BKK to AMM...and other journeys

Recently, we've been spending a lot of time researching travel destinations online and eagerly reading some Lonely Planet guide books we've picked up. With only about three more months left on our teaching contract here in Korea it's time to make some plans for our "post-Korea" travels. Actually, we've been dreaming up these plans since day-one and have had to scale them back to fit our shrinking budget.

First up, Japan. We get just about a weeks vacation from school at the end of July and have decided to visit the land of geishas and sushi. We'll fly in and out of Tokyo and utilize the country's bullet trains to see the sights in Hiroshima, Kyoto and then end up back in Tokyo for a couple days. We found a good deal on flights, so just need to take care of the rail pass and we'll be set! It will probably be the hottest time of year to visit, but we're excited and will our best to make the most of it.

The big news is that we just purchased a plane ticket to fly from Bangkok, Thailand to Amman, Jordan for November 1st. Holly and I plan to spend the month of October traveling in Southeast Asia - China, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand (bring on the beaches!). We'll spend time in some big cities (Shanghai) and more remote areas (Angkor Wat) and pack in as much adventure as our feet and wallets can handle! From there we'll be off to the Middle East to meet up with a friend living in the area and two other friends from home. It will be like our annual girl's trip, only on a much bigger scale! Together we'll go to Petra in Jordan, Mt. Sinai, Egypt, and Turkey (Istanbul and the Mediterranean coast). By that point I think I'll be exhausted and more than ready to head home for some home cooked meals and a soft bed! It will be the journey of a lifetime, but hopefully just the beginning of many more travels in the future!

Diary: "reckless motorcyclists"

This one made me laugh! I didn't know this student even knew the meaning of "reckless" or "blaring". She must have used her handy cell phone dictionary to translate the meaning of Korean words into their English equivalent!

Today was the reckless motorcyclists
sped by blaring their horns.
I think it is dangerous to ride a motorcycle.
We can hardly get any sleep in the summer
due to the reckless motorcyclists.
Motorcycle is very dangerous,
but bicycle is not dangerous.
-by Sally, 6th grade

Another Year Older

Last Friday I celebrated my birthday! It was strange to be so far away from home and miss celebrating with my family, but I want to say a huge "thank you" to everyone who sent cards, emails and packages! It made my day extra special. Since my birthday fell on a Friday I decided to make the most of my school day and planned "cookie parties" with some of my classes. This is what they call it when we let them bring snacks to eat during class, usually only on special occasions. I also brought a Korean treat called "choco pies" for the kids. It's pretty much like a Little Debbie snack cake with marshmallow in the middle, but they love it! Unfortunately, my birthday was not a good enough reason for the students to modify their behavior at all, so it turned out to be a frustrating evening. Holly and I went out to eat pizza after work with two of our coworkers, which was a nice way to finish off the day.

Saturday we planned to spend the day exploring Dongdaemun Market in Seoul and doing some shopping. As I said in my previous post, the torrential downpour kind of made this a challenge, but we didn't let that stop us! Thank goodness for underground shopping malls!! We also found a nearby Starbucks to take a break from the wetness. For dinner, we met all of our coworkers and Korean friend, Joey, at an Italian Restaurant called "Mad for Garlic." We'd heard good things about the food, which turned out to be true. In my opinion, the meal didn't seem extra garlicky tasting, but they did go a little wild with the "garlic" decor of the restaurant...garlic bulbs attached to huge pendant lights, custom sconces in the shape of garlic cloves, random strings of garlic hanging from the walls, etc. Actually, it was all very nice and I'm glad to have such great people in my life to share it with. See below for a photo (from the internet...I forgot to take any pictures that evening).

Summer in Full Bloom

Summer is officially here, and I'm sad to say the weather is much the same as the Midwest this time of year. The days have turned hot and muggy. As an added bonus, we've been told that monsoon season is fast approaching. Now, I'm not really sure what that is going to entail or how long it will last, but it sounds ominous. Saturday we got a taste of it - a downpour all day long that made our day of shopping in Seoul a little less fun.

I'm amazed at the array of plants and flowers that are always in bloom here. Recently, the giant rose bushes that cover many of the fences and line the sidewalks on our way to work were covered in thousands of flowers. It was so pretty! Below are a few pictures that give an idea of what it was like, but it was hard to really capture the full effect.