Half

Well what else has been going on?  In April we got word that our school was closing down.  Most of us had worked there for well over 5 years (me 7) and someone for even over 10!  It was a big shock and we were (are) really bummed because obviously we liked it and because we had been there so long we had a lot of seniority.  This meant lots of money and lots of vacation.  Here in Korea usually your apartment is linked to your school so this also meant that a lot of us were losing our places.  We only had a months notice so we did a lot of scrambling.  I have since found another job which I'm trying to adjust to and one of us actually moved back to Daegu.  For me it's hardest adjusting to the lack of vacation time.  I had trips planned (to Guam, Hong Kong, Macau) that I had to cancel.  So this all sucks!  So we decided to do something positive.  Nicola and I decided to train for a half marathon.  Before this my longest race was 10km.  It's only twice as far!  I'm so glad that I did this because it helped me feel very accomplished afterwards.  I may have shed a couple of tears when I crossed the finish line.  Some other friends ran their first 5ks too that day.  So it was positive thoughts all around!  I'm not going to lie.  It was hard.  It was very, very hard.  But we did it!

At the end of June I'll be running another race.  This time it's 6.25km.  It may sound like a strange distance but it's to commemorate North and South Korea's armistice on June 25th.  So that should be cool.  Also, not much feels better than when someone gives you a medal.  Honestly, I want to stop doing things unless I get a medal for it.  Every time I do the dishes a medal!   

Palawan, Philippines

It's June and I'm just posting about a vacation in December.  Bad traveller, bad!  Anyways, Mike and I went to paradise in December for a wonder vacation.  This time we went to Palawan in the Philippines.  I have been to the Philippines once before but Palawan has a totally different vibe from Boracay.  This was one of the most laid back trips I've taken.  There was actually no electricity where we were except in the evenings.  Our bungalow was one of only two places where you could get ice (therefore cold beer) all day!  It was an epic journey to get there.  Of course all the nicest places are.  We stayed put and did a few activities but mostly just relaxed.

This was around Christmas time and the Philippines is a highly Catholic place.  It was strange to see Christmas trees and hear carolling next to palm trees.  Actually, someone there told me it is so religious it is even illegal to get a divorce.  Their Christmas celebration beats ours and lasts for a couple of months.  It was perfect for me!

Here is the view from our room.  Not too shabby.

Here is our room.  Again, we did well for ourselves.

This is where I spent most of my time.

I went zip-lining.  It was awesome!  I was so pumped!

There was an underground river tour/cave.  It was full of bats.  It was a cool tour but I could have done without the constant jokes from the guide telling us not to open our mouths when we looked up because of all the bat sheeeet.

These guys were all over.

So pretty.