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Amy Salmon is now living and teaching in
I'm alive and safely in
For now, you can at least reach me at school M-F, 1pm - 11pm (Korean time). The address & phone number are:
Cheong Sol Foreign Language Institute
105-5 I-mai-dong Bun-dang-Gu
Sung-nam-si Gyeoung Gi Do
Phone 031-708-9001
The website may be all in Korean, but I thought you might enjoy checking it out.
Speaking of all in Korean, that seems to rule the
day.
There are very few signs with English letters. Meaning I need to
learn
the Korean characters, called hangeul, as soon as
possible, in
order to make my life a little easier! Fortunately, unlike
Mandarin,
there are only around 24. And the signs that are in English tend
to pop
out, like "TGI Fridays", and signal welcome little pieces
of home. I really think I'm going to love
Gotta run. If I can get an adapter
today I'll
write a letter on my computer and email it on Monday. The
last 36
hours are quite a story. In a nutshell, instead of flying
direct
to
Another quick update [one week later]. Sadly, it looks like I won't be able to get internet at the apartment, a cell phone, or any English channels on my TV until after I get the Korean work visa, which will be at least a few weeks. So I'm limited to quick emails at work for now, and no other way to communicate. I'm going into English withdrawal! I did manage to get an adapter for my computer (and hair dryer) on Tuesday, so I'll try to write that letter over the weekend and email it on Monday. I know I said that before, but I'll give it another try now that I've at least got power to the computer at home, although no web access. Which I have to admit surprises me...I was anticipating lots of "wireless networks in range" at least, but that's not the case. I'll just have to be patient and wait on the visa, it seems. But I really miss CNN and being able to get any kind of news. I saw on one of my brief checks that there was another al-Qaida threat video, which made me realize that huge things could happen that I would be totally unaware of. That made me feel nice and far away from home, I'll tell you!
Overall, although there is certainly a double
whammy I
haven't experienced before of new language and new culture, I'm
thrilled to be
here. Would you believe there's a French bakery on
the
corner next to where I catch the subway? How cool
is that? And there are actually English labels on the
items
for sale (a rarity!) so I can see what the heck I'm
buying. Good times! And I'm really enjoying things like
having hot
water come out of the tap in the bathroom to wash my face with
again,
which is virtually nonexistent in
I love my job, although I certainly will be
working
hard. But it's work I really enjoy, and that's the crucial
point.
I'm teaching about seven different curricula right now, with a few more
groups
of kids than that. So far they're all elementary-school aged, and
their
English level is pretty good. I get to speak English with them,
at
least...it's the three hours I have to be in the office before I start
teaching
that make me feel a little like a leper. I've never been in a
room full
of people before that were all speaking a language I couldn't
understand, for
hours on end, before. At least not that I can recall. A new
experience, to be sure. I'm getting used to it. It helps that
I've got a
lot of work to do during that time. I'm reconsidering my position
on the
TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language course in