Orientation + First Week

For the most part, orientation was more or less your average high school welcoming speech but drawn out over a better course of a week with not too much excitement. I spent my time trying to meet as many people as possible to try to have a sort of a support network over here.

A couple of notable things did happen at my time at orientation though. The first being that a couple of my buddies and I befriended a local undergrad at the university by the name of Shin. Actually, it seemed as if he was the ONLY student that actually wanted to talk to us. His English is actually pretty good and he gave us a tour of the super high tech library that they have. For my Irvine homies, it puts the Science Library to shame.

Orientation ended on Saturday with a lunch buffet of sorts. It was actually really good but we didn't have time to eat it since we had to get on the bus to our respective areas. There we met our co-teachers and their families. My co teacher is really nice! She brought her husband to help lug around my luggage and stuff. I was shown my apartment which, I think, is called an "office-tel" or something of the sort. It's rather tiny. It's sooo different than what I'm used to at home.

I may have mentioned this before but Korea has this massive widespread fear of swine flu. Ever since we got here we were tested, retested, and then tested again. Rumor had it that the reason our tour to Seoul was canceled was because one of us tested with a fever. And actually, some of us, myself included, are not allowed to work just yet just to be sure we're okay. Actually, one of the first thing my co-teacher asked me was what Americans think of H1N1 and I simply told them the facts that I've read on the papers, that the reason why it's so deadly is because no one has an immunity to it and in fact when it was winter in the southern hemisphere is like the normal flu.

First week

My first regular week outside orientation was rather crazy trying to settle in and everything. After my teacher left me at my place, I spent a few hours trying to acquaint myself with my new living quarters, spent a few hours exploring my immediate vicinity, and then met up with some friends in Hongdae at the Hongik University station exit. Needless to say, I got really lost but managed to get myself there. We ate this really good chicken stew type of thing then met up with some other SMOE, did the usual thing, did some singing room stuff, and then we went back home.

Sunday I did some more exploring and got things taken care of, like my Alien Registration card, going to SMOE Head Office and taking care of things there, I actually had to go twice because I forgot my TEFL Certificate the first time around. Once I got my medical clearance, I was THEN allowed to go to school and meet the teachers, get shown to my desk, and all that. On my first day there I was given a tour and I met most of the teachers, many of which I hardly see now that I sit in my office or classroom all day. Friday was when it finally hit me that I'm WORKING and not simply on holiday (I've met a lot of British people since I came here, some words have rubbed off on me). I spent most of the day lesson planning.

Friday night was a night of uninhibited crazy fun on Hongdae again. Saturday I signed up for a gym near my place and went out again at night. Sunday was some good wholesome fun in Gangnam.

SMOE Arrival at SSK University in Suwon

So SMOE finally picked us up around 10:30 and we arrive at our new home for a week a little while later. I really wanted to shower but decided to post pone it because lunch ended in half an hour and all of us who got to the airport early were starving. We had some meat loaf thing, some soup noodle thing, some potato salad thing, rice, and KIMCHI!

After that we hung out for a bit, I met my room mate, took care of some stuff, and then most of us went on bus to check out Hwaseong Fortress. We went on a little tour and it was okay, it felt like a little family vacation that the parents wanted us to go on. Everyone back home said that it was going to be HOT and HUMID and boy, were they right.

We get back from our little tour, get some dinner, I head up stairs intending to take a nap, next thing I know, it's 5am. Whoops. But man, that little nap was real good.

Monday was when we start the madness. We had our opening ceremony and our first few orientating classes. Also this entire time, I was able to meet some pretty cool people from everywhere, such as all over the US, New Zealand, The UK, and a few here from Australia. I have to admit, though, it kinda feels like high school all over again just by the sheer amount of people here and how we all congregate into our little groups during meal times.

Tuesday was class all day.

Quick Hits -

There are no drying machines here, we have to dry our clothes the old school way. Years of being an American have left me wanting instantly dry clothes.

I've made friends with the security guard that we pass on the way to lunch. He doesn't speak a much English and I don't speak much Korean but we manage.

For some reason, maybe only at this university, the left elevator is for odd numbered floors, the right one is for even.

Internet is super fast.

People are shy but nice over here.

The humidity is killing me.

For some reason, almost everything I've seen is very IKEAish, most everything is very bright and clean.

Small fish in the big sea

I'm in Korea! This is my first time out of the states.

Quick hits -

They have a coffee bean here. I tried to order, but she looked confused, so I just walked away.

After getting off the plane, we were ushered like cattle to this checkpoint where we handed off these information cards describing if we had any medical condition and they used this tricorder type thing on us. We passed and now we're chilling.

The airplane trip was 12 hours. Bad - cramped seats, I have wide shoulders so it was kinda awkward doing the elbow thing on the arm rest with the two people to me, soo hot so couldn't sleep too much. Good - had The International, the food was one of the better airline foods I've had, service was pretty cool.

Myself and other SMOE people from two flights set up base camp at Terminal F or something at Incheon, we're currently waiting for the buses to take us to our orientation center, which apparently was moved from the Hyundai Learning Center to....some college campus?

I'm hungry.

Things I need to do -

Find a bank.

Do the immigration thingy.

Find a gym.

Meet friends.

Two pieces and a carry on

It's interesting trying to fit my life into, more or less, three pieces of luggage. I've procrastinated on it long enough.

This entire last week has been so busy. So many people have called me left and right wishing me safe travels and all that good stuff, people have also been so amazing in taking me out for food and drinks. In fact, I know I've gained a few pounds because of it and lack of time for the gym. It's the last time for awhile that I'll be able to do it, so why not.

It's very endearing to me to see people take time out of their lives to just come out to see me. My friends and families have went out into the late hours of the night just to hang out, even when they have work the next morning, in fact, my fraternity little bro lied to get out of work just to hang out. I read a quote once that stated, more or less, that the most expensive thing anyone can ever give another person is time, because time can never be bought. Next to that is my friends paying for my expensive dinners at all these random places like Benihanas and Ra Sushi.

Everything is just so bittersweet. I'm finally talking to my mom and dad a little bit more because I know and they know that I'll be leaving soon so we have to. It's so sad to say goodbye to everyone, hugging everyone for the last time in a long while, wondering when the next time I will see them will be. I have to admit, I'm a little bit awkward with goodbyes.

I'm going to miss everyone and everything and I'm excited for everything at the same time.

Yet, I think the thing is, everything won't hit me until I step into my home away from home and my dog Chewie will not be there to run up to the door and greet me.

Trust and Respect

Respect.

It's a word thrown out here and there all the time. In a way, it's almost trite now. I know way too many people who throw out the word respect but do not practice it themselves.

I know too many people who say, "I don't give respect, you have to earn it." But dang, what does that solve. If everyone in the world thought like that, how will we ever acheive anything in the world. If no one is willing to give, how can anyone ever receive? In that stead, I ask, how can anyone have respect, be respected, unless they are able to respect others. Every single person in the world who I respect, who I love more than anything, has shown me respect first and foremost. My best friend, my father, my mother, every single person has shown love, trust, and respect and I them.

So, again, I ask, how can anyone be respected, if they cannot respect others?

Just now, a few hours ago, I threw a going away party for myself. It was very, very last minute and in all honesty, I didn't want to throw one, not one bit. There's way too much work, way too much cleaning, way too much hosting. But alas, my brother and some homies asked me to throw one, so I did. I figured I would be able to see all my friends for one last time.

So instead, the people who came for me I could count on two hands. My homies who begged me to throw a party didn't even bother to show up instead it was other random people who I didn't know, friends of friends of friends of my brother. Now, I am very, very appreciative of my homies who did show up, some homies that I haven't seen for years, but still showed, but part of me thought that other people who say they would, would show up, but they never did.

Part of me is glad that no one came. My brother's friends started some stuff outside and I had to play the good host and keep everyone inside until everything calmed down. My friend had to call the police on my own party. I'm going to write that again, we had to call the police on my own party. I'm very aware that my parties have a reputation, heck, that I have a reputation for these sorts of things but I simply hoped that things would be okay.

I mean, it's simple, come to party, have free drinks, talk to people, have fun, go home. But...why can't people adhere to that? Why can't people respect the host of the party, the house of the party.

When my brother and my homies asked me to through the party, I in turn asked my parents, asked them relentlessly to have a party, they relented and I rewarded them with a big party that the cops had to be called in on. Some son I am.

I have to admit, I'm conflicted, very much so. I feel hated and loved at the same time. When I told my family and my close friends that I was leaving soon they took me out, they spent as much time with me as possible. My father and mother, who I barely spoke to through college, took me out so they could spend time with me. My mom took me shopping and my dad had those father/ son talks with me. My best friend spends as much time with me as he could, my brother hangs out with me as much as he can, so does my other brother. I try to soak in as much time as I can with Chewie as possible. Yet at the same time, I'm sad, I'm sad that people who assured me that they would come see me didn't, people who assured me that things wouldn't go down but they did, people who said they would take care of me didn't, I'm sad that when things got out of hand, my own brother was too wasted to do anything about it so I had to take care of everything.

I honestly think there's something wrong with me. I try so hard. But in turn, I get nothing. But the fact remains that I can't feel sorry for myself because that's not going to accomplish anything, I just have to go out and change it up.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. Things have been the same for me for far too long, something's gotta give. If something truly is wrong with me, I have to find out what that is and fix it.