First update

I still have problems with uploading pictures so I decided to write a bit about how I’ve been and upload the pics later.

And sorry that I write in my crappy English :p. But I do this so as many of my friends as possible are able to read this.

I arrived in Seoul on 19.2 and hadn't been that nervous at all before we had found our baggage and stood in front of the doors that we know led to our host families. I hadn’t spoken to my family and had no clue as to what they looked like. But no problems, I found them easily, or should I say that they found me?

We went home with a bus and I spoke with my host dad at the same time as I tried to look at him, the TV and out the window as much as possible to get a glimpse of Korea. At that moment it didn't feel like I would have one year to stare my eyes out on this country. 

In the first days it really felt like I had come away from the cold climate of Finland. No snow, but a warm sun, and they still called it winter. The warm weather didn’t last for long, soon it was cold again and one morning when i woke up it had snowed. The snow didn't last for long either, it melted away during the day.

Sunday (3rd day) was the first time I went to church in Korea and I didn't expect too much of it. They actually asked me if I want to go and said that I didn’t need to cuz my uncle, who lives with us, doesn’t go either. But I said that I want to see what Korean churches look like. I thought that I would go there once and after that stay at home the rest of the church days. I never thought this about myself but I did find that I enjoyed it, even if I didn't understand anything they said. You can say that the Finnish and the Korean church are quite different. In Korea the children, teens and adults are in their own groups which means that the sermon is made for people your own age.

I will tell you more about church in another post. But I have to say that on Monday morning I really wished it would have been Sunday again. But that wasn't the case and it didn’t take long before I forgot it. We were going to the YFU orientation and I would get to see the other four lovely Finnish exchange students and I would get to hear how it had gone so far for them. It turned out that my church wasn't so unique because some of the girls (yeah, I’m the only guy from Finland) couldn't wait to go to church again. In fact one of them, Kata, had already been to church twice (and we had only been here for four days). It was really nice to meet the other exchange students as well and I was going to see them every day in one week. We were learning Korean and Korean culture at the YFU Korea office and the two last days we were going on two trips to different parts of Seoul.

We went to a Paris/Versailles museum with my host mom and dad. There were a lot of paintings of queens and kings and their children and siblings and so on. I really enjoyed it even if I didn't always know who the person in the painting was (there were only texts in Korean and French). Luckily I had an electronic guide thing (the things that are like mp3 players which tell you about the pictures) so I got information on some of the paintings, like what the different symbols meant and when it was painted and what had been repainted from the original. And I have to say that I was surprised with how big some of the paintings were.

As you already know, and seen pictures of, I go to 양정고등학교 (Yangcheong high school) (and if you have a good memory you may know that last time the name was written "Yangchung". Don’t ask me why :p). We went to Changdeokgung Palace (of course I forgot my camera at home that day so no pics from there, but I will visit there again when the trees have more color :)) when one of our "guide" guys got a call from… Actually I don’t know who. But he told me that I had to go and visit my school at that day and that I had to leave our trip on half. I was a bit down because of this cuz I didn't want to miss anything. But he managed to cheer me up a bit before I had to leave :). I was really nervous even if I only had to get my uniform from the school and nothing else. But I painted up pictures in my head about how I was sitting in front of the principal while he was really disappointed in me cuz I didn't speak any Korean. Anyway, it wasn’t that bad, I was surprised that there were girls in the school, cuz it’s a boy’s school, when I changed to my uniform. I had to go in a small tent/garbage bag when I put on my pants. And when I came out the woman in charge started to drag my pants really high up (but I’ve never worn them that high up in school) which was really uncomfortable.

My school is a private school but gets support from the state cuz of its good education. Which means that I didn't have to pay anything for my uniform.

The next day we went on a trip to Seoul World Cup Stadium that also was a soccer museum. Now there was a guide that I think no one really understood what he said. The place was quite interesting even if I’m not that big a soccer fan. After that we went to Myeongdong which is a famous shopping area. Luckily I didn't forget my camera this time :). So you will see some pics from there sometime in the future. I will also write a bit more about that place then.

I was afraid that I had got a too good welcome to the church, where people were interested in me. And I thought that it wouldn’t be the same (yeah I can be quite pessimistic sometimes :p) and I would be happy if a few people showed interest towards me. I had already been to my school once, but not really meat anyone and now I was going to the opening ceremony, which was really formal. Everyone stared at me while I came in to the big auditorium. Also I had to stand up so everyone could see me (as if they hadn't when I walked in) and once again I felt really stupid when I didn't understand anything and wasn't sure if I could sit down already or not. In the end the long ceremony went well and we went to our home classes.

After our home teacher had said what he had to say everyone just went home and I felt like what I was afraid of had come true.

Well, that did change the next day while I sat at new place with some under 40 guys, all in the same clothes, around my lectern. Some tried their best to communicate with me while some of them were pleased to just stare at me. It was a bit fun though, and now a week and a couple of days later all of them have turned out to be really nice and really good friends. Yet there is one minus, they take studying too seriously :p. And no, all of them aren’t nerds. Guess it’s just good, maybe I can learn something from them and be a better student back in Finland :p.