all moved in!

Finally! I am settled into my apartment!  It feels so good to finally be moved in and have a space that feels like mine, it certainly makes Korea feel a little more like home.  Here is my new place:

This is my wardrobe that is located on my balcony.

laundry, also located on my balcony.

here is what the whole space looks like.  not huge, but there is a decent amount of space.

living space.

sleeping space.

the whole living/sleeping room.

dining space.

cooking space.

view of the whole area.

my bathroom.  the I heart Elvis stickers were already there, so I left them.

my entryway. 

I like this apartment much more than my old one, and now that I am all settled in it certainly feels much more like a home and like I am actually living here now. 

This week went really well!  My students are still awesome and even the older ones are starting to come around and realize that I am not the devil, I just want them to pay attention and learn something.  

On Thursday I had my first Korean BBQ with some other foreigners, it was sooooo tasty!  On Saturday I did some more exploring around my town, I went to a really cool park that has awesome statues all over, here are a few of them:

Oh, I also got my hair cut,  I was a little nervous.  I walked into a shop where no one spoke English and handed them a picture of what I wanted, here are the results:

I also wanted to use this picture as an opportunity to show off how good I am at using chop sticks.

Now that I have lived here for almost two weeks there are a few things that I have discovered about Korea...first, it's dirty.  There is far more trash on the streets than what I am used to and there doesn't really seem to be many cleanliness standards in place either.  Take the fish market for example, there is raw meat just sitting out in the open, nothing to cover it from flies and most of it isn't even on ice!  I'm not too sure that I will be purchasing anything from there... Also, the cars own the road...and the sidewalks, and anywhere they can fit.  As a pedestrian I have to yield to cars and will be honked at if I do not, and traffic signals are more of a suggestion than they are law.  If cars are at a red light and the driver gets impatient they will go right through if the intersection is clear, and sometimes even if it isn't...

They also park wherever they want.

Even on sidewalks. 

Aside from the dirt and needing to be extra careful around cars, I do like it here.  The people are very friendly and super helpful.  The first time I used an ATM I couldn't find the money I withdrew, I went to a nearby coffee shop in a panic and asked one of the workers what could have happened, she wasn't sure so she called the bank for me, definitely above and beyond the call of duty.  Turns out there was an error and my debit card will only work in certain ATMs, but it was still very kind of that woman to call the bank for me.  

I also really like the set up of Korean showers and would like to have one when I return to the US.  I am starting to get the hang of chopsticks and really enjoy using them, probably something else I will bring back to the states with me.  Oh, and there pizza is tasty! Well, I only had it once and it was from a place that was recommended, but it was so good and their flavors are much more creative than back in the states. 

Here are a few more pictures my adventuring this weekend:

This is a giant digital sign by the park I went to.

This is me in front of a giant inflatable something. 

I just thought this was funny.

Some art on the streets.

I pass these on my way to school everyday.

As always, more to come!