Sophia Milan Hammoudeh



I can say one thing about living and working as an Epik teacher in Korea. Always be prepared to be unprepared. I truly thought I knew what the so-called “Korean-surprise” was, after watching countless Epik teachers on You-tube and meeting many with similar accounts throughout the orientation process. However, what I was not aware of was the scope of these unexpected encounters and happenings. While only focusing on the likelihood of negative, last-minute, and unpleasant news to come, it had not crossed my mind that these events could be funny, memorable, and also absolutely everything in between.



One morning I was stopped
at the bright, red, traffic signal on the way to my school, a car stopped near me and honked repeatedly. I was caught off guard and couldn’t see anything through the dark tinted windows. I simply flung my hands in the air with a shrug of irritation and decided to walk ahead since this car was clearly an impatient person urging me to get out of their way.

Imagine my horror, as I arrived at the school entrance to see the principal standing in the hall. She had hoped to give me a ride on the way to school which quickly became an ironic joke. I learned to take a double take because you never know when your boss may be trying to help you out one morning.



Another day, around the same area I was taken by surprise as a woman I had never seen grabbed my arm and urged me to come have a coffee with her as a treat. I was utterly dumbfounded as I had no idea who this was and why they would know of my existence or want to buy me a coffee. I eventually found out she was the 2nd grade teacher and had wanted to introduce herself for months. I was so shocked by her pure kindness and genuine spirit that it still makes me feel so touched even now. Teachers with whom I have conversations with everyday never hesitate to give me advice or help me when I am struggling. There are of course, two sides to every school but I feel so grateful to have such a reliable group of people. Working in Korea, I have had good and bad days, I have felt all emotions and waves of homesickness, however; being able to impact Korean students in a positive way while learning and growing in such an understanding and unique environment is more meaningful than I can put into words. My advice is to be open and pleasantly surprised. The unexpected can be just as pleasant and memorable as the known.