I've been home for over a month now. A final blog is in order, I'd like to establish some closure for the year.
Most things in life don't really feel like chapters, there's usually no clear boundary from one phase to the next. But the time before Korea, Korea, and coming home are all very distinct chapters dividing my life.
My biggest fear about coming home was that I wouldn't carry my optimism back with me. But home is better than I remember, and to my relief, not much seems to have changed here. I'm the one that changed.
What was the biggest impact this year had on me? Take this scene, for example:
Random person: “You're an English major?! What the h-- um, what will you do with that?”
Me: “I'm not sure.”
Random person: “Oh, so you want to be a teacher.”
Me: “No way, I'd rather die.”
I repeated this little scene over and over in college, with relatives and meeting new people and such. So the funniest thing to come out of my year of teaching English is realizing that I WANT TO BE A TEACHER! I've started the process of applying to grad schools.
Stay in this lane. Used to be ironic and now it's just... true. You can never have enough irony! So, my friend Colleen and I are apartment hunting in DC this weekend. Next week I'm also starting a new job with a really nice family in the city, another challenge probably worth another year's worth of blogs, but to respect their privacy I won't do it. Six months ago I would have been shaking my head at this plan, but it feels right, so I'm rolling with it.
I'll try to post pictures from Tokyo (worth a whole blog, if I ever get around to writing it) and possibly the cruise as soon as I get ahold of my camera again. I also visited my aunt and took trips to Cape Cod and New York, so I'll throw those pictures in with all the rest. A vacation album, I guess.
Farewell, 2009 – I will remember you fondly.
Hello, 2010 – I have a good feeling about you.
UPDATE
Picasa retired its slideshows for photos, so all my photos from my first year in Korea are here now:
Picasa Photo Albums Archive
Showing posts with label world travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label world travel. Show all posts
February 08, 2010
September 01, 2009
the china vacation
The whole week prior to vacation is lost - my brain was off, I taught on auto-pilot. Didn't sleep after work on Friday, packed all night, left for the airport at 4:15 am. Kim, Theresa, and I caught a cab to the airport bus. (Kim went to the airport with clothes for a week and fingers crossed for an empty seat on a plane to Taipei. I only found out when I got home that she'd made it.) Anyway, there's nothing like 5 am rides to the airport before a much-needed vacation. I exchanged some Korean money for Chinese, having no idea yet how far my money would go. China is so cheap. The flight took only two hours. T and I had landed in Beijing!
T had a layover in the city for a few hours before she headed off to the other side of China to spend a week climbing in beautiful Yangshuo. Dad was nowhere to be found at the arrival gate, so T and I got coffee and waited. Eventually Dad walked past the window and it was like eight months had never happened. It was just Dad. But I'll never forget the smile on his face when he saw me. We had drinks with T, then took a cab to the hotel.
The hotel deserves its own entry. But I'll try not to brag about it too much. It was the most posh hotel I've ever seen, and likely the nicest I'll ever stay in. The bathroom was pure luxury and I spent many hours in its rain shower and unwinding in its tub. There was a giant, free breakfast buffet every morning with every food imaginable. And every night there was a free dinner and open bar on the top floor lounge. I spent some nights enjoying free beer or wine and cheese in the company of only the city skyline. (Will Smith and family were there, and one night we ate dinner across from his son, the new karate kid!) Ok, I know you're all turning green, so I'll move on.
That first day Dad and I enjoyed a really expensive German lunch. It was only like $60 (450 yuan), but that's a lot for Beijing, considering you can eat a regular meal for only about $2 (15 yuan). Dad was pretty excited to use the subway system, it was so cute. Usually when he travels he takes cabs everywhere. There were plenty of doormen willing to hail a cab and a concierge willing to write place names in Chinese, but there was a subway stop literally ten feet in front of the hotel. The subway was dirt cheap - 2 yuan per trip. That's 25 cents.
On Sunday Dad was feeling really sick. I wandered around our rich area of the city by myself, and treated myself to a massage. I don't know why but I always expected massages to be transformative life events. It was at least really pleasant and relaxing. Dim lighting. Lavender oil. (Soft music? I can't remember.) The hall leading to the massage room was covered with a couple inches of water, and floating candles and stepping stones led the way. This was my first massage ever. I didn't know what to do and the language barrier didn't help. There was an awkward moment when I was wearing a robe and standing with arms crossed modestly when I'm pretty sure I was supposed to be naked and laying face down on the table.
So, what's it like to be a tourist in Beijing? Of course I saw whatever seemed interesting in the travel guide. Some things aren't really worth mentioning. Went to Tiananmen Square with dad. There are some obligatory pictures of that. Alone, I checked out some museums that ended up being a waste of the time and energy it took to find them. Well, except for the fact that it gave me some surprising insight into the lack of priority the Chinese government has for its national museums. But then again, in China I had some of the most beautiful moments I'd ever hoped to experience.
Beijing is louder and more crowded than Seoul. It's also much more polluted, but oddly didn't smell as bad. On half the days I was there the smog was so thick I could barely see a block away. And China is basically Korea on steroids. The spaces are so much larger, it's exhausting. Chinese people are not quiet on public transportation like Korean people. Their language was so interesting to listen to. Mandarin is famous for being impossibly tonal. Korean is famous for having a very flat intonation. I could definitely hear the strange difference. Duh, China is crowded, but what I wasn't expecting was how few foreign faces I saw. Transferring subway lines during rush hour and literally being the only foreigner among a sea of Chinese faces was the coolest thing ever.
The Summer Palace is on the outskirts of the city. The day I took on the challenge of finding it is my favorite day of the vacation. I got so lost and so frustrated, but it was all worth it. I woke up early to give myself plenty of time to get there. I wanted to take the scenic route to see as much of the city as I could while still making my way. Took the above ground part of the subway and saw parts of Beijing completely dissimilar to the embassy part of town. Matched the Chinese characters of the guidebook to those on the bus signs, all completely lacking English, to figure out the right bus on the right side of the street. My proudest moment was waiting for the bus after only having to cross the street one time! The palace grounds were immense and impressive. Because I had no expectations and knew nothing about it beforehand, I was blown away. There was a lot of hiking and a lot of something that felt very much like time-travel. So, yea, it was my kind of place.
My friend Terrell went to China last year and came back with stories and hilarious pictures posing with complete strangers. He'd told me people had come up to him constantly as though he was a celebrity. I only remembered that after the same thing started to happen to me. It was awesome. Chinese people are wonderful overall, but I did meet some who saw me as a chance to exploit the rich foreigner. (On that note, I've never seen poverty like I saw in Beijing, and it made me feel extremely guilty to be staying in a five-star hotel.) In the Lonely Planet I read about the scams, and I'm glad I did because I knew how to avoid them. There was one guy who was really good and almost got me to trust him. But then I heard Oprah's voice, in her special about kidnapping, telling me not to go to the second location. My dad swears I was almost sold into sex slavery.
The Temple of Heaven was a gorgeous park with plenty of trees and shaded pathways. Traditional Chinese music was coming from somewhere - I suspect the rocks. It was a good place to get away from the crowds, possibly because you have to pay to enter. After days on end of beautiful scenery swarming with tour groups, I had finally found a spot both amazing and secluded. I wished I had brought my book to read, but I'd given up on reading in public spaces at this point. (The Imperial Garden of the Forbidden City had been crazy beautiful, and I'd wanted so badly to find a quiet spot there to curl up and read. In the end, I'd put my book away in defeat.)
The Great Wall with my dad was one of those rare moments in life when the overblown and completely unrealistic expectations you have match perfectly with what actually happens. It was absolutely stunning. There are no words. It will just go down as one of my life's happiest memories.
T had a layover in the city for a few hours before she headed off to the other side of China to spend a week climbing in beautiful Yangshuo. Dad was nowhere to be found at the arrival gate, so T and I got coffee and waited. Eventually Dad walked past the window and it was like eight months had never happened. It was just Dad. But I'll never forget the smile on his face when he saw me. We had drinks with T, then took a cab to the hotel.
The hotel deserves its own entry. But I'll try not to brag about it too much. It was the most posh hotel I've ever seen, and likely the nicest I'll ever stay in. The bathroom was pure luxury and I spent many hours in its rain shower and unwinding in its tub. There was a giant, free breakfast buffet every morning with every food imaginable. And every night there was a free dinner and open bar on the top floor lounge. I spent some nights enjoying free beer or wine and cheese in the company of only the city skyline. (Will Smith and family were there, and one night we ate dinner across from his son, the new karate kid!) Ok, I know you're all turning green, so I'll move on.
That first day Dad and I enjoyed a really expensive German lunch. It was only like $60 (450 yuan), but that's a lot for Beijing, considering you can eat a regular meal for only about $2 (15 yuan). Dad was pretty excited to use the subway system, it was so cute. Usually when he travels he takes cabs everywhere. There were plenty of doormen willing to hail a cab and a concierge willing to write place names in Chinese, but there was a subway stop literally ten feet in front of the hotel. The subway was dirt cheap - 2 yuan per trip. That's 25 cents.
On Sunday Dad was feeling really sick. I wandered around our rich area of the city by myself, and treated myself to a massage. I don't know why but I always expected massages to be transformative life events. It was at least really pleasant and relaxing. Dim lighting. Lavender oil. (Soft music? I can't remember.) The hall leading to the massage room was covered with a couple inches of water, and floating candles and stepping stones led the way. This was my first massage ever. I didn't know what to do and the language barrier didn't help. There was an awkward moment when I was wearing a robe and standing with arms crossed modestly when I'm pretty sure I was supposed to be naked and laying face down on the table.
So, what's it like to be a tourist in Beijing? Of course I saw whatever seemed interesting in the travel guide. Some things aren't really worth mentioning. Went to Tiananmen Square with dad. There are some obligatory pictures of that. Alone, I checked out some museums that ended up being a waste of the time and energy it took to find them. Well, except for the fact that it gave me some surprising insight into the lack of priority the Chinese government has for its national museums. But then again, in China I had some of the most beautiful moments I'd ever hoped to experience.
Beijing is louder and more crowded than Seoul. It's also much more polluted, but oddly didn't smell as bad. On half the days I was there the smog was so thick I could barely see a block away. And China is basically Korea on steroids. The spaces are so much larger, it's exhausting. Chinese people are not quiet on public transportation like Korean people. Their language was so interesting to listen to. Mandarin is famous for being impossibly tonal. Korean is famous for having a very flat intonation. I could definitely hear the strange difference. Duh, China is crowded, but what I wasn't expecting was how few foreign faces I saw. Transferring subway lines during rush hour and literally being the only foreigner among a sea of Chinese faces was the coolest thing ever.
The Summer Palace is on the outskirts of the city. The day I took on the challenge of finding it is my favorite day of the vacation. I got so lost and so frustrated, but it was all worth it. I woke up early to give myself plenty of time to get there. I wanted to take the scenic route to see as much of the city as I could while still making my way. Took the above ground part of the subway and saw parts of Beijing completely dissimilar to the embassy part of town. Matched the Chinese characters of the guidebook to those on the bus signs, all completely lacking English, to figure out the right bus on the right side of the street. My proudest moment was waiting for the bus after only having to cross the street one time! The palace grounds were immense and impressive. Because I had no expectations and knew nothing about it beforehand, I was blown away. There was a lot of hiking and a lot of something that felt very much like time-travel. So, yea, it was my kind of place.
My friend Terrell went to China last year and came back with stories and hilarious pictures posing with complete strangers. He'd told me people had come up to him constantly as though he was a celebrity. I only remembered that after the same thing started to happen to me. It was awesome. Chinese people are wonderful overall, but I did meet some who saw me as a chance to exploit the rich foreigner. (On that note, I've never seen poverty like I saw in Beijing, and it made me feel extremely guilty to be staying in a five-star hotel.) In the Lonely Planet I read about the scams, and I'm glad I did because I knew how to avoid them. There was one guy who was really good and almost got me to trust him. But then I heard Oprah's voice, in her special about kidnapping, telling me not to go to the second location. My dad swears I was almost sold into sex slavery.
The Temple of Heaven was a gorgeous park with plenty of trees and shaded pathways. Traditional Chinese music was coming from somewhere - I suspect the rocks. It was a good place to get away from the crowds, possibly because you have to pay to enter. After days on end of beautiful scenery swarming with tour groups, I had finally found a spot both amazing and secluded. I wished I had brought my book to read, but I'd given up on reading in public spaces at this point. (The Imperial Garden of the Forbidden City had been crazy beautiful, and I'd wanted so badly to find a quiet spot there to curl up and read. In the end, I'd put my book away in defeat.)
The Great Wall with my dad was one of those rare moments in life when the overblown and completely unrealistic expectations you have match perfectly with what actually happens. It was absolutely stunning. There are no words. It will just go down as one of my life's happiest memories.
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