Day in the Life

Good morning everyone!

I hear MN (and WI) is transitioning into that great, slightly cool fall weather – it is definitely cooler here this week, but still warmer than home. Knowing that all of my Green Bay friends are back in school without me is more strange than I thought I would be – I miss the beginning of the semester syllabi, the getting ahead on homework the very first week and then ending up behind the next week, hanging out at Starbucks on the weekends (at least I can do that here if I still want to.)

I know my mom usually likes to be able to ‘picture’ where I am or what I am doing day to day, so I’ll give you guys a rundown of my daily schedule during the week, as it is more established now after two weeks of teaching.

I get up early in the mornings to run these days. It's become one of my favorite parts of the day (I know, I know, I don't run), because the sun is coming up, people are starting to get going for the day, and I love getting my exercise over with right away.

It’s a nice little walking park with a lot of interweaving trails and two lanes per trail – one blacktop surface and one softer surface which must be better for the knees or something. Every morning there are dozens of dedicated Koreans (mostly older) out speedwalking, arm pumping included, and using the workout stations that are along the trails in the park (I almost used the word ‘playing’ on the workout station, because that’s what some of the stations look like to me, but that wouldn’t be very nice.) Koreans are usually pretty dedicated to ‘their health,’ as they like to put it, so a morning walking routine fits nicely into their lifestyle.

So picture these cute little old men and women out walking, chatting, workout stationing, stretching, etc, and then along comes this blundering six foot tall girl in shorts and a t-shirt who starts jogging around the trails, dodging people as she passes them. What a treat for them to stare at! I feel a little like Gulliver in the land of the Lilliputians. It seems like common courtesy for them to nudge whomever they are talking to and point me out so that they can have a proper look at me also. It’s quite hilarious, actually. I’m sure the people that I pass are usually disappointed because they only get to stare at the backside of me instead of the front also. The best part is when I’m coming up the hill, because there are little benches to sit at on at the top so they get to watch me push it the whoooole way up the hill, and then watch the back of me when I pass them. The first day I got a lot of stares, (some I stare right back at, most I just ignore) but by the end of the week there were fewer stares – the regulars weren’t as interested anymore, I suppose. Nevertheless, there are always stares. I have to note that although I call it a walking park, there ARE other joggers there, just usually not in the morning - Mrs. Lee explained to me that Koreans do like to jog, but they prefer to do it in the afternoon - I've only seen a couple here and there in the morning. I'm not breaking the rules or anything, I promise. 

So I run around the same little loop for the amusement of dozens of Koreans, and then if I have time I like to try out some of the workout stations. I usually just copy what the others are doing, as there are two of the same machines per area, but more often than not the machine is a bit too small for me, so I have to adapt. I’m quite fond of the leg press one and the self bench press one (you sit upright and push forward, which actually lifts you and your seat up depending on how hard you push. ) I have my music in so I usually just stare ahead, but I know most of them are watching me. The second morning at the park I made a friend – a really cute adjuma who actually came over and showed me a different way to do one of the machines – she was the only smile I got all morning (she was also speaking mad fast Korean, which of course I couldn’t understand, but I just smiled and nodded back like I understood.) I saw her out walking the next day so I waved at her and smiled and she waved back. A beautiful friendship.

The park is busy every time I walk by during the day or even the evening. There is a neat fountain that lights up with different, changing colors at night in one of the corners – it’s a great gathering place for friends and family also, with lots of benches and hangout areas. My particular favorite place to sit and read or write is a big old stone right in front of the library.

As for the rest of the day, my bus takes about 20 minutes to get to the village my school in, then I’m at school from 8 to 5 each day, bus home, and then spend my evenings making a quick dinner, going out for a walk or swimming, doing some computer/Internet stuff, going to the library (Muedung Library – I now have a card for their English section), or just staying at my apartment and doing some work/reading, etc. I am usually so tired I go to bed by 9 or 10! There is another English teacher in my area whom I met at orientation, and I think we'll try to get together soon so that I'm not deprived socially. It’s a busy day but I like it and am getting used to my full schedule. With that, I’m going to spend the rest of my weekend doing some organizing and cleaning and then going to bed early to get ready for my new week. I hope you all have a great rest of your weekend!