Kyoto International Manga Museum | Kyoto, Japan

As the wife of an amazing artist, it was a given that we would visit the Kyoto International Manga Museum. The museum consists of multiple rooms filled with shelves of manga. It was really exciting walking through and perusing manga through the ages. Unfortunately, we could not take photos of the actual museum and exhibits. Although, there was one area that we had free reign to take photos, the cafe. I may have gone a bit overboard, but the walls were covered in illustrations from visiting artists. It was incredible.

The highlight of the trip was when we had the resident artist sketch us in manga style. She was so cute and I couldn't resist taking a photo with her. I really loved the illustration and I think she perfectly captured Markus and I. Overall, the Kyoto International Manga Museum is a must-see for anyone who would enjoy an afternoon perusing manga from the past and the present.

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. 

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! 

You're My Favorite Destination | Valentine's Day 2014

Last year, I made Markus a super geeky Valentine's day card about time travel. For this year's card, I wracked my brain for something awesome. I started a few and they were awful. I was about to give up when a burst of inspiration hit me. As you know, Markus and I love to travel and have been to so many amazing places. I have to warn you, I'm about to get a bit mushy and cheesy. So if you cannot handle that sort of thing, just skip on ahead or admire my handiwork.

Markus and I have lived in South Korea. We explored the ruins of Angkor Wat in Cambodia. We walked the streets of Kyoto as a geisha and samurai. We've ridden emaciated horses to the top of Taal, an extinct volcano in the Philippines. We've walked the halls of Pemberley in England. We've traveled to so many places and experienced so many wonderful things together, but when it comes down to it, my favorite place in all the world is wherever Markus is. I know you're all cringing now, but it's the truth. We could be in the crappiest place, which has happened, but it's still worthwhile because Markus is with me. My life is so much better because of him and I can't wait to spend the rest of our years going on adventures and traveling to faraway lands.

Ganda-Ganda 3.0

Ganda-Ganda v1.0

I can't believe that I've been consistently blogging since 2010. Looking back, I wish that I started on Blogger and not Tumblr, but it's okay. Tumblr was good to me, it just didn't fit my needs. I've been on Blogger for a year and it's been a wonderful one at that. So much has happened in the past 12 months. We finished our final year in Korea, we traveled to Cambodia and Japan and we finally moved back to the States. It's been a crazy year, but I wouldn't have changed a thing. 

Markus and I have decided that we wouldn't move back to Florida and instead we'll start the next chapter of our lives in Chicago. I wanted to commemorate all the changes in my life. So, I decided to completely re-design Ganda-Ganda. When I created Ganda-Ganda 2.0 and launched it on Blogger, I always had the intention of re-designing, but life took over. It happens, but I'm surprised that I found the time to do this in the past few months. It only proves that if you put your mind to it, you can do anything!

For this new site design, I created all the graphics on my own. Everything was written, sketched and inked by me. By no means am I an artist, but my dear and talented hubby is and he helped me a great deal. He encouraged all of my ideas and steered me in all the right directions. I'm actually quite proud of what I produced and I hope you do too! I hope to keep this new design for quite some time and look forward to creating more personalized graphics for future posts. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the new layout!

Ganda-Ganda v2.0

Ganda-Ganda v2.0 buttons

Turning Japanese | Five Novels about Japan

I'm an avid reader and if I'm not too busy with creative projects or planning trips, I'm reading. Most of the time, reading is how I relax. I love the feeling of being able to forget all my stress and escape into another world. I noticed recently that most of the books I've been reading lately were somehow related to Japan. I think I subconsciously chose those books with the intention of hyping myself up for my trip. I wanted to share these books and a few other favorites. Even if you can't travel to Japan, you can still experience Japanese culture through these novels!

1. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
I feel a bit silly having this on the list because by now, everyone has at least heard of this book or film. This was probably one of the first books I read that was set in Japan. If you've never heard of the novel, it's the story of a young geisha in Kyoto during World War II. Before reading this book, I didn't know much about the world of the geisha. I knew it was very secretive and a very special. I always wondered what it was like to be a geisha. It's actually quite an interesting story and although it's not my favorite, it showed me a world that would've always been a mystery.

2. Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
This novel is set in Tokyo and is a coming of age story of a young Japanese man named Toru Watanabe. I really loved the story and read it in two days. I really liked the tone of Norwegian Wood. I tend to read a lot of coming of age novels and really enjoyed reading about Toru's troubles with two very different women in his life. It was interesting reading about what relationships are like in Japan. Even though we come from different cultures, one thing will always be the same, the endless search for love and a connection with another.

3. Battle Royale by Koushun Takami
I know it's very strange that I have such a violent book on a list about traveling to Japan, but I think it deserves to be noted. Back when I read Hunger Games, Markus told me that it was just a tamer version of Battle Royale. I didn't believe him, but after reading it, the similarities were uncanny. There is no doubt that this book is violent and to a certain degree, soul crushing. It doesn't waste any time and gets right into the battle. It's pretty intense and I would probably never read it again. Despite all of this, it's such a Japanese book. It has that sort of signature style that you would expect from a Japanese film or anime.

4. Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
Just a few weeks ago, I finished reading my second Murakami novel. As I stated before, I really enjoyed Norwegian Wood and Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is one of his most popular. When Markus asked me to describe this book to him, it was a bit hard. I basically said, "It's about this guy that loses his cat and his wife and he has a lot of weird dreams." It wasn't my favorite book by Murikami but it when it was good, it was good. While I was reading this book, I was also planning our Japan trip. As I continued to read, I started to feel excited because I knew that soon I would be visiting the places that he was describing.

5. A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
This is the latest book I've read and it's quite good. The concept is quite interesting and really unique. Ruth in British Columbia finds a diary on the beach and features the world of sixteen year old Nao from Tokyo. I enjoyed Nao's story more than Ruth's because Nao felt so real. I could imagine her pain and her struggles. I could empathize with her constant loneliness and bullying from her classmates. It's an amazing book because of this. Also, there is so much about Japanese pop-culture and history. It's a story that connects the past, the present and the future. I loved this book and was the the perfect book to read before a trip to Japan.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my top five Japanese novels. Were there any novels that I left out or ones that I should read? I love to hear from my readers, so please leave me a comment!