Hello everyone! We did lots today, starting with two more factory tours. The first tour was to Yakult drinks, which makes yogurt probiotic drinks. These are very popular and are even served at the hotel’s breakfast buffet. The entire facility was very clean, and we had to take off our shoes and wear slippers for the tour. After going through an air-shower to get rid of any dust we had, we first saw their many yogurt culturing tanks. Yakult makes both the yogurt and the container it goes in at the plant, which was impressive. While the assembly floor was not open, as the workers had today off for Buddha’s birthday tomorrow, it was still impressive to see the many different machined chained together to make a single yogurt. The storing and shipping of the yogurt drinks were done by robotic arms, which was also very impressive.
After the first tour, we had a very short lunch break before the next tour started, and I ate some bulgogi kimbap. Then it was time for the second tour, which was to the Samsung Innovation Museum, or SIM for short. The museum covered the history and development of electricity and electrical appliances, and had many real pieces to display, like vacuum tube radios and Nokias. It became a commercial for Samsung at the end, but it was very cool to see all their latest technology. One of the most impressive pieces was a rotating television screen that could be either vertical or horizontal with the press of a button. It was very interesting to see items with such a wide range of technological development right next to each other.
After the factory tours, we had our final activity of the day: another scavenger hunt. This one was fairer, as each team was given 4 items, most of which were in the same place. The first item was the Gangnam style memorial statue, located in the actual Gangnam. The statue had been erected just four years after the song was released! The next three items were all locations around South Korea’s tallest building, and the 6th tallest building in the world: the Lotte Tower. The tower is connected to a large mall and an amusement park, and has a concert hall, 3 floors of theaters, and countless restaurants. It was even more impressive than the Hyundai center. While we found the different spots, we took lots of time to explore. It was almost overwhelming.
Until next time!