Troublemaker

A birthday in quarantine?? Sounds pretty horrible for Michelle, but we did our best to make sure she had fun.

The day started as usual. Hot dogs and salad for breakfast and then wandering the building until the orientation started. I decided it would be a great time to wash my clothes. I'd already washed some of my clothes by hand, but didn't really feel like they were getting that clean. Susan and I decided we would try the laundry facilities in this building. We gathered some of our clothes and then found that the laundry room had a giant puddle of water in the middle of the room. Plaster and dust from the walls (keep in mind this wonderful resort is under construction) had collected on the washing machines and piles of both wet and dirty clothes were everywhere. We started to pull some other people's clothes out of the washer to put our load in, then opted out of using the machines all together. The idea of some of the guys from this camp pulling my personal items from the washer grossed me out a little and I headed back to my room to hand wash. I started my normal routine of using Woolite and washing my clothes under the shower head. By the time I was finished my outfit for the day (which happened to be a cute green top matched with some long athletic boy shorts. I like to keep it classy.) was soaking wet. I didn't really care about my outfit being wet until I walked out to the hallway and Michelle met me at the stars. "Where have you been?? We started our meeting a LONG time ago!! Why are you all wet?" I arrived at my meeting late and soaking wet. Awesome.

In the afternoon, Michelle, Shannon and I went for a LONG walk down the hill, through the town of Wando, to the beach. It was a very interesting walk because we were paranoid of running into Koreans and then scaring them since we were told to stay far away from them. To our pleasant surprise, a large group of Korean workers spotted us and excitedly waved and smiled at us. It was quite a treat to feel welcomed into their town. When we made it to the rocky beach, there were tiny crabs EVERYWHERE. As we tiptoed through the rocks (so that we didn't crush the poor things) crabs crawled out in every direction. So cool.

When dinner time rolled around I, to Michelle's extreme embarrassment, stood up in the cafeteria and announced to everyone it was her birthday. We all sang her happy birthday and cut a cake that the camp staff bought for us. We were so happy the cake turned out to be a delicious and rich chocolate. There wasn't enough cake to give to all of the campers so we decided to give cake to the people who have to stay in Wando. They were pretty happy with us for about a minute. It's amazing how excited people who are in quarantine become over something like cake.

After dinner, Michelle, Shannon, Susan and I picked up our soju, soda and snickers that we asked Yu-Son to get for us. We took it up to our room and had our own little party. We sat in a circle and told grade school jokes and stories while enjoying our soju.

After a while we wandered around and found Marty, Carl and Jeff sitting around with Marty's guitar. This was the highlight of my night because we passed the guitar around and played songs we loved. We had so much fun with our soju and loud sing alongs. Our voices echoed through the hallways...I'm sure the other campers appreciated us. I could have done it all night but we had to move the party to a different area of the building since it was approaching 10:00 (quiet hours).

We moved to the auditorium, laughed as Carl played I'm On A Boat and cried tears of joy as Jeff played Maggie Mae. Yu-Son surprised us and hooked up the karaoke for everyone. Michelle and I sang quite a few songs (horribly) and then proceeded to be background dancers for all of the other singers. Everyone finished singing...but the party didn't stop there!

Suddenly, a huge group of people piled into the auditorium to join us for a dance party on the stage. People were getting all crazy up in here! Yeah, I just said that. The camp staff turned on stage lights and blasted American Hip Hop music. Campers were bumping and grinding up on each other within the conservative Korean culture...it was really entertaining to watch people go crazy. This is what happens when people in quarantine drink soju.


P.S. We found a giant spider and some crazy girl decided to pick it up and let it crawl all over her arm. I took advantage of the situation and snapped some photos.

Glorious Day

The best way to start this blog is to just say it...today was AWESOME!


I woke up refreshed and we were served another very special hot dog breakfast. The eggs on the side were pretty tasty. :)


After breakfast we enjoyed a presentation of Korean music. It was fascinating! We sang in Korean, played drums and danced. All of the campers were enthusiastic about participating which made it even more fun. During the break we did Korean chair exercises...yep, it's as entertaining as it sounds. Since then, Michelle, Susan and I have been putting on spontaneous chair exercising performances for others around us...I think they really like it. I think they also really like it when we sing awful Black-Eyed Peas songs in the cafeteria during lunch. Hey, we are just trying to help everyone enjoy their quarantine!


Fortunately, today I was also able to practice my disc-throwing with Lindsey. We played with some laid back guys and they were patient with our less than graceful disc skills.


Being stuck in this building with nothing to do has, surprisingly, not been terrible. Everyone has an attitude that says, "We're all in this together, so let's make the best of it." We find ways to enjoy ourselves with making each other laugh, sharing stories, pictures, watching youtube videos. It's amazing how we all just seem to have an incredible time even under our circumstances. Can we continue to do this until Sunday? I don't know...we'll find out.


Our next exciting event was a hike through the forests of Wando. The views were gorgeous and the pictures don't quite capture it. We hiked to the top of a hill and found a beautiful gazebo. Most of the campers headed back to the camp but Michelle, Shannon and I said, "ONWARD"...I like to make things sound way more exciting than they actually are.

We continued on our journey through forests and man-made waterfalls then found a ton of beautiful Korean architecture. We strolled through some beautiful gardens with trees and flowers we had never seen. There were beautiful dragonflies everywhere and we took our shoes off to walk through a stream of clear water. Then we made our way up to an amazing wooden house with gorgeous pillars and awesome doors. There was a nice looking Korean man walking slowly around the building...he must have decided to take a relaxing walk around on his lunch break. We had a moment of silence while taking in all of the beauty around us. Just as we prepared to take a picture, the man walked passed us let a loud one rip.


To end the night, the camp staff set up a karaoke party for us. It was a lot of fun and Michelle put on an adorable performance as she sang Pasty Cline for us. :) Look forward to the picture of her singing in tomorrow's blog...which I supposed for you would be today. Also stay tuned to see how we will celebrate a birthday in quarantine! Michelle's Birthday is tomorrow and I'm looking forward to seeing just how fun we can make the day for our little Magical Unicorn.

Anyong-he-kaseyo

Say It Ain't So

Twenty-Four straight hours of travelling and I will inevitably color a picture of multi-colored snakes! Nice right? After 11 hours on the airplane (Michelle and I were able to con the airport check-in people into letting us sit next to each other) we arrived at the airport of Seoul. I've decided Seoul is the coolest name ever by-the-way. The airport was packed with beautiful Koreans...not kidding, the women here are gorgeous! Sorry guys, didn't take pictures of them since I thought that might be a little creepy...

Next, we boarded a bus and drove for five hours. Need I say more?

Finally, we arrived in Wando and set up camp. The Wando campsite is where we will stay for the first week during orientation. We woke up the next morning and found out some special surprise information: WE ARE IN QUARANTINE FOR THE REST OF THIS WEEK SO THAT WE DON'T PASS THE SWINE FLU TO THE KOREANS! YAY!!! We get to stay in a dirty, old and under construction building! There is literally nothing to do expect for talk to other campers, walk around outside, and use the internet. If we go outside we are not to speak to or be seen by Koreans. The picture of the concrete building is our resort. It's actually a university for Korean students. I'm not sure how often it is used though...

There are two groups of campers along in this program: the Portland Group and the Missouri Group. The Portland Group is somewhat more conservative and the Missouri Group is pretty...hmm...for lack of a better word, outgoing. Sometimes I just sit back and enjoy the entertainment of the other campers. For some reason, I was really surprised to see how many single people are in this program. There are only a handful of people that are in relationships or are married.

My room is pretty decent. It has A/C and its own bathroom. I just need to make sure to remember the rules, "TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES!!" I was super embarrassed when I was shouted at, after marching into my room with my LA Gears...yeah that's right, they still make them and, according to me are still cool! Yu-son, my roommate is a twenty-one year old university student from Seoul. She's the one with the T-shirt. :) Like teenage girls, we stay up all night long talking and laughing.

While living in quarantine, there is not much to update you on except for the little things that have happened so far this week...

In the mornings, I usually, consciously, sleep through hot dog and iceberg lettuce breakfasts.

We have taken a couple of insane hikes through the forest and I've discovered the scary amount I am able to sweat. The humidity here has an affect on me that is worrisome. I won't gross you out any further. The hikes are pretty great though.

Michelle and I have fun talking to our husbands and friends over instant message and video chat. Please enjoy the picture of Michelle and Ian making out over video chat.


Food- We are served a lot of fishy things and we often eat off of metal (see photo). They often serve an extremely fishy broth. I took one bite. But hey, at least I gave it a shot.

Bugs- There are a ton of really unique looking moths and butterflies. I have a lot of really nice mosquito bites.

Living situation - Great news! Michelle and I won a coin toss between us and two other campers and get to stay at the same camp next week. It's called Mokpo and its supposed to be pretty cool with lots to do.

Stay tuned...

Perfect Situation

It all started as we were on our way home from Las Vegas in our Pathfinder during Spring Break. Jon, Matt, Sarah and I cruised along I5 listening to our iPods and talked about how much fun we had on our trip.My phone vibrated and up popped a text message from Michelle, one of my best friends. The message said, "Want to teach English in Korea this summer?"

Michelle is a second grade teacher in Woodburn. I met her in PSU Grad School two years ago and I decided that I won't ever be letting go of her. She's pretty much the funniest girl I know and a wonderful friend...


All sorts of thoughts ran through my head as I read the text out loud to Jon.


"When?" I wrote back.

"July 18th - August 18th. It's all paid for through Portland State..."

I had a quick conversation about it with Jon. He ultimately told me, "I'll miss you a lot, but it sounds like an opportunity you shouldn't miss."

"I'M IN!"

So here I am, three months later, packing for a trip I have no clue how to pack for. People ask me all the time, "Have you ever been overseas?" The answer is: never. This will be quite an adventure for me since I have no idea what to expect.

Yesterday I made a trip to Target to buy the things (like toiletries) that I thought I might need for my journey. About halfway into my shopping trip I almost had a nervous breakdown when I realized how full my cart was AND how little my suitcase is AND how I couldn't find the flippin' Earplane plugs for the 11 hour flight! In the midst of my freak-out session, I called my mom about three times and called Lacey twice to complain...I'm pretty sure they now both think I'm insane and incompetent. Lucky for me I am still paying Lacey to be my friend...so we're still on good terms.

Three hours and $200 later, I left the store with bags full of toiletries I may or may not need for my trip. Needless to say Jon was not pleased with my spending...it's okay though, I gave him a hug.

The search for my Earplane plugs is still on.
Without something to open up my itty bitty ear canals, I cannot step aboard a plane. Earplaneless, Michelle would have to watch me curl up into a little ball and lay my head on her lap, at which point she will be SO glad to have invited me on this 5 week adventure with her.

What does all of this have to do with the price of eggs in China? Nothing, but I'm sure you feel closer to me now that you know my ear situation. Yeah.

Things I've realized while packing for Korea:

1) Space Bags are the invention of a genius

2) I have a lot of brown tank tops

3) Having laundry done BEFORE packing is a helpful strategy

4) Gus should definitely come with me....

Next steps...leave PDX at 9:30am on Saturday, fly to Seattle, wait for Michelle's flight to arrive and finally fly to Seoul!