I'll Be Seeing you on the Flip Side

The advent of my departure upon me I can’t help but be simply astonished by how incredibly lucky and blessed I am. That’s all that trails through my thoughts; it’s consistently in the smiles I receive and the conversations and relationships I have. I am not one to ever come up short with my words but I cannot express how deeply humbled I am by the relationships I have with those around me. From my parents who have a sometimes unorthodox way of showing their support to my younger sisters who I know are watching my next few moves closely to gage how badly I am going to screw this one up, to my amazingly supportive and mind-blowing friends. Not to forget my extended family from all walks who have given great advice along the way. I want everyone to know without you I would not be able to start the next chapter of my life. I look back on the last 9 years of my life, high school and University and don’t know really how to put it all in perspective, especially with what is coming up next. I am torn, it is going to be insanely difficult to get on that plane and leave all of it, the hard work, the accomplishments, the failures behind and just go. There is no choice for me though. It is no secret that I have an

amazing support network but I think to truly find myself I have to leave it and embark on something completely my own and I feel selfish, I do but I hope you can understand. I have always struggled with my identity if you are close to me you know that. I have coped journaling, writing was my way to free myself from that frustration. Korea could be a solution and that is thrilling to me. The best way to articulate what I have to say next is to be grossly descriptive. Bare with me. Leaving everything familiar is an excuse to test my being. Pretty heavy I know, but let me break it down, if you’ve read this far you can spare I few more moments. I have spent the last let’s say 9 years, to be fair, constructing me. I can take this ‘me’ this version to Korea and test it. My functionality as a human I guess. It is an opportunity to really push my being and test my boundaries. I can see how well I well I can network, how well I can teach, how well I choose my friends- everything sans influence, completely solo. That being said it is no coincidence that I have chosen to even travel by myself. I have always had someone to do anything I need for me. My father even takes my car to wash it. So lame. I envy people, friends and relatives who have no quarry in themselves, are happy with where they are because they seem peaceful. I am always looking for that peace. My head never stops spinning. In Korea I hope to find some semblance of that groundedness and bring it back with me! I am going to miss everyone so much but I know you will all be here when I get back and that gives me all the strength I will need to get on that plane. Whether a new friend, an old friend, a friend of a friend, someone I casually dated or seriously dated, relative, mom or dad, sisters- if you have wished me well thank you so much. You’ve all added something to this. Hopefully this insight will get some people to think about travelling as well because if there is one solid I have learned it is that feelings are more universal then any of us believe or even acknowledge. We all go through the same doubts, fears, growths anxieties etc. The reason I choose to write about myself is to let those people who fret to know they are not alone. Having someone there, sharing your experiences can mean the difference between doing it the hard way or being convinced and having resolve that everything will be okay.

And just so you know, everything is going to be just fine. I will miss you all.
Yours, Dominique

Updated Map Info... Relocated to a New City

I think it is finally safe to say I am flying out to the southwest of Korea on the first week of March. I have updated and circled map info so you all know 'exactly' where I am if you want to visit! Also I put in some crazy pictures of the school I am going to be teaching at. Gwangju (the new city) is Korea's 6th largest city by population but is known as their cultural capital. There are a number of large national festivals that are held by the city. They also play host to many stars! There's epic hiking trails, 20 minute ride to the surf and it stays relatively warm in the winter (yaya). That being said, I am finding it easier to get information on this city, especially when it comes to teaching. I guess some good can come from surprise turn-a-rounds.
First impression- everything seems very animated! Western folk seem boring in comparison.


I can't wait to go hiking and it is no surpris that my weekends will be spent on the beach. I am getting pretty excited with Spring just around the corner! Not much else to add right now but I think the CEO of iSponge is hilarious with those balloons! I haven't figured out how to put captions on these pictures yet. i'll get around to it haha.
Keep fingers and toes crossed that nothing else changes!
Lovelovelove,
PL&H

The term 'this blows' comes to mind when I think of how long this Korean application process is taking. It has been a little less than two weeks since I received my offer and besides all my documentation arriving safely, (thank you UPS tracking) nothing else has happened. Nothing. Unbeknownst to me, Koreans celebrate Chinese New Years and their offices are closed. What's worse is the celebration is so rambunctious that my contact didn't provide and exact date as to when she would be back to work. When I think of all the effort and money I have exhausted putting my hiring and immigration papers together it really pisses me off that this agency wouldn't put a little more effort into getting me there faster.
The list of expenses so far are as follows:

6 copies of my transcript: 5o dollars

2 copies of my degree: 60 dollars

criminal back ground check: 10 dollars

lawyer fee: 40 dollars

renew passport: 110 dollars

2 sets of passport photos: 45 dollars
trip to Toronto to see the consulate: 20 dollars

shipping to Korea costs: 70 dollars
$405 Dollars... ugh!!
Some are incidental but as you can see it all adds up. Then I had to spend a whole day putting my mailing package together which included these items:
Two copies of my contact, filled out, initialed, signed, dated
E2 health statements
2 unopened transcripts
notarized copy of my criminal background check
my original degree (the two copies ended up being a waste of money)
two new passport photos
and a scanned image of my passport
It is a huge undertaking. I will be the first to admit that I didn't think the process would be this invasive. I now have to wait 1o business days for my papers to be approved which means I won't be leaving Canada until early March. Much later than I had originally anticipated. Minor speed bump and opportunity to save more money aside, people learn from this!


Peace, Love & Harmony

Daegu, Darling!

Ahh, so much to share with everyone. As you may already know I have been offered a contract with a school in Daegu. It is a starter school, catering to children between the ages of 3-9. I am thrilled. Round trip airfare is provided assuming of course I complete my one year contract. The start date is February 17th and while I might not make it for that exact date I will be there shortly after. The school is called Isponge. It is a medium-sized franchised private institution which has been around in some parts of Korea for 10 years. They adhere to a more holistic approach to teaching the kids English. In short I will be doing alot of talking and encouraging my students to be talking aloud, in English, in group settings. Their aim as a school is to take the fear out of speaking English from the very beginning. I have had many interviews with schools and recruitment agencies and one question stuck with me... why the push for so many native English speaking teachers. They have excellent qualified Korean English teachers. I asked on of the recruitment reps in my last interview and she replied simply 'competition'. Koreans are naturally competitive people and they have fallen back in the race to make spoken English vast in their country. The push to gather native English speakers has gone so far that the ministry of education in South Korea has a mandate in place to secure a native English speaking teacher in every single on of its schools across the country! Unfortunately their country has some remote spots and islands that probably, with only 20 students, will never see a foreigner. One upsetting thing I discovered is that an acceptable form of punishment for misbehaving students is to hit them... really old school mentality in that regard. Hopefully I won't fall into the habit! Joke.

Anyway, Daegu. A large metropolitan city with about the same population as Toronto. You can check it out in more detail here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daegu. Located inland, in the southeast corner of Korea it apparently is some crazy hub of medical and surgical research. Good to know, I am pretty clumsy!

In terms of immigration I have received all the documentation I need to get there I just have to get stuff notarized by a lawyer and the Korean Consulate. Pending some small details I should be there within 2 1/2 weeks!

Life is exciting again. Any questions ask, ask, ask... see if I can't recruit some more teachers!

P,L&H