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| Banana class |
The first week of work went relatively well, but was definitely tiring and we were both happy to see Friday finally arrive.
Our schedules at school go something like this:
9:45- 11:20 - kindergarten classes, 40 minutes long each, with a 25 minute break between
11:20 - 12:50 - lunch break, we usually go home and eat boiled eggs and carrot sticks and tuna.
12:50-2:00 - more kindergarten classes
2:00 - 5:30 ( or as late as 8:30 on some days) - elementary students, middle school students, classes are 50 minutes long, 10 minute break in between.
I am really enjoying the teaching, mostly because it is very relaxed and the kids, for the most part are great. In their first year at a private school ( Hagwagon) each kid gets an English name and there are some hilarious ones, as well as some strange gender-switched names:
-Justine and Joy (boys)
-Jack Jack
-Sonic
-Nike
-Zena (pronounced Jena)
-Chris 1, Chris 2
-Aqua
-Jupiter
There are also lots of common names (Amy, Tommy, Brian, Kevin, Becky) which of course remind me of people I know with these names. It blew my kindergarten's minds that I have a sister named 'Amy'. Other things that blow their minds:
-when Jill teacher speaks Korean
-stickers
-CDN money
-drinking from a big water bottle
-seeing any teacher at any time not in the class (ie hallways, stairs, etc.) , they are like mini paparazzi without cameras.
All of the kindergarten classes are named for fruits (Kiwi, Orange, Apple, Banana, etc) and they have 5 periods a day and a lunch time. Hello full-day Kindergarten! Our school is private, so the parents pay for their kids to go. The other, older kids come after their regular school day, and usually go to other lessons (piano, art, sports) after or before coming to Corem (our school).
I enjoy the kindergartens the most, because they are the most easily entertained and are also really smart and well - behaved. It's pretty safe to say that every kid over the age of 6 has their own cell phone.
As I said before, teaching is pretty relaxed here, especially compared to my experiences in Ontario. There are no 'nut-free' zones, and it is considered perfectly acceptable to hug kids, high five kids, or drag kids out of class for bad behaviour. Not that I am excited about corporal punishment... but it is refreshing to be able to show affection without looking over your shoulder for a lawsuit from a parent.
We work with 4 other foreign teachers, 2 are American and 2 are Canadian. They are AWESOME and have been nothing but helpful since we arrived. I don't know where we would be without them.
We also work with... 7? other Korean teachers who are also awesome. They teach English to the kids as well and help us with discipline issues and things like parent communication. Everyone at the school has been super welcoming and we both feel really lucky to be in such a great work environment.
From what I have gathered by talking to other teachers, our hours are pretty long at Corem, but you win some, you lose some. There are pros and cons to every teaching job here, and I would take longer hours over a negative work vibe any day.
School/work took over our life during the week and this weekend we finally got to see our friends Hailey and Christine who are also from Canada (Hailey from Fredericton and Christine from teacher's college in Ottawa). We went to Hyundae beach for a little sunshine, then Hailey kindly took us for a walking tour around her neighbourhood.
We stopped to eat at 'Kimbap heaven' and had a few Korean dishes, including my favourite Ddakbokki, yum!! We then walked through the market area and saw some interesting things for sale, likesuchas:
-bees in a bag (live)
-frogs in a bag (also live)
-eels
I was pretty excited to find a donut stall, and paid a pretty penny for a delicious looking pastry, then I tore it open and discovered a filling of...... chicken soup.
Most disappointing food experience yet, but oh well. After having bean-paste filled cake, I should have been expecting something like chicken in a donut.
Following that adventure, we bought some banana ice cream cones, which of course made everything ok.
After going home for a short nap, we met up with Hailey again and tried to take a cab to Kyeongsang University district, but ended up very far away at Pusan National University instead. We took it in stride and hung out at a 7-11 for some soju for a while. Can't say my first soju experience was one I loved, but hopefully it will grow on me. Hailey mixes a mean drink.
We did manage to make it to Kyeonsang after that, and felt like we were in Canada again because we ended up at a 'foreigner' bar called Foxy, filled with lots and lots of non-asian faces (including the long lost Miss Jennifer Sheehan!!! Who started us off with a rousing rendition of the FHS song, NBD).
Generally, things are going awesome, and I definitely feel like I have been here longer than several days. The heat is hard to escape but from what I hear this is not much different from home. I am somewhere between the hostile and excited stages that the 'culture shock' experts talk about, but I find that rocking out to Justin Bieber (or J Derulo, Kesha, etc.) is usually a pretty good cure.
Fwef! That's a lot of reflection, now time for a day of cleaning.... pictures of the apt to come soon:)
Lovelovelove from Jill on the hill!
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