My third Christmas away...

I can't believe that this was my third time away from home for Christmas. I seem to be getting into this habit. Each time away I always realize how much I miss friends and family back home. As much fun as I am having experiencing all I am- around Christmas time I can't help but feel jealous of everyone together back home. But going on tropical vacations definitely helps ease the jealous pains. 

Conor and I decided to go back to El Nido in the Philippines. Although we had been there before- it just turned into the easiest (and cheapest) place for us to book last minute. Our two friends from work, Brent and Mackenzie, came with us too. Getting to El Nido is a process. We flew from Seoul to Manila. Manila to Puerto Princesa- where we stayed a night. The next morning we took a 6 hour van ride to El Nido. The van is an experience all in itself. The first 3 hours are fine, but as you get closer to El Nido the roads get curved and rocky. It's a trek, but totally worth it. 

The Philippines is such an amazing place to visit. I felt it the first time around too. Everyone is nice and kind and always smiling. You can't help but feel happy there. There are stray dogs everywhere that come up to wagging their tails. I felt such a sense of relief upon arriving. Any work stress just melted away. 

I'll take a minute to briefly talk about work since I haven't posted anything about it yet. I have 9, 7 year old students in my class known as Kiwi Class (5 girls and 4 boys). They are quite a handful. The first week was rough for all of us- a big adjustment period. But after a few weeks I think we have all finally gotten into a routine together- figured out what works and what doesn't. I only haven them for another two months before they graduate. We've had some ups and downs so far which is why I haven't written about them yet. We are still getting to know each other. I hate to admit it- but I did miss them a little on vacation, don't tell anyone. 

Anyway, back to vacation. We stayed at a small hostel called Anang Balay. The woman who ran the place, Anna, immediately treated us like family. She and her staff were so good to us the whole time. The place had a roof with a beautiful ocean view, that became our hangout spot. The hostel cat, Ming Ming, sat with us up there every morning and evening. Anna helped us book tours, rent scooters and even introduced us to the police chief! It's always nice to feel at home  where ever you are staying. 

We stayed in El Nido for 7 days which allowed us to do a lot of things. We had a few rainy days and all of us (except Conor) had a sick day as well. Luckily the sick days and rainy days fell together. Twice we took boats out to go to other smaller islands close by. Out on sea we got to do some snorkeling in the beautiful blue water. We swam through rough waves and small caves to see "secret" beaches. But my favorite part of the island hopping is the lunch provided. Our tour guides cook/ prepare amazing feasts of fish, pork, rice, veggies and fruit. It's probably the most authentic food to eat on a trip and it's always delicious. The tours also allow us to meet some other travelers staying in the area. If anyone doesn't know, I don't love being on small boats. One trip we were moving between islands and the waves got really rough. Our guide and driver just laughed at how scared/ uncomfortable I was. Later he told me that it's like that everyday (is that supposed to make me feel better?). It's an irrational thing for me to be scared of considering I know how to swim, but the idea of a boat flipping over makes me cringe. 

El Nido is a cool little town. Although there are plenty of tourists there, it is not run over with tourism. The locals and tourists just hang out together in the area. There aren't big resorts taking over, just small hostels, a few restaurants and shops. There are no cars- only tuk tuk trikes. My favorite part about El Nido is the fact that there is no electricity between 6am and 2pm (sometimes later). It makes so much sense because there is no need for the electricity then. BUT I always woke up around 630 because it was so hot and our air conditioner had shut off. 

On the days we weren't island hopping we would take a tuk tuk to a beach close by. Los Cabanos was where we saw the beautiful sunset. On our final full day in El Nido we rented scooters and headed out to Nacpan beach. It was a bumpy hour ride, but totally worth it. Felt amazing to be on the back of the scooter on a beautiful day just riding through towns and past rice fields. The beach was as beautiful as I remembered it. This time there were a few Filipino families there. Everyone had the day off for New Years and it was fun to see families relaxing having a good time together. 

Saying goodbye to the Philippines and everyone we had met was sad. But being on this trip and having a new year ahead of me I had a lot of time to reflect. I am so proud of myself for going on these new, scary,  exciting and different adventures. I never thought this would be my life- but now I can't imagine it any other way. I'm looking forward to 2014- ready for more adventures and positivity in the next year!

My welcome back...

It was really a good feeling landing in the Incheon Airport after our flight.  It felt so normal and natural to be there, way different than my first time around.  I knew exactly where to go, how to get my bags, where I could exchange money- the usual.  Our flight really wasn’t bad- we slept and watched movies at the appropriate times and the 14 hours flew by! A taxi driver drove us to our new home- Bangbae, where we stopped by school and then were taken to our apartment.

 

I was SO happy to be able to go to our apartment right away.  A lot of times people have to stay in a hotel for a week or so into whoever they are replacing moves out.  Both times I’ve come to Korea I’ve gotten to move in right away, lucky me.  Our new place is a HUGE upgrade from last year. We actually have space and separation- unlike last year just living in a room.  I almost cried when I walked in and saw the regular size oven- I can continue baking even from halfway around the world.  Little things like having a microwave this year are also amazing in comparison. We have two bedrooms- the second room has become our laundry/my exercise room. The bathroom and shower situation are pretty much the same- a shower head attached to a wall, but there’s a window in there to reduce the mold build up.

 

My new school is called Alphabet Street School.  So far it seems pretty similar to my school last year.  This year, I’m going to be teaching 7 year olds to begin with.  In March I’ll get a new class, but I’m excited to work with the 7 year olds for now.  They all speak English pretty well; they have been studying since they were 6 years old.  I have 4 boys and 5 girls, nice small class.  I officially start teaching them next week so we’ll see how that goes.  Conor has started already with his class, he also has 7 year olds- but they’ve been studying for 3 years now!

 

It was very easy to settle into things this year.  It’s a good feeling that I know how to do a lot of basic things that I had to learn last year (example: how to ride the subway).  It made it a lot easier for us to immediately go out and purchase our brand new flat screen TV that we couldn’t wait to buy.  It makes our apartment truly start to feel like home.  Conor and I have also done some hiking since we’ve been here, but now it’s starting to get too cold outside.

A fun thing we did last weekend was go to a food and drink festival. It was in a giant hall in an even more giant mall. There were a few floors filled with Korean food, some western food and samples from all over the world. Our favorite part was the craft beer sampling station- every there got a free bag of tortilla chips too! 

All in all it’s been a good first few weeks back.  It feels like we’ve never left, been here forever, but I still miss everyone at home every day.  I’m excited to start teaching this week because I’ve been pretty bored during the day.  And I’m excited to start planning our vacation for December in a month!!!

My second time around...

When I was in 5^th grade I was asked “where will you be in the year 2014”.  I know it’s only 2013, but let’s compromise on that.  Luckily I’m a nerd and have kept most of my old yearbooks, so I pulled out the Collins School 2000 one to find my answer. My answer was “a teacher in first grade.  Maybe I’ll teach at Collins School!” A teacher in first grade, obviously no one bothered to correct my phrasing- but obviously I was hoping to be teaching first grade.  I’m just glad I didn’t write “married with three kids”.

For my second time around, Conor and I will be living in a new city, Bangbae.  Bangbae is a lot closer to the Seoul action than our last location was.  It’ll be nice to be able to go out sometimes from work – have a happy hour drink, go to dinner.  Even better is that Conor and I will be on the same schedule.  Last time, I worked 9:30-6 while Conor was working 1:30-9.  For me, this is probably the most exciting thing.  I will no longer have to wait to eat dinner until 9:30 just to fall asleep an hour later. 

I have to admit that leaving this second time around was, is, a lot harder than before.  These last few months at home were great.  I forgot how much I do like it here, and got really comfortable being here. However, I am excited about leaving. I miss working and teaching and ready to be back in my routine over there.  As of now I’m all packed, ready for my 1pm flight tomorrow!  14 hours on a plane- here I come!

My layover...

Conor and my flight home had a layover in Tokyo. So we decided why not extend it for a few days and hang out on our way home. And once again, Japan did not disappoint me. 

Last time I visited the South of Japan for my visa run and I was really excited to see Tokyo. It reminded me so much of Korea, it felt like home. After a long flight and a subway ride we arrived to our hostel, Tokyo Samuri. We couldn't check in until 3 so we dropped our bags and went exploring. 

We walked to some temples near by where we were staying. It was such a beautiful day outside and I was so happy to be out of the sweltering heat. Sensoji temples are located near some really cute walking streets. There were lots of people but not too much traffic, felt a little more relaxed than in Hanoi. Since it was a weekend there were alot of locals there, which was nice because we saw them pray correctly in the temples. Our exploration continued on the subway where we went to a beautiful garden and just walked around for a while. Tokyo is cool because even though you are in a big city, there are beautiful parks and gardens around every corner. 

For dinner we headed to the more happening Shinjuku area. We found a typical diner type restaurant where you put money in a vending machine, choose what you want and then give the slip to the waitress. The people are the restaurant were so nice and happy to help some foreigners out!

If you don't already know this, baseball is a huge deal in Japan. Once our plans were set to go, Conor began researching a game for us to go too. We went to the Tokyo Swallows, which happen to be the worst team (and they lived up to that reputation). But being there was so fun! Any time their team scored everyone pulled out umbrellas, I haven't had a chance to look up exactly why this is a tradition. But it was hilarious. The Swallows lost 10-4, but this was definitely a highlight of our trip. Nothing like a beer and udon at a baseball game. 

Tokyo is home to one of, if not the largest fish market. It's really common to wake up at the crack of dawn and go to see the big tuna auctions. Since we're lazy, Conor and I skipped that, but still went early enough for some action. I was surprised the smell of fish wasn't more pungent in the market. Flip flops were a bad choice because its wet and bloody everywhere. The best part is having fresh sushi from one of the restaurants for breakfast. We sat in a crowded place and shared a big plate of sushi. Our chef was so kind and was able to explain some pieces to us (most exotic would be sea urchin). It was delicious and fresh, and I'm not even a sushi lover. 

Japan was beautiful and it was so great to stop for a little on our way home. A great way to end my fantastic trip! Sad to see it all end, but so excited to be back home!

My goodbye to Vietnam...

We took the overnight bus from Hue to Hanoi. I felt like we had a going away party at the hotel because so many other people were leaving too. Everyone was just hanging out together downstairs before the bus rolled up and 5 of us got on, then we drove off into the sunset. 

On the bus we sat with 2 friends that we had met at the hotel- Leo and Chris. We all snuggled up in the back of our sleeper bus. Sadly this was one of the worst bus rides we've had. Within the first hour we had a flat tire, no one was feeling too great- all in all just bad. We got into Hanoi early in the morning and checked into a hotel. This place wasn't too great, and we knew we wanted to move the next morning. Conor and I both didn't feel great after our horrible ride. We slept and ate, but didn't do much our first day in Hanoi. 

We immediately changed hotels the next morning. Our new hotel, Charming, was one of the best places that we stayed at. The people were so good to us, good breakfast and the room felt like total high class in comparison to some of our other choices. We took a cyclo ride that morning around a big lake. A cyclo is basically a high bike with a seat attached to it. An older man huffs and puffs as he drives you around on his bike. It wasn't the most enjoyable ride because I thought the guy was going to have a heart attack, but I didn't feel right leaving Vietnam with never having experienced it. 

We had planned to go to the movies that day, but when we got to the theater realized that nothing good was playing. So we bought tickets to see The Hangover 3 the next day. The movie theater is in a big, modern mall. We found an arcade, and obviously played some games. Some children followed us around in the arcade, fascinated by us because we were the only non- Vietnamese people there. Sometimes it's nice to feel like a celebrity. 

The next few days all revolved around eating. In case I never mentioned this before, I love pho. And in Vietnam they eat it for breakfast so I don't feel weird when I wake up and crave it! We went to a good local spot one morning. The next time we went to find it, it was run down and looked like it had been deserted for years. Weird. Another great spot we found was DC Bistro, which was a French restaurant. They had a great set menu and a wine happy hour! What more could you ask for? Conor and I ate here 3 separate times. One night we even took home a bottle of wine and some cheese for a fancy dessert.  Bun Bo is a Vietnamese dish with is kind of like dry pho. It comes with crunchy peanuts on top and its really good with a spicy sauce. Neville, our Hanoi tasting tour guide, recommended a place for us to try Bun Bo. He also recommended a spot for Bun Cha. This is a pork soup dish. It's kind of a make your own thing- they bring you a plate of greens, a bowl of papaya in soup, noodles and a big bowl of pork. The place Neville recommended for us also served the best crab spring rolls (nem cua) I've ever had. I'm actually going to say they were the best spring rolls in general.  I would say these are our food highlights. Please don't judge me if I come home 10 pounds heavier. 

We had met this English guy (Sebastian) at the French restaurant one day. He was really friendly and told us his girlfriend was coming to visit. So we all planned to have lunch at the DC Bistro again. The lunch was fun and it really highlighted a great aspect of traveling. That is: everyone is your best friend upon meeting them and its not weird to have lunch with strangers. That same night my friend (and sorority sister) was going to be in Vietnam with her friend. So Conor and I took them to a cool street drinking corner. It was so much fun to see Jodi, a little taste of home!

We went to a museum of ethnology and learned about Vietnamese tribes. It was interesting, and outside there were so many fun things for children to do. It was children's day when we went here so Conor and I got to enjoy tug of war, a water puppet show and a goat walking around. We also went to an old prison which held some Americans during the war. John McCain was taken here. It was propaganda at its finest, claiming that the POWs loved it there. 

Hanoi was really fun. Conor and I really got to know the city because we were there for so long. We ate some really good food, walked around alot and hung out with some good people. I was sad leaving because it meant we were leaving Vietnam and who knows when I'll be back. Vietnam showed me some truly great places, introduced me to amazing food and taught me what it really means to sweat. I'll miss you Vietnam!

My cruise...

Conor and I had been looking forward to our HaLong cruise for a while. We have heard such great things from friends who have visited and from other travelers along the way here. After alot of research on what is the best cruise line, we decided to just trust our hotel and book through them. 

After a 3 hour ride out of the city we boarded the Fantasea cruise. Everyone was friendly and we all got to know each other a little over lunch. When I say lunch I also mean feast. The dishes were endless and delicious! 

Our first stop was to a huge and cool cave. I mean cool as in temperature wise. It's been SO HOT outside and walking around in a cave was a nice escape from the heat. After some exploring, we kayaked for a bit. We got dropped off at a crowded beach where Conor and I hiked to a beautiful lookout point. 

We got back on the boat and this is when the real fun started happening. Conor and I smuggled a bottle of vodka onto the ship, which we shared with our two new friends, Adele and James. A few drinks and a five Mcourse meal later it was karaoke time. Adele and I rocked the mic with our renditions of Britney Spears and the Spice Girls. Even Conor and James sang a few songs. At one point the four of us were the only people awake still, so after some star gazing we went to bed. 

Conor and I were the only people who booked a tour for 2 nights. So the next morning we got taken on a smaller boat to a less touristy part of the bay. It was beautiful and peaceful. We relaxed on a beach, did some more kayaking and even went to a pearl farm. I especially liked being away from crowded places for awhile. 

That night we got onto a different Fantasea boat. After stuffing ourselves with food, Conor and I decided to try squid fishing. We caught nothing. I'm not even sure if we saw a squid. We were karaoked out from the night before and headed to bed early. 

HaLong was beautiful and a nice change from the city. No motorbikes or polluted air. We were sad to leave!

My bike rides...

We arrived in Hue to the Google Hotel, which we had previously booked online, at 5pm- just in time for the free beer happy hour! The google hotel was really great- friendly staff and lots of cool other travelers to meet and hang out with. After having a few beers we took the 5 minute walk down to the river looking for dinner. We walked through the market to the restaurants and settled down for our seafood feast. We ordered clams, shrimps, rice, fish and a few beers; all for $13. The food was so good and fresh! Perfect first impression of Hue. 

We headed back towards our hotel and ended up at a street bar close to Google. This is where we met Ing Ahn, the young girl who worked at the restaurant there. Since Conor and I were the only people there, she sat with us for a while. Ing Ahn was awesome. She is studying English at university and she spoke so well. We talked for a while, she showed us pictures from her brothers wedding. We ended up back there the following night, just to hang out with Ing Ahn again. 

The following day we rented bikes from our hotel for 30,000 Vietnamese dong (1.50$). We rode around town to the ruins of the citadel with two friends from our hostel. It was nice to ride around and see the town for a little. We walked around inside the citadel and saw some old palaces. The buildings were from the Japanese rule in Vietnam. It was beautiful but it was so so sweltering hot. After a few hours we decided to find some shade and grab some lunch. We chose a restaurant on the river and were the only people there. The waitress gave us what appeared to be the "foreigner" menu. All of us had been in Vietnam long enough we felt confident ordering off the local menu AND the prices were cheaper. We all headed back to Google to relax in the air conditioning for a bit before happy hour time!

The next day Conor and I rented bikes again. It really was so great to just cruise around and see the town that way. The traffic wasn't as bad as other places and in Hue there weren't too many specific places we were dying to see so getting lost on a bike was perfect. Our first stop was at a cafe on the river. We've both enjoyed the local coffees in Vietnam, so we sat and had two each. We continued to ride around for a while looking for good street food for lunch. We ended up at a place close to our hotel. I got stir fried noodles with veggies and Conor got soup- yum yum!

That night we had a wonderful dinner with an Australian and English couple. We met the Australians at our hotel a few nights before. Paula and Chris were traveling for a few weeks in Vietnam. They were great and easy to talk too. That night they planned to meet up with Amelia and Andy to bring them to the river for seafood. Conor and I decided to join them for another great feast. It was really fun- great food, great conversation!  We all headed back to Google for a few more fresh beers for dessert. There we met some girls from Canada who were also really cool. Our hotel was really fun this way, everyone just hanging out getting to know each other. 

Our final day in Hue we went for a bike ride once again. Like the days before we rode and stopped at different places for drinks and snacks. One cafe we found was surrounded by lily pads! After a few hours we headed back to figure out our bill at the hotel. We were taking the night bus to Hanoi and wanted to relax for a bit before. After having a drink with Paula and Chris our bus arrived. A few people from our hotel were also taking the bus, which was nice to have some friends to go with. 

Hue was really fun, chill and relaxing. We met a lot of good people there, ate some really good food and just got to relax. Another place I can't wait to go back too!