Jam Packed Three-day Weekend!

This weekend I was lucky enough to have Monday off, because October 15 is our school's founding day, so a holiday is given. I took full advantage of the extra day and crammed a lot of sightseeing into one weekend, starting with Friday night. I met up with my friend Elizabeth in downtown, and then we caught up with another friend and his new Korean friends. The seven of us headed on a trek out of the pulsing heart of downtown, following narrow alleys to a low key Korean bar. We drank makgeolli (Korean rice wine) mixed with cider (basically like Sprite) and played Korean drinking games. It was really fun, especially because it reminded me of the evening my Korean friend from home made a huge dinner for us and taught us Korean drinking games. We played: Sam Yuk Goo (3, 6, 9) a game in which you say numbers out loud in a circle, but have to clap any time a number has a 3, 6 or 9, so 13 would be a clap, etc.; Gong Gong Chil Bang (007, bang) a game where you pretend to shoot people like James Bond, hence the 007, and have coordinating motions to go along; and the Stand Up game, in which everyone has to stand up and say a number, but if more than one person stands up for the same number, everyone drinks. We also learned the song people burst into when cheering on someone to drink, but I haven't quite mastered it yet. After drinking makgeolli and eating lots of food (spicy chicken, pajeon aka onion pancake, tangerines, and other side dishes) we headed to a Norabang for some karaoke. It was the first time I have gone norabanging in Korea, so it was fun to get out and sing! But it's a bit tough with a split group of Koreans and foreigners, because half the crowd really can't sing the song (i.e. we chose English songs, they chose Korean ones). After singing our lungs out, I decided to head home instead of dancing (wait, who am I?... don't worry, here's why) because it was about 3:30 a.m. and I needed to get up in about 4 hours to get ready for our trip the next day.

 

 

On Saturday I went to Jinju with Elizabeth and Lindsey to watch some bullfighting and check out the Jinju Lantern Festival. Sadly, the only bulls we saw were ones pictured on the side of the stadium. My guidebook led us astray, because there were not bullfights every Saturday as it so boldly proclaimed. There had been a bullfighting festival the weekend before, so we had just missed it! It was disappointing, but there was a lake nearby, so we hiked up to it and enjoyed the beautiful view. Later that night we went to the river for the lantern festival, which was indeed happening. It was absolutely beautiful! The three of us made our own lanterns and sent them into the river with our wishes. It was a pretty simple festival and could definitely have been done as a day trip, but we had already booked our motel, so we took our time wandering through the lights and enjoyed delicious pizza at an adorable Italian restaurant. Accommodations for the weekend booked up quickly, so we went ahead and got a two-person room for three people. But we made it work! We slept sideways on the bed and actually had quite a bit of room, though our feet did hang off of the bed. But it was a nice room and I got a good night of sleep. And the best part, the bed vibrated, so we had a nice massage in the morning (obviously that wouldn't be fun to try to sleep to).

 

Sunday we headed straight back to Daegu after waking up and getting ready. We decided to spend the gorgeous afternoon and Suseong Lake. It was a nice area, but for some reason I expected a much bigger lake. But it didn't disappoint, because duck boats abounded, and of course we took one for a spin. It was quite a workout, but a fun way to experience the lake. As we passed fellow duck boat users, we became instant, fleeting friends and shared friendly 안녕하세요s (hellos). Later we went to Ganga for dinner and had tasty Indian food. We had spinach paneer (my favorite!), tandoori chicken and garlic naan. It cost a pretty penny, but it was good. We then trekked over to the airplane turned coffee shop that was overlooking the lake. I've had many a cup of coffee in airplanes, but someone this was an opportunity I couldn't pass up! The coffee was yummy (I haven't come across a bad cup of Joe yet) and it was fun sitting in the cockpit. But the inside was a bit stuffy, so we took our drinks to the patio upstairs and reveled in the delightful weather and stunning view of the lake. After the lake we headed to Camp Walker, a U.S. army base in Daegu, on a mission to find the other gate into the post (I had already found one). We walked around the post, but sadly came to a dead end. I figure army bases have great businesses outside the main gates that cater to foreigners, so I wanted to check out what there was nearby. I actually found some good businesses outside Gate 4, but I still want to find out what Gate 6 has to offer. It was a bit disappointing, but there is still time to track it down. So we just headed on home.

 

Gatbawi 

 

It was quite the hike!

 

Bullo-dong Tomb Park

Today (Monday) I headed up to the northeastern part of Daegu to visit the famous Gatbawi stone Buddha. It was way more of a hike than I was expecting, but I was happy to get some exercise in with my sightseeing. I climbed so many stairs; I didn't think it would ever end. But I managed to make it to the top, and some some spectacular views of Daegu below. And the Buddha itself was quite magnificent. After making it back down the mountain, I went to the nearby traditional market and to Bullo-dong Tomb Park. The tombs are grass-covered hills all congregated in the park. Most have no marker or tombstone, and so just look like an interestingly shaped piece of land. It was a serene area and actually a nice place for a stroll. You just can't think about all of the bodies below the ground! I wrapped up my evening by visiting a recommended Vietnamese restaurant that had really tasty pho. I was also able to buy some cilantro and limes, two things that are hard to find else where. I paid about $1 per lime, but a girl had to have her favorite citrus... and I only got two! I have some avocados and home, so I certainly plan on making some really delicious avocado. I am definitely looking forward to that. So clearly I had a very busy weekend, but it was nice to be able to see so many different places, and to get a better feel for what's in my own city as well.

So ExPSYted

 

I saw Psy perform live!

  

Stadium food... actually quite cheap!

I went with no ticket, no time and a sliver of hope, but I managed to get in to the opening ceremony of Daegu's 93rd National Sports Festival. The festival is one of (if not the) biggest festivals that Daegu puts on, and this year's opening ceremony featured a concert by none other than the fabulous Psy. It was amazing! I loved the whole experience, and I mostly loved that I was able to experience it at all. I stumbled across information about Psy performing from a facebook group only two days ago, so I scrambled to get as much information as I could. Kudos to the Internet and facebook, because I was able to find out everything I needed about the event, including time, location and the free shuttle buses. And I also learned that all the tickets my gu (similar to district) was handing out were gone, and that I likely wouldn't make it on time to get in. But even with no ticket and the slimmest chance I would even arrive before the gates were closed, I decided to venture out and give it a try. I mean, it was a chance to see Psy perform live for free! You just can't throw in the towel for that until you do anything you can to make it.

I rushed out of my office as soon as the bell struck 4:30 p.m. and power walked to the Metro stop, determined and on a mission. I traveled past 9 stations to reach the interchange to get on line 2, where I traveled another 10 stops. Originally I was only going to travel 8 and catch a city bus to the stadium, but moments before getting to that stop, I saw two groups of Koreans pull out their tickets and discuss the shuttle bus location. I only really understood, because I had read the name of the shuttle buss point prior, but I wasn't confident about catching the shuttle until I saw them planning to go. And good thing I did wait, and that I got there when I did! As I stood in line waiting for the shuttle, my excitement was growing, because it was seeming more and more likely. Apparently the 5:30 p.m. shutting of the gates, was not observed, thankfully for me and countless other attendees. As I shuffled along in line, I remembered a tiny detail... I had no ticket. What to do, what to do?! Hello Korean man to my left, do you happen to have an extra ticket? And like that, my entrance was possible! God was definitely on my side and hooked it up. The man gave me an extra ticket he had with no hesitation. It was amazing. I thought he would be the first in an long line of many people I would have to beg for a spare ticket. Turns out, the man (my ticket friend) was their with his friend from church that has an English service and a group of about 100 or so foreigners. I was really excited to hear about that, because I haven't come across detailed information about English services here yet. So I plan to check out the church as soon as I am in Daegu on a Sunday, which should actually be pretty soon.

But anyway, to the main event. I shoved my way on to a crowded shuttle bus and arrived at the marvelous Daegu Stadium. Once inside I grabbed some concession stand treats (a meat stick, popcorn and water, all for only about $4!) and searched for a seat. I lucked out again and got an aisle seat, though it was pretty far from the stage. But I was just happy to be inside the stadium. The opening ceremonies were really beautiful, and included a light show, fireworks, the lighting of the torch and the singing of the national anthem. I realized that was the first time I had heard Korea's national anthem, so it was pretty moving, and I kind of teared up a little. Most of the time I had no idea what was going on, but I clapped and cheered with the crowd and just took in the general splendor. I was so happy to be a part of such a hugely important festival, because I really felt a sense of experiencing the culture.

Of course everyone's favorite part of the evening was when Psy came on stage. I don't know who was more excited, me, the little kids behind me or the adjumas. It was great fun watching Psy perform and watching the crowd's reaction. My favorite part of the evening was when Psy sang gangnam style and I danced it with the rest of the crowd. It was so awesome to dance to a real, live version of the song! After Psy performed, the evening was wrapped up with a beautiful fireworks show. 

Then I had to get home. It was intensely crowded and people were only looking out for number one. I felt bad for the police, because it was a huge crowd to deal with. But after about 40 minutes of waiting in a line that constantly swayed from side to side as intruders pushed their way in from either side of the line, I was able to get on a shuttle bus and make it to the subway. Overall it took me about two hours to get home, but it was totally worth it. I'm so glad I didn't give up before I tried, and that my ticket friend was awesome enough to give me a ticket! It really worked out well and was a great night to experience Korean culture.

Bits of Travel and the Best Sister in the World

 

Hey sexy lady!

 

Getting our massage on.

 

How we do.

I have the best sister ever, because she came to visit me in Korea! Luckily her Moon Festival vacation lined up with my Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) vacation, so we were able to travel to Busan together. We giggled a majority of the trip and had such a great time together! I tried to convince her to move to Korea; she tried to convince me to move to China. But we just wouldn't budge. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful relationship with my sister, and I know that if we ever settle down in the same country, we will certainly have to live close to each other and have ridiculously giggle-filled lives. It was an absolute joy to spend in-person time together after so many months of Skype. And considering we don't even live in the same country and haven't for the past two years, which have actually been able to see each other quite often. It's fantastic! 

We enjoyed the beach in Busan and got Thai massages. We also went to Spa Land, which is a huge bath house with a variety of saunas. My favorite sauna room was the wave dream room. It had comfortable benches and it wasn't as incredibly hot at the other rooms. I really enjoyed the different pools in the women's bath house. It was quite an experience, though, because there were naked women every where! It was actually quite freeing and very relaxing. We also went to Beomeosa Temple. It was very beautiful and in the mountain, which was a nice escape from the city.

Andong Mask Dance Festival

 

The group.

 

Bubbles!

 

Latvia

 

Russia

 

Masks!

 

Andong beef

Last weekend I went to Andong with Elizabeth and Jocelyn to check out the Mask Dance Festival. It was such a fun day trip! We saw many different kinds of masks from all over the world, and Elizabeth and I even made our own as pictured above. The festival had so many activities (Taekwondo performances, music, group dancing, food booths). We enjoyed the main dance performance featuring dancers from Uzbekistan, Latvia, Indonesia and Russia. The Russian dancers were my favorite! They were more like gymnasts, jumping incredibly high and doing back flips one after another. Their dancing is quite a physical feat! The dancers from Latvia were also good and did more of a contemporary style of dance. We finished the evening by trying some Andong beef, which is famous for being the best beef in Korea. We had it bulgogi (Korean bbq) style, and my was it delicious! The meat was very tender and flavorful. It was some of the best bulgogi I have had yet.

Chips and....

Salsa! I've just returned home from my second night of salsaing in Daegu, and I am even more excited than last weekend! The talent in Korea is unreal, and the salsa dancers' skill here far exceeds that of their California counterparts. I am in awe of the magnitude and quantity of the talent I witnessed tonight. Surely everyone at the salsa event must have been dancing for quite some time, because they were astounding! I saw moves I've never seen before, but definitely want to pursue. Even with a mildly embarrassing dip fall, I still had a great night, and I am so pumped up to really improve my salsa skills. I am planning on investing in some real dancing shoes, because my flats just aren't cutting it. And I am hoping to be dancing quite often, so I would love the comfort! Also, I really want to sign up for a salsa club and/or class. The club I went to tonight, Babalu, has lessons on Saturdays taught by foreigners, which is great, because it is in English. But it's all really basic stuff, and I really want a challenge! So language barrier could be problematic with taking a Korean lesson, but dance is all about expressing with your body! Though the basic stuff could be good for a while, because here they do New York style, while I am used to dancing LA style. So I get a little thrown off with the footwork, which is really frustrating, because I basically feel like I am back to square one! Nevertheless, I am looking forward to improving and dancing as much as I can.
Now I need to find a place to go swing dancing and a place that has hip hop dance lessons! I'd love to improve both styles of dance as well, but my focus will certainly be on salsa. And, of course, by salsa I mean salsa, bachata, merengue and (if I have to) cha cha. I am so happy to have such great opportunities in Korea! It's a great way to make the most of my time and get out and meet people. And salsa was a great start to my Chuseok vacation. Though I know the real fun is arriving around 11:30 a.m. tomorrow. I am so very excited that Shanna is coming to visit. It is going to be a blast and absolutely ridiculous!

Learning, Learning!

 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8xxgFpK-NM

One of my favorite things about traveling is meeting new people. Because in turn I am introduced to new foods, culture and activities. Wednesday night I headed to the YMCA in downtown Daegu for a free capoeira class put on by fellow waygooks (Korean for foreigner). I had never heard of the martial art style before, but figured it'd be worth checking out. I'm so glad I did! It was amazing... so much fun and an incredible work out! I wish I was going on my 12th year of capoeira practice so I could be really good! I definitely want to stick with the Wednesday classes and try to develop some skill. Obviously only practicing once a week won't get me flipping and flying like the guys in the video any time soon, but it's a start. Martial arts have always intrigued me, but for whatever reason I never really pursued any. Coming here, I played with the idea of signing up for Taekwondo classes, but now that I have found capoeira, I know the martial art style I want to pursue! It's from Brazil and originated with the slaves. They were not allowed to train to fight, and so had to disguise their fighting style with music and dance elements. It's about community and strength, and it really a gorgeous and graceful art. Words completely and utterly fail to describe the intricate movements capoeira masters perform with seemingly little effort. So check out the link to the video for an idea of this new discovery of mine. It's just incredible!

Settling In

Koreans love their coffee shops, clearly.

 

This delightful place is my favorite coffee joint. About $4 for a coffee, but you get a slice of cake and bread included in the price!

 

Lake near Duryu Park in Daegu.

 

Champion

 

Well hello again! I have been in Korea for a month now if you count the time for the flight over. It has flown by, but at the same time I feel like I have done so much in such a short amount of time. Though I have plenty more to do! Starting with really settling in to my apartment. I still need more hangers, decorations, a table for the kitchen and other odds and ends. But payday isn't for about 10 more days, so that will just have to wait a bit longer. I will certainly be hitting up Costco to get many of my supplies and most of my food.
I am so glad to have a Costco here! I will certainly branch out and shop the local places, but sometimes a girl just needs Costco. Especially because they have cheese... real honest to goodness cheese. Any where else you're going to find different flavors of individually wrapped cheese that is essentially just different colors of American cheese, which is fine and dandy for melting on things. But I like my cheese and a variety of cheese at that, so this homogenous "I'm not really cheese" cheese thing would be nearly too much to bear. Thankfully Costco swooped in to save the day!
But I must say I am glad to get my Korean lunch each day at school. It's nice to ensure that I have at least one Korean style meal five times a week. And I am also looking forward to trying out the many different restaurants in downtown. They have everything you could want, from Italian to Mexican (well I mean obviously it's not like home, but I'll take it!) to Indian to Vietnamese to good old American.
There really is a lot going on in Daegu. I plan to visit the tourist information center soon to get a good idea of what I need to see and do while I am here. Last weekend I went to Busan with Lindsey, my neighbor. I am really glad she lives in my building as well, because it has helped me to settle in having a person I can truly communicate with, and she is a cool lady! We went to Busan for the Oktoberfest at the Nongshim Hotel. Last year I was in Germany at the real shebang, so I was excited to check out another "Oktoberfest." The beer, food and atmosphere were all really great. The weizen and pils were quite tasty and really compared to the beer I had in Germany. I took part in the beer chugging competition and definitely won. I got a 20,000 won certificate to use at the event, so I bought some delicious, overpriced chicken with no qualms! It was a fun weekend, and I was happy to travel outside of Daegu.
I am heading back to Busan soon... in 13 days, but this time I will be with Shanna! I am so excited for her to come and visit. It will be great to see her and get to spend a few days together. It's so fun knowing she is only one country away instead of on the other side of the world! I really hope we can hang out often while we are hanging out in Asia. 

Life in Daegu

I have an apartment and a school and students! I am so excited, because orientation is finished, and things are just getting started. So much has happened in just a few days. Orientation was very helpful in preparing me to have an idea of what I will be doing in Korea and what to expect while I am here. I also learned a lot of great tips for the classroom and lesson plans and activities. I think teaching may be in my genes (I mean so many people in my family are in the education field), even though I tried to avoid it for a while. Though I’m not a full-on teacher here (more about that in a bit), I still have the basic responsibilities of a teacher and am happy to say that I seem to have a pretty strong presence in the classroom. I will be teaching 7 classes of fifth grade twice a week and eight classes of sixth grade once a week. I have four co-teachers, and they are all very nice! They seem excited that I am really enthusiastic about teaching and coming up with fun activities for the classroom. I can’t wait to learn more Korean and hopefully be able to have good conversations with them and learn about them.

I have a total of 22 “hours” (really periods of teaching, as they are each 40 minutes, which totally flies by!) and the rest of the time I have for planning. I work from 8:30 to 4:30 everyday, so it is really an excellent schedule... not too early and I don’t get out too late. Though I fear in time after I create lesson plans for the lessons that I might not have enough to do. So my plan is to just try to make the lessons even smoother and more fun for the students. I really want them to enjoy the class so they enjoy the language and really put effort in to learning English not just for the sake of taking some test, but so they can communicate well. This week I have just been introducing myself and getting a feel for how the lessons will go, but next week I will start co-teaching. I really hope I will be able to be really involved with the teaching over time. My principal (who incidentally is also my landlord) is really nice, but is leaving our school to head to another one soon, so hopefully we get a good replacement. All the staff in the school seem nice, so it’s really a great placement. Things have been working out so well. And we also get lunch everyday, which has been really tasty so far. It’s fun to have at least one Korean meal a day. Rice and Kimchi are staples plus some kind of soup, semisweet dessert and side vegetable dish. We finish each meal with some tea. The other teachers are happy that I enjoy the food (seriously, it’s been great!) and are impressed that I can use chopsticks. It’s so fun to get a feel for the culture.

But now to the apartment! It’s a great space in a fairly small building (about 5 stories). Happily I am on the second floor, because there is no elevator but I’m also not on the street level, which would kind of freak me out. Pictures will follow shortly once I get my own Internet. I am lucky enough to have two other GET (guest English teachers) or NET (native English teachers) as they are dubbed in Daegu. One of the girls is on my floor and has been very gracious in allowing me to use her Internet. I have to get my alien registration card, which I applied for today so I should have it within three weeks, before I can get Internet and a phone, so I will be fairly disconnected for a while. Anywho, back to the apartment! One of my favorite things about Korea so far is the lock system. You just have to enter a code to get in to the building, and then another code to get in to the room. It’s so incredibly, awesomely convenient, because I don’t have to lug keys around! How awesome, right?! Ever residence (plus the schools) have a little area to leave your shoes before entering the house. It’s a great way to keep dirt to a minimum. Take a tiny step up and you are in the kitchen! I am so excited to have a pretty good size sink, a really large fridge/freezer, a great cabinet meets pantry and a gas stove! SO glad it’s not electric, because gas is way easier to control the temperature. I have pretty good storage space, but basically no counter space, so I’m planning to buy a table with my first pay check. I have already purchased a toaster oven, because it seemed the most useful item I could add to the kitchen so far. I was incredibly lucky, because the previous NET left cups (so many cups!), a bowl, plate, spoons, butter knives, spatula and wisk. So I really didn’t have to buy my for my apartment to survive.

To the left of my kitchen is my bathroom, which is decently sized. It has good storage area for all the things I need and a nice Western style toilet! The showerhead is attached directly to the sink faucet, so I just leave it selected as the showerhead and brush my teeth/wash my hand in the kitchen. There is no separation for the shower, but it works out well. My toilet paper stays dry and there is a holder to keep the showerhead aloft hands free, so things are quite good! Next to the bathroom (though you enter from the kitchen) is the small room with my washer and drying rack, which hangs from the ceiling, though I may get another for the ground to have more drying space. It took some trial and error, but I can wash my clothes and get the water to drain and the machine to spin to shake off the water. There are a bunch more options that I will have to decode once I get Internet, but the basics work for now! The washing machine plays an excellent jingle to let me know it’s finished, which I thoroughly enjoy.

My bedroom is to the right of the kitchen and is the biggest room in my apartment. It is really quite large and has a table, bed night stand, shelves and a dresser/closet. Again, there is pretty good storage space, though I may get a TV stand for the room to have a little more shelf space (it’s currently living on the shelf tucked in to the back corner of my room, which is hidden by the door when it is ajar). I was also incredibly lucky to have (clean) sheets, a pillow and comforter left behind! So glad I didn’t have to buy any, because apparently they are really expensive and hard to find. I also have a convenient little bedside lamp. I do have a list of some things I want to buy for the apartment, but it is actually pretty small and nothing is urgently necessary. I am really surprised at how quickly I have settled in to my space. I am looking forward to having a little money to spend on some decorations so I can make it a little bit homier. But all in all things have really fallen in to place quite well. I am so blessed. It’s just crazy. I don’t know why I’m able to do these things (both opportunity and desire) but I am so beyond grateful and I absolutely want to make the best of it. Sure I’m still in the honeymoon stage and things are new, but I am very happy so far. Of course, I’ll have to update my status a few months in once things are less shiny and start getting covered with a dusting of snow. Though I have already survived a typhoon! The first day I went to school (Tuesday), the typhoon was at it’s peak, so I actually didn’t have to go to work until 10 a.m. It really wasn’t so bad, lots of rain and high winds, but it was a bit uncomfortable during the walk to work. My apartment is about twenty minutes from the school on foot, so I was pretty soaked once I arrived. But it is actually a pretty nice walk, and I go through the Wolgok History Museum, which has a great display of artifacts. Plus I get at least 40 minutes of exercise every weekday, so that’s a benefit! I am certainly planning to join a gym soon, and want to take advantage of the nearby mountain and awesome outdoor activities that Daegu offers. From what I’ve read so far it seems to be a pretty active city with lots to do. And it’s in the middle of the country and is the main transportation hub, connecting the north and the south. I am very glad that I was placed here. It’s a big city with lots to do, but it’s not overwhelmingly huge. It’s a wonderful balance in every aspect, and I can do lots of traveling from here! Now I need to read up on Korea and my city and what to do!

South Korea

Well hello again blogging world! As tends to be the case, I have neglected this blog during my time at home. Not because noteworthy things weren't happening, but because the events I wanted to share with people were actually happening with them, so a virtual recap of my life wasn't necessary. But now I am back to traveling the world, and so this blog will see more action as I dish about the happenings of my time in my new destination... South Korea.
I am in Korea to work for the EPIK (English Program in Korea) as a GET (Guest English Teacher). It's day three, and there still hasn't been a whole lot going on. Half of the GETs are at Jeonju University for our orientation. Today we have the opening ceremonies and our welcome dinner. Tomorrow we get to do a health check (let's get real, it's a drug test) and then we start in to our classes. I'm looking forward to having a little more to do and to getting a better grasp for what this program and the year I've signed up for will entail. Hopefully I love it enough to do two years, because I certainly packed enough stuff to be here that long! But it is certainly too soon to tell, and I definitely have a lot of greatness to return to at home. So more on that later as I get settled in and get a feel for my life in Korea.
I think I am finally getting over my jet lag, which is nice, because I certainly don't want to be tired all day. I have met a lot of neat people here. It is nice to feel like I have a group of people to rely on who are going through the same thing, so I can settle in nicely. But I am really anxious to find out what school I will be at and what my apartment will be like. I just want to get things going to get a feel for what my life will really be like here. And then of course I really want to get out and travel around. I want to see Korea and neighboring countries and really sink my teeth into the different cultures. Hopefully I can get a pretty good feel for Korean while I am here and learn important phrases. Not much else to report for now.

Doner Kebabs!

 

Germany- Doner Kebab

 

Albania- Doner Kebab

 

Slovenia- Doner Kebab

 

Portugal- Doner Kebab

 

Greece- Gyro

During my travels I have been able to try so many delicious kinds of food, and I have had some excellent meals. One of the main foods I had was the doner kebab, which can be found all over Europe. They are delicious, cheap and fast--a fabulous combination. Originally from Turkey, the doner kebab became a hit throughout the continent. And each country and restaurant makes every doner kebab with its own variation. The basic form of the doner is stuffing bread with shaved meat (lamb and beef or chicken and turkey) from a roasting pit. Then condiments and toppings can be added it, like lettuce, tomatoes, fries and the delicious and crucial yogurt sauce. During my travels I sampled doner kebabs from many different countries, and I have decided to compare them. My favorite doner kebabs came from Germany. They are absolutely scrumptious, and can't be beat. Though the doners from Slovenia and Albania came quite close. Doners from Italy were decent. Portugal definitely had the worst doner kebab! But although I thoroughly enjoyed doner kebabs, they had nothing on the gyros from Greece. The traditional gyro is the same basic form as the doner kebab, but it is stuffed with pork. And that makes perfect sense, because I love pork! The pita bread was also so tasty and really made the gyro surpass the wonderful doner kebab. So, moral of the story is: one of the best parts of traveling is the food you're introduced to. So get out there and eat!

Santorini 04/05/12-04/08/12

Oh Santorini. It was quite the roller coaster ride. I took a 9-hour ferry from Athens to get to the island. I went on Blue Star Ferries, and was quite impressed with the ship. It was a big boat and had a few cafes and restaurants. I lucked out and found a seat on a nice, cushioned bench. So most of the ride I napped. It felt so nice to nap lying down on a mode of transportation. I can only sleep so well sitting up! When I got to the port, I was so relieved to have a shuttle provided by my hotel. It is a steep, curving road that would have taken hours to climb up and to the city center, especially with all of my luggage. So if you ever visit Santorini and take a ferry in, definitely go for accommodations that include transportation from the port. That evening I walked around Fira and enjoyed the sunset. It was a bit cloudy, but still nice. I was so excited to see all the colorful and white buildings built up in to the hillside. It was surreal. The majority of those buildings are restaurants or shops. Santorini gets its lifeblood from tourists, which is so evident with how the whole island is equipped for tourists. When I was there it was clear the season was just starting. A few early birds had their shops and restaurants open, but many of the businesses were gearing up. Every path I walked in the cities either smelled like wet paint or had the hum from some power tool. Everywhere people were renovating their shops.

Friday I spent the morning in Fira and took the cable car down to the old port. The water is so clear and such a gorgeous turquoise. But the port was pretty dead, again most shops weren't yet open, so I hopped on a donkey to head back up the hill. It just had to be done... I mean it's Santorini! It was a pretty lengthy ride, and the scenery was very beautiful. A donkey ride is definitely a must-do. In the afternoon I caught a bus to Perissa, a beach town, to check in to my next hotel. Perissa is a beautiful area. The beaches have a fine, black sand that is really a sight to behold. Again it wasn't very busy and many of the businesses were closed. But it was actually nice to have the area be deserted rather than teeming with tourists milling around. And it had a lot of bakeries, which made me oh so happy! One of the bakeries (only a dangerously close walk of 2 minutes from my hotel) had the most disgustingly delicious, sickly sweetest pastries I have tried. It was a croissant sliced in half and smothered with Nutella, and then the whole thing is saturated in honey, which is huge in Greece. Oh my goodness! It was so good. I also enjoyed a lot of baklava from the bakeries and a tasty spanakopita. I spent most of my time in Perissa either laying on the beach or napping in the hotel. It was a very relaxing time.
On Sunday, I rented an ATV and drove around the whole island in the morning. I watched the sun rise at the Red Beach, then I went to the light house. After a brief snack at a bakery, I headed up to Oia, which is the picturesque city of Santorini. It was so beautiful! There were a lot more tourist shops and restaurants with terrace views of the ocean. I didn't spend a whole lot of time in Oia, because there wasn't much to do. So I headed back to Fira and had lunch at Mama's House, a restaurant several people recommended. I tried moussaka, which reminded me a lot of shepherd's pie. It was good, but I think I liked the house wine and butter spread and bread even more! I have to say, Greece does food so well. I think it was one of my favorite places to eat. The gyros, the bread, the traditional dishes, and baklava! Greece does food right. I finished the afternoon by cruising near Perissa beach and checking out ancient Thira, which was basically just remnants of old walls.
Then I got a ride from my hotel down to the port to catch my 17:55 ferry to Crete. Or so I thought. The whole day had been crazy windy. Clouds were zipping through the air, and a few times I felt like I was going to blow over. The wind was so bad that it made huge waves in the water, creating too dangerous of an environment for my ferry to dock or sail in. Ok, so when is the next ferry to Crete available? Oh, not until Tuesday. Well great, because my flight from Crete to Milan left Monday night, so there was really no way to make it. Thank God that there was a 17:00 ferry from Santorini to Piraeus available. And I'm so happy I chose the best place possible to stay at in Santorini, because the manager there, Rich, was incredibly helpful! He figured that my ship would likely be canceled, so he gave me his number to call him if I needed a ride back to the hostel. I was going to stay another night in Santorini, but then decided my best option was to go to Athens. I talked it over with Rich and he gave me some websites to check out. So I hopped on the ferry to Athens, and we sailed through the rough seas for six long hours. Several people got sick, and a few times I was convinced another big wave would come in and flip the boat in its side. But we made it through! I was so happy that I had already stayed in Athens, because I knew where I could get a bed (mind you it was 11 p.m. by the time we arrived). When I got to the hostel I got on to the Internet to try to figure out my game plan for making it to Italy. I was so grateful when I checked my email and saw that Rich had already done the research for me. He showed me a few options for taking ferries to Italy, but none would have made it in time. So I ended up taking a morning flight from Athens to Milan. I only got about two hours of sleep that night, but I figured it would be best to just get to Italy as soon as possible, because I fly from Italy back to the U.S. I was able to get on the flight and made it to Milan. Then I hopped on two different trains to get to Venice. Everything worked out really well. I spent more money than I wanted to, and it was not how i planned it, but it all turned out to be fine. I think this whole experience has shown me that God is always there for me and has bigger (better) plans in mind. So I need to just stop worrying, and start enjoying the wonderful experiences He has blessed me with. I am so happy to be traveling and so happy to see as much of the world as I can. Overall I enjoyed Greece. The food was exceptional, the people were kind and the island was gorgeous. But will I be back anytime soon? Probably not.

Athens 04/04/12

I didn't have a whole lot of time in Athens. But I saw what I wanted to see, so it worked out well. I arrived around 8:30 a.m. local time (1 hour ahead of Albania) and was happy to be able to check in to my hostel right away. I dropped my things off, showered (I needed it after that 14 hour bus ride!) and ventured out. My first stop was an outdoor market a street over and two streets up from my hostel, Athens International Youth Hostel- Victor Hugo. Can I just say, I absolutely love markets! The food is so fresh and so cheap. I should have just been shopping at them the whole time I've been traveling. It's a cheaper, healthier way to eat than constantly dining at restaurants (although I do enjoy a nice sit-down meal as well). I bought eggs, bell peppers, zucchini, onion and mushrooms to make a fabulous omelet, as well as strawberries and bananas. After taking the food back to my room, I ventured back out to the Acropolis. I went to the Acropolis Museum first, which was a good idea, because I was able to see what the area looked like before it was ruins. Then I headed up to the Acropolis. I was able to see it as it stands now and visualize what it might have looked like in ancient times. The Parthenon was so excellent, and the hill was a great vantage point for terrific views of the city. After a short break at a cafe for a snack and drink, I headed to the Olympic grounds. The area had a neglected feel, and wasn't all that impressive. But a huge tunnel of arching metal was quite nice. After that I headed back to the hostel to relax. I was so exhausted from the epic bus journey! After crafting my delicious, fresh omelet, I headed back to the Acropolis to check it out at night. It was nothing special, but still glad I saw it. On the way back to my hostel, I picked up some baklava. Wow! It was delicious.

Tirana 04/03/12

Tirana was just a stop over on my way to Athens, but it was nice to explore it for a few hours. Any longer would have been too much time for me, but I'm still happy I got a taste of Albania. Things there were so cheap! I only exchanged 5 euro, but was able to buy a lot and save some currency as a souvenir. Also, I tried a doner kebab there, and it was really good. I also had baklava, but that wasn't so great. It was a really long day of traveling on buses. I woke up at 4:45 a.m. to catch a 6 a.m. bus to Shkodra (duration: 2 1/2 hours) then another one to Tirana (duration: 2 hours) and then I had to wait about 7 hours to catch my 5:30 p.m. bus to Athens. The last bus took 14 hours. So it was a very exhausting day of traveling, but I got my passport stamped three times! Twice for entering and leaving Albania and once for entering Greece. So that made it worthwhile. It's ironic, because I figured I would only get my passport stamped from doing flights and not from traveling by bus. But it's turned out to be quite the opposite with the exception of flying in to Zadar, Croatia. But back to Tirana. Overall I'm happy I saw it, but not a place that has to be visited.

Ulcinj 04/02/12

I didn't even get to see Ulcinj, Montenegro during the day, but I still loved it. Perhaps because I only saw it at night it gave the city a more magical feeling. My room was in an apartment in the Old Town, which is on a hill right next to the beach. I was in a room right on the edge of the hill and had a stunning view from my window and private terrace. The ocean stretched out to the horizon, and lights from buildings across the bay twinkled in the night. The moon was nearly full, so it cast everything in a romantic glow. It was one of the most breath-taking things I have seen. My favorite part of my room was that it was on the roof was right outside the window. I have always wanted a room set up like that so I could clamber out of my window and sit on my roof any time I felt like it. But it was worth waiting for this rooftop, because it was a ridiculous view. A cool breeze caressed my face while I sat on the roof absorbing the gorgeous view. It was such a serene moment. And the bet part is that it only cost 10 Euro, because everything in Ulcinj is so cheap! I didn't have much time in the city, so i just walked around the Old Town and in the newer part nearby. The city was filled with Internet shops (and patrons) and men getting late-night hair cuts. I also hung out on the beach for a little while. The sand was so fine. It was like real sand again; not pebbles! Also, I got my passport stamped when entering Montenegro. I love collecting stamps and wish every country I have seen would have stamped it!

Dubrovnik 04/01/12

Well the day started out with gale force winds and blown about debris lodging into my eyes, but I still very much enjoyed my time in Dubrovnik. I started the day off by walking around the city walls in the Old Town. Happily I got a student discount and paid less than half of the adult fair! It was a very beautiful walk around the city walls. On one side the ocean stretched out to the horizon, and within the walls the city streets and buildings dotted the area. Walking the walls is definitely a must do, and a great way to start out seeing the old city, because you get to view it all at once. After the walls I strolled around within the city. I saw a good majority of the area, but it soon began to rain. The polished streets became very slick, especially because I was wearing my Toms. So I decided to head back to my room at the Villa Micika and wait out the rain and wind. Eventually I ventured back out, this time to the beach. It was another pebble beach, but they were pretty large pebbles. The beach was nice, and I was able to enjoy another beautiful sunset. And even though the weather wasn't ideal, Dubrovnik was such a lovely city and definitely worth a visit.

Zadar 03/30/12-03/31/12

 

I didn't really know what to expect from Zadar, but I really loved it. It was such a beautiful, relaxing place. The old town was definitely seeable in a day, which was perfect, because that was all the time I had. But I would have loved to have stayed in the area longer, because Zadar is very close to several gorgeous national parks. But the city itself was nice. The old town is a small area, but it is filled with so many treasures. There were several churches and interesting buildings. And a lot of random ruins. It was so great, because the ruins were in huge plazas where people just sat and relaxed. I also stumbled across an In & Out and met a girl, Carmen, from Sacramento. My California roots followed me all the way to Croatia! I had a burger at In & Out, and obviously it wasn't the real deal (I mean it's a & not an N' after all). But it was still very tasty. The bun was so good! Carmen and I also shared a good meal at a restaurant called Konoba Stomorica. An accordion player and guitar player serenaded us with song as we dined in the nautical-themed restaurant. We decided to share our meals, so we had veal with gnocchi and squid ink risotto. Both dishes were very tasty. We also enjoyed two desserts and the local brew. It was a nice meal, and I really enjoyed having someone to spend the evening with. It's been great setting my own pace and going everywhere I want to go, but traveling alone does get lonely from time to time. But I probably wouldn't have met so many people, so it's not too bad! My favorite part of my time in Zadar was most certainly watching the sunset at the salutation to the sun and sea organ. The salutation to the sun was a huge circle of lights that lit up right as the sun set. There were also other smaller circles that did the same. All were dedicated to astronomical aspects, such as the planets. It was so gorgeous to see the pink and orange of the sky paired with the shifting of colors all over the visible spectrum in the circle. It was located at the corner of the huge concrete pier/beach. Sadly, the sandy beach of the city was destroyed by bombs during WWII. But the people of the city changed the tragedy into something beautiful. They built a giant sea organ. As the waves (more like wakes from boats, because it is in a bay) hit the sea organ and push air through it, different notes are created. The melody is always changing with the ocean and is just such a cool thing! Overall, it was probably the most beautiful sunset I have ever experienced.