Category: Advice for Living Abroad

We are joined once again by one of our teachers who has kindly taken time to answer a few of our questions. This time we interviewed Sarah Steinmetz, a New Hampshire girl teaching English in South Korea. Here she tells us all about her time spent in South Korea so far.

Last week, I shared with you 5 cons for living in a small city in South Korea. Let’s pick up the pace and end on a much cheerier note, shall we?
Here are the top 5 Pros to convince you to pick a spot on your map, pack up your bags, and move to that small city in Korea.

Traveling is a lesson in the art of simplicity. After all, this is your life in a bag we’re talking about. Your choice of items is the nitty-gritty of what matters in serving your purposes abroad. Woe to the one who skimps on preparation. Thinking ahead, doing your research, and making wise investments are absolutely key in learning how to pack for a year abroad.

How do I cope with missing holidays/celebrations whilst living abroad? Well aside from walking around on an Easter egg hunt singing Christmas carols, doused in tinsel, with baubles hanging from my ears carrying a birthday cake, I try to first breathe and think about the long run.

All of us, teachers and students alike, are just people. People with backgrounds and histories. People with families and fears. People who are influenced and have an influence. Now that I’m on the other side of the desk, I am still learning to see the raw humanity in all those I influence. Especially students with behavioral issues.

There’s enough in this world to oppress us into cowardice and fear. We get to choose otherwise. We can take hold of life and embrace it in all its messy, hurtful, beautiful, weird, poetic brilliance. Traveling sets a sublime stage for such bold encounters of abundant life. And no matter what last year looked like for us, we can choose to make a change.

You’ve done it! You’ve sent in an application to use Reach To Teach as your recruiter and you passed the initial interview. Congrats! Now comes the really difficult part, deciding in which city you’d like to apply to teach. Should you choose the bright lights and fast paced streets of Seoul? Or should you opt for a quieter, smaller city?

This month Reach To Teach interviewed Brett Mandel, an American teacher in South Korea teaching with the EPIK program.