THE ULTIMATE
TRAVEL BLOG
UNIVERSITY OF SEOUL
SPRING 2019
SPRING 2019
안녕하세요 means 'Hello' in Korean! I'm learning more and more about the Korean culture every day. There are so many places to see and so many things to do! I'm disappointed that I might not have enough time to do all of these things (I've included a list of places I recommend visiting while in Seoul at the bottom of this post).
The University of Seoul also provides foreign exchange students with a group called Seoulmates. This group helps you navigate through life in Korea and hosts a lot of events for exchange students to participate in. Some of those events include visiting the Gyeongbokgung Palace, going to the night market, and many more. I definitely recommend participating in as many of the events as possible because you have the opportunity to network with people from different parts of the world. Another big update is that my girlfriend joined a Facebook group called Animal Rescue Network Korea and we are now foster parents to a cute Jindo mix puppy :) We named him Mocha! He's a really cute and energetic puppy. He's only one month old, but surprisingly he's very well-behaved and never barks. He e̶a̶t̶s̶ inhales all of his food without hesitation and doesn't require much attention. The Animal Rescue Network Korea Facebook group helps find new homes for animals that are going to be euthanized. In Asia, animal rights aren't strict and animal cruelty rates are extremely high. Some of them are even sent to meat houses. We decided to foster Mocha because he would have contracted diseases from the other dogs if he was left at the shelter. He needed a clean foster environment for about a month, which would allow enough time for him to get the proper vaccinations before being shipped to his new owners in the US. If you get a chance to help one of these poor babies, please do! It has been a very rewarding experience to be able to make a small difference for Mocha.
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Korea does not mess around with its public transportation. Buses, subways, and taxis can be found in abundance and at almost any time of the day. They are more efficient and a lot less expensive compared to back home. Usually a single journey ticket would cost about 1,350 won, which is about half the price of the $2.50 bus fare back home. Another cultural difference that I've noticed is that Koreans seem to not value individuality as much as people do back home. Many people have extremely similar haircuts, clothing styles, shoes, etc. There is not as much emphasis on individuality and being unique.
One of the things I really like here is that you don't have to tip when you eat out. Call me cheap, but that actually saves me a lot of money! And lastly, one of the most important cultural differences is that drivers are CRAZY here. Tip: PLEASE be careful when you cross the street. Even if you have already looked both ways before going, LOOK AGAIN! There is a blatant disregard for pedestrian safety. A car will drive inches near you and sometimes even cut you off while you're walking. It's amazing how I haven't seen a car-related accident here yet. If the drivers here were to drive like that in the US, I can almost guarantee that someone would knock their side mirror out. There are so many culturally different aspects here. However, I am enjoying my time here while immersing myself deeper into this unique culture. |
Michael ImaiEntrepreneur, Archives
July 2019
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