Chelsea in Osaka

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Our last full day in Japan has arrived. After 2 full days in Kyoto, we are finishing up in neighboring Osaka, which is closer to the airport we will depart from (KIX). Since the weather had finally fulfilled its promise of being miserable - ie: cold and wet - we decided to not stress about doing “sightseeing” and rather just enjoy our vacation.

That meant, first and foremost, not rushing to get out the door at the crack of dawn. We got up and went down the street to grab some breakfast items from a nearby bakery. The rain hadn’t started to pound down yet, but there was a drizzle. We grabbed an assortment of goodies then headed back to the hotel. We had gotten two free coffee vouchers from the hotel and Jessica used one while we enjoyed our breakfast at the hotel restaurant/seating area. While we were down there, we head those British “lads” again at the front desk. They didn’t see us, but we heard them talking to the front desk staff. It sounded like they were checking out and gave the staff a bottle of sake that they couldn’t take with them. Too bad we hadn’t run into them; we would have gladly taken the bottle! 

Once finished, we got ready and packed up our stuff. Since we didn’t need to check out until 11am, we decided to make the most of our room and stayed until we needed to leave. We headed out and made a pit stop at a curry house. We’d had a light breakfast and decided that before travel, one really should have a full stomach. Plus, I had been wanting to have tonkatsu (a dish comprised of fried pork cutlet over rice); we’d past this restaurant yesterday and knew we wanted to come back. Jessica loves Japanese curry anyway, so it was a win-win.

We arrived as the restaurant opened and each ordered half-sets of curry. They came quickly and they were delicious! Including a drink the whole set was around 500Y (~$5). A good deal, in my opinion.

We left there and walked along the main street towards Kyoto Station. It was around a mile away, but we had some good scenery as we walked. We walked by another palace/temple place, and I wishes that we’d have been able to go inside, but we had all of our luggage and needed to get to Osaka.

Once we got to the train station, we searched for the right ticket counter. Kyoto Station is quite large and there were hoards of people. We walked by one line (for a bus) that had probably several hundred people in it. Dang!

We got our tickets easily once we found the counter and followed the signs to the correct platform. We boarded and found two of the last remaining seats (not next to each other of course). I wrote yesterday’s blog and we arrived shortly thereafter. It was only about 30 minutes total.

When we got to Osaka Station, we needed to change to another line and head to Tennoji Station. It was supposed to be 190Y, but we weren’t sure if we should walk out of the gates, buy another ticket, then come back in, or if we could add money to our tickets, or what. I found someone official and asked; she told us that we could pay the difference once we got to Tennoji. 

We headed to that platform and rode the train another 20 minutes or so to the south part of Osaka where our hotel was located. We arrived and went to the ticket information desk. When I told the man we needed to pay the additional fare, he showed me a calculator that read 380Y. I shook my head no, and told him 190Y? He proceeded to explain to me, in his best attempt at English, that to transfer from Kyoto to Osaka and then to Tennoji, the additional fare was 380; if you were to go out of the gates and buy another ticket, then it is 190. When he showed the 190 again, I nodded vehemently and pointed to it and said “That’s what we should pay!” He shook his head and again told me the same thing. I basically told him that was ridiculous and we left. 

Our options were thus: pay the fare (more than double what we had planned to pay); ride the subway back to Osaka station, get out, buy the additional ticket, and come back; try and sneak out. Well, being that we are good law abiding Americans, we decided to try and bust out. We found an exit that wasn’t being watched by the jerk I just talked to (okay, really he wasn’t a jerk, just doing his job, but I’m bitter). I let Jessica go first as she put her ticket in the machine, it gave her an X, and she pushed through the plastic mini-doors. In Korea, if you do that, they just kind of give up and go back to normal; however, Japan doesn’t let you get away with it. It started to beep loudly at her, so she went back through the gates. THEN the doors appeared on the other side instead. Some old Japanese ladies were staring at us and one of them went to a help-phone on the wall and called someone. Cripes, here we were, the OBVIOUS foreigners they just told how to pay the fare, and now we’re trying to break out, caught red handed.

My adrenaline was up, but Jessica wasn’t to be deterred. She pushed through and we fled the scene before officials showed up. Our next plan was to pay the additional fare on one ticket, then both of us sneak through. We split the 360Y to 180Y a piece, then went back to the unguarded gate (by now being cleared of any on-looking Japanese women or jerk-officers. Luckily this gate appeared to be for handicapped or something, so it was extra wide, and we put the ticket in and both walked right through.

It was easy, too easy! My heart was pounding. I never break the rules! But it was also exhilarating. Take that, you unfair Japanese ticketing system that tries to scam you if you transfer lines mid-journey!! HAHA! (Jessica, on the other hand, wasn’t even phased about the whole incident…)

Properly endorphin-ed from my brush with the law, I high-tailed it out of there with Jessica laughing about my fear of breaking the rules. We walked to our hotel, which was very close by. The area around the station and the hotel were certainly more urban than Kyoto. While Kyoto was definitely a city, it had a more relaxed feel. Osaka felt like a neighborhood in Seoul. Bright lights, tall buildings, so many people…

When we got to the hotel, I could immediately tell that it wasn’t going to be the same experience as Kyoto. The interior felt very Asian; I can’t quite explain why I feel like this is Asian but it was all while fake-marble with light pink flowers and advertisements everywhere. The lobby was tiny and the guy checking us in spoke some English but was obviously flustered to talk to us.

We got in the elevator and we barely fit. This may have been the smallest elevator I’ve been in, including ones in Europe which are also quite small. We were nose-to-nose, as I had my backpack on and Jessica had her suitcase. We stepped into the hallway on level 4 and I immediately thought of Korea’s “Love Motels” - again, I can’t quite explain why. Maybe it was the room numbers that were lit up according to occupancy outside the room, or maybe just the feel of the place, but I definitely think it was the Japanese version of a “Love Motel”. We opened the door to our room, which was partially covered by a fake tree in the hallway, and sure enough, a Love Motel it was. It was so small and dingy compared to the Kyoto hotel! Honestly, if we had come to this hotel first, I probably wouldn’t have thought much of it, but after being at the really nice hotel in Kyoto, this was crap.

We put down our stuff and had a bit of a rest. It was still kind of miserable outside, but we decided to check out our surrounding area a bit. We walked down to the station area and walked through the shops both on the street level, as well as underground in the station area. We found some cute souvenir chopsticks for 100Y and each got some. After a while, we decided to get some Japanese snacks and go back to the hotel and watch the Korean drama we’d started called Heirs. 

We got a couple varieties of chips, including some that I think were cherry blossom flavor, some mochi ice cream (also cherry blossom flavor?), and of course chocolate. We watched an episode of the show, then I finished the blog and worked on photos. 

After a while, we decided that for our last meal in Japan we wanted to have sushi! Sushi in Japan can be quite expensive (more so for the quality of both fish and chef, more so than the availability of the fish…) so we decided to look for a “kaiten sushi” bar - the conveyor belt sushi.

I found one near Namba Station, and while we didn’t particularly want to travel and spend more money, we decided for our last meal it was worth it. We got on the subway at Tennoji and rode it a few stops to Namba Station, one of the largest in Osaka. We got off and headed for an exit that I thought was in the right direction of where we were going, but once we got to the surface, I was very turned around. Finally, I got my bearings and we walked to the restaurant. 

When we got there, there were tons of people outside waiting. I peeked inside and it was NOT conveyor belt sushi! Stupid Yelp. We decided to walk to another “sushi” place nearby; again, NOT what we were looking for. Giving up on the research side of things, we chose a street that looked busy and walked down it. Low and behold, after a few minutes, I spied a sushi bar and we excitedly went inside.

The host showed us to our seats around the bar and we started to look at all the sushi on offering. Most of it was normal, but there were also baby octopus, octopus tentacle, and some other interesting selections. I got some salmon and tuna, and Jessica ordered a couple of rolls (all the sushi on the belt was just sashimi on rice; no rolls). 

The sushi was good, but not particularly exciting. I think it was the experience of doing this in Japan that made it great. At one point, a man walked behind us and started trying to say something to me, but I couldn’t understand and was a bit bewildered. He kept walking and I realized a few minutes later that he was the sushi chef behind the bar. He talked to us briefly; asked if we were from America, then said something about Obama. We laughed and nodded and continued eating. 

We eventually finished and paid; I had gotten 5 plates and it was around $7 total. What a cheap last meal! Even including the transportation we were still only around $10. We headed back to our hotel and called it a night. 

Unfortunately, the neighbors next door did not have the same sentiment. In fact, they merely confirmed my suspicion of the true use of the hotel. Oh well, live and learn! We turned on the air conditioner (set to the highest temperature) and the fan mostly drowned out the sound…

And thus concludes our days in Japan…

Cheers,

Chelsea

War Memorial

I can't believe it's already my third day of vacation! It feels like it just started. I guess because Christmas was a holiday, it didn't feel like that should actually count against my "vacation" (ha!) and also because I was quite busy! Yesterday, I laid in bed all day and, while that was relaxing, it certainly wasn't a good use of my time!

Preparing for a Visit from Mom

Well, in 24 hours my mom will be in Seoul!!!!!! I didn't realize I would be so desperate for a touch of home only 3 months into my year, but her visit couldn't have come at a better time. It is beginning to be holiday season and seeing my favorite mom is just what I need!

About Teaching

Mostly I write about my life outside of work. Sometimes I write cute stories, but mostly I stick to what I think people will find "interesting" ... aka: what I can illustrate with photos! But, since this is also partly about me and my journey, teaching is what I do and I need to debrief (so to speak).

My First Parcel

My Wednesday wasn't too terribly exciting. I made some eggs and toast (made in the pan) for breakfast, and attempted to drink the soymilk I bought at HomePlus the other day. Well, apparently in America I have always drank vanilla soymilk, and this stuff was straight up soy bean juice. It was even slightly green. I don't know, all you hippies: is this normal?! (LOL) Anyway, I couldn't drink it and opted for orange juice instead.

Musings at Work

On Tuesdays, I have an extra 40 minutes of planning period, but today I am prepared well ahead of time. Today, I am using my free time to read the news, and I can't believe what I'm reading.

Baseball in Korea

This weekend was absolutely exhausting. It's what I get for complaining last weekend about being stuck in my apartment. My motto this weekend was Go with the Flow! Yes-man style.

Saturday night, I was thankfully holed up in my apartment, blogging and watching a movie (Diary of a Wimpy Kid 2, if you must know...). Sunday was so long, though! I woke up at 9am, and had to get out the door by 10am. If you know me, you know that I usually require over an hour (at least!) to get completely ready for my day, including hair, makeup, breakfast, and finishing touches. So, waking up a bit late on Sunday put me in a rush. I skipped breakfast since Tab and I had plans to get an earlier lunch.

Right before I left, I checked my email and saw I had an email from a guy I had contacted from Craigslist about a table. He had previously told me someone was going to buy it already, and I told him to contact me if it falls through. Well, he was emailing to let me know it was back on the market! I gave him my number and we planned to meet in the afternoon to do the deal. And with that, I was off to Itaewon for church...

We had planned to meet at the Itaewon subway station around 10:45, in order to make it to church at 11am. Well, I got there at 10:40, and planted myself on the stairs leading to the exit we had planned to meet at. 10:45... 10:55... 11:00. Where is this girl? Around 11:10, I finally get a text that she is outside waiting on me. Wait, what?! How did she sneak past me?!?!?! I hurry out the exit and see her immediately. Apparently, she had a subway mix-up situation like I did Saturday, and somehow ran right by me on the stairs. I still don't know how this happened, but regardless...

We walk down the road towards the Itaewon Methodist Church. Tab said she had looked up service times, and there was an 11:00am English service. We finally get there, figure out which door to go in, and head up the elevator. I got a little suspicious when we were in the elevator with 6 old Koreans, and no other white people. We walked out, and saw a man in a suit that looked to be a greeter. I think he asked if we were lost? (I could be remembering incorrectly, but he definitely assumed we were not in the right place). Tab asked "English Church?" and he responded "Oh, it's over. It was 9am!" I look at the sign right next to us and see, sure enough, English - 9am. Korean - 11am. Guess the internet is not always our best friend and most accurate source of information!

Tab was upset about this setback, but honestly, we were almost 20 minutes late by now, anyway. I said we will just try again next week; let's get some food. Before we could do that, I needed to go pick up a package Kristen sent me (my ZTA big sister who lives in NYC), and one from my mom. When that was accomplished, we set out to find food! Unfortunately, neither of us had done any research about where to go, so we attempted to find WiFi to get us on the right track. After a brief stint at McDonald's with no luck, we decided to just wing it.

We walked down the street, and I made the impulsive decision to turn down an interesting looking alley. We walked and gawked at the different wares being sold outside the ecclectic neighborhood. It was cute... and then it got residential. I had a vague sense of where we were at, and expected us to come out on the main street. Well, after another 10 minutes of walking, I decided we were definitely not going in the direction. We cut and curved back in the general direction we came from, although going through different streets. Finally we saw familiar sights and knew we were not lost for good. While I was mildly freaking out, Tab was taking photos of the little houses and the view... at least she was in a good mood and not blaming me for having to hike up about 10 hills!

We finally got to the alley which I expected us to originally come out at, and I saw a restaurant whose name I recognized from expat blogs: Wolfhound Irish Pub. We made a beeline, starving and tired. When we were seated at the wooden bench style table, we went over the menu. Tab decided on an English breakfast, and I went with fish and chips. (Interesting we decided on British fare when in an Irish pub in South Korea!) My fish and chips was pretty good, but nothing too special.

When we left, I let the Craigslist seller know that I was available in about 45 min (as long as it would take to get to the station). We chatted back and forth until we decided to meet around 3pm. That left Tab and I about an hour and a half to do whatever, then 30 min to get to the station. Since Itaewon doesn't have much by way of shopping, we headed to Myeong-dong to the Forever 21. I needed some tights to wear under skirts to work, so that was the best place I could think of...

We got there and I ended up getting some great blush-colored tailor pleated pants, some tights, and a couple clearance things. After that, we headed to meet the Craigstlist guy. I asked him would the table be one piece, or broken down. He said it breaks down, and was carriable, but a little awkward. After much debate, Tab and I decided to carry it together to her place. We had plans to go to a baseball game in the evening with some of her friends, so rather than take the table to my place then rush back to go to the game, we would just leave the table at her place during the game, and I could take it back afterwards.


This worked out well enough, but was pretty annoying and cumbersome. We rested for about 30 minutes at Tab's, then headed to the stadium. Luckily, Tab lives very close to the Seoul Sports Complex and we didn't have to trek all over Seoul to get there. One bus ride later, we were at the stadium. We got our tickets ($17) and headed inside.

Apparently, unlike American stadiums which use the health code as an excuse to exploit the hungry and thirsty fans, Korea lets you take your own food and drink into the stadium! There were vendors outside selling pizza and chicken in a box (literally). We passed in favor of getting smaller portions inside the stadium. Tab ended up getting a hotdog (a welcome surprise she wasn't expecting), and we both got some beers (which were also much more affordable than in the states at $2.50 a pop). We got our seats with the rest of the group, and settled in for some great American past time!

A few things popped out at me - 1) Rather than straight up cheering, the fans of each team had songs they sang during the time their players were at bat. 2) Similar to what the Aggies have at Texas A&M, there seemed to be a yell leader who directed the crowds in songs, dances, and other general hooliganisms. 3) There were cheerleaders. Well, not really cheerleaders - more like hybrid dancer-backup singers. They had quite conservative dances (compared to the American standard), and while they showed their stomachs, their necklines were so high even the Pope wouldn't have been able to complain. 4) While I still have not figured out the system on which Korean baseball is based and played, I figured out that anyone can play on these teams. I figured this out when I looked up at the pitcher, then leaned over to Tab and whispered: "Is it just me, or is that pitcher black?!"

Now, you can't call me a racist - there are literally no black Koreans. It just doesn't happen. Some of my American readers may not be able to understand this, since in America you get called a racist for anything. But seriously! It is not possible to be black, and be Korean. While being an "American" is a question of citizenship, being a "Korean" is a matter of race. Therefore, someone being black and being Korean are mutually exclusive. Okay, off my defensive soapbox.

We kicked back and enjoyed the people watching, and of course the sport of baseball. Apparently, we were rooting for the wrong team, since it was a shut out. The other team won, and their fans seemed to have a better time overall as well. If we had not been in a group, Tab and I would have traded allegiances and gone over to the other side. But, alas, we mostly observed.

Halfway through, Tab insisted that I eat something, having had nothing since noon, and been drinking a beer. I agreed to go check out the fare. I ended up deciding on some chicken. I would call them nuggets, but a better word would be pellets. Not like rat droppings, but more like short Cheetos. Does this give you a good idea? They came with a sauce, but I opted to have that on the side.

All of my skeptics who think I should have eaten the dumpling last week, you will be proud. Rather than dissecting the "chicken" to confirm it's variety, I just bit into it. It was cold, but otherwise not bad tasting. I looked at the other side which I still held in my hand. It didn't look like chicken. I smelled it, then had a recollection that Koreans like dark meat chicken, rather than white. I shrugged and popped the other half in my mouth. This was quite an accomplishment. I didn't eat the whole cupful, but I did eat quite a bit. I even tried the sauce, and enjoyed it!

We stayed til the end of the game, then trekked all over creation to find the bus to take us back to Tab's apartment. When we finally got there, it hit me how exhausted I was. And now I have the dilemma of taking this obnoxious large and awkward table back to my apartment on the other side of Seoul. So, my options:

1)Take it on the bus and subway alone (risk bursting into tears spontaneously, hurting myself and/or others, breaking the table)
2)Take an expensive cab ride (between $25-30) with it (benefits would be the ease)
3)Have Tab assist me on the subway then she can turn around without having to pay for an additional ride back home, then take a cab a short distance to my apartment.

This last option seemed to have both the financial and physical aspects under control, so that's what we decided to do. I carried the heavy part this time (Tab had it last time), and we headed out into the rain (which started as soon as we left the baseball game), on the bus, through the subway station, onto the trains, and out. Tab said goodbye, and I was burdened with the entire thing. This consisted of 1 large tabletop (not actually large, but bigger than was comfortable), which bent together but not all the way, only until a 45° angle remained. Also, 2 rectangular sets of metal bars, plus another 2 straight bars in a bag with the hardware. I wish I had a photo, because I must have looked ridiculous carrying this through the subway. It was slow-goings, to be sure.

I was actually kind of disgusted with the lack of assistance. Everyone felt it appropriate to stop and stare at me, but no one felt the need to help me take it even a short ways, up the stairs maybe, or to the end of the hallway. Maybe it's just that I grew up in the South and therefore most men have some sort of gentlemanly blood, but I was not impressed with the Koreans at that point in time.

When I finally got the thing to the top of the subway, I was totally dejected to find there were no cabs waiting at the curb (a frequent habit of empty cabs). I saw a boy, and asked where I could get a cab. He pointed across the street and I headed that way. He was just standing around and I couldn't believe he wouldn't help me, even when he knew I was only going across the street. I hobble over and the one available cab gets taken right before my eyes. I want to cry, but keep it together.

And then, like a ray of sunshine beaming down through the night sky, a yellow cab pulled right up to me and popped it's trunk. I gratefully put the table down into the trunk, and get in the cab. My hands are shaking and my body slumps into the seat. All I can manage is "Kamsahamnida, Kamsahamnida, Kamsahamnida!" (Thank you, thank you, thank you!). He smiles and laughs, and I give him my address. He types it in, and we're off.

I sincerely think God sent this taxi driver straight to me. Every cab driver I've had in Korea so far, no matter how nice, has spoken no more than 2 words of English. This man, while by no means fluent, asks me where I'm from, how long am I in Korea, etc. When I say I am from America, he starts singing Oh Say Can You See. I can't do anything but laugh and clap for him, despite the extreme fatigue making my hands weigh about 10lb each. He goes on to tell me that he loves "America human" because we are so "smile and kind... and beautiful!!" I just laugh and say thank you. He sings for me in Korean and tells me that it's "his song." Wow...

We get to my neighborhood, and I live on a one-way street. This guy goes in the wrong way and pulls me up RIGHT next to my door. I was so happy I could cry. I thanked him profusely and got the table out of the trunk. When he left, I was shuffling up the driveway to the entrance, and saw my landlord. I wouldn't be able to open the door with the table in my hands, so I give him my most desperate eyes and look at the door and back. He gets the hint, comes and opens the door. Then he does one better, and takes the table top from me, gets in the elevator with me, and takes it to my room. I wanted to hug him.

After that, I relaxed and then, I have no idea how I got the energy, but I put that dang table back together. I still don't know how I did it, but it's put together and I love it. It was worth the horrible time transporting it, I'm happy to say.

My Sunday was so exciting and jam-packed that my Monday is utterly boring in comparison. Today,  Typhoon Sanba was supposed to hit. Well, I guess it did. It was pretty rainy and windy this morning. But work was not cancelled, so I sported my rain boots. It was pretty chilly, too. I loved it.

After work, I got some groceries and I am happy to say I found some decent veggies!!! I got home and made some awesome pasta and chicken. Now, my bed is calling me and another day of work is at my door tomorrow. Happy Monday, Blogosphere!

Street Dumplings

This week has gone by so fast! I love it! I managed to get to bed by around 12:30 last night after talking to Michael for a while. I naturally woke up around 6:30, thinking I should be getting up. It was wonderful to realized that I had another hour and a half to sleep. I knocked out again, and woke up to my alarm.

My first thought was "What did Apple announce last night?!" So I got on my iPad and start typing "apple news..." and nothing popped up. That's strange. Normally this stuff gets a lot of press, and is a huge search topic. I searched and found on MacRumors about the announcement. All in all, I was not too impressed. Of course, it looks cool. But, what I was hoping for was a game changer. Something revolutionary! Like the iPhone 4 was when it was released. This is cool, but in my opinion, the 4S is a better deal... Good thing I won't have to make a decision on getting a phone for another year. Maybe even the iPhone 5.5 will be out ;)

Moving on... I made pancakes for breakfast. Last night I got a measuring cup (the big 4-cup size) and a measuring spoon. I was actually able to measure out my mix and water, and pour from the measuring cup. My pancakes came out golden brown and were as good as, if not better than, IHOP.  (Maybe this isn't true, but in Korea, they are the best.)

I watched Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol all morning and got to work right at 1pm. It was a rainy day today, so I sported my yellow wellies (of course!). Classes were good. I decided on which is my favorite. It's my 3SAP kids. They are only on T/Th unfortunately. I absolutely love them. I think all my good classes are T/Th actually. But these kids are the best. They all participate, there isn't a single one that ignores me when I say to do something, or to stop doing something. While some are brighter than others, they all participate and seem eager to learn. These are the kids that were singing with me on Tuesday. Today we were talking about dancing (actually, I was filling time that I had accidentally left open on the lesson plan) and the different types of dancing (I chose this because their unit is actually about a dance performance). And... I can't believe I did this, but... I did Gangnam Style.

If these kids did not love me before, I'm pretty sure they do now. If you don't know Gangnam Style, you might want to learn, quick. It's a song by a South Korean pop star named Psy who is taking the world, and the US, by storm. Almost all my friends back home are obsessed with this song/music video. The dance is hilarious, and the tune is catchy. So... watch and just picture me as the main guy with the glasses, but in a school classroom, accompanied by giggling Korean children rather than electro-beats. (While you are watching, check out the females' attire - they wear the shortest skirts/shorts, but barely show their chest. Also, the bus scene - the old lady with the visor, I can't go a day without seeing an ajumma like her!)

Well, that was a fun class. :) Otherwise, my day was fairly normal. On the way home, I decided to go out on a culinary branch and try these dumplings. I pass the cart that sells them everyday, on the street in the neighborhood I walk through. They have 3-4 varieties, and Erin Teacher told me they have some kind of meat, BBQ pork she thought, in them. I decided that my severe lack of meat/protein demanded I try them. So, I stopped tonight. I got 4 large dumplings for 2,000W, a pretty good price. They were warm in the bag on my way home and i couldn't wait to try them.

Being the careful eater that I am (there are negative connotations with "picky"), I pulled one apart before I bit into it. The dough outside didn't taste like much, but the juice from whatever meat it was, was kind of sweet. I inspected the "meat" further and decided it wasn't pork. It had the consistency of overcooked beans (kind of mushy), but I couldn't tell what it actually was. Then it hit me... It looked like bug larvae. I couldn't even swallow a bite once my mind got on that idea. I ate the dough around it and put the rest in my Food Waste bag in the freezer. Bummer.... but at least I tried, kinda.

The contents of my dumpling.

In other news, tomorrow is FRIDAY! And this Friday, I have plans. Yes, I'm actually going out, at night, with other people, and socializing! I am so excited! I would hold off to disclose my plans until they have actually happened, but I won't be posting a blog until Saturday afternoon or night, so I might as well.

Tab and I decided we need to go out together, since I haven't been out once since getting to Korea. We decided to go to dinner and get drinks, then party it up in Hongdae (the university area). I get out at 8, and she doesn't get out until 9:30, so we will meet somewhere around 10pm. (I might just take my things to her apartment early since I will be staying the night). Today at work, Michelle was feeling down. I invited her out tomorrow, to take her mind off things. She excitedly said yes! So, she will be joining the festivities. She will come over to my apartment after work, and we will get ready together.

When we decided this, she asked if there was anything I needed. I looked at her a little confused. She explained that in Korean culture, if you go to someone's home, you must bring a gift to thank them for their hospitality. I told her to just bring a bottle of wine she likes :) I can't wait to hang out with both of my favorites in Korea at the same time, and also get my party-on!!! It will certainly make up for my boring Saturday last weekend.

I think that about sums up my Thursday. Sorry I will be skipping tomorrow's blog, but I think it will be worth it for the adventure that will come of it. :) Goodbye until Saturday...

**UPDATE: Erin Teacher and I decided that the dumpling must have been 'red bean paste', a Korean thing that they love that no Westerner really understands... **

Apartment Decor and Work

This morning was awesome. I slept late, like 8:45, then got to talk to Michael for a little bit. I also spent a lot of time doing some Craig'sList research. I am officially desperate to make my apartment "home." Yes, it's getting there... but it still lacks a lot of homey-ness. Last night at one of the other foreign teachers' apartments, she had an armchair. And she had a western-style desk. It made me realize that, while I like that my furniture is not overpowering the room, I also think my room is very low to the ground. Like, the desk I have is a floor-desk, the hutch is very low as well. And of course the bed is low. I have no chairs, no rug or anything to sit on. I decided I need some things!!

First, I want an armchair. Like, something comfy I can sit in and blog, or read a book, or anything. Nothing too big, just a chair I can put in the corner and have a place of my own. This beats getting a large desk that hogs the room. If I did get the chair, I would give the hutch (that is really not very useful to me) to another teacher in the building.

Second thing I want is an area rug. I have faux-hardwood laminate that is pretty crappy. It's not ugly, but cheap. I want something to draw the room together, give it warmth! I would love a rich color, but honestly I'll take anything at this point.

I also would like some alternate lighting - a floor lamp and desk lamp to be precise. I hate my overhead lighting, plus the switch is on the other side of the room so at night it's annoying to turn off the light before bed.

Finally, I want wall decor. Some floating shelves, or some paintings/art. This is getting out of the "need" and pretty far into the "want," but oh well.

I went on CraigsList this morning to start some research. FIRST - the armchair. I only found 2 currently listed - one for 20,000W (~$20) it was not the prettiest, but it looked leather and wasn't too ugly. Only problem with that one is it was listed back on July 31. It is most likely sold by now, especially for such a low price! The other one I found did not have a price listed, only asking for an offer. It was originally 250,000W (~$225), so I would probably offer maybe 80,000 to 90,000W. The thing with either of these two is transportation! How the heck to get it from one side of Seoul to the other?! I emailed a guy I found on an expat forum about moving, and he quoted me around 70,000 to move it totally (from 1 apartment to the other). Woah! Alternatively, Erin Teacher told me at work I might could find one on the street that someone is getting rid of; several of the teachers have done that. I might just have to go hunting in my neighborhood one day!!

SECOND - the rug. Basically, no one has a decent rug. Awesome. THIRD - a lamp. One, single, solitary floor lamp listed. I emailed the seller, and she was selling it TODAY. Grumble, grumble.... FINALLY - I stumbled upon a pretty cool piece of art and made an offer on it. I think the same person, I made an offer on his kettle, rice cooker, and power converter. I also attempted to get a Brita water pitcher, but that deal fell through :(

Finally, I made it to work. I will summarize my classes:

First - my worst class. Jackie Teacher observed and helped put the kids in line. I made sure to use everyone's name so she sees that I know names!

Second - Belle was surprisingly participatory today. But the entire class seemed to have eaten straight sugar before I came in. They could not stop giggling, chatting, and generally being disruptive. We were talking about emotions, feelings, and how we feel. I was trying to explain "terrible" to them, and got a very sad look on my face. I said "How do I look?" Benny, my most hyper and disruptive student, said "Ugly?" .... I guess I should have clarified better! I got a shocked look on my face, and then he says "Oh, oh, oh... surprised!" Haha... these kids!

Third - Jackie came back again. It was a great class - very participatory, got some great responses, and felt like I generally had a good grasp on the class and the material.

Fourth - 2SAP girls... This class was a fiasco! I was checking homework and realized the girls had the old homework checklist, rather than the updated one that I had. Therefore, today was supposed to be a review, but they had not completed all their vocabulary. So, I made a teacher-decision, and we worked on the homework that should have been done last night, and then took the Word Quiz. Good decision, since I realized the W.Q. had words on it that we did together in class. Oops! Also, I think the girls did better since we had gone over the words immediately before taking the quiz. So, instead of reviewing in class, I sent the review home, and they will test tomorrow, right on schedule. Phew! Crisis averted... except that I had 1 student absent. So, she would be extra behind tomorrow. I had my partner teacher, Hannah Teacher (Korean), call Rachel's mom and explain the homework. So, Rachel will take the exam on Friday, instead of tomorrow. What a confusing and crazy day in that class!

Fifth - Jackie observed again (I was thanking Jesus and my lucky stars she had not chosen the previous class since it was so chaotic). I think I achieved something amazing - when explaining the vocab words with the class, we came to the word "rule" - I had them read the definition and then I asked "do we have rules at school? what are some rules at school?" I could only get 1 reply, "don't talk when teacher talks," so to dig myself out of that one, I said "Right, so here in SLP, we have a rule - don't speak Korean! Remember?!" (All of the kids speak Korean, but we tell them not to so they will practice their English) Well, I looked at Jackie Teacher and she is sitting in the corner just cracking up. I didn't realize it was that funny, but she thought it was hilarious. So, score! Jackie isn't mean, but a true laugh I have yet to see come out of her. Yay!

Sixth - my boys. I am so lazy with them. By the end of the day, I am so tired that I usually just sit and verbally go through everything rather than write it all on the board. They are so smart, anyway. Today I had my first trial run with the creative writing. I had them write about a trip they want to take, to go anywhere. They had to talk about what they would do, what animals they would see, etc. Using their vocab. I had two boys write about going to the Sun, and another to a lost island paradise under the ocean. I thought that was fairly creative. I was proud :)

Really, that is about all that happened today. I made Kraft Original Mac & Cheese when I got home (yay!!!) even though I was really craving a burger (I didn't want to make the trip to Itaewon just for that...).  This week is going by much faster than last week, thankfully. I am also feeling much more in control with my classes, since I am organizing their lesson plans, homework, etc. I am actually starting to enjoy it. I get the most frustrated when I am trying to teach and they won't stop talking!!! I want to shake their little faces until they pay attention!!!!! Haha!

Tonight my goal is to be in bed going to sleep by midnight!!! Looking good so far... Really excited for the Apple announcement tomorrow (well, I'll see it tomorrow. I'm not staying up til 3am to watch it tweeted live!) GOODNIGHT!!!

Manic Monday

Today wasn't really manic, actually. More like monotonous. I mean, it wasn't bad. It's just typical Monday! That horrible day when you're the farthest away from a weekend you will ever be in a week. Thankfully, Monday is almost over.

I wasn't going to write a blog tonight. I didn't think anything of any interest happened today. But, as I was about to get in bed to go to sleep, I realized that I felt significantly under-accomplished without spending the time to write a blog. Granted, it takes me around 1-2 hours to write each blog (not exaggerating), but today wasn't a grand adventure; I am thinking this post will be shorter...

Anyway, back to how I hate Mondays. Monday mornings suck in particular, because we have to be at work by noon, rather than 1pm. So, less time to myself in the mornings. When I got to school today, we had a teacher's meeting with the other foreign teachers and Jackie Teacher. I found out two things - one was almost bad, and the other was bad.

First, one of the classes I teach was announced to be changing some curriculum around, and I would now teach an additional book, which had no Powerpoints or resource material prepared. All needed to be made from scratch... But, then I found out it was not my class after all! It was the other class with the same name as my class that Sean Teacher teaches. Dodged a bullet; I feel for Sean :(

The other piece of news was that the only Saturday in my entire contract that I will be required to work is ... *drum roll* ... the weekend my mom will be in town. That's right. The only Saturday my mom will be here in Seoul with me, I have to go to work. I even kind of mentioned to Jackie Teacher that my mom will be in town, but she definitely did not get the hint to let me off work. Double :(

I really tried not to be too upset about this. Really, really hard. But, I couldn't help it. I'll have waited 4 months to see my mom, will not be able to see her again for another 8 months, and I will get 1 single day off work to spend with her (Sunday), out of the week she will be here. One day. I'm actually extremely depressed about it. I am considering being "sick" the Monday after that weekend... or maybe, I'll just tell Jackie, "Sorry, I can either miss Saturday when we have no classes, or Monday when you will have to find someone to replace me. Your choice." (Ha! Yeah right! I could never say that to an authority figure.)

After the meeting, I worked through Office Hours and got extra prepared; not only for today, but tomorrow as well. Classes were decent. I am definitely feeling the "growing pains" of my patience. During times when I want to sit down, cry, pull my hair out, and yell, I think of my Dad and the other really good teachers I had. They didn't do that. They just got things done. They chose their battles, not yelling at every single child every time one of them talked when they weren't supposed to, or did something stupid. It helps a little...

During my first class, the heathen children, Jackie Teacher observed my class. Thank goodness I thought she was just in there to help me keep the crazy kids under control rather than "observe" or I might have done worse. I actually think I did a fairly good job. I wasn't stuck to the computer as a script, could walk around and ask questions, got the kids talking and answering questions. I felt good about it.

In my second class, my problem child, Belle, decided she didn't want to be awake during class. I tried talking to her, touching her, even shaking her a bit; she did not budge. I finally had to ask Jackie Teacher to come in. She took Belle out of class, and returned her about 15 minutes later. Jackie Teacher told me later that Belle told her "a bad thing happened, and she does not want to study." Well, alright then... This girl absolutely baffles me.

Next class was okay, but Jackie came in and rather than observing, starting yelling at the kids to do something I had not told them to. Listen, lady, I know what I'm doing! I actually had it under control. I told her what we were doing and she said okay and left. I was actually a little confused by her random interruption and abrupt departure...

My 2SAP girls were okay. Sometimes they can be quite frustrating - these are the 3 sweet girls who just can't seem to get it together for school. We read their textbook and did some workbook pages. Nothing exciting there. My last two 1-hour classes were also uneventful. Well, in my first one, I had a student make a 0 on her vocabulary quiz. She has to come retake it tomorrow. I felt bad for her, but a 0?! Come on... My last class the boys just whipped through their work. I decided to make extra work for them when they do that.

During my last hour of planning, I made little essay packets for that last class, with prompts based on their Student Book lessons and using their vocabulary words. This is just something for them to do when they finish all their work early like they've been doing recently. It is creative writing type stuff. They need to work on their writing anyway... I am pretty proud of my little creations (the essay books, not the children....)

As far as the "social" aspect of my life (I say that with a great deal of irony), I had a heart-to-heart with Michelle at work. She had some personal things going on, and confided in me. Of course, I wouldn't break that confidence just to have something to talk about on a blog! :P So, suffice it to say that I was there for her in a time of need. I don't think I can say it enough - I love this girl! She's such a great person and friend :)

After giving her my best counsel, she headed home and so did I. My feet were absolutely killing me and my stomach hurt as well. I had Cheerios for dinner and watched TV on my computer. Then Tab and I talked about our Chusoc plans. That is Korean Thanksgiving, and we get 5 days off (including weekends, but who cares!?). It is from the end of September to the beginning of October.

We thought about going to China, but there was too much to think about for such short notice. The price wasn't bad, especially for an international trip. But, it was still more than I have to throw around before my first paycheck. I found a website called Adventure Korea - a Korean travel club. They host trips around Korea. The Chusoc trip looked perfect - it's in Korea, but still out of Seoul. It looks like an adventure with volcano climbing and beach time and cliff diving! I want to go so bad! It's a little pricey, but it would be worth it to take advantage of one of our only vacation times! I am waiting for Tab to give us the "go" and we will book it.

That's about all I have for today, and thank goodness because it's already taken 30 minutes to write all that! Time for sleep and hopefully I won't be so tired tomorrow. I need all the energy I can muster for the rest of the week.

Packing

I guess I can no longer avoid the inevitable: packing. I've been putting this off for, oh, 3 weeks. "But, seriously, how am I supposed to pack that far in advance? I'll need stuff between now and then!" Alas, "then" has arrived...

My plan involves 1 checked bag, less than 50lb, 1 carryon suitcase, and 1 personal item (backpack!) Since I will be living in a motel for the first week and a half til I get my apartment, I decided to pack my essentials in my carry on, and avoid getting into my checked bag until I get to the apartment. And all my valuable technology goes in the backpack.

In the 3 weeks I've been starting to pack, I've been just dumping things on the spare room bedroom as I remember I need them. Today, I had to sort thru the mess and actually get it in a bag. Thank goodness my dad is a Tetris master, and packing is basically the same thing.

I kept feeling like I hadn't chosen too much to take. I know that there will be plenty for me to buy there; I wear a small enough size clothing that I will find my size there, and shoes are also available for my size 7. (Shoes only go up to a women's size 8 there...!) Toiletries will be fairly easy to find as well. I am making a point to take my Bumble&Bumble hair products and 3 sticks of deodorant. Supposedly you can find it easily now, but I'd rather pay $0.88 at CVS than $10 at E-Mart in Seoul.

Basically, I'm attempting to bring enough of everything (or almost everything) and not too much of anything. I figure, I can bring what I need, when I run out, I'll buy more there. If I can't find anything I do need, I'll have enough time with my small supply to order more online or ask mom to send to me. Must be smarter than the suitcase...

I decided to try the "Army Roll" for my clothing in my carryon. Here is the link if you want to watch the video on this... It worked pretty well, but I'm not convinced that it created a significantly greater amount of space than my usual space bags. Oh well. No harm, no foul. For my checked bag, I packed normally....

In my carryon, I also packed several small bags, a tooth bag (toothbrush, trial size toothpaste, floss, etc), a hair bag (trial size shampoo, conditioner, testers of hair products, etc). I also packed an extra pair of shoes. The ones I am wearing on the plane are great, but I'd like to have an extra pair for that first week.

Speaking of shoes, I packed only like 4 pairs. I am wearing silver snakeskin flats on the plane (totally worn out, will prob throw away before returning home), packed my silver crochet Toms in my carryon, and in the checked bag, 1 pair of Sperry's, 1 pair of worn out New Balance, and ... well, I think that's it! I plan to buy my fall/winter boots there, as well as rainboots and hiking shoes. Luckily, I will be living in the same neighborhood as Dongdaemun Market, where I will have access to 24 hour shopping at 23 malls, 30,00 vendors, 50,000 manufacturers. Um, Yes.... this is real. And all within 10 blocks. *heaven!* So, being a "normal" Korean size, I am confident in my ability to get cheap, fashionable shoes in my neighborhood.

I also decided to pack my Canon Rebel DSLR camera and extra lens in my checked bag. I'm not so sure about this decision, but my dad says he got it extremely snug, it's in it's special packaging, and my suitcase is a hard-side. So, cross your fingers it stays safe.

Once I got everything stuffed in my checked bag, sorted out what to put in the carryon, we attempted to weigh this sucker. The limit is 50lb... this stupid thing was 55lb!!! So, we had to eliminate a few things... most of this consisted of vitamins and medicine, school supplies, and some electronic converters and stuff. My mom says we will just pack the stuff up and mail it out this week. So, I'll just have to wait for it and hope I don't need my Aleve Cold and Sinus between now and when it arrives. I think I'll be okay!

So, at this point, I have successfully got everything confined to 2 suitcases (1 significantly smaller than the other), and a backpack. I still have a few things to put in: makeup, hair products, all stuff I need on the morning I leave to get ready. And a few tops are in the wash, so they will get stuffed in the carry on as well. That checked bag is not getting touched, 49lb is incredible!!!!

At this point, I am trying to soak up every moment with my parents possible... and, trying to not have a panic attack.

Lazy

Since I got home from Florida, I've been simultaneously lazy and overwhelmed. I want to revel in my soft and comfy bed, cook the foods I want to eat, and watch all the Netflix and Hulu I can handle. Unfortunately, I need to be preparing for my imminent departure in, oh, just like, 20 days.

AHHHHH!!!

Some things I've been doing this week to prepare (which doesn't amount to much...)
- Throwing random little things I want to take, such as adaptors, converters, power strips (I think those will be very handy!), medicine, and some spices (Italian seasoning, garlic powder, rosemary, etc), into a suitcase laying permanently open on my bedroom floor.
- Mentally putting together outfits which I think would be appropriate for work, and also noting which clothes I couldn't live without (aka: Victoria's Secret PINK Boyfriend sweatpants for lounging around my apartment).
- Begging insurance to let me get my annual eye exam 2 months early and not pay for the appointment or order while abroad (BTW the answer was no... but if I can get an itemized receipt in English they will cover a whopping $35...) The good thing is I think medical care there is relatively inexpensive. Maybe I won't go broke getting contacts...
- Ordering replacement heads for my Clarisonic face brush. These are way too expensive but I found a twin-pack on Amazon with free shipping, so that will last me 6 months then I can ask my mom to send me more hehehe
- Making a massive list of the movies and tv shows to get put on an external hard drive for me. Nothing illegal here, folks. Just a friend doing me a favor... So far, the list is 1 page, 3 columns, 12-point font...
- Making sure my laptop is up to date with all my files and music and photos from my iMac.
- Researching places in Seoul such as an eye doctor, a church, where to buy cheese, etc.
- Emailing with a guy who is also going to teach at my same school. My recruiter (bless her heart) gave me his email and he seems like a nice guy. We're even Facebook friends, and he doesn't seem to be creepy so that's a huge plus! ;)
- Picking the brain of my friend Tab who leaves for her Seoul adventure TOMORROW! We grew up in the same small town in North Texas, but were put in touch by a mutual friend. I'm so happy we could talk before we got to Seoul, and we will have each other to keep us company all those lonely times.
- Attempting to decide what items are of emotional or symbolic value that I must take. So far, I KNOW I must take my turquoise blue embroidered ZTA blanket from my Big, Kristen. My pillow (nothing beats it), and trying to determine what best reminds me of Michael. I would love to take photos, but I hate not having frames - I would need to buy frames over there, and would hate to print photos in a size they don't have frames for in Korea. I'm mildly OCD about this, but frameless photos annoy me for some reason. My mom crocheted me some winter slipper booties, and I must take those. Also, she made the cutest little scarf and I talked her into letting me have it :) After all, she will probably need it far less than I will.
- Turning off my Verizon cell phone service. Good thing I broke my phone so close to needing to cancel service anyway. I have gotten a Google Voice number and finally got Talkatone and Gmail set up to allow my iPad to function as my phone for the next 14 months.
- Selling my car. Well, not actually. I told my mom to sell her car and take mine. She's always loved my car and still has payments on hers; I am such a nice daughter :) Haha! So, no more mode of transportation for me!

Well, for now, that's what I am up to. I can't wait to hear from Tab once she arrives in Seoul and gets relatively settled. Hopefully she can give me some advice!

Comment if you have a recommended movie or tv show I should take with me!

Mistake?

When I first began my job search for teaching in Korea, I didn't know what to look for. Still today, I feel unprepared. But, I consoled myself that I would be making slightly more than several other jobs I'd seen (2.1 mil Korean Won, vs. 1.8-2.0 mil at other schools). But today I realized and admitted to myself that I may have been too hasty in accepting a job. I will be working in a private school, which means...

Pros: smaller class sizes, more foreign teachers to connect with

Cons: significantly less vacation (8-10 days in a year, vs. 4 weeks at a public school), significantly less sick leave (3 days vs. 15 at a public school)

These are only the ones that I know of at the moment. My friend, Tab, is working at a public school and I can already tell she's got a better deal. She arrives 3 weeks earlier than me, but also gets a week vacation before she starts teaching! Ugh...

I hope I am not going to regret my decision to go private. Just telling myself that fewer students means I can connect with them more and make a difference. *fingers crossed...*

Booked

A few days ago I received my airline ticket itinerary from my school. I will be leaving Houston at 8:50am on Wednesday, August 22, arriving in San Francisco at 11am, continuing to Seoul at 1:10pm on Wednesday and arriving at 5:25pm Thursday, August 23. Basically, I lose 2 whole days, accounting for flight times and time zone changes. It will be 3:25am in Houston when I land. Good grief! 

Seeing my itinerary, with my real name on it, with actual flights, is insane. Is this really happening?! All my preparations are actually paying off. I am MOVING to ASIA for a YEAR! I can't believe it. I also can't believe I will have to pack so little for an entire year!

I looked up my airlines, and the international portion of the flight is through Asiana Airlines. They allow 2 checked bags up to 50lb. Alright,no problem there. However, getting to that flight I have to fly through United which, besides the fact that I hate basically every domestic carrier besides Southwest, allows ZERO free checked bags. So, I must pay $25 for the first, and $35 for the second. Now, most of the time, if you book an international flight and your domestic carrier doesn't allow for the same baggage as the primary carrier, they must accommodate you. However, I did not book this ticket. A travel agent did, who worked with my school and recruiter. So, I have a dilemma... 

If he booked my flights separate (which may have been cheaper), not only must I pay for the bags to get to San Francisco, but if my first flight is delayed and I somehow cannot make my international flight, I am screwed. I will have to attempt to get in contact with my school/recruiter and get another flight, which could take FOREVER (literally). However, if it was booked as one ticket, the airline must help me get to Korea.

Of course, when I emailed my recruiter to ask about how the flight was booked, she had no information. She said that the travel agent will call me this week to make sure everything is good to go. However, I have yet to receive this phone call...

Ah, well, such is life. I am more annoyed about the baggage and more scared about missing the international flight. I could be so screwed! :/ Yikes!

At least now I know that I can have 2 50lb bags, and may or may not have to pay an extra $60 to get them there. Now I can really start planning my packing...

I have read that I should not worry toooo much about clothes. Being a female, and a fairly style-conscious female at that, this is a dilemma. I want to bring ALL my clothes, not a few! I've read that the clothing there is inexpensive; also, if I buy it there, I know I will not make some horrible faux-paus of wearing a low-cut shirt to a traditional dinner or some other terrible ordeal. I still have no idea what my school's dress code is, but I guess I will just find out. So: pack only a week or two worth of clothes. 

Now this is disturbing: Koreans do NOT, I repeat, do NOT wear deodorant. "How is this possible?!" you ask?? I too would like that question answered. But, it matters not. Because I DO wear deodorant. Thus, I will be bringing 3 sticks of deodorant.

I can't seem to figure out if Korean women use certain feminine hygiene products... Sorry, guys! But we ladies are picky about what we use, and if they don't have some Tampax Pearl, I might die. Well, not really. But if anyone can answer that question, I'd be grateful. Should I pack my own preferred brand of tampons?

I am prone to body-aches and headaches and all kinds of aches, especially when I am not sleeping in my usual bed which has 2" foam padding. Therefore, I have determined to bring my own Ibuprofen. I know it can be gotten in Seoul, but I would rather not take the risk of getting the wrong thing, and would rather not pay through the nose for it. So, Economy-size bottle of pain killers, vitamins, sleep aids, and other necessary medications.

Of course, my carry-on will contain my laptop, iPad, iPod, iPhone, and other various i-Devices. As well as their chargers! The great thing about Apple is their chargers are conveniently already equipped as power-converters. All I need is the Korean adaptor piece. The world travel adaptor kit that Apple sells contains one of these magic items, but with all my iStuff, I really need more. If you or anyone you know owns the travel adaptor kit made by Apple, and do not foresee going to Korea within the next 13 months, I'll happily take it off your hands. I can pay you for it, or return it to you after my time abroad. Please comment if you want to help me get Apple adaptor plugs for Korea. I suppose I will also need a few converter/adaptors for normal plugs, and of course some Korean plugs with USB or Mini-USB input. I am crossing my fingers I can find some either online at an expat buy/sell/trade site or some cheap ones at mini-marts in Seoul. 

I am certain there are more things I will need to remember to pack, but for now, I will leave it at this. If you have any suggestions or ideas of what I desperately need for a year in Korea, comment! :)

I will be on a cruise next week and the following week returning to Houston for the Big Pack-a-thon, and will be updating you all further with my musings and findings of what I will need. Til then...

Visa

Today I got my Visa back from the Korean Consulate. I already began describing all the preparations that go into preparing for a trip such as mine, but receiving this reminded me of all the hard work that went into getting it. 


After all my paperwork was gathered (detailed more in "Redtape"), I had to mail it all to my school in South Korea. I say it again, MAKE COPIES of your papers before you mail them! I mailed my stack of papers via DHL, and it cost $54 to send priority. Holy crap! It is worth it though, because once they receive the papers, the school must submit them, as well as their own paperwork, to the Immigration office. Immigration then reviews everything, makes sure I am not a criminal or a dropout, then gives the school back a visa-issuance number. That process took almost 3 week after the school received the papers. This is not even the last step! That's why I put a rush on the papers' delivery.

The waiting periods during this whole process are obnoxious. Waiting for the background check, waiting for the apostille, waiting for some approval, waiting for a signature. Now I have to wait for the country of KOREA to tell me it's okay that I come.

Finally, I got the email back from my recruiter giving me the issuance number. The email thankfully included lots of other documents about what to do from here. Basically, I fill out 2 more forms, pay some more money, and give the copies of everything as well as the documents to the Korean Consulate. I was extremely lucky because there is a Korean Consulate in Houston. I looked it up and there are like less than a dozen in the country, and one was 45 minutes from my house. Thank goodness! If I hadn't been able to drop my stuff off at the Consulate, I would have had to mail it in, and that just scares me. Lost mail, wrong or incorrectly filled out documents, etc. Yikes! 

The funny thing was that when I took my paperwork to the Consulate, the processing guy told me that all he needed was the application, photo, and the money. (ps - here is where an additional passport photo is needed. You now have used 5/6 photos, 4 in the packet sent to Korea, 1 here) I thought it was hilarious that I went through all the trouble making sure I had copies of everything, gathering all of it up, and triple checking my checklist. He needed basically none of it. If I had mailed my application I would have included all this and they wouldn't have even needed it. So, at least now I still have copies of all my stuff (just in case!).

Once I submitted my application for the visa at the Consulate in Houston, it was ANOTHER waiting game. For one more time, I had to wait and hope they would not stamp my application with a big, fat "DENIED". 

Four business days later, it was ready to be picked up. Unfortunately, it was ready about 7 hours after my flight left for Miami. Really?! Thankfully I have amazing parents who went to get it for me. :) They mailed it to me here in Miami since I will need it on my cruise in a few weeks. So, I finally laid eyes on my long-awaited Korean Work E2 Visa. Wow! All that hard work for a little sticker in my passport (granted, it is a badass sticker!)

Now I wait for my school to book my ticket to Seoul! I want to say this is my last step, but realistically it isn't. I still have to pack, take a lonnnnng plane ride, go through an extensive health exam, apply for an Alien Resident Card, go through orientation, and then actually begin learning how to do my job. THOSE are my last steps.... Ha!

But for now, I have an awesome addition to my passport. :)

Technology

I have arrived in sunny Miami, Florida! I know this blog is about my experiences in going to and preparing for Korea, but I am so excited to be here! I will be here all of July, taking an extended vacation to spend time with my boyfriend before I leave for Korea in August.

So far, I have managed to be extremely lazy, get a sunburn (curse of the fair-skinned) and eat. A lot. I thought I would use a portion of my obscene amount of free time to continue my blog, which I apologize has been neglected for a week or two... oops!

I certainly do not claim to be a technology guru, but I would say I am a bit of a junkie. Especially following my last job, where I learned about TONS of awesome stuff you can do with your technology, I now have a bit of everything. So I thought I would share my preparations for Korea regarding technology.

I am a Mac. I hope that I do not offend anyone, but if you are a PC, your life probably sucks. ;) JK... kinda. Hehehe
Well, I am a Mac, and following college, I got a desktop iMac (27" if you must know). It is my beautiful wonderful magically baby. I guess it was the extended amount of time spent with my 13" MacBook (white) on my lap in bed in college but I just don't like laptops anymore. I like the big screen, big power comfort of a beast of a machine. So with the prospect of moving to Korea, to a itty bitty apartment, I realize that toting along my iMac is impractical. Actually, it's almost impossible for me. I do have an iPad, but since I am not a 70 year old woman who only uses email, I need a computer. I was lucky enough to be able to work out a deal with my mom wherein she buys a new MacBook Pro (for herself) but loans it to me for my year abroad. While I am away, she is at liberty to use my iMac. Basically, we switch for the year. This works because her iMac (about 6 years old) is getting, well, old. So, after much hoo-ing and haw-ing (ps, where does that expression come from...?) we decided on a new 15" MacBook Pro. It is NOT the retina display (damn! too much money...). I originally wanted the Air, due to the weight, but I simply wanted a larger screen. My mom agreed. We know it is more of a computer than either of us will probably ever need, but oh well! Now I just need to find a Korean plug for the charger. 

By way of a phone, here is where my problems begin. I am spoiled on my iPhone. Absolutely spoiled! As you may have guessed with my introductory sentence above, I am loyal to Apple. This includes phones. I don't understand other smartphones. I'm sure there are good ones, but I don't want to try them. I like my iPhone. However, I use an iPhone 4 (I know, I need to upgrade...) The 4 is NOT a world phone. Mine is also tied to Verizon. I have been desperately trying to search forums and websites about using an iPhone in SouthKorea. Apparently, iPhones are available, but the way their networks work is different from America (and the rest of the world) AND if you bring your own, you have to register the phone with the GOVERNMENT to get the serial number approved to use on a line of service. I found some service plans that would work, and are certainly cheap enough. However, even if Verizon unlocked my phone, I believe the network will not work due to the technology that goes into the phone. So my options are thus: bring the phone and try to get it approved and put on a line of service (about a 30/70 chance of working, not in my favor) OR buy an iPhone there (cons being that i have to sign a 2 year contract which I cannot do, or pay full price for the phone, can't afford) OR buy an iPhone 4S here (world phone!) but we all suspect a new phone in the coming months, plus would have to pay full price which i just cannot do. 

So, being the devious little imp that I am, I start talking to my crazy-smart coworkers about my dilemma. One of the suggests, in a tone which implied that I should have already known this, that I could use Google Voice thru Talkatone app to make free calls to US numbers (also texts and voicemail). This is so unbelievably brilliant, I can't help but doing a happy dance. Now my only problem is to get data on my iPad. I will need to obtain the same approval from the government for my device (I do NOT understand this process) and then purchase a SIM-card for the iPad. So far, I am not 100% sure I can do this, but it is possible in almost every other country in the world, so I am crossing my fingers. If this works, I will buy a cheap flip-phone for local use over there, but keep iPad with data to make international calls to America (taking away the need for calling cards or international calling plans). Can I just say that technology is INCREDIBLE. Seriously, it just keeps getting better! 

What do you think of my plan? If you have any insider knowledge that I need to know, please comment! I want to cover all my bases before I get there. BUT please do NOT comment that I need to stop being so picky and get a phone over there, that that is the land of technology, or some other negative-nancy comment. I know what I want! So there :P

Oh, also, this is neat. I bought an AirPort Express router (Apple also). This little baby is awesome! It is about the size of a deck of cards, and I expect will be extremely helpful over there. When I get my internet hooked up, my American AirPort Express will be able to use English (without the horrible attempts at translations). I am excited to have an English router. It just hooks up into my modem or my ethernet and broadcasts my internet :) I can control it in English settings from my iPad. This way, when I am at my apartment, I can use the iPad (or iPhone in WiFi-only settings) to call home, thru google voice also. Finally, I can take the AirPort Express with me when I travel. Anywhere that has ethernet, I can plug this baby in and create my own little WiFi network. Brilliant!

If you don't speak techno, I probably just simultaneously bored and confused the hell out of you. But, if you can follow that, I hope I gave some good information. Please feel free to comment questions or advice! I welcome all help! :)

Redtape

After the excitement of actually getting a real job offer, I had to start collecting all my paperwork. Actually, before I had my interview I started this process because it is a somewhat long and tedious one. I just REALLY had to make it happen once I had signed a contract. My recruiter sent me a list of things to get done...

I suppose for those out there who don't have the benefit of a recruiter, I will go into some detail here.

First thing to request: Background check from the FBI. This takes the longest to complete, so request it straight away! I got my fingerprints done at the local police office (check with your station because they may do fingerprints only on certain days). They have official fingerprint cards there, but you do have to pay a fee to have them done. You will later need to get an apostille from DC of your completed background check, so be sure to request a "pre-authenticated" check. I typed out a short letter to "whom it may concern" requesting it, printed and signed. Include that letter, your background check request application (found here the FBI website), and your fingerprint card, and payment (no personal checks accepted, you can print a cc authorization form from their website which is probably easier than money order or cashiers check). Include all this and a completed FBI checklist in a priority mail envelope (I believe you need to include a prepaid for return envelope, but check on the FBI checklist!)

Second most time consuming process: requesting an apostile copy of your diploma from the Dept. of State. You must take a photocopy of your actual diploma to a notary, each of you sign and date, and send that off to your capitol, Austin in my case. Unfortunately, the first time I did this, I forgot to sign (actually, I didn't forget, i just didn't know!) This process should take a few weeks or less (mine was about 2 weeks).

Make sure you have 2-3 copies of your transcripts

You should definitely have ALREADY obtained your passport (you want to work OVERSEAS, right? hehe) You also need several copies of a passport photo; HOWEVER, most countries need it in their standard form. For this, rather than trying to get the Walgreens photo specialist to understand why I didn't want US-standard sizes, I went to the website here. You can select the photo size you want, upload your OWN photo (yay!) and choose how many. For the standard 2 photo sheet, the prices is about the same as Walgreens. But I needed 6 photos, so their "best value" of 6 photos was DEFINITELY cheaper! I was very happy with this service.

To be honest, this is a process I went thru about 2 months ago, and I am now staying in Miami (rather than Houston) so I don't have immediate access to all my paperwork to refer to. I will try to go back and edit this post when I get all my information back at hand. 

Oh, don't forget - make photocopies of EVERYTHING! Make 2 copies just in case! You will need copies for the Visa office later down the road... ;)