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Archive for August, 2011

Aug 26

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Flashback Friday: New England Road Trip

At this time last year I was toiling away in a cubicle in suburban Philadelphia for eight hours a day.  The end of our fiscal year (oh, how I don’t miss using phrases like that regularly anymore) was approaching which meant my unused vacation days were going to expire.  The thought of wasting precious time off was unthinkable so my friend, who was living in Manhattan at the time, and I decided to take advantage of our new found east coast location and go on a New England road trip over a long weekend.  With no set plans except for making it to Bar Harbor, Maine we ended up having a weekend to remember.

Looking to take your own road trip?  Here are three things that can make the trip more interesting and less frustrating. Read more

Aug 23

Biking the Han

On Sunday Seoulites were graced with the presence of something we hadn’t seen on a weekend in months.  The sun.  The constant cloudiness and rainfall the past two months had me believing that I was living in my personal version of hell and I was beginning to wonder how much more of this I would be able to handle.  So, when I saw the little yellow ball on my iPhone’s weather app last Monday I immediately began planning the ways in which I could take advantage of this change in weather.  And when I woke up on Sunday to actual sunshine I knew that I was headed to do some bike riding on the Han River. Read more

Aug 22

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Out and About in Candidasa

Candidasa is a charming little town in East Bali that offers many amenities for tourists without being touristy.  The main road is dotted with small hotels, guest bungalows, and restaurants serving a wide array of culinary options.  Being only a short drive from the villa, we would hop over to Candidasa when we needed a little break from the tranquility, or in some cases when we needed to achieve an even higher level of calmness. Read more

Aug 16

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Celebrating Korean Independence Day

I’m taking a break from the Bali coverage today to write about a special holiday to the Korean people.  On August 15 of every year Korea celebrates its liberation from Japanese occupation.  At the end of World War II the defeated Japan was forced to give up its’ colonial possessions and after 35 years of horrific rule, the Korean peninsula was free again.  Thus, August 15 is a national holiday and a national holiday means independence of another sort.  Freedom from working.  Taking full advantage of every second I don’t have to spend inside the walls of a school, I had a full day planned. Read more

Aug 11

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Off the Beaten Track and onto Unpaved Roads

I spent the majority of my first full day in Bali white knuckling anything I could get my hands near in the back of a Jeep.  My friends and I had rented a car and we were making the journey from Amalpura to the coastal fishing town of Amed.  Being the adventurous (or, in my mind about half the time, stupid) souls we are, we decided to venture off the paved main road and take the more scenic route along the coast.  Lonely Planet describes this as the “longer, twistier, and more adventurous road”.  A more apt description, in my opinion, would be a harrowing, sometimes paved, sometimes not cliff side lane full of hairpin turns and oncoming traffic.  Did I mention I have a serious fear of driving in these types of situations?  Well, I do.  Heart palpitations and sweaty palms aside, the day turned out to be an experience I would have been upset had I missed. Read more

Aug 9

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A Peaceful Paradise in East Bali

I started off my trip to Bali with a 3 night stay at Villa Surya, located in Amalpura on the eastern side of Bali.  My friend’s parents built this place last year and were kind enough to offer it up to us in between rentals.  After about 2 hours in the car from the airport, Made, the villa driver, pulled off the main road and started down a narrow, unpaved, and bumpy path.  I was unsure of where we were going but as we arrived at the house, I knew I was in paradise. Read more

Aug 2

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The Last Stop

Dorasan Station was the last stop in two ways.  It was our last stop of the day on the USO tour of the DMZ and it is also the last stop in South Korea on the Gyeongui Line.  The station was opened on February 12, 2002 and it is located 700m south of the DMZ.  President Bush visited the station two weeks after its opening which pushed Dorasan Station into the international spotlight.  Dorasan Station is an extremely modern building that looks like any other new Korail station.  The only difference is that there is virtually nothing surrounding it and the only people inside are tourists. Read more