New Semester and Unforgettable Experiences – Fund for Education Abroad

The spring semester has already brought so many new, unforgettable experiences with it. To start, my best friend, Aurora, from the States, has finally arrived in Korea and will also be studying abroad this semester. She has moved into our shared dorm, and I’m so excited to live in Seoul with her! This past first weekend was jam-packed with plans that I made with all of the new incoming students. First, I helped Aurora move into SK Global House on Saturday, and later that night, I went to my first ever KPOP concert. This was the first live concert that I have been to since Covid started and to say I was excited is an understatement. Due to Covid, certain restrictions in place made the P1Harmony concert a unique experience. For example, in KPOP culture, it is normal to sing along and have fan chants for certain songs. However, at this current time, singing, screaming, and chanting are strictly prohibited. Instead, we were given clappers to clap along with. This was the first time I have ever been to a concert and not sung along. Despite these restrictions, I still had the best time because I got to see a live performance again. I had missed that butterfly-like feeling you get when you see your favorite artist live. This concert experience can just be added to the list of things that will make great stories in the post-covid future.

The following day I woke up extremely early to go snowboarding with a group of new friends! Snowboarding is something else that I haven’t had the opportunity to do since Covid started, so I was very excited. We took public transportation and traveled two-and-a-half hours North to the Elysian Gangchon Ski Resort in Chuncheon. Something that I noticed that was different than the previous semester was how easily I volunteered to be in charge of transportation and getting us there. It was amazing to feel secure in navigating, and I am happy I was able to show the ropes to the new spring students.

Once we arrived at the Ski resort, we had the best time! I’ve only been snowboarding three times before this, so I am still a beginner in every sense of the word. However, that didn’t take away from how much fun it was going down the slopes! I fell…a lot… but it was worth it every time! Once the slopes closed at 5 pm, we went to the nearby hotel and got a delicious dinner. By that time, everyone was exhausted, and we still had to make the 2-hour trip back. I didn’t end up getting back to the dorms until 11 pm, so it was a full day. To think that all of this happened within the first weekend of the semester is crazy and makes me incredibly excited for what’s to come!