Korean for Dummies

Well, lets start from the beginning... I am sure any right minded person leaving the country for an extended time would allow an ample amount of time to plan, pack, and get their affairs in order.  It should come as no surprise that I would deviate from a logical path for this.  I had arranged my schedule so that I would be teaching my last band camp with North Farmington the week leading up to my flight.  It was simple, I would leave camp on Friday night, get home to do some laundry, pack and catch a few hours of sleep before I had to go to the airport.  No chance of me forgetting anything, right?  Well, I finally made it into bed at 4am after making last minute copies, running to the bank & finding the most efficient way to jam lots of things in my suitcase that included but were not limited to, 4 jars of michigan jam (for gifts), american candy treats for students, my saxophone, some things to wear, and some toy dinosaurs (because you just never know).
I hauled myself out of bed to get to the airport after I heard my parents chatting, this coincided with my realization that in my exhaustion I shut off my cell phone alarm (apparently not even a flight to Korea was worth 30 minutes of extra sleep).  In a moment of unknowing anticlimax, I made my last meal on U.S. soil.  This meal consisted of a glass of green tea (classic) and a hamburger bun with peanut butter on it.  No time to be formally dramatic about these things, I have got to go!
So with a hug and a handshake I parted ways with my mom & pop for a while.  Onward to adventure, learning, & LIFE!...Wait, do still have my passport?  Yes. Yes I do "these are things you should check for when traveling across oceans" I thought to myself.
I should mention that because I chose to teach NFHS band camp I opted for a later flight than the rest of my peers from EMU.  Except for one person, my friend Nick.  Nick was not hard to find at the terminal, he has a unique mustache.  Thus the fellowship grew to two, a man with blond hair and a red beard, and a man with a mustache time warped from the 70's.  Onward.
I won't bore you with the flight so I will put everything you need to know in a single sentence.  16 hours of travel, Korean air stewardesses are prettier than American Airlines staff, and if you smuggle meat into Korea everything will die.
It was at the baggage claim watching my luggage not go around that I started to wonder if putting the jam next to my saxophone was a bad idea.  It could make my tone a little sweeter, but more than likely it would result in a sticky mess.  Nick thought the same thing about the bottle of hot sauce he stuffed in with his dress clothes.
All worries were for naught, and everything was good in the world.  24 hours ago I was quizzing students about coordinate dots, and marching technique.  Now I was on a bus ride from Icheon to my orientation site in Jochiwon, cue jet lag in 3...2...1...zzzzzz.
I was checking into the dorms when a few of the EMU peeps strolled in.  Sam asked how the flight was, I am pretty sure I answered in spanish due to time travel (jet lag) and being exhausted from band camp the week before.  She was a good sport and gave me a little smile and nod action before splitting the crazy train that was the Michael Sobolak hot mess special, and talking to someone more sane.  I would have done the same thing.  Where is my bed?
I slept a bit and woke up the next day for the field trip into Seoul.  Now this ain't your typical field trip to the petting zoo.  This was a split off into teams, get kicked off the bus with a blurry map and some instructions to find things and take a group pictures at them.  3...2...1...gam sa hab ni da.

It was good fun, I was team leader and had to corral "fast walker" Linda, with "my back hurts" Huan.  That was fine and dandy and we were the first ones back on the bus and the first ones out of what is know as "monsoon season" in this part of the globe.
The next two days were filled with some lectures, Norebong, an England vs. USA TaLK scholar soccer game, and lots of rice & Kimchi.
On a side note, the editing page for this blog is in 1/2 English and 1/2 Korean.  Learn by necessity, right?
I am meeting lots of new people from all over the globe as well as becoming great friends with the EMU group (Journey & Norebong will do that).  Until I have a moment to breathe again, 안녕히가세요.