Lola's Wanderlust

Around ICC...

2009-05-13T21:46:00.001-07:00

Give the camera to Baby Pinson and me and random photo shoots will occur. The following are random pics from this past week.

With A.J. and Max

Dorie is one of the coolest kids around. I named her Dorie after the character in "Finding Nemo" she is wacky...she's a hipster in the making who randomly has "meowing fits" in class. She is truly one of the most hilarious kids I have ever met. She was truly upset one day when I had the hiccups during class . She gave me a can of mango juice and mimed the treatment for hiccups I should follow. It worked.
She is always smiling!

The Pinson sisters and Dorie

I think I understand.

On my board I tack up pictures or cards the kids make for me. Julie, an adult student gave me lovely flowers and a card for Valentines day. My favorite part of the card is the post script: "I am sorry because I am not handsome man". She was sorry that I had received a Valentine's Day gift from an older lady as opposed to a handsome man...Oh dear...I enjoyed the flowers nonethess.

Who's counting?

I tell the kids they can do whatever for 5 minutes while I take photos and the rest is history!

I have an entire class of 12 year old boys who use their free time to play baseball. Letting them play baseball affords me many bonus points.

April Fool's Day...

2009-05-13T18:50:00.000-07:00

Late last year the city council decided that it would be a phenomenal idea to build a fountain on school grounds. For some reason the construction of this fountain began in the middle of January and everyday for weeks at 6:30 am they worked on it.

Around 2am April 1st Baby Pinson and I donned black clothing hummed the Mission Impossible theme song and filled the fountain with 10 kilos of liquid detergent. In the middle of our shenanigans I had a slight attack of vertigo which made the whole covert plan hilarious. This whole plot was the brainchild of Baby Pinson and she deserves mad credit for it. We expected some bubbles but what resulted was sooooooooo much better.

Photo courtesy of Sara "Baby" Pinson
BEFORE

Photo courtesy of Sara "Baby" Pinson
BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER

With my "Anton Chigurh" hairstyle (ugh)...if you get the reference you get 10 bonus points

Baby Pinson!!

In the South...

2009-05-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

Jorge gave us a tour of his school Georgia Southern. I went home for a few days in April and got to visit Skeletor, I mean my baby bro Jorge. Silliness ensued.

Seriously who wears black jeans in the South..Urgh it was hot

Excuse me Horte, are you getting frisky?

We Fly High...

2009-05-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

My buddy Jermil and I decided to spend a Sunday taking flying lessons given by a British expat, Matthew outside of Daejeon. It was thrilling, nerve wracking and dizzying, all in all a swell time. It is pretty hilarious and frightening being inside the plane while in the air because it is difficult to hear. The propeller is right in front of you and really loud which makes it difficult to understand the directions the flight instructor is giving. More often than not I turned the plane left when I should have gone right.

More....

2009-05-13T17:32:00.000-07:00

More flying pics courtesy of the the amazingly talented Jermil Sadler

This was outside of Daejeon in the middle of the country side

Day Trippin...

2009-03-24T06:25:00.000-07:00

…in Seoul. I met up with Big Bear in Seoul and cruised throughout the city. The best part of the day was visiting the Han River at dusk.

Jorge comes to Korea dressed like me and poses for a picture. Seriously though the resemblance to Jorge is a bit startling

My hair although getting longer quickly is still in the awkward phase

Las Vegas boat

It wouldn't be a worthwhile trip to Seoul without a ride on the crowded subway. Here is the lovely Rachel barely able to move.

Familial Ties

2009-03-24T05:56:00.000-07:00

...I have been fortunate enough to create many families for myself in Korea. I have my work family (Janet, Loren and Baby Pinson), my Seoul family (Tallia, Saska and Brian) and my Saudi Family (Ahmad (who I lovely nicknamed "Big Bear") and Enazi. We went out one Saturday for pizza and mild mannered joy riding in Daejeon and realized that we looked like we were family. Big Bear and Enazi have both been here for almost two years, are fluent in Korean and ridiculously kind.

Can you guess who is "Big Bear"?

Why is this picture in this post?
In Korea in restaurants and coffee shops 9 times out of 10 there will be a computer with internet access for all to use. While at Papa John's I showed the boys my blog and they saw this picture of Dad and they fell into a fit of hysterical laughing. Once they calmed down they explained that Dad looked just like a typical Saudi man. From the way he stood, wore his pants and tucked his shirt in his pants. They should have seen him when he had a beard was all I said.

Trinity Cafe...

2009-03-24T05:41:00.000-07:00

...offers you a latte with a bit of fish nibbling on the side. Trinity Cafe is a quaint cafe in Dunsan-Dong that has a pool full on tiny fish that will nibble the dead skin off of your feet. For less than two dollars you can soak your feet for an unlimited time. It tickles at first and if you are distracted by a conversation then you actually forget that you have fish eating away at your flesh. You feet come out soft and smooth and stay that way for a day or two. I took Baby Pinson to try "fish feet" and it is safe to say that an addiction has resulted. Thank you Chan Won at Trinity Cafe for the life experience...hehe.

Ireland December 2007-January 2008

2009-02-20T06:47:00.000-08:00

The following are pictures from my trip to Ireland. I went as part of an Agnes Scott College Global Connections group. We traveled all over Ireland on a bus visiting locations immortalized in Irish literature. It was one of the most amazing and enlightening trips I have ever taken and it was spent with some of the most intelligent women I know. On that note I would like to state that Maggie Greaves is by far the best person to visit IRELAND with!
I could not have taken the trip without a generous scholarship from the Department of International Education at Agnes Scott College and the generosity of my mom. Thanks again!

Random shots...

2009-02-20T06:31:00.000-08:00

...out and about in Ireland.

with a heavy hitter W.B. Yeats

reading Patrick Kavanagh poetry to a statue of the man himself

Only would yours truly visit Ireland and drink cider at a pub. In my defense my throat was fussy nearly the whole trip

At Waterford Crystal I won the Superbowl.

This is supposed to be a two way street

The River Liffey in Dublin

River Liffey

In Dublin

River Liffey...AGAIN!

The Political Murals of Belfast...

2009-02-20T06:21:00.000-08:00

are extremly revealing and highly insightful.

The Bogside Murals...

2009-02-20T06:03:00.000-08:00

The murals, created by the Bogside artists, capture the events of "the Troubles" during the 1960's and 1970's. The Bogside is an area outside of the city walls of Derry, Northern Ireland.

Newgrange...

2009-02-20T05:52:00.000-08:00

is a prehistoric tomb in County Meath. During the winter solstice the sun shines through the passage inside the tomb. Photos were not allowed inside the site thus all my photos were taken outside Newgrange. I was able to take a photo of the special triple spiral motif.

aerial shot courtesy of the Newgrange brochure

Triple spiral

Coming out of the tomb

Looking at Newgrange with the lush Irish landscape behind us

Giant's Causeway

2009-02-20T05:19:00.000-08:00

I spent my 22nd my birthday exploring Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. Giant’s Causeway is an area of 40,000 interlocking columns. The legend is that Finn McCool built the causeway to travel to Scotland and fight his enemy Benandonner. Similar columns can be found in Scotland. Maggie and I chose to walk all the way down and all the way up to see the causeway and in true fashion we turned the visit into an “Ireland’s Next Top Model” photo shoot!

Ferosh!

Lyndsey

Cold... but well used to it

Yay for being a young traveler!

Live Action From...

2009-02-20T04:35:00.000-08:00

...the Cliffs of Moher. The wind, the ocean and being in Ireland made Maggie and I incredibly hyper and happy. I tried to capture the atmosphere and the force of the wind with these videos. They are silly in nature and meant to give you an idea of how amazing and beautiful the Cliffs of Moher. One of the final videos is a "Thank You" video for my mom thanking her for the jacket she bought me specifically for the trip but the wind was so strong you cannot hear a thing. Enjoy!

Cliffs of Moher

2009-02-20T04:06:00.000-08:00

Along with Giant's Causeway I was eager to visit the Cliffs of Moher. Located in County Clare at the highest point the cliffs are 700 feet above the Atlantic Ocean. The group visited in early January 2008 on a cold, rainy, windy day. The wind was very powerful this day but despite the weather Maggie and I had an absolute blast.

O'Brian's Tower

It seemed more like milk that water

The Year of the Ox..

2009-02-08T09:35:00.001-08:00

I was fortunate enough to celebrate Lunar New Year in Beijing, China. I went on the trip solo and ended up meeting a fellow expat from Daejeon. Beijing is a city with personality, funk and movement. I fell in love with it's buses, knockoff products, kindness, green tea brownie ice cream and the funky hairstyles of the youth among other things. I had a fun time and it is a city I would love to visit again but with a a group of my girlfriends...it is a town to paint!

Before actual pictures of Beijing I leave you with a picture of a sign I saw at the Korean Airport that made me laugh hysterically.
It is essentially Korea in a nutshell.

NOTE: The date was incorrect on my camera. All the photos were taken a day after the date seen on the pictures.

Tiananmen Square...

2009-02-08T09:29:00.000-08:00

...was the first stop on my trip in Beijing. I visited as quickly as I possibly could. It was bitterly cold and my wind threshold was low. There is only one picture of me on the square and the unhappy look I wear on my face is a direct result of the cold. I was in and out of Tiananmen Square

The Summer Palace...

2009-02-08T08:52:00.000-08:00

... is not really a place to visit on one of the coldest days in Beijing. The Beijing wind burned my cheeks and made me question my own humanity. I trekked about 90% of the grounds in the bitter cold. The Summer Palace was a gorgeous sight and the scenery made the cold weather a bit more bearable. I would love to revisit again at a warmer time.

The frozen lake at the back of the palace

The Summer Palace from the arch bridge

Brave people waking on the half frozen lake

Random Shots...

2009-02-08T08:16:00.000-08:00

...about Beijing.

FRANCO again...this time in China!!!! L. FRANCO!

Qianmen

Traditional Tea House booth. It was extremely comfortable and pleasant to lounge and sip tea.

Blooming tea

I can take an escalator to cross the street

Ming Tombs
This is the Heavenly Gate of the Ming Tombs. It is believed that from where I am taking the photo is the "real world" and once you pass the gate you are in the heavenly world. You pass on the right side of the gate and when you are finished visiting you step up to the opening of the gate and before you step over into the real world you say aloud "And now I return".

ok...sure

I spotted this sign from my tour bus. "Wait, excuse me...I thought this whole country was CHINATOWN"?! This is so meta, China within China within China...

This trip...

2009-02-08T07:48:00.000-08:00

...was all about visiting The Great Wall. I could have stayed in my hostel for my whole time in Beijing and I would have been perfectly content because of my time at The Great Wall. The tour I scheduled consisted of six people including me. Two tour members were an older married Parisian couple and the rest of us were 23 year old girls. I really lucked out in having been able to visit the wall with four other gals, who like me, were young, away from home and traveling the world (two were Spanish speakers as well!). I dubbed us "Club 23". So many foreigners were visiting the wall and it seemed as if new conversations started with every step you took up. The whole world seemed to have gathered at The Great Wall.

The sight before the climb

About to climb the section of the wall that kicked my butt a bit...it was well worth it.

First climbing break

Taking a break with Maria in the background

The only time I will be able to strike a pose on The Great Wall of China

Crazy hair
Club 23...Lola, Teresa, Maria and Genna
Photo courtesy of Genna KondrakGenna, Teresa, Lola
Photo courtesy of Genna Kondrak

I came prepared...of course I sharpied my name

After the climb
La Puertorriquena, Venezolana y Mexicana
Lola, Maria, Teresa

Michael Phelps...

2009-02-08T05:16:00.000-08:00

...was here. I fell in love with the Olympic Green in Beijing. The Bird's Nest and the Water Cube are, in my opinion, remarkable pieces of art. I love them as much as I do "The Bean" in Chicago. The ability to find and conceptualize the whimsy in a bird nest and water bubbles impressed me greatly. Be warned I tried to capture every angle of these buildings, the pictures may seem like repeats...You may be bored with this post.

A building made to look like bubbles!!!

The year of the Ox. Happy New Year!

Where else...

2009-02-08T04:40:00.000-08:00

...can you celebrate the New Year for three days straight!? On the way to the airport Rachel and I hit a Lunar New Year street festival. We were so disappointed that we couldn't spend the whole day out in the street absorbing the sights.

The drummers prepare for their show

Rachel about to enter the crowd

Huge animal jerky?

It was not until we were looking over these pictures did we realize that this was probably a dog carcass

Handmade lollipops

All over Beijing they sell these honey covered fruit kebabs.

I thought I was biting into a banana...it was not a banana and I still don't know what fruit it was

Rachel's Panda cigarettes

Puerto Rico!!

2009-01-30T02:25:00.000-08:00

The following posts are of my trip to Puerto Rico during the Thanksgiving holiday. It was a ridiculously amazing trip and a nice departure from my job in Korea. I will soon add pictures from my previous trips for those who are interested.

El Moro

2009-01-30T02:03:00.000-08:00

Dad took Jorge, Tuti and I to visit El Moro and nothing but cultural learning ensued. We had a great time although the sun was in our eyes the whole time

I realized later that maybe we shouldn't have had her sitting on a 500+ year old canon

Baby hermanos and nieces...

2009-01-30T01:47:00.000-08:00

are the best accessories when vacationing in Puerto Rico! Thanks for the fun times Jorge and Tuti!
This blog is dedicated to you!

In Viejo San Juan

Tuti was going to town on a quesito!

Jorge going to town on pork.

She is pretty cute!

I seriously do not see the resemblance

Is Bacardi the name of the bat!?

2009-01-30T01:18:00.000-08:00

It was only right that we make a pit stop at the Barcadi distillery with an 8 year old in tow. Tuti partook in the Sprite cocktails while Mom, Jorge and I enjoyed the delicious mojitos.

Always the drama queen!

Out and about town...

2009-01-06T06:28:00.000-08:00

Random shots from my walks around Daejeon

There's an Ian's in New York and an Ian Bar in Daejeon

Signs and Signs everywhere

Fried chicken restaurant

Everytime I see this place I think of Keila...two of her loves Reggae and Tattoos

Seriously? I may send some of this to Jorge...

It's a pile of cups, plates, saucers and bowls for sale on the street

Hi- Ho

2009-01-06T06:16:00.000-08:00

...to the DMZ (Demiliterized Zone) we go. Brian, Tallia and I woke up entirely too early to visit the DMZ with the vain hope that we might see North Korea and North Korean soldiers. Of course it was the foggiest day our time here...URGH

An American soldier and a South Korean soldier

In this picture Brian and Tallia are officially standing in South Korea and I am officially standing in North Korea

Can you spot the North Korean soldier?

North Korea

Too early in the morning to be standing in North Korea

To kill...

2009-01-06T05:53:00.000-08:00

...a Saturday cheaply Sarah and I decided we would board a random bus and see where it took us. We boarded the 301 and rode it until the very end. The bus left us atop a hill in front of an ordinary looking building. We felt our "adventure" had been lackluster but upon exploring behind the building we encountered Ppuri Park and were completely dazzled and pleased. It was a lovely place to spend an autumn afternoon.

So happy to have lucked out and found the park... I was missing Vanessa this day (as I do every day) so I wore a "Hello Kitty" clip in her honor the whole day

My best Jorge face

What exactly AM I allowed to do?

This is a shot of the building the bus dropped us off in front of

It's fall...

2009-01-06T05:16:00.000-08:00

ICC celebrated Halloween by spending a cold and wet day hiking Gyeryong Mountain. Although really cold it was nice to get away from the city and mozy about.

Mountain police station?

Ridiculously...

2009-01-06T04:43:00.000-08:00

....long delay between my last post and this post. I apologize. Enjoy these random pictures from October 2008 in Daejeon and Seoul.

This is "Stylish" beer. It is marketed as the beer with fiber...I kid you not. You can imagine what it might make you do.

This is a temple on the roof of the Asia Museum

Daejeon has an annual "International Balloon Fiesta"...Although just for children I of course had to get in on the action happening inside the ballon

The Gapcheon River of Daejeon

Yummy! Silkworm larvae is a Korean street food that you pop in your mouth like peanuts. Umm no I have not tried it.

Cool buildings in Seoul. I partucularly like the second one because it looks like a building in a honeycomb.

Out to lunch...many options unless you're like me and can't stomach meet or spicy food.

I took this picture at what we call the "Nirvana" Starbucks. It is on the rooftop of a skyscrapper with a terrace. It had the usual "no shoes, no shirt, no service" as well as the "no strong smelling food allowed"

If it's free I take two!

Fire=McDonald's

2008-10-01T08:48:00.000-07:00

"We don't need no water".... but really we did to put the fire out that happened last Friday in the building I work and live in. Thankfully no one was harmed but the epicenter and very office that keeps the school running was destroyed. Have you have ever seen a melted copy machine...it is actually a thing a beauty and I am sad that I was not able to take a photo of it.
The story goes that for the last month the fire alarm in our building has been malfunctioning and going off at hours of the night for no reason. The night of the fire it went off at 11:30pm to my annoyed dismay. I went to bed at 4am and the security guard (Agashi (the Korean word for "Old Man")) pounded on my door a little after 5. I smelled smoke and sensed his urgency and I hauled ass put my robe on and my Uggs, and ran like a maniac to pound on my neighbors doors. Of course we ran out half dressed on what happened to be the first cold day of our time here. We realized that we were all without our passports or computers and daringly run back INSIDE to retrieve our stuff and put something decent on (Tuti if you are reading this do not ever run back inside a burning building!!!!!). But really what got to us was the fact that the alarm never went off when there was an actual fire.

Air conditioning unit

I had to take a picture with Agashi since he rescued us...our relationship consists of him telling me in Korean that I should eat meat, me making a face and responding that I don't eat meat, him laughing and me smiling. We get along fabulously!

I had to... I could have died (dramatic, yes) so I made the most of the situation

The firemen put out the fire and I decided we should "celebrate" and clear our lungs with a celebatory breakfast at Mcdonalds

Sleepy, smoke in our lungs, dressed in our p.j's and awaiting our pancakes from McDonald's...aint life grand?

Happy Cheseok...

2008-10-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

Cheuseok is the Korean Thanksgiving holiday. To celebrate the director of our school gave each teacher an extra day off, a bottle of Korean wine and then assembled all teachers to make the traditional Cheuseok ricecakes.

I attempt to comprehend the directions

Say and I realize we essentially get to play with dough instead of work

Violet with the rice flour dough and Hoonie in the background

Rice flour dough

This is the filling of the ricecake

The taste is very similar to the Puerto Rican sugar/candy stuff Dad sent me

Let's do this

Hehe...which one does not belong?

Here is my first attempt...notice how it is not smooth and oddly shaped

Look at my ricecake in the center surrounded by the lovely creations by the Korean teachers. The saying is that if you make a a nice, compact looking ricecake you will have beautiful daughters, an ugly ricecake constitutes an ugly son. All of my ricecakes have left me a future full of hideous,smelly, three-armed sons.

Since I lack the delicate hands needed for making ricecakes I decide to play and cover my entire hand in the dough. It was a bit difficult to I only covered part of it

Sarah shows off the die she made and Janet just smiles sweetly...Remember we got to do this instead of work

The Georgia Peaches hit the beach....

2008-10-01T08:03:00.000-07:00

Jo, Artesia and I hit met up to celebrate Artesia's arrival to Korea and my ridiculously insistent urging to go to the beach. It was Cheseok (The Korean equivalent of Thanksgiving) so we had the day off! There were only a handful of people in the warm water but Artesia and I made a party and photo shoot out of it

We attempt to do our best Korean photo poses

We be silly

Eating a peach this unlike anything in Georgia. It has the exterior of a peach with the interior of an apple

The "Georgia Peaches" as Jo dubbed us

Jo attempting to create an "artistic" shot...

International gifts from Mom and Dad...

2008-08-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

It has been Christmas in July for me! I received 4 packages and of course one from Dad and one from Mami. The packages from moms and pops included food. Mom will do anything in her power to make sure I eat...right.

It is bread from Puerto Rico (courtesy of Dad) and a bowl of bean stew (courtesy mom who sent me beans and Sazon)

YAHAHAYAYAYAYHAY!!!

This is a rare treat. Pan and Guayaba from Puerto Rico and the rare cheese that we got from the Costco in Daejeon.

Franco...all over the world....

2008-08-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

In all my travels I find a place or a brand named "Franco's". There is a "Franco's" restaurant in Atlanta but I did not expect to find one in Daejeon, South Korea. Thanks Dad for the last name!

This was taken when I was in Venice, Italy in January 2008.

This was taken August 9th 2008 early morning in Dusan-Dong. I had not been home in over 20 hours and look a hot mess. Still I could not miss this photo op.

I take a trip to the supermarket...

2008-08-04T05:58:00.000-07:00

Traveling to the supermarket is an adventure unto itself. Everyone from home asks me what I eat and all I can say is that I get creative and cook for myself. Thank you to all my family and friends who have sent me snacks and food from home! It is greatly appreciated.

Nearly all of the coffee here is instant

The Koreans have a love for moon pies

That love does not compare to their love of SPAM

SPAM in all its glory

Assorted pickled and mind-boggling spicy vegetables

Ritz crackers and Oreos Korean styles. The Ritz crackers come in various fillings, none that tempt me, personally.

I do not know what is worse:
Not finding avocados in Korea or finding avocados but at 6 dollars for two. I have never paid more than a dollar for an avocado and I don't plan to start now.

Instead of offering string cheese as a snack for children and adults alike Koreans offer meat sticks. Like a "gogurt" but in meat form. They are sold EVERYWHERE and mostly at room temperature...ugh.

Dried baby fish. I believe they are used to season broths and soups.

Lira & Tuti...doppelgangers

2008-08-04T05:33:00.000-07:00

In one of my beginner classes there is a precocious student named Lira. She is silly, funny, sweet and happens to be Tuti's doppelganger (double). Sometimes the resemblance is uncanny in appearance and personality. As all things in life this is best witnessed in person. These pictures do not my doppelganger theory justice because Lira is not wearing her hair down.

They always throw out...

2008-08-04T05:18:00.000-07:00

...the peace sign. It's the necessary component to any picture taken in Korea.

Dora

Donhu

Backrow: (sara, july, cindy, gradis) Frontrow: (silvia, moi)

Susi and Kevin

I throw the sign for the sake of the photo...

Rule of Thumb...

2008-08-04T04:57:00.000-07:00

The rule of thumb in my class is you have to be as silly as the teacher.

Cara and I

Alex

Eric

James (I named after James Dean because of how full of ennui he looked on the first day)

Ginny

Shane...at 7 this boy is Mr. Popular

John (I captured this photo during his daily walk as "Miss Korea".)

"No homework!?"

Jake!

I interrupt class for my very own photo shoot.

Jake....I take one of you

...You take one of me!

Day in and Day out....

2008-07-29T06:57:00.000-07:00

I am greeted by such smiling faces. I teach 12 distinct classes a week and I have a 144 students. They are a blast and I hope you enjoy these pictures.

The girl in the front row center is Lira and Tuti's doppleganger.

Abby and Luna

Hopeful shirt

Bruce

Bruce Hyeonseong and Jarvis

Yuna

Judy (Named after Titi Judy)

Adam (or "madam" which I call him when I tease him)

Jessica and Gradis

Charlie (I secretly believe his hair is trimmed every few days. It is too perfect)

Curie

Gwangmin

Helen

Rijeong

Lily, Leela and Ginny

Lovely Package, a la Ian Cho...

2008-07-25T06:59:00.000-07:00

Ian sent me the loveliest care package today. Just opening it made me cry and gave him mega points with the fellow teachers. Thank you for all of the lovely gifts.

P.S.: Penny te agradezco el "regalito" muchisimo!

Christmas in July...for me!

Thank You so much, Boojie!

This is the lovely video that was part of my package...I will treasure this so very much...

Weekend trip to Gunsan and simultaneously pics of my shaved head...

2008-07-07T08:16:00.000-07:00

I took a brief weekend trip to Gunsan (a nice coastal town) to meet up with Joanna. We eat at "Dasarang" a delicous chiken and pizza place. I ate cheese pizza, fries and an interesting fruit salad. I stayed in a hotel for 45 bucks. It was super swank and apparently it was one of those "urban" hotels where one goes to take care of business. I learned this because of the goody bag I received upon checking in. It had special gels for men and women and of course protection...

This is the fruit salad we ordered...the bananas were covered in a special mayonnaise dressing (we learned this upon tasting it)

I'll try it

I convince myself that if I apply the dressing to my lips, like lip gloss, I may convince myself that I have been eating this stuff for ages and in fact enjoy it and will not let it go to waste.

Same piece

Yeah I'm done with the fruit salad... and profile shot of my new hairshave

Joanna and I goof wherever we go but in this shot its all her

We killed the pizza and fried deliciousness but you can still see the fruit salad in the background

My swank hotel bed

The room came with a soft soft robe, computer with internet access, flat screen t.v., water cooler, free juice...all for $45. (no breakfast though)

Mega bathroom...my blog may be filled with tons of bathroom shots

That is not my t.v. that is the skylight

Sleeping...Maybe

Joanna made me wait in the cab while she went to her place to get what I have yearned for

Waiting...

Waiting and posing a la 6 year old Lola

That is genuine happiness on my face

2 Girls, 2 Days, 1 night, 1 City...

2008-06-29T00:09:00.000-07:00

I had to make a visa "run" to Fukoka, Japan last week. You basically leave Korea, go to the Korean Consulate in a different country and get a visa that lets you come and go as you please within Korea. The bus ride from my apartment to the airport was 3 hours while the flight from Korea to Japan was only 55 minutes... it was the best international flight I have ever ever been on. An entire meal, your own t.v. monitor and a new country in under an hour. Sarah, my Fukuoka buddy, and I saw the sights and in less than 2 days found a beach, learned the train and bus system, found the sports arena and slept in a box.

A map that shows the location of Fukuoka, Japan and its proximity to Korea.

Only I can look like a sasquatch on a 4am bus ride. We had to catch the bus so early in order to make our 9am flight.

Sarah and I, the only travelers on the bus so early have a 4 am giggle fit.

At Inchon Airport waiting...I make a picnic where ever I go

Of course I changed my outfit and proceeded to take a nap...its what I do.

Sarah likes to imitate...

Even in Fukuoka, Japan...Atlanta zero...

Look at the stylish footwear...

Now look at the brand

Stylish footwear...

Provocative brand...

The Fukuoka SeaHawks (baseball team) Yahoo! Dome

We found the beach and stripped and tried to stay as decent as possible

This is the Sea Hawk Resort...the building to the right looks flat

Fukuoka Tower

Sarah is a tall girl like me... the following pictures will demonstrate the box we stayed in in the hostel.

She could touch the right and left wall simultaneously

My face says it all...I got top bunk

Yep...I could touch both walls

At the train and bus station this lovely lady insisted on taking a photo of us for her English class and I took one for this blog. She was excited to find out we where from Atlanta and showed us her reading material on King Luther.."Oh Martin Luther King, Jr."...was my response. She was super helpful and her English superb.

It's hard to see in this picture but it was a 4 level highway...

I am legit now...I have my visa...

And just like my kindergarten graduation I celebrate with a trip to McDonald's...these were the most perfect fries I had ever seen. I must say that while abroad I have had more McDonald's than I ever did back home. Of course being vegetarian I only eat the fries and ice cream.

and play hard...

2008-06-07T04:41:00.000-07:00

All the teachers were treated to dinner, beer at "Miller Time Bar" and singing room mania!

Cara and I getting ready to order food from "The Flying Pan" Pizzeria

Sunny and June prepare for drinks

I was born ready for drinks

Hobnobbing in downtown

Singing and dancing in the "singing room"

Always dancing

I always make new friends

...and I leave them alone when they space out

The girls work hard....

2008-06-07T04:17:00.001-07:00

Hi all! Classes have officially begun and the first week is over. Each American teacher has her own classroom and students as well as a Korean co-teacher. The Korean co-teacher has her own students and classroom and three times a day each teacher switches rooms to teach her co-teachers students. I teach six classes a day!

This is my Korean co-teacher, Cara. She was hoping to teach with me!

Before classes began the school had an opening reception outside.

The ladies prepping for dia numero uno
Janet, Loren, Sarah

My prep work consists of looking fye...

Newspaper Article

2008-05-27T06:12:00.000-07:00

The Korean teachers, fellow Alum Sarah and I were photographed for a Korean newspaper article about ICC. Check it out…even if you don’ read Korean it has good photos of the school. http://www.dtnews24.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=55156

From left to right: Me, Angela, June, Violet, Sarah, Karen, Cara, Julia, Sunny and Jinny.
These are there English names of course. It is fun to hear their stories about how they were given or chose their names.

Trial & Error RICE

2008-05-27T05:27:00.000-07:00

So my fellow teacher Janet decided she wanted to cook beans and rice for dinner. The beans were dry and by the 40 minute mark we decided we were to hungry to wait and stuffed them in the fridge. Throughout the whole bean cooking ordeal Janet was becoming increasingly frustrated that the rice was so sticky (imagine white rice with elmer’s glue). Being Puerto Rican and non-sticky rice our specialty I tried to salvage it…really I did…. We each did actually. The rice ended up with stir-fried vegetables (seasoned with garlic and balsamic vinegar and my contribution), meat tenderizer, oregano, soy sauce, a raw egg and a random ramen seasoning package (Janet’s contribution). It smelled heavenly, looked disgusting and sheer hunger made it edible.

My plate

The chefs

Sheer hunger...seriously

The fellow teachers "enjoy" their meals

We killed it

P.S.!

By the next day I was itching for the rice the way my Mami taught me to make. The girls were eager to see if my experiment would work. Could I make white rice that had flavor and was dry with the Korean rice? Could I ever? IT WAS PERFECT!!! It even had PEGAO (No picture evidence though because we were to happy eating…Gracias mom!) I have been asked to give a lesson.

Where I live...

2008-05-25T06:20:00.000-07:00

As part of my job I am provided with a neat living space. I live in what the call "Global House" I get a room with a fridge, t.v. desk, heated floor and my own bathroom! Each room has a color theme and mine is pink.

My "scottie" blanket

The shower is really neat because it has no curtain and the water just drains into the drain. It dries pretty quickly. There are specific bathroom shoes one can use.

Bathroom shot...again

All the Korean Snacks and beverages I am trying and loving

The mega-communal kitchen with a flat screen t.v., two computers and comfy couches!

Loren and Sarah in the mega kitchen

I hate ironing and the one in the communal kitchen was tied in noose-style...Maybe Keila will soon learn that ironing = DEATH

Where I work

2008-05-25T01:19:00.000-07:00

I teach in Daejeon’s new International Communication Center or as the peeps call it “ICC”. There are regular classrooms and then there are “activity classrooms with themes such as, “drama”, “zoology”, “dance”, “words”, “speech” and even a situational room, i.e. the restaurant and store.

Front of ICC

Left side as taken from the hiking trail

Playground and view from my room

Also the view from my room

THE CLASSROOMS:

The Dance room

Dancing

The "Words" Room

The "Books" Room

The "Science" Room

The "Speech" Room

The "Earth" Room

Hallway

The Situation Room

I take this job seriously...as per what I call the "Birthday" Room

My New City, Daejeon

2008-05-25T00:35:00.000-07:00

I work in the metropolitan city of Daejeon. It is the 5th largest city in Korea. It is growing as I type this with many many high-rises and tons of businesses. It is surrounded by beautiful mountains and peaceful parks and hiking trails. It is a perfect city for me…a la my Chicago of Asia…hehe. The following pictures were taken on a 6 mile walk from my school/home to the oh so fabulous HOME PLUS (think Walmart).

As we walked we took photos like this in an attempt to orientate ourselves or in case we got lost

Our goal is to learn how to use the subway

We want to learn how to take the subway as soon as possible...look out for my "I got lost in the Subway pictures"

There's tranquilty

...and then there's vibrance and energy

What is now my favorite bakery is on this street

After a 5 mile trek, only having been there once (we were chauffeured), not speaking or reading Korean Janet and I made it to HOME PLUS...then we got lost in the store (seriously)!

While Atlanta is seriously lacking, Chicago has one, New York, Florida, Colorado Springs and DAEJEON TOO!

It took awhile...

2008-05-25T00:14:00.000-07:00

After a drive from Decatur to Jackson-Hartsfield Int'l Airport, a 3 hour plane ride from Atlanta to Minnesota, a 12 hour plane ride from Minnesota to Tokyo, a 3 hour plane ride from Tokyo to Incheon, and a 3 hour drive from Incheon/Seoul to Daejeon I have finally arrived in South Korea. It was a little bit more than a 25 hour trip to get here and I am loving it. I must say though that to begin this blog was more exhausting and trying than arriving and getting accustomed to Korea. They set up the computer in my room but everything appears in Korean! Please bear with me and "Lola's Wanderlust" blog as I try to figure out how to update consistently in what has become a Korean website...urgh. This blog is intended to be more of a picture blog that will allow my global community of friends and family to experience my travels with me...and keep tabs on me.

Enjoy!