Liang Xiong from Saint Paul, MN. Participant from the University of Minnesota

One word that would describe the South Korea Scholarship 2010 Korea-US Youth Network best is simply: amazing! I have been learning Korean for about two semesters, and this opportunity not only allowed me finally use some of my Korean outside the class, but that it introduced me one-on-one to Korea, the culture and the people.

Before traveling to Korea, I had had some visual knowledge of it through Korean dramas and popular culture, but I was still surprised to see how modernized it really was. I liked the fact that South Korea was described as both “modern and traditional,” which sounds a little ironic but makes a really good combination when trying to understand the Korean culture. A Korean American friend of mine told me that all of Seoul would be like our downtown Minneapolis in Minnesota where most buildings are 14 stories high and everything is close to each other. She gave the correct descriptions, but she didn’t mention how lively it was, and or how extremely safe it was either. Seoul has made a great impression on me and I plan to go back as soon as I can.

Aside from learning about the art, economical and cultural side of Korea, one of the most memorable activities from the program was the visit to the DMZ. Visiting the DMZ helped me realize the seriousness of North and South Korea’s relationship, the friendly relationship between the United States with South Korea, and eventually my relationship with Korea and Korean people.

I had initially taken Korean because I enjoyed watching Korean dramas so much, but after this phenomenal trip to South Korea, I feel inspired to continue learning Korean and to one day be fluent so that I can tell Korean people about my ethnicity and my people. Because my Korean was so limited, I was only able to tell them that I am Hmong and Hmong are from Laos. Because the pronunciation of Hmong sounded a lot like Mongolian, I was instantly called Mongolian. Or from my name, I was Chinese, from my appearance, I was Japanese. These are situations that I have learned about from my Asian American Studies courses, and this opportunity has also helped me develop a wider perspective of being Asian American in Asia. The 2010 Korea-US Youth Network gave me more than I expected, and I can’t wait to visit South Korea again!