Goodbye Korea Series: Busan English Library

I don't know why it's taken me 10 months to post these pictures, but at least I'm posting them. Towards the end of my time in Korea, I have to admit that I was frustrated. Homesickness really got to me and I had to work with a really inconsiderate person. Due to this, I left Korea happily. Now, ten months out, I really miss it, especially the library. Sometimes, we get so caught up in how we're feeling at the moment.  Working at the library was really one of the best jobs I've ever had and I truly miss every single person there.

For my goodbye dinner, they took me to Korean BBQ, since it's my favorite. Afterward, we went to noreabang and sang to our hearts content. It was a great evening spent with my favorite co-workers.  I even received a few gifts, including shoes for my future baby! In the two years I worked at the library, I made so many good memories, too many to name. I'm so thankful for having the opportunity to work at the Busan English Library and it will always be a cherished time in my life!

Goodbye Korea Series | Gloria and Seulhee Unnie

One of the things I miss the most about Korea are our friends. We met some amazing and wonderful people while we lived in Busan. I never thought that I would meet people that would become life long friends. Two people I miss the most are my unnies (Korean for older sister), Seulhee and Gloria. I met them through Markus, when they all worked on the Magic English Bus together. I really think they were the best thing to come out of that experience. When I met them, we instantly clicked and I knew I found my true unnies.

We would meet once a month, usually on Wednesdays, for dinner and drinks. I was always excited, because we would stay out really late eating delicious food, drinking too much soju and talking about life. They were more than just friends, they became like family. They knew everything about us and we knew all about them. We never ran out of things to talk about and they always had great advice. Sometimes, I wish that we could go back to our Wednesday night dinners. I truly cherished the time that we had with them and I'm anxiously waiting for the day that we can meet again!

Oh Korea Quote #3

Despite the fact that I don't live in Korea anymore, I still have heaps of material for my "Oh Korea" series. I took a little break, but now they're back!

I really miss hearing all the random things that Korean people said. It was definitely a highlight of my life in Busan. For the third installment of "Oh Korea", I chose a really strange one. I've had loads of weird conversations, but this one was really out there. I was talking with a male coworker and I we were talking about health and sickness. Basically the conversation went like this:

Me: I get sick really easily.
Him: Oh really? You didn't drink mother's milk?
Me: ..... I'm pretty sure I did.
Him: Until when?
Me: I don't know, until I was 1?
Him: I drank mother's milk till I was 13. Plus I really like... * he put his hands in front of his chest.*
Me: Oh.....

At first I thought he was joking, but after a few more minutes of conversation I realized he wasn't. He was dead serious. I don't even think it's possible for someone to drink breast milk until that age, but I could be dead wrong. I asked a few of my Korean friends if this could happen. They said that because he grew up in the countryside, anything was possible. Apparently things are really different in the country. Either way, I'll always remember when a grown man told me he drank mother's milk until he was a teenager. Oh Korea, how much I miss you. 

Eats with Jeff #11: Grand Finale

It's been a long time coming, but I finally edited the photos from our final "Eats with Jeff". I can't believe that this was six months ago and that we've been in America for six months. Anyway, on this last eats we finally met Jeff's beautiful girlfriend Allison. I was bummed that we didn't get to hang out sooner. It would've been nice to have her along for all our eating adventures. She's really sweet and a perfect match for Jeff.

For our final meal, we decided to go to a crab restaurant. In the two years that we lived in Korea, we never ate crab and it's one of my favorite foods. We spied this fancy crab restaurant in Seomyeon during one of our other outings. Jeff researched the place a bit to make sure it was good and fitting for our final eats. I have to admit that I don't remember much about the food, but I do remember that I liked it. I mean we ate everything on the table, so it had to be good right?! Unfortunately, Jeff told me recently that the restaurant closed. It's the sad fact that in Korea the restaurant business is a competitive business. Restaurants are always opening and closing regardless if they're good or not.

After dinner, we went to our favorite coffee shop, Tokyoloose. It was great seeing Jeff and Allison interact. She's really funny and full of aegyo or cuteness, which I love. In the short time that we were spent together, I could tell she was bringing the best out in Jeff.

I really miss these outings with Jeff. It's been a bit hard being back home. We're starting over in a new city and it's easy to reminisce about the good times in Korea. I wish that we could've spent more time together. Jeff is a great friend and I'm thankful for the short time we had together. I'm looking forward to the next time we meet and we can have another "Eats with Jeff"!

A Little Lost...

Since we've come back to America, I haven't been myself. It's like I lost myself somewhere along the way. The two years I spent in Korea were two of the best years of my life. Now that the dust has settled, the reality has finally hit me. Those years were a brief interlude but now I have to face the rest of my life. It's time to stop wandering and to become a real adult. The thought is scary, but it's something that every one of us has to face. It's really started to hit me that that part of my life is over. I think I've been in denial and I've been so overwhelmed. Today, it finally dawned on me. I'll never live in Korea again. That time of my life was beautiful, challenging and amazing but I can never go back.

In the past five months, I've gone through more changes than most people will go through in their entire lives. I've had a lot of ups and downs. I've stopped writing and taking photos. I stopped reading. It's like the happiness and joy I always had disappeared. I became a sad shell of myself. When I realized this, I was terrified. I didn't want to go from being someone who could go on adventures and live life to the fullest, to someone who went to sleep at 9pm because I couldn't deal with the reality of the day. I felt really bad for Markus because he had to deal with a depressed and emotional wife.

Dear readers, that person no longer exists. I made a resolution today. I will never be anything but myself. I will continue to write and blog. I lost that zest for life. I've always been a dreamer and that will never change. I can't be something that I'm not. I can only move forward and I'm really excited for what the future will bring. I don't know what it is, but that's always my favorite part, the unknown.

Creepy Camping Photos | Gyeongju, South Korea

Previously, I posted about our disastrous camping trip. It was quite the adventure, but an experience I will always cherish. So many crazy things happened, but I do think it was worth it. If you read about it, then you know how unprepared we were. While we were setting up the tents, we realized that we didn't have a light source. I guess we assumed we could sit by the campfire the whole time. 

When we went to the mart we were able to buy two cheap little LED lights. We spent the rest of the evening eating Korean BBQ and playing cards. Before we went to sleep, we took a few creepy photos. I think they look like pretty cool and I wish we had time to take more. At least I have these and I can always remember that unforgettable trip!

Goodbye Korea Series | Annie and the Boys

It's been a while since I've been able to post about Korea. I feel like that was such a distant time in my life. It's unbelievable but I still have a lot to post about Korea. Before we left, one of my adult students, Annie, wanted to take us out to dinner with her husband, Woo. I've met with her before but it's always just her, but this time we were able to meet with the whole family!

She took us to this amazing buffet that overlooked Gwangan Bridge. It was inside a really classy hotel and when we walked in, I was so impressed. I couldn't believe the views and the quality of food. My mouth is just watering thinking about it.

In my first year of teaching at the library, I didn't even know what two of my favorite students were her sons. When I finally found out, I realized that it all made sense. Her sons, Rex and Caley, had the best manners and really studious. I always told her that her sons were amazing and that I hope that one day my kids are just like them!  I was so happy that we were able to meet with the whole family one last time before we left Korea.

Adventures in Camping | Part 2

Last week, I posted about our first camping experience. It was definitley a whirlwind and it only gets better. I can't wait to share the rest of the story with all of you! In case you missed my Korean camping misadventure, you can read part one here.

Last I left you, we finished setting up camp and realized that we didn't have any food. Before setting up our tents, we drove from Busan to Pohang and from there to Gyeong-ju. Basically, we spent most of the day in the car and were pretty exhausted. Despite our feelings, we needed to fill our empty stomachs, so we all jumped in the car and searched for a place that would satisfy all our shopping needs.

We had many issues on this trip as I stated before. Our main problem was our location. We were far into the countryside and we missed our chance to go to a mart. On the way to Gyeong-ju, Gwang-jin missed the exit for Costco and instead of turning around, he decided to keep going. After driving for another 45 minutes we finally found a Mega Mart in Eonyang and we were able to get all the food we needed. We happily stocked up on all the essentials and headed back to Gyeong-ju..

Once we finally made it back to the campsite, we realized that we didn't have a table, seats or even a way to cook the food. By this point, I was beyond frustrated and just went with it. Thankfully, they found an old table and rented a grill. We didn't have any seats so we just found big rocks and sat on them. The boys also realized that they didn't have any way to start the fire. A nice Korean dad at the tent next to us came over and started the fire for us. I think he took one look at our "beggar" style camping and decided to help. I'm pretty sure we wouldn't have been able to eat if it wasn't for him.

Even though we all had a long frustrating day, the minute we started cooking, all our worries disappeared. We were all a bit annoyed with Junnie, but we know he meant well. He kept saying that he wanted to give Markus and I an unforgettable experience. How could I be mad at someone so sweet and sincere? We spent the rest of the evening stuffing our faces full of delicious barbecued meats and playing games. It was actually a fun night and it was like the stressful day didn't even happen. Around 11pm it started raining, so we all went inside our tents. We played a few more games and then around 1am we called it a night.

I would like to say that we slept through the night and woke up the next morning and made breakfast.  You would think that after all the stress we already went through that the camping gods were done toying us, but you would be wrong. Oh so very wrong.  It rained through the night and at 3am Markus and I were startled awake by something cold and wet. We sat up and realized that our whole tent was flooded with water. We woke up the boys and they told us to go sleep in the car. I slept for about 30 minutes but then woke up to metal hitting metal. When I looked outside, the boys had taken down both tents. They decided that we would either find a motel or go sleep at Junnie's grandmother's house in Pohang. Markus and I didn't want to stay at his grandmother's house so we decided on a motel. Although, we still had to go to Pohang to drop off the tents. After dropping them off, the boys again decided that we would skip the motel and drive the extra hour and half to Busan. At this point, all I could think about was my warm and dry bed. So, I readily agreed. When they finally dropped us off at our apartment, I looked at the clock and realized that it was 6am. We didn't even camp for 24 hours. We were out for only 22 hours! We waved goodbye to our friends and sought solace in our warm beds.

So this concludes, my first camping adventure. I know it was a crazy and unbelievable experience. Just writing about it, brought it all back. It's funny though. When I think back on it, I don't remember how annoyed or frustrated I was. I remember how much fun I had. I remember all our inside jokes and getting to know one another. It's one of those stories that I'll tell my kids when I tell them about my time in Korea. It'll be the time that mom and dad went camping in Korea and had the time of their lives.