http://www.solbridge.ac.kr/
Midterms and Immersion week have been keeping me extra busy, but now that things have become a little less crazy I’ve made some time to keep up with everyone. Two weeks ago we had a great food festival at Nuri Hall, sponsored by the management. They invited all the students to form teams and have a cook-off, with prizes and games to follow. The turnout was really incredible! Even my Korean song-sang-nim (teacher) from Solbridge stopped by. The food was so good!
We also sang a little karaoke after everything was finished. Nothing can bring a crowd of international students together like a good Backstreet Boys song… “’cause I want it that way…”
Last week my University held “Immersion Week.” Students were excused from classes in order to complete a truly challenging assignment – write a complete business plan. This activity was designed to integrate and build on the business concepts we’ve learned over the first half of the semester. In addition, keynote speakers were invited to the university to help guide us based on the topics that were selected. For MBA students, our topic was BIOTECHNOLOGY. We were to design a business plan around an emerging biotechnology product or service, and then present our plan to a panel of judges. The best team would then be awarded a monetary prize. Congratulations to Paul’s team, and especially my good friend Litchi, for winning first place in the MBA division. Good job, guys! But I plan on beating you next time, so be ready!
Doing research for this project was really interesting, because it gave me the chance to branch out of studying strictly business-related topics. It also gave me an appreciation for biotechnology, and how much the Korean government supports that kind of development and research, especially here in Daejeon. One day before we were to give our presentations, Solbridge also offered us the opportunity to visit IBXENE, a local biotech firm specializing in medical technologies, health foods, and other products.
This weekend, the local convention center (DCC)
held an International Bazaar, celebrating many different cultures with food, dancing, and performances in costume. 
Do you notice any trend here? South Korea really loves and appreciates other cultures; I’ve never experienced so many new things in my life! After the show, everyone visited the tents outside to shop. People were selling everything, from Ginseng juice to second-hand clothes. I found a really cute jacket for 500 won (about .50). My friend Star picked up this traditional Korean dress for 2000 won, and so we had a little fun with the camera this weekend. I think I will dress up for Halloween after all! 
Finally, here are some pictures of random cool stuff. In my spare time here, I like to watch the soccer team play, 
I like to go dancing with friends, 
and I like to wander around and take pictures of how beautiful it is here in Daejeon. 
And how they must not have gotten the memo about FUBU.
To all my friends and family back home, I wish I could spend some time with each of you, but since I can’t, I’ll just spend time remembering you through my blog. This week, I’d like to feature my mom. Her birthday was on the 23rd of October. Mom, the thing I miss the most about you is that you’re always thinking about me and wanting me to be happy. I’m thinking of you every day. I also miss hamburger soup and Audioslave at full volume. And of course, night runs to Wendy’s. I love you!!!
Congratulations to them and best wishes for the health and happiness of their newborn, I love you all so much!
Tuesday night, the entire school got to go see the Hanwha Eagles play against the Samsung Lions at a pro baseball game. Why were we invited? Because Dr. Endicott, the president of the University, was invited to throw the first pitch of the game! I’ve been watching him practice pitching outside of the university every day and wondering about it. Oh yes, and you also may be familiar with the Eagles’ pitcher, Ryu Hyun-Jin, from the BEIJING OLYMPICS this year… can you believe it? We won and the game was a blast! FYI - most of the people at my university have no idea how this game is played. Have you ever tried to explain baseball to someone who has never seen it before? Believe me, it's not easy! Baseball really is an all-american sport.
Thursday I studied. A little.
The crowd cheered and waved to us as we took our lap around the stadium. We then enjoyed a speech given by someone you might be familiar with, the ex-president of Russia, Mikhail Gorbachev, while we stood on the lawn and faced the audience. 
After I picked my jaw up off the ground and we were seated again, Korea’s most famous and popular boy band, “Big Bang,” gave a live performance of their favorite songs, while girls were screaming their heads off and crying. I was really in shock at this point, but I was having a blast all at the same time. If you want to see a great live performance of their hit "Haru Haru," click the link below. They're a lot of fun, really.
Let me tell you something, if you ever, EVER have the chance to come to Korea and experience a night at a jimjilbang, you should really take it. I could go on forever about how great my experience was there, and how good I felt afterwards, but this entry is already so long I think I’ll save it for next time. Truly, my trip to the jimjibang was my most favorite experience so far here in Korea; it was so incredible that I can’t wait to go back, maybe this weekend.
All day long we had an international Field Day, and played a million games, from tug-of-war to foot races. Once again, laughter was the main component, and it felt good to have so much clean fun in one weekend, away from the city life and studying. I realized this week that communication says a lot about a person’s culture. By blending our cultures through amazing and fun experiences, we were all able to make lasting memories with good friends.
Despite the tragic nature of this past week, with hurricane Ike destroying so much in the US, and the attack in Pakistan, there are many things I was able to enjoy this week in Korea. For instance, we had a lecture from Dr. Steven Jordan, KAIST School of Business Associate Professor of finance; give some insight into his research on the “Historical Perspective on International Evidence of Long-Term Reversals in Finance.” 
Local street vendors selling Korean snacks. I've never tried any of these things, just because I have no idea what's in them, and it's probably going to stay that way. I take one look at dried out squid jerky and my body and brain go into flight mode. Walking around the streets here is always entertaining, I love taking pictures because it's all so colorful and vibrant.
And finally, I'm going to educate you on the traditional Korean alcohol known as Soju(pronounced like so-jew) and Korean dining. Soju is low-grade liquor made from rice. One bottle costs about $1-3. 
It tastes similar to cheap vodka, and has pretty much the same effect. Anything else, any other type of alcohol, is SO overpriced. My first experience with soju was unforgettably painful – I couldn’t eat or even SMELL food for two days, and my head ached so badly I vowed never to touch the stuff again. So just like anything, taking it in moderation is a good rule of thumb. 
One thing I really love about this place is the Hof and Beer restaurants. They are located on every block of the city, and each one is like a little party room with a theme. 
The music is always good and loud, the food is “interesting,” the views are spectacular, and the service is so cool. But the best part is that the staff never hurries you to leave, in fact, they expect you to sit there all night drinking and having a good time with friends. Every seat is a booth, so you always have your own private space to enjoy with friends. 
After you are seated, they always bring out several little dishes of completely random snacks (anything from tiny radish cubes to salted seaweed paper), and take your order. After you order, they bring you your receipt and then - imagine this - leave you alone for the rest of the night! If you need anything, you just push the little buzzer located near the table, and they come immediately to see what you want, and then they add it to the receipt. No need to tip, no pressure to order anything, no rude service! Korean dining is so great!!! Pictured above - an interesting dish of watermelon, honeydew, canned peaches, apples, bananas, whipped cream, raisins, and tomatoes.
