It’s been a while since the last post… the last month has been me saying goodbye to everyone in Andong, saying hello to everyone in America, saying goodbye to everyone in America, saying hello to everyone in Seoul, and cleaning out my apartment from the last tenant who thought he would be nice and leave [...]
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The main reason we visited Hahoe Village this weekend was to see our friend Usher perform in a musical. It was really, really great. I didn’t understand the plot given that my Korean is pretty much limited to ordering food, ordering more food, and telling taxi drivers how to get me to said food. But, [...]
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Some friends and I went out to Hahoe Folk Village this weekend. It’s so beautiful there, and I was happy I got to see it again before I left Andong. Hahoe Village is a traditional Korean village from the Joseon era (1392-1897). The homes, the rice, the river… it’s all rather wonderful. And people actually [...]
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The other day I posted some photos of Andong’s music fountain. Now, I’ve finally put the video together. It’s very short (2 minutes). I removed the live sound and replaced it with one of my favorite Kpop singers — Son Dambi. (I love love Son Dambi.)
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Generally speaking, I find Korea to be very good with lighting. There’s obviously some rough spots here and there, but for the most part, I think they (more than Americans) take pride in how things look. Examples being… the ugly bridge in Andong that is slightly less ugly due to the colored lights at night… [...]
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This weekend I went to my first bodybuilding competition. Some friends from my gym were entering and I wanted to support them, while also realizing that the chance I’ll befriend bodybuilders again is about as likely as Bristol and Levi living happily ever after. It was interesting. I saw more muscles, more black bikinis, and [...]
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Donghwasa is probably my favorite temple in Korea. I love everything about it. So for Buddha’s Birthday, I decided to make a last minute trip. It was very, very interesting, even if it wasn’t as awe-inspiring as the first time. They were doing construction on the enormous 33m Buddha, so that was a mess. And while [...]
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After two long days in Seoul walking more than I have ever walked in my entire life, I pulled it together enough to wait it out for the Lotus Lantern Festival Parade. I’m glad I did, because I loved it. In my former life working in politics, I attended many (MANY) parades. As a rule, [...]
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This weekend I spent some time in Seoul to check out the Lotus Lantern Festival. Buddha’s birthday is this month and there are a lot of things going on. It was very interesting in comparison to American festivals… by that I mean it was A LOT less annoying. Of course, I can never figure out [...]
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I am the annoying tourist who sacrifices enjoying the moment so that I catch it on film. My friends oftentimes hate me, and sometimes I do regret not fully taking in some wonderful moments in my effort to get a good photo or video. Of course, now that I’m NOT on vacation, I am so [...]
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After Siquijor, I took a brief trip over to Apo Island. That proved to be one disaster after another and I took the first boat back to Negros. Once I was back on the island of Negros, I camped out in Dumaguete and was able to take a day trip to Casaroro Falls. Like everything [...]
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I know, I know. EVERYONE takes crappy sunset photos on vacation. It’s as if we’re unable to see sunsets in our hometowns and when thrust upon a new landscape, something as common as sleep becomes so incredibly fascinating. I do try to see the natural beauty of the earth; however, I live in the Apartment [...]
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One of the best parts of Siquijor was the butterfly sanctuary. I’d never been to anything like this, but I have to admit, being in a beautiful garden with butterflies flying all around is about as close to heaven as I’ve ever come… it was certainly much better than the “Heaven” room the Baptists would [...]
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The Philippines have a reputation for taking Jesus seriously… and on Siquijor there was no shortage of Jesus paraphernalia. Most of the things I saw were built in the 19th century when the Spanish had colonized the islands. I found them all to be very beautiful in their own way. One thing I always find [...]
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Cambugahay Falls was one of the favorite things on my trip. I had seen pictures before I arrived and I knew what to expect. However, like pretty much everything I saw in the Philippines, it exceeded every expectation. Cambugahay was also one of the few places I went where there were other people around. Several [...]
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I just got back from my vacation in The Philippines. I spent most of my time in the Siquijor province, but also went out to Apo Island, Dumaguete, and Manila. Siquijor was amazing. I stayed at the Kiwi Dive Resort (highly recommend), which only has a handful of cottages, and even though there were other [...]
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Giving into Olympic fever, I went out to visit Olympic Park in Seoul last weekend. I’m always so divided on the Olympics. I think it’s such a gigantic waste of money, but at the same time I can’t stop loving them. In my heart I really, really wanted Chicago to win the bid for the [...]
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I went to the War Memorial of Korea several weeks ago, but I haven’t written about it in hopes that my original feelings about the place would moderate. It is very different from war memorials in the United States, and I didn’t want my pre-conceived notions to get in the way (because I do actually [...]
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When I walked in to eat lunch today, I saw a “pretty” girl across the restaurant, but I didn’t pay much attention. There are a lot of “pretty” people in Korea (in my opinion) and I never talk to any of them. But as I was eating I noticed her talking to the owners of [...]
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Anapji has been one of my favorite things to see in Korea. It was a special night when I was there. Anap Pond, or Anapji, was part of the palace complex during the Silla Dynasty (57 BC – 935 AD). Also, note that I used more post-production on this video than I normally do, so [...]
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