First Impressions

Well, I made it through the first week of teaching. It was a long one. I leave my apartment at 8:30 in the morning and return at about 8 at night. Especially during this adjustment period, it doesn't leave time for much, other than a little emailing, blogging and sleeping. What a life. I am really looking forward to this weekend so I can finally unpack and start to explore a bit more. But even in the hustle and bustle of the work week, I have made some observations that I thought I'd pass along. 

I love the style in Seoul! Everyone looks so nice and put together all the time. I hope some of the fashion rubs off on me because it is so cute! All the Korean teachers at school have the cutest clothes and shoes. And the men! Wowzer. So fancy. American men could learn something from the Koreans about how to dress. So for those of you who thought I might fall in love with a Korean, I'm not ruling it out because they are looking good. And they are not short, by the way. There are many tall Koreans. 

I am still trying to figure out if the people are friendly or not. Half the time when I interact with a Korean, I feel like they're making fun of me because I don't speak Korean, but that's probably just my insecurity. And they don't smile much. But on the other hand, I had three people helping me at E mart last night, and the other day I was waiting for someone outside a shop, and the clerk wanted me to come in because I looked cold. So I think it's true what I've heard that Koreans are very friendly and helpful. I'm sure I will be in need of this numerous times in the coming months. 

You may think, like I did, that Korean children are very well-behaved. This is true, to some extent. They very quickly quiet down when asked and seem to have a better attention span then American kids. But they are also spoiled. It seems to me that everyone treats them (especially the little ones) like your grandmother would treat you. I can't say I blame them because they are so darn cute! Today was the first day that I actually did my hair curly because I finally bought a hair dryer last night, and the comments from the students ranged from, "Teacher, your hair looks strange," to "Teacher, you are beautiful today!" Who wouldn't want to spoil the kid that tells you you are beautiful?

Motorcycles, bikes and scooters ride on the street, on the sidewalk, through traffic lights, pretty much wherever they please. At least three times on my way home last night, a scooter type thing came zooming up behind me and scared the living daylights out of me. Seriously, these big things just dart in and out of people walking on the sidewalk, almost touching my side. And then you have to watch them go back and forth from sidewalk to street and fear for their lives. I wonder if I'll ever get used to that. 

That's just a glimpse of life here, a sliver of the thousands of things I am taking in and trying to make sense of. Tomorrow I hope to do some exploring, venture further than my previous two stops on the subway, and maybe even find something to eat? Who knows.