Six Months In

Not many embark on the adventure I'm on. I can honestly say this is the bravest thing I've done and I'm grateful I came. That being said, my contract is six months old and therefore I have less than six months to make a decision on staying or not. My buddy Brandon went on to find a great job at another uni and is a hell of job. I'm thinking of applying to get on there if I can, maybe apply at a couple other jobs and if I can make better money and more vacation I'm going to probably take it. I do miss home often and miss friends and think of possible missed opportunities, I met cool people shortly before coming here and I wish I could have explored those relationships more, but fate intervened.

Staying here is always on my mind and everyone home is still talking about how wretched the job market is so it makes me think I should probably just stay here and pay off some debt for a little while longer. But then I see guys that have really dug their feet in the ground here, bought cars, homes, and even married korean women. This weekend was spendt in Seoul at a kickboxing tournament with Mathew, Dan, and Paul. Paul has been here nearly for over five years and is very settled. He's got it in my head now that I need to buy a cheap bike to help me explore more. And I want to, I'm sick of going to the same foreigner bar every Friday night, I want new places and new experiences. After being here for six months you start to become more involved in people's lives in the foreign community which sounds great and can be, but some relationships have changed for the worse. I think I just really need to remember that no situation is perfect and even if I went home I would have blue days. Frankly I should probably just quit my complaining and make the most of my situation and put a smile on my face, after all I do love my job and I don't have to worry about money right now which is a first.

Its weird though, I never thought I would miss America as a country, but I do. I love my country, talk as much trash as you want whether you're American or not but its a great place in comparison to other parts of the world. Nothing is set in stone here, I could very well be living back home in six months, time will tell. Some of the best advice I ever got was from my father, he said, 'if you're not happy, then why are you doing it?', I think about the simplicity of that philosophy and try to apply it in any situation where I feel unsatisfied. I know what I need to know, I only need to decide what will make me the happiest. Just because I might have to go home and live a little tighter financial I could still be happier, eh who the hell knows, for now its bed time in Iksan, South Korea. Good Night Moon.....

Take Four Months in Korea, And Call Me In The Morning

The most beneficial advice I recieved prior to my departure to Korea was from an unlikely source, my doctor. Dr. Thompson served in the Air Force and spent time here and gave great advice that I do my best to live by. He told me explicitely NOT to sit in my apartment, to get out and see the country. I think I've done pretty well at doing so I'be been to the Northern, Southern, and Western borders and shores. Today I had an invite to join some of the Iksan foreigners to see a professional soccer match in our neighboring city of Jeonju, about 20 miles away.

The stadium is rather impressive and held an olympic event and a world cup there as well. Once there we commenced with the suds consumption and great conversation. Its typical for the fans from Iksan to rent battery operated mini-bikes and ride around the front of the stadium.

The cost is a meesly 6,ooo won or less than $5 US for a general admission ticket. The game was a great time and you can see the atmosphere of the crowd from the video above, its a pretty intense match. I'm sure I will go again and my thanks goes out again to the great doctor and his righteous advice. Its bedtime now folks, I have a long day tomorrow :)

A Big Muddy Mess

For the past ten years or so a town named Boryeong has become famous for its annual festival simply named-Mud Fest. For the last couple of years over 1.5 million people show up here to spread this magical grey mud all over their bodies.

The mud is pumped from another location and is put in stations on the beach with brushes to paint yourself. There are also areas with slides and mud-wrestling. Usually in Korea when you get ready to go to some festival or island you become acustomed to being a little let down because its never what you pictured. But the mud fest was actual what I thought it would be. The mud was really soothing in a weird kind of way and I hadn't seen that many foreigners in months.

Barb came up from Busan and hitched a ride with Greggers. Its nice that she's here and I'm sad sometimes that she is so far away but when we do see each other we enjoy each other's company even more.

What are the accomodations?? Well my inquisitive audience of seven, basically you rented a small duplex of 700 sq feet with two bathrooms and slept 13 people on the floor. Even such modest quarters will cost you 30,000 won per person or $24 .

After Brandon, Kim, Barbs, and I all spent the afternoon getting muddy we walked back to the hotel and stumbled into a parade. This parade was

in the middle of the afternoon with virtually no audience. As a Korean man who was marching handed me a flag as though it was the 4th of July and old glory was being presented to a five year old, I realized......

Korea is so bizarre, and to be honest I'm not even surprised anymore by such random acts but I'm also aware that if I ever do land my feet back in the states, I'll miss the strange unorganized feel of this place.

The last experience was waking up next to a complete stranger. Barb, Brandon, Kim and I split a room and when we woke to Erica telling us it was time to leave, she asked about the guy laying next to Barbie. I told her I noticed him there a couple hours ago but had no idea. He slowly woke after hearing inquisitions to his current position. He demanded to know who we were and why we were in his room. I politely asked him to look around and see if he saw anyone he knew, and said I think you may have stumbled into the wrong room bud. He was quite embarassed and stood up in a t-shirt and underwear and said he was sorry and left.

Another weekend, another chapter opened and closed in the novel of my Korean adventure.

As My Mind Wanders.....

At night I ponder my life. I sit in this tiny apartment 7,000 miles from home assuring myself that I'm in the right place. I'm having alot of fun here folks but this phase of homesickness is getting to me. What's worse is when I get this way, I only want to be more secluded. I confine myself to my room and get real grumpy with people. More than a couple of people have let me know that my attitude is quite moody. I think what makes it hard for me is my contacts from home are becoming more loose. Mom and I talk once or twice a week, Erin and I talk every other week, and I talk to my Dad once every six weeks or so.

I know I could make a bigger effort to reach out to them but I still get bummed thinking that I rarely hear from friends back home. I was told that it would happen too, that I would realize who really cared and who could do without my friendship and contact. To top it off my car that I've been letting a family member borrow (w/o insurance) was apparently wrecked two weeks ago. Sounds like it could have been minor but there was suspension damage. I just found cuz Mom didn't want to worry me....

I am going to Thailand and maybe Laos or Cambodia in August. Its really my biggest focus right now. After all, Korea is a stepping stone for me to backpack for a few months. The most exciting part will be doing it solo. Lately I've been reminded of how much Jim Arwood is a part of me, oh how I adore my solitude.

Anyway maybe now I can sleep having put these thoughts down and having buzzed my head (which happens about every 6 months) I feel clean and better about things.

Iksan-Korean Fortress of Solitude

I was riding the KTX for a trip to Costco today and I had a sad moment. I'm on this life journey and I feel a desire and need to be here and travel the world using Korea as my first stepping stone. I knew that coming here would be difficult at times at being away from friends and family would be harder than I could know.

I was people watching Koreans on the train and across from me were two boys one asleep in his mother's lap and another with his head nestled on his father's shoulder. They were both younger than Max is now but it reminded me of Max's smile and the comfort it brings to my heart having him in my life.

I wasn't able to see him often back home but knowing that I will see once once in the next year had my eyes a tad watery. I guess the hardest part is thinking about the way his face changes every day and he grows physically and mentally so quickly at his age makes it hard. I want to be there for him and answer all his questions and tell him stories and make him laugh but I can't.

There are many sacrifices that go with this way of life. I've had dreams lately of friends and I become startled in the middle of the night, when I wake up it's instantly real that I'm not back home and I can't call my friends to go hang out and my day is a little gloomy afterwards. I have had more fun in the last three months than I ever imagined I would have so I am thankful for this experience but people that are thinking of coming should know thoughts of those living this reality. Also, perhaps Max can look online someday and find this and realize how I felt about him and how important his life is to me and our family. I love you Max. I love you Mom and Erin.

Its lonely sometimes but the excitement is more prevalent than the anguish of solitude.

North Korea Shmorth Korea

I know a lot of friends and family are becoming increasingly concerned about what is happening in North Korea. I'm writing this entry to put them at ease and also to share a little bit about what I have learned about the North. I was let in on some of the differences in the North and South today by my students and couple examples are the lack of religion and the cultural differences in language. North Korea is like a home-schooled child, at home with their parents things seem normal but when released into the wild they show obvious signs of awkward dysfunction. If a South Korean attempted to talk with a North Korean, the North Korean would be very confused by the South Korean's lingo and phrasing. North Korean has stuck to its traditional language and has not change much since 1953. South Korea on the other hand has had the western world to influence its business dealings, diplomacy, military, and even education since the end of the Korean War. More specifically the U.S. holds a strong military presence here along with thousands of foreigners that teach ESL like myself.

My students made it clear that Kim Jong Ill would like nothing more than to unify his Korean countrymen into one glorious nation-state but he would dare not do such a thing with American swine infecting half of the peninsula. All the bullshit with nukes and journalist captives is a ploy to get attention from the U.S. (which usually works) and persuade them to politely leave the country (which will never happen). Its really quite simple then, Mr. Kim wants us out and to re-unite the nation. Funny though, I highly doubt these folks want to be a part of his regime. South Korea does just fine economically and with the fall of GM and Chrysler soon to fall, I'm sure the car companies here are about to get even busier.

I just wanted to give you folks a little background of what the fuss is about and that there's no need to worry. I don't know any Koreans that concern themselves with news on North Korea so I don't see that any of you should either. The best comparison I could make is an Oklahomans reaction to a tornado siren, a shrug of the shoulders, possibly check the TV to see if you're going to be in the path and then go on about your business.

Street Walkin Man

I left home ten weeks ago not fully knowing what to expect here. Knowing that I knew nothing was actually something. I have embraced this culture and my way of life. I majored in education thinking I could never live a life without the burden of wondering how I would pay for things. Here I shop, eat, and enjoy life without a care in the world as far as money is concerned.

Korea holds their ESL teachers in high regard therefore, I get to see all that this country has to offer me. The sacrifice is the loneliness and emptiness you feel when wish you could take a quick drive to see your mom on Sunday or have a beer and play darts with the guys. I am learning about myself but for god's sakes its really hitting me. I had a friggin nightmare last night that I was in a foreign country and couldn't come back. I know these feelings are normal by talking to other foreigners but I just wanted to throw some thoughts on here to let you people know that I'm missing you all terribly but I am enjoying my time and wouldn't trade it for anything.

When I return someday, I'll be a new man with enlightenment at my side and memories of foreign places that I will carry with me forever.

SHHHHUUUUUDDDDDAAAAAAAPPPP!!!!!

So there I was watching Kindergarden Cop thinking, 'Arnold, I totally feel you'. Man, kids were kicking me in the pants daily, everyday I wonder how I'm going to fill 45 minutes by explaining six words that they already know. And hell, getting the little jerks to sit down and be quiet is like wrestling a lion, a tiger, and a bear, except they're three feet tall and speak jibberish.

It has seriously been stressing me out every day but last night I had some awesome Cabernat-Shiraz inspired conversation with Brandon. Brandon is a very bright Canadian and a History major. We share alot of the same thoughts on life adventures, romance, and most importantly enlightenment.

We shared more than a glass or two last night after our poker game in Marcus' room and he gave me confidence that in time I will find my way. Since I was about 16 I've had a deep need to be the best at every job or anything new I jump into. I know that soon I will not have any trouble with this job and I will be giving others insightful advice. Today, I had a breakthrough.

Instead of barking orders and trying to be tough the whole class I used my chill voice, playing Jack Johnson and Ben Harper in the background of my class and never raising my voice allowed me to walk out of class with a smile. So, in short my funk is ending and I really just need to hit the gym and eat better so I can enjoy my time better. My shit attitude is imposing on my experience here and I need to meet every day with open arms.

From my new favorite book, The Razor's Edge, "I'm on the threshold. I see vast lands of the spirit stretching out before me, beckoning, and I'm eager to travel them. It's a toss up when you decide to leave the beaten track. Many are called but few are chose."

Jeonju Hashers: A Group of Drinkers With a Running Problem

Yesterday, I went to Jeonju for what is called a Hash. Apparently this an event that people participate in worldwide, personally I had no idea what it was. So if you are as ignorant on the term as I am here is what my day consisted of. I woke up at about eleven and Marcus, his girlfriend, Erica, Isaac and myself headed to Jeonju for the Hash. Me met with Tori and Greg, had a little BeeBimBop bought some wine and threw it into a backpack and met with some people that are regular 'Hashers'.

I met a British woman named Raveena or Highly Strung(her Hash name) and she gave me an explanation as to why I was thirty miles from home (okay so maybe more like 7000 from but 30 from my apartment) on a cold windy day. She explained that she and her husband led the Hash group for Jeonju and they were a group that went on treks through hills, neighborhoods, random buildings through the town. In a nutshell a Hash is an organized jogging session with many urban obstacles and you must keep a look out for Hashes or chalked arrows through out the town. If you go down the wrong path then the fun of the Hash is finding the path again. This trek we took was probably four miles, half of which was uphill on a mountain. Most Hashers run this trail but for myself and my friends we walked, enjoyed the views and some cheap Bordeaux from the local Mini-Mart. But why a run/walk? Why do these people insist on meeting no matter what the elements provide? Warren, a South Africa, had one explanation I found very positive. He said it was a way for foreigners to come together and bond. It is way to for us to say no matter how few of us there are in this country, we will seek each other out and have our fun and in great numbers no less. This particular Hash had at least twenty people from Iksan, Jeonju, and Seoul.

Once you reach the end, the walkers finally reconvene with thr runners and have a picnic. The picnic consisted of potstickers, beer, and sodas. After some good grub is consumed they all gather in a circle and sing short chants or songs about various things, one of which being Hash virgins. Myself and all my friends were new to the Hash and we had to stand in front of the group, introduce ourselves. In all honesty it was entertaining for the first thirty minutes but the songs dragged on for at least an hour and a half AHHHHHHHH!

Later in the evening they all meet again and have some drinks and dinner together to top off the day with a large amount of alchohol and hugs. Will I do it again? Eh, maybe, but I'm certainly glad that I went. The End....

I'll have more soon, I'm getting strange feelings and I'm not sure but something is wrong with me right now, so as soon as I figure out this funk I'm in I'll explain it.

Good To The Last Drip

This weekend was an adventure to say the very least. On Friday it was Brandon's birthday and we had a nice little time at the local foreigner bar Red Rock. As I was laying in bed and Mr. Jack Daniels was letting know how mean his sour mash after effects were, Brandon comes to my door to remind me that there was a bachelor party that night and if I was still interested they would be leaving in an hour. UGH! Though I thought going to a movie might be the more responsible thing to do but my curiosity and virile spirit had me in the shower and lacing up my chucks.

We met up with seven other guys that included, Irishmen, Scots, Canadians, and even a couple Americans with the same curious nature including the man of the evening Travis, a physics teacher in China from Newfoundland. His best man also from Newfoundland, named, Paul had quite the little game planned. He gave us all laminated cards to wear around our necks that had a list of 'to-do's' for each objective you got a sticker. You see we were on a serious competition for the evening. Some examples would be, get three kisses from girls and get two stickers or for each beer/shot you slam you get a sticker (can you tell that we are all teachers yet?) and if you do some other ridiculous act that we all agree is dysfunctional and hilarious, you also get some points. So, we hopped on a train to the 5th biggest town in Korea, Gwangju.

On the train we were already into trouble, being silenced by the train ambassador numerous times, only because we were speaking English, not because we were being too loud. Typical circumstances for being in a foreign land. We got our hotel room once we stepped on the Gangju and set out on our night on the town.

We started on a street corner near a Mini-Mart (quick access to alcohol) pulled a random table sitting on the street up and began watching the 'coffee girls'. You see, in Gwangju, there is a unique culture of prostitution run by gangsters. You order 'coffee' and if you like what she has to offer then you make a negotiation, if not, then you pay for the coffee. So, if your into Maxwell House or venereal diseases, your senses can be cured in Gwangju. After darkness hit this town filled with sin, we hit up a traditional Korean restaurant and had some grub, more laughs, and probably too much rice liquor or Soju.

Brandon and I were pretty stuck on having one hell of a good time and though some of the fellas had a little drama, we held our own, we burned past the midnight owls, I obnoxiously obtained pecks on my hairy face from foriengers. Korean girls refused to even reply to my hellos but two did direct us to a nightclub. The SUPER CLUB HOUZE, why they always get the little spelling wrong I have no idea, but B and I walked three floors beneath the Earth into a disco with two thousand Koreans dancing their hearts out, we scared most of them away but managed to get a couple to dance with us...well more like near us.

We called it a night and got to the hotel at about 5 am and crashed. Around 11 am, I heard a knock on the door, I opened my steel eye lids and past the image of my red eyes in the headboard mirror (ask about this and I'll explain its a long story), I saw a woman walking in. I assumed she was coming to ask us to leave so she could clean, Brandon was a little disoriented himself and had no answers to my questions. I leaned over and saw her pulling out a thermos and cups. IT WAS A FREAKING COFFEE GIRL!!! So, we had some coffee and after her pimp who thought he was intimidating us standing all of 5'8'' and weighing in at a strikingly petite 120 lbs with a pink shirt no less, we paid her and she left, THANKS FOR THE COFFEE! We passed on the VD, funny story but I wish a pizza guy had gotten lost instead! There's really another five pages to this story but I thought I would give the highlights. I made some new friends and established deeper roots with friends I have already made, overall this weekend was a blast. Until next time readers.....

Education For The Educator

This week I began teaching. I have five classes to teach, two adult classes and three kids classes. My adults are shy and the biggest struggle that we all have with them is to get them to open up. I let them know that my classroom is a safe enviorment and this is where we make mistakes. I feel like I have such good intentions but my teaching style still hasn't developed into a natural habit. I sat in on the other teachers classes last week and they were all so good, well most of them anyway. The kids classes that I'm teaching are ages 10,11,13, and 14. The children are divided up by age level and skill level. For instance my 10 & 11 yr olds are in "English Time" and they are put into different level such as 1 or 2. I have an English Time 1 and an English Time 2. My ET1 class is a nightmare, well actually its just two little girls, my class size is about eight or ten on average. I gave a spelling test today but they refused to take it. I told them that they had to take the test if they wanted to participate in game day but they just planted themselves. I even gave them the opportunity to go outside and play but they refused to do anything I asked.

My other classes are fairly well behaved and I can always put on my bear voice to scare them into submission but these two little girls just wont budge!! This job is fun when it works out and you're able to make that connection with the kids or adults but with every job there are complications. Just imagine when I'm trying to enforce discipline on these little rascals and they're just whining and snarling at me and neither one of us can truly express why the other is upset. This experience will only make me a better canidate for an educator in my home country or another one but, the biggest lesson to be learned is COMMUNICATION! Patience with communication in our fellow man is they biggest thing I have learned here thus far. There is something for me to learn every day and I have always felt that way, being in a foreign culture only intensifies these lessons. Farewell for now readers, stay tuned for my next entry....

Beef Soup for the Korean Seoul

In the last week I have been feeling a little uneasy about the cuisine here. My cold has kept me from being able to indulge in the spices in the food that I crave. Yesterday Dr. Yu, my director, invited me to a teacher luncheon at a traditional Korean restaurant. I had no enthusiasm as I haven't found any food to blog home about. My fellow teachers and I took cabs to the restaurant and as I stepped inside to kick off my hemp sanuks at the door, I smelled magic. I did not know what the smell was that was making my mouth salivate but I wanted a taste immediately.

The luncheon it turned out was not only for the western teachers but for the Korean as well, to top it off I met my boss' boss. As Erica and I sat cross legged on the floor with the leather cushion serving as our chairs, the fun was about to begin. They bring a giant pot over and four people share the pot and the table. First they fill the broth with a small amount of mystery meat and then begin chopping up huge fresh pieces of spinach, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, bok choi and many other veggies. Next to our cauldron of crazy is a stack of very thinly sliced sirloin. As we waited paitently for the veggies to cook, we dropped in the beef. From there its a feeding frenzy as Kim, Erica and I took to the Asian stew like pigs at a trough. Everything I was eating had the most incredible flavor with perfect seasoning and spice. I was in Asian food heaven. Oh and did I mention the University pays for these outings?? Of course had we come on our own the three of us would have only paid collectively less than thirty dollars US, I'm really starting to love this country....

Seoul Subway

Seoul Subway
Originally uploaded by scottarwood

Korea Landing

Okay so I'm finally going to start this blog now that I've gathered my thoughts enough so I don't come off negative and grumpy, because I'm so excited to be here. I landed in Korea on Saturday, my trip was rough on account of my cough but I was really too jacked to be too distraught. Erica, Mark and Jason greeted me at the airport and we went to Seoul so I could get some rest. The hotel we stayed in was my first exposure to this new culture. It was like 100 sq ft and the bed was hard as a rock, I didn't sleep much nor had I slept much the night before because I was packing and busy paying last respects to friends who needed some Scott time. The following day we walked around Seoul saw architecture, rode the subways and basically just got lost in the city. I had no care as to where Mark was leading us I was fascinated in every detail of the city from their lack of driving rules to the mannerisms of the elderly man who was trying to use his umbrella as a bayonet and attack a tree.

My fever and cough were kicking my ass by mid-day so we left for Iksan via KTX and shot home at 200 mph. I was so relieved to be in a decent bed but to be honest, I'm still not sleeping as great as I could be. I woke up around seven the next morn b/c my schedule is way off and I took a walk. My morning walk really freaked me out. I did not realize that Iksan was bigger than the streets I was on so seeing the dirt and filth of the morning calm had me pretty shaken up about what I was doing here. I was worried I had made a mistake. It wouldn't be until I visited the Uni that I began to feel at ease.

For the next couple of days all I could do was worry about being hit by cars on roads 2/3 size of those back home and wipe my tears when I would get a whiff of the open sewer. I went for coffee with Mark and Jason and a man in a car stuck his arm out the window and threw some 50 flyers for a bar on the street, just trash everywhere. I was blown away, I half laughed and just asked, "what the hell was that?!", "advertisement", they replied.

Finally, on Tuesday I visited campus and I met my director, Dr. Yu. The campus was very pretty and much larger than I anticipated. I sat in on two of the classes that I will be taking over and two classes from other teachers. When I sat in on a class of university student and was able to communicate freely with a Korean student I was instantly feeling that I was in the right place. The feeling I get when I'm able to share who I am and understand where this person is going on their journey makes me feel so incredible. This feeling that I am still riding on now as I'm typing is euphoric and addictive. I can hardly wait to have these classes for myself next week.

After my first few days of electrifing culture shock, I came to a very simple realization, I have a barrier between myself and these people, our language. Their food and music and even their religion is different yes but the biggest difference is the language. All in all, they love the same and they laugh and cry the same, we are all human beings and my ability to cross that barrier will be my biggest task and biggest pleasure while I'm here.