Why Every Student Should Experience South Korean Culture

South Korea is a beautiful country with an incredible rich culture and history. The country has an incredible range of opportunities and experiences waiting for students of various subjects to embrace. From Performing Arts students to STEM students, South Korea is an invaluable educational visit for all. Here is an overview of some cultural experiences on our itineraries:

Talk to a North Korean defector

The relationship between North Korea and South Korea is fascinating, complex and often frightening; for this reason It has dominated world news for years. Instead of just reading headlines and forming opinions from thousands of miles away, we encourage the students on our trip to really engage with the politics of South Korea.

On the majority of our itineraries we introduce the students to a North Korean defector and take a walk with him through the gorgeous gardens of Changdeokgung Palace. Here, we encourage the students to ask their questions and engage in real educational conversation. This is not only an experience they will never forget, but a vital political awakening.

Visit the Demilitarised Zone

To continue this theme and encourage the students’ interests we then take them to the DMZ between North Korea and South Korea. This is an incredible opportunity to learn about the wars that have taken place in this beautiful country and to fully understand the extent of the broken relationship between North Korea and South Korea.

After this we also visit the village where the armistice agreement that paused the Korean war was signed. It is a day sure to spark the attention of any student!

Learn how to cook Korean cuisine

Moving away from the historical and political, we always like to give our students a good cooking lesson, and nothing quite beats Korean food! Full of spice and intense flavour, Korean cooking is fun, sociable and delicious.

We start off by taking our students to Namdaemun Market, the oldest market in Korea, and seek out our ingredients for the cooking class ( this is also a good opportunity to put into practice some of the language lessons they will have had ). After this they will try cooking some Korean classics like bibimbap and seafood pancakes!

Learn the language

The Korean language is beautiful, spoken and written. The lesson will focus on the basics so the students can practice with the locals throughout their adventure. They will also practice writing, learning to write the basics in beautiful characters.

Despite just having one lesson, being immersed in the language and being able to practice in an open and supportive environment means the students will learn more Korean than they ever thought they could!