Day 1- May 16th-17th
Today I left for South Korea. It has been pretty crazy thus far. The travel experience has been very affirming. I had breakfast with the fam and headed out to the airport. After getting everything ready last night, I had officially only got 3 hours of sleep. This has proven somewhat difficult, as my day has started. I arrived at the airport and went to check-in. My ticket wouldn’t confirm b/c I did not have a return flight. So, the attendant took me to a counter to talk to an actual person.
[Side Bar: I found out I could actually take 3 50 lb suitcases with me, I just had to pay extra for it. So my first bag would be $15, the second $25, and then the third would be $85. This whole process of packing is a different story. It took me about 4 different times of packing my suitcase and unpacking and taking stuff out and adding to different suitcase. I had finally succeeded though and each of my bags were exactly 50 lbs, or at least so I thought!]
So, a guy was now checking me in. He asked me how many bags I was taking and how much each one weighed. I told him I was checking 3 bags and they each weighed 50 lbs. I set them up on the counter, which is a scale. My first bag said 50.5 lbs and I thought in my head ‘oh no, what am I going to do b/c I can’t add weight to any other bags!’ He didn’t even look at the scale. He put my tags on it and put on the belt behind him. I then placed my other two bags up there as well. The first one was 50.5 lbs again and the third one was exactly 50 lbs. He gave me my boarding pass and my passport back and told me to have a nice trip. I asked him, don’t I need to pay for my bags? I couldn’t really hear his exact response but the gist of it was, it didn’t pop up and say I needed to charge you so don’t worry about it! I didn’t ask for clarification or if he was sure. I took my documents and thanked him!
Saying goodbye to the family was more difficult than I had originally thought it would be! I was a mess… but honestly no surprise there, right?? We had a great time of prayer before I left and I went around the circle and said my goodbyes. The toughest one was definitely to my nieces! Brylie (the middle one) wouldn’t let go of me. It literally broke my heart. They both started crying and just kept hugging me! My sister had to pull her off of me and they were crying hysterically. Definitely one of the toughest things I have ever experienced! So of course as I’m checking in and going through security I’m a mess. I’m carrying a backpack that weighs 25 lbs, and rolling a bag that weighs 35 lbs. I had my pillow in my hand and it was stuffed with my winter jacket. I’m sure I was a sight to see in that moment!
I went to Denver first. It was a good flight. I slept for most of it. I could not keep myself awake! I’d be reading and nod off. I then flew changed planes and headed to LA. I sat next to a couple of ladies who were in there 50s. We had small talk but nothing major. I was still exhausted and not up for much conversation. As the flight went on though, one of them said, ‘oh I love your pillowcase, it looks so soft!’ [Side Bar: My friend Sydney had this pillowcase with this amazing soft material and she used to take it on road trips for volleyball. I was always so jealous b/c I wanted one! And, being the great person that she is, she made me my very own to take to So. Korea with me… I absolutely LOVE it!] I said thanks and told her my friend made it for me b/c I was moving to So. Korea. She said no way, I have a friend over in Seoul now who is teaching ESL. Crazy small world it is!! So, we talked about that for quite awhile! She said, ‘man the Lord wanted us to sit right next to each other, didn’t he?!?’ Those were my feelings exactly! She just kept telling me that I was going to love it and she was so jealous that I was going to do that! It was very affirming to talk with her and it seriously blows my mind every time I think about it!
So, I arrived in LAX and had to navigate how to get to my next flight b/c I had to change airlines. I honestly didn’t know what time my flight left, so I had no clue how much time I had. I had to go to the bathroom so bad, but I couldn’t stop b/c I didn’t think I would have enough time! My next task was to ask someone how to get to Asiania Air. I found a very helpful lady in one of the shops and she drew me a map. I was informed I had to leave the exit and get on a bus and they would take me to a different terminal. They sent me heading in the right direction and I was off. I happened to walk right in to a currency exchange place, which I was needing to find before I left the states (I needed to exchange just a small amount so that I could get to the school once I arrived in Seoul.) I finally got on the correct bus and I was off to the International Terminal. When I walked in, I realized that this is where I flew out of when I went to New Zealand a few years ago! That was neat. I found the right counter and began checking in. She asked if I needed to check any bags and I told her that I had already done through my previous airline so it should be good. She had me put my rolling suitcase on the scale b/c they have a weight limit for carry-ons. (That’s how I knew how much they weighed.) She informed me I was going to need to check the bag. She asked for my receipt from that morning when I had checked my bags. I told her I didn’t have to pay and she was a bit confused. She asked if it was a friend and I said no. She asked if it was a male who checked me in and I said yes. She then laughed and said, ‘Did he ask you for your number?’ She told me I was lucky and usually they should charge me $110 for this next check bag (my 4th checked bag by this time!!) but this time she would only charge me $30. I was looking at my boarding pass as she was finishing up and noticed that it said boarding time 13:00. I asked her what time it was and she said 12:30. I had to check my bag, go through security, find a bathroom, and get something to eat in 30 minutes! A little stressful, but I did it. I was sweating profusely by the time I got in line to board, but again no surprise there… I am a sweater!
I get on the plane and it was a bit of a culture shock. The stewardesses are lined up along the aisles and they are all welcoming me and showing me to my seat. They have this music playing that takes me back in time. I start the walk down the aisle looking at the numbers above each aisle. My aisle in 64 so I know it’s a bit of a jaunt. I get to the end and realize the numbers stop at 62. I was like what?!? Then I looked to the left and saw my row. It is the very last row in the entire plane! It’s not too bad, it just figures! I thought for a bit I may have the whole row to myself. Then 2 older Korean Gentlemen joined me. We began talking and they asked me if was going to be teaching ESL. I told them yes and where I was doing it. I really need to work on my pronunciation b/c they had no idea where I was talking about. I had to spell it for them! I asked if they lived in Korea and they said no, they live in Phoenix. They asked where I was from and I said Kansas City. One of them said, oh my daughter lives there in Overland Park. I found out she went to KU! Oh my word… I am just reminded over and over what a small world this really is! The other man was a minister/missionary. We actually talked for a bit and he gave me some pointers!
I had my first Korean meal. It was Bi-Bim-Bab and wasn’t too bad. It was rice with a bunch of different vegetables. Some were cold and some were warm and it didn’t really mesh well together. Not my favorite, but that’s okay. My goal is to try every thing and not turn my nose up at it before I try. They guys next to me checked on me after I ate and asked what I thought about it. I said I liked it and he was like too spicy? I said not too bad, but I only used half the tube of spicy sauce. He laughed and I thought, wow they must be thinking amateur!
When I arrived, 4 girls who are also teachers here met me! They were very helpful. We ate at KFC (surprisingly not a lot different) and then got on the bus to head to campus. The bus ride was about 2 hours. They told me to try and not sleep on the way home so that I could sleep that night. Yeah, that didn’t work so well. Within the first 5 minutes I was out!
I’m living on campus in a single room. I have my own bathroom so that’s good! I’ll take some pictures soon of my place so that you can see it. I have my own balcony which is kind of fun! My next chore is to get unpacked and settled!
It’s still hard to believe I am in So. Korea but I am so anxious to get going and see what it is all about! I’ll keep you posted… (hopefully the rest of my posts won’t be this lengthy!!) J
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