Today I got to learn taekwondo. I woke up and went down to eat breakfast in the hotel lobby. I then went back up to my room for a while since I had time before leaving. We took the subway to the place where we were all going to learn taekwondo. Today we didn’t have the receivers that we usually use when travelling through the subway. By this time everyone was starting to get the hang of using the Korean subway system. At the studio we took off our shoes and they gave us a uniform to put on over our clothes. I got a souvenir belt with my name on it to go with the uniform. Once everyone was dressed, they instructed us to sit down and they taught us about the history and philosophy behind taekwondo. They taught us the basic movement for our hands and feet. After that they let us all break a board with our foot. This was a really fun experience.
After taekwondo, we then took the subway again to city hall and to eat lunch. I went out with my group and some others to a burger place that was very good. After lunch everyone reconvened and we got to look at some of the ruins from the Joseon Dynasty. We then got led on a tour through city hall. I couldn’t hear our tour guide very well, but it was interesting to hear how South Korea revitalized itself after the Korean War. I know they talked about how South Korea used the Olympic games to establish itself after the war as its own country that is strong. Overall the tour was interesting. City hall was full of plants and living walls that helped with sustainability since they purify the air.
After the tour Dr. Yun gave each group a scavenger hunt to find a famous landmark in Seoul. My group got a bridge along the Cheonggyecheon River. At first we went to the wrong bridge, but we got the right bridge the second time. For this challenge we had to take the subway by ourselves. We ended up taking it twice, both times with a transfer to a different line. My team didn’t win, but I also think we didn’t get last. We then went for a full group dinner. The dinner was good like all the food so far in Korea. After dinner, I went out with my group and bought some souvenirs and got some dessert.
