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@teachingallnations
It's the picture that all my fellow EPIKers have seen/posted themselves in the last several weeks, but I can't help it! Got my visa today! That's one more passport page filled :D I really want to fill it all up before it expires in 2016.
One. More. Week.
Seven days. And then I’ll be off to Korea for a year. Crazy as it seems, picking up and moving around the world is becoming my “normal.” Packing and unpacking my life, traveling all over to see my family even if for only a day, all the “see you later”s because I don’t do goodbyes, the luggage hauling, airport scrambling, and plane boarding, and the settling into yet another new place…Welcome to my world!
Of course there are always good and not so good things that come with this wandering, nomadic lifestyle, but I’ve found that the good far outweighs the not so good. I know Korea is completely unlike anything I’ve ever experienced, but I’m ready for it. Ready to be stretched to my limit, ready to get a little uncomfortable at times, ready to learn what life is like half -way around the world, ready to understand even better what “My grace is enough for you” really means.
So here’s an update on how things are going: ▪Spent the last several days hopping around from Toledo to Cleveland to Kent and back to Toledo to spend time with family. I’m sooooo thankful this worked out despite the MANY obstacles. ▪Checked my account on Sunday and to my complete surprise my pension money from El Sal was deposited!!! Thank You, Jesus, and thanks to you all for your prayers! ▪Currently on my way to Chicago from Toledo via a greyhound bus. My mom will meet me there and then we’re going to the Korean Consulate to pick up my VISA!! Yeeessss it was already issued and now I just have to pick it up. ▪Tomorrow I hit the ground running with packing and making final preparations before next Wednesday.
So things are finally falling into place and God continually proves to be Faithful and True. Now it’s time to get back to my Korean studies. ^^ 저는 선생님입니다. <— I’m a teacher. Yeeaahh…I should probably learn more practical things like “where’s the bathroom.” About that...
So this has been my method of studying Korean lately. (By the way, if you click on the title in green, it will take you to the site.)
When I was still living in El Sal, I had been taking free Korean classes that a Korean pastor randomly started giving. But after leaving El Sal, I pretty much stopped studying all together and forgot most of what I learned. :/ But I still remembered the alphabet! There are so many good YouTube videos where you can learn how to read hangeul (the Korean alphabet). If you're interested in learning Korean, definitely commit to learning the alphabet first. It's actually REALLY easy compared to other foreign alphabets.
As for this website, Talk To Me In Korean, I definitely recommend it. They have tons of lessons starting from basic and working up to more advanced topics. They make videos and do a great job at making language learning fun. Ever wanted to learn a new language? Why not Korean? Then you can come visit me in Seoul and we can go around speaking Korean together. ^-^ Anyone??
So much to do, so little time!
Only 13 more days before I leave! What?! When did that happen? And every day that passes I keep thinking of the million things left to do. Like pack, make travel arrangements to Ohio to see my family before I leave the country again, go back to Chicago whenever visa is ready, PACK, buy last minute things that'll be hard to find in Korea, review my ESL instruction textbooks because I feel like it's been way too long since I've been a full-time teacher, study Korean, and PACK!!!
Do any of my fellow EPIKers feel like there's just way too much to do before leaving?
And that pension money I've been waiting on from El Sal? Still not here. I'm pretty sure the man handling my case is fed up with how many times I've called him, but really, he's told me several times now "solo unos días más y ya va a estar." Just a few more days has turned into several weeks. I just got off the phone with him and now it apparently will be in my account by next Tuesday. I asked him if he was absolutely sure it would be no later than Tuesday, and he changed his mind and said Wednesday "to be safe."
Please keep praying that the money is deposited soon. There are some things I really wanted to buy before leaving, and I can't make my school loan payment for this month yet until the money arrives. Also, EPIK teachers are supposed to bring $1,000 with them to Korea because we won't get paid until after like 5 weeks of being there. With 13 days to go, my patience and trust are really being tested.
In the mean time, I'm going back to my Korean studies with the hopes that I'll be able to hold a VERY basic conversation by the time I arrive. Lord, help me!
Here's what my flight routes are. Chicago - San Francisco, 1 hour layover, San Francisco - Incheon, Korea. 18 hr. 10 min. in the air!
First Goodbyes, Visa, and Flights... Last Friday was my last day at work. Since September I've been working as a bilingual Teaching Assistant in a small school district here in central Illinois. When I returned from El Salvador last June, I was just hoping to get a decent job that would be enough to pay my monthly school loan payments. I never expected to find a job in a public school since I don't have my teacher's license here, but thankfully you don't need it to be an assistant. I had the opportunity to work with latino kids from kindergarten through 5th grade, and I absolutely loved it! But as always, goodbyes are hard. It wasn't fun having to explain to my students that I wasn't coming back any time soon. But if I'm going to keep moving forward, saying goodbye is something I'm just going to have to accept. Yesterday my dad and I got to enjoy a "father daughter date" in Chicago. We took off early to make the 2.5 hour drive and found the Korean Consulate pretty easily. It's on the 27th floor of the huge NBC Tower. I went in with my passport, visa application, Notice of Appointment, and contract. The lady took everything along with the $45 payment, and told me she'd call within 5-7 days when it's ready! Really it took no time at all for her to check everything over. Now let's just pray that nothing holds up the process and it'll be ready by next week like she said. Being in Chicago, my dad and I had to do lunch Chicago-style. We went to Portillo's and shared a Chicago-syle dog with everything on it (pickle, tomatoes, onions, mustard, relish, stadium peppers, and celery salt) and an Italian beef sandwich. AMAZING. I also bought my flight yesterday!! (Though I am still waiting for the pension money to be sent from El Sal...) It leaves Chicago early on the 19th with a 1 hour layover in San Francisco. From S.F. I'll fly into Incheon International Airport in Korea at 4:15 p.m. on the 20th. From there I'll check in at the airport with the EPIK staff, and then I'll be put on a bus to travel to our orientation site in the city of Daejeon. Slowly but surely, everything is indeed falling into place. It amazes me how just a year ago this was all just a dream God placed in my heart. For the longest time it didn't even seem like a reality, and yet here I am only 15 days away from leaving. I appreciate all your love and support, and more than anything I ask for your continued support through prayer. That I would be able to tie up all these loose ends here, that I would be able to see my dear family and friends before leaving the country again, and even that I'd successfully pack my life into two 50-lb bags. Just looking at my suitcases is beginning to overwhelm me! "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7
Contract and Notice of Appointment have arrived! Next step: go to Korean Consulate in Chicago to apply for visa. I'll be going Monday first thing to apply in person. It's a 2.5 hour drive from where I am in central Illinois, but I prefer to go in person than mail my application. As long as there are no issues, I should receive my visa in about a week!
Yaaaayyy! I just got the email from my recruiter that he sent me my appointment package. I’m not sure when I’ll get it, but by later today I’ll be able to start tracking it. Still waiting on my pension money from El Sal, but I can definitely say I have much more peace about this all. I’m sure Phil Robertson can relate to that “happy happy happy” feeling. Thanks for your prayers and support!
Here's a link to the program I applied to, just in case you're thinking about moving half-way around the world to teach English ;) (But seriously, I wouldn't mind a familiar face over there!)
Waiting, waiting, waiting...
That's my life ever since I began the process of applying to EPIK last year. I won't get into all the details of how to apply to EPIK right now, but I'll give you an update of where I am and what kinds of things I'm waiting for.
I have been accepted as an EPIK teacher for the Spring 2014 intake, and I'll be hired by the Seoul Office of Education (SMOE). I'm currently waiting for them to send my Notice of Appointment (NOA) and contract so I can apply for my visa at the Korean Consulate in Chicago. And because I decided early in application process to apply with the help of a recruiter, my NOA/contract will be sent to my recruiter first, and then to me. I just heard from my recruiter a few days ago though, and he hopes to receive the documents from Korea early this week, so I'm hoping to have them by the end of this week.
Once I get the contract, I'll be able to apply for my visa. This should only take 5-7 days, but if there are any issues, it could take longer. I'm praying that it comes quickly, because I'm leaving in only 3 weeks. Better sooner than scrambling at the last minute to get what I need, right?
Now, I'm also waiting for a whole different process that's going on in El Salvador. During my trip there in December, one of my main goals was to withdrawal the money that I had earned for my pension. As a foreigner in El Salvador, you're able to take that money with you when you leave the country. So when I came back home after my trip, the money was scheduled to be deposited into my salvadoran bank account by January 15th. Long story short, I'm still waiting for it. I've worked it out so they can wire the money directly to my U.S. bank account, but I had to send them some signed documents for them to approve the transfer.
The documents won't arrive in El Salvador until maybe Thursday of this week, and from there, another few days before the money is available in my account. I'm just praying this gets settled as quickly as possible because I can't really buy my flight to Korea until I get that money.
Waiting, waiting, waiting...I'm at that point where there are so many things I want to do but I can't yet because I'm waiting for other things to be taken care of. And the reality that I'm leaving the country in three weeks is really beginning to hit me. I go between states of utter excitement and fear thinking to myself, 'What in the world have you gotten yourself into, Nicole?' But really, I haven't chosen this for myself, God has. He's calling me to come to Him, walking on the water of unknown, uncharted territory and trusting that He will make it possible. He wants me to venture outside of my comfort zone where there is no app for that. Where Google isn't enough. Where I can't make everything happen. Where I must simply keep my eyes on Him and let Him work.
So as I keep waiting, waiting, waiting, I would definitely appreciate your prayers. For everything to fall perfectly in place in God's timing, for me to keep my eyes on Him and hold on to the peace only He can give, and to enjoy these last several weeks I have in the United States. What about you? Are you waiting? Is God calling you to walk on the water of the unknown? I'd love to hear from you!
It's actually happening! I'm moving to Korea to teach! The process has been longer and more complicated than I had ever anticipated, but as things are falling into place I can say it's been worth it.