It’s funny, half way through the year it felt like the longest six months of my life and now here we are back in Canada with Korea appearing as a dream like memory. Were we really there? Did all that actually happen? It seemed never ending at the time and now it seems like it didn’t occur at all!
Were we really in Nampo?
But it did. I know that! And you would think that after already completing two years there I would be used to the ‘living abroad and returning home’ scenario. No matter how many times I do it though, it always feels strange and unusual at first! There are so many things I missed about home while away and now that I am here those very things I longed for seem irrelevant and not quite as important as I thought. I find myself wishing I was back in the cement jungle hopping on and off the subway grabbing a 20 cent coffee and pumping tunes through my earphones to drown out the foreign languages squawking around me. What I wouldn’t give to be able to walk out my apartment door right now in fall attire and stroll down to the local Donenu BBQ to cook up some galbi along with drinking a nice bottle of Dry Finishee! I know Graham would second that and throw in an order or two or three of kimchee simmering on the grill.
Now that’s a meal!
Sitting here in our temporary makeshift office back home I now long for so many things Korean it almost makes me forget all those Canadian things I wished for while away. I have come to realize that in order to live for today or make the most of each moment I have to remember both sides of the coin! I can’t always hate where I am and wish for where I want to be. Reminiscing is proven to brighten ones day, but I must also love where I am in the present moment because, no matter where it might be, I am one lucky girl to be there. If I could do that I would definitely have a smile on my face all the time!
So I am going to make a list of loves, both Canadian and Korean, to remind me of all the great things I have experienced and to keep me smiling for days to come! I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions because I cannot keep them even if my life depended on it, but let’s just say this is more of a new mantra to try and repeat to myself every day (… fingers crossed I remember)! Hopefully that will heat me through the cold because that is one thing I do not love about Canada right now! It’s minus 22 with the wind chill and I am finding it hard to smile even inside the house!
Things I miss about Korea:
1. My Students
Hands down one of the best things about Korea is always going to be the amazing students I have the privilege of working with. Here you have some of the most over-worked young people in the world who get up before the sun rises and get home well after it sets attending at least three to four different schools each day and sometimes even on weekends. They are usually enthralled with stories from my childhood where I describe what it’s like to actually be a carefree kid who only went to school from nine to three and then dare I say played with friends or had an afterschool job once I hit high school! Unimaginable to them. Every story is met with gaping mouths and wide eyes. That saddens me, but then I remember how much fun we have when they are in my class and how many of them thrive and continue to strive in an unruly system. They are incredible kids and I miss them each and every day!
My faves!!!
2. Our Friends
One of the greatest gifts of traveling and working abroad is the gift of friends you would never have had the chance to meet while at home. People from all over the world have become very dear friends to both Graham and I while we were in Korea. They most definitely helped both of us get through some of the not so fun times that come with living in a foreign land. Many of these people you only know for a short time, but it is absolutely amazing how quickly someone can become your true friend and sometimes even your family. I’ve said it many times before, living abroad is like a rollercoaster, some days you are up and some days you are falling straight down, but no matter what you can always find someone who understands and has been exactly where you are. They are perpetually ready and willing to head to a pub for a beer or just go right for the somek erasing all memories from that day! Those people, and they know who they are, are irreplaceable and a single thought of a memory made with them brings a smile to even the darkest of days.
A little Long Island between friends
Get by with a little help from our friends
3. Traveling
For someone who just cannot scratch that itch, Korea provides some of the best opportunities to travel. Whether it be a subway ride downtown, a bus to a nearby city, the KTX to explore Seoul, or a flight to another exotic place, you are never left without options for things to do and see. Touring Asia is actually quite affordable once you are already over there! Our best deal ever was purchasing a flight to Osaka for $30.00 (one way) which is cheaper than a train ticket from London to Toronto (Ontario Canada)! It always blows my mind how much cheaper it is to travel on the other side of the world! The amount it costs you to travel across Canada would get you at least a few decent trips through multiple countries in Asia.
Busin to Gyeongju
KTX to Seoul
4. Culture
Part of what I love about traveling is experiencing all the different cultures of the world. It always amazes me to think that right at this moment so many people are living in so many different ways around the globe. I love that in Korea many stores and places of business don’t even open before 11am to compensate for the late hours spent drinking and doing business the night before. Older ladies seem to reach a certain age and give up all their fashion passion for mismatched floral attire combined with oversized visors and terribly permed hair completely transforming into ajummas. My all-time favourite characteristic of Korean culture is the rarity of crimes or violent acts on a daily basis. I have seen many business men passed out on the street with their briefcase and wallet present only to wake several hours later and stumble home with everything still intact. No theft, beating, or any other random act of violence would occur. You just step over the sleeping man and keep going on your way or maybe move him to the side of the road just so he doesn’t accidentally get hurt. Where else in the world would that ever happen?
Ajummas working
Late night street nap…
Honestly now that I am in a groove this list could go on forever, but I will stop there as I am sure you do not have all the time in the world to read it.
Stay tuned for my list of Canadian favourites!