An American Girl in Seoul
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
An American Girl in Niamey
Well, I think it's safe to say I was a bit of a failure at keeping up my blog past the first 6 months. I like to justify this by saying it's indicative of the lifestyle. It's no big secret I have moved on to yet another continent. New territory means a new blog, so check out my 3rd installation of "An American Girl in..."
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Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Deokjeokdo











Monday, May 6, 2013
Life in Korea: Ten Things I Want You to Know



Monday, February 18, 2013
Japan




Saturday, January 5, 2013
The Holidays
When I first arrived to an empty apartment with only a mini fridge and foam mat on the floor, I thought to myself "This sucks and is not what I expected..." Immediatly followed by telling myself, "don't rush it, buy a few things at a time and by Christmas time you will make this feel like your home." Well that time has arrived faster than I imagined and I do indeed feel at home. Christmas Eve I came back after a nice dinner with friends and snuggled up with my new pajamas from my Mom, my Christmas tree lights on, and a movie playing in my cozy bed just as snow began to fall at midnight. This is about as good as it gets when you can't be with your family. One glass of red wine, and a steak dinner prior to this made it all that much better. This is my second holiday season away from home and what I have learned about myself is I don't care about presents, just people. I was very lucky this year to have a turkey dinner but the tree and the food don't matter if you are lonely or don't have loved ones to be with or even miss. Christmas Day some of us met up to see the Tim Burton Exhibit which just opened at the Seoul Museum of Art. I had brought it up to my friends and coworkers Erin, Ian and Paige and we decided on it. We invited some of our other friends, Tiffany and Michael. Recently my friend Meryl who I met while traveling in Bangkok arrived in Korea so she came too and even brought along a few new faces which was nice. The museum was packed but the exhibit was awesome and we were there for hours. It is divided into three parts and very well curated in my opinion. After a short walk in the bitter cold we found a Vietnamese restaurant to warm up in. This is where I parted ways to catch a taxi and head to a dinner party (with an actual turkey!) hosted by our friend Na and her boyfriend Ahmed. More often than not when us foreigners try to get a cab if it's even the slightest inconvenience the driver waves us off and says "get out". I walked out of the restaurant and a cab driver stopped. I showed him the address in korean but it wasn't easy to read on my phone. He took the time to find his magnifying glass and enter it into his GPS. Normally I take the metro or bus or just walk, but in this bitter cold weather I splurged for the cab. I was so thankful that he helped me instead of kicking me back out into the cold. A small Christmas miracle perhaps? I made it just fine to the dinner party and was so delighted to be a part of it. Did I mention there was a turkey?! After two plates of mashed potatoes, corn, turkey and a few glasses of red wine I snuggled up on the couch to enjoy the wonderful company and conversation. Eventually Paige and I made our way home and I immediatly crawled in to bed wishing I didn't have to work the next morning but content on a very lovely Chirstmas full or fun, food, and great company. The rest of the week was a little tedious as most people have it off, but we do not. Mentally it was hard to get back into the swing of things, especially knowing that as soon as the weekend came again it was 4 days off and New Years. Most of the weekend I spent relaxing and grabbing a bite to eat with friends. Gearing up for the big day I suppose. New Years turned out to be a blast and exactly the opposite of last year where I was in the moutains in a tiny Burmese town drinking whisky and dancing my ass off to Shakira. This time it was the same thing in a club full of Koreans in one of the biggest cities in the world, complete with a headbutt to the face. Followed immediatly the next day by one of those hangovers where you swear you will never drink again. Now it's back to work and that feeling you get on January 2nd with the realization that the holidays are officially over. It's back to the grind. I am thankful to have my birthday in February to look forward to and a long weekend in Kyoto/ Osaka. I don't believe in New Years resolutions, so I will just leave you with this: 2012 was an amazing year, and all I can hope is that 2013 will be even better. To my friends all over the world I wish you only the best in the year to come!
OH and in Korean years I am officially 29 years old now ;)
Sunday, December 2, 2012
It's All Relative
It's that time of year again, The Holidays. And for most expats this brings inevitable homesickness. For me it always begins with Thanksgiving as that weekend is the anniversary of the tragic death of my cousin, her fiance, and his 3 year old daughter in a plane crash. I was set to be her maid of honor the following March. The anniversary on top of being alone for such a family oriented holiday always makes me a bit pathetic. Those of you who know me, and have lived with me abroad know this is not something that happens often. I am human afterall, and given the lifestyle I have chosen it's inevitable. No one ever said this was easy. This past week I have been missing my family just wishing I could sleep on their couch and live out of a suitcase from a trailer. I promised myself when I was home I would not wish my time away for this exact reason. That feeling where you would do just about anything to see them (and their kitties too). The good news is this always passes. As time goes on I find myself wondering if I will ever feel guilty for this time in my life I have spent on another coninent. My friends and family are nothing but supportive and it is only my own guilt that comes into play, no one is forcing it upon me. This is who I am and I recognize how lucky I am to have people in my life who love me enough to let me live this very selfish and independent life with no guilt trips. I am missing weddings, and births, and engagements, and birthdays yet not one person close to me has ever made me feel bad for that (but I do anyways, of course). This year Novemeber 27th marked the 7 year anniversary of the loss of Heather and her family. Whoever said "time heals all wounds" is full of it, that is not always the case. For whatever reason this year was a particularly difficult one for me to endure. It's not just because I am away from home as it was the same situation this time last year in Thailand. I guess it just hits hard sometimes. Thanksgiving day here I was feeling particularly down. I had an incident with my boss that day and felt like I had been hit by an emotional truck. That afternoon I had to go get my Alien Card from immigration. On my way home an old woman sat next to me on the subway. We got to talking and I came to find out she was 74, married for 50 years, and quite spry. She had studied English at multiple Universities and told me how pretty I was along with asking me why I wasn't married. 3 times. This was the first time a stranger on the metro had taken up a conversation with me. She was very kind and little did she know how much I needed it at that very moment. Her name is Mrs. Kim and she even took down my phone number as I got off the train. I haven't heard from her yet, but I hope I do so I can thank her for her kind words. This has all had me thinking a lot about time. I will try not to get too philosophical on you, but recognizing these days like Thanksgiving and Heather's day made me realize that time is all relative. I felt like a train wreck on Novemeber 22nd, and Novemeber 27th. For my relatives back home it was stil the 21st and 26th. They felt these things the following day. Each year passes and we recognize birthdays, anniversaries, holidays on a given day but when you live on another continent that reality is different for you. I suppose if you are a glass half full type you can look at it like I get two Christmas's and two birthday's each year. For the harder stuff I chose to keep it limited to just that one day if possible. Turns out regardless of the time zone we are in it doesn't make any of those feelings any less real, and sometimes you have to face the fact that even going half way across the world will not outrun the things you will always carry with you.
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
You Know You Live in Korea When:
I have become very aware of the fact that being an expat in Korea comes with a completely different lifestyle than that I have led in other countries, which were also much smaller cities. There is always an invite, something to do or see, and you are constantly meeting new people. It is a ton of fun but sometimes feels like a transport back into University. You attend work with the same people everyday (just like class), walking to and from together. You eat all your meals together and live in the same building which instantly feels like a dorm. "Hey wanna get food?" "Sure just come down to my room." Then there's that sudden realization one day: Oh wait, I am 27 years old and this only sort of feels like reality. Immediately followed by "I am having too much fun to care." Plus someone else is paying for my apartment and I am making great money, instead of taking out 30 grand in student loans. The party scene here is reminiscent of my time in Spain. A night out can easily turn into not going home until 5 or 6 am. I am not even talking ridiculous night clubs in Seoul. More like a group of us in Ilsan dancing like idiots to 80s/90s music, (Michael Jackson's "PYT" along with Next "Too Close" are common favs) till we realize McDonalds just opened for breakfast and its probably time to go home. The great thing is aside from the party scene there is so much to do and see. I have recently gotten involved with a group called PLUR who does various projects to help the homeless in and around Seoul. On Sunday nights I have joined a group that walks around and gives out food. There are over 1 million homeless people in the city and it is a significant social issue. Most of them are old and many have mental disorders. There is a lack of retirement support or what we would call social security and most of them are made up of the population that fell through the cracks with no family to take care of them, or services to help with their mental health. It seems like there is always a festival or free cultural event going on somewhere and this place is so huge that the possibilities to explore seem endless. Have I mentioned how many skylines this place has?! Ilsan is starting to feel like home and I really love it here. We have our regular spots where people know who you are, and wave to you as you walk by, even though you've never exchanged more than hello, thank you, and goodbye in Korean. Literally across the street from my apartment building is a mall with an imax theater (which I have not been to yet, go figure). Anything you could possibly need is available which is beyond convenient. Dangerous too. Koreans dress very well. Sometimes they also dress ridiculous, and I love it. Sweater leggings? Fuzzy hoodies with bear ears sewn in? Mittens with strings? A reindeer sweater?! YES PLEASE. The latter I could not resist. I needed some socks so I bought a few pairs for a buck. They have chickens on them with some writing in Korean. I wore them to school only to find out the writing is the equivelent of "sexy moaning" in korean. WIN. I finally got a real paycheck for the first time since last June which felt great. My apartment has come together nicely with bits and pieces from people leaving and a few very frugal purchases on my part. I hardly recognize it from a month ago and it feels like my own little home. All in all things are good and this girl is loving it. So the moral of the story is: You know you live in Korea when you are happy to wear moaning chicken socks, reindeer sweaters and dance to MJ till 6 am.
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