Seoul Loving

안녕하세요 !^ㅠ^ Ever since I was a freshman at Western, I knew I wanted to to study abroad in South Korea. Three years later, I made it happen. In fall 2010 I became an exchange student at Yonsei University. Take a look at my life in Seoul! Main Pic by "findingblueroses"

[seoul-loving]

Crusin thru my hood

Yonsei has probably one of the MOST beautiful campuses I have seen in my life. I totally fell in love. Everything was green in August and just the whole atmosphere was new and lively. It was interesting walking around campus not know what signs said or what people around me where saying but thats what made the whole experience more amazing. 

This is the main road on campus. There are buildings to both sides of the road. Thats the Samsung Library. Its so high techy! 1) you need to have your student ID to even enter it 2) You have to reserve a spot via computer with your id to even find a place to study! Its hella crazy but super cool! 3) People here are so serious about studying. NO JOKE. 4) There had these touch screen tv/monitors things where you can read the news and zoom in and out. FREAKIN cool. 

My favorite building ^^

Yonsei is located in Sinchon (신촌) and its pretty much college students heaven. There are tons and I mean tons of food shops, coffee shops and most importantly bars! (just kidding on it being the most important ^^)  I absolutely love it ( and quite honestly am missing it a lot). This picture is from Yonsei's main gate leading into the center of Sinchon ^.^ (Check out how wide the cross-walks are!) 

Ewha Women's University is literarly across the street from Yonsei and I must say the campus is beautiful as well!  Check it out!

   I had the chance to attend here as well  but the thought of it being an ALL WOMEN university just really didnt appeal to me at all ^^ cus well I wanted to meet korean men! LOL :D :D  Anyawys, those stairs were killer! Especially when I was coming home from an all-day shopping spree. The campus is just so beautiful. In a way it kinda reminded me WWU with all the green trees everywhere. 

[seoul-loving]

Seoul Land <3

Right before classes began  I took a small trip to Seoul Land with Aimee, Esther and Myoung. We had a lot of fun. It was great getting out of busy Seoul and have a few hours of fresh air surrounded by beautiful evergreens. We rode the cable carts and it was so peaceful and calming. You can see Seoul Land up in the background. The view  was spectacular. 

Upon arriving at the actual Seoul Land we went on endless rides on everything that we wanted because there was no crowds. It was my first time being in amusement park where the place wasn't crowed. After five hours worth of rides and crazy 5D movies we decided to head back home and rest, and well get ready for classes! 

One last picture before leaving. We so cute! :] 

[seoul-loving]

My friend Riedman has been teaching in Korea for a year now. We haven't seen each other in six months! We finally reunited and had a very interesting first day together! LOL check out the video! This was one of the times in Korea that I will never forget! :D LOL

[seoul-loving]

Reunited at last!

Sep 3rd 2010

On the weekend Riedman finally came to visit me & boy was that the adventure. (Literally). Riedman decided to bring his big suitcase to pick up some stuff of his that his friend has. On our qwest to find a motel we had to drag the bag along for more than 3 hours. Thats right THREE hours. We couldn't find any motels. We looked in Sinchon, Edae & Hongdae. It was not our night. So much for going to Club Night ( club hopping every last friday of the month for free). We finally gave up and decided to just come to my university to rest. Before arriving here we ran into a motel, which was literally two blocks away from where we had been earlier. MAJOR FAIL. Anyways by the time we gotto the hotel we were exhausted and super hungry. We went to get Samgyupsal again & then crashed right after. We woke up at like noon the next day. 

We both changed and our first stop was visiting the "Namdemun" market. It started raining on us so we didn't get to do too much shopping. However I did find some shops with tons of souveneirs, so I'll defenitly will be making a trip back there later on.

We continued on our way and then made it to City Hall!! Check out the huge screens that are attached to the building. This is where all the World Cup games were broadcasted and a gazzilion Koreans all decked out in red watched the games! It must have been a cool sight to see! 

Since its still being remodeled (City Hall) they had it all wrapped with this awesome cool wall-paper type of thing...&& LOOK I joined them! Do I look Korean?? ~^^

After taking a few pictures with the cool wallpaper we had the lovely experience of being "celebrities" and I say celebrities because we were interviewed for this Water campaign event that was happening in front of the City Hall building. There was many pictures taken and overall we felt pretty cool being foreigners. There was a spot where you could take polaroid pictures with like old school buckets and a well & when it came to my turn they not only put clothes on me (unlike the rest of the people) but they also made Riedman dress up! HAHA! Again, being a foreigner has its benefits! haha! They most likely dressed up up since we both are brown and village people do tend to be darker! Anyways it was still fun :D :D

After our 5 minutes of fame in Seoul City Hall we went over to Deoksu Palace. Deoksu Palace is one of the "Five Grand Palaces" of Seoul. We walked around all of the garden took some pictures and enjoyed the contrast of this highly traditional palace in the midst of its high skyscrapers that surround it.

Upon leaving the Palace we ran into a public demonstraion of  "Changing of the guard ceremony", which was tradiontally done during the Chosun Dynasty. I even had a chance to take a picture with some of the people that participated in the demonstration.

  It was quite the sight to see. People wearing traditional & highly colorful clothing, flags, chants and music. We definetly chose a good time to visit the temple. Deoksu Palace is one of the smallest palaces so I really want to visit a bigger one. 

  Next stop was Gwanghwamun square. There we saw the statue of Admiral Yi Sun Shin along with the statue of King Sejong the Great. He was one of the kings of the Choseon Dynasty and is considered as the greatest king. He was the one that developed Hangeul ( Korean language). So he's pretty cool guy to most koreans & myself! :D 

It started raining again :( & so we saw this free exhibit and naturally we went. LOL. It was called EGG Hall ( Experience Green Growth Hall). It hella reminded me of Western and all the movements on being & becoming more green. It had different exhibits on how korea is becoming more and more green, from transportation to green homes. Even Polar Bears! LOL!

AHHHH I got the WORLD on top of me ^^ This place was super cool :D Check it out if you are ever in the area! :D 

After this we took the subway to Itaewon a district of Seoul where the majority of its people are foreigners. We ate at this really good Mexican food restaurant. It felt good eating beans and rice again! :D After dinner we were determined to go out in Hongdae to find a good place to dance some latin music. Upon arriving at Riedman's motel we both were too exhausted. We got ready and then decided to take a nap. Our nap ended up turning into a DEEP sleep. Needless to say we never made it out the clubs. LOL. We basically got all ready ( hair did, make-up did) to go to bed! Gotta love us. LOL. Anyways, it was crazy meeting up with Riedman in Seoul!! We both kept saying this all weekend! Good times. Our next adventure together is???? CHINA :D 

[seoul-loving]

Week Two

Week of September 30-5th, 2010

Week two was quite busy. It was the last Hoorah before classes started. I went on a trip to Seoul's Immigration Office to apply for Alien Registration Card with some friends. The trip took about 25 min on the subway but then we had to do sooooo much walking! At least it was nice out- and we had a chance to check out a different part of Seoul.^^

Since we had arrived way early to our appointment with the Immigration Office (just in case we got lost) we headed back to the subway to check out some of the shops that were down there! Korea sure knows how to utilize every space available! Check it out! I did my KPOP shopping by purchasing Taeyang new International cd! I even got a free poster! Holla! It definitely made my day! ^^ I felt sureal since I no longer had to order my cds from yesasia.com LOL :D <3

We went back to the immigration office, turned in our papers and headed back home. The heat really did get to us by that time, it was super HUMID. I was definetly not digging the weather at this point. As we got on the subway back to Yonsei I wasnt feeling too great, the air quality down in the subway was terrible and I felt like I couldnt breathe... Yeah that  was not fun. Anyways- once the subway arrived and the AC was on I felt a lot better. 

Thats the Han River :] It divides the North and South part of Seoul. Its so pretty yet highly contaminated. :/ The walk from the Sinchon subway station to the dorms is about 15 minutes, but we were exhausted especially from the heat outside. I came back, met up with Aimee, got dressed then went out to dinner. 

Before heading our to dinner we had asmall photo shoot at Yonsei's main gate. Thats Aimee and I  (aka my awesome roomie). I was so nervous about my roomate! (not gonna lie!) but Aimee and I instantly clicked! YAYS! She is from Seattle as well, but now lives in Oklahoma and goes to school in Texas!! Thank your diosito ( Thank you god)  She had been to Yonsei during Spring semester so she knew a thing or two about Seoul already! WHOOP :D 

Anyways, we all went out to Samgyupsal ( Korean BBQ) for dinner in Sinchon. It was super yummy! All you can eat meat/side dishes for $7000 won! (less than $7) We have slowly become regulars there! The adjuma (older lady) that works there is simply too cute & sweet that we can help but to come back! :D <3 Chris was the meat cooker for us that evening, which was great cus lord knows I didnt know what I was doing! :D LOL 

With Korean BBQ comes SOJU! I had to aquire the taste of this because I was not a big fan of it at all. Anyways, you know what they say..."When in Korea, do as the Koreans do" LOL <3  

[seoul-loving]

Week One

August 29th 2010

On tuesday we had orientation and I must say it was pretty boring. Everything they said was on the handbook we received as we entered. The only good thing was getting my ID card ( I felt super duper official). I also had a chance to meet up with my friend from Western Myoung! After that was over we all decided to get lunch at Hongdae. We took the subway there, so first I had to get my buscard or  "T-money card" as its called here in korea. We ate a this really cute Korean Rice and Noodle restaurant called "Donzzola". This was what I had! :D it was really good. ( Shrimp/rice type dish). 

My university is located in Line 2 of the subway. It's the busiest line of the metro since you can connect to all of the other lines from this specific one. There are seats on the subway designated for the elderly/people with disabilities/pregnant women usually at the end of each subway cart, these spots are also marked on the outside area, so it's smart to not stand by that specific door since you most likely wont get a seat. I really like the subway, it's convenient & cheap. The fare is $900 won which is about $.85 cents. Usually down by the tracks you'll find many different small shops. All of them usually sell umbrellas considering its been raining like no other lately. They really know how to utilize the space they have, since its so limited and compacted.  

First Step to Korea was a program put together by the Global Lounge. It basically provided programing for exchange students as they make their transition from their home countries and into Korea. They showcased different cultural dances & did various Taekwondo demonstrations. 

[seoul-loving]

1st Night Out!

August 25th 2010  Crossing the international day line made my sleeping schedule quite complex! The first night I arrive I slept, slept and slept! I finally woke up on monday at like 6am, showered and went back to bed! By the time I actually woke up I decided to go and explore the campus.  I had my campus map in hand and decided to look for the library. Being me I obviously got lost and ended up touring Ewha Women's University instead of Yonsei! haha! Ewha University is directly in front of Yonsei University ( now i know this) but I eventually I did make it to my campus. I got caught in this lovely 90 degree rain, so that was lovely. (sarcasm) I found the library and used the computer for a few hours. After I went back to my room- I heard some students talking in english so I asked them if they were going back to SK Global House, which they were and so we started talking. I had made my first friends! They were from California and were all students at University of California- Irvine. The girls all turned out to be living in the same floor as me & so we all went out to dinner together. I met some other friends from their school and we all got along great .

After dinner we all decided to go out and find the E-mart to buy stuff we needed but we were unsuccessful :/ However, we did get a chance to see Seoul at night and just explore a little bit.

We decided to shop around and see what kind of things they had and ended up at this   acessories store and I bought some stuff :] I also saw some "different accessories" aka swastika earrings! I later found out that they weren't swastikas but rather the Buddhist symbol! So I guess Korea isn't that crazy! :D 

[seoul-loving]

Asiana Airlines Flight 271

Monday August 23rd 2010

Lets take a trip back to this past saturday. I arrived at the Sea-tac airport with two luggage bags and a whole bunch of emotions running all through my body. I was really leaving to Seoul, there was no turing back. As my mom helped me carry in my luggage and get in line I said goodbye, she gave me her bendicion (blessings) and told me to take care of me, to stay safe and enjoy my trip over there. It was right then and there that the tears began to come. I asked the guy who was behind me in line if he could watch over my bags as I went back to the car to say goodbye to my little brother and sister. He shrugged a little but he said he would. In less and two minutes I was back in line and that young man who helped me with the luggage turned out to be such a blessing. He not only helped me with my luggage, he made sure I was taken care of at check-in, waited in line with me at immigration and we would even be on the same plane to Seoul. I was super happy that I had made a korean friend already. His name is Henry, he's from Busan but lives here in Seattle and he studies at the University of Washington. As we sat at our gate and shared some snacks, he asked me why I was wanting to go to Korea and I found myself not knowing what to answer ;] there was simply too many reasons for this trip. I wanted to be in complete culture shock ( which trust me it did happen once I arrived), I wanted to learn a new language( which will hopefully happen if Im able to register for the classes I need!!) and well I wanted the chance to snag a couple of K-pop Stars (aka Big Bang! <3!)

in

THE LONG JOURNEY BEGAN and I literally mean long because the flight from Seattle to Seoul was 13 long and lovely hours. Gosh, I dont think I mentally prepared for this flight. Anyways, at least they fed us yummy food! & I had a chance to sit with other Americans which was cool cus I could actually communicate! 

After a 13-hour flight I had finally arrived in Seoul. I looked like a hot mess, no joke. I didnt care, shoot I couldnt even manage to take a picture of the "Welcome to South Korea" sign as I left the plane. As I was walking onto the Incheon Airport I realized that I was overdresses, yes overdress. It was a gazillion degrees and my hoodie no longer needed to be in my body. The lines for immigration were SUPER long. I wanted to cry. Luckily Henry was still waiting for even though his line took less than 5 minutes. Oh the perks of holding a Korean Passport! :] We walked together to pick up our luggage and then headed outside to the greeting area. It was crazy, so many people everywhere!

As I looked at the crowd, I quickly saw Jun and then Henry and I said our goodbyes, I thanked him for his help and told him I would hit him up once I was back in Seattle! Jun was holding a sign with my name!  It was like what you see on the movies. He was really nice. Thats him and I on the bus. We took this "limousine bus" that would take us from Incheon to Sincheon ( the bus/metro bus stop for Yonsei). There I met two latinos from Ecuador! Super small world. I was talking to them in spanish for a while. I immediately again though of Riedman ( I had met two latinos within 3o min of my stay in Seoul!) They were only here for a few days, since their final destination was Tokyo.

After arriving at our stop we hopped in a taxi and it took us straight to my dorm. I live at the SK Global House International House. ^^ I went up to my room and left my stuff. Jun helped me find the nearest store on campus and went on his way. I came back- unpacked a bit, tried to get my internet to work and then gave up!! I crashed and basically slept for hours.

[seoul-loving]

Cheers to Korea!

Friday August 20th 2010

I went out to dinner with my dear Tawna baby for dinner at Azteca in Southcenter, it was our last dinner before my long four month trip to Seoul! Later in the evening I was going out for drinks with some friends but Tawna couldnt come cus she had work and well she was under 21 :( Anyways- Im glad I had a chance to see here before I left! 

We met up at Ambers down on belltown. We are a pretty good lookin group arent we? HAHA anyways it felt great seeing my friends and just having a good time out in the town! :D Amber has always been a favorite for Marisol and I and well we definetly had to come back. We grabbed some white-russians! NOM! 

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Our next stop was "La Taberna" which was literally right next to Amber so that was nice. Drunkies cant be driving! Anyways at this point we had more people join our crew! We told them it was my birthday and check out the sweet dessert we got along with some Champagne! 

Anyways- it was great having one last night with some of my closest friends. But now I had to come back home and get ready for my highly long but long-awaited trip to South Korea! 

CHEERS TO KOREA! 

Now, Big Bang wait just a lil bit cus baby girl is on her way! :D 

[seoul-loving]

T-minus 1 day to Korea

Yikes! My plane leaves tomorrow afternoon. I have yet to start packing, and I'm going out tonight to celebrate with my friends and say goodbye. This sounds like me; a total procrastinator! On the other hand I just found out who will be picking me up from the airport! (considering Riedman couldnt do it, but its k I still love you babe!) Its this very nice guy (or so it seems from the picture and his message) from IYC or International Yonsei Community! It's this really cool community I found online that basically tries to bridge the barrier of international students and korean students! It seems like they do a lot of fun stuff so I will most definitely be involved with them during my stay.  Well time to start packing! :D