SCHIPHOL/ISTANBUL/SEOUL | Departures and Arrivals

My heart was full after saying goodbye to my lovely family members at Schiphol Airport. Had the chance to catch up on some girl talk with ...

My heart was full after saying goodbye to my lovely family members at Schiphol Airport. Had the chance to catch up on some girl talk with my 2 bests; received enough cuddles from my little cousins to survive the next 5 months; all in all, yet again moments of gratefulness for so much love in my life.

After shedding no tears (who am I even kidding) at the goodbye, I was off to my already delayed flight to find out it was delayed some more. Ok, no pressure, it just takes an hour of my transit time in Istanbul. Should be fine. It seems unnecessary stressful, but can u blame me? It's my first time traveling alone. I'm that spoiled brat that is used to following around her folks and does whatever they tell me to do.

I flew with Turkish airlines. The lunch and dinner were knock-off Turkish meals which were ok. You tend to settle, even cheer, for ‘ok’ after dealing with weird, jello-ish, scrambled eggs floating in some type of water which make you doubt if it is artificial food, because it sure looks and tastes like it.

Rushing to my transfer gate in Istanbul, even having plenty of time left and seeing my suitcase making its way to this airplane, made way for that chill "all is going well" vibe. I had still time to sit back and chill - Which, by the way had me wonder in 2014 why there isn't any free Wi-Fi on the airport. Yes, 5 hours without social media gets you into cold turkey state. (get it?) 

By the way, entering the plane was where the Korean culture sort of started. Do I already bow if I want to be excused? Do I wait till somebody is done doing his thing with the luggage? Do I help everyone that is somewhat older than me? - Basically: Am I rude without realizing? See Koreans have these unwritten respect rules, which I probably have to find out along the way. Luckily, the middle-aged (or is it elderly? - Asians seem to be forever young) lady next to me kindly introduced herself to me. She practiced pronunciation of Korean (even though I don't know the words), we talked through her translation app, talked about family and friends and showed pictures of them -So if you're someone close to me: A Korean woman might got to know about you while she was on an airplane somewhere above China. She was kind, interested, motherly, my first Korean friend and -not to overlook- her selfie game was fierce, shameless and obviously better than mine. 
Sleeping in planes is in general a big fat mess. I'm too short to lean back properly in the chair because of the head part that sticks out uncomfortably, but I'm too tall (yes, I said tall) to lean back in just the bottom and mid part of the chair. Also the guy behind me slept with his arms and head on the back of my chair, so I didn't want to disturb him by playing around too much with my chair (don't judge). 
Having safely arrived, I had to figure my way out to school. Yes, International office demanded that I'd come straight to school to still be able to attend a few hours of the mandatory orientation. One thing I realized is that I will need to grow some serious muscles if I go traveling again, because that suitcase was one hell of a job to carry around. Especially when your cabin luggage is also a mini suitcase. That's also why I couldn't take a lot of pictures. 

So after taking a train, metro and taxi, I arrived at school. With my suitcases and airplane odor. The campus is BEAUTIFUL! And the area around it as well; it's full of stores and restaurants and it's alive till late. It's in the Dongdeamun district. I'll share some more info on this later. 
I've got a lastminute change of roomie, which was totally blessed by God because she dances and is superchill. Her name is Kookai and she's from Thailand. The room is tiny as expected but it has everything and enough spaces to store my stuff. It's in an I-house (International House) with International students only.

Lastly, I spend my first night walking around with two new Swedish friends. Ate some Fish roe Bibimbap as my first Korean meal (ever) which you have to mix and then it tastes like spicy sushi. Yes, because off all the rushing to school, this was my first meal since the jello scrambled eggs at 9:30am. (Sorry, mom) I ate better starting the day after. We explored and enjoyed the area around the campus and spend the last hours of the day sitting in the arena of the campus enjoying life. The weather is warm and humid, and sometimes it rains. It's like I'm on vacation.


Last but certainly not least, I want to give thanks to EVERYONE that has send their love and support. I read each and every message and I wish you knew how much it warms my soul.

Blessings and love,
Nin

unnamed

Seizing every amazing opportunity that I come across. And this is where I share them with you. Enjoy my enjoyments.

You Might Also Like

6 comments

  1. CiskaAugust 31, 2014 at 8:09 PM

    Leuke blog Nien!

    Dikke kus Xxx

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 1, 2014 at 10:31 AM

    Fun story, and I'm curious about the Dongdeamun district! xxx sjev

    ReplyDelete
  3. NatasSeptember 5, 2014 at 10:40 AM

    Leuk stukje Nien, je hebt een grappige schrijfstijl... Benieuwd naar je volgende blog.

    Fam.❤️

    ReplyDelete

Instagram