... Or am I? Today marks four months of living in Korea - wow! I have eight more to go, but possibly more. I am thoroughly enjoying my experience here so far, and the consideration of renewing my contract for a second year has crossed my mind. I have not made any set decisions yet, however, and most likely will not do so until March or April - so hang tight!
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| Suncheon Seonamsa Temple |
The past four months have been a series of transitions, breaking down cultural and language barriers, adjusting to my full-time job as an English teacher at an all-boys high school (it is so different than co-ed schools in America!), establishing new relationships with friends, my home stay family, and co-workers, various trips to the doctor, all amidst traveling and exploring the beauties of Korea - whew! It has been quite busy, but practically anyone who has met me knows that I wouldn't have it any other way. These experiences can be frustrating at times, but I always try to remember how lucky I am to have this opportunity to simultaneously do two things that I love dearly: teach and travel. These two passions challenge me on a daily basis, and motivate me to be the best person that I can be. My boys can be ornery, but their bright smiles, awkward English greetings/phrases, and adorably oversized glasses remind me why I love this profession so much, and the many gifts and hidden joys that teaching brings to me. Travel not only broadens my worldview perspective, it helps me become confident with myself and realize my accountability for my actions, and how those actions affect myself and others. I am blessed to see the beauty of this world, and I am humbled every time I travel somewhere. Every town, every city, every country has amazing things to offer - whether it is the people, the landmarks, the food, or the far and in-betweens. I continue to thank all of my loved ones for their support and encouragement, because I know I never would have made it this far without them.
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| With my co-workers |
With that said, it is story time! Since my last post, I have been busy at school preparing speaking tests for my first and second grade high school students. They get so nervous and tense when I say those words together - I remember doing the same when I had to do oral tests for Spanish class. I have no doubt that my boys will excel at these tests, though - they are rockstars! I have been building some stronger relationships with my students by creating a "Teacher Facebook" and becoming friends with my boys. It is also a great way for me to get to know them on a more personal level and stay in touch with their goals and interests (I have between 500-600 students, so this is super helpful!). Today after lunch I was able to play basketball with some of my second grade boys and it was a riot! They convinced me to play each one of them in a game of one-on-one, which was a mistake on their part. I am not the greatest player by any means, but they definitely underestimated me as a female basketball player. It was funny to see their reactions when I was playing hard with them! I think they will respect me a lot more after beating the majority of them in one-on-one... haha!
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| Suncheon Seonamsa Temple |
Last week, my co-workers and I took a field trip together to Suncheon and visited Seonamsa Buddhist Temple. It was an absolutely gorgeous day to visit because the leaves were in the midst of changing colors, and the temperature was just right. Here are some pictures!
This was a great trip because I bonded with some of the younger teachers who I do not normally see on most school days because their offices are separated from mine. One co-worker invited me to spend Saturday together, so we did some more sight-seeing in Suncheon. She took me to Bonghwa Mountain (봉화산) and spent the morning hiking for four hours.
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| Hiking with my co-worker |
After hiking, we went to her home and had lunch with her parents and grandmother (who is 94 years old!) before heading to the Suncheon Gardens (순천만정원). These gardens are beautiful! It features traditional gardens from various countries, such as Thailand, Turkey, Spain, America, Britain, Japan, and more. Some of the gardens were in the midst of dying while we visited, but it was a beautiful park to walk through and learn about gardens all over the world. While we were there, we walked across "Dream Bridge" which has a collection of drawings submitted by elementary students. It was a really neat thing to see.
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| Suncheon Gardens |
And, how could I forget, Halloween festivities!? After Korean class on Friday night, we all decided to go out for drinks and noraebang (노래방), which is a place for private karaoke singing - also known as the greatest invention ever. There are various types of noraebang - individual (sounds lonely), small group, large group, and uhhh... "couple's" noraebang... I'll leave you to interpret that how you want. We had a large group, so we all piled into a ginormous room with couches along the walls and drank some beer while queuing up our karaoke tunes. It is a great time for friends, family, and strangers to bond over singing and dancing! Unfortunately, I did not wear a costume this year (Halloween isn't really celebrated in Korea, unless you go to Seoul where all the college students who party are at), but it was still a fun night with friends.
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| Halloween Party |
This upcoming weekend is my big race! I am all ready to go for my first race in Korea. I am interested to see what it will be like as compared to races in America. I will be running a 10K with a friend who is in my Korean class - I will be sure to update with results (if they're decent, that is... haha). Stay tuned!
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| Race gear |
