Hump Day with a PELTest

Ah, Wednesday.... one of my least favorite days of the week. Thankfully, today was not a bad Wednesday!

On the way to work today, it was perfectly sunny and temperatures were in the high 70s. By the time I got to work, I was a little hot, simply from walking a mile in the sun. But, it was the kind of weather that you can't help but smile at. I enjoy walking to work now that I can go alone. I know the way, and most of the teachers go in at various times (1230, 1245, 1, etc),s so we walk alone. It's a peaceful time. I get to listen to my music and think about whatever I want. I don't have to make conversation with anyone, I can just be with myself. I like it.

An aside: Koreans don't seem to wear sunglasses. Today was bright and sunshiny, but I was the only person wearing sunglasses! Maybe that contributes to the stares I get... Maybe.

When I got to work, I felt in control. I worked on my daily lesson plan, which I really enjoy doing! I have to turn them in to Jackie Teacher every day for 2 months, but chances are good that I will continue to do them for myself. (Each class has it's own lesson plans for the month, but doing a full day of plans with each class is helpful!) I even found the quizzes for 2 of my classes by myself and made the copies solo. I felt awesome!!! I finished up report cards, and had about 15 minutes to spare before class started.

My first class is my worst. I'm kind of glad of this, because once it's over, its mostly downhill after that. The class is made up of mostly 6-year-olds whose English skills are basic and have the attention span of a gnat. To top things off, there are 10 kids in the class... 3 are trouble makers, 3 are more advanced than the rest, and 4 just zone out for the whole class period (except to occasionally look up and copy the board into their workbooks). It's frustrating and wearing on my nerves... I can't wait for February when I can get rid of most of these kids. (Classes rearrange and change in February) The only kid I love is Tommy, whom I previously described. Bright eyed, eager to please the teacher, and raises his hand for every question. I love him!

My second class is also trying, but slightly less. This is mostly due to the fact that there are only 5 students, instead of 10. However, these kids are mostly all troublemakers. Two of them try and obviously enjoy class. But even they succumb to the incessant chattering of the others, chiming in and laughing at the most inopportune times.

Third period is one of my better classes. They are helpful when I am confused, receptive to my comments, responsive to my questions, and are willing to work. Granted, they are still young and therefore do get sidetracked easily. But I can wrangle them back in fairly easily.

Fourth period is my infamous 2SAP class: 4 (now 3) little girls who laugh at anything and everything, comment on everything, and generally suck any remaining energy from my reserves. One of the girls is taking a month vacation (I'm so jealous), so we have 3 now. One of those girls is significantly behind the others, but tries very hard so it's difficult to be too frustrated at her. Today, I had Jackie Teacher sit in on my class with them, and I was very intimidated. Korean culture leans heavily to the "constructive criticism" rather than "positive reinforcement" tactic with employees. Therefore, even when I do a great job, Jackie Teacher usually has a suggestion for me. Today, I was determined not to give her anything to say. She came in as we were reading the book, and I made sure we finished on time. When we were done, rather than moving on immediately, I asked the students some comprehension questions. To my delight, Rachel answered correctly on a question that was fairly difficult (predicting future events based on things that happened in the story we read). While she couldn't articulate her ideas with much finesse, she made her point and I reiterated it in the best grammar I could. Jackie Teacher seemed pleased, so we moved on to the next section. The girls did fairly well; Jackie Teacher only interjected when she felt like they were not understanding or the girls were not responding to my questions or prompts (come on, girls! you're killin' me here!!!) Overall, Jackie Teacher gave me a smile when she left the room, and I sighed in relief.

My next class was another large one, but these kids were fairly better behaved. They had a vocabulary quiz, after which they had a practice PEL Test. PEL Tests are the Korean education system's attempts at English Language Standardized Testing. 3 days out of the month, the kids do practice exams. Today was one of those days, so for 40 minutes of my hour long class, I got to sit down. This is a rare treat, and I enjoyed it immensely. The kids, unfortunately, suffered through 40 minutes of an hour long class listening to boring recordings and circling answers in a workbook. Poor kids, lucky teacher.

My last class was repeated in much the same manner, except these kids are at a higher level, so the questions were not repeated multiple times on the recordings, and therefore the test went by in 20 minutes rather than 40. So, I had 20 minutes to kill. I let them work on Homework (illegal), talk about their weekend plans (generally unacceptable), and pack up early (totally illegal). Thankfully, Jackie Teacher did not pop-in on this class or I would have been floundering.

After classes were over, I finished up some report cards I had missed in the morning, and made my lesson plan for the next day. Tomorrow, Sean, Jamie & I are going to Immigration to apply for our Alien Resident Cards, so we have to be at work at 12:30. Lucky us! I got the lesson plan done, which took care of one thing I would otherwise need to do tomorrow. Unfortunately, I was mentally checked out after that, so I did not prepare anything else for tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have some prep time before classes...

I talked to Michelle Teacher, my Korean BFF, for 20 minutes before I left. We made plans for the weekend - Sunday, we are meeting at her church for the English service, then getting lunch together. Her husband will be there also. When we left work, I waited with her until her husband got there to pick her up. She offered me a ride home, and while I don't mind walking much, I jumped at the offer. The other foreign teachers were still at work, so I would be alone anyway. Her husband picked us up a few minutes later and took me by my apartment. He was very nice!

I am very excited to spend Sunday with them! I also want to make plans with Tab for Friday night/Saturday, so I have something to look forward to the next 2 days. I think we might go to a Korean spa, or maybe a famous cafe. Who knows! (You will, when I blog about it after it happens!)

Two more days... two more days... WEEKEND!!!!

A Much Better Day

Man, I don't know what was up with yesterday! I could barely keep my eyes open... Okay, maybe that had something to do with the Advil PM I took. But, mentally! I was super beat. Literally I didn't want to think for half a second about my classes.

Today, though, was a different story. Tuesday/Thursday I have only 5 classes (rather than 6), so I got extra time to prep when I got to work. As soon as I got there, I had a little list of what I needed to do to prepare. Also, because I am new, I have to do daily lesson plans to turn in to Jackie Teacher. While some may think this is micro-managing, I love it. For a person as organized as I am, this is helpful to me as well as her. I get to go through every class and really make sure I am doing what I need to do.

I realized that I had 2 quizzes in 2 of my classes, so I made sure to get copies of those. I also got my 2SAP class sorted, since yesterday was so terrible. Finally, I began doing copies of Report Cards for each student who had a test last week. Thankfully, someone (Maggie, I assume) had already done them, I just needed to insert her comments and print. How nice!

Honestly, as long as my day is and as many classes as I go to, I can't remember which class had which issues, etc. But, I do know that I felt a million times better today. Not perfect, there were still a few glitches: one of the quizzes, I had to read them sentences, and I forgot the manuscript. Another class, the computer completely crashed when I had to get done 2x as much work as a normal day. And the list goes on...

One great thing was that Michelle Teacher got to move and now her desk is next to mine! :D This makes me very happy! She is so awesome. I decided I want to get a Bible Verse daily calendar we can share on the desk. :) I get them in emails from Air1 everyday, and one I received a few days ago really spoke to me:

"Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Jesus Christ" - 1Thes 5:16-18. 

It reminds me that even when I am beat down and feel like I can't go on, I can have joy. If for no other reason than I have a savior who died for me. There are so many more reasons, though. Never stop praying - in every single situation, good or bad, invite God into it. He can take care of things infinitely better than I can. In my classes, in my relationships, in my walk to school, in my apartment, everything. Talk to him. Be thankful in ALL circumstances. I need to thank Him for the hard times, as well as the good. I came here for a challenge; to become a better person. And, I'm here and doing just that! Even when I'm tired, and the day is overwhelming, just being thankful can completely change your attitude. Even if you fake it 'til you make it, IT WORKS! And anyway, I'm where I am because of God, and his will for my life. That is something to be thankful for; I am taken care of.

This morning I made 3 eggs, and some toast. I ate a yogurt before classes began, and I'm still quite content at almost 10pm! That is so awesome, and a staggering difference from last week. Michael still cracks up thinking about me living on bread and coke. Every time we talked on FaceTime, he could see me with this huge 2L of Coke, drinking straight from the bottle. This is what living in a motel does to you!!! Now, I come home to a clean apartment with a bed, a kitchen, food in the pantry, and privacy! I am so thankful!

I am still tired, but I feel slightly less haggard tonight. I want to make plans for the weekend, so I have something to look forward to. I really appreciate weekends now! Tomorrow is Wednesday: hump day. Make it through tomorrow, and it's all downhill. Yay!

Michelle said she would go shopping with me on Saturday, so maybe we will do that. I don't want to seem desperate, but I would really like to do that. Hopefully she is still up for it! I also want to go see Tab. Maybe we will go out to her favorite place: Hongdae. Or, maybe I want to pass out by Friday at 8pm. Who knows!

This is a somewhat short blog; I need to get better about remembering my classes! It's so hard to think back and talk about what we did. Sometimes it's just so boring that even I can't make it interesting... Other times, it's so chaotic my mind couldn't even take it in. But one thing is certain: I am making progress. I still have a lot to learn, but it's getting better. :)

I am going to go make some dinner and maybe watch a movie - I made myself blog as soon as I got home so I wouldn't do a repeat of yesterday! Hopefully something interesting happens soon ;)

I'm too tired to think of a title

I decided today, instead of writing about what happened during my day in a chronological fashion, I will just ... well, ramble.

Things that annoy me about Korea:

• You don't exist to half the people you're around. no one gets out of the way when you're trying to pass by and no one looks at you (or they stare awkwardly)
• The other half of people think you're a freak of nature.
• Simple things are now much more difficult. like going to the store to buy something. you can't read Korean, so what's to do? I spent 30 minutes translating my air conditioning remote last night...
• There is dust everywhere. every where!
• When you walk down the street, there are 3 smells: fish, trash, or sewage. 
• You have a very limited pool of people to be friends with
• High expectations by your employer and coworkers.

Things I like about Korea:

• When you actually talk to someone (i.e.: store worker), most of them are fairly friendly. 
• I feel legit when I can actually say something in Korean
• My work hours are conducive to talking to friends/family back home.
• The kids are so cute!

Best part(s) of my day -

• I got to make bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast!!! So delicious!
• Tommy in my New Hi Kids class is so precious and tries so hard. He looks at me with big, expectant eyes. I can just hear his brain sucking up all the information. Kid is smart, and eager to learn. Today, during class, another student (Brian) was pointing a pencil at me, and saying something in Korean. It must have been something like "I'm going to throw this pencil and hurt teacher!" because Tommy held his hands out in front of Brian to try to stop him throwing the pencil. He was protecting me! He is the only good part of that class.
• In one of my Reach Out classes, I knew exactly what I was doing and found everything I need on the computer. I finished all the work on the schedule and the kids were pretty well behaved. 
• Michelle Teacher agreed to go shopping this weekend for clothes with me. I am so excited to have a Korean come and help me!
• I got my bed fixed! It was falling over very badly...

Worst part(s) of my day -

• Immediately after my great Reach Out class, I completely fumbled the ball during my 2SAP class. I didn't have new books for the unit, I had forgotten to give them their homework over the weekend, and I found out later, I also forgot to give them their new Learning Calendar and Homework Checklist. So, basically, nothing got done.
• Nothing good to eat at lunch at work. Good thing I brought my own sandwich and snacks!
• My feet are killing me (what else is new?!)
• I have 4 more days til the weekend...

I am extremely tired. The long days get to me. Working until 9 will take a lot of getting used to. I'm so thankful I have mornings to myself, though. At least tomorrow I only have 5 classes...

I promise I'll get back to my usual descriptive blogs soon; I needed a breather tonight.

My Apartment!

Even though I technically moved into my apartment Friday night, today I finally started to "make it my own." I dedicated the whole day to this! I knew I needed to unpack, organize, and probably go get some things from the store for the apartment.

I started my work around 12pm, after sleeping late and talking to Michael in the morning. I so wish I had taken before photos, because I feel like I put a lot of work into getting things arranged the best way possible, and the room looks excellent now.

First thing that I knew I wanted to do was to organize the mess of cords by my bed. There was this huge bundle of cords all tangled and going every which way. I channeled my inner-Dad and got all the cords sorted and wound up so they were neat and tidy. After that, I decided that I really wanted to move my bed. I had heard that if you position the bed to where the headboard is against the wall opposite the entrance to the room, the room looks biggest. So, I pushed and pulled and got my bed turned 90˚, and against the other wall.

Since I was moving furniture, I decided to also move the fridge. Currently, it was kind of in the middle of the entrance walk way. Not terribly in the way, but awkwardly taking up valuable space. I moved it beside my wardrobe, facing the stove. This also makes getting food out to cook easier. The place I put the fridge was currently home to a hutch of sorts. Maggie had had a microwave/convection oven on it, so I guess it suited her needs. She sold that before I moved in, so the hutch was just an awkward short table-thing for me. I put it where the fridge had been, half to cover up the horrible looking floor where the fridge had been, half because that was the only place for it.

Being Chelsea - Homemaker !

My next endeavor was to get rid of the TV. The cable-cord came out right by my bed, but there was no where good to put the TV that the cable could reach. I decided that since TV rots your brains anyway (and I have a terabyte of movies on my harddrive), I would get the TV out of the way. Bonus, this eliminated a few cords that were clogging up that area. I decided to put the TV on top of the fridge, since it wasn't a full size fridge, and had a good 3-4' of space on top before the ceiling. I managed to pick up the TV, but lifting it over my head was not happening. I decided to wait until I could ask Sean to help me move it. (He came by a few hours later and we accomplished getting it up there). I also put the DVD player and remotes up there behind the TV (why would I need those anyway?)

I got some laundry going during this time and had to Google what the washer settings were supposed to be. I think I figured out "quick wash." I don't have a dryer so all the clothes go on the drying rack after the wash. (PS - it's been 8 hours since the first load came out and some clothes are still wet-ish).

Unfortunately, the result of moving furniture that hasn't been moved, let alone cleaned behind, in years is dust. Lots of dust. I began a list of things to get at the store, and the top of the list was some kind of swiffer type dust mop. Other things included: a rug, lamps, some kind of poster/wall art for next to my bed, decent pot/pan, school supplies, clock, new toilet seat (the current one was the kind with foam inside, and had a rip. The foam couldn't dry because my bathroom is a Korean style shower aka gets water everywhere. It was gross to sit on...), and lots of other things!

When I got most of the house-work accomplished that I aimed to, I set off for HomePlus, the Korean version of Target. I'd been before, but this time I had a list and I was on a mission. HomePlus is not very far from me, but I didn't know which bus to take. I contemplated taking a taxi there, but I knew I'd have to take one home with all my purchases. Somehow, I found myself walking the familiar route to school. The one time I'd been to HomePlus, I had left from school, so I knew which bus to take from there. I finally made it and got the bus just in time.

A few minutes after getting on the bus, the driver stopped at a red light... and turned off the bus. He jumped up and said something in Korean, and got off the bus. It was a red light, so there was no immediate danger, but I had no idea what was going on. None of the Koreans looked concerned, so I just kept looking around trying to figure it out. I heard the driver messing around with something in the very back of the bus (engine, maybe?) He raced back around, hopped in his seat, and the light turned green. I still have no idea what happened, but I was very impressed with his timing.

On the way to HomePlus, the bus went over a small river, When we were on the bridge, I looked out the windows and saw the best view I've seen since I got here. It was the mountains to the north of Seoul, and it really made me smile. I'm sure the Koreans thought I looked extra weird (already being weird for being a blonde American), but it reminded me that there is life outside this chaotic city, and it's really beautiful.

Once at HomePlus, I attempted to get some money out at the ATM, but it kept having a read-error. After 5 attempts, I gave up and decided to just make the purchases on the card. The fee would be more, but oh well.

This was one of those shopping trips that even though I had a list, I went down every single aisle. It was a good thing, because I found a few items I had not written down, but did need! Before I went to HomePlus, I had priced a few things at the small "everything-store" next to me, and there was a few things I was surprised were more expensive at HomePlus. Things like pots and pans and surge protectors were much cheaper at the small shop. Other things were better at HomePlus, though. I got the toilet seat replacement!! I splurged a few more dollars for the cute one with polka dots rather than ugly pink or blue.

I got a spatula for making eggs, some wall hooks for my jewelry to hang, a clock (luckily the only one that was contemporary looking, not basic black and white, was the cheapest too!), some batteries for my AC remote control, a lot of school supplies like red pens, some labels, a basket to take my things to class, a pen cup, some scissors, post-its; also, zip ties for the cords I had wrangled earlier, some hangers with grippy material on the shoulders for my tops that fall off the hangers I inherited. I'm sure there was more, but I can't remember now. I also bought some food staples: eggs, bacon, bread, special k cereal, some chips (Korean Pringles), pasta sauce (Maggie left some pasta in the pantry), milk, yogurt, cheese slices, laundry detergent and fabric softener (Maggie had left detergent, but no softener and I made sure to remedy this situation), chip-clips... hmm, I can't think of what else!

I checked-out, and filled up all my reusable bags I had brought. I lugged them out to a taxi nearby and the driver was extremely nice, a rarity in old Korean men who speak no English (in my experience!). I made it home, unpacked my groceries, and went to that small store nearby for the last few items; a non-stick pan for my eggs (Maggie's wasn't non-stick, and messed up my eggs this morning), a pot (the one Maggie left was questionable...), and a surge protector. I already had a surge protector, but it only had 4 plugs, and with all my technology, I need more.

Finally back at the apartment and cleaned up, I snapped some photos. Like I said, I definitely wish I could show you the difference from this morning. The room now feels much more open, bigger, and I've made efficient use of the space while maintaining a simplistic feel (aka: limited clutter!). Now I just need some color. I couldn't find a rug or lamp or poster for the wall. But, I did get magnets and have my photos of my family and Michael on my fridge :)

Brunch, Shopping, and New Friends

In case you aren't caught up on all my blog posts, last night was a late one. I didn't get to sleep until 4am. Tab and I went to the Dongdaemun Night Market. It was a crazy experience and I loved it! She spent the night and we woke up with a mission to find an American breakfast.

We have both been so sick of Korean food, and in particular, not having any western breakfasts! Apparently, Koreans eat kimchi and rice for breakfast. I'm not commenting on this practice, but you can guess my opinion.

We did our research a few days ago when we made the plan, and set off to Itaewon: Little America in Seoul. It is situated right next to the Army Post in Seoul, so it caters to westerners very well. We took the subway and met the cutest little girl on the train. I wish I'd gotten her picture, but the whole thing happened quite fast.

Tab and I were sitting on the train (which is kind of a big deal, seeing as seats are prime real estate and if a young person or a foreigner (or, heaven forbid, a young foreigner) sits in a seat, everyone over 50 years of age gives you the stink eye... ) Well, we were only 1 stop away from our destination, and the cutest little Korean girl got on the train holding her dad's hand. We waved at her and she waved back. Dad saw and literally dragged her over to us and (I guess) told her in Korean to talk to us.

Tab says "Hello!" and the little girl says "Hello, my name is Julie" (honestly, can't remember her name...) and we all have a basic conversation in which we find out that she is doing "happy" and we tell her we are Tab Teacher and Chelsea Teacher. She is so bashful but speaks well enough. The dad is so excited for her to talk to us! It was both cute and weird. He wanted us to keep talking, but our stop had come so we said goodbye.

This is probably the most attention I've received in public. Before coming to Korea, everyone told me to expect a lot of attention because of my hair and eyes (being starkly different from the Korean genetic pool choices). But, thus far, most people stare and avoid being in direct contact with me (like sitting next to me on the subway). This was so precious and I didn't even mind that the dad was shamelessly using us for free English practice for his little girl.

Well, once we arrived in Itaewon, we followed the directions to Richard Copycats: All American Diner. Score!!!! We arrived and the first thing I see is a room full of 18-year-old Army boys. We avoid the room and ask for a table for 2. The waitress asks "Smoking?" and points to the sparsely inhabited larger part of the restaurant, "or Non-Smoking?" gesturing to the room full of American guys. Sighing, we head to the small non-smoking, American section.

As soon as we enter the room, we are received with a chorus of "Helloooo ladies!!" (or some variation of the same sentiment). We blush, avoid eye contact, and sit down. Thankfully I got the seat that had my back to the majority of them. As soon as we sit down, we get asked "Come here often?!" I just blush harder and look away, but Tab responds with "Oh, not really." Haha, I just think she is so ironic sometimes...

We get menus and look over all the mouth watering choices. I hear the guys at the table behind me start talking louder (in a (sub?)conscious attempt at impressing us with boasts of how much they can drink or ignorant remarks about Korea). I started to get annoyed, but for the love of bacon I just suffered through it. After we ordered, one group of guys got their bill and stood up to leave. One of these guys came over and let us know that there were guys behind us looking at us. Wow, thanks Sherlock. I would never have guessed, being the only females in a room of about 40 18-year-old soldiers.

Incredible breakfast. Coming at least 1x per month.

Our food took a while but when it arrived, my jaw dropped. Both of us ordered the "Big Morning" with pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, sausage patty, hashbrowns, and toast. I sub'd my sausage for bacon, and she did the same but opposide. We each added cheddar cheese to our eggs. This was breakfast of champions if I've ever seen one. It was honestly a TON of food, but we heard "wow!"'s from the boys behind us who all got hamburgers and other lunch things. (It was after 1pm, but all day breakfast menu = heaven). Call me a glutton, but I wanted to eat every bite. I almost succeeded. I left half a pancake, and 1 whole hashbrown. Yes, I did eat several days' worth of calories in one seating, but by George, I loved every bite!

All said, including my OJ, I paid around $20. Glorious, glorious breakfast food!

After we left, Tab and I walked around Itaewon. I looked for a place to get data on my iPad, but was told to come back on a weekday when it could be activated (Korean phone activations will not go through on weekends). After that, we didn't really find any good shops (minus one street cart with "I love Korea!" t-shirts, which Tab and I both bought one of) so we decided to head to Myeong-dong, one of the best shopping districts in Seoul. She had head about their street vendors and I was on the hunt for a purse large enough for my iPad.

After looking in many stores, I finally found a store that only sold purses, and every single one was 10,000 KW, about $10. Now, the quality is obviously very poor. But that was the flat out best price I'd heard, so I found one that suited my needs: cross-body with enough room for my iPad and some papers, my wallet, hairbrush, chap stick, etc. I bought it in coral.

Along the way, we found some great deals at the street vendors. Tab and I both bought some headbands, and I got a silk scarf to use in my hair. We took a little break at a coffee shop and I got an iced chai tea latte, which was amazing.

Around 5:15pm, Tab and I said our goodbyes and boarded subway trains going in opposite directions. She was heading to her apartment and I had plans to meet some friends.

Back story: When I first told my dad that I had decided to go to Seoul, he contacted his Air Force buddy who was currently stationed in Seoul, Ed. Well, he and his family have since reached out to me several times and offered assistance in whatever I needed. Now, among the people I know, everyone says they are there if you need anything, but its just something they say. It's a passive friendship. If you need something, come to me. Thursday afternoon, I got a Facebook message from Heather, Ed's wife. She and Ed invited me to dinner Saturday and also offered to pick up some American groceries for me.

Maybe I don't have very high expectations of people, but this was something I never expected. It was not only kind and generous, they were actively attempting to help me in every way possible. These people have never met me, knew my dad several years ago, and owe my family or me nothing. And yet, they went out of their way to invite me over, offer me dinner, food, and help. I was overwhelmed with gratitude.

So, today I headed to meet up with them. They gave me directions, which of course I mis-read and almost ended up at the completely wrong gate. I managed to correct myself before much harm was done, and met Heather and her daughter at the visitors center. To sign in, I had to surrender my drivers license. No prob!

We headed to their home and they gave me a bag full of groceries she had got me: apples, breakfast bars, peanut butter, Cheerios, etc! Wow!! They also offered to take me to look at cell phones. Now, I had basically made up my mind to get data on the iPad and just get a flip phone for local use. But, I said sure, let's see what they've got on Post. I'm sure they have good deals for military members.

Well, we get there and I start looking at the contract phones aka smart phones. The guy behind the counter explained the contracts and my options being here only 1 year. I will skip the pro/con list and the deliberations and skip to the point: I got a 2 year contract with a 1 year return policy (basically, I pay the better price like a 2 year contract, but I give back the phone after 1 year). However, I am sorry to say, I could not get an iPhone. They do not have the return policy (which I could have guessed), so I was stuck with a choice between LG and Samsung. Samsung had the better deal on the phone and contract rates, and it was my preference anyway. Even though they are Apple's biggest competitor and I hate Android, at least it has unlimited data and tethering as well (basically wifi anywhere I go for my iPad!). And the price, you can't beat! $55 a month including the fee for the phone. iPhone contracts are at least $20 more a month plus stuck with 2 years. Finally, I got the phone much earlier than I expected because on Post, I could get the phone without my ARC. If I'd have gotten the plan otherwise, I'd have to wait til I had that.

After some running around to get the proper identification (my license was still at the gate, remember?) we got the phone in hand and everything signed off. I have to wait until Monday to activate it, though. Remember, Korea won't activate cell phones on the weekends.

After all this, we headed to dinner. Originally, they invited me to get some American food for me, but after my amazing brunch, I was not necessarily dying for a burger. We decided on an Indian food place in Itaewon. It was excellent, and I really enjoyed getting to know the family. Finally, I got a cab home (too many bags from shopping plus groceries. Also, I was dead tired and my feet were killing me).

Now, it's time to get my apartment set up. I am very glad I have a day tomorrow to relax and decorate before work starts again on Monday. I'm really living for the weekends now...

Dongdaemun Night Market

I left my apartment around 1020 and headed for the subways station. Tab was supposed to meet me around 1045, so I got there a little early. I waited at the exit I told her to meet me at. I waited for like 20-25 minute and finally saw her walking up from the subway.

When we got to the exit escalator, we discovered it had started raining. (Side note - this AM I looked at the weather and since it said "RAIN" all day, I wore rain boots to work. Walking over 1 mile in rubber rain boots is not fun, and it was SUNNY! So, heading to get Tab, I wore my crochet Toms. They have holes in them!) We grabbed a taxi right outside the station and told him "Dongdaemun Market!" He understood after only repeating 3 times (success!) and we were on our way! Tab had a big backpack that was super-touristy, but who cares. It was about a 20 minute taxi ride, and cost less than $8. Wow! And, thank goodness, this area of Seoul was not raining.

Dongdaemun is a huge area with something like 10 buildings containing all kinds of shopping both retail and wholesale. Outside the high-rise super-shopping complexes were street vendors. The first building we tried was kind of bad, so we left and went across the street to a much more neon-sign lit up fabulous looking building. On the way, we passed by some of the street vendors. We saw all kinds of fried foods on sticks (which, unfortunately, were not Oreos, brownies, or snickers... more like grasshoppers, seaweed, and squid), we saw knock off couture everything, we saw dancing singing stuffed animals. It was insanity. 

I stopped to look at a few of the knock off tables, and a Vivienne Westwood clutch caught my eye. I asked how much and she said $14 and held up 4 fingers. I'm thinking, "WOW! Maybe I can get her down to $10 hehehe" so I said "Will you take $10?" She looked like she was thinking, laughed, and said "Okay, discount. I give for $35." -- Wait, what?! Ohhhh... she meant "$40" not "$14". Ha! Well, I decided to scout my options. 

We headed into the big building, and it looked like a department store with all the different "brands" in little sections along the asile. These weren't actually "brands" like in a department store, but shops. There were some decent things, at good prices, but something at each place kept me from buying anything.

We wandered around some more, and saw a lot of interesting things. People sleeping in tents outside the buildings, specifically the wholesale market. I saw a bag in the wholesale market that was perfect for what I was looking for (something cross-body that could hold my iPad and papers for work), but alas, "no for shopping!" shouted the lady when I asked the price. Um, excuse me? What are the fifty thousand other people in here doing, then? "Wholesale!!" She shouts at me. Ohhh... damn.

We decided that the street vendors had the best stuff, so we headed back to the area where they were. After inquiring about several different wallets/clutches/handbags, I decided the original clutch I saw was the best deal and would be very useful to me. I got it for $35, and felt great! I also snagged some Tory Burch "T" style earrings for $5. And a gift for one of my friends back home. No names or description in case she is reading! I also looked for a gift for my dad for his birthday coming up, but I didn't like any of the ties (plus, he has like 200 already) and couldn't find much else. 

I wish I'd found some clothes, but that atmosphere is not ideal for me to pick out clothes. I need low-key boutique type situation. Maybe tomorrow I will have more success with clothes!

Tab and I got a taxi back to my place around 1:30am and she is crashing here for the night. Tomorrow we have big plans, and my feet are absolutely killing me! I should get to sleep since its 3:30am now... Loving my first night in the new apartment. Can't wait to make it "mine!"

Actually Teaching...

I would say that today was my first actually day on the job. Yesterday, I was alone in the classroom, but most of the classes were tests. Today, I actually had to teach!

I got to school about an hour early, because I was quite nervous about being prepared for all my classes. It was nice to be there early because it was actually quiet and not chaotic. I got some work done, mostly grading. I felt like there was probably much more I should have been doing but I couldn't even think of what to do! Eventually, the other afternoon teachers arrived and Erin Teacher helped me go through each class and make sure I was prepared.

They say experience is the best teacher and it is so true. The first class, I was a mess. I couldn't find any of the materials on the computer to show on the screen and the kids were crazy. I had a Korean teacher in the class with me watching ("making sure the kids behave and I can find my way" aka freaking me out!). She was helpful, I must admit. The kids are scared of her. Thats a plus!

My second class got a little better. Most of the classes were starting new Units so there was not as much work to do as there will be later in the month. So, most of the classes I got finished with everything I needed to. It felt weird to be the one making decisions. Of course, there are things I need to do, but then there are situations where I can make the call. If we don't finish a page for homework, I can assign it for homework. AND THEY HAVE TO DO IT! Whaaaat!!

Third class was also new curriculum, but my partner Korean teacher made sure we had the correct books. I swear, these kids have so many books. It makes my head spin! This class, I handed out 3 textbook workbooks, 1 story book, 1 bound spiral workbook, and 2 CDs. Are you serious?! How can I keep this stuff straight?!?!?

2SAP class was the worst, I think. We had to catch up from yesterday with the quiz, and the girls were so talkative (per normal.) It was Sarah's last day so we all took a photo. Apparently, she will be back in a month, though. She's probably the cutest kid I have, I will miss her. We finished the quiz, went over a few questions from the exam that many of them missed, and started book club. The girls also go to the Library on Fridays, so I had to squeeze that in at the end. I ended up assigning some extra homework for book club. I felt bad, but hey, they pay for me to give them work.

The last 2 classes are my 1 hour classes. By then, I was absolutely exhausted, but I was getting the hang of things. In many classes, the content is different, but we do very similar exercises on the same day.

Right before I began my classes, I had a moment. I was getting so overwhelmed with absolutely everything and couldn't keep things straight. I literally had to take 10 minutes and talk myself down. I prayed and had to remember that I am here for a reason! Everyone who does this work feels the way I feel at some point. And everyone gets the hang of things! And, as Erin Teacher pointed out, at least our mistakes don't kill people. Reassuring! ;)

After classes, I was POOPED! I sat down and had a piece of cake (it was one of the Korean teachers' last day so we had a little celebration. I just ate some cake.) We walked home, and Brian Teacher helped me get my suitcases (pre-packed from this morning!) and take them to my NEW APARTMENT!

Maggie Teacher was finishing cleaning and she gave me the how-things-work tour. I learned about getting hot water, working the AC, the stove, and the lights. Once she left, my first task was to get my WiFi set up. The apartments have ethernet cables, but no routers. Luckily, I planned ahead and brought an Apple Airport Express!

This little bad boy allows you to set up a WiFi network anywhere you go with accessible LAN or WAN ethernet. I got it all set up; the name is "You Shall Not Pass!" - can anyone guess the reference? ;)

Once that was set up, I got some pizza from the little place around the block and talked with Michael a little. Pretty soon it was time to go meet up with Tab...

I think I will end this post here, and resume my evening on the next edition....

Made It Out Alive... Day 1 of Being A "Real" Teacher

Today was my first "real" teaching day. Up until now, I've been shadowing and trying to learn everything about all my classes while watching Maggie Teacher run around like a crazy person. I've been taking notes every day, but I still feel like I've missed so much information. Around 6pm every day, it took a lot of effort to keep my brain powered on. Sometimes information would do the in-one-ear-out-the-other trick. I frequently asked Maggie Teacher to repeat what she said. There is so much to learn!

But, today was day 1. I am officially "Chelsea Teacher" to about 100 Korean kids. Since today was Thursday, I was actually meeting my classes for the first time. Three of the classes had exams, and another had a "pop" exam from Jackie Teacher (will get to this later...) I guess I'll go in order.

First block, I have free. I don't know how I managed this, but I am not complaining! It's only T/Th that I have this luxury, but I'm pleased. I prepped before class, making sure I had everything for the exams, and was prepared for the other classes. Maggie came in for a couple hours to finish up her paperwork, and helped me get ready.

Second block (my first class) was New Hi Kids and they had an exam. Since the class was large, about 10 students. The exam has 3 parts: Listening, Reading, and Speaking. Listening is done as a class, everyone listening to the computer read out the questions, and the kids marking in their test booklet. Reading is straightforward, normal test procedure. And Speaking involves the students coming into the hallway one at a time with the teacher to orally answer questions. Being a large class, I had to get some help. I did Speaking exams while Michelle Teacher also did some, and Phoebe Teacher watched the class. It was a bit overwhelming! We finally finished, and moved on to the next class, which was also New Hi Kids, but there were only 2 students in that class. Same procedure.

Third class was my 2SAP kids, 4 little girls whom I see every day, and they had a test AND a quiz as well. The girls are so sweet and cute, but they are talkative and have so much energy! We got through listening, and I began speaking. I sat by the door window to keep an eye on them while doing speaking with the individual students in the hallway. These students have more work and higher standards. They have to verbally answer questions, sight-read a paragraph, and recite a memorized summary of the book we've been reading.

By the time we finished the exam and the speaking, they could only finish part of their Word Quiz. We will have to finish that up tomorrow. Like I said, the girls are precious and dead smart, but hyperactive and I think one may have a touch of ADD.

My fourth class was 3SAP (similar to 2SAP but much larger class of 10 students and I only see 2 days per week). We were already 2 days behind; one day was taken up from a speaking contest last week, and the typhoon day put the class even more behind. Today was supposed to be those 2 days combined, and next class have another 2 days crammed to be fully caught up. Well, the best laid plans... 3 minutes before class, Jackie Teacher tells me we will be having an unplanned placement exam. It should "only" take about 20-25 minutes. Awesome... But, gotta go with it! So, we give the exam which ends up taking 35 minutes, and barely get through 1 days worth of work, and still had to assign extra homework. :( Poor kids... Jackie Teacher and I went over the lesson plans and decided we should rewrite them tomorrow. It was a bit overwhelming. Not only am I new to teaching, I've never had this class before, and now I'm having to modify what was already planned. Stress!!

My last class was the only class of the day without an exam. *Phew!* We did "Reading Engine" which was basically reading an article and doing a ton of questions together. One students didn't have her book, and protocol is to make copies of another student's book for her to work on. Since it was my first day with these kids and I've already gotten so behind in my last class, AND I'm also behind in this class, I decide to skip taking 5 minutes to make the girl copies. I tell her to read along with her neighbor, write down her answers, and copy them into her book when she gets home. I hope I don't get in trouble for this, but I wouldn't have gotten through all the material if I had taken the time to leave the classroom.

That last class also had a problem child. In Korea, it is very rude to eat or drink in class. Extremely disrespectful. So, kids are not allowed to have snacks, water, or candies during class. Well, when I walked in they were still snacking from Break. I told them to put everything up, and 5 minutes later I see Alicia just munching away. I tell her again to put it up. We do some more work and then I see her get some candy out of her bag. I tell her "Alicia, put the candy away. If I see it out one more time, we will go in the hall and have a discussion." Side note: apparently being pulled out of class for bad behavior is super embarrassing. She finally put it up, but I can tell she's going to be a handful.

After classes, we had an hour to work on things before we could leave. I graded a lot of my tests, but still wasn't done by 9 o'clock. I will have a few hours of prep tomorrow to work on them, and I feel moderately prepared for tomorrow's classes. I really can't wait to get the hang of the classes, I feel so flustered!

On a slightly different note, okay, a totally different note: this morning I had a minor meltdown. Staying in the motel is really hard, not just because it is gross as hell, but there is NO way to cook or reheat anything. I have no stove, no oven, no microwave. Nothing! So, I must eat out. Well, no one has explained anything to me. I know of 2 restaurants and I don't really like either. Breakfast is hard, because there is only bakeries around me. So, I've been having rolls and pastries every morning. They are good, but when all you eat the rest of the day is the rice that the school makes and maybe some crackers, it is not too great. I never thought I'd say "I'm so sick of all carbs!"

So, this morning I set out on yet another attempt to find some semblance of a hot breakfast. Of course, nothing. Plus, it's raining cats and dogs. I get home and talk to mom. And I completely lose it. I am so frustrated by the situation! I don't know what the signs mean, so I'm too scared to go in places. They don't speak English, only half have pictures of the food, and even then I dont actually know what goes in it! I am scared to ask the other teachers where to go, for fear of looking like the princess of the group.

My mom, of course, wants to try to help me fix it so she's telling me to ask the teachers or go to this neighborhood or that place. Well, obviously I've thought of those things before and they don't work! So, I'm frustrated and so hungry it hurts. I hang up and call Michael; by this time it's certifiably sobbing.  He gets me to calm down eventually, and I decide to go to the Lotteria in my neighborhood (remember Lotteria, McDonald's ripoff from this weekend?). I mean, it's not very good and it's greasy, but I can get protein in the form of chicken strips. So that's something!

Well, then I get to work and see that in addition to the rice, the lunch lady made some kind of marinated pork. My Korean friend, Michelle, told me to try it. I got some, and with the hot rice on it, it heated up (for some reason, Koreans like a lot of weird things served cold... I'm confused but it seems to be the case...), and it was actually good! I had a whole bowl. I was so proud of myself for trying something new and actually liking it!

By the time school was over, I was hungry again (my stomach is being so greedy now that it's actually getting some nutrition!). I asked Michelle would she mind maybe showing me some places in the area to eat, or what common signs on restaurants mean. She was so sweet and agreed. But, we wouldn't be able to meet until next week, because of timing conflicts. I was just very happy I asked and she didn't think I was some crazy white girl.

On the way home from work, I mentioned to Erin that I'd like to know where restaurants in our area were, and what they served. I mentioned that I kind of liked the kimbap the school served on Friday (I mean, not really, but I forced it down.) She said, "Oh! Yea, there's a kimbap place right next to us! I'll show you!" I could hear the heavens singing Hallelujah!! She took me on the way home, and I got a kimbap roll. It was the equivalent of a little over $1! **The server is down or I would be adding photos of my kimbap :) will add soon!**

Kimbap looks similar to sushi rolls, but it does not have any fish! Usually they have tofu or ham (or both) plus some veggies and other bits and bobs. I honestly don't know what all was in mine, but I picked out the large yellowish blob because I didn't care for the texture. It was hard like a carrot.

I just think it's so amazing that when I get so down about something here, God really looks out for me. I knew this trip would be good for me, help to grow. But I didn't realize the lessons would be so quick. I know God doesn't always give us exactly what we want when we want it, but He provides! I was so hungry this morning, I cried out to Him, and He answered my prayers. It wasn't BBQ or mac and cheese, but it was food I could eat, and my stomach doesn't hate me anymore (or at least quite so much...)

One more amazing thing before I end this one... Michelle, my Korean friend, is awesome. Uploading a photo of her wall post to me today. I love her! I can't wait to be better friends with her. Hehehe!

Last Day of Training

As the title implies, today was my last day of "training." Since we had the typhoon yesterday, I wasn't able to meet my Tues/Thurs classes, so class tomorrow will be the first time I meet them and I get to teach alone! Talk about nerve wracking....

Today went by very fast. I woke up at 8am to make sure my day felt fulfilling. I don't like work being the only thing I accomplish in a day. I like to take my time in the morning. So, I woke up and got ready. So happy I was able to actually blow dry my hair! I'll have to get used to the new dryer; it's a bit different from mine. Once I get in my apartment I think I'll feel more comfortable getting ready; can set up a little vanity area with all my products.

With face and hair done, I got my yellow boots on (rain in the forecast!) and headed out for breakfast. I had spied a waffle/gelato place down the main street from me while on the bus the other day. I headed in that direction. It was closer than I thought, and I went inside. I ordered a waffle with strawberries and cream. I was practically drooling for something warm for breakfast. All I've had thus far was pastries from the bakery. While this didn't have any significant contribution to my daily protein intake, it was better than I've had in a while.

In fact, when my buzzer rang and I went to get my order, I was quite surprised. Instead of something like the sample in the window, I got a mountain of whipped cream and strawberries. I was hesitant about this, but after my first bite, I was in love. The waffle was hot and the cream must have been homemade. The strawberries weren't the freshest, but still quite good. All in all, it was heaven in my mouth.

After wiping up every bit of whipped cream, I walked back to the apartment. I wanted a nice side of bacon and a couple eggs, but that's not very Korean.... so no where does that. The portion of the waffle was a great example of why Koreans, and the rest of the world, are not nearly as fat as most Americans. An order of waffles at any American diner would have had about 3x as much food on the plate. But, I was satisfied with the portion. It's all in your mind...

Well, anyway. I spent the morning on FaceTime with Michael and watching Big Bang Theory. When it was time to go to work, I felt ready!

At work, I was put to work immediately. Maggie Teacher gave me a list of classes to prep for and what exactly to do. It was the first time I'd felt useful and like I was getting somewhere in my "training." I basically found and photocopied the materials I would need for my next few classes. We had tests in most classes for the day, and Maggie Teacher had already prepared those. I was getting ready for "my" classes! When the bell rang for our first period class, I was surprised almost 2 hours had already passed.

Classes went quickly; each test has multiple parts, one being a speaking part. The teacher has to give that part in the hall to students individually. In our first class, there were 8 students so we both gave speaking tests at the same time. It went very fast! Second class had a test administered by Jackie Teacher (head Korean teacher) because it was like the equivalent of a Final Exam. After they finished, we went over workbook pages for the rest of the class period.

Third period was also a test we gave, with speaking. While students did a listening portion (listened to a cd recording and answered questions about it), I started grading tests from previous classes. Maggie Teacher showed me how to score. Mostly, on subjective questions, we are fairly lenient. Maggie Teacher gives lots of half credit.

Fourth period is my 2SAP kids, the girls I see everyday instead of either MWF or T/Th. They are so precious. They gave Maggie Teacher cards for her last day. We had a review in class and their test will be tomorrow.

Fifth period is the hour long class, and we gave a test there too. It was extremely low key, as was sixth period (almost the same class). By the end, I had graded almost all the exams. It was good I had kept up with grading, because Maggie Teacher had to put in grades today since it was her last day. We ended up staying 30 minutes late to finish up report cards and for me to be done with prep for the next day. Hopefully prep gets easier and faster!

So, tomorrow is my first day alone as the kids' teacher. I am nervous, but weirdly excited! I know that I will be good at this, just as soon as I get the whole system figured out :) I suppose I should go to bed soon... I can't wait to move out of this place! Friday I should be in my new place. Thank goodness!

Typhoon Day

Today, school was cancelled. I was so thankful for that when I found out last night, and it's been so wonderful. Although I woke up early, it allowed me to talk to my mom and dad, and Michael, and get some necessary internet surfing done, all before noon. I took a shower and watched a movie ("Jeff Who Lives At Home" which I was skeptical about at first, but ended very good!) while Sean mooched off my internet for a while. All in all, it was a very lazy morning...

Around 2, Jamie came by and I let her use my internet as well. (What a nice person I am! Haha) We decided that if the typhoon was supposed to get bad tonight, we should get some food early. We gathered Sean and all went to a Japanese restaurant around the corner. I was very glad to go somewhere with a menu in English.

Jamie recommended the cold buckwheat noodles, so I tried them (couldn't be too crazy, right?), and got the "set" with sushi and rolls (2 pieces of some kind of sushi roll, and 2 pieces of sushi on rice). I can't seem to find my camera cord, but I will try to add a photo of my dinner later. It was pretty good! I wish I had gotten more meat, chicken maybe. But, I'm quite nervous to order something and end up hating it. Noodles seemed safe, and as it would be my only true meal of the day, I went with it.

We stopped at a convenience store after to get snacks for the night. We were thinking that the typhoon must be getting close, since thus far we hadn't experienced much of anything. I got a packet of some cookies and a packet of these hazelnut straw things.

When we got back, Jamie & Sean decided it was a movie afternoon. We went to Sean's room and watched Titanic on TV. There is something about that movie that really gets to me. I love it, but it just makes me nervous! The whole time, I'm just thinking "oh my gosh, in 30 minutes they'll be swimming down that hallway rather than running..." etc. So, when it was about time for the ship to hit the iceberg, I abandoned the proverbial ship in favor of Big Bang Theory on my computer.

When I got back, I realized that since the typhoon thus far had yet to make a true appearance, and stores seemed to be open, that I would try out BauHaus (department store on my block) for some clothes. I have been feeling frumpy as compared to my other teachers, and the majority of my clothes are fall weather clothes. Monday I just about died of heat stroke, and it doesnt' seem to be cooling down anytime soon. So, I'm going to invest in a few pieces of summer weather work clothes.

When I got to BauHaus, it still hadn't really started raining. I wore my new wellies since I could (hehe) and found a few things on sale. I tried one dress on, and it was so cute! Only problem was it barely covered my butt. Literally, it fit perfect everywhere else, but could have passed for a shirt. I couldn't see myself actually wearing pants with it because it was fairly tight, so I passed. I went up a level, but couldn't find anymore women's clothes. But, I found the hair dryers.

Now, I've looked at these blow dryers before, a few days ago. This time, however, I had an English-speaking salesperson. (This is an anomaly). He saw me looking at the dryers and recommended one, told me it was "the best brand in Korea, very famous". He even plugged it in and let me test drive it. I loved that! I needed to see it in action, and he provided that. It took me all of 30 seconds to decide "I'll take it!" It was 39,000 W (around $35) which is dirt cheap compared to my dryer at home which was about $100. I think I will really appreciate having a good dryer!

Even though I couldn't find any clothes, the hair dryer made me confident that even if my clothes weren't cute the next few days (I am going shopping on Saturday and will come home with something!), that if my hair looked good and I did my makeup, I would feel much better about my appearance.

On the way back to the motel, something funny happened. But first, I must explain my motel. I haven't gotten around to doing this because I've had so much else to talk about. But since today was such a slow, lazy day, I actually have time for it.

This is the motel every new teacher at my school must stay in for approximately a week until we can move into our apartments. Therefore, it is famous. When we had dinner with the teachers the first night, they asked how we liked the "love motel." Eh, it was okay. They had a laugh when we were asked the question, and explained that it is called a "love motel" because in Korea, many young adults still live with their families, so couples have to have somewhere to go for "alone time." They said it was even pay by the hour. *Woooowwww....*

The room is extremely basic, but once I found out it's true purpose, I saw the signs: condoms at the front desk checkin, a toothbrush provided, some toiletries to spruce up after, a water machine in the corner, and almost no bed linens (this last point is probably quite common in Korea). So, basically, I'm staying at the sleaze-inn. Great.

So, when I walked back to the motel, someone had just gone in before me. I paused to see if it was a teacher before I followed, but didn't recognize the person. When I walked up the steps, the girl turned left and sort of hid behind the stairs while a guy talked to the front desk guy and grabbed a handful of condoms and stuffed them in his pocket. I tactfully avoided eye contact with either person, and avoided looking at them in general. I just find it funny to actually see someone checking in! Obviously, Sean, Jamie & I are temporarily living here, so we're here often, but we don't usually see anyone else. I suppose they come & go at odd hours... Haha! Gross.

Well, not much of anything happened today... the typhoon hardly made an appearance. Some wind and a bit of rain in early afternoon, but nothing like I was expecting. I guess that's good! It meant I could go out and get something done on my day off. Now, the rest of the night will be dedicated to watching movies on the computer. :)

The Great Cell Phone Quandary

Since before I left for Korea, really before I even signed my contract, I've been attempting to find out about using an iPhone or iPad in Korea. In the states, I did not have a contract (rather, month-to-month) and used an iPhone and an iPad with data. In Korea, I've already been having a time not having access to the internet while on the go. Subway stations are fairly easy to navigate, but the many lines and different directions on each line can be a headache. There are apps that make getting around and life in Korea much more bearable and user-friendly, so to speak. However, getting an iPhone plan here is an even bigger headache.

I would be totally okay having a basic flip phone, if I could access the internet another way. Before I got here, I'd heard that Seoul had wifi almost anywhere. While this is pretty much true, it's misleading. Almost every business has wifi, but this is confined to buildings, not on-the-go. The wifi networks outside are available but either require a login or to purchase access to the wifi.

iPhone plans are 2 year contracts, and you rent the phone instead of buying it. These two factors are deterrents for me to want to go that route. After a week of life without instant internet access, I decided that I really do need it. Well, I really do want it. :)

Now, rather than sign a whole new contract, I could possibly take over someone else's contract (a lot of expats are here for a year at a time, and need to transfer their line to a someone else when they leave the country.). I would be up for this, but it's pretty expensive. While researching just how expensive, I came across a link to KT Global Store Blog. I'd seen this before, while in the states, but it's somewhat hard to figure out all the details. Today, I looked at it again, but this time I saw the section labeled "Data Lifetime Plan" - hmmm, "data" is the word for iPads getting online, and this infers that there is no "Talk/Text" on the plan (this is a good thing).

The brilliant thing about this website is that they have someone logged into Twitter and they respond in real time to questions you have. Granted, 160 characters or less, but it's great for quick things. I asked,

@olleh_expats are these data plans for iPad by contract or month-to-month? this is for those who already own an iPad?

Here in Korea, like the cell phones, users do not purchase the iPad, but pay extra on their monthly fees to rent the device. Since I already own my iPad, I wanted to make sure the data plans were available to those who already own. I turned off the computer for a while and cleaned my room up. When I got back online just now, I had a response from the twitter account!

@chelseakaitlin Yes, these are the iPad plans, and they can be used with both existing iPad users and those purchasing new ones. :)

WOOHOO!!!! I can't stop smiling!! This is so perfect! Now, I can pay the monthly fees for data on the iPad, not worry about renting a smartphone, and just get a prepaid talk/text cheapy flip phone! This ultimately saves me a lot of money and headaches and contracts and hassle at the end of my stay. YAY!!!!!!

This is a topic I never found a clear answer to during my preparations in the states. So, to those of you who stumbled upon this blog looking for the answer to the question "Can I use my 3G/4G iPad with a SIM card in Korea?" the answer seems to be "YES!" - I'm not sure it's a physical SIM card, such as the states use, but I will find out when I go to the Global Store this weekend.

I am so happy this worked out!!! Now, I just need to find a bag/purse that I can carry my iPad around in! :) I might even be able to get an app that can call/text with Korean numbers, and avoid the whole Korean cell phone entirely! Double yay!

Health Check & More

1:11am Tuesday, August 28, 2012 - Seoul

Today has been a really weird day. Ultimately, I guess, it was good.

Last night I decided to set my alarm for 10am and force myself to sleep until it went off. I wanted to have a lot of sleep to be prepared for my long day at work. Getting used to 1pm-9pm work days is difficult. I have to stay up later to get anything done, and therefore need to sleep a little later to have my full nights sleep.

Well, I woke up around 7:30am, and made myself go back to sleep. Suddenly, I open my eyes and click my iPad and it's already 10:20. Now, this would be okay any other day of the week. But Mondays, teachers have to be in the office at noon, rather than 1pm, to make up for the hour we take off on Friday evenings leaving at 8pm. So, I have 1 hr 20 min before the other teachers come to collect me for our mile trek to school.

I get a shower, but my blow dryer in my motel room is the worst thing known to man. I attempt to dry my hair, but for whatever reason, my hair isn't havin' it. It dries, with absolutely no style or body whatsoever. This can be fixed, with a pony tail... which, I cannot find. I even open my giant suitcase and sift through the tons of clothes and items in there, to no avail. I barely have time to slap on some foundation before I hear a knock on my door. On top of bad hair and no makeup, my attire felt wrong. I think the females reading this know what I mean when you just feel like you look bad. It affects your entire outlook on life.

We start the walk to school and I quickly realize this is going to be bad. It is in the mid-90s with about 90% humidity, and I'm in jeans, sperrys, and a shirt which requires an undershirt. What was I thinking? 20 minutes later I trudge into school looking like I just attempted to try out for the Olympics; sweat drenched and nasty. I find a rubber band (a la 3rd grade) and use it as a pony tail holder. At least it's off my neck...

After a quick meeting with Jackie Teacher (a Monday morning ritual), Maggie Teacher starts prep for the day. We look at the tests we have to give this week and start making copies. Around 1:15pm, Jackie Teacher calls Sean & I over, and explains that originally we were going to get our health checks tomorrow afternoon, but the impending typhoon might interfere. Therefore, we needed to go back to the motel to get our passports so we can go to the hospital today. Great, another mile back to get the bloody passport, and another mile back.

Sean, Jamie, & I all walk back, retrieve our passports (and I change into shorts and a single shirt) and head back. I also take my ginormous bottle of water from my fridge. I'm thankful for the refreshment, but quickly realize carrying the damn bottle back to the school will be a hassle. I need a bag. Something cross-body but large enough for my iPad, a bottle of water, and other things I want to take to work like maybe a lunch one day. (Mental note to add this to my growing list of things I need).

Now, before I go on, is it clear that today is just not going my way? I look gross, I feel gross; you reap what you sew and I was definitely watering the budding negative thoughts. I felt alone and miserable. Every little thing annoyed the hell out of me, and I'm sure I had a look about me that said "Don't even think about speaking to me if you value your life." Is the picture in your mind clear? Okay, great...

One of the Korean "desk teachers" aka admin assistants takes us in a taxi to the Dongdaemun Hospital. On the way, Sean & Jamie are talking about this and that, everything under the sun. I was at a loss; I wanted to jump out of the cab and into oncoming traffic. (Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration, but still).

I couldn't think of anything else to do so I started praying. I told God about my horrible start to my day, and I forced myself to say one positive thing for every negative one. My hair keeps coming out poorly - well, it can be fixed with better shampoo and a nice blow dryer. I'm hot and sweaty - at least I got the chance to change clothes. I was tired from too much sleep - at least I get out of the classroom for a few hours to get the health check. I have to get a flippin' health check - at least I get to sit in an air conditioned building for a few hours. Etc, etc.

This only lasted about 2 minutes, then my mind wandered off and we were at the hospital. We followed the desk teacher in, and sat waiting for them to process our paperwork for about 15 minutes. I noticed that the school actually paid for the health check. I had read online that we needed to fork over the cash for this, but they covered it. Sweet! Another bonus!

The health check went like this: blood pressure machine (76/86... is this bad?), then colorblind test (passed with flying colors, heh heh!), eyesight check (my contacts helped but I still didn't get 20/20...), height/weight measurements (I'm not listing my weight, but when I converted kg to lb, I knew I would be thankful for those mile walks to school when I drop some lbs or kgs or whatever). After this, a lady asked us some questions in moderately decent English. The usual - ever had any XYZ problems? (liver, brain, kidney, etc) No, no, no. Promise I'm healthy!

**T.M.I. WARNING!!!**
The next part of the exam, I wish I hadn't taken out my camera to make room in my purse for a brush! We had to give a urine sample, and I came into proximity (not contact) with my first real Korean toilet. This amounts to a hole in the ground. I could see how it was supposed to work, but getting my drawers down and aiming correctly seemed to be mutually exclusive. I am ashamed to say that, instead of figuring out the physics of peeing in a hole while squatting and keeping my pants on, I just took my pants off. Somehow I got them off while keeping my shoes on (thank goodness I got out of the jeans and into shorts at my room earlier), and proceeded to make efficient use of the toilet.

That was a somewhat traumatizing experience; I wish I'd had a camera to show you how odd this looked in a modern hospital! I'm posting another blogger's photo of a Korean toilet that is pretty much exactly what this one looked like...

Anyway! Moving on... next was the blood! I was nervous for this part; everyone had told me that they take a lot. Not as much as donating, but a fair amount. I've had blood drawn plenty in my life, but never an obscene amount, and never as a donation. Therefore, I had no idea what to expect from what I was told would be "a lot!" I gave up my arm (surprisingly my right arm, not my left like usual) and averted my eyes. Before I got my head turned around, I saw the viles he would be filling. There was only 3! And one was smaller than the other two. I felt much better about this. He was done in a minute, and I was totally fine. :)

Last part was a chest x-ray and dental exam that were less than 15 seconds each. That is not an exaggeration. All in all, the health exam was basic and quick. Nothing painful or terribly time consuming. Literally, I didn't even sit down for the dental exam; the lady just told me to open my mouth and looked in. She said they looked good and booted me out. Hey, I'm not complaining!

By the time the health exam was done, I realized that I was in a better mood! I could attribute it to the air conditioned building, but I think it was a God thing. ;)

When we got back to the school, I had a bowl of rice with egg drop soup on top. I think the soup had tofu in it, but I didn't even care. I was so hungry by that point. Hunger is a feeling I'm becoming much more accustomed to...

I went with Maggie Teacher to the last 3.5 classes and took rigorous notes. In the first full class I was in with her, she had to step into the hall at one point. We were 5 minutes behind, so she asked me to do the next exercise with the kids on the board. The sudden pressure was on! I got up and just "winged it" ("wung it?"). Maggie Teacher came back in halfway through, but I continued the exercise with the kids.

After I was done with the page, she resumed control of the class, but told me I did good. In fact, after introducing the next topic and doing the first exercise, she invited me to lead another exercise. I think I did okay! The kids giggled a little, but at least they understood and got the questions right. :) It was a bit scary, but I know I'll be okay once I get the hang of things.

Before our last class of the day, we had a 10 minute break and I got to meet the new Korean teacher, Michelle. She will sit right behind me in our offices. She learned her English in Australia where she lived and studied for 9 years. She was so incredibly sweet. It was really cool to meet another newbie, but one on the "other" side of things (Korean side). She shadowed the last class with me, I was so excited! I really want to try to become friends with her outside of work. I need a Korean! And she seems absolutely awesome! That definitely lifted my spirits! I was already feeling better, but that was a great pick-me-up. And the best part, our conversation all started when I complimented her Louis Vuitton handbag. Looks like my time in sorority recruitment practice paid off ;)

During the break when I met Michelle I also found out that our school decided to follow the lead of every single public school in Korea: closing on Tuesday for Typhoon Bolaven. The school is more of a business, and close very rarely. I think this storm is supposed to be pretty bad, if they made the decision to close! But, that gave me another thing to smile about - a day to recuperate from my terrible hair day!

I decided that if I was going to be stuck indoors all day tomorrow, and if I didn't want to end up with the same hair on Wednesday morning as this morning, I should head to a store and get some Dove Shampoo and check out the hair dryers. One of the other English teachers took Sean & I to HomePlus, which is basically Korean Target (win!!!). I got my favorite shampoo and conditioner, some crackers and other nibbles for the day tomorrow.

Taxi home and that's about it to my day. It was an extremely long and emotionally exhausting day. Typhoon day tomorrow!! I'm mixed excited and scared... Pray for everyone's safety, but I'm also thanking God for the day off! ;)

Sunday Adventure Part II

After my last blog, I met up with Tab. She is a girl that is from my hometown of Perryton, Texas. We didn't really know each other when I lived there, since I was so young and we were not in the same grade. But, a mutual friend put us in touch before we left for Korea. She has been here a few more weeks than me. Tonight we got to meet for the first time! Well, first time we can both remember.

We met at Hongik University subway station. She was familiar with the area, so I met her there. We wanted to get dinner, but since neither of us knew where to go, we just wandered around for like an hour. We went in one restaurant, sat down, but never got any service! So we left. We saw a Hello Kitty! cafe on one side street. Tab insisted we take photos.

Hello Kitty Cafe

Another store we saw was Frisbee. I had read about it on a blog, it's an Apple Authorized Reseller. It's the best place in Seoul to buy Apple Products. It tries to look like an Apple Store, and in my humble opinion, has better accessoies! Haha!

"Apple" store!

See how it looks so much like our store?

Finally, we went to a place that served "Spanish Spicy Chicken" - when we went in, the cute little girl working explained the process to us: order first, then sit and meal is delivered. She also took us through the entire menu. I suspect she wanted to practice her English descriptions of the meals. She was really good though! I ended up getting Spanish Chicken Dinner aka some chicken on the bone grilled with spicy sauce, potatoes and some other kind of side. It was quite nice! Tab got Chicken Paella. We sat and ate and talked for a while.

When we were finished, we decided to walk around the Hongdae area. It was so much more "happenin'" than my part of town! It's next to a university, so I think that contributes to the trendiness. I also liked that many more of the shops had English signs or at least translations. Not all! But more than in my area.

We stopped at a cupcake place and each got a cupcake. It was more like a muffin as far as consistency, and the frosting was extremely light, not thick/creamy. We decided that it was probably healthier.

Vanilla Cupcake had such cute decorations and we loved the world map!

Choco Marshmallow and Choco Chip.

After the cupcakes, we wandered the streets some more. There were music performances and people trying to give us pamphlets, etc. It was so busy! Tab told me at night, when the party scene cranks up, it's insane and there is trash covering the ground and drunk people passed out everywhere.

All the lights! Hongdae area.

We kept seeing stores that said DVD on them, and were curious what they were. We went in one and found out it was where you could rent movies and then watch them in private rooms. It was so sketchy at first, but turned out to be fairly innocent. I mean, I'm sure some dirty things happen behind closed doors, but the movies were normal movies! and the guy working asked us if we wanted to use one of the rooms. So, who knows! It felt like we were going to do a drug deal, though, the way we had to go up stairs and in dark hallways to get to the store. 

We also accidentally found a karaoke room! These are wildly popular in Korea. When you're out with your friends, the cool thing to do when drunk is go to a private karaoke room and get crazy. (Apparently, I had the cool Korean thing going on on my birthday this year! We did the same thing, but in Houston!) We decided to save that adventure for another night.

While we didn't do karaoke, we did do something equally, if not more, Korean! We went in a "digital sticker" shop. It's basically like photo booths but you dress up and can choose backgrounds etc. It was hilarious and the shop keeper helped us the whole way. We chose wigs and accessories then got in the booth. He showed us how to choose "backgrounds" which showed up in the preview when our photos were snapped. After our little photo shoot, we got to edit the pictures. A few things were green screened, so we fixed those and other minor details. Then, we got prints and the man cut them into individuals. It was hilariously fun and super Korean. As we were leaving, 2 Korean girls came in to do it. Apparently it is popular! 

After we finished wandering the streets of Hongdae and getting up to a bit of mischief, we called it a night and headed back to our respective sides of town. I really wish Tab and I lived closer to each other. She is so fun and I KNOW we are going to be great friends! I wish we lived closer and could hang out more especially because she has a small school and doesn't have a great network of teachers like I do. But, I definitely will be bringing her to dinners and over to the apartment, so she will meet everyone. I can't wait for next weekend when she comes over! She will help me move into my apartment on Saturday. :)

Tomorrow is work, so I am going to bed early!