"quite spectacular"
So many things and so little time lately.
I have a few long-ish entries about Korea and its enchanting and non enchanting qualities that I am still plugging away on, BUT in light of the oh-so-exciting news I received yesterday I need to share and say a HELLO to the blog-reading world.
Yesterday the lovely and nurturing women who work in the Fulbright Office in Seoul--Mrs. Shim and the rest of our Korean grandmothers (Mrs. Im, Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Lee)--came down to Chuncheon for the much anticipated announcement of our placements for the year.
WELL, I thought Westminster and Kenyon graduation were full of pomp and circumstance until this ceremony-of-sorts. As each of the 64 of us walked in the door they handed us a clear tab sticker on which to write our names. We all sat on the edge of our desk-chair seats and nervously listened to Mrs Shim (above) tell us " Not to compare" and "Be positive--the key to your success."
Then, Province by Province, Mrs. Shim read off each ETAs name and the name of their school. Aimee (our Orientation director) stood at the map and pointed to the province (left). At the end of each Province list, each person announced skipped or dawdled up to a large map in the front of the room and placed their sticker on their town.
My name was one of the first on the list for the Jeju-do Province. Jeju Island is off the southwest tip of the mainland and is known as "Korea's honeymoon island." I must say island living is sounding oh so nice. There are 12 ETAs placed around the island. I am placed in the second largest city on the island, Seogwipo (SEW-GEE-POE) . With a population of 84,000, Seogwipo sounds absolutely divine. In fact, I have been reading the Lonely Planet description of the city over and over for about 24 hours straight. It says:
"Amid the tangerine groves on the lower slopes of Hallasan sits Seogwipo, Jejudo's second largest after Jeju City. Compared to its northern neighbor (Jeju City), it's warmer, more tropical and more laid-back and its setting is quite spectacular."
The most exciting part of my placement is my school. I will be teaching at Seogwi Jungang Girls' Middle School. It is a very small public school with all girls. I am so so happy about that. Thinking of the young women I already call "my girls" makes me remember why I wanted to come to Korea.
I have a few long-ish entries about Korea and its enchanting and non enchanting qualities that I am still plugging away on, BUT in light of the oh-so-exciting news I received yesterday I need to share and say a HELLO to the blog-reading world.
Yesterday the lovely and nurturing women who work in the Fulbright Office in Seoul--Mrs. Shim and the rest of our Korean grandmothers (Mrs. Im, Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Lee)--came down to Chuncheon for the much anticipated announcement of our placements for the year.
WELL, I thought Westminster and Kenyon graduation were full of pomp and circumstance until this ceremony-of-sorts. As each of the 64 of us walked in the door they handed us a clear tab sticker on which to write our names. We all sat on the edge of our desk-chair seats and nervously listened to Mrs Shim (above) tell us " Not to compare" and "Be positive--the key to your success."
Then, Province by Province, Mrs. Shim read off each ETAs name and the name of their school. Aimee (our Orientation director) stood at the map and pointed to the province (left). At the end of each Province list, each person announced skipped or dawdled up to a large map in the front of the room and placed their sticker on their town.
My name was one of the first on the list for the Jeju-do Province. Jeju Island is off the southwest tip of the mainland and is known as "Korea's honeymoon island." I must say island living is sounding oh so nice. There are 12 ETAs placed around the island. I am placed in the second largest city on the island, Seogwipo (SEW-GEE-POE) . With a population of 84,000, Seogwipo sounds absolutely divine. In fact, I have been reading the Lonely Planet description of the city over and over for about 24 hours straight. It says:
"Amid the tangerine groves on the lower slopes of Hallasan sits Seogwipo, Jejudo's second largest after Jeju City. Compared to its northern neighbor (Jeju City), it's warmer, more tropical and more laid-back and its setting is quite spectacular."
The most exciting part of my placement is my school. I will be teaching at Seogwi Jungang Girls' Middle School. It is a very small public school with all girls. I am so so happy about that. Thinking of the young women I already call "my girls" makes me remember why I wanted to come to Korea.
posted by Kate B. at 11:32 PM
1 Comments:
Wow! What luck. Best place in South Korea. I think I would have preferred eating local oranges to eating sea cucumbers. (We actually wolfed those down for a week or so until we found out what they were-ick)
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