Toronto, Flights, and Seoul

I arrived in Toronto and finally had a chance to use a bathroom. I waited for my bags to tumble down the baggage carrousel, the tidy mint green suitcase a little dirty, but still classy. I lugged my heavy baggage to the outside and almost immediately spotted Wanita, Bryan’s sister, who was willing to come and pick me up sitting in her car waiting for me. Back at her surprisingly large apartment, I ditched my baggage, drank a bunch of water, flying makes me thirsty, and met Joanna, Wanita’s cousin and roommate. (My flight to Seoul boards in half an hour; the butterflies are back.) We stayed up a bit, but because I had to get up pretty early for my interview, and being exhausted from the days activities tears, I went to be pretty early. Joanne gave up her bed for me to sleep in.
I woke up before my alarm clock and tired not to worry about the impending interview, having no idea what to expect, I had no way in which to prepare. I put on nicer clothes and Wanita drove me to my appointment.
At the consulate, I told the lady at the front desk that I was supposed to have an interview, she gave me a sheet to fill out, information that I have provided to various people, including the consulate, over and over again, like a monkey with a miniature symbol. Meanwhile, well dressed Korean women were running around in high heels, literally running, as if they were all in the biggest hurry. As I was filling in my application, one ran up to me and asked if I was Desi...Desa...Desimublemumble. I told that yes I was. Seeing that I hadn’t completed the form, she ran away again. She returned in moment and asked me to follow her, then stopped me and beckoned me again, lead me into the an office, possibly that of the consul, but I’m not sure. I waited for a bit, listening to the high heels clack around. Finally, a man came into the room, and sat down without introducing himself, he asked me where I was staying, something they all seemed concerned about when they discovered I wasn’t leaving until the following morning. He asked me what my personality was a teacher is, and then he asked what I would do to motivate students, talked on the phone while I answered that one. Two other vague questions about teaching and students and only half listened to the answers. Then he said ok, initialed my application and stoop up and left the room. I followed him, unsure of what to do or when I could pick up my Visa. The racing girl brought me to a waiting room and said she would need another half hour. I waited about 15 minuets, pretending to read a Korean newspaper and she returned with my passport and the visa and told m to have fun.
Wanita and I went home, I changed and chocked down some Extra Raisin Crunch with milk that came from a bag; Ontario is so strange. I kept forgetting that I was still in Canada, all day I would be surprised by something Canadian before I remembered that Toronto is actually in Canada.
Wanita and I played tourist for a day, we took a bus, streetcar, and subway to Chinatown, wandered around Kengistion Market and walked past the Uof T campus. We paid to go up the CN Tower, so worth it, and ate on the harbour front. We visited Joanna at Le Pain, an organic restaurant and bakery. I drank some delicious iced green tea and ate a croissant.
Wanita and I rented a movie, bought some frozen pizzas. I realized that I had to be at the airport at 4:00 am, which meant leaving at 3:30, which meant waking up at 3:00AM. I went to bed pretty early, after rearranging my bags, again. I kind of slept, only waking up in a panic once, at 12:30 being certain that I was going to miss my flight. After that I managed to sleep until my alarm actually went off. I nearly jumped out of bed and into my clothes.
Wanita drove me to the airport, again. I arrived before the check-in was open and had to wait in the slow line when the they did open because the self check-ins didn’t cooperate with me. It turns out that my green bag weighed 76 pounds, which would have meant paying like $400.00 or something, but I took about a bunch of books and put them in my carry-on bags, reducing the fine to $40.00, but the check-out guy walked away before I could pay. So I went on through security. Took a long time, and there was these interesting boys and one girl, clearly sponsored by Burton and of various nationalities. I was so curious about there story that I almost talked to them. Well not really.
Security was a breeze except for the waiting part. I had not trouble with anybody and was not searched at all, I could have carried all sorts of illegal things into the states. Nobody even looked at me, although I can’t imagine that I look very suspicious.
By the time I was through security, I only had to wait about an hour before boarding. On the flight, I had the very last seat on the plane in the very back corner, a window seat, my favourite. I mostly slept and read through the whole flight, the movie choices, which I can’t remember now, were pretty awful.
In San Francisco, I had about four hours, which was plenty off time to get to the international terminal. So changing planes was not a panicked event like I have experienced in the past. I just read and used the internet during my wait. Soon, my flight to Korea was boarding.
At first I was seated in the middle of the middle row, but thankfully, a women who was flying with her two children needed me to switch seats so that her kids could sit next to her, I got another window seat and had only one person to crawl over. This flight was totally full. I was sitting next to a girl that was really friendly but we didn’t talk, she slept for most of the flight, I read and watched the awful movies.
The 12-hour flight was uneventful, and the food was horrible. I can’t stand the smell of airplane food. Yuck. I arrived at the Icheon International Airport at 5:30 PM, Korea time, I got of the plane and followed the flow of people towards immigration and security. We had to take a train to the passenger terminal and then waited to clear immigration, which I thought might be a hassle with my Visa, but she looked at my passport, stamped my Visa and I was in Korea. I collected my bags, which miraculously arrived. Things had gone to well up to this point, I though for sure this would be the thing that goes wrong. I basically walked through customs, having nothing to declare, and into the lobby, where a Taxi driver was standing, holding a sign with my name on it. He took my bags and I followed him to his Taxi, he didn’t speak much English, so we didn’t talk, we just drove, almost two hours.
I was disappointed that is was already dark by the time I left the airport, I couldn’t see much of what was around me. I did travel over a bridge that kicks the Golden Gate’s ass though. Once we got closer to Seoul, there was more to see, the buildings are lit up. There were a lot of churches; at least there were a lot of illuminated crosses. We mostly drove on freeways that had high walls, but once we entered the city, there was a lot to see.
The school looks nice, very legit, so I'm very relived, a few rooms, lots of computers, it's bright green! Mr. Park, some guy who works at the school, I'm not sure what he does, was at the school waiting for me, he was dressed like a preppy hipster, chucks and all. When I got to the school, the cab driver called him down, he brought me up to the school and while he called the director, Mr. Lim. He let me use the computers to inform my "friend and family".
He also called the other teacher, Sally from New York, and we went out to supper. She seems really nice and has a really good relationship with them, lots of laughing and joking. I started teaching on Monday afternoon; the first class was at 3:40. I had one student. She was really cute. However, she was very quiet and although she repeats why I say perfectly, she clearly does not understand what she is repeating back.
Because my apartment wasn't ready, they put me up in a super nice hotel, And the toilet has heated seats and they have all the toiletry products you could imagine and if I were in to that sort of thing, a Jacuzzi tub, you know with the jets, I wish that I could take a picture but I left my camera in my bags at the school. No view though, just another building that I could almost touch. Although, I did discover that there was no screen on my huge window, and a drop of thirteen floors. I crawled partway out to tae a look around the city. That is when it struck me that I am in Korea.
The city even smells exotic. There are lots of bright lights, the subway trains were running all night, I think. I could see a soccer pitch; later in the morning I could see a game being played
There seems to be lots of shopping in the area, no houses just apartments. The building that the school is in looks kind of old, but the school part looks really nice, I think that my apartment is going to be really close, which is awesome because there is a grocery story underneath the school and a bakery called Paris Baguette around the corner.