Back In The Saddle Again...?

Well, I'm back in Korea. In the smoggy, acid-rain-soaked city of Ulsan this time around. I arrived late Saturday night after nearly 24 hours spent on 3 flights and in 4 airports, severely sleep-deprived and seriously questioning my decision to come back to this lovely(ish) peninsula.

The trip from Toronto to Chicago and from Chicago to Seoul and from Seoul to Busan went smoothly, without event. Thankfully. And although both Ken and I were dreading the flight from Chicago to Seoul the most (all 14 hours of it!), we were pleasantly surprised when, upon boarding the Korean Air flight, we discovered a brand-spanking new airplane with wider seats and personal entertainment systems that included a selection of 30+ movies and all the video games a Korean teenage boy could dream of (it was a small light in the otherwise dismal circumstance). I managed to watch six movies, take a short nap, and play a few games of Tetras before we landed in Seoul!

Upon our arrival in Busan, we were met by our recruiter (whom we've both worked with in the past), who whisked us out of the airport to his waiting vehicle for the long drive to Ulsan (OK, so maybe it was only an hour--but it felt longer). As Simpson (said recruiter) cranked up the radio in his car so we could hear the latest Korean pop hits, he swerved us out of the airport parking lot and into on-coming traffic. Welcome back to Korea. I immediately reached for the holy-crap-handle above my door and held on for a typical ride along the Korean highways--lots of traffic, lots of weaving in and out of said traffic, and lots of car horns wailing. (I realize I've lived here for two years, but I got used to being back in the States where traffic, even on a bad day, is relatively calm.)

Moving on.

We were thrown into the classroom at our new school first thing Monday morning. This year I'm working for a kindergarten, teaching 3 and 4 year olds how to speak English when they can barely even speak Korean. It's been interesting thus far, let me tell you. Instead of allowing the students to call me "Liz Teacher", as I've been referred to at my previous schools, my supervisor instructed me to make the wee ones call me "Miss McClintic". Excuse me? Most grown native-English speakers stutter around with "McClintic" the first time they try it on for size! (?) Basically the kids have been calling me "Miss Mcroonoo" all week, and I'm not sure it's going to get much better as the year progresses. The saving grace in this job, however, is the little tykes are positively adorable. (But after a few months of "Miss Mcroonoo", mixed with lots of tears and toddler-tantrums, I might be singing a different tune all together.)

I suppose I'll wind up this post, as I'm currently sitting in a smokey PC Bhang, getting lung cancer as every minute passes. Every morning I wake up wondering how in the world I ended up back here. But I'm here! And I will do my best to keep everyone updated on my oh-so interesting life in Ulsan, South Korea as the year goes on. And if I fail here, check Facebook.