Two Tall Travelling

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Its intensive month here so...

kingkate — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 01:27:44 -0600

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Its intensive month here so I’m working 13 hour days. Ugh. But this charming book report cheered me up this afternoon.

Happy New Year From South Korea

kingkate — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 09:30:08 -0600

Happy New Year From South Korea

One last picture of Seoul’s beautiful Christmas Eve snow

kingkate — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 00:05:29 -0600

One last picture of Seoul’s beautiful Christmas Eve snow

Happy Holidays, all! My sorta snowy Seoul Christmas was pretty...

kingkate — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 06:02:52 -0600

Happy Holidays, all!

My sorta snowy Seoul Christmas was pretty wonderful. I went out on Christmas Eve and drank a little hot chocolate and rum, my favorite winter drink. Then I went out and danced with some friends and strangers and came home and slept like a baby.

This morning, I let myself sleep because I didn’t have to work (YAY). Then I went to Iteawon, which is near the US army base and a big foreigner hub. We ate a huge pepperoni pizza and played some darts and shuffleboard at a nearby bar. And we did our secret Santa exchange. I got the above. A very, very ridiculous Hello Kitty cell phone case, which was a delightful present. Then we ate ice cream!

Now I’m gonna snuggle into a pile of blankets on my heated floor and watch movies with my handsome boyfriend. Yay.

Seoul had a gorgeous, white Christmas Eve. Merry Christmas,...

kingkate — Mon, 24 Dec 2012 21:21:15 -0600

Seoul had a gorgeous, white Christmas Eve.

Merry Christmas, followers!

Street Food Seoul: Episode 1 - DESSERT

kingkate — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:17:16 -0600

Street food is my absolute favorite kind of food, whether its an empanada in Argentina, a green onion pancake in Taiwan, or what is quickly becoming a new favorite, cinnamon and brown sugar filled pastry in South Korea.

Other than hot dogs and halal food in New York City, the US lacks a big street food culture. But in Asia, especially in cities, it thrives. People are busy here. And there are a lot of those busy people. So grabbing dinner or a snack on the street makes sense.

So, there is a lot to choose from. I plan on writing more street food entries. But today we start with what’s important.

DESSERT.

There are a lot of dessert options: waffles and ice cream and chocolate filled cakes shaped like fish are all common. But my favorite is Hodduk. (Pronounced Ho-dok.) Its a small, doughy cake filled with melted cinnamon and sugar. Its served very hot and sometimes the vendor adds some nuts and seeds on top.

It is honestly the perfect way to warm your belly on a cold, snowy day.

Its made in these stalls, and its just honestly dough fried in oil. (The cleanliness of these stalls is debatable. But I’m always happy to risk a few days worth of diarrhea for a few minutes of heavenly, mouth bliss. As I proved with my emergency room IV a few months ago.)

They are served in cups and folded in half to make it easier to eat it fast. Which is the Korean way.

I prefer to savor mine though. If you visit me, I will buy you one.

(Also, all these photos were edited on Line Camera, a ridiculous Korean photo editing app, which I highly recommend you check out. Its too cute for this world.)

sometimes funny things happen when you live abroad. like when you go to the drugstore to buy body...

kingkate — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 23:04:47 -0600

sometimes funny things happen when you live abroad.

like when you go to the drugstore to buy body wash. and everything is in korean.

so you just grab the cheapest, big bottle.

and you get home and it smells like limes. so now you gotta walk around smelling like a margarita for six months.

true story, friends.

Last night, I met up with two lovely ladies in London....

bakedapple — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 10:34:53 -0600

Last night, I met up with two lovely ladies in London. I’ve know these women since I was three years old, and somehow we all ended up in London on the same day. Reunions in Europe are pretty cool.

Feeling Heartbreak from 5,000 Miles Away

kingkate — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 20:27:12 -0600

After a silly night out of drinks, dancing, and fast food, I woke up on Saturday, and like always, checked the news. And my heart sank. Information was pouring in about an elementary school shooting in CT. In America. In my home country.

I was in Taiwan during the Aurora shootings, and my heart broke. But my heart has shattered while reading the stories of the small children and brave teachers fleeing from a madaman in an elementary school.

When Obama suggested that parents hug their children closer on Friday, I cried. I can’t hug my parents or my sister or my friends because we’re oceans apart. And I felt so lonely.

Because America is such a powerful nation, I hear about it everyday in South Korea. I hear English music playing in coffee shops, my students ask questions about American films, my co-teachers ask about Obama, and even eleven year old students were smart enough to make fun of Romney (They pronounce his name R-money. HA). While I miss my friends and family, its easy to not miss my country because I can smell it everytime I walk past a Mcdonald’s. I can wear everytime, I go shopping at Forever 21. And, I can hear it, everytime I dance in a dirty club.

But how do you miss it and mourn for it and love it and feel so fed up with it from so far away?

I don’t know. I’ve been reading the news obsessively, but that has only made me tear up at my desk. I’ve emailed and skyped with my family, but that only makes me want to hug them more. I’ve looked at pictures of my hometown and remembered my elementary school days, but that just makes it feel more distant. I’ve even brought in candy for my young students, seeing their faces next to the now-famous small faces from Sandy Hook. That only made my gut wrench.

(Guns are completely banned in South Korea, and there is very literally no gun violence here. That’s all I’ll say about that.)

But over the last few days, I have missed and cursed my home in the same breath. I feel very alone in my mourning, and I think that’s what makes it hardest. In America, despite all its flaws, we really do stand together after tragedies. We are a community, solid and strong. I miss that community most of all in the aftermath.

I've Got a Deep Soul, apparently

kingkate — Sat, 15 Dec 2012 22:34:00 -0600

Fortune tellers, palm readers, and tarot card readers are very common in Korea. They have street stands, booth in malls, and stores in popular shopping districts. Couples often visit them before marriage or when they become pregnant. Sometimes, the readers even choose the name of a couple’s child.

So, naturally, James and I had to try it. (Don’t worry, Mom. I’m not pregnant or engaged. I promise. We just thought it would be fun.)

We had an hour to kill before we saw The Hobbit (unpopular opinion: that movie was way too damn long), so when we saw a tarot card lady in the mall, we went for it.

The reading cost about 10,000 won, about 9 usd, and lasted like fifteen minutes. It was entirely in Korean, so James had to translate. And it was really, really fun. The lady spread a bunch of tarot cards in front of us, and we each choose three, then three more, then three, and then a final three. Half of the cards had pictures and half were just colors.

Now, I don’t know anything about tarot cards, so I don’t know if what the lady told us was true. But, apparently, I have a very deep soul, and a fairly negative outlook on life. I also always try to find a reason for things and am much calmer than James. I’m also a daydreamer and a traveller. I’m also embarking on a new mental journey. Finally, I’m a peaceful, quiet, thoughtful person. All of this I found to be pretty true.

James, on the other hand, is full of passion, ambition, jealousy, charm, confidence, and vision. He is experiencing the death of an old way of thinking, and changing his perspective on life. He will also be experiencing improvement in the condition of his life. (Hopefully, employment!) Again, I think a lot of his reading was pretty accurate too!

It was a really silly, fun experience. If you have a Korean speaking guide, I totally recommend the experience.

5 Days

bakedapple — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 05:38:04 -0600

until my semester abroad ends. I honestly can’t believe how quickly time to going by and I really just need it to stop for a little while. Stop. Just stop. I’m freaking out that I may never see my host family again or some of my American friends.

My core course had a end of the year dinner on Tuesday night after our exam. It was the saddest party I’ve ever been to. The 30+ students in this class have bonded over our obsession with our crazy professor and the memories of our study trip to Berlin. We all said goodbye to our professor over a traditional Danish Christmas dinner (meat on top of meat) and then went to a club together where the drunken goodbyes were had and our secret love for one another was shown. It was ridiculously upsetting, and I spent the next day depressed. But, no worries. The next five days will be incredible once I finish this final paper…

In response to Kate’s cute snow picture, I give you Krista...

bakedapple — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 09:11:28 -0600

In response to Kate’s cute snow picture, I give you Krista in a Danish blizzard

Blog Update

kingkate — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 07:03:20 -0600

Hello My Fellow Wanderlust Beauties!

Just wanted to let you know that Krista and I have added pages to the side of our blog with posts tagged by country.

You can now easily find information about Denmark, Ireland, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan.

So, if your planning a trip or daydreaming about a certain place, go for a scroll (like “go for a ‘stroll’” hahahahaha…….?).

Anyway, enjoy and have a wonderful morning/afternoon/evening, depending on your time zone.

Hygge

bakedapple — Sun, 09 Dec 2012 10:15:00 -0600

pronounced “hooga” is a Danish word that cannot be translated into any other language. It calls to mind friendship, coziness, warmth, comfort, love, etc. Wikipedia describes it as “relaxing with good friends or loved ones, often while enjoying good food and something to drink or creating a more friendly atmosphere by lighting a few candles. Christmas time, when loved ones sit close together on a cold rainy night, is a true moment of hygge”

On Thursday night, my Danish buddy network had a holiday hygge party. Anthony decorated his apartment with a Christmas tree, candles, Danish flags, a televised fireplace, and delicious treats.

And since I was with my very flamboyant buddy network, the beautiful drag queens read us a rather depressing Christmas story.

Then, we all got wine drunk on the couch and enjoyed each other’s companion.

And there you have it: HYGGE

ohthoseplaces: Neighborhood Wall on Flickr. one more of my...

kingkate — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 20:42:00 -0600

ohthoseplaces:

Neighborhood Wall on Flickr.

one more of my seoul snow photos

awesome…

bakedapple — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 09:30:00 -0600

awesome…

Danish Christmas

bakedapple — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 11:12:50 -0600

Danish Christmas

Snow in Seoul on a pink tree

kingkate — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 09:46:42 -0600

Snow in Seoul on a pink tree

Today was Seoul’s first snow!

kingkate — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 23:32:03 -0600

Today was Seoul’s first snow!

Also, James met some sumo wrestlers on his way to Japan. May I...

kingkate — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 07:52:40 -0600

Also, James met some sumo wrestlers on his way to Japan.

May I present:

suspicious sumo, surprised sumo, sad sumo.