Friends

Someone once said, "Friends are like siblings God forgot to give us." What an amazing quote and so true in this chapter of my life right now. I love all of my friends back at home and I embrace the new friends that God is placing my life right now.  I've been plugged into a wonderful church community at ICC (International Community Church) and pretty soon, we'll be meeting weekly for bible study. :D

After church Sunday, some friends and I were on a mission to play ultimate frisbee. Having never played before (and reading what I could on WIkipedia about the sport :D), I was pumped and ready to play! We got to the place that was posted on Koreabridge (equivalent to Craigslist) and no one was there! Albeit, we were 20 min late but still, either that was a super fast game or it got cancelled bc it was so stinking hot.

Field of a private Junior Highschool
Figuring out what to do next wasn't hard. 
We quickly made up our mind to go hiking in the Ee Gi Dae mountains.

We had to walk up a steep trail at one point but it was worth it because the view was amazing

We may have jumped off on the other side of this cliff

Here are some people chillin and taking in the hot Busan sun.

Chillin. These men were hardcore. They were still there on our hike back home.

Go OU! With the help of a Texan ;)

A woman tubing and having the time of her life

Gorgeous, no?

The formidable group minus two.

Imagine climbing back up this loooong bridge of stairs. Can't believe it? See below

The Great Wall of Korea

It's pretty cool when you get up to the top because you can see Haeundae city and the famous Gwangalli bridge

Panoramic.. sorta

The famous Gwangalli bridge in the distance..

Just making sure you're paying attention.

Isn't he cute? Saw this precious cutie on the hike...

You walk on this barefoot because it's "good for health" as many would say.

Hey mom, u should get one of these in our your backyard. It's good for health.

Group minus one and before cliff diving!

I would guess this was about 40 feet up..? The water was as if we dove into the run off of the polar glaciers. 

This caused major water consumption upon contact followed by heavy breathing and shouts of triumphant screaming and laughter... Who woulda thunk this to be so fun?? 

This immediately prompted the group to dive over and over again.. like penguins going back for more fish.

One thing that informative Jay did NOT tell us was that there are jellyfish in these salty waters. Being the loyal Friends fan that I am, I quickly shared with the group that one must excrete urine on another in case a near fatal jellyfish attack should happen... no one took it seriously.

So I, too, brushed it off and sealed the experience with a victorious celebration!

 I won't blame you for cringing at this pic bc it's pretty cheesy.

The sun was slowly setting and we made the trek back to the car

Notice how the gang is up front. 

To take good pictures, one must be dedicated to follow from the back. 

Call me if you need a good photographer as I'll have tons of iphone experience after this year. 

Wedding? no prob. Me and my iphone will be there.

Not sure why I took this pic. 

Hey mom, this is what dad used to pick from the cracks of sidewalks to put in our dwen jang chigae

Ahh, I can almost hear the birds chirping and the leaves rustling..

God's ray of light peeking through the trees :)

I enhanced this one

After our successful hike and returning to our car with a negative calorie count, we decided to head to Gwangalli beach where we were greeted with tons of restaurants, coffee shops, and silkworm vendors.

Quickly moving on...

This was our spread. Yes, that is cardboard that Korean Sam picked up next to a trashcan. It's okay, "it's good for health."

The gang minus me.

Here, Jay is modeling how it's done.

Chicken wouldn't be complete without the use of chopsticks!

I couldn't understand the random ball of rice noodles in the spicy chicken mix. It also made for an awkward situation when it came time to who got how much of it.. in the end, I ate it.

'Gorges' pronouced 'Hor-hays'

Boardwalk - right side

Boardwalk - left side

View towards Haeundae Beach (more crowded and apparently overrated)

At night. We were here for quite a while. 
We played frisbee and various other frisbee games

Bustling Gwangalli

After 9pm on weekends, the street is closed off for performers to woo the crowds. Here is a man singing old Korean songs that I'm sure would fancy my mom's musical taste

And what would blogging be without posting occasional Konglish (korean+english) that makes no sense? 

Trotting along the boardwalk and we were stopped by these cops.. robo cops, that is.

They had toy guns made of styrofoam. One fake shot me in my face. And I'd like to elaborate on this..

I once heard that when you experience a 'gun-in-the-face- situation', you'll never forget it because of the trauma and the ptsd-like effects. Sadly, I experienced this way too casually but the effects were still all the same.

But these pretty lights made me feel better. I will one day frame this.. uh oh, I used one day.. which means it'll never happen.

Konglish example #2

Patbingsoo!! 

All gone!

Sunday was a success for many reasons. I got to visit so many cool places and what made it better was that it was with friends who could appreciate the beauty of God's creation. I'm so thankful (even when little frustrations creep up here and there) to be here right now and know that I won't forget this experience for a very long time!

For those who are reading this.. still... I miss you very much and wish you were experiencing these things with me. Love you all....

Genesis 1:20‑21 "And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky." So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good."

Here and there

Hey hey. I'm sorry a week slipped by without an update! I had been feeling under the weather for the past week but I'm now back to my normal self. I realized that I packed very badly when I saw that I didn't even bring Tylenol! Before I fully update you on what's happened in the last week, I'd like to leave you all with some eye candy.

This is a picture of a bunny that someone keeps drawing in one of the classrooms. It's funny because Mr. Bunny would reappear in a different set of clothes the very next day! This is one my highlights that I look forward to...

And this is a bakery right around the corner and in between my apt and the Hakwon (school). It's called Paris Jean and very lovely inside.

Mousse Cake

Various cakes. I almost bought one for myself but then I thought, not only is that sad but fattening. Very fat.

So I just resorted to a macaron, mini pumpkin pie and apple juice. Now that I think about it, all this combined prob amounted to the same number of calories as a whole cake. I shared my pumpkin pie with the other teachers at the hakwon later on. But meanwhile I enjoyed my macaron and juice in the company of...

the Sex and the City cast.

And here is Mary. I met her at ICC (International Community Church) last Sunday which, by the way, is an awesome church with committed, fun, and loving believers. I feel extremely blessed to be a part of this group. We and a bunch of others went out to go watch Toy Story 3 in 3D for 14,000 Won which was the cost of my finger. That woman in the back was one of the characters in the movie. jk.

To get to the Hakwon, I have to cross this main intersection to reach the other side of the road where the man/woman is jogging in sandals. I turn the corner...

And continue walking.. until I reach the hakwon on my right.

I'm working on another Saturday which really stinks. I haven't quite figured out if I want to continue with the normal curriculum on a weekend. Should I just let the students off easy? What would you do?