Blogs from Yangsan, Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea, Asia

A couple of weeks ago, I went to Everland in Seoul with my friend Charles. Everland is basically South Korea's version of Disney with different themed areas, characters, and rides for people of all ages.... just much smaller than Disney. I had heard many people mention different aspects of Everland and decided I wanted to go at least once while I was in Korea. Usually, I try to blend in as much as reasonably possible in Korea. Unless I am in an area of Busan with large numbers of foreigners, I tend to avoid drawing a ton of attention to myself as 'waygook' (foreigner). I speak Korean as much as possible, I don't take a ton of selfies with normal Korean stuff.... and, when I do take selfies, I don't do the stereotypical 'peace sign' that ... read more

I have heard, time and again, that home is not necessarily where you have physical belongings. It's not where you have a roof over your head, or where you happen to be sitting at the moment. Home, at the end of the day, is where your heart is. I've always loved this sentiment. Home doesn't have to be where I am right now, or where I will be tomorrow. Home will always be where the people I love are; where, as much as my wanderlust is a huge part of me, I yearn to be. Home is where my family is... but it's also where my friends are. My friends are just as important to me as my family by blood.... they are the family I chose, after all. While I truly believe that home doesn't ... read more

I'm going to take a break from the posts about the places I've visited for a minute. (Don't worry, Taipei and Seoul will be coming soon!) I have no been in South Korea for just about 3 months. I am 25% of the way through with my teaching contract. I survived my first Christmas away from home by spending it with friends instead. I have watched my niece and nephew get bigger and reach milestones without getting to see them except in photos; I missed my niece's second birthday. In the next 9 months, three of my closest friends will get married and I won't be there to celebrate with them. In three months, I have visited Hong Kong, Manila, Taipei, and Seoul as well as taken several trips in to Busan to explore. I have ... read more

It is 3pm Monday, December 8 in South Korea.... which means I have officially survived one full week. Woohoo!! It's been a crazy week of adjustments, culture shock, jet lag... finding my way around a new city, learning some new words, and meeting an awesome group of English teachers that are also living in Yangsan. Some first impressions of Yangsan, and Korea in general... The mountains and views here are stunning. Every day, I walk a mile to and from school, and get to see some amazing views. I have loaded some pictures on Facebook for those of you that are friends with me on there and I will try to load some onto my blog here for those that are not. Unfortunately, don't have any saved on the computer at school, so I will have ... read more

I'm back in Korea and it was pretty sad to leave all my wonderful family and friends but I am happy now that I am here :). The title of this entry comes from the first morning I woke up in America and walked into the kitchen and thought, "where's my rice???" I went out that day and bought some ;). I definitely eat rice every day here and at almost every meal. And that's they way I like it (uh huh uh huh) (yes I did). Ooohh, speaking of things that I like... I really like how I don't care so much about what others think of me or what I do and I feel like I got from living here (quote to follow) - I loooove my coteacher and she has taught me to ... read more