I've never liked bugs. I wouldn't say I'm 'scared to death' or anything by them, (except for one time in Panama City, Panama when a hissing cockroach turned flight to fight. The thing was the size of a baby's shoe...and had eight girls running for their lives. Terrifying.) but I don't have any interest in bugs. A few months ago, I was teaching one of my beginner English classes about pets. After getting through the basics...(rabbit, cat, dog, hamster, fish) I asked them about what pets they had at home. One little boy piped up that he had a _____(korean word ?). Having NO idea what that was, I spent the next 15 minutes of class trying to figure it out. Finally in pure desperation, I had him draw a picture. One thing about little Korean ... Read More
Archives for January 2013
I practice my hobbies on saturdays…
Saturdays are my 'relax' day. I absolutely love Saturdays. I know this sounds terrible, but I've become a fan of doing absolutely nothing. My week is filled with go, go, go moments, and honestly, I'm not left with much fuel in my tank. This past week I had been particularly stressed; my husband made me promise that when the weekend rolled around I would take some time to myself. I have to admit: I'm like a two year old child. There's no way I can sit for hours doing the same thing. I start multiple projects and jump around trying to complete them throughout the day. I love it. This week I had to challenge myself to do something I really enjoy doing. It's what the hubs wanted. It's what I NEEDED. The laundry was to remain unfolded, ... Read More
Weird Wednesday (01/23)
I knew it was just going to be a matter of time before a strange item would be sighted in a bathroom stall. Public bathrooms are just strange here. Not only do they make miniature toilets for the little ones, but they give you moist towelettes to wipe down the seat before you go. If you need to use the restroom in a more 'lavish' area, many times they have bidets instead of normal toilets. If you're not sure what a bidet is, it's basically a toilet that 'cleans' you, instead of you using toilet paper. Some of them even have heated seats. I don't even know how many awkward situations I've been in...looking at all the buttons (in Korean btw), and trying to figure out how to flush the stupid toilet! I'm actually not writing today to talk ... Read More
[Vietnam] the time i ate sea urchin
Our vacation in Phu Quoc was just getting started. We booked an all-day fishing and snorkeling excursion (only $15 dollars a person) around the south tip of the island. We weren't sure what to expect, but were ready for the tropical adventure. We headed out first thing that morning, and on the way to our tour boat, we stopped by another pearl farm. It wasn't long after the pearl farm visit that we arrived at our destination. Our tour boat was pretty small, and we had about twenty other people with us for the day. We immediately picked the 'prime' location on the top of the boat-halfway in the sun, halfway out of the sun. We could already tell it was going to be a hot day and lathered up the sunscreen. Thankfully sunscreen in ... Read More
The candid series: farmer’s market
I love photography. If you know anything about me, you don't have to be a genius to figure that out. I'm always snapping pictures everywhere I go. If I don't have my DSLR with me, I use my trusty smart phone...and then (of course) proceed to load all my pictures on Instagram. I'm addicted to photos; I love looking at them, taking them, playing around with editing them. My husband knows this as well...and as most of you know, bought me a spiffy new camera for Christmas. I've been dying to take my 5D Mark ii on a test run for days, and decided today would be the perfect day. I've also have been thinking about ways to challenge myself when it comes to photography, and that's where I came up with a 'shoot-from-the-hip' idea. I love ... Read More
[Vietnam] landing in paradise
Day four of our Vietnam travels brought us to the sunny island of Phu Quoc. We weren't sure what to expect; our acquaintances that had been to Vietnam before knew nothing of this island. Ideally we were looking for a tropical getaway where we could relax on the beach and do 'beachy' things (i.e. snorkeling, fishing, swimming). Well...we found the goldmine when it comes to a location in paradise. If anyone ever tells you that Vietnam doesn't have white sands, crystal blue water, and palm trees-they're lying. It's only short thirty five minute flight from Ho Chi Minh. Phu Quoc is a small little island (actually comparable to the size of Singapore) in the Gulf of Thailand. The 'essence' of the island is comparable to Hawaii with a little ... Read More
Weird Wednesday (01/16)
Today on Weird Wednesday I'm bringing up my students. I've observed many foreign things when it comes to what my students wear, eat, act like, and mention in everyday topics. Even just yesterday I had one of my 5-year olds throw up out of the blue on our way to his next class. The desk teacher (they're pretty awesome ladies who do not mind doing all the dirty work) came up behind the student and started hitting his back repeatedly...hard (meanwhile I was running to get a trashcan...I guess they don't do that here?) I'm used to a gentler approach of rubbing the rather sick individual's back, and maybe applying a cool cloth to the back of their neck. Ok, well whatever works. I've also noticed quite a few kids running around with tissue up ... Read More
5D
What goes down in the books as the most monumental Christmas present ever? The title would go to my husband, and that would be giving me a 5D Mark ii, complete with a 50mm (f 1.4) lens AND a 28-105mm lens. I've been drooling over this camera ever since my love affair with photography began in 2008. I'm definitely not claiming im a good photographer or skilled in any way, but I love it. It's my hobby. It's a challenge that always presents itself in new, refreshing ways. I hit the limit of what I could do with my trusty Canon Rebel (xsi) that I bought in 2009 and used for my first college photography class. That camera and I had seen a lot of things, traveled many countries, and definitely logged our time taking pictures. I hit the limit of ... Read More
[Vietnam] a morning in the bay
Our second day cruising in Halong Bay started early with a'tranquil' Tai Chi session that Derik joined on the sundeck of the ship. To be honest, as I observed the session with taking pictures, I felt like the Tai Chi Master may have been making up more than half the moves. It was still fun enjoying the quiet, foggy morning with a cup of thick-as-tar coffee in hand. No joke about the coffee-that stuff was cruel. After Tai Chi, the cruise continued with our next tour destination in the horizon:Surprise Cave. The sights along the way were as beautiful as ever. We even sailed by a floating village. This guy was selling snack items and water to tourists and locals for the hike into the cave. On the way out, we met a ... Read More
