Recap

So I know I haven't been completely committed to this blog. But with good reason...I was out enjoying my first two months in Korea. To pick up on where I last left off I have met and become friends with such an amazing group of people. They have all been here for varying amounts of time ranging from four months to over four years. They come from all over the world including England, South Africa, New Zealand, Canada, and even as close to me as Denver, CO. But I have to say they are all thoughtful and all of them know how to have a good time. Just recently we all went down to Busan for the weekend as a sort of last big group trip before they all start heading back home. Between the dance party in the apartment in Seomyeong to the keebabs out in front of the dance club, and finally topping off the night with a brisk dip in the ocean we created a pretty memorable final farewell for our group.
The first to leave are a really laid back couple from New Zealand, Hamish and Megan. They are getting ready to go to Japan for a couple weeks and then they plan to buy a van, fish, camp, and travel around New Zealand. The thing I remember most about them were all the card games and tournaments we played at their apartment high above Geochang.
It is sad seeing this great group of people leave, but as my friend Graham told me, "You don't stay for the people because eventually they will all be gone." On a positive note last night I met a couple of the newbies in town. Two girls named Sara and Laura are working at the Geochang Lift College, which oddly enough is the only elevator college in the world. Finally, I met Diana who is an sweet girl from South Africa. So out with the old and in with the new. The next chapter of mighty Geoochang begins!!!!!!
So to recap on exactly what I have been doing for two months I am pleased to say that it included a lot of little trips all over South Korea.
Daegu
Korea's third largest city is not much of a tourist destination but it provides plenty of the amenities that I need. Considering that it is just 5,ooo won (about $4.00) and one hour bus ride away I have visited this city the most. These trips included going to see a new movie, Chloe (overtly sexual movie that I think made the Koreans watching it with us crawl in their skin). Going out to all the fun night clubs and western eateries, this included Frogs, Holy Grill, Gorilla Burger, Commune, as well as many other bars and such that at this point have faded into a haze. I have also gone down to Daegu for shopping which ranges from the Gap, Zara (an Italian clothing store), Lotte Department store, Home Plus (a cheaper better form of Costco), and all the other random Korean side shops in between. I even dropped by Daegu one night after a crazy weekend in Seoul just to experience the KTX train ride with a couple of British friends I had just met in a hostel a few night prior. Daegu has many fond memories even though it offers the least amount of tourist attractions of any city I have been to so far.

Seoul
Korea's capital city and home to the World Cup Stadium as well as Asia's largest electronic market. Seoul is a great city because that is where most things happen such as festivals, major concerts, and it has the largest array of western restaurants. On the flip side I am not a huge fan of Seoul because it is so large. Seoul has the world's busiest subway system and it definitely feels like it when it is five o'clock and you are crammed into a subway car like one big human jello mold. No one stands supporting themselves you act as one entity just swaying back and forth as the subway moves. But I do have some great memories in Seoul. Like on New Year's Eve when Graham, Jitesh and I were running through the subway desperately trying to reach Hongdae before the clock struck midnight. It was so bitterly cold that night I think it got down to -20 Celsius. Or my last adventure to Seoul when I went to visit my Korean friend and ended up meeting some really cool people in the hostel where I was staying. Clubbing, driving around in the M5, and over all craziness for that Lunar New Year Weekend. Funny enough one of the guys I met at that hostel, Tom, was considering coming to Geochang and so he had posted something on our Geochang G.U.E.S.T facebook page. Later on I came to find out that is who recommended me as a good contact in Geochang when the new South African girl, Diana, coincidentally contacted Tom via facebook. I know small world right?

Finally, Busan...Oh Busan
By far the prettiest city in Korean that I have visited since I arrived. It picture perfect mountains back right up to the beaches. When I went sailing and looked back to the coast line all the multi-colored buildings almost resemble the Mediterranean coast, or least that is what I imagine it looks like. Tons of restaurants, bars, casinos and plenty of beautiful beaches it makes this quite the get away and fortunately for me it is only two or so hours away. I am really looking forward to the Pusan International Film Festival which in recent years has become more and more prestigious not to mention the amount of cool DJ's and live entertainment that comes in to play on the beaches until the early hours of the morning. Oh I was even able to get my hair colored and cut there, although it did take over four hours

Well plenty of things to report home. I hope everyone else is doing well. I miss you all very much. But if all goes well I am seriously considering staying another year. These are some of the best moments of my life and I don't want to ever give them up. I gaining all sorts of insights to life, teaching (although less than initially expected) girls who absolutely adore me, and living in an amazing country by myself. I think I could do this for just a little longer than expected :)



Oh this is a clip from the Winter English Camp, these are the Philippians dancing for the students. Pretty cute!


One Love,
Erin

Flying High

-->

Countdown one hour till departure to Seoul :

Well the time has come I am sitting in LAX, a shithole of an airport if you ask me, and I am remembering my family and friends that I have so readily left behind. It’s weird I thought I would become more anxious about leaving but all I have felt is a precious energy to leave.

My first flight from Denver to L.A. was boring and crowded I sat next to a guy my age that seemed to want little to nothing to do with me. Despite him and in celebration of my departure I ordered a cocktail. I must have synced on some weird level with the flight attendant because when I looked at my receipt I realized they charged me for two mini liquor bottles. Although the attendant was very apologetic I calmed her worries by letting her know it was no problem and I was more than happy to accept the additional bottle of booze, only because I didn’t want to cause a ruckus mid air ;)

When I de-boarded the plane I felt like one of those rats in scientific maze I had no idea which way was up. After multiple explanations that I needed to find the Tom Bradley terminal I found myself actually leaving the LAX airport to walk several minutes to find the Tom Bradley terminal down the way. Lets just say there were a lot of Asians standing in line. Naturally I thought this must be where I am suppose to stand, with the Asians who don’t speak very good English, right? Luckily, I met a little man from China. Who told me about some ice sculpture he was going to see. After a few minutes of standing in line, which I was sure was due to the “incident” this morning; he talked to a friend on the phone and quickly realized we were in the wrong line. Thank God he intervened because there was no way I was willing to risk losing my place in that godforsaken line to find out where I was actually suppose to be.

Once I got to the correct terminal I looked for a place to eat. With lady luck on my side there happened to be a little “restaurant” right next to my gate. I say restaurant so hesitantly because it was an establishment about the size of my parent’s kitchen that had a bar and microwave. Every food item that came through this place was either wrapped in plastic wrap in the cooler or it was nuked in the microwave to give it that warm home cooked feel.

I met two guys that were headed to Melbourne and we talked about each of our intended travels. We related to each other because we all had at least a thirteen-hour flight ahead of us. Now this is were I think I made my fatal mistake. With the food looking oh so appetizing, coming from a microwave I passed and instead had another cocktail. Now the last time I ate something was about five o’clock. I headed to the gate boarded the plane and waited unknowing of the pain and misery that was about to ensue.

In-Flight Mayhem:

Korean Air is a no joke airlines. This is by far the nicest airline I have ever flown. They gave me a first row seat with extra leg space, a personal monitor to watch all the free movies, music, and television I could desire, and the food oh the food. I choose to go with the traditional Korean dinner called Bibimbop (I think that is how it is spelled), which is a rice dish with beef, mushrooms, and an assortment of legumes. All of this is tossed with chili pepper sauce and sesame seed oil and then served with seaweed soup and fruit, delicious. I took my medicine that I had planned to use to help me sleep. Now it is about 1:30 am and I am just now getting my first substantial meal of the evening. Korean Air being the awesome airlines that they are offers complimentary wine with your meal. After I finished my meal I noticed I was starting to feel tired almost dizzy. I ignored it thinking it was either the medicine or actual exhaustion setting in. With my eyes closed trying to focus on the relaxing flight to Korea I started to notice that the dizziness was worsening and all of a sudden the nausea set in. Again trying to remain calm and remind myself that I am just really tired I tried to mentally push past it. Once it dawned on me that no amount of mental strength was going to subside the nausea and dizziness I went to the restroom. Now the last thing I remember was seeing spots and losing my hearing followed by me lying on the floor of the tiny bathroom with the flight attendants pounding on the door in fear of having a dead passenger on board. Lets just say that this was not the start to the thirteen-hour flight I had hoped for. For the rest of the flight I was diligently checked up on and I was even offered the care of a doctor who was on board. Regardless, the duration of my flight was miserable, plagued with nausea and the overly attendant stewardesses waking me every half hour, I was overwhelmed with happiness when we finally landed in Seoul. Lesson learned never think that by some miracle of your experience at previous college parties that you can travel over half a days time and survive on liquid meals, not smart kids not smart at all.

After a quick flight from Seoul to Busan, my recruiter greeted me at the airport. He drove me north to Geochang and was gracious enough to let me sleep during the car ride back. Then came the greetings. I was exhausted at this point and ready to go to my home. But as custom in Korean I needed to meet my teachers and tour the school first. Everyone was so happy to meet me and kept telling me that I was “so beautiful”. So I have to say it was worth it to go to the school for a little confidence booster after what seemed to be one the worst traveling experiences of my life.

I was please to see my apartment although seemingly small it was more than enough space for me. I had a relatively large bed, a full size brand new fridge, rice cooker, microwave, two burners and a brand new front-loading washing machine. Over all I thought to myself this will be a good year. Kind co-workers, a great (free) apartment, plenty of amenities and awesome friends who were soon to be discovered, what more could you really ask for?