Well I’ve been in Korea for 6 months now. It’s still surreal to me that I’ve been outside of North America for so long. It’ll be really interesting when I head home. I have gotten used to the fact that I can’t understand anyone around me (whether they are trying to speak english or not.) When I’m out exploring it’s like I’m in my own little bubble, my brain filters out most of the chatter around me. But don’t worry I have been able to learn some of the language. I can read most things in Korea (I don’t know what they mean, but I can sound them out.) It really helps when I’m wandering around on the subway and on the bus system. I can at least know what stops I’m passing by.
I also have a lot of the food names memorized, or at least the ones that I like. I also have come to crave kimchi. I know it’s weird but what can you do. I’ll have to learn to make it just to keep it in check.
On top of me being here for 6 months I have also started a new school year which has completely changed the atmosphere at school. Instead of teaching the most advanced kindergarten class I now teach a beginner class. It’s still fun though, but it does create new challenges. I could say the same thing 10 times and all the kids understand me but one. And he just gives me the blankest of looks.
The 6th was my birthday and two of my friends also have birthdays this month. We decided to spend it in style at a theme park called Lotte World. It’s a park in Seoul that has two parts, indoor and outdoor. Indoor is pretty much all the kiddy rides with some more exciting ones. Outside has the main attractions. You know all the big rides. It was good.
To top off everything I have been very busy with a variety of different projects. But I’ll talk about those more later.
I have been in Korea for a month now and have yet to write anything about my stay here so far. So I’ll start from the beginning to fill you guys in.
I flew out of Portland on Aug 24th to come to Korea. I left early in the morning and hopped onto a small plane to Los Angles. That flight wasn’t too bad, there just wasn’t a whole lot to do for the two hours. after arriving in LA there was a long walk to the international terminal. Not too much to complain about there except for the five hour layover. I met a lot of other teachers before taking off and learned that there was a huge JW conference occurring in Seoul so the flight was full of them. Then there was the twelve hour flight to Korea. If it weren’t for the personal entrainment center, I would not have survived. I was able to watch a few Korean movies, Castaway on the Moon, very funny and My Girlfriend is an Agent, I met one of the main people in that movie.
When I finally arrived in Seoul, and went through 10 forms of screening, I was met by my recruiter who drove me to my apartment. It was reassuring to meet the person I’d been working with for the last month or so. We drove for a little over an hour before getting to my place and there I met my boss and got moved into my apartment. It’s pretty small but livable for the next year.
I’m living in a place called Dongtan. it’s about an hour south of Seoul near a city called Suwon, if you want to check it out on a map. It’s a really new area and isn’t very populated… yet. There are new businesses opening up everyday. My place is about a 40 minute walk away from my school where I teach. A little far, but it allows me to get some exercise in twice a day.
After two days of arriving here I was off to Guam. My boss dropped me off at a bus stop where I caught a bus to the airport. Buses are great, but are a little slow. I was able to get to the airport with 20 min to spare. Then I hopped on the plane for another 5 hour flight. I slept most of the way, they only had one movie and it was not worth watching. I also had the row to myself so that was another bonus. I arrived in Guam at 3am and got to my hotel. When I woke up I was able to get the things done I needed. I went to the Korean Embassy and started the process of obtaining my Visa. I had to fight for it though, they were a man short and wanted the whole weekend to process it. I told them my situation and then had my recruiter call them. He was able to resolve the situation.
I spent the rest of the day exploring the little city I was in. It was a huge tourist area so there were lots of outlet malls and shop mingled among lots of over priced restaraunts. But of course I had to eat at one of them. So I went to the Hard Rock Cafe. It wasn’t bad, but I’ve had better. I was going to buy a shirt, but not for $40. I went to bed early that night and was woke up by the front desk at 12:30 am to catch my flight back to Korea.
Since it has been so long since I have written I’m going to break it up into small chunks. It will be easier to read that way.
Everyone knows that the economy isn’t doing so great right now, and that really does not bode well for me since I’m trying to enter the marketing world. I am getting ready to graduate this summer and things still aren’t looking up for me.
I know there are companies that are still hiring. There are always jobs up for grabs out there, but the key is knowing where to find them. When it comes down to it, it’s who you know. I had a friend tell me recently that companies are rarely looking at all the resumés they are being sent since there are so many of them. Instead they are looking for referrals from people inside the company. I know many people out in the world, but not a whole lot of them work in the field that I’m wanting to enter.
This Thursday there is a career fair here at BYU-Idaho. I have been working on perfecting my resumé, getting my siblings to review it and spell check for me. Generally there are lots of companies that come to this event, many of which are looking for perspective interns and new hires. Will it be the same this year with the economy the way it is? Who knows. All I know is that I’m going to be there as much as I can, talking and interacting with all the reps.
At any rate, here’s to hoping.
