IT’S NICE TO HAVE SOMETHING WAITING AT HOME FOR YOU

When I came home this evening from the airport, this is how I found my front door.


Yes sir, lots of fast food delivery services that I will not be availing myself of. Considering the building is half empty, and there are only 2 apartments on each floor, I’m surprised to see so much. I expect to have many more as time goes by.

I picked up my visa today without problem. Everything went quite smoothly. After my visa pickup I had a little time to kill, so guess what I did? You’re right. A bookstore with a nice selection where I purchased four more books. I’m planning on making a major Amazon purchase and bringing them back with me from the States, but I may not have that many to choose from.

I then took the subway back to the hotel. At the subway station I turned in my Octopus Card. You get the money you have remaining on it back in cash. That is so cool. They do deduct about a $1 service charge, but I’m not complaining. So, was I done spending? Nope. I had to walk from the subway to the hotel and on the way I bought an electronic dictionary. I will be able to translate between English and Korean. It also does English to Cantonese and Mandarin. It says the word in the language you’re translating to if you want, and it’s has the roman phonetic of the word in English which is a help. The dictionary has 340,000 words along with useful phrases. It’s kind of difficult to explain words at times even with my skillful acting and drawing abilities. Have you ever tried to explain the word “clue” to someone with limited English? It will be handy for words like that.

I took a shuttle to the airport where I grabbed my first Whopper since leaving America. I do prefer Burger King to McDonalds so that was quite nice. The flight was pleasant. I was the aisle seat in the middle three, and there was no one beside me. The flight went smoothly and the food was edible. I had Chinese food. Sweet and sour chicken which I’ve had a craving for, so that was nice. One of the desserts on the tray was an ice cream bar. I can’t say I’ve ever seen one of those served on a plane.

The custodian guy was at the airport to meet me. It is just so damn nice of everyone to take such good care of me. This is how you treat strangers who come to work for you. I am so pleased. However, I want to move to Hong Kong. I like it. There are things to do, it’s clean, it’s pretty (when there is no fog), and there’s plenty of English. I’ve seen English teachers there out and about with their students so maybe you can get a job there. Who knows? I might look. I am a traveling man, trying to make a living doing the best I can.

So tomorrow is my first day of school. The custodian guy is picking me up at 8:10 and school starts at 8:30. I have no idea what to expect except I’ll probably have to take my shoes off. Koreans always take their shoes off when entering a room and apparently at the public schools, all students and teachers take their shoes off and walk around in slippers. I was hoping to wear my new green Converse All-Stars tomorrow, but is there a point? I’ll have to decide in the moring.

I think it should be a long day. After all, when there are only 10 teaching hours a week, how many can you have in one day? I hope I have my own area to hang out in, with my own computer. I really don’t want to drag my computer back and forth to school to kill time. I’ll take some books with me to read, and I’m taking my Korean study book I bought months ago. Now that I’m inspired, I’ll begin in earnest.

I can’t believe I’ll be in Texas in less than 2 weeks. I wish there was Montreal Smoked Meat there. I wonder if anyone will bring me some. This is a craving that just won’t die. (And I have a ribs craving too).

ON A CLEAR DAY

On a clear day I’m sure there are wonderful things to see in Hong Kong. Unfortunately I went to see them today but I have no idea what they looked like due to the fog at the altitudes I was at. But more of that later.

Yesterday (Saturday) I awoke and was out of my hotel by 10AM. It was raining a bit so I thought I wouldn’t do major sightseeing, but walk around some and maybe buy a thing or two. I wish it was that simple. One of the tourist books you can get shows different walking tours so I took the subway over from the island I’m on (Kowloon) to the Hong Kong island. I quickly lost the trail I was supposed to be following so I just wandered aimlessly around looking at the old shops.


My first purchase, and a major one at that, was an antique statue from the Tang dynasty. It’s about 8 inches high and has some color on it (it’s a woman) and a bunch of dirt which you really shouldn’t take off because the color might come with it. I bought it because I like it. And, I can use a personal thing or two in my apartment. Her cloak is orange and her lips are red. When I get back to Paju and unwrap it, I’ll post a picture.

There was a temple close by the antique shop (actually there were a lot of antique shops) which I decided to visit. It’s in the middle of the street so it’s a bit of a surprise setting.


Inside there were people lighting incense and praying. It was a Buddhist temple and here are a few people lighting incense. I don’t know why they do, but it would be good to be an incense merchant in the land of Buddha.


Did you ever wonder why Buddha appears to be fat all the time? Here’s the reason. People keep bringing him food. Of course if you put all this food in front of him all the time, he’s going to put on weight. I propose we have a “let’s put Buddha on a diet” week here in China.


I then visited a linens store and bought myself a 2nd set of sheets along with a quilt. I needed it, and I purchased a towel with it. I think it cost more than I wanted to spend, but yesterday I was calculating the exchange wrong. Not everything in Hong Kong is cheap and the sheets set is nice.

From there I did one of my favorite activities and visited a bookstore. I spent about an hour there and came out with six books. I just love looking at books. I’m set for books for a while now.

I have been riding the subway and it’s quite clean and nice. The price isn’t bad and I have my Octopus Card. The Octopus Card is a card you can put X amount of dollars on and then swipe it as you get on public transportation. It’s much more convenient than always buying tickets. However, after the bookstore my parcels were so heavy I just plopped myself into a taxi. Everyone in Hong Kong speaks English, except for my taxi driver who didn’t exactly understand where I wanted to go but he somehow made it to my hotel.

I dropped my purchases off and hit the streets again. I went to the jade market and if there was any real jade in the jade market, I’d be shocked. What a bunch of junk. I then walked down “Jade” street where there are a bunch of jewelers, some of them who’ve been in the same location for 30 years. I bought some stuff there including 2 new earrings for myself. I got a green jade earring and a white jade earring. They’re very nice and the couple who run the store were very nice. I spent about a half hour chatting with them and it was most enjoyable.

From there I went to a street where there are tons of electronics stores. What could I possibly want? Don’t ask. I walked up and down that street several times. It was jam packed with people. I went in a store that was huge, and it was only cell phones. Amazing. I bought, and I’m embarrassed to say, a video camera that also takes still photography. Why, oh why, would I do such a thing? How about so I can shoot some video at Leah’s wedding? That was one of my ideas. Video cameras are great when your kids are young to capture those moments. This was not my most brilliant purchase ever, but who knows, perhaps I’ll get some pleasure out of it.

I went to a California pizza restaurant for dinner and had a pizza. It was so good. I’ve been eating quite well since I left Gwangyang. It’s nice to be eating again and enjoying it. I then walked through an evening market where I bought assorted junk including 3 pairs of Converse All-Stars running shoes. I own a pair of red ones and now I have blue, orange, and green. I’m Mr. Fashion.

I got back to my hotel room about 11PM so it was a long day, an expensive day, but a good day. My mind was made up that Sunday was to be sightseeing day.

I awoke and had breakfast in the hotel. I had breakfast at Starbucks yesterday so I wanted something different. It wasn’t a huge ripoff, just a small ripoff. But since I’m spending money like a drunken sailor, why not spend a little more.

I left the hotel about 10AM and headed down to the pier where I took a ferry to Lantu Island to visit the Giant Buddha. This is the world’s largest sitting Buddha. However, it was misty and the Buddha was high up on the island, so you could be standing right under it and not see it. The fog was so thick you couldn’t see 10 feet in front of you. Here is what I saw of the Giant Buddha. First with a front view,and then we have a side view.



Here are some statues around the Buddha.


And of course, anywhere you find a Buddha, you find a place to light incense. And be careful because it’s hot.


After my visit of not seeing the Buddha, I came back and then rode a tram car to the top of Victoria’s Peak. The ride was interesting, and I hear the view is great, but I wouldn’t know. Here’s what I saw.


There was a small mall there with a bulk candy shop and I sort of went overboard. I won’t say how much I spent, but if I eat it all, it may be declared suicide by the coroner.

I came back to the pier and then went to another mall close by thinking that perhaps I could see a movie. So I did. I really didn’t like the book, “The DaVinci Code” so I decided to see if the movie was better. I don’t know if it got good reviews, but the most interesting thing about it was Tom Hank’s hair. He needed a haircut. It was dry and convoluted like the book. I don’t get it. Why does everyone like it? The theater was nice and the seats were the most comfortable theater seats I’ve ever been in. They felt like leather. And, it was the first time I’ve ever been to a movie that didn’t have previews. It had commercials, but no coming attractions. The price for the film was about $10.

I knew I wouldn’t have enough room in my suitcase to take everything home with me, so I went to another night market to look for a suitcase. I did good and found a quite suitable one for about $17. I also visited a fortune teller. Hell, I’m in China and there are a lot of fortune tellers. This whole street is filled with them.


This guy took down my birthday and using his Palm Pilot and some books did some research to come up with my fortune. This included my past that has my many successes in business, my making of much money with the help of women, my kind brother, my rich father, and other things that were so far from the truth it was amazing. He hit on that I had 2 kids and I’ve had some health issues. He also said I’m a non-conformist and adventuresome. But all in all, he was useless. But I’ve done it, so there.

I rolled back in after a meal at McDonalds around 11:30. Another full day and tomorrow all I’ve got planned is to pick up my visa and fly back to Korea at 4:30. I won’t be visiting Hong Kong again, but if you’re in the neighborhood I strongly recommend it. It’s clean, it’s easy to get around, there may be things to see on a clear day, and there is shopping, shopping and more shopping.

THE LAND OF ROLEX’S

If I could walk for five minutes in Hong Kong without someone offering to sell me a Rolex, it would me a minor miracle. There must be a surplus of them here. It’s absurd. I mean, how many times must a man turn his head, and pretend that he just doesn’t hear the Rolex salesmen?

So I woke up at 5:45 after a few hours of sleep to begin my Hong Kong journey. I was downstairs at 6:30 and waiting for the custodian guy whose name I learned but now forget. It got to 6:45 and he hadn’t shown and I was starting to panic. Then he appears just walking up to my building. Apparently he’d been there before 6:30 but fell asleep in his car somewhere in the parking lot.

I flew Cathay Pacific which is a new airlines for me. The flight to Hong Kong was 3 hours and I had the bulkhead with no one sitting beside me. Therefore, it was a pleasant flight. I had breakfast at the airport which consisted of a sandwich, a donut, and a coffee. I couldn’t find the Starbucks so I made do with Dunkin Donuts coffee and I was surprised. It wasn’t bad.

Getting through Hong Kong customs was no problem. It’s quite a large airport. When I got through, I called the agency and they had my visa issuance number which was good news. It means I can go back to Korea on Monday. I bought a ticket for the shuttle to take me to the hotel and off we went.

It’s hot here. It’s about 90 degrees and humid as hell. I’m not used to it so it seems a lot worse than Texas. It was a real shock to the system. Hong Kong itself is a small area but there should be plenty to do to keep me occupied. It seems I won’t be going to Macau because you need your passport to go, and I had to give mine to the Korean consulate for my visa which I pick up on Monday.

Here’s a street in the daytime. (It’s just as busy at night).


The first thing I did after dropping my bag at the hotel was to go to the consulate to get that squared away. There is a one day turnaround time for the visa. The subway was packed. The streets are packed. There are a lot of people here. Here are some people riding the subway.


Even the ATM’s in the subway’s have lines.


After the consulate I headed back to the hotel, but first I made a Starbucks stop (of course). There’s no point in taking pictures of them anymore because they’re everywhere. It’s not special to see them in any country. My hotel is right beside one.


This hotel charges for the Internet and the connection is lousy. It’s quite the ripoff and it’s been a long time since I’ve had to pay for Internet access in a hotel.

I spent a lot of time debating whether to sign up for tours of just wing it. I’m going with the ‘wing it’ option. I went for a walk in the night time market that doesn’t open until 5PM. It’s junk, junk, and more junk. However, I did make a purchase. I broke down and bought a pocket watch for about $4. I’m such a big spender.


After that I headed down to the harbor and walked around. I hit the walk of stars which has handprints and names of Asian stars and some statues and a nice harbor view. It reminds me of a poor man’s Shanghai. The harbor view there was fantastic. This was nice and I felt there was no comparison.

Here is a dynamite photo of Kwan San’s handprint on the walk of stars.


If you’re ever alone, it’s kind of depressing to do the harbor cruise at night. Actually, they are always bad, but alone they are worse. As I believe I’ve mentioned before, sometimes you can feel really lonely when seeing new things by yourself. I felt that today in Hong Kong. I don’t know why I went on the Harbor cruise. It sucked.

Here are some harbor view pictures at dusk.



I had a decent lasagna for dinner tonight. Only I come to Hong Kong and get Italian food. I’m such an adventurer. I’ve mapped out a full couple of days for myself for Saturday and Sunday. I’ve even found where a good English bookstore is so I can spend even more money. I brought my 2 pairs of shorts with me so I’m pleased about that.

I will be here all weekend in case anyone cares to join me. And I’m disappointed that no one commented on my short video clip of the string performance. Did anyone watch it?

Something I forgot to mention is that earlier this week I received a lovely email from one of my former students. She’s the middle school girl who has the great vocabulary and asked me what horny meant and bought me the pen in Seoul. I was quite touched by her email and I wrote her back telling her that if she’s ever in Seoul to call me and I’ll buy her lunch. (I gave her my number).

I’m copying the email and putting it here. Forget the grammar because it’s awful. It’s just about the sentiment and actually being able to make a connection with a student. I miss Jo Yeun.

i'm jo yeun!! why did you ieave?
i didn' know you will leave ..
i was so surprised ㅜㅜ
i want you back !!!!
where are you now??
are you still here??
out cast said to you forget what kelly said to you
and be happy!! everythings gonna be alright haha!!
and i want so
anyway! i can't leave the massege
if i leave the massege she'll think i'm crazy
becouse i'm no longer your studentㅜㅜ
kelly was bad!! i don't like her
maybe i'll quit the accademy
my purpose was talk to you!!
every student was so sad
even if you will back to the america
i want touch base with you^^
my phone number is 010-9487-7549
if you want call me
you can call me any time~~
i miss you

THE WORLD JOURNEY CONTINUES

Orientation is done. Did I learn anything? A little. They had some speakers who were entertaining and were from North America which made it a little easier on the ears. I learned some new games and I learned how to make a simple storybook out of folded paper. The woman who taught that was a Canadian. I had to tell her that I really enjoyed her seminar and she didn’t have to tell anyone she was Canadian because she said, “eh”. You can take the Canuck out of Canada, but you can’t take the hoser out of the Canadian.

Last night we were treated to a performance of traditional Korean music and instruments. They were kids playing and it was quite enjoyable. It was quite nice of the school board to bring them in to give us some culture. Here’s some pictures of the percussion performance and one of the string performances.



A group of strings players (I can’t remember the name of the instrument) treated us to this familiar music. Click the link to catch 2 of your favorite tunes.

Today we went to the Suwon fortress which was our cultural field trip. It wasn’t bad. There was a palace, a fortress wall, and the usual things. After China, I need first rate palaces to interest me. I hear the one in Seoul is good so I’m looking forward to visiting that. While we were there they had a special martial arts exhibit there. Aren’t these guys scary?





And then, of course, the scariest picture of all.

They wanted to sign me to perform in their troupe on a long term contract, but I told them that teaching kids is my life, and I would have to pass. Needless to say, they were crushed.

On the way back to the resort from the fortress the bus broke down. That was fun. We had to wait for a new bus, and the person picking me up at the resort to bring me back to Paju had to wait for me.

The custodian guy picked me up. He seems like a very pleasant fellow. He brought me a bottle of ice water for the trip which was quite thoughtful of him. When we were just getting into Paju he pulled into a rest stop and asked me if I wanted a hamburger. A Korean rest stop is not where I would choose to eat anything, so I told him no thanks because I had to get home to get ready for Hong Kong. I hope he understood.

He’s picking me up in 5 ½ hours to go to the airport. I booked a hotel online in Hong Kong and it’s rated 4 stars and it’s only about $70 a night so I wonder what’s wrong with it. I have a list of things that might be interesting to see. I don’t have my visa issuance number yet, which I need for my visa. The agency told me they went to immigration today and asked them to hurry up. They told the agency they could have the number tomorrow. The agency asked why they couldn’t have it today, and they were told it had to be tomorrow. Damned if I understand anything.

What all this means is that if I don’t have it before 3PM I can’t start the process tomorrow and I’ll be in Hong Kong an extra day. I don’t like that idea because this weekend will be expensive as it is. I think I have a shopping bug. Do you think that there’s anything to buy in Hong Kong?

I’ll probably visit Macau also because it’s close. I know nothing about Macau, but it’s close. So that’s a good reason. It’s incredibly cool to just say, “I’m going to Hong Kong for the weekend”. It’s almost better than saying, “I’m going to Buffalo for the weekend”.

The hotel has Internet so I’m lugging my computer so I can post if I feel like it. Keep those cards and letters coming in. Only 2 weeks until I leave for Texas. It’s hard to believe. This last week has flown by and has been my best week. I look forward to starting my new job. It’s great to feel positive. I wonder how long it can last? Y’all take care now. (Just practicing my Texas talk).

ORIENTATION CONTINUES, WHEREVER I AM

Where am I? I don’t know. I feel a little stupid not knowing where I am, but I suppose many could say I never know where I am. Today was the first full day of orientation and I don’t think I’ll be learning a hell of a lot.

I slept well last night in my motel room. I am so glad I decided to stay here. I’ve heard complaints from others at the resort with regards to sleeping conditions. This was money well spent. I walked over the resort this morning and had breakfast. They had eggs and toast which was just fine with me. After that we headed to what was like a lecture hall for the orientation. The opening ceremonies began with all rising and saluting the Korean flag. We didn’t have to sing because no one knew the words to the anthem. The salute was putting your hand over your heart. It was kind of humorous. Then it was on to a couple of boring speeches by officials of the education ministry. At least that’s what I think they were. After that was our first lecture but I don’t even remember it. Then it was time for lunch.

Lunch was Korean food and the smell was deadly to my nostrils. I went down the buffet line and declared that there was no suitable food for me to eat. I then went back and got a plate of white rice. Then I had a brainstorm and I asked the kitchen staff if they had any fruit. The kitchen guy took me to the head Korean running this orientation and I explained to him my distaste for Korean food in a very apologetic manner. I asked him if he could get me an orange or something. He asked and then told me that they didn’t have any. I went back to my chair. Then the head Korean guy came back and said something like they were going to the store to get me something. A few minutes later the wait staff brought me a plate of tomatoes, bananas, and oranges. I love Koreans. It was very kind and thoughtful of them, and I appreciate how they try to ensure your comfort. (Was I really in Gwangyang)?

There were 2 different seminars this afternoon. It was a real struggle which I didn’t always win, to stay awake. The first was this Korean woman who was from Arizona who taught English. Some of her stories were interesting and she laid out some things that are different with Americans and Koreans. I knew most of this stuff. Her English was surprisingly bad for a “native” speaker. The 2nd speaker was a Korean professor who was quite charming and went over teaching methods. Once again I knew most of this stuff. Most of the afternoon seminars were geared toward elementary students. Tomorrow there will be more high school stuff and middle school (that’s me) which is part of high school. The professor woman showed a book she made almost 20 years ago and it was so cool. She had made a copy of “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”. The drawings were quite excellent. She then went over how she would teach it in class by trying to teach us in Korean first. They way she explained things, and the tone of voice she used were no different than when I taught it at the academy in Gwangyang. A lot of this teaching English as a 2nd language is common sense. Talk at the level of your audience, use gestures and pictures, speak slowly, and things like that are things any idiot should know. She spoke in an entertaining manner but I still managed to fall asleep a few times.

After that there was a break for one hour before dinner. I sat in the lobby by myself for a while and then when people came in I’d chat with them. It’s basically a very nice and interesting group. I’ve met two women who just started working in Paju and we will exchange numbers. One is a young woman from New Zealand. We’ve only spoken briefly but she comes across as quite nice. The other is a woman my age who hails from Thunder Bay, Ontario. She’s not a teacher by trade, but she taught in Taiwan last year and now she’s here. Her husband is moving here in about July or whenever their house sells. He lost his job in the mines in Thunder Bay because the mine shut down. Thunder Bay is becoming a depressed area. She seems nice and interesting and I’ve enjoyed chatting with her.

There are quite a few Canadians in the group. It’s amazing what a small world it really is. There is a couple there who also came from Thunder Bay. We’re not talking a major metropolis when we talk about Thunder Bay so it is a little amazing. There is an older man in his 60’s who is so incredibly lonely. If he gets near anyone he talks and talks about himself and his incredibly boring teaching experiences. He just makes me want to scream for him to shut up. He monopolizes any group and that group quickly disperses. It’s quite sad actually.

Dinner was edible. The grapes and pineapple were great. They had edible potatoes too. After dinner I went on a half hour mountainous hike with the woman from Thunder Bay and a young man named James. James was born in Korea and moved to the U.S. at a young age. He’s now divorced and he’s moved here with his 6 year old son to try something new. As I said, there are interesting people here.

Tomorrow night they’ve arranged a presentation of traditional Korean music on traditional Korean instruments which I’m looking forward too. On Thursday afternoon they’ve arranged a field trip to some fortress. I’m game for that. I’m sorry I’m not going to get to learn many teaching tips, but it’s been interesting chatting with most people and getting this small tour opportunity and the night of music.

The most interesting thing I learned today was that I’m a “co-teacher”. This means that the Korean English teacher and myself are both in the classroom. That will be quite weird. I really don’t want company because it may cramp whatever style I may have. The other thing that worries me is that it may be too easy for the kids, and even myself, to use her for translation before I’ve exhausted my explanation methods, my drawings, and my acting. On the other hand, she may be intimidated by me and my perfect (I wish) English. I truly hope we can work together well and are comfortable with each other.

I wish I was back in my fancy new apartment. I just met it and already I miss it.

EVERYTHING IS STILL GOOD

Yes, the experience is still positive. Of course, I just wrote about 30 hours ago but good things still are happening.

Yoon-Soo came over yesterday about 6 and helped me get the gas fixed. It seems there is an electronic thing to open the gas valve which the gas man didn't tell me about. It's tied into the security/telephone/whatever system that is computerized in the apartment. It's pretty cool. Fortunately he could call the office and have them explain it to him, because I never would have found out.

We then went shopping so I could pick up a few things I didn't get before. He's very kind, but I already said that. After shopping, I bought him dinner and we went to Starbucks. All in all a very pleasant evening.

Yoon-Soo confided a bunch of things in me about his life and how he feels about things. He says no one knows these things about him, and he wondered why he would tell me. I told him it was probably because I was a stranger and had no preconceived image of him. He doesn't want to tell friends because he thinks their opinion of him will be lowered. For example, he lives in Ilsan and not in Seoul with his wife. He said no one where he works knows that. If they did, he would lose face. Weird place. I told him he should be more like me and not really care what others think. (Of course, there are a small circle who you care what they think, but overall why bother)?

I'm flattered he feels comfortable enough with me to do this. I suppose this is my way of paying back his kindnesses. I can just be a wise and worldly listener.

He was explaining some Korean customs to me that are beyond my comprehension. I told him I hate when people lie to me because they will only tell me a good answer. He said Koreans do that. They don't want to say anything negative. And you're not supposed to say "no" to a friend. Even if you have an appointment somewhere and a friend calls you because he needs something at the same time, you cancel your appointment and go to your friend. If you don't, then your friend thinks you don't like him. Very strange.

I was picked up to be driven to orientation this morning by the money guy (name of Mr. Lee), and the custodian whose name I don't know. First we went to the school where I learned that the English teacher is away at on the job training and won't be back until mid-June. I met the substitute whose name is Mrs. Lee. She told me the money guy's name is Mr. Lee. She thought it would be easier for me to say those names instead of their first names, and she's right. Her English wasn't very good and she seemed intimidated by speaking to a native speaker. (I'm the native speaker. People from countries where English is the first language are referred to as native speakers, even though we are foreigners here).

I thought I was going to have to take a taxi and a bus to get to the airport for my Hong Kong trip, and again on my return. Today Mr. Lee tells me that he'll pick me up on Friday morning at home, and get me from the airport Monday night. That was a very nice surprise. Things keep getting better.

Mr. Lee, who I thought knows no English, knows a little. This is good because we can stumble through a conversation and understand a little bit. He invited me to his house in 2 Saturdays which was quite nice. I think these people want me to be comfortable and happy. What a nice change.

It took 2 hours to drive to wherever I am and I slept most of the way. The orientation is being held at a golf club/resort. It's older and is about starting to look run down, but it's fine now. They gave me the key to the room and told me I'd have to share a room. I decided to suck it in, and do it even though the thought of it made me sick.

We go upstairs to check the room and in the sleeping area there are 3 single beds about 6 inches apart from each other. In a "closet" beside one of the beds is a 4th bed. There is one bathroom. I started spazzing out and said there is no way I can stay in this room. Mr. Lee and I went downstairs and we asked if there is another room, and I'll pay the difference. They said they were fully booked up. I said I'd sleep in the lobby.

Mr. Lee then inquired as to whether there was a motel in the area. There was one about 5 minutes away. It's clean and it's fine and it's costing me $35 a night out of my own pocket. I'm not thrilled about it, but it's better than the other accommodations. I'll be over at the resort most of the time for the orientation and meals, so this place is just for sleeping. I'm doing the right thing and it's worth it to me.

Dinner tonight was quite fine. They had chicken that I really enjoyed. I had a ton of it. On the weekend I had 3 meals on both days. Actually I had 3 meals today too. This is amazing. Maybe my appetite increases with a better outlook.

There was no orientation tonight. It begins tomorrow morning with breakfast, followed by registration, followed by the opening ceremonies. I have no idea what the opening ceremonies are. Maybe one teacher from each country enters the room carrying the flag of their country.

I met a few teachers tonight. There was no one I anticipate becoming friends with, but they were all fine. I think this group will get along well and hopefully we can learn something. Somehow I doubt it. Opening Ceremonies!

The room itself is $30. I am paying $5 extra for the Internet connection. But I would hate to disappoint my loyal readers of whom there are multitudes. I hope when I post tomorrow, I'm smarter than I am today.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES

I could barely sleep Thursday night. In fact, I barely slept Thursday night. I suppose it was the excitement I felt knowing I’d be departing Gwangyang in the morning. And morning couldn’t come fast enough. But, eventually it did and I left my apartment for the last time at 6AM to get a taxi to take me to the bus station for my ride to Seoul. I had one suitcase, my laptop, and my ironing board and drying rack taped together for my journey.

As tired as I was, I only slept about 10 minutes during the 4 ½ hour journey. I arrived in Seoul at 11:20 AM and went to meet the person from the agency who was picking me up. I spent about 15 minutes with Choi from the agency standing outside and discussing plans for my visa run. I have orientation from Monday to Thursday so I’m going on Friday and returning on Monday. He gave me a choice of Osaka or Hong Kong to fly to for the visa. Since I want to spend some serious time in Japan, I chose Hong Kong because a weekend visit should be more than enough. I asked him how much the flight was and he called the travel agent and told me $430. That was fine with me (I pay and then get reimbursed by the school). He ordered the ticket and told me I would have to do a transfer to the travel agent of the funds. Then he said that if I gave him the money, he would do it. That was much easier.

After we were done talking he loaded me in a taxi to take me to the school in Paju where they were waiting for me. He gave the driver $50 and told me it was about an hour drive. And we were off. The drive was approx. one hour and it went quickly. The driver dropped me off at the front door of the school and I went in.

The school has a large campus and it’s a primary school and a middle school. The building looks brand new, which I learned later that it was. The school just opened this year. I went into the office and told them my name. They were expecting me and ushered me into this huge office slash conference room which I think serves as the principal’s office.

I was greeted by the principal and another man who did the talking to me in English. His name is Yoon-Soo and he was there as a favor to the principal to do the translating. The principal speaks no English, and the Korean English teacher at the school was away on a course. Yoon-Soo is an high school English teacher in Ilsan, which is very close to Paju. In fact, where I live is closer to downtown Ilsan than downtown Paju. So with Yoon-Soo translating, our little meeting began.

I was told first off that we would conduct ourselves according to the contract which was fine with me. I was told that I would have a maximum of 22 teaching hours a week which is tiny compared to Gwangyang where I had 30 hours. Then I was told that at the moment there weren’t enough students so my teaching hours would be 8 to 10 hours a week. Holy cow! I asked why that is. It seems the school was built in anticipation of a growth spurt the city is expecting. LG (a huge electronics company) has built a plant in Paju which will employ many workers. It is in preparation for all the people coming to Paju that the school was built. Eight to ten hours is obviously not enough, especially when I have to be in the school from 8:30 to 4:30. I asked if this was a rule and I was told that it was. I can leave with special permission of the principal, but I should be there. The teachers should be at school to answer the students questions, and as the foreign English teacher should be there, as there will be other teachers who want to practice their English with me. I hope there’s a lot, because that’s a lot of time to kill.

I asked if there was a dress code and I was told that they really didn’t want me to wear shorts. I assured them that was no problem. I asked if jeans were okay, and I was told they were. This is good. I can dress for comfort and not for respect. I get lunch at the school for free in the cafeteria, and since I don’t like Korean food it should be an adventure.

During our meeting I mentioned that of course they knew I was leaving for 8 days on June 10th to go to Texas. They didn’t. I almost had a fit. I told the agency to check with the school before offering me the job to see if my leaving was okay. They told me they did. I don’t want to look like I’m pulling a fast one. They are talking amongst themselves and I’m saying to let me call the agency and get a name of someone they claimed to speak to. They told me that according to the “law”, (after all I’m now working for the government), a family marriage only entitles you to one day off. The principal then says, thru Yoon-Soo, that it’s okay for me to go. He had no choice but it was good of him to say that. I profusely apologized for the agency lying to me and told them that I didn’t want them to think I was springing a surprise on them. I have no idea why the agency lied to me. It’s a Korean thing. Don’t tell the truth, tell the person what they want to hear.

We then discussed orientation. It seems that over 100 new English teachers will gather in some city about 2 hours from Paju for this orientation. I have to sleep there. Yuck! Someone from the school will drive me there Monday morning and pick me up Thursday evening. I then go to Hong Kong Friday morning and return on Monday evening. I start teaching on the Tuesday (May 30th) and then leave for the States on June 10th. A busy time.

They then went into plane fare reimbursement and said I’m entitled to one flight to Korea, and one flight back home so they would pay for my return from Hong Kong but not my flight there. I picked up the contract and showed them where it said that the school pays for the visa run. They said no problem. I then asked when I get my $300 relocation allowance. I was told it was no problem, just bring them receipts. I showed them the contract once more (since we are to be governed by the contract), and the contract says nothing about receipts. It’s just a flat $300 to be paid upon signing the contract. They said no problem and the money person disappeared for about 5 minutes and returned with the cash. I was impressed with their ability to stand behind what they had said and signed. All in all it’s very different than my Kelly dealings.

I then asked if they had arranged for the Internet connection like the agency asked them to. They said that an Internet connection is not in the contract and I told them that I understood that, they just were to arrange the connection. The agency never asked them. I felt stupid again. I then asked if I was getting an air conditioner and I was told it’s not part of the contract. I told them I understood that, but the agency told me that the school said they would get me one. They said they never heard that request. I’m catching on. I think the agency just didn’t do what they told me they did.

It was time to leave and move in to my new apartment. My boxes and suitcases which I shipped thru the post office were at the school, so Yoon-Soo, the school money guy, a teacher, and the school custodian loaded up 2 cars (cars are small) and we headed over to the apartment.

It’s in a group of apartments that are 15 floors high. The buildings looked brand new which I found out they are. We unload the cars and head up to the 13th floor where I am to live. We entered and I was totally floored.

This apartment is unbelievable. Whereas I had a tiny one room and I was told I was getting a larger one room, I now have a brand new apartment (the building isn’t even half occupied yet), with a living room, a full kitchen including a stove and oven, a laundry room, 3 bedrooms, lots of verandas, and 2 bathrooms that include a bath tub and a shower stall. This place is huge. It’s bigger than my Texas apartment and I was told that everything is bigger in Texas. I guess not. This is unheard of for an English teacher to get to live alone in. This is bigger than what the average Korean family has. The school money man (I must learn his name), who speaks no English, asked me if it was okay. I didn’t have the words to express how fabulous it was. I was almost in tears, I was so happy.

This apartment has keyless entry. Each floor only has 2 apartments on it. Here is the hallway and the thing I wave at the door to get in.




This is the foyer, the 2nd picture with me facing into the apartment. Yes Virginia, we are going on an apartment tour.




Here is what I refer to as the spare room which will be a junk room where I will throw things as you can see.


This is the bathtub from the hallway bathroom.


This is a view down the “hallway”. The living room is on the left, my bedroom is at the end of the hall, and the kitchen and laundry room are to the right behind that wall/divider.


Here are 3 views of the living room. Of course all the furniture in the apartment is brand spanking new.






Here is the living room veranda with some of my laundry drying. It has glass sliding doors so you can open them and it’s like your outside.


Here is a view to the left, a view to the right (notice that there is a small market to get fruit and vegetables and other fancy stuffs), and a picture of some of the apartment complexes. When I said that there are 2 apartments to a floor, it’s not that that whole thing is one floor. There are about 5 entrances where the elevator is only for your section.







This is the whole kitchen followed by kitchen shots from different angles. You have to love the oven.






Here is the laundry area and the washing machine. There are extra burners there in case four on the stove aren’t enough.





Here is what will be my “office”.


What this is, is that off the office and the master bedroom are these tubs along the wall. They are filled at the moment with bags of soil. If I get a hankering to plant things, I just go ahead and dump the soil in, and plant away.



Here are some shots of the master bedroom, along with the veranda off of it, and large extra spaces.















The last picture will be of the shower stall in the bathroom which is situated off the master bedroom.


I hoped you enjoyed the tour. I think at least 4 of my old apartment would fit inside this one. And my apologies to Robert who lives in a smaller apartment in Seoul than I had in Gwangyang. I think he would like to kill me and take over my apartment. I will watch my back, very carefully.

When we got here the furniture hadn’t arrived yet. Yoon-Soo told me he was taking me to arrange for gas hookup, phone hookup, Internet hookup, and to take me shopping. Yoon-Soo and I bonded during the course of the day. He is a very kind and helpful man. He is 44 and has a house in Seoul where his wife lives. Sometimes (I think) he goes on the weekend but otherwise lives in Ilsan (where he works). It’s hard to understand someone’s marital situation thru small hints. The conversation between him and I flowed smoothly and by the end of the day we were friends. I think we’ll do some hanging out together during my time here, which I’m looking forward to.

Before leaving the apartment, Yoon-Soo told me that the money guy from the school wanted to know if it was okay to talk to me about his children “visiting” my home. Koreans don’t like to come out and say what they mean. They are very non-specific which can be frustrating. I’m not totally sure what “visit” means. It may mean tutoring or it may mean a social call that lets them practice their English. Yoon-Soo told me that many teachers like to “visit” the foreigner to practice their English. I told him that if people want to be friends, it’s not tutoring and I’d be thrilled. He told me to not decide anything until after I settled in. However, I will let the money guy’s kids “visit” me. And I think it will be free. There are 3 people I should suck up to at the school. One is the principal because he’s the boss. One is the money guy, because he’s the money guy. And the 3rd will be the school cook, so I can ask for some edible food.

Yoon-Soo called the gas company and made an appointment for them to come on Saturday morning. We went and ordered telephone and Internet. They said they would be here on Monday (which is good), but I wanted it now. Besides, I will be away on Monday. The phone company (which also does the Internet) made a special call and they agreed to come to my home on Saturday. Yoon-Soo told me they really don’t work on Saturdays so I was quite pleased. I’ve become so dependant on Internet that being without it for a few days while at home would be hell. There was one funny thing while ordering the Internet. I was told it was $35 but after I gave my address, the price went up $2. The reason for this is because I live in a “far” suburb of the city. I guess I’m paying for the extra cable.

Yoon-Soo then asked me if I liked Walmart. I told him I hated it and gave him my multitude of reasons. He apologized and said we were going shopping there because it has the closest supermarket. I assured him it wouldn’t be a problem. I wouldn’t have gone anywhere near there on my own, but I wasn’t going to dictate to someone doing me a favor out of their kindness. Remember, he doesn’t work at my school and he’s doing all these things for me.

My $300 relocation allowance disappeared quickly. In fact, I dropped $500 at Walmart. I needed sheets and towels and plates and so on. I had to have all the accessories for the apartment. The prices shocked me because they were higher than Gwangyang for many items. I always assumed that you pay less in a bigger city (which this is). But, I could buy frozen French fries and frozen corn dogs that you can make in the microwave. But, on a sad note, they had no cheddar cheese. Koreans don’t really eat cheese.

Yoon-Soo had a friend coming to Ilsan to visit him. It was a young lady who he said he met in graduate school and made friends with 6 years ago. I don’t really know what their relationship is. Anyhow, Yoon-Soo picked her up and took her and I to Outback in Ilsan. And he paid. Some people can’t do enough for you. How can you reciprocate? It’s so difficult because I’m the visitor here so many of the kind things he does for me, I can’t do for him. I think Koreans are generous, and in Yoon-Soo’s case, he got a Fulbright grant last year and studied in Texas for a few months. He made friends there and was treated very well. That may be part of why he went the extra mile. He was in San Antonio and Austin but I don’t recall seeing him. It is a small world. One of the people he met came to Korea to teach English this year. He works at an American school in Daegu. He’s from San Antonio and Yoon-Soo called him and then put me on the phone with him because we had Texas in common. I talked to him for a while and he seemed quite nice. We will get together in September. He is going to the States in mid-June for the summer.

After Outback Yoon-Soo brought me and my packages home. He translated the washing machine manual for me so I could do some laundry. I told him I was going to Seoul on Saturday evening and I asked how to get there. He told me that it was too late to find out and he would come visit me on Saturday. I wish I could be as nice and unselfish as some people.

On Saturday morning I puttered around and tidied up while waiting for the gas man, and the Internet and telephone man. The apartment has a computer system built into it that controls security and other functions. I can buzz the building complex thru it to talk to someone there. I was just pressing buttons and learned this when someone was jabbering away to me in Korean thru the intercom into my apartment after I pressed the button. When someone rings your buzzer, the screen (built into the wall) shows a live shot of the person. It even stores several frames so you can go back and see all the people who’ve come to the door. When you come in, go out, turn on and off lights, and other things, a Korean voice says something. I don’t know what, but they say it. I can open the front door by pushing a button. And, I can make phone calls from it and answer phone calls too. The bathroom has something in it that was like a speaker and a button so if the phone rings while you’re on the toilet, you can answer it. I’ve seen them in hotels, but never a private residence.

The gas man came and hooked me up. Then the telephone man came and hooked me up. He went to leave and I said “Internet”. Of course he spoke no English so it was difficult to try and explain things. I called Yoon-Soo but he didn’t answer his phone. I’m panicking because I want my Internet. I then look for something I have that has a phone number you can call to have things translated for you. While looking for it Yoon-Soo calls me back. The phone guy will go back to the office and ask the Internet guy to come. That’s fine. Yoon-Soo tells me that he’ll be by at 1:30 to wait for the Internet guy. I then let the phone man escape.

Yoon-Soo comes at 1:30 and we chat and wait for the Internet guy. He comes and hooks me up without a problem. However I wanted to hook up my wireless router so I can take my computer anywhere in the apartment. The power adapter wouldn’t work. I then remember I’ll need passport photos for my visa. I have a CD with a picture on it I had done for my previous visa photos but I can’t find it. Yoon-Soo tells me that he’ll take me to take care of that, and he’ll take me to find an adapter for my router. I get my stuff together and bring along my wireless router so I can be sure it fits. Yoon-Soo then tells me he’ll drop me off at the subway in Ilsan so I can go to Seoul. We check out the bus stop on the way and I now know how to take the bus there. He tells me that he will come by and Sunday and we’ll take care of the photos. We don’t find an electronics store so I decide that’s where I’ll meet Robert in Seoul. There is a huge store of electronics. It has 9 floors. It’s not one store but hundreds of individual kiosks for companies selling things. Yoon-Soo drops me at the subway, I call Robert and we make plans where to meet, and I’m off.

It will take about 20 minutes by bus for me to get to the subway in Ilsan. It takes about an hour by subway to get to the center of Seoul. It’s a long ride, but it’s close enough and cheap enough so that going to Seoul won’t be a major outing. Robert and I meet at Yongson (the electronics place) where I buy an adapter from this very nice and helpful young man at a kiosk. I also buy a printer for $60 (HP inkjet) from him. The price is right and my apartment is big enough to handle a printer. I also buy a DVD player for my rapidly expanding DVD collection. We didn’t buy any yesterday because there is nothing new since my last visit to Seoul 3 weeks ago.

This “store” also has a mall in it and many restaurants. We found a nice looking place and tried a C.B.L.T. (chicken, bacon, lettuce, tomato) sandwich, and a New York pizza. We were impressed. It was quite good. It was really wonderful to go out with a friend for the evening. It’s nice to be living within striking distance of someone I like and who the conversation flows easily with. Of course I brought my camera along so he could see the pictures I just posted (and more). Yes, he’s one jealous guy.

I took the subway back to Ilsan and because it was late and I was lugging several things I took a taxi back home. I had asked Yoon-Soo to take a guess at what a taxi would cost and he said about $5. I figured it was worth it. He was wrong. It was over $12 so I just won’t be hopping into a taxi any old time to go back and forth from Ilsan. I’ll use the bus mostly as long as it’s not too late and they’re still running.

Today I hooked up my printer and my DVD player. Writing in my blog takes longer than you would think. It’s now 4:30 in the afternoon and Yoon-Soo is coming at 6. We’ll go out shopping (I have a short list) and then to get a bite to eat. I’ll pack tonight for my orientation trip while dreading that I’ll be sharing a room with others where I am. You don’t stay at a hotel, they have accommodations there.

I probably won’t be posting for a while. I’ll take my computer with me, but I don’t know if I’ll have Internet access. I don’t know anything about any of the orientation or the facilities or any part of it. I won’t take my computer to Hong Kong. So my only post for over a week may just be Thursday night when I’m back from orientation. But don’t despair because just maybe I will be able to get online.

It’s been a great start to my Paju chapter. Everything has gone better than I could have hoped for in my wildest dreams. Kelly and Gwangyang are already distant memories. I’m optimistic about the future. It will be hard to live up to the start I’ve had, but hey, why not? The only negative thing is that cleaning will be time consuming now because the apartment is so big. But if that’s the price I have to pay, so be it. I just noticed that in Word this document is now on page 10. The pictures aren’t in the document, just the links. This must be my longest post. And I was worried that as soon as I left Gwangyang I’d have nothing to say. Hah!