Being at the Kyunghwa Girls' High School has already been life-changing. The pure joy and enthusiasm they give us everyday in the classroom and around campus is indescribable. Yesterday was the music festival to celebrate the school's 40th anniversary. Every class prepared a song to preform for the school and the judging panel. Each grade has 12 classes and they couldn't wait to show us what they had been preparing. Each classes' performance included a conductor and accompanist from the class. Each classes' performance included movement and even the teachers participated. The performances were gorgeous and I couldn't believe how amazing they sounded. After all the performances were over we gave a special introduction to the 1,000 students in the Girls' High School. When we walked onto the stage we were welcomed by a deafening cheer. The students were so loud we couldn't hear each other when walking up to the microphone. We each took turns introducing ourselves in Korean on the microphone and the screams continued after each introduction. This experience could only be compared to a popular celebrity walking on stage. The warm, warm welcoming we have received at the school has been amazing and something that I will never expereince again. After the winners were announced and the girls contained their excitement we left the concert. The girls have been making frequent visits to our dorm room to say hello and ask for help with English. Their constant desire to learn is endearing and contagious. The busy schedule that we are on has left me exhausted, but it is well worth it.
On day 9 we started off the day packing for our weekend trip to Busan. After finishing packing we went to the cafeteria to eat breakfast with the students. It was an exciting day, it was sports competition day! They have a sport competition day annually where each class competes against each other in different sports (relays, dodgeball, jump rope, tug of war, and basketball). Each class dressed up in matching outfits that were very elaborate. They had an opening ceremony to celebrate the country, school, and their individual classes. After the opening ceremony the students began their competitions. There were over 2,500 students competing so not all of them could compete at the same time. We were seated in the stands watching the competition to begin. We were bombarded by students that wanted us to take pictures with them. Once other students saw that we were taking pictures we were taken pictures with the students for the rest of the competition. The girls' admiration for us will stay with me forever. The short interactions I had with each of the students while taking pictures made me incredibly excited to be able to teach them for the next four and a half weeks; they are incredibly special. It was a great day for them, because of how hard they work each and every day. They deserved this day off! We are still amazed by the hospitality we are given. We were served grapes on a tray with juice and then asked to join the founder in his office for afternoon tea. The founder has an amazing story that he shared with us. He left North Korea to come to South Korea during the Korean War. He then worked for the U.S. Air Force as a house boy and a military man grew attached to him. This American soldier decided to financially support his education and inspired Founder Kim to start an all girls school in his honor. Founder Kim's philosophy and story was inspiring to hear! After our tea we then left the school and traveled to Busan for the weekend. It was a four hour bus ride and an hour subway ride; the travel was truly worth it. The mountains and ocean remind me of the northwest region of America. When we arrived we walked around and ate fresh seafood. We then explored the area around our hotel which has an amazing view.
On day 9 we started off the day packing for our weekend trip to Busan. After finishing packing we went to the cafeteria to eat breakfast with the students. It was an exciting day, it was sports competition day! They have a sport competition day annually where each class competes against each other in different sports (relays, dodgeball, jump rope, tug of war, and basketball). Each class dressed up in matching outfits that were very elaborate. They had an opening ceremony to celebrate the country, school, and their individual classes. After the opening ceremony the students began their competitions. There were over 2,500 students competing so not all of them could compete at the same time. We were seated in the stands watching the competition to begin. We were bombarded by students that wanted us to take pictures with them. Once other students saw that we were taking pictures we were taken pictures with the students for the rest of the competition. The girls' admiration for us will stay with me forever. The short interactions I had with each of the students while taking pictures made me incredibly excited to be able to teach them for the next four and a half weeks; they are incredibly special. It was a great day for them, because of how hard they work each and every day. They deserved this day off! We are still amazed by the hospitality we are given. We were served grapes on a tray with juice and then asked to join the founder in his office for afternoon tea. The founder has an amazing story that he shared with us. He left North Korea to come to South Korea during the Korean War. He then worked for the U.S. Air Force as a house boy and a military man grew attached to him. This American soldier decided to financially support his education and inspired Founder Kim to start an all girls school in his honor. Founder Kim's philosophy and story was inspiring to hear! After our tea we then left the school and traveled to Busan for the weekend. It was a four hour bus ride and an hour subway ride; the travel was truly worth it. The mountains and ocean remind me of the northwest region of America. When we arrived we walked around and ate fresh seafood. We then explored the area around our hotel which has an amazing view.