Now that I’m back home from studying abroad, here are some things I wish I kept in mind or did before moving to South Korea for the fall semester:

#1 Balance both parts of “study abroad”

Before coming to South Korea, I was kinda familiar with some parts of Korean culture, like the food, bits of history, and the entertainment scene. I knew how to read Hangul but I couldn’t understand many Korean words or phrases. Now I leave knowing how to make basic conversations and a deeper understanding of Korean culture.

During my time abroad in South Korea, I went on a few trips that friends and I organized. Here are three of my favorite ones:

#1 Lotte World

The second day of the trip was spent admiring nature. Our day started off bright and early like the other IES trips, but this time everyone was better rested. 

Our first stop was to Gyeongpo Beach. Not many people were at the beach this early in the morning, so it was pretty peaceful. Unfortunately, it was a little too cold to go for a swim or dip my toes in the water. I enjoyed listening to the waves as I slowly became fully awake for the rest of the day though.

There's a chocolate shop near where I live, called Chocolat DJ. I first found out about this place from a classmate of mine who is from Seoul. They said it was an awesome place with amazing drinks and very tasty chocolate! A few days later, my classmate—and now good friend—and I went to Chocolat DJ. It's a small shop, and If I hadn't heard about it from a friend, I would have skipped past it entirely. We went inside, and it was very quaint. They have their own home made chocolate, and very nice liquor, my two favorite things!

As I stepped out of my tiny apartment in the bustling streets of Seoul, the crisp spring air greeted me with a sense of excitement. Today was a special day—I was about to experience my first LG Twins baseball game in this vibrant city that had become my home for the past few months.

Navigating the bustling streets, I made my way to the subway station, the rhythmic hum of the city guiding me towards Jamsil Baseball Stadium. The anticipation bubbled within me as I thought about the vibrant atmosphere that awaited at the ballpark.

Making friends in a new country is never easy. When I first landed in Seoul I didn’t know a single person in this hemisphere of the world. Unlike my home school I wasn’t living on campus in a dorm. I was in an apartment with old ladies as my neighbors. Only two other people from my program were even in my building. There were orientation events and classes to make new friends but ultimately it was hard to make lasting bonds with people and find the sense of community that I had at my home school. But when you are in a new place, community comes where you least expect it.

When I came to Korea I wanted to learn how to play the gayageum, a traditional Korean instrument that I have been interested in for a while. As a zither, it is a lot more unique from Western instruments and I have always been interested in learning unique skills. 

Everything Korea but ice cream is so much cheaper. This for me didn’t always feel like a benefit. I eat so much ice cream. My family has a house in Cape Cod which is home to Sundae School Ice Cream, which is the best ice cream ever. Additionally I also live in New Jersey, home to Hollsteins which is a filming location for the Sopranos but also the second best ice cream ever. The fact that a pint of Häagen-Dazs® was sometimes $15 was outrageous.

Board Game Cafes are not unique to Seoul but I certainly spent a lot of time playing board games with friends this semester. In Sinchon there was a board game cafe called Holmes and Lupin where you could rent a room indefinitely for only 8,000 won. The workers there always seemed to have trouble using the cash register so it could always take like 20 minutes to get set up but other than that it was a good deal.