Where are we going?

Well, kindly, EPIK decided it was best withhold from all us teachers our final destination until the second last day of orientation. This caused for many anxious conversations as although we knew what province we would be in, with 200 plus teachers going there we had no idea where we would be placed. I think Garry secretly hoped that we might be placed in different towns so that he could get some peace but alas, we finally learned that we were both to spend a year in POHANG!

On the map it is South East.


This was quite amusing for me as when I had been applying for jobs in Korea, I had been offered a private job in Pohang but had not gone through with it as EPIK had offered me a position. We were given our school names which were quickly googled and hilariously they could not be closer! Poor Garry. We were given new contracts and signed them quickly. We were then sent off to the closing ceremony (yes, with more Korean “delicacies” = hungry Monica) before our 3 hour bus to Gumi the next day to meet our co-teacher.

Definition of co-teacher = a co-teacher is a Korean teacher who is based in your school and given the job of assisting/managing you in your year in Korea. You will usually teach some classes with this person but not always and not all classes. They are paid no extra money for helping you so small bribes are recommended throughout the year. Many EPIK teachers report that your relationship with your co-teacher can make or break your school experience.



Here are some pics of a night out learning ‘Farkle’ - a dice game that our friends Katy and Danny from Coloroda taught us during orientation. Oh, and you can also see beer and soju - a traditional Korean alcohol made from rice, its about 20% alcohol and tastes like watered down vodka.