Korea 4 weeks later

Hello,

So, I’ve now been in Korea for 4 weeks, which is strangely frightening. Time ha gone really quickly whilst I’ve been here and it’s been a journey that is both difficult and rewarding.

Despite this, I’m very much looking forward to pay day tomorrow as funds are now running a little tight.

I’ll start off with Korea in general. Despite coming here for a holiday last year, I’ve discovered, like probably many places, nothing actually prepares you for actually living in the country.

Korea is beautiful, and the city that I’m living in (Changwon) is very picturesque. I’m finding enough things to do to keep myself occupied on the weekends where I’m not working, and have so far also explored (a little) Daegu and Busan. Both of these places are very large, so it’s probably going to take a few trips to really get to see them.

Work is okay. I knew that the Korean work ethic was quite nitpicky, but I’ve experienced it first hand where people will literally pick at anything and everything. The teacher that I replaced said that they picked at her for the clothes that she wears, they pick at me for my accent.

You’d think hailing from Britain, which is kinda the home of the English language would be good. Nope. Unless you’re speaking American, good luck!

Despite this, I’m learning quickly, and I feel like I’m becoming better and better as the weeks go by.

I’m mostly official now. I’m just waiting on my ARC to come so that I can finally get my phone contract and a bank account. From here, I will consider myself fully settled, but Changwon is starting to feel a little like home.

One of the things I had accounted for, but wasn’t too worried about was loneliness. I don’t really mind being on my own, but I do miss having people around all the time that I can just talk to. So, I’m trying to get better at Korean so that I can talk to more people.

Despite what the web says, most of the expat stuff that happens in Korea happens in Seoul, so finding other English speakers is proving to be very difficult.

But, I have found Korean lessons and I’m definitely making an effort to learn the language.

The weather since I’ve arrived here has almost been unbearable. Most days tend to be about 35 degrees, and it’s humid. I can never seem to catch a break from the weather, so I’m also kind of looking forward to September where it’s a little cooler than what we have now.

The winter is supposedly very cold, but I can deal with cold slightly better than I deal with this heat, so wish me well!

Now that I’m kind of mostly settled, I’m thinking of updating this blog at least once a week. I’ll try and do more, but the change in lifestyles and schedules has changed the way I want to work. I haven’t even picked up a book properly since I arrived and that’s kinda scary.