Boryeong Mud Festival 2012

The great part about extending our contract is that we get to experience all the great parts of Korea that only happen in the summer and fall two glorious times. That means, we made it to Mudfest again!!

This time around at Mudfest, we did things a little better. We got to hang out with friends and family, planned better, spent less money, and got to play on more of the inflatable toys. Win. Win. Win. Win.

From Suncheon, we left on Friday night and made our way to Jeonju by train. When we arrived in Jeonju,we took a taxi to the bus station to look at bus times to Boryeong and try to buy tickets. We weren't able to buy tickets the night before but we did see all the times and they had special seasonal buses going to Daechon beach. Yes, just what we were hoping for! We stayed at a great love motel (the front was the lone word "Hotel" and it claimed to be "a tourist hotel") that was only 40,000 won for the night.

The next morning we got up early and left on the 8:30am bus to the beach. We arrived at about 9:45, stored our stuff in a locker (2,000 won this year, free last year), and bought wristbands for both the morning and afternoon sections. (Last year there weren't sections and only on entrance fee of 5,000 won for the whole day.)

The morning section was a LOT less crowded than the afternoon section. We only had to wait about 15-20 minutes in line for each slide, mud pit, or obstacle course. We were able to do everything. Even though each activity seemed to be over really quick, it was still super fun. I was laughing, slipping, and sliding all over those big plastic toys!

The afternoon is when everyone and their flippin' brother arrived. All the organized tours started pulling in and the place really started filling up. The lines swelled and what used to take 20 minutes, took up to two hours. We didn't go on any of the slides or anything in the afternoon. It just wasn't worth it to wait that long for less than a minute of play time.

It was so crowded but there was still plenty of mud to go around! They have a "jail" where you go inside and they festival workers throw mud all over you. It was a good way to get to lookin' like this:

The first photo was taken by Katie and the last four were taken by Brent of Kimchi Bytes.

Gwangalli Beach, Busan

Over the weekend we went to Busan to visit with some friends and for Spencer to play in soccer tournament. We stayed with our friends in the Gwangalli beach area and it was like a little slice of Korean heaven. I loved everything about the place! First of all, our friends live about a block away from this:

Beautiful, no? :) The bridge lights up at night with little color changing lights. It's gorgeous! I wish I took a picture of it but it was rainy when I saw it at night. Bummer.

Number two, Gwagalli has a variety of cafes, restaurants, and bars along the beach. For the price of a cup of coffee, you can sit in the shade for a couple hours enjoying the cool sea air. There is some great people watching to be had, and what better place to do it from than from the second story of a coffee shop?

Another great part about our beachy weekend get away was our friend's cat, Oscar. Oscar is a loaner kitty that Courtney is watching while her friend does some traveling for a couple months. I'm honestly not very much of a cat person but I instantly fell for this guy.

He has got to be one of the most chill cats, ever. And his hair is just awesome. He's like a tiny grey and white lion! He's a gem.   

Also, here's a few more photos from the weekend, just for fun.

futsol tournament

art in the metro

Gwangalli Beach, it's definitely not secluded!

The Highs

This is a great idea!

Gwangalli street sign

heading home to Suncheon, bus terminals as far as the eye can see!

Korean Photo Poses

One of the greatest things about Koreans is the way they pose for photos. Just smiling isn't good enough for them. They feel they should invoke what they are feeling, some creativity, or silliness into their photos. It's silly but actually really fun!

Here are a couple of our friends, Kaylee and Jeremy, showing some of the poses for you.

Photos by Miss Katie High.

View from the Top

When we were in Seoul for Spencer's birthday, we went to a cafe and took these pictures using the mirror on the ceiling. I think they're great! I love using things around us to create unique and interesting shots of every day life. I need to keep my eye open for more opportunities like this. Hope you enjoy!

Sloshball in the Park

Last weekend we went to Seoul to hang out with some cool people and play sloshball in the park to celebrate Spencer and Allie's birthdays. 

If you don't know, sloshball is just like regular baseball, or in our case kickball, but you drink beer the whole time. To be able to pass second base, you have to down a beer first. Some people play that you have to drink a beer before you bat, too. People on defense have to have a beer in their hand and yeah, it's hard to play with a beer but it's super fun!

second base and Kyle kicking in the background

We had a great time entertaining the Korean families enjoying the park with us. One group of old guys even clapped whenever someone made a particularly good catch. We played for about 4 hours and never kept score. It was a great way to spend the afternoon and celebrate the births of some great people.

I was too intent on playing and didn't even take my camera out but Katie took a bunch of pics so all these are hers. Thanks Katie!!

Katie, in all her glory

One Year in Korea

 
I'm not going to lie, this year has been a bit crazy. Living in another country creates all kinds of exciting adventures and frustrating differences. My best friend told me before I left that Korea is like a roller coaster--there are great highs and low, lowly lows. She was so right. There were times when I loved it and times when I wanted to just get on a plane and go anywhere but here.

Even through all that, I'm so happy we came to Korea. Not only are we able to work at a steady job with a good income but we are able to live in a foreign country while doing it. Since we both love to travel, this kind of lifestyle is exactly what we want. We want to make exploring and travel the biggest part of our lives.

Granted, working for a hagwon in Korea we don't get much vacation time, but we are able to learn what it's like to be an expat. I'm sure this won't be the last country we live in as expats. In fact, we're already planning to do a work/holiday visa in Australia. :) My adventurous spirit can't sit still for too long!

When I start to get antsy and ready to move on to the next adventure, I try and remember to relax and enjoy every moment because I'm living my dream life.

Living in the Moment

Some of the happiest people I know are those who focus on the present. They seem to always think the future can wait and the past is where it belongs, in the past.

I've been trying to implement this mindset into my life but it's more challenging than you think. I've realized that I'm constantly thinking about the future. I'm a planner, and I'm always thinking of places to go or different life paths to take, which isn't a horrible trait to have...but I think if you live in the present you can change your life. 

By being mindful of the present, you can make the most of your time. If you experience every moment, it will feel like you are really living instead of just going through the motions. I've found that I notice more things around me, I'm more engaged with my students, and I'm more grateful for the good things in my life.

To get  myself in the present, I'll literally tell myself things like, "I'm riding my bike. I feel strong. The breeze is so refreshing." I just tell myself what I'm doing and then I try and think of adjectives to describe it. It's so simple but has been effective in getting my mind out of the negative aspects of life in Korea and focused on all the great things we have here. There is joy in every day and I'm trying to notice it and be grateful for it.

I have to work at it everyday, but it's worth it. Instead of feeling sullen and unhappy in our last five months, I hope I'll be able to enjoy life. I'm trying to change my mindset and make myself a more happy person.

After all, that's what it's all about: being happy.