On January 19, 2016 NSLI-Y Korea students hosted a virtual event sharing their experiences with Seoul's transportation system. The audience was an enthusiastic group of NSLI-Y alumni, staff, family members and educators. Current NSLI-Y students spending the academic year in Korea made presentations about traveling around Seoul on foot and by subway and bus. In case you missed the event, we have featured below the full recording and several presentation highlights.
The first group of students presented about walking around Seoul, the people they meet and what it is like to walk around a city that is such a blend of old and new. Alexi, featured below, discussed what she has learned about Korean culture from walking around Seoul:
"In Seoul, when you walk around, and you see the surrounding architecture- the buildings, the markets, the people- you can quickly tell that Seoul is a unique city in that the past and the present really coexist"- Alexi, NSLI-Y Korea, Academic Year 2015-2016
Next, students presented on subway stations in Seoul. They talked about the layout of the Seoul subway system, the people you can see from people watching on the trains, and the things you can buy in a Seoul subway station. Luc, featured below, gave an overview of the subway system, talking about the expansion of the Seoul subway system and mentioning some of the technologies used in the subway stations:
Last but not least, students presented on Seoul's buses. They talked about their experiences of figuring out the seemingly complex bus system, how that helped them shave time off their commutes, and how Koreans have an app that tells you when the next bus will come down to the second! Katie, featured below, talked about the different colors of buses in Seoul and how to figure them out:
Throughout the presentation, the audience had the chance to ask questions of the students. They asked many great questions about the differences in transportation between Seoul and cities in the U.S., the NSLI-Y students' experience learning the language, and what Korean high schools are like. The student presenters had the chance to answer these questions at the end of the event in the Q&A session. Featured below are some clips from this section of the event:
We are very proud of our student presenters for embracing their role as cultural ambassadors in sharing their experiences of living in Seoul and would like to thank everyone who made the event possible! We would especially like to thank Katy, iEARN-USA's wonderful intern (and NSLI-Y alumna), for editing these videos and all of the behind the scenes work she did for the event.
The NSLI-Y Korean language academic year program is administered by the International Education and Resource Network's U.S. office (iEARN-USA).