First Day of School!

What a day!  I hope all Mondays can be like this.

This is what I saw walking to my first class.  This old, adorable couple is apparently the groundskeepers for the street where I live!  Everything here feels so Asian.

First class = Environment and International Relations
(I liked it.)

Then came lunch with Marina, my friend from Germany who was born in the Ukraine.  We went to one of the many small restaurants around campus.  Nothing was in English, of course, so we pointed to the table across the room where four girls were eating something that appeared to be delicious.  And this is what we got:

(Please note the exactly two fries, the perfectly divided corn/peas, and the tiny dollop of macaroni!) Everyone was using a knife and fork, so we followed suit.  The silverware should give you an idea of scale!

Alas, for all this food we had to pay a price - 4,000 won!  To give you an idea, that's like $4 USD!  For all that food! Love a country where the food is so cheap.

Second class = Strategic Management of Technology and Innovation
In both this class and my previous one, the professor's emphasized how they were going to teach in the "style of USA." That is, instead of rote memorization, students would be required to discuss different ideas in readings and case studies.  Because that is to what I am accustomed, I never thought of discussion as being a revolutionary teaching style.

Third class = Beginner's Korean
We merely divided up into smaller classes of 27 students.  Which still seems a bit big to adequately learn a language. 

A dinner of kimbap, a delicious chocolate cake, and then I went with some friends to play basketball at the outdoor courts.  The game was way too intense for me, but it was fun to sit there and watch.  The number of people playing and watching at 9 PM on a Monday night was incredible.

I feel as if I've been here much longer than one week.  I really think I'm settling in.  And I'm happy. Good friends, good food, and good adventures!

Thick Thighs and Korean Guys

Went out the other night. I prefer taking stairs to riding escalators,
so I was told,
"You shouldn't walk so much. Be more like Korean girls. Then your thighs won't be so thick."

I'm still not quite sure what he was trying to say to me.

P.S. My Address

          Seoul, Sungbuk-gu
          Jongam-dong 23-60
          Well-beingtel 209
          Republic of South Korea

Welcome to my life in Seoul!

For my first post, I would like to present to you my oasis in this incredible city, my haven in the beautiful foreignness - my home for the next four months!

The street where I live. [My building is on the far right.]

I had to stand outside of my room to take this. My bathroom has a window, toilet, shower, & sink.

Fridge, bookshelf (with lots of food), desk, pictures of loved ones!

I'm standing in my bathroom to take this shot.

Quite large by Korean standards, and quite comfy.  I have a password to get onto my floor, a key to get into my room, and a shoe locker out in the hall.  (Like many traditional Korean places, you have to remove your shoes before entering.)  I even have air conditioning, which has been much appreciated during this past hot (and rainy) week!  Supposedly, during the winter, the floor will be heated - a Korean idea which I find rather lovely. And, to top it off, it's only a five minute walk away from where most of my classes will be!

Check back later for posts on the food, Korea University, and my explorations in the city and beyond!  I hope to post two or three times a week, but I'll try to add interesting tidbits about Korean culture whenever I observe them.  I hope you enjoy!  I miss all my family and friends, and this is my way of sharing my adventures with you!

Saranghae,

Kate in Korea