다시 만날 날까지~ (da-she man-nal nal-gga-jji) Until We Meet Again!

 이번이 마지막이네요.. ㅠㅠ 안녕하세요 여러분!
( ee-beon-ee ma-jee-mak-ee-ne-yo... yu-yu ann-yeong-ha-se-yo yeo-ro-bun)
 For the last time.. :'( :'( Hello Everyone!


I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving Break this last week. I'm a bit sad to say, but this will be our last post (aside from the photo of the week). Fortunately, we will get to meet again when I come visit next month! I'm so excited to share with you in person about South Korea. By the way, I am so curious! What was your favorite blog posts from the past 10 weeks? What was your favorite thing you learned? Also, do you think you would like to visit South Korea if you had the chance?

During this last post, I am going to tell you four reasons why you should consider studying abroad when you get older!

Number 1: Learning about a different culture and history! 

 

Photos of historical and cultural things I took in Korea. Top
left: A tower known as a Sok-tap where ancient Koreans
would pray to free their worries. Top Right: Picture of wishing
rocks. (Remember the hiking blog?), Bottom photo: Picture
of one of the traditional buildings from the Buddhist Temple, Sudeoksa.

When you visit or study abroad you have the unique opportunity to learn about a new culture and history different from your own. I know you all seem to enjoy Korean history, so I thought I'd tell you a very quick history lesson before this blog ends. I asked my Korean friend Jiyeong, to explain this story to me.

Creation of Korea: The Story of Dangun

Legend has it that a long time ago there lived a tiger and a bear. The tiger and bear went to the God of Sun (Hwan-eung) and asked to become human. Hwan-eung said if they could stay in a cave for 100 days and only eat mugwort and garlic they could become a human. The tiger couldn't stay in the cave but the bear was strong and endured! When the bear came out of the cave, Hwan-eung had made her into a beautiful woman named Ung-nyeo. Hwan-eung and Ung-nyeo become married and had a baby named Dangun (The First Korean) who grew up to be a powerful Shaman. Thus, the land of Korea was created with Dangun as its first member.

Picture Depicting the Story of Dangun

If you'd like to learn more, I invite you to watch this short video about the history of Korea from YouTuber Billy GO! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbhZ0RapV4U (Also if you ever want to learn Korean, Billy makes great educational videos and books about the Korean language!)

 Number 2: Try and eat delicious foods! 

Pics I took of a bunch of delicious food! In order: Patbingu, Haejangguk, Honey Butter Chicken, Jjimdalk, Ddukbukki, Choco Chex Bingsu, Mango Bingsu, Honey Macaron, Bungeobang, ddong (poop) bread, Yukgaejang (best I've ever had!!!), full course ddeokgalbi meal, and different yummy drinks. 

Studying abroad allows you to try and eat all sorts of yummy foods you can't easily get in America! During my study abroad these past three months, I have had the chance to eat so many delicious foods that I will really miss when I go back home. I plan to come back to Korea next August and a large reason for that is definitely the food!! Whether Korea, Japan, Mexico, or The Netherlands; each country has their own unique foods that studying abroad will give the chance to try!

Number 3: It's Cheaper Than You Think!

 
I think that one reason a lot of people don't study abroad, is that it can be really expensive. However, that is not always the case. Most schools offer scholarships you can apply to that will really help with the cost. I have been really fortunate that I have had to pay little to no money to study abroad. During the summer of 2018, I received the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) for Korean. Through CLS, I was able to study Korean in Korea for two months all expenses paid for plus money for food and travel. For the program I am doing currently at Soonchunhyang University, not only is housing free, the school actually pays me over $100 a week and paid for my airfare!

Of course, not all study abroad programs are like this but if you are worried you can't study abroad because of money, definitely look into similar programs! Actually, theres even a high school program called NSLI-Y that pays everything for students to study abroad for 2 months or even a year. Of course, you all are still young but just know there are lots of opportunities out there!

Number 4: Make Friends From All Over The World!

 

Finally, studying abroad gives you the opportunity to make friends from all over the world. At my school not only are there Koreans, but there are people studying abroad here from the United States, Canada, France, China, Japan, Uzbekistan, Germany, Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, Vietnam, and Mongolia!

 I've been able to meet and make friends with so many people I could have never met without studying abroad. Some of which, I will be friends with for a lifetime!

I hope these reasons make you consider studying abroad in the future and of course there are so many other reasons I did not even touch. I have not only made new friends, gone on cool trips, etc., but, I have truly learned a lot about myself  as a person as well! I truly think this study abroad program has pushed me out of my comfort zone and made me a more confident person. I am so thankful for these experiences and very grateful that I was able to share them with all of you!

Again, I would love to hear about which blog post was your favorite, or any other fun facts or things about Korea that you remember learning! Also, if you have any suggestions for fun  stuff we can do during our celebration next month let me know (like maybe I can give a little Korean lesson!).

Until we meet again,
안녕! (Ann-nyeong)!