Six months

Today is the official six months here. And with that comes six months to go! This is our halfway point. The time is only getting shorter now. We had planned to accomplish so many things by now… many of which were travel plans…many of which had to be placed aside due to school, weather and sickness… but what better way to ensure a great last six months than to make a public promise about all the things that need to be accomplished and enjoyed.

It is very easy to get stuck in a rut, and do what is comfortable and easy… but that is also a good way to miss a lot of opportunities in a far away country that you will probably not get a chance to visit again. That being said here is a short check list of sorts to help remind us Why we came here and what we want to do!

1. Travel – that was the most basic and exciting reason we came to Korea, and we have not been nearly everywhere we wanted to go. We fully intend to see more of Korea, (Whitney I SWEAR we are going to make it to Deagu to visit you), as well as plan a big trip to China…we just found out that this summer we will get ten consecutive days off work, so there will be no better time to make a big “see Asia” trip than that. China is HUGE so we hope we can see a good chunk of it during that time… it will also be fun to plan what we want to do and see, so if anyone has any ideas let me know! We were thinking it would be cool to take a train to the Great Wall, and we know we want to visit some bigger cities too! It will be fun to document not only the trip but the process to get there as well!

2. School – Can’t deny that our school is the reason we are here. We have some schedule changes coming up and Grace has given us a real chance to do some creative teaching. We are coming up with a new curriculum for our advanced students to challenge them and also get them interested in things going on in our world today. Maybe we will even tackle trying to teach them about the American Health Changes about to take place, see what they think! I am really excited about this new lesson plan… it will be a lot of work, but we will get to have a real say in what we teach! Very cool! I will keep everyone updated as we try to find a Korean newspaper in English……

3. Try new foods. – Now this is not always an easy task, because half the time we go to a true hole in the wall Korean restaurant, we usually have no clue what to order or what they even sell. We stick to the main circuit of restaurants that we know we like or we pick out simple foods at the store that remind us of home that I can cook in a microwave oven (or on a burner) With summer coming up (soon hopefully) that will also change what foods I cook to a lighter cooler fare than what I usually make (hearty warm stuff since it has been so cold) Mexican night will still be a favorite in our books, but new menus can be refreshing. It is hard to find things you like and not eat them till you get sick of them (because I have not had rice in a week and it really has not been long enough!) So I vow to find at least one new restaurant to try each month!

4. Mindset – Things have been very hard at times…there have been times when both Joseph and I wanted to throw in the towel and hop a plane home…. (thankfully not at the same time or we may have actually done it) We have so many talks about how culture is really intrinsic to how you live daily life. It really becomes a part of you and to be out of your element for a long time really puts everything in perspective. Korea is not bad by any means, simply different from my own way. However, “different” can put you on edge and make things that normally would not bother you become a huge burden. And those burdens can weigh heavy on your heart and mind. We miss home a lot. We miss family a lot…. We miss friends a lot… we miss SOUR CREAM!!!!! But at the end of the day we usually end up talking about something funny that happened in class, or something cool coming up for the teachers and things in general that make everyday more interesting and unique than it would be in Raleigh. I am glad Joseph and I are not quitters, because in the end this ultimately will be a positive experience, and one I plan to look back on fondly. Nothing is perfect, but you can always make the best of things when you have a positive attitude. So I will promise to always look on the bright side.



And now for a Top ten list of things that have changed in six months….. (please bear in mind I am not David Letterman or his staff of writers so this may not be funny at all!)

1.) I now walk into a convenience store and the Korean for “Hello” and “Thank you” come naturally .

2.) Slowly we have picked up on more vocabulary and can tell when the kids are talking about us! HAHA score 1 for teacher!

3.) I was honked at by a car for being in his way on the sidewalk.

4.) I clean more often, because the smaller the place you live in, the harder it is to get away from the mess!

5. We only have 2 forks, but several sets of chopsticks.

6. I eat fermented cabbage with red pepper every week (almost every day)

7. We can walk anywhere in the city we want to go in about 30 minutes.

8. Quiznos has become “special dinner” food.

9. We get really excited when English movies come to the Island, and super bummed that they only stay for a week.

10. I find myself staring at White people, just because I don’t see them that often.


And a top ten list of things that are always the same no matter what country you live in…

1. The guy above you in the apartment will inevitably decided to do laundry at 2am on Wednesday night when you want to wake up and talk to your parents early on Thursday.

2. Kids think anyone over the age of 25 is old ( ohhh goodness when did that happen?) a seven year old actually gasped when I told her how old I was. (wait till may when I turn 26, Emily)

3. Teacher’s see students eating potato chips in class even though the kid thinks they are being super sneaky by putting one chip in at a time and sucking on it so it doesn’t crunch.

4. Chinese food is cheap and AWESOME!

5. People talk on cell phones all the time.

6. Everyone LOVES Friday!

7. They Show CSI on television daily (in no particular order though) I can thank Dani for letting me chill at her house once a week!

8.Grocery stores, Movie theatres, and restaurants are PACKED on weekends

9. Hamburgers are easily accessible.

10. Kids still say the “darndest” things. Especially when English is not their first language.

So on that note, happy six months to us, and we will see you all soon