As an international exchange student at Chung Ang University things are quite different than my life back in San Diego California where I attend San Diego State University. It has taken a while to get used to and as we approach the end of the first month of school I am still working to keep all of my, "appointments," in order. Along with the hustle and bustle of the city and all that it has to offer at all times of the morning and night it seems as though there is a never ending schedule that keeps changing, being added to and modified. At first, I was a bit taken aback by the intense and demanding schedules, however as the weeks go on it seems that I am finally getting the hang of things here. This is not to say that I haven't double booked or been late for a engagement but it is definitely getting better. I have had the opportunity to speak to some of the other exchange students and the sentiment tends to be pretty similar no matter where they are from in the world. We international students come from places that range from the United States to France, England, Netherlands, Canada and even China. As we struggle to maintain a social life as well as our academics we have found solace in each others company while discussing our times here in Korea. We are however, always looking for Korean friends to help acclimate us to our new surroundings.
 
 It has been important for us to remember that this busy lifestyle is merely a way of means for Korean students, business women and men, even the children who also have busy schedules. When you look at it from this perspective we find that it is not so difficult and so we suck it up and put in the work just as the rest of our peers are doing. This will most likely prove beneficial for us students from the United States whose study habits are nothing to brag about. This highly structured way of being has helped me to put my priorities in order and proof of this is the fact that I have never used a planner more in my life. With all this said, at the end of the day I feel accomplished and I am motivated to it again the next day. Surpringly I am not, "burned out," and my energy level has maintained steady and I am hoping that it will stay that way.

 Due to a conflict in my course scheduling I was unable to enroll for the only Korean language class offered in English. Working to learn Korean without taking a Korean language course has proven a bit more difficult than I imagined. I can understand for the most part what people are attempting to convey to me, but responding is a whole other story. Asking for prices in the crowded shopping areas and markets has been on of the few things that I have been able to do with a minimal amount of confusion on my part as well as the vendors. They do seem however, high in their spirits and it makes it easer for us to want to continue to try to work on our Korean language skills.
 
 As a foreigner in a completely new and unfamiliar setting I am just beginning to become aware of my bearings. The subway, train and bus systems are a wonder to be discovered, but for someone like me who comes from a place where everyone drives in their car, alone, it has been a challenge for me. In California things are so far from each other that walking would be inefficient. It may take an hour or two to get to your friend's house by foot but by car approximate time of arrival might be 15 minutes or less. That is of course there is no traffic. Here there are so many people that it doesn't matter how you choose to transport yourself, it will be crowded. I have literally never walked so much in my life! And on the first day of school all I could think of was, "is this how it's going to be all semester?"