The Next Big Trip - Southeast Asia

Hi friends! :) I am so excited about our upcoming trip that I can't wait to tell you all, even though it's still months away.

Spencer and I will be spending four months in SE Asia starting December 1st!

rough itinerary - original map from here

We are really enjoying living and working in Suncheon, South Korea. So much, in fact, that we are extending our contract for five months. Our contract ends in July but we're going to hang on for a bit longer to earn some extra cash and enjoy another fall season. (Fall is absolutely lovely in Korea.)

We've only recently begun planning the trip and I've been scouring blog archives, reading Lonely Planet, and checking Gogobot for ideas of itineraries, special places to visit, visa information, foods to try, and what to expect. When planning, I usually like to read as much as I possibly can about our destinations while never setting anything into stone. I like to know what's out there but not really plan anything to keep our options open and be able to take advice from fellow travelers while we're there. That way we can also stay longer in one area if we like it and it feels more like we are exploring.

Our itinerary as of now: I'm thinking we are going to fly in and out of Bangkok and make a kind of loop. Here's the plan as of now (I'm sure it will change many times before December!) Start in Bangkok or Phuket and then explore southern Thailand's beaches and limestone cliffs. From there head back up north to Chiang Mai, Thailand and over to Burma. After Burma, go back east to Laos. After Laos, hop over to Hanoi and then travel all the way down Vietnam, beach by beach (possibly via motorbike!). Once we get to the bottom of Vietnam, head east to Cambodia for a while. Lastly, go to Bangkok for our flight back to the States for some family time and weddings. 


Have you been to SE Asia? I would love any advice you have to give! 

Fish Spa in Seoul

Have you ever had little fish eat dead skin off your feet? I have and at first, I couldn't handle it! Those little fishies were tickling me sooooo much! Also, I was the only person with my feet in the fish tank so they were all on me like savages. I could only leave my feet in for a few seconds before I would squeal and yank them out.

Here's a video (from my iPod) of me putting my feet in with the savage fish:




Those guys were crazy! Thankfully, there was another tank and the fish were a bit more calm. It felt really strange at first but I soon got used to it and actually enjoyed myself. The water in the tank with the calm fish was noticeably cooler. Maybe that's why they were more relaxed? I'm not sure.


The place we went to in Seoul was in Gangnam and really easy to find. It's actually at a cafe called Book and Spa Cafe. First you buy something from the cafe (coffee, tea, snacks...general cafe stuff) and tell the cashier that you want to do the fish spa. First you enjoy your beverages or snacks and then you can do the fish spa. Also available to snack on (free of charge) are bread and jam, generic tea, and simple snacks (like you would find in a bar). There are signs in English to help you understand what to do and the staff can speak very basic English, at least the staff working when we went could.


How to get there: Take the subway to Gangnam station and exit from exit 10. Walk straight until you see this bear:

The Book and Spa Cafe is right above this shop on the second floor. The shop is hilariously called Teenie Weenie. When looking at the bear, look left and you will see the door to the elevator and the stairs to get to the second floor.

The Hunt for Mexican Food in Seoul

Before we moved to Korea, we ate authentic Mexican food at least once a week. It might have been a tad unhealthy, but it was delicious. We've been living in Korea for about eight months at this point. We've had homemade Mexican food and ate at one Mexican restaurant in Busan last August or September (can't remember which month).

Before our most recent trip to Seoul, I was really craving some tacos, nachos, and basically anything spicy and crunchy with Mexican flavor. I did some online searching and found a place in Gangnam. The directions were from a blog I'd never heard of before so I was a little skeptical about them. When I told my sister-in-law, Katie (who lives in Seoul) about them she informed me that all the subway exits at that stop changed numbers in November 2011. So the directions were even more sketchy. Great.

We were on a mission and even though we knew it would take a while, we decided just to try different exits and see if we could find it. Gangnam subway stop has a LOT of exits.

After walking around for close to 45 minutes we found a different Mexican food place and decided just to eat there. The place we found is called Dos Tacos.

The restaurant is pretty small and it was packed full of people when we got there. We had to wait about 5-10 minutes before getting a table in the corner. The place is full of western posters and signs in Spanish and English. There's a map of Mexico, the skyline of Los Angeles, and Mexican beer signs, to name a few. Above the "dos tacos" sign, it says, "feel the salsa beat."

We ordered nachos, a taco, a quesadilla, and a burrito between the three of us. I'm not going to lie, after not eating Mexican food for so long, it was pretty good but it was nothing compared to the quality we can get back home. It was good in a pinch. The absolute best part was the guacamole. The guac was actually really good! Ask for extra guac if you go.

Not great directions, but how to get there: Take the Seoul subway to Gangnam station and use exit 10. Walk straight out for about 15 minutes. There will be little alleys on your left. Look down them until you see the Dos Tacos sign.

look at those tiny kegs!

Welcome Spring

 Hi friends! Sorry I haven't been posting regularly. I've been super sick. One day I went to work, taught one class, and then my boss looked at me and said, "I think your condition is not good. You can't teach today. You should go home." I have never been more grateful to be sent home from work! So, after three visits to the doctor in two weeks, I'm now on my third round of antibiotics and am hoping that it will be my last.

One positive thing that's happened during that time is that Spring is finally here! :) I'm so happy to see the longer days and rising temperatures. I've noticed the roses I walk by on the way to school are starting to wake up from their winter slumber and all the flower shops are beginning to keep their plants and flowers outside again. I no longer need to wear leggings or tights under my jeans everyday, and today I even went out without a scarf!

My goal is to enjoy every Spring day and be grateful for the beautiful weather. It's just the beginning of Spring now and it's still pretty cold in the mornings and at night but it's still exciting. Plus, I know once the humidity of Summer hits, I'll be wishing for Fall, so I really want to enjoy the transition from cold to hot.

Spring also means the emergence of cherry blossoms and I can't wait to see some flowering trees and hopefully make it to this cherry blossom festival, butterfly festival, and green tea festival. There's so much to do! :) 

If you'll be in Seoul this Spring, here are the "Best Spring-time Destinations" from the Korean Tourism Board.

I hope Spring is in the air wherever you are!

Kony 2012

Joseph Kony is the number one wanted criminal on the International Criminal Court's (ICC) most wanted list for his crimes against humanity in Central Africa. He is a rebel leader who abducts children and forces them to kill or become sex slaves. He is a man who needs to be taken down and it will happen this year: 2012.

Watch the video to learn more and see what you can do to help the international effort to stop this despicable man from causing harm to children, their families, and all of humanity. 


KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

Do all these people really work here?

One thing I know for sure is that way too many people work at Home Plus. What I can't figure out is why. Just browsing around the electronics section, you'll get two or three people buzzing around, invading personal space, and speaking in rapid Korean. Even if I was attempting to understand them, I would never be able to.

After living in Korea for seven months, I find myself looking, while simultaneously pretending not to look, as I walk slowly past so no one will come up to me. I only do this if I'm not intent on actually buying something. I see it as a way of saving everyone's time. It's a kindness, really.

For those of you that don't know, Home Plus is a massive big box store that sells everything from groceries to running shoes to books. It's convenient to have everything in one place but it's not like your typical big box store. There isn't just one set of registers where you can buy everything. There are larger areas and smaller booth-like areas. The "booths" are each manned with anywhere from one to four employees. In the large more normal-to-me areas, there are people standing in the aisles waiting to help you. This makes for a lot of unnecessary employees milling about with nothing to do, which I find extremely overwhelming. If you go in on a weekday afternoon, you can actually expect to see more employees than customers.

When we first moved here, I thought, "What are all these people doing just standing around? What are they doing?" Then I walked into a "booth" area to look at something and one shot up to me, standing right at my elbow, smiling and talking in Korean. "Ahhh, I understand. They work here!"  I tried to convey what I wanted with a series of gestures and smiles. After about 20 minutes of "talking" to multiple employees, I finally bought the face powder I needed.

I am successful at this type of communication only about half the time. When I can get my point across, I feel very happy and proud of my interpersonal skills that can somehow transcend language barriers. Go me! When I'm unsuccessful, I usually end up trying to explain myself to more and more employees who congregate to try and help me. They are so thoughtful and try so hard. I know it's my fault we can't communicate because I'm in their country and can't speak their language. I always smile, bow and say thank you in Korean (one of my few words) even if I walk away from the exchange empty handed. I then avoid eye contact with every employee I see, which is almost everyone in the whole store.

I understand that people need to be there to help customers but why are there two ladies standing in the shampoo aisle? Do people really need help picking out the right shampoo and conditioner? Maybe they're there to put things in your cart for you. I still don't know.

My Favorite Place in the World

One of the hardest questions any traveler gets asked is, "What was your favorite place?"

My first time out of my native country was with the Semester at Sea program in college, where I visited 10 countries in 100 days. Every country was so different and offered commendable, praiseworthy, and completely unique experiences. I truly loved every country but always got asked the same troublesome question: "What was your favorite place?"

How could I pick just one?!! Every place was so jaw droppingly different from home. How could I compare the time I saw a family of elephants walking along a mountain range in the twilight of South Africa's wilderness with the time my friends and I let our drivers have a break while we raced each other and peddled them to our destination in Burma?

As much as I tried to explain this over and over, it seemed that few people understood where I was coming from. Either that, or they just were trying to be nice and weren't really looking for an hour long speech about how every country is amazing in its own right.

I soon thought of a suitable answer to this ceaseless inquiry that I would spout off from memory whenever someone posed it to me. That way, I didn't get annoyed and angry when people were trying to be nice to me and hear about my trip. It went something along the lines of, "Oh, that's such a hard question! I loved them all....but if I had to pick a place I could see myself living in, I would say South Africa or Japan." Ugh, just typing that made me bored.

More than a few years later, I now have a real answer for this question. When people ask me what my favorite place in the wold is, I say "Monet's garden!" with a gracious smile.

Visiting Monet's house is like a dream. It's the most beautiful place in the world. Now when I get asked this horrendously tedious question, I instantly get reminded of it's beauty and grace and instantly forget my frustrations.