Laura Ortiz

When asked how would I describe my study abroad to Seoul there are two words that come to my mind: incomparable and unforgettable. Nothing compares to what I learned and experienced in this beautiful country. The people, their food, their culture, their history, their scenery, everything was beautiful. While I have traveled to countries in the Americas, Asia is another world. When I took the plane to Seoul I was calm and relaxed because I thought it would be like any other trip I had done before, what I did not realized until I landed was that I was going to a completely different continent. Nothing hit to me until I landed in Seoul and it was time to get out of the plane. It was in that moment that I looked around and realized I was different to everybody else, in absolutely everything, from looks to culture and traditions. That's when I realized that I was in a completely different country with no one who I knew and no language in common to communicate. Fortunately enough I was in an airport where I was able to find someone who spoke English and helped me communicate with my university in Seoul for the pickup arrangements. After that day my real adventure began. Learning how to order food at the local restaurants, learning to read the maps in Seoul for subway directions and learning how to behave depending on the situation was all part of the adventure. While in Seoul I took two classes, Rise of East Asia and Growth, Inequality, and Economic Growth. In my class for Rise of East Asia I learned about the rise of Japan (during the Meiji and Post WWII), South Korea, and the rise of China and analyzed the East Asian Model for development. In my class of Growth, Inequality, and Economic Growth I studied the theoretical and practical application of the Malthusian and the Solow growth models, the neoclassical growth model, the real business cycle model, as well as the New Keynesian models. This same class taught me how to examine and interpret real-world data while using cross-country data analysis to study economic growth. While this classes were extremely challenging for a month long program they were extremely worthwhile.  My living abroad experience combined with the material I learned in both classes was a very rewarding opportunity that really did opened my eyes to the world. I felt that it was the immersion in another culture that allowed to see the world with another lenses different to my own.  I will forever be grateful with God Jesus and my family for allowing me live through such a remarkable experience.