GOING MY WAY OR THE GWANGYANG WAY

The first thing that struck me at the airport as I stood in line to check in for my flight to Seoul was that most people were Korean. I know that sounds silly but when you're used to being in the white majority (even if you are Jewish), it's strange to be the minority. I think the fact that I was surprised by all the Koreans gives some indication of my preparation for all this.

It was a non-stop flight from Toronto to Seoul of around 14 hours. Luckily I had an aisle seat with no fat people or smelly people beside me. And they didn't talk to me which was good because I don't like talking on airplanes.

When they brought the dinner around they asked if you wanted "Korean Food" or meat. Being the adventurous sort and looking at my neighbour's Korean food, I said meat. Mistake. I think the Korean would have been better.

I was pleased that it was the quickest 14 hour flight I'd ever been on. I arrived in Seoul about 4:30AM their time on Tuesday. Monday disappeared but I didn't miss it. After all, who likes Mondays? I then had to change airports to get a domestic flight to Yeosu which is about 30 minutes from Gwangyang. I managed without difficultly to get my baggage, go through customs, and transfer to the bus. Korea would be a snap.

Wrong. My flight was cancelled. It was scheduled for 8:30AM so they booked me on the 11:30 flight. They said to come back to the desk at 10:30 to see if the flight would go. So my luggage and I got to check out the airport. And like any good airport, what I found is in the picture below:


Of course, my next flight was cancelled too. I called the director of the school (Kelly, female) and told her and she asked me to call her back in 20 minutes. I did. It seemed that a lot of flights in the country were cancelled because of weather so I took the bus from Seoul to Gwangyang. What fun! I took a bus from the airport to near the bus terminal. Then I went to the bus terminal but the only problem was I has 3 suitcases, a knapsack, and my laptop. It's snowing and freezing and I'm lost. What fun!

I asked someone where the bus terminal was and he told me. He saw me struggling with my bags and asked if he could help me. I was shocked. He took me and a bag to the bus station and made sure I got in the right line. I was so impressed. I felt very positive about Koreans right away. So I had a 4 hour bus ride and when I got here, the director said it was a very special day. I said, "Why"? And she said it never snows and it was snowing. What a thrill. I missed Austin already.

They brought me to my apartment and I walked in and laughed. I knew things were smaller here, but I expected something bigger than a car. It's tiny. One room (no bedroom) that has a closet, a bed, and a small table. The kitchen has a mini-fridge and a mini-washing machine.

Kelly (the school director) asked me if I wanted to go for dinner because she made a reservation at Pizza Hut so I could meet some of the kids. I said yes but I wanted a shower first. I opened the bathroom door and said, "where is the shower"? There was a shower hose attached to the wall. You just stand on the floor in the bathroom and the water hits the floor which tilts towards the drain. It's so damn small. Then I asked where the towels were. She said, "right here". They were 2 tiny hand towels. I said, "do people really use these to dry themselves"? She said yes. I have since bought a couple of bath towels. What is interesting is the way apartments are heated. There are no vents. The floor gets the heat. It's weird. Sometimes I feel like I've got hotfoot.

At dinner the kids brought me presents that they had got me as a welcome gift. I was so embarrassed. One kid gave me soap, another toothpaste, another gave me money, and I got some chopstick stands and other stuff. It was very nice. And it was nice of them to pick Pizza Hut so I wouldn't get scared.

This is an adjustment. I hate the cold. The kids are nice though. I don't hate any of them. Yet. My little kids (kindergarten) cracks me up. Today they were all over me hugging me and chattering away in some foreign language (I think it was Korean). Then they made a tent and we all went in it and one kid brought out cookies and snacks. I just played with them. I wanted to take them home they were so cute (and there are probably laws against it). Some of the classes have no idea about English. I would say what page in the book are you on and they would say something like 68. So I would ask questions from things on page one and they look at me with blank stares. I have no idea what they've been taught.

It seems like the English academy business is good. They got a lot of new students signed up this week. I think having a foreign teacher in a small town is a big selling feature. That is until I get mad and throw one of them out the window. It is a nice change to be working with kids. I like when we can just talk. It's good for them because they are forced to talk in English and it's good for me because I learn about life here. The kids have been on vacation from real school for about 6 weeks. They get a six week vacation in the winter and about 4 weeks in the summer. The new school year starts in March.

I got my Internet today and I think it might be too slow. The problem is I have to do everything through Kelly because I don't speak Korean. I hate having to depend on others. She's very nice though. She gave me a cell phone (but of course I pay) and she just tries to make sure I'm taken care of until I get settled. But she does talk on the phone a lot.

I had dinner at a restaurant the other night. No chairs. You sit a mini-tables. I think I am going to take a yoga class and limber up some. The other picture is me sitting on the floor in my coat at dinner because it's cold.