The End of This Chapter

I honestly don’t know how to begin to describe the time that I have spent here in Korea. I knew the day would come when I had to say goodbye. But now, that day is staring me right in the face, and I feel a sick feeling in my stomach thinking about everything that I am leaving behind. I have made two hundred new friends from around the globe, and have formed strong bonds with so many amazing people, but nothing could have prepared me for the pain that I have felt when forced to lose them all in one day. It is a truly unique kind of heartbreak.

To all the students of Sogang Fall Semester 2014, I have loved every single one of you in different ways, and I will never forget the times we shared together. Sogang University will always be such a beautiful place to me, because it holds only positive memories: all of your smiling faces, the strong bonds we formed out of nothing, those nights we spent dreaming together and making large, ridiculous plans for the future, the nights that we partied, the nights that we just stayed in, our tears when we laughed, our tears when we said goodbye, and those times when we smiled at people we’d never met because even though they were complete strangers, we knew that they were family.

You have all helped me to grow as an individual. I am not afraid to be who I am, I am not afraid to acknowledge my faults, I am not afraid of what people might think, and I am not afraid to feel! I want you all to know that I have loved spending time with you, and that this is a truly tragic day for me. But I also know that it was perfect just the way it was, because my time spent with you is now a perfectly wrapped gift of memories, which from this day forward, I will be able to unwrap at any moment in my life. The time was precious, and even though it is over, it is far from dead.

So let us be positive! We have formed lifelong friendships, and we have all grown as individuals. True, we will never again know the same life that we have lived in Seoul, but think of all the people who will never experience what we have experienced here. God blessed us all by giving us this extremely rare opportunity, and a whole new book of stories to tell!

I know that I will never see some of you again, but I can promise you that I will never forget your faces. Because even though time flew by, and even though I shared no more than a nod of the head with some of you, Sogang to me was always a place of complete happiness; a place free of judgment, a place free of hatred, and a place where two hundred complete strangers could come together in love and join their lives as one.

“Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”

-      -- Dr. Seuss

Signed in Seoul and love always,

Kristin

Kristin is supported by the Australian Government through the Australia-Korea Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

My Birthday in Seoul

Hello friends!

Recently it was my birthday, and I had a fantastic day with my closest friends in Korea. My roommate took me to some places to which she knew I wanted to travel, one of which was the YG Entertainment building in Hapjeong.

I made a video of this adventure for our ZISSpop channel, so you can view our shenanigans below ^.^

The night before my birthday, my friends were kind enough to take me to a cafe that I had not seen before, called "Cafe Poem". It was super cute and we had a lot of fun. Clearly they have paid attention to my cravings for new cafes. I cannot get enough of the cafes in Seoul!

The rest of my birthday involved brunch with my dear friend KiJoong (before my roommate Tinika woke up :p), pho with my Tinika (a favourite cuisine of mine!), mass at the Catholic church on campus, a Skype call with my family, a late-night birthday cake with my favourites and then ANOTHER cafe called "Coffeesmith" for midnight coffee (no regrets). I then stayed awake for a prolonged period of time watching pointless YouTube videos.

I also was blessed that my kind friends gave me some lovely gifts, most of which were snow-themed thanks to my newly-discovered love for snow! Thank you to my friends for the gifts and to my family in Australia for the lovely card.

Overall, a brilliant, intimate birthday with my closest friends; the activities of which proved that they truly do know me!

My life in Seoul is coming to an end and I am coming to terms with the fact that soon, I will have to say "see you later" to the dear friends that I have made here (note, I didn't write "goodbye"!).

Thank you for all your beautiful birthday messages. Keen to see your faces soon!

Signed in Seoul,
Kristin

Kristin is supported by the Australian Government through the Australia-Korea Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

The 10 strangest things about life in South Korea: Part 1

So I am getting to the point where I have spent enough time in Korea to feel like I am qualified to write posts like this.

Below is a list of observations I have made concerning things that I find particularly strange about life in Korea. Not all of you will find these things strange, but given that I am used to Sydney life, I couldn't help but pick up on a few things about Korea that are quite different from Australia. So please, read on, and I hope that you may discover something new about Korea from this post.

Note: This post will come in 2 parts, because otherwise it would be too long and therefore too much of a commitment for you to read.

1. The fact that it is normal to pass out anywhere.
I mean this in two senses: both napping and being intoxicated. Blackout Korea means that people can pass out/nap anywhere without getting judged or abused by the public. The fact that there are several Facebook pages and blog posts dedicated to this worldwide is an indication of how much of a Thing it is. I have taken around 40 photos myself of people passed out in Korea, mostly because I have been amazed at the lack of shame. Take a look at some of my photos below.

The upside: Come on, how awesome is it that you can nap anywhere without judgement?! I have taken advantage of this more times than I care to admit.

2. The fact that bins are extremely rare.

I mean, they have bins of course but I am constantly baffled at how rare they are. In my first few weeks, I could happily get a take-away coffee, blissfully unaware of the fact that once I had finished said coffee, I would have to CARRY THE EMPTY CUP IN MY HAND FOR AN HOUR BEFORE I CAME ACROSS A BIN. It's not like Sydney, where on the streets there are bins every 100 metres. No, coming across a bin on the street is like winning the lottery. It is genuinely something to be happy about. The only places guaranteed to have bins at least 90% of the time are coffee shops (and you can't really use those without buying a coffee or pulling a sneaky throw-and-dash), take-away places and restaurants (both of which are a gamble anyway).

It is very strange to me, because when you walk the streets, you often come across garbage heaps where people have placed their trash, and it looks really gross. Like, why not just PUT BINS ON THE STREET!? The other day, I was walking the streets with a coffee in my hand and I was fortunate enough to come across one of the rare street-bins. So, I legitimately stopped, stood there right next to the bin and finished my coffee -- even though I still had a good half a cup to go -- because I wanted to avoid the empty-cup struggle. I stood there like a moron, finishing my coffee, and then I had to speed up the process so that I wasn't standing there too long, so I didn't really even get to enjoy that last bit of coffee. Maybe I'm an idiot, but the struggle is just too real. Funnily enough, I have actually seen people do this same thing several times.

The upside: You can place bets with your friends about when the next bin will show itself. (I have never done this, I just couldn't think of an upside.)

3. The fact that fitting rooms are equally as rare.

This one makes me emotional. As a tall woman in Korea -- scratch that, as a woman in general -- I need to try on my clothes before I buy them. And Korea has just not delivered in this department. Shopping is very cheap, yes, but it's sort of a stab in the back because whilst there are so many awesome clothing items for dirt cheap prices, there is more often than not nowhere to try them on. Because of this, shopping is such a bitter-sweet experience. Sometimes, I have raged against the machine and attempted to try on items of clothing within the store DESPITE the lack of change rooms, but I am almost always told off by the shop assistants, who are like 'NO TRY. NO TRY.' I am convinced that they are out to ruin lives.

The upside: It stops you from losing all your money. Also, after living here for a while you can sort of get a feel for how to judge whether things will fit you or not.

4. The selfie culture/the fact that there are mirrors everywhere/the fact that everyone is well-dressed.

It is no secret that Korea craves the aesthetics. Clothing stores are plentiful and almost everyone seems up-to-date with the latest fashions. What I find extremely strange, however, is their placement of mirrors. They are just everywhere! To some extent, it is nice to have mirrors in convenient places, but a lot of the time in Korea, I'm like... "Why?! Why do you need a mirror there?!" 

For example, I have found mirrors in almost every elevator, large mirrors in waiting rooms, full-length mirrors outside elevators, in cafes, and my personal favourite, full-length mirrors in toilet cubicles so that you can watch yourself peeing. The latter is definitely one of the weirdest things I have ever encountered. It's like, any moment you spend waiting for anything in Korea, you don't have to worry about being bored, because you can just look at yourself for ages! (And I've seen too many people shamelessly staring at themselves, with the 'mirror face' that everyone seems to put on when they look at themselves.)

One of the many, MANY mirror-selfies my roommate and I have taken in our dormitory elevator. We have since become notorious elevator-selfie experts.

Furthermore, the selfie culture is unavoidable. If you're going to live in Korea, just give in and buy a selfie stick. They are actually kind of cool, despite their crazy impracticality. Haha. But really. I am now used to seeing people take shameless selfies everywhere. Sometimes, they don't just stop at one. My friends and I once saw a couple in a line at Lotte World take -- no joke -- at least 30 selfies over the span of ten minutes. It's like they were never satisfied with just the one selfie. And you have to ask, were they planning on posting all those selfies online? Because in what world would anyone be sitting on their computer going, "ah YES! Jack and Sarah just posted another series of selfies. I am so keen to view them all to see how they worked the change of angle and struggled to find the perfect light!!! I wish I could get the perfect selfie only in 30 takes, just like them!"

The upside: With mirrors everywhere, you never look shabby ;)

5. The need that Koreans seem to have to brush their teeth all the time.

It sounds like such a small thing, but it is so common that it can't go unnoticed. Koreans just, need to brush their teeth apparently. A lot. In between classes, I will go to the girls bathroom and always see at least a couple of girls in there brushing their teeth. Sometimes, there is a crowd of them. It's just weird. I mean, not that it's a bad thing. Good on them! But it's strange! And it seems to be a priority as well. Friends will sometimes delay plans because "sorry, I'm just going to go and brush my teeth first!" and then I will feel like the un-hygienic one who 'forgot' to bring her toothbrush.

One time, a girl started brushing her teeth in the middle of class. I think I genuinely stared, jaw gaping, at her. Just, why?! Why couldn't she wait until afterwards? Or beforehand? Then I couldn't focus on the lesson, because all I could think was, "is she going to swallow that?! Surely not!" (For the record, she didn't. She left class to go to the bathroom once she was done.) Anyway, you've got to admire their persistence and their lack of shame. Keep it up, I say! You Koreans will be laughing when the rest of us grow old and our teeth fall out.

A random Korean child being a good guy and brushing from a young age.

The upside: It inspires you to up your hygene!

So, there you have it, the first half of my list. Tell me what you think! Is it just me, or are these things just a little strange to you too?

Disclaimer: I still love Korea. A lot. Don't hate me, Koreans. Please.

Thanks for reading! I will post the second half of the list ASAP!

Signed in Seoul,

Kristin

Kristin is supported by the Australian Government through the Australia-Korea Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

I'll be home for Christmas...

It is a cold, lonely night in Seoul and at 5am, I cannot sleep.

Maybe it's because I made the stupid decision to have 2 coffees in a row at 9pm last night, which resulted in me sitting in a convenience store for a couple of hours, then having a 4-hour conversation with my roommate (unplanned as usual but always better than sleep), which was then followed by me writing a paper for another hour, which put me in a reflective mood.

Or maybe it's because yesterday marked the beginning of my final month here in Seoul. And that is just -- as we exchange students say here -- NoNo!

I knew this time was coming of course, and yes I've still got another 22 days here, but that doesn't make it any less upsetting. I have formed a life here. I have made friendships stronger than I could have ever imagined I would make under such circumstances. Of course I miss my home, but there is something so tragic about saying goodbye to this life which I know I will never have again... Something so heartbreaking about leaving behind these people and knowing that we will never all be together again.

As each month has passed of our exchange experience, we have edged closer to the dreaded December. After the first month, it was 'wow, we are a quarter of the way through, and it went by so fast!' After the second month, it was, 'okay, we are halfway through, that's a bit depressing. Oh well, let's live more!' And now, after the third, we are all talking as if it is already over. 'Oh, I wish I had done more of this', or, 'ah! I never got the chance to do this!' which is so strange, because we still have 3 weeks left (a lot longer than a standard holiday for most people our age).

But, because we have been here for so long, and 3 weeks is nothing, we are sort of wrapping it up, and summing it up in depressing terms.

Maybe it's because life in Seoul has changed. In the last couple of weeks, it hasn't been the same. The air is different, the way in which we interact is different, the recreational activities in which we partake are very different. And why?

Because Christmas.

The decorations are out, the snow is falling (apparently. I have missed it all thanks to my stupid need to sleep in), the carols are playing in shops and cafes, families are seen frolicking together (of course not literally but it seems all the more merry when I am without my family), church vibes are happy, Santa Claus' are a-plenty, couples are extra couple-y and the air is just extra jolly. I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about. It's just, Christmas.

So, naturally, we have all been missing home just that extra bit more. A part of us wants to be home for this Christmas season, but a part of us never wants to leave because now, we are family. For the last three months, we have all been alone and without our loved ones, so we have become each other's loved ones. It's so very cheesy but so very true. Even right now, my roommate sleeps peacefully across from me (I envy her un-coffee-affected slumber) and I cannot help but cherish this time because it is one of the last nights I will hear her sleeping next to me (so creepy but I'm sticking with it).

This blog post is kind of nothing, just a record of my reflections on this cold (freezing), late (now verging on 6am) Seoul evening (morning... my perception of time has become nothing and let's be honest I am nocturnal now).

I have just received word that my family set up their Christmas tree last night. Sticking to tradition, they set it up on the 1st of December (I say 'they' very loosely because I know that it would have mostly been Jenna (she does a beautiful job every year)), and I just know that they will be playing Boney M's Christmas album every day now until Christmas Day. Oh, how I miss it! I eagerly await returning to that environment!

Alas, I am not done here yet! I have not yet left my footprint in Seoul and there is still much work to do (I wish I could say something more inspirational here but if I'm honest, I am referring to my final assignments and exams).

Exchange students, if you're reading this, let's make Seoul our oyster in these last few weeks! The memories I have formed here will never be forgotten. I say that with sincerity. And I plan to make 100 new ones before this month is through!

Signed in Seoul,

Kristin

PS. I'm hungry. Temptation to stay awake until 7am when breakfast is served is peaking. Who bets that I will commit?........... Lol.

Kristin is supported by the Australian Government through the Australia-Korea Foundation of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade