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Published: January 10th 2010
I've officially been here a week and I'm keeping my promise to myself to blog once a week. We'll see how long it lasts. Quite a few things have happened since I arrived here groggy and disoriented seven days ago.
It's been an awesome experience so far. For the first few days I was very reluctant to step but a few hundred feet out from the comfortable love hotel I stayed in. My diet consisted of raman noodles for breakfest/lunch, and then I would rely on my boss to pick me up and take me somewhere out for dinner. He has since cut off my training wheels and I'm starting to find my own way around. I took the subway alone for the first time on Wednesday to get my medical results (happy to report im disease free) and felt extremely accomplished after arriving back to my hotel. Its funny how such small feats feel so great in such a foreign country. I didn't realize it at first because I was just afraid I'd insult or come across disrespectful but cherades and pointing go a long way. I am now eating fairly well and I've realized everyone is out to help you. For instance, while awaiting my results some nice korean lady kept staring at me with a curious eye and I didn't really know what to do/say. Eventually she smiled and offered me a small candy. I think she was just nervous to say anything initially. Often times I'll simply be walking down the street and both men and women will just stop in their tracks and stare at me in some sort of baffled amazement.
In fact, the coolest thing just happened today. I left my apartment around noon in search of food and I heard this Korean man come up behind me and joyfully say, "Where are you from!" in fairly good English. We started hitting it off, and he offered to take me out for a Korean lunch. What followed was such an awesome experience. He says his American name is Dragom Kim. He also told me I should address him as Mr. Kim but eventually told me I can just call him Dragom because I was now, "good Canada friend". We walked and talked, he inquired about where I was from, my family, and taught me Korean language and customs. He is actually the owner of a fairly prominent Korean computer company, and I think by the way he dressed and acted, is fairly well off. After lunch he insisted he take me to the local Sunday market. It was awesome! I received quite the dose of local culture which is great because its easy to become caught up in safe 'foreigner' circles. He introduced me to a handful of people, we laughed a lot, he explained to me all the different foods and smells. He persuaded a lady to let me try some fried octopus for free (it was actually decent...just tasted like chicken), he brought me into this tiny electrical shop and bought me a power bar because he knew I needed one. He struggled with a lot of words but I helped him out, and in return he helped me out tremendously. He later asked if he could email me because he'd like to introduce me to his wife and son. After hanging out for almost 3 hours, he shook my hand, bowed to me, and with a huge smile bid farewell to me. Such a cool experience.
I am also now into my new apartment. I still need to get small things like hangers, a garbage bin, some cleaners. It's a very nice apartment complete with heated floors and a HEATED toilet seat which is amazing. It's a pretty big place with a seperate bedroom which is a nice touch. I begin my job tommorow afternoon and I'm excited yet a little nervous. I went out downtown last night which was terrific. I met probably 60 foreigner teachers and some locals. Everyone is extremely nice and helpful. I'm looking forward to getting to know them all better! That's it for now, I'm probably forgetting quite a bit, but next sunday I'll let you know how my first week of teaching unfolded
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Montreuil
non-member comment
I am jealous
Sounds amazing dude. Just remember to be safe. Take care of yourself.