Start Saving for a Ticket to Visit Korea, Because I'm Not Coming Home.

You guys, I'm so, so sorry, but I absolutely love Korea.

Please remind me of this in 5 months when I'm homesick and lonely, craving Mequon Taco Bell and have gotten sick of rice.

About a month ago, I bought a one-way ticket and hopped on a plane, traveling over 30 hours to get here.  I'd never been to Korea before, I don't speak or read the language, and I knew a grand total of four people in a country of 50 million.

Officially the last photograph of me in the USA.

I haven't had a chance to truly sit down and study the language yet, but I now know a handful of phrases and am able to (slowly) read and write.  In the span of a week my circle of friends and family has expanded to eighteen.  In Korean culture, friends are made by being "introduced" by a mutual friend.  Striking up a casual conversation with a stranger is strange and uncomfortable, but with an introduction, people are quick to be friendly and keep in touch on KakaoTalk*.  For example: my friend from college, CJ, introduced me to his friend D on Sunday.  D brought along another friend, B, who I ended up grabbing lunch and hanging out with on Tuesday when my other friends were busy.

Coping with Language Barriers & Becoming a Charades Master

Moving to a new country is never easy.  There are foreign customs, strange foods (that may or may not agree with you), bizarre stereotypes, and every day tasks like grocery shopping or ordering a cup of coffee can become incredibly challenging.

Help.

I lived abroad in London, England for a semester and found plenty of frustrations during my stay--and that was in an English-speaking country.  A step up from that, traveling throughout France (where I speak the native language well) has been manageable.  Even other countries that I have visited in Europe have used Latin alphabets that I have been able to read.

Somebody Time Me, I'm Heading to Korea

Traveling to South Korea from the United States is far more than "just a 13 hour flight".   I've traveled enough (both domestically and abroad) over the last few years to know you should always give yourself extra time between each leg of your journey.  However, the longer you travel, the more these unexpectedly add up.  I got up at 6:45AM on Tuesday, July 29th and was prepped for the following itinerary:

• Leave home in Cedarburg, Wisconsin at 7:45AM CST to make it to Mitchell Airport (35min)
• Catch flight from Milwaukee, Wisconsin at 10:30AM CST to Chicago, Illinois. (2h 45m)
• Sit at the O'Hare Airport for ~2 hours. (5h, and we haven't even left the US yet...)
• Catch the 12h 40m flight from Chicago, Illinois to Tokyo, Japan (17h 40m)
• Sit at the Narita Airport for ~1h 30m (19h)
• Catch the 3h flight from Tokyo, Japan to Seoul, South Korea (22h)
• Catch a bus from Incheon Airport to Daejeon, where I would connect with CJ. (24h)

So hypothetically this should only take me around 24 hours of traveling, right?  Wrong.  So very, very wrong.  Catching all of my connecting flights went over very smoothly.  However, I am neither graceful, fast-moving, nor collected when I am juggling a purse, a computer bag, a 65L backpack, a suitcase, and a second 75L hiking backpack zipped in a carrying case.

Packed and ready to go!