So much clearer now.

My Korean-American coworker Claire just translated the itinerary to me. Looks like its going to be a pretty regimented trip. Not a great deal of time to ourselves. Which is a pity as I was really looking forward to hooking up with Courtney and Co. on the island. Nick is always good for a laugh and Colleen certainly seems to be a cool cat.
Claire seems to share my concerns about being carted around for the whole weekend so the two of us might make a break for freedom. With her linguistic skills and my ability to lift heavy objects, nothing can stand in our way.
Having said all that, it will nice to be shown around Jeju. I know Court is a little concerned about finding her way around, as she will probably do the talking for Colleen and Nick. Plus everything is on the island is being paid for by work so I should probably quit complaining and enjoy the amazing opportunity I'm being presented with.

American Colonialism

So Courtney's friend, Colleen, from back home is here with us in the Land of the Morning Calm. She arrived last night and will be staying with us in my apartment. Courtney seems quite excited but is making sure that I don't feel as though they're taking over my apartment. At the moment I certainly don't and I don't see it becoming a problem for the week that Colleen will be with us. There's plenty of room for the three of us, especially since Court and I moved one of the beds downstairs a while back. This means that Colleen has the upstairs as her own, minus the space taken up with all my drying laundry!
I'm excited to have someone new here. It was great when my friend Nicky came for a weekend. Having people over to visit helps remind you about what is great about Korea, things I've started to take for granted. The food alone is worth coming here for, let alone Korea's rich history and vibrant modern cultural identity (this is expressed through K-Pop, Animal themed coffee shops and a serious passion for fashion).
There will be quite a crowd of us going to Jeju. Not only the whole OES workforce, but Courtney, Colleen and Nick will all be on the island this weekend. I still haven't managed to decipher the itinerary for the trip yet but I really hope it won't be a too rigidly structured trip. It would be great to hang out with Court and Co. rather than my work colleages, as nice as they are.

The Return

With only a month or so left in Korea, Courtney and I are spending more and more of our conversations discussing what we think it'll be like to return home. I've been away for a year now, Courtney has been absent for two years.
We're both aware that there's a good chance there will be a bit of 'reverse culture shock' but we don't know how it'll hit us until we're back. The main issue will just be the amount of time that has passed. A lot can, and does, happen in a year. All my friends will have changed, I will have changed, but in what ways? I'm only back in the UK for a month, so I think I'll take Court's advice and treat my return as a visit to a foreign country, to not go there with expectations.
It's going to be amazing to see all my friends and family again. I can't wait to find out what's new and what's the same.
The only big change I'm aware of is that Woolworths has closed down, and my mum has now retired. I'm sure they're not the only things to have changed.

The Korean Experience

Came into work today and on my desk was a printout, all in Korean. I was informed that it's the intinary for the upcoming Jeju trip that my hagwon is very kindly taking me on.
My Korean is poor. I can read Korean slowly and I have a very limited vocabulary. Fortunately there tends to be a lot of 'Konglish', English words written in Korean, like 바비큐 - BBQ, 세미나 - seminar, and, of course, 이마트 - E-mart. Because no Korean outing would be complete without a trip to the supermarket.
Granted I've been in Korea for almost a year and I took Korean lessons for about 6 months, but my boss knows that I don't speak Korean. If it wasn't for my co-workers, I wouldn't have a clue as to what was going on. Not that know much more now. I now have the impression that we're taking an hour flight and spending three days shopping, have seminars and BBQs. Sounds alright to me.

Website Update

Finally got round to putting up some more of my earlier nature shots onto my photography website. Hope you like what you see.

Take my advice, I'm not using it...

So much for focusing on my time in Korea.
Been looking at the CELTA course that ECC does in Thailand. It's a tad annoying that after three years and ten grand it looks like I'm going to have to fork out another thousand pounds for another qualification. Normally the idea of paying for some sort of course wouldn't be much of an issue for me, except that I'm getting the qualification to do a job I'm already doing.
Except there are no mangoes growing in Korea...

Summer Program

Its the start of the Summer Term at OES Kids. It means an earlier start, earlier finish, and, most importantly of all, a proper lunch.
This also means that I'm entering the final chapter of my time here in South Korea, just 15 teaching days left. I've had an amazing time here in the Land of the Morning Calm, but I need to remember that I'm not actually leaving for about a month yet, so I still have time to enjoy Korea and I should try and limit how 'checked out' I become.
Which will be difficult as the next destination will be Thailand...