Finally moved into my apartment in Mokpo!
Tuesday (August 30) was a very long day for the TaLK Scholars in Jeonnam. Woke up super early so that we could finish packing our bags and be physically ready to leave at 8:45am (even though we weren't scheduled to leave until after lunch). The conference room was full of formally clad scholars and heaps of suitcases. We were told to say our 'good-byes' before the closing ceremony began because as soon as we lined up, we were instructed to act professionally and stay close to the representatives from our elementary schools. Everyone looked sharp, but a little hesitant to go our separate ways for the long run. It's going to be a while until we are all in the same place at the same time again.
During the closing ceremony, we filed into 2 rows on the stage. Our schools were announced in geographical order, and each scholar stepped up to the podium to say a brief introduction about themselves. Then we walked off the stage to our school representatives in the audience.
I was greeted by the vice principal of my school and a teacher, who has been the official driver during my transition into Mokpo / Yeongam. We ate lunch together in the cafeteria. They don't speak English very well, so we didn't talk much.
After lunch, we departed for Mokpo, a 1.5 hour drive during which I (accidentally) fell asleep. We arrived at my new apartment, and I was confused because I thought we were going to Daebul Elementary School instead. [Language barrier issues.] At first sight, the room was small. There was no furniture: no bed, no television, no fridge, nothing ... and the floor was sort of dirty. A guy was there cleaning my apartment, and I thought, "Hell no, I can't live here." They asked me if this room was okay and offered to find me another apartment if I did not like it. So I asked / gestured in broken English if another place would be bigger and have a bed. They said that they would have to keep looking and proceeded to talk among themselves in Korean for a long time -- one of many long, foreign conversations that I've had to sit/stand through with deaf ears. My vice principal kept gestruing at me when she spoke. She looked concerned. In my mind, she was vouching for me: "No way. This girl is a TaLK Scholar. She cannot live here!" but after a while the teacher/driver told me that they decided that this would be my apartment. Who knows what she was actually saying. They drove me to the Immigration Office to apply for my Alien Registration Card. I need this to apply for a contract mobile phone and to return to Korea if I ever decide to travel outside of the country. I also finally cashed my travelers cheques at a KEP Bank. (I was running short on money and struggling to find a bank in Jochiwon.) Then we spent over an hour at E-Mart, which is similar to a small K-Mart or Walmart. I dropped $200 on supplies to furnish my new apartment, such as bedding, kitchen utensils, pans, a rice cooker, plates, toilet paper, the essentials of life. The school is supposed to reimburse me come payday.
I didn't have Internet access for about a day. I found myself channeling WiFi on my phone down the street...in the middle of the night...behind a dodgy van...and getting bitten by heaps of mosquitoes. Luckily I only had to do that for a day.
I visited Daebul Elementary School for the first time on Wednesday, August 31st. The teacher came to pick me up, and we drove for about 20 minutes out of Mokpo, over the Young San River, through an industrial area of Yeongam, and up to the school. Daebul is in the middle of a field, in the middle of no where. The area is windy and hot, but my co-teacher (Hannee) tells me that it will be windy, cold, and snowing (yes, snowing) later in the year.
I met Hannee on Thursday, September 1st. She goes to Daebul University and is studying English Education. Her English is not very strong, but she is really nice and will be in charge of translating / controlling the kids on Tuesdays & Thursdays.
I ate lunch with the staff and faculty. The food was delicious as usual, and I was lost in translation as usual. I briefly introduced myself, and my mentor teacher (Dae Ho) translated for me.
Dae Ho is another teacher at Daebul. I think he is only 25 years old, but he is already married and has a daughter. We had dinner together on Tuesday, the day I arrived. (We were supposed to eat dinner with the principal, but I think that shopping took too long that day, so it got postponed.) Conversation was a bit scarce because of the language barrier, but I think we will get along fine. He has been very helpful about answering my questions / miscellaneous demands about my Internet problems and broken camera issues. (Yeah, my camera stopped working in Gwangju. I am in the process of possibly getting it fixed, but that is another story.)
On Friday (September 2nd), I went to Daebul to work on my lesson plans and eat lunch -- their food is delicious -- better than any Korean food I've eaten in the States. Instead of lesson planning, I cleaned 95% of the surface area because it was really dusty, reorganized the supplies, watered the plants, and took an inventory of the resources in my classroom. It was a productive day!
I spent the weekend trying to hash out a monthly plan with my friends Joanne & Nari. It's harder than it sounds. More on that later.
I am cooking for myself these days. I is a grown up. I cooked rice like half a dozen times this weekend because I was bored, and I did it for every meal because I had all the time in the world. I recently learned to cook a lot at once and then save it in my fridge for later. Silly me. I also know how to make fried tofu, different kinds of eggs...I bought some Korean side dishes to go with my rice. Yummy.
Today I accidentally bought 13 bananas. Back in America, I usually pick the number of bananas that I want and stick them into a plastic bag. I noticed that the bundles of bananas had a price sticker stuck onto one banana in the bunch, but I disregarded it and plucked the bananas off. I brought my bananas to the register with the rest of my groceries and confused the cashier because she didn't know how much the bananas cost. She walked off with my bananas and consulted another sales clerk. The other clerk came over to me in the line and started speaking in Korean and gesturing if I plucked the bananas. I replied 'ne' (yes), and she shook her head / finger, indicating that I should not have done that. I said 'mian-hamnida' (I'm sorry). She left and brought me the rest of the bananas. So I ended up buying the whole bundle, all 13 bananas, for about $3.50. Maybe I can fry them and make plantains? I will probably try that tonight.
Alright, I am all blogged out. More next time. Peace out.
During the closing ceremony, we filed into 2 rows on the stage. Our schools were announced in geographical order, and each scholar stepped up to the podium to say a brief introduction about themselves. Then we walked off the stage to our school representatives in the audience.
I was greeted by the vice principal of my school and a teacher, who has been the official driver during my transition into Mokpo / Yeongam. We ate lunch together in the cafeteria. They don't speak English very well, so we didn't talk much.
After lunch, we departed for Mokpo, a 1.5 hour drive during which I (accidentally) fell asleep. We arrived at my new apartment, and I was confused because I thought we were going to Daebul Elementary School instead. [Language barrier issues.] At first sight, the room was small. There was no furniture: no bed, no television, no fridge, nothing ... and the floor was sort of dirty. A guy was there cleaning my apartment, and I thought, "Hell no, I can't live here." They asked me if this room was okay and offered to find me another apartment if I did not like it. So I asked / gestured in broken English if another place would be bigger and have a bed. They said that they would have to keep looking and proceeded to talk among themselves in Korean for a long time -- one of many long, foreign conversations that I've had to sit/stand through with deaf ears. My vice principal kept gestruing at me when she spoke. She looked concerned. In my mind, she was vouching for me: "No way. This girl is a TaLK Scholar. She cannot live here!" but after a while the teacher/driver told me that they decided that this would be my apartment. Who knows what she was actually saying. They drove me to the Immigration Office to apply for my Alien Registration Card. I need this to apply for a contract mobile phone and to return to Korea if I ever decide to travel outside of the country. I also finally cashed my travelers cheques at a KEP Bank. (I was running short on money and struggling to find a bank in Jochiwon.) Then we spent over an hour at E-Mart, which is similar to a small K-Mart or Walmart. I dropped $200 on supplies to furnish my new apartment, such as bedding, kitchen utensils, pans, a rice cooker, plates, toilet paper, the essentials of life. The school is supposed to reimburse me come payday.
I didn't have Internet access for about a day. I found myself channeling WiFi on my phone down the street...in the middle of the night...behind a dodgy van...and getting bitten by heaps of mosquitoes. Luckily I only had to do that for a day.
I visited Daebul Elementary School for the first time on Wednesday, August 31st. The teacher came to pick me up, and we drove for about 20 minutes out of Mokpo, over the Young San River, through an industrial area of Yeongam, and up to the school. Daebul is in the middle of a field, in the middle of no where. The area is windy and hot, but my co-teacher (Hannee) tells me that it will be windy, cold, and snowing (yes, snowing) later in the year.
I met Hannee on Thursday, September 1st. She goes to Daebul University and is studying English Education. Her English is not very strong, but she is really nice and will be in charge of translating / controlling the kids on Tuesdays & Thursdays.
I ate lunch with the staff and faculty. The food was delicious as usual, and I was lost in translation as usual. I briefly introduced myself, and my mentor teacher (Dae Ho) translated for me.
Dae Ho is another teacher at Daebul. I think he is only 25 years old, but he is already married and has a daughter. We had dinner together on Tuesday, the day I arrived. (We were supposed to eat dinner with the principal, but I think that shopping took too long that day, so it got postponed.) Conversation was a bit scarce because of the language barrier, but I think we will get along fine. He has been very helpful about answering my questions / miscellaneous demands about my Internet problems and broken camera issues. (Yeah, my camera stopped working in Gwangju. I am in the process of possibly getting it fixed, but that is another story.)
On Friday (September 2nd), I went to Daebul to work on my lesson plans and eat lunch -- their food is delicious -- better than any Korean food I've eaten in the States. Instead of lesson planning, I cleaned 95% of the surface area because it was really dusty, reorganized the supplies, watered the plants, and took an inventory of the resources in my classroom. It was a productive day!
I spent the weekend trying to hash out a monthly plan with my friends Joanne & Nari. It's harder than it sounds. More on that later.
I am cooking for myself these days. I is a grown up. I cooked rice like half a dozen times this weekend because I was bored, and I did it for every meal because I had all the time in the world. I recently learned to cook a lot at once and then save it in my fridge for later. Silly me. I also know how to make fried tofu, different kinds of eggs...I bought some Korean side dishes to go with my rice. Yummy.
Today I accidentally bought 13 bananas. Back in America, I usually pick the number of bananas that I want and stick them into a plastic bag. I noticed that the bundles of bananas had a price sticker stuck onto one banana in the bunch, but I disregarded it and plucked the bananas off. I brought my bananas to the register with the rest of my groceries and confused the cashier because she didn't know how much the bananas cost. She walked off with my bananas and consulted another sales clerk. The other clerk came over to me in the line and started speaking in Korean and gesturing if I plucked the bananas. I replied 'ne' (yes), and she shook her head / finger, indicating that I should not have done that. I said 'mian-hamnida' (I'm sorry). She left and brought me the rest of the bananas. So I ended up buying the whole bundle, all 13 bananas, for about $3.50. Maybe I can fry them and make plantains? I will probably try that tonight.
Alright, I am all blogged out. More next time. Peace out.
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