized free time, but it wasn't all that spectacular. Mainly because of a lack of organization and planning skill, I ended up being (admittedly too) frustrated throughout the trip. That being said, we had some fun times. Near the end of our trip, my friends Josh, Rachel, Jonathan and I wandered into 남산공원 Namsan Park, which my friends thought was an actual park. Surprise, 남산 Namsan translates to South MOUNTAIN! So we arrived at a mountain. Luckily we found an American woman who has lived in Korea for 7 years, and she gave us some tips for exploring 남산 Namsan. She told us to take the cable car up to the top, so we did and boy did that save some energy.

Me only slightly wanting (and trying) to kill Rachel because I was so frustrated

Covered in locks! All put up by couples... barf

남산타워 Namsan Tower

I had actually been to 남산 Namsan before when I was studying at 서강 Sogang, but I had not managed to go to the top of the tower (서울타워 Seoul Tower that sits at the top of the mountain). Because I complained and my friend Josh is a saint, he accompanied me to the top of the tower (after paying 10 bucks of course). In the top of the tower was an observation deck where you could also conveniently buy souveniers (or candy). The view was pretty amazing, as the tower is the tallest point in 서울 Seoul). It's easy to forget just how big the city is, and it was pretty neat to see the mountains that surround 서울 Seoul.

View from inside the tower

View from inside the tower

(forgot to mention we went to a pool party at the Embassy and had American food so here's that)

Was actually bomb

Miscellaneous picture of an Outback Steakhouse in 서울 Seoul and Rachel looking beautiful as ever

2. End of Orientation

This past week was also our last week of orientation! It was a difficult time for everyone as we were crazy busy with packing but also wanting to say bye to our friends. It's odd how close you can feel to a group after only 6 weeks. Thursday was our last free day, as Friday was packed with checking out and meeting our new co-teachers. Even knowing that I would get up around 7 on Friday, I made the mistake of going out to 노래방 noraebang with some friends the night before. (노래방 noraebang literally translates to "song room", and is a very popular Korean activity in which you rent a small room and sing karaoke to your heart's content). After getting some fried chicken with a smaller group, we planned to go have a chill night at 노래방 noraebang, however we intercepted our much larger Fulbright group and it became a party. We ended up staying there until 2 a.m... big mistake. But it was very fun, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to enjoy some time with friends before we departed.

It's official y'all

King Eugene made the blog. Congrats.
Right before departure ceremony!

3. 경주 Gyeongju

Friday was the big day: Departure Day! We woke up very early to check out of our dorm rooms and get ready.

The main portion of the morning was the departure ceremony, in which they announced where we were teaching (even though we already knew this). The important part is that a representative from each school was at the ceremony to come whisk us away. A lot of representatives got their ETAs flowers, and mine got me a giant basket of flowers! It was actually pretty heavy!

But yes, I got to meet my wonderful co-teacher! Her name is 박효정 Park Hyo-Jung, and she is my Fulbright Co-Teacher. I say that because I also have two additional co-teachers (also women) who I have not yet met. 효정 Hyo-Jung is a very sweet lady who speaks pretty good English, however there were still a few confusing exchanges! After eating lunch with 효정 Hyo-Jung and frantically getting my things and saying bye to everyone, we left for 경주 Gyeongju! It was just 효정 Hyo-Jung and I in the car for over 3 hours!

When we arrived, I was surprised to see how flat 경주 Gyeongju is. I don't mean the landscape (as pretty much all of Korea is mountainous), but rather that there are not many tall building! Of course there are a few, but the vast majority of buildings are one story and/or in a very old-fashioned architecture. It is a beautiful place though, and I have yet to take many pictures!

The first place 효정 Hyo-Jung and I went was to my school, 선덕여자고등학교 Seondeok Girls High School. There I met my principal, which was very nerve-wracking. I can't tell you how many times I bowed! She was very impressed with my Korean though, as the past few ETAs have not spoken any! While at the school, we also stopped by the office I will be working in. Many of the students were still at school and a big group of girls came in and saw me! We actually got to talk for a little bit, and they were all extremely excited to see me! It actually helped me a little to see how excited all the girls are to have another foreign teacher. It makes me less nervous for my first day (which is in two days for the record).

After visiting school, the moment of truth: going to my homestay. 효정 Hyo-Jung and I pulled into a rather nice apartment complex and looked around for my new home. We were greeted by my new parents, which my sister hiding shyly in the back. It didn't take long for her to open right up to me, and she's way more of an extrovert than I am actually! My mom was dressed in a very nice blue dress, and I discovered pretty soon that she doesn't speak much English at all. Let me introduce the family.

My apartment complex from a distance

My building

My room: already dirty

Ramen and Korean babies on TV: the life

김대훈 David Kim is my father, and yes he had the English name before I got here. He is 44 and works at city hall in a department that supports fine arts. He said he would take me to performances! He speaks English very well for being from a smaller city in Korea, and we usually speak to each other in English.

김분순 Kim Boon-Soon is my mother. She hates her name, and we are still deciding what to call her! As I mentioned, she doesn't speak much English, and when she speaks Korean she has a 사투리 saturi (accent/dialect). We haven't communicated much yet, but we still try to talk to each other. Her accent is very difficult to understand, as if Korean isn't difficult enough! She is very kind though and a good cook! She also works at city hall, but in a different department from David.

김민주 Kim Min-Joo is my younger sister. She is a first year high schooler (equivalent of an American sophomore) and is one of my students! She is very outgoing and talks a lot. She had no problem opening up around me, and she didn't even seem uncomfortable for a second!

김민영 Kim Min-Young is my other younger sister. She is a first year middle schooler (equivalent of an American 7th grader) and is pretty funny. She seems a little more tom-boyish in her behavior, but she still loves her a good KPop boy group. In fact, both of the girls like KPop, which has already helped us bond! 민영 Min-Young's English level is rather low, so we have spent today trying to speak to each other in Korean.

Me, 민주 Min-Joo, David, 분수 Boon-Soo, 민영 Min-Young

We went to 삼겹살 Samgyupsal for dinner

분수 Boon-Soo and 민주 Min-Joo at dinner! 민영 Min-Young was still studying

So far my family has been beyond amazing. I know how hard it is for them to accept a foreigner into their house for a year, but they have been very kind and considerate so far.


I'm sure I left out some things, but I think this post is long enough. If you want my address, please ask me now that I know! I didn't want to post it online for obvious reasons.

Thanks for reading!

Annyeong Y'all