By the time the weekend rolls around, I get pretty restless. A combination of staying indoors because of the cold and the fact that the majority of the day is spent with myself and myself alone, by Friday, I'm itching to meet up with people and explore the city.

Last week, I met up with Jamie after not seeing her for a couple weeks, which is the longest we've been apart since being in Korea. She traveled to Thailand and Malaysia the week before and captured her entire experience with a toy film camera. By Wednesday, she was dying to get the photos developed, so we met up in Chungmuro, which is a neighborhood known for its camera stores. We dropped off her FIVE rolls of film and decided to walk around for a bit to kill some time. Right as we were passing the subway station, we ran into two friends who were planning on shooting around town (take photos). Instead, the four of us sat in a small cafe, catching up on life, reminiscing about college (we all went to the same school) and discussing what our plans are after this year.

[Jungle and Phil laughing at the ridiculous amount of cameras the four of us have put together]

[See?]

We then shopped at a toy camera store before going back to the film developer, where we played a self-created memory game in which we all wrote down as many of the 50 states we could remember (Phil came in first, me second, Jamie third and Jungle fourth, just in case you were wondering). Phil and I took it a step further by trying to memorize all the African countries, which we failed at miserably. Then, we headed to Myeong-dong for some delicious kalguksu, which is the perfect soup for terribly cold days.

[Toy cameras galore!]

On Friday, Jamie and I met up again to walk and talk around Hongdae, our favorite neighborhood. These pictures will illustrate exactly why we love Hongdae. Despite going there almost every weekend, we're constantly discovering new places. In fact, I don't think I've been to the same place twice because there are just that many cafes, restaurants and shops that make it impossible to ever get sick of Hongdae.

[Charlie Brown Cafe]

[My cappuccino]


[An adorable cosmetics store]


[Lomography, another toy camera shop]


[An impromptu visit to the optometrist]


[And new glasses!]


[Shortly after, we met up with Mark at a snowboarding competition
smack dab in the middle of Hongdae]


[Although Mark looks like he's freezing, it was one of the warmer nights in Seoul]


[We headed to Vinyl, where they serve drinks in bags!]


[And the perfect way to end the night? Eating BBQ of course!]

So a fun weekend all in all. This upcoming week will be filled with various festivities as it is the Chinese New Year. Jamie's back on the road in Japan, Mark has the week off after Tuesday and although I work on Tues. & Thurs., I'll be spending some quality time with family.

Hope you all had a restful weekend. Until next time, bisous xoxo

The joys (or mishaps) of miscommunication

Learning a new language isn't fun. But what's even more not fun is learning a language in a country where everyone expects and assumes you know the language. Although there's a Korean word for Korean-Americans (gyopos), it doesn't cause people to sympathize. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Saying you're a "gyopo" only gives older people a sense of utter responsibility to tell you how disappointed they are. Then, they shake their head as they walk away. Unless, of course, I'm being lectured by the taxi driver; then, I just get an earful until we've reached the destination. Sounds lovely, doesn't it? ;)

Now, I'm not complaining. I knew this was what I was getting myself into before I came here. (Sure, it can get annoying at times but it isn't so hard to just ignore). You see, since people assume I'm Korean and I'm tired of saying "I can't speak Korean very well," anything goes. Mark can tell you. Anytime I'm with him, everyone always directs their attention to me, not because I'm the better-looking one ;), but because I'm supposed to be his translator. This is how most situations go down:

_____________

Woman: Something, something, something

Me: (shakes head) Ah-nee-yo (which means "no")

Mark and I walk away, confused because we didn't get what we wanted

Mark: What did she say?

Me: I don't know...

Mark: (feeling defeated) Ok

5 minutes later...

Mark: You know, I think you should really learn Korean.
____________

I've been learning but it's a slow process so in the meantime, I've just decided to go with it. Rather than saying "Hangul-mal chal moh-teh-yo" every 5 minutes, which means "I can't speak Korean very well," I just take a risk and either say yes or no. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But each time is highly frustrating for Mark. Poor guy.

Another joy of miscommunication is the terrible English translations that people come up with here. I've posted this pic before, but just to remind you of how bad translations are, here it is again:

And if that wasn't bad enough, here's an ad for some fashion label gone terribly wrong:

Anyway, you get the picture. So because of these "translations," I can't always trust what I read out here. Take, for example, the day before yesterday when I was at the local grocery store E-Mart. I wanted to buy free range eggs, which was harder than I thought. They had every type of egg imaginable: garlic-fed chicken eggs, ginseng-fed chicken eggs, hormone-free eggs, etc. But what shocked me most was this:

I know people eat fertilized eggs, but I didn't know it was such a common thing...well, at least common enough to have shelves upon shelves of fertilized eggs with images of happy chicks smiling at you on the egg carton. Maybe I'm just being over sensitive since my family owns somewhere between 10 and 14 chickens (it seems to change every week). I admit, it had to take some getting used to to eat the eggs that I saw coming out of the hens' behinds, but the rich taste of fresh eggs was enough to get over that. But the thought of eating a fertilized egg is just beyond me.

Speaking of which, I went to a bake sale/fundraiser for Animal Rescue Korea at a cafe very far away because 1) my next piece is on Animal Rescue Korea and 2) one of the bloggers I follow was the main baker for the event. She's a vegan and she often recreates Korean dishes so that they're vegan. Anyway, the days leading up to the fundraiser, she'd post pictures of all the goodies she was baking for the fundraiser, which got me soooo excited (I'm not vegan or vegetarian but I am pretty health-conscious, so I tend to gravitate towards those types of food naturally). Although the event was a success in that I got in contact with the head of Animal Rescue, it was a total failure because all the goodies were gone by the time we got there :( womp womp.

Actually, I'm being dramatic. We ended up buying some brownies that the owner was saving for a special friend. But she felt so bad they ran out so quickly that she put them up for sale, which we snatched up right away! And they were delicious. I also got to meet the blogger in person in addition to many other nice people who love dogs just as much as I do :)

Most of the people who showed up were dog-lovers or vegans (or both!), so it was a very eclectic group of people that gathered at the cafe. Some of the conversations that took place had to do with different vegetables and herbs that can/cannot be found in Korea, the excitement of being a foster home for dogs in need, how vegan brownies come out so sticky despite not using butter, etc. One of the organizers of the event had a t-shirt of cute chickens, cows and pigs with the words "What do you eat again?"

I'd be lying if I told you I didn't feel a tinge of guilt when I was there. And although I've toyed with the idea of being a vegetarian more than once in my life, living a vegan life is beyond my understanding. It takes a level of commitment that I'd compare to religion. Every aspect of your life, including the people you spend time with, revolve around that decision.

Anyway, if any of you are vegetarians or vegans, tell me: why are you doing it? Is it hard? Do you find that your circle of friends are mostly vegetarians/vegans too?

Blog? What blog?

You caught me. Time got the best of me and I've contributed a lot less to this blog than I would have liked to admit.

Thankfully, "blog more" is at the top of my 2011 resolutions list, so that's exactly what I'll be doing! Rather than just depending on my phone's camera, I'll start carrying my Nikon around more often to capture the ever mysterious and never-sleeping Seoul.

I've also wanted to do some film photography for awhile now, but I never knew where to start. Recently though, my friend Jamie got a mini Diana, which is a toy camera with detachable lenses and a flash, and I think that's a great starting point. I don't want to invest in an SLR until I familiarize myself again with film photography.

Nor do I have an excuse for blogging less. Just recently, a few crucial changes at my job made my schedule a lot freer and made me a lot happier :) In short, I was able to convince my producer to move me to the international news segment twice a week rather than the Bigger Picture segment every night. Now, I have more time to explore and freelance while doing a segment I'm much more interested in. Granted, it's a pay cut since I'm working much less, but sometimes you gotta sacrifice a little to do what you love, right? :)

On another note, I have a lot of great things to look forward to in the near future. My mama is coming the first week of March, which I am soooooo excited about! I've been making a tentative list of all the things we're going to do, all the food we're going to eat and all the places we'll explore. The list is entirely too long for the 8 days she'll be here, but I get so excited when I find a new place that I have to put it on the "list." If I can't show my mom, I'm sure I'll be able to share it with another visitor!

Then, in April, I'm going back to the States for 2 weeks to go to Coachella, hang out with friends and spend time with my family, whom I miss oh-so-much! I'v been dreaming of the beautiful weather and fun times ever since I booked my flights last week. So the countdown begins!

Anyway, because I put my goal to blog more on here, I hope you can help me stay accountable. Please feel free to leave a comment, question or concern and I'll be sure to address it. Plus, it's nice to get a note every once in awhile...it reminds me that this isn't just a vain attempt to write about my experiences ;)

I miss all of you terribly. I hope you're enjoying the beautiful weather and if the weather isn't so beautiful (ahem, East Coasters), know that I feel your pain.

Until next time, bisous xoxo

Resolution # 6

Do you see what #6 says? It says, "Cook Korean food 3x a week." Do you know how many times I've done that since I created my NY resolutions, which was a week ago? Zero.

And here's why. It's not because I'm lazy or because I'm to afraid to cook. It's just the food is so cheap and so good here. It doesn't make sense to lug a bunch of groceries home in freezing cold weather when I can just go here:

Each of those plates, which is filled with pot stickers or steamed buns, is anywhere from $1-2. I know, big-spender right? I mean, seriously people, for how easy it is to just go here every meal of the day, I don't know if I'll ever cook again. And I know for a fact I won't be successful at fulfilling resolution #6. Oh well, there's 14 other ones I need to work at, so I guess it's forgivable ;)

Baby, It's Cold Outside.

I can't remember how many times I've already said this in relation to Korea's weather, but this is my first REAL winter. And with that comes the winter blues. When I lived in sunny California (where it is now 80 degrees!), I'd hear about people getting depressed at how cold it was in other states, which I couldn't really fathom. I didn't understand how weather was correlated with someone's mood. Oh but it is...

You see, after 8+ hours indoors, a girl like me (who has been described as a "mover and shaker") gets antsy. Watching movies is boring, going online is boring and doing crafts becomes boring. Nothing indoors sounds fun anymore. So I get dressed, which is a 30-minute adventure in and of itself (we're talking stockings, leggings, jeans, long socks, tank top, long sleeve shirt, sweatshirt and the poofiest jacket ever all at one time...I can barely fit through the door), and then I take a deep breath to ready myself for the brutal wind chill. The moment I step out my door and into the hallway, I have second thoughts. But I keep going.

Once I've reached the 1st floor, I've regained my composure and I'm ready to take on this stupid weather. But I almost completely lose it the moment I step out of the lobby. It doesn't help that there's a HUGE wind tunnel right in front of my apartment. In fact, Mark has pointed out that every single time he is with me, I say the same exact thing, "Why is it soo cold right here?!?! Why is it so windy right here?????" and then, I become angry. I mean, we're talking every single time. I walk in and out of my apartment about 3 or 4 times a day. You can do the math :)

Usually my adventurous streak only fights against the cold for about an hour or so and then I surrender. It's just that cold. We've been told many times that this is the coldest winter since the 80s and Sunday was actually the coldest day ever (it was -16 Celsius). Does that even make sense?

I hate feeling defeated but every time I'm feeling ambitious and the cold weather wins, I get the blues. Fortunately, looking back at my pictures reminds me that I have done quite a bit despite feeling like a loser. I've gone out to various cafes, restaurants and movies. And I have the pictures to prove it. So ha! cold weather, you lose :)

[A funky wall I found while exploring Sadang]

[Singing our blues away at a noraebang aka karaoke]


[Of course, work always helps me get out of the house :)]


[In Hongdae on a wet Sunday, which is the home of the cutest cafes and restaurants]








[An itty bitty cup of tea]


[Let's dance our blues away!]


[And if that doesn't work, a little reminder to be happy always does the trick]


[Watching Tron in IMAX 3D]




[And of course, the best way to beat the winter blues is by eating your sorrows away.
Fortunately for me, there's lots of opportunities to do that here!
Here's some yummy jjajangmyeon at the iPark Mall]


[Kalguksu at Namdaemun Market]


[And bibim naeng myun as the side dish!]

Despite being the coldest day ever on Sunday, Mark and I went to Namdaemun Market just to walk around and eat the delicious kalguksu pictured above. And one point, our legs had both gone numb and Mark said, "Even though it's the coldest day ever, we just can't stay indoors, huh? It isn't our vibe." I couldn't have said it better myself!

Hope all of you Californians are enjoying the nice warm weather there...I'm not jealous at all!! ;)

Until next time, bisous xoxo

PS- Sorry for the low quality photos lately. My dslr has just been too heavy to carry around for my liking, so I've resorted to iPhone photos for the time being. Hope you forgive me, they get the job done :)

Reflect

Wow, 2010, you treated me well. Thank you for all the fun, the joy, the laughter, the smiles, the cries, the accomplishments and even the little failures that led to bigger, more important successes. Thank you for the relationships that grew exponentially and the relationships that simmered. Each shed new light and molded me into who I am today. Thank you for your rollercoasters because without them, life would be boring. Thank you for being better than 2009. And I hope you don't take this personally, but I hope 2011 kicks your butt :)

Here are just a few snapshots that made my 2010 pretty epic:

[Coachella...need I say anything more?]

[Graduating with Jamie!]

[Berkeley with my best friend!]

[Harvest Crusade with my love & best friend]

[Jamie's going-away BBQ]

[Mine and Mark's going-away party]

On January 1, 2011, I sat by my dad's office window overlooking the ocean as the sun began to rise. Everyone else was running around, so I had a moment to myself to watch the golden sun crawl over the water's horizon. And it was truly spectacular. As I marveled at its beauty, I couldn't help but think that the actual moment when I could see the sun poking over the edge was so symbolic of my 2010. Long before the sun actually popped over the horizon, I could see the sky light up but it seemed like eternity before the sun actually appeared. In fact, I was growing impatient until I finally told myself, "Stop. Relax. Be patient. And enjoy." Then, I marveled and appreciated.

Exactly one year ago, I had been home for 2 weeks from an amazing 4 months in Lyon, France. I was happy to be home but reluctant and nervous for the upcoming changes in my life. For the first time ever, I had to think about life after college, finances, work, relationships, etc. and it scared me like no other. The new change excited me because that meant new adventures and challenges, which meant I'd get to experience new accomplishments. But even though I tried to remind myself to take it all in stride, I wanted to control everything and have a plan A and plan B for every possible scenario life might throw at me. Well, I'm sure you're all thinking, "That's silly," but by all means, I tried and I failed miserably. I'd end up frustrated and angry at myself and the world. It only took a matter of time before I realized I needed to...yep, you guessed it..."Stop. Relax. Be patient. And enjoy."

Graduation came and went, which was really fun, and then it was time for my 6-week roadtrip across the country with my wonderful family. And let me tell you, wonderful family + wonderful adventure does not always equal wonderful times. We definitely had our ups and downs (as every family does), but I learned more about my family in those 6 weeks than ever before. And more importantly, without knowing it at the time, I came to appreciate and love them so much more (all their quirky tendencies included!)

Here are some photos of the roadtrip, but you can check out the whole thing by clicking on the 2010 posts on the right-hand side of this blog :)

The next step was deciding what to do when I got back. Was it teaching in Korea? Finding a job at home? Go to grad school? A couple doors closed for teaching opportunities in Korea, so I began looking into other avenues, such as teaching in Thailand, Vietnam or China. But that search didn't go very far. For some reason, despite not knowing when or how or why, I knew I needed to be in Korea. And 4 months later, I'm here to tell you that I'm glad I listened to that voice inside my head :)

[If I didn't come, how could I appreciate moments like these?!]

These first few months in Korea proved to be challenging yet rewarding at the same time. And yet again, I found myself frustrated for not getting immediate answers. But all it took was a little faith, a little prayer and a lot of perseverance, and I can honestly tell you, I'm at a wonderful place now. And more than anything, the biggest blessing has been the new and old relationships in my life--Mark, Jamie and my dad to name a few. Without them, God knows how lonely I'd be!

Last year, on January 19, I had a blog post titled "Reflexion." At the end of it, I wrote this:

Change is a part of life. Change is something that is inevitable. It's not easy. It's not bad. In fact, most of the time, change makes you stronger, more mature, thoughtful, cultured, etc. I can't wait to see what these changes entail for my life. I love this life I've been blessed with. This is what I must remember.


It's funny to see that despite being a year apart, these two reflection posts parallel each other in many, many ways. I'm excited for 2011...bring it on!

Until next time, bisous xoxo