Cultural Excursions

HandS Korea

South Korea

Cultural Excursions

Spring 2017

1. Overview

The South Korean cultural excursions is an initiative designed to help ESL teachers who will be teaching in South Korea adapt to the social norms and new environment allowing them to integrate smoothly into Korean society. The program consists of various activities excursions that hope to orientate and inform new teachers.

The importance of gaining an understanding of language, history and culture is imperative to making a success of teaching in South Korea. This is because many of the issues that one will face when teaching in a foreign country vastly different from their own will be rooted in cultural differences and the language barrier.

The course delves into the heart of South Korean culture and values that were first introduced in the online classes before you arrived in the country. When our teachers are in the country, active-learning cultural excursions of various sites will build their cultural and historical knowledge. The in-country excursions are punctuated by in-class language lessons, designed to establish a basic Korean language understanding in participants and ultimately help them to make a relatively seamless transition into life in South Korea.

All of this is provided to participants who are joining the Teach in South Korea program.

2. Course Details

The course takes place twice a year and classes and excursions will take place over three consecutive weekends. On these weekends classes will be held on Saturdays and Sundays in the capital, Seoul.

Excursions and experiences will include:

	Insadong neighborhood of Seoul which once housed the largest market in the
	world for antiques and art
	Gyeongbok Palace, commonly known as the Grand Palace, the largest of 5
	grand palaces in South Korea
	 Traditional South Korean Taekwondo Class

	 Korean cooking lesson

	 Wear a Traditional Hanbok (Korean traditional clothes)

3. Full Itinerary

Weekend One: 18th- 19^th March
Saturday
10am	Initial meet up at accommodation
11am	Taekwondo Class
2pm	Lunch Break
3pm	Korean Dessert Café
Sunday
10am	Korean Language Lesson
Weekend Two: 25^th- 26^th March
Saturday
10am	Korean Cooking Class
12pm	Lunch Break
1pm	Grand Palace Tour
3pm	Insa-dong Tea Tasting
Sunday
10am	Korean Language Lesson
Weekend Three: 1st- 2nd April
Saturday
11am	Hanbok Café
12:30pm	Lunch Break
2pm	Traditional Market Walking Tour
5pm	Farewell/Meet Up Dinner
Sunday
10am	Korean Language Lesson

4. Activity Details

Korean Dessert Café
Have you ever tried the famous Korean dessert, ‘Bing su’? The cold and sweet dessert is extremely popular all across Korea. It is a shaved ice dessert with sweet toppings such as chopped fruit, condensed milk, fruit syrup, and red beans. Walk into one of the many cafes in Seoul and you see friends and couples sharing various types of bing su as they socialize. We’ll be taste testing

bing su while we get to know each other.

Taekwondo Class
Taekwondo is a Korean martial art, characterized by its emphasis on head-height kicks, jumping and spinning kicks, and fast kicking techniques. We will be visiting a ‘Dojang’ where the master or ‘sabeomnim‘will introduced us to Taekwondo. The instructor speak excellent English and will cover things like correct form, self-defense and you may even get to break a wooden board!

Korean Language Lesson

Over all three weekends, participants will be taught the basics of Korean. A professional Korean teacher covers reading Hangeul, the history of the Korean language, useful phrases and how to use Korean to show respect. The three sessions will be building blocks for teachers to develop their Korean skills on.

Korean Cooking Class

Participants will be taught how to make several various traditional Korean foods. Everyone will get a chance to have a go at cooking. Below is a list of dishes that we might make:

1. 
   Bulgolgi(Beef in a marinade)
   

2. 
   Pajeon(Green Onion Pancake)
   

3. 
   Fried Kimbap
   

4. 
   Skewered food
   

One everything is ready, it’s time to eat! You’ll get to taste all the food and see what you like!

Grand Palace Tour

Built in 1395, Gyeongbokgung Palace is arguably the most beautiful, and remains the largest of all five palaces.

During our visit we will join a tour by an English speaking guide who explains the history and the cultural significance of the various building and grounds of the palace.

Insa-dong Tea Tasting
Insa-dong is a place where the tradition and the modern, and the old and the new generation are mingled together, and the center of the representative cultural arts in Seoul. Insa-dong, where traditional tea house, antique shops, galleries and old arts shops are gathered together, is the place to feel the traditional culture and latitude of mind and a place to show the Korean styles to foreigners. You’ll get a chance to sip on one of the various teas that is Korea is famous for.


Traditional Market Walking Tour
This walking tour takes visitors around the traditional markets of the Dongdaemun District, starting with the Seoul Yangnyeongsi Herb Medicine Museum, then the Gyeongdong Market and the Seoul Yangnyeong Market, one of the most famous oriental medicine markets in Korea, and then finally the Janganpyeong Antique Shops, one of the largest antique markets in Asia. It’s a great opportunity to discover the quieter side of Seoul.


Hanbok Café

Take a picture of yourself in a hanok setting wearing colorful hanbok, Korea’s traditional costume. After you transform yourself into Korean royalty explore the special room designed for traditional Korean photo shoots. Take selfies or photos with your new friends. Will you play some Korean instruments, reenact your favorite Korean period drama or (pretend) to drink tea in the tea room. Feel like a true Korean for the afternoon!

5. Included and Excluded

Included:

Below is what is included in the cultural orientation, from online classes through to in-country excursions and language training:

1. 
   Entrance fees and activities during cultural excursions
   

2. 
   3 sessions of in-class Korean language lessons
   

Excluded:

Below is a list of things that will not be included in the orientation program, both online and in-country:

1. 
   Transport to and from Seoul for the orientation weekends
   

2. 
   Food during cultural excursions and language training
   

3. 
   Accommodation outside of the Saturdays during the orientation weekends
   

4. 
   Transportation costs to activities (but we will take the train so it is relatively inexpensive)