December 13, 2021
Neema Lwande '22
Notes From Abroad: Neema in South Korea
Neema '22 at an art display at the Gyeongbokgung Palace
Neema Lwande '22, a double major in Business and Asian Studies, studied abroad at the University of Seoul in South Korea.
As a 3rd culture kid, traveling and living in different cultures is nothing new to me, so naturally, I was excited to experience South Korea both through an Academic, Social and Cultural lens. Through the help of the Ingrid H. and George L. Speros Scholarship for Study Abroad, I was able to achieve just that and embark on a new adventure. Surprisingly at first, I was nervous, having to learn a different culture and language, but as soon as a I landed and got out of quarantine, my excitement rose and the realization of me settling in, and living in Seoul for the next 4 months filled me with joy.
Studying at University of Seoul has allowed me to experience Korea past the classroom, classes such as East Asian history and Korean Tradition and culture allowed me to engage in historical artifacts, explore museums, and palaces of south Korea. Classes such as mass media and pop culture allowed me to explore Koreas popular culture including the Kpop industry, and Korean entertainment industry. Through this class we were also able to connect with known producers and writers of well-known broadcasting channels in south Korea such as KBS. I was able to connect with other students and talk about their cultural background as well. Studying at University of Seoul has enhanced my understanding of Korean culture.
My Experience here in Seoul has been very different from other experiences I had, amidst the coronavirus, not only did I take on intercultural responsibility but also intercultural understanding to the extent of health and covid protocols. The contrast between countries that I currently live-in being Kenya and the US, versus South Korea is important was important to consider when navigating my everyday life in the city. Having curfew start and 10 pm and abiding by those regulations as well as relearning different protocols that differed from those of my home university was overwhelming however, I quickly adapted.
At the HYBE Insight Euphoria Exhibit:
Namsan Tower, also known as the Seoul Tower:
