Wanderlust: 01.09

1.21.2009

My Wanderlust is Being Fed...

As I began my second semester of grad school, I thought I would stay put in Issaquah until my departure to Korea for a second go round. Well, suddenly there is much more on my agenda than simply studying.

This weekend I will visit a friend in Langley, Canada, near Vancouver for my first trip EVER to Canada. I'd say it's about time as I have lived in a country bordering Canada for most of my life & have seen several other countries. I'm quite excited to get the chance to hang out with Shawna, a friend I met in Korea, on the North American continent. I do have to say, the more I travel, the more amazing people I meet & have been able to visit in their home element as well, really fun!

Upon my return to Washington, I'll be here for a few days of intense studying & then am heading to Florida for a short trip to hug everyone & hang out for a few days. What I didn't realize when I booked my $240 plane ticket was that I was returning to my hometown on the weekend of the super bowl (and guess what, the super bowl is being hosted in my hometown). I'm not quite the football fan, so I'm just hoping it won't be too crazy on the roads. That's what I get for not even knowing it was football season, oh man.

The date of my departure for Korea is February 18th. I have orientation from February 20-27th in @ a University two hours outside of Seoul through the EPIK program (EPIK is the education board that hired me). After that, I will be picked up & brought to my final destination in Gwangju where I believe I begin teaching on March 2nd. My mouth is watering for kimchi chiggae (spicy kimchi soup with pork), I long to hear the chatter of Koreans speaking all around me, & I am ever so excited to visit Yeosu to see my friends there.

Life has gotten pretty busy, but also so exciting. I am one lucky lady & I certainly thank my lucky stars each day for the life I lead!

1.13.2009

20 of the Goodest Things I Love to Love to Love

These are in no specific order, I love, love, love them all!

1. Silly moments of uncontrollable laughter
2. Learning language & using it on the streets
3. Cuddling which (thanks to Sarah) I like to call snugging
4. DANCING (esp. in house dance parties)
5. Listening to live musica
6. Bicycle riding & all other forms of public transport
7. Hanging out with children (they make me feel tall, eheh, really they make me feel happy)
8. Getting spiffy
9. Making out
10. Night hiking (all hiking, but especially a hike on a beautifully clear night)
11. Eating delicious food accompanied by delicious beer or wine
12. Traveling...I've got a case of wanderlust
13. COoking & baking (my new love)
14. Taking walks just after the sun goes down
15. Drinking iced Americanos on a hot day
16. Laying in bed reading on a drizzly day
17. Hosting parties
18. Unforeseen adventures
19. Taking photo self-portraits
20. Having a community of friends by my side

1.11.2009

Writing, Musing, & Waiting

Tomorrow marks the beginning of another trimester of school for me, my 2nd of my MA career. I am taking Second Language Acquisition as well as 3, one credit courses where I choose a topic for each & write a short essay, comment on my classmates' essays, & write a final reply to the comments on my own essays. I think I will learn a lot. I am excited that the 3 topics are of my choice. That way, I can really delve into TESOL topics that are relevant & interesting to me.

I've also had a lot of time to think in the last month, what with not working, vacation from school, & being in a new environment where I don't know anyone nor have easy access to get anywhere. The future looms, but not negatively upon me with lots of new adventures to come as I make my way back to Korea for another year, in another city, with a job at a public elementary school. Things like being busy with a full-time job & school are on my mind as well as new friends, explorations, & hopefully learning much more Korean.

As I wait for my next move, I am relishing each day of slow-paced life, preparing myself for the dive into a new life, again in Korea.

1.07.2009

Portland & the Weekend

I spend the very first weekend of the new year, 2009, in Portland, Oregon with my friend, Brittany and her boyfriend Honore, that I had not seen in almost two years.

I took the train from Seattle to Portland which took roughly 3 1/2 hours. Beautiful, snowy scenery served as landscape on my short, but sweet ride. Arriving in the 6pm darkness, it was such a nice feeling to see Brittany's smiling face come around the corner to greet me and take me out into the wilds of Portland. We finally found boyfriend & dog, Honore & Max, respectively. And off we went on a lovely, lazy, & very enjoyable weekend together.

Activities consisted of game play, reading, beer, photo booth, hiking which was preceded by a mad search for rubber rain boots in a city you would expect would have a plethora, eating, sleeping, much biking, biking in the snow, coffee drinking, Powell's bookstore tour, walks with Max, meeting friends, talking about the environment/politics/the world/memory loss, & lots of catching up.