I'm Here! - Day #1

Disclaimer: This a really long post. So if you get bored of reading, I will understand :)

Wow! I can't believe I'm here. This is so surreal. It was really tough leaving my family. There's no way to give someone a year's worth of hugs, but I sure tried. I am really going to miss them!

The beginning of my trip started out a little slow. My flight was to depart from Roanoke on Friday at 5:47 am (EST), but of course we didn't take off until around 8:15 am (EST). After only having a total of about four hours of sleep, having nothing to eat and sitting on a plane that was not moving for 2.5 hours, I was not a happy camper. There was a nice, very talkative, girl from South Dakota next to me and she helped to make the wait go by faster.

I finally arrived in Chicago about 10:35 am (EST). This didn't give me as much as a layover as I was expecting, but it was just enough time. I was able to locate my gate, grab some food and exchange currency. I was going to wait until I got to Korea to exchange currency at the bank, but I'll pay for convenience.

My flight took off as scheduled at 1:00 pm (EST) from Chicago to Seoul. The plane was HUGE and so nice. I probably sound like a big nerd, but I've never flown overseas and had no idea what to expect.

The plane had a total of 42 rows with nine seats across. I was lucky enough to get a window seat, as well as being seated next to two very nice Korean women. One of them is actually an English teacher in Seoul. She gave me her contact information just in case I had any trouble. After about 15 minutes of being on the plane I was knocked out. I was then awaken almost an hour after take off so I could be given goodies and food. They supplied me with headphones, indoor slippers, a pillow and blanket, and a menu.

Here's one of my meals...

Keepin' it Western

I arrived in Seoul around 4 pm Korean time / 3 am (EST). A driver picked me up and drove me to my apartment. As I arrived, I was so nervous as to what to expect. I walked up the stairs, behind the driver who was carrying my luggage and opened the door. My stomach just sank. My first thought was, "What the hell am I doing here?" The place was left in a bit of mess. The studio apartment is very very small. I began to get discouraged, so I called my Director. She said she was coming over at 8 pm to help get me acclimated around the apartment. As she arrived, I felt very comfortable knowing she was so helpful and willing to correct the issue. She said it wouldn't be until Monday before she could have someone come in to clean.

I decided that was fine and that I could deal with it. I think the best part of my evening was turning on the TV to find "Sex and the City". Ahhh!