what i've been doin

so there's just a few days left before i make my glorious return to canada and i thought i'd make one last entry. my last few weekends have been very busy.. well, maybe not so much busy as much as i've actually been doing stuff. last weekend mike and i went to busan. it was really nice because generally i do the same things there but this time i got a chance to do some different stuff. we stayed near the fish market which made me think of charlie. i wasn't as bothered by the smell as much as i thought, and not nearly as grossed out by gross things.

some turtles waiting for a nice home. ahem.





there were tons of big rusty boats. i'd like to add that the breeze alone in busan makes it worth considering moving to. i got a bit of a burn (didn't even think of sunscreen), and it was pretty damn sunny that weekend but the breeze made it so nice!

it wouldn't be a trip to busan without a go at the aquarium. some hepari (jellyfish) my spirit animal.

we also checked out a temple by the sea. this is hands down the best temple i've been to in korea. it also made me miss kincardine and the water A LOT. good thing i'm coming home soon. i mentioned a nice breeze? it was fantastic here. they were just taking down all the lanterns from buddha's birthday which was just a few days before.

some people at the temple.

anthropomorphic statues. there was a turtle-like guy, and a chicken- like guy, but no jellyfish -like guy.
views.
i don't know what these are but i've never seen them at temples here before. i've also never been to a temple on the sea before. i'm thinking there may be a connection.


the weekend before the busan weekend i headed to seoul for one last hurrah before moving there in july. it was the weekend before buddha's birthday and the lotus lantern festival. we missed the day-time stuff but made it for the parade in the evening. lots of laterns, lots of older korean ladies (ajummas) and some fire breathing dragons.







the evening before the parade we went to a pig roast just outside of seoul. yay pig. i got sat at the 'vegetarian table' read: loser table! it was good though, lots of fun people and good times. AND there were marshmellows for roasting. i make the perfect roasted marshmellow.



me and the pig. they brought out the whole thing on a platter. you know how i feel about eating food off of bones, imagine how i am when you can see the head of the animal. this is my disapproving look.

about coming home:

i arrive on june 2nd at 6:15 in toronto.
i will be going to oshawa after that for approx. a week.
i will head to kincardine hopefully with blake for around the same time.
then to london to live with russ for as long as he'll have me.
i'll finish up the trip in oshawa.
i'll fly to korea on the 27th at 12:41 and arrive on the 28th at 9:30 pm

if anyone wants to meet up at any of those points just send me an email. most of you should have mom and nana and papas numbers, if you don't lemme know.

look forward to seeing you soon!
j

i'm got married!

totally not true, but my friend greg did. i've been counting down to this wedding for almost a year now partly because it's my good friend greg and partly because it was a traditional korean style wedding. i loved it. seriously, if i ever marry a korean this is the way to go! the wedding took place in a korean style/temple building outside on a gorgeous day. so many people turned out for it, (including kmom) and it was amazing. greg's family came from canada and also wore the traditional korean hanbok.

all pics stolen from a friend at school:


this man may or may not have been a guest at the wedding. either way, he's the cutest old man ever, and definitely a contender for kgrandpa.

that is greg in the back and dong-hee in front. these ladies were there to help her with all the bowing that went on.


that chicken is real! i doubted it myself until i saw it move and eventually break free from the cloth binding! we were wondering if the chicken would actually have a part in the ceremony but i guess it was just symbolic decoration. anyways, after it broke free the SECOND time, they took it away. i'm assuming to a farm.


dong-hee coming down the aisle. seriously, do i really need to get married to have someone carry me in a litter?


greg comin down.


this is one of the drumming performances.


another of the performances.


dong-hee was the cutest bride EVER. she looked like a doll and i just wanted to take her out of the box and play with her.


resting in their litters.


some pics of the area.


infront of the building.

melly and me.

so, let's do the tally.

# of smoke machines = 0
# of confetti machine guns = 0
# of attempted escapes made by a chicken = 2

this adds up to a pretty fantastic wedding. congratulations greg and dong-hee!!!!!

broken down love motel

so remember awhile back when i mentioned mike and i getting locked out and having to stay in a love motel? here it is!
my friend jay needed a place to crash last weekend so we thought this would be convenient and we could all meet up for lunch the next day. not so much. he crashed on the floor of mike's place.
this is so korea. places are constantly being torn down to probably build the same thing again. this is currently happening with my only near-by convenience store! i'm pissed! now not only do i get woken up really early to the sound of windows breaking and jackhammering, but i also have to walk an extra TWO blocks to get water. yeah, that doesn't sound like a lot, but in the daegu summer heat, trust me it is.

this weekend should be splendid. greg is getting married and i actually get to see a traditional korean wedding. if i see a smoke machine and/or confetti firing trumpet gun i'm out of there.