Odyssey

I have been in Korea since time began. Well, it sometimes feels that way. I actually came to Korea a long, long time ago when I was the grand age of 22.

I recall my difficulties staying motivated in my final year at university. I had been a voracious reader throughout my teens but by my early 20's it was as if I had become burned out on it all. I began to spend more time in clubs and bars than at the books. After university I decided to throw myself straight into nondescript full time work. I had no real direction and spent the best part of a year just drifting along. Sometimes I would meet up with old university friends who had continued with their MA's and on one of these occasions I was handed a graduate job newspaper. I was basically told to "Do something because what you are doing isnt making you happy!". I rifled through all the office jobs and saw a few ESL teaching positions in countries such as Italy, Japan, Argentina and of course Korea. I made no conscious decision to come to Korea. The Korean position was the first to respond to my interest and impulsively I went with it. Within a few months I had all my documents in order and I was ready to go. I was going to go to Korea for a single year to work, think and somehow come back with a fresh sense of purpose about what to do with my life. I went to the airport armed with a single suitcase and a copy of the Lonely Planet guide to Korea. I actually changed my mind about going at the last minute and told my Mother that I wasnt going to go. She responded by telling me "You've already paid for your ticket. Just go". On that touching mother to son moment I took my leave.

I could write an awful lot about my time in Korea and the things I have gone through but its all too much for a simple blog entry. Needless to say, all this time later I am still here. Ive kind of grown up here in Korea. When I first stepped into the classroom I had no real idea what I was doing. Thats a problem with a lot of ESL environments. You have a teacher who speaks English and its automatically assumed that they can teach English. Its not so cut and dry as that. I developed as a teacher through experience and hunches about language and what I felt was successful or not. Eventually that was not enough for me and so I decided to take an MA distance learning course in TESL. A 30 month course!! Im well on the way to completing it. Its tough, but rewarding on an intellectual level. I have none of the motivation issues that plagued me when I was younger. Language aquisition is a complex and intriguing process. To be an effective teacher you need more than gut instinct and to actually have a sound grasp of the theories and concepts surrounding the learning process really. An enlightened approach as it were. Having been here as long as I have I have taught at numerous schools and companies and I will most probably always be involved in this field in some form or other.

Life in Korea has treated me fairly well. Ive had some rocky moments for sure but I have been here so long that I have learned how to make the system work for me. Ive met a lot of interesting people here and a few who are friends for life. Of course, I met my wife here and that was one of the principle reasons my stay has been so long. I can imagine myself staying here for a number of years more. I rely on my wife a lot. I dont speak Korean well and it can be a really tough place for newcomers here. I spend my time being abstract whilst my wife does the hard work of actually getting things organised. We have a stable and grounded life here.

The following relates some general information about Korea for a certain curious Hobbit. Korea is a country full of mountains (in England we would call them large hills really) and farms with an abundance of rice fields. There are many large cities and they are typically heavily populated. High rise apartments dominate the skyline. The view outside my apartment window looks out over a busy road onto yet another high rise apartment block. Its not attractive and certainly not like back home. I generally keep my balcony door closed. I dont have any photos of my apartment but generally Korean apartments come in all shapes and sizes depending on how much you want to pay. We have a decent sized place and it stocks everything we have accumulated over the years nicely. Not as large as my parents home but big enough for us two. Some families with kids live in this building. Personally I dont think the apartment is big enough for that, but some people are just trying to put bread on the table I guess. The younger Koreans are comparable to Western people in terms of height and build. Less overweight people here though. And in general I do think more people wear glasses than in the UK and there is definitely less facial hair here. Though historically Koreans have grown long thin beards. Not cool today though. The noise pollution I get from the cars definitely indicates that life here isnt all that rural. Right enough for one day.