Annyeong haseyo!

WOW! .. Yeah I'm not really sure where to start.

You will notice that I am awake at 7:30am. At home it's 5.30 pm. This is strange because usually when you are jetlagged, you can't sleep when you wouldn't sleep normally. However, I am the queen of napping through the evening, so I can't figure out why I was wide awake this early. Who knows! It is a mystery of the universe.

Anyhow, yesterday I was up even earlier, 6:00am, which means that I had a pretty jam packed day. I started training yesterday, which basically consisted of my boss showing me where the teacher's guides are, and then letting me sit in on five classes. It wasn't until the two last classes, that had American teachers, that I really started to understand what my job would be like. It sounds stressful and confusing, and it kind of is, but this is the way I learn--I refer to it as the "if you throw her in the pool, she will learn to swim" method. Now I would never teach a child how to swim like that, mostly because that endangers their lives, but this is how I best learn new jobs. It just takes a big toll on you the first week or so.

I am surprised at how calm I am about things. I remember the first time I went abroad on my own--to London--I was nervous about this, and that, and all these different things. This time I am just at ease. I think it's because I'm older and better traveled, but also my bosses have put me at ease. They are great people, very kind.

I am staying at a hotel right now, because the teacher I am replacing is still in my apartment. He is leaving tonight, but my bosses said that they wanted to clean the apartment before I moved in. (Good plan!) I am really excited to have my own place--decorate everything, make myself at home. Of course, I do like the (free) broadband internet that the hotel offers... and the self-making bed and self-folding towels, haha. Anyway, though, I started to say that because wen I arrived, I pretty quickly realized that the power outlets in Korea are recessed, meaning that my converter plug wouldn't fit! It is big and square, and the outlets have round holes. (Pondering the situation, I decided that recessed outlets are silly and don't make any sense, but maybe it helps with tripping on a chord and breaking it.) I went to have lunch with my bosses, and I mentioned this problem to them, and Mr. Kim ran off and bought me an extender! I was so happy!

Okay so a note about food. FOOD IS AMAZING. Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park took me to a Japanese fusion restaurant for lunch yesterday. I had some kind of fried meat (pork or chicken) with sweet potatoes stuffed inside. Mr. Kim had the same thing only the stuffing was cheese! CHEESE! NO WAY MAN. I don't know if that is an anomaly in Korea--to have so much cheese in one meal--but I know where I will be eating if I am having a craving for a cheesy deliciousness. For dinner, we went to a restaurant where you cook your own vegetables and meat. I went with Mr. Kim and Mrs. Park and Rebecca, the other American teacher at my school. She is interesting and does well with the kids. I sat in on a class with her that was VERY rambunctious, but at least they were rambunctious and speaking English, haha.

The curriculum is simple, and I think it will be easy to learn. It's even all online, so I can check it out on my laptop! That is what I intend to be doing for the AHH million hours that I have before I need to go to work. Mr. Kim is coming to pick me up, because.. well, I don't actually know how to get from my hotel to my school. Hehe. Like I said, I'm being pretty laid back about things.

Anyway... overall I am doing well!! I am tired, but I am so excited about living here! The eye has plenty of things to feast on, from the distant mountains (!!!) to grandmothers sitting on the street selling their produce. Just from briefly walking on the street yesterday, I feel like this is going to be a fascinating fusion of old and new... where you can have a farmer sitting on the ground with beans for sale on top of a subway tunnel and next to the kind of clothing shop that would be at home on 5th Avenue.

This is going to be great, I can tell.