Wanderlust: Blast From the Past

Today I wanted to show you my school and what my walk home (about 30min.) looks like. Kujeong Elementary is small and under a lot of construction at the moment, so it’s not the prettiest place, but the kids don’t seem to care. They will play rain or shine, in mud or on green grass, totally oblivious to all else around them. Beautiful.

Teacher's Room

My Desk

That thing in the left corner is a heater. I thank my lucky stars we have that, because the school is not heated/air-conditioned.

Are you ready?

My classrooms

I just had to share these. They are quotes on the front of each English classroom door. Priceless.

I bet the Korean makes sense.

My walk home is interesting. I feel like the area I’m living in got left behind in terms of modernization after the war. It’s like I’m in a time warp in the 50’s where you can definitely tell this country has been occupied for decades. There are many empty lots or buildings under construction. Trash and broken glass, etc. is everywhere, and I’m not too fond of the sewer smells that waft by every few feet (dreading the hot and humid summer!). Despite the lack of aesthetic beauty of the area, I find myself slowly becoming attached to it. There are giant surrounding mountains that cannot escape notice, and the dilapidated quality of most of the buildings gives Pohang its own unique character. People have been living here and going about their lives for years, completely unbothered.

Needless to say, I am stared at constantly, which doesn’t bother me now. Living in Japan for a year will knock that little annoyance out of anyone’s system. I was just concerned that people would have a problem with a lone foreigner taking all these pictures of empty lots and trash, so I had to snap my shots stealthily as I walked home. These images are by no means meant to tarnish or slander the reputation of “Dynamic Korea”. It is just showing another side of this fascinating country which is not completely “modern”. So far, the local people I’ve met here have been very friendly. Almost every stranger I say “hello” to in Korean responds back with a smile. I think I am starting to assimilate to and enjoy this new lifestyle. The following are just pics of my walk home, not my immediately surrounding area.