Surfing new waves of geekdom.

My South Korean adventure is now over. I made it home to Canada safely, none the worse for wear. I feel that I have gained so much from the experience that I'm afraid I'd lapse into tired cliches to say more. I am happy I went, and I'm happy I'm back, and what a great and challenging time it was.

I am now residing (temporarily) in Vancouver until Jon, Guy and I can move to Burnaby in a few days. So far I have been loving my time here. I can feel changes happening, taking me in new and happier directions.

Here is my new home. Expect the layout and colors to change shortly.

[Please excuse the URL, it's kind of stupid sounding but in a terribly awesome way...and surprisingly nerdyglory was taken]

Also, if you're looking for him, you can find Guy at a new blogger address too, as his Korean adventure is now also at an end.

That's it. Go there already!

Laura

Goodbye ECC ^__^;;

Well, folks, it's official...I'm finished my year of teaching here in Korea. I have my plane tickets, the school paid me in full and said their goodbyes, and I am almost finished packing. It feels so surreal, like I'm missing something...It was all so simple. Thanks for being here, here's your money, best of luck, out the door. Awesome! I'm richer, smarter, more attractive (ha!), and happier after this year. There have been some difficult times but I made it through.

And tomorrow Guy and I escape the horrors of +33C nighttime temperatures into a land of airconditioned bliss. Yep, we're getting a hotel room in Pusan somewhere. A mini-vacation before our real fun begins--back in Canada!

Goodbye Korea. It's been real. Don't forget to email me some of your kimchi. I have the feeling I'll miss it.

Food, folks and fun

My school smells vaguely like stale McDonalds. It makes sense, because we are located directly on top of the only one in Miryang. It is the only fast-food chain restaurant in town (unless you count the Korean version, Lotteria, which I don't).

I now hate McDonalds with a fiery passion. I haven't always felt this way. In fact, I was pretty indifferent before I moved to Korea. There were times when a tiny tiny cheeseburger was very satisfying. The slight tinge of guilt I'd feel after eating something vaguely meat-like was quashed by the burpy satisfaction of a double cheeseburger.

For the first while here, Guy and I were eating at McDonalds fairly regularly, simply because there wasn't anywhere else you could get a fast-food cheeseburger in town. When you are getting used to a Korean diet, sometimes you want a break from rice. So he and I ate there quite a lot.

Until...that fateful Saturday when we went for the Big Macs. The horrifying aftermath is not fit for print. Suffice it to say it don't taste any better coming back up.

I am still holding a bitter grudge against McDonalds for that. Except for one thing. I'm a little embarrassed about it.

Their coffee is the closest I've tasted to real coffee since coming to Korea. Since Guy's french press broke, we have been coffee-less. He sneaks out to McDonald's every morning to get us some caffeine.

I can forget about their food, if they keep providing us with coffee. It's only for two more weeks!

Chock full of museumy goodness (when your head doesn't hurt).

For all you [three] people that are angry at me for not updating, here it is, fools.

Guy and I went to Gyeongju this weekend, the old historical city in Korea. We went courtesy of a woman he teaches privately, a director of a hagwon here in Miryang. She took us to Gyeongju with her husband and five-year-old daughter. They treated us to a hotel room and lots of food and museums, which was very kind. I have some photos but I'm too lazy to post them here. If you want a gander at them, why dontcha email me, dammit?

So the trip was great, we saw lots of sights and temples and all that. Unfortunately my experience was soured a bit at one of the major museums in Gyeongju.

I got hit in the head with a shoe.

Yes, you read that right. Guy and I were wandering around a glass-walled exhibit, looking at old daggers or gold jewellry from the Silla Dynasty, when *bam*. I was stunned. Something with a decent amount of force hit the side/back of my head. It took me a few seconds to even comprehend what had happened. I looked down. A kid's shoe lay in front of me. I looked up. A woman with her family was apologizing using a very serious Korean term for "sorry". She made her kid apologize to me. I think it was an accident. He must have been fooling around and flung off his shoe.

Horrifically embarrassed and stunned, as this created a bit of a scene, I dragged Guy outside with me to get some air. The shock of it all (getting hit in the head with a shoe, in a museum??) brought some tears to my eyes. I was pretty upset. Angry at the kid for being so disrespectful in a museum, angry at the accident, confused and bitter about why I got hit squarely in the head and not someone else. Maybe if it had hit the glass pane, it would have caused more problems.

Anyway, I have a headache today. And probably a bump on my head.

Time to go work on my website. I have web hosting already so all I need to do is create, and upload. Busy, stressed me.

Only a month and a half until my feet touch Canadian soil again. July 26th. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, so I've been *away* for awhile.

I'm not sure who's still reading this. I do get a few hits from time to time (mostly from Guy's site). I just haven't felt like writing much lately. Life is fine here, pretty darn good actually, so maybe that's why. No drama.

I got accepted to Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, and I'm going to study Sociology. Living in Korea has reawoken me to my interest in people and culture. I feel fascinated by something new here every day, and I am constantly asking questions. I think this is a good and new direction to stretch myself in.

Also I've been pretty busy creating new artwork, mostly digital, that I've had ideas for for a long time. I'm not sure where this creative spurt will lead me yet, but I'm happy that I have a deep creative well to draw from now.

If you're curious about some of the work I've been doing lately, click on the sidebar pictures, from my deviantart site. It's just something fun I like to do. I get feedback sometimes and it's kind of a trip to post work I've done for everyone to see.

So that's all for now. If you want to get in touch with me, email me at visualaura@gmail.com.

If you're here and visiting, thanks for dropping by. I miss everyone at home. Only three months to go.

Laura

Seoul in February

I'm not going to write much this time. I just thought I'd post a few of the touristy-type pictures I took in Seoul, with minimal comments. I will probably put up more artistic shots in my deviantart gallery, so if you're so inclined, you can look for them there.

A great time was truly had by all.


To start, this of course is Andy, Guy, and me. We're at Deok Su Gung Palace, near the beginning of our visit.




A couple more shots at Deok Su Gung Palace, which has quite a long and varied history. A lot of temples in Korea look similar, although each of them is a little different.








Can you tell the difference? I can't.
Guy posing with King Sejong, who was evidently a big reader, unlike Guy. ha!




The culprits again, this time at a major stadium in Seoul. We wanted to attend a soccer match (South Korea vs. Kuwait) here the following night, but tickets were sold out. Since we were here already, we decided to take a few pictures.

We had to settle to watching the match on TV later on, at a bar with really delicious beer. And really great lights.




Speaking of that bar, here's a beer we obviously didn't drink there (or would ever drink):




I'm really thrilled because we got to see a great art exhibit at a really nice museum. The show's theme was games and culture, and it was a digital show, with pieces varying from video to interactive projects, to huge letters scrolling on the wall. I came away from that feeling inspired and refreshed. It was modern, forward-thinking, and truly wonderful. I only wish you could have seen it for yourself. We all had a great time there.




OBEY.




And finally, Guy and I made it up to Seoul Tower.






I'm being rather succinct here but I'm truly weary of uploading photos. If you have any questions just email or write a comment. The system is much easier to use on Blogger now, I think, so it will be less trouble to comment now.

I am going to go now. Hope you're doing well, all who pass through here.

While we're on the topic of Korean web cartoons...

My Seoul pictures are almost ready. So be patient. In the mean time, sit back and enjoy the antics of the crazy rabbit...

Mashimaro!

Yay!

I guess this is what the stickmen I draw on the board look like to Korean children.

It's what my young (and not so young) students are into these days. Often in their excited conversations with each other I can hear references to "Zolaman". It's a Flash animation created in Korea. I don't pretend to understand it. But it's kinda nifty. Check it out.

Saturday: The Real Work Day Begins

Sincere apologies for the delays.

Today *should* be devoted to getting my Seoul pictures sorted out, and other various future planning that needs to be done. I always have great ambitions to get so much work done during the week, but once my teaching day is finished (usually around 8:30 at night, sometimes 9:30), I am brain-dead. I'm much more of a morning person. I get more work done earlier in the day, and the quality is much better. So needless to say, weekends are the best time to do my own personal stuff.

It will get finished. At least, that's what I keep telling myself.