Today I road a train en route to Busan, South Korea. To celebrate the ending of my midterms, a couple of friends and I planned some trips together. About twelve or so people are going to travel to Busan with me but after that, my friend, Luann, and I will be going off on our own to Taiwan for 4 days and Osaka for one week. This will be the first time that I will be leaving South Korea since arriving. Prior to this, I have only been to Jeonju which is another city in S. Korea. Most of my friends left for Busan yesterday (Thursday) afternoon but I had to stay back because of my ITM class today (Friday). It was possible for me to miss this one class without it affecting my participation grade but I didn’t feel comfortable not attending class. This class only meets one day a week and every lesson is content heavy. I am glad that I ended up staying and attending class because now I feel a little better about having fun for the next two weeks. Yes, you read right! I will be traveling for two weeks straight! :D Next week is going to be jam packed with holidays like Buddha’s Birthday and Children’s Day. The following week will be elections day in Korea so that is another holiday that I have utilized for my travels. I woke up early today to pack (yes I know that this is last minute but this was the only time I had during the week.. haha) and finish up some last minute planning. To help you future travelers out there, I have created this packing list for the two weeks! Feel free to tailor it to your own personal needs. I did not bring a carry on luggage suitcase with me to Korea (silly me) so my only resort is to pack in a large check-in luggage. In the end this worked in my favor because I plan to do some shopping while in Taiwan and Japan. For now, it is only a bit of a hassle because I have to lug it with me on the bus and train. Thank goodness I have a friend traveling with me to help me carry it haha. I had a blast riding the Train to Busan! Luckily, I didn’t turn into a zombie on the way there. My friend, David, and I decided to ride the fast KTX since we were traveling at night and didn’t want to miss the bus. There is an option to ride the longer train for half the price but we couldn’t afford losing anymore time. We were on the train for about three hours and then we got off to catch the bus to our respective Airbnb’s. We had to take the same bus but we were going to get off at different stops. I felt the most nervous about having to leave David because it would be my first time traveling alone to a foreign location in South Korea. Google maps was also not working for me ㅠㅠ so I had to pay close attention to the bus stop names - With my limited knowledge of hangul I had managed to make it to the Airbnb in one piece. Currently, my friends and I are staying at a place close to Haeundae Beach which is a prime location for tourists. Luann and I went to the beach at night to just chill and hang out. Some nice strangers on the beach gave us sparklers to play with after seeing us admire their fireworks! I had a wonderful start to my travels! Until next time lovelies~ Cheers!
7 Comments
Howdy everyone! Week #3 was a blast! Read more of this post to see what I did this week. More pictures of Week #3 are also located in my Weekly Recaps gallery.
The food is delicious, cafes are cute, and its a great place to get fashion inspiration from Seoul’s young and wealthy. Garosugil is located close to Gangnam so it is very nice and modern as opposed to some of the other traditional parts of Seoul. Luann and I woke up early in the morning so that we could catch the bus to see if we could beat the lines to cafe and coffee shops. What we failed to do was research the hours of the stores... Business starts later than usual around this area (compared to the entirety of Korea even though Korea itself starts at a later time than the rest of the world), so Luann and I had to wait around for a bit before some of the shops opened. Anyhow we didn’t wait that long and it was a lesson learned for us to research the area before visiting it. Walking up and down the streets was really cool. I was amazed at how beautiful the shops were. It is a bit more expensive to shop here than in other parts of Seoul but you are paying for the quality and longevity of the goods.
The perimeters of the base of the tower is adorned with hundreds if not thousands of couple locks <3. Its the perfect place to go to with your significant other to just sightsee or eat ice cream. There is an entrance fee to get into the tower and from what I can remember it is about 10,000 ₩. which is about $10USD. There are various things to do in the tower such as send post cards, or eat at a cafe/ restaurant. I opted not to eat there since I had already eaten in Hongdae and it was kind of pricey at the tower restaurant. At the top of the tower you can see a 360 degree view of beautiful Seoul. On a clear day you are able to see the mountains of Korea in the far distance.
Hongdae is the best place to go to if you want to go to animal cafes. That is probably where I am going to visit next! I believe that there are sheep, cat, dog, and meerkat cafes there.
Hello everyone~ week #2 flew by so quickly that I almost forgot to update my blog… haha! The highlight of my week was getting to spend time with my dear friend, Brenda, while she traveled to Seoul from Hong Kong. Follow her blog here to see some adventures with Brenda. Another highlight of this week was starting my academic semester at Yonsei University. Overall, I am having a blast exploring the area around Yonsei and taking my classes. To look at more pictures for week #2, please head on over to my Weekly Recaps gallery.
Today marks the day that I am officially starting my study abroad journey! I will be flying on a direct Korean Airlines flight from the Honolulu Airport to Incheon Airport. The flight will last about 10 hours and I will land in South Korea at about 5:55pm in the afternoon. To be honest, I am quite dreading the long flight as I always experience some air sickness. Also, this will be the first time that I will be flying completely on my own. Fortunately, my friend, Julie Li, will also be flying to Korea - but on a different flight. We plan to meet at the baggage claim at Incheon after we land to regroup and find our AirB&B host. Our AirB&B host is very nice and will be picking us both up from the airport to drive us to our room. We will be sleeping there for one night before heading to Yonsei first thing in the morning to check into our dorms. Dorm check-ins start at 9:00am and I plan on being there bright and early so I can settle in quickly and relax a little before I start exploring the city. Leaving home is a bittersweet moment as I am excited to be able to finally live my dream of studying in South Korea, but also a bit sad as I have to leave my friends and family. The time difference doesn’t make it easy as there is a big 18+ hour difference between Seoul and Hawaii. :,( Luckily, phone apps like KakaoTalk, FaceTime, and Facebook Messenger help connect me back to home. It puts ease to my mind that Hawaii is only one call away. I highly recommend downloading the KakaoTalk app well before traveling to Korea to help familiarize yourself with the user interface. KakaoTalk is the main form of communication for local Korean citizens. I also recommend checking the weather trends leading up to your flight to S. Korea so you know what to pack and bring on the flight. Currently, it is around 0 °C in Seoul. To help you out, I have a created a little carry on packing list below. Note: this is what I have packed and you can pack more or less depending on your needs.
Until next time~ Cheers!
After accepting your nomination to Yonsei University through the MIX program, you will then need to complete the Study Abroad at Yonsei (SAY) application to fully complete the process. The only way to receive the SAY application is through direct email. The regional coordinator of Yonsei’s exchange program will send you an email that includes link to the application as well as your personal login information to the site. The application is straight forward and should not take you a long time to complete. It is crucial that you follow the criteria that is listed in the application. The deadline for the application is in Korean time so mark your calendars accordingly. I did not have to mail anything in (unlike in previous years for the SAY app) but I still completed my application well ahead of the due date. Important application tips
ID PHotoYour ID photo is critical to your identity while in Korea and very strict rules have to be abided when taking the photo. Below is a picture of the requirements that have to be met. Requirements:
***note the photo has to be 3.5cm x 4.5cm*** Upload in .jpg format I used my iPhone camera to take my photo so it is okay if you do not have a professional DSLR to take your ID photo PassportThe SAY application requires you to upload a scan of your passport. I uploaded mines in .jpg form. At the time I didn’t know whether or not Yonsei wanted all of the attachments in PDF or JPG format. I just took a shot in the dark and it worked out! Luckily, I already had a passport on hand by the time that I started the SAY Application. I highly recommend getting a passport once you’ve decided on applying to a study abroad program. It takes a good 4-6 weeks to receive a U.S. passport so please plan ahead and don’t procrastinate! You can get your passport done at the Hawaii State Library or UH Manoa’s campus center. Health InsuranceMy personal insurance plan does not cover me internationally so I had to purchase insurance from MIX. When I started the SAY application I had not purchased the insurance yet so I just attached a PDF that stated “Insurance proof to be provided on admission.” It looked like this. I wanted to purchase insurance only after I received my acceptance letter from Yonsei. ***very important*** You are allowed to edit your personal information after you have submitted your application. Please remember to upload proof of your insurance as soon as you have it. Personal StatementAt the end of the SAY application, there will be a word doc for you to download and complete. There will be roughly 4 short response questions that should only take 1/2 of a page each to answer. I spent a considerable amount of time working on my short response answers and I made sure to be respectful and honest. Make sure to proof read your responses before uploading the word doc to the application. And... congrats! You are completed with the application You have now completed the application. Now you have to wait for your acceptance packet which should come in about a month from the due date of the application. Your acceptance packet can be picked up at the MIX office in QLC. Your next step should be applying for dorms. Stay tuned for posts on how to choose/ apply to the dorms!
Until next time~ Cheers! Dear Mr. Graeme Freeman and Freeman Foundation, I would like to expresses gratitude to the Freeman Foundation for awarding me with the Freeman Scholarship for the 2017-2018 school year. I am deeply grateful to be a part of such an encouraging and driven cohort. This scholarship has given me the financial and emotional support to study abroad at Yonsei University in South Korea in Spring 2017. To tell you a little about myself, my name is Elizabeth Quach and I am currently a junior studying Finance and Management Information Systems at the Shidler College of Business. Growing up in Hawaii all my life, I am most excited to study abroad in a foreign country and have the “college experience” - to allow me to find my strengths, my weaknesses, and what I need to gain as a person. As an avid believer of learning through the reflection of doing, I truly believe that studying abroad will allow me to expand my horizons and grow personally and professionally. With the this scholarship, I will have the support to travel across the world to learn about new cultures and traditions of people. The human experience is something that I am passionate about and I believe that the value of life is found through interactions between different groups of people and being respectful to each other. I will take this semester to learn with an open mind and heart to expand on my international relations and business skills. Once again, thank you again for the generous monetary donation and continued support. Without your support, I would have not been able to have the opportunity to have this experience of a lifetime. Warmest regards, Elizabeth Quach |
About meMy name is Elizabeth (Liz) Q. I am a full time student studying at the University of Hawaii at Mānoa. I am extremely passionate about helping people, learning things and developing relationships. Archives
April 2017
Categories
All
|