Drama, drama, drama in South Korea, ladies and gents. Today, it actually snowed in Busan. This was a welcomed treat for me because I am from the South and I wanted to experience snow, but not too much snow. Oh, yeah and I got two new co-teachers. My former co-teachers went to different schools. You may recall that I wrote a list comparing education in South Korea to Education in the United States. Well, this list has changed slightly with my new teachers. One of my teachers has asked that we meet twice a week and actually write out formal lesson plans. That’s new! She also would like to discuss each class, what worked and what didn’t work after each session. That’s also sort of new. We did that naturally before with my other co-teachers. The shocker was when we sat down and she discussed my written rules. So, now I rules that dictate who locks the doors to the classroom, and that it’s okay for me to come early, but I should call an hour before I am going to be absent. The expectations were simple, and I had been doing all of them, but there is a different air when someone who is a junior to you and new to teaching English gives you your rules.
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I thought that it was a joke when she told me. I started laughing, and I couldn’t stop. She looked at me as though I had lost my mind, especially when I kept pinching my arm, hoping that I would wake up from a nightmare. I was awake and it was no joke. Here’s how it went down. I had no classes today. I have two new co-teachers, and they had just come back to Korea from the United States. They spent six months teaching English in New Jersey in a Korean government sponsored program. So, although school began on Tuesday, I had Tuesday and Wednesday off. Read more…

All I can say is that Itaewon, which is near Seoul, is rockin’. I didn’t see much of the area, but it’s the people there who made it fun. The area is a more diverse city than Busan because everyone goes there first. I loved it because of the Yongsan Army Base. It felt comfortable being there, like being with family. I am a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., my sorority sister invited me to a Kappa party (Kappa Alpha Psi). There were so many people representing their fraternities and sororities that it was like being at an old school college party back in the states. The party was classy with jazz, and spoken word presentations, but of course we got down on the dance floor, too. It felt like home.

I stayed in a nice hotel called the Dragon on the base. The room was spacious, four of us could sleep comfortably, because we had a convertible sofa. All of the electric outlets were American, which seemed weird to me. My cell phone has a Korean plug. One of my sorority sisters, told me that celebrities stay at the Dragon when they visit Seoul. In fact, we actually met Sheryl Underwood there. Sheryl not only took a few pictures with us, but she also talked a long time with my sorority sister, giving her advice about the entertainment industry.

Being on base was like being back in the U.S. Everything was American, even the ATM machine. My Korean card wouldn’t work. There were real stores, with sizes that we could all fit. The employees were Korean, but they could speak English. Really! I had a real American breakfast in the morning. Oh, how I missed pancakes!

It felt glorious being surrounded by my people in Korea. Since the base was so big, the club for the party was on base. I already mentioned that at least one hotel was on the base, I wonder if the people on base really have a true experience of what it’s like to be immersed in Korean culture. I certainly didn’t feel as though I was in Korea. I almost felt as though I was back in Atlanta!

I can see how people experience culture shock when they return home. I was weirded out by riding in a car with R&B music playing, and it felt strange, but wonderful, to speak English/slang fluently to everyone. I love Busan, but I didn’t want the weekend to end. If it wasn’t for the snowy winters and the slower pace of living in Busan, I wouldn’t mind living in Seoul. I will definitely be visiting more often.

Notes about My Visit to Yongsan Army Base

1. You have to know someone to get signed in on base.
2. You must have ID to get on base.
3. I took a high-speed KTX to get there from Busan @ about $100 (100,000 won round-trip) for three hours
4. If you need to change your KTX ticket, do so as soon as you can, before your train departs. I decided to stay longer and ended up having to buy a new ticket, getting back a small portion of my money.

A friend from my former school in the U.S. asked me how is teaching in South Korea different from teaching in a public school in the U.S. I am a certified teacher from the U.S. with experience teaching high school. This list represents my experience as a foreign teacher in a Korean elementary school.

Students are not bused to my school. I have never seen a school bus at my school. Most kids walk.

When kids move on from elementary school to middle school, their new school is determined randomly. I think that the students attend school in the same area, but students may not go to the same school as their friends. The Korean government would like them to meet students from different feeder elementary schools.

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It was what I’d call a bitter cold day — cold for a tropical girl like me, but something happened today that had never happened to me before in the U.S. I’ve been taking these things for granted. I was on the way to work when I ran into a co-worker. I never saw co-workers until I was already at work in the U.S. We got into a discussion about religion. She has invited me to her church. It’s primarily Korean, but there is a multicultural study group. I really want to go, especially since the church is close to my home.

Then I started thinking about how fortunate we are to be able to speak freely about our religion on the street. I had been reading about the people in North Korea and how they are not allowed to have ANY religion. They can only honor the ruler of their country. I feel so fortunate to be able to travel outside of my country. Some people are prohibited from doing this and living and working abroad is also a tremendous blessing. It’s an awesome experience to become immersed in another culture.

After teaching my usual four hours with my co-teacher on Thursday, I settled in at my desk for the rest of the afternoon. I was happy when my friend Lucy came to rescue me. I had asked my co-teacher about the whereabouts for the new SHOW cell phone payment center, and she had to go off to a meeting, telling me that she would show me (pun intended) on Friday. I wanted my cell phone bill paid. When I mentioned this, Lucy said, “Oh, let’s go now!” So, off we went at the end of the school day. Read more…

They say that any issues that you have in your hometown will follow you to South Korea. This is so true. I’ve met trifling shady men in America and definitely met my first and hopefully my last one in South Korea. I went out with this guy from West Africa, and we were having a good time, but he made two mistakes upfront. Read more…

This post isn’t about paying U.S. bills in South Korea, rather paying a South Korean bill. Actually, I thought that I was going to pay the bill until I had the best excuse ever. Read more…

Today was the first day of classes at my school in Busan, and it was good to see my students again. Some of the students forgot their manners and tried to paw my hair. I let them know quickly that was not acceptable. Today’s lesson was How Much Is It? I taught third and fourth graders with my co-teacher. I caught a bad cold over the weekend and although school started yesterday, we didn’t have classes. Read more…

I searched Daves ESL Cafe to find teaching jobs when I first decided that I wanted to teach in South Korea. I still visit the forums there. I use the site now, mainly to read the teacher banter. Now that I’m teaching in South Korea, I can see that a lot of the discussions about South Korea are jaded. Visitors are always complaining about South Korea. They don’t like the culture in Korea. They say that the people are rude, and on and on. People are always in trouble in Daves ESL Cafe. They didn’t get paid by their school or they are having trouble with their visa, or the school’s owner is not adhering to the contract. People go there to vent. They rarely post, saying that they love their jobs.

Today I wasted time by reading a discussion from someone in his 20s complaining about people over 30 who were wasting time by coming to South Korea, because anyone over 30 is too old to travel the world, teaching, experiencing a different culture, and earning a living. Yes. There are trolls or crazy people on Daves ESL Cafe, but it’s still a good site. Read more…