안녕하새요! Hi!
Well, here is my every few month update. Sorry - yet again for the late arrival.
Here's what's new...
If you haven't noticed or are too busy to check your e-mail....over the last month or so I've been trying to upload as many pics as possible starting from February to the present. It's been quite a task, but is hopefully allowing you all to visualize what my current year has been like for me. I'm currently (as in, this exact moment) uploading pics from summer. You probably won't get many more because I haven't been doing much of anything these days.
For summer vacation, David and I headed to the small infamous island of Jeju. It is located on the southern tip of Korea. They call it the Hawaii of Korea - it's where are the honeymooners go. No pun intended. We had a fabulous time. It was incredibly hot, but we managed to see and do just about everything we planned. The beaches were amazing there and the life there made it seem as if we weren't in Korea at all. The people there definitely had this island life vibe around them. It was so nice to get away and relax. The pictures will explain the trip.
Well, summer is out and fall is in. Just about a month after coming home from summer vacation, we were in for another week off. Chuseok - Korea's Thanksgiving was the last week in September. Last year mom and dad were here around the same time. This Chuseok I planned a trip with 9 other friends of mine. We went to Beijing, China! We had such a great time and it was a packed filled vacation. Those pics will come soon. We were on a tour so everything was very well organized and timely. I really enjoyed China and would love to go and see it again. We were able to see all the famous spots in Beijing as well as eat some of their local cuisine. I'm so glad I was able to see a part of that country while being out here. There is a lot of history in China - the US doesn't compare in age and it's amazing to see palaces and cities that Emperors once ruled.
Up next in September was another 10K. Unfortunately I over-trained right before China and hurt my heel. So I ran a 5K instead. It was short and sweet. I'm taking it easy but I'm signed up for another 10k in November.
One thing I have been looking to do in Korea for the past year and 9 months is visit an orphanage. Finally I made it out a few weeks ago. The kids were so cute and they seemed to connect easily with a bunch of foreigners. It felt good going and I hope to go again soon.
For those of you that are unaware - there is a MAJOR crisis going on in Korea right now. The crop of Korean cabbage did not do so well lasty year, so there is a HUGE shortage of kimchi. With the crazy weather that we had last winter, the crops didn't produce nearly as much cabbage as previous and Korea is now importing cabbage from China. Pretty sure its putting a big damper on the Korean pride. Anyway, so if you are a regular kimchi eater in the states - I'm sure the price has gone up 10 times. Just a little food for thought.
Alright, for those of you who see/talk to my parents on a regular basis you might have heard of my plans for the next year or so - for those of you who don't, let me fill you in. According to my last blog update, I stated that I was thinking about staying in Korea another year to fulfill some financial needs. Well...money isn't everything. My plans have changed and I have mapped out the next year of my life. I will be coming home March 26th, 2011. Get excited. I plan on coming home and starting Esthetician School at Clover Park Technical College. The program starts March 30th....I was sure to give myself plenty of time to get ready..haha. The Esthetic Program lasts two quarters, Spring and Summer. I will be taking 7 courses and going full-time from about 730am to 2pm Monday thru Friday with the weekends off. If anyone is in need of a facial, waxing, or body wraps I'm sure I'll be working on the floor within a month of school - probably for fairly cheap. When I come home I'm going to be looking for a cheap car, and a cheap/free place to crash.... :) Remember, you all miss me and really want me to come home - even if that means bumming off of your couch from a few months. My plan after school is to either get a job or move back here to Korea. The program will end August 30th. It's not a great time to get back to Korea - September is in the middle of the term, but there's usually something you can find at any time. Also, I am thinking that hitting the Esthetics market here is a great idea. There aren't a whole lot of places that are clean/trustworthy, or that even do waxing. I wanna monopolize the market here and especially with the foreign community. Anyway, these are just ideas right now. I might come home and love it and never want to leave again. I do have many babies waiting to meet their Auntie Jin (at the least 4) and a wedding to be in. So, these are my plans as of now and I'm so excited to see everyone. You need to put in some last minute requests for Koreanish things while I'm here so I can ship it home while I can.
Now for some bigger news. Although I may be coming back to Asia, there is no guarantee - soooo....what better way to leave than by going on VACATION! Oh yeah - I'll be traveling from February 27th until March 23rd. Guess where I'll be going - such a great question to answer. My itinerary: Busan, SK to Boracay, Philippines - Boracay to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - KL to New Delhi, India - ND to Bangkok, Thailand - Bangkok to Vietnam - and then home. Now, you think that is amazing..well, the price was even more amazing and going to all those countries costs about 300 dollars LESS than going from Vietnam to Seattle. Soooo...who could say no to that...??
This does put a huge damper on all of your Christmas presents...sorry. Soju presents, ok?? It's killing me, but Christmas will be pretty uneventful from me. I'll be sure to send a card!
When you see me again I will be brown and skinny. :)
On that note, I'm off to teach! Have a great Fall in WAshington! And see you all next SPRING!!
Love, Jin
