I am in Korea in the second week after arrival. The plane ride went well, not as long as I remembered oh-so-many years ago; The bad thing though was that my carry-on luggage was not only huge but also very HEAVY, putting it in the overhead compartment was nearly impossible (I had to get help from random strangers each time).
There was lots of confusion in the airport when I was to be picked up. Though Gomo + Esther (yes, she gave me a great surprise by showing up) arrived right on time, we waited for TWO hours before we finally found each other...long story.
Seoul is crazy busy all the time from the mass of people, cars, & buildings. I feel clastrophobic at times & people here can be very rude (lots of pushing). There's also a lot of pollution & funky sulphur smells. I also hate to say that girls here are crazy! It's FREEZING here, yet I still see many girls wearing mini-skirts. A lot of them actually look the same as well (bc of plastic surgery & the fact they all wear the same thing). But observing how Korea changed over the years & how it is now is very interesting to me. Haha, I really didn't mean for it to sound so bad here...
Anyway, after the craziness from getting to know Seoul (about 2-3 days), I got to go visit Esther's hometown. It was a nice change. The scenery everywhere is sooo beautiful!! We took an hour hike through the mountains; I can see why our relatives were very unimpressed by our mountains in the States.
I got to observe her classes as well. I got to see the extremes. The 1st class was impossible to talk to; we decided to play hangman & I called on a girl. She started to cry. Yeah. That's basically how all the other students were. But the other class I got to see were great. Everyone volunteered & spoke up in class. I never realized how much energy one class took up, but I was exhausted just by watching Esther teach (which I might add, by the way, she is great at). So kudos for her for doing it everyday.
After Goesan, I went to Cheonan to visit Jennie, Jeffrey, & Grace. Surprisingly, they remembered me (except Grace, of course). They still say their usual line ALL THE TIME ("Play w/me!!!!!") Anyway, I just arrived back home from the National Museum of Korea just now(it's brand--maybe 4-5 months?). Eastern history was very interesting, but bc of the kids, I couldn't really see anything. The kid's museum was actually sold out, so the kids were all bored out of their minds.
As for school, I don't actually start until after March. The kids here seem nice; But w/the visits to Goesan & Cheonan, I haven't really had time to bond w/too many of them. I figured I can do that during the school year when I actually have a set schedule.
Sorry for no pictures, but I accidently left my digital camera in Cheonan. I will be sure to post those as soon as I can. Now that I know certain people (ahem, Mom & Dad) check this site often at the library (since the internet connection is turned off at home) I will be sure to update more ofte, so they actually have something to read. Anyway, I miss you all, & I'll write again soon!
