Typhoon, Screen Golf, and 30th Birthday...

I have experienced several firsts in Korea thus far. I walked into a two-story, 120-seat Dunkin Donuts. I watched Starcraft played on television, with announcers. I used an electronic bidet. And now I can add living through a typhoon, what they call a hurricane in the Western Pacific, to my list.

Looked as if it might be fierce, but wasn't

Once a category 4 hurricane, Typhoon Bolaven lashed Okinawa with 150 km/h winds and buckets of rain, then looked poised to take near direct aim on Seoul today. Flights were cancelled, schools were closed, and the U.S. Embassy shut down. My Korean language classes were cancelled for the day as well, so I set up a view of the storm from my 18th floor room at the hotel in which I am staying.

And...a whole lot of nothing, really. Not a ton of rain so far, it seems. Definitely windy but besides a stray plastic bag I haven't seen anything flying around. I won't taunt Mother Nature as I'm sure this storm could have been much worse, but I was disappointed with the intensity of this storm given all the buildup. Well, I won't have much time to bask in the glory of surviving my first typhoon experience as typhoon #2 (Tembin) is already approaching later this week!

Scott is "stuck" in a bunker

Had another first this week – screen golf! Golf is super popular in South Korea – there are two golf channels on TV here (one for men and one for women) – but given the constraints on land in this country (50 million people living in a place about the size of the US state of Indiana), playing golf on an actual course is expensive. On average, it costs $295 to play a round of golf here! Hence, the booming popularity of screen golf, which cost us about 1/10th of that. The game is sort of like Wii Golf, except you play with actual clubs and real balls. You can play a wide variety of famous courses...we tried Pebble Beach...and as you slam a ball from a driving range mat into a screen a computer measures the speed and direction of your club face to determine where the ball should fly in the game. It's not wholly realistic – you can't really simulate a bunker shot well – but my typical late-round slice off the tee kicked in, and also just like real golf I became quite frustrated by about the 16th hole! Plus with no heat stroke or sunburn to worry about, no lost golf balls, and an attendant who continually brought us drinks and snacks, I think my screen golf experience was a big win!

Getting after it in our own private karaoke lounge

Finally, I celebrated my 30th birthday on Saturday. Celebrating a birthday in a new place can be hard as you aren't able to ring in the special day with many of your old friends. That said, I had a delightful evening with many of my new Samsung colleagues. We went "Gangnam Style", partying in the now-famous Gangnam district in Seoul. Though we ate Turkish food for dinner and strangely did not guzzle any soju, we were able to introduce some Korean flair to the festivities with a late-night visit to a karaoke room! (노래방, or norebang in Korean) With all the new experiences of the past three weeks the gravity of the end of my 20's hasn't really sunk in, but being a little older may work to my advantage in Korea, a place still heavily influenced by Confucian principles.

Finding My Way Around

It has been two weeks now since I landed in Seoul, and the wildly unfamiliar here is slowly starting to become familiar. Everyday activities like riding public transit, ordering food in a restaurant, and using my hotel gym are becoming easier. Now that (fingers-crossed) I'm done with my apartment search, I've had a little time to study the Korean character set, which I can almost fully read by now, although at about a two-year-old's pace! Still, it's nice being able to go into a restaurant without an English menu and know the difference between 불고기 (bulgogi) and 김치 (kimchi). I still don't know most of the Korean food names, though.

With my newfound free time, I've tried to take the opportunity to explore Seoul. The August weather here, unfortunately, has decided not to cooperate – rain has fallen almost every day for the last week or so. This was not totally unexpected...over half of Seoul's annual precipitation falls in July and August...but still frustrating. I have been getting a little stir-crazy on days when I'm waiting for the rain to clear, and the umbrella I brought to Korea has already broken from overuse. The umbrella survived two years in Charlottesville, but not two weeks in summertime Seoul!

Lots of old tanks and planes sit outside the War Memorial of Korea

Museums have been a good use of rainy afternoons. The War Memorial of Korea was particularly interesting...I learned about the history of the Korean War on a guided tour from an elderly man who was a refugee during that war and then later fought alongside the US forces in Vietnam. The National Museum of Korea is immense and details the entire history of people on the Korean Peninsula, all the way back to the Stone Age.

Gwanghwamun Square

I also have enjoyed walking around neighborhoods in between rain showers. My favorite areas now are in the older part of Seoul north of the Han River. The Insadong area is a lovely pedestrian mall full of small art galleries, craft shops, and tasty restaurants. Myeongdong is a packed shopping district. The Cheonggyecheon is a neat urban stream reconstructed recently through the center of the city. This leads to Gwanghwamun Square, Seoul's equivalent of DC's national mall, with a magnificent statue of King Sejong the Great leading to the Blue House (Korea's presidential residence) and the grand Gyeongbokgung Palace. And I love the Hongdae nightlife...a university area with outdoor performances from Korean indie bands and good cheap food.

South of the Han River is more modern, less touristy and more glitzy. Apgujeongdong has all the finest luxury brands I probably never will buy (Hermes, Louis Vuitton, etc.) and nice little boutiques off the main strip. The massive COEX mall is all underground and feels like a casino – no windows, no clocks, no clear way out. The Gangnam Station area, where Samsung Electronics headquarters is located, brings to life the frenetic, neon-glow image that many have of East Asia.

I've met some of my new Samsung colleagues thus far but still have many more to see. Next week, I will be taking intense afternoon Korean language classes, which should help to solve some of my difficulties with the basic language and introduce me to more of my new coworkers. I'm ready to get started.

First Week Reflections

Happy Korean Liberation Day to you all!  (Gwangbokjeol  they call it here)  The day celebrates the end of the Japanese colonial period in 1945.  Unfortunately the weather is pouring rain on this holiday, making it a good day to catch up on my blog-posting!

It's hard to believe that today only marks day 7 of my journey in Seoul...I feel like I have been here much longer. Every day has been mesmerizing for the senses, taking in the sights, sounds, and tastes of a new country. The first week in Korea has often been bewildering as I try to navigate language and culture barriers. Emotionally the week has oscillated between exciting highs and brief moments of exhaustion.

Enjoying my first dak galbi  dinner with my colleague Dave & his wife Mor,

I dove headfirst into the apartment search from the first day I arrived. Four realtors took me on a whirlwind tour of 33 apartments within commuting distance of my office, the Samsung Electronics building in the bustling Gangnam district of Seoul. The process felt a bit like when I rushed fraternities at MIT 12 years ago, which happened almost the moment I arrived in Boston. Pledging a fraternity with imperfect information is a poor idea and signing a two-year apartment lease in a brand new city seems like a poor idea as well, but I had no choice on the latter as I needed housing, so I tried to be as thorough as I could.

The quality of apartments that my Samsung housing budget could buy me varied widely, from tiny cheap-feeling units in high rises lacking appliances to spacious "villa" style units in smaller walk-up buildings. With many new Samsung expat employees flooding the rental market all at once, I was in competition with many of my future coworkers for apartments, forcing me to decide rather expediently. Thankfully I now have a hold on a nice apartment in the posh Hannam-dong neighborhood, which I should be able to move into in a few weeks!

This K-Pop girl band is pretty popular here

Though apartment hunting has consumed much of my time here thus far, I have had some time to get out and acclimate myself with my new city.  I've mostly explored the area around the office and my hotel, the bright glitzy neighborhood surrounding Gangnam Station.  It's a little like Times Square with all its bright lights, restaurants and shops. Gangnam is an affluent and trendy area, perhaps the heart of new Seoul.

The best part about being here so far, without question, has been the food. I will refrain from starting a Seoul food blog as I don't have a refined food palate, but I'm a big fan of Korean food so far. Anyone who loves grilled meats, soups, noodles, and (of course) kimchi is in heaven here. With a generous bounty of vegetable side dishes at almost every meal (complimentary in many restaurants), the Korean diet feels very healthy and I don't think I'm gaining any weight despite all the food I've been eating. Warning to my American friends: Much Korean food is spicy!! I definitely need to adjust my spice tolerance over the next few months.

Another delicious Korean dinner: pork with garlic, mushrooms, kimchi, and a plethora of side dishes

On the other hand, communicating has been a major challenge. I don't yet speak the Korean language or read the characters, and spoken English proficiency varies considerably here. Even those who you might expect to have strong English skills sometimes disappoint. Given the amount of American and British media permeating the airwaves and the fact that English teachers probably outnumber English-speaking tourists, I was expecting less difficulty, but it is what it is. In some cases I'm just getting by with smiling a lot, bowing my head, and uttering the few words that I have learned so far ("hello" and "thank you"). There's a silver lining to all this: more motivation for me to learn Korean!

There has also been a natural amount of cultural confusion. Sometimes I forget to take my shoes off before entering a room, sometimes I'm watching others to learn the proper way to eat the food at a Korean restaurant. Doing laundry has been interesting -- I have a Korean washer/dryer unit in my hotel and a clothes drying rack that I haven't figured out how to set up yet. Many of my clothes came out all wrinkled and my attempt to rectify this with an iron and a tiny Korean ironing board didn't work so well. At times I feel like a Conehead, coming from another planet and trying to figure out how to do the little things in everyday life.

France! We come from France!

But all of these challenges are part of the fun of throwing myself into a foreign land. There will be more slip-up's and faux pas's for sure along the way, but I don't think there's any way that I can mess up too badly. Seoul is safe and clean, the internet is fast, the power stays on and the trains run on time. I'm staying patient and trying to observe and absorb as much as I can. Though life here may often be unclear, everything will be just fine.

I'm Landed

I landed on the ground for the first time in Seoul this evening. Such a surreal feeling to be here. It's been a very long day flying here from San Francisco, a 12-hour flight across the Pacific spent chasing the sun. But the flight passed rather quickly as I read through an edition of The Economist, devoured the Moon guide "Living Abroad in South Korea", watched several episodes of the Kimchi Chronicles downloaded to my new iPad, as well as several episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" (needed a little fix of American culture).  I had an unexpectedly difficult time getting through passport control – the Korean immigration official gave me the staredown once I handed her my visa and said a bunch of (to me) unintelligible Korean, but after being sent to the immigration office I was able to enter without incident.  Totally unclear what happened there...

Korean thermostat control

Without knowing the Korean language my first few hours here have been bewildering. My hotel room has an air conditioner with controls entirely in Korean, but thankfully I was able to figure this out as the summertime heat and humidity is everpresent this time of year. The toilet has one of these fancy Japanese style bidets with electronic controls but thankfully an English translation of what the buttons do – will need to play with that at some point. I took a walk around the hotel this evening, set right in the Gangnam Station area of south Seoul next to Samsung's offices. I did about a 5 city block square loop and was the only Caucasian person on the street, a strange but awesome feeling. I'm definitely in Korea now!

Alright, I'm done fighting jetlag for one evening as the beginning of the Seoul real estate tour is tomorrow morning. I'll leave you with my favorite Korean music video of the moment, a really catchy tune and dance moves that I need to master!  (it looks sort of like a big Korean dude riding a horse...)

Korea Bound!

It's hard to believe but the day has finally come. Tomorrow I board a flight in San Francisco, Singapore Air flight 15. Destination: Seoul, Korea.

My decision to go was sealed long ago, all the way back in December 2011, when I accepted a job offer to work at Samsung's Global Strategy Group after graduating with my MBA from the University of Virginia. The decision was not easy but I'm convinced now that it was the right one. I laid out the long thought process in my old MBA blog, and my reasons for going can be summarized as follows:

• A desire to "globalize" myself as a business leader
• The chance to work at a well-respected, rapidly growing technology company
• An immense learning opportunity, both in business and culturally
• Right time of life for me to go – I'm young and single
• The potential regret factor: If I don't take this opportunity now, would I regret in 20 years?

The eight months since I made my decision have flown by, and I have felt the natural emotional highs and lows as the anticipation for leaving grew. Some days I felt like pinching myself as if I believed I was in a sleeping dream of good fortune. Other days I was wracked with separation anxiety as I considered all the close family and friends that I would be leaving behind. But pretty much every day of late I have felt resoundingly positive about my departure, and am now almost giddy with excitement!

Saying goodbye to good friends...

This summer has been a whirlwind for me. I've spent the three months since the end of business school classes on a rapid tour of the USA, visiting old friends in scattered places around the country (with a little party time in Scandanavia thrown in). I went to North Carolina, the Virgin Islands, Alabama, Atlanta, Houston, New Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Washington DC, and have spent the last week in California. In between I sold my car, packed most of my possessions onto a shipping container bound on a trans-Pacific voyage, and moved out of Virginia, my home state for the last eight years.

Everywhere I traveled I was asked the same question – Why are you doing this? – and after eight months of explaining my future life path to folks I, frankly, grew a little tired of repeating my story. I yearned for the day when I wouldn't be simply talking about leaving my home country, preparing to move abroad, reading about Korean customs, business etiquette, and cuisine. I wanted to start living it.

...and family

But all the patient waiting to the eventual departure day and the endless discussions I had with friends and colleagues have sharpened my resolve to go abroad. I am thoroughly convinced that this is the right decision for me, and that this is an incredible opportunity. I have been blessed that I have had the time before leaving to say "Goodbye for now" to so many wonderful people in my life.

As for what awaits me, here's what I know...I fly out at 2PM tomorrow from San Francisco and land 12.5 hours later in Seoul, 6:30PM Wednesday. I will spend the first month in a hotel as I look for a permanent place to call home in that capital city. My work at Samsung begins September 3rd, and I will be in daily Korean language classes soon after my arrival (though my group's language is English). I will be an internal consultant at Samsung for the next two years, working on solutions to high-level business issues across the company's many business units and geographies. Over 40 MBA graduates from top schools in the US and Europe will be starting with me.

Summer was a whirlwind tour of reconnecting with old friends and colleagues. Great to see everyone!

What don't I know? Almost everything else!! How will I acclimate in such a different culture? How will I get around in a country where I don't yet speak the language? What will I miss most about America? What will I be doing in two years?

For all this ambiguity, I'm surprisingly comfortable with not knowing the answers to these questions at this point. The next two years will be an exciting journey where I discover the Samsung company and the nation of South Korea. After two years of "trusting the process" during my Darden MBA experience, I'm confident that I will discover the answers to many of these unsolved questions and that my life will work itself out.

This blog will document my journey of self-discovery in a foreign land. I will try to bring to life the sights, sounds, and feelings from my everyday experiences. I want to introduce readers to South Korea, a rapidly developing country that most Americans know little about. And I hope to inspire others considering similar international adventures.