This is not the end

It's been almost a week since we arrived back in the states. Our last days in Korea were filled with packing, finals, goodbyes and many other things that we hardly had any spare time. Even though the semester is over and we're back in Texas it does not mean it's the end of our blog! There are still many things we did not get a chance to post about while in Korea so we will still be posting, but most importantly, WE'RE GOING BACK TO KOREA for one more semester! Originally we had only planned to study abroad for a semester, but the opportunity arose and we decided to extend our stay. Studying abroad in Korea has been such an amazing experience that we decided to stay a little longer. We will be spending the summer in Texas and returning to Seoul in August. Although we would have liked to stay in Seoul during the summer changing our flight was too expensive so our only option was to return home.

                                                            The Trip Back Home

The last picture we took of the view from our dorms. It had been raining for the past couple of days. 

The flight back home was much shorter than the flight to Seoul; it was about 13 hours from Seoul to Dallas and from there another 1.5 hour flight from Dallas to our hometown.  Our flight left to Dallas at 11:00am, but we left to the airport about a quarter to 7:00am  and this was because it took about an hour from Konkuk University to reach the airport not including traffic. The cab driver was really nice! Rather than calling an international cab one of our Korean friends called a regular cab for us and it was much cheaper. We paid about $30 each while others had to pay $40 each or more for the international cab. The cab driver gave us candy and had this television in the middle of the cab that played K-pop videos throughout the whole ride. We found ourselves singing to 2NE1 and other kpop artists which was really cool! Also the seats were so comfortable that we took a short nap. Once we were at the airport we searched for Korean Air so we could check in. Navigating Incheon International Airport was so easy and the employees were so nice! Going through security, customs and check in all took less than half an hour. We're not even kidding! After that we spent time with our friends  before boarding our flights and said our goodbyes. We made so many great friends in Seoul, we're really grateful to have met such wonderful people.  Once we reached Dallas we felt really overwhelmed. This is the part where reverse culture shock comes in. Many of our friends spoke about it, our study abroad advisor even tried to prepare us for it, and yet we were not. It must have been a mix of restlessness, stress, jet lag, and lack of sleep that made us feel so out of touch with what was going on, but I think reverse culture shock deserves it's own post because it's something no student who studies abroad can get away from. Adjusting back to life in the U.S.  has proven to be more challenging than adjusting to life in a different country. I'll leave you with a few pictures from our last days in Seoul.  

Kai's students at their farewell party enjoying potato pizza! 

My students at our farewell party! They were adorable! They got me some farewell snacks and wrote the cutest things on the board. I'll miss them a lot. :c

Me (Ro) on the left with my friend Sen on the morning of our departure. We were so sad not only because we were leaving a place we had called home for the past four months, but because this would be the last time we would see each other since we live in different states.

Hello Kitty Cafe inside Incheon Intl' Airport! It was right next to our waiting area. ^^

Korean Universities Spring Festivals

Every Spring semester universities all over Korea hold school festivals.  The festivals usually last 2 to 3 days or in some cases the whole week. My university's festival is held every year on the day of its foundation. This year Konkuk University was celebrating 82 years! The festival started early in the morning and while generally classes are cancelled during these days professors had the option of still holding class which we unfortunately had to attend. There were booths all around campus that served different purposes. The booths were organized by many different student organizations.  Many of these booths sold food, alcohol, games and many other things. They had food from different parts of the world including Chinese, Turkish, and of course Korean. At night after student performances came the celebrity performances and this year at Konkuk University we had performances by Epik High, Beenzino, Girls Day, K. Will and other artists. Our favorites and the ones we anticipated the most were K.Will, Epik High and Beenzino! If you're ever in Korea during the Spring we highly suggest you go to one of these festivals because they really are something else. I can't think of anything back in the U.S. that is similar to this. You get to eat good food, meet new people, and see your favorite Kpop idols perform for free.

The day before the main event a party was held in front of the student dorms. It started early in the morning and went on late into the night. There were many student performances and at the end there was a dj set where everybody pretty much went crazy. By this time many of the students had been consuming 2 dollar jagerbombs and many cans of 70 cent beer throughout the day!

 During the day there were many activities held by the students. Our favorite booths were the cocktail booths and food! We tried a chicken kebab and it was so delicious! 

This was one of the many cocktail booths at the festival. Apparently they have just recently become a popular thing at school festivals. 

Us with our mentor at the International Program's Booth in which we volunteered for a few hours and had not only nachos and beer but also different games where you could win free stuff. 

Our favorite part of the festival was Korean rapper Beenzino's performance with Beat Box DG. We waited hours in advanced just so we could make it to the front of the crowd and even so it was still a struggle. There were so many people that were pushing there was a point where Beenzino cstopped the performance because they were stepping over people, but we made it close enough and we were so happy! At one point before his performance the MC noticed my friends and I as the only foreigners in the crowd and asked us to send Beenzino a message! 

At the end of the festival there were many fireworks but I didn't get a chance to take pictures. The festival was so much fun I definitely recommend attending one if you're ever in Korea around in the Spring!