The Prologue

So for those who aren't totally aware of what's goin on, let me take a second to get you up to speed. My apologies if this is a bit long.

For the past few months I've been applying to an English Language Institute in South Korea called Chung Dahm Learning (CDI). This came about because there was a period of time when InsideOut (my current employer) was being held up by Detroit Public Schools, I wasn't working and I was looking for an alternative. My boys Dave and Milo told me about an online recruiter for teaching in Asia called Aclipse. I knew my homie Krebs was already in Korea doing the same thing, so I went for it.

Now, four months later, here I am with a year-long contract from CDI. They're placing me at the school in Ilsan (일산), which is located in the city of Goyang (north of Seoul). The city looks amazing, if you wanna see some pics check out this link http://chrisinsouthkorea.blogspot.com/2009/02/destination-ilsan-goyang.html. There's also a really convenient subway line that connects Ilsan to Seoul. And there's Goyang Kookmin Bank FC (soccer team) so maybe I'll get into soccer while I'm there. Needless to say, I'm pretty excited!

As of right now, I still need to get my visa and buy a plane ticket, but I've got a little over a month to get everything in order so I'm not worried. So barring any unfortunate circumstances or setbacks, I'll be stepping off a plane in Seoul on May 15th. In the meantime, I'm trying to learn some basic Korean. I can just about read Hangul, but reading it is more or less pointless if you don't know what you're reading. And there's some basic grammar and reading skills I should brush up on before I go and try to teach them. So I've still got some work some to do.

So that's where we are right now. I don't think I've fully grasped the weight of spending the next year away from home on another continent. But the culture, the cuisine, the people, the sites and everything that comes with it will be more than worth it. This whole blog is mainly for me to keep everyone updated on how things are going in Korea, and all the cool stuff I'm doing as I "ill in Ilsan". Now you all know what's going on, and hopefully you're not gonna try and call my cell this summer and get mad because my voicemail says I'm out of the country.

With that, I wanna thank everyone who's been supportive and optimistic while I've been figuring this whole "teaching in Korea" thing out. Thanks to everyone at InsideOut for giving me my FIRST job after undergrad, and the staff at Edison Elementary in Detroit for making it such a great experience. Thanks to my parents for letting me live at home for another year, while I figured out what to do. Thanks to Don Smith and Aclipse for connecting me with CDI. And thank God for all the obvious reasons.

Peace & Love