Wuhan

I had enough of Shanghai's lights and decided to leave to somewhere more peaceful. My destination was Wuhan in Hubei province about 12 hours to the middle part of China. It was the highlight of my trip and Wuhan felt so peaceful after the metropolitans (with its population of "only" 8 million people). I stayed with my dear friend Xu and her mom who took so good care of me with only a few hours warning. We saw the highlights of Wuhan in addition to eating lots of traditional Hubei food - we had to try as many courses as possible! - and water parachuting. I also met Peizhou who showed me around his campus and spoiled me by taking me to a chinese sports massage (which was no doubt the best massage I've ever had).

Bad luck - again!

Well, everything sounded too good, like I could ever avoid problems anyway. I didn't have a flight back home and tought it would be an easy job from China. However, I ended up hearing that there were no evn close to reasonably priced flights back home. I was calling everywhere, but for some reason all the flights were packed. When I finally found one and went to the agency to pick it, the travel agent had accidentally deleted my reservation. I was leaving to another city and begged him to hurry for not to miss the train. Finally, he arranged me another flight and I rushed to the train train station just to be there 3 (three!!) minutes late and missed the train I had paid for. Worse come to worse, all the train tickes for the later trains were sold out. Is someone cursing me or what?!

Shanghai

After the culture and history overdose in Beijing I took the train to Shanghai to relax and enjoy city life. I took the time to spoil myelf after the "tough" travelling by getting a manicure, pedicure, massage, facial and what not. I met some friends and we weaded to a spa and waterpark, did some shopping around the city and walked by the river. Thanks to Remy I met a lot of great people and they took me to Shanghai nightlife including one of my new favourite bars where girls enjoy free drinks, people dance on the bar and bartenders pour Tequila right into your mouth ;)

Things about China

Because of the one child policy, people really seem to love kids and take good care of them. Otherwise so serious adults are really playful with kids and also take them everywhere. Especially fathers are cute when they go out with their children.

Chinese have an explosive temper. People get furious everywhere, they shout, fight and insult. For example today I witnessed a subway fight when people tried to get in and out at the same time. Instead of waiting their turn they started to push eachother on the ground despite the fact that there was an old lady, a child (and me) in the middle.

I'm impressed to see how equal women and men are here. Women are working on very masculine fields such as officers, bus and taxi drivers, construcion etc. They don't pamper their husbands and are able to take care of themselves. Hopefully Chinas strong women will bring the country to a new era.

I'm also relieved that style does not count here. Unlike in many countries, especially in Asia, looks dont determine your value as a person here. Men walk around in boxers and without shirts - even in restaurants! As a woman I can finally leave my makeup and high heels home after Korea, where you are in a constant modelling contest.

The people from the countryside are really nice and China has an awesome nature (based on what I saw from train windows...). A lot of things are improving and it's generally really safe and nice to travel even though you would be alone and a girl.

Trip to the Great Wall

After seeing all the compulsory sights in Beijing (including Temple of Heaven, Forbiiden City and eating Beijing roasted duck) we decided to follow Maos opinion that a man who hasn't climbed the Great Wall is not a real man, and booked a trip to a beautiful sight at the wall. It sounded to be great value: good price and a ten hour trip to the wall. There was only one condition, we should visit one shop for 40 min. However, it turned out that we went to several different tourist shops and every time the tourguide made us lie that we are not students because they get paid for bringing customers there and students are not willing to buy anyway. In each shop we had to spend at least 40 min and even the promises lunch was in a jade carving factory. We had booked the trip to a pretty nice scenery at the wall but all of the sudden the travel guide got information that there was an "accident" on the road that lead to that place. Instead, he made us sign a paper that we would go to another sigh, which surprisingly was a lot closer to Beijing that the intended one. We made him promise that we would not have to go to a single shop anymore and finally reached the wall. For the first time in my life I understood the movie Rocky when we finally survived the incredibly steep stairs leading to the top of the wall. However, we did not have too much time to enjoy the beautiful view because -oh, he forgot to tell- we still had a silk and a tea shop to visit! As we started complaining the tour guide told us that we were the most horrible group he ever guided, not at all understanding that spending 1,5h from our 10h trip was not exactly what we wanted to pay for. The Great Wall was great and definitely worth seeing but avoid the tours and take a taxi instead to save your money, time and nerves instead.

Mongolia

Greetings from Mongolia! I arrived here from Beijing with train, and it was much more comfortable than I expected. The first night I spent at a local girls apartment which was a real fortune for me. She happened to know some nomand people in the countryside and I was allowed to stay two nights with a real Mongolian family from the countryside. Nomands live in gers (big tents) in the countryside og Mongolia and live from growing cattle like cows, lambs and goats. They move around a few times a year and carry everything they own with them. My family had around 500 goats and lambs plus several horses and cows. Believe it or not, I actually milked both a cow and a goat which was one of the most difficult tasks I've done. The family consisted of an old grandma, a few sons, their viwes and several kids. We stayed in their ger a few nights and ate with them. The food was surprisingly based on milk and meat: for breakfast hot milk and milkbutter, other meals some meat mixed with rice plus hot milk and for snacs some yoghurt and milk tea. Now we are back to Ulan Bataar which is not exactly the most beautiful city with endless activities. Actually, the natural science museum is probably the only sight we have seen and there's not that much more options left... :)

Beijing

Greetings from Beijing! On my way here I met an old friend on the airport who knows the city like his own pockets, so he helped me to get oriented. On our first night we headed to a rave party, which was pretty cool considering the fact that I hate dancing and techno music. The city is extremely polluted, you can hardly see the sky. Furthermore, its hot which has lead the Chinese men to create a new fashion to roll their shirt above their fat stomachs or leave the shirt away. And this is on the crowded streets of the capital. We went to see the temple of heaven and naturally had Beijing Duck while in Beijing. (I also ate snake, frogs and Jak!) On the second evening we watched a kung fu performance and otherwise we've been just shopping (oh, I got so much stuff I don't need!) but I'll be back here to see more sights hopefully. Ok, now we will leave to Mongolia and I will put this text to internet from there because China has banned my blog and I can't enter it from here...

Time to say goodbye

Hi guys! The moment of goodbye has arrived - I’ve got my bags packed and I’m ready to go. I’ll leave in about an hour to the airport and my next destination is Beijing. On Monday I will continue to Mongolia and after that where I end up is a mystery for me, too. Most likely back to China. The four months here have passed extremely fast. I met awesome people and got some great friends as well as learned so much about Korean culture. I saw local family life and was part of the studying community with hours of group working and endless parties. It’s been a rollercoaster – really exciting including both ups and downs. I’ll definitely miss Korea. Anyway, I’ll try to write something in the blog during the rest of my journey, too. Take care!!

Johtopäätöksiä

Noniin, nyt on viimeinen ilta ennen lähtöä käsillä. Olen pakkaillut pitkin iltaa ja huomenna lykkään koko maallisen omaisuuden pahvilaatikoissa kohti suomea. Matka jatkuu Kiinan kautta Mongoliaan ja sieltä tuntemattomaan. Muutamia johtopäätöksiä voisin vielä aikani kuluksi vetää näin neljän kuukauden perusteella.

Perhe-elämä on tullut tutuksi ja naapuruston kotirouvien elämänmenoa on surkuhupaisa seurata. Naisen asema ei rehellisesti sanottuna ole häävi. Vaimon tehtävä on hoitaa kotia ja mies tienaa leivän pöytään. Nuorissa korealaismiehissä ei ole valittamista ;) mutta vanhempi sukupolvi on uskomattoman sovinistista porukkaa. Naisen kuuluu jäädä avioliiton jälkeen kotiin ja passata miestään. Eräänäkin aamuna perheemme äiti oli asetellut paahtoleivät isälle valmiiksi lautaselle ja hillo- ja voipurnukat viereen. Mies tähän tokaisi lysähdettyään pöytään: ”Mitä tämä on olevinaan? Mikesi leipääni ole voideltu?!” Äidit eivät juurikaan ota aikaa itselleen, vaan huolehtivat lapsista ja heidän koulunkäynnistään. Läksyjä tehdään esikoulusta asti monta tuntia päivässä ja kaikki lapsille tarjottava viihde on oltava jossain määrin opettavaista. Perheellämme ei ole televisiota, mutta lapsilla on monta hyllymetriä opettavaisia kirjoja. Oma suosikkini on ”Opi historiaa kakkapökäleen kanssa”. Videoita saa katsoa jos ne on tarkoitettu englannin opiskeluun ja joka aamu kuunnellaan englantilaisia lastenkasetteja. Myös harrastusten on oltava kehittäviä, veljeni käy esim. tiedekerhossa.

Eräs suunnattomasti ärsyttävä asia on korealainen tapa työskennellä. Töitä tehdään hullun lailla, mutta työskentelytapa on uskomattoman tehoton. Panos mitataan työhön käytetyn ajan perusteella, ei tulosten. Ryhmätöitä tehdessä saatetaan viettää useita tunteja yhdessä vääntämässä muutamaa sivua tekstiä viilaamassa pilkun paikkoja kaikkia miellyttäväksi, kun yksin saman homman saisi valmiiksi muutamassa vartissa. Priorisoinnista ei ole tietoakaan, yleensä asiat aloitetaan mitättömistä sivuseikoista, joita hiotaan tuntikausia, ja lopulta huomataan itse tärkeimmän asian jääneen viimetippaan. Töitä ei voida koskaan saada valmiiksi hyvissä ajoin, vaan viimeinen yö on aina vietettävä koululla tai tietokoneen äärellä aamuun saakka. Ulkomaalaisten kanssa samaa ongelmaa ei koskaan ole tullut vastaan, mutta muutaman korealaisen tytön onnistuin lukukauden aikana suututtamaan, koska viimeisellä kouluviikolla olin lähdössä matkalle perheeni kanssa. Olemme kuulemma yliopistossa enkä ymmärrä asian vakavuutta, kyseessä ei ole mikään vitsi. Muutamaan otteeseen jouduin menemään 6:30 aamulla koululle viimeistelemään tai valmistelemaan ryhmätyötä ennen klo kahdeksan luentoa, ja tähän luonnollisesti 1,5h koulumatka päälle.

Voisin kirjoittaa loputtomiin, mutta aika loppuu kesken, yritän lisäillä jotain tekstiä myös loppumatkan aikana... Pärjäilkää ja pian nähdään!!

Relationship with professors

People in the university have a very strange relationship with their professors compared to Finland. The professors bring us for dinner and we might go and have a beer together. They even call students to their private phones to make sure that they have understood the tasks on the course. You can imagine how shocked I was when during the first weeks in Korea I answer my phone and there is my professor asking my opinion about the course webpage!! This Friday however, was the strangest experience ever. Our professor brought the whole class to all you can eat and ALL YOU CAN DRINK buffet instead of making a final exam and naturally paid everything. The grades would be given based on how much you can drink. The professor showed example and poor Asian students could not say anything against the authority. Me and another Finnish guy were the only ones walking out of that restaurant, others were either crawling or carried.

The photo above is from the party and below is my communication class.

Small weird things

There are a lot of small weird things in Korea that never stop amazing me. Here are a few examples that pop into my mind right now:
Coloured dogs: Having dog as a pet instead of a meal is nowadays more common. A small white poodle is a must, but like it would be not enough to dress it up in cute outfits the trend is to colour them! You can see poodles in all rainbow colours and the hip style is to colour the ears and tail leaving the rest of the body white. (The dog in the picture was owned by an at least 85-year-old lady.)
Toilet culture: Many of Korean toilets don’t have locks on the doors, so a common custom is to knock on the door before entering. If it’s occupied you should knock back. Also in toilets with locks it’s polite to knock first. What shocked me too is the amount of floor toilets: many places still have a hole on the floor instead of sitting model. The ladies room is also equipped with places for make upping because otherwise no one would be able to reach the sinks. The girls put makeup on constantly!
Tooth brushing: Koreans brush their teeth all the time. When you enter the bathroom someone’s always doing it, and it’s not strange to do it even in the hallways of school. Because of social pressure, I feel obliged to brush my teeth after every meal, too, and always carry a travel size toothbrush and paste with me.
Masks: Koreans are really into fashion, but they have a habit of wearing surgical masks when walking on the streets. There are a few reasons. First of all, Seoul is really polluted and there is yellow dust coming from China every now and then. You can’t really ever see the sky because there’s always a pollution cloud over the city, but during yellow sand it gets even worse. Another reason I hear sometimes is that the people are sick and don’t want to infect other people. That’s something I can’t really understand because they still eat from same portions and share the drinks..
Strange combinations in food: I never imagined having cabbage or potato pizza (picture) before coming to Korea. I also didn’t expect finding rice in hamburgers. And furthermore, seeing a toilet paper roll in restaurant table and using scissors instead of a knife when eating never stops amazing me. (I never realized that there are actually people who have no idea how to use knife and fork..)
Incredibly expensive cafeterias: Having dinner in Seoul is pretty cheap but going to the cafeterias is so expensive. It’s normal to pay 5 dollars for a coffee, but I just had a tiny cup of tea that cost 9 dollars!! I also went to a waffle café and ended up paying 26 bucks for a waffle!!
Living home: Everybody here lives at home as long as they are not married. You meet men in their middle 30s still happily enjoying the time living with their parents. The consequence is that you also often see parked cars shaking all around as soon as it gets dark, hahaha.
Boys carrying handbags: A common habit here is that the guys carry girls stuff whenever they walk on the street, so you see men carrying handbags all around. Even when I walk with my male friends they insist to carry my handbag because it’s too heavy.

Cooking festival and AKARAKA

Last week AKARAKA, the biggest festival during the spring semester, was finally there. The whole week is full of action starting with international cooking festival on Monday. I was the only Finnish member in the Finland team and planning of the menu was somewhat challenging, as we had to find the ingredients in Korea and there was no oven etc. The Koreans in my group were so excited to make green jelly that I had a hard time refusing. I tried to explain that jelly is absolutely not traditional Finnish food, but it didn’t sound convincing to them. Moreover, they wanted to have a green food as it’s our national colour. (Why? Because Xylitol is green!) In the end we decided to make meatballs, mashed potatoes and blueberry milkshake which ended up being a success. The food tasted just like home and we sold all the food we prepared.
Inspired by our success I also prepared another Finnish dish, macaroni box (lol, people, what is makaronilaatikko in English?!?!) for my host family and they even invited a friend family to enjoy my dinner. Having good manners they ate all the food, but I have a hard time believing it would be exactly fit to Korean taste. - Actually, they said it reminds the taste of omelette!
In the pictures you can see our cool Finland booth and a meal of meatballs with mashed potatoes having a Korean artistic touch. The cooking festival was followed by dadongge, two days of partying on the campus area. Various clubs were selling food and drinks and there were different kinds of performances and bands playing. However, all this was just warming up for AKARAKA, a huge festival held in the amphitheatre. The whole university area turned blue on Thursday getting ready to celebrate Yonsei. Over 8000 students gathered together to sing cheering songs and watch the front row Korean stars and bands performing exclusively for us. I have never seen people having so much passion for their university. It was like a religious event when thousands of people sing together how much they love Yonsei and they are blue soldiers for the best university for the rest of their lives. Here’s also a video, but it doesn’t really show the passion and is also of bad quality…

Hviba, hviba!

The Finnish ministry of tourism should definitely give a price to Lotte, a Korean company doing almost anything, including chewing gum, for promoting our country. Almost everybody here knows Finland, but not because of Nokia, our welfare system, Santa Claus, Sauna, Sibelius or even our sportsmen. No, the reason is the most popular chewing gum Xylitol. When you mention being from Finland the usual reaction is that the Korean person will start making weird movements and screaming “hviiiiba, hviiiba!” First I taught that I’m just a magnet to mentally challenged, but the reason was simpler. In TV they have this advertisement for Xylitol where they tell it’s from Finland and Finnish people always eat it before going to bed. (Of course, why would someone bother to brush teeth if u can chew gum instead?!) In the end of the commercial there is this weird greenish elf-looking man who dances shouting “hyvä hyvä”, meaning “good, good” (Koreans pronounce it “hviba”) and this is the image is the one Koreans have from us. However, words are not enough to describe, so here is the link to the advertisement. Enjoy!

Korean food

Korean food is very different from everything else I have been eating before, so I’ll tell you about some of the most popular dishes. Firs of all I must say that Korean food is extremely spicy. (Especially for Europeans who are only used to salt and pepper.) They even dip chili peppers into chili sauce! On every meal you have Kimchi as side dish. It’s like a Korean version of sauerkraut, cabbage with hot chili sauce. The basic ingredient is usually rice, but in some meals noodles are used, too. Meat is often pork, because beef is expensive and it’s cut in small pieces. It’s very hard to find good steaks here, and that’s what many guys seem to miss. Otherwise, chicken and seafood are popular. Some common Korean dishes:
Samgyopsal: Very popular Korean barbecue which is often eaten in student parties. It’s a thick piece of bacon style meat and the name comes from the three fat stripes on the meat. Very unhealthy and greasy, but delicious!
Bibimbab: A bowl of rice, meat and vegetables which you mix with spicy sauce. Basic student food.
Kimbap: Similar to maki sushi. A seaweed roll filled with rice and vegetables, meat or something similar. Nice snack.
Dubu-/ kimchi jjige: A stew made out of tofu or kimchi. Kind of soup which will be good both as side dish as well as dinner.
Maeunmatjeyukbokkeum samgakgimbap: Just because of the name. A triangle shaped rice snack with pork.

WILD STUFF:
Ok, if you have problems with nerves, heart or mind the following stuff is to be read on your own responsibility. You are welcome to write your moralizations on the comments… =)

So, there is this rumour that Koreans eat dog. Is it true? Well, yes it is possible to get dog here and they have restaurants that make dog food. It is not something that you eat every Sunday and Koreans don’t really talk about it, but if you ask, many people have at least tried it. It’s also a special food, so there is no chance that you would end up finding dog in your food accidentally. In fact, you have to know where to go to get it and know what to ask for. Anyway, yesterday I had my first dog meal. It was like a stew with soup, vegetables and dog meat. The meat was very different from pork or beef because it was more tender and the structure reminded maybe a little bit chicken or something.. I couldn’t finish the whole big portion, but I did eat quite a few bites anyway. It was more of a mental thing to imagine a Chihuahua on the plate, but in reality the dog is an own breed raised just for food, not as a pet. And pork, beef, lamb, chicken, fish are animals too!!

Another exciting food experience was pondaegi, which is like a cocoon of silkworm. They sell it on street sides and also in some restaurants for side dish. You can’t really miss it, because the smell of it on the street is very strong. The taste was not exactly delicious, more just slimy and weird.

In the pictures: me eating dog, the pondaegi cocoon dish and a local food store.

The story continues...

My host mom is just too nice. After the episode described below she called to her friend who speaks fluent English and asked her to explain the situation to me. She felt sorry because I felt sorry… And you know the Asian way.. =) I keep telling her that she should be selfish sometimes, but she is definitely a person who puts everyone else before her own needs. I wish all the people were like that, the world could be a slightly better place then.

Cultural differences

Ohh, now I’m struggling again… The more time I spend here the more I grow into the culture. However, that also means that people start to treat me more and more like a Korean an expect me to know all the unwritten rules. One of the things I’m really struggling with is schedules between my host family and me. We are both very busy, and don’t have too much family time together. However, in Finland you plan things well in advance where in Korea you are more spontaneous. Today I faced this fact again when I had already made an appointment with my Korean friend for the evening. However, in the lunch table the family told that we are going to do something together in the evening.. I felt so bad and tried to tell that I already have appointment and it would be extremely rude to cancel it, but I feel that the family didn’t quite understand it. They tried to say I should cancel the dinner with my friend, but then again, I just confirmed in the morning that I will join them and they will pick me up with car at 6PM… I have had this problem so many times before, too, and I have tried to tell politely that I will arrange time in my schedule if they just tell me a few days before. However, still after 2 months they try to find hints in my speech instead of asking directly and then we end up in the cultural crash. I might have an appointment made a week ago, and then on a Saturday morning they might have everything planned for the day. When I mention that I have other obligations, they are surprised because they thought I’m free and found it unnecessary to ask… And of course I end up feeling so bad… From now on I will try to ask them more about their plans and tell about mine, so that I don’t have to disappoint anyone… =(
My Asian friends, do you have any suggestions?

A few words about the Virginia Tech shootings

People have been asking how Koreans have reacted to the Virginia Tech tragedy after it was found out that the shooter was Korean, so I will write a few words about it. Of course, the whole world has been shocked of what has happened and feel sorry for the victims but in Korea the nationality of the shooter has been even bigger news. People are afraid that this tragedy has ruined the reputation of the whole country and that Koreans will face attacks abroad. Many of my schoolmates are concerned about Koreans in USA and fear that there will be prejudices against Korean immigrants and Korean-Americans and possible riots or violence. Many Korean parents in States try to avoid sticking together with other Koreans and pick their kids up from school to avoid any possibilities of danger. The whole country here is ashamed that the boy was Korean and they feel losing their face according to Confucian belief. However, the shooters family is in the worst situation. In their view they have raised their son to be a murderer, so they have lost their face. Because of this, the only option they have is to commit suicide. I heard that both of the parents tried to kill themselves, but the mom might have survived after taking poison. However, there are a lot of rumours and speculation going on, so I cannot be sure if this is the case. Koreans feel ashamed to talk about what has happened and they keep apologizing, even it has not been their fault. Most of their concern however, is that the attitude towards Koreans will turn more negative, especially in America.

Aina ei voi ymmärtää aasialaista mieltä, ja nyt on taas tullut sellainen hetki. Olin erään pienenen taidegallerian avajaisissa singaporelaisen kaverin kanssa. Oikeastaan tässä tuli jo ensimmäinen ihmetyksen aihe – kaveri ei ollut tippaakaan kiinnostunut taiteesta, mutta halusi mennä paikalle luomaan suhteita tärkeisiin ihmisiin. (Tämä kuvaa hyvin monen kyseisen maan edustajan mentaliteettia: ihmisiin ei tutustuta sen perusteella kuinka mukavalta hän vaikuttaa vaan sen, kuinka paljon ihmisistä voi hyötyä ja millainen sosiaalinen asema hänellä on. Siellä poika sitten jakeli käyntikorttejaan ja myhäili tyytyväisenä uusista networkeistaan.) No, jatkoimme galleriasta syömään paikalla olleiden ihmisten kanssa. Ihmetyksen aihe kakkoseksi nousi aasialaisten halu olla ikäistään vanhempia. Poikaparka (23v.) pohti kuumeisesti kuinka näyttäisi fiksulta ja ikäistään vanhemmalta, kun päällä oli vasta puku, kunnes keksi ratkaisun: vihkisormus sormeen! Koulussa sormus on kuulemma jo tehnyt vaikutuksen, vaikkei kumppanista ole vielä tietoa. Killutin nimettömässä hän sitten innoissaan kyseli näyttääkö ikäistään vanhemmalta. No, illallinen jatkui ja tulinen ruoka ja kuumuus saivat kaverini korvat lehahtamaan punaisiksi, josta sitten tuttavallisesti naurahdin pöytäseurueessamme. Emämoga! Illalla tuttu raivosi mesesessä kuinka voin tehdä jotain sellaista ja nolata hänet koko pöytäseurueen edessä. Hänen suuret networkinsa olivat takiani tuhoutuneet ja kasvot menetetty. Siinä sitten rauhoittelin miestä mäessä ja kehotin olemaan stressaamatta, mutta turhaan. Myöhemmin sain vielä sähköpostia kuinka pettynyt hän on minuun ja käytökseeni ja kuinka en lainkaan kunnioita häntä ja olin sivuuttanut suuren tragedian mese-keskustelussamme. Voi pyhä sylvi!!!

There's no place like home

When I came here I said that I could never live in Asia permanently and that even I like it here, I could never feel home. Well, now I am afraid that I do start feeling like home and start turning more and more into a Korean.. I have become close with my host family and they treat me almost like their child. The father told me that he doesn’t feel that I’m a foreigner at all, because my mind is so Korean. Today Joshua, my Singaporean friend was laughing at me and told that my behaviour is starting to bee too Korean. Yesterday we went to amusement park with the host family and had good time together.. But today Tommy, my host brother dropped the bomb: Mom, I love Johanna! Owwwww, I have to see that boy after 10 years!!!! Another fun thing happened in a technology shopping mall when my friend said: Johanna, let’s not speak English so they don’t think we are foreigners and charge more.. (Like with this face they’d ever think I’m Korean!)

I also love the way the people are in my suburb. The bus drivers already know me, so I always get a good morning greeting. If I’m the only customer when I come back home they will stop right in front of my door and they also stop if you just wave on the street even there would be no bus stop. If it’s crowded the people sitting will insist to hold your bag, which would never happen in the city subway. And lot of random people come to talk, where as in downtown Seoul they couldn’t care less.

In the pictures: my dear host family

Pink…is my favourite colour =)

All of a sudden the whole city has turned pink. The spring is finally here and it means that all the trees are blossoming – especially the pink cherry blossoms which are my favourite. I feel much happier now when the sun is shining, butterflies circle around you and it’s getting warmer day by day. I just we could have this kind of spring back home, too! Well, let the pictures speak:

B-boys, fly girls

How much culture can a person take in one week? I tried it out and ended up to three performing arts shows. Well, the first wasn’t really art but my mentor brought me to see a b-boy show to increase my hiphop credibility. Actually I expected there to be the whole Seoul hiphop posse, but surprisingly the room was full of girls who came to see the b-boys. Then, on Tuesday I went to see cirque du soleil which was just awesome! I don’t have to explain it in detail – u all know it – but to put in one sentence it was like artistic circus made for adults. Music, visuals etc… Then, like that was not enough culture, on Friday we went to a show called Korean dance meets Finnish music. It was about postmodern dance which was actually really good. They did really weird things and it was different from other classical dance performances. The music part however.. well I never knew such music exist in Finland! Only one time I heard Fnnish language and the rest was something else (like French one time!)…

In the picture my mentor MiSun in green and two Japanese.

Dancing, writing and fighting

During the semester I’ve been taking part to a culture experience program. This program lasted for 5 weeks and consisted of traditional Korean activities: mask dance, calligraphy and martial arts. The mask dance reminded me more of an African than Asian dance, because it consisted of big movements and jumping wearing scary masks at the same time.

After the dance practices we changed into a more peaceful activity: calligraphy. It was writing, arts and meditation at the same time, and I totally lacked patience for it. It was fun, but I was never satisfied with the results – the one thing I hate is bad handwriting. We were doing simple Korean alphabets, but it was actually much harder than I taught. The last part of the program was traditional Korean martial arts. It was nothing like the usual things you see, for example Taekwondo or Karate, but much smoother. The idea was to kick the other person in the head, but the kicks were soft and hurting the “enemy” was not the point. This martial arts really looked more like an art than fighting and it even had some elements from dance. From the whole program this was my favourite part and I was really happy to let my school stress out by kicking my classmates… =)

Ruokaa!

Jos haluat laihduttaa, Korea on oikea paikka muuttaa sanat teoiksi! Korealaiset eivät nimittäin syö juurikaan mitään ja länsimaalainen saa olla jatkuvassa nälässä jos haluaa elää paikallisen rytmin mukaan. Seuraava esimerkki kuvaa hyvin mentaliteettia: Tänään olimme viettämässä perheenisän syntymäpäivää ravintolassa. Menimme ensimmäistä kertaa syömään länsimaista ruokaa ja ajattelin tietysti tilausta tehdessämme, että kaikki ottavat omat annokset. Tilasin siinä sitten pihvin, mutta yllätys oli suuri kun pöytään tuotiin vain kaksi annosta: minulle yksi ja yksi yhteinen nelihenkiselle perheelle. Korealaiset eivät kertakaikkiaan syö mitään! Koskaan ei myöskään tilata omia annoksia, vaan kaikki syövät pöydän keskeltä samasta lautasesta. Ei siis ihme, että aasialaiset ovat hoikkia. Jos syömme hedelmiä ei myöskään jokainen ota omaa omenaa, vaan yksi omena jaetaan viiteen osaan. Eräänä iltana puolestaan illalliseksi oli kuuden aikaan pieni kulhollinen keittoa. Kun yhdeksän maissa hain pakastimesta leipää oli perheen äiti järkyttynyt valtavasta ruokahalustani.
Ruoka-avustuksia otetaan vastaan!

Party weekend

Hard work needs hard free time activities, so after a hard week of studying I decided to dedicate the weekend to partying. On Friday two Swedish girls were celebrating their birthday, so first we I had dinner and some soju with them. It was mostly Scandinavians there so people decided to head to an ice bar. I however met with some Korean friends to hang out in Hongik University area, which is full of bars and clubs and especially one specific friday a month is the offial party day. First we visited a club full of American soldiers and Korean girls, but for some reason didn’t stay there long. Then we changed to another bar and just sat there having fun until 4AM. I planned to rest for the Saturday, but my other Korean friend had a better idea. She was going to another MT and over spoke me to join. The last MT was full of exchange students, but this time we were only two non-Asians there. The main language spoken was Korean and the party style was Korean, too. We played a lot of weird games again – in Korean of course - and ate some Korean food. Compared to the previous MT, this one was not as wild, if you don’t count the fact that the Swedish guy totally ruined Sweden’s reputation (and I got all the credits for Finland of course…).

In the pictures: birthday party, Korean friends and the area close to our university.

MT (member training)

This weekend we had our first MT, which means member training for new members in university clubs. This MT was by Mentor’s club, a club organizing parties and activities for exchange students. So we headed to a house somewhere 2 hour away from Seoul. We arrived there around 10PM, so the first thing we did after arriving to the house was having some barbecue. Then we moved to campfire, but it was all rainy and muddy so we didn’t stay outside for long. Also, even though it was a cottage trip, all Korean girls were wearing high heel sandals and miniskirts =) so it wasn’t too pleasant for them. So we went inside playing some Korean games I didn’t understand at all.. Just scream and make weird movements…?? However, I was totally exhausted as I had woken up at 6 in the morning so I had a brilliant idea to take a short powernap. Surprisingly I fell asleep and woke up at around 3AM and had to catch all others up... The MT was ok, but the stupid thing was that we went there so late and had to leave already at 9AM in the morning, so there was not that much time to have fun (especially if you wanted to sleep, too.) But I learned this is a normal Korean way: rent a house somewhere, go there at midnight and leave early morning. What I also learned is that Americans cannot drink. (I’ve never seen anyone throwing up on his own FACE, and I still don’t know how that even is possible…) In the pictures: me and one mentor, guys dressed up as gladiators, Finns having fun.

New family member

Today we got a long wanted new family member when the kids finally got a pet. My host brother Tommy bought himself a bug for 10$. I don’t know exactly what it is but you can figure it out in the picture. They made him a home into a small terrarium and now the keep doing experiments with it. We’ll see for how long, the two previous ones have already died for some reason… Anyway, in the picture is Tommy and the bug, notice also Tommy’s new hair. (Yes! They DO perm and color eight year old boys hair in here.) So cute!!

Trip to Gyeongju: “museum without walls”

So we arrived to Gyeongju safely and decided to experience some culture in the ancient city from Silla-dynasty. First we went to see some tombs and had a nice plan for the day, but of course it started to rain and getting cold so we had to change our program. After the tombs we just wanted to get inside where it’s warm, so we headed to a local museum. (I guess no one of us had ever been so happy to get into a museum!) Because of the crap weather we ended up being in the museum area for several hours and we even got a private guide there for free =).

In the evening we had a cultural overdose, so it was time to relax. First we went to a local sauna, where we were treated like dogs. The lady working there didn’t apparently like foreigners, so she kept making our time as unpleasant as possible. The sauna was not much of relaxing, but luckily you can always trust that Soju is there for you.. So it was time for some fun instead of relaxing! We headed to norebang (=karaoke room) to let our inner superstar out. It sounded more like Idol’s worst auditions, but we had a great time and it was sooo hilarious. However, Gyeongju people are apparently all unfriendly, because also the karaoke owner lost his temper with us even though we brought him lots of money and he didn’t even have any other customers.
The next day the weather was better, so we decided to see a Buddha statue on top of a mountain. Of course we had to climb the mountain first, but burning calories in a nice sunshine was not that bad. (Except the fact that on top of the mountain we found a road and heard that there would’ve also been a possibility of bus transportation.) We also visited a temple on the way and on top of the mountain had a look at the Buddha in the grotto.

Wow, so much culture in one weekend! But next weekend will be dedicated to party because there is MT coming…

In the pictures: Gyeongju landscape, Heikki and me singing karaoke, king's tombs

Having fun in bus and starting the trip to Gyeongju

This weekend we made a trip to Gyeongju, an ancient town about 4 hours from Seoul. We had a great group of ten students, half of us being Finns however. (We are altogether 10 exchange students from Finland and somehow there is one common interest to us…) Most of us left already at afternoon, but me, Teemu and Heikki had lectures and took the night bus. Of course we wanted to catch up with the others probably already having a great party at Gyeongju, so we bought several bottles of Soju* to the bus. (*Soju is the local Vodka with less alcohol though. Usually the only drinks available are Soju and beer, so you better learn to like it if you want to have fun in Korea… ;) I’ve never had so much fun just travelling with a bus, but according to the businessmen travelling with us and trying to sleep we were somewhat loud. We also invented a new drinking game you can use for studying as well: Someone says a word and you have to give the Korean meaning, if you don’t then you have to drink. Teemu kept studying Korean but he was smart enough to keep saying the sentence “Jonun SWEDEN saram hamnida” over and over again (meaning I’m from Sweden) saving the reputation of Finns. Finally at night we arrived to or destination and ready to join the others for the party. But what did we find: boring Austrians sleeping in the hostel. Of course we woke them up and tried to have a room party, but the success was somewhat low… In the next post I will tell you more about the trip itself.

In the picture me and my animal friends (I bought the monkey in Gyeongju) and the view from the mountain.

Frustration

I’m soooo frustrated right now! I was taking part to a Korean language course at school for 2 hours every day. The course was really good and effective, we had a great group and I was both enjoying and learning. Today however I was kicked out the class just like that. Reason: I have too many courses. Graduate exchange students are only allowed to take five courses where I was having eight. My school Helsingin kuppasurkeakoulu however insist me to take 5 business courses even I’ve been mailing them that you cannot live in Korea without knowing the language. (And I really wonder how you should do business without Korean!) According to them I can take it as extra, however according to Yonsei’s rules not. Why am I punished for studying?! (And being smart, haha!)
Well anyway if it didn’t come clear yet, I’m pissed.
Thanks, bye.

Buddies

The university has two buddy programs where they give foreign students a Korean “friend”. I took part to the mentor’s program, which is mostly just having a Korean friend for fun, as well as the language buddy program where you have a language exchange. I feel like a big sister to my buddies because they are both born in -88, but they are super nice and I’m sure we’ll have lots of fun together despite the age gap. My language buddy actually wanted to have a German buddy to practice her German, but as there were no Germans attending they gave me to her. I guess I have to start practicing my German, too, as I promised we can make our meetings trilingual (English, German and Korean)…

In the picture me and my language buddy at the school library.