I am the worst at sleeping on planes, cars or any mode of transportation, so I wasn’t very optimistic about the 14-hour plane ride from Dallas to Seoul. Despite only getting a few hours of sleep, touching down in South Korea made it all worth it. After a relatively short time in customs, we collected our bags and met our tour guides from the Asia Institute. They were all so welcoming and excited to spend the next few weeks with us. We stopped to exchange our cash for Korean currency and then hopped on the bus to the hotel.

On the way, we got our first glimpse of Seoul from a distance as our tour guide Rob gave us a brief overview of the country’s history and culture. I knew that Koreans, in contrast to Americans, really value group identity over individuality, but I didn’t realize it extended to car color! Rob told us that the collectivism went so far that Koreans only buy black, gray, or white cars in order to blend in with the group. Since hearing that I’ve tried to find a car in a different color, but it’s really difficult!

After checking into the hotel we went to dinner in a traditional Korean-style restaurant. Afterwards, we decided to explore the city a bit – something that was even more exciting because people were celebrating Buddha’s birthday. We stopped by an outdoor concert, glowing statues and decorations, and eventually found ourselves by a nearby temple. There were tons of colorful lanterns decorating the space, as well as people in traditional dress taking part in a group dance. Wandering the streets of Seoul, I completely forgot about my jet lag, and I couldn’t have imagined a more interesting or beautiful start to our time in South Korea.