Nicole vs. The Roaches
Ok....by now some of you have heard that I've spent the last 25 days sleeping on my boss's couch. Why? The apartment I was supposed to move into was invested with cockroaches. I'm not talking about a roach here and there at night....I'm talking about roaches out in the open, just hanging around playing poker, DURING THE DAY. The roach control websites I've been to all say that if you see roaches during the day, infestation is an understatement. Sigh. How did the apartment get like this? Simple: the girl who lived there before me rarely cleaned, rarely took out her recycling, left bags of sugar and other things OPEN in the cupboards, and had an ENTIRE YEAR'S WORTH of PIZZA BOXES on the floor. I'm not surprised roaches found their way there--the place was a frickin' hilton! (How this girl managed to live like this is a mystery to everyone.) When the extensiveness of the roach issue was realized, I said there was no way in hell I was moving in until the problem was resolved. This is why I've been sleeping at my boss's house. But, after about 6 cans of Raid, traps, bait, two bug bombs, and a thorough trash/food evacuation, I think my apartment might be ready for human habitation. But because it's been saturated with all kinds of chemicals, it needs to be scrubbed down so I (and Miami) don't get sick. It will be really hard for me to get that done during the week, and this weekend isn't suitable for cleaning, as my co-workers and I are throwing a rockstar party at a 5-star hotel downtown (we're all going to dress like rockstars and proceed to act like rockstars....surely there's no shortage of things to do in Seoul...). The party begins Saturday afternoon, but I need to prepare my costume beforehand, and I'll probably have a hangover on Sunday. So I suspect I will first move into my apartment next week Sunday or so. I'll show those roaches who's boss!
A Day in the Life
I may be assuming too much in guessing some of you might wonder what day-to-day life is like here in Seoul...but I have some time before I teach, so I'm going to tell you anyway. I wake up on my boss's couch (yes...my housing situation is a long, long, story--look for a posting on it soon) at about 7.30am, get dressed and prettied up for work, scarf down a yummy yogurt, walk 10 minutes to the subway, and then stand for 20 minutes (on rare occasions there's a seat available) until I reach the stop for school. Hopefully I have a full hour before I begin teaching so I can adequately prep for class. I usually teach anywhere from 6 to 9 40-minute classes a day beginning at 10am and finishing at 6pm. (Mondays, though, I begin teaching at 12.40.) Most days I have sizable break or a few shorter ones. The youngest students I have are about 5, and the oldest ones are about 10. I really like all my classes except my 5 year olds--they are more than a few handfulls to manage. But they're not all bad. They will come into my office and say hi or see what I'm up to. They sure are cute--I have at least one favorite in every class! When I finish teaching, depending on the day, I might head home and make a sandwhich for dinner or go out with co-workers for galbi (look for a food posting in the future). I'll feed and play with Miami, and then crash around 11ish.
The Foreigner vs. Korean Kid Germs
I have been in Korea for 13 days. It only took 12 for me to get sick (nothing serious...just a head cold). I'm not particularly surpised, though. Most foreign teachers spend much of their year battling colds because we swim in a sea of small booger-y kids coated in germs that are unknown to our immune systems. I've been really good about washing my hands and using hand sanitizer, but apparently I need to take my efforts to Nazi level. So while all of you enjoy your Friday evenings, think of me and my chapped nose, sniffleing and watching Sex and the City.
Quiz Night and Killer Poker Hands
Every Monday night, several foreign teachers at my school (and other schools like ours) go to the "foreign district" of Seoul called Itaewon. Itaewon is near the military base and has a decent selection of non-Korean restaurants, so there's always tons of foreigners there. The major draw on Monday nights, however, is Quiz Night and poker. Similar to the quiz nights in the UK, the Canadian-owned bar, Rocky Mountain, hosts a jeopardy-like, team-based quiz. The team that knows the most random, worthless knowledge wins a pitcher of beer (how could that NOT be fun, right?!?!). My team came in second, right behind the other team of my co-workers. Before and after the quiz, those who want can play poker. All bets are small (we make good money here, but we're not high-rollers or anything...our bets are change, not bills), and the usual games are Texas Hold 'em and "In Between." In between is a super fun game where you bet against the pot if you think the card drawn will be "in between" the two post (or end-point) cards. I did pretty well with that game, and I have more than enough change to bring back next week!
Pool-time and Condom-heads
Sunday was quite a bit hotter than it had been the previous week, so Shannon thought going to the pool would be nice. She called the pool she wanted to go to and asked if they were still open (considering it is now September). The worker said yes the pool was open, so we called our friends Geoff and Gilles (both Canadians that we work with). They met us and we took a cab to "Dreamland." Once we got there, though, we were told the pool was closed. UGH! But rather than "throwing in the towel" (heh, like the pool humor???), we went to the Tower Hotel to use their outdoor pool. The interesting thing about public pools in Korea is that everyone who goes into the pool must wear......a SWIMMING CAP.Yeah....I've never had to do the swim-cap thing, and I was a little nervous about it. I mean, the idea of putting a rubber cap on my head made me feel like a penis with a condom. But I was able to find a swim cap that was more like swim-suit material than straight rubber, so the whole situation was a LITTLE less condom-ish. The pool was nice and relaxing. We had a great time! Gilles is the thin one with the nice smile, and Geoff is the one making the ridiculous face.
First Day at the Ninth Gate of Hell
So the first day teaching was miserable. I was completely lost. Syllabi were incorrect, I discovered protocol and routines that I was not informed of prior to my Kindy students setting me straight (I thought my credibility was in the toilet!), and the girl that I replaced had the most disgustingly unorganized desk. It took forever to find stuff and to prepare for class. Bleh.Luckily....the second day was better. MUCH better! I got to school early, and it took me 2 hours to clean out my desk. But now it's all organized and lovely. I feel much more in control and have much less stress. It IS quite strange teaching small children, but I think we are getting on just fine. They are intrigued by my red hair (they tell me I have a boy haircut because women in Korea don't have short hair) and my nose piercing. I've been getting lots of hugs and smiles. They all call me "Nicole teacher." So far so good!!!
Customs and Cats
So it turns out that bringing Miami to Seoul wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. She made the trip like a champ! The most difficult part of the whole ordeal was getting the paperwork in order before I left. At the airport, I just had to pay $260 and she was good to go. She hunkered down during the flight and I brought her into the bathroom to stretch every few hours. The pic is her hanging out on the diaper changing table thing. When we landed, all I had to do was get my customs declaration form stamped at the animal quarantine desk. They didn't open her carrier or anything. They just looked at her health certificate and sent us on our merry way. She's settling in just fine. She's been taking Korean lessons while I'm at school. She's catching on quite quickly....I think she may know phrases than I do!
Once Upon A Time...
...a girl moved to Seoul and told everyone she would maintain a blog to chronicle her goings-on. But upon arrival, she found herself tossed so violently between work and bars and sleep that she forgot her login and password to her blog, so she couldn't update those back home. Luckily, she awoke one morning finally remembering her login and password. What follows are all the things she wanted to share with you during the past week.
