November is finished! I had been counting down the days to December 1 for a while because it meant the end of teaching and the beginning of three easy last months in Korea. My students took their final tests today and now it is smooth sailing until Christmas vacation in two weeks! November was also exciting because Tara and I booked our tickets out of Korea. We’ll be flying to Puerto Princesa, Philippines on March 2 to start our big trip. Now that the first ticket is booked, the trip is starting to seem a little more real.
In blogging news, I started a Tumblr for Farsickness. There are always stories and photos that don’t make it to the blog, and I’m going to use the Tumblr as a place to share those. Also, this blog usually lags about a month behind, but the Tumblr will be updated in real time. Lastly, I think Tumblr is a fun platform, with a great community. The blog there will be a little more relaxed, with quotes and photos from places I’d like to see. You can check it out here.
My Favorite Farsickness Posts
A Washing Machine and a Crazy Korean Grandmother: One Sunday morning a Korean grandmother barged into my apartment while I was pant-less and disconnected my washing machine. I still can’t believe this actually happened.
Flashback Friday: Spending Holidays Abroad: Thanksgiving has come and gone, but Christmas is around the corner. This post has some tips on how to spend holidays abroad without feeling sad.
A Stroll Through Bukchon Hanok Village: If I had to pick one tourist attraction as a must see in Seoul, it would be Bukchon Hanok Village. I’m so glad I finally got myself over there.
Flashback Friday: Learning to Love Travel Through Road Trips: My parents helped develop my sense of curiosity through family road trips as a child. This post is one of my favorites, mostly because of the awkward photos my mom sent me to include in it.
A Korean Cooking Class at the Institute of Korean Royal Cuisine: I almost missed it, but this cooking class was one of the best I’ve been to.
What I’ve Been Reading
Paper Planes Street Art- Georgetown, Penang: I love street art and when I saw Alana’s post about Georgetown, Malaysia it made me really excited to go street art hunting in the city when I’m there next year.
That Backpacker Havana: Must Every Visit Be Political?: Cuba’s been on my travel bucket list since high school, and Audrey’s beautiful photos make me want to hightail it over there ASAP. She also poses an important question about traveling to politically sensitive places.
C’est Christine Sailing the San Blas Islands With the Black Dragonfly: South America has been on my mind a lot lately. Boat trips and secluded beaches rank pretty high on my lists of favorite things. So, when I read about Christine’s trip between Panama and Colombia on the Black Dragonfly I made a mental note that I have to do this sometime in my life. Who’s in?
Wayfaring Amanda 7 Reasons I’m Excited to Go Home: I love to travel, but there’s something special about going home. Amanda’s list of reasons she was excited to go home is incredibly similar to mine.
Expat Edna Azerbai-where? An Introduction to Azerbaijan: I knew next to nothing about Azerbaijan a couple weeks ago, but after reading Edna’s incredibly detailed post I’m read to plan a trip there.
Farsickness Around the Internet
Expats Blog The Beginning of an Addiction in Rome: My entry in the Expats Blog writing contest talks about how my addiction to living abroad was born.
Travel Wire Asia Who’s blogging about Korea? A blogger roundup: Chris Backe included Farsickness on his round up of bloggers in Korea, with some very nice comments.
Expats Blog Interview with Amanda- American Expat in South Korea: Another post on Expats Blog, in this interview I talk about what it’s like to live as an expat in South Korea.
Upcoming Travel
Next week I will be accompanying 140 sixth graders on a four day long field trip to Jeju Island. In addition to spending nearly 96 hours with a bunch of 12 year olds, I’ll also be sharing a room with two middle aged Korean women who don’t speak English that well. It should be…interesting?
After that, on December 19, I’ll be headed back to the United States for two weeks of eating, drinking, and family time!
What were your favorite posts around the blogosphere in ? Do you have any travel plans that you are looking forward to in December?
Thanks for the shout out Amanda! And you’re going to Jeju?! My school won’t take me anywhere, haha
Should be a memorable trip!
No problem! And yes, it will definitely be memorable. The jury is still out on whether it will be in a good or bad way
Thanks for including me! And glad you get to come home and enjoy some of those things as well. Awesome name by the way
Amanda recently posted..Photo of the Week (41)
It is a great name, isn’t it? haha
Loved the post, now I’m just counting down the days until Chipotle
Thanks for sharing my post! More on Azerbaijan to come
Edna recently posted..I Love My Neighborhood: Nairobi’s Kilimani
I realize my Seoul visit was more the result of serendipity than planning but I was a little disappointed to not get into the November wrap-up issue. I guess on my next Asia trip, I’ll have to bring my “A” game and plan ahead. Say hello to T for me and safe travels home this week.
An oversight on my part! It was a great evening and worth a mention. Next time!