familiarity in a land of so many things unfamiliar

I'm sitting here on Sunday morning with my cup of coffee, looking out my balcony window feeling very content. I really am starting to feel at home. Not just because my apartment is finally almost unpacked and clean, but because I am starting to see familiarity in a land of so many things unfamiliar. I'm starting to recognize things in my neighborhood, I'm learning the names of all the different parts of Seoul, pronunciation of words doesn't seem quite so difficult, and I actually am learning how to navigate the huge subway system here! I think what really struck me though was running into someone I knew while riding the subway last night. Obviously it wasn't someone that I knew really well, it was a teacher from Sullivan School the previous year, but how random is it that in an area of 18million people (Seoul and its outlying cities) I would see someone familiar on the exact same train car that I was on!

Ok, enough with the subway rusings... I have officially completed my first week of teaching! This week has been hard work, I have been told that the first month will be the hardest, but I am optimistic because that means there are only three weeks left of my first month! There is still so much to be done when it comes to establishing routines in the classroom, both for myself and the children, lesson planning, figuring out what materials I have to work with, and maintaining a comfortable classroom environment. Since I have 4 year old kindergarten, most of my week was spent establishing rule routines and playing so the kids felt comfortable in my classroom. As of Friday I still have one little girl that bursts into horrible sobs if I even look in her general direction. Two others only cry once in a while, and the rest are very, very energetic and adorable children. I'm not looking forward to tomorrow because I know that it will be almost like starting over again, reinforcing the rules that everyone forgot and making sure the children are comfortable in my presence! However, anyone who has taught knows the importance of sticking to your boundaries and establishing routines and rules in the classroom. I know all the repetition will be my saving grace in a month or so!

School has kept me almost completely occupied this week! After school Adam, Trena, and I have been going to the gym. By the time we get home there is no time for anything else. Starting tomorrow we will be going at 6am so we have our nights free after school. This weekend I got a chance to explore more of Seoul. On Friday most of our staff met and went out to Itaewon, which is a part of Seoul close to the army base and is known for all the foreigners that hang out there. We went to watch a band play and continued to go "out on the town," if you will. I guess Saturday nights are much busier than Friday nights, so I don't think we truly experienced the crowded craziness of an Itaewon night. The bars don't have a closing time so the time passes very quickly. We were all dancing and having fun and when I looked at my watch it was 4am! By the time we took a cab home (and got lost on the way) it was almost 6am! Let's just say it was a good time!

I made a new friend! Adam and I were so fortunate to get an apartment that was stocked with so many things for us, but we never expected a friend to come with the apartment! One day I answered the phone and a girl, Jade, was calling looking for Sonya, the lady who used to live here. She had just left that day so I was telling Jade that we had just moved in. We got to talking but since it was the first day in our new apartment I told her to call back another time so we could talk again. A few days ago she called back and we made plans for Saturday night. Adam and I were very excited because we both want to make Korean friends, not just foreigners. Trena came along too and we ended up meeting Jade in Hongdae, which is a very artsy area of Seoul right by some big universities (think Uptown for all you Minneapolis people.) We actually figured out the subway by ourselves. We accidentally started off going the long way on the subway line so we were a little late, but we did make it! Jade is an amazing girl! She speaks great English and knows a lot about the area. She is more than happy to help us with our Korean skills and answer all of our questions. Last night was so bitterly cold that we didn't get too much of a chance to explore Hongdae, which is kind of unfortunate because there are so many cool shops and street vendors, live music bars, and good art everywhere! We ended up going to a restaurant that only served octopus and squid! At first I was a little leary about trying them, but they were delicious!! They were both cooked, not raw, so I think that helped a lot! I'm not so sure how I feel about eating raw octopus! After dinner we grabbed some coffee and then headed home. Jade doesn't drink and she loves to explore so I am happy to find a friend who wants to do other things besides drink here! I am looking forward to hanging out with her again!

Other than that, not too much else has been happening. I did finally realize that I have been going up and down the wrong side of the stairs the whole time I have been here! The other night some man looked at me really crazy and said something in Korean, which I'm assuming was something along the lines of, "get on your own side!" There are so many people everywhere it is hard to pick a "side" sometimes. I did see arrows marking which way to go up and down, which is opposite than in the states! We go up and down on the left here! I know it's a small observation but it still struck me funny!

Sorry for the long blog, I know it has been awhile since I have written. At the end of my day I usually have so much to write about but no energy left! I will try and do better next week. I hope everyone has a great week!