Liebster: noun. a person who liebs?

The lovely and talented Jen from Jennipal recently sent me a shout out on her blog (which you should read by the way) letting me know she thinks I'm worthy of a Liebster! What is a Liebster, you ask? Well, as far as I can tell, it's like a high-five that bloggers give to each other to show some love, an excuse to tell someone how awesome they are and throw a few questions their way. I'm down.

I hope reading my blog gives you the same joy as this picture of Chilean penguins.

The Rules:

List 11 random facts about yourself.

Answer the 11 questions.

Nominate 11 bloggers with less than 200 followers. (I don't think I actually read 11 blogs especially if you take out Jen's and livingontheflipside.blogspot.com which Jen has already tagged in her post).

Comment on their page to let them know.

Tag the person who nominated you in your post.

I know that a lot of people hate being tagged in these things, so if I do send it your way, and you don't feel like doing it, no pressure. I get it. Just delete the tag and carry on being your awesome self.

So, eleven random facts about me...

My dreams (or at least the ones I can remember) tend to follow the same few plot-lines with limited variations.

One of my front teeth is a fake.

My first dream-job was "polar bear."

My family is huge and complicated. I have to like someone a lot before I tell them all the details about my family.

I love the smell of marshmallows. I wish I had a pillow made of marshmallows.

I will watch absolutely ANY movie with Jackie Chan in it... and love it.

I fell in love with my husband because of his awesome sense of humour. He's still the funniest guy I know.

There are very few people who actually call me Ashley. I always go by Ash.

I hate when people spit on the street. It's gross!

I sometimes come off as cold when I first meet people. I'm actually just awkward.

I have a large collection of children's books.


And Jen's 11 questions:

1.  What is one thing that you want to do but haven't done yet for whatever reason? 
I'd like to have a garden. I haven't done that because I am lazy.

2.  What worries you?

I worry about a lot of stuff (all of it trivial), but the thing that causes me the most anxiety is being on time. In school, I was what some might call an "apple-polisher" (brown-noser). When I was in middle school, my father moved about 45 minutes out of the city, but I continued to attend school in the city where my mom was living. My father was notorious for oversleeping and being impossible to wake up, so whenever I'd stay at my his house for a few days, I'd always be late for school. Being the conscientious student I was, this caused me immense anxiety. Since then I've had big issues about being on time. Ask my husband. Anytime we're supposed to catch a bus, plane, whatever... I am not fit to talk to until we are at the bus station/airport at a crazy early hour. It's taken him a long time to accept that about me.

3.  What is one thing you would change about yourself/life?

I would take my own advice and relax more. 

4.  If you could travel anywhere where would you go and why?

I'm currently living my dream, travelling full-time. One place that's high on my list is India for it's cultural and historical importance. Also, I've never heard anyone smack-talk India.

5.  What is one thing you'd like to be remember for?

I would like people to remember me as a thoughtful person. That's one of the qualities I value most highly in other people, so I'd feel pretty awesome if people thought that about me.

6.  What was your original motivation for starting a blog?  Is it still the same now?
My original motivation was my relationship with Korean culture. That's still a journey I'm on today, but the motivation for writing about it comes and goes.

7.  Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In five years I hope to be somewhere on this amazing planet, learning, teaching, and hopefully momming. And of course eating everything in sight.

8.  Who was the last person that made you cry? Why? (if you care to share)
I cry ALL THE TIME. I'm just an easy crier about anything, sadness, frustration, anger, laughter. Since my husband is the only person I have regular face to face contact with, he's probably the last one that made me cry, though I don't remember what about.

9.  Why are you happy?
I'm happy because I'm leading a blessed life traveling around the world with somebody I love.

10.  What is your favourite thing to do when you are alone?
When I'm alone (which is pretty much never these days), I enjoy reading, drawing, watching terrible movies, and eating junk food.

11.  What is one thing you'd like to learn?
I'd like to learn embroidery. And of course I'll continue learning about Korean language and culture.

Thanks to Jen for the push to update this blog again! Seriously, check out her blog. She's rad!

Ashu

페루 쿠스코에서 쿠스코리아 축제 (CusCorea Festival, Cusco, Peru)

It's been one month and three countries since I last updated this blog... 미안해요!

It's not that I haven't had anything to write about (aside from switching cities every 5-7 days: San Jose-Arenal-San Jose-Panama City-Cartagena-San Gil-Bogota-Lima-Huaraz-Lima-Cusco since we last talked). Long bus rides make for good opportunities for watching movies (Sunny, A Moment to Remember, Memories of Murder, Introduction to Archaeology) some of which I will hopefully make the time to write about sooner or later. Husband and I had a brutal Olympic nationalism feud in Colombia (friendly, don't worry). I'm loving 버스커 버스커 right now. Anyway, I just haven't made much time for blogging.

The funny thing is, I've probably spent more time speaking Korean than English or even my ridiculous excuse for Spanish since we've arrived in Peru. Husband found a Korean guesthouse in Lima, and since we've spent a lot of time in English speaking backpacker hostels, it was only fair that we switch it up for a change. Plus, he really wanted a chance to access some Korean books. The owner of said guesthouse in Lima let us know about an upcoming Korean culture festival in Cusco (bizarre?). We were heading to Cusco anyway, so we decided to check it out.

Turns out there is a Korean cultural center in Cusco. They offer Korean language lessons which are surprisingly popular, especially among teenage girls. These girls LOVE their K-pop which might be their motivation for learning Korean, who knows? I knew Hallyu was getting big around the world, but seriously, I had no idea... These girls knew all the words to every popular Korean song. They knew the dances too! 강남스타일 was the crowd favorite.

The center hosted this two day festival to spread awareness of the center and its programs. There were traditional games: 제기차기, 널뒤기, and 팽이. They offered samples of Korean food: 주먹밥, 계런마리,  and some other delicious meat pancake that I can't remember the name of. Plus the students of the center put on an awesome talent show, stunning us with their Korean singing and dancing skills!

The festival was a great experience for me in two ways. First, I got to connect with other L2 Korean speakers. It was nice to talk about our shared interest and challenges in studying Korean. Secondly, the Korean community were so welcoming and kind, and it was nice to have a little taste of home, especially after travelling so long.

Well, that's all for now. I didn't take many pictures at the festival. I was having too much fun. But here are a few.

Husband teaching some Peruvian kids to play 제기차기

the students of the center and their Korean idols

사랑하는 김치 (Beloved Kimchi)

On our first date, Husband asked me if liked kimchi. My response was, "Oh yea, my favorite is hot kimchi!" He looked a little puzzled. "You know," I explained, "when you eat samgyeopsal and you put the kimchi on the grill. That's delicious." Then he just laughed.

When we left Korea, Mother-in-Law insisted that I pack two huge bags of kimchi in my suitcase. When I opened the suitcase, after about 2-3 days due to some flight issues, ALL of my clothes stank of kimchi! I was so mad. I hated that kimchi. I never wanted to smell kimchi again.

*Note* The kimchi and I eventually got over our differences and shared many delicious meals together.

Now I've tried many kinds of kimchi, but I'd have to say "hot kimchi" still ranks at top. I know the general opinion on kimchi among foreigners goes either way. Some love it; others hate it. I'm not here to preach about the life changing qualities of kimchi, but I have been told that it prevents cancer, and that it's one of the reasons Korea was not affected as adversely by the SARS outbreak a few years back.

After too much excess in Vegas (drinking, gambling, junk food, cigarette smoke everywhere), what I really wanted was a bowl of kimchi jiggae. I don't know why, but I always magically feel healthier after I eat it. I wanted that jiggae so bad that I paid $13 USD for a bowl of kimchi jiggae in Las Vegas. It pains me to write that. That's almost triple the price of what I pay at a restaurant in Korea! But I have to say, I was really satisfied after that jiggae.

To sum up, I'll leave you with my favorite view on the subject. I once asked Husband if kimchi was his favorite food, and he responded, "No, kimchi is like air."

미안해요 (Sorry!)

Well, it's been about six months since I've posted, which is probably not my longest hiatus, but still, pretty disgraceful. If you were reading back in July, needless to say, my blog/study challenge failed miserably. As always, life gets busy, priorities have to be made, and somehow I always seem to put wine, binge eating, and trashy TV above studying Korean. It's a problem.

But I'm happy to say I haven't been completely useless in the Korean department. I went back to class at 오누리교회 and basically got free 1:1 lessons with my favorite Korean teacher ever, 안진명선생님. She's the best. I brainwashed a bunch of my friends to come with me too. Now everyone loves studying Korean! The month I spent living with my in-laws probably did a lot for me too, at least comprehension-wise. Oh yea, did I mention I got married? More on that later.

Anyway, now I'm back in Canada. More on that later as well. After three years abroad, it's a big adjustment. I feel a little like I've been rewired, and now I'm trying to go back to a previous version of software. Seriously homesick for Korea, so I'm back to this blog. Now I'm thinking have I become one of those annoying white people who tries to be Asian? Probably.

Well this post is kind of lame, but restarting the blog is always a little awkward, especially when you're pretty sure you no longer have any audience. But now that I'm funemployed (unemployed with out the life crushing stress of looking for a new job/worrying about bills), I'll have more time for updating. I promise better programming in the near future... Maybe.

그냥 농담예요 (Just a Joke)

학교에서 선생님이 공기가 뭐냐고 물어봤습니다. 학생들이 그문제에 때해서 잠시만 동안 생각했습니다. 드디어 학생이 대답했습니다. 공기가 그냥 공기이라고 했습니다. 선생님이 맞다고 했습니다. 그 다음에 선생님이 다시 물어봤습니다. "물이 뭐예요?" 라고 했습니다. 학생이 생각하고 대답했습니다. "물... 물은 셀프입니다!"

ㅋㅋㅋ 좋은 이야기예요? 미용실에서 이 농담을 들었어요. 5분 동안 실소했어요. 정말!

*English Translation*

At school, a teacher asked "What is the sky?" The students thought about this problem for a moment. Finally a student replied. "The sky is just the sky." "That's correct," said the teacher. The teacher asked again, "What is water?" One student thought and responded, "Water... water is self!"

Is it a good story? I heard this while getting my hair done. I laughed for like 5 minutes. Seriously.

Note: In Korean restaurants, there is usually a big water cooler with cups and you serve yourself. Most restaurants have a sign by the water cooler that says "물은 셀프입니다" which means water is self-serve.

Ashu

내 사랑한테 8개 서약속 (8 Pledges to My Love)

I missed Korean class this week because of some stupid traffic. Guess I've got a lot of catching up to do before next week. Luckily I've got my secret weapon, native speaker Boyfriend!

Last week in Korean class we learned the grammar pattern "도록 하겠습니다" which is kind of like a formal promise of what you will or will not do. For homework, we were asked to write 8 promises to a love. So here are mine:

늦지 않도록 하겠습니다.

I will not be late.

화가 나오지 않도록 하겠습니다.

I will not be angry.

길에 걸을 때 오빠 손을 잡도록 하겠습니다.

I will hold your hand when we walk on the street.

오빠의 농담 때문에 웃도록 하겠습니아.

I will laugh at your jokes.

오빠하고 한국어로 얘기하도록 하겠습니다.

I will try to speak with you in Korean.

항상 오빠를 돕도록 하겠습니다.

I will always help you.

한국 문화를 이해해 보도록 하겠습니다.

I will try to understand Korean culture.

일이 생기면 오빠한데 말하도록 하겠습니다.

If there is a problem, I will tell you.

I haven't shown these to Boyfriend as he's the kind of guy who will hold you to it all the time.

"I thought you promised you would laugh at my jokes!"

Ashu

Something New

So I've decided to start something new, not unusual for someone who has as much free time on their hands as I do. My old blog kept you up to date on my daily/weekly/monthly goings on, but I've since realized that's a little boring. Seeing how little I care about the daily ins and outs of my life leads me to believe you care even less. But I know how much you love reading my small works of genius, so I'm not giving up on blogging altogether.

My solution: you've found it! This is where I'll talk about stuff you might actually be interested in, mostly Korean stuff since that's where I live, but pretty much anything is fair game. What I like, what I don't like, what baffles me and amazes me, you'll find it here. And let me know what you like, what you don't like, what baffles and amazes you.

Here's to a new start.

Ashu