I’ve already been in Korea for a week! I feel like it went by super fast. The week flew by because I’ve been so busy with work. The week was hectic not only because it was my first week, but it was also the start of a new semester for the school. So I would go to a class and find out that they had a different book than what was given to me, so I’d have to go straighten it out and get the correct book. I think this second week will go better since I know what’s going on a little more. I think some of my classes will be changing, but I’ll still be teaching at the same times. Yesterday I saw some of the kids doing Gangnam Style as they were playing in the gym. And during one class (where the kids are about 12 years old), I was trying to decide if I wanted them to do one more workbook page before starting their homework. Of course they all said “nooooooooooooo”, and I ended up not having them do it because it didn’t look necessary and they started singing the Hallelujah chorus. It was really weird. And really awesome. Some of the kids in my classes are trying to see what they can get away with since I’m new, but I’ve already yelled at them plenty of times for being disrespectful and not listening to me.

I explored my neighborhood a little bit today, and found there’s a lot of American restaurants around where I live. So far I’ve found an Outback Steakhouse, Burger King, Baskin Robbins, KFC, Dunkin Donuts, Pizza Hut, Domino’s and Starbucks. I haven’t really experienced culture shock at all. I didn’t when I went to Spain, too, but I thought it may be different here. I haven’t felt overwhelmed with the culture at all. It just feels like normal life. I’ve recovered from jet lag, so I’m not waking up at 5 am anymore. I feel very comfortable and safe here. I have a TV in my apartment and it gets a few English channels, like the History channel. And the driving here is CRAZY. I came very close to being mauled over by a motorcycle..when I was on a sidewalk..

And here’s some pictures of my apartment!

It’s small, but it’s just fine for me! I actually really like that it’s all one room.