Hello World,

Our journey started on February 16, 2005, when we met in New York City. We became inseparable from the very first day we met, began dating, fell in love, and moved in together in SoHo, N.Y.C. Our lives, now intertwined, took a very adventurous turn as we moved to Japan. While living in Japan for a year I (Larry) taught English as a second language in Shin Uryasu-shi and Melanie was Ariel in a performance of 'The Little Mermaid' at Disney Sea in Tokyo. After Japan, we realized how much we enjoyed traveling and decided to move to South Korea.

During our first year in South Korea we both taught at an English immersion camp called English Village. I taught a variety of classes, including Robotics, and Melanie originally started by teaching English through dance and performances. She later switched to the same teaching program as me, specializing in Broadcasting classes. Melanie continued with her performances by landing a guest spot on the popular television show "Muhan Dojeon," as well as starring in several children's television shows.

Our second year in Korea we moved to the the center of Seoul, an area called Gangnam, where we continued teaching, but in a very different environment. We worked in a private academy called a "hogwan," where we taught primarily elementary and junior high schools students in a very structured school setting. During our second year, I worked almost every day and Melanie continued with her teaching and Children's TV shows on the popular Korean TV network, EBS. While being in Korea we have had the luxury of being able to travel through much of Southeast Asia, and we continue to travel to new destinations.

After Korea, we decided to work onboard a Holland America Line cruise ship called 'The Amsterdam'. We started in San Diego and sailed along the coast, around Cape Horn and into the Wilhelm Archipelago of Antarctica. From here we sailed north, up the east coast of South America to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. For the next 5 months we sailed through a small part of Antarctica and between Rio de Janeiro-Brazil and Valpairaiso-Chile, while stopping at such ports as Montevideo-Uruguay, Buenos Aires-Argentina, Port Stanley-Falkland Islands, Ushuaia-Argentina, Punta Arenas - Chile, and Puerto Montt - Chile. After our we completed this itinerary we enjoyed a transitional cruise stopping in Ecuador, Peru, Panama, several ports in Mexico, San Diego, Seattle, Vancouver - Canada, and Victoria - Canada.

We returned to the United States of America in May of 2009. After catching up with loved ones we spent the summer working part-time jobs and planning our wonderful wedding. We got married on September 4th, 2009 in Dearborn, Michigan. Our wonderful ceremony was at the Martha Mary Chapel in The Henry Ford Village, a very historical place. After numerous pictures and an enjoyable carriage ride we continued our beautiful day with the reception at the Alexandria Ballroom at The Dearborn Inn - the ballroom was actually where Henry Ford and his wife danced together. After hours of mingling, toasting, dancing and eating, we continued an after-hours event in our suite for a few more hours.

Saying goodbye to friends and family was hard to do, but Melanie and I had to start planning for our 5-week honeymoon. We started our honeymoon in Rome where we boarded a cruise ship, The Prinsendam. Four weeks onboard The Prinsendam allowed us to see such countries as Italy, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Albania, Croatia, Egypt, and Israel. After cruising around the Mediterranean and Black Seas, we returned to Italy and decided to explore some more of Italy. We rented a car and drove to Pisa, Vincenza, and the very unique city of Venice.

After returning once again to the United States we had friends to see, birthdays to attend, weddings & holidays to celebrate, and had to start looking for a career. A brief search and an ailing global economy led us back to South Korea. We are now back in Seoul, South Korea, teaching English, doing voiceover work, and traveling the world.

There are still places to see, people to meet, and unusual things to eat. I am so lucky to be able to have and share these amazing adventures with my best friend, my wife. We hope you enjoy reading our experiences as much as we like sharing them with you.

Love,
Laurence & Melanie Buckley

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