Video

I just thought I'd post a video of my hagwon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yey9dCMnIrM

Nearing the End

I'm arriving at the end of the tunnel and I can pretty clearly see the light. For months now I've been feeling really good about work and Korea but the last few weeks have really been rough. I've received some really great news about what I'll be doing after my time in Korea. On the other hand I'm finding it hard to enjoy, or even appreciate, much of Korea and it's culture.

I'll start with the negative stuff first so that I can get it out of the way. Just this week I spent an hour after work talking with one of my Korean coteachers. I don't think it would be appropriate to post what we discussed on my blog as it has to do with her personal life. Let me just say that the cultural tradition in Korea of not questioning anything anyone older than you says (especially your boss) has left one of my coworkers feeling awful about her family life and guilty about wanting to leave here job. She wants the best for her family but cannot provide that solely because it would go against the desires (read: demands) of our boss. I am so frustrated with this situation because she is an amazing, intelligent person but my boss is making her feel like she is being a jerk. She is not. I want bad things to happen to that man.

Anyway, there's more frustrating things I could talk about but I'd rather talk about the great news I received last week. I GOT INTO GRADUATE SCHOOL! I'll be completing a Master's degree at Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA. The title of my degree is Master of Arts, Master's International in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. It will consist of one year of course work at Gonzaga then two years in the Peace Corps teaching in a developing country. I don't know where I'll be exactly and won't know for some time but I'm just so excited to know that I'll be spending two full years living and working in another country. Once I'm done with my degree I hope to get a job perhaps in the Middle East or at a University in Asia. This will allow me to pay of my loans quickly while also working towards my life goal of living on every continent. So far I've lived in North America, Europe, South America, and Asia. So I have Africa and Australia (and maybe Antartica) to go.

I'm lucky enough to have an amazing Aunt and Uncle who have offered to let me stay at their place while I'm studying. I'm very excited to get to be closer to them since we've always lived quite far from each other and have only seen each other every few years since I was a child. Thanks Nancy and Dale!

I'm so excited for the next chapters of my life. It is making it hard to focus while I'm here in Korea but luckily I only have 76 days left until my visa expires! (Not that I'm counting) I'm also hoping to write more this year--it's one of my resolutions.

I hope everyone is doing well!
Talk soon! See you soon if you're in Minnesota or Washington/Oregon!

I'll be home for Christmas

It's official. I have my tickets and everything! I'll be seeing all my friends and family in Minnesota for the holidays! Well, technically only one of them since I fly out on New Year's Eve. But I'm still excited. More to come!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I've been out of the country for the last 2 Thanksgivings so I wanted to make sure to send warm wishes to all my family and friends. I hope everyone's holiday season is off to a beautiful start. I wish I could be home for the holidays...if only in my dreams...

Miss you and love you!

Getting better

Hey all,

I never write, I know. Sue me.

I'm feeling much better since my last post. Things are looking up and I'm even enjoying my job! We had a teacher's workshop a week or so ago and it was actually quite helpful. It really put me in much better spirits about teaching and Korea. I just hope this holds through the end of my contract.

Since the workshop I've been spending a lot more time planning out my classes and just more time at work in general. Sometimes we put so much energy into thinking about why we dislike something that if we used that energy to enjoy what we do have thing would equal out more. That's what I was doing. I focused far too much energy on all the little things I hated about my job/boss/Korea that I overlooked all the awesome things. Most days I spend about an hour at school after my last class planning for the next day--something I never used to do. It's made my days much smoother and more enjoyable. The head teacher has definitely noticed and is trying to convince me to stay another year. So I must be doing something right!

Our Halloween party at work required draining hours of extra work outside of the regular schedule and during our normal breaks but it was a huge success. We made a pretty cool haunted house/maze out of cardboard boxes for the kids and they all seemed to enjoy it. The kindergarten kids all the way to the middle schoolers went through and everyone came out smiling. But man, I slept well that night.

Yesterday, we all celebrated Halloween in Busan. It was great! So many people (Koreans and foreigners) were dressed up, dancing, and having a great time. I went as a mummy and was probably stopped about 40 times by strangers to have my picture taken with them. I don't think Koreans celebrate Halloween much and certainly don't dress up as mummies often so it was quite unique for them I suppose. There were so many fun outfits though!

Tonight we watched a scary movie at a DVD bong (instead of renting movies it is more common in Korea to rent a private room where they have DVDs for you to watch on pretty amazing home entertainment systems. It's actually quite fun and since the apartments here are rarely more than a room with a separate bathroom it's nice to get out of it from time to time.

Well, I'm off to get ready for bed. The week starts bright and early tomorrow!

PS Thanks to everyone who sent me a letter or package. I loved all of them even if I didn't write back! I'm so horrible at that but I still intend to!

Feeling down.

Work's been getting to me lately. I'm growing to really dislike my time here in Korea which isn't fun. My weekends and vacations are golden and I haven't felt like I've been able to relax much in the past few weeks. To top it off, I injured my left elbow somehow and haven't been able to go to the gym or do yoga until just the last week and a half. Also, I have had to take a break from running as I was starting to get some shin splints and don't want to exasperate the injury. I haven't ran in a week but will probably start again this week.

I had a nice weekend this weekend. I did a hike up to the top of a small mountain in Busan where I saw some cool (though I doubt authentic) sculpture in the rocks--a kind of outdoor altar. I went with a couple I met at the Temple stay I did a few weeks back. They are good people and it's nice to have friends outside of Gimhae to go visit.

Anyway, if you love me and want to put a smile on my face I'd love to hear it or get a postcard/letter/anything in the mail! (hint, hint!) I promise to respond quickly!

I hope you are all well!

Love, Zach

Zach Wegner

Noblesse BL. 5F 1145-2 Nae-Dong

Gimhae-shi, Kyoungsangnam-do, Korea

Summer

The past few months have been interesting to say the least. I've been able to experience a few unique things about Korea--both good and bad. A typhoon came through, I stayed a weekend at a Buddhist temple, and work has been less than pleasurable.

The typhoon ended up being more hype than anything. There was some strong wind and a lot of rain, lightning, and thunder, but nothing more than one might experience several times during any given Minnesota summer. There have been a few more recently. In fact, Typhoon Malou just swept through the Korea Strait last night. There was some rain but it wasn't like the Typhoon that hit us. Afterward, in an attempt to capture some of the effects on film, I went for a walk with my camera. I had gone for a jog right before and saw somethings I wanted to get on film so I can officially say I ran 5 kilometers through the aftermath of a typhoon. The storm knocked down some trees (all of which were poorly and freshly planted along the street) and there were branches and leaves everywhere. An interesting experience, I'm still waiting to experience a really strong one.

A few weekends ago I spent the weekend at a Buddhist temple. It was a refreshing experience and I'm glad I did it. We practiced meditation, experienced a typical meal of a Buddhist monk/nun, and woke up at 4am to do 108 bows--a great workout. All in all, I loved the experience but have no plans on pursuing Buddhism as a way of life. Nothing I like about Buddhism necessitates Buddhism and, like every religion, its adherents have some pretty crazy beliefs. One of the guides (not a monk himself) at the temple believed that his son was saved from being hit by a car that passed right behind them on a crosswalk simply because he does 108 bows on occasion.

I don't want to talk much about work because it's really not enjoyable at the moment. We are worked long hours with no extra pay even when extra classes are added. There is no way out of the work except to just leave the country because our visas are connected directly to our employers and not to the field. For example, even if another school was hiring and I applied and got the job, I would still have to leave the country for at least a few days in order to end the current visa with my employer. There is the option to transfer the visa, I think, but private academy directors in Korea are notoriously assholes and ours is no different.

Anyway, I hope everyone is well! Miss you!