Long time, no update!
It’s a Saturday morning, just video-skyped with my folks and I figured I would tackle the task of giving the long-awaited update.
Korea feels like home now….that transition is always amazing to me because I’m never quite sure when or how it happens, but before you know it, it already has. Just walking around my little community during the day I find myself in these moments where I think to myself, “This is MY street. This is my home, etc.” I can’t really describe that feeling, but those of you who have lived abroad for an extended amount of time will certainly know what I’m talking about. It’s a good feeling though.
On the other hand, some days as I’m bussling through the crowded subway stations or streets, towering over a sea of shorter people, all with jet black hair….I think to myself, “Holy crap, I’m in ASIA!!” Those moments are by far the most sureal ones, albeit they are also good. It is rewarding though, to finally have discovered so much of this place that before was always a big mystery to me. The far East…the Orient….Asia. Now that I’m so comfortable here it seems almost silly to think of it as such a great mystery.
Life is good though. Work had me stressed out for the first few months until I finally resigned myself to the fact that I’m not really here to teach English. I’m mainly a status symbol for the parents, and seeing as how I only see my kids once a week….I am supposed to have fun with them and play games, etc. So, my teaching, or “edutaining” as it’s often called in Korea, has reached a very satisfying point now that the pressure is off. I’m enjoying my kids a LOT more now and actually look forward to going to work each day. Here’s a little comic strip one of my classes made (with the help of my macbook):
The boys are just a tad bit obsessed with fighting and killing. All those video games they play I guess. And there is certainly much to do around Korea. I took a trip to a small island with some friends not too long ago, and my summer break is on the 26th. I’ll be going to China for 10 days!! My co-worker Ben and I are visiting Beijing and Shanghai and we could not be more excited! It’s fascinating to me to discover the differences between the Asian cultures, and how different they actually are. It will be cool to be there so close to the Olympic games also….I’ve read that Chinese university students are hanging around the McDonald’s in Beijing just waiting for a foreigner to come in so they can practice their English, haha.
Some people have asked me about what it’s like to live as a foreigner here….and I have to say it’s not as difficult as I imagined it to be. Not sure what it is I imagined exactly, people running up to me as though I were an alien from another planet? Perhaps. Nowadays in Korea a foreigner doesn’t draw THAT much attention, although I can assure you I don’t go anywhere unnoticed. Occassionally I will hear someone shout “Wae-gookin!!” (foreigner), but it’s mostly younger people or kids.
My favorite instances of “foreigner shock” are with really little kids on the subway. The family gets on the subway, and the only empty seat is the one next to me. Now, in Korea people will let really young chidren take the seat….so naturally the parents start directing the child over towards me and that empty seat. At this point the kid hasn’t seen me yet. Finally, the moment is about to come….so I get a big smile on my face and try to look as disarming as I possibly can. “Sit down in that seat” the parent says (in Korean) while pointing next to me. The child whips around happily, ready to hop into the seat and then upon seeing me…..BAAAM. Frozen. Eye contact. Jaw drop. Can’t move.
It almost never fails, hehe.
Well anyway, I will write more later about my trip to the DMZ and other things you’ve missed out on and so desperately want to know about my fascinating life here. In the meantime I will leave you with a few more pictures.
