Finally, an update!

Hello friends and family!

I am in Korea safe and sound and have been here for the last ten days. I apologize for waiting so long to update my blog, but everything has gone by so quickly and I’ve had so much to do; I knew I wouldn’t have time to write everything I wanted to. So I saved it all for when I finally made it to Daejeon.

To start, the total travel time from New York to my orientation site at Jeonju University, in Jeonju City (including wait time) was about 27 hours!! Jeonju University is a really nice university. I don’t know how old it actually is, but they were in the process of building new dormitories, and we got to stay in one! The facilities were really nice, and we were fed a lot during that week of orientation. The one downside was that it was EXTREMELY HOT the entire time (except for a few days).

Honestly, orientation feels like a blur. We were busy from the moment we got up in the morning, up until dinnertime – with lectures, meetings, Korean lessons, etc. I attended about 14 lectures total, ranging from things like the Elementary School curriculum, to classroom motivation, and to adjusting to life in Korea.

I also met a lot of wonderful people! My roommate, Chriselle, is awesome and I’m so sad that we are no longer together (she is in Gyeongbuk, a nearby province). The first night we arrived, we went out to a nearby bar and had soju and beer. I have gone out almost every night, to explore downtown, hang at the local bar, or go to norebong.

On Sunday we had a bit of a respite, for a field trip to a Hanok Village (traditional village) and Keumsan Temple. I was one of the class representatives for the group going to Daejeon, so I got to mix a HUGE pot of bibimbap for lunch! (Jeonju is famous all around Korea for their special bibimbap. To see a picture of me doing this in an article for the Korean news, click here)


Above is a photo of some of my new friends, with the dormitory building in the background. We were all spending so much time together that it was hard to believe we only met days ago. Honestly, it felt like freshman year all over again: living in dorms, going to the dining hall together, going to class. And yesterday when we finally had to leave each other and go to our respective cities, we were saying goodbye like it was the end of freshman year! The last ten days was truly an amazing experience, and I hope to see many of those people again.

After the end of orientation, we all boarded our buses, and the Daejeon group (almost 70 of us) went to meet our co-teachers. Our co-teacher is like our lifeline in Daejeon: they help us settle in, they introduce us to our school and our city, and they also help us with things like getting an Alien Registration Card, a cell phone, and utilities. I have two co-teachers because I will be working in two different middle schools: Louise and Ms. Shin (or Hyun). They are so sweet and nice. One of the first things they told me was that my apartment isn't ready yet (the old teacher moves out on the 31st), so I was going to stay with Louise for a few days. I didn't mind because I actually expected much worse.

Louise is in her 30s and is married and has a four year old son. Their apartment is SO NICE, and they have been so welcoming and hospitable!! So far she's paid for all my meals, and tries to make sure I'm comfortable constantly, and tomorrow she's taking me and another teacher to visit a nearby temple. Also, another co-teacher is taking me to see a soccer game!!

Tonight a bunch of the EPIK teachers got together for dinner. It was really nice to see some familiar faces, even though it's been only a day since we split up... being in a foreign city and especially for me, not really having my own place yet, really throws you off... so seeing everyone and sharing stories really made me feel at home.

So while I'm not completely settled in yet, I am definitely being well taken care of... so no worries!! I will update my next post with more info/pictures of Daejeon and (hopefully!) my new apartment. Until then, be safe, and love you! =)