Kate in Korea -- Light Fellowship

Today I slept in a bit before finishing my packing and talking to Dad. I went to Tera Gimbap for stone-cooked bibimbap for lunch followed by my favorite bingsu for dessert. I went back to my dorm next before getting in a taxi and going to the airport. After my flight from Incheon to Seattle, I missed my flight to Portland by less than a minute, so I had to wait in the airport for four hours for my next flight. Then, because of weather issues and complications with the plane, the flight got delayed two hours. Once we were finally on the plane, we had to wait another 45 minutes to leave, and then after arriving in Portland had to wait another 45 minutes because no gates were available. Finally, I got off the plane and met Dad at the airport past midnight.

Today was our last day of class, and after finishing the textbook, we were all awarded with certificates and took some pictures as a class. Afterwards, I went to Waffle It Up for lunch, before cleaning up my room a bit and getting my room inspection done. After that, I went to Insadong to buy some last souveniers at Anyeong Insadong and Ssamziegil. I went back to the dorm to drop off the things I had bought before going to Hong Kong Banjeom for a final dinner of jjajangmyeon. I went back to the dorm and had Melona and did some more packing before finally going to bed.

Today is Liberation Day in Korea so class was cancelled and I started off my day by going to the War Memorial of Korea. I walked through their general exhibits about Korean war history before going to their exhibition on the Korean War. I don't usually like history museums, but this one was pretty interesting and I am glad I went. The museum also featured old helicopters, tanks, and other war equipment, alongside various memorials to soldiers who died in Korea's past wars.  I spent a long time at the museum before going to Cheese Industry for a very late lunch. I went back to the dorm next before heading out to Songbukdong to meet with my host parents for the last time. We had some Korean barbeque and then got a red bean bingsu and a sweet pumpkin bingsu. Everything was delicious, and I was very happy to see them before I left. They both have lots of exciting things happening in the next year with their jobs, so it was good to hear about that. They also both said they could tel

After class, I went to Hanok Langsom for a matcha montblanc and plum ade. Then I took the subway to I'Park Mall. I walked around for a long time looking at the stores and all of the cool things in the mall itself. I love the architecture of the outdoor courtyard, and there were lots of spaces with events for various brands and franchises. After walking around for a while, I went back to the dorm before having dinner at Yeoneo Chobap for the last time. I went back to the dorm, and started doing a bit of cleaning and packing before going to bed.

During class today, we got our test scores back, and because it was our last class with Mrs. Ryu, we took some class pictures. After class, I took I long subway ride to Sounbing, a bingsu place Skylar highly recommended. It was amazing, and I was shocked because it was one of the best bingsus I have ever had, and also the cheapest. I went to Hangaram Art Museum next, where I went to an exhibition featuring the works of Carlos Cruz-Diez, who makes art that focuses on color and the illusions that simple overlapping of colors can create. He had a variety of paintings with thin stripes of color that blended together to make the paintings look like they were in motion. Another part of the exhibition had rooms that transitioned between different colors of light; it was super cool to walk through them. I then went to the nearby Calligraphy Art Museum. I went to a really unique exhibition by an artist who uses a very thick brush to paint Korean words onto a canvas. Because the brushstrokes wer

After taking my last tests today, I went to Nakwon for earl gray chocolate cake and raspberry ade. I then took the subway to Seongsu. The neighborhood has a really cool mall made up of shipping containers, so I went there to appreciate the architecture and look at all of the stores. I also walked around the greater neighborhood and went into some more shops. I went back to Ewha next and went to Artbox to buy some more souvenirs for my friends. I had dinner and wrote thank you cards for my teachers in the evening before going to bed.

This morning I slept in and then talked with Mom and Grandy before studying for a while. I then went to Ikseondong to go to a cafe for lunch. The cafe I wanted to go to was completely crowded, so I ended up going to Cheonsudang Bakery again and getting their peach montblanc. I then walked to Insadong and stopped by a few stores before going to my host dad's latest exhibition. It turned out he was at the gallery and I talked to him while I looked at all of the art. I went back to the dorm next and studied some more before getting bibimnaengmyeon from Tera Gimbap for dinner. 

This morning I did some studying before going to Waffle It Up to eat and read, and then I went to the Seoul Botanic Garden. There was an outdoor section with some cute sculptures and lots of different plants, but my favorite part was the indoor section with plants from all around the world. There were some really beautiful plants, and the space itself was very pretty. After the gardens, I went back to the dorm and studied some more before going to Chang Hwa Dang for tteokbokki for dinner. I got a Nougat Bar at the convenience store for dessert and watched some TV before going to bed.

After sleeping in and talking to Mom and Dad this morning, I studied a bit and then had a quick lunch before meeting up with Skylar. She is finally back in Korea and I was really happy to see her. We went to Ongnumong, a famous bingsu place in my neighborhood that Skylar has always wanted to try. It definitely lived up to the hype; the bingsu itself as well as the red bean that went along with it was super high quality. We talked for a while before going to a photobooth and then Paik's Coffee for some drinks. Skylar left after a few hours, and I studied some more in my dorm. I had dumplings for dinner before doing some more studying and finally going to bed.

Today was the first day of my final exams, and after the tests I was exhausted. I ate some food in my room before going to Hongdae for my favorite bingsu! I went into a few stores around Hongdae, including a photo booth on my bucket list that is teddy bear themed. Next I went to a store I have been wanting to go to for a long time called Object. It is four floors of cute pouches, stickers, phone accessories, posters, and tons of other things! I spent a long time there getting gifts for my friends before walking around the Sinchon area and finally going back to my dorm. I quickly stopped by the dorm before going to Aangan for dinner. After dinner, I spent the night doing laundry before going to bed.

After class today, I had lunch at Greek Day before getting Gong Cha and spending my afternoon studying. For dinner, I went to Tera Gimbap for their stone-cooked bibimbap, and then went back to my neighborhood. I tried a nougat bar from the convenience store for dessert before studying some more and going to bed.

After class today, I went to Cheese Industry for their brie cheesecake and peach yogurt smoothie before going back to my dorm to study. Today I had a workbook chapter to complete, a twelve page worksheet to do, and a vocabulary quiz to study for alongside the fact that my final is in two days, so I spent the entire afternoon and night studying and doing homework with a quick break for sushi at Yeoneo Chobap for dinner.

After class today, I had a quick lunch at Waffle It Up before taking the subway to the National Museum of Korea. I briefly walked through the history section of the museum, but it was super crowded so I spent most of my time on the upper floors, which focused on wooden lacquerware, mother of pearl furniture, traditional paintings, and celadon pottery. Everything was really beautiful and I was glad to see it! After spending a couple of hours at the museum, I went back to my neighborhood and had dinner at Kkai Restaurant for their Singaporean chicken rice. I then went back to the dorm and studied grammar and vocabulary for a long time before watching some TV and going to bed.

This morning I slept in and then talked to Mom and Dad for a while. I did some homework before going to Cheongsudang Bakery to try their matcha montblanc and have their prickly pear cactus drink. Everything was delicious! I was planning to go to a museum next, but walking back to the subway and even in the subway I was severely overheating and started feeling lightheaded so I went back to the dorm so I could lie down and get air conditioning. I studied some more grammar, read, and ate some coconut shrimp ramen that Adeline gave me last week before watching some TV and going to bed.

This morning I studied for my final and had some ramen in the morning before going out for Greek Day in the early afternoon to fuel myself for the long hours ahead. After an hour-long subway ride I got to the venue, KPSO Dome at 3:00 for (G)I-DLE's "i-DOL" concert. Even though I was there three hours early, the line for foreigners to pick up tickets was over a quarter of a mile long, so I am glad I got there early when the line was shorter than it would be later on. Once I finally got my ticket, I found a shady spot outside of the venue and read and studied vocabulary until we were finally let in. I got to my seat quickly and talked to the girl sitting next to me for a bit before reading some more before the concert finally started. It was an amazing concert! There were a ton of backup dancers and most of the songs had choreography which was fun to see in person. There were also some cool effects used on the stage itself, with pyrotechnics and stands that lifted the membe

After class today, I went to Hongdae and had gimbap from Tera Gimbap for lunch.  I then walked over to the cafe 44 MEANS NOTHING that I have been wanting to go to for a long time. I was excited for it based on what I had seen online, and it did not disappoint. I had a lychee, rose, and strawberry cake that was beautifully shaped like a rose, complete with "dewdrops" made from a jello-like substance on top. It will go down in history as one of the best desserts I have ever had, from taste to presentation and I hope to go back before I leave. Next to the cafe was a photobooth I have been wanting to go to. It was elevator themed and it was fun to take pictures there! I explored the neighborhood a bit and popped into some stores before taking the subway to the Seoul Urban Life Museum. It was a great museum and very much catered to my interests. I learned about Seoul's population explosion and massive growth and development over the past few decades, various marriage customs i

After class today, I had lunch in my dorm. I had some snacks from the convenience store, but the highlight was the kimchi. Dji-yon went to a kimchi making class and brought all of us kimchi and I needed to eat it before it went bad. It was amazing kimchi, and was more of a meal than a side dish. There were a bunch of segments of cucumber stuffed with kimchi; the coolness of the cucumber combined with the spiciness of the kimchi was amazing. I called Agomoni briefly and then started studying for my final exam. I reviewed some grammar and vocabulary for a while and then met up with Sonia in Myeongdong. We walked around and went shopping for souvenirs before meeting up with Sonia's friend Seth, and his friend Teo. The two of them had been teaching in China together and were stopping by a bunch of other East Asian countries afterwards. The four of us went to get Korean barbeque, which was delicious. It was really fun talking to them. I hadn't met either of them before but we had a