


My bed...so, in Korea, there is no such thing as a mattress and a box spring (or at least not in the 2 places that I've stayed so far. So, my "mattress" is actually a box spring. Nice. I splurged and got a mattress pad, which has helped, but it's not a mattress.
To give you an idea of how close everything is- to the right is my kitchen area, and to the left you can see my green comforter and desk from the first picture.
Here is the kitchen area...at least I have a proper refrigerator.
My bathroom...and laun dry room. I didn't take a picture, but the shower head is just next to the sink. So, really you could shower and do your laundry all at once.
This banner reads, "Chuncheon...the city where hope flows like the river"
A group of ladies, one of whom was the mother of a player on the Korean team, invited us to sit with them.
Our Korean High 1, whose mascot is apparently a lamb? beat the Chinese Dragons 8-3...
lamb mascot WE WIN!!!
After the game, we had a pretty difficult time getting a taxi, because we were in the middle of nowhere, so we decided to walk. Some of the sites we saw along the way:
scenic views of the mountains in Chuncheon
ice fishing
Yes, it is that cold!!
After walking for about 10 minutes, we were still in the middle of nowhere. The managers of the hockey team drove past us and happened to recognize us from the game; they offered us a ride to their hotel, so that we could grab a taxi. Then, we headed to Myeong-dong meaning downtown. Myeong-dong is a famous shopping district in Seoul, but is also the name for the shopping district in Chuncheon.
Myeong-dong
After walking around a bit and having a coffee to carry me through the jet lag, Linda and Nicole treated me to my first dakgalbi- a popular South Korean dish, which is a local specialty in Chuncheon is generally made by stir-frying marinated diced chicken in a gochujang (chili pepper paste) based sauce, and sliced cabbage, sweet potato, scallions, onions and tteok (rice cake) together on a hot plate. We had ours stir-fried with noodles, but it can also be served with rice. You can enjoy dakgalbi on its own or wrapped in lettuce leaves. The best part was after eating for 15 minutes the noodles would stick to the bottom of the hot plate develop a crunchy crust. MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! Nicole called it Korean comfort food and that it was!
Chuncheon has an entire street dedicated to Dakgalbi...you turn the corner and it's all you smell:
Dakgalbi Street signs, which line the side walk
All in all, a wonderful first day with 2 new friends. Tomorrow is my first day at the school...I can't wait!
It was really tough going through security and leaving Doe behind. Of course, I am sad to just leave everything behind, but I just wish that we could share this amazing experience together. We’ve done and seen so many amazing things the past 3 years, it feels weird to head out alone. But, I did and I’m looking forward to the next 12 + months.
Yesterday afternoon I boarded Asiana Airlines from LAX...a little bit of a delay, but nothing worth complaining about. At first I hadn’t heard of Asiana Airlines, so I deemed them Korean Air Tran…not true. After browsing the Asiana website, I had high hopes. "Flying with Asiana Airlines will give you indefinite pleasure. Feel a rest on the sky with various movies, music, and games of your preferences." Yes, I'm always game for indefinite pleasure, and resting on the sky sounds like fun.
Keep in mind, the past 2 times I’ve flown to Asia, I flew first class thanks to my Dad’s 2389278364839102 frequent flier miles, but this time, the school paid for my airfare, so no first class. I’m used to eating out real china and a seat that turns into a bed, but I have to give it to Asiana Airlines, it was one of the best flight experiences I've ever had for the following reasons:
1. A lot of leg room…always important for talk people like me.
2. Impossibly friendly flight attendants
3. The ridiculous movie and music selection…you could choose from 14 international blockbuster hits…I watched Inception and Eat Pray Love…strategically chose “Long Distance” and “Killers” for dozing off to. If you haven’t seen the latter two, good choice, but Inception and Eat, Pray, Love might be worth it. And, my favorite part, they had full albums to choose from…of course I chose Usher and the Korean pop sensation, Rain!
3. The warm wash cloth rolled and placed gently in your hand by tong wielding, impossibly friendly flight attendants…I got these in first class, but was really excited about having one in coach!
4. Gift bags. Sort of like the kind they give away at the Oscars except instead of an iphone and a gift card to Saks, I got a travel toothbrush and synthetic socks…and the best part- slippers, so I could take off my flats that were becoming increasingly more uncomfortable as my feet swelled from sitting for 13 hours.
5. The food was seriously good...and explanatory. I ordered the traditional bi-bim-bap which is an assortment of vegetables mixed with rice, sesame oil, and red pepper paste. The happy consumer (me) is responsible for mixing the vegetables, rice, sesame oil, and red pepper paste together. As this sort of responsibility can be intimidating for beginning bi-bim-bap eaters, the meal came with a how-to guide offering helpful tips on creating the "greatest harmony" of flavors. Here’s what it looked like..the tube is the red pepper paste…use as little or as much as you like!
After more bad movies, Usher, and Rain that I could handle I finally landed. We were a bit delayed, so I had to catch the last bus to Chuncheon for the night at 9:30. After a 2.5 hour bus ride, I made it. Mr. Lim (the Director for The Avalon School where I will be teaching) picked me up at the bus terminal. Snow from the day before still dusted to roads and the air was a bitterly cold 23 degrees.
I had big plans for last night…get un packed in my new apartment, hang up pictures, hang up clothes…but, nope. My apartment is currently occupied by another English teacher- Steve from Canada and he will not be leaving until December 23rd. My temporary studio isn’t too bad…everything I need.
I first fell in love with teaching english on my first trip to Thailand in 2006. It’s been my dream ever since I got back from Thailand to move back abroad and teach again. I feel so fortunate to have this amazing opportunity, but also to have so many amazing friends and family who have made saying good bye so hard. How lucky I am to have a best friend and better half that despite how sad he is to see me go or how sad I am to leave, he supports my dreams no matter what. Thank you everyone for your support. Follow me to South Korea and wherever the next 12 months might take me. I won’t say good bye, just see ya later…