Writing this post from 36,000 feet above. My three-week South Korea trip is officially over. I was going to journal during this course, but it was really chaotic, to be honest. I couldn’t do lots of things I thought I would do. ‘So how was Korea, Fatima?’ This is the question I expect for the next two weeks.
Crazy. Scary. Joyful. And I dare
to say that I have changed slightly. I am definitely not the same person I was three weeks ago. Three weeks in another country is a long-time, man. Yes, I say things like ‘man’
now. Just one of the things I have picked up along the way.
So it started a little unpleasant, I guess. 12 hour- flight is not something I was looking forward to. I was quite miserable with lots of pain, feeling over-emotional and anxious about things in general. Cannot be grateful enough that that awful trip is over for good. Then to passport control, meeting with the other colleagues at the airport, moving to another airport where our next flight was waiting for us. Getting from one airport to another was also another challenge. Because the only way to purchase a train ticket was by cash. And the ATM at the airport did not accept our bank card. And we did not bring any Korean won with us, that is how prepared we were, lol. Also, no one was able to speak English. Even finding the English language option on the ticket machine and figuring out how to get our tickets took a good fifteen minutes. Then we ran to the next flight. Luckily, after taking off, it was smooth. We had someone waiting to pick us up at the airport. Finally, we arrived at our beautiful hotel surrounded by a splendid port. I was amazed at how magnificent the view was and was wondering how it is going to look the next morning in the daylight. There was just one problem. We missed dinner time. One of the responsible people for our course took us to the nearest convenience store to grab a quick dinner. After scanning every type of noodle and trying to find a vegetarian one, I ended up choosing a fish noodle and banana milk. Great combination, I know. But there was one slight problem. I did not know how to use chopsticks. Yes, I do go to an Asian restaurant in the UK, but I always ask for a fork, lol. I still remember my struggle to eat the noodle that I did not like very much with the chopsticks that I was unable to use in the hotel lobby. Of course, at that time, I was not aware that I am going to be eating noodles almost every night before going to bed for the next 3 weeks, lol.
People go to Korea or want to go
to Korea because of the food. But if I am being honest, the food was always a problem
for me. I’ve tried a few traditional things, liked most of the street foods, and
was okay with Korean BBQ, but disliked the seafood. I am not even going to
start with the worms that were still crawling. Or the pot of boiling bugs. Still trying to delete that image from my mind. But when we go to the
street food market, I quite enjoyed their meals and dessert. I think the
problem was partly on me since I don’t generally like seafood, and I am also quite
picky when it comes to other stuff. I like my own food. Cooking breakfast or dinner
was one of the things that I missed so badly during this time. I don’t think I
could survive in hotels or hostels for more than a few weeks. Also, we had to
make a few trips to different Mcdonald's during our stay, lol. I am sure going
to Mcdonald's during their time in Korea was probably not something anyone could
expect. Especially for me, since I don’t eat fast food that often, particularly
from food chains. They are basically ‘garbage food’ in my eyes. But never say
never.
The next day was the first day of
the academy. Oh yes, I forgot to mention. The reason for my Korea trip was the education
program that I have been awarded a law of the sea course which was generously
sponsored by the Korean Maritime Institute. I honestly don’t think I would be
able to get another opportunity like this, it was that valuable. I am forever
grateful to every academic and staff in the course. There’s absolutely nothing
to criticize about the organization itself. Kudos to all of them. I’ve been
taught by prominent academics all around the world for two weeks with lectures,
workshops, and discussions times. We even had a written and oral exam. When you are
almost 30, you think that there are not going to be any exams in your life anymore,
but the reality is different. I still remember on the exam morning, all of us
were working on our laptops in the hotel lobby, at the coffee shop, and here
and there. These people are lawyers, directors, diplomats, lecturers, and so on.
Quite an important bunch of people, I should say. I did not mind having an exam
since I am a Ph.D. student. But the whole situation was still a bit funny. The
last time someone tested me was when I was doing my master's. But all turned
out fine, I got a diploma in the end. I even have a graduation picture with the
diploma. Making a collection of those... Whatever it takes not to go into working
life, lol. Yeosu was really nice from top to bottom. It’s a beautiful city by
itself. But I also got very nice relationships with many colleagues and I
believe some of them turned into great friendships afterward.
During my time in Yeosu, we
visited Busan for a day with a few friends. The whole trip was a bit fiasco
since we couldn’t find our way around and didn’t get to see many places we
wanted to see. And it was the only rainy day in Korea. But I still enjoyed it very
much because the whole situation was funny from the beginning till the end.
Busan is a nice city, with a beautiful beach and so many skyscrapers. Not my
kind of city, though. But I laughed a lot that day. Even though the trip did
not end up being a very productive one, I think that was a different way of
experiencing things.
Then Seoul, the dream city. Not
necessarily my dream but many people’s. Seoul is a really beautiful city. We
spent 5 days in total there and still couldn’t finish all of the tourist attractions.
And to be honest, I don't think I care that much. Because I was with my
friends in a foreign land. So, everything felt adventurous. I didn’t care if we
were able to put a tick on every item on our itinerary list, which we did not
have properly.
After our beautiful hotel nearby
the ocean in Yeosu, my accommodation in Seoul was pretty pathetic. I stayed in
a hostel with a friend. Sharing a very tiny room with 5 other strangers was
quite a new experience for me. My own room in the UK is probably bigger than
our dormitory. I was quite disappointed when I saw it at the same time, however,
I didn’t cling to it. In the end, all of them were part of the experience. By
the way, experience is quite a dangerous word. You can use it to try anything.
It is a safe-looking word for making an excuse to do dangerous stuff. It feels
like that makes everything legit all of a sudden. I think I also experienced
quite a few things for the first time. But still tried not to go crazy or
anything. I don’t think I have any regrets though.
Korea is a nice country overall.
Even though I only saw three cities, Yeosu, Busan, and Seoul, I think spending
almost 3 weeks saved us from being a total tourist. We have had the full
experience. I had a lot of trips in my life. And will be having in the future
too, hopefully. There are so many memories I could tell but decided to save
some of them for myself. With the hospitality and kindness of the Koreans, with
excellent training by Yeosu Academy, all the weird things I encountered during this
course, and the people who touches my heart, this trip will always be a very
special one.
I am going to miss my evening
walks along the port after dinner, with my headphones on in really windy
weather. I am going to miss the 5:30 am morning walk to the fish market with
Prof. Kraska and others. I genuinely want to
be like him when I grow up. I learned more things from him on the very limited
walks than from the lectures. I am going to miss ice cream trips to GS25 after
lunch. I am going to miss watching the sunrise at Odongdo island. I am going to
miss riding a cable car over the ocean and watching this magnificent view from the top. I am
going to miss the lady in the very first coffee shop we visited in Yeosu, whom
I managed to communicate with Google Translate and who ended up giving me a
monkey cookie on the house. She was adorable and it was the best coffee I’ve
ever drunk. I am going to miss people’s kindness, and effort to communicate
with us even though we don’t speak the same language. I am going to miss having
a reunion with my friend unexpectedly after a long time- that’s how small the
world is. I am going to miss being lost in
the streets and yet, keep walking without being in rush. I am going to miss
being in a country where you don’t understand anyone and anyone understands
you. The UK was like this for me in the very beginning. And even though things
got easier and easier over time, I never thought it was my home. But after
feeling this foreigner feeling in Korea and after 3 years in the UK, I realized
that the UK became my home without even I realized.
One thing I hated though- wearing
masks everywhere! It is mandatory by law and you get to be warned if you avoid
it. Come on people, are we still in a pandemic? Oh wait, we are, lol. It was
pretty uncomfortable for me, after not wearing any mask in the UK for a long
time. I did not get sick or anything though, which was weird because I get a
cold almost every other month in the UK. So, it turns out masks do protect you.
So that’s it. I tried to keep it short,
but it still looks lengthy. This could’ve been my next journal article dammit,
lol. Anyway, just to make a record for later, here are some of the places I
have seen during my trip.
Yeosu: Yeosu Port, Maritime
Cable Car, Korean Coastguard Academy, Fish Market, Turtle Ship, Lighthouse,
Odongdo Island, Aqua Planet, Museum of Color, Sky Tower, Dolsan Bridge.
Busan: Sky Capsule, Haeundae
beach, Shinsegae Gangnam Department Store.
Seoul: Gwangjang Market, Jogyesa
Temple, National Folk Museum of Korea, Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul Tower, Starfield
Library, Lotte World, Cheonggyecheon Stream, Hongik University, Insadong, Myendong,
Han River, Yeouido Hangang Park, Gwanghwamun, Seoul Square, SFC Mall, Deoksugung
Palace Stonewall Walkway.
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