One Fine Spring Day (May 2, 2010)

As many of you may realize, this year, spring came late to Korea. Usually the weather would be getting warm started from March, but this year, it even snowed on late March! But aside of the late coming, spring is always nice. Chilly breeze combined with a not-so-bright sunshine, it's a perfect day to leave the hibernating period and step outside ^o^

So, that day, my friends and I went to go for a walk along Hangang Park in Yeouido. As we expected, it was so crowded with people (and pets actually^^). We rode the bicycles, played at the fountain, stared at the river, and sat on the grass enjoying the breeze.

It's refreshing and envying to see lovers rode the bicycle, hehehe...

 Look! Even there were some families building tents there^^

After cycling for an hour, we took break here...

Sitting on the stone floor and put our feet in the water while watching the scenery of Han River, so peaceful that I forgot about my assignments for a while^^

That dome-like building is a cafe and we also spent some time there. 

This kid was playing with the fountain beside the cafe.

The identical buildings at the foreground are Twin Building (Twin Tower), the headquarter of LG Electronics, one of the biggest electronic company in Korea and in the world...and also the company I used to work for before^^

The brown building at the background is 63 Building, a very famous building in Korea.

Side note:

I really, really hope that Jakarta will have the facility like Hangang Park, where people can relax and enjoy the scenery for free and safely. I know that we have some facilities, but most of them are not free and not so enjoyable, some are not clean enough. I think we have a lot of potentials to develop something like this if people and government join hands together to create a better environment for the city. Go go Indonesia!

World Students in Korea (WSK)

Good night^^

Okay, I think I haven't announced that I have been selected as a member of World Students in Korea (WSK)
*throws confetti*
WSK is an international students program run by the Presidential Council on Nation Branding (PCNB) since June 2009. You can take a look at the website in Koreabrand.

As the member of WSK, the students' main task is to run individual blogs to promote cultural exchange and to strengthen ties between Korea and our own home countries. As an exchange, the Council will provide us opportunities to visit Korea's cultural heritage sites, major industrial sites, and workshop.

Until now, there have been 2 batches of this program, and I'm the member of the 3rd batch. On May 4, 2010 we attended the kick-off ceremony for the 3rd batch and also closing ceremony for the 2nd batch. It was held at the National Museum of Korea. We had an awarding ceremony for best bloggers of the previous batch. After that, we had a free museum tour. It was so amazing tracing the history of Korea. However, because we didn't have much time, we finished the tour in short time. I think I'll visit the museum again to satisfy my curiosity to explore the whole museum^^

This is the pic of the kick-off & closing ceremony. Thanks Ms. Shin of WSK who sent me this pic^^

The building of National Museum of Korea. It was so grand, beautiful, and crowded!

I will blog about this place next time, so please keep on reading and commenting my blog^^ See you!

My dorm at Ewha

Good night all^^
Tonight I'll show you my room at Ewha Graduate Student Dormitory.
It's located inside the campus, near Ewha Children Center & students' cafeteria.

I'm sharing the room with another Indonesian student, Atri. I was glad of that, because it made me easier in adapting rather than sharing the room with student from other country^^;

Ah, one thing, pictures below are taken by Atri, and she kindly allowed me to share them here.

Aliens' room^^. Why I call myself as an "alien"? It's because as a foreigner, I have to report to the Immigration and obtained "Alien Registration Card". I wonder which other countries use the term "alien" for "foreigner"? So unique^^

When I entered my room for the first time, I wondered. "Isn't it a hotel room?" XD

I mean, look at the bathroom! It has 24-hour hot water! And look at those big mirror, you'll know what I mean...

Go out of the bathroom and turn left, there are a shared mini fridge and my closet^^. The fridge can store our raw food stock for 1 week, but we put all the spices on top of it since the fridge is always full.

My roommate's bed. I couldn't put mine because it's too messy now hehehe... She likes Super Junior and put their poster on her wall. On the other side of the wall, there are controllers for air conditioner (used in summer) and heater (used in winter). So convenient!

Lastly, here is the spot where we spend the time most, the desk! *drumrolls*

 High speed 24-hour internet is provided, so it makes us easier in searching for materials for our assignments...I am so amazed by Korea's high speed internet, and I think I will miss it a lot when I go back to my country T^T

Hmm okay, I think that's all for tonight. I'll post again tomorrow, with different topic. I hope you enjoy visiting my blog and don't forget to follow me if you have Blogger account^^

Touch down in Korea (26.02.2009)

Hmm, I'm trying my best to recall my memory. I left Jakarta on February 25th, 2009 and landed in Seoul the next morning. The flight wasn't so smooth as we kept on being in bad weather and had to fasten our seat belt. Being our first time to Korea, the four of us (Au, Atri, Ludi & me) felt lost, but luckily Atri's friend, Ayu, came to pick us at the airport. Then she took us to our soon-to-be home for 1.5 years, Ewha Womans University (I'll tell you the details about my university later, hehehe). Although winter had ended, but the temperature was still low that we felt freezing. It's natural for us who come from a tropical country like Indonesia, isn't it? The first sensation was like..."Wow, I felt like being in a giant freezer!" LOL. We were suffering but trying to get used to it.

Arrived at our dormitory after dragging our suitcases for about 200 meters from the bus stop, we registered to the office and got the password number of our rooms. I was placed in the same room with Atri at room A415, while Au was with Ludi at A506. We were so amazed with the convenience at our rooms. They look like hotel rooms! You can take a peek here (I'm gonna post the pics of my room later).

The next day, we attended the opening ceremony for our program, Interdisciplinary Program of Technology and Development. We had a briefing and lunch with the Dean, Professors, and assistants.

First time is always good! I enjoyed the Korean foods they served on that welcoming ceremony, but I had to be extra careful because most of Korean foods use pork that I'm forbidden to eat.
Also, I fell in love at the first sight with Ewha's landscape. The campus has a Western style buildings, being it as a product of an American missionary project. The campus is a blend of beautiful buildings with 1800s' style and modern buildings such as ECC (Ewha Campus Complex) that becomes the most attractive building at Ewha.

I just realized I don't have the buildings' pics in this computer *LOL*, so I took one from wiki ^^.
And this was our first pic with ECC on the background..From left to right: Au - me - Ludi - Atri.

Okay, that's all for the "first" theme. I'll write more about what I experienced during my 2009's spring next time. See you!