So I went to Seoul....

Even though this was planned before I decided to take my hiatus, my trip to Seoul was extremely well timed.


That's right, I took a trip to Seoul!

I could probably bore/interest you with some facts about Seoul, largest city in Korea and has 25% of the South Korean population in its city limits or whatever; however, that would only be a small part of my weekend trip. And stop being lazy, go to Wiki and look it up yourself.

The original intention for my trip up to Seoul was to have some American food.

Breakfast food.

That hassle was real

It had been way too long since I had American breakfast food and I was really missing it. Like really missing it. Missing it so much, I made a whole weekend trip to go get some.

Okay...sort of planned a trip.

True story, I was kind of freaking out about the whole time.

Packed bus to Seoul

Sure, I've gone to Daegu many times, since I barely live an hour away from it...but Seoul? That's  basically a three hour drive. In fact...I think it was more...?

Gongcha and bus riding

And while I've been in country for three months by then, public transportation is still very daunting for someone who rarely used it. Back home, I have my own car. I was very privileged in that fact. I had a car since I was of age. And...school buses aren't really public transportation.


So, yeah.

I had to figure out the online reservation, which surprise of all suprises, the English site does not work. You can only make reservations via the Korean version. Am I the only one who thinks that's...odd? I wonder how common this is? Are sites in America like this as well? What about other countries?

Empty bus to Geochang

Figuring out the ticket system took a hot minute. I had to ask other foreign teachers, 'brah, what do?' I did find out that if you use google chrome as your browser, it'll translate most of the site for you, so that was a small blessing. But you have to be careful. It translates a lot of things into literal translations. Particularly city names. Moments like these, it's good to have a grasp in Hangul.

Most of the reservation is self-explanatory, but then the purchasing part is a little different than what I was familiar with. Instead of entering the CVV code (those 3 numbers on the back of the card), I had to enter the first two digits of my 4-digit passcode as a card password?

A literal process.

Do I look tired?

But doable.

It just takes patience and not being afraid to ask for help.

Bus ticket aside...I got to Seoul easy enough, but very exhausted. It was after a long day at work (taught 6 lessons that day, because Fridays are a day to overwork yourself??), and then I had to find my friend.

Who was lost.

At a different bus terminal.

Thankfully in Seoul.

I made sure that we went over the Metro protocol Saturday.

It's as if this post has only been focusing on transportation...doesn't it? I haven't even gotten started on the taxi life...but I'll save that for a different post. But, most of my taxi experiences have been good and reasonably priced!

Now, let's talk Seoul...shall we?

Just the Oncology building at
Severance Hospital. SO BIG.

Since I was already in Seoul, I made an appointment with Severance Hospital. One of the very few hospitals Fulbright ETAs can go to where we don't have to worry about the two to six month reimbursement process. I had an appointment for my foot since it was now going on for 3 weeks of PAIN.

I couldn't wake up without my Achilles aching in pain. Or walk up stairs. Or play soccer. Or volleyball. Probably the reason I ended up tearing my muscle while playing soccer too.

This burger gave me life

Severance Hospital...oh my god. I don't even know how to explain it. It's huge and wonderful and I'm pretty sure it's also a mall? I had maybe one of the best burgers there.

Anyways, I had my foot checked out and found out I had tendinitis. I was told one month of 'no soccer, no volleyball, no hiking'.

Me: lol, k.

As soon as November hits, I'm going to go on a nice, relaxing hike. Enjoy nature and all that.

Outside of the hospital, we found a random music festival and looked around in some shopping options but didn't get too crazy into it. Personally, I felt very overwhelmed with how shopping happens here. In the states and Germany (the two places I'm familiar with), everything (literally, EVERYTHING) wasn't displayed for you to look through right on the shelves. But here....it's just all...there. I guess it has something with not having a 'back area' or something? Spacing difficulties? I probably need to look at stores one or four more times before I would feel comfortable/know what I want to buy.

So yeah. Overwhelming.

I did see a sale on face masks though. 1+1 (BOGO in America), I got 30 face masks for 15,000원. Yes, I literally paid $0.44 for one face mask. It was a beautiful moment.

And then finally Sunday came around...

Breakfast.

We went to the Original Pancake House in Itaewon (barely a five minute walk from the Metro stop). I will let the pictures do most of the talking, but I will say this. If you're looking for a place that serves Ihop-styled food....this is the place to go while being in Korea.

Sooooo, worth it. 

And not to worry! All of the employees speak English and the menu is in English (and Korean). I will definitely be making a trip again...maybe in November...after my hiking day?

What I haven't mentioned: The crazy thing Friday Night at 7/11.

#SaveOurToya

Temporary Hiatus

Hey everyone,

Nothing amazing to post about except that I'll be going on a hiatus for a bit.

Not sure when I'll be back, but I need to focus on myself. A lot of self-realizations have come up lately and I need to work through them.

I hope I won't be gone for too long, but...I know self-care is very important. I will be taking all the time that I need to get through this.

On that note, I hadn't planned on posting anything about my departure, but I feel that it's important that people hear about moments of self-care. Because if you can't care for yourself, who will? No one else owes it to you, but you. If you notice that somethings not right, take a step back. Treat yo'self. Tell people 'no'. Speak up. Do what you need to do to help you.

We only have one chance in this life and it's better to live it happy than miserable.

If you want to get updates on the latest #SaveOurToya shenanigans, please hit the FOLLOW button to the right.

So until I get back, take care of yourselves and live your best life!

#SaveOurToya

The Chicken Review

Tae Hee and I gave a little review for some Korean chicken. 

Let us know what you think!

Video credit goes to Angelina Beelina!

#SaveOurToya

Week 10 - Korean Bathhouses

I really shouldn't worry about not having something to post about. Because every week, I do something or see something that is blog worthy. Work was rough this week, but I also went to a Korean bathhouse and relaxed like nobody's business.

Between the two, I'm sure you can guess what I'm gonna talk about it (you know, if the title of the post didn't give it away...)

You: "Oh, you took a bath? Good for you."

Ha!

I didn't just take a bath. I took a bath with 30 other women. 

Well...basically.

We weren't all in the same bath, but I saw more naked people in 1 hour than I ever have in my whole life combined. It was quite the experience!

Many of you back home must be wondering just what am I getting myself into over in Korea?

It's not signing myself up for an unexpected trip unknowingly...at least not in this post. I purposefully agreed to go to the Korean bathhouse, or as it is known in Korea a 찜질방. And yes, I knew I would be stripping down naked where other women can see me. I did not go into this blind.

I went into this experience as one should, open-minded. A 찜질방 is a very common and popular place for Korean families to come and relax or have a weekend getaway. And while I'm not Korean, and trust me, we all knew that I wasn't, I didn't feel singled out or uncomfortable. 

Being Black in America comes with a lot of extra baggage that your forced to deal with whether you want to or not. And being staring at, no matter where I go or what I do, is quite common.

Get ready to have your mind blown, but I think I got less stares in the bath than I did on the street.

Crazy, right?

Here I am, naked as the day I was born, getting less stares, where I could literally stand in the middle of the street, conservatively dressed, and be the focus of people at all times.

It boggles the mind.

That aside, I had a great time! I was at the bathhouse to celebrate a friend's birthday, which may sound weird, but I low key wish I had thought of it first. I was so relaxed after a month of teaching and adjusting to my new life here in Korea.

We also stayed the night and were never short of snackage or good conversation. I do wish, that I hadn't been as tired as I was. I was so tired that my contacts were doing the thing where you can't see anything.

By the time we checked out, my body was completely relaxed, my vision was back, my skin was ridiculously smooth, and I was ready to face the day in a way I haven't in quite some weeks!

My advice is this: if you ever find yourself the chance of going to a bathhouse, go! It might be a little nerve-wracking (what with the naked part...), but you won't regret it!

#SaveOurToya

I hope you had a great birthday Matt! Though the 찜질방 threw me for a loop as a birthday location, you chose well~! May this year bring your many experiences with even better memories!

Happy Birthday to Toya!

Birthday cake - Blueberry
from Paris Baguette

My birthday fell this week in an odd case of 'Wait, its September?' I don't know what happened, but I don't think it clicked for me that after August came September, until I was in my 5th grade class asking them, "What is today?" 

To everyone's surprise, mine included, it was my birthday.

Birthday dinner was delicious!

Nonetheless, I had a very happy birthday! 

My host family surprised me with a birthday cake and a traditional Korean birthday dinner. It was a night of good food, good conversation, and good people. I couldn't have asked for a better host family! 

I was so very happy!

Outside of the homestay, my friends and family reached out, not letting a little distance come between us. I don't think I'll be able to express how much the well wishes meant to me. It may sound silly, but in all honesty...the fact that people from home reached out to me, it was like they still remembered I existed. It's so easy getting caught up in the day-to-day and the on-goings of everything around you; its so easy to just rely on someone's physical presence as a casual reminder that they exist. Since I'm no longer in the city beautiful, I don't hold it against others when they don't reach out. I understand and am guilty of it myself. 

Apsan with a view~!

In summation (scrabble word of the day), I was grateful and thankful.

Since my birthday fell on a weekday, I was perfectly alright with the small party. I was tired anyways, I was in no mood to get turnt.

However...the following weekend, I went to Daegu and had a such a blast!

Let's just say I climbed a mountain (again!), went to Costco, found cheap good vodka, and didn't make it to bed until 3am. 

This is what 25 years old looks like. At least for me it was. 

#SaveOurToya

Week 9 - Festival in Geochang

Already at week 9? Wow. Okay. Time is seriously flying...and here I thought it would be kinda slow...what with figuring out how to juggle teaching 22 different classes a week (yes, I am writing 22 different lesson plans) and figuring out my social life.

There's kind of two things I wanted to highlight in this week's post. And instead of making one very long post, I decided to have two posts. I was a bit iffy on what to highlight for Week 9 since two very awesome things happened this week.

But, I figured my birthday post, should be its own.

So! Guess what my small town decides to have Week 2 of me being here?

That's right, a festival.

Before going, I had no idea what it was even about. Everyone kept saying 'festival! festival!' and I'm all, 'okay, but what kind of festival?' I would just get the same answer...I figured it would be easier to just go and find out myself.

Okay, small lie. I knew it was about Geochang. So, I guessed it would probably be something about apples? The town has apple things everywhere. I thought it was a pretty solid guess.

After attending one of the first days of the festival, I'm honestly still not too sure what it was for? All I know is that there was good food, rides, performances, and an indoor garden. There wasn't just one thing to look out for and honestly I'm okay with that. I got to grow closer with my Homestay family that my Host Dad now let's me call him 아버지, which means that I have built some serious 정.

I really enjoyed the festival and hope that I get more chances to go to others! (be it with the host fam or with friends!!)

Oh...and did I forget to mention I ate larvae?

#SaveOurToya

...Ya'll, they were cooking in a LEGITIMATE cauldron	My favorite festival snack!
아버지 was "shooting" tonight. (aka, he picked up the bill)	Foods you could order!
아버지 and I being cool af	Aren't I cute?
Still cute, nothing's changed.	Like I mentioned....FRUIT.
The 2018 Geochang Hanmadang Festival!	So Korean. Chicken and Beer

Week 8 - Consistency is a Thing of the Past...Apparently

For a second there, I didn't know what I was going to post about...

But then I remember something that happened during Day 2 of teaching.

I don't think you'll ever guess what happened. (Unless we happened to speak to each other during this week.)

Five minutes before I was about to teach my last class of the day, literally FIVE minutes, I get a "Toya-teacher, hi. Can you teach for three hours...straight?" (There was a lot more stop and go, with mistranslations and lots of confusion. But it boils down to that.)

Please note, that I only had a single lesson plan in my hand, wasn't even that good of a lesson plan, that would last for 40 minutes.

Now, I haven't had a math class in quite some time...BUT! Crazy thing, I do know that 40 minutes does not equal three hours.

In my head, "FUCK."

What I actually said, "Three hours? Where? The computer room? Okay!" And skipped my internally freaking out behind back to the first floor where the kids were waiting for me.

Y'all...I really don't know how I survived it. But somehow...I did it.

Looking back, I can hear what one of my favorite coworkers use to say all the time. "Consistency is key!" Out of everyone in our office, she was the one to remain consistent for the two years that I was working there. And she has a point.

Consistency is so important. It helps keep things organized and succinct.

But the way I'm feeling it while being in Korea...not so much.

But before we get all 'rawr rawr' about it, there are some things to keep in mind. Yes, it was day two, and WTF!?, but also. It was Day 2. My schedule is still tentative as they try out having a full-time English teacher. And yes. I am the English teacher. Not the assistant.

There is definitely a language barrier. And that can be really intimidating on getting information across quickly and confidently. Not that it's an excuse, but it is a factor that plays a role whether we like it or not.

Also, did I mention I was their first full-time ETA? Yeah. It's all a bit crazy.

Hopefully, things get better for next week!

So, I want to hear your thoughts! Do you think you'd be okay with someone springing a three-hour class on you all of a sudden? What are your thoughts on consistency? How would you have handled this situation?

If you want to get updates on the latest #SaveOurToya shenanigans, please hit the FOLLOW  button to the right. I mean, why not?

#SaveOurToya

First Day Nerves

This is it. 

Today is my last night before I become a real teacher at Jusang Elementary School. What makes me finally 'real', you must be wondering?

I'm finally teaching a literal class tomorrow. 

I'm teaching four classes and yes, I am nervous as fuck.

Not so much in my teaching ability, but if I lesson planned well enough? Does that even make sense? 

If not...here's my defense: I've been sitting in the living room of my Homestay for the last 4 hours, making out my lesson plans. And before that, I was making a powerpoint for about an hour or so. It would've been less time, had I gotten more accurate information on where to start my lesson planning to begin with. 

The hardest part in a new job is the starting point. 

The messier your information, the harder it is to get your mind around everything.

I do pride myself in being able to sort out things out quickly and efficiently. But still...I'm allowed to be nervous!

It's normal!!!!

At least that's what I keep telling myself. 

So here's what I'm jumping into:

There has never been a Fulbright ETA at this school before me. They have one traveling teacher, who jumps between three schools. I am in contact with her, and bless that I am. Knowing where the kids left off before their break is much better on where to start, than suddenly being two chapters ahead. 

Which was the information I got on Friday. And on Friday, I banged out like four lesson plans, they were beautiful. But now...nevermind. Gotta use them later. Maybe in October?

I almost forgot!!

Don't let it fool you. This is not set.

Annndddddd, let's not forget that I don't even know my full schedule yet. I'll find out tomorrow. 

During go time. 

I feel like I'm a new driver with one foot on the gas, the other on the break, and another on the clutch. It's like I have three feet, two legs, with the street signs blown away by the typhoon. 

Gah.

So. Much. Gah.

Lesson learned (pun NOT intended): At the end of each class, semester, year, whatever...write where you left off. It's not only a good benefit for yourself, but also the next person coming in. You definitely want your administrative staff to be aware as well. 

Communication is so important, folks. I mean...don't leave home without it, important. 

There's so many other things going on, why make it harder?

My next post will be on Week 8 to talk about my first week in class. Any predictions on what's going to happen? I'd love to hear about it!

If you want to get updates on the latest #SaveOurToya shenanigans, please hit the FOLLOW  button to the right. I mean, why not? 

I'm a peach.

#SaveOurToya

Chopstick Search

That moment when you're making yourself ramen but can't find the silverware in the kitchen so you go on a search for a solid 15 minutes when you realize there was a hidden drawer in the bigger drawer where you remember seeing them last time.

Life be trying me...

#SaveOurToya

Week 7 - Future Goals

Hi.

Can we take a minute to talk about my host family? Particularly, my host parents?

Because these are the lives I want to have.

They are happily married, sixth sense, and doing the happy couple thing. That's great and all things cute.

But. It's this next part that is, in my opinion, the best part.

Despite being extremely happy with their jobs, fully employed and well off, they live like they're retirees.

Not a care in the world, but completely determined. (Only retirees can be so paradoxical.)

They have a cabin. In the woods. Not just any woods. Up on a mountain.

Where they spend just as much time as they do in their town home. Pretty sure they'd rather be in their cabin on the mountain than in their town home. Not that it's a crazy bad town. It's cute and relaxing.

You can see the whole town from their apartment. I love it!

So hi. I'm Toya. I'm 24 years old and want to be a retiree.

Moving right along...

My host parents have been very nice to me, and quite funny. I want to say that they've gotten comfortable with me rather quickly and I with them.

Well, let me rephrase that. I don't feel hesitant to ask questions or to stumble through our language barrier.

That language barrier? It's there. There's no way it'll just disappear. Fact is fact.

But, I try here and there to add what little Korean I know, so that I can lessen the burden on their side.

What I do worry about is that I hope they're okay with me being a quiet person. I tend to be on the more quiet side until I'm comfortable and relaxed. Who knows when that part of me appears, but that'll happen at it's own time. And hey! Maybe by then, my Korean will be better?

They have been so kind to me, fixing my Korean whenever I stumble through or teaching me new words. I've learned how to say, 'what a waste'. Sounds like something my retiree persona would say all the time...

What do you guys think are some other phrases I should learn how to say?

Also! Before I forget, I wanted to show off the beautiful mountains that surround my little town! Please enjoy them~! (The last three are pictures from up on the mountain!)

당동	당동	당동

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