I did go to a unicycle and juggling shop before I left Korea!

Sadly I’m no longer in Korea It was great while it lasted! Fortunately the memories live on. It’s not finished yet (and it might take awhile) but I’ll have a little page of my website dedicated to my internship. In the meantime I’ve written a report about my experiences and what I did.

A big thanks to everyone that made my trip so amazing! Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted KakaoTalk and lost my username so please don’t send any messages to me on that because I won’t get them!

It won’t be long till university starts. I’m hoping to do my 4th Year Project on snakeboards… In the meantime I’ll adjust the much colder Scottish climate. When I stepped out Glasgow Airport in my shorts and t-shirt I thought I was going to freeze!

After enjoying my weekend of hiking, I decided to use my day off on Monday climb Bomunsun. Monday was a public holiday in Korea because it was Gwangbokjeol (광복절). Celebrated annually, this holiday commemorates the end of colonial rule on August 15, 1945.

The weather was fairly stable (we’ve been getting some very heavy downpours recently) but unfortunately it was very hazy. This obscured the views from the top a great deal which was disappointing.

Probably for that reason it wasn’t the greatest walk I’ve ever done but I still enjoyed the fresh air.

Eunbi was right when she said the weekend would be very tiring

My previous trip to Seoul was great fun so I went to the latest IAESTE get-together. The original plan was visit Everland (an amusement park) but the bad weather caused us to reconsider. Instead we went to Lotte World on Saturday because it has lots of indoor rides.

Lotte World has some pretty good rides. The rollercoasters are well designed and there is a good variation between rides. The queues were long but that was to be expected, it was a Saturday during the holiday period.

I don’t expect theme park food to be top quality but a little variation is nice. All the food vans sold the same things at exactly the same price. It was lockdown and control taken a little too far!

Since it was so busy we couldn’t leave an re-enter. However, we needed some proper food by 6pm so we went to Omato Tomato for dinner. I ordered the same thing I did from the COEX branch. Just as tasty this time as last.

After dinner we went ice skating. The 11000 won for about 2 hours of skating was very reasonable. I stumbled across another quirky Korean safety thing as I headed to the ice. Wearing gloves is mandatory. The place is actually fairly warm (it’s surrounded by restaurants and many levels) so I don’t think they were for keeping your hands warm. I imagine they were to protect your hand in the event of a fall. Maybe some Koreans need to “man up” and let people decide for themselves!

It reminded me of the time I went to a public swimming pool with a friend in Daejeon. At ten minutes to the hour, every hour a whistle was blown. This signalled that everyone needed to swim to the side and have a ten minute break. I was very confused because until my friend explained it to me I had no idea what was going on!

Jet to the face! Apparently this is evidence that I'm "cruel".

On Sunday went to Nanji Camping site because one of the IAESTE people was celebrating his birthday with a BBQ. After we had some food some of us went to rent some bikes (the others continued eating and drinking).

There were four of us so we rented two tandems. Riding a tandem is something I’ve wanted to do in a long time. Unfortunately they weren’t in the best condition (my seat had a large chunk of plastic in a very uncomfortable place) but we had fun regardless.

I think Doris really appreciated the fountain “bonding session” where I decided to to aim for the water jets!

Sadly this was the last time I’ll see many of my IAESTE friends in Korea. Hopefully we can meet again soon, somewhere!

I write the following under my own free will and I am under no kind of duress from external parties: I met the coolest American girl ever and she gave me life lessons on how to speak English the correct way. I loved every moment of it.

In East Asia there is a strong tradition of having a personal name stamp that is used as a signature on official documents. Nowadays hand written and electronic signatures are very common but many people still have their own stamp.

In Korea name stamps/chops/seals are called dojangs (도장). When I got to know a little bit more about them I knew I wanted one. They are the ideal souvenir: almost practical, small, will last forever and beautiful. Also, they are not tacky.

After searching the internet I knew exactly where I wanted to get mine, Myung Sin Dang. A number of bloggers have been to that shop and all the experiences were positive.

Since I was heading to Seoul for the weekend anyway I decided to drop by on Friday. I’ve been to Insadong before but I missed Myung Sin Dang the first time because It’s a little bit hidden. However, this time I knew what I was looking for and found it soon enough.

I took some photos and videos of the process.

Today I said goodbye to my friends Wang and Katrina. Wang worked in the same office as me at KIER and Katrina worked at the nearby geoscience institute, KIGAM.

Buddhism is the main religion in Korea and has been heavily influenced by the Confucian traditions. Temple stays are becoming increasingly popular because they are a good way to gain an understanding of Buddhist practices and traditions. IAESTE organised a Temple weekend from 6th – 7th August at Young Pyung Sa near Gongju.

It turns out this particular temple stay was geared towards Koreans. Everything was in Korean. The consequence of this was that for most of the time the majority of people in our group (including me) didn’t have a clue what was going on!

This total lack of understanding was apparently a good thing, according to a slightly unorthodox Russian monk we met. We had a few conversations and I grew to like him a lot. My understanding is that he believed Buddhism should be a philosophy and way of life rather than a religion. Getting hung up on formalities and doing everything ‘correctly’   can distract you from the purpose of the ceremony.

The food was pretty good. It is all strictly vegetarian so the meals are probably the only meat free ones I’ve had since coming to Korea. The concept of vegetarianism hasn’t really caught on here. Asking for anyo-gogi (no meat) will probably result in a few (not all) chunks of meat being removed from your dish. However, most food is cooked with meat making up part of the sauce or something. Even kimchi can often contain fish oil.

Breakfast on Sunday was a formal monastic meal. This involves a ritual where you pour water from bowl to bowl to clean them. You are not supposed to leave a single grain of rice at the end. The final part involves drinking the water you used to clean the bowl. Eew. After waking up at 3:30am and still feeling sleepy 5 hours later I didn’t manage to drink it all.

I was a little disappointed with one of the main activities “ecological soap making”. This involved melting blocks of soap and someone adding extra powders from little plastic bags. The soap was then poured into silicone moulds to set. You don’t even keep the soap that was poured into your own mould, instead you are given the previous session’s soap because it takes a short time to set!

The other activity was making 108 bead necklaces. Because the instructions were in Korean I had already half-finished mine before we were ready to begin! A CD was played and every ten seconds or so there were wooden knocking sounds and you were supposed to add one bead each time. Much to my amusement the CD started skipping (sounded like a techno remix) about 40 beads in and because there was no numbering it wasn’t possible to restart.

I don’t want to sound too negative about this trip. While it wasn’t quite as good as I hoped it would be it was still a worthwhile experience, just not one I will try again!

So I decided to hit the hills. Two weeks ago I had an impromptu hike after following the riverside path past Yuseong Spa. I wasn’t wearing proper shoes (I nearly trashed the cheap shoes I was wearing) but I got a taste of the outdoors and realised how much I missed it.

The previous weekend I was touring Seoul so I keen to don my trekking shoes (provided the weather wasn’t too bad!). I didn’t make up a specific plan, I just chose an area and pedalled off.

Saturday – Gyejoksan

I decided try a nearby mountain. After I crossed the river I started pedalling up a narrow, steep road to get to the car park. The gradient soon became too much (for the bike, not me!) and I had to push. I soon realised the ride back down was going to be a little bit terrifying because my bike has limited braking abilities. Eventually I got to the start and headed up.

From what I have experienced, gentle Korean hiking doesn’t exist. You are either climbing up a steep path or scrambling down trying not to lose your footing. My efforts where soon rewarded when I reached pagoda at the top of the first peak. I got a lovely (hazy) view of Daejeon and I wasn’t so far from the Guesthouse.

After taking some photos I headed for Gyejoksan and the Yellow Earth Road. The photos probably explain this “road” best. I enjoyed looking round the mountain fortress walls but I am very glad I wasn’t involved in lifting all the stones into place!

I eventually headed home with my bike squealing in pain from the descent to ground level.

Sunday – Sutonggol Mountain Valley

Getting to Suntonggol Mountain valley proved to be a fairly epic challenge. I was a third of the way there when I got a puncture! After buying a pump in Homeplus and failing to understand how Korean valves work I had to head to a bike shop. Although the owner does not speak English he is very helpful. He refused to accept money for the help he gave me reinflating the wheel. I found out a few days later both the tire and inner tube where wrecked so I returned for a proper repair job (He charged a very reasonable 30000 won)

Despite having GPS and maps on my phone, finding the exact location wasn’t easy. I followed a road where lots of cars were going. When I got to an entrance a (Korean) woman asked me if I was “here to buy an appartment”? I was not!

After retracing my steps and trying a different road I eventually found the valley. Unfortunately the rain started and soon got very heavy. Unlike Scotland the temperature was high enough that I didn’t get cold despite being very wet. I continued on and I did a full walk but the views were greatly obscured.

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.

My photo doesn't really do justice. The omelette looked much better in real life!

While I was staying in Suwon my host, Hui and I went to the COEX shopping centre in Seoul for dinner. It is a big place. Really big. After an hour on the bus and a subway transfer we arrived at 6:30m very hungry. We walked round for five minutes before we started seriously looking for something to eat. Dr Kim has taken us out for a few different lunches and they’ve always been good, so we were happy for him to choose!

He recommended an omelette restaurant called Omuto Tomato.  We queued outside for a few minutes before we went in and I decided I would have the Thai Stir Fry omelette. It was featured on a giant poster and it looked good. Unfortunately when we came to order I was informed it was a lunchtime only item (why?!) so I picked the shrimp omelette. A few of the drinks and other dishes were out of stock too but  we were probably just unlikely.

When my omelette arrived and I cut into it, I was surprised to find it was stuffed with rice! In hindsight this shouldn’t have been completely unexpected. Koreans like to take “western” food and Korean-ise it. Often it works very well and this was no exception. I have had noodles with steak at an Italian restaurant and it was also tasty.

From the 18th – 20th of July my host, Hui and I went to Kyung Hee University as part of the “Global Collaborative 2011 Summer Program in Sustainable Developments towards a Green Planet”. Dr Kim (my host) had three afternoons of lectures on wind energy.

The students were all around my age but came from different academic backgrounds (ie not necessarily science or engineering). Dr Kim was keen to give them a good introduction to something most had heard a little about but never given much thought or consideration.

My friend, Hui “Wong” Wang is originally from China but has lived in the US for a few years is visiting KIER to do research. For the final day he had prepared a project on the wind farm development process. After being split into teams, the students were given wind resource maps along with some other information and challenged to design a wind farm.

Although greatly simplified from the real world it was still complicated. As expected, the initial reaction was confusion and befuddlement. However, 4 hours later I think everyone (including me) had learned more than could ever be taught by a lecture.

We were at the KHU campus in Suwon which isn’t the main one but it was still very spectacular! From the giant stone gateway to the fountains and statues in the centre, everything was very grand. Since the weather was lovely (it wasn’t muggy!) I tried to get some nice photographs.