May 3, 2011 School already...........?

So today I found out that Osama bin Laden was killed!  That is so crazy!  I thought someone was playing a joke until I saw President Obama’s speech online.  Oh my goodness!!  It’s unbelievable! 

Korean news on Osama bin Laden’s death.

Today was the day that the study abroad group was supposed to meet up at the Seoul, South Korea temple.  It didn’t matter what time we could arrive there because Professor Peterson wouldn’t be getting into Korea until midnight or so.  Since I had some time, Aunt Sookhee 숙희 이모 and her dear friend took me around to see more parts of Seoul 서울.  She had to attend a seminar at Konkuk University 건국대학교 first so I walked around their campus and then went to the Lotte department store 롯테백화점 (department store=bae-kwa-johm).  I thought Konkuk University 건국대학교’s campus was beautiful but since I didn’t have any business there, I just walked around and then went to the department store.  But this part is really cool, Minho Choi 최민호 from SHINee 샤이니, that’s right, goes to college here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I should have peeked inside their Fine Arts departments just to see if he was there.  But he wouldn’t be since he’s with SM Entertainment in Europe…..boo…….

Konkuk University 건국대학교

Campus.

Lotte department store 롯테백화점 is really close to Konkuk University 건국대학교 so I just walked there.  This department store has everything but I think I prefer the Coex Building 코엑스 빌딩 and Hyundai department store 현대백화점  but Lotte was still pretty cool.  It’s hard to take photos in the department stores but I tried my best.  They have the cutest brands there!  I found so many stylish things.  Ugh, too bad it would wipe a chunk of my bank account if I bought one thing there.  I’m absolutely in love with the brand “Jiggot” and “Bombyx R. Moore”!  So darling!  These brands make Anthropologie seem cheap!  Also, I believe that the Korean drama Secret Garden 시크릿 가든  was filmed in some areas because the store’s logos and trademarks are very similar.  I was so exhausted that I took a nap on the top floor.  It wasn’t very comfortable but I can sleep anywhere luckily.  I did happen to get a few pictures there but I had to be sneaky.  I tried to take a few photos of the clothes I tried on but it just so happens that the stores I went to just happened to have no mirrors in their dressing rooms….yeah weird… But anyways, it was a lot of fun going shopping (more like window shopping haha)! 

Walking to Lotte department store 롯테백화점.  The weather was so beautiful! 

I think this was the 3^rd or 4^th floor.

So cute!  I fell in love with this place.

Ok, now that was just creepy.  Mannequins are already odd but that was just scary. 

After Aunt Sookhee 숙희 이모’s seminar, she took me back home to pack and then drove me to the temple where I would be meeting the other students for the study abroad.  However, we didn’t have to arrive at a designated time and the traffic was pretty crowded and so we decided to do a little more sightseeing and then leave later.  She picked up her childhood/school friend who I met the other day and we went to her friend’s university, Ewha Womans University 이화여자대학교.  Their campus was really cool to visit as well!  I love visiting the universities here; surprisingly it’s pretty fun!  I still need to visit Yonsei University연세대학교and a couple others.  The buildings are kind of interesting.  There’s this big wide open space with what looks like just walls are actually entrances into buildings. I can’t explain it very well but you’ll see what I mean below.  The numbers are doors/entrances to levels and floors.  It’s cool because it doesn’t look like a building at first but it very much is a building.  We went into their bookstore to take a look and haha just like Young Min 영민 and Ji-Young 지영, they bought a gift for me behind my back.  Man, I need to get good at spotting them before they do it!  They bought me this little study pad, I guess you could call it.  It had a mini notebook, pens, post-it notes and tabs.  Korea LOVES paper products and study materials and they’re cute too haha.  I think I better stock up because I can’t find anything similar in Utah and for that cheap; at least not that I’ve seen.  Haha never would I have ever thought about getting crazy over buying something like that before.  Korea’s craze is slowly sinking into my mindset and blood….muahahaha…..haha….ok that’s enough of that. 

Ewha Womans University 이화여자대학교. 

Isn’t that pretty?  It looks like the Eastern coast. 

Aunt Sookhee 숙희 이모.

Here is what I tried to describe earlier.  The numbers are the floors to the building.  Interesting huh?

These stairs were pretty steep.

After looking around, we went to 이대앞 (ee-dae-ahp) which is just an area that has shopping, restaurants, and fun things to do close to the university.  It was close to dinner time so they took me to this restaurant called haha get this “Original” 오리지날 because this restaurant has been around since the university was built.  It hasn’t changed a lot since it was built and so they thought it would be fun.  The food was pretty good but oh my gosh; I get full so fast here.  It’s like once I got off the plane, my stomach shrunk to the size of a toothpick.  I got 돈까스 (don-gga-seu) which the closest thing that I can describe it to is a pork cutlet.  It’s really good and so if you’re a picky eater, this is pretty safe and good to eat.  J  I can’t remember what the other thing is called that we got but it was good too; spicy but delicious.  Mom, you’ve made it before I’m sure so let me know what it is.  So many names are coming to my head but if a Korean saw what I was trying to name it, they would laugh so I’m not going to try to name it and wait for you to tell me.  After dinner, we went shopping around at the stores.  I’m super picky when it comes to shoe shopping because I hardly find something that I like but holy cow!  Korea is so creepy in the sense that I think they knew what I liked and I saw so much that appealed to me.  Haha, another funny thing is that most of them were high heels.  Does that say “Julianne, Julianne, Julianne” or what?  As were walking, I saw this face/cosmetics store that had a Nichkhun 닉쿤 from 2PM life size cut-out out front.  I just wanted a picture by it but then we went inside to see what they had.  I heard about BB Cream from commercials saying that most women use it when they don’t want to use makeup but cover up their skin.  I tried some and that stuff is amazing!  It looks like foundation but it’s not.  It’s really light and it covers up well.  I think I might invest in some.  Aunt Sookhee 숙희 이모 got a membership there but in the end, she gave me the card which had Nichkhun 닉쿤’s face on it!  Now I have to get something there; J haha lol. 

이대앞 (ee-dae-ahp).

Shopping.

There were lots of cool things inside.

Original Restaurant 오리지날 부식.

Pork Cutlet 돈까스.  So good!

The other dish that we got that I can’t remember the name of at this moment.  But seriously so good; it’s wasn’t finished cooking so that’s why everything looks like it’s in piles.

Sweet potato/고구마 (go-goo-mah).  My new favorite vegetable. ^^

So much food……………  we got full really fast.

I was just a BIT twitterpated to see Nichkhun 닉쿤.  He’s only just the best looking Thai person ever!  J

This is for you mom.  Here are two of your most favorite things:  Micky Yoochun 믹키유천 (the one on the right) and things on sale.  Tee hee hee J

After some shopping, we got some gelato at a café called the DISH.  Ice cream or dessert is a must after Korean food.  It completes it.  When you have lots of spicy and flavorful food, something sweet afterwards makes you feel satisfied.  You know I love mangos so I got one and was a happy camper for the rest of the night.

the DISH.

Gelato.

After a fun filled day, I went to the temple where everyone was meeting up for the study abroad.  The Seoul, South Korea temple is pretty much impossible to find.  It’s hidden a ways back that a GPS is necessary.  It’s pretty secluded whereas temples in Utah are out in the open; almost a landmark.  It’s so beautiful.  The temple is very Korean with the architecture, furniture, interior, etc. but that same spirit is there.  It’s a pretty small temple but so beautiful.  The first time I met the temple president, I thought he was intimidating and scary.  But he’s pretty nice. Professor Peterson didn’t arrive until midnight and the temple president didn’t like the idea that the boys and girls would be staying in the same building without our director here so he had the boys stay in the actual temple house and sent the girls to the dormitories.  The dormitories are really nice!  I didn’t get many pictures of the dormitories because it was late and I was tired. 

Here’s my aunt’s childhood friend.  She was so sweet to me and so fun!  Also in the background are the dormitories.  You can’t see it very well but we slept and lived well in those dormitories.

Ugh, I don’t feel like studying now because Korea is a party!  Not ready to get serious yet.  However, I’m reading to become more proficient in the language and more knowledgeable about the history and culture.  Korea is so much fun.  I think I’ve adjusted well.  I haven’t felt culture shock here at all.  In fact, I’ve settled in and adjusted very well.  Haha in fact, if I see a white person, the thought comes to mind, “Woah!  It’s a white person!” I think when I go back home, then I’ll feel culture shock.  I was on facebook the other day and now white people are starting to all look the same!  Haha yes, I’m quite aware they don’t all look the same.  But for a while, I was like, “they all look like Barbies!”  hahaha.  Whenever I see Korean people now, I can tell they’re Korean but they look different enough to me from other Koreans.  Haha, isn’t the cool or what?  Korea has been the best experience yet so far.  No regrets whatsoever!

I wanted to try out how my camera took pictures.  Didn’t this picture turn out well?  Haha, doesn’t this picture look like something that would be on a Mormon Tabernacle Choir CD?  I can see it now. 

This is kind of how I feel among the Koreans.  Not quite purple (Korean). 

May 2, 2011 Such an Unfortunate Day!

Hey!  Do any of you know why uploading videos to blogspot is not working or taking forever?  I've been trying to upload videos but after trying for an hour I gave up.  Do any of you know why?  I've tried YouTube videos and those work but ones from my laptop have difficulty uploading.  I might put them on YouTube and then try to post them.  We'll see what happens.

Although today had great fun moments, it had some very disappointing ones as well.  L Boo!  First of all, SM Entertainment artists have gone to Europe to promote their Japanese debut.  Lame!  I finally come to Korea and they decide to go to London and Paris!  안돼!!!!!!!!!!!!!  SM Entertainment, 너!! 너무 소심해!!! /No way!!!!!!!!!!!!! SM Entertainment, You!!  You are so close minded!!!  (ahn-dwae!!!!!!!!!!!!!  SM Entertainment, noh!!  Noh-moo so-shim-ae!!!)  When I leave Korea, they come back from their debut!  Talk about super lame!  SHINee 샤이니 should change their lyrics, “Hello!  Hello!”  to “Goodbye!  Goodbye!” 

So that made me a bit sad but this next part just made it worse.  Honestly, that did not end the world but come on!  Talk about inconvenient!  But this was really bad!  I decided to curl my hair for the day and my hair was a little wet but it wasn’t that bad (or at least I thought so).  If you don’t understand curling hair, just bear with me.  I’ll try to make sense out of it.  Well, I swear, I think our appliances get hotter faster over here with the converter.  As I was curling my hair, I tried to release my hair which it falls out by itself.  Well, it wasn’t releasing itself which it does sometimes if it’s a bit wet.  If that’s the case, I just pull the curling iron and the hair comes out.  Well, as I pulled the curling iron, MY HAIR CAME OUT WITH IT!  I pretty much cinged my hair!!! L  If you know what my hair is like and how I feel about my hair, it makes the situation that much worse….  So you can see my pain, I took some pictures of it.

This was a long strand.  It doesn't look like it because it's wrapped around the iron but it was the full length of my hair.  If's from my left side. 

Uh-oh....

Realization kicks in...

Here comes the tears.  After this, it just gets ugly but I won't show you my face for aesthetical purposes.

MY HAIR!!  I burned my hair off!!  I felt like crying but bucked up.  I had to hurry up because a foreign exchange student from my high school wanted to get together tonight because she lives in the same city and province as me right now.  Her name is Ji-Young Kim 김지영.  It’s really cool!  At first, she came to America as a student and now I come to Korea as a student!  She’s so cute and smart!  She’s attending Seoul University 서울대학교 majoring in Computer Science 컴퓨터 공학 (computer gong-hak).  We decided to visit Namsan Tower 남산 but now they’re starting to call it N. Seoul Tower.  This is a huge tower where you can see all of Seoul 서울 from up above.  It’s best to see it at night because all of the lights from the city.  We took a bus to the Tower but they dropped us off at the bottom.  We had to walk up a steep hill.  They have a tram but we had to hurry since it was closing in an hour.  It wasn’t long but it was really steep and we were walking in heels.  Haha aren’t we Korean?  Walking in heels everywhere.  They have two exhibits going on.  They have the observatory which is where you see the city and the Teddy Bear Museum.  You can also pay to have dinner up in the tower.  We first went to the Teddy Bear Museum which is located on the bottom of the tower.  The Teddy Bear Museum was really cool and so cute!  They had 3 stages.  They had an exhibit of teddy bears showcasing Korean life centuries ago, one of modern Korea, and a Goong궁 exhibit based on the Korean Drama because that drama used lots of teddy bears in it.  I loved this drama!  If you have time, check out this drama.  It’s so cute!  They also showed the Alfred bear which is used by the main character Lee Shin 이신 (Joo Ji Hoon 주지훈).  I loved that exhibit the best because of the drama and it was darling.  The teddy bears would move which was pretty cool.  My goodness, I’ve been so impressed with the museums and exhibits here in Korea.  They’re very high tech and interesting.  You forget that it’s supposed to be a museum.

Ji-Young 김지영 and me!  She's so darling!

Outside view of Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower.

We've arrived at Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower!  Yeah, we were inside that!

This is the Teddy Bear Museum.  Here is depicting life in old Korea.  Education has always been extremely important in Korea.  Attending a university was the gateway to prestige and power.  This is depicting specifically the Joseon 조선 dynasty.

I thought this one was cute lol.  It looks like a troublemaker in school.

This is depicting a traditional wedding ceremony during the Joseon 조선 dynasty.

Here are the court ladies making food for the royals.

Haha, this one, I had no idea what was going on.  The one on the left was doing push ups.  I have no idea why.

Markets

This is depicting the last king of the Joseon 조선 dynasty.

Ssamzigil 쌈지길

Cheonggyecheon 청계천

Seoul Plaza.  This is where everyone gathers to hear and cheer during the World Cup.

The Blue House.  This is where the President lives.

Hong Dae 홍대.  This was really cool because the bears were spinning and break dancing. 

They had TV's where you could insert yourself next to teddy bears.

This is describing the Goong 궁 exhibit.  It showed the Alfred teddy bear which was used frequently throughout the drama.  It also showed some of the teddy bears that were shown at the end of each episode of the drama.

Here are some scenes of the ending episode bears that were used in the drama.

This was one of my favorite scenes from the drama!

Teddy bears imitating the drama poster.

Goong 궁 plot by pictures:  There once was a boy named Lee Shin 이신 and a girl named Chaegyeong Lee 이채경 who went to the same high school.  Lee Shin 이신 was a cold but handsome prince.  Chaegyeong Lee 이채경 was a clumsy but good hearted girl.  Their first encounter was a bit rough. 

Lee Shin 이신 had a girlfriend named Hyo-Rin 효린 who aspired to be a prima ballerina.  He asked her to marry him because he was about to secure the position of king.  They're almost out of high school and she thinks that it would be better if she concentrates on her dancing.  But she still loves him. 

A long time ago, Lee Shin 이신's and Chaegyeong Lee 이채경's grandfathers made a promise that their grandchildren would marry each other.  So, to honor their grandfathers' wishes, they decided to marry despite their distaste for each other.  After this marriage, their lives changed forever. 

Luckily, good love stories have happy endings!

Now this was an exhibit for the famous actor Bae Yong Joon 배용준 that they say resemble a teddy bear.  At least that's what I think his name is lol.  Haha I've never thought of people resembling teddy bears before.

Bae Yong Joon 배용준

After the Teddy Bear Museum, we headed to the Observatory.  We had to wait in a long line to take the elevator.  The elevator is the fastest in the world.  They had photo booths like they do at Lagoon and Disneyworld where they take pictures, photoshop you in front of a scenic background, and then if you like your picture, you pick it up in the end.  The Observatory was pretty cool at Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower!  You can see the whole city of Seoul 서울 and with all the lights, it's so pretty!  It's a romantic place if you have dinner there or if you visit there with someone.  We were up so high!  When we got back down, it was incredible to look back and see how far up we were from the city. 

When I saw the "SHOCKING WALL" sign, it freaked me out at first.  I thought we were literally going to get electrically shocked but as I read further, it was a relief lol. 

Inside the elevator.

Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower

Amazing...

Dido.

Getting to see the night view of Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower was pretty incredible.  Especially after hearing that SM Entertainment went to Europe and my hair was cinged.  Haha I swear, Koreans are so funny with gifts.  Ji-Young 지영 did the same thing that Young Min 영민 did the other day!  She bought a gift for me, when I wasn't looking, of a little replica of Namsan 남산 Tower/N. Seoul Tower!  I thanked he for the gift and taking time out of her schedule to come and take me to see this great place.  Just getting to be here in Korea has been a wonderful gift.  I wish many of you were here with me so you could experience the fun Korea has to offer.  I've lived each day with no regrets!  :-)