Attemping to Adjust
July 2nd, 2009
I am in Changwon now. Thursday night now, I arrived Sunday night and was met at the airport by my employer’s husband and my good friend Trey, who I knew when I was back in Missouri. The above image is a fair depiction of how I’ve been feeling so far this week thanks to jet lag. Yesterday I woke up at like 5:30 AM, went for a 6 mile walk, came back, took a nap, and then went to work. After work last night I went to the grocery, fell asleep at 11:00, and woke up at 6:30. Better, but still not so great. Establishing a good sleep pattern again is going to be one of the less pleasant things about the move, but oh well. Another week and I should be OK.

This is the view out one side of my apartment. I have two small balconies on opposite sides of the building, which itself is rather narrow. The apartment itself is OK. Nothing to sing praises for, but it could also be a hell of a lot worse. I can make it work well. I have a fridge, a cooktop, a toaster oven, and a clothes washer. No dryer, oven, or microwave but oh well. The TV gets a range of Korean stations, including some version of FX that seems to be American programs with Korean subtitles. A finicky but effective water heater and a surprisingly effective air conditioner provide heat and cold respectively.
I have a kitchen/eating area, bedroom, bathroom, and a small second room that I’m not sure what I’m going to do with in the long run. Darkroom maybe?
I can’t read Korean yet, can pretty much say hello and little more, and when I get in a cab to go home or to the store, I show the driver a piece of paper on which Trey has written the name/address of the place in Korean. I studied Hangul a bit tonight but it’s rather daunting. I’ll get the hang of it, I just can’t expect too much from myself when I’m exhausted, confused, and really wanting to go to bed.
The hardest part of everything so far, though, is loneliness. I feel fortunate to have a good friend here already, and I know I’ll make others (especially among other expats), but all the same it’s pretty lonely at the moment. There’s a severe feeling of isolation that comes with arriving in another country knowing essentially nothing, knowing practically nobody, not being able to read street signs, having to guess whether what you think is in a package you pick up at the store is actually what you think it is, and spending your nights alone in the middle of all the confusion. I will learn the language, I will get to know plenty more people, it will get a lot easier. For now, though, it is tricky. Having things like email, skype, etc helps, but they don’t change the reality of your situation and that’s the hardest part of it.
What I’m really looking forward to most, I think, is getting adjusted physically and regaining my sense of adventure. I want to go out and explore this city, country, etc. I want to make photograph after photograph of really interesting things. I want to get the most out of it. Getting closer to getting back on track for that, but I still need a bit more time.
Expect more in the way of writing/photos this weekend.



