친구 Korean friends

 

5 people goofing off in small street in seoul with cityscape in background
The hospitality of the SNU group was fabulous. They met us all at the airport and carried our luggage.They played Kpop songs in the van rides.  They fed us insanely good food. The gold on this sushi is for good luck:

sushi with gold flakes on top

Everywhere we went, they had welcome signs

building with sign saying welcome COE

We had two young DVM interpreters that shared their skills and information all day every day!

They even had a strong connection with Minnesota dating back to the 1950s! (No, I wasn't at MN then, thanks kids; however, I did share PhD advisors with some of their faculty). 

history museum with plaque about MN project


But above all, they kept us company and showed us Seoul. Because international flights leave in the evening (to keep customers quiet and asleep), we had most of the last day open. Instead of sending us on our way, they offered to show us the old town (our choice of what to see). As you wander through the spaces, there are diamonds on the ground to show where to stand to get the best shots. 

We wandered into small shops and learned more history:

Erin with SNU folks in hanok

They helped us shop for keepsakes and laughed with us. This is a traditional mens' hat:

helping Sam tie the hat

Erin in traditional men's hat

The last is Shadow Milk Bird" from the mobile game Cookie Run: Kingdom (Kpop demon hunters game)

It was a great way to spend our last hours in Seoul! Such great memories and good friends. I hope to catch up with them again. 

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