Vietnamese Invasion!

Hello friends and welcome back! Just as the Mongolians invaded our first session of classes, so the Vietnamese have done the same in this session. I think there were around 100 Vietnamese students that came in this week to start their Korean training here. Most of our class is now Vietnamese, and it's very interesting. Hearing all the different Asian languages spoken in class, and seeing how they interact with each other is fascinating. I'm so glad to get this different outlook on life. I'm pretty sure I could never speak these languages properly even if I spent the rest of my life trying.

Today was a pretty eventful day. I left class 2 hours early because of the interview with the Christian high school. I brought a change of clothes, and changed into them. Button down, slacks, and some dress shoes. I found out those weren't exactly needed, but that was ok. Heavy G drove me and we met Dr. Rhee along the way. We followed his car to the high school and went inside to meet the principal.

My meeting with the principal was actually pretty short lived. The principal got one of the employees to give me and Heavy G a tour while Dr. Rhee talked with him. We toured the very small, but very nice campus. As you walk in from the parking lot there is a space between the buildings and you walk into a courtyard area made of brick. The size is roughly a basketball court. There are soccer nets on either end of it, and a basketball hoop on one of the sides. In front of you is the chapel. To your right is the school building, and in front of you and to the left are the dorms. Behind you is the cafeteria.

After touring all these buildings we went to the cafeteria. It was actually lunch time so we sat down with our tour guide and had some 고추장 불고기 (Go Chu Jang Bulgogi) or spicy fire meat. It was so good, I was truly impressed by this place. The best part about it is that it truly is a Christian school. Not like they have in America where it's really just Christian or Catholic in name only. These people practice what they preach. The school only has 72 students, and has an age range of 6-19. If I were to work there I would be working with primarily middle school, and high school age students.

In the middle of lunch, Dr. Rhee's son Alex came and sat down with us. He has been working at the school for a few months now, and is preparing to go back to the U.S. for law school. He speaks English very well as he moved there at age 10 and has lived there for awhile. We ended up talking the entire lunch time and got to know each other well for such a short amount of time spent. I really enjoyed talking to him, and I think he is someone I will end up being friends with for a long time to come. We shared our visions of our future inside God's will, and talked about our views on faith.

After eating we went to the courtyard to watch some of the children play basketball, and a lot of the middle school/high school aged girls came and stood around. They wanted to know about me, but they were nervous to speak English. I find that's actually quite common here. Koreans tend to be nervous or shy about speaking English to a native speaker. I do my best to make them feel at home, and I've also been told I'm quite approachable despite being a giant with a giant beard.

Eventually it was time to go, and the principal came up to me basically stating that they would love to have me work with them. The unfortunate truth is there might be some visa issues that go along with this. So I don't have a set in stone job as of yet. I will keep you all updated on what happens with this, but I love this school a lot and I hope it is within God's will to have me teach there.

After leaving there we headed back to the dorms. I took a short break and then walked back to the global lounge where I talked to Yoon Jong Chan about possible visa options. After getting the information I needed, I walked back to the dorm and rested until dinner. I had neng myeon as a good boy should, and then headed to badminton class with Heavy G and YJS. An Hyo Sang went back to the dorm by himself to take a break.

That's basically it for today, but tomorrow promises to be another crazy one as the KBS crew is getting here at 6:30am to film for the "Love Family" show. I have no idea what is going to happen, but please pray that everything goes well. I'll update you guys tomorrow on what happens! Good night!

Korean Word/Phrase of the Day: 외동 아들/딸 (Wae Dong A Deul/Ddal) This means only child male/female. We reviewed family today and this stuck out because, well, I am an only child! Enjoy!

TL:DR I am broken, I am blessed.