Toei Kyoto Studio Park | Kyoto, Japan | 3 of 4

Warning, the next two installments of the Toei Kyoto Studio Park are going to be super geeky. If you are uninterested, take a moment to peruse my other offerings from our Japan trip. Maybe a glance at the stunning Arashiyama Bamboo Groves or the magnificent Fushimi Inari Shrine? If you are a super geek like Markus and I, get ready to fulfill your otaku dreams with some Super Sentai.

If you were anything like us as kids, you devoted some of your television time to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. I have to admit that I was clueless to it's original Japanese counterpart, but not Markus. He knew all about the original predecessors. As a kid from the early 80s, he spent afternoons watching Spectreman, Ultraman and Godzilla. That's why spent an obscene amount of time in this part of the theme park. I didn't mind though, anything to make the boy happy!

Godzilla & Toho Studios | Tokyo, Japan

If there was one thing on this earth that Markus loves as much as me, it would be Godzilla. This kid is a fan of all things kaiju. I think it stems from his childhood and watching anything involving the Japanese monsters. I'm not joking. When he found out that Toho Studios was breaking Godzilla's ten year hibernation, he was ecstatic. All he talks about is this new Godzilla movie, it's quite funny. He owns almost every Godzilla movie and is constantly searching for the ones he's missing. The other night I walked into the bedroom and he was watching Gamera, the other famous Japanese kaiju. He even loves Ultraman, which has heaps and heaps of giant monsters. Personally, I think this obsession is adorable and unique. When we decided to travel to Japan, it was really his decision. The UK was my dream trip and Japan was his. In order to really make this an unforgettable trip, we had to trek to Toho Studios, the home of Godzilla.

Unfortunatley, Toho Studios does not offer tours. It totally stinks, but real diehard fans, still visit the exterior entrance.  Markus did all the research and figured out a way to get there. There isn't a direct way there and you have to walk through various suburban neighborhoods. To be honest, I really didn't want to go. It was out of the way and difficult to get there, but for Markus I relented. When we finally got to the exit after an hour, we walked for a bit and got lost a few times. I remember walking through this random gate and we finally found it. Toho is pretty brilliant, because the outside has a mini Godzilla and a huge wall homage to the Seven Samurai. It's enough to please any fan and Markus was more than pleased. I looked over at him as soon as the studio was in sight and he was more than happy. It's like he was a kid again. I've never seen him like that and it made all the trouble worth it.

Sherlocked | Valentine's Day Card 2014

Every year, Markus illustrates cards for me for every occasion and holiday. He always incorporates things that I love into the cards and this year was no different. If you know me, I'm a huge anglophile and I'm obsessed with Sherlock. We even visited 221b Baker Street when we were in London two years ago. I was so excited to recieve this card and love the little inside jokes. My favorite is "siblings". People always think that Markus and I are brother and sister. Super weird, but really amusing. Either way, this card is perfect and I love it!

Happy Valentine's day dear readers! I hope you have a lovely and wonderful day! 

Charlie Brown Cafe | Busan, South Korea

For Mark's birthday weekend, we spent an afternoon wandering around the PNU area and ended up at the Charlie Brown Cafe. We've been wanting to go for ages, but lets be real, Markus and I are hobbits that never leave the house. After finally making it to the cafe, we both felt a bit sheepish for not going sooner. I really loved this cafe. The atmosphere is great. There is so much space and all the rooms felt really sleek and clean. Charlie and his friends are decorated everywhere and it's pretty cute. I will admit that I didn't watch a lot of Charlie Brown growing up, but I still have a connection to it. Everyone knows Charlie Brown and it was pretty awesome being surrounded that reminds me of home.

Mark's Geeky Birthday | Busan, South Korea

FREE WILLY!

Previously, I posted about Mark's Posh Birthday Celebration. The following day, the festivities continued. Since the night before was pretty classy, he decided to fulfill all of his geeky inclinations on another day. Even though we did all the stuff that Markus likes, I still had a great day with him. Markus and I are creative types, so we always have something to work on. Most weekends, you'll find us holed up in our house like hobbits. We refuse to leave until our respective projects are finished. It was nice to be able to spend the whole day just messing around and relieving some of our stress!

I always wanted to be a mermaid.

Oh Korea.

Creepy Seal

Mr. Frowny

Where are you?

BFFs

Markus is a huge fan of anything to do with nature. He's always talking about frogs and lizards. It's really cute. Sometimes when we're walking, he'll stop and move caterpillars and bugs to the side, so no one steps on them. I can't believe that he would take the time to do stuff like that but he's so compassionate. It's one of the things I love most about him. When we first moved to Korea, he did some research and found the Busan Marine Natural History Museum. For his birthday weekend, we decided to make the trek to Dongnae and see all the delightful animals. It was a bit of a journey there, but we finally made it. I've been to heaps of natural history museums and I must say, this wasn't the best. The condition of all the exhibits were really bad. Everything seemed sort of cheap and in disrepair. They had a few live animals on the upper level but they all looked a bit sickly and sad. Even though it wasn't the best museum, we still made the most of our time there.

Dracula Burger

Someone is excited.

After we got our fill of taxidermy animals, we headed to the PNU area to get burgers. Markus is a HUGE fan of burgers. It's one of his favorite foods. He's always talking about how much he misses American burgers, so we are always on the lookout for good ones. I read online about Valance Burgers and we decided to give it a try. I'm happy to say that we weren't disappointed. They were really good. The meat was seasoned well and the bread was a bit sweet. I think because of that it balanced well with the meat and made for a delicious burger! 

Someone else is really excited.

As we were walking around the PNU area, I kept seeing people eating tall ice cream cones. I know that in Myeongdong there is a similar treat, but never heard of it in Busan. After walking for a bit, we finally came up to a long line. I read that the cones were only 2,000 won ($2) and immediately convinced Markus to buy one. I always wanted to get one in Seoul, but I knew that we wouldn't be going back, so I really happy to finally get the chance to try it!

Charlie Brown and Markus

Me and Lucy

After we shopped around PNU for a bit, we headed to the Charlie Brown Cafe. I'll be making a separate post about the cafe. It was that amazing! After a long day wandering Busan, the Charlie Brown Cafe was the perfect end to our day. I had so much fun with Markus and I realized that it doesn't matter what we're doing, I always have fun with my boy.

Mark's Posh Birthday

Birthday boy!

A week ago today, my beloved Markus celebrated his 33rd birthday. I really can't believe that he's in his 30s. The boy really does look young. Once someone said to him, "Mark, I think that you drank from the Fountain of Youth." I really think he worked some kind of hoodoo because he does not look 33. Since Markus entered his 30s, he's preferred to have low key celebrations. Now that I'm also approaching my 30s I do too. Last year, Markus didn't get to do anything he wanted for his birthday, so I was determined to make all of his birthday wishes come true this year.

Posh Nosh

Darth Vader Art

Seared Tuna Salad

Gorgonzola Pizza

Lychee Martini and Mojito

So excited

Our first stop for Mark's Posh Birthday was the amazing Posh Nosh. Usually, I do all the research and look for restaurants, but this time, Markus found the place. When we walked in, I was so impressed. I think of all the restaurants we've been to, this is by far the classiest. I loved Posh Nosh and everything about it was great. The decor was really modern and artsy. The food was absolutely delicious, a little pricey, but worth it. We ate the Gorgonzola Pizza and Seared Tuna Salad. We've had Gorgonzola Pizza before and it's been average. We were both worried it would be mediocre, but it wasn't at all. It was really good and it only proves that quality means everything. Even though it's a simple pizza, the flavors of the cheese were strong. My favorite part of the meal was the drinks. I ordered a Lychee Martini and Markus ordered a Mojito. I usually hate martini's but this one was so good. It was sweet and had the subtle taste of lychees. Honestly, I would go back to Posh Nosh, just for the drinks.

It's your birthday, ru ru ra ra ru....

SKULL JOKE!

After we ate dinner, I gave Markus his personalized birthday card. As I've said before, we try to give each other personalized presents. Nothing too big, just something that the other person will like. This year, I started watching One Piece, as you probably noticed. Markus loves two characters, Sogeking or Usopp and Brooke. Each character on One Piece has signature sayings or jokes. So for Sogeking and Brooke, I used them for his birthday card. I think he really enjoyed it and I was so excited to make it for him, especially because I also watch the show.

Shinsekai "New World" and the One Piece Bar

Ace, I see you hottie.

Zoro, Luffy, Chopper, Rayleigh

Someone is really happy.

Mugiwara's

Yakitori

Grilled Rice Balls

After our delicious dinner at Posh Nosh, we headed to Sirohige, a bar that we saw a few weeks ago. As we walked the streets of Seomyeon, Markus immediately saw a bar that was decorated with One Piece figurines. We made a mental note and decided to come back for his birthday. Sirohige is a Japanese yakitori-style pub. Yakitori is basically a Japanese style of food where everything is put on sticks and grilled. We ordered our food and drinks and checked out all the One Piece figurines. We even played a game of naming all the characters. I know it sounds really juvenile and doesn't fit in with the definition of posh, but it was really fun. I love that Markus and I can do simple things but manage to always have fun. I think that's why I love being married to him. It really is the little things.

Face Cake

We decided to save dessert for home.  Markus was surprised at school by four of his students. They gave him heaps of presents, a poster with letters and this personalized birthday cake of his face. When he told me they got him a cake, I thought it was just one from the store, not one of his face. I couldn't believe it. I only made him a card, but these girls completely upstaged me. Despite being completely outdone by four elementary girls, I was really happy for Markus. I think that he always gets overlooked for his birthday and this year, it was really special. I just hope that he knows how important he is to me and even to his students!