Everything I Did During My First Week in South Korea! Part One

The following is a very literal retelling of my first few days in South Korea.

Thursday, August 21st

My plane landed at Incheon International Airport at about four in the morning. After getting through immigration, baggage claim, and customs, I met up with an IES Abroad helper. Then, I pulled out 200,000 Korean Won from an ATM. I accidentally pulled out four 50,000 bills instead of the smaller bills that I wanted. I also got an esim from KT with data and prepaid calls/sms. It was a very easy process to buy and set up.

After waiting for two more students to arrive, we took the airport bus to our housing in 동대문 (Dongdaemun). The ride was about 1.5 hours since we got caught in the morning traffic. Once we arrived, I unpacked and took a shower since I had been on three flights and traveled for 30 hours. I then explored Dongdaemun Design Plaza and grabbed lunch.

In the evening, the other IES Abroad Seoul students and I took a bus to Namsan Tower, where we went up into the observatory and had a five-course meal. The views were incredible up there. 

Friday

I started the day by heading to IES Abroad’s orientation. Everyone took public transportation to 명동 (Myeongdong), where orientation was held at a conference room in a really nice corporate building. We learned about the Seoul program, safety advice, signed housing documents, and took a Korean culture and language crash course. We had a long break during lunch so a few friends and I went out to explore Myeongdong. We went to Line Friends and a few other accessory stores. After orientation ended at five, we were free for dinner and went to get fried chicken followed by bingsu. On our way back to the subway we saw a very interesting and loud political protest.

Saturday

Today was the DMZ trip. About 40 students and I took a 1.25 hour bus ride to our first stop, which was Imjingak Peace Park 파주 임진각(평화누리공원). We saw a lot of meaningful monuments related to the Korean war. These included Mangbaedan Alter, Dokgae Bride, and Old Locomotive. Afterwards, we headed off to have bulgogi for lunch. It was really good. Next, we boarded the bus and had to pass through a security check before heading closer to the DMZ. Then we went into the Third Tunnel, one of the tunnels North Korea built after the armistice agreement to invade South Korea. It was a steep ramp to get down to the tunnel and the tunnel was very short in height. I actually hit my head while adjusting my hard hat, and my hat cut into my forehead.

Next we went to the Dora Observatory 도라전망대 where we could see a clear view of North Korea. It was an amazing view but we were not allowed to take pictures. Looking through the binoculars, I could actually see some North Koreans riding bikes. Afterwards, we headed to a unification village and had some soybean ice cream. I preferred the chocolate flavor over the original. At about 4:30pm, we rode the bus back to Dongdaemun, where my friends and I ate naengmyeon for dinner and got ice cream from 711 for dessert.

Check out part two to read about my experience visiting The Academy of Korean Studies and Yonsei University's exchange student orientation!