When I was greeted with smiling faces, delightful aromas of exotic foods, and colorful digital advertisements on the street, it truly hit me that I had successfully gone from the classroom, to the city, to the world. However, the joy of completing the journey to Seoul, South Korea was preceded by an early morning wake up call and approximately 17 hours of travel in an airplane. Thus, this study abroad experience demanded the discipline to be a responsible student and called for a positive attitude right from the start! Fortunately, this was not a challenging effort as the extensive hours of traveling allowed for me to reflect on the appreciation I possess of this opportunity to further develop my global competency. I utilized travel time to review my textbook for the Plus3 Korea Program, which included practicing the pronunciation of the numeric system in the Korean language. I have already deemed that this skill will be useful for an occasion that I have eagerly been looking forward to—placing orders of Korean dishes at restaurants around the country. Furthermore, from a tiring day of traveling I quickly developed an appreciation for frequent travelers in the international business field. I will remember my travel experience and easily be able to relate to exhausted colleagues or clients that have traveled abroad once I enter the workforce. Nonetheless, in the few hours I’ve had upon arrival to experience Korea, I have loved every second I have spent in this beautiful nation! Students of the Plus3 Korea Program were welcomed by kind colleagues from the Asia Institute, whom will be assisting us in navigating the Korean experience. I appreciated the warm welcome from these program coordinators and fellow students, and loved sharing a meal with these individuals at the Plus3 Korea Program Dinner. This study abroad has already proved to be eventful, and I am prepared to immerse myself in professional and cultural settings as I eagerly kick off my time in Korea!
Hello, “To the World!”
