Busan Beaches!

 

I am finally on vacation! Ah, the taste of freedom is sweet and sorely missed. A friend of mine, Greg, invited me to come visit a friend of his in Busan this weekend. I had no other plans, so I happily obliged! Busan is a south western metropolitan city which has the 2nd largest population in the country. Also, it's right on the sea. Which sea, you ask? It's kind of complicated.... Anyway, we left Saturday and I met Greg's 'ole college buddy, Gun. Then we went out drinking and clubbing (ha!) and we all got a little drunk and had ourselves a grand time.

Gun taking in some Sun.

The next day, we planned a trip to the beach! The weather threatened rain, but it managed to stay at bay. And then WE went to the bay! har har har... The water was warm and the air was warmer so it was nice to swim and lounge around. We went to Gwangalli Beach, the smaller of the two largest beaches. The water was a little dirtier but it was less crowded. It had this really big bridge out over the water. It was cool and an eyesore at the same time.

I wanted to do a beach post, so I took the opportunity and flashed some pictures! I also wanted to show off my new headband/handkerchief. Teehee!

-Anna-

swimsuit: Urban Outfitters (billabong)(also, from last year)

shorts: ebay

bandana: Korean subway

There was this strange little statue out on the water. I asked Gun, but he didn't seem to know what it was for.

On Monday, Greg and I were on our own with looking around so we hit up the fish market. Busan is right on the beach so they rely a lot on their seafood for revenue. It was basically just a long street with tons of sea creatures, alive, dead, and dying. Yeah, maybe a little gruesome. Now, I'm not too big on seafood, so maybe some of the appeal was wasted on me, but I will admit it was worth the trip. 

wtf gross phallic things which are not actual penis'.

We got lunch at a seaside restaurant which served.. you guessed it, fish! So Greg and I ordered sashimi (raw fish) and fried fish. We also got A TON of sides (which is typical in Korea, but DAMN). And they just kept coming! There was shrimp and smoked salmon and kimchi and soup and raw veggies, chicken, pork... and more that I couldn't even identify. It was all real yummy, you know, for fish, and we were thoroughly stuffed when we finally managed to fit it all in our bellies.

surprisingly not the full spread.

I also got a local dish, dwaeji gukbap (돼지국밥), which is a rice/pork soup. It's quite delicious! Add a few tiny shrimp and some kimchi for flavor, and you've got a scrumptious hot dish.

Oh and one more story:
So Greg and I went to this bar our last night out, and a few beers into the evening, I manage to drop my glass three inches off the table. Typical, right? Hahaha, so the thing shatters in to a thousand little pieces! Not even big chunks, noooo, tiny little bastards that land all over arms and thighs and table and floor. I have nothing too bad to show for it, but I did manage a few little nicks.

So that was my first adventure of my vacation. My second will begin tomorrow when I visit Elly's hometown on the eastern coast. I don't remember the name of the city, but it's not overly big. I'll be staying with a friend of hers, one I met a few weeks ago when I went camping! Awesome, right? I'll be hanging out with a normal Korean family who I barely know for four days. What a new adventure! I finished the first Game of Thrones book, but I have to wait to borrow the next one. So I'll be taking John Green's Papertowns, and J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, so I'll crack into those during my trip. See you in a week or so!

Sincerely yours,
Anna

Nautical Nonsense

Who lives in a hut close by the sea? AN-NA FLO-RES! Who drinks lots of beer and eats bacon and cheese? AN-NA FLO-RES! Her nautical nonsense is not something to miss. AN-NA FLO-RES! So jump on aboard, there's a new kitty to kiss! AN-NA FLO-RES AN-NA FLO-RES AN-NAAAAA FLO-REEEEES

Eh, it's not my best work... and much of the rhythm is a bit of a stretch, but I had to commit once I started! There are quite a few things I want to mention, so bear with me....
 

Firstly, this outfit is from school today. I usually opt for dresses, because they're just one piece. But then I remember that I have skirts I like to wear, so I make the effort to pair them with something. Also, white and navy horizontal stripes just screams nautical to me. Ahoy! 

It had been too long since a last post, so I took upon myself to update. Now, Bette just got back from her cruise this weekend (that's her excuse for the lack of posts), so I'm sure she'll be posting pictures of that soon enough. I'm sure there will be pictures that I will be so jealous of (Wizarding World of Harry Potter anyone?), but I want to see all that she saw. Make this happen, Bette.

 

 

-Anna-

shirt: thrifted

skirt: Forever21

shoes: ebay

necklace: garage sale

earrings: Icing (sale!)

belt: Toona (Korea)

watch: gift

 I had an open class this week. That means that faculty from our school come and sit in our class. It can be kind of nerve racking because their essentially critiquing your performance. I mean, the people who sat in on ours were not cynical people, so that helped. It also helped that the vice principal, who was supposed to show up, didn't.

Elly chose our topic, and she chose to teach about race. No, not the kind like the tortoise and the hare and winning and losing, but in that the tortoise is black and the hare is Asian and the hare is kind of racist (a whole other kind of loser). Anyway, a tough topic to teach children, especially if they don't understand much of the target language. But we had is planned carefully and the kids responded well to it (we taught them the "Don't Laugh at Me. Don't Call Me Names" song, Bette, hahaha!) and we got through it. Yaaay! Now to repeat for next week, different class with regional representatives, not just our school faculty.

 Also, bonus, on my walk around to find somewhere to take pictures/eat, I came across a lady with her birds. Kissy kissy, 'dawww their so cuuuute.

 Next! I went to the eastern island of Muuido for a friend's birthday. We stayed in these little huts on the beach, or it was so cool! The tide, though, was crazy, so when we arrived there (after walking a lot, a ferry, and a hot, sweaty bus), the tide was soooo far out. Like, maybe a half mile? I don't know, they were talking in kilometers and I just knew it was a long walk over wet sand and small crabs. It was wonderful when a few of us actually made it to the water. It got even better when they tide moved it's way in. It felt so good to frolic in the water. I've missed it. And I miss our pool back home...

But anyway, I digress, food, drinks, water, and birthday wishes and even a slackline (again) made for a fun, interesting weekend.

Aaaand.... we all had some stories to tell the next day. A personal favorite was the brief, beach romance between a friend of mine, and this chinstrap-clad guy named Amma Bear. Yeah. AMMA BEAR.  Say it out loud. Go ahead. Hahahaha!







And last but not least, I adopted a cat! Or more like took him off someone else's hands... He was going to be sent to a shelter otherwise...

He's a rambuncous, curious little guy who can be super cute and affectionate one moment, and a manic warrior the next. Also the curiosity is a little much.. he opens drawers, knocks shit over, climbs on EVERYTHING... but gosh, he is very darling... when he's calm, which he is at the moment of writing this post.

i mean, he watches psych with me, we have to be friends.

Until next time, my friends,
Anna