#term abroad

To this day I think, it was the best decision I’ve ever made in my life :(

A place I miss: Sinchon, Seoul, South Korea. Picture taken during the spring term in 2020

Sinchon was the area I lived in while I had my term aborad. The Goshiwon (small one room) I lived in was only in 5 min. walking distance from the main entrance of the Yonsei University. I arrived at the end of February, one day before the news reported that the corona virus had spread rapidly from Daegu through the whole country. My parents called and asked if I wanted to go back to Germany - of course I said no. It took hours for me to arrive in Seoul and I tried to only get straight As at my home university in order to get picked for the term abroad - yearly only 7 people are picked from about 200~300 people (even though I admittedly don't know how many applied). So nope I wasn't going back. But thanks to corona virus the term abroad was pushed back a few weeks so I didn't have anything to do and no one there I knew. I was really really lonely and didn't know how I should make friends as an introvert in a country where it wasn't even common to just talk to strangers (if strangers came to talk to you they're most likely trying to get you into a religious sect - and there are so many different ones in SK). I wasn't really sure if I was going to have a good time in SK as I have hoped. And just because I didn't want to return back to Germany didn't mean that I wasn't homesick. I missed my family so much because I'm especially close to my mom and my sister.

How I made friends and what else I did in SK besides taking online courses when the term began and how the HelloTalk app helped me with a few things (not sponsored) you can read in my next posts.

Today (Saturday) I returned to Germany, home. Took the train the Helsinki and then an airplane to the Frankfurt Airport, at which my parents were waiting for me.

At the Helsinki Airport, we had over an hour spare time in the duty-free zone. There were reindeer pelts for sale! And we visited the Moomin shop.

Today was our last full day in Lahti, and last day at Salpaus. After school, Agnes and I went to a café with our friends here for the last time, and Zofia spoiled us with a last dinner at her place. That’s a lot of lasts... I‘m pretty sad to be leaving, because I had such a great time. Everything is packed and tomorrow we will make our way to Helsinki for the flight home.

Soo, what did I do for 3 months nearly nonstop in the workshop...

an enameled silver brooch inspired by Alvar Aalto (unfinished)

a silver signet ring with moon cut outs

a silver wire ring with an aquamarine stone (unfinished)

a simple silver band

an enameled silver pendant (unfinished)

a copper prototype of Arwen's Evenstar with a garnet stone and silver setting

3 simple silver rings

an enameled silver ring

And...

Here are pictures of some of the enamel pieces I worked on today.

First picture: four pairs of earrings made of silver plate that has a guilloche pattern on it. The pattern I made during an internship at the German Museum of Technology using the machines in the jewelry manufacturing exhibit.

Second picture: two pendants. These two pieces were also prepared during the internship mentioned above.