Yes, it's true...I graduated our Korean language program!! I definitely didn't earn any awards, and in fact did miserably on our final exam, but I passed, and I know I did the best job I could. Languages just aren't my thing, I guess. We had a pretty lavish ceremony this morning, with speakers from Korea University (where our sonsangnims teach) and the Fulbright Office. The infamous Mrs. Shim was supposed to attend, but evidently she was not feeling well this morning, so another man came in her place. According to Aimee, our Orientation coordinator, this behavior is not characteristic of Mrs. Shim and is in fact quite worrisome. I suppose we will find out more next week, perhaps, when we are in Seoul. The man who replaced her was the single worst speaker I have ever encountered. It was PAINFUL. I have no idea how Stanford could possibly justify its decision to grant him a PhD. His speech was so disorganized and jumbled, not to mention irrelevant, that I tuned out almost right away. I cannot believe this guy represents America and is in this powerful post in Korea. Seriously...it was terrible.
This ceremony was my first glimpse into the competitive Korean mentality. I had heard a lot about academic competition here, but hadn't yet seen it in action. It is INTENSE. There was an award given in all six classes to the best student and I guess we were supposed to be competing for it. I personally tried to do my best for my own sake and didn't need competition as an incentive, but I guess that's how things operate in Korea. It's very strange and I don't think I like it. On the positive side, I did get a really impressive graduation document that I think is even nicer than the one I received from Pomona! It's bright red and fuzzy. Too bad it has my lousy grades in the inside.
I also experienced the Korean gift-giving culture in its full form. We have been giving so many gifts lately--to teachers and even our TKD instructors! It's actually kinda fun...I like the idea of being part of a culture that gives random, spontaneous gifts. It seems very considerate and caring. Not that I didn't receive gifts at home, but they were usually only from my family. Our teacher gave each of us a Korea University binder and T-shirt. They are both really nice.
Two guys in the beginning classes gave speeches in Korean, and I should have been able to understand them, but my listening skills are basically nonexistent. I did, after all, get a C+ on the listening section of our exam. They sounded good, though. The intermediate class had a speaker, too, but I definitely did not pick up on a single word he spoke. They also sang a really pretty traditonal Korean folk song. The advanced class made a PowerPoint presentation of our Orientation and spoke about it. It was really impressive. If I can get a hold of it, I will post it for you all. It gives a better picture of Orientation and the other ETAs than all the words I have written here.
For lunch, the cafeteria prepared a surprise for us--FRUIT!!! As much as we wanted!! Usually we are limited to a single piece because fruit is so expensive here, but we got a table full of grapes, watermelon, bananas, and half-ripe peaches in celebration of our accomplishments. There were also some dessert-like rice cakes and pseudo-cookies. It was really nice. It was too bad the normal lunch was terrible, but at least I got some vitamins along with my soy sauce!
This afternoon we had our last workshop together. It was about our first week teaching and gave us some tips for making it successful. It was informative, I guess, but I think I'll have to dumb it down a lot for my elementary kids. The problem was that all the OCs had high school students, and though they might be low level, they will definitely be ahead of my kids, I think.
I also bought a microphone/headphones headset so I can use Skype now. It's an internet program that allows you to make free calls from your computer. I think I am also going to download SkypeIn, which gives me a U.S. phone number that you all can use to call me without incurring international phone charges. I'll send all that contact info in a later email when I know my new address, too.
Tonight I am going out to dinner with all the TKD people and our instructors. I think it will be really fun. After that, I am either going to a movie or watching one here in the dorm. I want to get a lot of sleep because I am leaving tomorrow morning at 7 to spend the day at a national park. I should probably find out at some point where it is, because right now I have no idea. We're just going for the day and I'm really looking forward to it. My foot is looking better and though I'm sure it will hate me tomorrow night, I'm going anyway. I'm just going to wrap it in an Ace bandage and hope that my shoes provide the support it needs.
Cheers!