I guess it has been a while since my last post. The Ulsan Cup was quite a ways back, so it's long overdue for an update. I'm writing now from home. By home, I mean actual home. I'm in North Carolina at the moment, enjoying a nice little vacation before heading back to work next week. I flew out of Korea on the 27th of July, having completed my one year contract with the TaLK program. Then, I spent a week in Quebec with my family which was a fantastic time. Now, after visiting Charlotte, Myrtle Beach, and a few places in between, I am finally home. So, without further adieu, here's a few things that have happened since the beginning of summer.
At the beginning of June, the TaLK program decided to take all of the scholars from our province down to Jeju for a cultural trip. Wow! What an awesome experience. We flew down from Gwangju (20 minute flight) and got to spend 3 days in an amazing place. We toured Jeju and stopped at some of the most amazing places. We saw fabulous beaches, hiked dormant volcanos along the coast, and then got to shoot fireworks off on the beach at night (almost ending in disaster :) ). My overall thoughts on Jeju are that is has to be one of the nicest locations in Korea. There is a reason that many Koreans choose Jeju for their honeymoon location, and it's obvious once you arrive.
June and July were both busy months for me. Getting everything finalized with my new employer and new school was consisted work considering I was working with paperwork in the USA... from Korea. I managed to get everything done, and tomorrow I am picking up my new work visa from the consulate in Atlanta. During June and July, we had multiple soccer tournaments, including major tournaments in Yeosu and Busan. Both the tournaments were a success, however, we did not take the trophy at either one. Our worst finish so far this year has been 3rd place, and that's out of 7 tournaments. So, this year has been a success. In Busan, we had an amazing tournament. We entered two teams, and both teams advanced to the playoffs. The team I played with, listed as Gwangsun IFC, scored an amazing 25 goals during the group stages and conceded 0. We lost a heartbreak in the semi-finals, but even after the tournament had finished, our team had scored more goals than we ever had. Even our goalkeeper came up to take a penalty.
June 1st, I finally got my car. It's a small, blue Daewoo Matiz. I bought it from a friend here in Gwangyang. Although it's old, it runs like a gem. I immediately upgraded the stereo system (old or not, it needs good tunes), got a tune up, and hit the road. In the first two months, I've managed to put over 4000 kilometers on the car, which is astounding to think about. I had a lot of drives to Yeosu (I play there sometimes during the week), which I think has really added up.
June and July was also the time of the Euros. We had our share of Euro parties and viewings, but things weren't as lively as my last major tournament (The world cup while I was in Paris). This is mainly due to the fact that the games came on around 1am here in Korea, which was way too late during the work week. I did, however, manage to either watch or record every game, and I was very happy with the outcome! As a result, I now have a light blue Spanish jersey sporting #9, Torres.
In June, Romi, my cat, decided to get sick. When I say sick, I mean very, very sick. He has had a long road of losing weight, shaking all night, and being a glimmer of his normal, annoying, overactive self. After many vet visit (and bills), he is finally starting to make a recovery. Also, thank you to a very dear friend who is watching him now while I am here in the US. Hopefully, within a few weeks, Roms can be back to running around again. For a while, I was really worried that it was something chronic. I'm still not 100% sure, but i'm definitely optimistic now.
In July, the Dark Knight Rises was released. If this statement means nothing to you, please stop reading and go watch the film now. We made sure to go to the Gwangju IMAX to see it the opening weekend. And wow, were we not dissapointed. Between the amazing screen, popcorn, and drinks, we had an awesome time. To add to the weekend, we spent the evening out at Ashley's the "American" grill in Gwangju. While the all you can eat buffet leaves something to be desired, the All you can drink wine leaves absolutely nothing to be desired. For 23k won a piece, you can enjoy fairly good food (an amazing variety) and all you can drink wines served from giant...... kegs. We were there for maybe 3 hours, starting our night off just right. This was also our final weekend together with the TaLK scholars that came in. If you remember back, the amazing "G6" that once rocked out Jochiwon and Gwangju and roamed the streets of Korea was finally coming to an end. We enjoyed a final night out, and then our last goodbyes. It was an amazing weekend of batman and friends, and definitely goes down as one of the best. Also, Gio, who has been a huge part of my first year here in Korea, finally had to go home to New York. Best of luck to him there, he will be missed here.
The weather in Korea has not impressed me lately. The beginning of July brought about an insane amount of humidity accompanied by heat, and more heat. The rain, heat, and two - three weeks of no sunshine (not exaggerating) really took a toll on me. Although I still played a lot of soccer, I found myself not running as much during the week, simply because I didn't want to be outside. Now that I'm home, I'm hoping that the weather in Korea has decided to change some, at least a bit. The weather during my trip here has been amazing, absolutely amazing. Canada had some of the best summer weather I've ever experienced. The perfect blend of sun, cool breezes, and warm temperatures made for quite a nice week.
The World Expo in Yeosu turned out to be an amazing success. I've been on two seperate occassions and each time has been fantastic. I went to all but two countries at the expo (there are 80), and ate at almost every restaurant there. The second time at the expo, we were invited to stay after for the employee party at the Netherland's tent. You see, the employees are mostly college aged students who are looking for a fun, multicultural experience. So, after the expo closes at 10pm, the exhibits are pushed to the side, the speakers are pushed in, and the night begins. In one night, I met people from every continent (except Antarctica, sorry bud), and got to speak everything but English, which was so refreshing. We ended up taking the 6am train home, after an amazing night with a very unique group of individuals.
That brings us to today. On Sunday, the 12th, I fly out of Atlanta headed for Incheon. I will then take a shuttle from Incheon to Gwangju and start a 10 day orientation there for my new work posting. The orientation will be extremely repetitive for me, but I am more looking forward to meet a lot of new people and staying in a fairly nice hotel. The 22nd of August I move in my new, much bigger apartment in Suncheon. I'll be in Shidae Apartments, where almost 75% of all foreigners in Suncheon live. Although they aren't the nicest, they are spacey, conveniently placed, and are great for seeing friends nearby. My new school is Buyeong Elementary School, which is just minute down the road from me. Bonggang had 46 students, while Buyeong has 1500. So, my classes are going to be huge, I may never learn the student's names (sad), but it will be a new and different challenge, and the rewards a very nice. I am hoping to save enough money for graduate school. On August 20th, 2013, I have to be in Aix-en-Provence, France to start my Masters degree, which will be a totally new experience in itself. Until then, i've got a year in Suncheon to fill with awesome memories and personal improvements!
Well, that is a very out of order post, but it's about as quick an update as possible. The Quebec vacation will get it's own post, so look forward to that!
Thanks for reading! Really, if you are reading this, that's impressive.
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