Cafe Post: Dear Me

It's been a while since I've posted anything on here, and to be honest, I was a little nervous about coming back because I kept thinking I needed to properly explain why I've been absent.  I kept trying to write up a decent post but it was kind of stressing me out so I've decided to skip that all together and just come back in with a cafe post!   The explanation of my absence might come later, but it might not.  We'll see.

Anyway, as mentioned in this post , the cafe culture in South Korea is pretty much a national hobby which has been an absolute pleasure to keep up with.  If you're following me on Instagram (and if you're not, you should ;) ) you'll know that one of my favourite things to do on the weekends is to go try out different cafes with their beautifully presented and (generally) delicious menus.

Instagram-worthy Cafes in Korea: (Slightly) Pink Edition

If you're ever in Korea, one thing you will notice is that cafes are to Korea like Chinese people are to every country - they're everywhere.  The cafe culture here is so prevalent that they've even coined a term for it: 카페놀리 (ka-peh noh-ri) which literally means 'cafe-playing'.  Regardless of age and time, you will find people in cafes everywhere doing all kinds of activities - studying, catching up with friends, watching videos, having group meetings, having Bible studies etc.  

In my daily life in Korea, I visit a lot of different cafes so I thought I would share some of the best looking ones I've been to.   This one is slightly pink-centric so I hope you enjoy!  

A Weekend In Gwangju

When I came to South Korea as an exchange student, I pretty much stayed in Seoul the entire five-and-a-half months I was there.  Being such a huge and busy city, there was always something to do, something to see, something to eat, someone to meet etc and I never felt like I wanted or needed to go somewhere else.  In the years after I went back to Australia though,  I always looked back and thought: "Why didn't I go explore the country more? I had so much time! So much energy!" I did visit Jeju Island with my family for three days when they came over to visit but it was raining for 80% of the trip so it wasn't the most ideal experience. But now, since I live in such a small city and there is not much (read: nothing) to do during the weekends, I have no excuse but to go out and see more of this beautiful country!

My ESL Teacher's Life So Far

I have a feeling that every time I write a new post on this blog, I am going to get the exact same phrase popping into my mind: Wow! I can't believe it's been (amount of time since last post) already! So much has happened! I once read an article which said that it can feel as though life moves really quickly when you picture yourself living in one place for years or decades into the future.  Daily routines turn into weeks, which turn into years and life seems to be passing you by without you even really appreciating it.  But when you move abroad, it's like there is a different switch activated in your brain telling you "Pay attention!  Don't miss out!"

"Every minute matters.  Every smile, every word, every action has greater depth because you know it is one of very few you might have in this new place you call home."

It hasn't even been a month since I moved to Korea, and only three weeks in my adopted hometown, but it feels like I've already reached my quota for a year's worth of new experiences and random Korean surprises.  From my beginning as an elementary teacher at two different schools and trying to learn everyone's names (more on that later), to making my first trip up to Seoul for a weekend, to successfully finding an English church in Daejeon (it takes 1.5 hours to get there *crying emoji*), and even to navigating the local lifestyle - which supermarket is cheaper, which kimbap place is better, which cafe has the fastest Wifi, where to go to avoid drunk ahjussi's late at night - it's all so new and exciting but draining at the same time.  Although, I have to say, every time something new happens, and I am either successful or not made to look like a complete idiot (which, don't worry, has happened a few times), I feel so proud. Like, I did it! I didn't have to walk away in shame from the ahjumma at the supermarket checkout because I forgot to bring my wallet and had to put back all the items in my basket including returning my fresh pork belly to the delicatessen ahjumma and try to apologise and explain in my broken Korean that I didn't have any money and therefore she needed to unwrap the pork belly and put it back into the fridge.

Anyway.

Hello From Geumsan

Wow.  What a jam-packed ten days it has been.  It has been pretty eventful from the get go from nearly missing my flight to Kuala Lumpur (where I stopped over for seven hours, got some delicious local food in, crashed a birthday party and then had a four-hour delay to Busan) to completing an intense eight-day orientation schedule with EPIK, the program I'm working for in Korea (more on that below), to now - where I am finally settled into my new apartment with food, water, kimchi and a rough idea of what the next year is going to look like.

Let me get to the most important details first: where am I?!

Three Days Left

My goodness time flies!  It is so weird to think that in three days, I will be on a plane to Korea to start my adventure as an EPIK English teacher.  If my room wasn't so stripped bare of everything and I wasn't constantly receiving updates from our Facebook EPIK teacher group about orientation and flight plans, I don't think it would have even really sunk in that I'm leaving despite the merry-go-round of farewells, packing, farewells and more packing.

Why I'm Moving To South Korea

First of all, you should know that I seriously debated about whether I should explain why I'm off to South Korea.   I mean, you've probably heard it all before.  Not from me specifically, but from all the other thousands of unsatisfied twenty-something bloggers out there who have meticulously documented their feelings (oh the feels!) and frustrations about not knowing about what they want in life and trying to live up to people's expectations and standards etc.  You also probably don't need another rendition of "I'm Living My Life My Way", "Chase Your Dreams" or "You Miss 100% Of The Shots You Don't Take" - those songs are so overplayed.

But in the end I decided that I would.  Because there was once a time when I was the one looking for inspiration from those unsatisfied twenty-something bloggers.  When I was the one looking up all the inspirational quotes (still do, tbh) and mentally preparing myself for the journey ahead.  When I was the one who needed that extra push from people I had never even met to finally take that step and 'step into the unknown'.

For people who want the TL;DR version, here it is: I am a cliche Asian millenial.

For people who enjoy essays, read on.