Gwangyang Living: Year Two

Hi everyone! Since my last post, I have been busy moving into my one-room apartment in Gwangyang, transitioning back into school mode, and catching up with local friends.

Most of the second-year ETAs!

On Friday, August 21st, all of the ETAs departed Jungwon University en route to our placements. I had one of the longer trips as I live in the south, so the other ETA in my city (Josh) and I were some of the first people to get out of there. As soon as I arrived in Gwangyang, I had to transport all my luggage to my new apartment. Luckily, my school was willing to let me keep most of my belongings there during break, so I was able to have my co-worker help me move the bags from the school to the apartment.

My bed!

Moving in has gone a lot smoother than I anticipated, which I am extremely grateful for. I was happy to have a full weekend to get settled in before heading back to school and teaching again. After unpacking all my belongings, my good friend Eun Jeong took me shopping to a large grocery/home store, where I was able to buy plenty of necessities. I am lucky to have such a selfless, kind friend, willing to drop everything and help me. Thank you, EJ! While out shopping, I bought a bookcase, shower cabinet, and other basic necessities. I ended up having to make a couple extra trips to the store on my own after getting everything in place and then remembering something else I needed to buy. Haha! But I am nearly two weeks into my apartment living, and all is good. It is a perfect apartment for one person, and I feel very comfortable. Although I miss my host family a lot, it is nice to have my personal space. Luckily I am only five minutes away from my host family, so I can visit them a lot this year!

Panorama view from my apartment window

One-room apartment

Besides moving in, I am currently training for a half marathon in November. It will be held in Suncheon, and last year I participated in the 10K race. I'm excited and nervous about running my first half marathon, but I am looking forward to crossing it off my bucket list. On top of my training, I signed up for Korean classes which keeps me busy after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I am happy that a lot of my friends in Gwangyang/Suncheon are also taking the class, so we can all hang out and study together! Bonus: the class is free and is taught by a certified Ganada instructor (a popular Korean language hagwon/private tutoring organization). I'm really hoping to bump up my Korean by at least two levels this year.

Our welcome dinner in Suncheon

Going back to school has been another quick transition; I'm loaded with a full 22+ hours this semester, so not as much down time during the school days as I have had before. It feels good to be back, though. The students and my co-workers seemed happy to have me back, as noticed by random shouts in the hallway "HI HILLARY! SO PRETTY!". They also loved my "Summer Vacation" lesson, which was basically me standing in front of the class showing off my pictures from vacation back home. They were mesmerized by the size of American homes and schools. We pulled up Google Earth Street View and I showed them what everything looked like. It was interesting to hear their questions and gasps of shock when I showed them the size of our sports facilities. Haha!

Photo by Mokhwa Kim

On Friday night, the Gwangyang/Suncheon foreigners had a welcome (back) dinner for the newcomers. We all met at a restaurant and had dakgalbi, a stir-fried marinated diced chicken in a gochujang based sauce, and sliced cabbage, sweet potato, scallions, onions, perilla leaves, and tteok together on a hot plate. After dinner, we headed to a convenience store to buy alcohol and drink by a lake, which was displaying fireworks and a live concert. The night continued at a bar named Elvis, where we hit the dance floor and had a good time. I met some other people from Gwangyang, so I am happy to know that there are actually other foreigners in my area! Hooray!

Photo by Mokhwa Kim

On Sunday, I met up with my Korean friend, Mokhwa, at Suncheon University. She had contacted me and asked me if I could "model" for her, as a part of a photography project she's doing at her university. I reluctantly agreed, but there was a small part of me that was actually excited about doing something I've never done before (although I was self-conscious about my crooked nose the entire time... good thing there's photoshop!). Anyway, we met, and Mokhwa did my hair, makeup, and dressed me in traditional Korean attire called Hanbok. She had me do all these awkward poses I never even thought could be sexy or chic, but it turns out something went right. She was very encouraging throughout the shoot, and a great scaffolder at showing me the ropes of posing. We played some music while we were shooting and had a great time. I never knew modeling could be so fun. America's Next Top Model always makes it seem so serious and edgy. Overall, it was a fun experience and I'm glad I tried it out! Modeling is definitely not for me, but I was happy to be a volunteer and help Mokhwa with her project. Her photography and photoshop skills made me look much better than I actually was, I'm sure - haha!

Photo by Mokhwa Kim

This week has been busy as the students are preparing for speaking tests. The first-year students are presenting about "Saving the Earth" (how to be eco-friendly), and the second-year students will present about "My Vision" (future job, dreams, goals). I am looking forward to hearing the students' ideas and passions for their future! I am working hard to prepare the students as best as I can, so I hope that the student-product will exemplify the same effort. Stay tuned for my next post, as I will likely update with some unique/outstanding student work from the speaking tests, as well as updates on whatever else is happening in my life at that time! Thanks for reading.