Day 3: Saturday August 27

A lesson in homesickness...

The roller coaster continues. I was both tired and sad, while also being relieved that I would be meeting up my new foreign teacher friends for dinner (possibly Indian food).  Thankfully, my principals thought I should take the day to rest rather than be on the Fun Day with Dad field trip that the school had organized.  I was (and still am) really missing my family & friends, including the cuddly nature of my kitty, Lily, and there is really no way to soothe that lonely feeling when you have a day to be by yourself.

I ended up napping from 4pm to 10pm Korean-time –aka 3am to 9am Canadian-time –and woke up to the sound of Sara & Hilary (who arrived here a month ago) knocking on my motel door for dinner.  Since it was late, we opted for the 24-hour McDonalds and ordered a “Shanghai Chicken set, zero soda” (Spicy Chicken Burger with Coke Zero & fries) for 5,200 won which is roughly $5.20 in Canada.  Hilary & I ended up talking at McDonalds –which played Western music like Beyonce & Bruno Mars, by the way –until 2 am then walked our separate ways which is actually incredibly safe here because it is well-lit & well-policed with the use of CCTV (the security cameras mounted everywhere).  It’s funny how feelings can fluctuate from incredibly lonely to excited for the next adventure when homesickness is looming.

My new shower shoes for less than $3 despite their Adidas-like appearance

Day 2: Friday August 26

My first full day in Gwacheon City, South Korea

I wake up with questions like: can I really do this? Am I totally fooling myself into thinking that I make it in a foreign land on my own? I’ve made the executive decision not cry anymore and I try to utilize as many Canadian-made goods as possible... while I sit in my Canadian flag, smelling of TreSemme that I lovingly bought at Wal-Mart.  On that happier note, I get ready for my first real training day and head to school with the goal of connecting with the other six foreign teachers that are at my Wonderland school. 

After a successful trip to the hospital –including my 8-event relay for my health check –I found myself in Mr. Cho’s office for the second part of my orientation.  While he focuses on the historical & cultural aspects of Korea, it is far from comforting that to hear this, this, this and that are going to be hard.  As one of the principals of Wonderland, I know Mr. Cho means well and is trying to adequately prepare me for my new Korean life; however, after hearing about five “that will be ready hard on you”s, my stomach decided to prove exactly how nervous & anxiety-ridden I am... all afternoon long.

A quick one-on-one with Sara (a fellow Western grad and two-time returner) helped me to see that what I was feeling was normal and that I’m not such a hopeless traveler after all.  What made it even better was the walk to Block 2 (to see the basic apartment layout), trying out the subway, buying a new universal adapter and having a tasty dinner of Korean BBQ in Pyeongchon with my new-found friends.

The sight of Pyeongchon coming out of the subway station

The BBQ grill is built into the table & they give you unlimited side dishes... so yummy!

Captain's Log: Day 1

Flight to Korea, via Korean Air
(left Toronto @ 12:05pm on Wednesday, arrived in Incheon @ 1:35pm on Thursday)

With 13.5 stationary hours to spend, I had two meals & two naps, watched five films (Fast Five, Kung Fu Panda 2, Adjustment Bureau, Rango & Lincoln Lawyer) and achieved a high score for the in-flight Tetris game... woot woot!  Then came the slightly trickier part: de-boarding the plane and taking my next few steps towards calling Korea my temporary home.  Customs was easy-peasy.  Baggage claim had free trolleys and both of my suitcases.  Saw a man with a sign reading MS JENNIFER COLLIS: perfect, my driver was already waiting for me.  All was seemingly well in my new Korean world.  Little did I know that jet lag was lurking and my sketchy-looking (but yet, fantastically safe) motel would eventually cause a sob fest, party of one.  To be honest I forgot what it was like to bawl myself to sleep –thank you Korea for reminding me.  I would also like to take this opportunity to say how much respect I have for international students now that I have gone through the process of entering a strange land; they are brave souls for not running & screaming back to airport on arrival.

Kickin' back watching movies on our mini TVs

Waiting for my luggage to come off of the carousel

My beloved motel room