Medical Exam...Check

Physicals are a good time...
Being poked and prodded in various areas is just how I want to spend my first full day in Korea...
It's a good thing that my wish was granted...

When we were given our nametags at registration, we were also assigned to various classes (1A-6B). I was assigned to class 5-B, meaning that I had to be at my medical exam at 10:20 am. This was an awesome time as it allowed me to sleep in and start to restart my internal clock.

So 10:20 rolled around and I made my way over to the Multimedia Building, Room 411. There, we signed in and were given an overview of what to expect with the exam.

Pee in a cup...no problem
Height and weight...fantastic
Sight and color blindness test...passable
Blood draw...bring it on
X-ray in the back of a janky van...suspicious

So after our overview, we were directed to the restroom, told to fill our cup up to the line, and then proceeded to give our specimen to a guy sitting in the restroom. That has got to be one of the worst jobs - handling other people's pee for about 4 hours straight. Pretty sure he didn't wear gloves, which really bothered me. But hey, at least I didn't have to pour it into the test tube!

Following the drop-off of my sample, I was ushered into another room. Here they took my height, weight, and measured my chest. The height/weight machine was pretty neat - you stood on the green footprints on the base and a little plank came down from the top of the machine, bounced off of your head, and returned to the top.

Once those measurements were taken and recorded, the eye test was the next thing on the list. I covered up my right eye first and the nurse had me read some of the smallest letters ever invented! There was one row that I swear they were just dots. It seemed that any number I said was the right one. She gave me the same numbers for my left eye as well. Needless to say I passed with flying colors! It also turns out that I'm not color blind, which is phenomenal!

Next stop was the blood draw room. This was by far the easiest and most pain free blood draw that I have ever been subjected to in my life. I of course didn't look as she was drawing my blood, but I didn't even know that she had put the needle into my arm. These nurses need to teach their technique to the American nurses!

Last stop was the x-ray. We had to go outside to the back of a bus to accomplish this task. Once you got into the x-ray area, the nurse had you spread your legs over a black box and then press your chest up against the x-ray machine. She then proceeded to smash my shoulders flat up against the machine and wrap my arms around the back of the machine. Awkward. Two seconds later, I was free to go.

Around 3:00 we were taken to the Art and Design Hall for the opening ceremonies. We were once again broken up into our classes and enjoyed the entertainment provided by the Moonil High School drumming team. They performed a traditional drum routine called Sa Mul No Ri. It was phenomenal and definitely managed to wake all of us up. We were then welcomed by the EPIK head honchos and the staff that we will be working with this week. After a few more speeches and talks, we were dismissed to go eat and then enjoy the rest of the night. I ended up staying in a falling asleep around 9.

Today we started our lectures. The topics covered today included "Making English Comprehensible", "After School and Vacation Classes", and "Working with a Co-Teacher." Before our first lecture, we were told what level we would be teaching this year. I have been placed in a high school and couldn't be happier! There's also a high probability that I may be moved to a middle school placement around February. The government is trying to remove the English teachers from the high schools because high school students in Korea are so focused on their KSAT (Korean College Entrance Exam). So that could lead to me being moved, which would be interesting as it would give me the chance to see two different systems within the Korean school heirarchy.

Tomorrow's filled with more classes and Sunday we take a trip to the Korean Folk Village, so that should be a fun and interesting time. Pictures will follow that trip...