Trying my best to catch you up.

I know, I've been so poor about keeping things updated. My life has been made up of a series of power naps that make up for the 3am bedtimes and the 7 o' clock alarms. The first three days here dragged in a way that made me too lethargic to document, but it was in a flash that the pace of life here changed.

My first four days of this adventure were spent proof reading materials and doing research in preparation for the English training camp that was soon approaching. Jisoo, my house mate from last year, magically appeared at the office to whisk me away from language slavery. In all honesty, it's been go-go-go ever since, eating and drinking and taking pictures with our "one-day friends" as backdrops. We don't remember any of their names.

The native English speakers soon arrived and my friendship count shot straight up from one to double digits. For the most part, we all got along, sharing a joy in adventure and good company. Together, we scoured the underground shopping center and walked the streets of Chuncheon, indulging in the wonders of cultural Korea. Even though this is my second time here, there are countless things that still manage to amaze me.

Soon, we were in a town called Cherwon and learning tips to teach. For the first time, the native speakers and the Korean teachers had a chance to meet, and by the time our four day camp was up, we had made life long friends that have already made our time here worthwhile. Naturally, we bonded instantly with certain people and it was my friendship with Jisoo that somehow improved. We conquered activities together, caused trouble, mastered double dutch and tried our best to convince the YMCA staff that, with the other, we'd be great at everything. Unfortunately, this wasn't enough to keep us together, as they placed us in different towns with different partners two hours away. We have already schemed to reunite, and when we do, world, watch out.

Still, by the end of camp, everyone was close with everyone, so much so that when we arrived back in Chuncheon, we were all making plans to get lunch and hang out. The Americans hastily planned a visit to Seoul for our last weekend before the true teaching begins. Although the day trip started off quite nicely, it ended in the only way that a day in which all had gone wrong could end. The unfortunately long story made short goes like this:

Caught the wrong subway, missed the last bus, walked a mile in the wrong direction and spent the night in a train station. At one point, by complete irony and bad luck, I found myself on the wrong side of the door when security locked the entrances to the terminal. My traveling companions on the inside and yours truly on the out. It was one o'clock in the morning and I was hopelessly separated from everyone I knew and immersed in a dark world of homeless men and aimless teenagers. Frightened and confused, I found solace in one security guard who told me stories of his family while I cried by his side. All had gone wrong, but his kindness was my salvation. Together, we waited until the doors were unlocked and when they did, he escorted me to my four friends who hugged me while I cried out my relief.

The final train ride home was spent in utter silence - we were asleep and thankful to be returning home.

But alas, Chuncheon couldn't be ours forever as most of us were sent away to our new towns. My Korean teacher is a girl named Kyung Rahn, my age, adorable, and hilarious. Most of our conversations contain moments of laughter and jokes about our rural life. In fact, what happened when we got dropped off looked something much like that of a movie scene. The taxi drove off and left us sitting atop our luggage at the top of the steps. The school was empty and locked, so we sat in silence, looking out into the vast nothingness while we waited for anyone to claim us. We sat like this for fifteen minutes before deciding to explore. It was when we were snooping in someones greenhouse that the principal spotted us. Embarrassed, we ran to our bags and followed him in the school.

Anyway, tomorrow is our first day of class and with the overwhelming amount of free time at my disposal, I'll be better able to keep you updated on Korean life. It'll be good.

ps. I'll leave you with an amazing Korean oddity to drop your jaw at: Entitled "The best lunch time ambiance ever." (Click to see just what we're really dining on).