Final Semester

Well, the title says it all - I'm wrapping up my final semester in South Korea as part of the Fulbright Program. The past three years have been a life-changing experience, and living in this country has been filled with ups, downs, and plenty of personal growth. I don't really feel like getting super sappy about all of this right now, because I'm sure that will come later (like once I'm back in America and facing reverse culture shock and reminiscing a lot more). But I will always look back on this experience with fond memories and an appreciation for all of the friendships I've made and will maintain as I move forward.

To roughly transition, this semester has been the busiest four months of my life. Period! From maintaining my personal health, excelling at work, and endeavoring in plenty of extracurriculars, this semester is one for the books. I would like to briefly share some highlights and achievements with you all (in no specific order):

- Finally filling up my second diary and starting my third one
- Demetria's visit to Korea (and trying to win at those damn crane games everyday, lol)
- Participating and completing 6 running/marathon events
- Hiking to the summit of South Korea's tallest mountain, Hallasan
- Eating a tub of ice cream (alone) in a single day while binge watching the newest season of House of Cards (this might be a low for some people, but not in my books)
- Planning, acquiring approval, and executing a Seoul-wide scavenger hunt with my after school class
- Fulbright third year soccer jerseys = the most badass investment ever
- Japan! (part two) Okinawa and Disney
- Keeping up my resolution of posting two blog entries per month
- Drinking beer at 9:00 a.m. before a long flight
- Meeting new friends, getting closer with old ones, and making amazing memories
- Spongebob references, everywhere (shout out to Anna)
- I found Oreo O's and tried them for the first time
- Coming in 1st place in the 100m dash at my school's "Sports Day" (sorry-not-sorry kids, I'm ultra competitive)
- Dancing with a fun-loving old guy at Seoul's Rose Festival
- The assist I tallied when I crossed the ball into the box and our school's Vice Principal headed it into the back of the net (glory moment)
- Supporting my talented and beautiful friend EJ as a model in the Seoul Africa Festival
- That ONE time when a bunch of the older, male teachers at my school talked to me at lunch
- Changing the billboard in my classroom to something meaningful for the students
- (Accidentally) going to an indoor baseball game with Anna and Annaliese
- Becoming addicted to Magikarp Jump! (app)
- Seeing my childhood favorite, Britney Spears, perform live in Seoul
- Watching matches at the FIFA U-20 World Cup
- Becoming involved in a D&D campaign with a group of amazing friends
- Finally getting my students to stop feeling shy about taking selfies with me
- Wearing a different dress to Fulbright's final dinner event (I still love you, green dress)
- Consuming way too much Monster Pizza, but never feeling bad about it
- Hanging out on Haeundae Beach in Busan and later dancing the night away with friends
- Feeling thankful for all the amazing friendships I have both here, at home, and elsewhere in the world

Those are just fragments of what I've been up to the past few months. I'll be back Stateside on August 5, and I have no idea what comes next for me.

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Tokyo Disney!

Cinderella's Castle

Hello everyone! It's time to share my AWESOME experience at Tokyo Disneyland~! I treated myself and booked a hotel resort for three nights, along with a three-day pass to Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea. I have to admit, I had no idea what Disney Sea was before I arrived, but it was so fun (and actually better than Disneyland, to be honest). 

With my best buddy, Goofy

"Critter Sundae"

On the first day, I headed to Disneyland, which I hear is very similar to the one in L.A. Space Mountain, Cinderella's Castle, Splash Mountain, etc. This park is a bit older than Disney Sea, but was still full of fun and adventure. There was a theme for Easter, and an Easter Parade with all of the characters. Unfortunately, there was also an extremely loud and catchy made-up tune that was looping non-stop throughout the entirety of the 45-minute parade, and I was singing it for the rest of my trip. It was called "Usatama on the Run!". I think that is something about eggs, but I'm not sure. There were plenty of eggs everywhere. Haha!

Tokyo Disney Resort

Hispanic Goofy?

The second and third days I decided to spend at Disney Sea, which was SO FREAKING COOL. As can be expected by the name, this park was centered around nautical exploration. It had different themes such as "Mermaid Lagoon" where I watched an Under the Sea musical adventure (all in Japanese), but still sang along with all my favorite Little Mermaid tunes. There was a new Finding Nemo exhibit opening up, but I came just one week too early to be able to go on the attraction. There was a huge "American Waterfront" section which had a bunch of American-style food like reuben sandwiches, fried cod, beer, and more. So yummy! AND a new Toy Story virtual ride based on classic carnival games. There are shooters on the vehicles and you shoot targets in those 3-D games like "egg toss" and "balloon pop".

Mermaid Lagoon

Sunset

The Tower of Terror was also worth checking out, as the story line for Tokyo Disney is totally different than the normal story back in the States. It was super neat. AND the guides even provided an English translation for me as I went through. Very cool and fun ride. My favorite was the Indiana Jones attraction. The props, setting, and overall ride itself were totally awesome. I rode it two or three times, I think.

Overall, it was a very exciting trip to Disneyland and Disney Sea. And so much cheaper than in America! I paid $160 for a three-day pass. That would be the cost of a one-day entry back in the States. Crazy.

Usatama on the Run!

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Okinawa, Japan

Well, I lived up to my promise! If you remember, I traveled to Japan during my winter break (in February) for ten days. I had an amazing trip, met some awesome people, and knew that I had to go back one day.

That time came sooner than I expected. I had a two-week "spring break" because of my school's midterm examinations and class field trip, which I did not attend. I decided to make a short trip back to Japan, this time visiting Okinawa and Tokyo Disney Resort. I stayed in Okinawa for three days, and Tokyo Disney for four days.

The beach

Okinawa is a southern island of Japan, and it was extremely humid and a bit rainy during my trip. Another solo trip, I was looking forward to meeting new people and enjoying some alone time (as if I don't get enough of that already... lol!). On the first day, I didn't get to Okinawa until late afternoon, so I checked in and just did what I usually do - walk around the city and get lost a little bit while exploring. While exploring, I came across a beach and stopped to relax for a bit. I made it back to the hostel and hung out in the lounge. While there, I met a Canadian and an American, and we spent the evening chatting awhile. I crashed early because the next day was prepped with my Japanese friend, Mai!

Donkatsu (pork cutlet) and miso soup

I had a restless sleep due to the humidity and woke up with even more BRUTAL weather - sunny, humid, disgusting. I put on my lightest set of clothes and headed to meet Mai. Unfortunately, after she picked me up, her car stalled and the battery died. So we were stuck for awhile and our initial plans fell through for the day. We decided to walk and get lunch while the repairman came and took a look at the car. We ate pork cutlet (donkatsu), which was absolutely amazing. One of my favorite Japanese dishes. While at lunch, Mai and I met up with her friend/co-worker, and they decided to take me to their dessert restaurant by the beach! Mai is the manager at a souflet pancake shop. OH. MY. GOD. I have never tasted pancakes so delicious in my life. They melted in my mouth, so fluffy, so sugary, so buttery, so good. I have GOT to get that recipe. After we felt sufficiently full from lunch and dessert, we walked around the beach and rested for awhile. Mai's friend had to leave to take care of her baby, so Mai and I decided to take a drive around Okinawa for awhile. After that, we enjoyed an insane amount of Japanese appetizers as our dinner whilst consuming Okinawa's finest beer, Orion. It was SO GOOD, but I soon found out that they don't export it ANYWHERE. Not even on mainland Japan. Ugh. So I used that as an excuse to drink as much as I wanted. YOLO. Vacation. Mai and I departed ways after an extremely fun day spent together. I wish we had more time!

Hanging out inside a seashell

The most delicious pancakes EVER

Reunited with Mai and her friend!

The next day, I made plans with the two friends I met at the hostel, and we headed to a famous ramen shop. We had to get there an hour before opening just to guarantee ourselves a spot. So we waited from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. for some delicious ramen. And it was spectacular! After that, we headed to Shuri Castle, a popular tourist site of Okinawa. The weather was SO RAINY and cool, the complete opposite of the day before. Island life, man. I couldn't get used to it. While at the castle, I was trying to take a picture when suddenly, a cute, older, Japanese woman completely photobombed the picture. I decided that the picture looked better with her in it. She came up to us and started talking to us in a friendly manner, and then her husband dragged her away, LOL.


Amazing ramen

The cute lady who photobombed my picture

Okinawa scenery

We headed back to the hostel as the rain kept pouring down. I didn't feel like doing much else after that, so I rested awhile. Eventually the rain let up and I went to the market to buy some souvenirs. The next day I was headed to Tokyo for my expected trip to Disney Land! Stay tuned!

Orion beer at 10:00 a.m. while waiting for the plane

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