#pictureplease

[mollymcbco]

Annie butted in front of Timmy demanding her photo be taken. #pictureplease #noteeth #toothless #tongue #chihuahua #chihuahuas #rescue #rescuedogs #adopt #chihuahuasofinstagram #muttsofinstagram #dogs #dogsofinstagram #dogstagram #chi

[pondandpuddlejumping-blog]

I’ve got Seoul, yes, I do...

My first trip of 2019!

Over the Christmas holiday I took a trip to Korea to visit one of my best friends from my first undergrad. She has been living just outside of Seoul, in Incheon, for the past 2 years teaching English to elementary school children.

I had pictured Seoul as futuristic and sterile – with lots of skyscrapers and clean lines. While some parts of the city upheld these expectations, there were more parts of the city that were bursting with street food, string lights, art installations, and people. So. Many. People.

This city is unlike any other city that I’ve travelled to in terms of crowds. I realise that it was also the holiday season so there were numerous tourists around like myself but still, everywhere seemed to be running at maximum capacity. The other interesting point is that locals didn’t seem to notice! Being jostled or even straight-up pushed out of the way was not an issue for everyone else. I’m glad that I’m quite tall otherwise I think it would have been a bit of a claustrophobic experience.

I enjoyed seeing the fashion of the city and the standards of beauty (even though I’m well aware that they are quite impossible to uphold. It was interesting being in a place where physical appearance holds such prominence). Everyone had beautiful, poreless skin and lots of the men also wore make-up. I enjoyed browsing the skincare and make-up stores, taking advantage of the cheap deals and trying new products.

What I also really enjoyed was the food! Korean food is so tasty - with all the different spices and sauces. If you’re not a fan of really spicy food, beware. That’s not to say that you can’t find non-spicy food, it’s just that you should note that it’s more common than in North America.

Korean BBQ! One of the things I was looking forward to the most on my trip. This is from a restaurant called Ungteori in Myeongdong. Delicious! 

Finally, this brief trip allowed me the experience of what it feels like to be in the minority and look different. While we were out and about, I noticed people staring at me. While we were exploring Gyeongbokgung Palace people came up to me asking to take my picture or to take a picture with them. Some people didn’t even ask, they just blatantly took my picture. This is not to say that I minded or that I was offended. This was the first time that I had ever received attention like this and was unsure how to handle it. Needless to say, it was a funny experience and makes for a good travel story.

I had no idea that this little girl was taking my picture until my friend showed me this picture afterwards.  

Seoul is a beautiful city with so many interesting alcoves and neighbourhoods. I’m so glad that I was able to make this trip happen. This trip reminded me that travelling is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. There will always be time to work or study or do any of the other mundane things we have to do in our everyday lives. I will take advantage of these travel opportunities while I can.  

[laidback1981]

Bitte recht freundlich!

Inder sind ausgesprochen kontaktfreudig. Man wird praktisch auf offener Strasse gefragt: “Where you from?”. Wenn man darauf antwortet, entwickelt sich zwangsläufig ein Gespräch. Verstärkt wird dieses Interesse an Uns insbesondere durch Patricks Aussehen. Ein 1.55m grosser, weißer Dude mit blonden Rastas, blauen Augen und nen 20cm langen Zickenbart ist der Garant für Dutzende “Please Picture? Take Picture?” am Tag. Man kann es gelassen nehmen, die Menschen sind allesamt sehr freundlich und wirklich interessiert. Wir sind quasi mal auf der anderen Seite der Glasscheibe im Menschenzoo. ^^