TL;DR: check the vlog (the first part is really blurry and i couldn't fix it rip)
So this week was very eventful- perhaps too eventful. My legs and back really hurt from all the walking and it doesn't help that my bed is basically rock solid (as most beds here in Korea are). The share house I'm living in (Borderless House Korea) is nice and has a lot of perks such as language partners and free house exchange, but it's still a bit too cramped for my taste. So I went apartment hunting and found a super nice and pretty big room in Hongdae. It's even cheaper than my current room and bigger so I figured why not. I'll move there in a month. Word of advice for future Light fellows: join Facebook groups to find housing! I wish I had seen these earlier. Rent House Seoul is where I found my new place.
I had my placement test on Tuesday which was alright. It consisted of an essay writing and an interview portion. It was pretty quick but I kept stumbling over my words during the interview even though I understood most of the material I was given. Anyway, Sogang's campus is beautiful. Though SNU is known for quiet, green spaces, Sogang does not lack that. In fact, there is a whole forest in the middle of campus that I spent about an hour walking around. It's also very hilly.
I had lunch with a share house friend who's also doing Sogang. She's Japanese and we can only communicate through Korean. When I asked her why she wanted to learn Korean, she said it's because she likes K-Pop and Korean people's faces. I'm usually quick to judge, but I slowed down and analyzed my thoughts. I would usually deem this a superficial reason to learn the language, but it's actually totally valid. People here are consumed by pop culture and appearance, and I cannot judge a person's mindset just because I come from a very different perspective. More thoughts on that to come later...
Anyway, this week a few of the other Light Fellows and I have been doing all the touristy stuff before school starts and we don't have the energy. We visited Namdaemun which is a great place to get lots of cheap clothes and knick knacks. I got my brother a Supreme hoodie for $20. Then, of course, we went to Myeongdong... several times. Especially for the street food which is deliciously cheap. I've found it a little difficult being vegetarian in Korea. I'm not the biggest fan of rice but that's basically all I can eat at most places. I will hopefully start cooking for myself once I get a routine, but I went to the grocery store and some of the prices for fruits and vegetables were quite expensive. I'll have to figure something out.
We also went to Gyeongbokgung palace which was kind of like one of those things you have to check off your "Visiting Korea to-do list." It was beautiful, though, and a lot bigger than I thought it would be. On our way back, we stumbled upon a pride festival near city hall. That was super cool to see. I felt like I was surrounded by so much love and acceptance, and I hope the country makes more progress in that area soon.
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