Controlled chaos, Noraebang, and a shathroom

So this first week in Korea has been really interesting. I got in last Saturday at about 5:35 am. Went through customs and saw my friend, Mauri straight away. We traveled together to Colombia and lived together (for a VERY short time) in Ecuador. Glad we met up because it took some time to work out our ride situation. Our driver finally found us (or we found him) and we set out for an undisclosed location outside of Seoul. The details about the first week were very limited so I had no idea what to expect. We got to the the Hyundai Innovation Center and began orientation with 140 other public school teachers. The school I am working for outsourced orientation to the center. The good news-met tons of other teachers from all over the world, food was free and the facility was pretty nice. The bad news-we shared a very small room with two other teachers, no phones available and we were told not to leave the facility. It was really weird. The coordinators claimed they had ran the orientation before but there were many things that were weird and not really thought through. It was kind of humorous and frustrating at the same time. A little bit of a cluster**** and very much controlled chaos. But free snacks, we were paid for it and it was kinda fun.

So after a couple of days on lock down people were ready to break free. A huge group of us headed to a nearby bar and then to Noraebang (karaoke). About 10 of us were in this small little room and almost everyone sang, from "Under the Sea" to "Billie Jean". Got back pretty late and I had a dream that I peed on the floor and was convinced I had for the first part of the morning until I realized it was a dream. Outrageous. The whole night was really fun but I was super tired the next day. On Thursday we went to observe a classroom in the morning and go to the National Museum of Korea in the afternoon. Really nice to actually see Seoul and get out of the compound. By the end of the week people were definitely ready to get out of there and move into apartments.

Yesterday, we took a bus with all of the people in our school district to meet our co-teachers. A co-teacher can make or break your experience here because they are who you work very closely with. I was really nervous and expected an older man that couldn't really speak English as my co-teacher. Got off the bus and a younger man approached me and spoke to me in really good English. He introduced himself as my co-teacher and he also had another teacher from my school with him. They introduced themselves as PK and Sandy (her English name). The girl was really cute but super small and I felt like an ape towering over her. They also had "janitor" with them and he helped with my luggage. We went to my apartment which looked literally new. It is pretty small but suits me fine. Pleasantly surprised to find tons of brand new appliances for me and bedding! Which was great because the heat in my apartment was not working last night. My bathroom is pretty funny....it doesn't have a shower stall. It is just a toilet, sink and shower in one room. A shathroom. It calls for creative showering. After we went to my apartment, my co-teacher took me and Sandy out to dinner. I had really good Korean food at orientation but the restaurant we went to was delicious. I haven't tasted anything bland in Korea...very spicy.

Seoul is a huge city and I am in the northeast. I like my area so far. I am close to a stream with a pathway where people walk or run. There is an open market really close by. My school is really close as well. I have heard that there is a fitness center and bowling alley close but I have yet to check them out. There is also a Pizza Hut and Dunkin Donuts down the street. Ahhh globalization. If you don't have a cell phone making calls can be a hassle. No locotorio like Spain or Ecuador. I need to get an immigration card before I can get a cell phone. I have to get a medical test before I get my immigration card. So I will be without phone for a little while. Which should be fine since I am used to not having a phone but I am sure my dad is getting mad that I haven't called. Please forgive me father!