Gwangju International Center

I am really glad that I decided to apply for the GIC Homestay Program. I had really good times with my Korean family, one of my best experiences in life. We first met at the GIC when we attended the Welcoming Party for the families and students who were joining the Homestay Program. At that time, Mr. Lee Jun Yeob came with his son, Hyukjin. We talked a lot during the session. We introduced ourselves, talked about our families, experiences, and many other things. I learned that Mr. Lee is really nice, and although he spoke a little bit of English, he still tried to speak with me. Hyukjin is a really smart boy, and he spoke English really well! I was impressed by both of them, and we went around the city a week after the cultural day which was arranged by GIC.

The cultural day was awesome. We made kimchi, had a lunch, and also wore hanbok. That was my first time wearing traditional Korean clothes. I don’t know if it was just me or if I looked really funny wearing hanbok, but I had fun. At the end of the cultural day, we continued hanging out together. We drove around the city, and they introduced me to every place that we passed through. Then we stopped at Yeomju to ice skate. Unfortunately, the skating ring was already close because it was too late. Mr. Lee did not want me to feel bad about it, so he asked me to play golf. Then we moved to the golf court, as it was still in the Yeomju area. Since it was my first time playing golf, he taught me how to play properly. It was really hard, it was not like any game I had played before.We played golf for about two hours. I never expected that playing golf would be so tiring. After that he asked me to sleep over at his house and I just said yes. Before we went to his house, we went shopping to meet his wife.

Their house was really nice and so warm. Behind their house, there were a lot of paddy fields. It was so refreshing and relaxing. It felt like it was my second house in Korea, as I loved it. In his house, he lives with his wife, son, daughter, mom, and brother. They all were really nice to me. Even though most of them could not speak a lot of English, they always tried and they always smiled. I could feel the warmness of his family. He is lucky to have them as his family. We had spaghetti for dinner and they did not forget to serve banchan (a Korean side dish). We talked a lot about the family and living styles in Korea and Indonesia. I showed them my family pictures. We talked and we laughed together. Sometimes the language became a gap between us but it was ok. Then Mr. Lee brought me and Hyukjin to the nearby middle school. He said it was better to exercise a little bit after eating dinner. We walked around the soccer field many times to burn off some unwanted calories. I had a really long night with them and it was fun!

The next morning before I went back to the dormitory, Mrs. Lee and I made breakfast together. It was kimbap. I can conclude that making kimbap is not that hard, because all we need to have is just the ingredients. I told them that Indonesians love to eat spicy foods. So, when I ate kimbap with chili sauce, they laughed at me. Well actually I did eat kimbap with so much chili sauce on it, so that is why they laughed. After finishing breakfast, I played a computer game with Hyukjin. He was a really good gamer! When it was time for me to go home, Mr. Lee and Hyukjin took me back to the dormitory. Before I left, I did not forget to say thank you to them. It was my pleasure to have really unforgettable moments with them.

It was a month after my Homestay and we still kept in contact with each other when I was living in Korea. On another day, Mr. Lee asked me to come over to his house again and my answer obviously was a yes! That time I had time to prepare myself to go there. And the day had come, that time I brought fruit as a souvenir. That time, Mr. Lee did not come with Hyukjin, but with Tae Ho. Tae Ho is Hyukjin’s cousin who used to live in Canada to learn English and was seeking for new experiences. We headed to Tae Ho’s house because all of Mr. Lee’s family was there. They said it was a celebration for the return of Tae Ho and to greet me. When there was a celebration, there must have been a cake. We had a strawberry cake, and it was yummy! For dinner, we ate a lot of food dishes. We had a kind of beef sashimi at the beginning. It was really strange for me since I only knew sashimi was only for seafood. At first, I doubted it would be good as seafood sashimi. But then I realized, it was really good! I liked it, I dipped the beef sashimi into sesame oil, and it was even better! For the main course, we had bulgogi. It was really delicious, but I think it was similar with the Indonesian dish of semur daging. The difference there was sesame in the bulgogi, while there is not any kind of seasoning like it in the semur daging. Again, we had a really good time. We talked a lot about our families, countries, cultures, and many other things.

The next morning we planned to visit the Seaweed Festival in Wando. I helped make a Korean-style picnic lunch. We made variations of kimbap. We also brought instant ramen and fruit, and I was glad that I brought my fruit. Then we were ready to go, as Tae Ho also went with us. It took us about three hours to get to his house in Wando. After we arrived in Wando, we were a bit unlucky, because it was raining and the wind blew so fast. Stilll, we enjoyed the Seaweed Expo. It provided every kind of benefit coming from seaweed. I already love seaweed, but I loved seaweed even more after I went to Wando. I also managed to use a Korean massage chair. I felt like an old man that time while being massaged. We also ate abalone, as Tae Ho said it was really good for our health. Actually, I wanted to ride the water cycle, but due to rain and wind, I could not do it. After we finished going through the Expo, we had lunch. It was proven that eating together can help us get to know each other more. Then we headed back to Gwangju. I loved that day so much.

I really enjoyed every second that I spent with Mr. Lee’s family, and I won’t forget everything that we did together. I must say that I was really glad to have joined this program, so thank you so much to my Korean family. And, thank you, GIC, for creating such an awesome program.