Sophia Schulz - Blog Abroad
Blog #1
My name is Sophie, and I have been living in Seoul, South Korea for almost two weeks now, but I’ve already had tons of wonderful and challenging experiences here. Before I get into that though, I’d like to introduce myself a bit. This is my second year as a university student, and I study both Psychology and Studio Arts at UNM, but now I am attending Ewha Womans University here in Seoul. I enjoy creating art in my free time, particularly practicing photography (I brought my cameras with me on this trip and plan to upload pictures on this blog soon!). I also have a great interest in travel obviously, and love learning different languages and cultural practices. I have wanted to visit Korea for quite some time after becoming interested in the pop-culture that has spread to the U.S. (K-pop, K-dramas), and I cannot believe I will be living here for the next 4 months! Now, I’ll share a little bit of what my experience has been like so far. On the first bus ride into Seoul from the airport, I was so exhausted from travelling my neck ached from holding up my head for so many hours, but still, I couldn’t help myself from straining to look out the window at the new world around me. Seeing things in real life that I’ve only imagined or seen through a screen for years has been so joyful. One of the places I’ve visited so far has been Yeouido Hangang Park on the Han River. It’s a great place to admire the beauty of the river, take pictures, and enjoy a bicycle ride (you can rent a single bike for an hour for only 3,000 KRW! - $2). The weather in Korea has been very cold so far, but there were still lots of people walking and having picnics in the park. I’d like to visit again when the trees begin to blossom, I bet it will be beautiful. I also went to visit Seongsu, a district in Seoul, which has lots of cute cafes, restaurants and many shopping centers and pop-ups. It was raining all day when I visited, but there were still many people walking around the streets and waiting in lines for the cafes! Some foods I have tried so far include chueo-tang (추어탕), which is a traditional, healthy Korean soup made with ground-up fish as the broth, it was very hearty and warm if you don’t mind a fishy taste, and only 10,000 KRW ($7). I also tried shabu-shabu, which is a Japanese hot-pot dish but there are tons of restaurants here in Korea that serve it. It was very delicious and only 8,000 KRW ($5) for a one-person serving. And lastly, I also stopped by a street vendor when I was out one day to try red bean bungeoppang, a fish shaped-(but no fish ingredients)-pastry with red bean filling (3 for 2,000 KRW - about $1). It was so wonderfully warm and crispy, and a comfort to me in Seoul’s cold weather. Thus, I’ve had high moments like these where I’m gripped with curiosity and delight for my new surroundings, but also lows, where I’ve struggled with many different cultural and situational challenges. On my third night here, I came down with a bad flu. It was hard to move, hard to stand, and yet I was in a situation where I needed to accomplish a series of errands, navigating a city whose language I could not yet understand, in order to move into my dorm. Before getting sick I was ready with a plan of what to do that day, but suddenly it all felt so impossible because my strength was gone. I definitely had a moment of panic, but I reached out to my family back home and then knew what I had to do in order to take care of myself. It was a grueling day, but I got through it and was able to move into my dorm where I could finally rest. Since then, there have been more moments of joyful discovery, but also more challenges. The main consistent challenge I’ve been facing is that of loneliness. In the beginning it was very difficult to meet or hang out with anyone at all, much less try to make friends. Everyday became a cycle of anxiety over missing opportunities to connect with people, and fear for a future here without friends. And furthermore, I haven’t explored the city as much as I could have because I started to feel a bit insecure about going out by myself (something that I usually enjoy). Something about being in an entirely new culture with a foreign language makes me crave the comfort of being in a group, but that has been difficult to find. Recently though, despite the struggle, I’ve slowly started to make some connections, and with classes starting up, I have hope that I’ll only make more. I know another part of my adjustment here is due to the culture shock and language barrier. For the most part, I’ve been able to find my way around the city and order food, and I'm very fortunate that many people here speak some English even if it’s not the native language of the country. However, with my limited Korean there have still been many instances where it has been difficult to communicate, but I’ve encountered many people who are patient with me and helpful, which I am very grateful for. Of course, there have also been people who quickly get annoyed with me since I cannot speak the language, but that’s expected, and I don’t blame them. I’m hoping that through more exposure and the Korean language classes I’ll be taking, my speaking skills will improve! Even though I’ve had a hard time adjusting to this new place so far, there have still been many gifts from this experience. Despite the worries and challenges, I’m certain that I made the right choice coming here and I look forward to the subsequent adventures waiting for me just around the corner. Thank you for reading! 감사합니다! 안녕하세요! Hello and welcome to my blog!
