Leaving Home - Aloha A Hui Hou, Hawai`i!On Tuesday, August 21 at 1:30pm, I said a tearful (. . . very tearful for my mom!) goodbye to my dear family and friends, and boarded my flight to Seoul, South Korea. Nearly 10 hours and two delicious, Korean-Airlines meals later, my fellow Freeman Scholars, Pono and Keri, and I have arrived in our new home! After going through customs, immigration, and baggage claim, we bought our T-Money cards (I received a used one with some credit leftover from my best friend, Brittany, who students at Korea University last semester - thanks B!) and headed to Hongdae to our AirBnB. AirBnB in Hongdae Our host Helen is a lovely lady who met us at the Hongik University station exit and walked us to the AirBnB which was only three minutes away. We paid around $25/per person/per night which was kind of pricey but we were in a great location with AC and three-bedrooms on the 3rd floor of the building, so I can’t complain. Helen even gave us a wifi egg to use while we were there so that we’d have internet access while walking around. We stayed there for two nights and checked out on Friday morning to move into the dorms. I highly recommend staying here if you want to be where the nightlife action is! Link: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/24707601?s=51 Exchanging Money (USD -> KRW) Money exchange is something I originally struggled with in Hawai`i. Without contest, the BEST rates are at the duty-free Galleria in Waikiki; however, they almost never have KRW as they only sell what they buy. I basically went to South Korea with no KRW aside from 10,000 won (<$10) pocket change. Not to worry though, I quickly found an exchange booth right outside of immigration check (after luggage pick-up). We all know that airport rates are not in your favor, so I recommend just exchanging $100 to get you around at first. That being said, we were lucky because they were selling KRW for 1,072 to $1 (generally if it’s over 1000 won, you’re not good depending on the current rate). The following day, I went to Myeongdong per the suggestion of many Korean and Shidler friends for the best rates and exchanged $1000 for 1,121 won per $1. Myeongdong has a plethora of exchange places on the smaller streets surrounding the tourist hubs and this was the best rate we could find. They do not charge commission unlike banks, and the rate is higher than airport, so overall a very positive experience. More on my visit to Myeongdong in a later post! Moving into SK Global - Yonsei U. Dorms In Korea, cabs are very affordable and when you have a lot of luggage, it is the best way to travel! Keri and I split a cab from our AirBnB to Yonsei University which is really close by, less than a 10-minute ride. We hailed it via KakaoTaxi (KakaoT) and paid 6,000 (<$6) total. Make sure you order the cab to drop you off at the EAST GATE as SK Global and International House dorms are right there. If you just say “Yonsei University,” they will drop you off at the main gate and from there, it is a 15-minute HIKE to the dorms. Check-in was a very simple process! We arrived at 10:30am, an hour and a half after check-in began. There were very little people in-line and we were able to get our keys immediately. Here are the steps:
MAJOR TIP: Bring your own toilet paper! They do not stock toilet paper in the rooms! (Thank you to the past scholars who wrote about this in their blogs.) Best of Bites #1:Sinmigyeong Hongdae Dakgalbi: Dakgalbi is my favorite Korean dish to share. Everyone sits around a sizzling, shallow skillet that is filled with spicy chicken mixed with cabbage, tteok (rice cakes), and potatoes, flanked by melted cheese to dip - Koreans LOVE cheese! Needless to say, this goes great with soju. We found this place on the food app, MangoPlate, with raving reviews and loved it so much that we’ve been back twice in just our first week!
Issac Toast: This chain in Korea is perfect for college students as everything is 2,000 - 4,000 won. Simply an assortment of sweet and buttery toast filled with different meat patties, cabbage, and sauces, there is something so comforting and down-right magical about Isaac Toast. The Myeongdong location that we visited had a long line causing us to wait 30 minutes, however, we discovered more accessible locations in Sinchon and Ewha. I will definitely be a regular here!
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South KoreaSinchon, the bustling U-district in the center of Seoul, will be my current home for the next few months. This blog is a collection of adventures in and around Seoul from the eyes of an exchange student from Hawai`i. Archives
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