When I first got to Seoul, I felt a bit overwhelmed. There are so many places to visit, people to meet and foods to try. I was immersed in a completely new culture as well! So how did I start to feel more at home here? I share below some of the small things that I did that helped me immensely:
I continued pursuing my hobbies from back home. I’ve played volleyball since I was in middle school, and I still play competitively in college. At home, most of my friends are from the volleyball community, so naturally, I wanted to find that community here. Despite the language barrier between the local Korean volleyball players and me, it was much easier to connect to them because we already have something in common. Meeting locals is one of the most rewarding parts of traveling. They can show you the real-life experience of a local that you can’t begin to understand online. Learning a local's favorite places to eat and hang out can give you a completely different perspective on any given place.
I learned key phrases in Korean. If you haven’t studied the language of the place you’re traveling to, it can seem like a daunting task to learn it. It can be so daunting that you might not even want to try. But don’t fret!
