Friday Letters #35

Happy Friday Y'all! 

I hope you had a wonderful week. To be honest with you- our week was pretty awesome, and I can't wait to share a sneak peek with y'all through these letters. These might get a little long, but such is life. 

Dear Saturday, We started the day off bright and early with a 5:00 am train ride to the airport. Matt and I actually pulled an all nighter. We tried to fall asleep, but when it hit midnight with no sleep- we figured- what the heck- and just stayed up. We passed the hours playing Rumikub and watching Bones on Netflix. 

We made it to the airport and checked into our flight to Cambodia. It got a little dicey when we got to the counter the signs said to go- to only to be told to go somewhere else… to then be told to go somewhere else! Oh Korea- how difficult you make things sometimes. But we got through security pretty quickly and all was good. 

We had a 4 hour layover in Guangzhou, China. The layover wasn't long enough to leave the airport, so I just put my cardigan on the ground and took a nap. I don't know about you, but when I travel I do anything to be comfortable. If there isn't a huge crowd around the gate- that includes laying down to catch a few zzzs. I know this probably bothers some of you, but for me a happy and non-tired Alex is the best Alex to travel with. :) So for the sake of Matt's happiness- I sleep.

Around 6:30 pm we arrived in Siem Reap. We made it through immigration easily and when we got to the arrival gate the driver from our hotel was waiting for us. I felt so fancy having someone standing with a sign that had my name on it! We got to the hotel, which was amazing by the way, and then went straight out for our first dinner out on the town. 

Dear Saem SiemReap Hotel, You were amazing and wonderfully beautiful. I can't believe the deal we got on you. Every day we stayed with you was wonderful. The staff was great. The room was beautiful and clean. And the pool was amazing. 

Dear Sunday, Another early morning started off with a TukTuk ride to the Angkor Wat ticket center to get our park passes. We opted for the three day pass to explore the temples. I was so excited to finally be on our way to explore this famous place. 

Dear Angkor Wat, Seriously- Every temple we explored was amazing. The heat that we experienced towards mid-day was a little extreme, but the views were totally worth being uncomfortable. Sunday we took the 'little' tour and were able to see the three big temples -Angkor Wat, Bayon, and Ta Prom- and a bunch of smaller ones along the way. It was really a dream come true. It was a long day of sight seeing and being out in the heat, but I don't regret a thing. Our TukTuk driver was awesome and always had cold water waiting for us when we would come back from looking at a temple.

  Dear Mr. Khen TukTuk #10, You were the best driver we could have ever hoped for. I'm so happy you were with us every day of our trip. It was nice to have consistency and someone we could trust to take us where we needed to go. You gave great recommendations and our trip was that much better because of you. 

We got back to the hotel around 2 and then hung out at the pool for a few hours. Since it was so hot during the day- we didn't feel guilty for being at the pool and relaxing. We had planned on having a lot of down time just for this. Our hotel wasn't crowded, so most of the time we had the pool all to ourselves. I must admit I got pretty hooked on the hotel's Italian Sodas. Yummy! 

After our pool time, we got ready and went to a show called Smile of Angkor. It was pretty interesting. Then we went down to Pub Street and Market Street to have some fun. It was an experience walking down the street and seeing the night life of Siem Reap. Matt and I both got a foot massage for $3 for 30 minutes. It was heaven. 

Dear Monday, Today we took a break from the temples and decided to take a cooking class at the hotel. This was mainly for Matt because I don't cook and really have no desire to learn. We met the Sous Chef and Kitchen Manager at 8:00 and headed to see a local market to get some ingredients. It was an interesting place to say the least! 

Dear Cooking Lessons, I have to admit- it was pretty fun. And the food was amazing. The whole time we were eating I was like- I helped make this! I had a fun time getting to know the kitchen staff a little better and really interacting with the staff of the hotel. If you ever get the chance to take a cooking class in Cambodia- do it! The food is awesome. 

{Yes we made that! I folded and stapled the banana leaf into those cute bowls. And I chopped the ingredients for the Fish Amok.} 

After the cooking class we hung out by the pool and Matt treated me to a facial at the hotel spa. It was amazing. Then we got ready for our evening out to the circus. 

Dear Phare Cambodia Circus, I am so glad I happened to see this and tell Matt we should go. It was worth every penny. I really can't wait to share this experience in detail with you. But for now I will say it was the best thing we did on our trip. At least tied with seeing Bayon. 

Dear Tuesday, Today we did the sunrise at Angkor and then the 'grand' tour of the temples. It was the perfect last day in Siem Reap. The weather wasn't that hot and we got to see some more temples. After the temples we had some pool time (of course) and then we did a couple massage. 

{Yes- we like taking pictures in the hotel robes- it makes us feel fancy} 

I'm telling you- when we want to have a vacation to relax- we go all out! This trip was the perfect blend of sight seeing and relaxation. Tuesday night we went back out to the Pub Street area and walked around. It was the perfect way to end our trip. Matt got a fish foot massage. I found a Costa's coffee shop. We ate at the Green Star non-profit restaurant. We shopped a bit. It was great. 

When I was living in London- my friend and I would visit Costa's probably three times a week. I haven't been to Costa's since, so it was amazing to see one in Siem Reap. And it was as delicious as I remembered. 

Dear Wednesday, Today was our travel day back to Seoul. It was sad to say goodbye to Siem Reap, but I'm so thankful we got the chance to visit this country. I didn't expect to fall in love with it, but I did. 

Our travel day went pretty smoothly- except for when Matt left his wallet in the hotel car that took us to the airport! Luckily, he called the hotel and they got it back to us quickly. I had the passports so I checked us in while he waited outside. I'll be honest with y'all- he was waiting in a different area because I was pretty pissed and didn't want to say anything until I had calmed down a bit. I guess I should have been saying 'Do you have your wallet?' Instead of just Passports Passports Passports?
(No trip is perfect right?!) 

We got back to Seoul safety and then from there made it to our apartment. 

Dear Thursday and Friday, Boo- back to reality. We both had to finish our work week. I actually woke up with some sort of stomach thing on Thursday morning. I will just leave you with the term stomach thing without going into any details. :) To say the least- I wasn't feeling too hot. 

But now this whirlwind of a week has come to a close. If you can't tell- I loved Cambodia. I would visit Cambodia again and again. I know our hotel and the people we met were a big part of why I loved the place. I look forward to sharing our trip with y'all. 

I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend! 

Love, Alex 

{Linking up}

Reflections: Month 9

Saturday will be my 9 month anniversary of living in Korea. 

Oh how the time flies. We actually only have a year left of living in Korea. I know that sounds like a long time, but I really think it's going to go by fast. 

As I do with every month- I wanted to give a quick temperature check on how I am feeling about Korea and living the expat life. 

Yesterday, Matt and I got back from our trip to Cambodia. We had a really great time in Cambodia, and I can't wait to share our experiences with y'all. We would have loved another day or two in Siem Reap, but we were also ready to be in our own home. And that's when it hit me. 

Korea is our home. 

When I thought about going home and sleeping in my own bed- I thought of Korea. When we arrived at the Incheon Airport- it felt familiar. When we walked back to our apartment from the bus stop- it was our neighborhood we were walking through. 

I think I have been feeling this way for the last couple of months, but didn't know how to accept it. I have been holding onto Hawaii for so long that it took me a while to realize that Korea is our home right now. 

Next year, our home will change again, but for now, in this 9th month, I am feeling content. 

And that's my temperature check for month 9.

Happy Thursday Y'all! 

The Places: Travel Tuesday

Happy Tuesday Y'all! 

Last week I missed out on the prompt for Travel Tuesday, so I thought today would be a great time to play catch up. 

The prompt last week was The Places 

you have loved most

you want to visit

where you live now 

So here we go. 

The places I have loved the most

{The Isle of Skye, Scotland} 

{London, England} 

{Oahu, Hawaii} 

The Place I Want to Visit 

{Thailand} 

image via 

Where I Live Now 

{South Korea} 

{Linking up for Travel Tuesday} 

Friday Letters #34

Happy Friday Y'all! 

I hope you had an amazing week and all have amazing plans for the weekend. 

My week pretty much consisted of work and getting ready for our trip to Cambodia. 

Dear Saturday and Sunday, Like most weekends nowadays- you were spent studying for the GRE and relaxing. I started re-watching the series Bones on Netflex. I don't know why- but I just love binge watching shows. I seriously have a problem. On Saturday night, Matt and I went to see The Amazing Spiderman 2. Although I'm not a huge fan of Spiderman- the movie was pretty good. Plus- it's hard to pass up seeing American movies in theaters since a lot of movies don't make it here. 

Dear Monday, You started the week off right with a shortened work day. Thank goodness for middle school tests that happen four times a year. The tests usually mean a lighten work load for a month, and one week of easy/ absent classes. 

Dear Tuesday, Again easy day. I had a pizza party in one of my classes. This class is one of my favorites. I went down to get the pizza and when I had come back up they had arranged their desks for their party. So cute. :) I also got to leave work two hours early and it was amazing! 

{Jeff, Sonia, Sally, and Stella} 

Dear Wednesday, Usually you are one of my harder days because my 6 classes tend to go pretty slow, but today it was awesome. While I had to stay for the full length of time, my day was good. A lot of my classes had presentations, so we got play games after they were finished. I brought SkipBo to work and had fun time teaching them the game. Dear SkipBo, Thanks for being a fun game that forces my students to practice giving instructions and counting in English. 

Matt went to the bank to get the money for our trip. Cambodia takes USD so we pulled out cash to use. Dear USD, After 9 months of using Korean Won- it's weird holding and seeing you. 

Dear Thursday, You went by quick- and that's what count. Matt and I spent the evening packing and cleaning up our apartment. 

Dear Friday, You are finally here. Although the week went by fairly quick- I'm still happy to see you. Matt and I got up earlier than usual with the hope that we can go to bed earlier since we have to wake up really early in the morning. We'll see how that goes. I also spoke with my mom for a bit- which is always a nice thing. 

We have everything ready for our trip tomorrow and are very excited. Today our school had a movie/ pizza party all day so work was super easy. And I got to go home two hours early! Woot Woot! 

{There is nothing better than getting to leave work when it's still light outside.} 

Dear Cambodia, Finally you're here! After months of waiting- it's finally time to leave. I can't believe it. I hear you're going to be 95 degrees. I'm not looking forward to the heat, but I'm sure the temples will more than make up for it. 

Well- I hope you guys have a wonderful weekend. I won't be in the blog world for a few days, but I'll try to keep in touch with y'all via Instagram. 

Love, Alex 

Oh PS- Dear Joe, 생일 축하합니다!!!!

Happy Early 21st Birthday little brother. 

Love you mucho! 

{Linking up} 

Check- Check- and Triple Check

Aloha and Happy Thursday Ya'll! 

And Happy May 1st! 

I really can't believe in two days Matt and I will be in Cambodia. It seems so surreal. I am having a hard time coming to terms with the idea of being in Cambodia. CAMBODIA! I mean- for real- doesn't that just seem crazy to y'all?

Anyway- today's post is going to be short and sweet. 

Yesterday was spent cleaning up the house and doing some laundry for our upcoming trip. I always like to leave the house nice and tidy for when we return. (Isn't slipping into clean sheets after traveling one of the best feelings?) I have made my packing list. Checked it. Checked it again. And once more for good measure. 

Today I'll be packing and getting the last minute stuff together. Which brings me to my point. 

The last few weeks I've had these nightmares that I've gotten all the way to the airport and then realized I didn't have my passport. In these dreams, I'm so stressed and upset that I usually wake myself up. 

Does anyone else have this dream? 

Forgetting my passport is one of my biggest fears. Second to losing my passport. 

As an expat- I'm really screwed without a passport. Because it's so important- I know it would be highly unlikely for me to actually forget and or lose it- but that doesn't stop the nightmares. 

So now my checklist looks something like: 

Passports

Babushka 

Underwear 

Clothes

Toothbrush/ Toothpaste

Do you have the passports? 

Shoes

PJS

Passports? 

Passports? 

Passports? 

Can you tell I'm a little crazy? And if that's not bad enough- I have to ask Matt before we leave- Do we have the passports? 

On the train- Passports? 

Airplane-Passports?

I'm insane, but at least I have my passport. 

So travelers? What do you get paranoid about before leaving on a trip? 

Love, Alex 

Yonggungsa Temple: Busan

Happy Tuesday Y'all! 

It's time for another Travel Tuesday. Today I'll take you guys back to Busan. 

On our quick trip to Busan we were able to stop off at Yonggungsa aka the Temple by the Sea. Unlike most temples that are in the mountains- Yonggungsa is right on the ocean. This temple was originally built in 1376 and then reconstructed in 1970. 

Matt and I didn't have any plans for Busan other than seeing the beach, so we added this temple to our list. And if you are ever in the area- I would recommend making a stop here. It was really one of the most beautiful temples I've been to so far. I think the ocean just added to how amazing it was. We actually visited at the perfect time because the cherry blossoms were in bloom, so it made the temple grounds all that more beautiful. 

Be prepared for a ton of pictures- I couldn't help myself. 

 {I feel like all the taxi drivers in Korea need to be praying to this pagoda} 

{This walkway was filled with beautiful statues} 

All through the temple there are buddhas that represent different things. Buddha for the birth of a son. For academic achievement. Good marriage. It was interesting to see all the different buddhas. 

 Do you love this place or what?!? 

Yay for spur of the moment adventures. I am so glad we were able to make it to this temple. It was so worth it. We took a taxi from Haeundae beach and it was about 8,000 Won. You can also get there by subway or bus. 

For more information click here. 

{Linking up for Travel Tuesday} 

Easter 2014

Last Easter, Matt and I were celebrating in Hawaii. We had Easter brunch and dinner with our friends and family and had a wonderful time. We dyed Easter eggs and chatted with our friends for brunch before church, and then had dinner with more friends and a game of Jelly Bean Uno. 

That Easter, even though we were far away from Georgia, we had people to get together with. It was so nice to be surrounded by friends and cousins. It was wonderful to know that we were not alone. 

This year was a different story. We really didn't know what we were going to do in terms of celebrating Easter. I knew I wanted to color eggs. I knew I wanted to have a dinner, but I really didn't have the energy to fix a large Easter dinner for just the two of us. 

Honestly, I was really missing home. I know Matt and I chose this life of travel. And most days I am excited by the adventures we have. But sometimes I just want to take part in the family activities that are going on back in Georgia. Even though I was having a nice little pity party, our Easter turned out quite nice. 

Before church, Matt and I had a nice breakfast of eggs and American style bacon. (Yes- it's hard to find American bacon here.) Luckily, our church was having a Easter potluck after services so we were able to have that Easter dinner without having to cook a huge meal for ourselves. The ward provided American style ham (again- something we wouldn't be able to find). Because most of our ward members are military families there was a lot of food that you can only buy on military bases. Since Matt and I aren't in the military- we were pretty lucky to get these treats. American style ham- dinner rolls- jello- green bean casserole- brownies- root beer! It was pretty exciting. We had a great time eating and visiting with people from our church. I'm glad we decided to stay and participate in the potluck. 

After the potluck, we decided to color Easter eggs. This year I really wanted to try my hand at the nail polish marbling technique. So we got some nail polish and I gave it a try. We also painted eggs with paints we had laying around. We chose this because I really didn't feel like searching for food coloring in Korean stores. I wasn't too impressed with the marbling, but by the end I was getting the hang of it. 

{Eggs- Nail polish- room temperature water- gloves (to stop polish from getting all over your hands)- toothpick} 

I used the tutorial from Henry Happened for my egg marbling adventure. None of my eggs looked like hers, but again I think if I had experimented more I would have gotten it. I just was tired of wasting eggs. And our apartment was really starting to reek of nail polish, so I knew I needed to stop. 

Even though the eggs didn't turn out perfect, I still liked how they ended up. 

And those are our 2014 Easter eggs. I can't believe Matt and I didn't snap one picture of the two of us. I got 50 million of the flipping eggs, but not one of us. Does this ever happen you guys? 

Overall, our Easter was great. I think by the end of Korea I'll be ready to start celebrating holidays with my family back in Georgia. But regardless of where we are- Matt and I seem to always have fun. 

I hope you guys had a wonderful Easter.