I have been in Korea for two months and until last weekend I had never met anyone from IAESTE Korea (the local organisation who helped arrange my placement).

Currently there are about 10 students in Korea doing IAESTE from”Austria, England, Poland, Switzerland and Spain”. England?! Fortunately I spotted this heinous and grievous error and had it corrected. Mistaking England as meaning the whole of Great Britain is something a few people I’ve met have done. Since my own geography knowledge isn’t exactly expert it’s not something I can get mad at! So far I’ve been mistaken as French, Irish,  American and Polish.

IAESTE organised a weekend tour of Seoul starting on Friday evening and ending Sunday afternoon. Those of us who don’t live in Seoul stayed at the Pencil Hostel in the Hongdae area. The hostel was excellent, the owners and the guests were very friendly. It is also in a very convenient location and the rates are very cheap. My only complaint is the lack of toilets are showers. Two bathrooms shared by 30 guests makes mornings a bit of a struggle! I am returning to the hostel for a couple of nights before I leave Korea so I can explore more of Seoul.

The Hongdae area is one of the main clubbing districts in Seoul, with Hongik University nearby it is bustling with students. Eventually everyone assembled at the meeting place and we went to a bar/restaurant with the President of IAESTE Korea, Young Soo You. We stayed there for an hour or so before heading out clubbing.

Eunbi (the exchange coordinator for IAESTE Korea) had planned what we would do on Saturday. Thankfully the itinerary allowed for considerable deviation of time because the late night had taken it’s toll. I like to think there is a meeting time and then there is an IAESTE meeting time!

Most of the group eventually met and we headed to Changdeokgung Palace, one of five grand palaces built by the Joseon Dynasty. The palace has a “forbidden garden” and we were given a guided tour around it. At one time I’m sure it was very beautiful but now it has a lot of concrete and a lot of tourists. I didn’t feel the “natural beauty” so much and it felt a little artificial. It’s one of those places I’d rather explore at my own pace instead of being herded around in a crowd.

After the palace we headed to Insadong (a famous market in Seoul) where we had lunch and bought a few souvenirs. Most of the shops stocked the same things for the same price!

Since it was a hot day we also visited some outdoor fountains where a few members of our group frolicked around.

In the evening, after dinner, we headed by bus to N Seoul Tower. There was a lovely atmosphere with live bands playing. A ticket to the top cost about 9000 won so we all headed up. I didn’t realise how big Seoul is until I walked round the viewing platform. The city sprawls out as far as the eye in every direction.

For about 3000 won you could send a postcard directly from the tower to your “love”. I thought this was an excellent idea so I bought one to send to Kim. I was just about to start writing it when I realised… I didn’t actually know her address! I mean, why should I know it? I live about 3 minutes away from her! In the end I just sent the postcard to my parents.

After relaxing in the tower for about an hour and a half we fought our way onto a bus and headed home. Those of us staying at the hostel grabbed some snacks on the walk from the bus stop. We chatted with other people staying there until 1am when we were politely told to go to bed because people would want to start sleeping soon!

GALLERY OF SATURDAY STUFF

On Sunday we visited Seodaemun Prison that was built by the Japanese during their occupation of Korea in the first half of the 20th century. It was an interesting visit. Some truly terrible things happened there. The prison acts as a memorial for the period of occupation.

Unfortunately what was missing from the information boards was what happened after the Japanese left in 1945. The atrocities didn’t suddenly stop. There was no mention of what Korean’s did to other Koreans in the post war period.

I absolutely agree that the time Korea was occupied should be remembered by Korea and the rest of the world but I don’t like incomplete history that ignores some of the ugly things that people (the government?) want to be forgotten.

After lunch on Sunday afternoon we headed our own separate ways. I didn’t go on the IAESTE Gyeongju tour so the next time I met my IAESTE friends was at the temple stay.