안녕하세요 (Annyeonghaseyo) !!

So after a 13 hour flight from JFK to Seoul, a 2.5 hour bus ride to Goesan, and 7000 miles of travel, I finally arrived at Jungwon University for Orientation.  The flight felt must shorter than I expected: stayed awake 3 hours, slept 6 hours, spent the last 4 hours getting the high score in Tetris on my little TV monitor!  For dinner, they served bi-bim-bap, which was a wonderful start to my culinary journey in Korea.  Once we landed, we had to wait a couple hours for the other 2 flights of Fulbrights to land.  Eventually, our Orientation Team Coordinators arrived and we loaded up the buses with our massive suitcases (See below).

The orientation site is absolutely exquisite, a perfect mix between a vacation resort and a swanky marble palace.  Jungwon University is a super small private school in the middle of nowhere.  Although less than 1000 students attend the university, the facilities are amazing and the campus is sprawling oasis with multiple pools, saunas, and a golf course. 

We are seriously spoiled here.  I can't wait to spend time in the massive pool area, which I my bedroom window overlooks.  And with all the water slides and that crazy hamster wheel thing, it feels, at times, more like an awesome summer camp than a grueling training program.

The first couple days have been a blur.  Mostly, they have consisted of overcoming jet-lag, meeting 87 other Fulbrights, trying not to get lost around campus, and eating lots of yummy meals in the cafeteria.  Fortunately, I love kimchi and Korean food so the adjustment has been relatively easy.  It's only been four days, but I've met a ton of amazing people, who are all so accomplished and dignified in their own right.  It's humbling to be in their presence and I'm honored to be considered one of them.  Here's the first photo of me in Korea, and another with my roommate Lauren.

The Fulbright Korea program is considered the gold standard of all Fulbright programs, largely due to it's rigorous Orientation program.  Mornings are consumed by four hours of intensive Korean language classes.  The language program is run through the Institute of Foreign Language Studies at Korea University, which is the second most prestigious university in the country.  In the afternoon, we have four hours of teaching or cultural training.  I also signed up for extracurricular activities: taekwondo, archery, the Global Language Educational Exchange (GLEE) club [where we meet Korean students], and traditional tea ceremony.  They keep us busy here but I'm loving every second of it.  More pictures of the gorgeous campus (Please note the epic dinosaurs)!

Goesan is, by Korean standards, a super small and remote town.  But yesterday, we got to explore it in teams of four on an epic photo scavenger hunt!  Here are some of the highlights.  Well the dog wasn't one of the items on the list, but I thought he had the fiercest eyebrows!

Well so far so good.  Tomorrow is the second day of language classes and in the evening, Mrs. Shim Jai Ok, the Executive Director of the Korean-American Educational Commission is visiting us.  Apparently, this is a super big deal and we've been practicing our 인사 (insa = formal bow) like crazy.  Time for a shower and then bed.  Miss you all!