25th in Korea!!

It was August 31st, my birthday. I had plans to meet my friend Minkyung in front of Yeongnam University. After classes,I went home to change into more comfortable clothes. Then I headed out for the bus stop that would take me to the university. I arrived without any problems and I met my friend there and she was talking with a crowd of girls surrounding her. I realized that I knew some of them. They were her closest friends. We all introduced ourselves and they started asking me all kinds of questions. We were all starving so we decided to go eat some Korean food. I chose Sangyeopsal, which is one of my favorite Korean dishes. I remember the place clearly sitting next to a group of girls. Remembering all their names would be difficult so they told me English names for me to remember them by. There was Amy, Rachel, Cindy,and Hyoeun. It was nice though I could speak to them in English or Korean whatever I felt most comfortable. We ate a lot but also talked a lot and mostly about me, lol.

We started cooking the delicious pork belly meat. It’s basically bacon or close to it. Then the girls started asking more questions like, why am I here? Do you like teaching? How long do you plan to stay in Korea? I then explained to them my reasoning. They also asked me what my job was before and I told them I was swim coach back in the states. The conversation was nice and then the difficult questions came. Do you remember our names? Then Minkyung asked me, what do you think of my friends? Tell me one by one based on their personality. Wow that was difficult one because I had to make sure I didn’t say anything stupid, lol. Also four of them I just met so it’s not easy to tell that quickly. Anyways, it was a great dinner and I ate a lot of food.

It was great birthday feast. So afterwards we walked down the street looking for the next thing we would do. I decided it was a great idea to go to 'noraebang' or karaoke. In Korea, they are very popular. They are everywhere. Korea is very small so everything is in rooms or 'bang'. You have PC room, DVD room, drinking room, karaoke room, spa room and many more. We found a nice room where we could sing with all six of us. One of the girls, Cindy started off singing and it was hilarious.

She liked many American artists like Avril Lavign, Cold Play, Katie Perry and many more. We sang over and over again. We switched off but I think Cindy sang the most. I sang American songs cause they wanted to hear me sing in English. I sang from artists such as Blink 182, Foo Fighters, Linkin Park, Jay Sean and Eminem. It was a great time.

At first it was just myself, Cindy and Hyoeun and Amy. Minkyung and Rachel were missing but I soon figured it out when they showed up about 20 minutes later with a huge cake with candles on it.

I was surprised and just living in the moment. I made a wish and blew out the candles and then we ate some of the cake which was delicious. Paris Baguette has some amazing cakes. The night soon came to a close and though our crazy karaoke time was over, I knew it wasn't my last. I said my farewells to my new friends and thanked Minkyung for a great time. It was one of the best birthdays I've ever had!!

Getting connected to Korea

I will say Korea is one of the most wired countries in the world. You can access the internet and wi-fi connections from anywhere. It's amazing. I managed to get a phone but I had to sign a contract. I went with one of my co-teachers and we got it but if you don't know what kind of phone you want it makes it more difficult. I know I wanted a smart phone. It is similar to an ipod but just a different company. I wanted a phone where I could text, use internet and listen to music. I decided on the Samsung Galaxy SI model. The guy at the T-world shop in Daegu recommended it to me. Well there are many hurdles you have to leap over to get a phone here if you want a nice one.

Ok first off, you have to have what’s called an alien registration card or a document that identifies you as an employee here in South Korea. There are two main providers in Korea. There is SK and KT, these company work with you to help pay for your phone services every month but there’s a catch. You have to pay the money back. There are three types of phones in Korea. There is a normal, pre-paid or pay as you go, and a smart phone. Pre-paid phones are nice for travelers here in South Korea and pay as you go work well if you don’t spend a lot of time using the phone everyday. However, the smart phone is the top phone as it provides everything to people including; internet, texting, gps and maps, watching TV, playing video games and so much more.

Now the thing I don’t get is how they come up with the numbers for the monthly fees. I watched them add the numbers and it still doesn’t make sense to me, lol. Since I’m in a contract with the phone company I have to continue paying for a certain time period or I have to pay a penalty if I break the contract. It’s nice though because I made a good friend at the phone shop. The guy sat down with me for a little while and talked with me in both Korean and English. His name was Jang Wook Yang. He was so nice. We talked about my travels here last summer and that I was a swim coach in America. I told him I was a fan of Park Tae-Hwan and Park Ji sung which surprised him. He told me I was his first foreign customer which was funny. He said, “I’ll make sure to take care of you and handle any problems you have.” He said he will never forget me since I was his first customer from abroad. We have conversations from time to time which is nice.

The School for Athletics

My first week was a bit tiring but exciting as well because you introduce yourself to the students. I was little surprised when my co-teacher at Seongam Elementary told me that I’m teaching at a middle school on Thursdays. But the problem was how to get there. My co-teacher drew me a map and told me which bus to take and I would have to walk a little bit to find the school. Thursday came I took the bus but it took me twenty minutes to figure which bus to take. My co-teachers told me a bus but not specifically which bus could take me to the school. I asked someone which bus will take me to a specific place and he was nice enough to show me. Of course I asked him in Korean which was lucky for me I could ask a question. I got on the bus but it was packed with middle school and high school students, which was not all that comfortable. The bus was nice but too crowded. I thought to myself, should I really take a bus every week? It was ok but such a hassle. I got to school and I was greeted by what I assumed was my co-teacher. It turned out it was m co-teacher. She could speak English which was nice. Her name was Young Soo. She said I would be teaching one class of seventh, eighth and nine grades. I didn’t know what to expect from my first class but I was sure it would be interesting.

First, my co-teacher introduced me to the staff of the school including the vice principal and principal. There was a teacher for several sports including a cycling, track and field, fencing, wrestling, weight lifting, taekwondo, judo, swimming, and many more. They were impressed that I was a swim coach back in the states. They said I should coach the swim team at this school. I laughed because I think they were serious. After meeting the staff, I was shown to my office desk and I was given a rice cake and coffee. They treat you very well here. I’m so grateful to everyone for everything they have done to make my time here as enjoyable as possible. My first class was seventh grade class 1. I was greeted by many students in the hallways but in the classroom it was different. Lol Since it was a physical middle school, there were no textbooks or curriculum they had to complete. It was interesting and a little difficult to comprehend. The school was specifically for athletics which made my job harder as an English teacher.

However, I showed them a presentation of myself and they were very interested in me their teacher. I told them where I was from and what my likes were and then I asked them to answer similar questions with their classmates. Some participated but others either slept, didn’t pay attention or just creating trouble. Lol it was fun though learning that this school was not a normal school. So seeing students unmotivated to learn was a given. They did however like my presentation very much. And I got all kinds of question. First it was my age they were asking me about and then if I was single or not. Then they asked me how tall I was and finally if I could sing in Korean. I thought that was hilarious. After the first class it was similar with eighth and nine grades. However, almost every class I was greeted with an, “oh very handsome.” Lol even guys said it.

Some of the older yeohaksaeng, girl students, said I have a beautiful nose. I’m not really sure what that means but they made me laugh. These aren’t your average students. These are serious athletes that withstand intense training and some in my classes are national recognized athletes. Kind of crazy if you ask me but they really like that I was an athlete as well. Some of the swimmers at the school challenged me to a race. But when they heard how fast I was in the past they changed their minds. These are middle school kids. Another student asked to arm wrestle with me. Now that was interesting. The guy was big and strong so he won. I had lost a lot of muscle since my college days. I used to weigh around 215 lbs but not anymore.

This school is very nice. The facilities are great. I mean the track looks like a national level one and the swimming pool is Olympic size, 50 meters. So Anderson is nothing compared this facility, lol. I want to swim in it sometime this year. They said I might be able to swim there. The food is amazing at this school. I mean you have so many choices. You get to help yourself to the food. In other words, teachers can have as much food as they want. I never go hungry at this school. After lunch, there is always some sort of snack, like decorative rice cakes. All I know is that they gave me lots of food. I would say I made a great first impression at this school as well. After my first day, my co-teacher offered me a ride to and from the school so I don’t have to take a bus anymore. It’s great. And with classes, I have the freedom to teach whatever in English so it’s interesting.

First Week at Seongam Elementary

The first day I had the program in the auditorium and the speech and then we went to the Immigration office in Daegu that afternoon to apply for my alien registration card, which is the what identifies me as an employee in South Korea. It was long day but we managed to go the bank and set up my account at Daegu Bank and we tried to get a cell phone but there were some complications.
The first day I had the program in the auditorium and the speech and then we went to the Immigration office in Daegu that afternoon to apply for my alien registration card, which is the what identifies me as an employee in South Korea. It was long day but we managed to go the bank and set up my account at Daegu Bank and we tried to get a cell phone but there were some complications.

My first class was with 4th Graders. I remember sitting in the room towering over everyone. All eyes were on me. And a chatter 'Oh it's Daniel' Everyone seems to remember me from my speech and the principle's introduction, which was nice. But now it was time for my first class and I started off with an introduction of myself. I provided a powerpoint presentation with lots of pictures of myself and my hometown. I made the presentation a kind of guessing game so students would guess where I was from, what I like or so on. It went very well and I showed them a live picture of my house from Google earth and they saw my house and my neighborhood. They were very impressed and really liked where I lived which was funny to me. Most of the students live in poor community but it's a nice town. It's kind of rural as it is right in front of the mountains. But the first class was very successful and students were asking all kinds of questions.

First, one student asked, how tall I was? Another asked how old I was. They were surprised that I was 24 at the time. I looked so young to them I guess. The first class went by so fast that I don't even remember what I said to them. It was same for my next class. The third class was a little different as they were 6th graders. They didn't ask as many questions but they asked different ones. They asked if I had a girlfriend. They also asked how tall I was which was funny because everyone asks me that here. In my 5th grade class I was asked if I was married. The same introductions were used all week as I have six different grades in the elementary school. But I would say I made a good first impression on the school staff and students.

My Speech

The first day came on Monday, the 28th of August. I walked to school which took only 5 minutes from my apartment but I quickly found out once I got there, I had another 5 minutes walking uphill as there was an overpass that crossed above oncoming traffic. When I reached the school I was greeted by some other teachers in the "gyomushil" or teacher's room. I met my co-teachers and they explained to me that we didn't have class today so I was a little disappointed at first but then I thought I guess I can relax. They explained to me that this was the teachers room and they introduced me to the vice principle which greeted me very warmly. Afterwards, we went to a much nicer and larger office where I was introduced to the principle. First I spoke in Korean and he shook my hand. Then he said something to my co-teachers in Korean which I think it was "He is very tall."

After the initial introductions I was relaxed and went up to the classrooms I would be teaching in. Classes would start tomorrow. My co-teachers told me that I would go and apply for my alien registration card today at the immigration office in Daegu. Suddenly, they tell me that we have a a welcoming program for the whole school so we started walking towards the gymnasium. All teachers were there and some students were recognized for past achievements in sports and academics. Then my co-teacher Park Suja told me that I will be introduced to the whole school in few minutes. I was surprised that I would introduced like this. I started thinking, what should I say? Do they want me to give a speech? Should I speak in Korean or English? After the principle introduced me to the stage, I walked up there where I was in front of a podium. At first, the principle gave a introduction of me and then I followed up with my own words. I said in Korean first, annyeonghasseyo. My name is Daniel. It's nice to meet. I am from the United States. I will be your English teacher this year. Then I said in English I am looking forward to working with all of you. Thanks you. It was a little longer than that but it's all I can remember. It felt like I was up there longer than I was. I realized I was talking to the entire staff and students at once. About 220 people so it wasn't a huge amount but it's definitely more than I'm used to. But everyone cheered and clapped like I had won an award or something. After my speech the principle came back on and explained something about the upcoming year.

Figuring things out (Part 2)

I finally got settled in my new home in Korea but I was all alone. I had no phone,nobody to talk to because I couldn't figure out the internet in my apartment. After my flashback, I started walking down the street. I went into town where there were people. I decided to eat out at a little restaurant. When I arrived, two women greeted me with an, "osseosaeyo" which in Korean means welcome. I sat down and read the menu which luckily I could read clearly. However,the problem now was what was what? I realized even with my knowledge of Korean, I needed to know what the dishes were on the menu. I knew many but not off the top of my head. I tried many dishes but remembering their names is a different story. I knew bibimbap and kalbi so that's what I ordered. I was very hungry that night so I ordered both. The owners looked at me and smiled, which was nice. They must have realized my appetite was huge. It was delicious and I watched some TV as there was a familiar comedy show with Dongchan on. I have watched it many times and found it hilarious even if I didn't know everything that was going on. I could get a general idea of what was going on. For some reason, that find it hilarious to see how long they can stand jumping on rocks. lol oh Dongchan.

After eating I decided to go home and rest so that's what I did. My apartment had a nice Queen size bed which was amazing. I remember my EPIK coordinator in Seoul laughed in my interview that she had to make sure to find me a bed that was my size. Well I must say Rachel, good job cause you were successful. I was very tired that day so I went to bed early. I woke up the next morning which was a Saturday around 11 am. I decided to go exploring around town and find a way to get in contact with friends and family. I figured there would be a "PC bang" or PC room nearby so I walked to town and found one quickly. It was a nice one and I said to the lady at the counter, "internet piryhaeyo." I think she understood me cause she said something but it wasn't something I understood. I soon realized she asked me if I wanted a smoking room. So I finally was able to access the internet but I still didn't know how to use it in my home but at least I could email my friends and family I had safely made it to my place.

I was supposed to meet my friend Minkyung on Sunday but with no phone or skype it was impossible to get in contact with her. I also had another problem I didn't even know my own address. I forgot to ask my co-teachers what it was. It wasn't too bad though, I was able to figure out the address of my school. From there, I was able to draw a map of the surrounding area after typing the address in Korean. I was able to see the map in google and scouted out for a big store like E-mart. Luckily, I was able to find one and I wrote directions out. It was only two miles away. After using the internet in the PC room, I headed out to find the E-mart. Since this was the first time, I had no idea about the surrounding area but I was able to find it rather easily. I realized why the internet wasn't working. While I did ask my co-teacher if the apartment had internet, I neglected to ask if there was an ethernet cable. So I arrived at the E-mart and it was huge. The background in the distance was so beautiful with mountains overlooking the scenery.

I was able to ask for a cable rather easily and I was able to get some more food which would probably last me until the end of the week. Afterwards, I started walkng back towards my new apartment. I found my way back but I got lost because Seongam-ro 3 gil has 6 or 7 adjacent streets so my house was on a street that continued for three or four small streets. I finally found my place and I was ready to hook up my internet connection. I found the outlet under my desk and I realized that the plug was behind the large shelf against the wall. Another problem was that all the furniture was blocking my access to the plug for the connector. I thought of the easiest way to get to the internet plug in was to move all the furniture. So first there was a large desk which I thought was very heavy but I was surprised that it wasn't heavy. In fact the desk was just a piece of wood laying on top of a small cabinet on one end and a large shelf at the other end. While it wasn't that heavy, there were several pieces I had to remove. First I had to remove a long piece of glass across the top of the wood and then the wood underneath it. Then I had the large shelf in the corner I had to push out. Unfortunately I had placed most of my things on the shelf already which made it very difficult to move. So I had to take everything off the shelf as well. Finally I was able to move the shelf and could reach the internet cable.

I was successful in getting the internet to work and I got my workout for the day. I was able to use the internet and it was worth all the trouble. You don't realize how much you need something until it's gone. We rely on technology so much these days I couldn't imagine how people were able to get by back then. The next day I met Minkyung but things were different. I was in Korea. Things changed but I was happy to see her and we were good friends again. We went to restaurant in town that served sundae, mandu and tteokbeokki. We talked for a little bit but I was hungry as I devoured all the food they served us. After we ate I waited for the bus she took to meet me and we say our goodbyes. I would be starting school the next day.

Flashback from Japan

I remember it clearly as if it happened yesterday. Two years ago on a trip I took to Japan. I had been out late with my friend Fumi in Tokyo and I found my way back to the house my friend was letting me stay in. It was his uncle's house in Machida. They lived in a very nice neighborhood. It was a city on the outskirts of Tokyo. I can't believe I remembered which subway and most importantly which bus I needed to take to find the way back by myself. I remember walking to the bus stop in the morning, it seemed so simple from that bus stop. However, it was 9 hours later, 11:30 at night. I could barely see anything in front of me. Never before had I felt such fear inside of me. I had gotten lost and no one was around to help me. Many thoughts circled my head, "Did I get off at the right stop? Is this the right neighborhood? I was lost but I decided to look for the house anyways. Up and down the streets I walked for what seemed like forever looking for a house that I thought I could find.

I remember the way from the house to the bus stop so I tried to back track but I started to doubt myself. I walked around for 20 minutes looking for that house. I thought to myself, what if I can't find it? What do I do now? I didn't give up though, I kept looking and going back to the bus stop and back tracking the way I came in the morning. Finally, I came to the point of no return. I gave up so I walked up to a house that looked nice and I noticed some kanji written on a mailbox. I couldn't quite make out what it said because of the darkness but I recalled seeing it once before. I was about to knock on the door I had chosen when my phone rings. It was my friend asking where I was. Apparently he thought I was coming back to his apartment and so did his uncle. But my clothes were at his uncle’s house so I figured I would stay there for that night. He realized that I was lost and called his uncle which immediately came out of the door I was about to knock. I had found the way back in the dark somehow and I was right because I could read kanji. I just remember getting lost and being helpless. I thought to myself what will I say if it's not the right house. What a bad situation at the time. I can laugh about it now. This feeling had returned here in Korea but this time I was stronger cause I had been through it once.

Figuring things out (Part 1)

My first day was long and tiring. My co-teachers showed me my apartment and then afterwards we went shopping at E-mart, which is similar to Wal-mart in America. E-mart is a mart for Everything, literally. First I compiled a list of things I would need such as a pillow, bed sheets, shower slippers, food, etc. Then we managed to find everything and make it back to my apartment and they walked along the path to school and showed me where to go. It was fairly close, only about 5 minutes away. my co-teachers told me to come to the school on Monday which was in 3 days. Finally, I had made it to Korea and I was in my new home. Now the only thing left was to meet the school principle and other teachers and of course my students. I still didn't know my schedule yet which didn't really bother me that much because I knew the first week would be introductions about me.

My co-teachers lived in Daegu so I couldn't contact them for something like, What is good to eat around here? lol So I was finally on my own. This time I was alone. I had no phone, and there was no one I could talk to. I wanted to talk to my parents or contact my friends that I had made it safely to my home. It was about 8 o'clock or so by the time I got the courage to go outside and explore my new neighborhood. It was dark outside so I figured I should try to find something. Suddenly, I had a flashback of Japan, a trip I took two years ago where I was lost in a neighborhood and it was pitch dark.

My new home

We arrived in Gyeongsan and I was very surprised becuase we passed Daegu stadium about 20 minutes prior. Later, I learned that I live on the edge of Gyeongsan, away from the actual city but only 20 minutes away from the city of Daegu. The neighbordhood I live in is called Oksan. It is a small portion of many similar neighborhoods in the city of Gyeongsan. Anyways, we stopped at what looked like a neighbordhood with various alleyways but in Korea the roads are narrow so I guess it was a small street. The apartment was called Yerim Bil, which I think means Yerim Ville or building. Not really sure though lol it's written it Korean like 예림빌.

Anyways, my co-teacher showed me the key code, in Korea there are electronic codes that unlock the building. You have to remember a four digit key code to get in the building. I watched my co-teacher do it and it seemed simple enough so I memorized the numbers and wrote them down later. We entered the buidling which was nice and walked up to the second floor. Once there, I saw a hallway with a couple of doors and my co-teacher explained to me that this is the one. We opened the door and saw a nice room with a queensize bed which was a huge surprise. It had a nice main room with a bed, desk, bed and a place where I could hang my clothes. There was another room next to it that was the kitchen. But the most surprising thing was there were utensils, glasses, and several types of dishes. The bathroom was right beside the place to hang my clothes and it was a decent size, which I was very happy about it.

My co-teacher then explained to me this would be my new apartment and the school was sign a contract for a year for me to stay there. Next she told me that the school would help pay the rent every month. All I would have to provide would be the cost for utilities. She also explained I could use all that was provided already in the apartment which was pretty awesome.

Suddenly, an ajjuma, an older woman came into the room and started cleaning the apartment and preparing it all for me. I am really grateful to her for doing that. She then introduced herself and her daughter. The young woman introduced herself as Young-mi Hong and the other woman was her mother. She said I was very tall, lol. She told me she was the owner of the apartment and if I had any questions to call her. I am very happy with my apartment and am glad I am surrounded by such nice people.

Am I the next contestant on the Price is Right??

The last day of EPIK orientation we finally learned where we would be teaching. What the name of the school was and the grade levels. I learned I would be in Gyeongsan, which was really nice. Because it's very close to Daegu. I was happy that I would be teaching 초드학교 which means elementary. I still didn't know what to expect when meeeting my students, co-teachers and principal but I was ready to meet them. That day I thought about what I would say to them when I meet my co-teachers and especially the priciple. I wanted to make sure I make a good first impression. We left Jeonju University and had lunch in Gumi, a city north of Daegu. Gumi was beautiful with many mountains overlooking the sceneary. They gave us an hour to look around the area we stopped at. An hour felt like an eternity to me. 20 minutes passed and I was feeling anxious. I just wanted to meet our co-teachers and go to the place we would be living. After waiting what it seemed like forever, we drove five minutes to a parking lot. There, we proceded to unload all of our luggage off the buses.


We found our luggage and waited again but this time I was feeling more anxious. What should I say? What if they can't speak English? All these thoughts ran through my head but I calmed myself and just relaxed. We waited for about 10 more minutes after the intitial 5 minutes and then I saw a car pull up to the parking lot and it stopped. Finally someone got out of the car and was holding up a sign. I soon realized it was a name. It must be a co-teacher looking for their native teacher. Moments later I saw several other cars pull in and do the same as they walked toward the large crowd of EPIK teachers. about 2 minutes after the initial car pulled in there were several cars pulling in nonstop. It seemed as if there were a crowd of co-teachers holding up signs and yelling out names. I thought to myself, is this a gameshow? I'm I the next contestant on the Price is right!! After seeing many of my friends leave I was anxious to meet my co-teacher as well and finally I did.

There were two women that were holding up a sign with my name and they said, "Are you Daniel" which I said yes I am. I first greeted in Korean to show my respect and they gave me handshake which was nice. I had two co-teachers. One's name was Ji-yeong Kim and the other Park Suja. They would be my line of support at my school so I better remember their names. Anyways they loaded their car with my luggage and we left for Gyeongsan. It was quiet for a little while which was nice but I broke the silence by telling them I have traveled to Korea. I started speaking in Korean and some English. We had a nice conversation and one of the teachers said, "You will be very popular." I had no idea what to expect driving down the highway towards Daegu. But I was ready for anything.

New friends, new memories!!

EPIK Orientation was great. It wasn't just the classes that helped us prepare for anything. It was the friends that we met, the line of support we established. No one else knows our situation except for the people that we have been with at orientation. I made several friends at the orientation and I'm grateful that I was given the opportunity to meet such a diverse group of people. First, there was Chuck and Clara, my team 8 leaders of orientation which I am shown with below. It was the classes we went to that I met many of them. Such friends as Charles, Rose, Brandon, Nichole, Kenmei, and Laura just to name a few of my close friends I made. Others I met at lunch or dinner and of course my roommate Ian. And it's really great that there is a facebook page with most of the teachers in the Gyeongsangbuk area so we can post questions on there if we are unsure about something and people can respond to it. Communication these days is so convenient.

One of my favorite classes was the Korean language class. They divided us into three groups for this class, beginners (level 1), intermediate (level 2), and intermediate to advanced (level 3). I was in level 3 class and I was excited to be in it because I really liked my teachers. One girl was Soohyun and the other girl was Heewon. Both were very nice and made the class enjoyable. On the first day I got a taste of what Korean class is like when Soohyun just started talking all in Korean with no English. At first, I was like whoa and then it went away. It's been like this for me several times. I have experienced in the Korean church, with my best friend and girlfriends so I thought of it as another challenge. In fact, the first time I experienced this was with my best friend DY and it was frustrating the first time so I told myself I will learn Korean. I hate not knowing something and being totally clueless.

Anyways, the first night we read a dialogue about a blind date. It was rather humorous and sad at the same time. It was about introducing themselves and their hobbies and when he asked the girl out to the movies she gave him an unknown. We then did some partner activities in front of the class about ourselves and wrote our names in Korean. We also wrote about our likes and where we were from. Heewon helped me out with my sentences. She was so cool. Anyways, after class they hung our names up on the wall in the University food court.

Our next class was just as good as we continued working on another dialogue. We got some real speaking practice which was nice because I needed that kind of practice. We also did group work in the class which was good for my speaking. The last class we read another dialogue and learned some new vocabulary. We also translated and sang a Korean pop song. It is really funny because Heewon was supposed to sing first and show us but I guess Soohyun didn't tell her. Lol I think Heewon would sing it well if she got another chance. lol maybe we'll get the chance to go to karaoke sometime or something. That would be cool. Anyways, we starting singing in class all in Korean and I thought to myself, I do this all the time. I guess that's why I didn't find it embarrassing. The song was "Moonlight, Starlight" by Secret, a girl group. It was fun but sad as well because the class would end that night. I made sure I would keep in contact with my teachers though. Heewon was very helpful and I felt like we could talk to each other easily. She always seemed to make me smile. I'm glad to be friends with her.

EPIK Orientation 2011

After walking forever it seemed I found the EPIK table and there I was greeted by EPIK staff and given a number for a bus to take. While waiting for the bus, I had the chance to meet many new faces. First, I met a guy named Ian from England and he was going to the same province as me so we started talking and it turned out we had similar interests. He liked sports like me which was cool. He had a good sense of humor cause he always seemed to make me laugh. I waited for the bus to come and finally we loaded all our luggage on the bus and we set off for Jeonju University. It would be our home for the next nine days. I sat with Ian on the bus and we decided to become room mates for orientation since we got along so well. It worked out nicely for both of us. About three hours later, we arrived at the university and we were given many things like a care package with a t-shirt, textbooks, an alarm clock, a mug from Jeonju university and food. It was nice.


Orientation was interesting because you have 400 plus people all in one place taking classes learning the same thing but they from all over the world. I think I saw South African, English, Welsh, American, Canadian, New Zealand, Chinese, Vietnamese and Australian. The first day was a traditional Korean demonstration of Korean dance, Taekwondo and drumming. It was pretty cool. The next 4 days were pretty much classes all day. Classes consisted of various topics from teaching elementary to high school. How to plan lessons and classroom management were other class topics. We even had a lesson demonstration in front of our class. It gave us some practice before we actually start teaching. One thing we got to do was take a Taekwondo class with Jeonju University's best. That was a great experience and I got a taste of what it is like to train in the sport. It was an intense workout that lasted 1 hour and 30 minutes. It consisted of multiple standing punches, kicks, roundhouse kicks, push-ups, running and much more. A great way to be introduced to the art of Taekwondo. I think I will find a class this year and take one. I asked the instructor what an apjeogi was? Cause he said I had a good one. I found out later in meant front kick.

The next highlight of orientation would have to be the cultural field trip we took on the fifth day. We went to Hanok Village, a traditional village in Jeonju that hosts cultural traditions of Korea. First, we took part in the traditional Korean dance, and even got to dress up in costume. It was a very unique experience. Next, we made and designed our very own traditional Korean fans. That was also very cool because I had never did that either. Then, we took part in traditional Korean drumming and we got to play the drums and learned the traditional drum beats. This was one of my favorite things at the village. I love music and I love drums but this was like nothing I had ever experienced before. About 50 people playing drums all at the same time. It was loud and it was crazy but awesome. After playing drums for awhile we went to restaurant and ate famous bibimbap, which is rice, vegetables eggs, meat and sometimes seafood.

After leaving Hanok Village, we stopped at Keumsan Temple which is a Buddhist establishment. It was huge with carved roof carvings. It had several halls with figures behind screens. The temple was outside in a huge area filled with pagodas and shrines. The main hall had a shrine with Buddhas and people could could take part in the ritual if they wanted. It was a nice change from having classes all day at least. We finally headed home around dinner time for Jeonju University.

Food at the University was decent. Every morning there would be something new but there was always rice and some type of soup. For lunch again there was rice but we had many choices of meat, seafood, and some American foods like french fries but not very often. For dinner it was the same as lunch. But for the final day when we all passed the orientation, there was a dinner and ceremony. That dinner had the real Korean food. Everything from mandu (Chinese dumplings), sushi rolls, and bulgogi (Korean beef) to Songpyeon (Korean rice cake) and kalbi(Korean beef). It was all so delicious!! I can still remember the taste of the food from that day.

Arriving in Korea!!

Leaving my friends and family was hard but necessary for me to experience the unknown. Flying on the plane on that Wednesday afternoon of August 17th was pleasant and reminded me of last summer. Things were different this time it was for employment, not travel. I sat next to two very interesting people. One was a recent graduate from Minnesota University who majored in Korean and the other was a Korean-American girl who i learned was the same age as me. We both learned a lot about each other during the course of that 14+ hour flight. We learned we share similar interests in music, sports, dramas, food and movies. So u could say we became friends rather quickly. The girl’s name was Semy and the guy was Alex. I kept in contact with Semy and she lives in Seoul with her 4 roommates. We have plans to meet up sometime during this year so it’s nice that i made a friend before we even arrived to Korea.

After 14 hours passed, we arrived at Incheon Airport. Semy, Alex and I all stayed together as we waited for our bags. Semy was the last one to get her things and say farewell. We said our goodbyes not knowing if we would ever meet again but i was certain we would. I exchanged most of my money into Korean won and set off to find the table for EPIK check-in. With a shopping cart to hold my luggage it was very easy to transport my bags. As i was looking for the EPIK table, i spotted a crowd surrounding something so i got closer and noticed it was Crystal from fx, k-pop star. Musical artists here can easily be spotted in Seoul as i found that out last summer when I met one of my favorite k-pop artists, Younha. It's weird though she not very popular but she knows Japanese and English which is rare.