A place to call home

I moved into my homestay yesterday afternoon.  I am living in the Sinchon area of Seoul about a 4 minute walk to exit 8 of the subway.  I was happy to find I would be living in this area as it is close to Hongdae, EHWA and convenient in general.  During my first trip to Korea, we actually stayed in this neighborhood, so much of it is familiar to me.  It is nice to sort of know my way around.  As I say this, I must tell you that I got lost 3 times today.  Once on my way to my first school, on my way to my second school and then I got confused coming home from the subway.  Luckily, I left an hour early for school this morning, had 1.5 hrs between my first and second school and didn't need to be anywhere until 7pm after teaching until 2:30.  I told you, I am terrible when it comes to directions!
My homestay family is so nice and friendly.  Both are 34 years old.  The husband is plays electric guitar and used to play in a band.  Now, he sells musical instruments.  The wife used to work for a travel agency, but is now a stay at home mom with their 1 year old son.  She shared with me how many women feel like their life is over when they have kids in Korea.  They feel like they've lost their identity and sacrificed their aspirations and dreams.  Perhaps that is part of the reason the birth rate is so low, as well as the cost of living here.  Supposedly, it is very expensive to live in Seoul, but to me things seem much cheaper than home.  I guess it's all relative.

The apartment is older and eclectic with its shagadelic wallpaper patterns.  I have my own room with a double bed which is on the floor.  I have 2 dresser drawers and 2 wardrobes for my clothes.  The house has bamboo floors, family room with play area for Jai Ik, kitchen, bathroom, office, master bedroom, laundry area and my room.  My room is actually quite spacious as are the other living areas.  The bathroom is the tiled floor with shower head, just like the guesthouse.  No tub or shower here.  I have to wear the house slippers for the bathroom area.  When I need to take a shower, I need to tell them so they can turn the gas on for hot water.  They have a floor mat in the family room and master bedroom, which is basically like the world's largest heating pad to heat the floor. Very cozy to sit on.

My adorable homestay son, Jai Ik (Jake) named after a famous guitarist

Isn't he cute??

I am enjoying conversation with Hyoung Hwa, the wife.  She is very open and shares a lot with me about her life and about Koreans.  She has a great sense of humor and is very down to earth.  The first evening here, her mother was staying here and will leave on Wednesday.  Hyoung Hwa was sick a week ago and her mother came to take care of her and Jai Ik,  Her mother was very kind and was so welcoming to me.  She does not speak English, but Hyoung Hwa said that her mom was so happy to have me here.  She always wished she had another daughter and that I am the other daughter she never had.  They didn't believe my age, staring at me, touching my face, talking about my skin.  I felt bad that her mother thought I looked younger than her.  Hyoung Hwa thought I was a university student in my 20's!  Really?!  I have a hard time distinguishing ages of people on the streets.  I think a lot of people look very youthful.  Hyoung Hwa told me that your milestone birthday where your life begins is 60 years old!  WOW, that must be why the elderly are so vibrant and active.  I am in awe of them and hope to have that much energy and mobility when I'm their age.  Hyoung Hwa said we are still babies, not considered old at all.

For fun, Hyoung Hwa started taking drumming lessons on a full drum set.  She used to do traditional Korean drumming and decided to do this to get out of the house for time to herself.  I went with her to her lesson and she was really impressive.  I have forever wanted to play the drums, so I was really happy for her to take up this new interest.  Hyoung Hwa is really happy to have me here for company as she is often very lonely.  She calls me "un-ni" 언니, older sister.  I am to call her by her name.  It is common practice for friends to call each other sister and brother rather than their name.  As we walked to and from drum lessons, Hyoung Hwa and I walked arm and arm together.  This is another common practice amongst Korean friends to walk with arms hooked like their walking down the aisle to be married.  It is a little uncomfortable at first to have that personal space broken into, but it is so commonly seen that I didn't feel strange doing it.  Only thing was, I didn't know if I should also bend my elbow or if I should keep my arm straight down. LOL

I spent the rest of the evening unpacking and settling into my room.  I also planned my lessons for my first day of teaching tomorrow.