One month!

My departure date draws nearer. It's hard to believe I'm going to South Korea in a month!

No later than a few hours after I wrote that last entry did I find out that I'm actually going to be working for a different school in South Korea. As it turns out, the school that initially wanted to hire me has lower enrollment numbers than they anticipated. However, their sister school, the Songpa-Gangdong LCI school was still in need of a teacher. It is still in roughly the same neighborhood, just a little further east. I'll be closer to the Olympic Park than I was going to be initially, and a little farther from the Olympic Stadium. It's still the same neighborhood though!

Until I leave, I will continue working for the YMCA in Burnsville, MN. I did want to substitute teach, but alas, most districts will not let you do that until you receive your actual teaching license, which I will still not get for a couple more weeks.

I will be in Chicago one last time before I leave, February 11-February 15 (leaving at 3 pm the 15th.) My departure date is going to be either February 19 or 20th from my understanding, I'm still waiting for the official word from the school.

That's all from me for now. Have a great day!

My next adventure!

Hello! (Annyeong-haseyo) As a lot of you already know, I have found a job for my next step in teaching. On February 17, I will be moving to Seoul, South Korea to teach for a year. I will be working at the Jamsil LCI School and teaching English to elementary school children. While it is not teaching music, it is still doing so many of the things I want to do: go abroad, teach, live in a big city, experience a different culture, travel and start sooner rather than later! Also, the school said I might be able to start a choir, which would be wonderful! This is an incredible opportunity with so many advantages, it was hard to pass up. They are paying for my airfare, housing, and half of health insurance. On top of that I get a salary, and will only be responsible for paying for utilities, internet, phone and food.

The school and where I will be living is in a wonderful location, considered one of the best places to live in Seoul. I will be right by the Olympic park and stadium that were built for the 1988 Olympics, as well as the river, the subway, and a large indoor amusement park. It's a quite bustling area to be in!

The time difference between here and S. Korea is 15 hours. (They are 15 hours ahead of us) So as I am writing this, it is 5:15 tomorrow morning there! I will continue to use Skype while I'm over there (hopefully more than in Spain, because the internet will be more accessible) and I will probably purchase a Korean phone once I get there.

I'm really excited about this opportunity, and I will keep everyone updated on it!

-Emily