Fulbright is a very organized program. I have been very impressed with the way they run things; however, there is one thing that they have kept us in the dark about: placements. We came to Korea with no knowledge of where we might end up living. Yesterday they announced where exactly we will be teaching. It was a ceremony where Mrs. Shim came to read out our names one by one and we were called to the front of the room to put a little piece of tape with our name on it on a giant map of Korea, representing where we will be going. I am very happy to report that I will be teaching at Jeju Jungang Girls' Public High School in Jeju City on Jeju Island which is off the southern coast of South Korea. I am very excited to be on this island. My school has about 1200 students, and there is no telling how many of them I will be responsible for weekly, it could be as many as 800 students in 20 different classes that I will be teaching. This is where my own experience and those of the other ETAs diverge; I am now an employee of this school and my experience will vary based on the school's needs and wants. (We are of course protected by many things, like being overworked, due to specific stipulations in our contract between the school and Fulbright.) I am very excited about living on a sub-tropical island. On the island I will be able to scuba dive, ride my bike, go to beaches in the summer months, and eat incredible sea food. There are direct flights off the island to Japan and China which I plan to take full advantage of as well. I plan to pursue Tae Kwon Do and earn a black belt before the year's end. Jeju Island is known as Korea's honeymoon destination. It has been described as "Emerald Isle," "Island of the Gods," "Island of Fantasy," and "Korea's Hawaii." I hope that I have sparked interest in at least some of you to come and visit!
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