My month-long journey to South Korea concluded May 20. The Rotary Foundation, which sponsored this group study exchange trip, promised it would be life-changing, and it fell nothing short of being just that.

There would not be enough pages in this newspaper for me to disclose all of the highs and lows we encountered on our journey; nor would there be enough room for me to explain how much I learned from my experiences on this trip.

However, I would like to take this opportunity to disclose some of the highlights of my trip regarding the geography, food and schools. I will address the remaining highlights of my trip in a column next week.

When we arrived in Korea April 20, I realized how similar South Korea's geography is to East Tennessee. The tiny peninsula has breathtaking mountains that outline much of the country. Having arrived in April, the flowers were in full bloom, and never before this trip have I seen such beautiful azaleas.

My team, consisting of Melissa Godfrey of Wartrace, Mary Little of McMinnville, Tracy Strange of Church Hill and Ron Lawrence of Knoxville, toured many areas of South Korea. We spent the majority of our time in Dae Jeon City (the country's fourth largest city), however, we did have opportunities to see other bustling cities such as Buson and Seoul.

Whatever your preconceived notions about Korean food may be, make no mistake; Korean food is nothing like Chinese or Japanese food! It is a style all its own, with the scent of the food perhaps being harder to get used to than its taste.

Anyone who knows anything about Korea knows about kimchi. If you don't know about kimchi, all you need to know is that Koreans eat, breathe and love this food that is so foreign to Americans. While at the beginning of our trip I tried just about anything offered to me by the Koreans -- including a bug while hiking in the mountains --

I soon learned that I could no longer say yes to kimchi. My taste buds just couldn't bare the taste of fermented cabbage any longer.

Another staple for Koreans is ginseng. I will never forget our trip into Geumsan, the ginseng capital of Korea, where we toured a ginseng factory, market and museum. By the end of the day we had tried ginseng tea, ginseng candy, ginseng shakes, raw ginseng, fried ginseng, and the list goes on. Not only is ginseng a very important part of their diets (they believe ginseng is a cure to all maladies), it is also a driving force in their economy.

While I wasn't a fan of kimchi, ginseng or octopus, not all Korean food is hard to swallow. Their diet is extremely healthy and it's no wonder Koreans are such trim people. They don't consume much cheese, bread or dessert. Fruits and vegetables were included in just about every Korean-style meal, and I had the pleasure of eating some of the best fruit, especially the strawberries, I have ever tasted while in Korea.

I also enjoyed their soups, bulgogi (beef), pancake (similar to what we'd call an omelet), porridge, and a dish called bibibop, which is a combination of vegetables, beef, rice, eggs, herbs and hot sauce.

If I had to choose one thing about the Korean culture that amazed me the most, it would be the schools. Korean schools are very demanding, especially for high school students who plan to attend university. These students attend school from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. six days a week.

Koreans have such a strong desire to get ahead in the world, and instilling discipline in their children early on is one way they've achieved this goal. Korea is currently ranked number 11 in the world economy -- Samsung, LG and Hyundai are exported from Korea -- and their desire to continue climbing the ladder seems unstoppable.

English is a subject for all Korean students, just like math or science; therefore, many Koreans, especially the younger generations, can read and write in English. Whether they can speak the language depends on how much they practice their skills upon graduation.

Today, with English being one of the most important considerations for employers, college students are very eager to practice their English skills. For this reason, we were lucky to have student translators, hired by various Rotary clubs, with us almost every day.

Many high school and/or university students, whose parents can afford sending them abroad, also spend semesters if not years in the United States or Canada honing their English skills. We were told many times by our Korean friends that it's the graduates who speak the best English who find the best jobs.

Some may feel the Korean school system is too rigid, leaving little time for family, friends and fun. While this may be true, one thing can't be argued: Students are extremely hardworking, dedicated and respectful to their elders. I found the school system to be, put simply, unforgettable.

Please stay tuned next week for part 2 of 2 on highlights of my GSE trip to Korea, where I write about society, history and traditions.

--Sadie Fowler is a Times-Gazette staff writer focusing on lifestyles and human interest stories. She may be reached at sfowler@t-g.com.