Made it to Korea!
The 3-hour flight delay in Allentown didn't mess up my connection to Seoul, and I discovered that the Detroit airport has an amazing underground rainbow tunnel to get you from one terminal to the next. I appreciate art installments like that, meant to make a usually annoying task (getting from point A to point B in an airport) an enjoyable one.
I also found out whilst reading SKY Magazine on the Delta flight that there is a spa in the airport (notable because my gate was right next to it, I saw it but didn't actually investigate while I was there) which specializes in super-fast treatments between flights. Depending on how I feel once I get there in a month, I may look into it as a way to keep myself awake during my 5 hour layover. O_o
Anyway, once I landed in Inchon Airport, there was the usual passage through immigration and customs, which went without a hitch. My baggage got off the plane with no problems, and the representatives from BIP were easy to find. Unlike other airports where there's a solid wall of people holding signs to find people arriving, there were relatively few people there to pick people up. Then came an hour wait for more people to arrive to make sure the bus would be full, and then an hour and a half bus ride (it was roughly that long, I fell asleep for a bit so it might have actually been a bit longer or shorter) to SWU, Seoul Women's University, where the BIP program I'm in is being held. I was the first of all my suite mates to get in, so I had the lucky opportunity to unpack and get organized before anyone else. Sheets and pillows are provided, though the pillow is a bit confounding, as it is stuffed with plastic packing peanuts (like the type in a FedEx box), though surprisingly comfortable. The wardrobe I am using doesn't have hangers and I failed to bring any, but it turns out that this is not nearly as problematic as it might be, as once I got here and felt what the weather is actually like, I realized that about half of the clothes I brought are way too warm, and therefore the few drawers in the wardrobe hold what I have. Even knowing the weather forecast, I still underestimated what a humid tropical climate really feels like.
Our suite consists of four bedrooms with two bunk beds in each, though there are only 11 girls in the suite total. The suite also has a shower room with four showers, and two bathrooms. I have only one roommate in my room, and she is a very sweet Korean girl who attends SWU during the school year. On our floor there is also a laundry room with a washer, dryer, and HUGE sink. Also on our floor: a lounge and full kitchen, though I'm not sure I'm going to attempt actually cooking it in.
Last night pizza was ordered in, as the full meal service hadn't started yet, and then at 11pm there was dorm meeting with our RA. It was a struggle to stay up until then, and I did fall asleep before 11pm, but luckily I was jolted awake around 10:55pm by my brain going "must get up for dorm meeting!!"
Then I slept SOUNDLY from around 11pm until 7:30am this morning, when I got up and had breakfast with my room- and dorm-mates. The food service is as it is normally for the Korean students, so it was a bit interesting to see pumpkin soup (tasted oddly like oatmeal), salad with what appeared to be 1000 Island Dressing, kimchi, and cereal which for no apparent reason was Corn Flakes and Froot Loops mixed together. Following the feeding frenzy, five of us from Cedar Crest went for a walk around the campus, which is very park-like, and off the campus there are small stores and restaurants, though all the signs are in Korean, so it was a bit difficult to firmly determine what each building was, other than by just looking in the windows. We also found a bank and ATM to get some Korean Won.
Now the Korean students are off to a meeting of their own, and the international students have free time until lunch and the Welcoming Ceremonies this afternoon.
I'm off to either a) take a nap b) read some c) listen to music d) go find the post office in the bottom of my building. I'm thinking of perhaps tackling all of those tasks if I can.
Note: Do excuse any typos in this message. Though I am not tired at the moment, I can feel that my brain is fuzzy, and might not be working at top speed. Hopefully this problem will go away soon with some more sleep.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
This Post Compliments of LVIA
LVIA (Lehigh Valley International Airport, formerly known as ABE, short for Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton) . . . turns out they have free Wifi. Excellent for when your flight has been delayed 3 hours and it is now 40 minutes away from the new flight time . . . and no one has boarded, nor are there any staff around who look like they could begin the boarding process. But hey. I can check my email for free! That makes up for it.
I suppose on the bright side, the longer my flight is delayed, the less time I'll have to spend in Detroit airport for my layover waiting for my connecting flight. I got to spend a few of those new hours in bed! Unless this flight gets delayed so long that I can't MAKE the connection. Then this will be bad.
Interesting ticket counter story: when I got into the airport, there was a reasonably-sized line at the Delta counter, but NO ONE working. No lie, I stood there for about 15 minutes, while no one worked at the counter. Apparently a lot of flights have been delayed this morning, and everyone was spread thin trying to reschedule flights for everyone, and no one was really sticking to their designated airline counter as a result. As we slowly compacted the line (I think it must have been a psychological reaction, since we weren't actually moving, we were moving closer together to make the line look smaller and therefore we would THINK we were moving . . .), I saw off to the side that there was one of those self-check in machines. The way it was positioned, it looked like it was reserved for only Super-Duper Frequent Fliers, but there were no signs or other clues to indicate that this was the case, other than the awkward alignment. I asked a few people if they knew if it worked, if we could use it, and no one seemed to know. A woman who had just showed up and was the first to spot it when up to it, but it could find her ticket. Apparently she needed to completely re-book her flight (I told you there were a lot of flight problems this morning), and so it couldn't complete her transaction. No one else seemed to be interested in giving it a go, and since my flight had only been delayed, but not actually canceled or dramatically affected, I decided to give it a try. It worked! In like 3 minutes, I was done.
Let this be a lesson to all who might be involved in the placement of items (ie. everyone at some point in time): if you are going to put up some kind of "convenience" service, like a self-check-in counter, PUT IT SO THAT IT IS OBVIOUS THAT PEOPLE CAN USE IT. It took me 15 minutes in line to even SEE the kiosk, and all that could have been skipped (and probably some people in line in front of me could have tried it too) had they been able to see it.
Also, it looks like the pilots and flight attendant have just showed up at the gate. And the tarmac guy just walked in the door to let them on the plane! But he had a concerned look on his face like something was wrong. Darn.
25 minutes until take off. Supposedly.
I suppose on the bright side, the longer my flight is delayed, the less time I'll have to spend in Detroit airport for my layover waiting for my connecting flight. I got to spend a few of those new hours in bed! Unless this flight gets delayed so long that I can't MAKE the connection. Then this will be bad.
Interesting ticket counter story: when I got into the airport, there was a reasonably-sized line at the Delta counter, but NO ONE working. No lie, I stood there for about 15 minutes, while no one worked at the counter. Apparently a lot of flights have been delayed this morning, and everyone was spread thin trying to reschedule flights for everyone, and no one was really sticking to their designated airline counter as a result. As we slowly compacted the line (I think it must have been a psychological reaction, since we weren't actually moving, we were moving closer together to make the line look smaller and therefore we would THINK we were moving . . .), I saw off to the side that there was one of those self-check in machines. The way it was positioned, it looked like it was reserved for only Super-Duper Frequent Fliers, but there were no signs or other clues to indicate that this was the case, other than the awkward alignment. I asked a few people if they knew if it worked, if we could use it, and no one seemed to know. A woman who had just showed up and was the first to spot it when up to it, but it could find her ticket. Apparently she needed to completely re-book her flight (I told you there were a lot of flight problems this morning), and so it couldn't complete her transaction. No one else seemed to be interested in giving it a go, and since my flight had only been delayed, but not actually canceled or dramatically affected, I decided to give it a try. It worked! In like 3 minutes, I was done.
Let this be a lesson to all who might be involved in the placement of items (ie. everyone at some point in time): if you are going to put up some kind of "convenience" service, like a self-check-in counter, PUT IT SO THAT IT IS OBVIOUS THAT PEOPLE CAN USE IT. It took me 15 minutes in line to even SEE the kiosk, and all that could have been skipped (and probably some people in line in front of me could have tried it too) had they been able to see it.
Also, it looks like the pilots and flight attendant have just showed up at the gate. And the tarmac guy just walked in the door to let them on the plane! But he had a concerned look on his face like something was wrong. Darn.
25 minutes until take off. Supposedly.
Friday, July 1, 2011
Away We Go!
In less than 12 hours, I will be at the Lehigh Valley International Airport, waiting for my flight to Seoul via Detroit. Yay!
My suitcase is all packed, and is tipping the scales at 43 pounds. I'm 7 pounds away from the Delta baggage weight limit . . . considering the fact that my bag is fairly small in size, I'm taking this high density as a sign of my ability to pack well, utilizing every spare inch of space in my suitcase. Perhaps I pack too well, because if I expand the sides on my suitcase for extra room on the way home, it will be too heavy to take on the plane. Perhaps I should stop being so efficient.
Considering I need to wake up around 3am in order to be ready to get to the airport on time, I am trying to figure out when I should attempt to go to sleep tonight/this afternoon. Early, probably, but I'm not sure that any degree of going to bed early can make up for the jolt of having to get out of bed at that ungodly hour.
In other news, the grades for my Summer Philosophy class have yet to be posted . . . according to the academic calendar for the school, they are supposed to be up today, but I don't see them. I was really hoping to know how I did, in order to have that issue put to rest in my mind before I go, but I suppose it is not to be.
My suitcase is all packed, and is tipping the scales at 43 pounds. I'm 7 pounds away from the Delta baggage weight limit . . . considering the fact that my bag is fairly small in size, I'm taking this high density as a sign of my ability to pack well, utilizing every spare inch of space in my suitcase. Perhaps I pack too well, because if I expand the sides on my suitcase for extra room on the way home, it will be too heavy to take on the plane. Perhaps I should stop being so efficient.
Considering I need to wake up around 3am in order to be ready to get to the airport on time, I am trying to figure out when I should attempt to go to sleep tonight/this afternoon. Early, probably, but I'm not sure that any degree of going to bed early can make up for the jolt of having to get out of bed at that ungodly hour.
In other news, the grades for my Summer Philosophy class have yet to be posted . . . according to the academic calendar for the school, they are supposed to be up today, but I don't see them. I was really hoping to know how I did, in order to have that issue put to rest in my mind before I go, but I suppose it is not to be.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Counting Down . . .
I leave in 5 days for my trip!
I am finally starting to get excited about going, though I am also starting to feel the familiar feeling of "Why on earth do I have so much stuff if I don't need to take it with me on vacation?"
This inevitably happens when I go on vacation. In the go-through-everything method of packing that I employ, I am always stunned by the amount of stuff I have that I simply don't need. 6 "junk" t-shirts for dirty work. 8 tank tops when I don't even like wearing tank tops. 5 pairs of jeans when I only ever enjoy wearing 3 of them.
These kinds of questions bother me, mainly because the simple solution is "Get rid of the stuff you don't like or want or need," but there's always something that holds me back. It's amazing the amount of stuff I don't even like but I hold on to and use for some unknown reason. One explanation might be, given the fact that I do use some of the stuff, that I NEED the items and therefore it would be stupid to get rid of them. However, the only reason I use them is because they create a need by being there, not because the need is there and they fill it.
I think a better explanation is that there is that primal "store up for the winter" thinking that pervades human actions, which leads people to do strange things like hold on to bedsheets from 1970 "just in case" the current ones get messed up. Of course, if the current ones get destroyed, new ones will be bought as a replacement before the old ones will be brought out of storage, but these kinds of facts I can never quite convince my brain of.
Of course, even of the stuff that I DO want to take with me when I pack, it seems to be far more than one person should ever have in their possession/desire to drag with them to a new location. My mother often says that I have anorexia when it comes to possessions, I always have this constant desire to reduce and purge myself of unneeded items. I hate the idea of being needlessly burdened down with items that aren't really essential to life.
In other news, tonight is my last class for my summer Ethics course. It's been interested, and made me more confused than ever about the world, but I do feel kind of bad about the course in general. Due to it being the first time this teacher had ever taught the course in an intensive 6-week, 4-hour-class-twice-a-week style, and his lack of knowing how to structure the time, we missed a lot of material. Taoism, my favorite Eastern religion, was completely skipped over, as well as Family Ethics, Media Ethics, and a few other Ethical issues, despite the fact that they were listed in the syllabus and the readings were in our textbook. I would have liked to have gotten a more broad scope of Ethical thoughts and issues, but I suppose it was not to be. Many people have said that this is common of summer courses, that they are far easier and more relaxed than standard, and part of the issue might also be that I am taking the class at a community college, rather than at a standard 4-year school, the style of which I am now used to after a semester at Cedar Crest College.
In other other news, my bag today has, by far, the most eclectic assortment of things that I think it has ever held, which, for me, is saying something. It contains, among other things:
My textbook for tonight, along with my binder and notes
Library books and movies from two different libraries
Two pouches of CapriSun which I took from the giant boxes at the break room at work
A piece of pizza
A water bottle
My bill and receipt for tuition for the Fall at Cedar Crest
A box of frozen vegetables
An umbrella
However, as I am writing this list, I realize that I left all my pens and pencils at home, and that if I plan to take notes tonight, I should scavenge for one before it's too late. I should get on that.
I am finally starting to get excited about going, though I am also starting to feel the familiar feeling of "Why on earth do I have so much stuff if I don't need to take it with me on vacation?"
This inevitably happens when I go on vacation. In the go-through-everything method of packing that I employ, I am always stunned by the amount of stuff I have that I simply don't need. 6 "junk" t-shirts for dirty work. 8 tank tops when I don't even like wearing tank tops. 5 pairs of jeans when I only ever enjoy wearing 3 of them.
These kinds of questions bother me, mainly because the simple solution is "Get rid of the stuff you don't like or want or need," but there's always something that holds me back. It's amazing the amount of stuff I don't even like but I hold on to and use for some unknown reason. One explanation might be, given the fact that I do use some of the stuff, that I NEED the items and therefore it would be stupid to get rid of them. However, the only reason I use them is because they create a need by being there, not because the need is there and they fill it.
I think a better explanation is that there is that primal "store up for the winter" thinking that pervades human actions, which leads people to do strange things like hold on to bedsheets from 1970 "just in case" the current ones get messed up. Of course, if the current ones get destroyed, new ones will be bought as a replacement before the old ones will be brought out of storage, but these kinds of facts I can never quite convince my brain of.
Of course, even of the stuff that I DO want to take with me when I pack, it seems to be far more than one person should ever have in their possession/desire to drag with them to a new location. My mother often says that I have anorexia when it comes to possessions, I always have this constant desire to reduce and purge myself of unneeded items. I hate the idea of being needlessly burdened down with items that aren't really essential to life.
In other news, tonight is my last class for my summer Ethics course. It's been interested, and made me more confused than ever about the world, but I do feel kind of bad about the course in general. Due to it being the first time this teacher had ever taught the course in an intensive 6-week, 4-hour-class-twice-a-week style, and his lack of knowing how to structure the time, we missed a lot of material. Taoism, my favorite Eastern religion, was completely skipped over, as well as Family Ethics, Media Ethics, and a few other Ethical issues, despite the fact that they were listed in the syllabus and the readings were in our textbook. I would have liked to have gotten a more broad scope of Ethical thoughts and issues, but I suppose it was not to be. Many people have said that this is common of summer courses, that they are far easier and more relaxed than standard, and part of the issue might also be that I am taking the class at a community college, rather than at a standard 4-year school, the style of which I am now used to after a semester at Cedar Crest College.
In other other news, my bag today has, by far, the most eclectic assortment of things that I think it has ever held, which, for me, is saying something. It contains, among other things:
My textbook for tonight, along with my binder and notes
Library books and movies from two different libraries
Two pouches of CapriSun which I took from the giant boxes at the break room at work
A piece of pizza
A water bottle
My bill and receipt for tuition for the Fall at Cedar Crest
A box of frozen vegetables
An umbrella
However, as I am writing this list, I realize that I left all my pens and pencils at home, and that if I plan to take notes tonight, I should scavenge for one before it's too late. I should get on that.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
The Song You Never Knew You Knew
I can't even remember what made me think of this today, but I suddenly remembered the song "Like Humans Do" by David Byrne.
I don't particularly like the song, nor do I find it all that interesting, but it is inexorably lodged in my brain because it was the one song that came preloaded on Windows Media Player on Windows XP (I can't even imagine how much was paid to get that kind of exposure). Until I figured out how to get free music / started earning money in order to buy music, this was the one song I listened to over and over and over to be an awesome Windows-Media-Player-using adolescent.
Ah, youth.
I don't particularly like the song, nor do I find it all that interesting, but it is inexorably lodged in my brain because it was the one song that came preloaded on Windows Media Player on Windows XP (I can't even imagine how much was paid to get that kind of exposure). Until I figured out how to get free music / started earning money in order to buy music, this was the one song I listened to over and over and over to be an awesome Windows-Media-Player-using adolescent.
Ah, youth.
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