The start of March

We just finished our second week of teaching, well sort of teaching. Adam is teaching 4th grade, 6th grade and then 3rd grade after school on his own. I'm teaching 5th grade, 6th grade and then a Monday class to be determined! So far most our classes have consisted of introducing ourselves and we are just now starting to teach the curriculum. Adam had one day cancelled because of testing; I had the same day cancelled along with the next day because of student elections. This was all after my prep day where I have zero classes, so I didn't see any students until Thursday. I got my alien registration card on Thursday and Adam should get his next week. Once he gets his we will be able to go get cell phones.

The low-down

• In homes and at school the shoes you wear outside are not permitted. So, at school we have to wear "slippers" which are basically soccer sandals. We love this rule, it makes for a more comfortable day.
• We found a little restaurant run by one little old Korean woman, and after pointing at a menu (with no pictures) we ended up with a really good meal with lots of side dishes and a egg and sprout soup! We took a picture with the old lady (see below) she was so kind and I think she asked us to come back! We need to learn more Korean ;).
• Lunches at school have been surprisingly delicious! Of course including the usual: soup, rice, kimchi and then a variety of vegetable/fruit/meat sides.
• Adam has one trouble student in a 4^th grade class that wont sit or follow any directions and started to kick him. He might be going to the principal’s office and getting a visit from old hickory soon (that’s allowed here).
• The teachers here love to play volleyball so last Wednesday we both had staff volleyball games. They told Adam the day before so he was able to bring clothes but they forgot to tell me so all I had was my work clothes and I was unable to play. Adam played really well and they want him to join the school’s volleyball team (I think elementary schools make teams and compete against each other). I don't think I will be invited to be a part of my schools team... we'll see =).
• I started a morning show with the other guest English teacher that's broadcasted for the school every Tuesday and Thursday. Thursday was the first show and not being very prepared we just made fools of ourselves in hopes that the students found it funny. We got a great response, so either the students found us funny or just liked watching us clowning around. I have twice as many students saying "Hello" to me in the hall and much more class participation. Success!!

Our first blog...finally!

Adam and I have been in South Korea now for 17 days!! Time has been flying so far. The first week we had orientation with EPIK. Our day was filled with classes on teaching and living in Korea and when I say filled, I mean FILLED! We were in classes from 9 -8:10 with a few breaks to eat the delicious cafeteria food ;).  During orientation we went to JUMP, a martial arts comedy show followed by a very informative trip to POSCO (the third largest steel production factory in the world). Jump was very funny, and POSCO was...well POSCO. It was a 2 hour drive each way and wasn't really worth the 5 minutes we spent walking through one part of the factory.
Now we are on our own in Haeundae, Busan! This week we had Monday and Tuesday off for Korea's Independence day from Japan. Adam and I spent this time making many trips to the E Mart and getting settled in. Wednesday we started work and were introduced to faculty and our classes. We both have another native English teacher at our schools which isn't very common. Our co-teachers are very nice and so far we haven't had any problems.

The low-down

• Koreans are VERY nice. Adam met an older Korean heart surgeon and his PHD student at a bar who ended up buying us a huge pizza! 
• Water is served in TINY cups. I'm having a small problem with this because the food is so spicy! I thought I handled spicy food pretty well until coming here. They take spicy to another level! Adam isn't having any problem with it though!
• Some bathrooms have a roll of toilet paper on the wall instead of the stall, so you have to guess how much you'll need before going in. Some toilets here are super fancy and have a ton of buttons. I haven't tested the buttons out yet!
• The subways/buses/streets are very clean despite not being able to find a trash can anywhere on the street. Quite a contrast to back home where you can pass five trash cans in a block and still have the street filled with trash.
• Koreans seem to love coffee as much as I do! I am constantly being offered coffee at work and I LOVE it!
• Found a cupcake shop that is beyond delicious. I think about it all the time=).
• To get to work we take the subway four exits away from our stop and then take a bus the rest of the way, it's about 30-40 minutes to our stop. I can't get on the bus without falling asleep. It's so warm and pretty comfy=).
• Adam and I are going to start learning Korean soon. This should help with our ordering skills! Right now we are dependent on pictures and gestures. It's worked out well though, everything we've pointed too has been delicious!! 
• All meals come with at least rice, soup, kimchi and some other sides for about 5,000 won. It's great!
• The koreans are pretty impressed with our chop stick skills. They always tell Adam how good he is.

P.S I'M AN AUNTIE!!! Chloe Dawn Post was born March 3, 2011. She is the most beautiful baby. I already got to skype with her, Neal and Laurie. I can't wait to watch her grow. 

Adam and I will put all our photos on Facebook. Here are a few to hold you over!!