Whew!

Sorry about the long delay, dear readers! As I have said previously, Hannam has us booked. And when we aren't doing anything, we are trying to spend time together, it seems, since we have only one week left in the program.


It feels like weeks since I last posted, though I know it has not been nearly that long. Looking back at all the things I have done here in Korea, I can barely believe it has only been two weeks! I am just going to give you a brief outline because I simply have too much to say! Here goes:


Wednesday the 23rd: Korean history class in the morning, Taekwondo in the afternoon (I learned how to roundhouse kick just like Chuck Norris [who, by the way, is heavily influenced by Taekwondo]).


Thursday the 24th: Field trip to the base for the 20th army division where we observed their living quarters, visited a museum of the Korean War, ate lunch with the soldiers, then observed a tank firing. Yes, they shot a tank for us. It was AWESOME! But also a bit humbling to think that the individual firing the tank is not that much different from you or I. I will mention here that army service for young Koreans is not voluntary but mandatory. Every young Korean man has to serve a minimum of two years in the army (unless his older sister does so before he is of age). One thing I noticed while eating lunch with the soldiers is that they all look so young. I mean, I know they are at least 20 years old, but in their uniforms, they just look younger than that.



Anyway, after leaving the base, we travelled to Yeoncheon, Kyeongi-do to check into our hotel. Now this was an adventure... I later learned that this hotel was chosen because it was as near to the Northern border as we could get. At the time, however, I am many other students encountered difficulty in enjoying our stay there. By Western standards, this hotel was, well, simply awful. I am trying to be as polite as possible, but it really was pretty bad. First off, we were at least four to a room, and our room had only a queen size bed. This means some of us would have to sleep on the floor. Okay, no big deal really, unless you had been expecting a nice, warm, comfortable bed. I am my roommates got lucky, though. It seems that all of the rooms we reserved for the KSSP group were in some way different. Some of the students did not even have the choice of the bed and had to sleep on the floor. In the room, however, several things were provided: a half-used bottle of body lotion (with dried lotion crusting the top), a hairbrush (with hair in it), and a bar of soap (unpackaged, also with hair in it). The room itself was marginally clean, but they hallways weren't the best. I cannot quit identify the components of the smell, though I guess fermented mud, sweat, and cat urine. I think. Whatever it was, it almost bowled me over when I left the room in the morning for breakfast. I have noticed in my stay here that, within this culture, it is a given that other people have been here before and there seems no reason to make it appear clean, pristine, and sanitary. The Westerner in me, the fact that I am a foreigner makes is no different. Let me be clear, these conditions, while uncomfortable for me, were in no way dangerous. In fact, I imagine it is safer for me, since my body is being exposed to bacterias, etc., for the benefit of my immune system. It takes some getting used to, trust me. Two weeks later, looking back, I can see this just fine. At the time, however, I wasn't too fond of it.

Okay, I must leave you now. We have another field trip today and I must finish getting ready. I am taking my computer with me this time, so I will try to write more on the bus and post it tonight or tomorrow. Thank you for your patience, dear readers. See you soon!