My week in hell is over.

I am back among the living in Colorful Daegu.

I have never been happier to be in Daegu than I am right now. By the end of Hell Week, I missed Daegu ALMOST as much as I missed Chicago. Read that last sentence again.

I started harmlessly enough, but by the end I was as ready to kill other human beings as I have ever been.

The living accomodations were fairly uncomfortable(no beds, only mats on the hardest floor I have ever slept on). Most of the people were douchebags(Some were not. More on this when I have more time). The food sucked. I know Korean food fairly well. I like Korean food when it is well prepared. I hate bad Korean food. Hate it. There were at least two mornings that I did not want to eat. For breakfast, I want bread, juice, coffee and maybe an egg or two. In Pohang, we got kimchi, rice and a weak soup. No coffee. I can't believe I lasted as long as I did. If they didn't sell beer and soju I would have killed someone.

I foolishly chose to take out my frustrations on whichever guest speaker happened to irritate me and one of my "roommates." One guest speaker actually told us that "The Korean teachers will not be trained in coteaching and they might not want to work with you." Wait a second. Why are we being trained while the Korean teachers are not? I realize western logic does not apply, but why would Koreans pass up the chance to add some more bureaucracy? Either way, I grilled the speaker on this and he didn't answer my question. I had to keep asking about it. Finally, I told him that this lecture was fairly depressing. He apologized for frightening me. My response, " I didn't say that." His response, "I'm sorry for making you upset." My response, "I didn't say that either." He was frightened. I high-fived my buddies after.

Then, I was informed that I could not use my vacation days during the winter holidays? Wha-What? I can use them when the schools are on vacation, so I can go home, just not for Christmas. This was not explained at all. I understood that I would have 7 vacation days each semester to use as a I choose. Not the case. I wanted "Elisha" to explain this. The first words out of her mouth were, "Didn't you read your contract?" Wrong answer. I brought the pain. Dewoskin-style. No yelling, just persistent questions.

I met the principal's and teachers that I will be working with in Daegu on Friday. They are the most instantly kind people I have ever met. In other words, the anti-"Elisha." I really can't wait to start here. They were all impressed that I could speak even a little Korean. I think I will be perfectly happy here.

I don't have a phone line yet, so calls cannot be made until next week.

I still don't have my visa. More on that in a few days. I want to see how ridiculous this situation will get before I comment.