Mom, Part I

As you may know, my mom is visiting me for 9 days. Tonight is the end of day 6 and it makes me sad to think that our time together will be ending shortly. I'm sure many of you have experienced the fun yet exhausting task of being a host/entertainer to a visitor. You always have to be "on" and energetic.

BUT with my mom, she is so easy-going and mellow that no part of her visit has been a burden to me. We wake up leisurely, drink our cups of coffee, read some of our books, watch a couple movies and then, when we feel ready, we head out. There's no pressure to do all the touristy things (she has seen it all...or most), so we just walk around, talk, eat, talk some more and continue walking around.

[Walking along the Han River]

[Getting some street mandoo]


[Dessert time in Itaewon!]




[@ What the Book in Itaewon]

That's not to say we haven't been tourists though :) Over the weekend, we went to Busan and stayed at a very nice beachfront hotel. We napped to our hearts' content and went to the hotel's natural springs, hot tubs and pool for the rest of the afternoon. We ate like kings (or shall I say queens)--Korean BBQ, grilled fish, international cuisine buffet, etc. And then, on Saturday night, we headed back to Seoul.

[Our view during Friday brunch]

[Reading as we listened to the crashing waves and felt the nice cool breeze flow
into our oceanfront room at Paradise Hotel in Busan]


[Drying her hands so she can take a picture of me haha]

As much as I would've loved to drop all my commitments to play with my mom, that's just impossible. But instead of feeling bad for leaving my mom at home while I work, she has been more than happy to tag along and even help me out! Last Thursday, she came to the station with me and snapped photos during my entire segment (how embarrassing...kidding!) and on Sunday, while I was tutoring a kid, she was helping the kid's mom with her conversational English. How awesome is that?!

Today was a pretty action-packed day. We woke up, drank some coffee, ate some breakfast, watched True Grit and finally stepped out of the house around 11. We went to Myeong-dong, where she did a little souvenir shopping for the family and then we walked to Namdaemun Market, where we had some yummy kalguksu. After that, we headed to the iPark Electronics Mall, where my mom stepped into total mom-mode and bought me a much needed microwave. By the way, she bought one for Mark too. I'm telling you, she never ceases to amaze me :)

[First stop of the day: Myeong-dong. Mom's face: I'll smile for the camera but get me out of here]

[Kalguksu!]


[A woman delivering food at Namdaemun Market]


[As we wait for the subway...]




[Looking very stylish in Gangnam]




[A cafe with tons of delicious-looking pastries. I didn't get to try any. Oh well. Next time...]

Soon after, we headed to Gangnam, where we walked around Kyobo bookstore and purchased 3 of the 4 GQ Anniversary magazines that my aunt specifically requested (don't worry, Aunt Mary, we're still on the hunt for the 4th one!). We ended the night with some cheap yet delicious tofu soup and kimbap.

Now, I'm here, mom's snoring in the back (shhhh, don't tell her I said that!) and I'm hoping that the next couple days with her go by verrrryyy slowly :) Although unrealistic, that would be absolutely ideal! I probably won't have a chance to blog until after she leaves, so until then, ciao!