my home is not a place, it is people

Learning Spanish was supposed to be learning a foreign language, but Spanish is such an American language; Mexican culture is so much a part of ours now. So much so that I bought a Mexican style poster for my apartment in Seoul, my logic being it would make me feel less homesick. And when I lived in London eating Mexican food was a way to ease homesickness. Anyway, learning Spanish was more like learning a different language, especially compared to learning Korean, which is a real foreign language.

So, one of the most appealing things about going to live in such a foreign and different country is that it will be almost like visiting a whole other planet. And that, my friends, will be almost like living in a sci-fi or fantasy book! (It's hard to be unapologetic about being a nerd, but I will try.) Below is one of the passages that has stuck with me for years and years. It evokes the feeling that inspires me to want to travel. See a new place for the first time and you see the world in a whole new light, for a moment you feel like you're seeing the world for the first time, but it's actually just another piece of the puzzle. Then it's really a profound moment when you consider your own place on this planet, in this time. That's exactly why this passage is so perfect:

He found his hearing and other senses sharpened. He could smell the trees and the trodden grass. He could hear many different notes in the rustle of the leaves overhead, the river murmuring away on his right, and the thin clear voices of birds in the sky. He felt the sun upon his face and hands when they passed through an open glade.

As soon as he set foot upon the far bank a strange feeling had come upon him, and it deepened as he walked on: it seemed to him that he had stepped over a bridge of time into a corner of the Elder Days, and was now walking in a world that was no more. In Rivendell there was memory of ancient things; in Lórien the ancient things still lived on in the waking world.

…The others cast themselves down upon the fragrant grass, but he stood awhile still lost in wonder. It seemed to him that he had stepped through a high window that looked on a vanished world. A light was upon it for which his language had no name. All that he saw was shapely, but the shapes seemed at once clear cut, as if they had been first conceived and drawn at the uncovering of his eyes, and ancient as if they had endured for ever. He saw no colour but those he knew, gold and white and blue and green, but they were fresh and poignant, as if he had at that moment first perceived them and made for them names new and wonderful. In winter here no heart could mourn for summer or for spring. No blemish or sickness or deformity could be seen in anything that grew upon the earth. On the land of Lórien there was no stain.

He turned and saw that Sam was now standing beside him, looking round with a puzzled expression, and rubbing his eyes as if he was not sure that he was awake. `It's sunlight and bright day, right enough,' he said. `I thought that Elves were all for moon and stars: but this is more Elvish than anything I ever heard tell of. I feel as if I was inside a song, if you take my meaning.'

...Though he walked and breathed, and about him living leaves and flowers were stirred by the same cool wind as fanned his face, he felt that he was in a timeless land that did not fade or change or fall into forgetfulness. When he had gone and passed again into the outer world, still Frodo the wanderer from the Shire would walk there, upon the grass among elanor and niphredil in fair Lothlórien.

Yes, it's shocking how dorky I am. Anyway, this is how I often feel when I travel. The novelty is so beautiful to take in. I fondly remember when I saw the Houses of Parliament on the Thames for the very first time. Took my breath away like never before. The golden towers glittered with the sun and contrasted blazingly against the blue sky. This sort of feeling happened pretty often that semester, almost every time I saw a new area of the city for the first time. Discovering new places is like a fairy tale. Traveling - seeing any new place - is like living in a dream.

I should explain the title of my blog. My brothers and I have a sort of inside joke ever since Ryan decided one day to shout, "STAY IN THIS LANE!" when I first started driving. I was just learning so of course I was completely traumatized and almost crashed the car. Now we'll randomly shout it on long road trips and such, to the dismay of whoever's driving. My brothers are my favorite people in the world and always will be, so the title will basically be a little reminder of them and of home.

But the title means something else. Not switching lanes while driving is essentially the safest way to go. But living that way is...well, I'm sure you get the point. Leaving home to go to a country where I know nothing and no one (not to mention the ever-present threat of North Korea!) is like switching lanes. So my title is also a reminder of my decision to live a little dangerously.

don't forget to write

Once upon a time, there was a woman who discovered she had turned into the wrong person. -Anne Tyler

I'm finally doing it. I have been thinking about it for a year now, and I know I would have always wondered "what if" if I didn't go. There are around 50,000 expatriates living in South Korea, so I know I'm not alone and this plan isn't that crazy. It's pretty safe for an adventure.

I'm excited about living in a big city again. Ever since I left London I've wished I could move back, and I have a feeling I'll feel the same about Seoul when I leave. The good thing about that is Seoul is much less expensive than London so I can stay for two years if I want, or longer. I could even try Shanghai or Hong Kong or Tokyo if I never get tired of being a poor traveling English teacher.

Getting a job to teach in Korea isn't too difficult. All you need is a recruiting agency, unless you want to do an overseas job search all by yourself (and I know some people actually choose this route). I found a company in Canada that basically does all the work for me. There are a lot of agencies based in Korea; this was the only one I found based in an English-speaking country. The agency will get paid by the school for finding me, so it's an extremely helpful service that doesn't cost me anything. The people who run the agency used to teach English in Korea, they've been through the same thing I will go through, and they help me step by step through each part of the process.

So, if you meet the following requirements you can teach in Korea (and probably China and Japan):

-have a four-year degree in any major
-don't have a criminal background
-have a passport (or plan to get one quickly)
-are a native English speaker from America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, or South Africa

Essentially, the only thing I needed to do is to pay for my own criminal background check. They need that now in order to get my visa, but until recently it was even easier to get a teaching job in Korea because the background check is a pretty new requirement. I had to go to Reisterstown, which is a couple hours away, to get fingerprinted and to purchase the background check. Tomorrow I go to Annapolis to get an apostille for that check, which arrived in the mail a week after I paid for it. This has been the hardest part, and while it is inconvenient, it is easy too, so I can't complain. Overall the process has been just like—if not easier than—applying to study abroad.

I know one of the last steps is going to be to go to the Korean Embassy in DC to get an interview with a consulate, and that will probably be the hardest step. It is just as new as the background check. Before recently you didn't need to do this either, but the Korean government is making it slightly more difficult after discovering there were people teaching English who had created fake diplomas or had criminal backgrounds.

Anyway, this is what I've done so far to get ready:

I have two travel guides for South Korea, one for Seoul, one Korean phrasebook, and a book on Korean customs to help prevent horrible culture shock. I'm waiting for one book about women traveling alone to come in the mail. There are a lot of books written on this topic, which gives me courage to go for it.

Learning Korean will be like learning Spanish, only with an extra step because I have to learn a new alphabet first. I have Rosetta Stone and have already started teaching myself the alphabet. I still only know how to say a few words and phrases, but learning how to read the language has helped a lot even though I have no idea what what I'm reading means yet.

I made a packing list with basically a year supply of anything I know they don't sell over there. Every website with advice on what to bring made sure I knew they don't wear or sell deodorant in Korea. I wasn't surprised, though, because my Korean friends over the years have already told me they don't need it because they just don't get B.O.

I'm going to be writing this blog to help me remember everything for when I'm an old lady, because I wish I had done something like this when I was in London. I'm also going to use this to keep in touch with family and friends. So far away from home, I figure I will feel closer to the people I love knowing they are reading this. I'll write more soon. Within a couple weeks I should know details about where I'll be living and working in Korea.