Some notable experiences would be experiencing a Korean Community Center which had a bathhouse of sorts. I went there for the indoor pool, for exercise purposes, of course. However, the Center also had a Sauna, but the catch is you have to do the Sauna...nude. In America, locker rooms are pretty conservative, you'll have the occasional naked guy on the way to the shower, but not this measure! It took me a minute to get over my shyness and be comfortable being nude in front of so many people.
Another experience would be the time the 2nd time I ventured alone. This time I went to Dongdaemun Historical Culture & Park, which is sort of the shopping Mecca for everything in Seoul. However, I wasn't interested in the Malls. I came for the park about 6 blocks to the south, the Park was also hosting the VANS Festival which had a variety of independent artists, and VANS (of course). I arrived too early for the festival so I decided to venture to the park first, which led to Namasan Tower (highest point in Seoul). The way I went was extraordinarily beautiful, with plenty of views, I admired the athletes at the traditional Archery Fields, practice, as well as the peaceful sounds of nature. The view at the top of the tower was subpar, since the day was particularly foggy, but nonetheless, it was a splendid adventure. I than ventured back for the VANS Festival and enjoyed the artists' work.
The solitary adventure was necessary. Since I have been here, I have become a bit reliant a group of friends, it may be because they are more proficient in Korea than I, may be because they push me to go out more, not sure, but one thing is for sure. They have more money than me. I came to this realization when we went to Hongdae for a day and we stumbled into a clothes designer store, my friends were excited about the deals the store was having, however I was cringing. It was at that moment I realized I needed to distance myself a bit from them, not because I didn't like them, but because I needed to learn to have a good time without feeling the need to spend money. Also, because I enjoy walking and adventuring at my pace which tends to be faster than the average person (I blame years of Cross Country and Track).
Something else too note would be, my dreams. I have been dreaming lately, nothing crazy, but just dreams of my life in Georgia, being with family or friends. I had a dream recalling the first time I beat my brother in Pokemon, another of the time my sister made me watch Nicolas Sparks The Notebook. Although the dreams are different, each time I wake up with the same feeling, that I am in my bed in my parents home aka my childhood bed. I can't say I am sad, but I definitely miss them, the highlight of my week thus far has been when my cousins called me, drunk. It was hilarious hearing them try to speak cohesively.
Miscellaneous mentions: I started and finished my Logo for Personal Business Cards that I've been putting off for 3 years. Being in the Korea University Business School, has made me really apparent as to how competitive the global market is and I need to differentiate myself with clear initiatives and so I made it a point to learn Adobe Illustrator. Learning to use Illustrator took me a week and designing the logo took me two days (thanks a million to my Gran, Matthew Simmonds for the advice and critic).
I leave for Sokcho tomorrow. If you don't know what that is, it's the only place in South Korea where Pokemon Go works. I am both excited and nervous about this trip. I am excited to see the Korean East Coast, and catch Pokemon, but I am also very nervous. I am leaving with my good friend from Germany (really glad to be traveling with only one other person, makes it easier to make group decisions), but our only guide will be a paper map. Here's to keeping a positive mindset.
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