When life throws you a lemon, sometimes you just gotta take it.
It has been one of those days...actually, it has been two of those days. Yesterday, I lost my iPhone. And just like I lost my wallet in February, I have no idea how. I wasn't being irresponsible, I wasn't absent-minded, I wasn't in a rush...it just disappeared.
This is how yesterday morning went: Before I left for work, I called Mark to ask him to check if my umbrella was at school. He said "yes," so I packed up my purse, tossed my phone in my bag (or so I thought) and headed out the door. Then, on my way to the subway, I took the trash out and went on my merry way.
Now, usually I take out my phone while I'm on the subway to read news, check email or play games. But yesterday morning in particular, I pulled out a new book to start reading. It wasn't until I was on my way out of the subway station that I realized I left Mark's keys at home. So I reached in my purse to call him, but I couldn't find my phone. No big deal, I thought. I probably left it at home.
When I got off of work, I went home expecting to find my phone on the desk. Huh, not there. In the kitchen? Nope. In the bathroom? Nope. That's weird.
At that point, I proceeded to turn my apartment upside down, looking high and low for that darn thing. I called it on Skype and it rang, but I couldn't hear the ring tone! Then, I thought, maybe I accidentally threw it in the trash bag, which I tossed in the dumpster this morning....
Yep. If you guessed that I unashamedly went to the dumpster to dig my trash bag out, you're right. And to no success either.
Since then, I've refreshed the lost & found page of the subway metro website every hour or so and I've called my phone at least a gajillion times. It's still ringing, which leads me to believe that it wasn't stolen. But 36 hours later, I still have no idea where it's at.
Things like this--losing things when I wasn't being stupid--really throws me off. I try to stay organized and on top of it for the most part, and the last two things I've lost in Korea (which happen to be arguably two of the most important things), I just can't track back, which is highly frustrating.
I'm not jumping the gun yet, though. I have a feeling that it's going to just show up magically, or more accurately by the grace of God :) I mean, really, where could it be?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Discouraged.
6.23.2011
6.19.2011
It's official. Korea's weather sucks. Winter was brutal. Summer is brutal. And while spring is beautiful, I've learned that it only lasts for a total of 4 days.
In eight months worth of blog posts, I whined and complained about how cold it was. Now, out of nowhere, it's hot. Uncomfortably hot. Unbearably hot. Stinkin' hot. And the best part of it all? It's just the beginning! (insert sarcastic smile here)
I know it's going to get much, much worse, so it's kind of pointless to start complaining about it now. But I just can't help it. When I take Molly out for a bathroom break, I'm sticky and oily within minutes.
Thankfully though, the nights are beautiful. It's warm but not hot and everyone's just...happier. Last weekend, Mark said, "Who knew Seoul would become a completely different city in the summer?" And he's absolutely right--everyone's smiling, wearing tank tops, having fun, running around...it's just better.
So I guess the point is this: sure, the weather stinks but if it lifts the city's spirits even just a little bit, I'm willing to grin and bear it :) Wouldn't you?
In eight months worth of blog posts, I whined and complained about how cold it was. Now, out of nowhere, it's hot. Uncomfortably hot. Unbearably hot. Stinkin' hot. And the best part of it all? It's just the beginning! (insert sarcastic smile here)
I know it's going to get much, much worse, so it's kind of pointless to start complaining about it now. But I just can't help it. When I take Molly out for a bathroom break, I'm sticky and oily within minutes.
Thankfully though, the nights are beautiful. It's warm but not hot and everyone's just...happier. Last weekend, Mark said, "Who knew Seoul would become a completely different city in the summer?" And he's absolutely right--everyone's smiling, wearing tank tops, having fun, running around...it's just better.
So I guess the point is this: sure, the weather stinks but if it lifts the city's spirits even just a little bit, I'm willing to grin and bear it :) Wouldn't you?
Here's what I mean...
As the weather heats up, more and more people hang out at the infamous park in Hongdae. That means awesome people watching, more street performances and spontaneous flute solos :)
6.14.2011
Last week, my friend Judy invited me on a day trip out of Seoul to Jeonju, which is about 3 hours out of Seoul by bus. So, on Wednesday, I packed up my camera and jumped on a free bus there with Judy, her mom and her mom's friend.
I didn't know what to expect since I've never really heard of Jeonju. The only thing I knew about Jeonju was that there's a type of bibimbap named Jeonju Bibimbap, which is rice and veggies mixed in a large metal bowl. And while I've only had it once and it was good, I prefer the bibimbap that comes in the hot stone bowls (dolsot bibimbap), where everything is sizzling and kinda burning while you're eating it.
We left Seoul around 8 a.m. and made it to Jeonju by 11. The weather has significantly warmed in the last few weeks, so by late morning, it was already pretty hot. We met up with Judy's mom's other friend, who is originally from Jeonju, for lunch. She took us to this great restaurant that only served Jeonju Bibimbap and this time, it was very delicious! Rather than being piping hot, everything was cool, which was perfectly refreshing. And the side dishes were delicious! ^^
[Pan chan--side dishes--galore!]
[Jeonju Bibimbap]
After lunch, we walked around, going in and out of various shops and monuments. Jeonju's not very big at all, but it's filled with a lot of culture. The city is famous for its traditional paper, or hanji, which is made from the inner bark of a certain Korean tree called Paper Mulberry. So all throughout the shops, there were paper fans, pretty stationary and large colorful sheets of this special paper to buy...it was very tempting!
[Making hanji]
[The end product...colorful paper]
Since Jeonju is a lot more traditional-looking than Seoul, there were tons of great photo opportunities. I think I took about 200 photos that day! And I brought 2 different cameras too (one of them is film, which I haven't developed yet, so those photos will come later). I was snapping photos left and right--as we climbed a mountain, went down a mountain, sat at a cafe, watched people making hanji, went to the bathroom...just kidding. I didn't go that far.
[Unfinished.]
[Trying to figure out what this game is...getting the sticks in the tiny pot is hard!]
[My halfhearted attempt]
[Love the vibrancy of these ceilings!]
[Such a tourist haha]
And here are some iPhone pictures...
[A gorgeous light made with hanji]
But anyway, around 3:30, we headed towards this tea house, where Judy's mom's friend signed us up for a tea ceremony (how nice of her, huh?). We learned all about different types of Korean teas; how you're supposed to look a person in the eye when you say "hello" and then bow, rather than doing it at the same time, which is what we all do now; how to properly serve tea to your guests; etc. My dad has been wanting me to do a tea ceremony for awhile because it's a wonderful cultural lesson on traditional Korean values that aren't as apparent in today's society as they should be.
[In front of the tea house]
[Ready!]
[Mimicking the teacher's every move...]
[Trying to sit straight like a lady]
[This photo kills me...look at the teacher's face. She's so bummed out haha]
It requires a very graceful person to master the act of serving tea in this Korean way. And I think it goes without saying I'm not exactly the most graceful person here. So, you can put the two together. By the end of my turn at pouring and serving tea, the little table was filled with droplets of spilled tea. Sigh.
After that, with about an hour to spare before it was time to get back on the bus, Judy and I went to the cultural center, where we made mirrors with hanji paper. It took me back to my elementary school days, when paper-mache projects were the best thing that ever happened to me. This, however, was a little more traditional: the glue was made out of smashed rice and water. So, friends and family, if you're ever in a bind and you need glue immediately, just smash some white rice, add water and voila, you've got yourself some glue!
Once we finished, we all got on the bus and passed out before you could even say, "Jeonju." In fact, everyone on that bus did...it was, by far, the quietest drive I've ever been on.
When we arrived in Seoul, Judy and I squeezed out the last ounce of energy we had by walking around Gwanghwamun Square. It was quite the evening to do so too--corners were filled with various protests and tons of people were out and about. Unfortunately, our night was cut short by a sudden thunderstorm. But it was an adventure-filled day and we were exhausted, so we took it as our cue to go home :)
[Gwanghwamun]
[New versus Old]
[Protest regarding education, we think.]
[Cheonggyecheon Stream]
This was my first day trip out of Seoul since being here and I really loved it. It's nice to get out of Seoul every once in awhile...this city can exhaust you :) And tourism organizations make it so easy and cheap (or, in this case, free!) to travel around Korea, there's really no excuse not to go!
Like I mentioned before, I took TONS of photos, so if you'd like to see the rest, go to my Flickr page here.
Until next time, bisous xoxo!
I didn't know what to expect since I've never really heard of Jeonju. The only thing I knew about Jeonju was that there's a type of bibimbap named Jeonju Bibimbap, which is rice and veggies mixed in a large metal bowl. And while I've only had it once and it was good, I prefer the bibimbap that comes in the hot stone bowls (dolsot bibimbap), where everything is sizzling and kinda burning while you're eating it.
We left Seoul around 8 a.m. and made it to Jeonju by 11. The weather has significantly warmed in the last few weeks, so by late morning, it was already pretty hot. We met up with Judy's mom's other friend, who is originally from Jeonju, for lunch. She took us to this great restaurant that only served Jeonju Bibimbap and this time, it was very delicious! Rather than being piping hot, everything was cool, which was perfectly refreshing. And the side dishes were delicious! ^^
[My partner in crime, Judy Kim.]
[Pan chan--side dishes--galore!]
[Jeonju Bibimbap]
After lunch, we walked around, going in and out of various shops and monuments. Jeonju's not very big at all, but it's filled with a lot of culture. The city is famous for its traditional paper, or hanji, which is made from the inner bark of a certain Korean tree called Paper Mulberry. So all throughout the shops, there were paper fans, pretty stationary and large colorful sheets of this special paper to buy...it was very tempting!
[Random entryway with a very traditional-looking man!]
[Making hanji]
[The end product...colorful paper]
Since Jeonju is a lot more traditional-looking than Seoul, there were tons of great photo opportunities. I think I took about 200 photos that day! And I brought 2 different cameras too (one of them is film, which I haven't developed yet, so those photos will come later). I was snapping photos left and right--as we climbed a mountain, went down a mountain, sat at a cafe, watched people making hanji, went to the bathroom...just kidding. I didn't go that far.
[Unfinished.]
[Trying to figure out what this game is...getting the sticks in the tiny pot is hard!]
[My halfhearted attempt]
[Love the vibrancy of these ceilings!]
[Such a tourist haha]
And here are some iPhone pictures...
[A gorgeous light made with hanji]
But anyway, around 3:30, we headed towards this tea house, where Judy's mom's friend signed us up for a tea ceremony (how nice of her, huh?). We learned all about different types of Korean teas; how you're supposed to look a person in the eye when you say "hello" and then bow, rather than doing it at the same time, which is what we all do now; how to properly serve tea to your guests; etc. My dad has been wanting me to do a tea ceremony for awhile because it's a wonderful cultural lesson on traditional Korean values that aren't as apparent in today's society as they should be.
[In front of the tea house]
[Ready!]
[Mimicking the teacher's every move...]
[Trying to sit straight like a lady]
[This photo kills me...look at the teacher's face. She's so bummed out haha]
It requires a very graceful person to master the act of serving tea in this Korean way. And I think it goes without saying I'm not exactly the most graceful person here. So, you can put the two together. By the end of my turn at pouring and serving tea, the little table was filled with droplets of spilled tea. Sigh.
[More tea in the cup or out?]
After that, with about an hour to spare before it was time to get back on the bus, Judy and I went to the cultural center, where we made mirrors with hanji paper. It took me back to my elementary school days, when paper-mache projects were the best thing that ever happened to me. This, however, was a little more traditional: the glue was made out of smashed rice and water. So, friends and family, if you're ever in a bind and you need glue immediately, just smash some white rice, add water and voila, you've got yourself some glue!
Once we finished, we all got on the bus and passed out before you could even say, "Jeonju." In fact, everyone on that bus did...it was, by far, the quietest drive I've ever been on.
When we arrived in Seoul, Judy and I squeezed out the last ounce of energy we had by walking around Gwanghwamun Square. It was quite the evening to do so too--corners were filled with various protests and tons of people were out and about. Unfortunately, our night was cut short by a sudden thunderstorm. But it was an adventure-filled day and we were exhausted, so we took it as our cue to go home :)
[Gwanghwamun]
[New versus Old]
[Protest regarding education, we think.]
[Cheonggyecheon Stream]
This was my first day trip out of Seoul since being here and I really loved it. It's nice to get out of Seoul every once in awhile...this city can exhaust you :) And tourism organizations make it so easy and cheap (or, in this case, free!) to travel around Korea, there's really no excuse not to go!
Like I mentioned before, I took TONS of photos, so if you'd like to see the rest, go to my Flickr page here.
Until next time, bisous xoxo!
6.08.2011
Let me just start off by saying, I was very tempted to write yet another post about Molly. But I figured I'd start losing readers if all my blog postings turned into photo collages of Molly sitting, staring, eating, peeing and sleeping. Then, I'd have to change my blog name from sans borders to sans a life (without a life). Man, I crack myself up when I'm delirious and running on only a few hours of sleep.
Anyway, last weekend was a three-day weekend for most people, with Monday being Memorial Day here in Korea. Although I work on Saturday and Sunday morning, the amount of work I'm actually required to do makes it wrong to even call it "work." And I think this goes for any country, but when there's a three-day weekend coming up, you can just feel it in the air. People are chirpier and the sun's a bit brighter.
Mark and I decided to use the holiday as an opportunity to ride our bikes along the river. First, we took Molly to the vet to get her vaccines and then, we got some lunch with our new friend, Charlotte. I don't think I've mentioned Charlotte on here before, but she's a good friend of Mark's sister, who came out here to teach English at Mark's kindergarten! She's been here for a month already, and her bubbly personality and semi-permanent smile makes it almost impossible to have a bad day. She's awesome. In fact, she's so awesome that we're actually planning on traveling to Thailand together in July. Pretty awesome, huh?
[Bibim Neng-myeun is so good in the summer time!]
After lunch, Mark and I left Molly at home to rest (the vet told us she wasn't allowed to walk for a day because of her vaccinations...have you ever heard of such a thing?) and then, we took off with our bikes. We rode all over, but my favorite spot was Ttukseom Resort, which is this big area right by the river to hang out, have a picnic, play games and just enjoy the day off. We got a little snack, parked ourselves at a little old picnic table and watched some old grandmas and grandpas playing croquet.
[This is how we travel with Molly when we ride bikes.]
[You should hear how many people say, "Ahhh kee-oh-woh!!", which means "how cute!!"
Mark thinks they're talking about him. tee hee hee.]
[The weather was perfect, so lots of people were out and about.]
[A small part of Ttukseom Park.]
[Mark and his new stache.]
[This man had good form, and good style ;)]
After 20 minutes or so of that, we jumped back onto our bikes and rode to Oksu station, where we rode the subway to the radio station because I had to report on international news that evening. Then, just 10 minutes later, we were back at Oksu, jumping on our bikes to return home.
[On our way back!]
I have to admit, it was a bit exhausting especially with the wind on the way back, but I couldn't have been more satisfied with the day. It was adventurous yet relaxing and best of all, I got to spend it with my best friend and love. Who could ask for anything more?!
Anyway, last weekend was a three-day weekend for most people, with Monday being Memorial Day here in Korea. Although I work on Saturday and Sunday morning, the amount of work I'm actually required to do makes it wrong to even call it "work." And I think this goes for any country, but when there's a three-day weekend coming up, you can just feel it in the air. People are chirpier and the sun's a bit brighter.
Mark and I decided to use the holiday as an opportunity to ride our bikes along the river. First, we took Molly to the vet to get her vaccines and then, we got some lunch with our new friend, Charlotte. I don't think I've mentioned Charlotte on here before, but she's a good friend of Mark's sister, who came out here to teach English at Mark's kindergarten! She's been here for a month already, and her bubbly personality and semi-permanent smile makes it almost impossible to have a bad day. She's awesome. In fact, she's so awesome that we're actually planning on traveling to Thailand together in July. Pretty awesome, huh?
[Bibim Neng-myeun is so good in the summer time!]
After lunch, Mark and I left Molly at home to rest (the vet told us she wasn't allowed to walk for a day because of her vaccinations...have you ever heard of such a thing?) and then, we took off with our bikes. We rode all over, but my favorite spot was Ttukseom Resort, which is this big area right by the river to hang out, have a picnic, play games and just enjoy the day off. We got a little snack, parked ourselves at a little old picnic table and watched some old grandmas and grandpas playing croquet.
[This is how we travel with Molly when we ride bikes.]
[You should hear how many people say, "Ahhh kee-oh-woh!!", which means "how cute!!"
Mark thinks they're talking about him. tee hee hee.]
[The weather was perfect, so lots of people were out and about.]
[A small part of Ttukseom Park.]
[Mark and his new stache.]
[This man had good form, and good style ;)]
After 20 minutes or so of that, we jumped back onto our bikes and rode to Oksu station, where we rode the subway to the radio station because I had to report on international news that evening. Then, just 10 minutes later, we were back at Oksu, jumping on our bikes to return home.
[On our way back!]
I have to admit, it was a bit exhausting especially with the wind on the way back, but I couldn't have been more satisfied with the day. It was adventurous yet relaxing and best of all, I got to spend it with my best friend and love. Who could ask for anything more?!