Student group at Korea University
The Indian students toured Seoul this past summer as part of an event there called Tomorrow’s India Global Summit. The group is pictured here at the 111-year-old Korea University, which has more than 35,000 students and nearly 5,000 faculty members. About 80% of the students, including nearly 1,800 international students, are on the university’s Anam campus. One member of the Indian group, Mina Alia, a student of Sharda University in Greater Noida, says language was not a problem, as most of the Koreans they met spoke fluent English.

 

Seoul National University
The Indian students also visited Seoul National University, one of South Korea’s most prestigious institutions of higher education, established in 1946. One of the students, Martha Daniel Matiku, who is doing a BA in Applied Economics at Sharda University in Greater Noida, says, “The South Korean people are friendly and welcoming. I admire them because they are disciplined, focused, determined, committed, and they invest their time in important things. This is one of the reasons why South Korea has developed so fast.”

 

Seoul city
Mina Alia of Sharda University says she enjoyed soaking in the atmosphere of the city. She says: “The city grows beautiful as the night matures. The city tour added a lot to our knowledge about Seoul.” One of the tour stops was 600-year-old Gyeongbok Palace, pictured here. Samarth Juneja, student of the Rukmini Devi Institute of Advanced Studies, New Delhi, says, “Exposure to Korea is important, as I am a business student.” Having some international experience on one’s resume helps, he says, as it not only builds confidence but is also a way of learning new things, meeting new people, and learning how to adapt to another culture.
 

Lotte World
Among Seoul’s many attractions is Lotte World, a huge recreation complex that gets 7.3 million visitors a year. “Lotte World was full of adventure and enjoyment,” says Mina Alia of Sharda University. Samarth Juneja, student of the Rukmini Devi Institute of Advanced Studies, New Delhi, says: “OMG, what thrilling rides they were! The best one was where we went up to the height of some 100 feet, followed by a free fall.”

 

Myeongdong Market
It was here, says Samarth Juneja, student of the Rukmini Devi Institute of Advanced Studies in New Delhi, that he discovered the best street food he’s ever had. “The most astonishing experience was hearing a vendor cry out, ‘Ice cream le lo’ (have some ice cream)! There was an Indian selling ice cream in the streets of Korea!” Myeongdong is one of Seoul’s busiest areas, seeing an average of more than a million shoppers daily. The streets, where you can hear English, Japanese and other languages, are lined with department stores, shopping malls, and stalls selling snacks, cheap clothes, and trinkets.

 

Yonsei University
Syed Ahmad Samar, a student of Galgotias University, Noida, says the university visits “gave us a great idea of the Korean educational system.” The oldest among the three universities he and his fellow-travelers visited was Yonsei University. Established in 1885, it is South Korea’s oldest university. It has more than 39,000 students, of which nearly 12,000 are graduate students and more than 4,000 are international students (undergraduate and graduate combined). The total faculty strength stands at nearly 5,000.

 
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Tags: South Korea, Seoul, Korea University, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, travel