Between 9am and 10am, we were picked up by our partners or
dispatched to the specific area, if partners lived particularly far away from
Seoul.
Below is a map of the location of host schools. If you compare it to last year's, it seems that there are many more participants this year.
Katey Man
Partner - CHOI Cho Hee
School - Wongok High School
Before, I headed down to Ansan which is roughly an hour or
so away from the centre of Seoul, Cho Hee and her friends (also teachers) took
me sightseeing.
First they took me to Seoul Tower in Namsan Park and we made
our way up the mountain in a cable car. Not the best situation when you are
afraid of heights!
At the top, there were amazing views, even though it was
quite smoggy that day.
I was also given the opportunity to wear traditional dress.
As beautiful as their cultural dress is, I felt that it made me look rather on
the larger side!
It was also interesting to see thousands of heart shaped locks and romantic love notes left by couples, who had affixed them to the railings. This is not a custom restricted to the Koreans and is seen in other places such as Rome and Paris, although it is a sweet notion for all of you romantics out there!
Then for lunch I was taken to a particularly famous Korean steakhouse restaurant, where the controversial ex-president, Lee, Myung-bak had eaten in the past. We sat on the floor and was served the main dish of sizzling beef, accompanied with rice and various other side dishes. DELICIOUS or 'massidda' in Korean!
After lunch, I was taken to Suwon which was extremely scenic
and had beautiful sights. I could see the Hwaseong Fort up in the distance and
wondered whether I could make it up all those steps. What a challenge that
would be!
We also made a stop at a quaint Café, which has a strange
museum of props from various Korean TV shows and films.
Did I, or did I not touch it? That is the question!
Finally to end my day of sightseeing, my partner and her
friends took me to Bukchon Hanok village; a Korean folk village which
has preserved the traditional housing that the Koreans had in the Joseon Dynasty.
For a small price, we were allowed to go inside a vacated traditional house. It was definitely more spacious that I thought it would be.
Finally it was time to head off to what I will call home for the next three and a half weeks - Ansan.
Post written by Katey Man.
