Kieun (pronounced key-un) was born in Seoul but actually spent her younger days in a smaller town in the countryside. When she had just enough of the city life in college, she decided to go get a taste of Southern hospitality in the States. Being a global adventurer, she flew across the ocean to do a one year exchange program at Ferrum College in Virginia. As one of the very few Asians on campus, she was now part of the minority. That didn't stop her from being active. She was debating in the Model UN and making herself heard in the choir at the local church.

Returning to Seoul in 2002, it was not long before Kieun decided to go to Beijing for a short term Mandarin course at the Beijing Language University (or as most alumni know it as Yuyuan Xueyuan) Studying hard and partying hard, she visited places from the Great Wall to Sanlitun bar street. Although she loved the city, she had to go back home to finish her studies and continue on to graduate school at Yonsei University, majoring in International Cooperation.

In her first year of studies, Kieun decided to go into the corporate world to see what the big fuss was about. She worked in public relations for Bobbi Brown, a brand within the Estˇe Lauder Group. She found a natural comfort in working with cosmetics and the fashion industry. She then moved on to LG into one of their consumer product divisions. Deep down, she knew her calling was to return to Beijing. The thought of dumplings and lamb sticks danced in her head. Even after long hours of work, she prepared herself by taking part-time Mandarin courses. Finally, in the summer of 2004, Kieun moved to China and enrolled into Beijing University of Technology.

Now Kieun is working at M Moser Associates as a marketing manager. When she has time, she's looking forward to traveling within Greater China. She finds Beijing to be an amazing place attracting many interesting people from all walks of life. After joining the ORIENTED, she has grown to love this opportunity, allowing her to reach out to other newcomers. She is still in her honeymoon period, taking in the Beijing lifestyle.

Do you want to find her? It's easy. Look for a girl with a smiley face and two dimples at the ORIENTED table at the next happy hour.