Didn't really sleep last night...maybe for 45 minutes! Up at 2:45 AM to make it to the airport for 4. Leaving the house was sad for me...it was hard to say bye to all my babies...Winnie, Dudley and Lucy. Gave them each one last pat and treat...and that was it. :(
Just mom and dad came to the airport. I didn't really expect anyone else to at that hour!!!! ha ha Went to check in...and thank God my bags were under the weight restriction!!!! I actually could have packed a few more things! I grabbed a bite to eat at Tim's before I headed off to security. This is where me, mom and dad parted. We gave each other big hugs and said our goodbyes...of course there were tears too. Not too many...I thought i would be a wreck...and I am sure I would have been if I weren't sooo tired...but I was exhausted and hadn't even stepped on the plane for the 24 hour trip around the world!!!
Got through security just fine....no forks stuck in my hoodie (inside joke)! ha ha Then I boarded the plane...it was weird. It felt like I was only going away on another quick trip. I don't think the reality set in for a long time....it still hasn't really.
Arrived in T.O and had the quick one hour stop over...pretty much just enough time to get to my next gate, and go pee. IHopped aboard...I was soo psyched to be getting breakfast on this flight! Yummy...pancakes...my fav! I settled in for the 5 hour flight...managed to make it through despite a screeching toddler 2 rows back! Earphones come in handy sometimes! Watched a movie and listened to some tunes...it was a long five hours. And I was anxious to meet up with Colleen. I was at the gate in Vancouver and already I was the minority. It definitely puts things in perspective.
Anyway, about and hour later I see Colleen and her four carry-on bags coming my way! Our flight was delayed a bit so we went and browsed through the airport.
Finally, it was time to board the plane for Korea. This was it. 13 hours in flight....yikes! Turns out the flight was fine...long...but fine. A few movies and a few meals and we were here...standing in an airport on the other side of the world. The reality was starting to sink in.
We met up with two other "western" guys who we later found out were also teaching at our school. So we made our way through immigration together and went to find the person at the arrivals gate holding our names on a big piece of paper (you know, like in the movies!) We met our guide...his name was Bruce...he is part of the Korean staff at our school.
He piles all four of us, plus himself and ALL of our luggage in a taxi van. Man it was a tight squeeze. You're talking about two girls moving to the other side of the earth for a year...you can imagine the luggage! Anyway, it took us about an hour to get into the city...traffic was insane, it being a Friday night...and the driving here is retarded in general anyway!
We slowly made our way to Itaewon (pronounced E-tay-won), where will would be living for the next 12 months. We were orignally told we would be living elsewhere, but whatever. So, the cab turns off the main drag and starts heading up this ally-way. Colleen and I are looking at each other like...holy shit....where the hell are we living? Honestly, it looked scary. First of all the ally was so narrow that no normal person back in Canada would even THINK of bringing their car there. Koreans are some of the worst drivers, but also some of the best...they can squeeze through anywhere.
Anywho, not only is this ally narrow, but it is like climbing Mount Everest. I honestly don't know how the car didn't flip over backward....it is soooo steep. No learning to drive a standard around here.
Finally the taxi stopped and we hopped out, unloaded our bags and prepared for the worst. We opened the door and almost fell over! The apartment was actually nice!!!! I'd say better than nice actually. Way more than we had expected. Three bedrooms for two of us, a nice siced living room etc. We were pretty stoked.