Jungchul English School

Here is a little bit of extra info about where I'll be teaching.

As I already said, the city is Incheon, South Korea, which is about 60 miles southwest of Seoul. In Incheon, I'll be in the ward of Yeonsu-gu and the neighborhood of Ongyeon-dong. The school I'll be teaching at is the Jungchul English School.

Here is a video of the school taken by one of the teachers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dO9trdGlaV8 This is a chain of schools in the country, but I am almost 100 percent sure this is the one where I'll be. Either way, it's an interesting tour. (Ed. Note - Not the same school.)

My plan is to get on a plane on Friday, Aug.29. That will give me a day or so to adjust before starting work on the following Monday.

I will be making 2,100,000 won per month over there, which equals $2,100. Not only is that more than I'll make here, but I will be living in a single apartment rent-free, which will stretch my money even further.

There are three other foreign teachers at this school giving English lessons. We work anywhere from 2 to 9 p.m. between 27 and 29 hours each week. So the hours aren't that long or demanding. I will be required to do some student-related activities outside of school hours, but I'm not sure what or how many yet.

We get two one-week vacations. One is in the summer and one is in the winter. Other than that, it's just a year of teaching. At the end, we get a one month's pay bonus and the ability to take a month break if I decide to sign up again.

My friend, Dan, has been giving me a lot of advice, and has absolutely no regrets except that he recently bought a car before making up his mind to head overseas. Fortunately for me, I will be able to pay off the CR-V before heading over. That will help me with paying off my student loans, my only debt left.

I'll be about a 10-minute bus ride from Dan, but he thinks it's about four or five miles. That means I'll be well within walking distance. They also have a great subway system over there, which Dan said they use to go into Seoul on the weekends to party.

I'll be speaking with one of the recruiters tomorrow morning at about 8 a.m., which is 9 p.m. his time. He'll be getting off work and I'll be waking up. Go figure. During that time, I'll find out where I need to send my packet of information in order to get my visa number.

Once I have that, I'll be able to get my visa through an interview at the Korean Consulate in New York City. Fortunately, we're making that trip this weekend after Mom and Dad drop Melissa off at school in Virginia. If timing works right, I'll be able to get that done up there, and be on my way home in the middle of next week with my work visa. All that remains after that is saying goodbye.

If anyone has any questions for me, feel free to let me know. If it's okay, I'll answer them on here just in case anyone else is wondering the same things.

Thank you so much everyone for your kind words and encouragement so far. It's certainly fueling my excitement. Twenty-seven days and counting!