KUBA Orientation (February 26)
During the week before the start of school, exchange students had an orientation held by KUBA (Korea University Buddy Assistants). We were gathered at the Inchon Memorial Hall (인촌기념관) and led into an auditorium. KUBA members and other guest speakers gave an introduction to KU, KUBA, the Global Services Center (GSC), and shared some tips on how to stay safe in Korea.
They also handed out free sim cards!
This was perfect because my sim card
is actually about to expire. The sim card
plan apparently will last for two months,
which is so neat.
After the presentations were finished, KUBA took my group around the campus. We also had lunch at the Student Union Cafeteria. It was buffet-style, where we took whatever we wanted. The menu that day was curry, hot broth with tofu, salad, perilla leaves, a side of kimchee, and french fries. It was a really nice first campus meal!
After eating lunch, we finished the orientation with a group photo at the staircase in front of the Central Plaza steps, which I noticed is a popular photo-taking spot.
We were free to leave after this picture was taken. Some students stayed for the Life In Seoul sessions, while some decided to explore the campus and Anam. To kill some time until the after-party/dinner at 6:00, we went to a cafe with some fellow UH students and a couple of new friends I met at orientation.
I experienced my first Korean dinner outing that night, which was really fun. I learned about some of the popular drinking games Koreans often play, as well as unique ways to open soju bottles. While I was familiar with the Korean drinking culture through watching a lot of Korean dramas, seeing it in real life felt surreal to me.
KUBS Buddy Orientation (March 2)
As a business exchange student, I also had a separate KUBS buddy orientation held in the Hyundai Motor Hall, which is one of the business buildings in KU. They gave us an overview of the activities they have planned for us throughout the semester. Additionally, they provided a guide on apps every KU student should have on their phone, popular lounge spots on campus, and restaurant recommendations. I found this to be really helpful, especially because the campus is so large and sometimes it can become overwhelming as a clueless exchange student.
We did a couple of ice-breaker games, including 2 truths and 1 lie, a self-introduction game, drawing games, and guess the Konglish (Korean-style English). I was the best liar for the 2 truths and 1 lie game, so I won a KU tiger mascot measuring tape and KUBS card holder + string. Conveniently, I needed a card holder for my T-Money card, so I was very satisfied! :^D
The KUBS buddies then took us on a tour around the business buildings. Like the KUBA orientation, we ended our KUBS orientation with a group picture at the same location. My group then went out to eat jajangmyeon 짜장면 (black bean noodles) and tangsuyuk 탕수육 (sweet and sour pork) at a small Chinese restaurant in Anam. It was my first jajangmyeon meal in Korea, and it tasted great. We ended the day with taking some photos at a nearby photo booth. The KUBS group is much smaller than my KUBA group, so I felt that I was better able to properly meet and talk to everyone.
KUBA Cheering Orientation (March 3)
The Cheering OT was held just a day before the start of school. We met inside the Science Library (과학도서관) and were brought inside an auditorium. KUBA gave us a rundown of the unique cheering culture at KU and the cheering squad led the rest of the orientation. We were taught various dance moves that are often used in many of KU's cheers. While they had the lyrics of the cheers on the screen, I was mainly focused on following the choreography. We were also handed red bags, which some of my friends initially had mistaken them for bags to store our outerwear (like at many BBQ restaurants LOL). We then noticed KUBA inflating them and holding the bag by the end so that it becomes something similar to a balloon.
At first, I felt a little embarrassed because I was not exactly used to the KU-style cheering, but I was so impressed at how prideful and energetic the KUBA buddies were. On this day, we learned 32 cheers, which was tiring considering the amount of head-banging involved in their cheer choreography. But I had a lot of fun learning all of the cheers and as a result, I felt closer to KU as an exchange student.