Why so long?

I was asked this question today regarding my trip.  At first I was taken off guard and couldn't believe someone would question me about my first trip to the land of my birth. How long should it take for me to find out about the country where I was born, learn about the culture in it, learn the language, meet the people, see the country?  But, three months is a long time.  I'm guessing there may be others asking the same question.  Here are some of the reasons why I'm here (not in any particular order):
1.  I was born in Korea and I've never seen it until now.  I want to learn the language (at least some of it), learn about the culture, meet the people, see the country.  There is no way I could do this in a "normal" vacation amount of time.
2.  I came here as part of a program that is sponsored by Holt Adoption Agency and the Mapo-gu District Office.  These two organizations have generously provided a homestay for me in Seoul, assistance with my birth family search, access to my adoption information, etc., in exchange for teaching English.  Without participating in this program, I would not have been able to make this trip.
3.  This trip has been a dream for me all my life, and for it to be able to materialize has been so fantastic.  Words can't express how fortunate I feel that I am able to make this trip.
4.  Connecting with other adoptees may be one of the more priceless parts of my trip.  In the States, I have not met other adoptees, and in fact, have shied away from meeting or getting to know other Asians.  This similiar scenario has been part of our adoptee discussions, and it seems like I'm not the only one who felt like this.  Now, I can't wait to search out adoptees in the Northern California area and start a dialogue with them.  It's been great to talk about our life experiences, how we felt as children, how we did or did not feel accepted.  Although I had a very loving family upbringing,  I guess it's human nature to shy away from something that's different from yourself.  I think we (speaking collectively for other adoptees) all have felt exclusion at one time or another, because of the way we looked.  It's so cool to be here and just blend in...although, we actually stick out because we speak English, yet look Korean.
5.  This trip has given me the time to do a lot of thinking about my life.  I still know that I am fortunate to have been adopted.  I know my life would have been much harder had my birth mother chosen to keep me and try to raise me.  Single mothers in Korea are very discriminated again, and society as a whole in Korea is not accepting of people who don't have families.  In Korea, it's all about your family.  Because I was orphaned, had I not been adopted, society would have viewed me as an outcast.  I would not have been able to get into good schools, marry into a good family, get a good job.  My choices would have been few.  Although I knew most of this before I came to Korea, my trip has been more positive reinforcement of that knowledge.
6.  My dad told me a few days before I left California that he was excited that "I could see some of the things that he saw when he was here."  I was moved by that.  I came here with their blessings, with John's blessing, with my family's blessing.  It doesn't matter to me what anyone else might think...I'm super happy to be here!  This has been a trip of a lifetime.