Okay so, hey guys! This is our 4th day in Korea, and I am finally getting to update this blog thing! Hmmm... before I go into my thoughts on this place, let me give you a quick recap of the daily events:
Day 1: Stuck in San Francisco! I've never been to California before this day, so it was a rather interesting experience - the place was beautiful, although the hospitality left something to be desired. However, we as a group had a lesson from Day 1 on adapting to inconvenient situations and working together so that we could all accomplish our common goal.
Day 2: We arrived in Seoul, and took a ride through town before checking into our hotel (which, by the way, is amazing!) There are many many interesting things about the hotel - amusement park, Lotte Mart, the bidet... - but perhaps the most interesting thing about the hotel is how green-oriented it is! As a matter of fact, that seems to be a recurring trend throughout the landscape... moving on... After checking into the hotel, we were taken to a traditional Korean dinner and show - which were also very interesting and lovely, although I'll admit I fell asleep from the relaxing ambiance created within the theatre. At any rate, it was a beautiful performance and put me right in the mood to rest after our long journey.
Day 3: Today was a really interesting day! We went to visit the Gyeong Bok Palace - the palace that housed the members of the last Korean dynasty - and from there had a tour of the city before seeing a martial arts/comedy performance called Jump! and then going for a walk downtown before eating at a "Western-style" restaurant called the Bellagio. It was rather amusing to see the Korean idea of Western food - I suddenly understood the way that Asian people must feel when they come to America and see our idea of their traditional food! At any rate the cuisine was excellent, even if it was a bit confusing at first!
Day 4: Today we visited the Universities to sign the agreement to establish an exchange program between Alabama State students and Chung Ang students. The people we met at the university were so welcoming and inviting - and everyone wanted to speak to us! You know, a girl could really get used to the celebrity treatment we get around here! *smile*
Day 5: Today was Tuesday and we visited the POSCO steel plant! That was a really interesting and exciting to see this factory that looked to be about the size of Montgomery going through the total production of coils of raw steel ripe for use in one of the other major industries in the country. I was really interested in the organizational culture of POSCO... it was amazing the openness and dedication to environmental preservation (again with the green theme) - that's a really big thing over here! We also visited the World Heritage site of the Bul Kook temple which required that we hike up a mountain and meet monks and other cool things of that nature...
Tomorrow we will visit the Hyundai ship building and car manufacturing plants - I'm excited to see the infrastructure of this establishment as well - the new concepts that I have learned in my textbooks are really coming to life in the real world and its exciting to be able to do an actual application!
The most affluent trend I have noticed since coming to Korea, however, is the concentration on the whole *green* thing - escalators that don't work if no one is on them, streams in the middle of the keep cooling costs down, plants that only give off steam and recycle 97.9% of the energy sources that it uses in order to become more efficient throughout - its inspiring! It also lets me know that America is WAAAAYYY behind the times on this whole green movement. I suppose that the Koreans have had to develop this new way of business out of necessity because it is such a small, highly industrialized nation, but nonetheless, it is impressive! I have a feeling tomorrow's look at Hyundai will be equally exciting!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Monday, March 3, 2008
Countdown to Korea
T minus 10, 9, 8, 7...
So... we're going to finally going to Korea in 10 days! I'm so excited!
We have been waiting and preparing for this trip the entire academic year, learning things about the culture, language, and business practices of the Korean people, and now we get to actually immerse ourselves in the culture for the first time.
This blog will be our official reference point, updates daily, letting everyone know what we are doing, the different things we are experiencing, and what we are learning along the way.
Going into this trip, I don't really feel very much except excited! I absolutely love to travel, and learning about different people and new ways of doing things, so this is going to be a great experience I'm sure!
In preparation for this trip, I and the other 6 students who are participating have taken part in several different excursions around the state to get a firsthand look at some of the multinational businesses that are in Alabama.
First, of course there are our East Asian Institute sessions, during which we are exposed to many different people who are representative of our Korean partners - who give lectures on important facts and practices in the Korean culture, as well as expose us to the things Korea is doing in the global marketplace.
We also have off-campus excursions to get a first hand look at the international business arena.
Last month, we as a group went to visit the Mercedes plant in Vance, Alabama, where we took a tour of the entire facility, being briefed on the way that the assembly line works, how they test the quality standards, the science of their "just in time" delivery system, and other things.
From there we went to a supplier for Mercedes, the ZF Plant, where we saw basically the same thing on a smaller scale. They explained to us the importance of quality and standardization in their product, as well as their symbiotic relationship with Mercedes.
With these types of exposure, I feel very confident that we are prepared to go forth and experience the world of global business, I think that this trip will be one of the most rewarding experiences of my college career, and I am looking forward to it!
So... we're going to finally going to Korea in 10 days! I'm so excited!
We have been waiting and preparing for this trip the entire academic year, learning things about the culture, language, and business practices of the Korean people, and now we get to actually immerse ourselves in the culture for the first time.
This blog will be our official reference point, updates daily, letting everyone know what we are doing, the different things we are experiencing, and what we are learning along the way.
Going into this trip, I don't really feel very much except excited! I absolutely love to travel, and learning about different people and new ways of doing things, so this is going to be a great experience I'm sure!
In preparation for this trip, I and the other 6 students who are participating have taken part in several different excursions around the state to get a firsthand look at some of the multinational businesses that are in Alabama.
First, of course there are our East Asian Institute sessions, during which we are exposed to many different people who are representative of our Korean partners - who give lectures on important facts and practices in the Korean culture, as well as expose us to the things Korea is doing in the global marketplace.
We also have off-campus excursions to get a first hand look at the international business arena.
Last month, we as a group went to visit the Mercedes plant in Vance, Alabama, where we took a tour of the entire facility, being briefed on the way that the assembly line works, how they test the quality standards, the science of their "just in time" delivery system, and other things.
From there we went to a supplier for Mercedes, the ZF Plant, where we saw basically the same thing on a smaller scale. They explained to us the importance of quality and standardization in their product, as well as their symbiotic relationship with Mercedes.
With these types of exposure, I feel very confident that we are prepared to go forth and experience the world of global business, I think that this trip will be one of the most rewarding experiences of my college career, and I am looking forward to it!
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