2015년 07월 22일
Wednesday was much more eventful than its predecessor.
Although the day seemed to drag by slowly (we had two quizzes in our classes that morning... what fun), the pace sped up during our culture class that afternoon. Students from 1B, 2A, and 2B all took the subway after morning classes to a station about 15 minutes away from Sogang, where we all met our culture teachers, primed for the task ahead: Taekwondo.
Entering the room, we were handed outfits to change into and were told to take our socks off. Once we had all changed in the poorly-ventilated room, we were told to sit and listened to the instructor ramble in Korean about the main components of Taekwondo. But, the instructor made the lecture tolerable because he was funny from time to time.
After listening for a little while, we then were able to practice certain stretches (both alone and with a partner) as demonstrated by the instructor. We must have stretched for about an hour before we started learning punching and kicking moves. Then, we practiced those with a partner, trying our best to keep proper form, as the instructor demonstrated.
To end our lesson, we had to complete one final task: break a board with our fist. First, we had to write the following on the board (in Korean, obviously):
(1) 이름 -> Our name
(2) 태권도 -> Taekwondo
(3) 사범님 -> Sabeomnim ("instructor")
(4) 주먹 -> Jumeok ("fist")
(5) 사범님 좋아요 -> Sabeomnim johayo ("the instructor is nice!") LOL
(6) A wish for the future*
*During this segment, the instructor was joking around that we could write a wish like "I want to meet Super Junior~!" ... HE SAID IT FIRST, SO IT WAS FAIR GAME.
슈퍼주니어 만나고 싶어요! -> (I wrote those exact words on the board and he laughed at me)
After successfully breaking the boards, we headed back towards the subway. However, while everyone else made their way back to campus, I transferred to another line heading towards Gwanghwamun -- I was to meet with my Language Exchange partner to visit Gyeongbokung palace!
But... it started to rain... Luckily, by the time we walked there (about ten minutes later), it stopped! We were also lucky because the admission costs were free for the month of July! Due to the MERS scare, Korea wants to boost its tourism rates and is offering a lot of discounts for foreigners country-wide!
I only took a few pictures of Gyeongbokung because it was too big and we didn't get to see a lot (we arrived at 5:10 PM and the doors would close at 6:00 PM). But, we also had the opportunity to explore the Korean Folk Museum (located right behind the rear of the palace walls). I learned a lot about Korean history and had fun looking at the artifacts (especially the development and transition of Hangeul and the Korean langauge!).
Catching the subway back to campus, I met up with some friends by the front gate and we headed out for dinner. Not too far from campus (about a 15-minute walk from our dorms), is a small restaurant called "Pizzahand." Little did we know it has the BEST pizza I've had in a long time. Although I ordered the plain cheese, the sauce and crust were amazing -- not like any other Korean-style pizza I've had (even though I've only had one other type). It was prepared fresh and made-to-order. What's more, it actually tasted like American-style pizza! It was perfect to satisfy my home-food cravings, even though it was a form of what I would normally consider "fast food."
I wouldn't mind going again some time soon!
Wednesday was much more eventful than its predecessor.
Although the day seemed to drag by slowly (we had two quizzes in our classes that morning... what fun), the pace sped up during our culture class that afternoon. Students from 1B, 2A, and 2B all took the subway after morning classes to a station about 15 minutes away from Sogang, where we all met our culture teachers, primed for the task ahead: Taekwondo.
Entering the room, we were handed outfits to change into and were told to take our socks off. Once we had all changed in the poorly-ventilated room, we were told to sit and listened to the instructor ramble in Korean about the main components of Taekwondo. But, the instructor made the lecture tolerable because he was funny from time to time.
After listening for a little while, we then were able to practice certain stretches (both alone and with a partner) as demonstrated by the instructor. We must have stretched for about an hour before we started learning punching and kicking moves. Then, we practiced those with a partner, trying our best to keep proper form, as the instructor demonstrated.
To end our lesson, we had to complete one final task: break a board with our fist. First, we had to write the following on the board (in Korean, obviously):
(1) 이름 -> Our name
(2) 태권도 -> Taekwondo
(3) 사범님 -> Sabeomnim ("instructor")
(4) 주먹 -> Jumeok ("fist")
(5) 사범님 좋아요 -> Sabeomnim johayo ("the instructor is nice!") LOL
(6) A wish for the future*
*During this segment, the instructor was joking around that we could write a wish like "I want to meet Super Junior~!" ... HE SAID IT FIRST, SO IT WAS FAIR GAME.
슈퍼주니어 만나고 싶어요! -> (I wrote those exact words on the board and he laughed at me)
After successfully breaking the boards, we headed back towards the subway. However, while everyone else made their way back to campus, I transferred to another line heading towards Gwanghwamun -- I was to meet with my Language Exchange partner to visit Gyeongbokung palace!
But... it started to rain... Luckily, by the time we walked there (about ten minutes later), it stopped! We were also lucky because the admission costs were free for the month of July! Due to the MERS scare, Korea wants to boost its tourism rates and is offering a lot of discounts for foreigners country-wide!
I only took a few pictures of Gyeongbokung because it was too big and we didn't get to see a lot (we arrived at 5:10 PM and the doors would close at 6:00 PM). But, we also had the opportunity to explore the Korean Folk Museum (located right behind the rear of the palace walls). I learned a lot about Korean history and had fun looking at the artifacts (especially the development and transition of Hangeul and the Korean langauge!).
Catching the subway back to campus, I met up with some friends by the front gate and we headed out for dinner. Not too far from campus (about a 15-minute walk from our dorms), is a small restaurant called "Pizzahand." Little did we know it has the BEST pizza I've had in a long time. Although I ordered the plain cheese, the sauce and crust were amazing -- not like any other Korean-style pizza I've had (even though I've only had one other type). It was prepared fresh and made-to-order. What's more, it actually tasted like American-style pizza! It was perfect to satisfy my home-food cravings, even though it was a form of what I would normally consider "fast food."
I wouldn't mind going again some time soon!