The End is Near
In two weeks my five month ESL adventure in South Korea will come to an end. All resignation paperwork has been turned in. My luggage is packed. I’m ready and waiting. I never did experience the honeymoon phase of coming here and it still hasn’t quite settled with me that I’m actually in South Korea. Things started out on the downside within a week of my arrival, so it’s more of an eking out an existence. I’m just…here. Which sucks because I waited several years for this! I plan to make up for this disappointment though, once I decide on my next international destination. Thankfully, these last few weeks are during the school’s summer vacation. There are no lesson plans and PowerPoint presentations holding me captive on the weekends, so I’m able to get out and do a bit of exploring. Since my coteacher is on vacation, I can venture about town before five in…
Making The Goal in Half The Time
I set my mind on a financial goal before arriving in Korea, and I’ve been true to reaching it. I’m thankful for the financial discipline I have. I came here on a one year contract not aware of the bear trap I was stepping into. But you know what? It doesn’t matter! In 83 days, I will have reached my goal, in half the time anticipated, and will be headed to wherever I want to go that’s not Korea! Just imagine if I could stomach staying til I completed the year…Oh, well… I can get the same result putting simple principles to use. So no worries. I started on a new book a few days ago. Here’s one of my favorite passages thus far from The Richest Man in Babylon: “….Thereupon they agreed that it was so. “Then,” continued Arkad, “if each of you desireth to build for himself a…
A Tuesday Afternoon: Day In The Life Of A TEFL Teacher Abroad
Reflecting It is Tuesday afternoon. I am sitting at a bus stop in the little town of Yukdan-ri. I have completed my day of teaching at Geunnam Elementary School. Now, I’m just sitting here relaxing, reflecting. I’ve been on my feet, in flats, most of the day. It feels great to sit down and rest these puppies. As you can see from my photo, I don’t have very much to occupy my mind while I wait, naturally I start mulling over today’s events. Taxi Fares The taxi ride from Wasu to Geunnam Chodong Hakyo (Guennam Elementary School) wasn’t bad. It never is. It costs about 6,000 won (~$5.40) every time. The taxi drivers are pretty nice and usually don’t ask for the extra when the fare goes over 6,000. I sometimes get up to a 700 won break. It’s not much, but over time it adds up quite nicely. I’m…
Co-teacher
Where’s my co-teacher? Ok. So I go in for work at about 8:55 this morning. My co-teacher isn’t in the classroom. So, I do my normal whipping out of my laptop and start typing away on lesson plans, etc. There’s no 1st period on Mondays, so I think nothing of it when 9:20 rolls around and my Co-teacher still hasn’t shown up. Second period starts at 10:10, so when 10:00 rolls around, I start thinking, Hmm… Maybe she’s downstairs talking to the principal or office staff? I run downstairs to the office. I ask where she is and the office ladies tell me that she isn’t coming in today because she’s sick. They proceed to apologize. I respond with a resounding, “Oh no! It’s OK! Kenchanayo!” Oh, happy day! I left out of that room with a pep in my step! Not that I was happy about her being sick… But,…
I Got The Job: Now I’m An EPIK Teacher
My EPIK teacher life It’s official. I am an EPIK teacher in South Korea! No more hospital lab work. I’ve gotten TEFL certified and cleared to teach English in South Korea. Since I’ll be away for a while and having a new life experience, I decided to start this blog to chronicle the happenings of my first ex-pat experience, and to keep friends and family abreast of my well-being. A sign of things to come? I arrived in South Korea on March 26th, and it has been quite an experience! Within a week of arriving, I developed acute bronchitis. I suffered through pretty severe symptoms for a month. I was weak, dehydrated, had a sore throat, lost my voice, and had bloody phlegm- and was still expected to teach- and teach I did. I’m a trooper 🙂 (So glad it’s over!) I was placed in a small, agricultural town in Gangwon Province called Wasu. …