시원섭섭하다

"To be bittersweet"

One of my favorite words in Korean that we learned in level 5. 시원하다 means "to be relieving, refreshing" while 섭섭하다 is "to feel sad because of separation." So when you put them together, "to be bittersweet" is probably the best way in English to capture this feeling. A feeling that occurs pretty much at the end of every school year and especially at graduation. No different will I feel at the end of level 6! While on one hand it'll be relieving to think "Ah! I'm finally done with my last level at Sogang!" it'll be extremely sad to part with the friends that I've encountered and gotten close to over this year. Two of my Japanese friends, Hiroko and Naoko, felt the same as they left back for Japan last Thursday. As expected, it was a very tearful goodbye, but very feel-good as well, as we all put our hands together in the last moment, agreeing that we would definitely meet again!
The stars of the night! 누나들 얼마나 보고 싶다~Never forget Level 4 friends!

Two days after was Shaun's wedding, which, as most weddings go, was filled with a feel-good atmosphere and loads of hope. It was much longer than our teacher's wedding but still rather short, as Korean weddings go. The food was delicious and the procession very inspiring. Congrats to Shaun and Jiseon! :)
Groom and...
Bride with her father!
Adorable ring bearer and flower girl!
Shaun reading his vow in Korean.
And Jiseon reading hers in English.
Rings being exchanged.
And the bow!
Tossing the bouquet.
It's funny how I've already been to two Korean weddings and not a single American one yet! (well, I went to one when I was REALLY young so I don't remember...). It'll be interesting to see how they differ!

So, to answer last week's weekly question! "What is your marker for success on this fellowship? More vocab? More friends?"

Tough question, but really I'd probably have to say every little thing I *have* accomplished here! The fact that I have made friends from multiple nations who could last a lifetime and who I will miss dearly when we all depart has already been one marker of success. Not only have I learned from them how different and yet similar people from completely different parts of the world can be, but just by merit of meeting them, I've gained an urge to learn about their cultures as well. Alas, time is short and the world is large. What can be done? But we'll see, eh? ^^

Educationally as well, I have definitely gained a lot from Korea. Having focused all my energy into this language for the year, I've reached a level surpassing any other language I've ever learned, including the ones I speak at home (as I do not speak to my parents about "advanced topics" such as politics, the economy, etc. so I very much lack those vocabulary words and advanced written grammar patterns), leading me to feel a little ashamed about my noviceness in those languages as well hehe. As a Korean phrase goes, 배워도 배워도 끝이 없다 (you learn, you learn, but there's no end)! Although I've learned quite a large number of vocabulary and grammar pattern, even just living everyday life, watching Korean dramas, hanging out with Korean friends, and especially looking at practice TOPIK exams (a Korean standardized exam designed for foreigners to assess their level of Korean--but really it's an assessment of writing skill and memorization of vocabulary and grammar patterns, as well as inference skills), there's a humongous wealth of more vocabulary and grammar to learn. Overwhelming, but a bit exciting at the same time!

Another sign of success! I've been working on two projects lately ^^. One being translating my level 5 teacher's book, which is a Korean self-study book for English speakers (woo! my first translation job =]) and the second being translating Sogang's Level 5 grammar reference (which does not have an English version yet) and revising the Level 4 one! I've started a bit on both projects and even though I knew of how vast the difference between Korean and English was, it's very interesting to actually see it in action! Not to mention, it makes me feel like my learning of Korean is finally coming to fruition in actual work ^^. As compensation for helping in revising the Sogang grammar reference books, I'm receiving 20 hours of a class on Korean linguistics (국어학), which will start on Monday. Exciting! :)

So success? Living in a foreign nation for an extended period of time while making cherished friends and getting comfortable in a foreign language --I guess I now kind of know how my parents felt when they first moved to America ^^ (except the fact that I'm a student and they were working).

Lastly, a completely random picture, but why on earth would anyone name their coffee ship this???