So today marks 4 weeks of being away at home. I figured I would give into the tired old cliché of starting an expat blog…I’m not the best guy at keeping in touch with people so this is by far the easiest way of letting my friends and family know how I’m going. If anyone cares, anyway.
So, where to start? At the beginning of this year I was pretty unhappy with the way my life was turning out. I shouldn’t have been…I had just graduated, and I spent my entire summer chilling with my best friends. No pressure from the parents to find a job, I had the time to do anything I wanted (which was nothing, and I dare anyone to prove they are better at doing nothing than I am). I had everything to look forward to really. But I just felt…empty. Like something was missing. I was bored of Perth. I felt like my life was out of my control, like I was supposed to find a job after graduating and settle into the 9-5 life. That was fucking scary. I wasn’t ready to become a responsible, productive member of society. I worked full-time for all of two months last year and I felt like locking the office doors behind me and burning the whole place down. Seriously, picking lint out of my belly button was more exciting than that job. So what did I have to look forward to? Staying in Perth seemed like the safe option. Since I came back from my 2-month holiday in China I always entertained the possibility of going back. Maybe not China (don’t get me wrong, I had an awesome time there) but somewhere else in Asia. Where English wouldn’t be the native language. Just somewhere completely different. I mean, shit is pretty much the same anywhere you go. But I was just so tired of my life in Perth (although I do miss my friends and family like crazy). So sometime in January the idea of going to Korea entered my mind. Japan was too expensive, and there was no work to be found in Taiwan. Teaching ESL was going to be my ticket out.
After months of fruitless searching (application after application with no result) I had all but given up. Until I got an email from some guy called Arthur Haaxman. Apparently someone had passed along my resume to him and he wanted to set up an interview. Cool. I figured if it didn’t work out I’d just give up on the idea of going to Korea. 3 days later I have a voicemail on my phone telling me I got a job in Korea, and training starts in 5 weeks. So how did everyone take it? I think they were just surprised I finally followed through with something that I said I’d do. I couldn’t believe it either. It didn’t sink in for weeks…not until I started saying my goodbyes to everyone. That was tough…everything was so rushed towards the end. I wish I had made more of an effort to see everyone before I left. But hey, goodbyes have never been my thing. At Perth Airport my dad told me to be brave (I guess because he thinks I’m a huge pussy) and my mum even teared up a little. And after that I was on my own.
Did it sink in then? No, it all still felt pretty surreal to be honest. Almost left my passport in customs (yeah yeah) so at that point I was thinking, man, I’m not going to make it. I won’t be coming back with a passport and kidneys this time hahaha. The flight was pretty uneventful, tried to get some sleep but had no luck there. Bleh. Next stop, Singapore!
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