Gyeong Ju - Suite Field Trip: The Third Edition

I was blessed once again this semester because my suite was picked to go on the field trips! We visited two cities that I have been waiting to see for a while. The first we went to Pohang city where POSCO (a large Korean steel company) largest factory is located. I did my presentation in Korean Business Global Strategies class on this company in first semester. It was really neat to see just how large this company is first hand. Of course the property is gated off and we can't actually go inside, but you can still see the grandness from just across the water way.

This is a battle ship in Pohang, I don't quite remember what the significance was...whoops

Next we made our way to Gyeong Ju, the high light of our trip! I've been wanting to visit this city since first semester when my friend Christina told me how beautiful it is! This was a former capital so one of the famous  places to go to is the park with all the tombs. Traditional Korean tombs look like mounds of grass, the larger the mound the more important you were.

We made some traditional Korean items while here. Since Gyeong Ju has a nice breeze, Patrick who happened to have made a kite decided to fly it.

All the guys trying to figure out how to make the kite fly higher...
It was actually pretty funny because a little boy had to teach these guys how to get the kite in the air in the first place...ahahaha

My friend here is eating 번데기 Beondaegi - a pupa...I can't say I'm a fan, but you can definitely give it a try if the opportunity arises.

 The tombs!

Gyeong Ju has quite a few sites that are really famous and are "must sees" if you ever make a trip down (and you should if you have time). Along with the tombs, at the same site you can also visit 첩성데: Cheomseongdae is an astrological observatory used back in the day for the Koreans to look at the stars and predict the weather.

경주빵 - Which translates to Gyeong Ju bread, even though it's not really bread it's more like a pastry. It reminds me of a moon cake but the outside layer of dough is a lot thinner and softer. It's not too thick, maybe 1/2 a centimeter and then the inside is a solid filling of red bean! I loved it, but if you are not a fan of pressed red bean, or red bean at all this might not be something you should try. This is the famous snack to buy while in town though!!!

There are also two very famous temples in Gyeong Ju for you to visit, 불국사 Bulguksa and 석굴암 Seokguram. The photo below is from Seokguram. Here there is a statue of Buddha carved inside a cave. It's quite pretty! Also to see the Buddha you have to go through a mini hike. This temple is also up on top of the mountain, so the view is really pretty!!!

Our trip was only for the weekend, but it was so much fun! I am so blessed to be able to go on one of these cultural field trips all 3 semesters!!! Even though the field trip proposal can be a pain because everyone will do it at the last minute. Actually going on the field trip is really fun! Plus it's school sponsored, so what a great way to explore Korea without having to spend money!!!

I'd also like to thank Jason Kwang Ho because this is his hometown so his parents also bought us a lot of food and snacks as a welcoming gesture.

Spring Festival Spring 2012 Edition

Once again Spring Festival has rolled around. How the time flies, I feel as if this was my first one. Due to my school + exchange schedule this semester, I wasn't actually able to walk around the day time activities as much. With that said, I was still able to catch one of the midday performances and see some friendly faces that I haven't seen in a while.

Roscoe (the guy in the hat and navy button up) took a break from the army and came to visit us! He entered the army really early so we only had one semester together out of my three. However, in that first semester we were able to became good friends. He was also the friend I visited on the army base last semester! I was happy I was able to see him before I left Korea.

During the school festival we would invite bands to come and perform. The first night we had 8Eight as our performance. I LOVE them. I've been a fan for a while, I don't even remember when I started liking them. All I know is pretty much since their first single. I know they were on an audition program before that, but I didn't know them until they released their first song. They were the highlight for me out of all the performers.

After 8Eight (no pun intended, if you know about the chocolates) a DJ from England performed. I actually don't remember his name. I think I took a picture of the poster somewhere, but at this point I'm not too sure. He was cool, he had a sidekick...that guy was kind of funny. At this point I think a lot of the students were intoxicated so everyone was dancing and jumping around, the side kick seemed funnier.

Oh also many of my Korean female friends thought the DJ was super good looking, lol they are so cute ( I mean my Korean friends). The DJ is the guy with the hat, his sidekick is the guy in the back wearing the white T.

I didn't have too many pictures from the 2nd day of the festival. This is from the 3rd and final day. To my surprise a hip hop duo, that I actual know of, came to our school to perform midday.The Hip Hop performers are called Bae Chi Ki (배치기) and during that time they had a very popular song out called Tu Guys (두마리). This was the second high light for performers at the festival for me!

We had beautiful fireworks this time around. My little camera pulled through and was able to capture this beautiful shot! YAY for Canon cameras and the "fireworks" mode! Sometimes even ordinary people, like me, have a chance to look like a photographer!

Disappointingly the last and "most anticipated" group, more so if you ask the guys, was Rainbow. I'm not a huge fan. I had a feeling they would be a let down. Of course I tried to be positive, but they totally proved me right.

Even though they were disappointing, I still had a fabulous time. This was going to be my last school festival EVER, I made it my goal to enjoy it thoroughly and I did. I had a great time because I was surrounded by great people and of course I was in Korea!!! Those two elements always allow me to have a good time.

Travel Bug

So a year and a half in Korea has made me a lazy blogger...

At the moment I am travelling around Southeast Asia before my journey home to Canada. Currently in Cambodia waiting for my friend to finish her shower so we can grab breakfast!

In a total of 8 days we will have been to 3 countries. I know we've only scratched the surface of all of them, but we wanted to experience a few different places before going home. We were lucky enough to stay with a friend in the Philippines. Then we jetted off over to Vietnam and bused over here to Cambodia.

I am so happy we were able to see more of Asia before my return to Vancouver. I will definitely update A LOT when I get home. I'm sure I will have nothing to do, since I will be up during the night trying to fight jet lag ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Sports Fest + Dream Concert 2012

Saturday May 12, 2012 marked the 3rd Sports Festival I have attended here at SCH. Unlike the name suggests we did not really play sports. What we had fell more under the relay category and the most athletic event we had was the tug-of-war. 

(My team - C)

This is a compulsory event for the foreign exchange students. If we do not attend this event we actually get marked as absent.  So every semester there isn't too much hype about the even because most people feel like they are forced to go. Although I did not participate in as many events as the past sports festivals, I feel this one was the most fun. 

 (Team huddle)

 Short and sweet is probably what made it that much more awesome than the other ones. The very first semester the all you can eat barbecue party was THE BEST. However, overall Sports Festival feeling wise this one was probably my favourite. It probably helped that our group won...

Part of the reason the Sports Festival ended promptly is because so many people were going to attend the Dream Concert. Even though it took me and Elijah 3 hours of sitting in the lounge refreshing, refreshing and refreshing the webpage we were able to get tickets. If you are ever in Korea around this time of the year this concert is definitely a good one to attend!

Especially if you are an overall Kpop fan and you want to hear all the popular hits of that time. There was an amazing line up of artists and the tickets only cost 5 000won (which in Canadian dollars is around $4.50).

 (The MC's - ZE:A's Siwan, KARA's Seungyeon & 2PM's Taecyeon)

One of the best, if not the best, performances of the night Ailee - Heaven. I fell in love with her voice through the videos, but to hear it live it's even MORE amazing. I really cannot describe it. Kristen and I were definitely even more blown away. If you ever get the chance to hear this girl sing live, DO IT she won't disappoint.

My favourite back drop of the night was 2AM's fish tank, aquarium theme. Some groups didn't put too much effort into their back drop videos. It's probably because many groups are dance groups so most of the audiences attention will be on the people anyway. However, since 2AM is a ballad group this beautiful back drop accompanied one of their songs.

The Dream Concert was probably one of the most unique experiences I've had here in Korea for these various reasons:
1. Korean fan girls: You've heard about them, maybe seen one or two even BUT to see them in crowds, waving balloons and chanting their favourite groups names is pretty amazing. (see video below)

2. Korean Kpop Chart LIVE: Basically the bands that performs at the Dream Concerts are the most popular groups at that time (or groups that have been heavily promoting during that time period). If you are a Kpop fan you will get to hear most of the hits all in once place live. If you have a favourite group, you can watch them perform their latest song live (for a very reasonable price). And if you are new to Korea and just want to see what Kpop is all about for a price that won't break the bank you will get to experience just how crazy Kpop can be. Plus sometimes you just want to hear one song from one certain artist live, but you don't want to attend their entire concert.

3. Concert in a foreign country: When you go to a foreign country it's probably difficult to attend a concert festival with so many bands and artists for such a small fee. This is something to cross off your bucket list while travelling AND maybe you will even make it on TV. The concert aired about a month after on national television and a few of my friends made it onto the small screen. They became mini celebrities here at school for a few days, teacher and students were buzzing about it!

Would love to see 2NE1 live, but I read their concert doesn't start till the end of July...too bad =(

Final Exams

I know I promised an update...
Right now it's final exam period. Since I'm taking the intensive Korean program this semester I actually have 6 exams this week. I also have classes at the same time, so time is a bit tight.

Although I'm stressing a bit about my exams, I kind of enjoy it. The last two semesters, during exam period, felt a bit too breezy. Now my Korean suite mates and I can relate even more. Although they definitely have the studying thing down way better than I do. I'm not used to this "memorization" method of studying so it's driving me a bit crazy.

I have 7 exams in total, but one was finished last Wednesday. Here is what my week is going to look like:
Monday - Korean Speaking
Tuesday - Korean Reading, Korean Writing and Korean Literature
Wednesday - Korean Listening
Friday - Korean Culture

Tuesday is the killer day. I'm pretty sure once that day is over I'll be A Ok and the stress level will go down.
Anyway, it's about time to sleep! Wish me luck.

잘자요 굿나잇! Sleep well, good night!

Odds & Ends

I don't eat pancakes THAT often in Vancouver, but it's nice to have that option. I guess one of the biggest struggles I've had in Korea is my option with food. And of course when that option is taken away you start to want it more. I finally made it out to one of the more well known pancakes house in Seoul. It is called Butterfinger Pancakes at Gangnam. 

Kristen and I went after our wonderful Lady Gaga concert. I had an omelet and Kristen had the waffle platter. Since we are eating foreign food the prices are more than what you'd expect for a Korean meal. The prices on the menu run between 10 000 - 35 000 won depending on what you are getting. Most of the standardized meals are about 12 000 - 18 000won. This is just what I am recalling from memory, don't quote me on it... Thinking about it the price I paid wasn't more than what I would pay at home after tax and tip so I wasn't too heartbroken since the food was great!

Of course if you are used to your 5 000won Korean meal you might feel bad paying 16 000won for a meal these days. However, if its only once in a while I don't feel it's that bad to splurge!!! Next time they have this great waffle platter with 6 different types of ice creams and about 10 different types of sauces and syrups that I MUST try before I leave!

On a very random note, in Korea it is hard to find Lemon Ice Tea. For some reason they have a huge fascination for Peach Ice Tea and it's everywhere. Most places only offer Peach Ice Tea...I'm not a big fan so when I finally found Lemon, I was too excited I had to take a picture.

 Now that I have been here for over a year, I think my mentality and actions are very routine like. I haven't been as adventurous and sometimes I really just want to stay in my dorm room and sleep. I know I should be out and about since I have less than 2 months left, but I can't help but feel like I live here.

One Sunday (May 13) I met up with my food friend from Vancouver, Tiffany, who happens to me in Seoul as well. We went wandering around Hongdae and found this small place Moi (pronounced Mo Ee) that served great fusion food. They also had some wonderful side dishes! Not your traditional Korean side dishes but SO delicious none-the-less.

Lastly it is graduation photo season! I love this time because I get to see all my friends get dressed up and look gorgeous. This semester I seem to know even more people graduating. Including my wonderful roommate. She took her photos this year because she's technically not graduating till August of next year, not February like everyone else, but they don't do another batch of photos for August graduates. Just the standardized February graduates. So she got all dressed up and took them this year!

Although we're not experiencing the normal weather this semester, I am enjoying this spring. That is because it is cooler than what I remember last year. At night time it is still quite chilly AND I am not complaining because this definitely reminds me of Vancouver! I can still go for a run at night and it feels refreshing, not suffocating. I will update about Sports Fest, the Dream Concert and Spring Festival soon!!!

Born This Way Ball Kickoff

Kristen convinced me to purchase tickets to see Lady Gaga in concert in Seoul. At first I was a bit hesitant because I like Lady Gaga but I wasn't sure if I wanted to see her live. However, after looking at how reasonable the prices were I decided to go. I was very happy I went, I realized I actually know a lot of her songs so I was able to sing my heart out. Even though we were quite far from the stage it was still a nice party. I also found out the Seoul concert was the kickoff to her World Tour! She is a fabulous performer and I thoroughly had a really good time. I'm glad Kristen decided to persuade me to go.

Countdown

Recently when I think of counting down days, I feel I should be looking forward to something. Obviously that is not always the case, but more often then not, people tend to countdown to things they are looking forward to. However, for me, this particular countdown is not pleasant. I'm not consciously counting down my time left here in Korea, but it did hit me recently that I have less than 2 months here at SCH and less than 2.5 months left here in Korea.

My heart now has two homes. My last year and a bit here in Korea has been amazing. I truly cannot really point out too many down points. Maybe it's because I'm a positive person or the fact that the down points weren't that bad to begin with. Whichever, it's good to know I have such a positive time to reflect on and look back at when I am older.  I will never be able to forget my time here in Korea. Although I want to stay longer, I definitely feel this experience has run it's course. And as much as I'll hate leaving, it's also time to return home.

I will miss my new family here in Korea dearly, but I know sooner or later I will be back...
As this chapter of my life is closing, I will prepare for the next stage in my life...
I am looking forward to where life may take me next!

Cherry Blossoms at SCH

Once again it is that time of the year where until the rain comes, I have been taking pictures like no tomorrow of the Cherry Blossom trees on campus. I have been informed this year that not only are there Cherry Blossoms on campus, we also have Japanese Apricot treas and Magnolias! I am a bit sad this year because my classes are so far from Phoenix Field I cannot see the kindergartners run around everyday. Luckily I was able to catch one batch of them! When there is a festival, our school's campus seems more alive. Normally it's bustling, but a new type of energy definitely is in the air when a festival is going on. I cannot wait for the school festival to arrive at the end of the month!


During the Cherry Blossom Festival friends will have picnics together on Phoenix field. They will eat, play games, take pictures and drink makgoli (a type of Korean Rice Wine) together. During the festival the picnics are the most prevalent, but since this indicates that Spring has arrived from this point on more people will be eating and drinking in the fields.

Since the weather has been cooperating I have also been out and about taking pictures and having a relaxing lunch on the field. I heard my school is one of the luckier ones since we have Cherry Blossoms on campus. We don't have to travel very far to enjoy this time!

My favourite sophomores, Annalee and Seong Tae =)

 My roommate and one of her best friends, Sae Rom and Hae In

 Even during exchange sessions everyone wants to go outside. Recently many people have been meeting in the lounge, due to the lovely weather the lounge has been empty! As it should be...

My lovely exchange partner Cha Hee

 And I discovered we also have a rabbit sharing the campus with us. This isn't my first time spotting the rabbit actually, but today I was able to get a better shot!!! Ain't he cute?

My classmate Yu Yong.

 Kristen rocking the "I've got allergies, but I so don't care..." look.

The KINDERGARTNERS! Such cuties.

During my Friday morning exchange, my partner and I crashed my previous semesters Korean Speaking Teacher's Korean class. Since the weather was so beautiful they had an outdoor class =) How perfect.

 My exchange Hye Seon and I =)

We heard the rain was coming on the weekend, so at the end of the day we just enjoyed the very last moments of the weather and scenery before calling it a night and going to dinner.

Some stronger Cherry Blossom trees were able to survive the rain that did come that weekend. Now our campus is lush and green! Although I enjoy seeing the campus look so bright, the bugs have also invaded =( It's time to prepare for the invasion. Here at Soon Chun Hyang, because it's the country side, there are SO many different types of bugs...I'm definitely not a fan. I hope they stay away for a long period of time...maybe?