Whew – this one has been on the Bucket List for awhile! Haedong Yonggungsa Temple is renowned as Busan’s most beautiful temple. It’s easy to see why – the grounds are massive, and visitors can wander through forests and caves with beautiful shrines to the Buddha. The temple is also one of Korea’s only temples that’s on the coast! The […]
Haedong Yonggungsa Temple
Wicked in South Korea
If you know anything about me, you’ll know that traveling and musical theatre are the greatest loves of my life. Hyperbole aside, I LIVE for these two things. It’s funny to me that I had no idea before coming here that South Korea had such a vibrant musical theatre scene – this is the country world renown for their K-Pop […]
Buddha’s Birthday at Samgwangsa Temple
Buddha’s Birthday is a National Holiday in South Korea, and is celebrated nationwide by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. The Asia Society describes the Buddha’s Birthday as, “a carnival day when Korean culture and tradition is celebrated” and I found that to be extremely true. This year, the holiday landed on Wednesday, May 19th and we were lucky to have the […]
My Buddhism
When I was a Sophomore in College, I changed my major from Music to Religion. The year prior, I had stumbled into an Academic Study of Religion course, Intro to the Hebrew Bible, and it completely captured me. I was raised in a Missouri Synod Lutheran Church and attended the school at the church until I was in 5th grade. […]
Jeju City
Jeju is the largest Island in South Korea, and a popular tourist destination for Koreans and travelers all over the world. The island features a dormant volcano at its center, with a variety of hiking trails around its base and up to the summit. The island seems to have everything you could ask for in vacation destination – bustling cities […]
Seokbulsa Temple
“I hope I die warmed by the life that I tried to live” Nikki Giovanni O️ne of the many reasons that we wanted to move to Busan was for the amazing hiking adventures in the mountain ranges that run through the city. We have tried our best to make weekends all about hiking, and we’ve had a blast exploring the […]
Lessons from the Cherry Blossoms
“All important ideas must include the trees, the mountains, and the rivers.” – Mary Oliver When life is filled with chaos, it’s no secret that returning to nature is the best medicine. School was well under way and things were feeling very out of control – we had all sorts of reviews of our students, monthly tests, plans, and work […]
A Day in the Life
I just completed my fifth week of being an English Teacher in South Korea! I have already had so many wonderful adventures, mishaps, laughing fits, and healing tears – what else could I expect?! Starting a new career is crazy, let alone doing so in another country! But I am loving my life as an English Teacher and am excited […]
We’re Free!
We did it…somehow, we survived 14 days of Quarantine in a studio apartment! After 2 weeks of intense isolation, it was a game changer to take a walk on the beach and explore this foreign place that we are calling home for the foreseeable future. We strolled along Haeundae Beach, got COFFEE (which was sorely missed), and met up with […]
Moving to South Korea
Have you ever thought about moving across the globe? How about moving across the globe, during a once in a lifetime, global pandemic? I can tell you from experience, it’s not a walk in the park. You know the cliche “it’s not easy, but it’s worth it?” Ya…well I can’t guarantee it’s worth it yet, because I’m in quarantine for […]