CORNWALL, Ontario – They say it’s the little things you miss most when travelling, and a pair of Cornwall sisters on the other side of the planet can attest to that.
Robyn and Shannon Bedford of Cornwall are both teaching English in South Korea.
And while the move to the Pacific Rim has been rewarding on a number of levels, the niceties of good old-fashioned Canadiana is sometimes lacking.
“Although it sounds like a Canadian cliché…I miss Canadian bacon and maple syrup,” said Shannon, who teaches at a school in Songdo, about 10 minutes from her new home in Incheon. “Some of the major things I had to get used to was the food, although I love spicy food and I’m pretty open to eating new foods, the meals here are much different than back home.
“It is all very healthy. I eat kimchi and rice almost every day.”
And there’s the little matter of cramming so many people into such a small piece of geography.
“The one thing I had to get used to was some of the everyday etiquette differences here,” said Robyn, who teaches English at a private school called Avalon in Seongnam. “Personal space is almost non-existent and if people bump into you they won’t apologize.”
But that’s not to say the sisters are complaining. Not at all.
“I made the move to Korea because I wanted to go out and experience something new,” said Shannon.
The Bedfords have been in South Korea since February and signed one-year teaching contracts.
After university, I wanted to go out and do some travelling but it was hard to save up the money,” said Shannon. “Teaching in Korea has so far allowed me to save money and
I’ve been able to travel within and around Korea at the same time. After my contract is finished I plan to travel more around Asia.”
Compared to Canadian standards, pay rates can seem a bit low. Some schools pay as little as $15 an hour for teaching, but the cost of living in South Korea is low too, especially if one lives like a local.
Often in South Korea accommodations for foreign teachers are paid for and furnished and meals can be much cheaper than in Canada.
The Bedford sisters are making inroads when it comes to communicating in the local dialects, though it takes some getting used to.
“It is difficult sometimes having no prior knowledge of the Korean language, you have to sometimes ‘sign’ your way through some little everyday situations,” said Shannon.
