Locality Summer School

It is always difficult to write about another country and another culture, because there are so many differences that you actually do not know what to start with and what really deserves to pay attention at.

First of all, it was not my first time in Korea this year, so impression was really different. Talking about the very first impression of South Korea, I was shocked since I leave the plane and stepped on the ground, and then I continued to admire every single thing or place I saw. National food was salty, hot and so much sweeter than food of my country, the weather was really hot and humidity was no joke, so it was quite difficult to become used to this. Finally, my level of Korean language was much lower then and I haven’t got any chances to practice it until I came to Korea, so I feel stressed so many times I needed to speak with someone.

Comparing to my first time, this year I just came to familiar country with familiar places, people, food and climate. The first day my teammates came to pick up me from the airport and in the evening we went to eat dinner all together, including other Russian member. I realized that the dish we ate was really hot only when a looked at my Russian friend’s face, because I did not even feel any discomfort anymore. The weather in summer in Korea is really hot, but comparing to my country it is easier to stand the heat.

I like coming to Korea, because it is my only chance to see the daily routine of people from another country. Actually I like just to look around noticing what common people do and how more than do the sightseeing itself.

Talking about the Summer School program, it was full with many different kinds of activity, so I feel really satisfied after finish this. Although it was such a short period of time, there were so many experiences and good memories, that I can bring back home.

Firstly, I would like to thank members of both Eurasia teams. They really did their best to introduce Korean culture to me and another Russian member, to help us with all the difficulties and to entertain us during the program. It was such a good idea to stich both Russian team together and to have fun all together. I believe most of us will keep in touch in the future so that we can meet again when I return to Korea. Moreover, we talked with each other so much that I can practice my speaking language and I hope even improve it.

Talking about academic feature of the program, which consisted of special lectures and team research projects, it was kind of too complicated. Lectures were quite interesting, but not so detailed as I expected. All the international students were already aware of most of the information that was given. In contrast, in-depth project was one of the most difficult parts, especially for Korean students, because there was not enough time to complete all the preparation properly. However it was fun to meet all together and work all night long, trying to complete the presentation and report. 

It must be said that food was amazing. According to Korean students, it was the best food supply they have ever seen in their university canteen, and it is easy to believe because dishes were so nice and portions were so big that I couldn’t even pass any of eating occasion. I love Korean food and I was so happy that I had such an opportunity to eat it on daily basis.
 

We had one day when we can see outstanding performance with national music instruments and even try to play them by ourselves. There was a presentation about each group of instruments and then a quiz connected with it. I liked kayagum the most though it was quite hard to play.

In the first day we visited Gyeongbokgung Palace and Seodaemun Prison History Museum.

Seodaemun Prison History Hall is a special museum located at Seodaemun Independence Park. It was built near the end of the Joseon Dynasty (~1910), and was where Japanese soldiers tortured and later executed Korean Independence Movement followers. Seodaemun Prison History Hall was built in remembrance of Seodaemun Prison, and to salute the Korean patriots. There you'll find seven jail cells, a historical exhibition hall, an execution room, watchtowers and a basement jail cell where Yu Gwan-sun an historic figure during the independence movement died. The 1st floor is “A Place of Reverence,” where you can learn about Seodaemun Prison through a video. A large screen shows the background of its founding and the transition periods in its history. The Reference Room has displays and information on Korea's history. The museum also holds special exhibits. The 2nd floor is “A Place of History,” where you can view the “National Resistance Room,” “Prison History Room” and the “In Prison Life Room.” This floor shows examples of how the people fought through this dark chapter in history continuing to hold on to their hopes and resolve for freedom. “A Place of Experience” is the most horrifying and dreadful place in the prison. In the “Temporary Detention Room” and “Torture Room” you will see recreated torture scenes that are frighteningly realistic. At the Seodamun Independence Park nearby you can visit the Independence Hall, the Patriotic Martyr Monument, the March 1st Declaration of Independence Monument, relic no. 32 and no. 33.

In the second day we visited Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art and National Hangeul Museum.

Leeum museum has 2 different sections. The first one houses a collection of traditional Korean art, of which 36 pieces are designated national treasures. Included in the collection are landscapes and folk paintings, traditional ceramics and porcelain, such as Celadon and Buncheong, a bluish-green traditional Korean stoneware. As well as 14th century daggers, crowns, earrings and ornaments; and Buddhist art, sculptures, paintings and manuscripts. The second one features modern and contemporary art from both Korean and foreign artists. To be honest, both me and my Russian roommate liked the first section more, because modern art turned out to be kind of hard to understand for us. 

National Museum of Hangul is not that large as other museums, so it did not take much time to do. However it was one of the most interesting places we visited. Exhibition shows the history of Korean national alphabet and I find it attractive how Korean people appreciate this part of culture. Actually, we had chosen this museum only because it was connected to our project topic, but it was worth seeing.
 

To sum up, I would like to say again that the program was eventful, very dynamic, we did not have even time to just seat quietly and do nothing, because there was always something to do. And I really thankful for this opportunity to learn about Korean culture deeper and to make international friends and lots of good memories. I would also thank the staff team for helping us during the program, the canteen staff for giving us such a great food and professors for providing interesting materials. I would strongly recommend this program to other foreign students.​