Day 1

Greetings from SK! I made it here safely and without incident (or not much of one anyway...I'll explain). The trip was long and exhausting, but pretty much everything went off without a hitch.
The plane ride was about as good as one could expect 18 hours on a plane to be. I spent the entire ride cramped between two people, unable to sleep. But on the bright side, I did watch three movies which I had been meaning to see but simply hadn't found the time to sit down and watch. Also, I had my first Korean meal. I had the choice between American style beef and Korean style beef for lunch on the plane, so I decided to be brave and go with the Korean style beef. It was called Bibimbap. It's basically a beef and rice dish with seaweed, mushrooms, cucumbers, hot red pepper paste, and sesame oil. I was tempted to eat the dish in my traditional "picky Jaime" style, but the kid next to me went out of his way to show me how it was supposed to be eaten (all mixed together) so I gave it a shot. Not bad, actually.

Incheon International Airport in Seoul was probably the most difficult to navigate simply because even though most of the signs are in displayed in Hangul AND English, not all of them are. I had to ask several people where on earth I was supposed to go to catch a domestic flight to Daegu. Upon finally arriving in Daegu I went to pick up my bags (here's the small incident I mentioned before), and lo and behold, they were not there. I was informed that my bags were still in Seoul because I was supposed to pick them up and recheck them after I passed through customs. Apparently I was misinformed back in Portland, ME. I specifically asked if I had to pick up my bags in Seoul, but the woman told me that they were going to my final destination in Daegu. However, what she didn't know is that they don't transfer bags from international to domestic flights. You have to pick them up yourself. Anyway, the guy who picked me up spoke to the baggage lady and arranged to have them dropped off at the MoonKkang office the following day. So now I have my bags.

I was then driven to the MK office so I could use the internet because my phone doesn't work over here. I met several people on the Reinforcement Team that I've been working with via email. Then I was driven to my temporary apartment (I move into my permanent housing next week...we're currently waiting for the guy I'm replacing to move out). My guide purchased some bedding and some food supplies for me beforehand so he handed them over, showed me around, and left me to get settled.

I was seriously stressed last night because I had no way of setting an alarm, and I was positive that I was going to sleep for at least a full day without someone or something to wake me up. My phone can't find service in Korea so it has no idea what time it is so it couldn't possibly wake me up at the right time. My iPod, although it's now set to the right time, doesn't have an alarm feature. My alarm clock was in my checked bag, which I didn't have last night. So after spending 15 minutes trying to figure out a way to set an alarm, I gave up and went to bed. Fortunately, I did not sleep for a full day. In fact, I didn't even sleep as long as I would have on a normal day at home. I suspect the bed had something to do with it. It's as hard as that green couch at Pepere and Doris's house, for those of you who are familiar with it. Perhaps even harder. It's like sleeping on the floor with only a blanket underneath you. In fact, I almost considered moving into the living room and sleeping on the floor because the floors in the living room (and kitchen) are heated. That's awesome, by the way. I had cold feet last night and couldn't sleep so I went out to the couch and sat with my feet on the floor for a couple minutes and voila, warm feet!

I haven't seen much of the city up close yet, but I drove through quite a bit of it. As far as I can tell, it looks like an Asian Manhattan. It's big and city-like, but all the signs are in Korean script with little English subtitles. My temporary apartment is a 5 minute walk from the "Fifth Avenue" of Daegu. Shopping central. Fortunately, I'm not yet brave (or stupid) enough to venture out of my apartment by myself so that will have to wait.

Today involved a trip to the hospital (which looked more like a spa) to be run through a myriad of tests. Blood test, vision and hearing test, chest x-ray, urine sample, height, weight, and chest size (not sure why this is important, but oh well), and a blood pressure test. And I had to remove my shoes and put on little slippers before entering the hospital. Pretty neat.

Then I was transported to my branch (the MoonKkang school in the ChimSan district of Daegu). I met my coworkers (two Canadians, two Brits, and 4 Koreans) and oberved 6 classes. The kids are adorable, and I can tell this is going to be a lot of fun and a bit of a breeze. Apparently, with a bachelor's degree in education, I am officially the most qualified teacher here. None of the other teachers are trained in education.

Also, I learned that as of January 1st, 2010, I will be 24 in Korea. In Korea, you are one when you're born, and you turn a year older on the first of the year. So that makes me 24 in just a few weeks. Pretty cool, eh?

Tonight the other teachers and I are going out for dinner and soju (Korean beer) so I'll get to see a bit more of the city. I'll update again when I have time. Miss you all!