Sometimes watching a video of a city or school can give you insight that photos can’t! Tour AmeriSpan’s Seoul Korean school in the following video blog!

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa’s blogs from Seoul

See Korea's Royal Court Procession for yourself! 

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa's blogs from Seoul

Getting around in unfamiliar territory is a challenge, so this how-to guide for public transportation in Seoul is a must-watch!

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa's blogs from Seoul

Getting around in unfamiliar territory is a challenge, so this how-to guide for public transportation in Seoul is a must-watch!

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa's blogs from Seoul

A couple weeks ago, blogger Josephine K. described her experiences museum-hopping in Seoul.  This week, Melissa E. takes us on a video tour of a museum in Seoul!

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa's blogs from Seoul

By Josephine K., guest blogger studying Korean in Seoul

Nothing to do in Seoul?  Check out a museum!

Seoul is such a busy city that it's hard to find yourself with nothing to do.  However, if you are ever stuck I recommend spending the day at one of the MANY museums.  There are museums dedicated to anything and everything, including art, history, the olympics, and even the popular Korean food kimchi.

The great thing about going out to these museums is not only do you get to learn more about the culture, but you also get to practice what you've been learning in class.  After learning one of the sets of numbers I found it great fun to go to the museum shops and ask what the price was for different objects.  Not only did this build my confidence with what I had been learning in class, but I also got to practice my pronunciation.  Many of the shop clerks were happy to help correct me and were very patient with my slow speech.

Even though it was great to practice the language, there was still plenty to learn in each of the museums.  So far I have visited three museums: National Museum of Seoul, Seoul Museum of Art, and the Kimchi Museum.  All of these museums had explanations of the exhibits in both Korean and English so I was able to learn about the history without having to know the language.  Also, before entering the exhibits most of the museums offer audio tours for less that 5,000 won.  All you do is give the museum employee a form of ID (it does not have to be your passport) and they will give you a MP3 player for you to use during your visit.  The audio will start automatically as soon as you stand in front of the different exhibits.

One of the things I did not expect was to be followed around in every museum I went to.  No matter which museum I toured I was closely followed by a group of young children.  With my blonde hair, freckles, and blue eyes I stick out like a sore thumb in a crowd of locals.  The reactions I received varied in each museum but I always received some form of attention. 

In the National Museum of Seoul (6th largest museum in the world) a group of 7 year old girls followed me around for most of the first floor (which is a pretty large space) saying, "Hi," "It's nice to meet you," and then running away giggling.  They even dragged their teacher and a male chaperone and forced us to have a very awkward introduction.  However, after I said "annyeong haseyo" – a polite way to say hello) the girls froze and ran away surprised I spoke Korean.  Luckily for me they did not continue the conversation, because at the time that's about all the Korean I knew.

After visiting the national museum I then went to the kimchi museum.  In this museum they explain the process of making kimchi and the history behind one of Korea's most famous foods.  At the end, there is a place for you to try all different types of kimchi, and this was yet another spot for me to become some sort of spectacle.  I was trying a piece of kimchi when a mother and her young daughter came up to try some too.  However, the mom wanted to take a picture of her daughter trying the kimchi.  I politely backed out of the photo, but after many gestures the mother insisted I be in the picture with her daughter.  They got a kick out of "migook salam"  American trying kimchi and I enjoyed being able to interact with a Korean family.

So, if you ever want to practice your Korean, be stalked by kids, or most importantly learn a little more about the culture, I highly recommend visiting one of the many Seoul museums.  I only wish I was here longer so that that I could visit them all!!!

Here I am trying kimchi at the Kimchi Museum in the Coex Mall National
Museum of Korean – the 6th largest museum in the world!

See AmeriSpan's Korean School in Seoul

Read all of Josephine's blogs from Seoul, Korea.

For details about studying Korean, see Korean School in Seoul

See all of Melissa's blogs from Seoul

I met with the school director at the Korean Language School in Seoul, Korea. She was very professional
and nice, and like many Korean women she was very reserved. I was greeted and
offered something to drink. We met in
the lobby of the school at 2pm. I was not able to see any classes in session
but the school director and I were able to discuss the most commonly asked questions sheet
to make sure the information was up to date. My mother, who is Korean, was with
me and was able to translate and clarify many of my questions.

Building and School Location
The Korean school is located in a university town called
Donggyo-Dong. Hong-Ik Univeristy is
located here and is a very well known University in Korea. I loved the area the school was located. The
school is conveniently located near the subway and bus. It took me only 5
minutes to walk from the subway to arrive at the school. Next to the school is a restaurant, where
students can get lunch after classes are over. The area also has many other restaurants near by and lots of good
shopping as well. The building has elevator access, bathrooms on each floor and
are very clean and well maintained.

The school is on the 3rd
floor of the building. Classrooms are located on the 2nd and 4th floors. The
3rd floor is where the lobby and teachers office is located as well as a
computer area where students have access to emails and the web at no cost.

The classrooms hold a maximum of 11 students. On average a classroom has about 7 students. The school is available to accommodate 150 students which is the maximum capacity for the school.  The most common country in which students are from is Japan. The teachers are all mostly young in age ie; mid 20’s to mid 30’s.

Language Program

There are 6 different language levels. Methods used for teaching are books, audio and video. One of the American students I met in housing, informed us that this Korean school is stronger in their text method then other schools and that their intermediate level of teaching is the strongest. When discussing with the school director on how she felt about their highly advanced levels she said she was very comfortable with this. After my discussion with the student I met in housing, I can say that this seems to be very true. 

The Korean school offers private classes to any student. They are available for 1-on-1 sessions in which a tutor is arranged during any time it is convenient to the student. The school organizes excursions for the students such as city tours, art performances and other group activities. The excursions are available at an additional cost to the students and are mostly conducted in Korean. The students are allowed to invite friends to come with them if they would like.