EPIK Orientation

I made it!

For my 14 hour flight, I was seated between two other girls doing the EPIK program. Their names were Dinah and Brandy. We talked the majority of the way, and got along very well. The food was decent. We had two meals, dinner and breakfast. The three of us decided to be brave and have the Korean Bibimbap. It is rice, meat, 4 or 5 different kinds of vegetables, and korean chili paste. It was spicy and delicious! Of course, it was served with kimchi. It wouldn't be a real Korean meal without it! I tried it, and it wasn't really that bad. I know I'll have plenty of other opportunities to have it!

We got to the airport around 4:45 am, and stayed with the two girls. It was really really easy to guess who was doing EPIK, there were about 30 of us on our flight from Chicago. They stuck out like sore thumbs- white, young adults who looked extremely confused! We didn't have any problems getting through customs, but I was suprised when they took our temperature before we even got into the terminal after walking off the plane! Guess I passed! I had no idea how cautious they were about H1N1!

I hung out in the airport near the EPIK desk with about 149 other people until the busses came. Because there were so many of us, I was unable to get on the first bus at 7:30, so my bus came at 9:30. I made some really good friends during that time, and by using the free wireless internet at Incheon, I was able to add most of them as "friends" on Facebook!

The bus was full with 30 people's luggage. Many people packed tons of stuff, and it makes me hope that I packed enough. Some people that had bags that weighed over 85 lbs and had to pay extra; that's twice the amount of weight that I had in my bags! I have no idea what some people brought- the girl I'm rooming with for orientation, Natalie, packed her pillow.

The ride took about 4 hours to get to Jenoju University. We had two stops at reststops, and I wish ours were like them. We got some snacky food. I had "ham toast." It is ham, toast, egg with cabbage, ketchup, and seasoning salt. It may sound strange, but it looked so yummy when it was cooking that I had to try it. For the $1.50 that it cost, it was totally worth it. I washed it down with at $.50 coke.

We got to the university at around 3pm. I kept my two big bags in the storage area in Art Hall because the elevators in our 19 story building are tiny. Nothing like the dorm elevators in Towers at UWEC. The most people you can cram in them is about 7. Natalie from MI and I decided to room together, and we are right next to our other 8 girlfriends from the midwest on the same floor.

We both thought it would be a good idea to take an hour nap, because even though we weren't too tired, we wanted to be rested before going out to dinner. Natalie was going to wake me after an hour, but I woke up about 2 hours later to see that Natalie had fallen asleep while reading. I showered and layed back down, and when I woke again, it was dark. We slept through dinner and the evening, and at 9pm, I decided to just continue sleeping through the rest of the night. Said and done, I slept from about 5pm to 5 am today! But I'm feeling fully rested and refreshed now!

One month to go

There is currently one month before I need to arrive in South Korea for EPIK. It is hard to believe that this dream I once had is quickly becoming a reality. It seems like there is still so much to get ready for. I sent my paperwork to the Korean Consulate in Chicago earlier this week, and according to their website, it only takes a couple of days to process. Once I get the E2 visa, I'll be able to buy my ticket. They are currently going for anywhere between $600-700, but the good news is that I will be reimbursed that amount when I arrive.
I've also started to make a list of what I need to pack. It's difficult, because I'm not sure what the school will want me to wear when I teach. I'm going to play it safe, and bring a little of everything. Gwangju is 1.5 million people, so I should be able to buy whatever I need there.
I am hopeful that the school will have good resources for me. I have some teaching materials I'd like to bring, but it depends how much spare room there is left in my suitcase. I'm just excited to get there, get settled, and begin teaching!