Sunday, July 11, 2010

Log 1

Well, this is overdue.

Hello everyone, and welcome! This is my first official blog post of my year-long trip to Korea!

Since the moment our plane landed in my birth country on Sunday July 4, 2010 at 5AM - exactly one week ago - we have not had a moment's rest. We dove straight into language tests, language classes, speeches, teaching and cultural workshops. Needless to say, these past seven days have felt more like seven months.

There are 73 of us at this 7-week orientation, and I have met some tremendous people from all over the country, including Georgia, Montana, California, Boston, Oregon, and others. Many are recent graduates of college, including Harvard, Brown, Scranton, Pitzer, Georgia, USC, Illinois Urbana-Champagne, and Williams.

We are in Goesan of Chungcheongbuk do (region), a tiny rural city 3 hours south of the metropolis Seoul. Our orientation camp is being held at Jungwon University, a brand-new decadent structure that looks (and acts) a lot like a product of Pyongyang (capital of North Korea).

I'm sorry I can't say more for now, but today was our first real "break" day when we had some time to breathe. So I went on a hike with some of the Fulbright people, and here are some pictures to give you a sense of where I am (the hike was 5minutes walking distance from our school):


Our Hike! L->R: Janine, Erik, Ji-Soo (Jungwon student), David



Our Hike2



The view from the top...with me (the others got real pictures, so I'll upload them when I get them; the school is behind the high rise apartment on the right behind my head)



The barren street (the car is parked)



The other side


Drawing penises in unexpected locations seems to be a universal practice


Jungwon University sign and gate


Through the gate


The school


The ridiculous fountain in the middle of the school yard


The outrageous golf-course in front of the middle of the school yard

Here's a song a former teacher used for her students.

I sincerely hope you are all well. More to come soon!

-Yours Sincerely
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Words to Live By

"Who dares wins." -Motto of the British SAS

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly." -The Buddha

"Don't give up; don't ever give up."
...-Jim Valvano (ESPY Awards speech)

"Persevere, do not only practice your art, but endeavor also to fathom its inner meaning; it deserves this effort. For only art and science can raise men to the level of gods."
-Ludwig van Beethoven (letter to a child in 1812)

"This above all: to thine ownself be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man."
-William Shakespeare (Polonius from Hamlet)

"The time is always ripe to do right."
-Martin Luther King Jr. ('Letter from Birmingham Jail')

"We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."
-TS Eliot (last stanza from 'Four Quartets')

"All things of this world will come to pass. Strive on, diligently." -Last words of the Buddha

"The really important kind of freedom involves attention, and awareness, and discipline, and being able truly to care about other people and to sacrifice for them, over and over, in myriad petty little unsexy ways, every day. That is real freedom."
-David Foster Wallace (commencement speech to Kenyon College Graduating Class of 2005)

Enjoy the little things in life. -Yours Truly