Escaping the Concrete Jungle

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So after much arm-twisting Fran has agreed to co-write this blog! I know those of you who regularly read them will be overjoyed to hear his opinions and takes on things! And don't worry, the second installment of our adventures in the Philippines will follow shortly. For now we thought it would be good to bring you up to date on where we stand in our journey.

We have four, yes FOUR countdowns going & as of today they stand at:
9 weeks
63 days
34 teaching days
42 days left having to go into the school
On a good day these numbers seem manageable, but on a bad it can appear impossible.

Since Fran is usually the more level-headed of our pair, Jess thought it would be interesting for him to share his opinion on our current situation regarding our school:
Right now our day to day existence at the school is about surviving. We do our jobs and fulfill our duties while keeping our heads down. After meeting all the requirements of our contract (and some extra hidden ones), we've still been made to feel as if we've done something wrong. We are made to feel less than human on a regular basis. As if we don't actually matter. And for those of you who don't know, our co-teacher has appeared as the villain of our dramatic adventure.

It appears that everybody in the school knows whats going on. Including our manager and the principle. You would think that something would be done to stop the problems, but no, not here. We received the same answer we heard months ago when we tried to tell them they had us teaching too many hours, that change, "Is not possible." Our manager said that she is unable to do anything as she cannot change the 'character' of someone else.

I remember when I was moving to America, I was warned not to let anyone take advantage of me. Maybe I was naive but I didn't believe anyone could be this cruel to me. I cannot wait to feel a million miles away from school. I hope I leave a lot happier than I am now. As we're starting the writing of this blog on a Sunday, my body is already showing signs of nervousness about school tomorrow. I don't expect people to understand. I don't even really understand myself how someone could be this cruel/evil/conniving. Whatever we say just doesn't quite cut it.

We came here to teach English at an elementary level & this is what we got. With this much stress & this much drama you would think we were working for NASA. But, we don't have long left.

Living for the Weekends

And they aren't long enough! They are usually lots of fun, many spent with some people we refer to as our 'Korean Family' who have been quite the support group for us during trying times - we're so lucky to have them and grateful they've put up with our moaning. (Although we're also looking forward to one day seeing them outside of Korea so they can meet us for who we truly are!)

Over the past few weekends we've attended the birthday festivities of one Ben & the leaving 'do' of another Ben (on the same night), Fran went to a shooting range in a shopping center (it's great stress relief!). On Easter Sunday we went into Seoul with our neighbors Dan & Latanya for brunch at a place called Suji's. We've also rediscovered Seoul's other huge market, Namdaemun which is truly a fascinating place! Jess got her 'name stamp' there one chilly Saturday. (Koreans actually register these stamps & then are able to use them as legal signatures on Korean documents.) Last weekend we also experienced a new Korean dish gamjitang, or pig spine soup. Honestly, it tastes much better than it sounds. (And yes, Jess was apprehensive about trying it but thanks to its spicyness, she enjoyed it as well.)

This weekend will be the continuing celebrations of Fran's birth. Thursday we got together with some of our wonderful friends here for dinner and some drinks afterwards. With the help of some lovely ladies Fran's childhood favorite cake 'Chocolate Concrete' was pieced together, mixed, sent to the next town & baked then brought along. A special thanks to those who helped to make that happen! Tonight we will head into Seoul for our dinner reservations at the (true) Italian restaurant Sortinos where we celebrated our anniversary last year. Tomorrow we will venture to another part of Seoul to experience the wonder that is cherry blossoms in spring followed by some walking around the original city wall and a few other areas we've been meaning to explore.

The Next Step

We're also preparing for our next adventure; Southeast Asia. We're really excited to be able to have this opportunity. And we decided yesterday not to take a trip down to the Southeast part of Korea (Busan) over a long weekend in May, but to spend two days in Tokyo later on instead. It might sound surprising, but this will probably be a cheaper option.

Many of you are aware of the trip we've been planning. It is to be 'loosely' organized but we're also going with a pretty good idea of what we want to see & the route we're thinking of taking. Here's what it generally looks like now:

Tokyo - Hong Kong - (Thailand) Bangkok - Ayuthaya - Northern Thailand (Chiang Mai/Pai) - (Laos) Luang Prabang - Vientiane - (Vietnam) Hanoi - Sapa - Halong Bay - Hue - Hoi An - Nha Trang - Mui Ne - Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon) - (Cambodia) Phenom Penh - Siem Riep - (Thailand) Bangkok - Southern Thailand (Ko Tao/Ko samui) - (Malaysia) Penang (Georgetown) - Kuala Lumpur - Singapore - (Indonesia) Yogyakarta - Prambanan - Borobudur - Bali - Lombok - Gili Islands...... And who knows where else!

We're estimating about 12 weeks, but it could be longer!

Hope this finds everyone well and happy wherever in the world they may be! xxFran & Jess

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Comments

[Eric]

I enjoyed your Korea post. I have always wanted to go there. My blog is looking for travel photos. If you have the time, check us out at dirty-hippies.blogspot.com Continued fun on your travels, Eric

[Fransmum]

Wah!
Hang in there kids, you can do it! (I suppose it's too late for acting dumb/skiving/saying 'this is unacceptable and I invoke the Geneva Convention'/poison in her tea?) Get a massage, eat well,and plan the great escape. XXX

[Tricia]

Hang on in there
Just think 42 days going into school, compared to 12 weeks travelling. We have English friends in Hong Kong so let us know if you need anything when you are heading there. Much love