To borrow from my fellow teacher's clever wordsmithing, my SIDs seems to be close (thanks, Katrina... I'm both in awe and a little jealous at your cleverness.) But I digress.
Yesterday (Monday, 3/29), I was admitted to the hospital. Finally. This was, of course, after a full 72-hour Friday - Monday morning full on don't move-from-the-bed-not-so-comfortable-sleep-a-thon. While I thought this rest was sure to be a cure all, by the time I made the trek to work (a mere 10 minutes on a regular day; 25 for this wheezing girl!), I collapsed into a chair in exhaustion and no breath. It was pretty obvious teaching was out of the question. So, a school representative drove me home after I laughed at my manager's suggestion that I hoof it back home. Seriously? Was he blind?
My fellow teacher, Katrina, had also fallen ill over the weekend, but was up for teaching so the plan was to head to the doc's after school. And off we went.
Despite my insistance that I had pneumonia, my doctor was quite sure I didn't. Fair enough, but he did think my symptoms (ZERO energy, no breath) were serious enough to be admitted to the hospital for five days. My room wouldn't be ready for the next few hours, so after another chest xray, urine test and bloodwork, I went home to gather some necessities and returned at 7:30 p.m.
In Korea, there are three types of patient rooms:
1. Six-bed rooms. WTF? It's not a freakin' hostel! It is the cheapest option, but uhh, no thanks. Call me a snob, pretentious, whatever. Not going to do it.
2. Shared room. Ok, so this is fairly common. But I still wanted my own room.
3. The coveted private room. The most expensive, yes, but I was willing to splurge. Unfortunately, they didn't have any available so shared it was. Thankfully, my roommate didn't join me until this afternoon, so I had the room to myself last night. My roomie is pretty cool. She's quiet. I help her turn on and off the TV and shut the door to our room when nurses don't shut it. I shared an orange with her. It's all good.
For the first time in more than two weeks, I've felt a semblance of energy. I'd almost forgotten what it was like to feel alive. It's been a strict night-of-the-walking-dead existence for so long. It went from "go,go,go, can't catch time" to "BAM. you're done. fallen. give up now. Resistance is futile." That's what Suzi's Illness of Death will do to you! Ahh, yes, which leads me to...
This morning. After a visit from my vice principal, who came bearing gifts of milk and cocoa, the doctor came in and lo and behold, can you guess what he had to share? Ahhh yes, he had examined my chest xray and *surprise* -- I have freakin' pneumonia! He's a good guy, speaks good medical English and I'm not doubting his doctor abilities... I'm just sayin' is all!
Speaking of the non-English speaking staff... boy, I'll tell ya.. it's a whole new "lost in translation" effect. my pocket translator doesn't do much help and I'm pretty sure they pull straws for who has to come in and deal with me (nah, not really), but it's pretty amusing they think I'll understand what they say. The cool thing is they're not jerks and aren't condescending or anything. And they don't seem to be too frustrated. Can't complain.
Anyway, I'm just excited to finally be correctly diagnosed and getting the right treatment. It's obviously working since I've stayed awake all day. listened to music, read and written emails, blogged, socialized... oh it's so exciting! I see the light ya'll! And not the light I saw the other night when Carol Ann was beckoning me over to the other side.
A few coworkers stopped by after school. They're also not feeling up to par... we're all just a bunch of crazy, sick English teachers! What the hell? Is there something in the water??? I was pretty upset to miss a big meetup of foreign English teachers in the area last night, but know that we'll meet up again.
Meanwhile, the WiFi is pretty weak at the hospital but I'm happy to get it when I can.
So I found this quote and thought it pretty fitting:
"The most important thing in illness is never to lose heart." -- Nicolai Lenin
It's been rough, but I think I'm starting to find my heart again. Nothing like some good meds to help along with that! ;)
Until next time, I'm wishing you all MUCH health!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
A sickly report
Where do I even start? I'm not even sure when last I wrote. I'd love to say I've been so caught up in the beauties of my new life that time has gotten away from me, but alas, that would not be true. It is true enough, though, that time has gotten away from me... in doubled-over, lung-hacking, phelgm-producing hazy days! Ahh, yes. To be sick in a foreign country... there's nothing quite like it.
What started as a sore throat quickly morphed into a fierce case of laryngitis, which, of course, coincided with the beginning of teaching two hour time blocks of an afterschool program that had little direction and tons of hyperactive kids! And then... the sinuses/nasal congestion started... and then the cough... and then *hope* I regained my voice! Ahh, but wait... false hope -- my cough deepened. Although my initial chest x-ray showed no signs of pneumonia, the fact that I've made two trips to the doctor's in the past two days for a cortisteroid IV injection to open my airways makes me doubt the prognosis.
So here I am. I'm finally strong enough to string together a few words, but am so irritated (I think it's the steroids!) that I can't seem to really express what I want to say. I feel clumsy and useless.
A bit of background, though. On my first trip (of four) to the doctor's, I had a chest xray and was prescribed three days worth of pills... about 13 pills per day. What those pills were supposed to do is beyond me, but they didn't work. The upside? Doc's visit + xray + 40 some odd pills = less than $20.
Three days later (doc's only prescribe meds for three days at a time), I still felt shitty, so I returned. More pills, but a different set. Again... about 13/day. And again, pretty useless.
Four days later, couldn't breathe. Felt like crawling out my skin. Doc ordered steroid IV to open my airways... finally-relief! (After, of course, one of the nurses blew out one of my veins-ouch!)
And today. Had to return for another IV... doesn't seem to be helping as much, but at least I'm not continually dislodging my lungs from their permanent positions.
Oh, but my original point: I think all of this has cost me less than a hundred bucks. So, while the meds are questionably effective, at least they're cheap!
I know this post must sound pathetic and whiny, but I'm sick and need an outlet. Today was such a rough day. I dealt with hellions all day. Well, not all day. Some of the students kicked ass, but when one boy threatened to beat a girl over the head with a chair because she stole his stickers, I'd about reached the end of my rope.
For a minute, I almost closed my eyes and clicked my heels three times. But then I realized -- I'm already home.
And so, in efforts to lift my spirits, I'm going to get lost in music... maybe a little Mamma Mia will do the trick. :)
What started as a sore throat quickly morphed into a fierce case of laryngitis, which, of course, coincided with the beginning of teaching two hour time blocks of an afterschool program that had little direction and tons of hyperactive kids! And then... the sinuses/nasal congestion started... and then the cough... and then *hope* I regained my voice! Ahh, but wait... false hope -- my cough deepened. Although my initial chest x-ray showed no signs of pneumonia, the fact that I've made two trips to the doctor's in the past two days for a cortisteroid IV injection to open my airways makes me doubt the prognosis.
So here I am. I'm finally strong enough to string together a few words, but am so irritated (I think it's the steroids!) that I can't seem to really express what I want to say. I feel clumsy and useless.
A bit of background, though. On my first trip (of four) to the doctor's, I had a chest xray and was prescribed three days worth of pills... about 13 pills per day. What those pills were supposed to do is beyond me, but they didn't work. The upside? Doc's visit + xray + 40 some odd pills = less than $20.
Three days later (doc's only prescribe meds for three days at a time), I still felt shitty, so I returned. More pills, but a different set. Again... about 13/day. And again, pretty useless.
Four days later, couldn't breathe. Felt like crawling out my skin. Doc ordered steroid IV to open my airways... finally-relief! (After, of course, one of the nurses blew out one of my veins-ouch!)
And today. Had to return for another IV... doesn't seem to be helping as much, but at least I'm not continually dislodging my lungs from their permanent positions.
Oh, but my original point: I think all of this has cost me less than a hundred bucks. So, while the meds are questionably effective, at least they're cheap!
I know this post must sound pathetic and whiny, but I'm sick and need an outlet. Today was such a rough day. I dealt with hellions all day. Well, not all day. Some of the students kicked ass, but when one boy threatened to beat a girl over the head with a chair because she stole his stickers, I'd about reached the end of my rope.
For a minute, I almost closed my eyes and clicked my heels three times. But then I realized -- I'm already home.
And so, in efforts to lift my spirits, I'm going to get lost in music... maybe a little Mamma Mia will do the trick. :)
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
You win some. you lose some
It was only appropriate that when I turned on my iPod to escape the afternoon's events, Robbie William's rendition of "You win some, You lose some" blared in my ears. Fitting enough, for sure, and it certainly helped me put today in perspective. After all, life in Korea (or anywhere) can't really be all peaches and roses, can it?
I find it amazing how humbling teaching first, second, and third graders can be. Humbling in the sense that it can bring you to your knees in the realization that you have absolutely no clue how to control the little ankle biters and that the degree you earned offers no support in the classroom. I'll be the first to admit: I don't know kids. I don't have them; I'm usually not around them; and quite frankly, they scare me a little. Having said that, I really was (and still am) excited at the challenge of teaching them. And up until today, it's been good. Sure, I have some classroom management issues and I'm not the most creative creature in the forest, but with the help of my awesome coworkers, it's been all good.
Ahhh, but today. As part of our schedules, the English teachers are required to teach four hours (two hour blocks twice a week) of an afterschool program. Topics were chosen a bit haphazardly and I selected creative writing, with the understanding that I would teach students in third, fourth, fifth, and maybe sixth grades, with perhaps a higher command of the English language. Oh, to have that understanding again. In reality, it turned out to be 18 first and second graders with a wide range of English-speaking abilities.
Have you ever spent 100 minutes with 18 six- and seven- year olds?
Aya -- so to wrap this up as it is quite late, my head teacher "assisted" me today (second time meeting these kids).. I say, "assisted" because in reality, he led the class. Thankfully so. There are a couple of things with this that I initially listed, but deleted here because I'm not quite so sure I want to share all that information with the world :) Anyway, the primary note to self is this:
I don't like feeling like I'm not in control... whether be it in a class, in a personal situation, or what have you. I should have full command (well, maybe not FULL command). And when there's someone else in the room, albeit to help ME!, I wither into a wilted rose plant seemingly unworthy of water. Ok, so *maybe* that's slightly melodramatic, but I'm supposed to be into creative writing, n'est pas? Don't misintrepret me; I'm really not a Type-A control freak, but when everything seems to be spinning OUT of control, all you can do is hold on to a shred of controllness and work it as best you can!
I don't even know if this makes sense.
*end senseless rant*
Post-script: My afterschool class has officially been "reworded" or changed? to Translation. I'll spare you the details, but the main message is that the 18 kids will be split into two groups (WHEW).
I find it amazing how humbling teaching first, second, and third graders can be. Humbling in the sense that it can bring you to your knees in the realization that you have absolutely no clue how to control the little ankle biters and that the degree you earned offers no support in the classroom. I'll be the first to admit: I don't know kids. I don't have them; I'm usually not around them; and quite frankly, they scare me a little. Having said that, I really was (and still am) excited at the challenge of teaching them. And up until today, it's been good. Sure, I have some classroom management issues and I'm not the most creative creature in the forest, but with the help of my awesome coworkers, it's been all good.
Ahhh, but today. As part of our schedules, the English teachers are required to teach four hours (two hour blocks twice a week) of an afterschool program. Topics were chosen a bit haphazardly and I selected creative writing, with the understanding that I would teach students in third, fourth, fifth, and maybe sixth grades, with perhaps a higher command of the English language. Oh, to have that understanding again. In reality, it turned out to be 18 first and second graders with a wide range of English-speaking abilities.
Have you ever spent 100 minutes with 18 six- and seven- year olds?
Aya -- so to wrap this up as it is quite late, my head teacher "assisted" me today (second time meeting these kids).. I say, "assisted" because in reality, he led the class. Thankfully so. There are a couple of things with this that I initially listed, but deleted here because I'm not quite so sure I want to share all that information with the world :) Anyway, the primary note to self is this:
I don't like feeling like I'm not in control... whether be it in a class, in a personal situation, or what have you. I should have full command (well, maybe not FULL command). And when there's someone else in the room, albeit to help ME!, I wither into a wilted rose plant seemingly unworthy of water. Ok, so *maybe* that's slightly melodramatic, but I'm supposed to be into creative writing, n'est pas? Don't misintrepret me; I'm really not a Type-A control freak, but when everything seems to be spinning OUT of control, all you can do is hold on to a shred of controllness and work it as best you can!
I don't even know if this makes sense.
*end senseless rant*
Post-script: My afterschool class has officially been "reworded" or changed? to Translation. I'll spare you the details, but the main message is that the 18 kids will be split into two groups (WHEW).
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Link to photos
In my previous post, I figured out how to include a few photos. However, it's a pain in the arse, and now it's late, and I know many of you want to see pictures. So, in the interest of time and convenience, here is a link to some photos I've posted on Facebook. Not to worry, you do not need a Facebook account to view these photos. In the future, I'll work in more photos to the blog, but for now, this will suffice :)
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=208467&id=612675882&1=6814ea8a86
Cheers,
Suz
Link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=208467&id=612675882&1=6814ea8a86
Cheers,
Suz
Two weeks: a brief reflection
Two weeks in and I'm loving life here. I've met some really awesome people, I love my coworkers, my apartment kicks ass, and I'm on other other side of the freakin' world! When I left for Korea, I tried to limit my expectations, taking more of a "hope for the best, expect the worse" stance (if you do some research on teaching ESL in Korea, you'll know why I held that stance!) But, by leaps and bounds, my experience thus far has far exceeded any expectations.
The transition to life here has been relatively seamless. Sure, I wish I knew how to say more than "annyeong haseyo" (hello) and "kamsa hamnida" (thank you), but once I'm able to establish more of a routine, I know I'll buckle down and learn hangeul (Korean alphabet)... and following that, I'll take classes, for sure. I can't stand not being functionally literate. All the same, though, I haven't been distraught over my lack of language ability. I feel like I need to give myself some slack and I realize that it will come with time. Yes, the town in which I'm residing is small, but I think I might actually prefer that to big-city life (time will tell, eh?) Admittingly, I would prefer that the E-mart (equivalent to a super WalMart on steorids) was not a 20 minute bus ride away, but hey- you deal with what you've got. Meanwhile, with big-city Seoul only about 45 minutes away, it's an easy commute to escape this "country" life.
It's a bit strange... living this life is so natural for me (not the aforementioned "country" life... just life in Korea in general!). I feel like I'm "home" and that the year will only get better.*
*Disclaimer: This does not, by any stretch of the imagination, mean that I will not experience intense periods of frustration -- either with work or life (so don't be surprised to see those blog posts!). However, as a whole, I'm so content and have absolutely no doubts that this is exactly where the universe intends for me to be.
It's a great feeling.
The transition to life here has been relatively seamless. Sure, I wish I knew how to say more than "annyeong haseyo" (hello) and "kamsa hamnida" (thank you), but once I'm able to establish more of a routine, I know I'll buckle down and learn hangeul (Korean alphabet)... and following that, I'll take classes, for sure. I can't stand not being functionally literate. All the same, though, I haven't been distraught over my lack of language ability. I feel like I need to give myself some slack and I realize that it will come with time. Yes, the town in which I'm residing is small, but I think I might actually prefer that to big-city life (time will tell, eh?) Admittingly, I would prefer that the E-mart (equivalent to a super WalMart on steorids) was not a 20 minute bus ride away, but hey- you deal with what you've got. Meanwhile, with big-city Seoul only about 45 minutes away, it's an easy commute to escape this "country" life.
It's a bit strange... living this life is so natural for me (not the aforementioned "country" life... just life in Korea in general!). I feel like I'm "home" and that the year will only get better.*
*Disclaimer: This does not, by any stretch of the imagination, mean that I will not experience intense periods of frustration -- either with work or life (so don't be surprised to see those blog posts!). However, as a whole, I'm so content and have absolutely no doubts that this is exactly where the universe intends for me to be.
It's a great feeling.
Welcome Back: not your average kick-off to a new school year
Last Wednesday, my school held its annual "Welcome Ceremony" for incoming first-graders (so cute!). I'm not sure "Welcome Ceremony" is the title meant for what happened later that afternoon, but for our purposes, let's just assume it is.
With the chairman of the school board in tow, the principal, vice principal, and faculty and staff gathered together for a "kick-off" dinner. (FYI: March is the start of the Korean school year.) Sitting down for a Korean-style dinner (everything in this town is Korean-style, but in this particular instance, no table and chairs were provided... we sat on the ondol-heated floors), the teachers appeared to be segregated by age (younger; older) and then "us" (the English teachers). As most of you know, I absolutely love forced social interactions ;) -- but seriously, this was awesome. I had a great time, even with the chairman and principal sitting diagonally from me.
After the meal and several soju shots (have I mentioned this? Soju is rice wine that is more on par with vodka than "wine". It's extremely important in Korean culture and you will often be asked how many bottles you can drink), everyone got up and mingled and all was good. It was definitely interesting to see the chairman and principal and... well, everyone else, getting their drink on. While that may be more common in corporate America, I can't say that I know of any teachers in the States that drink it up with their superindendents/principals/presidents, etc. I took careful notes, though, of the night's events in the event SSC wants to beef up their own annual "Welcome Back" event. I think they could learn a thing or two!!! (SSCer's: Do you think E. Ann would be receptive to adding soju to the ceremony?? Heehee.)
Below: This is my school's principal. Note the empty shot glass in his hand. Someone should have refilled it ASAP. In Korea, when someone finishes a drink (especially your boss!), it is considered rude not to refill it. (Note to self: do not always finish soju shots!)
Two and half hours later, I thought, surely, this evening is coming to a close. Ha! Not even close. We (as in Korean and Western teachers + administration) walked over to the noraembang (karoke rooms) where the evening continued.
Below: I was coerced into this. I thought it only appropriate to belt out Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer." What else would I be doing living in Korea???
Below: Katrina believes in life after love.
And our principal (far right) loves busting a move to "La Bamba"! (PS: On the far left is the manager of my school's English department; peering on in the middle back is the chairman of the school board.)
Ahhh, what a night. Best Welcome Back event I've ever attended!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Agendas: friend or foe?
In the days leading up to the Westerners' first day of teaching, the English department had a few "meetings." Given the outcome (and I use the term "outcome" very loosely), I am now a die-hard supporter of agendas. Of course, creating agendas for meetings has been drilled into my work life for the better part of a decade. Agendas provide a map, and perhaps, can even serve as an accountability measure (for example, if you don't cover what you said you were going to cover in a meeting, then what the hell was the meeting about and why did you have it?!). Above all, though, agendas provide organization and with some insight, a rough timeline for the meeting in which you're about to endure.
So, why, you may wonder, the sudden interest in agendas? Well, if you're of the school of thought that agendas place everyone on the same page for a particular meeting and that they tend to serve as a loose communciation or information vehicle, then just imagine what NOT having an agenda might be like in a meeting where two languages are spoken (and you don't speak the second language).
Ok -- by now, I'm assuming you've picked up that I was in meeting where an agenda was not present. Fair enough. I've held my share of meetings with forgotten agendas (but always with personal notes to make sure I stayed on point!). Alas, in this particular meeting, I don't think anyone knew the purpose. And so we spent an ungodly amount of time talking about which order the English teachers should complete weekly plans and daily lesson plans (keep in mind we were scheduled to teach the following day and had already completed this week's "weekly plan"). The debate was on whether to (1) Plan for the next day's teaching lessons, or (2) Plan for the following week's lessons. Between you and me, I personally felt that MAYBE planning for the first day of classes was *slightly* more important than worrying about what we would teach the following week. But hey, I'm just an English teacher. What do I know???
Oh, blast those weekly and daily plans!
I'm not entirely sure what happened, but the meeting quickly turned into the vice principal dominating the conversation. She doesn't speak English, so for 20 minutes, the Koreans talked amongst themselves while the department manager gazed in the distance with a look of sheer "I'm getting my ass kicked" bushwacked look. Although I didn't know what the VP was saying, I had only assumed the topic had been changed. What I did think was that everything sounded more important in Korean. But it probably isn't. Turns out, I was right. After 20 minutes, English was spoken again and we were STILL talking about weekly vs. daily plans. AYA!
*End rant on agendas and weekly/daily plans*
So, why, you may wonder, the sudden interest in agendas? Well, if you're of the school of thought that agendas place everyone on the same page for a particular meeting and that they tend to serve as a loose communciation or information vehicle, then just imagine what NOT having an agenda might be like in a meeting where two languages are spoken (and you don't speak the second language).
Ok -- by now, I'm assuming you've picked up that I was in meeting where an agenda was not present. Fair enough. I've held my share of meetings with forgotten agendas (but always with personal notes to make sure I stayed on point!). Alas, in this particular meeting, I don't think anyone knew the purpose. And so we spent an ungodly amount of time talking about which order the English teachers should complete weekly plans and daily lesson plans (keep in mind we were scheduled to teach the following day and had already completed this week's "weekly plan"). The debate was on whether to (1) Plan for the next day's teaching lessons, or (2) Plan for the following week's lessons. Between you and me, I personally felt that MAYBE planning for the first day of classes was *slightly* more important than worrying about what we would teach the following week. But hey, I'm just an English teacher. What do I know???
Oh, blast those weekly and daily plans!
I'm not entirely sure what happened, but the meeting quickly turned into the vice principal dominating the conversation. She doesn't speak English, so for 20 minutes, the Koreans talked amongst themselves while the department manager gazed in the distance with a look of sheer "I'm getting my ass kicked" bushwacked look. Although I didn't know what the VP was saying, I had only assumed the topic had been changed. What I did think was that everything sounded more important in Korean. But it probably isn't. Turns out, I was right. After 20 minutes, English was spoken again and we were STILL talking about weekly vs. daily plans. AYA!
*End rant on agendas and weekly/daily plans*
Monday, March 1, 2010
Yada, yada, yada meets blah, blah, blah
Captain's log: Day 10
As it's very late and school starts tomorrow, I've written a few snippets of the past week's events so as not to fall so far behind and forget what's been going on! Everything is fluid and plans change frequently, so remaining flexible is key to not freaking out (so far, so good... who knew flexibility and patience really are key attributes!)
Orientation: Tuesday, February 23 marked my first official day at my school. The Western teachers were introduced to the Korean teachers in what proved to be a delightfully short first meeting with the principal. Our principal, who we had met the day before, is a man of few words. His welcoming message to the English teachers: "Welcome. Do a good job. Goodbye." Fair enough. Message received!
And so, after meeting our Korean counterparts, we retreated to a second floor classroom and began a week of questionable productivity. Presentations on Korea's history (I'm not quite sure a qualified fact-checker was employed in reviewing the facts, though; apparently, a few key facts were omitted!), classroom management and other key information were provided. We brainstormed names for each "level" of English proficiency (jungle animals for lower grades; elements for higher grades), crafted snappy slogans to be posted in our classrooms, selected our teaching dens, and later in the week, cut rainbow triangles and fastened them to ribbon to make flags for decor! (Given my distinct lack of arts&crafts skills, this was, by far, my least favorite activity and, in what may be a surprise to you, instilled a level of anxiety I had yet to experience since arriving in Korea!)
Korean food: Eating in Korea is a communal event. All the dishes are shared, and each meal comes with several side dishes. Again with the pictures -- I have them, but have yet to sort out how to post them here. Give me time. Speaking of time, it's only taken 10 days to progress from being a chopsticks-fumbling fool to below-basic, but still functioning, *master* of chopsticks!
Seoul: Venturing into the big city took an hour by bus to reach the nearest subway station (but only 30 minutes on return ride home... traffic woes) and then another hour to reach Itaewon. Itaweon is the area where Westerners are known to congregate. Personally, I found the place relatively unimpressive, but I do imagine it will be comforting to visit a Subway after a few months in good ol' Maseok. I'm interested in seeing some other areas of Seoul, but I've always held a pretty consistent view of big cities: A big city is a big city. You can be anywhere in the world and see the same thing. What's the draw?
Maseok (Namyangju): While Seoul is a sprawling metropolis, Maseok can be covered by foot in about 20 minutes.. It's much smaller than I had anticipated, but I can't complain. I live right off the main street, so I hear the cars whizzing by, but thankfully, the noise doesn't bother me. It's soothing, actually. The next town over (20 minutes by car) has an EMart, which is like a steroid-enhanced Walmart.
Health check: Briefly... we've all peed in cups, right? Agreed, I'm sure, BUT can you say you've ever peed in a paper Dixie cup and handed it over to a non-gloved nurse? Oh yeah, baby. That's top notch sanitary.
Soju = whhaaa TF? (more later)
And the winning phrase for the week? Blah, Blah, Blah... similar to Seinfeld's clever yada, yada, yada to gloss over details, Korea's blah, blah, blah, might be more for glossing over words not known in English, but still maintains the integrity of yada, yada, yada. Our trusty Korean boss employs this phrase in almost every conversation.
And ... blah, blah, blah. Now I'm a millionaire.
Onward and upward,
Suzi
As it's very late and school starts tomorrow, I've written a few snippets of the past week's events so as not to fall so far behind and forget what's been going on! Everything is fluid and plans change frequently, so remaining flexible is key to not freaking out (so far, so good... who knew flexibility and patience really are key attributes!)
Orientation: Tuesday, February 23 marked my first official day at my school. The Western teachers were introduced to the Korean teachers in what proved to be a delightfully short first meeting with the principal. Our principal, who we had met the day before, is a man of few words. His welcoming message to the English teachers: "Welcome. Do a good job. Goodbye." Fair enough. Message received!
And so, after meeting our Korean counterparts, we retreated to a second floor classroom and began a week of questionable productivity. Presentations on Korea's history (I'm not quite sure a qualified fact-checker was employed in reviewing the facts, though; apparently, a few key facts were omitted!), classroom management and other key information were provided. We brainstormed names for each "level" of English proficiency (jungle animals for lower grades; elements for higher grades), crafted snappy slogans to be posted in our classrooms, selected our teaching dens, and later in the week, cut rainbow triangles and fastened them to ribbon to make flags for decor! (Given my distinct lack of arts&crafts skills, this was, by far, my least favorite activity and, in what may be a surprise to you, instilled a level of anxiety I had yet to experience since arriving in Korea!)
Korean food: Eating in Korea is a communal event. All the dishes are shared, and each meal comes with several side dishes. Again with the pictures -- I have them, but have yet to sort out how to post them here. Give me time. Speaking of time, it's only taken 10 days to progress from being a chopsticks-fumbling fool to below-basic, but still functioning, *master* of chopsticks!
Seoul: Venturing into the big city took an hour by bus to reach the nearest subway station (but only 30 minutes on return ride home... traffic woes) and then another hour to reach Itaewon. Itaweon is the area where Westerners are known to congregate. Personally, I found the place relatively unimpressive, but I do imagine it will be comforting to visit a Subway after a few months in good ol' Maseok. I'm interested in seeing some other areas of Seoul, but I've always held a pretty consistent view of big cities: A big city is a big city. You can be anywhere in the world and see the same thing. What's the draw?
Maseok (Namyangju): While Seoul is a sprawling metropolis, Maseok can be covered by foot in about 20 minutes.. It's much smaller than I had anticipated, but I can't complain. I live right off the main street, so I hear the cars whizzing by, but thankfully, the noise doesn't bother me. It's soothing, actually. The next town over (20 minutes by car) has an EMart, which is like a steroid-enhanced Walmart.
Health check: Briefly... we've all peed in cups, right? Agreed, I'm sure, BUT can you say you've ever peed in a paper Dixie cup and handed it over to a non-gloved nurse? Oh yeah, baby. That's top notch sanitary.
Soju = whhaaa TF? (more later)
And the winning phrase for the week? Blah, Blah, Blah... similar to Seinfeld's clever yada, yada, yada to gloss over details, Korea's blah, blah, blah, might be more for glossing over words not known in English, but still maintains the integrity of yada, yada, yada. Our trusty Korean boss employs this phrase in almost every conversation.
And ... blah, blah, blah. Now I'm a millionaire.
Onward and upward,
Suzi
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