First Week of School

So it’s been a few weeks since I moved to Korea and I’ve been having so much fun exploring and meeting new people. I’m now living in a dorm at 연세대학교 (Yonsei University) called SK Global House. Fortunately, I ended up with a Korean roommate. Although she grew up in Argentina and doesn’t know Korea very well, it is extremely helpful to have someone who can explain what things mean. She speaks fluent Spanish and Korean, and even learned English through watching TV! How cool is that? I wish I could speak Korean as well as she speaks English by watching Korean dramas all day. J

The weather has cooled down a bit, so walking is more bearable. Most people here do a LOT of walking. There are many hills here, so we get some good exercise just walking to class or out around 신촌 (Sinchon) area to shop or get food. If you like shopping, then there are a lot of good shopping areas that are mostly outdoors. My friends and I like the ones around 이대 (Ewha Womans University), 홍대 (Hongdae), and 명동 (Myeongdong).

This was my first week of school too. I have a Korean through Ethnography class that seems interesting. The class is made up entirely of other foreign exchange students from all over the world. As for my business classes, they have mostly Korean national students in them. I heard that Korean students are required to take a class in English, so hopefully I get a chance to practice some Korean!

Our school has been getting ready for something called the 연고전 (Yonko games). 연세대학교 and 고려대학교 (Korea University) are rival schools and every fall semester they have a big competition and play games, such as basketball, ice hockey, and soccer. It’s coming up soon, so we just had a cheer orientation. We learned a lot of the cheers and saw video clips of previous games. These students are so passionate and proud to be here, so it’s cool to see everyone get together and show their spirit. I’ll let you know how they go!

Finally Here!!

So it's only been a few days since I arrived in Korea and I already know that this year is gonna be fun! There is so much to do here and the nightlife is amazing. There is always something to do and tons of people walking around. Many stores and restaurants stay open pretty late (11ish, but I've heard that some are open almost all night). If you're looking for something fun to do at night, there are tons of bars, clubs, and karaoke (노래방)! I heard that because everyone works during the day, most places open later and stay open really late too.

I arrived here about a week before the 연세대학교 (Yonsei University) dorms open, so I'm staying at a the Kimchi Hostel until then. It's in 홍대 (Hongdae), which is fairly close to my university. Thankfully, my friends and I have a native Korean friend who is helping us out. 고마워요, 소담 언니 Thank you Sodam!! She is AMAZING. She's been showing us around, helping us move in, and she's even willing to help us get phones and bank accounts!

Pizza from Mr. Pizza. It's endorsed by a K-Pop
group called 2PM, so you get a discount if you go
at 2pm. :)

팥빙수 (pat-bing-soo) 

Food is very cheap. We usually spend about $5-10 per person. Also, there's no tipping!

I also visited 연세 (Yonsei) today. The campus is so pretty. It's very green yet modern, or as my friend John called it, "fancy".

연세대학교 Application Process

Only 4 more days till I leave for Korea!! As promised, here are some important dates…

(FYI: some of these may not be the exact date, but it's still pretty close)

Feb. 1, 2012	MIX application due
Feb. 3, 2012	Heard back from MIX about acceptance (this may vary because my friends going to other schools heard back up to 2 weeks later)
Feb. 17, 2012	UH Manoa STAR Student Scholarship Applications due (online)
Feb. 20, 2012	Received application for Freeman Scholarship
Mar. 1, 2012	Online application for 연세대학교 (Yonsei University) opened
Mar. 2, 2012	Freeman Scholarship Application due
Mar. 20, 2012	Met with Dean Vance Roley (the “interview” for the scholarship turned out to be very good news that all 9 of us were receiving this scholarship!)
Mar. 30, 2012	연세대학교 application due to Darrell Kicker at the MIX office (the actual deadline was April 30, but we sent it in earlier just in case)
April 10, 2012	Met with the Donors, Mr. Freeman & Mrs. Freeman
May 3, 2012	MIX Pre-Departure Meeting
May 8, 2012	Received email from 연세대학교 about acceptance into the exchange program
May 16, 2012	Received official acceptance letter from 연세대학교 (letter was sent to Darrell, so I had to pick it up from the MIX office)
June 1, 2012	Dorm Applications open (they don’t notify you if you got in, you just have to keep checking your application status online)
June 19, 2012	Received Robert H. Y. Leong & Company Endowed Scholarship (Thank you Mr. Leong!! J)
June 25, 2012	Got accepted into housing (pay ASAP because it takes time to wire the money)
July 16, 2012	Received registration guide from 연세대학교 and a list of all the courses taught in English
July 30, 2012	Dorm fee due
Aug. 4, 2012	Received sign-up sheet for the Mentors Club at 연세대학교
Aug. 9, 2012	Registration for classes (make sure you make a wish list, sign up IMMEDIATELY*, and don’t forget about the time difference!!)
Aug. 16, 2012	Leaving for Korea!!
Aug. 23, 2012	Move in to dorms
Sept. 3, 2012	Classes start

*All of the business classes have a very limited number of seats (usually only 5!!), so when I say IMMEDIATELY, I mean that you should be waiting on your computer, staring at the clock. Haha. That’s what I did and I was able to get all my classes. J

I know that this may look like a lot of work, but it’s totally worth it! I bolded the dates that are specifically about MIX and 연세대학교 (Yonsei University). The rest are scholarship related info. 

Introduction

Aloha readers! My name is Erin and I'm currently a Shidler College of Business student at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM). We have a wonderful program here called the Manoa International Exchange (MIX) program, which allows us to choose from about 20 different countries to study abroad in. I chose to do a one year program in Seoul, South Korea at Yonsei University (연세대학교). I leave in less than two weeks, so I'm getting super excited!!

As I'm sure many of you have guessed, I chose Korea mainly because of its pop culture. I absolutely love the dramas and LOVE the music (hence the myluv4mu5ic)! For the past couple years, I have been studying Korean at UHM and find the culture fascinating. I'm really looking forward to getting out of the classroom and experiencing this country firsthand.

I've always loved the excitement of traveling and experiencing new cultures. Luckily, I was chosen for the Freeman Scholarship and given $5000 to use for my international exchange program experience! Thank you so very much to Mr. Freeman and Mrs. Freeman for this wonderful opportunity. You are seriously giving me the opportunity of a lifetime!

I guess that's all for now. I'll update you later with more information about the process of applying and some dates. Till then!! :)