Last Words on Korea

I won't say I'm happy and I can't say I'm sad. As hard as it is for me to write this, my experience in Korea has changed my life!

You know, there were lots of concepts of Korean culture I really couldn't understand. However, living abroad has helped me grasp and appreciate it. I made some great Korean friends through absorbing concepts like 는치(neunchi~ keen sense in social situations), 정(jeong~ spiritual and emotional bonds), 체명(chemyeong~ preserving harmony and balance), 분위기(bunuiki~ mood or atmosphere of a group), and 기분 (kibun~emotional state aka aura). Understanding how Koreans build and maintain relationships has helped me make wonderful long-term friendships.

While living in South Korea and being around the people, I've come to figure out how a Korean mindset is different from an American. There are exceptions, but most Koreans posses values such as hard work, human relations, collectivism, social face, and hierarchy. This is also a key component to Confucianism.

Things I will miss in Korea:
~Fast driving taxi's and buses
~Fun and embarrassing drinking games
~노래방 (karaoke)
~Great clothes and bargaining
~Korean FOOD!
~홍대 and 신촌 (places in Seoul)
~Nightlife
~Staying out all night until the subway opens
~Hearing Koreans speak better English than some Americans lol!
~There's just too much to name!!!

To the people who want to study abroad in Korea:
~Always carry around hand soap
~Make friends in your dorm or home-stay
~Be prepared for confusion or frustration at times
~Keep a sense of humor
~JOIN A KOREAN CLUB! (You'll interact with more Koreans that way)
~Participate in traditional activities
~Travel as much as you can
~Feed your cravings (food, clothes, music, TV, etc from home)
~Keep a diary and write down your experiences (trust me, you'll laugh about them later)
~ Build a cultural bridge to understanding Korean culture

Also, I want to give a special thanks to:
~UCD Study Abroad office
~CIEE Seoul
~CIEE friends
~Yonsei University
~H.A.R.I.E.
~Ye Won Church
~Korean Language Institute
~and ALL the friends I have made on my journey!

I wouldn't have transformed as a person without this experience! It's all thanks to my support system. Now I can go back home taking everything I've learned with me. This has been the time of my life I will never forget!!

감사합니다 ^^

Last Weekend in Korea

To spend off the last weekend in Korea, I visited my friend from my home university in her home town 전주 (Jeonju). It was a long bus ride, but totally worth it! I finally got a chance to see a familiar face from Colorado ^^.

For starters, went to go see Madagascar (all in Korean btw), but there was a long wait for the movie. So to kill time and build memories, we took a bunch of sticker photos! Lol!

After the movie, we went on a ride called Disco Pang Pang. This ride is only available in certain spots in Korea. It spins around and shakes you~ violently!! And the operator of this ride, oh don't get me started! All he does is operate the machine and make fun of the riders. In other words, he gets paid to poke fun. Since I was obviously the only foreigner, guess what?! I was a target! Accept for he is the worst trash talker I've ever encountered. Like I'd wish he would have tried harder. All he was saying was that I had hairy armpits and my hair looks like a chicken. HA good thing I can laugh at myself easily! The second time we rode the ride, be had the nerve to ask for a picture together. After the ride was over, I really didn't feel like it. Haha so we zoomed right out!

After many bruises and soreness from the ride, we took a walk through a traditional village on Jeonju. Actually, it's the same place I stayed at when I visited with CIEE early on in the semester.

 

우린 너무 배고팠어. We both were very hungry, so we spent time walking around a local uni (forgot the name).  We finally found a place to eat, and it was super delicious!! I don't remember the name of what we ate, but it had cheese! And I love cheese!!!

To end of a fun but exhausting night, I went back to my friend's home to rest. I met her family, and it was the first time I've ever been in an actual Korean household. Her family was extremely nice and humble, and the house felt like home. 

Shout-outs to one of my best friends right here. She's one of the main people who properly prepared me to come to Korea. Plus, she looked out for me the entire time. There were many new experiences on that last weekend, and I had the time of my life! 고마워 girl! ^^

Goodbye City Chick, Hello Farm Girl

A few days ago, CIEE took us to the countryside of South Korea. We went to 전주(Jeonju), 남원(Namwon), and 한동 (Handong). But this is only 전주.

Now let me give you a little background info on me~~~~~ I grew up in a small part of Colorado. So you'd think I'd like hiking, rock climbing, and all the outdoor nature stuff. WRONG! I would do those things sometimes, but if I had a choice, I would stay indoors all the time. And don't even get me started on bugs! So ever since I lived in New York working as an intern, I've been a city girl at heart!

Jeonju has the best Bibimbap in the Country

Even got a chance to do some traditional style korean dancing! I sat in front of the class haha! My friend next to me got picked on all the time for not doing the moves right. It was really funny though, even for him! All fun and games there.

We visited the  Paper Museum of Jeonju and I handmade the paper. I would be a great dealer if I made my own paper. Now all I need to do is know how to roll it. Just playin!!

I can't remember if this was a palace or temple. Either way it was gorgeous!

I SOOO don't remember~~

 Other photos of different areas on the countryside are coming soon!

 Nevertheless, it was surprisingly nice and peaceful! I wouldn't mind living in the countryside. SIKE!

I'm a Celebrity! @Arirang TV

Apparently Arirang TV is extremely popular in Korea and internationally. I didn't know this when the TV crew randomly came up to me in the Hongdae market. I have friends and strangers say they saw me on this commercial Lol! Yeah it's less than a minute, but if something this crazy could happen to me on my first day... imagine the next 4 months!

No Trashcans, NO TRASH

All that trash with many people eating in the restaurant, and a little tiny trashcan. I'll bet the workers have to empty it every 20 minutes.

This country has strategy! If you come here, you'll realize that there are barely no trashcans around. It will be once in a blue moon. People carry the trash with them. A friend of mine jokingly put her hand in my coat pocket and a bunch of wrappers (My Chews) fell out! Hahaha! You'd think less cans would mean more garbage, but Nope! Very clever~

Odd Tasks to Explore Seoul

Random Pics of the Day:

The program sent us on a scavenger hunt in Seoul giving us a bunch of tasks. I was assigned with a group that knew little or no Korean, so it only made the game funnier! Plus, it was freezing!  The tasks were so randomly selected in my opinion, but it was a great way to explore the city. Yeah we got turned around on the subway a couple of times, however I believe we did a nice job without having any koreans with us (all the other teams did) *cough cough*.

We had to take the best jumping photo in front of the Seoul City Building. Now imagine how people in the business suits thought of us. THOSE DARN KIDS!

Picture of the creature of Hangul King Sejong

Group photo in front of the National History Museum of South Korea