LITMIR.BIZ

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you,’ I interrupted to tell Marilyn. ‘She has taken over a booking at a hotel in Busan during Chuseok and she wants us to go with her.’

      Myong-Ai became very excited and was keen to be involved with the planning.

      ‘It is very lucky to get a booking so close to Chuseok. Everything would normally be taken because everyone goes to be near their family.’

      ‘Yes, well, Olga was offered a hotel booking by one of the teachers at her school who needed to cancel. It’s a large room for two adults and two children so there is plenty of space for three of us, and it’s near the beach.’ I told her handing the phone to Marilyn.

      Myong-Ai wanted more information about everything. Why did the teacher want to cancel? Who was the teacher? Who was Olga? I was becoming more irritated by the second and answered in monosyllables while trying to catch what Marilyn was saying to Olga. I heard Amos’s name mentioned. Myong-Ai seemed oblivious to the effect that her questions were creating.

      ‘I have some friends in Busan. I will call them and tell them to look after you while you are there. Find out when the booking is for. I could come down one day and join you with my Busan friends.’

      While I was still trying to frame a reply that would not offend, Marilyn, with one hand covering the phone, gave an embarrassingly emphatic ‘No’ and went on to tell Myong-Ai that this would be ‘our’ holiday and that we didn’t need people to look after us.

      I felt embarrassed and awkward. I was annoyed by Myong-Ai’s intrusive interference with our private business but at the same time I was starting to understand my room-mate and to suspect that this was a very lonely and rather sad woman. I knew that over the holiday break Myong-Ai would most likely visit her family for a meal or two and sleep the rest of the time.

      It was a relief when Marilyn finished on the phone and told me, gathering up her bag and belongings, that she had arranged for the two of us to meet Olga in town to make further arrangements. We would have to leave now. I felt like an irresponsible teenager but decided to ignore the risk of hurting Myong-Ai’s feelings. There was enough to deal with.

       Six

      Amos was waiting with Olga at Friday’s when Marilyn and I arrived. Marilyn was still grumbling, half under her breath, about Myong-Ai’s nosiness.

      Amos was obviously pleased to see us. Marilyn had already filled me in on what had been happening with him. He had been given a share apartment with other English teachers: one of the ‘instant married’ couples from Ireland, who had only met since coming to Korea. They had since decided that they couldn’t stand one another but never-the-less were not going to take the chance on being placed with families as Marilyn and so many others had been. So Amos had been living in what he called a war zone. Screaming rows happened every night. Although Amos had his own room, he was always tripping over whichever of his flatmates was sleeping on the lounge room floor.

      ‘I couldn’t believe my luck when Olga phoned and asked if we would be interested in going to Busan for four days over Chuseok,’ I said as I slid onto a long bench beside Olga. ‘I really need to get away for a while but it didn’t seem likely. Apparently Koreans not only go back to their family homes at Chuseok but they also book out every hotel in the country. Will you be coming with us, Amos?’

      ‘Hardly … three ladies in one room with four futons! I’m thinking of coming down for a day, though. I need to get out of the apartment before I go postal.’

      ‘Yes, I heard about your feuding room-mates. It sounds horrible. We all seem to be having trouble with accommodation. What about you Olga?’

      ‘I’m tempted to go back home.’ Olga said. ‘Marilyn told me about the letters you’ve written. I think Amos and I should do the same.’ She turned to Amos and explained that Marilyn and I had written letters of complaint to the Education Ministry and the Australian and American embassies complaining that our contracts were not being adhered to.

      ‘Would you really think of going home?’ I asked. Olga shrugged and grinned but didn’t give any further explanation.

      Marilyn pointed at the three of us with the menu. ‘I’m telling you it is absolutely essential that we make formal complaints. As soon as there is an answer we need to go to Seoul and discuss this personally. I’m so angry at the way we’ve been treated.’

      We were interrupted by the waitress. Amos then tried to change the subject.

      ‘Aren’t we supposed to be all happy and excited about Chuseok? You know, blue horse skies and all that.’

      ‘Wide horse sky,’ I corrected him.

      ‘You know about that, do you?’

      ‘You bet! Myong-Ai likes to clue me up on Korean culture. It comes from the saying The sky is high and the horse is fat.’

      ‘Which explains everything,’ said Amos, rolling his eyes at me.

      ‘Well it does explain why we are sometimes getting blue, cloudless skies instead of grey all the time, now that we’re getting close to Chuseok.’

      ‘What about the fat horses. Seen any lately?’

      ‘You idiot,’ I laughed. ‘It’s an ancient saying from the days when it was a sign of prosperity that the animals were well fed. Also the blue skies meant that travelling to reunite with family would be easier. So Chuseok is the time when everything changes for the better.’

      ‘Let’s hope it works for our accommodation problems,’ said Olga.

      ‘There’ll be another big change for us anyway,’ I said. ‘After Chuseok we start at the Teacher Training Institute. I’m looking forward to that. We’ll find out what it’s like this Wednesday, when we start our orientation at the institute. I think it will be all of us. Is that right?’

      The others nodded, with mouths full of Friday’s’ ‘buffalo wings’ and salad. Olga held up a finger to show she wanted to say something when she finished swallowing.

      ‘I’m so looking forward to three days without being at the school with Jun ignoring me. It is three days isn’t it … Wednesday through Friday?’

      We nodded.

      ‘It’s such a relief. I’ll be leaving early in the mornings, too, before Jun is up, and then coming back late.’ She laughed in her husky voice. ‘It might be enough to save my sanity.’

      I was quite excited when Wednesday came around. I had a three kilometre walk to join the chartered bus, so I left home early.

      During the hour it took the bus to reach the institute, high in the mountains around Daegu, I was plied with questions by the Korean teachers. There would be other western teachers, my friends among them, coming from other directions, but I was the only one with this group.

      My first sight of the Teacher Training Institute filled me with awe. It was the only sign of civilization in an immense landscape ringed with mountains. Long flights of marble steps led to the building itself, with a covered pavilion half-way up, which reminded me of a Greek temple. The walk from the bus parking area left me breathless. A few others among the group felt the same. While the younger ones continued on, a few of us rested on the stone benches of the pavilion and got to know each other. One of the Korean teachers that I had spoken to briefly on the bus, introduced herself as Yu Un-Kyong, and we discovered that we lived near each other.

      ‘I’ll be driving here tomorrow. I have a trainee teacher observing my classes these days. She’ll be doing the intensive training course here so she’s included in tomorrow’s orientation – and Friday, of course. Today is only for graduate teachers as you know. So, since you don’t live far from me, you could come with me to save such a long walk and leaving home so early. I’d like you to meet Sun-Hi.’

      I thanked Kyonga, as she had asked me to call her, and made plans to meet her in the morning.

      As we started to walk further I heard Marilyn call my name and waited while she caught

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