“I will miss jjimdalk (steamed chicken dish) so much when I go back to China,” said Qing Yan Meng (Yanbian University, 3), an exchange student majoring in history. Like Meng, exchange students who have come to Ewha are savoring their final days in the campus. Before they leave Korea, the Ewha Voice (E.V.) met four students to peep into the experiences they had at Ewha: Graciela Nooitgedagt (The University of Groningen, 3) from the Netherlands, Patrick Yiu (The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2) from Hong Kong, Qing Yan Meng (Yanbian University, 3) from China and Thomas Gazzal (ISC Paris, 3) from France.

 

E.V.: What is the biggest difference between your home university and Ewha?

 Nooitgedagt: I think the way of getting into the university differs between Korea and the Netherlands. In Holland, if you pass a certain exam, you can choose whichever university and major you want to study in. However, in Korea, I could see so many high school students cramming to enter universities.

 Meng: Giving a presentation in front of the class is a common assignment in Korea, whereas, in China, there is no such assignment. That is probably due to the massive number of students in one class.

 Gazzal: People in Ewha as well as in Korea are so kind. In Paris, local people usually do not pay attention to those who cannot speak French.

 E.V.: What was the most interesting experience you had at Ewha?

 

 

 

 Yiu: I would say it was the Halloween party, which was prepared by the Ewha PEACE Buddy. I dressed up like a woman since we were having a contest to select Mr. Ewha. I enjoyed it so much. 

 Gazzal: I think it was the orientation party. I got to know other exchange students as well as Ewha faculty members and students.

 E.V.: What was your most memorable experience in Korea?

 

 

 

 Meng: I have a Korean friend whom I met in a class. She and I went to Dongdaemun, the place famous for shopping centers. We had dinner and shopped together. We even had dumplings when we got tired of walking around. We opened our hearts toward one another.

 Gazzal: I was once invited to my Korean friend’s house for dinner served with various kinds of Korean dish. The family was so nice to me and I can never forget that.

 

 

 

 E.V.: Were there any difficulties you faced in Ewha?

 

 

 

 Nooitgedagt: I think the English version of notifications posted at Ewha is insufficient. I once went to the Student Union Building to sign up for a taekwondo club, but I had to give up because I couldn’t read the notification which was in Korean.

 Meng: I wish the graduate dormitory where I lived had a kitchen. It is not healthy when you always have to eat instant food or eat outside.

 E.V.: There are only a few weeks left until the end of the exchange program, what do you think the program gave you?

 Meng: I was fully absorbed into the Korean culture. I enjoyed watching Korean soap operas and making many Korean friends. And I got a better understanding of Korean history after attending classes, which will be helpful for my future plan to be a history professor.

 Gazzal: I got a freedom while I was in Korea, since it was my first time to live away from home for such a long time. And in Europe, people stick to this “consciousness” all the time by not trying to bother anyone around you. Yet, I could see no such boundary between people in Korea.

 

 Yiu: I had a difficulty eating spicy food because people at my hometown never eat spicy food. Now I can eat kimchi and red pepper.

 Nooitgedagt: I could be more feminine while in Ewha. Girls at Holland Universities don’t dress up like Ewha students. Under my Korean roommate’s discipline, however, I learned the ways to be a young lady.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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