Model United Nations classes

Since 23 June I have been teaching a course called Model UN here at Hanyang University, located on the north bank of the Han River here in Seoul. I have the second largest enrollment of students attending the summer school here http://iss.hanyang.ac.kr/ with about 25 students. The largest enrollment this summer is in the Business Statistics class, which is probably understandable. Last year my UN class had by far the largest enrollment probably due to the interest generated by the new Korean Secretary General Ban ki-mun. This year Korean students are understandably more interested in building their skills in international business - "money talks, !@#$% walks!

Food Shopping and Prices

When I first arrived here in Seoul, I found a grocery store to go to... The products in the picture are sitting on top of my refrigerator and are, from left to right with there approximate prices here in Seoul: strawberry jelly ($2), Thousand Island salad dressing ($2), four pack of Spam with a roll of paper towels ($6), milk ($4), 2 1/2 lbs of sugar (90 cents), soju (Korean "firewater!") ($1.20), and Korean raspberry wine ($7). So you can see that prices vary quite bit depending on the product. Also, not shown is a liter of Fanta soft drink ($1), a can of tuna ($2.25), a small loaf of bread ($2.50), two 100w light bulbs ($1.50), and they charge for plastic bags (no paper) (50 cents).

Main Living Area

As you walk in to the door to may "apartment" here at Hanyang University's Guest House," you first see the living area, which, for a single person, consists of a Large "dance floor" area and a TV. The TV is tuned to the Armed Forces Network here in South Korea and is showing my favorite show: Law and Order.

Bedroom

A bit of a panoramic view of my bedroom. Hanyang has provided me with a three room apartment. This bedroom, a living area and a kitchen. My two bed bedroom also has a computer with Internet-access provided and bookshelves: although I did not bring very many books with me!

Bathroom

When I arrived, I was shown my room and a bathroom without a bathtub!

Like in other Asian countries, there's no bathtub: you use the shower that sprays directly on the floor - most squat down and use the the large "bowl" shown under the sink.

To the left and out of sight in the bathroom is a rather large washing machine with at least a dozen buttons labeled in Korean. I have had to learn the Korean alphabet to do my wash!

Kitchen

Not bad for a kitchen, now I have to learn how to use chopsticks

Arrival in Korea

Eating a Korea lunch, Bibimbpap restaurant near campus, Great food.

These are a line of small "Mom and "Pop" restaurants near campus.

Setting up my first blog

Well, it's about a week before I go to Korea so I thought I would set up a blog to let you all know what's happening while I am in Korea. I will be teaching a class called "Model UN" at Hanyang University in Seoul and then will visit Xian Jiaotong University in central China from 21-28 July. Stay tuned!