GRIP, Internships Abroad Everyday Life in Seoul

International Development in Seoul, South Korea

I think one of the most rewarding aspects of the GRIP is the chance to stay in your placement country for long enough to develop your own routine and way of life in a place you might have never imagined you would actually live in one day. Having lived in Seoul for the past couple of weeks, I have had the opportunity to experience so many quintessential things the city has to offer: a day wearing hanboks while exploring Gyeongbokgung Palace, eating at the famous Gwangjang Market, enjoying a Friday after work lounging by the Han River. A just as exciting experience for me has been getting the chance to develop my own convenience store drink order – I find such great joy in the small, mundane things in life that come with being in a place long enough to get settled. I love how well acquainted I’ve become with Mango Plate – a Korean version of Yelp that lets you find any kind of amazing food around at any given point. I love being able to pinpoint one thrift store in Hongdae that I can go back to again and again to find new things each time. And I love having my commute pinned down to the minute (this one took a while to figure out), and rumbling across the same path in the morning.

At the same time as this routine has developed, I have loved the unexpected nature of some parts of my life in the country. Korea has such a wide breadth of things to do, especially for people who love to shop and eat, like myself. Just this morning, I was eating Namul-Dolsot-Bibimbap, a traditional-style wild leaf variety rice dish, up in the heights of Seoraksan mountain in the East of Korea, and by dinner, I was trying Korean-only Subway items back in Seoul. Although I wake up every morning knowing I will go on the same commute to work, I can only ever guess what the rest of the day will bring – what restaurant or food I will try, what random pop-up store with a line around the corner that I will inevitably wait in to see what the hype is about, what subway stop a friend and I agree to meet at to explore the surrounding area for hours. In many ways, I think this experience has given me a chance to really find a balance between enjoying the novelties of a city at the same time establishing my own little life within it.