Last Night

Short post again tonight, as it is past my bed time.

Tonight is my last night in Jochiwon, South Korea. Tomorrow, I will wake up (what seems like) ridiculously early to get on a bus that will take us up to the airport in Incheon. I have spent this week taking finals. Luckily, I was done on Tuesday and they were not too difficult. The next days were spent gathering last minute souvenirs and packing. Oh boy. The packing. I arrived in Korea with one suitcase, duffel bag, and backpack, all packed to the max, knowing I would probably need to buy another suitcase before leaving. Little did I know, suitcases here are a bit expensive (around 100,000₩) and slightly smaller than what we would find in the States. One incredibly valuable piece of hardware to bring (or be good friends with someone who did) is a suitcase weigher.  They generally look like this and will help give you a good idea if that heavy suitcase you've stuffed full of souvenirs is over your airline's 50lb limit. 


So, after much weighing and unpacking and repacking, I can finally declare myself "all packed." It's a bit strange to be writing this, as I don't think it has fully hit me yet that I will not see some of these people again. Some, obviously, I will, as they either go to my school, will be coming to my school, or we have bonded so closely that several promises have been made to come visit and some plans have already been put in motion to that very end. The people who were on this program became like a family to me and it will be heartbreaking to see them go. We have had too many laughs, trips, falls, lunches, dinners, super-fun drinking times, and adventures to take this parting lightly. While we may say a teary "see you soon," it could very well turn into a solid "goodbye" that sits heavy in your gut. I would love to have (I'd like to say "each and every one of the program members" but...we all know that situation can't always be true) my ITS family all come to visit me all the time; it will a quiet life without their constant laughter and squeals.

My memories in Korea are some of the best I have and could ever hope for. I am so lucky that I bonded with the other UNC students so well that it will feel more like that "see you soon" than the finality of the "goodbye."

And so it is with a heavy heart (and two very heavy suitcases) that I say "goodnight" one last time in Jochiwon as I prepare for that final "see you soon" of the semester.