Good Morning Vietnam!

So here we go again on the fun adventures of Korea :) Please, contain your excitement ;) Well, this past week has been rather exciting to say the least. It was Chuseok Mon-Wed, therefore we had a little vacation time...much needed. There was much fun that needed to be had. Enda and I took off to Vietnam on Saturday morning and were able to stay there until midnight on Wednesday...trying to enjoy the last possible second of our vacation away from Bupyeong. I'll begin the play by play of the journey...yay! :) If you get bored with reading the blog, you can at least look at the pictures and hopefully you can enjoy them :)

First and foremost, I have to say that Vietnamese children are extremely beautiful...gorgeous big eyes and wonderful smooth skin. Anyways, you will realize my infatuation with them as you go through this entry.

Vietnam is a very interesting country. It's a dream spot of backpackers...everything is extremely cheap! The food costs maybe $3 for a full meal...coke is about $0.45 for a bottle etc...I love it! Our hostel was about $5 for a night. amazing :)

When we first arrived, the myriad of motorcycles caught me of guard for sure! I was definitely scared to cross the street...I actually closed my eyes one time...just crossing my fingers that no one would hit me...crazy stuff for sure. Everyone has mopeds. They are rather cheap to buy...maybe $500 for an okay one (an imported one from Korea/Taiwan etc...might cost about a grand or so...) It was great to see parents waiting to pick up their children from school on the moped...lol ahh...good times.

So, we got there on Saturday and spent the day just wandering around Hanoi (the Old Quarter). We then took off early Sunday morning to Handspan. We planned to do a 3 day kayaking adventure...We took a 3-4 hour bus ride to Halong Bay which was enjoyable. It was great to get out of the city for sure! I really enjoyed this area. It hasn't been too built up with hotels or tourist attractions which I find rare nowadays. I kind of hope it stays this way for awhile...unfortunately we can already see some new places where hotels are going to be built.

There were only 8 of us on the tour which was nice. We got on a boat which was gorgeous and set out for Halong Bay by ship :) Yay! It was gorgeous weather as well so we were able to do a little sun bathing on the top of the boat. Halong Bay is has over 3,000 limestone karsts. I believe is was admitted as World's Natural Heritage by UNESCO and is on the nomination list for one of the new 7 Wonders...:) (TBD in 2008)

Anyways, it was gorgeous as you can see...we were able to go swimming during sunset...very surreal...nature is so breathtaking...

We spent the night on board and were planning on going kayaking all day Monday...well low and behold what gets in our way...oh yes...a typhoon...those darn typhoons...so we had to turn our boat around and head back to the bay...oi....a very sad day for me and the rest of the crew.
On the bright side though, we had an extra unplanned day and a half before us. We decided to take the overnight train to Sapa. It's about an 8 hour train ride...costing us a total of $6 each i believe...or something ridiculously cheap :) granted the toilets weren't the most wonderful experience to see but beggars can't be choosers! :)

Sapa was raining as well, but nonetheless it was gorgeous. Vietnam is such an agricultural society...the rice fields are breathtaking...the people are hard-working, laid back people that have the most winning smiles...honestly! When they flash their smiles it's hard to say no to them :) Here are some more pics from Sapa...

The women in the picture are obviously Sapa natives. I was trying on some traditional outfits (like they are wearing). They were giving me advice as to what other accessories I should wear with the garments. It was rather random. They just showed up at the door and were watching me try on an outfit. The little girl in front had great English and was my translator :) (I eventually did end up buying part of the outfit :)

I have a ton more pics but I'm currently rather computer illiterate, so if you are interested in seeing the rest of them, they are on my flickr account :)

Must hit the sack for the night...if any of you have a chance, I highly recommend visiting Vietnam... :)

August Adventures

So, let's see where to start. I believe I am getting worse and worse at this blogging as the months roll by. My contract officially ends in about 6 weeks which is crazy to think about! I do believe though that I might stay here until the end of November...finish out the term, deal with some business that needs to be taken care of, etc... :) I'm sure the time will fly by regardless and I'll be home before I know it. Amazing how fast time goes...


Well About a month ago, some of my girlfriends and I went out East for the weekend. We were able to play some soccer, do some water sports, and, of course, find time to eat some great Korean BBQ... :) Yeah for galbi!

It was nice to get away from Incheon and see some nice green grass...rice fields....new faces... refreshing.

I'm realizing how I'm not a city girl at heart...the pollution is hurtin the lungs...the acid rain is hurtin the hair line...the smoking...oh wait...yeah, I don't do that, but if I did I'm sure it would be hurtin me.

Moving right along ;)

I celebrated my b-day with some peeps from work/soccer/other exported Koreans etc... :) Good times. We went to Carnie Station, which is like a little piece of heaven I do believe. It's an all you can eat and drink for about 25 USD. You can stay there for up to 2-3 hours...ahhh...good stuff. (Pic to the right is my girls and I textin our peeps :) Trying to be as korean as possible :)

We then headed to a bar. Met up with some friends...laughed, dance, drank, hugged, loved, and cried...okay, maybe not the last one, but the other ones are pretty accurate.
Good group of people for sure..
Was able to get up the next morning for some soccer at Yonsei Uni. as well which

surprised me. Glad I did it though.
Oh and this is a pic of me blowin out the birthday candles...it was gorgeous cake though!Both of them..mmm good..

Let's see...a couple weeks ago I headed with Enda to Seoul tower to check out the city at night. It was nice to get the city into a better perspective...it's a huge city...love it. :) There were a couple too many foreigners for my taste though. Granted I was also with a foreigner but that's besides the point. Anyways, this pic below is what the tower looks like from the ground. It's me attempting to be artsy again...

Taekwondo is going well which is very nice. I'm starting to use some weapons. Always a good time. The fighting skills aren't up to where they should be, but I suppose it comes with time and practice. It's also been blazin how out here..it just finally cooled down.

I'll be taking off to Vietnam for a couple days come Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) in September, so I'm definitely looking forward to that. 5 days of Kayaking, the sun (hopefully), biking, beach, and chillin...much needed...very very excited...!!!

We also just started a new 3 month semester at the Hagwon. The students are good for the most part, but teaching is very tiring. I have a new appreciation for my teachers who taught me when I was young (or actually all teachers in general!) Cheers to you all.

My apologies on the uncreative blog entry. I'm not feeling that creative...witty...etc...tonight..not saying that I am naturally any of these..hmm..k I believe my bed is calling me. G'nite.

Gathering 2007

Well this past month has been a great one. The summer months are non-existent it seems. I just finished my last vacation days this past week. I spent the week in Seoul and attended the 2007 IKAA Gathering of Korean Adoptees from around the world. I think there were around 500 of us from Italy, France, U.S.A., Denmark, and many other countries. It was an eye opening experience. I've never been that involved in anything Adoptee oriented, so going into this week long convention I was rather oblivious and/or ignorant of many issues that are happening in the current (as well as previous) intercountry/transracial adoption scene. I was able to attend a couple workshops that covered issues on adoption in the media, politics, behavioral science, etc.. It was refreshing to have new issues to get me thinking again; challenge the mind.

I was also able to play in the 2007 Korean Adoptee World Cup. I was a member of the Korean Team which was fun. Unfortunately we only made it to the semi's (due to bad ref's but whatev...no grudge :) and...(unfortunately...) the 2 U.S. teams fought it out in the finals...

This is a pic of the power house of the team :) us 6 girls rocked it alongside our European men on our team :) The REAL Samgyupsal :) I love it. all of us are from the U.S. except one...while all the men are mostly from France...

Anyways, it was fun. I was able to sing the Korean Nat'l Anthem too so that was interesting :)

This is a pic of our first and only goal against the Danish :) We were all soooo freakin happy!

We also made time for some good ole drinking/noreabang outings as well. There's always time for singing and drinking with friends :)

For the convention I also found a place to stay in Seoul which was nice. The commute to and fro Bupyeong to Seoul is rather long. It was nice to be able to go out at night and not have to worry about time. But now I'm back to reality; work, taekwondo, some responsibilities...oi. :)

My contract also ends in October which is coming rather quickly. I'm tossing the idea of staying here longer, but who knows what will happen. I guess only time will tell...okay, well maybe not only time, but you can only control so much.

I'm continuing to love Taekwondo and the whole martial arts scene. Hopefully I'll be able to retain a lot of what I'm learning here once I move in the Fall...to wherever.....

Adventures with my sister

Okay, seeing that my sister has already put her post on her blog about our vacation trip together, I feel rather obligated to follow in her footsteps and do the same as quickly as possible in fear of never getting around to it until August rolls around. So here it goes...please, try and contain your excitement :)

Mine doesn't contain the interesting facts about the Silla Dynasty like my sisters, so my apologies. Feel free to check hers out though and pick up all the fun facts about Korea that I am leaving out... :)

**This picture above was taken in a traditional village on Jejudo island. In regards to the sign, I really shouldn't be near this gate any time soon...yup :) hmmm..**

So, I finally took my vacation (of which I haven't had since I landed on this country 9 months ago) and took a week off of school to go and travel with my oni (meaning older sister in korean). So we started in the great city of Incheon and headed down south to Gyeongju! It is one of my favorite cities in Korea i have to say...a lot of history, temples, palaces, tombs, flowers, etc...great place and easy to get around...well, sometimes. Anyways, we stayed there for a couple days and then headed further south to Busan/Pusan....We really didn't do too much there. Just chilled for a short time and then flew to Jejudo. yup...the semi-tropical island...not quite like the Thailand scenery I was hoping for, but beggers can't be choosers. I'll take what I can get.

**the Picture below is me on a seesaw that you stand on, not sit. I don't really understand my facial expression, so interpret it how you see fit**

We were able to see a decent amount of the island and were even able to hike the volcano in the middle of the island, only to arrive at the top and not be able to see anything due to the heavy fog and the great rainy season that it currently is. ahh..the joys of Asia.

The pic to the right is a typical scene on our adventures in Korea this past week. The lonely planet got us through a lot...

We ended our week though in Chuncheon where there was a Taekwondo Championship! YAY!! It was quite exciting I have to say. I have definitely missed it this past week and was ready to jump into the swing of things again. There was a ton of sparring going on, along with some gymnastics and taekwondo dancing...gotta love it :) Seeing the women fight and not being one of them kind of made me sad, but maybe someday soon I'll be out there throwin' some kicks and doin all that jazz :)

Okay so I realize this is getting rather lengthy again so I'll bust outta here. My sista is chillin here for another week which will be good; checkin out Seoul of Asia :) Time is flying as usual and it's crazy to think I'm out of here in a couple months. Ahh!!!

I'm on vacation with my sister in Korea!!! :) YAY!!!!

Heat wave

The heat is coming and I am not ready for it. Usually the nights and mornings aren't too bad, but the afternoons are deadly (maybe not 'deadly', but hot enough). Oh, and I heard it only gets more humid and hot when July shows it's face. I'm very excited. hmmm.

Well time has continued to fly by and I still haven't learned how to control it. I'm not holding my breath for that day..and yet I continue to try and conquer time and have my say at how fast or slow it should go by...

So last week my choir from Calvin College was in town. Unfortunately I was not able to hear them in concert, but I did meet up with them during the day in Seoul. It was great to talk to catch up with friends/professors. Great ladies. Good memories of being in the choir. It's always weird though when 2 worlds collide together...G.R. people and Korea.

(L. The wonderful Linda, C. me, R. the amazing Dr. Shangkuan)

Love them both dearly.

Last weekend there was a big festival in my city. It was pretty fun I have to say. There was some great drumming and traditional music. I have fallen in love with Korean Tradition drumming. It's amazing. Ari rang is turning into a person favorite as well :)

There was a viol inst there who was pretty great, but it was the most interesting combination; short skirt and top, Canon in D, and B-Boys (Break-dancers). Fascinating. (see pic. below)

I was thinking that Pachelbel was rolling over in his grave :) It was entertaining though. Anyways, it was fun. Good musicians, good friends, good times. Oh, my roommates and I got a family portrait done...yup. The artists wasn't very impressive though. I have a deformed hand, my friend has an odd shaped head and interesting facial hair.

This past week we also had a day off so my friend and I decided to go to the beach which was supposedly only 2 hours away on an island...supposedly.

Quick walk thru of the day:

no sun-

Bus: 15 min. to subway ($.60)

Subway: 1 Hr. to airport ($2.00)

Taxi (b.c. we missed the bus that comes once every hour) ($30 for a 10 min. ride)

oh wait...oh yes, the taxi ended up taking us the wrong way...yup

Wait for bus: 30 min.-

-no sun

Take bus back to airport (oh, and this is the bus that we supposedly missed but was going the wrong way anyway) ($.90) 1 hour-finally get to the ferry-

-clouds are rollin in-

Ferry ($2.00)-2 min. ride to island (me looking excited about the rain, wind, and cold beach)

-rain drop-

Arrive on island-bus pulls up right away, but wait...oh he doesn't' pick any of us up for some strange reason, so we wait....and wait....and the rain comes in.....and thunder...more waiting....

40 min. later...back on the ferry...

so basically hours of trying to get to this beach and never actually seeing it or the sun. oi.

Teaching on the other hand has been going well. I'm really enjoying my new students (we started a new semester about a week and a half ago). I have some of the upper level classes, which has been more challenging for me as well as the students. These students continue to amaze me with their intelligence. Very bright :) It's times like these when I wish I was trained to be a teacher so I could be more beneficial to them in a more efficient way. A musician knows only so much about teaching haiku, ballads, cinquain, onomatopoeia etc.

My Friday classes involve teaching logic, debates, oh and interviews...logic is a lot of fun..maybe more so for me than the students, but nonetheless it's good for them.

This past weekend I went out to hear some jazz in Hongdae. I am realizing how much I miss quality music..where's Wagner and Schumann when I need them. The good news is, I moved the piano into my bedroom finally! yay! more time to practice and learn some more Debussy and Chopin. I'm very excited :)

Soccer is going well. The guys are great. Good times, Hot weather though. My sister is coming next week so that is also very very exciting :)

Rainy days...

Things here are continuing as usual. We are finishing up our first semester of Avalon and diving into the next one in about a week. We are in the middle of our parent-teacher-translator meetings; the first one that us foreign teachers have partaken in. It's a good experience for me but It also reminds me that I am an extreme amateur at teaching...what do you expect though when I majored in Music and a German....hmm


I've been filling my weekends with sports and hanging out with friends in Seoul. Time continue to flies by...Soccer is going well. It's always a good time to play on the great gravel "fields" (and if we are lucky we can get field without too many potholes :) Actually we've been playing on some turf which is pretty fun. Rock climbing is going well also. I definitely need to work on my balance and strengthening my grip but it's coming along slowly. I tore up my hands this past weekend but no pain no gain right?...:)

There was a fun market right outside our apartment this past week. There were tons of stalls to buy food/spatulas/fish/yup...everything you need to survive in Korea :)

This past weekend there were some celebrations for Buddha's birthday (that is actually today). I was able to check out the Lotus Lantern Parade which was pretty fun and saw some cool sites in Seoul. Seoul continues to surprise me...


I had my taekwondo competition a couple weeks ago and have yet to find out if I received my black belt. It was one of the shortest tests I've taken. It must have lasted about 2 minutes...okay maybe like 5, but regardless, it was really really short. I had to spar for about 30 sec. and perform 2 pumsae's (a combination of about 15-20 punches and kicks) and do some other kicking (of which I didn't understand the commands and so I kind of messed that up...yup...) It was fun though and I'm glad I did it. When I was sparing, one of the refs was saying something to me in Korean and I just have him my confused look...it's a common look...
(The pic to the bottom is me with my sparring gear...:)

The weather is so rainy these days which can be nice but defintely plays a role on your mood.. The mosquitos have officially began to attack me though. The other night I ended up with about 5 bites from this one darn mosquito...oi. I can't escape them...

I guess nothing else too new has been happening. I'm just rollin with the punches and still trying to figure out what I'm going to do when I'm done.

My sister is also coming out in a couple weeks so I'm definitely looking forward to that! What a better place to chill with the sis :) I still dont' know what travel plans we'll be partaking off, but we'll figure it out.

I'm still trying to learn Korean on my own which is hard but I'm making slow but steady progress. The self-motivation is going surprisingly well...some days better than others for sure. The korean teachers that sit beside me have been extremely helpful. Great people.