People that travel overseas to teach English are often a unique breed. This story about a teacher looking to do something different in the land where eating live octupus is not only accepted, it's encouraged.
Here is the story she has to tell of her adventures soaring over the Korean peninsula.
How did you find out about this?
"I found out about it from an adult student. He goes every weekend and he kept saying how wonderful it was and that I should go. So finally I said I would go."
How much did it cost?
"Because he was a member of the club I paid only 50,000 Won, normally it is 80,000 Won. That includes transportation to the mountain, equipment use, tandem flights and lunch. After we went out for dinner and to a sauna but that was extra."
What was it like?
"We left at 6:30 in the morning. It still looked like night. I couldn't tell if people were still awake or just waking up. We arrived at the school and waited for people to arrive. No one except my friend spoke English. We took a van to the mountain which was about 3 hours away. We got there and stopped at the bottom of the mountain. While waiting at the bottom other people showed up including some foriegners (English at last!). This mountain is maintained by the government so there is a bathroom and general area for paragliders to watch the jumpers and eat lunch. We took a rickety truck up the mountain's curvey road. Me and some other foreigners thought it would be fun to sit in the open back of the truck with the equipment. Well, the road was so windy and bumpy that it was an adventure just to get to the top without falling out.
Once at the top they give you the equipment and tell you to get dressed. Well for the first time in my life I couldn't dress my self. The clothes and helmut are pretty awkward when putting them on for the first time and my tandem flyer had to help me put it all on. Then we had to unfold the glider and arrange all the ropes and then attach ourselves to it. You end up looking like a Tennage Mutant Ninja Turtle. Then comes the part where you run off the mountain. My Dad thought this made no sense when I phoned him. "What do you want to run off a mountain for? You're meant to go up mountains not jump off."
They start yelling "run, run, run." This is the hardest thing I've ever done. The glider is really heavy and you're running into the wind so you can only crawl really slowly, not actually run. But they keep saying "run, faster" so you run and pull and run and pull. It took 3 tries before we actually took off. The best thing about flying tandem is once in the air you don't have to do anything except enjoy the view and rush of flying. I could see for forever. The flying is exhilarating and if your tandem flyer does some acrobatics even better. The best thing is looking down and seeing your feet dangling in midair. The ride was too short (about 10 minutes the first time and 30 minutes the second time).
The landing is also hard work. You have to land on your feet and run so the glider doesn't tangle. Well you see the ground getting closer and closer but it's hard to tell exactly when you'll land and then suddenly it feels like your feet hit a brick wall. Well I couldn't run, I crumpled like a rag doll. Crash landing! We then get undressed, pack up the equiment, put it on the truck and go back to the top. The whole day was like this. Go up the mountain, jump off, pack up your equipment, go up the mountain, jump off. Lunch was delicious. And when I wasn't flying there were lawn chairs to lie on and watch the view of all the gliders floating off the mountain. From down below it looks graceful and beautiful. Not at all like the awkwardness you feel when taking off. It is completely addicting. I want to go again and again.
For more information about paragliding in Korea please contact:
www.jonathansky.com
Phone Number: (82)-(0)32-518-1877
Address: 2F Jonathan Paragliding School,
610-10 Bu-pyung 6-Dong, Bu-pyung Gu
Incheon, Korea
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“I have been teaching in Keelung, Taiwan for over 1 year now, and plan to stay at least another. Footprints Recruiting was an invaluable service for me, assisting in many ways to ensure I had a smooth transition. Without their support, moving to Taiwan would have been much more difficult, and my experience much less enjoyable. I have, of course, become friends with other teachers, both in my school and elsewhere, who did not come via Footprints Recruiting. Many had encountered problems, such as teaching at an unprofessional school, visa problems, housing problems, etc. I am grateful I never had any such difficulties. My experience in Taiwan has been wonderful.”
