Korean Thanksgiving

It’s called Chusok, it’s a three day holiday, and it’s a time for Koreans to be with their family and exchange gifts sets (think tea, honey, SPAM). What this meant for me was a short vacation, but having not booked a flight or ferry out of the country at least 2 months prior there was zero opportunity to leave Korea, but that in no way interfered with my holiday fun.

We kicked off the extra long weekend with a Friday night gong show of free beer. The following day we boarded a ferry to explore Geoje-do, a beautiful island about an hour off the coast of Busan. For three days we lazed, swam, gamed and drank. The weather wasn’t in our favour, but it didn’t impede at all on our good times. Koreans were more than helpful with calling us cabs, or driving us waygooks around the island in search of food.. then providing us with treats if they were too full to house us for the evening.

The results: Five Restful Days, Amazing Hospitality, Competition to the Max, Good Company, and Plenty of Laughs – all great reasons to give thanks.

A Slightly Tactless Entry

As we all know, a picture is worth a thousand words… so I’ll let these photos do the talking for this one.

Don't judge me too harshly...

BEFORE:

AFTER:

A Goodbye for Mai

I have never prided myself on being a spontaneous person… Acting impulsively is not one of those things that I’m into, known for, or comfortable with. But sometimes it can be a difficult thing to avoid, particularly living in a foreign country, where I find myself forced to succumb and adapt rather quickly.. and so, it was with Mai’s departure weekend. I couldn’t have predicted the outcome, and had I given myself time to think through it all, I would have denied myself the enjoyment that was Saturday night.

Following an intensively competitive few games of bowling, the crew headed to a beach party at the other end of the city. As is customary of our nights (days, and lives) we brought the debauchery, caused a ruckus, and began wrestling… This behaviour landed us, at 4 am, fully clothed, in the ocean. Once we were in there was no turning back, so under a moonlit sky, we frolicked in the warm crashing waves without a care .... trying to remain oblivious to how cold it would be once out, how hard it would be to get a cab, and how far it was to get home.

What followed were 4 grueling hours trying to warm up, and stay awake in order to get Mai to the airport for her 10am departure, and our tearful goodbye. A sad ending to a wonderful evening… but hurrah for the lack of sane logic that led to one of the best nights to date.

A Mid-Way Perspective

Time is a funny thing… sometimes hours can feel like they’re taking far too long to pass, and the weekend seems so far away, yet months can pass you by in the blink of an eye.. and so if feels with the past six months I have been here… and it blows my mind. I’m no longer a “newbie” though in some ways I still feel like I only arrived last month. But, I’m settling in so well, and I’m living this life now, and it’s a strange but wonderful reality. What seemed strange and bizarre at the beginning is now normalized and commonplace.. (which hopefully explains my less-than-frequent blogging). I have a life, a routine, friends, acquaintances, drama, boys.. all the great things that keep me sane…

But my six month mark also held some of the hardest times since being in Korea. In the past 2 weeks, I have said goodbye to two very close friends. Girls that have made a mark in my life and helped define the first half of my time here. But that’s the way things go, especially living in a foreign country… Most of us are here temporarily, so people are constantly in and out of our lives.. but these same individuals are part of the small circle of people that we have here… so with no family around the friendships, though brief, are insanely intense, and wonderful. So, the summers end, my six month mark, and the tearful goodbyes haven’t been easy, but they have encouraged me to remember all the great experiences I’ve had since coming here. And I’m ready to begin anew, and step up to what the next six months will offer… I’m only half way done, so my adventure is far from complete!