What living in Seoul is like

Rokaya M., a civil engineering student at Boise State University, and Hodan M., a politics and international relations student at SOAS University of London, reflect on studying abroad in Seoul, Korea. From becoming roommates to finding confidence, routine, and belonging as Muslim women, both share how daily life, friendship, and identity shaped their experience at Yonsei University.

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Transcript

[00:00:00] Melissa B.: Welcome back to THE Study Abroad Pod. In today’s episode, Rokaya and Hodan talk about meeting as roommates in Seoul, Korea, figuring out daily life abroad, and what it meant to feel safe, confident, and truly themselves while studying at Yonsei University. From identity to friendship, this conversation is about the moments that make studying abroad change you.

[00:00:25] Rokaya M.: Hi everyone, welcome to the Study Abroad Pod. I’m Rokaya, a proud USAC alumna from the USAC Korea Summer 2025 program at Yonsei University. I’m currently living in Boise, Idaho. I’m a senior majoring in civil engineering at Boise State University. I’m here today with my former roommate, Hodan, who I met in Seoul.

[00:00:45] Hodan M.: Thank you for the intro. I’m Hodan, and I live in London, where I’m studying politics and international relations at the School of Oriental and African Studies.

[00:00:54] Rokaya M.: So we first met when we were apartment hunting. Do you want to talk about that?

[00:01:00] Hodan M.: Yeah. We actually both met through our other roommate. I found her, I think, on Discord, and Rokaya found her on Reddit. She knew I was looking for a roommate, so she said, “I know another girl who’s looking for a roommate, too.” So we joined together and found an apartment in Seoul.

[00:01:20] Hodan M.: Apartment hunting was an interesting process. We went through quite a few, but in the end, the apartment we found was nice.

[00:01:35] Rokaya M.: It was a nice apartment. It was really decent on the inside, but getting to it was kind of difficult because it was an uphill walk. I’d describe it as a hike, honestly.

[00:01:50] Hodan M.: Everything turned out fine in the end, which was good. What were your first impressions of me?

[00:01:58] Rokaya M.: You were taller than I expected. With how much we FaceTimed beforehand, it was like meeting a friend in person, but you were definitely taller than I thought you would be. What were your first impressions of me?

[00:02:22] Hodan M.: Honestly, I agree. The fact that we FaceTimed before made it easier for us to click. And you were a lot shorter than I thought you’d be. Also, on FaceTime you were less talkative than in real life. Not timid, just quieter. In person, you have a bigger personality. I wasn’t shocked, it was more like a pleasant surprise.

[00:02:49] Rokaya M.: I like that. So what made you want to study abroad in Korea, or what made Korea stand out to you as a place to study abroad?

[00:03:00] Hodan M.: For me, I’m always looking for an excuse to go abroad. I want to do a year abroad next year, and I felt like this would be a good way to test the waters, because a year is a long commitment. The six-week experience was a good way to dip my feet in and see how I’d feel.

[00:03:26] Hodan M.: I’m not going to lie, at first I was worried because Korea wasn’t somewhere I initially had in mind. It was a place I wanted to travel to for a holiday or to visit with friends, but I had never really considered studying there. I was on the fence, but I leaped into it because it was six weeks. If it went wrong, it went wrong.

[00:03:51] Rokaya M.: Mm-hmm.

[00:03:52] Hodan M.: But I ended up enjoying it. What about you?

[00:03:54] Rokaya M.: For me, it was different because I had always planned to study in Korea ever since high school. I was 17 when I started really getting into K-dramas and K-pop, and then I started teaching myself Korean. It was lockdown, so that’s basically all I had to do.

[00:04:18] Rokaya M.: After that, when we went back to real life, I still kept that love for the culture and entertainment. I was like, “Okay, when I graduate high school and go to college, I’m going to do a semester abroad,” which ended up being a summer, but it was still amazing.

[00:04:35] Hodan M.: So what was going through your mind when you first arrived? The sights, sounds, what moments stuck with you?

[00:04:44] Rokaya M.: I remember it vividly when I landed, mostly because we landed in Incheon, where the big airport is. It’s about an hour and a half outside of Seoul, closer to the water. As soon as we got off the plane, I felt the humidity immediately, and I was like, “Oh gosh, this is going to be a long summer.”

[00:05:10] Rokaya M.: It was also raining really hard that day. Incheon didn’t feel like a big city. It honestly kind of looked like Idaho, just closer to the water and more humid. But as I rode the airport bus into Seoul, I remember looking out the window and thinking, “Wow, this is the city.”

[00:05:36] Rokaya M.: I had a difficult time getting to our Airbnb because the airport bus stops at a random bus stop, and it was hard to figure out which ticket I needed for which stop. When I got off, I tried to get an Uber, but it was raining so hard. I was soaked.

[00:06:00] Rokaya M.: That was a core memory because I didn’t enjoy it in the moment, but it was also my first day in Seoul, and I was like, “Wow, this is amazing.” I really just wanted to get home and shower. The first sights and sounds were intense. It was loud, all the traffic paired with the rain. It was a big city compared to the small city and town I live in now. What about you? What stayed with you when you first got there?

[00:06:38] Hodan M.: I had a lot of issues on the way there. I had a connecting flight in Abu Dhabi that was supposed to be less than an hour, and it turned into 14 hours. I was stuck in the airport, and I was feeling really sick.

[00:07:02] Hodan M.: Once I got on the plane and landed in Incheon, I told myself, “Okay, let me be positive. Let me not let this ruin my day.” I’m the type of person who’s more chill when I’m with other people, but when I’m traveling alone, it’s a different level of responsibility and stress. I get really stressed and hyperaware.

[00:07:28] Hodan M.: Before I arrived, I did a lot of research on Korea. Not just customs, so I wouldn’t embarrass myself in public, but also what it might be like for me as a Muslim woman, and as a Black Muslim woman. In London I don’t stick out at all, but in a homogenous country like Korea, I was worried about how people would react to me and whether I would have a bad experience.

[00:07:58] Hodan M.: The reviews online were mixed. I saw good and I saw bad, so that kept me on my toes. And I was totally responsible for myself. I had to get my own SIM, pick my own Ubers, and all of that made me really aware of everything. I was kind of in survival mode.

[00:08:24] Hodan M.: It didn’t hit me that I was in Korea until three or four days later. I think I was walking home, and we got to the last hill, and I saw the view of Seoul, and I was like, “Wow, I’m actually here right now.” That’s when it started to feel real, and I felt less like I was just settling in.

[00:08:42] Hodan M.: Before coming to Korea, what were you expecting daily life to be like, and did it turn out how you imagined?

[00:08:42] Rokaya M.: I watched so many Korea vlogs on YouTube before going, even just for entertainment years prior. I remember seeing the cute daily life, studying, coffee shops, and stuff, which I did experience, and it was so aesthetic to me. I really loved it.

[00:09:08] Rokaya M.: But I didn’t expect the weather, how bad it could be, and how difficult it is to walk around with all the hills. The maps app they use there was so helpful and detailed. I think I prepared enough and knew how things worked well enough that I didn’t have much culture shock. Especially because I know a decent amount of Korean, so it was easier to get around. It did turn out how I imagined. What about you?

[00:09:55] Hodan M.: I didn’t really have a lot of expectations. Seoul is a very metropolitan city like London, so I expected transport to be similar and that it would be walkable. Socially, I assumed after class I’d be doing activities with my roommates or other friends.

[00:10:16] Melissa M.: Mm-hmm.

[00:10:17] Hodan M.: I’m trying to think of anything that didn’t go how I expected. I’m a stick-to-the-plan type of person, but I feel like I became more of a go-with-the-flow person that summer. I kind of let the wind take me wherever. If my friends wanted to do something last minute, I was like, “Okay, yeah, let’s do it.”

[00:10:41] Rokaya M.: And Hodan, since you visited China before, how did that experience shape what you expected in Korea?

[00:10:48] Hodan M.: In some ways, there are similarities between China and Korea, like good transportation and how homogenous it is, but there were a lot of differences too. For example, China has completely different social media apps and navigation apps. The first few days were hard because you can’t really use your bank card. They don’t use cash. I had to download Alipay and all of that. So in that sense, Korea felt a lot easier.

[00:11:24] Hodan M.: China was my first experience where it felt totally different from anything I had experienced before. Sweden didn’t feel that different. Egypt culturally didn’t feel that different to me either. But China did. And I think that helped prepare me for being in Korea, in terms of being open to a totally different culture. I wouldn’t say they’re the same, but it was a good step for exploring other parts of the world.

[00:12:06] Rokaya M.: Mm-hmm. Mostly because it was a homogenous society, the same as Korea?

[00:12:13] Hodan M.: I think so, yeah. And I became desensitized to stares because I got used to it in China. It wasn’t as bad in Korea, though, because in China people would actually take pictures of you or ask to take a picture with you. I was like, “I’m not Beyoncé, I’m still a normal person.” But I guess it was curiosity. Where I was staying wasn’t Shanghai or Beijing, it was just a regular city. I didn’t see many tourists. But yeah, it was a good experience.

[00:12:50] Hodan M.: Not totally similar to Korea, though. Also, I have a question for you. What parts of Seoul felt unexpectedly familiar, seeing as you’re from Idaho and Seoul is really different?

[00:13:02] Rokaya M.: Honestly, nothing really felt familiar in the city itself, besides the friends I hung out with, like you guys. Since we had talked before, it was comforting to hang out together and figure things out, like public transportation and restaurants.

[00:13:30] Rokaya M.: I guess the language felt familiar. I had Korean class and it was different from the classes I’ve taken at Boise State, but I still felt like, “Oh, I understand you. I can communicate.” And my classmates were mostly American, so the school part felt familiar. It worked the same as school and homework in the States. Would you agree with that?

[00:14:11] Hodan M.: Yeah. Something that made me feel less like I was in a totally different place was that I had so many friends from all over the world who spoke English, or who were from the UK or the US and felt culturally similar to me.

[00:14:34] Hodan M.: I was saying to my sisters the other day that something about Korea felt weird because I didn’t feel like I was in a completely different continent with a completely different culture. But I realized it’s because I was around so many people who were similar to me and spoke the same language. At the same time, I still got the best of both worlds: experiencing Korean culture and the cultures of everyone else I met.

[00:14:55] Rokaya M.: And the study abroad program made it hard not to make international friends. I was in Taekwondo and made friends there, and we hung out outside of class. There were also events you could sign up for, like cooking classes, K-pop dance classes, and stuff. It’s really difficult not to make foreigner friends when you’re in Seoul, especially because it’s such a big city.

[00:15:28] Hodan M.: Even outside of classes and society things, just going to the Emart downstairs after class, where everyone went to get a snack, I met a lot of people and made friends there too. Student areas were a great place to make friends. It was kind of hard not to make friends. Everyone was super friendly. If you didn’t go up to someone, they’d probably come up to you anyway.

[00:15:58] Rokaya M.: Since you live in London, what stood out to you most about Korean culture? What felt different compared to London?

[00:16:09] Hodan M.: Something I had to come to terms with was public transportation. When I’d be going into the subway or toward the bus station, a lot of people would walk with their heads down, glued to their phones, not watching where they were going. They’d bump into you or bump shoulders and not apologize. They wouldn’t say “excuse me.” They’d just barge past you.

[00:16:40] Hodan M.: For the first week I was like, “Oh my God.” In London, people can be mean, but they still have the decency to say “excuse me.” When I didn’t even get an “excuse me” or “sorry,” I was like, “Whoa, what’s that about?” Because from the research I did, I thought respect was a big part of Korean culture. I wondered if that wasn’t considered disrespectful.

[00:17:10] Rokaya M.: People show respect differently. On public transportation, they’re shoving and nobody says “excuse me,” but when you’re actually interacting with people, they’re very respectful and formal. You basically bow to everybody. If it’s someone you don’t know, like you walk into a convenience store and say hello, you bow and they bow too. When you say thank you, you bow.

[00:17:44] Rokaya M.: If you’re really close friends, that’s when it gets informal, but I don’t think we had local Korean friends we were close enough with to speak informally. So I was always using honorifics when talking to people, because they were strangers, like at restaurants or shopping.

[00:18:16] Rokaya M.: Shopping for clothes felt a little less formal because it was so busy in those big districts. They still use formalities, but there isn’t as much bowing. It feels closer to the subway experience in terms of how rushed it is.

[00:18:38] Hodan M.: Yeah.

[00:18:38] Rokaya M.: In the stores.

[00:18:40] Hodan M.: They greet you, but they’re doing their own thing, folding clothes and walking around. They notice you, but that’s about it.

[00:18:50] Rokaya M.: Right. I feel like it happens more in smaller shops. Even though I researched it, it took me a second not to feel weird bowing in the first week. Then I was like, “Oh, this is actually easy.” Just go with the flow. Say hi respectfully, say thank you respectfully. I really like it. It’s a sweet thing.

[00:19:20] Hodan M.: Yeah.

[00:19:20] Rokaya M.: Speaking of daily culture, what surprised you most about daily life, just being locals there?

[00:19:34] Hodan M.: It felt really natural. The fact that I was living alone in a completely different country didn’t feel weird at all. I went about my day as usual: hung out with friends, went to class. I kept waiting for it to feel like, “Whoa, what am I doing here?” But it never really did. Everything felt normal. I didn’t feel like I stuck out. I felt like I was supposed to be there in that moment. Did you feel the same?

[00:20:10] Rokaya M.: I agree. Before I went, I thought I would be exploring everywhere and doing something every single day. The first half week, before classes started, was really fun and it felt like that. Then we started classes, had assignments, and had to go to class. Sometimes at the end of the day I just wanted to go home, eat ramen, and watch a movie.

[00:20:44] Rokaya M.: It felt normal to me too. As time went on, I didn’t feel uncomfortable walking alone or doing things alone. Before I got there, I assumed I’d be with my friends the whole time. And I mostly was, which was good because it made me feel less lonely. But sometimes, after class or after Taekwondo, I’d walk around the city by myself.

[00:21:20] Rokaya M.: If we were hanging out and I was really tired, I’d go home alone. It felt safe enough to do that. Sometimes the buses weren’t in service, so I’d walk home and I wouldn’t feel unsafe at all. I actually felt calm and at peace. Walking home at night, seeing the city lights, felt like a “I made it” moment.

[00:21:59] Hodan M.: Building on what you said about doing things solo, I realized I felt more comfortable in Seoul than in London doing solo activities. I don’t know what it is about London that makes me feel awkward doing things alone. Maybe it was the fact that I knew no one in the city except my friends, which made me confident enough to do things by myself. There were certain things I wanted to do that my friends didn’t want to do, and I realized, “Wait, I can actually just do it myself.” Korea was super safe.

[00:22:31] Rokaya M.: Yeah, I agree. I definitely felt the same.

[00:22:34] Hodan M.: So what routines or small parts of everyday life made you feel comfortable there?

[00:22:40] Rokaya M.: I liked using the same public transportation every day. With the transit card, tapping onto the bus felt routine, and it made me feel like a local. During the first week I was stressed about how public transportation worked. I worried, “What if someone asks if I paid?” But it was really easy. If it was different every day, I would’ve felt overwhelmed. Having classes and living there, rather than being on vacation, made me feel comfortable.

[00:23:31] Hodan M.: The fact that me and you had a class together helped too. Everyone was at the same university on the same campus, but having the same class meant I had someone I already knew in the room. It made me feel less awkward on the first day, because I was nervous. And having someone to walk off campus with afterward made life easier.

[00:23:58] Hodan M.: That connects to your experience learning Korean and trying to use it with locals. I don’t know a single word of Korean, but you know a lot, and I kind of relied on you. Do you want to talk about that?

[00:24:19] Rokaya M.: Yeah. I’ve taken three Korean classes here, on top of teaching myself in high school. I hadn’t had that much practice speaking, but I felt like I had a decent foundation before going. I liked that sometimes I was the only one in the group who knew a good amount, so I could communicate at restaurants, read signs, or read ingredients.

[00:24:52] Rokaya M.: We eat halal because we’re Muslim, so we can’t have pork, and we also can’t have meat that isn’t halal, meaning it’s slaughtered in a certain way. A lot of ingredients are in Korean on most foods, so I enjoyed reading those for you guys.

[00:25:22] Hodan M.: Yeah.

[00:25:24] Rokaya M.: But sometimes it was difficult because I’m already bilingual and I’ve practiced Korean for years, so my accent can sound pretty close to a local. When I started speaking with the limited Korean I know, people would respond with advanced Korean really fast, and I’d be like, “Wait, I’m sorry, I only know a little bit.” That discouraged me at times.

[00:25:56] Rokaya M.: But other times I was like, “They think I’m a local. They probably think I’ve lived here for 10 years.” I’m kidding. We should talk about belonging and identity in Seoul, because we’re both hijabi Muslim women. How did you feel walking around Seoul as someone who looks like you?

[00:26:32] Hodan M.: Like I said earlier, I don’t stick out at all where I am. I’m basically an average person in London. So I was worried about that when I came. I did get stares sometimes, mostly from older people. But I like talking to strangers. If I notice someone interesting, I’ll say hi.

[00:27:00] Hodan M.: With older people, I’d smile or wave, or even say hi. We’d interact using a translation app because I don’t speak Korean. It would actually turn into really wholesome conversations. Sometimes after staring for a while, they’d say something nice or compliment me. It felt like they weren’t being malicious, they were just curious or friendly.

[00:27:27] Hodan M.: And walking around, I didn’t really feel like I stuck out. We were walking together, we’re both hijabis, and there were other hijabis too. If we stood out, at least we stood out together.

[00:27:39] Rokaya M.: Right. For me, where I’m from, I do stick out. And honestly, I felt like I stuck out less in Korea because there were so many foreigners. Seoul is really densely populated, and even though it’s homogenous, most foreigners who move there move to Seoul. I saw non-Koreans everywhere I went. Even when I was alone, I saw foreigners a lot. So I felt like I belonged more than I do here, which sounds weird because I’ve lived here so long.

[00:28:26] Hodan M.: So did you feel reverse culture shock when you went back to Idaho?

[00:28:31] Rokaya M.: Honestly, yes. I stayed home for at least a week after I came back. But when I started going out and going back to school, it felt weird. My college friends aren’t people of color. In my cohort, it’s such a small major. There are a couple people of color, but the people I’m close with, I’m the only foreigner.

[00:29:04] Rokaya M.: So I do stick out. Sometimes I’m like, “I miss Korea.” I didn’t stick out as much, and I had a diverse friend group. Did you feel reverse culture shock in any way?

[00:29:26] Hodan M.: No. I kind of went back to being more invisible, and I liked it. I felt less on edge because I wasn’t fully in control of everything on my own. There were so many people who looked like me. But I didn’t feel that different from how I felt in Seoul. I just felt like I blended in even more, because everyone is going their own way and no one cares what you do. I could wear a purple wig over my hijab and no one would bat an eye. So it didn’t feel that different.

[00:30:06] Rokaya M.: That’s good.

[00:30:07] Hodan M.: Yeah.

[00:30:08] Rokaya M.: And since we had one of our classes together, did you feel like our faith or skin tone drew attention to us at all?

[00:30:20] Hodan M.: Honestly, no. We were the only hijabis in our class, but there were people from so many different countries. We had people from Singapore, lots of people from the UK and the US, African American students, Indian and Chinese students, and even Korean students. It was such a wide range that I didn’t feel like I stuck out.

[00:30:51] Rokaya M.: Right.

[00:30:52] Hodan M.: It felt really comfortable. What about you?

[00:30:54] Rokaya M.: Yeah, I agree. I’m imagining sitting in our classroom and remembering everyone. Even the Americans weren’t all white. It was very diverse, and I loved it. I’ve never had a class that diverse, so it was a shock, but I felt comfortable. Even our professor was Korean.

[00:31:19] Hodan M.: Another question. Did you notice people reacting differently to you when you were alone versus when we were together?

[00:31:26] Rokaya M.: Yes. When we were together, we got complimented a lot. People would say really specific things, like, “You guys look like beautiful princesses.”

[00:31:38] Hodan M.: Yeah. The compliments were really specific, but everyone was really kind.

[00:31:41] Rokaya M.: When I was alone, I don’t think I paid much attention. I’m a shy person, so when I was walking around, I’d look straight ahead or at my phone. I don’t think I noticed reactions as much. I do remember being approached a couple of times, but never with bad intentions.

[00:32:10] Rokaya M.: People would ask, “Where are you from?” Or I’d get the “You’re so pretty” compliment. I even got approached by foreigners who thought I lived there full time and asked for recommendations or directions, and I was like, “Oh my gosh.”

[00:32:30] Rokaya M.: What about you?

[00:32:38] Hodan M.: When I was alone, I didn’t really care. I’m someone who’s focused on getting from A to B, and I had my headphones in most of the time, so I was speed walking everywhere. But toward my last two weeks, I started thinking, “Maybe I’m not blending as much as I thought.”

[00:33:06] Hodan M.: I’m a foreigner, and I’m not super tall, but I’m not short either. So I’m this tall-ish foreigner walking fast everywhere. I remember one day I was going to buy shoes. I was at the bus stop after speed walking there, and there was a group of really short elderly people staring at me. It was embarrassing, but also really funny. I was thinking, “How many other situations are like this?”

[00:33:37] Rokaya M.: And you mentioned before that you’d handle those moments by smiling back or saying hi. Do you think that worked most of the time, like they were staring out of curiosity?

[00:33:49] Hodan M.: A hundred percent. Every time I waved, they’d say hi, or laugh and wave back. I don’t think I was met with any hate or meanness. I was met with kindness. I don’t think I had a bad experience at all with the people who were staring.

[00:34:10] Hodan M.: So you obviously had a big group of friends. Were there any ways you made friends other than through our roommate?

[00:34:21] Rokaya M.: I feel like most of my friends came through you guys. Before we started studying abroad, I was moving houses, I was busy, and I had a competition I had to prepare for. So I didn’t really take part in the bigger group chats. I was like, “At least I have my roommates. We’ll make friends.”

[00:34:54] Rokaya M.: I’m so thankful that you guys had those friends, because I wouldn’t have met them if it wasn’t for you. Literally nobody knew me. I only knew you guys and a couple other girls. We made a couple friends in our international relations class, and I made a friend in my Korean class. We hung out a couple of times. I also made friends in Taekwondo, but I mainly hung out with our roommates and that one big friend group.

[00:35:34] Rokaya M.: Did living in a homogenous place like Korea change how you see your identity at all?

[00:35:49] Hodan M.: I never really second-guessed my identity, but living in Korea made me more aware of it. It gave me, not exactly pride, but kind of a sense of pride. Things like my skin color or the way I wear my headscarf, I’ve always seen as just me. But there, it was like, “Oh, this is me.” And even though it’s different, it’s still great.

[00:36:26] Hodan M.: I’ve never felt insecure about how I look, and I’m lucky, especially living in such a multicultural city. But meeting friends like you who grew up as a minority, and also being a minority in Seoul, changed my perspective, not negatively, but positively. It changed how I see myself.

[00:36:55] Hodan M.: It also affected how I see my home. In Seoul, I wasn’t homesick, but I compared parts of Seoul to London a lot, like transport, how things work, what’s sold in stores. I realized both cities are amazing but completely different, and it’s hard to compare them. So I stopped comparing and just enjoyed Seoul. Then when I got back to London, I enjoyed London.

[00:37:34] Rokaya M.: Mm-hmm.

[00:37:35] Hodan M.: But what about you? We discussed going back to Idaho, but did it change how you saw your identity?

[00:37:45] Rokaya M.: Yeah, I think it did, mainly because it was an area of growth for me. A lot of things that happened built my character. Living in a new place and doing regular chores in a new place, like dealing with trash. In Korea you separate trash into different bags and set it out at a certain time.

[00:38:16] Rokaya M.: And then dealing with food, and even the way I dressed. Over the summer, I feel like I was more in touch with my real identity. I went shopping so much, and you know this, I almost completely changed my style. But that’s how I’ve always wanted to dress, and that’s how I feel like I belong.

[00:38:50] Rokaya M.: It was also Korean style, and most Koreans dressed like that, so that made me feel like I belonged. I brought that style back to Idaho, and I felt weird. Like baggy jeans with a mini skirt over it. It’s so cute, but nobody dresses like that here.

[00:39:25] Hodan M.: Yeah.

[00:39:25] Rokaya M.: I feel like I keep saying “I belong,” but it was really true in Seoul. A lot of my identity over the years, like my interests in K-pop, K-dramas, and that cute aesthetic, made sense there. Being in Korea made me stick to it more. Coming back, I care less about what people think. I feel more mature too.

[00:40:15] Hodan M.: Mm.

[00:40:15] Rokaya M.: It was also my first time living with roommates, so I think that really changed me.

[00:40:26] Hodan M.: Yeah, I agree. Seeing you become more comfortable dressing how you really want to was refreshing. Seeing you get excited when we went shopping, you’d pick up one thing and then it would just take off from there. But I agree, seeing you feel more comfortable being yourself was really refreshing. It was the same for our other friends too. A lot of people felt comfortable sharing their true identity. Maybe it was the culture, maybe it felt like a fresh start, but I really liked seeing that.

[00:40:58] Rokaya M.: Yeah, I agree with the fresh start. I had never met you guys in person before. Almost everybody in Korea, I didn’t know. It was refreshing being somewhere new where nobody knows you.

[00:41:06] Rokaya M.: Was there any moment, by yourself or with friends, when you thought, “This is why I came here. This made it all worth it”?

[00:41:34] Hodan M.: I hope this doesn’t sound corny, but honestly, anytime we were hanging out as a group and doing something fun, I was like, “This is what life is about.” I needed that. I’m a sentimental friend, and time with my friends is really important to me. I like to cherish it.

[00:42:04] Hodan M.: I was also worried about not making friends. I’m not shy, but I worried I’d struggle to find people I clicked with. And in a foreign country, I couldn’t just call my friends from home to hang out. So the pressure felt on. But the friends I made, my roommates and the other friends, the time I spent with you guys was genuinely fun. I enjoyed all of it.

[00:42:34] Rokaya M.: Mm-hmm. Yeah, I agree. I also felt like, “This is what life is all about,” when we were hanging out. But I also had moments alone. I think I talked about this earlier, but the city at night.

[00:42:50] Hodan M.: Mm-hmm.

[00:42:51] Rokaya M.: I don’t know why, but something about seeing the city at night. Whether it was on the river, or do you remember halfway up the hill to our house, that little balcony where you could look over the city? After a long day, whether I was walking home alone or with you, I’d look at the skyline and just think, “Wow, I can’t believe I’m here. I’ve always wanted to be here.”

[00:43:23] Hodan M.: Yeah. Another memory I just remembered was our last day in Jeju. We went to that little sandwich shop, and there was a nice empty bench near the ocean. I wanted to sit there, so I put my headphones in, ate my sandwich, and watched the sea.

[00:43:45] Hodan M.: The weather was sunny. I had a really good latte, and I was like, “Wow, I can’t believe this is my life.” Traveling is something I love, and the sandwich was one of my favorites, and it was my favorite type of latte too. I was listening to my favorite song and thinking, “Wow, my life is so great right now.” I felt so grateful to experience it, and grateful to experience it with so many great people. That’s a memory I cherish.

[00:44:14] Rokaya M.: Mm-hmm.

[00:44:15] Hodan M.: So if you could talk to yourself before the trip started, what would you say?

[00:44:22] Rokaya M.: Ooh. I would definitely say, “You don’t need to pack all of those clothes.” I overpacked way too much.

[00:44:32] Rokaya M.: On a serious note, I’d say: do things even when you don’t feel like it. A lot of times I was too tired, or it was too hot, and I’d miss out on going somewhere or hanging out with a certain group of friends.

[00:44:58] Rokaya M.: Sometimes it would be late at night and we had class in the morning, and I’d be like, “No, I want to sleep.” Which is good, because you need sleep. But sometimes I wonder what would’ve happened if I went out anyway and hung out, even with class the next morning. Being more spontaneous and open to doing things.

[00:45:28] Rokaya M.: Comfort is definitely number one, and sometimes I really needed to go to my room, close the door, and have time to myself. I think you felt the same. But sometimes I’m like, “I wish I spent more time with my friends.” I wish one day I didn’t stay home while everyone hung out. But in the moment I probably needed it.

[00:45:50] Hodan M.: Hmm.

[00:45:51] Rokaya M.: What would you say to yourself?

[00:45:56] Hodan M.: Honestly, I wish I packed more, so I’d probably say, “Pack more clothes.” But the advice I’d give myself is something I learned during the trip anyway: take a chill pill. Enjoy life. Take what you get and see where the wind takes you. You’re here for a limited amount of time. Have fun. Just vibe.

[00:46:26] Hodan M.: I think the fact that I was alone without my family made me more hyperaware and more prone to worrying about mistakes. But I learned that as I went.

[00:46:48] Rokaya M.: Yeah. What advice would you give to other Muslim women or women of color thinking about studying abroad in Korea or East Asia in general?

[00:47:01] Hodan M.: Do your research. Research where you’re going to be staying, the area you’ll be in, and whether it’s foreigner-friendly. We were in Sinchon, a densely populated student area. We were also close to places like Hongdae, which is a big area where foreigners like to go.

[00:47:26] Hodan M.: Also be prepared in terms of what type of food you’re going to eat. If you want to eat halal, prepare a list of halal restaurants to go to. I’d also say, make friends before you go, if you can. But honestly, just enjoy it. Have fun. Don’t say no to a fun experience.

[00:47:47] Rokaya M.: I’d give the same advice. If you’re thinking about it, just do it. Studying abroad anywhere is an amazing experience. As a Muslim woman or a woman of color, try to make friends with fellow Muslim women and women of color before going, because you’ll probably relate to each other more and have similar experiences in that country.

[00:48:20] Rokaya M.: And restaurant research, for sure. I used TikTok a lot to find halal places and Muslim-friendly places, which really helped. I didn’t plan much specifically for being Muslim because I already knew it was a big city. Where I live, we have maybe three or four halal restaurants, but in Seoul there are so many Muslim-owned or halal restaurants, and places that offer halal options. I knew I wouldn’t go hungry.

[00:48:58] Rokaya M.: But definitely research beforehand to see how life is as a Muslim and as a woman of color in Seoul.

[00:49:28] Hodan M.: So if you had to describe our time in Seoul in one word, what would it be?

[00:49:35] Rokaya M.: I would describe it as memorable, for sure. What about you?

[00:49:40] Hodan M.: I agree. Memorable is a really good word. And I’d also say spontaneous. There were a lot of on-the-whim plans we made.

[00:49:45] Rokaya M.: Yeah, I think that’s the perfect note to end on.

[00:49:52] Hodan M.: Okay. Thank you so much for talking with me today. I’m not going to lie, this was a really nice conversation. It made me remember so many things I feel like I forgot, and it made me miss you a lot more than I thought I already did.

[00:50:05] Rokaya M.: Me too. I miss you so much.

[00:50:08] Hodan M.: No, genuinely, we need to go back there or meet up somewhere else.

[00:50:12] Rokaya M.: Yeah, we have to. We have to go back one day, hill and all. To everyone listening, thank you so much for joining us.

[00:50:23] Hodan M.: Thank you so much, everyone.

[00:50:26] Rokaya M.: Bye.

[00:50:27] Hodan M.: Bye.

[00:50:28] Melissa M.: Thank you for listening to THE Study Abroad Pod, a podcast brought to you by the University Studies Abroad Consortium. Please listen, subscribe, and review us on Buzzsprout or wherever you get your podcasts. You can follow USAC on all your favorite social media channels @studyabroadusac. And if you have an idea for a future episode or want to learn more about study abroad, you can email us at studyabroad@usac.edu.