HUGE UPDATE

It's snowing in Korea right now. It's the first time I've seen it snow since I've gotten here! They say March is supposed to be pretty cold and then it'll start warming up in April.

Okay, so I haven't updated in a while and I feel like so much happens to me in one week. So to make things simpler, I'll outline it out.

• Internship
• Failed Night Out
• DMC Ville
• Korean Language Class

INTERNSHIP

I had my first day of internship last Thursday. My cousin and I went to the office through public transportation last Wednesday so that I wouldn't get lost or be late to work on the first day. I was really nervous the first day. When I first met the director I was very intimated by him. As soon as he came in, I sat down with him and he handed me a 100+ page publication and told me he wanted me to read it and eventually translate it into Korean. He also wanted me to strategize how to utilize the publication to our advantage and to make a presentation in Korean to the entire staff.

Within the first hour, I literally was thinking of ways on how I could quit. I freaked out. I didn't want to stress myself out during my time abroad. But after lunch, we went to Starbucks and I confronted him about my feelings and how I wasn't sure about doing this internship. He was very nice and told me he didn't expect that much performance from me. He assured me this was an opportunity for me to learn more than to work. He was quite convincing. So I decided to stay. At first I was supposed to work Tues-Friday 8:30-3pm but I was able to get some Fridays off so that I have more free time to explore Seoul. Last Friday I was able to go to the headquarters of a VERY large company in Seoul. I was able to sit in during the meeting and learn more about the Global Reporting Initiative. (By the way, the division I work under is the Sustainability Management Center which provides assurance and consulting services in sustainability strategy and management)

Going to Korean class by 4pm is a struggle every time I work! I have to leave work by 3pm in order to get to class by 4pm. It's actually only about 30 minutes away but it takes about 15 minutes to walk up the hill to the Korean Language Institute building and the crosswalks in Korea take about 4 minutes for the light to turn green to walk.

FAILED NIGHT OUT

So Friday night my roommates and I decided to go out for our first night in Seoul. We heard about a really popular, upscale club called Eden at the Ritz Carlton Hotel. However, the Ritz is in Kangnam and so it took a little more than an hour to get there from DMC. From the subway, we had to walk like 5 blocks to get to the hotel..When we finally got there, we showed our IDs but me and one of my roommates only brought our Yonsei school ID. We assumed you had to be of age if you were a college student so we thought it would be okay. However, the guy literally would not let us in after much hassle. So we ended up taxi-ing it back home and hanging out at our apartment.

NOTE TO FUTURE KOREA ABROAD STUDENTS: Korea is not that strict but they will be at nightclubs. Therefore, bring an ID with your birthdate on it or else you're not getting in!!!

DMC VILLE

I'm loving DMC Ville more and more. For those applying for housing under the Yonsei program, I highly recommend DMC Ville (S-house/off campus) option. Compared to a dorm room, we get a fully furnished luxury apartment with kitchen and laundry. There's also maid service once a week which is a lifesaver. She makes our bed, wipes the floor, and cleans the bathroom. We also get a GYM with a lap pool, jacuzzi, and sauna!! They also have a virtual golf driving range and a squash court. My roommates and I decided to make Monday nights our sauna spa days. The only con is that you have to take a 20 minute bus ride to go onto campus, which can be pretty inconvenient if you have gaps in your schedule. But I literally never waited more than 5-10 minutes for a bus because they come so often. The advantage of having your own "home" to come back to is worth the amount your have to pay plus it comes with amazing amenities.

KOREAN CLASS

I got put into Intermediate Level 1 class for Korean language. There are 3 levels each for beginner, intermediate, and advanced. We get one teacher MWF and another teacher for T/TH. But today we had too many people in our class (20 students) so they split us into 2 classes. I like it much better because the class gets to know each other better and there are more chances to practice speaking. Practicing speaking Korean is VERY crucial. I'm still a little shy in speaking Korean but I'm getting there.