Dancing, Dancing, Dancing

As someone who loves dancing, especially hip-hop, I essentially grew up watching lots and lots of dance videos online before being able to attend any studio classes myself. One of those studios in particular is a dance studio called 1Million, a world famous studio set in Seoul that’s brought dancers in from all over the world. When I found out I’d have the opportunity to study abroad in South Korea at Yonsei University, I knew immediately that I had to sign up for a class there!

Although I was immensely excited at the prospect of attending a 1Million class - I knew I was scared to go by myself! I’ve always found that I enjoy dancing more with friends. I was lucky enough to meet a friend during orientation who also wanted to go to classes at this studio! And after a few weeks went by, I’d decided to finally look at the schedule, reach out, and book a class there!

I ended up planning to go with two friends - One of which lives in the separate CIEE dorm, so we all agreed to meet at the front gates of Yonsei. It was about a 40 minute ride on the subway from Sinchon station, the closest subway to us, and we were running a few minutes behind, but it was ultimately not too far of a distance for such a fun experience.

After exiting our stop we definitely booked it out of there - class had already started by the time we arrived where we needed to! A near ten-minute sprint landed us at the entrance to a place I’d only ever really imagined I’d maybe get to go to - seeing it up close and in person was a surreal experience for me, who’d been a fan of 1Million choreographers since I was sixteen years old and dancing in high school. After getting over my initial awe, we hustled inside, showed our required QR codes for entry, and then entered the class! And lucky for us - they had just begun working on the choreography!

To say the dance was challenging would be an understatement - this is when I learned that a “learner” class at 1M does not at all equal “beginner.” The choreographer we worked with, Bale, was really energetic and full of life, so that definitely made the learning aspect more fun despite how tough it was. We made it through, got to film the choreography, and all left wanting to go back. It was a crazy good workout!

Since then, I’ve spent a great deal of time trying to integrate dance into my schedule whenever I can. I was able to participate in the Hype Boy choreography class that our CIEE staff set up for us earlier in the semester with THE choreograper of Hype Boy! That was a really fun day, and I felt confident in my ability to nail the steps despite how I messed up at the end. And I’ve tried to attend more hip-hop classes with friends!

The most unique dancing experience for me so far has been my participation with Yonsei Step, Yonsei University’s ballroom dance club! Made for beginners, it’s full of international and local stuents alike, and I’ve gotten to make many new friends, try styles of choreography I’d never learned before like Cha Cha and Rumba, and to participate in the culture of school organizations in South Korea.

Needless to say, I think I’ve succeeded in really making dance a part of my life here! I plan to absolutely keep this up until we have to leave come June.

Definitely take a class or two if you’re reading this and interested!