My living arrangements...

Some pictures from my home!


My room... already messy... good thing I'm not sharing it with anyone!


Our kitchen. We don't have any pots or pans or anything... but it's nice to have, regardless. This morning, I turned on the stove and sort of held a croissant with cheese a few inches over it... Makeshift, but functional.


Chan's room- she sleeps a lot.


Jan's room... Her roommate has not been seen once since we moved in. Mysterious...

Here!

Wow... my first few days here at Yonsei have been very stressful, but everything seems to be falling into place now.

We arrived yesterday to the Yonsei campus to take our placement exam, which was way more challenging that I anticipated. I knew I wouldn't place into a high level of classes, but after the test, I'm positive I'll be in the beginner level. Learning informally has limited my knowledge of grammar, which the test focused heavily upon. Oh well; I suppose there's no harm in going back to basics and reviewing some things.

The worst part of the day was finding out that I couldn't live in the International dorm, let alone with Jan. There was a mix-up in papers, and I ended up being placed in the Muak dormitory. It's about a 20-minute walk up a mountain from my main class building. My roommate is a Malaysian girl named Chan, and luckily she speaks English and Korean.

I was really upset about the dorm situation at first, but it seems okay now. Chan and I have a suite, and my room there is bigger than my room in Bethel. We also have our own private kitchen and bathroom with a shower! So really, the only negatives are the long walk and the cafeteria (Muak only has Korean food, while the I-house has yummy American food like pancakes!!).

Still, I plan to just bring my stuff for the day every morning to Jan's dorm and hang out there most of the time. That's where I am now, and it's working out just fine!

I'll post pictures of my huge dorm, my Chan, and my new friends soon.

>.<

I'm home in Bethel again for a few weeks now. It's nice to be home- I love Korea, but there was a LOT to get used to (spicy breakfast, getting my blond hair stared at, bowing instead of hugging). Regardless, I really like where I am now. I'm happy to have time with my friends, boyfriend, and family, but I am also really excited to move back to Seoul.

Today I am figuring out housing at Yonsei... I really hope Jan and I get into the international dorm! It's apparently always a really close community and a really fun way to meet people. That's what I need!

When we were in Seoul, I also visited the hagwan (English school) that I'll be substitute teaching at this fall. It's called Jes Island, and I adore it. My friend Damon let me teach a lesson to a group of fourth grade kids. It's amazing how diligent (and adorable) they are! I really love teaching- I'm so psyched that I have the opportunity to. Plus, subbing at Jes Island now will give me a great connection if I ever want to come back and teach full time in Seoul.

It is sad to see my friends leave, one by one, for their respective universities... especially because Jan and I don't fly back for another month. I'm hoping I can spend that time visiting everyone on weekends!

For now, I have to study for my Yonsei placement exam...

Hello, all...

I can't believe we've already been here for a week!

Since I last wrote, Jan and I have done many things...

We went out on the town in Jeju one night, going to various clubs and noraebangs (karaoke rooms!), and met some locals...

On Saturday, we went to a spa. Jan had done this before, but it was my first time, so when she told me I'd have to go naked, I was a little intimidated... But it was only awkward at first. After a while, I got over it and just relaxed... and it was SO worth it. It was a really relaxing experience-- I plan to make it a habit of going while I'm here.

Yesterday, we went shopping and I bought gifts for my family in Insa-dong. It was a bit touristy, so I saw a lot of white faces! Haha... we are a rarity here.

I am a little homesick, but I do love Korea. Now I just have to get a better handle on the language... Off to study!

<33 Maggie

We're here!!

We made it to Korea! Here are some pictures from our trip so far.



The plane made the 14-hour trip not so bad... There were tons of free movie and music channels on the back of every seat, and we actually got served two meals...



When we arrived in Seoul, it was 5 am on Monday. Basically... Sunday, July 29 never happened in our lives.



This is the view from our window at Jan's family's apartment in Seoul.



And this is Tambi, our roommate!! Her tongue is too long for her mouth. I'll try to get a better picture of this. It's tragic... but awesome.



We toured around a bit on Monday evening... and Jan's emo took us to a coffee shop, and then to see Transformers (in English).



This morning, we were back at the airport, to leave for Jeju- the small island off the coast of Korea.



Hahaha... just making some new friends...



Jeju Island!!







Hiking down the rocks in Jeju..



My first time on an ATV without Leanne driving. And I was just fine! Only nearly crashed once!



Jan... being the hill, I think. We were at this really campy ranch in the middle of Jejudo.





UM this was easily the strangest thing I have ever witnessed... I'll have videos of it up on Facebook soon... Wow...



And now we're back in our lovely hotel, the Jeju Grand!


Wow... only 36 hours and so much has happened...

I like it a lot here, but I definitely have to get used to being the only blond for miles and eating spicy meat for breakfast. I'm giving it time.

I have to go. Jan and I have massage appointments now! I love vacation.

Because I'm packing...

Here's the weather forecast I found for the first couple days that we'll be in Seoul.

Saturday
Scattered Clouds. High: 84° F. / 29° C. Wind light.
Saturday Night
Chance of Rain. Scattered Clouds. Low: 73° F. / 23° C. Wind light. Chance of precipitation 20%.

Sunday
Scattered Clouds. High: 84° F. / 29° C. Wind SSW 6 mph. / 10 km/h.
Sunday Night
Scattered Clouds. Low: 73° F. / 23° C. Wind SW 6 mph. / 10 km/h.


Not too bad! It seems a lot like the weather here in Connecticut.

I'm starting to get really excited. To make a little extra money in the fall semester, I've found some students who want to take private English lessons. It was actually quite easy: I met an American guy, Damon, on Facebook who has been living in Seoul for a while, teaching private lessons. Since he's moving back to Missouri in the fall, he gave his students who wanted to continue taking lessons to me! I'm going out to dinner with Damon and one of his students next week while I'm in Seoul, to meet them both. Isn't the internet awesome?

Anyway, I'd better get back to packing. It looks like I'll have to bring clothes for all kinds of weather... Just hoping I won't go over the 50 lb airplane limit!

-매기

!!!

We leave in less than two weeks!