2010 was nothing short of pure EPIC and I can’t believe it flew by in such a flash. Seriously what an amazing year. I went awesome places, met awesome people, did awesome things, and spent the whole thing living in an amazing foreign country. A whole year away from home, a whole year in a new place, and I did it! That in itself is a great landmark for me, and add to that the fact that I loved every minute of it and I just feel so lucky and blessed in my life.

I’ve been perpetually mad at myself for not being better about this silly blog, but I’m done beating myself up over it and I’m done waiting for time to catch up on everything I’ve missed. I’d like to make it seem like less of a chore and more of an outlet, and maybe it’ll be easier to just post naturally. No promises on rates of posting, but keep checking back because I really am going to try. Happy 2011, may it be the best year yet.

Well I don’t believe in vacations that don’t involve some beach action, so of course this trip did too. Malaysia is seriously underrated as a tourist destination. It was home to the prettiest beaches I have ever seen– and yes, even trumped Thailand. We stayed on the Perhentian Islands off the northeast coast of mainland Malaysia, on Long Beach on the little island. The original plan was to maybe hop around a bit, but we loved it so much we just stayed put at Long Beach the entire time.

Beenish and I wandered around trying to find an open hostel (the one downfall of not planning ahead) and finally came across a little place that had an open bungalow. Turns out it wasn’t actually vacant, as it also served as home to a giant lizard (1-2 feet?) up in the corner, and bats in the rafter. Nothing like a little extra company to make you feel welcome. The next day another room opened up- with cement floors and ceilings, and our very own bathroom. Heaven!

We were able to do a lot of snorkeling, a lot of sunbathing, a bit of volleyballing and hiking, and plenty of taking it easy on the beach, both night and day. At night the entire beach transformed into a row of restaurants and night clubs, with small tables lit up with candles lining the beach front. We spent each night relaxing around these little tables, playing cards, talking, and dancing in the fresh air. One night it started pouring rain out of nowhere and everyone else ran for cover. The five of us were in our own little world and just stayed out in the downpour dancing and running around. All of the fancy Europeans probably thought we were crazy, but we had no care in the world. Just dancing in the rain on a beautiful beach in Malaysia. Sometimes I can’t even believe that this is my life.

Long Beach

finally brushed my hair after 10 days...

perfect snorkeling conditions

team pic

After a few days in the city, we headed north to the Teman Negara Rain Forest. It’s 130 million years old and known for being the oldest in the world. SO AWESOME. I was sure we were going to die on the terrifying bus ride there, but magically we survived and made it to the land of mountainous green. Getting to the town where we stayed involved 3 hours on a wooden boat, winding down a river through all of the magnificence. Seriously unreal.

We went hiking on a big loop that took us up to the top of a lookout point– and it truly felt like we could see for days. Nothing but big tall trees and rolling hills, not  a speck of development in site. On our last night, we decided to hike out a few kilometers and set up camp along a little river. Probably our best idea/worst idea ever. There’s really nothing that can compare to laying in a little tent surrounded by some of the best nature the earth has to offer and listening to all the wildlife go crazy. Really brings things back to the basics.

In the morning we swam in the river and got all cleaned up to continue our journey. Minus the bat attacks, giant GIANT spiders, and a terrible night’s sleep…. it was truly amazing.

every morning looks like this

thank you heat stroke for making everything really this blurry

chuck and i just hangin out

hiding from the bats in a baby sized tent

our tent setup

this little guy chomped on jono's foot the next morning... tarantula sized, i swear.

My main rule in Korea is that during every major vacation- so every winter and summer- I must travel to a faraway land. After some major debate between Indonesia, Malaysia, and The Philippines… Malaysia took the gold and we booked our tickets for a 14 day journey in tropical paradise.

Malaysia was kind of a random pick because none of us knew much about it, and even until the day we arrived we didn’t really know what we were in for. Luckily the four friends I went with share my same travel philosophy- don’t stress, don’t plan, and just go with the flow- which helped the whole trip go very smoothly. There’s nothing worse than traveling with some downer who’s like “BUT IT’S TUESDAY, WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE LEAVING THE ISLAND BY NOW.” Chilllll people, buy your tickets as you go, book your hostels as you go, be willing to switch your plans, and everything will work out. It’s like the code of travel.

Anyways, despite our not knowing what the heck we were doing, Malaysia turned out to be a MARVELOUS trip, probably one of the best of my life. Two weeks of roaming around a beautiful country and getting a taste of all the landscapes it had to offer. We spend a few days in Kuala Lumpur, a few days in the oldest rainforest in the world, and the whole 2nd week on a beautiful island. Pretty rough life, I’d say. So here is Part 1– THE CITY.

Little India Bazar

cityscape

China Town

Bantu Caves

twin towers KL

Inside a Hindu Temple

(Sept 18-19)

Ijak Island is a magical place off the western coast of Korea. We tried going there on a big group camping trip over the summer, but unfortunately it was too foggy, the ferry was cancelled, and we went to this beach instead:

(Incheon. Fun trip, but nasty water.)

September offered a lovely bonus week off, wherein we went to Thailand (that post coming soon) but the way our ticket fell, we had 2 extra days off before the trip. So when you have 2 extra days of vacation before a giant trip to Thailand, do you rest up? Do you take a break? Do you save your money? Of course not! You try for Ijakdo again, and succeed!

So we did, and we went to Ijakdo and it was empty and awesome and mountainous and pretty. Saturday we swam all day and then had a giant bonfire all night. Unfortunately it the next morning, but we just huddled in our tents and had an easy day. I’m pretty sure the tent is still bundled up wet, sandy, and I’m sure moldy, in the corner of my office. Oops.

whole beach to ourselves

picture crasher

those are our "tomorrow we leave for thailand" faces

The World Cup happened a long time ago..like almost 5 months ago type of long time. If I don’t dedicate a whole post to it though, I’ll feel like a complete Korea failure, since it was basically the hugest event of the year. So I’ll just do a quick recap so I don’t forget about it altogether, and to try to convey just how AWESOME it really was.

I love soccer and always have, but in America you’re kind of a minority if you favor soccer above other sports. The World Cup goes by kind of unnoticed, with some clips on TV every once in a while. So to be in a country that is OBSESSED with the World Cup was amazing. The World Cup was actually hosted here in 2002, and Koreans still cling to that event with pride. During every Korea game, Seoul was completely PACKED and all the major plazas transformed into giant viewing areas with billboard sized TVs hanging from skyscrapers. Every pub, bar, and restaurant showed every major game, and EVERYONE wore red to the games, and often the entire day. Koreans are known for their “togetherness” attitude– but WOW it was seriously phenomenal. It was awesome to be part of something so HUGE in the world, and to see its specific impact on Korea.

The World Cup was held in South Africa this year, and most of my friends here are South African, so that added an extra dynamic to everyone’s enthusiasm. I know I’m using all sorts of adjectives and adverbs to try to emphasize how great it was, but I don’t think there’s really any set of vocabulary that can really describe how huge and awesome it was. One of the games was on at 3am so I woke up to watch it, and every time they scored or something major happened, everybody in the apartment complex cheered and shouted at their TVs. Hundreds of people, right here in my apartment complex, at 3am, alllll watching the same game. Insane. I know it’s weird to compare sports to politics and economics… but seriously, THAT is how Korea pulled itself into an international powerhouse in only 60 years after a devastating and dividing war. Freaking epic.

We all felt very lucky to be here at the time (well except the South Africans who wished they were home,) and were sure to get into the spirit as much as possible. I wore red to school on the days of all the games, played soccer with my kids during lunch, went to every game (minus the 3am one) down in Seoul at City Hall, and became a true Reds fan. Probably the first team I’ve ever had an emotional investment in… because really I’m not a big sports team fanatic. But it was all worth it, and made for a really great time. Oh, and I’m famous and was on TV like 100 times that month.

DAE HAN MIN GUK!

Although not always well portrayed on Facebook and other sources, my life DOES consist of a little more than just play all the time. We’ve been trying to mix it up a little with touristy stuff and just regular life stuff (like joining the gym. woohoo.) Although it means I’ve still been just as busy during this 2nd half of the year switch, it feels like it’s been a bit more productive than the first. Also I have an amazing boyfriend always full of good ideas, so I’m sure that helps. Here’s a brief highlight of some summer adventures…

Lightshow Bridge: This bridge over the Han River has a water/light/music show that plays several times each evening. We ran into by accident, and I’m so glad we did!

The Seoul Zoo: It was kind of a bust for animal interaction… most of them just laid around looking extremely depressed and bored. The zoo had a nice atmosphere though and it was fun to walk around and enjoy some of the first days of summer.

Namsan Tower: This is known as a tourism must-see for Seoul, and now I can see why. Basically it’s just a giant tower on the top of a mountain in the middle of town (basically the only mountain…) that provides amazing views of the entire city. It was a bit foggy while we were there so the views weren’t the greatest, but it was still cool to see the layout of the city and watch the sunset.

War Memorial of Korea: This is basically a giant museum paying tribute to all the wars Korea has ever been a part of and the soldiers who fought them. It has a lot of historical information and artifacts about Korea from its inception all the way up to modern battles. While we were there they also had a special exhibit about the DMZ that focused on the Korean War in the 50s and the split between North and South Korea. There were a lot of details about that war that were covered that I  knew nothing about. Definitely a must-see museum for those trying to get a better understanding of Korean history.
Busan! In August Adam and I took a trip down to the south coast to Busan, the 2nd largest city in Korea. It’s famous for its crowded beaches, excellent weather, and weekend festivals. Although Adam’s from Korea, he’d never been there either so we decided to go check it out. I wasn’t a big fan of the crowded beaches part, but the weather really was great and there was a lot of cool stuff to see down there, including the largest aquarium in Asia (or so they say…)

Insadong: The main tourist street of Seoul where they sell ceramics, souvenirs, local foods, and all things “Korean.” It’s a fun street to walk around on and is full of adorable shops and fun stuff to buy. True to its artsy nature, we found an area that had different art projects you could work on yourself and take home with you. We decided to paint some mugs, which have made a lovely contribution to my obsession with dishware.

Looking back on all of it at once, I can truly say that it’s been an AMAZING summer and I wasn’t bored for even a second. I feel so lucky to be living here in Korea with the opportunity to see new places full of new adventures every single day.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is one of those holidays I can never completely make up my mind about.. My costumes are always last minute and thrown together, and overall I’m not a fan of scary things. But it is also a holiday that serves no other purpose than to give everyone an excuse to have fun, and I’m all about that, so I guess I’m all about Halloween.

Koreans don’t celebrate Halloween and most have no idea what it is, so I introduced it to my students with a series of games, crafts, and a lot lot of candy. That’s the main key anyways, right? Oh and I also got this dude to donate two singing man sized skeletons to put in my classroom all week. Definitely a huge hit, and the cause of plenty of little screams.

After a week of kid style festivities, Saturday rolled around and we were able to celebrate the adult version as well. Team Dirt (the running group we’re all apart of) ran a race in the morning so we all signed up for it and ran in costume. Unfortunately I woke up extremely sick (my timing on these things is really terrible) so despite the past few weeks of flawless training I couldn’t even run an entire 5k. Ridiculous. Luckily I wasn’t alone, and a few of us slowed down and served as supporters to the 10k’ers who were passing us in stride.

After the race, we all hung around for a big picnic/potluck event that somehow lasted the entire day. Previously I mentioned foreigners and our attraction for pictures being taken of us… Imagine 100 foreigners wandering around in ridiculous costumes on a random day that means nothing to Korea. People were definitely confused, that is for sure. But it didn’t stop them from throwing their kids at us for plenty of photo shoots.

PS: I was a killer bee. Forgive the lack of a striped shirt…apparently without it, the connection is simply too hard to make.

Oct 23/24

One of the fun things about living in a foreign country is that you gain instant celebrity-ness. People stare constantly, people always ask to take my picture (awkward) and people always throw their babies at me to hold. Sometimes those kids cry  (super awkward.) Overall it’s a pretty exciting gig, although occasionally I can understand how celebrities get a little tired of their fame. Sometimes it’s nice to just blend into a crowd and go unnoticed. My peacock-ness has its limits.

One thing I do NOT get tired of, however, is FREE STUFF. Especially free stuff granted me just because I’m a foreigner. Last weekend was a weekend full of those things, leading to a lovely weekend of cheap fun.

PART 1: After my first few months in Korea, I became obsessed with K-Pop, a special brand of music manufactured here in Korea that melts the heart of teenagers all over the world. My students are obsessed and can bust out any of the music video dances on command. Think NSync, Spice Girls, and Justin Beiber for Western world comparisons. However, unlike the way we’ve thrown boy bands out the window out west, Asia has caught on strongly to the phenomenon and everyone is in LOVE. I mean really, what’s better than perfectly chiseled bodies dancing in perfect sync together in cheezy choreography singing poppy love tunes? Not much. There was a giant concert at the Seoul Olympic Stadium on Saturday, bringing together over TEN major KPop groups (including Kara, Beast, 4minute, 비, 2AM) and we got to go for free. Plus RAIN was there… if you know nothing about him, please go look him up, and then go watch Ninja Assassins, an American movie he starred in earlier this year. You will die. Also watch the music video links I posted above. Trust me.

PART 2: A few weeks ago, we saw an invite on Facebook stating that there were some free Formula One tickets available to foreigners. Surprisingly, I’m weirdly fascinated by Formula One and have really been wanting to go to a live race. My friend Andre in Utah conned me into watching a race on TV at 3am one time, and then I was hooked. Unlikely story.

This is the first year for the Grand Prix in Korea, so apparently they wanted to build up some hype by having a lot of foreigners in the audience. However, tickets for Formula One range anywhere from $200-$1000+ per ticket, so it seemed a little too good to be true. We decided it’d be worth the risk since the tickets are worth so much and we wanted to go so badly, so we took the 5 hour bus ride down to Mokpo earlyyyy Sunday morning to test our luck. Sure enough, it was a real deal and we were granted midlevel seats valued at almost $500!!!

Sadly it rained all day, we were cold and wet, and they had to significantly delay the race. so due to our bus schedule we had to leave before the end. But it was a fun day and we got to see some awesome cars drive amazingly fast.. for FREEEEE.

Today I
put real energy into each of my classes
planned Thailand logistics
made hummus from scratch
tackled the laundry
walked the river trail
sorted a summer’s worth of recycling
dishes, tidying, regular maintenance
ground up fresh coffee for the morning
and, am finally blogging

Last weekend I
single handedly took out 5 boys in poker
made gourmet french toast for a very deserving boy
wandered seoul, and survived a could’ve-been-awkward dinner
munched Korean staple foods in great company
adventured to the DMZ, and lived to tell
gained inspiration for my future life as a mega-runner

Tomorrow I will
watch my students run and play all day
enjoy a full day of real Korean culture
pack for a weekend out on the islands
appreciate another day in my lucky life

Summer came and went in a whirl, and I’m still picking up the peices. We’re off to Thailand next week for Round 2 (wait 2 times in 9 months? my life is a dream.) which will signify the final chapter of summer adventures. By then, I think I’ll be ready for an orange autumn backdrop, as long as it means the humidity and monsoons will end. Anything but more of that, please.

Today was nearly perfect in productivity standards, and I couldn’t let it go by unremembered. These types of things keep me motivated on the days I just want to come home and drop into my bed. The rest of 2010 needs to feel this good.