Saturday, February 28, 2009

We're here!

Welcome to our first blog, Haws Seoul (like “has soul” – totally cute, right?!). Christopher and I are going to try to do our best to keep this updated for those of you on the other side of the world while we are on our teaching adventure in Seoul, South Korea. We’ve only been here for 24 hours and I already have so many post ideas so it shouldn’t be too hard to keep it updated.

Thank you Joanne for getting the blog-world ball rolling for us. Chris and I got our site set up but that’s about it. We had no idea how to address our last few days in the states – they were full of blessings and goodbyes, which are hard to put into words. The blogger-savvy Joanne helped us put up some pictures to attempt to describe our last days in Colorado. Our good friends, the Dixons, threw us a “Send Off” party that was wonderful – great company and yummy food. We got to share some laughs with Elisabeth and Brian at the Daniel Tosh comedy show, enjoy a special lunch with my parents where we practiced our chopstick skills, and celebrate EL’s 22nd birthday with the Hawses and fajitas. We ate our last burgers and drank our last Coors Light with Danika and Brandon, tried jambalaya and listened to Creole jazz with G&G Haws, and spent some very important quality time as pack (C, L, and Daphne). The night before we left, the Haws Clan joined the Gilmore Clan for a last supper. Many kind words were shared and later many tears. How blessed were we those last few days?

Thursday morning we got to the airport bright and early to learn that our flight was delayed which may lead us to miss our connection in San Francisco. While worrying about this we also found out that there was a problem with my ticket – it had been purchased under my married name while my passport still lists my maiden name (one of the struggles of a name change after marriage). A certified copy of our marriage license couldn’t solve the problem so a new ticket had to be issued. After our last goodbyes, we boarded our plane to San Fran. Once we arrived we were rushed to our plane for Incheon (no time to even stop in the restroom or spend our last USD). We made it on time and were back in the air before we knew it. The next twelve hours were spent reading, watching bad movies, and playing gin rummy. I made sure not to sleep so I could easily adjust to arriving in Seoul an hour before bedtime. We landed safely and after breezing through customs and struggling with four bags that were practically bigger than me, we were greeted by Pep Choi, our driver. He strategically drove us 31km to Seoul and helped us to our 6th floor apartment in the Gangnam district. We were so thankful to have safely arrived in our final destination. I cannot accurately describe the many other feelings that were rushing through us at that moment.

Check back later for details on our “honeymoon” suite ☺

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:18

12 comments:

Unknown said...

HI! Yay!! I'm glad you guys made it safely!! I miss you guys already but am excited for your new adventures! I love you both!
Elisabeth

Truth said...

I know these first days will be especially challenging as you adjust to everything new. Thanks for updating so soon. We miss you so much and it is great to hear and see updates on how you are.

Much love to you both!
(Oh, and you might want to change your blog settings to allow anyone to comment. Just a thought.

Michael Macal said...

Wonderful to see that you made it there without too much of a struggle. All of our wishes are with you.

Ed Haws said...

Hi C&L:Glad to hear that you arrived safely and are settled in your new apartment.
We send our love.
Grandma and Grandpa Haws

Anonymous said...

Hi guys, I'm so glad you made it there safe and sound!! Thanks for letting us know so quickly. We send all our love and prayers for a great adventure this year.
Love Aunt Jeri

Anonymous said...

Hi, guys! I bet you're jet-lagged beyond belief! Hope you're first days go smoothly. I'm excited for you both on your new adventure. What a great way to start off your new life together!
Love you,
Aunt Julee

Anonymous said...

wooo! no international adventure is complete without some struggle at the airport. that's how you know you're getting off to a good start. i can't wait to hear what happens next! i love you both!
Kasey
PS -- GREAT hair lauren :)

Anonymous said...

HAWSOME Blog!!!

Kathleen said...

I imagine you had a wild and woolly first day at school! Things will get easier. Let me know if you need ideas for lessons. I am very interested and seeing what they gave you for lesson plans.
From the size of your apartment, I don't think you will be doing much shopping!
Enjoy the adventure!
Gram Ulrich

Kathleen said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Could not possibly be prouder!!!!!!!

Love

Dad (Haws)

Anonymous said...

Did you say you were staying at the Days Inn or the Econolodge??
Little bit of humor there. The place looks nice. I can't wait to hear what and where you are getting your meals. Is everything on TV in Korean??I would suspect it is. Maybe they have an Armed Forces TV station close by. I know we still have American troops stationed there. I would imagine you are so busy that you don't have much time to acclimate yourself to your surroundings. Right now your focus is on eat, sleep, work. Things will get better as you start to establish some daily patterns.

Love you guys,
Gramps Ulrich