It's been quite some time since my fingers have touched the keyboard but to be perfectly honest, since leaving Canada it has been a whirlwind few months but we will get to that later.
After another fabulous Christmas in Canada, we decided that our love affair with Asia was still strong enough for us to start considering positions in Taiwan , Hong Kong and Japan.
Many people question why we wouldn't in fact want to return to South Korea, having had such wonderful experiences in the two years we spent there. This in itself is one of the reasons, as sometimes it is better to move on whilst retaining fond memories of a place rather than to cling on and let familiarity turn into contempt .
There are people who have spent several years there (known as lifers) and seem more than content but we felt that we had started to exhaust our options in terms of weekend jaunts and cultural experiences and towards the end of the second year, things we had previously laughed off as cultural nuances were now becoming repetitive and frustrating. This could be anything from the general staring to the incessant question patterns from taxi drivers. By the end, it was like going through the motions - a little something like this;
Taxi driver: What country?
Me: England
Taxi driver: Ahhh gentleman (awkward pause...then) David Beckham! At this point the taxi driver would usually glance in his mirror, probably wanting some recognition for putting the two together.
Then I would attempt to shift the focus to Cassandra by stating "and Canada".
This would somewhat stump most taxi drivers presumably because South Korea clearly don't import too much maple syrup or have a particular interest in Celine Dion.
Then surprisingly and for the first few times unpredictably, the next question would not be what our names were or even our occupation but " Are you married? ". We would later learn that to answer "no" was the equivalent of unzipping my sweater to reveal a t-shirt stating 'I love Kim Jong-Il'.
Anyway, the point is that when this type of thing starts becoming annoying then it is probably time to start thinking of moving on. That isn't to say that at times we didn't feel the pull of Korea because it must be one of the easiest countries in Asia to get set up in. If you work for the government in a public school position and you have the patience and organisation skills to complete and send off the mountain of paperwork needed to obtain a visa, then the package offered is a pretty good one for someone in my position.
They will pay for your flights, arrange accommodation and even give you a a 'settlement allowance' as well as taking you shopping and buying you most of what you need to get set up. It has to be said that my priorities would be 1. A decent bed 2. a good shower and 3. toaster and kettle but a rock hard bed, a wet room and a rice cooker still aren't too bad.
It reminds me of a story that my friend told me after he had arrived in Korea and even now it brings a smile to my face whenever I arrive in new accommodation.
He is one of the most genuine friends I have ever met and I recall him telling me his story of how his school took him to his apartment after a 14 hour flight. The coordinator in charge could clearly see that after the long flight that he was exhausted so said that he would go to the supermarket and buy pillows and bedding but that in the meantime, my friend should have a lay down. Anyway the punchline was that after putting down his bags and taking a look around my friend who when telling the story looks at me with a disgruntled expression and says "There was no f**king bed!". This isn't uncommon in Korea because up until recently many families would sleep on an ondol floor because they believe it is good for the back and has the benefit of being heated in the winter whilst staying relatively cool in the summer.
Although the accommodation is something of a lottery, it is rent free and the teacher usually just pays a deposit and utilities which amounts to very little in Korea because electricity, water and gas are so cheap. I did run an electric heater for one month in the winter though and after receiving my bill which was around $450, I promptly ditched the heater and started toughening up.
Having been so well looked after in Korea, I tried to once more to lower my expectations in order to deal with whatever Asia was about to throw at me.
After a fair amount of deliberation (I say this because friends and family started asking the question "What country are you going to today then?") we opted for Japan because the Hong Kong position wasn't meant to be. Although one of the bigger recruiting companies that I have always reserved particular contempt for was largely to blame for this. Until recently this recruiter were ranked second in my personal 'list of crappy recruitment companies' but have since moved down a place to third. At the top of the list would be the recruitment company who we have dealt with most recently but we will get to that much later.
I guess it depends on the person as to what one would expect from a recruitment company but I have never had any trust or faith much in the same way that I wouldn't rely on a Korean taxi driver to try and initiative an original or interesting conversation.
In case you were wondering who is second on the list, it is this shoddy outfit who were advertising teaching positions in Oman. I sent my resume and contact details and a day later received an e-mail asking if I would be available for an informal talk on Skype. This is standard procedure, so I arranged a time and began talking to Michael the head of the company. He asked me background information and about teaching experience and then why I couldn't start a position until March the next year seven months from then. After explaining that we were about to embark on a trip through Africa, he said he was hoping to fill contracts much sooner but that he would put us through to Pat. I had no idea who Pat was and I still don't really but she comes onto the line and launches into some spiel.. " if you're going to Africa, then I know a really cheap way. My friend Doug drives a car down through Europe and.. at this point I look at Cassandra who is wondering why I am asking questions such as "Is it his own car?" and "How long has Doug been transporting people into Africa?". It really was quite bizarre although slightly amusing but sadly we had already organized our flights and travel details a few months earlier.
Coming back to the Hong Kong position, the 3000+ hours of actual teaching experience I have accumulated isn't enough for the recruitment company but if I took a 120 hour in-class program (run in association with their partner for a princely sum of $750) then that would suffice. Like the previous conversation with Doug's car, it ended with me putting down the phone feeling slightly angry and extremely baffled.
From here we narrowed the list to either Japan or Taiwan and found a fabulous school (which means lengthy interview essays and complex application forms) an hour outside of the capital Taipei. We were really keen and delighted to get a job offer but it didn't start until August which would mean having 6 months to wait and as a result not working for a whole year.
So we pursued Japan where originally we were applying to be 'Assistant Language Teachers' but also got offered a job working in an 'International Kindergarten'. We were told about the 'immersing program' and that we would have 'complete freedom' in the classroom - later we would learn that this meant no curriculum therefore a shit-load of extra work.
So it was decided that we would become Kindergarten teachers in Japan. Looking back I can't remember the actual decision-making process but one large factor was that we were spending a lot of time with Cassandra's nephew Colton, who is bright, funny and completely adorable. He is so imaginative and his brain is like a little sponge absorbing all that is around him. He is exactly the type of kid that should be on a gap commercial which even he probably realises as he is working on his own catchphrases already.
So this helped place a massive tick in the 'For column' along with the immense fun I had teaching kindergarten and 1st grade in Korea last year. In the 'Against column' was the small fact that I am not a female, middle-aged, frock-wearing vegetarian who loves to break into song without warning.
So "YES, I'll take the job - sign me up". Now just to send off my visa application and board a plane to Japan - 'How difficult could that be?'.
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