Day 1: The kids are coming up to Max and rubbing their faces on his arm hair…off to a good start. It has been a crazy week so far and we have finally had a minute to calm down and take a look at our new life in Korea. This week was a blur as we were swept off the plane in Seoul and arrived 40 minutes later in a city called Migeum. We found out we would be staying at King Hotel, which happened to be a quasi acceptable hotel, complete with silk robes and sans a shower curtain. We did not venture to wear the silk robes, but we managed to flood the bathroom several times, finding out later that a lack of shower curtain was normal. Of course, I used the biggest towel to clean the floor.
We were picked up by a man named Kevin who works for the school and throughout the week he chauffeured us to all of our errands in his spotless Kia. Without fail and from what we could tell, slow, sappy Korean love songs and the occasional slow jam from the United States always welcomed us into Kevin’s car. He has been an incredible person to know so far in Korea; however, to our horror, he told us we could not eat the rest of the night or the morning because we had to get our health checks the following day. I wanted to die as I had not eaten for at least 2.4 hours on the plane and didn’t know how I was ever going to make it through the night without food. I don’t really know what else happened after that as my blood sugar was so low, but Max assured me I was going to pull through. We were so exhausted and not functioning on any level. We looked forward to a long night of rest...false.
Having slept 3 hours the entire night, we woke up feeling like winners. Throughout the coming week, we would sleep a total of 6 more hours. It was like the week of the living dead. We continue to have giant bags under our eyes and we haven’t stopped sweating since we arrived. I am sure people feel sorry for us, because we have not made a graceful transition. The next morning we arrived at our school, KCTY, not the hospital like we were told. After introductions to all the teachers, we were told who we would be shadowing. I almost fell over…no dinner, no breakfast, and 4.5 hours until lunch!!! I tried to rally, but after Max would tell me that he could tell I was outraged at the fact of skipping a meal. Anyway, Kevin bought us breakfast at a sandwich shop downstairs called San Presso. Good old turkey sandwiches and Americanos. Feeling revived we spent the next 10 hours shadowing the people we were replacing and learning the protocol of the school. We have both blacked out 86% of what happened last week, but the generosity and thoughtfulness of Mark and Michelle (the couple we were replacing), as well as the outpour of support from all the other teachers have been absolutely amazing. We have huge shoes to fill. Also, during the day we found out we would be living in the hotel until our apartment was ready Friday. This so called “love hotel”, described by the other teachers who had all stayed there for at least a night or two, was aptly named probably for the flickering blue and red lights, the silk Hugh Hefner robes, and the gold comforter in the room. During the week, we did make friends with the front desk man. He worked the night shift and was there every morning while we waited for Kevin in the lobby. In decent English he managed to tell us that he was stupid, because he and his girlfriend just broke up, he has insomnia, and he doesn’t sleep much, but sometimes he naps in one of the free rooms during his shift. We asked what his favorite food was and where he liked to eat and he said, “steak at T.G.I.F”. We will miss him, but if we are ever in Miguem, we know we have a friend at the King Hotel.
Friday we had our first real day of teaching without the support and constant attention and encouragement from Mark and Michelle, again amazing people, and we moved into our much anticipated apartment. Totally refreshing- the apartment is spacious and has a view of downtown Suyon, a city about 15 minutes from Migeum. We love where we live, we love that there is a washing machine in our kitchen, and we love how we have a convenience store right at the bottom of our building. Cheers.
Even though Kirsten has tried pork (a smidgeon of a piece that could have been lost in her bowl of rice), our most difficult task of the week has been finding food that suits Kirsten’s eating preferences. Tonight (Sunday), we got Korean ramen noodles from the convenience store downstairs and Kirsten bought another can of Pringles.
The population density in South Korea is unbelievable. Everyone lives in high-rise apartment buildings, all of which look like they were created by an architect in Inception, and businesses are stacked on top of one another for several stories. Although it is quite a sight to see, and this experience will be amazing, I have already decided that I will never again live in an area so flooded with people that they have to build up instead of out.
Our apartment overlooks the city, and right now as I look out of our window, I count seven neon crosses that dwarf the surrounding signs. Christianity is very popular here, and apparently so are the Jehovah’s Witnesses. We were approached by two different Korean couples yesterday on our walk, and apparently the only people who know English, or who are interested in speaking to an English speaking couple, are pushers of The Watchtower magazine. According to these friendly people, there is a meaning to our lives we haven’t yet considered.
The babies and the old men walk in the exact same manner, but they do so for different reasons. The babies stumble around because they have big heads and lack coordination. The old men constantly lose and regain their balance because they drink Soju by the gallon. One night, after walking out of a bar with cashmere walls that was charging ten thousand won (10 dollars) for a pabst equivalent, we found ourselves in a fried chicken and beer restaurant right across the street from our hotel. There were three different men belligerently drunk in the table next to us (I will try to get Kirsten to upload the picture). After one accidentally shuffled into the women’s restroom, and then mistakenly right past his friends on his way back, one of the restaurant employees graciously walked him back to his table. In the states, he would have been kicked out of the restaurant. The next night in the subway station, a man fell off of his seat and on to his face. After several people ran over to him and he remained motionless for a few moments, he rose to his feet and tried to play it off like nothing happened. We have been told that Koreans love to drink with Americans and they will ask you how many bottles of Soju you can drink in a sitting. Soju is a drink that is very inexpensive and tastes just like vodka. From what I gather, it is the Mad Dog 20/20 of the Korean world.
Everyone seems to be very friendly and our co-teachers rave about their experience here. The kids are adorable and their laugh is contagious. Even with the long hours and stresses of teaching, I am thinking that a positive attitude and the kids will get us through. We miss you and love you.
Peace and lovies,
Max and Kirsten
