My time here in Korea is officially coming to an end. I have about 12 hours left in this country before I head off to Australia. Its amazing how quickly two weeks goes by.

I just checked into my hotel room by Incheon Airport and so far, so good. The rooms here are way bigger than your average North American hotel and the price was fair. I just got back from roaming around the area…couldn't recognize a single thing other than the "Family Mart" (the Korean version of 7-11). I stocked up on drinks and a few snacks for the night. I also splurged and bought a calling card (10,000 Won) to call home. Right now, it's about 4:30am in Mississauga, so I'm going to wait a bit….

The following blog is going to be my sad attempt to re-visit the past few days in Seoul. I tried to keep track of everything as best I could, but I was always so tried by the end of the night to actually post a new entry. However, I definitely have some time to kill before I get some sleep, so here we goooooo…..

Monday was my "life as a typical foreigner in Korea day", simply put: Shawn had to run a lot of errands and I tagged along. First on the list was the Post Office…if you provided me your address, you should be getting something very shortly! If you haven't yet, please email it to me, as I am a very good pen pal! Shawn also needed to go to the bank, as he needed to exchange Korean Won for Thailand Bhat (god this currency thing gets confusing). As his home bank, we had no luck….but the women there told us about KEB- the Korean Exchange Bank and luckily there was one close by. We also needed to go to the Immigration Office so he could get a special sticker for his Visa, which would allow him to re-enter Korea after his vacation. This was the afternoon from hell. As with any government office, long line-ups are to be expected, even in Canada…however, if you want to get something official done in Korea, please multiply your wait-time by ten. I'm not kidding. After we got a numbered ticket, we wandered around outside and went to the market, got a coffee, people-watched ect. I figured by the time we got back, we wouldn't have to wait much longer. We were very wrong. Even though I couldn't speak the language, I could tell even the Koreans in the waiting room were getting pissed. After Shawn and I continued to "huff and puff", FINALLY some Korean guy (I assume he was the manager) told us to wait in a special line….5 mins later, Shawn got his documents sorted and we were out the door. All that waiting for five freakin' minutes. God I hate government offices, even in Korea. The day was basically shot after that, so we shopped around for a bit and I bought a few souvenirs. There is definitely no shortage of shopping in this country.

The night Shawn had made plans for us to teach an ESL group, which consisted of three young teachers who are trying to improve their English skills. The whole thing was hilarious. First off, the place we went to is basically the best designed study center I have ever seen. From the outside it looks like a cute coffee shop, but in the basement lies several study rooms….comfy little "cubbies" with fluffy cushions and whatnot. You rent these special rooms by the hour and it also includes drinks and snacks. Best idea ever…I'm considering opening one of these little joints by York, I think it would make a killing. So anyways, we studied an article about environmental sustainability…got in a few heated debates….but the night mostly consisted of laughing. Us laughing at their mistakes….them laughing at us when we talked too fast or used big words…it was a real hoot. The young women were really friendly and curious about me, which I liked…I even walked away that night with a "Korean name", which they did write and translate on my hand…but it came off before I had a chance to write it down…I think it was something about the word "twinkle" or "shiny"---something to do with my eyes, I think. Participating in this little workshop made me realize how much fun teaching ESL could be. You can almost guarantee a good laugh and the money is pretty tempting. At first I was a bit nervous, but after the initial awkwardness, things started to smooth out pretty quickly. This was definitely a highlight of my trip and I'm glad I got to experience "true ESL" teaching.

One afternoon we also went to Shawn's school….Nowon High School….just so I could look around. Its pretty much your standard ghetto area high school….complete with dusty soccer field and sad looking basketball court. Inside however was much more charming. I got to see Shawn's desk where he does his lesson planning and what not. I also met a few co-teachers and I think even his vice principal was there too. It's the student's vacation time right now, so the school was pretty dead. We did however run into one of his students ('Dinosaur'- his weird English nickname, I guess) out on the field. The faces the kids make when they see Shawn is priceless…their eyes light up and they sport the biggest smile I have ever seen….I love it haha.

The next day we hit up "Itaewon", a pretty popular spot among tourists and foreigners. I always heard people talk about this spot, but to be honest it was one of my least favorites. Sure the shopping is great (you could get a knock off of almost any designer you could think of), but the area itself is not too impressive…mind you, the entire district seemed to have been under construction. The best part of the area is the "Foreign Grocery Store" where you can find things like Cheerios! And Doritos! And Cheese! (for 16,000 won…which is like 16$ at home!) The prices are definitely crazy, but I'd probably go there if I ever felt homesick or missed Western food.

That night we went to Seoul Tower, which is similar to Toronto's CN Tower. We went at night so the view was beautiful and I got some really nice pictures. The hike up there was pretty strenuous…one thing I noticed in Korea right away is their love of STAIRS! Huge staircases are everywhere here! The subway, the malls…everywhere. At first I thought it was very artsy…then my legs started to give out on me haha.

On one of my lasts days here we pulled a mission to this Korean Folk Village. It was about a 3 hour journey on the subway and then a bus. However, the place was interesting and we did see a tight rope walker and a horse show…so I guess it was worth it! I also ate a traditional Korean dish (similar to a pancake…) and we got to eat it outside on this crazy platform…you had to take your shoes off and everything (I always get really excited about taking my shoes off in restaurants….I guess it makes me feel pretty Korean haha)

On my last full day here we slept in (yay!) and went to the movies (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button). We also both had to pack and get organized for our trips. Fast forward a day later and here I am….all settled into my hotel room.

I'm pretty excited for the next few days….I can't wait to get to my school and settle in. I have a lot to get organized but I'm sure it will be a breeze (at least in Australia, I won't have to worry about the language barrier!)

Well, I'm pretty exhausted so I think I'm going to take a shower and get ready for bed.

I'll keep ya posted!

xoxox