I didn’t make it home… April 22, 2009

In my last post, I was getting ready to go home on vacation.   Unfortunately, that didn’t exactly happen.  Well, I shouldn’t say unfortunately because my trip home just got pushed back till the summer.   2 weeks before my flight was scheduled to leave, I saw an ad posted on an ESL website looking for someone to start work in March.   The headline read, “Looking for a kindergarten teacher and you will get 7 weeks of vacation”.    I couldn’t help but reply because the vacation time is simply phenomenal.   Last year, I only got about 2 weeks of vacation with 10 holidays thrown in as well.  So, 7 weeks had me near salavating at the mouth. 

I applied for the job and as they say, the rest is herstory.   I was hired the same day I applied and they asked me to start work on March 4th.   Now, I’m going home during summer vacation in July/August and I can’t wait!  This is the longest time I’ve been out of the USA but I’m not terribly homesick.   Of  course I miss certain things but I can hold out till the summer.

I did manage to go on a mini-vacation to Japan in March.  I had to get a new work visa for my job and did the infamous visa run to Fukuoka.   However, my visa run lasted a bit longer (8 days) than most due to some complications with immigration.  But I got to see Fukuoka, Osaka and Kyoto which was really cool.  Here are some photos of my trip and I’m so happy to know that someone looks in on this blog every once in awhile!

Shinkansen

A row of bikes in Fukuoka

A canal in Kyoto

East meets West

On the way to a temple

Kiyomizudera Temple

 

Pagoda

View from the top

So peaceful. The temple is in Kyoto

Pond view of the pagoda

I love this shot!

Leaving the temple

Next up, the streets of Osaka

I had to run to get this shot!

Dontcha just love the colors

The cutest McDonald's I've ever seen

I went to the mall; isn't this cool?

                                                                                                                

7 Weeks Left!! January 8, 2009

Oh my goodness, a year has almost passed by in the blink of an eye.  I will be back in the states in less than 2 months and I can’t believe it!  My life has changed so much in 12 months and it really affirms that adage, “You never know what will happen in life”.  I’m planning on coming back in May so I am not bidding adieu to Korea. 

I still think there are tons of things for me to explore and I’m not quite finished with this country.  When I come back, I plan on posting more pics on here b/c I was ridiculously lazy in that arena last year.  Even if I can’t write much about my life, I will at least put up some pictures of what I am seeing.  Me and one of my friends are “Moving on up to the East Side” in the summer.  Actually, it’s the south side of Seoul, aka ritzy side but I couldn’t help inserting in a reference to the Jeffersons. 

This year I lived in a very traditional Korean neighborhood.  It was cool and in regards to the culture, it was very educational but I would like to have more access to international things.   So, I am now trying to land a job in the ritzy part of town.   Wish me luck!

Right now, all I can think about is going home and seeing my family and friends.  Everyone else’s life has changed a lot in the past year as well and I envision long talks over wine or coffee in the coming months.  I am so excited to speak English too.  Living here makes you forget you are actually literate in a language and that you have the ability to hold decent conversations.  Hopefully, this year I will get off the lazy train with learning some of this language too.   It’s a bit difficult so we shall see.   So see everybody in 7 weeks!!!

Just what I needed… November 30, 2008

This year will be finished in rougly 31 days depending on what time zone you live in.   Right around this time of year is when I look at the past 12 months to see if I was successful at accomplishing any goals set for the year.  However, back in January I didn’t set many new goals to achieve in 2008.  I was unemployed at the beginning of the year so my only concern was to find a job asap.  When I lucked upon the teaching job here in Seoul, I packed my bags and left my life in Los Angeles.

The one year that I didn’t have a laundry list of things to do happened to be the year when I did the most.   Here are a few things that 2008 brought me:

• Moved to a new country
• Taught kindergarten
• Quit smoking
• Lost 20 pounds
• Dated a helluva lot more
• Got closer to God
• Visited Thailand
• Met some new life-long friends
• Wrote on a regular basis
• Discovered I can’t get along with all types of personalities (quite a shocker for me!)

When I look back at 2008, it truly was an awesome year.  I was a little worrisome when I left LA to come here.  Although I was excited about new adventures, I just kept wondering if I made the right decision.  I was really comfortable with my life in LA but at times, I felt like my journey was coming to an end there.  Once I left and came here, I realized how much was missing from my LA life.    Everything that was missing are most of the things that 2008 brought me.    Living here in Seoul has given me a more balanced life which is what I tried so hard to achieve back in the States.  I never would have dreamed that moving almost 7000 miles from home was just what I needed.   As 2009 fastly approaches, I wonder if I should go back to making a list or just see what the new year brings my way….

My kids October 7, 2008

I never got around to putting up any pictures of the little munchkins I teach.  Here are some pics of one of the Kindergarten classes I teach.  I’ll post some more pics of my other class soon…

Alice being cute

Sophia and Amy writing on the board

 

Sophia

BFF

Amy

Alice and Sophia

Danny (The other 2 boys were out on this day).

Waiting for group picture

Say cheese!

One more time

Playing around

More playing around

Who am I kidding, they can play all day!

 

One last group shot

I could hardly put the camera down and get to work.  I can see how Mothers get so camera happy with their kids all of the time!  Anyways, like I said, will post more of the other class soon.  Ciao.

Vacation recap September 1, 2008

I’ve been back from Thailand for almost a month and I still wish I was there.  I don’t know if it’s because I always tend to think cities I am not residing in are better than where I live or if it’s because it’s truly greater.  I’m gonna go with the latter reason on this one because in this case, the grass really was greener on the other side. 

In one word, Thailand was phenomenal.  I loved the people, food and ambience.  It had a very chill vibe and everyone seemed so relaxed.   My friends and I arrived to Bangkok around 10pm and got to our budget accommodation by midnight.  We decided to roam the streets aka bars since we only had 2 nights in the city.  We stayed in a popular tourist area so the streets were very lively and full of people even at 1am.  We sauntered into a random tavern place and drank cheap cocktails.  The entire bar was essentially wasted and the people were quite funny to watch.   Most of the tourists were European (British & German) and one man told me he was impressed to see some Americans traveling there. 

  (I’m on the right)     (Crazy Kim doing the victory sign)   

The next day, we did a boat load of sightseeing and shopping.   The palaces were ostentatious, the Buddha’s were serene and the shopping was overwhelming.  This one mall the locals encouraged us to visit was enormous!  There had to have been at least 10 floors of just about everything you would ever need in a lifetime.   It was quite different from malls back home though.  At this mall, you could still bargain and negotiate prices as if you were buying from an outdoor vendor.   I was surprised how much I was negotiating because I usually never do this sort of thing.  However, people assumed we had exchanged American dollars instead of Korean Won and they were quoting ridiculous overpriced amounts.  I told one vendor, yes I am American but I work in Korea and make money in Won.  He just stared and said, Ahhhhh.  Korean money is not doing all that great right now and although Thailand was still cheap for us, it wasn’t dirt cheap.

  (Riding in a Tuk-tuk)       (Canoe ride at the floating market)

The next morning, we left Bangkok and headed for Koh Chang.  The entire trip took about 6 hours and we got to Koh Chang ready to relax.  The island was so cute and quaint.  We were in desperate need of some R&R and the island was the perfect solution.  In Bangkok, we barely slept since we had such little time there.  In Koh Chang, we caught up on our sleep, got massages, drank fresh fruit juices, ate on the beach, drank many cocktails, shopped a bit, lounged in the pool and ate thai food galore.  It was really a glorious time.  The hotel was perfect and very quiet due to low season.  The crowds of Seoul seemed so far away from the Island and its peacefulness was much enjoyed.

Beach at the hotel

Sunset on the beach

All in all, it was a fabulous trip and worth the 8 year long wait it took me to go on vacation.  I’m already planning my next vacation and this time, it’s barely 8 months away.  Ciao…

Going on Vacation July 22, 2008

To say I have been MIA is an understatement.  It’s not that I didn’t log on to WordPress almost everyday with the intention of writing something savvy about Seoul.  But to be honest, I haven’t been doing anything that exciting or savvy to log on a weekly basis.  I’ve carved a little routine here already.  I go to work Mon thru Fri and then hang out with friends on the weekend.  It sorta mirrors my life in LA.   I pretty much do the same things here that I did there except it’s with new friends set in a different backdrop.   We go out to dinner and go out for drinks.  You know, usual adult stuff.   But now, it’s about to get exciting again.  I am going on vacation next week to THAILAND!!  Woohoo, finally something cool to write about.

I haven’t had a vacation in 8 years.  Sure, I received vacation time from my previous employers and used it to visit my parents.  I always thoroughly enjoyed those restful weeks at home but it never constituted a real vacation.  To me, vacation means exploring a new city; laying on a beach drinking some fruity drink; going to a museum; eating new cuisines etc.  The last time I did this was with my friend S back in 2001.  We went to Jamaica and had a lovely time.   I was 22 and foolishly thought I would be taking new excursions every year with friends.  By the time 23 rolled around, I had acquired a car loan, insurance and expensive rent to pay.  The vacations were sent packing but not anymore. 

Thailand has always been on my list of places to visit so I am excited to mark it off the list.   I keep imagining paradise awakening me every morning.  It will be a much needed break from Seoul.   Living in LA afforded me lots of personal space, clean air( I know it’s crazy saying LA has clean air but it really does compared to Seoul) and to die for weather.  Seoul is grimy, noisy and the weather plain sucks.  I have complained so much about the humidity and the rain that I think my friends are ready to kill me.  It rains for 2 months straight in Seoul (July and August).   I hate the rain, so it’s been a wee bit difficult to adjust too.  I’ve really learned to appreciate simple things much more living out here.  So, I think next week I will just be soaking up all of the goodness and enjoying every minute of it.  Here is a pic of where I am going.  It’s an island called Koh Chang.  

See you when I get back!

I leave my purse everywhere May 24, 2008

All of my friends and fam know that I am usually attached to my purse everywhere I go.  It hardly goes without being by my side in churches, parties, restaurants, bars and bbq’s, etc.   One of my friends met an ex-boyfriend at a club b/c he had to know what I had in my bag that was so important for me to hang on to it on the dancefloor.  Even when I do leave it somewhere other than my shoulder, I secretly wonder if it will still be there when I get back.  

I think my grandmother instilled this paranoia in me.  I have a cousin who had a slight theft problem when I was a kid and my grandmother told me to NEVER leave my purse unattended because money would probably be missing when I got back to it.  Somehow, that stuck with me well into adulthood.  Until I got to Seoul.  I had read about crimes of theft being very low in Seoul before I came and people leaving their personal belongings unattended for long amounts of time.  I just didn’t believe it.  But I first witnessed this “leaving your personal belongings behaviour” while I waited to board the plane in Dallas. 

This older Korean woman sitting next to me in the airport got up and left her purse and luggage for about 5 minutes.  I kept thinking, is she insane?  Someone could come and grab her stuff any minute now but that didn’t happen. 

The first time I went out to a bar here, I noticed all of my coworkers left their purses in a couple of chairs the entire night while we danced.  I held onto mine at first but they assured me nothing would happen if I laid it down for 5 whole hours.   It all sounded a little suspect to me.  I mean, what if you have over $100 bucks in your purse? But they said no one would touch it.  I decided to just go with the flow even though I kept glancing over at my purse the whole night.   To my surprise, nothing was missing when we left. 

Now I leave my purse unattended everywhere; in cafes, bars, and restaurants.  Today, I went out for lunch alone and I left my purse at the table while I went to the restroom.  That is something I would have NEVER done back home.  I don’t think that people are stealing purses left and right in the states but I feel like you have to have your guard up more at home.   Because the one time you try to be less paranoid is the time when it will be gone when you get back from the potty.  I’m sure some purses have gotten stolen in Seoul because no city is perfect but it’s nice to feel so free with my personal belongings here.    

Channeling an old friend May 7, 2008

Korea is not my first time living abroad.  As most of my friends know, I lived in Spain for 10 months back in college.  It was a pivotal changing point in my life and I was a new person after I went home.  It’s amazing how living in foreign countries can change your entire view on life.  While I was there, I made connections with people I still keep in touch with today. 

Of course, some people I met,  I haven’t seen since we parted ways in Madrid.  There was this one woman I befriended that started college later in life and she was 30 years old at the time while the rest of us were 20-21.   She was so full of life and really enjoyed every moment from what I remember.  For lack of a better term, living in Spain was her last hurrah before she got married.  She was engaged to a man she had been with for 10 years and before they took the plunge, she said she wanted to do one last thing as a single person.  We all really forgot she was 9 yrs our senior but she was definitely a lot wiser than us when it came to certain things. 

So when I got to Seoul and started hanging out with my soon to be good friends here, I realized I was channeling the woman I met in Spain.  I’m 7-8 years older than the girls I hang out with and at times, I feel myself turning into their much older sister and giving them advice about pretty much everything.  You don’t realize how much you know till you take a step back and look back at your life and see what you’ve learned. 

 I also benefit from hanging out with them as well.  It’s nice to feel like I’m reliving my early twenties again; so fanciful and carefree.  We don’t talk about the future too much; we just try and enjoy the present.   Of course, I am not ignoring the future because I am at an age where every decision I make is basically affecting my retirement plans.  But it’s kinda nice to be this space where I feel exempt from all of that, even if it’s just for a little while.

I still wonder how my friend is doing from time to time.  She prolly has kids now and is living a proper surburban life in Southern California.  But I’m sure she thinks back to those days in Spain when her only care in the world was meeting her girls for drinks…

 

Adjusting May 5, 2008

Last month was.. difficult.  I didn’t blog much at all because I had nothing to say.  The “homesickness” feeling took a hold of me and all I could think about was friends and family and how I wanted to be back in my comfort zone.  After the novelty of Seoul wore off, nothing felt exciting anymore. 

I met this girl at a bar when I first arrived and she has been living here for 6 years.  She told me that you have to recreate the life you had in your home country here in Seoul or you will just feel like an outsider with no real ties to this city.   So, my new challenge is to get some new hobbies so I can really soak up this experience.  I’m finally starting Korean classes this month which will make adjusting a whole lot easier I’m sure. 

 Last week, I felt back to my normal self and I was really relieved.  I’m not used to being in a funk for so long because I’ve always been pretty happy go lucky but now I’m back on track.  I just had a great weekend filled with lots of dancing, eating good food and roaming around the city.  I discovered this really cute district thanks to another blogger (http://nearandfar.wordpress.com/) called Samcheong-dong and I felt at home in this area.  Lots of cute cafes, wine bars, boutiques and shops lined the tree laden streets.  Since I live in a grimy area, it was such a welcome change to see greenery and nice architecture.  I’m sure Seoul has many more wonderful areas just waiting to be discovered and I’m looking forward to finding my niche while I’m here.   

Long gone the days… April 6, 2008

Long gone are the days when we were kids fresh out of college with so much time to spare on our hands.   Time to hang out for hours on end and just be.  Time to have weekly dinners and all night partying sessions.  Time to soak up each others presence but not fully appreciate it in the moment.  That’s the thing.  We never realize how different life will be once change occurs.  I always prized myself on being able to be alone and enjoy my own company.  For the most part this is true.  But, here in Korea, the ability to enjoy myself alone is being taken to a whole new level. 

Before, even when I was alone, there was always someone to call on.  With the press of a button, I could get my mother, sister or a friend on the phone instantly.  But not here.  Here, it is different.  There is no one to speed dial, no one to text message, no one to hang out with just for the sake of hanging out.  I have to learn to really enjoy being alone.  And that is hard, even for me.  I am not depressed or anything; I am just in a new stage of having to learn even more about myself.  

Before I left home, my mother said this would be a great opportunity for me to get closer to God.  I wouldn’t have her or my friends to call on for happiness.  I have definitely prayed much more out here and talked to God which is cool.  But sometimes, God is so intangible and I still miss having a physical person in front of me.  I know I will rise to the challenge of being happy with just me but for now, long gone are the days…