Fall Feeling

Weekend trip to Seoraksan National Park located in eastern South Korea. The third highest mountain in the country.

Enjoy. xx

Bronze Buddha of Sinheungsa

hand + bird

fall leaves

cable car

ajumas kickin' ass

The Power of Kimchi

There is a 'cabbage crisis' in Korea. Shut the front door. The country is running out of cabbage. Who would have thought this would be so devastating? Heads of napa cabbage are going for $10-$14 each due to the mass amount of rain we've had in the past couple of months. Usually a head of cabbage is around $4. This is a disaster for the country because Koreans, literally, cannot live without their kimchi. Apparently, a man outside of Seoul was arrested for stealing 10 heads of cabbage-now that is dedication.

Kimchi usually consists of cabbage, which is fermented in chili paste and garlic. It is a side dish (banchan) that is served everywhere, at every meal- for free. It is even available to the kids at lunchtime. I think it is their favorite part of their lunch. Koreans are obsessed with the stuff. They eat it hot or cold, in soup or mixed with rice. Instead of smelling coffee in the morning when I walk into the office- what do I smell? You guessed it- fermented cabbage.

I'm not going to lie- I like the stuff; but Korea better get their hands on some cheaper cabbage soon- otherwise, we're in for some real problems.

Bambi

On Sunday, I stumbled across a petting zoo full of deer in Seoul Forest. Conveniently, there is deer food for purchase and you can casually feed and pet the deer that are behind a metal fence. Sad for the deer, but win for everyone else.

D.A.N.C.E.

I was unsure whether or not I was going to attend Global Gathering a few weeks ago, but I am so glad I did. Global Gathering is a massive electronic music festival which tours around the world. I was never a huge fan of electronic music but this show blew me away. With great artists like Fatboy Slim, Justice and Armin Van Buuren-it was well worth the money. On Saturday we prepared ourselves with a little galbi and soju around 3pm and 5 hours later arrived at the show. Twelve hours had gone by since I had left and I stumbled into my apartment (around 4AM), body aching and with a new collection of glow sticks. Here's a few pics from the night:

It's T-Shirt Time!

Yes, I'm posting about the tackiest show on television. Jersey Shore. Hate it or love it, it's absolutely hilarious. Scripted or not, these people are ridiculous, and I have to admit, it's one of my new favorite shows. Honestly, who could hate the fake tans, dirty mouths, sky high hair and fist pumping? I. can't. stop. watching. Enjoy some of my favorite episodes.

Chuseok

Chuseok is one of Korea's most important holidays. Known as "Korean Thanksgiving," it's usually a 3 day holiday, leaving the streets of Seoul completely empty. Most Koreans visit their hometowns to pay respects to their ancestors. They play traditional folk games and eat lots of traditional foods.

Songpyeon (송편) is the most popular food eaten during Chuseok. Songpyeon is a type of rice cake made out of glutinous rice. These treats are crescent shaped and usually filled with sweet fillings like sweet red bean paste or sesame seeds & honey.

Lucky for me, my school put together another 'Cooking Day' and the kids and I made songpyeon in class. The rice dough was already steamed and the kids had the option of stuffing their songpyeon with beans, raisins or sweet potato. They ate this as their snack and washed it all down with a glass of milk.

Happy Chuseok!

Hello Kitty

Before moving to Korea, I never thought I would develop such a large crush on an animated character. Yes, people, I have come to love, and not just love- obsess over Hello Kitty. Before moving here, I was never a huge fan of the cat and always judged my friends (cough, Lucy) who had Hello Kitty memorabilia.

I've always been a Nijntje (Miffy) fan- I was exposed to the character by my little cousins in Amsterdam. I even brought a stuffed Nijntje back from Holland, so lets be honest, my love for Hello Kitty, came as a shock.

Teaching 6 year old Korean children has really gotten the best of me. I now own a Hello Kitty fan, markers, ball point pens, notebooks, stickers, stamps and have purchased 3 cell phone charms. Currently, there is a large Hello Kitty face, dangling from my cell phone.

I print out coloring sheets everyday for my kids- and yes 80% of them are Hello Kitty, but the kids love them and so do I, so I figure, why not embrace the cute cat with the perfect bow?

Today in class we talked about dreams. I asked my class what they dreamed about and whether their dreams were good or bad. One of the girls told me that she often dreamed about Hello Kitty and how her dreams were always very good.

The cat does wonders. (But Nijntje I still got your back!)