American football star Hines Ward and his Korean mother Kim Young-hee arrived in the country Monday evening for a ten-day visit.

He told reporters at Incheon International Airport that he is happy and pleased to come to South Korea, lauding the landscape he saw from the sky as beautiful.

As he headed for his hotel in Seoul, he waved at the hundreds of fans who came out for a glimpse of the Super Bowl star.

Ward will host a news conference Tuesday and will later meet President Roh Moo-hyun. The player will also receive honorary citizenship from the Seoul metropolitan government.

He will also meet mixed-race children and throw the first pitch in the opening game of the domestic baseball league.