Back to school...

Well, it's official! I've accepted a place at the University of Nottingham so in just a few short months I'll be flying off to England! Hopefully I can remember how to be a student again. At the very least, I can stock up on the best stationery here in Korea ;-)

I'm actually super excited that this is finally happening. I've always loved school and scholarly environments. Many of my favourite books even feature school settings. Currently, I'm teaching at an elementary school (although this often feels more like a zoo than a scholarly environment). So yes, this new adventure feels thrilling and inspiring!

I have three more weeks of teaching left before the semester finishes. I should start applying for my student visa and figuring out housing.

Exciting times!

Sentence of the day...

"I just want to lie in bed and eat potatoes."

Context: It's been incredibly dark and cloudy lately. So dreary! I guess the sunshine's on vacation somewhere.

Having no access to an oven (and therefore unable to bake delicious carbohydrate-y potatoes), the cute snowman's head had to go. Ice cream may not be a carbohydrate, but it sure is delicious!

Birthday in Korea...

This was my second time celebrating my birthday in Korea. I was grateful to spend some high quality time with my boyfriend and lovely friends, eating delicious food, chatting, and laughing nonstop. I went to Seven Springs and as much as I enjoyed the food, just thinking about how lucky I am to have met the amazing people in my life was the highlight. I only have a month before I fly off to distant lands (otherwise known as Canada) so I'm trying to soak up everything and enjoy every single moment. I think missing someone dear to you is one of the saddest feelings we can ever experience. I wish we could always be with the people we love.

Other highlights included this delicious snowman ice cream cake, brownies made from a mix in the microwave (only in Korea! amazing!), and this gorgeous card from my parents. I miss them!

These days feel very bittersweet. I keep reminding myself to just focus on the present and not think too much about the future. One step at a time...

Grimes - Genesis

Most recent obsession.

Anna Karenina Trailer

I want to watch this right now...the film looks exquisite. Alas, we must wait until November.

Fresh food in Korea + Seven Springs

One of the hardest things for me about living in Korea is the lack of fresh, juicy, delicious fresh fruits and veggies. In the Vancouver area, fresh produce is abundant and cheap, but it's a different story here. Of course it's possible to get plenty of lovely colourful foods, but they are quite costly and I can't help but miss the local foods that I ate almost daily back home. 

Soooo, I fell in love with Seven Springs, which offers an amazing buffet of healthy food. They have a giant salad bar with oodles of choices so that you can make a custom salad. The dessert table has many fruits and you can also make a yogurt parfait with their homemade yogurt as a delicious base. There's cake and ice cream too if fruit isn't quite enough. There's also plenty of warm food, including roasted veggies, spaghetti, pizza, juk (a kind of porridge made from rice and other nourishing ingredients), etc. 

The cost is pretty expensive (for Korea), but all the food is absolutely delicious. Also, it's lovely to sit by a window and be surrounded by plants and natural wood. The decor is beautiful, simple, and meant to create a kind of urban picnic atmosphere.

I've already gone two times and I will definitely go there again!

Jeff Buckley & Elizabeth Fraser - All Flowers in Time

This is so lovely.

Warpaint - Stars

I want to put on a white dress, transport myself into this video, run through the woods in the night, and wave sparklers under the stars.

Summer in Korea

There are no words for just how much I adore summer. It's pure joy, golden sunshine, warmth, sweetness, freedom, and all things fantabulous! 

Here are some things that are making me extra happy these summery days in Korea:

Green tea ice cream - refreshing, creamy, and delicious!

Icy drinks with brightly coloured straws - I'm usually a warm drinks year round kind of girl, but here in Daegu it gets so hot that an icy drink becomes a necessity rather than a voluntary choice. A tasty necessity. 

Juicy colourful fruits - a few days ago I went to Seven Springs, an organic salad + other healthy food buffet. I was in heaven. Of course the salad was completely amazing but I also have to mention the rainbow of fruits that I devoured all too quickly. 

Listening to dream pop - there's no better time for it than in the hot summer!

Wearing shorts, light shirts, and no socks! - I am pretty much always cold, especially my hands and feet, so being able to feel air and sunshine on my skin is incredibly liberating and energizing. Woohoo!

Lemonade - I already mentioned cold icy drinks but I must say, lemonade in Korea seems to be more delicious than anywhere else!

Yoga!! - I try to do yoga on a regular basis, but in the winter all I want to do is curl up and cover myself with blankets (and fuzzy socks!). Yoga feels best in the summertime and warm muscles make stretching a whole lot easier. 

Walking around with a parasol - I love my parasol, it always makes me feel like I'm in a Jane Austen novel. However, here it's not just an accessory but a surefire way of preventing heat stroke. 

Opening up all the windows - what can I say, I just love fresh air and the feeling of openness. 

Hooray for summer! :-)

Beach House - Lazuli

Oh my, this song is pure gorgeousness. 

Lately I've been spending hours upon hours listening to music and, ahem, writing poetry. Today, these lovely activities were combined with ice-cream eating and instant coffee drinking. I'm wild and crazy that way. But hey, if I can't be in a band of my very own, I am more than willing to listen to beautiful inspiring music, occasionally lip-synching and/or dancing. I'm also very willing to write my very own mediocre amazing poetry. Ta da. 

Today also featured an incredible thunderstorm that was loud and scary enough to shake me up a bit. Having experienced a total of zero thunderstorms back in Vancouver, I was extremely delighted. 

And now for happy weekend time, hooray! :-)

Florence - Cosmic Love

Hmmm, it wasn't exactly my intention to post so many music videos, but I can't resist putting this one up. I adore this song and the video is beautiful. Florence's videos usually are :-) I want to go frolic in a magical world filled with fairy lights and chocolate cake. After I wash the dishes.

Listening to: Soley

One day I hope I can visit Iceland. In the meantime, I can't stop listening to this song.