We Made It: Our Book!!!

Thanks to Agus and Ozy ..and of course other friends..who had helped....preparing for the publication and the...laucnhing.

Yup..as many as 600 books were published ..not to mention the hundreds others back home in Indonesia.

I couldn't be more happier..to know that a lot of students participated in this.

Proud...and happy.

Thank you to all of our students at UT Korea for having made this endeavor ..possible and enjoyable.

We do hope that your stories ...are shared for generations to come.

Books Written by My Students: The Launching Event

I couldn't be more happier. Yup..March 6, 2016 marked the day when finally my personal journey of "rigorously" and "patiently" usurping my students' lives...paid off.  

^^ yup....'usurping'...'violating' in the positive sense....I did come into their lives...asking them to share their stories to be compiled in a book. 

As a member of INAKOS (International Association of Korean Studies in Indonesia), I've been ...lunatically ㅋㅋㅋ hahaha....going after my students, Indonesian migrant workers, student/workers in Korea......to share their stories ....to the public. 

Yeaah...we did it. 

Yup, the book titled "Sensasi Seru Jalan-Jalan di Korsel" was finally re-published in Korea. (After it was published in Jogja last year. It's republished after as many as 23 writers (who are mostly the students of Indonesia Open University in Korea or UT Korea) joined in.  

The event of the launching itself was made possible by the great cooperation of all of the students and tutors at UT Korea. 

We invited the students to the auditorium where we had the event...so as to give a chance for others to see what their peers have achieved. Right. Writing about one's experiences is no easy feat. It takes time and courage and determination...even just to write or retell one's stories into an essay. So the fact that as many as 14 students of UT Korea joined in....indeed overwhelmed me...(being said: I'm proud of them)

Just like last year's event. This year's publication was made possible by a partial support from the Senior Public Diplomacy Group, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Korea.

We managed to have a pose in front of the event venue....^^

Since we re-launched the book in Korea, of course...only those residing in Korea could attend this Launching Event. Those in Indonesia could not...unfortunately. But..surely enough..they knew about the event.

Thanks to Indonesian Embassy in Korea for their support...

Some of my students...proudly...showing off their books. Yup, their stories, life stories, traveling stories, occupational experiences...are all jotted down in this book.

Bravo, guys. We're proud of you.

Eulwangri Beach at Night

Being the closest sandy beach to Seoul is a plus. We took the airport train to Incheon airport for about 1 hour, and then from the 3rd floor, we took 302 or 306 bus and got off at Eulwangri beach.

It's dusk..and the sun just set a few minutes earlier when we arrived there.

Without further ado, we started having fun...

while enjoying the orange-red-glowing skies on the west horizon..

afar...a line up of eateries and the tallest hotel in the area were visible.

We kept on walking and walking..and feeling the breeze of air on the beach.

Eyra and Freya were of course ecstatic to be able to see the shore again...

It's a bit funny to think that last year..we also spent new year's eve at the Eastern sea of Korea, at Jeongdongjin beach.

..and then on the eve of Lunar New Year, we also spent the night, only this time...

we went to the western part of the peninsula...to embrace this beach.

The good thing was that...not many people..in fact..no other people were there..and that's the best part actually, for we could really enjoy the scenery..all to ourselves.^^

Of course, it's winter..and no one considered going to the beach in winter..

so, we just did the opposite....the anti mainstream..

and what we got? we got a whole beach to ourselves and a huge discount on the hotel.^^

HoteL RaY and ITS Vicinities

Ship-shaped hotel that stood among the others, especially with its unmistakable rendition of what a ship would like like when it's aglow.

The eateries were just around the corner, even the mart which opens 24 hours (supposedly).

Then..of course, the beach was just 3-minute walk from the hotel.

and..not to mention the cafe and other restaurants that dotted the neighborhood.

Yup, this was what we saw as we approached the front facade of the hotel.

It sure did look like a ship..stranded on the ground.

simply because it resembled my name....we ended up staying at this hotel...

and...got a huge discount..ㅋㅋㅋ