Goodbye Lorla Teacher

Not sure how I feel about writing this post. It will be my last one here in Korea before I start my German adventure. These past few weeks have been full of "Holy cow do I really only have 2 weekends left?" and "Don't worry, I have 10 days to see you!" and "Wow my apartment looks horrible when all the pictures come down...". The packing has started, my desk at school is looking quite bare, and my goodbye letters are written. It is a bit strange being on the leaving end of the goodbye parties after being the one to send people off for the past 2 years.

This weekend began with a get together on Friday night full of good food and amazing friends. We ate, skyped with Kaitie and Amanda, and got manicures from Alex.

These are some of the best coworkers I could ever ask for. They are patient, kind, incredibly smart, and caring for all of the students and teachers who they work with. They took me under their wings and helped me during my first year, and we have gotten closer and closer as time has gone by. I wish I could work with them forever. If you all could come to Germany with me that would be great.

The next morning, I woke up and met Liz and Alex to have the day together out in Seoul. Our first stop was the Bakers Table near Noksapyeong station. I had been before and was in heaven with the delicious (non sweet) bread and muesli. For those of you who miss a good sandwich, you should check it out!

This picture was before a very exciting part of our lunch. We had a pigeon who decided to fly into the restaurant then proceed to crash into the window over my head and land right in the center of our table, dancing around on the plates. I was lucky enough to see the pigeon coming towards our table (well maybe lucky isn't the word), so I could prepare myself. By 'prepare myself', of course, I mean covering my head with my arms and curling up into the fetal position on my chair. Liz jumped up and screamed, as the pigeon flew right over her shoulder, and Alex, who was wielding her fork in hopes of taking a bite of schnitzel, jumped back holding the fork in her hands- perhaps to defend herself? The pigeon, after skating around in balsamic oil, slid under our table, perplexed at why he couldn't go through the strange clear boundary that looked like it would lead outside. As all the Koreans in the restaurant formed a 2 meter boundary around our table, a nice foreign guy stepped up to try and get the confused (and probably concussed) bird outside of the restaurant. Unsure of what to do next, Liz, Alex and I stood up to see what they would tell us about our uninvited, feathery, lunch guest. As we waited, however, it became apparent that they were not planning on talking to us. The waitresses and other help avoided our eyes as they busied themselves with other guests. Eventually, one waiter told us we could leave. It was a bit unceremonious. Felt a bit like it was our fault the pigeon was hoping to fly through glass and bathe in our food. A free lunch is a free lunch though and definitely a story to tell the grandkids (or at least the friends).

We calmed our nerves by walking around Itaewon. We went into a book shop and then probably every bakery along the road to take a look. Alex has this 6th sense for bakeries. She knows where all the best ones are. We walked along and then a cafe caught our eye. "Mug for Rabbit" highlights odd flavored lattes, such as wasabi, ginger, and rabbit (lets hope its not real rabbit...). They had adorable cupcakes and a lot of bingsu options as well. It was a perfect place to sit and relax for a bit, especially for rabbit teacher!

 

 

After another bakery (yep.) we parted ways and I headed to meet a group of friends at Petra up on the hill back by Noksapyeong. Having tried a large majority of the Arabic restaurants in Itaewon, I think Petra is definitely the best. The food is heavenly and the atmosphere is cozy. Once everyone arrived I looked around and was surrounded by nearly 20 people all who I had met through different circumstances, talking together and sharing the evening with me. I'm so lucky to have met everyone here. I'll have friends all over the world after I leave, and I can't even begin to describe how happy that makes me.

 

 

 

 

The whole night was full of great friends, awesome dance moves, and shoving my fingers in my ears saying, "NO no no we aren't saying goodbye no no no I-cant-hear-you-lalalalalalalalala". I held myself together surprisingly all night. I refused to spend my last time out with friends with tears rolling down my face. I think forcing it to stay inside backfired on me however, as this morning it came out of my eyes like waterfalls. I was sitting, preparing for my day of packing, when suddenly I started balling and couldn't stop. Skyping with Beth and the family made it better (or worse) as they comforted me with the fact that it will all work out. I should only worry about the things in my control, and do one thing at a time. Breathing was also on the list on things to do. That tends to be important.

For the next week, along with breathing, I will be introducing two new foreign teachers to our school and preparing them for their contracts this next year! It is exciting to have the opportunity to do this one more time before I go. I know they will be great. Also, I have two more graduate courses starting up, so I can add that to the list. I should really try to be more productive and busy huh? I'm becoming lazy with age.

The next time you read this I'll be in Europe!!

Korean of the Phrase:
독일에 김치를 찾을 수 있서요?
(dokilae kimchileul chacheul su iseoyo)
"Can I find kimchi in Germany?