Adventure Day

23rd September 2019, by Wonjin K. (G12)

It is almost the end of the first quarter of 2019-20 school year, which means it is time for the students at KISJ to have adventure trips. Most students remained on Jeju Island for their trips, while some went to the mainland of Korea. On September 19th and 20th, seniors had their adventure trip to Udo, which is a small island on the right side of Jeju Island. It was a short and quick trip which did not include massive hours of transportation and tight schedule filled with lots of activities. Since it is seniors’ last adventure trip in high school officially, it must have been a memorable trip to our seniors.

Seniors’ adventure trip to Udo started from meeting at the cafeteria at 8:45 in the morning. Mr Baker and Mr Lehman did not forget to warn that students who arrive later than 8:45 will be joining Mr Baker to his morning jog at 6 am. After gathering in advisory groups as usual, seniors headed to Seongsan Pohang Passenger Terminal, which takes about an hour and 30 minutes by bus. At the terminal, seniors were able to head to Udo by ferry, then the scavenger hunt started right away. All seniors were to rent a bike to use it for the scavenger hunt, and some were able to rent an electric bicycle, or an e-bike, which is much more convenient than a normal bicycle. First day of seniors’ adventure trip was mostly about the scavenger hunt. After returning to the pension, seniors started playing soccer, volleyball, and frisbee in the yard, and some jumped into the ocean before the barbeque. People who went into the ocean came back after drying themselves, and that was when the barbeque started. It was around sunset, when it started to get darker and colder. Students gathered around tables in small groups while one or two people were cooking meat on each grill. Everyone was cooking for everyone else, even though we were sitting in small groups.

Second day of seniors’ adventure trip started with Mr Baker’s morning jog at 6 am. For the last meal of the trip, seniors visited a restaurant called Pung-won, which is famous for its halla-mountain fried rice, or volcano rice. After having lunch, students were given free time for the rest of the day until they were to leave Udo. Some decided to ride their bicycles so that they could look around the island, others walked around the pension, finding an ocean-view cafe, or going to CU to get snacks, and the others remained at the pension, playing volleyball, soccer, and frisbee while listening to music on a bluetooth speaker. The winner of the scavenger hunt was also announced on the second day, who earned the right to wear their advisory hoodies or t-shirts on every Monday in the second quarter. For the very first advisory competition, Outliers, which is Mr Lehman’s advisory, earned the first place.

Since Udo trip was only for two days, it must have felt quite short compared to other school trips which lasted for three days. Unlike any other school trips, Udo trip did not include tight and impossible schedule. Some students really liked the flexible schedule including only few activities while others wanted more activities. A number of students also wished that they could have stayed longer. Julia K.(G12) said how it was such a valuable opportunity to spend time with her friends even though riding a bicycle for the whole day when you are a beginner was exhausting. She also stated how it was such a shame that we only stayed for two days. Daniel N.(G12) also mentioned that being on a bike for the whole afternoon was challenging and got him sunburn, while also stating how he would like more engaging activities than having a scavenger hunt for the whole day. There were also more positive feedback, such as Juni P. (G12) saying that she loved riding the e-bike around the island and she is definitely coming back to Udo in the future.

There were various opinions about the adventure trip to Udo; to a small extent, the schedule during the trip, or roommate issues, to a large extent, the trip itself. Despite all the positive and negative feedback, it is undeniable that every single member of 12th graders was able to spend valuable time with their friends and build unforgettable memories while putting all the concerns and worries regarding colleges to the side. Students are looking forward to build valuable memories throughout the rest of the school year.