A Little Bit of Culture Shock

It's been one month since I arrived and things have not gone the way I anticipated. Korea is not like I thought it would be but then again I don't really know what I expected. Maybe it was the 6 months of anticipation? I suppose I had this idea that it would be just like any big city transplanted into Asia. It's definitely not like anywhere I have seen before so its hard to explain as I have nothing to compare it to. It is on the biggest scale imaginable. How many skylines can one place have?! I am fairly certain that my first few weeks were filled with some serious culture shock, something I have never experienced upon arrival in a new country. When I first moved to Thailand I was lonely but it was somehow easier as I was so enchanted with my surroundings. Here it is the opposite, I already knew, and have met lots of great people in the city, (and one not so great, but it happens), but was miserable the first few weeks. School also took some getting used to. Things are very chaotic and different than any teaching job I have held. Now that I am getting the hang of it things are much better. I am getting used to the fact that there are no garbage cans, anywhere, and gas mask stations in the subway. The thing is there are about 20 at each so I would more likely die from the mob than the actual gas attack. I suppose these are the Korean equivalent of an old wives tail but believed by many nonetheless: If rain touches your head your hair will fall out, and if you fall asleep with a fan on you will die. One of the first things that struck me was how quick people are to pop off (yea like Jersey). The whole people yelling at strangers thing took some getting used to as Thailand is the extreme opposite. I have gone through the ringer with my washing machine. It is finally being fixed after 6 weeks and quite a few ruined clothes along with a lovely little flood in my apartment. I wasn't greeted with an actual bed and slept on a foam pad on the floor for the first month averaging about 4 hours of sleep per night. Oh yes and I have been to the doctor like five times for everything from digestive issues to a gnarly cough. So here's the good news... It's like a switch flipped and I found my groove. I am finding Korean people lovely and endearing now that I understand them a little better. I know what's going on at school about 86% of the time, and my surroundings are becoming familiar enough that its starting to feel like a home. I really like Korean food too but miss things like green chiles and mac n cheese. Adventures are also good and exploring makes me feel better. The first month of a transition is always the hardest, but this was a doozy.