Seoul's got soul (because it's so punny)!

Alright, sorry for not updating throughout this week. I've been working through the beginning of classes, as well as, trying to waste all of my time eating and hanging out with friends.  This week hasn't been as eventful as the first few days I was in Seoul, but I still have to say, I'm having a great time here!

Before classes began at Yonsei, I visited the Seoul Tower with friends I've met here.  It's on top of a mountain near downtown Seoul and was served as my last major hurrah before classes at Yonsei started on Tuesday. This tower has an observation deck both at its base and in the top of the building.  Since several of the people I came with have been in the tower before we decided to stay on the lower observation deck. Local folklore says that couples who visit the Seoul Tower should bring a padlock and attach to the fence guarding the edge of the lower observation deck. Naturally my soul was crushed by my solitary existence (just kidding guys!). Actually, I've decided that my next girlfriend and I will be visiting some nice looking public fence someday to attach a padlock to it. Actually the fence at Seoul Tower is so full of padlocks, that just about any surface on the observation deck has a few padlocks attached and there are padlock trees spread around the tower park.  Here's a small sample of the craziness...

Like I said, classes at Yonsei began on Tuesday. As a sign of solidarity with university students, the weather let loose the tears of monsoon season.  Though I was drenched walking back from dinner Tuesday night, it's only rained two days since then, which I'm thinking is less than the amount of rain Kentucky has received based on the Facebook posts I've seen recently. People keep warning me about the rain, so, I'm still waiting for the bottom to drop out.

As far as classes go, I'm enjoying myself so far.  I'm taking courses in International Conflict and Cooperation and Global Health: Sociological Perspectives.  My International Conflict course is a back to basics international affairs course so far, which I needed after not discussing basic international theories for two years in an academic setting.  My Global Health course is taught by an engaging professor from Maine (whose father is from Lexington oddly enough) and so far it's trending towards top five favorite courses ever.

Aside from that, good food has been a constant with one minor complaint...fruit in South Korea is freaking expensive!!! Korean food is generally healthy, provided in healthy portions, and delicious. However, they have some serious issues with fruit prices. An apple is $1.50 (almost reasonable for a country that imports fruit), but a large watermelon is closer to $30.00! Okay, rant over...another interesting note about food here, they have vegetable yogurt! It's been surprisingly awesome along the lines of a V8 drink.  Even better, my bread in the mornings is not called bread according to the package, it's better known as "Morning Milk Toast". Yep, it rolls right off the tongue, haha. I love the way countries take food from other places and re-purpose it slightly.

One last note for today. I've been working on my thesis project in the WKU Honors College since I've been here. My goal is to interview experts on North Korea who know about how NGOs (non-governmental organizations, think non-profits) have been received and regulated in that country.  While I'm struggling in setting up the interview side of things, I did visit the National Assembly Library yesterday. It was pretty cool being in a library also used by the lawmakers of this country.  See you guys and I hope everyone had an awesome 4th of July! Peace!

 (Below: The steps leading to the National Assembly Library. This is where cool people should say things like, "Education is the foundation of Democracy!")