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
Sunday, March 7, 2010
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
Sunday, February 21, 2010
First impressions
After making my way through Immigration, Baggage Claim, and Customs, I met the man holding my name in his hands. I've always wanted to be one of those people who had a stranger waiting for them at an airport.
Quickly, he whisked me to another area of the airport where I met my future co-worker (wouldn't it have been a good idea for my recruiter to have introduced us before then? No worries, though... just an idea). The driver handed his cell phone to me and I was greeted by my recruiter on the line welcoming me to Korea.
About an hour's drive later, coworker and I arrived in Namyangju and met the new head of the school's English department and the new head teacher. It was about 9 p.m. While K (I don't feel like I know her enough to publish her identity here just yet) seemed a little surprised that we'd be meeting our boss, I wasn't all that shocked. First impression: the dept. head and the head teacher are super cool. I'm extremely happy. It's also nice to know that we're all new. While I suppose it would be helpful to have an old hand around to help out, there's something comforting knowing we'll all be going through this together.
Before we headed to dinner, we stopped by our individual apartments -- Yippee! It came true - I DO live by myself! SCORE. And the apartment is so much more than I expected (especially since I could never acquire pics from the school). If I knew how to post pics in this blog, I'd show you the place, but because I'm new to blogger, I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Stay tuned for a future blog dedicated to apt. pics. The place is seemingly brand new... at the very least, everything in the apt. is brand new... the table chairs still have the cellophane on them. The school provided a twin bed (with really kick-ass hot pink bedding!), a flat screen TV (hell yeah!), a couple plates, a few coffee mugs, a refrigerator, a washer, an iron (but I need a board), a microwave, and a pot and a pan.
The head teacher, who has been in Korea for a year and half, mentioned how lucky we are to have the accommodations we have. He's never had anything this good. He also said that he's pretty happy about the school -- it has a great reputation, it's prestigious and everything checks out (as compared to the horror stories of places he was sure we had heard... and he assured us those horror stories are generally true!).
Back to the night's events... we had a great dinner, but I was knackered and fully ready to hit the sheets (not the hot pink ones; I'd been advised to bring my own... thanks for the sale BB&Y). After the head teacher dropped us off (and after his quick purchase of toilet paper and water for us), I showered, unpacked a few things and nodded off around midnight. All in all, my "day" had lasted longer than 25 hours.
Eight hours later, I was up and at 'em, though I'll admit I lounged around for two hours before finally unpacking the rest of my stuff. And then is was time to venture out, explore the city, find some grub, and hit a PC Bang (since the adapter I bought at RadioShack, is indeed, incompatible with plugs over here).
I knew that English was not well spoken or used much outside of Seoul... and wow, is that true! No signs, except for a few street signs, businesses promoting PC Bangs, and the occassional "chicken" restaurants, are in English. Intimidated by the first few eateries I passed, I opted for a place that had "chicken" written in English. When I attempted to pronounce the Korean words for "chicken"and "water", the guy was like, uhhhh, whhaaa? He was really nice, though, and we worked it out. Turns out I also asked for a crap-ton of chicken and paid the equivalent of $15. Well, what can I expect when I don't know the language??? Overall, the experience wasn't too tramautizing!
Walked around a bit more, found the school I'll be teaching at, and came to the PC Bang. Language barriers definitely exist. The girl who works at the PC Bang didn't speak any English, and of course, I don't know Korean, so it made for a very interesting interaction. No worries, though. I got sorted and once we figured out how to switch the keyboard from Korean to English, I was off and running to my first blog written in Korea.
The head teacher should be coming by my apartment this evening with dinner. And I think we'll be securing cell phones as well. I hope!
Also heard from a friend of a college buddy (who gave me the friend's name) who has been in Seoul for the last three years teaching English. We're going to get together Friday night.
It's all very exciting!
Cheers.
Quickly, he whisked me to another area of the airport where I met my future co-worker (wouldn't it have been a good idea for my recruiter to have introduced us before then? No worries, though... just an idea). The driver handed his cell phone to me and I was greeted by my recruiter on the line welcoming me to Korea.
About an hour's drive later, coworker and I arrived in Namyangju and met the new head of the school's English department and the new head teacher. It was about 9 p.m. While K (I don't feel like I know her enough to publish her identity here just yet) seemed a little surprised that we'd be meeting our boss, I wasn't all that shocked. First impression: the dept. head and the head teacher are super cool. I'm extremely happy. It's also nice to know that we're all new. While I suppose it would be helpful to have an old hand around to help out, there's something comforting knowing we'll all be going through this together.
Before we headed to dinner, we stopped by our individual apartments -- Yippee! It came true - I DO live by myself! SCORE. And the apartment is so much more than I expected (especially since I could never acquire pics from the school). If I knew how to post pics in this blog, I'd show you the place, but because I'm new to blogger, I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Stay tuned for a future blog dedicated to apt. pics. The place is seemingly brand new... at the very least, everything in the apt. is brand new... the table chairs still have the cellophane on them. The school provided a twin bed (with really kick-ass hot pink bedding!), a flat screen TV (hell yeah!), a couple plates, a few coffee mugs, a refrigerator, a washer, an iron (but I need a board), a microwave, and a pot and a pan.
The head teacher, who has been in Korea for a year and half, mentioned how lucky we are to have the accommodations we have. He's never had anything this good. He also said that he's pretty happy about the school -- it has a great reputation, it's prestigious and everything checks out (as compared to the horror stories of places he was sure we had heard... and he assured us those horror stories are generally true!).
Back to the night's events... we had a great dinner, but I was knackered and fully ready to hit the sheets (not the hot pink ones; I'd been advised to bring my own... thanks for the sale BB&Y). After the head teacher dropped us off (and after his quick purchase of toilet paper and water for us), I showered, unpacked a few things and nodded off around midnight. All in all, my "day" had lasted longer than 25 hours.
Eight hours later, I was up and at 'em, though I'll admit I lounged around for two hours before finally unpacking the rest of my stuff. And then is was time to venture out, explore the city, find some grub, and hit a PC Bang (since the adapter I bought at RadioShack, is indeed, incompatible with plugs over here).
I knew that English was not well spoken or used much outside of Seoul... and wow, is that true! No signs, except for a few street signs, businesses promoting PC Bangs, and the occassional "chicken" restaurants, are in English. Intimidated by the first few eateries I passed, I opted for a place that had "chicken" written in English. When I attempted to pronounce the Korean words for "chicken"and "water", the guy was like, uhhhh, whhaaa? He was really nice, though, and we worked it out. Turns out I also asked for a crap-ton of chicken and paid the equivalent of $15. Well, what can I expect when I don't know the language??? Overall, the experience wasn't too tramautizing!
Walked around a bit more, found the school I'll be teaching at, and came to the PC Bang. Language barriers definitely exist. The girl who works at the PC Bang didn't speak any English, and of course, I don't know Korean, so it made for a very interesting interaction. No worries, though. I got sorted and once we figured out how to switch the keyboard from Korean to English, I was off and running to my first blog written in Korea.
The head teacher should be coming by my apartment this evening with dinner. And I think we'll be securing cell phones as well. I hope!
Also heard from a friend of a college buddy (who gave me the friend's name) who has been in Seoul for the last three years teaching English. We're going to get together Friday night.
It's all very exciting!
Cheers.
DOD: Day of Departure!
Timing, they say, is everything. After my hotel conveniently forgot to honor my 3:45 am wake-up call the morning I was scheduled to depart to South Korea, I was supremely pissed. My best friend in the world luckily woke up just before 5 a.m., thanks to her natural clock, and we rushed to the airport so I could check-in and catch my 6:30 a.m. flight.
Nothing is ever as simple as that, though. Though I had expected fees for overweight baggage, I was NOT expecting those fees to be $700!!! WHAT?! For those of you who know me, you know I generally thoroughly research information... that was not the price listed on UA's website. But, there was no arguing. Instead, the representative said it would be cheaper to check a third bag. I'm sure that's true, but unfortunately, I was sans third bag and all the airport shops were still closed! The UA rep disappeared into the back for the second time and returned with an extrememly beat-up duffel bag. After shuffling around toiletries and clothes, Liz and I managed to get the bags close to the maximum weight and my new UA friend ignored the few extra pounds and loaded the bags to the conveyer belt. WHEW!
Off to the clusterf*k that was security... How the lines were soooo backed up at 5:45 in the morning is beyond me. After snaking through the mess, I finally made it to my terminal where I walked on to my already-boarded plane at 6:20 a.m. We taxied from the gate a mere 15 minutes later.
Liz says I'm the luckiest person she's ever met. There was absolutely no way I should have made that plane (though is hardly the only reason she says I'm the luckiest.... she can list a host of examples pointing to her conclusion!).
Bound for San Francisco, I settled into my very, very nice aisle seat and reflected on what else the day might bring! During the next six hours, I realized that had La Quinta not so irresponsibly disregarded my morning wake-up call, I may not have met my new UA friend who was so unbelievably cool in helping me cut my charges! So, ok, La Quinta, you're off the hook. This time.
With a four-hour layover in San Fran, I somehow managed to only make the last call for boarding for my 1:30 p.m. flight. Don't ask... between eating lunch, checking e-mail, updating my Facebook status (you know, the important things in life), charging my phone in the walkway of the airport, calling family and friends, and exchanging US dollars into South Korean won, I just lost track of time.
But once again, I made it. :)
Twelve hours later, I landed in South Korea.
Stay tuned for the next blog!
A post note: I realize this isn't the most exciting entry you've ever read, but in an effort to capture details of my trip for myself, as well as for you, it's a necessary evil to include blow-by-blow information ;)
Nothing is ever as simple as that, though. Though I had expected fees for overweight baggage, I was NOT expecting those fees to be $700!!! WHAT?! For those of you who know me, you know I generally thoroughly research information... that was not the price listed on UA's website. But, there was no arguing. Instead, the representative said it would be cheaper to check a third bag. I'm sure that's true, but unfortunately, I was sans third bag and all the airport shops were still closed! The UA rep disappeared into the back for the second time and returned with an extrememly beat-up duffel bag. After shuffling around toiletries and clothes, Liz and I managed to get the bags close to the maximum weight and my new UA friend ignored the few extra pounds and loaded the bags to the conveyer belt. WHEW!
Off to the clusterf*k that was security... How the lines were soooo backed up at 5:45 in the morning is beyond me. After snaking through the mess, I finally made it to my terminal where I walked on to my already-boarded plane at 6:20 a.m. We taxied from the gate a mere 15 minutes later.
Liz says I'm the luckiest person she's ever met. There was absolutely no way I should have made that plane (though is hardly the only reason she says I'm the luckiest.... she can list a host of examples pointing to her conclusion!).
Bound for San Francisco, I settled into my very, very nice aisle seat and reflected on what else the day might bring! During the next six hours, I realized that had La Quinta not so irresponsibly disregarded my morning wake-up call, I may not have met my new UA friend who was so unbelievably cool in helping me cut my charges! So, ok, La Quinta, you're off the hook. This time.
With a four-hour layover in San Fran, I somehow managed to only make the last call for boarding for my 1:30 p.m. flight. Don't ask... between eating lunch, checking e-mail, updating my Facebook status (you know, the important things in life), charging my phone in the walkway of the airport, calling family and friends, and exchanging US dollars into South Korean won, I just lost track of time.
But once again, I made it. :)
Twelve hours later, I landed in South Korea.
Stay tuned for the next blog!
A post note: I realize this isn't the most exciting entry you've ever read, but in an effort to capture details of my trip for myself, as well as for you, it's a necessary evil to include blow-by-blow information ;)
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