I'm going to Korea in less than a week. A week from today, in fact, I will almost be to the Inchon international airport. Wahoo! I'll get to taste my first bite of kimchi, and will be able to be in high humidity in a country where I don't understand a lot of what I hear again. Fortunately, I'll be able to understand at least a little bit.

My Korean is going okay, I suppose you could say. I'm anxious to go to the country, though, because I've discovered I learn Korean better when I hear it and am forced to use it than by simply reading it. I can read Korean pretty well, actually. Putting sentences together is difficult. But I can do it. I'm sure my pronunciation is terrible, but that's why I'm excited to go to Korea.

It will be about a 14 hour flight. I think. Not too bad, especially when compared to train rides I've taken before. I also get to take a train. I'm very excited about that. I wonder if Korean trains are any different from Chinese...I bet they are. Korea is a very advanced country.

My address in Korea will be (I'm pretty sure):

Sister Erica Oates
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Korea Daejeon Mission Daejeon
P.O. Box 38
Daejeon, Korea, 300-600

Neat, eh? I'll post it in Korean one of these days.

Please write me! I won't be able to update next week (obviously), so if you want to hear from me, you'll have to write me. I love you all, and I'm very excited to be going to Korea, immersed in the language.

Keep up the good work! God loves you all very much, and with His help, we can do seemingly impossible things like learn Korean.

Sister Erica Oates