Welcome to Korea

I landed in Korea yesterday and responded to a sign reading 'Acole Andresen'

That's me, Acole Andresen.

I took a leap of faith with the driver who called up someone who spoke to me in english, welcoming me to Korea. We drove from the airport in Incheon across what is one of the world's longest bridges. We past clusters of apartment buildings surround by grassland. They do a similar thing in China. Canada, and I feel more so Australia, builds from the centre outward -meaning we get that urban sprawl. Here apartment building come in a cluster of similar buildings -between 3 and 10- that just grow like a cluster of hairs coming out of a mole. They look taller because there's nothing else around.

Now I have my own mole hair to call home, but that comes later.

We went directly to the school. Another leap of faith: taking all my bags and leaving the driver with the car just slightly confident in where I was going. Once I got in the elevator I saw the business were listed in Korean. I have spent the last week learning how to read Korean -very slowly- and by the time I got to the 5th floor I was positive I had just read the name of my school.

And there is was. People to greet me and everything.

While the first day felt like a bit of a sleepy blur my jet lag from Brisbane, a one hour time difference, could not compare to past English teachers coming from the UK and North America. So for that I am thankful.

After a bit of orientation we left to get dinner! Naturally my favourite part of going anywhere is the food, and Korea did not disappoint.  The other teachers who took me out assured me that eating out is often cheaper than cooking for yourself. That being said the ordering was a bit messy to get across what we wanted -but in the end it all worked out.

Then we made our way through the neon signs to a mole. A chunk of land containing only apartments and we walked right through it, up a road, near an alley, to find our apartment. I had been forwarned it would be small and I'm pleased to report it is basically hotel room-sized which is completely agreeable. I did the minimum: shower and connect to the wifi.

Now it is home.