Day 11 - Korean Bank & Medical Clinic...AHHH!

What a freaking long day! Our days are getting earlier and my internal clock is ringing later. Mornings are becoming routine.

No breakfast this morning because we had to fast for our medical exam today. They did everything! Height and weight check was on this awesome scale that had an appendage at the top that moved down until it hit something (your head) and then it went back up. They should have those in the states, just sayin'. Quick hearing check, vision check, and they made sure we weren't color blind. We then had to go outside to a mobile x-ray machine in a bus. Had to strip from the waist up and put on a blue smock. This was followed by a blood pressure reading, giving a vile of blood, then peeing in a cup. How well did we get to know our colleagues? Well, we have now seen each other walking down the hallway with a squeeze tube of pee...I'd say we know more than we would like. Once that was all done, we were rewarded with boxes and boxes of Dunkin Donuts and Krispy Kreme assortments.

Lunch rolled around at 11:30. The school served us a traditional Korean meal that was an acquired taste. We all ate it including Ethan. I am proud of us for trying all of it even the spicy kimchi. We were left slightly unsatisfied especially noticed after we chatted with our Australian colleague Ben about Texas beef steaks....salivating. :)

The buses left the school around 1pm for Hana Bank where about 20 of us proceeded to setup up individual checking accounts, one for US money and the other for Korean money. I have never seen people work so fast and efficiently. I'm sure the bank met their quota for the month AND only half of us went today.  

By now its 2:40 and we are back at school. We checked out Stacy's classroom and my office. I have a desk next to a window in my office. I share an office with a guy named Tomy Tom. Apparently he used to play for the MLB and had a baseball card and everything. I get along with most people so hopefully I will get along with him. I haven't met him yet.

So, back in the states Ethan had to have a medical exam kind of like we did today. I thought we had covered everything but as it turns out he lacked a TB test. Several other staff kids had to have the whole medical check up done. KIS setup this afternoon as the day we would all take our children to a nearby clinic to have the check up. We spent over 2 1/2 hours there. It was on the 2nd floor of a store building. On the second floor it was surrounded by little shops. The location was odd for a clinic. Either way they got Ethan taken care of within the first 30 minutes. Then we waited for everyone else to finish. It was loud, busy and chaotic. The doctor spoke some English which made it easier to communicate and the nurses were nice. When we were all done, we are told that we have to pay. We weren't informed prior to the trip that we were going to pay for anything. No one had brought money to pay for this so our school nurse paid for it and we are supposed to reimburse her or something like that. Of all the experiences so far, this one has been the most headache inducing. I am glad its over and Ethan wasn't traumatized. We didn't make it home until almost 6:30pm. As we were walking up the road to our apartment, Stacy was walking down and coincidently met us. He was SO worried about us because it took so long. We can't wait to get our cell phones activated that way we can communicate when we are separated. He chose not to come with us and now regrets it.

Grill cheese sandwiches for dinner tasted so good tonight. It was quick and easy....now I'm going to rest. Tomorrow is another day in the life of an international teacher.