running water, palaces, parks, and more!

well, i finally made it...and it already seams like it will be a grand adventure.
the thirteen and a half hour plane ride wasn't too bad. i had a window seat with an empty seat next to me so i had plenty of space to sprawl out. from what i can tell from the two meals they served on the plane, korean foods have their ups and downs. i definitely recommend the bebimpab, but stay away from the seaweed soup!

once i arrived at the airport and got through customs and collected my bags, i met hokey, a guy from the school along with another new teacher that had been on my flight named turk. turk and i are both soc. studies ed majors and come to find out we have the exact same bday! year and all! after about a 30 minute ride from incheon to ilsan, we arrive at the school and meet the principal and a few teachers and take a tour of the school. after that i am taken to my apartment to freshen up and unpack a bit before a few teachers and i go out for a traditional korean bbq meal.
here's where the fun part starts...i got to my apartment to realize my water hasn't been turned on yet! and it can't be fixed until the next day. luckily ben (another teacher) offered to let me use his shower. after dinner and a shower, i went home and unpacked and hit the sack.

the next morning i got ready for school without water and was picked up again by hokey. we headed off to the school for lunch, planning, and afternoon classes. from what it seems, i will be teaching 9 different 40 minute classes per day - an american history, an american government, a world history course, a reading course, an earth science course, and elementary grammar, english, french, and spanish courses...

after work, turk and i went to the e-mart (like wal-mart) and costco in search of supplies. both stores are within 3 blocks of my apartment, which i am greatful for since i have to carry everything back. we were stoked about getting a hot dog and coke for 2,000 won (about 2 bucks american) before we headed back.

once i arrived home i was thrilled to find out i had running water...until i popped into the shower to find i had no hot water. after my cold shower i phoned lee to ask when he wanted to meet up the next day and spent the rest of the evening cleaning and rearranging.

the next day was saturday and so i slept in and relaxed until it was time to meet lee at the subway station. it was so good to see a familiar face! he came to my apartment and got the staff to fix my hot water, making him my permanent hero! i am pretty sure that after all he has done for me by the end of this year i will owe him my first born! i would be lost without him! anyway, we took the subway to the old part of seoul and visited the last emperor's palace, which was amazing! unfortunatley i forgot my camera, but it only cost about 3.00 american currancy to get in, which means i am definately going to have to take another trip with my camera! we also visited the korean folk museum before stopping off for some traditional korean chicken. we walked along the streets catching up and joking. lee took me to walk along a sacred stream that is quite famous in korea although i can't remember its name; only that the translation is something like blue chicken stream. we took the subway back to my place and spent the evening looking at photos and videos and chatting and before we knew it, it was midnight and lee had missed the last train home! we ended up going to a 24 hour convenience store around the block and picking up some ramen and some breakfast materials and headed back to my place.

in the morning after i made lee breakfast and we said our goodbyes, i got ready for my afternoon with turk and jenny (folks from the school). we decided today was the day we were walking to the lake park that ilsan is known for. after about a 45 minute walk, we arrived and quickly found why everyone went there. it was completely gorgeous! we walked around for a few hours before heading back. i took turk and jenny to the costco since i am the only one in the group with a membership and they picked up a few things while i picked up a few free samples (i heart costco!). after that i headed home for a cool shower and to nurture the growing sunburn i picked up from my afternoon in the park. tonight, i am turning in early to be rested for my first full day at the school, and i can't wait!