Masters... (Wednesday 25th March 2015)

Dear Sal,

It was absolutely wonderful to see you last weekend. The overwhelming emotions of seeing you after well over a year was such a surprise. It wasn't until I saw that I realised just how much I missed you. I dread to think how I will react to seeing my family when I return to England in two months.  I'm so glad to see that you are settling in to your new life over here and are enjoying the work with the tiny elementary students you teach, who are a stack contrast to the students I have.

For the last term I have been taking the highest level classes my hagwon provides, Masters. This class quickly became one of my favorites to teach. The skill level of these students is vast and I have a feeling some of them are far more intelligent then I could ever hope to be. The lessons focus on English literature and involve reading such books as Ender's Game, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and discussing the themes and tone of these novels in great detail. The lessons are a pleasure to teach but mean a lot more work for me.

The high level of these students allows for more flexibility in the subject matter and vocabulary that one can us within the confines of a Korean class room, including swear words. In one class the subject of periods came up, as well as attempted rape. This week we have been reading To Kill a Mockingbird, focusing on the Jim Crow Laws. (I assume you have heard of them and I don't need to go into detail to explain it, if you haven't then Google it now, then come back and continue reading.) The students reaction to some of the images we looked at can be very shocking when you first experience it. They laugh at the sight of a golliwog, giggled when they saw a man in a minstrel show wearing black face, the discrimination of another race is all fun and games to a child who knows no better. It wasn't until I showed them an image of lynching that the laughter subsided. 

Something you will soon realise since you've moved here is that the children may come across as, well a little racist. I found this out within a few weeks of teaching when I showed my students a video of a starving African girl who was crying after the death of her mother to malnutrition. They found this harrowing video highly amusing. I shouted at them for their disrespectful behavior, which seemed to go completely over their heads. But it's not there fault.

Up until about fifteen years ago, Korea was one of the most homogeneous countries in the world. And while we grew up in a culturally divers environment, they did not. Outside of the big cities it's rare to see a foreigner, let alone one whose skin is a completely different colour to their own. These children do not hate, they just don't understand. They don't know how to react to someone different from them and so, they laugh. Korea is a very proud and very hospitable country, I have felt completely safe and at home since first stepping foot here and I am sure you will feel the same once you've settled in. Just a heads up. 

Love, hugs and what in the Sam Hill are you doing?

Samuel James

Daegu to Andong... (Sunday 22nd March 2015)

Dear Sal,

Once again I have neglected you. Sorry, I'm not sorry. You may think that I have grown increasingly lazy over the last few months but this just isn't the case. Well, maybe a little.

With Jason's last visit at the end of February came a bombardment of social events. His brief two week stay meant most nights we were out, eating, drinking and drinking some more. It took it's tole on me both financially and physically. I'm broke, I say broke what I really mean is I went into my savings, and I am exhausted. With a new term starting as well means more preparation and work to be done. This term I have two classes that I have to pretty much plan myself, where as before I was given a tablet and a lesson plan for three hours, I am now handed a book that barely covers an hour and told to just 'think of something'. For the first time since I started over a year ago I have been stressed about work. I know I shouldn't moan, and that others have more work to do planning every lesson, but I haven't had any training for this. And I'm terrified they will realise I'm a fraud, who couldn't teach a fish how to swim.

Jason was a great distraction and I loved seeing him, but like every visit he makes comes a pang of sadness, as I know he will be leaving again all too soon. Saying goodbye doesn't get any easier. Other then that I haven't done much else. Oh, I got a TV finally! It's one of those big old box ones, it was free so I can't complain.

But enough about me, how are you? You're finally here and have started work. How are you finding it? I have so many questions for you. And I will ask you them in due time. As I write this I am currently on a train to Andong to meet you. I'm sat next to this old women who has no sense of personal space and who is eating dried fish. Wonderful.

I look forward to hearing about all you recent korean endeavours and seeing your hideous, I mean beautiful, face.

Love, hungs and dried fish.

Samuel James.