Last Days in Korea

My last two days in Korea were jam packed with things to do (by the way, I am back in the "States" now - safe and sound). On Monday we had our homestay with a Korean family. I stayed with Moon, pictured left, and his brother. We walked around downtown Daegu and met up with Sun (yes..Sun and Moon - perfect). We went to a fusion restaurant which was a combination of Korean style food and Western foods. It was excellent. Then onto karaoke again. That's flavored soju by the way. Its kind of like a mix of wine and vodka. Its everywhere.







The last day we experience some traditional Korean music and cooked some Korean rice cake (different from rice cakes).












The last night we had a house party at Sun's parents apartment. He said that Koreans really didn't have parties at their home, so he was excited. His parents were excited too. They had never had this many foreigners in their home. They took a picture with us. After that...what else? Karaoke one last time.





I arrived home at 1 am on Thursday morning and was hit with jetlag a bit. It was a 14 hour flight to Korea, but it only took 11.5 hours to get back. Anything above 6 is brutal though.

I had an amazing time in Korea and I'm glad that you guys could share a bit of it with me. Sorry it took so long to publish this last post. Thanks to all of the Korean students for such a great time. They really are the most hospitable and caring people on this earth. Besides Shaq. Bye.

Busan

Today was another busy day - this time in the coastal city of Busan. First we visited APEC (Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperative) where a large economic summit was held in 2005. Then we walked along Haeundae Beach, the most famous beach in Korea. Next was the UN Memorial and Cemetery for the Korean War, which was really amazing. Then we went and saw a lighthouse at the top of a mountain on the edge of the South Sea - the edge of Korea!

APEC and views






























Haeundae Beach and UN Korean War Memorial





























Cliffs in Busan (famous for suicides actually)

Gyoungju Tour

Today we visited the ancient city of Gyoungju. It used to be the capital of Korea thousands of years ago. At that time the country's official religion was Buddhism, so there are many Buddhist shrines, temples, etc. We walked through one of the most famous and beautiful Buddhist temples, went to an ancient burial ground, and visited some museums.

First, the Buddhist temple...























Next, the ancient burial grounds and museum. The Koreans buried kings and such under these huge mounds. They dug tombs underground (under the huge mounds) and buried the king and his possessions. Pretty interesting.

A Little Bit About Life Here on the CU Campus

I figured that I would write a few words about our stay at Catholic University. Its much different than in America. For instance, at breakfast time we have the choice of rice, Korean soup, and kimchi or bread, rice, and salad. Its very strange eating salad in the morning. Each meal at the university is basically the same food. Insert meat into lunch and dinner.

As for the room and bathroom situation, my room is really very nice. Its bigger than the dorm rooms at VT, and I have my own room. The shower/bathroom situation is interesting. The shower, sink, and toilet are all in the same place, so everything gets soaked at shower time. Also, the only towels used are hand towels. Its hard to cover up with a hand towel, so I pretty much have to air dry.

This is a catholic university, so curfew at the dorms is at 11 pm. That means people are literally sprinting towards buildings at 10:59 pm. Its pretty funny.

When you go out drinking at a pub in Korea, the waiter brings plate after plate of food. Basically like another dinner. It makes it really hard to drink because you have two dinners in two hours. I guess that's the idea. Also, whenever we are out in a group, the Korean students introduce others as their brother or sister. Their word in Korean for brother can me male friend or brother, so its a little confusing sometimes.

Heeeyah!

Hey guys, today we started the day off with some Korean calligraphy. Then, we learned some basics about Tae Kwon Do, Korean martial arts. We learned some basic moves and then broke some wooden boards. Then it was off to Korean language class again where we learned a few words and so on and so forth. It was pretty hard, but I'm glad that we are getting exposed to the language. Then we went and ate dinner outside the university with some Korean friends. Take care.

Catholic University in Daegu

Today was the first full day at Catholic University of Daegu. We ate breakfast in the cafeteria for all of the students, so pretty much everyone just stared at us. Then we went on a campus tour and a pottery class. I carved some pictures in a bowl with the help of a Korean student and then tried to make a bowl "Ghost" style. I ended up making about three pieces of clay with holes in them....like bagels. Then we took a Korean language class and ate dinner. Next up was a Korean pub with the MS State group and the Korean students. The last thing of the day was a trip to the karaoke bar - a little different than in the US. We had our own room which was pretty fun. Here are some pictures of the campus and the night's events.

Nice Shirt!

Days Two and Three in Seoul

Hey guys, sorry I haven't posted recently. Our schedule was jam packed in Seoul, so we did not get much free time at all. Plus, of course, I was out experiencing things instead of sitting in a room on the computer. Also, something strange was happening with the Internet, so if a post goes through that repeats this stuff, I apologize.

We visited SK Telecom in the morning on Day Two and saw all of the great things you can do with your cell phone here that we can't do in the US. Then we went to KBS, the Korean public broadcasting company (like BBC or PBS). In between we ate Korean BBQ called pulgogi. Very good! After the business tours I hiked to the Korean Red Cross and took some pictures for my lovely wife.





Then a group of us walked to a district in Seoul for shopping and dining. I don't even have to explain this next picture.

Then we went to the Ice Bar, one of three in the world. It was a bit cold in there, but we had a good time. They gave us parkas to wear while we were there.


The rest of the night we went to a few bars and then got back to the hostel.



On day three we went to the Korea Foundation and learned more about the culture. We wore some traditional Korean dress, attended a tea ceremony, and did some artwork.

Hey everyone. Today, we went to SK Telecom, a telecommunications company, and KBS, the Korean broadcasting channel. Then we went and drank some Korean wine and beer. I haven't had much success making a comment on each picture though. I can't downloand multiple pictures at a time and upload them to a cell phone.
Unfortunately, it looks like I can't upload pics while I'm on a blog here in Korea. That means no explanation of the handshake.

A few more photos...

Here are a few photos..

First Day

The first day has been a looong day. We landed at Incheon Airport in Seoul around 5 am after the 14 hour flight. From there we headed straight to downtown Seoul, a city of over 10 million people. First, we went to the national health museum, then we were off to KAIST (an advanced business school) to meet with students and listen to lectures, then Kyung Hee University, a local private university, to learn about the programs and departments. Then we went to a traditional Korean village for dinner. For some reason the pictures are not uploading at this point, so please look out for them. Take care!

Today's the Day!

Today, I leave for South Korea. I'm flying into Chicago tonight and then leave for my 14 hour flight at midnight. We'll actually land at around 5 am on Monday morning in Seoul. It will be a long day, but I'll be able to tell you guys what happens in the future. Thanks to my lovely wife Beverly for doing all of my laundry and helping me get ready! Check out the link to the MS State Global Leadership Program website for my itinerary.

http://www2.msstate.edu/~jps1/GLP_2008/

Unfortunately, I didn't make it down to Starkville, MS for the picture. Talk to you soon.