It's that time again...

On Monday, the new teachers arrived and it started to feel real. Then they were assigned their classes. Then I started to let the new teacher teach. It's starting to feel pretty real right now. Tomorrow morning I will say good morning to my 6-year olds (by Korean standards, really all but two of them are 4 years old) for the last time. This is not the last time I've said goodbye to a class (I can't count them on one hand anymore), but it seems to not be getting any easier. I've had my current group for 6 months - 121 days (not including tomorrow) according to our daily popsicle-stick count. I realize I've probably spent more time with them than anyone else in that time and they truly do feel like family. From my shy students whose infrequent smiles can change my day from a bad one to a good one, to my good-intentioned but ultra-hyper students, I will miss the whole lot of them more than I care to admit. I've tried to tell myself that they will forget me within a week and that I shouldn't worry about them (and I don't, I feel I am leaving them in capable hands), but it's still difficult to face the fact that I won't get to joke around with them, or to see them (all) reading.

Enough of the sappy stuff. To be honest, it's been a good run with Plum Class version 2.0 (as it was with 1.0 for the first 12 months), and truly I cannot complain about all of the benefits I've got on the side (a pay cheque for doing something you enjoy is never a bad thing). So I go to bed tonight, knowing that tomorrow will be a tough day. But the sun will still rise on Saturday.

A big thank you to all of my students (in alphabetical order): Aiden, Alicia, Caroline, Claire, David, Eddie, Eric, Felix, Flurrina, Henry, Jenny, Jessie, Ji You, Jodie, Jun, Kevin, Lucy, May Yoon, Sally, Seo Won, So Yeon, and Tony (all the Plums). They constantly pushed me and never let me forget how vigilant I need to be in everything I do (in a good way). Tomorrow I will say good bye to most of you. I hope we will not forget each other...

Seoul in a Nutshell. 여기는 서울입니다.

Since this blog is about my work around the world, I though I should at least take some time to mention some things about Seoul and Korea in general (since I've been living here for about 17 months now). I'm sure a lot of people wonder what it's like here and to be honest that question is really hard to answer. I could try telling a million stories, but to be honest, that will only give you a snapshot and the stories fit into a larger context which is not always obvious.

Recently, I came across some YouTube videos taken by foreigners of Korea (mostly Seoul, but I saw some Sokcho in there, and I'm guessing some other places as well) that showed a lot of what I see on a daily basis. Though the videos are stunning and very well put together, I should note, that it is one thing to see the mass of people and concrete in a picture or in a video, but it's a totally different thing to experience. Enjoy the show:







Not everything in the videos are things I have experienced or seen, but it gives a very good impression of my time in Korea.