1) Now I am here

I have officially been in South Korea for one week now. Sometimes it seems like a lot longer, but other times it seems like I just got here yesterday. Either way, it has been very overwhelming, but so far I love it. I have been spending most of my time at school so far. At first (and still to a large extent) it is very overwhelming at work. It is hard trying to figure out the system, and I have several different grade levels to teach. What makes it all worth it is the kids- I really love working with them. Many of the kids that I do not have in class freak out when they see me in the hall, and others are just very curious. It is interesting to see how these kids act compared to the children in the U.S. For the most part it seems to me that these kids want to learn, and they don’t try to deceive the teacher. From experience as a former child in the U.S. I can say we really tried to get away with things like not doing homework, or not having to take a test, or not getting homework. But here I can ask the kids if they have a test, or have homework, and they tell me honestly.
Even with the overload in work, I still have really been enjoying my time here so far. The people and city are very interesting to me, and so far I like them both a lot. The owner of the school, and the lady just under him have been great to me. They take me out to dinner, and help me with whatever I need, including money. And that is one big problem so far, if you come to Korea to teach for a year, don’t expect that your credit card will work here, because chances are it will not. So, I have been living cheaply, and will probably have to continue to for about a month. But that is not something that is hard for someone just out of college.
Now, for those of you who know me, you know that I am not a drinker, but that was not the case last night. Michael, Dan, (the two other white teachers at my school) and I went to sit outside Family Mart last night, to have some beers (for them) and watch some people (particularly the drunks). Right when were about to sit down a man (named Jimmy) got my attention and informed me that he spoke English, which probably meant that he wanted to practice it on us. So he sat with us and we where talking, and he was a really cool guy. I was drinking Soju, which seemed like something I had to try because it seems like everyone drinks this stuff. It costs 1,0000 won (which is a dollar) per bottle, and is about the equivalent to vodka, but doesn’t taste as bad to me. After a while Jimmy invited us to a bar, and said he would pay, and after some persuasion he got us there. It was really nice, beautiful flooring and walls, and just a very nice place with live music. Next thing I know he is ordering us tequila shots, and then a whole bottle. It didn’t take long for me to get bombed, and Jimmy kept screaming “FUCK!” when something would upset him- it was pretty hilarious, and no one in the bar seemed to care at all (although not many people were there). Before I knew it the bottle of tequila was empty, and eventually I just got up and left for some reason, and thankfully Dan caught me and walked me home. We don’t really know if Michael is still alive, as neither Dan or I have checked on him yet. The other weird thing was Jimmy kept on asking Dan if he wanted to fight him, but he was really polite about it. I thought it was hilarious.
Another cool thing in Korea that I was told about before I came is the bathhouses. They are basically big spa type buildings that have a couple different types of hot tubs, and some saunas, and the one I went to had a massage area, and a shaving area, and also a fitness area. They are really nice, and it seems like usually below ground, and you have to go completely nude, which is a little bit weird, but also pretty nice. It was really relaxing, and a good evening, it is nice that they are open 24 hours.


This is a picture of Suji, taken from a mountain about 10 minutes walk from my appartment.


Here's one of the main street in Suji. My school is about a 1 minute walk from here (and as you can see KFC's are everywhere).