Blogs from Gangnam, Seoul, South Korea, Asia
April 16th 2012
Today I will be visiting the 63 Building, one of Korea’s tallest skyscarpers. It is called 63 because of the number of floors it has. 3 of the floors are actually underground. It is also known as the Golden Tower because of the golden reflective glass. The building has shopping malls, restaurants, IMAX theatre, convention hall and an aquarium. I went and ate on the 59th floor. The restaurants were between floors 56 and 59. The observation is located on the 60th floor. From here you can get a great view of Seoul. The building looks over the Han River. After exploring the 63 building I just walked along the Han river and enjoying the view of Korea and just looking around appreciating the free time I have left until I get back to Australia and ... read more
March 26th 2012
"We should never forget our birthdays or the birthdays of those who are close to us. Birthdays keep us childlike. They remind us that what is important is not what we do or accomplish, not what we have or who we know, but that we are, here and now. On birthdays let us be grateful for the gift of life.”-Henry Nouwen Birthdays are my chance to plan something outlandish and my friends will have to do it. I absolutely love planning parties, dressing up, and doing something I've never done before and I use birthdays an an opportunity to do that. Year 20 was a trip to the Exploratorium in San Francisco, where we acted like kids, and had a party back at the dorms. Year 21 was the H party where I introduced beer pong ... read more
January 25th 2012
I have a lot to catch up on here but I will start with the first eventful...er...event...that has happened to me recently. On January 24th, 2012 I had my first all-day date. My boyfriend thought it would be so much fun to meet up at 9am. 9....am....on my day off. Who thinks of such things, right? But I complied. Falling out of bed at 8:30 I got all ready and walked to the subway. It was one of the coldest days I have ever experienced. Just walking 5 minutes made my face burn with cold. Once I reached Joseph, he assured me that we would be inside the whole day, as the mall and surrounding places were connected. Was very happy at this thought. After a relaxing subway ride that lasted maybe half an hour, we ... read more
October 22nd 2011
>Time to get some exercise. We hiked up the second highest peak of Cheonggyesan mountain. It took a little under two hours to get to the top. I had so much fun that the following morning I went back for another hike, but this time to the highest peak. I've never visited Korea during this time of year. It's so beautiful. The trails are covered with red, yellow, and orange leaves. They fall down from treetops and land in your lap or cling to your hair. It always makes me smile.... read more
May 15th 2011
What happens when Australian beef meets a forward thinking Korean? You get South Koreaʼs #1 Premium Burger Diner! April 1999, the first of twenty-four Kraze Burgers opened their doors to the people of Seoul in the ritzy area of Apujeong-gu. The first menu consisted of Burgers, Pasta, Rice, Salads and Steak. Their “Mad love” for premium burgers, affection for their customers needs and dedicated hard work by their employees set Kraze apart from the competition. Quality, service and customer satisfaction has been their focus since opening their first diner set in a unique, trendy, dining experience because of this they have expanded international with diners in Hong Kong, Macao China, Singapore and Washington D.C. Walking out of the darkened COEX Mall hallway the fluorescent lighting ripped through our corneas. Grabbing the only available table we set ... read more
February 17th 2011
Today ended up being a pretty long day. I left with roommate #2 for school at 9:15, morning classes start at 9:40. And now I can finally answer almost all of the questions (that were asked so frequently before I left) about what I will be doing for work over the next year. First off- I will be teaching pre-school mostly. These kids are about ages 5-7 but in Korean years which differ from ours #1 because they come out of the womb as 1yr olds, and then they acquire a year onto their age every New year or Korean New Year...not sure which. Anyways like I said they start class at 9:40 and are there until 2:30 each day. At age 8 they start elementary school, which they attend until 2:30, and then show up ... read more
February 16th 2011
Well Hello There!! This is the first entry of my first travel blog- how exciting! Well, it would be if I weren't so exhausted. I really just wanted to try and get on here to quickly jot down how my day went. I slept straight through the flight from Denver to San Franciso- no problem. It was a good thing I had a 5 hour layover in San Fran- that airport is pretty big. I found out that they have two international terminals, so I wandered around a little, then found a spot to park in the Int'l Terminal for awhile, then decided to try and find my gate, and THEN found out that there were two. No biggie- still had plenty of time. But I slept a lot and watched a lot of movies on ... read more
Seoul Calibur OCI: Drinking Edition
Published: September 14th 2010Asia » South Korea » Seoul » Gangnam
September 14th 2010
So I have three students I teach at OCI, their nicknames are Choi, Ung and Root. We have a good time and they are all a bit older than me...mid to late 20's American age. Root and Choi live in Seoul so I convinced them that the four of us should plan a trip to go there. The proceeding are the adventures that transgressed on said trip: I took a cab directly from school after my class ended at 8. It was raining so I was sure to bring an umbrella. The cab driver took some crazy route to the bus station that ended up costing more...I was a little pissed. Nonetheless I was on the 8:30 and on my way to Seoul. When I boarded the bus I sat down and put in my iPod, ... read more
June 23rd 2010
Apologies for my mysterious disappearance. Honestly, I hadn't had much going on until this past weekend other than my KAPS volunteer work (I'll get into that in a few minutes). With warm weather and a steady income, I also have somehow stumbled onto some sort of regular social life. Go figure! ;) Anyway, this weekend, I holed up with Kate in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. I was in desperate need to get out of Daegu (not that I didn't just get out last month, I know). I booked a late-night KTX on Friday night and got into Seoul around 12:30. We spent Friday night in Gangnam, hitting up the Rainbow room, and just hanging out. Then, we decided to go to bed early for our adventure the following day: Yongsan Market. Yongsan Market is a majestic place. Just ... read more
March 25th 2010
This is going to be quick because I've got to get in the shower and get ready to leave for the last day of training. SO glad it's the last day. I didn't think it would ever come. I'm not sure I've ever learned this much information in a week of my life. From 9-5 for the last 4 days I have been sitting at a table learning new information and then mock teaching, which is followed by the whole group offering constructive criticism! That's always fun huh!? I wasn't really aware that upon arriving to training they make it very clear that you haven't been hired yet, often referring to the "application process." IF and WHEN you pass the class structure test and final mock evaluation on Friday THEN you sign a contract and are ... read more
