THE BEGINNING OF THE END.

Today is June 26th, which means I have less than a month at my job, and less than two months until I move back stateside. 

To help me emotionally prepare for this big life change, i've been taking very practical steps to ease the process. I've started cleaning out my desk, which has accumulated stacks of papers, snack wrappers, stickers, and books over the years. I've also been sorting out my apartment, trying to make piles for good will, things to ship home, things to pack. And i've been roughly planning out my schedule when I return home. All things that are helping my emotions catch up with the speeding calendar.

Ending things is weird, isn't it? I've never been good at "ends" ...like graduations, farewell parties, last days at jobs...I've always squirmed at the thought of them and then closed my eyes and clenched my fists as I walked towards the inevitable. Like a airplane landing awkwardly, doing a few too many skits and skaaats and tips and tops before landing evenly on the runway. That's how I always feel at the end. Up...down...happy...sad...thankful...unsure...peace...chaos...I'd much rather run away and not look at anything, than stare the exit straight in the face.

So now, as I look straight ahead at the end of this chapter in my life, my main prayer is that I would exit with grace. What a thought! Exit with grace. Not a sprint out the door. Not a silent exit with no witnesses. Not an eyes closed, fist clenched bye bye. Not a exasperated last yell. Not a tear soaked farewell. But a graceful, God-honoring, beautiful, exit.

God is faithful and I know He will help me through it all, just as He has helped me through every single day of my life here in Japan. It has been so sweet...and nearing the end is so hard. But God is good. And He is at work in all of it. Grace...grace...and more grace!!

By the way, here's the FIRST POST about my job here in Japan...and my FIRST NOMIKAI (drinking party) with coworkers. THAT WAS BACK IN 2015!!! Three years ago!! 

I LEFT MY HEART IN SEOUL - PART III/III

The day Miri and I first arrived in Seoul, we walked past this big building on the corner just 3 minutes from where we were staying. It immediately caught my attention for it's SLEEK exterior and open and clean interior. We soon realized it was...of all things...a coffee shop!! So we made sure to check it out when we had a free morning on Sunday...and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.

Ladies and gents...let me introduce you to what is quite possibly the best coffee shop I have ever entered : LUFT COFFEE, MYEONGDONG. 

Why is this the best coffee shop? Easy. Interior Design 100%. Pastries 100%. Coffee 100%. Art and aesthetic 100%. Incredible. 

LOOK AT THESE BEAUTIES!!! These were cream filled with various flavors that matched the colors : blueberry, cream cheese, matcha, and raspberry.

THE COFFEE WAS JUST HOW I LIKE IT: HOT AND STRONG. yummmmm. Plus, how amazing are these cups??? 

Also, we went right when it opened in the morning and were the only ones there! lucky us. We kept joking, "Seoul is still asleep" because I am pretty sure it's the kind of city that stays up late at night! 

OK, so next on our agenda after that amazing breaky was a slight nerd moment for me he he he...

so my favorite K-pop band, BTS, created this series of characters all based on their personalities. My favorite member, Jin, created this Alpaca (the big white fluffy ones) since people say he looks like an alpaca. Anyway, it was in partnership with the LINE store (line is the biggest sns app in Japan) and they sell their items at their store!!! Here in Japan, all these items are sold out so I had to go check out the one in Korea. 

Did I walk out having purchased a white, fluffy, alpaca head pillow?? possibly. 

Ok, next...LUNCH TIME!!! 

Miri's good friend from High School met us for lunch in GANGNAM. Yep, the iconic place from "Gangnam style" which is really just a big shopping district in the city.

This part felt quite like Japan...tall office buildings...huge department stores...lots of money all around. We cruised a little, then met Miri's friend for lunch. She took us to this amazing place...

HELLO BEAUTIFUL KOREAN LUNCH PLATE :) :) :) 

How absolutely stunning is this?? I ordered the pork which was so tender and delicious. But my actual favorite thing from this whole meal was the SOUP!!! See that bean sprout looking dish at the bottom left?? YEP. That was some magical, flavorful, salty, bean-sprouty, delicious soup. 

After eating, we decided it was time for something sweet. And one cannot really go to Korea without eating PATBINGSU aka...KOREAN SHAVED ICE!!!!

The most popular place to get PAT BINGSU is of course...SUL BING. (Which I kept thinking was named "Seoul bean" haha) the iconic shaved ice is this one here...kinako (soy bean powder) and it was SO GOOD!!!! It was light, milky, melt-in-your-mouth, refreshing, and so worth the hype!!!

We were there at like 2pm on a Sunday and the place was jam packed...all with locals which I thought was cool. Miri's friend said that people always eat PAT BINGSU after a meal! haha love it. 

After lunch, Miri and I headed to the famous SAMSUNG (yep, like the phones) to see this library we wanted to visit. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked out and saw SM TOWN...aka one of the big three K-pop producing companies. We visited their gift shop and even saw one of the world's most popular K-pop groups walk in!!! *SHINEE*

This was the STARFIELD LIBRARY which recently became super popular due to its massive walls of books.

COOL COUPLE IN A COOL LIBRARY. 

After that, we did some shopping...and I was so obsessed with these wallets and bags from this Korean brand, FENNEC. They were well priced and so beautiful.

Korean fashion is really something special. They aren't afraid of colors, prints, patterns. mix-and-match, pairing timeless pieces with funky new ones...which is so cool. Their stores are all stocked full of crazy cool clothes and I could have really looked through these racks forever! 

Time for an afternoon snack!!! So, there was this place I had been eyeing for a while...this place with the most beautiful TOAST I had ever seen. Yes, toast. IT was a bit off the beaten path, but we tracked it down and found MND COFFEE...just a 10 min walk or so from SEOUL station. 

They designed the interior to look like a hotel lobby. Pretty cool. 

Here it is!!! It is basically a whipped cream sandwich with pink and white cream cheese on top! And they give you berries and jam to add to it, which was delicious. Also, the Vietnamese coffee (coffee with condensed milk) was amazing!!!! 

We couldn't resist, and had to order the blue one too. Which tasted the same, just a different color. 

I had to snap a photo of this guy, because he epitomizes Korean fashion to me. Fresh haircut, skinny pants, loafers, and an ACNE studio bag!!! Trends on point. 

After our nice toast snack, Miri and I headed to see SEOUL STATION. They have this really cool walking bridge that leads to the entrance of the station and we went to check it out. BTW how cool is that guy's SONS OF SEOUL shirt?? 

Our first thought upon seeing this place was..."uhh..why does it look like Tokyo station?" hahhaa. If you've seen Tokyo station, you know what I mean. I wonder which came first?

On this walking bridge, they had foot baths for you to rest at. This little kid and his mom were so cute! And looking down on the roads, I was mesmerized by the Korean characters written on the ground and also the width of the roads. Interesting fact: my coworker told me, "Amie, you know why the roads are so wide in Korea?...so military tanks can drive through if needed." woah.  

They even had a trampoline on this walking bridge...with a security guard in a cowboy hat YES hahaha. I love this shot because I feel like it perfectly depicts city life for kids. 

There was a big mall connected to the station, and surprisingly a lot of homeless men (I only say men) laying out in front. This is drastically different from Tokyo, where you rarely (if ever) see homeless people. 

After that...Miri and I went back to where we were staying and rested before going out to dinner later at night. We bought more cosmetics, cruised the streets, and crashed hard after that long day!

OKAY....WELCOME TO OUR LAST DAY IN SEOUL....

So, on Monday morning, we had one last day in Seoul. We woke up, packed up, and walked to my favorite coffee shop, LUFT, for one last breaky. I got iced coffee this time, and we ate this chocolate brick toast thing!!

Korean money (WON) is pretty!! And it reminded me of Vietnamese money (DONG) for how many 0000 there are on the bills. For example, 1000 WON = $1 !!! So I would be buying like a pack of gum and pilling out billssssss. That was funny. 

Out last meal in the city was the famous KYOJA noodle house in MYEONGDONG. This place had thousands of reviews and was raved about endlessly online, so I knew we had to check it out. The place looked small and unassuming on the outside, but upon walking in, we realized what a massive undertaking it was. There were like 4 floors, 20 nice obachans working throwing plate of noodles and dumplings on tables one after the other. We sat down immediately and ordered the dumplings and famous noodle dish...AND THE FOOD CAME OUT IN 1 MINUTE!!!! I am not exaggerating. It came on with the quickness!!!

These noodles were spectacular!!

AND ... back to the airport we went :(

ONE LAST KOREAN DESSERT <3

AAAAND....THAT'S A WRAP.

SEOUL WAS BETTER THAN I EXPECTED!

definitely going back :)

now...where to next?

I LEFT MY HEART IN SEOUL - PART II/III

SATURDAY IN SEOUL <3 **insert all the HEART EYES!!**

Is there anything more perfect than an entire free day in a city you've never been to before?? nope. 

Miri and I had rough plans...see the famous BUKCHON HANOK village and go stop by this coffee shop i've been dreaming about seeing that has a vending machine as a door!! But besides that, we didn't really have much else planned. We decided to just roll with it and see what could unfold. 

A few cosmetics that I bought on Friday (From Stylenanda and toocoolforshool) and the view from where we were staying. I love city life!! 

So, Miri and I headed to the famous BUKCHON HANOK village and decided we should get breaky on the way. We were a bit hungry so decided to just grab Dunkin Donuts HAHAH. This became even funnier when, later that day, we walked down the same street and realzed there were about 10 other adorable Korean style coffee shops we could have gone to -__- LOL. Buy anyway, it was the fuel we needed on this hot day! 

TA-DA!!!! This is BUKCHON HANOK VILLAGE, a super famous spot in the city that is basically a few hills lined with traditional Korean houses that people still live in today. Obviously it was super touristy and there were even signs up from the neighbors that said stuff like, "please stop coming here! this is our home!!" which made me feel pretty awkward hahaa. But hey, it's a beautiful beautiful place to see in Seoul. Highly recommended. 

The village in smack dab in the middle of all these winding streets with cute shops and cafes. We were in search of a nice cold drink (it was super hot and dry out) and stumbled upon one that looked like a library...

We ordered traditional Korea drinks (I can't remember the name!) but Miri's was fresh ginger soda basically and mine was really fresh lemon and pomegranate soda! So delicious! 

Ok by this time...we were ready for lunch. We decided to find a place that served good BIBIMBAP and gogoled this placed called GOGUNG in Myeondong. It had a bunch of reviews and basically said it was the best BIBIMBAP in all of Seoul so we went to check it out. 

A few things I love about Korea food 

1. It comes out FAST. Like...we sat down and within 35 seconds the server brought out all these side dishes. YES.
2. It's cheap. This meal cost us only about $10 USD (aaaand not to mention they give you free tea!) 
3. It's spicy. I LOVE SPICEEEE!!!! And everything in Korea is spicier than average. UHHHMAZINGGGG.

GLORY GLORY HALLELUJAH. This is the standard BIBIMBAP from GOGUNG. A bunch of amazing pickled veggies, hot sauce, ground meat, salty seaweed, and a raw egg atop fluffy rice. I want to eat this every day. 

Ok so after lunch we cruised on over to a different area of town to find this coffee shop I had been dreaming about for a while. I saw a photo of this place on insta and immediately knew I had to come! Does it seem like our whole day was driven by food? haha. 

ZAPANGI!!! Apparently, Zapangi literally translates to "vending machine" in Korea which sounds cool to foreigners but must sound weird if you speak Korean? Anyway...some brilliant human decided to make the front door of this coffee shop look like a pink vending machine that you walk into. GENIUS. 

Upon walking inside, I was immediately in awe of the delicious looking sweets for sale. WHAAAT!!!!! They really know the way to a girls heart. 

I got this strawberry cake in the cutest tin can and Miri got a crazy rainbow latte thing. I almost didn't eat it because it was so aesthetically pleasing!!!! MY GOODNESS. 

Also can we just give a hand to the interior design in this place **clap clap** Whoever these Korean cafe creators are really know what is on trend and what is going to bring in that young, hip, instagram generation. 

Ok so after our little afternoon coffee... we walked around a local market on our way back into the city.

KIM CHEEEEE EVERYTHING!!! WOWOWOWOWW. Side note: I used to be really obsessed with Kim-chee until I realized it was made with fish sauce and other questionable sea items hahaaa (I can see my brothers both rolling their eyes as I type this) 

All kinds of Korean style fried chicken. yummmmmm.

Well, that's part II of my SEOUL post and only half of what we did on Saturday. More to come!!!

I LEFT MY HEART IN SEOUL - PART I/III

Earlier this month, my good friend Miri and I hopped on a short 2 hour flight from Tokyo --> Seoul for a weekend of spicy food, cheap cosmetics, and insta-worthy sweets! We had been planning this trip for a while now and since neither of us had ever been to South Korea before... we were stoked! 

We flew in on a Friday morning, stayed three nights, and flew back on Monday night.
It was... dare-I-say... the absolute-most-perfect-seoul-weekend-EVER.

Here's part I of our trip: 

Fun fact : the food at INCHEON airport is AMAZING. Our flight landed around noon, and we decided to grab a bite to eat before exiting the airport and it ended up being such a smart move! There is a place called Korean Food Street right when you exit customs which is basically a restaurant where you can taste all the classic Korean dishes! I loved the bean sprout pancake (bindaetteok) that was HUGE and was served with the most delicious pickled onions! YUMMMM. 

After that, we took an awesome bus ($15) that dropped us off right in the heart of SEOUL. The bus system from Incehon to the city is incredible!! I was so impressed by the ease of buying tickets, the location of the bus stops, and the comfort of the buses themselves! The ride into the city is over an hour so starting well was the BEST.

We dropped our bags off at our place in MYEONGDONG and decided to go check out some shops. We stopped dead in our tracks when we saw this beautiful icecream.

Ok first cosmetics stop...STYLENANDA. They actually have this shop in Tokyo, but I knew I had to check out the main shop in MYEONGDONG. Get ready for the most dreamy make-up store ever! 

OKAY...THIS LINE OF MAKE-UP (blush) WAS JUST TOO CUTE TO BE TRUE. OMMGGGAAHHHHHH.

The building was 6 or 7 floors...make-up, fashion, and a cafe. UGHHHH they KNOW WHAT WE WANT!!! haha.

This floor of accessories and under garments was called "LAUNDRY" ...CUTEST THING EVER. 

The top floor was a denim shop with a cafe...all POOL themed because WHY NOT!??

And...a cosmetic store wouldn't be complete without a rooftop chill nap spot with pink and white fluffy pillows - right!?? INSTAWORTHY. 

MYEONGDONG reminds me a lot of Shibuya...only a little less crowded and a little more sketchy. haha take for example...

A bunch of street vendors selling LEGIT knock-offs...like all these supreme bags and shirts. You'd never see this kind of thing on the streets in Tokyo.

After spending some cash on cosmetics, we met up with Miri's high school friend, Jeong, for dinner! Jeong is a local so she knew the best places to take us to. 

She took us to dinner at this incredible samgyeopsal (pork belly) place that was HANDS DOWN THE BEST SAMGYEOPSAL I HAVE EVER EATEN IN MY LIFEEEEEEE. Nothing can compare to this. This was just I N S A N E. The best part was actually these long garlic leaves that were soaked in vinegar that you used to wrap around the pork like a little slaty, tangy, delicious burrito and OHHHH MAN. I could not stop eating it!!!! 

Top it off with cold beer and some spicy Tofu soup and my first night in Seoul was already the best of the best. 

After dinner we walked to a nearby castle to experience some Korean culture and see ladies dressed in Hanbok, traditional Korean dresses. They are so ornate and beautiful!!

BTW...something I noticed right away in Korea was how much PDA people are ok with! This might have had a greater impact on me considering I live in Japan where people are super ANTI-PDA...like you can hardly tell if people are siblings? friends? enemies? strangers? hahaa jk it's not that bad...but basically I never see anyone show any form of PDA here so it was more shocking to see couples hold hands, hug, and be all lovey dovey in public! 

This is (ready for it...) GYEONGBOKGUNG, is the largest of the five grand palaces in Korea and a super popular spot of people to visit. 

I love how detailed and colorful the painting is on these buildings! 

They had special lights up around the castle that made it a pretty cool spot to check out even at 8pm at night.

Our last stop for the night was the famous CHEONGGYEONCHEON (say that 5x fast) which is notorious for being a date spot in the city. What made me laugh was when I asked Jeong, "so, have you come here on a date before?" and she answered, "yeah, i've been here with about 5 ex-boyfriends" HAHAHAHA love it. 

DAY ONE IS SEOUL...AND I WAS ALREADY IN LOVE!!!!

S E O U L <3

Guys, it finally happened! I WENT TO SEOUL!!!!!

Now, as a resident of Japan for the past 2.5 years...it was about time I hopped on a short 2 hour flight over to our neighboring, Korea. I had been dreaming of this trip for some time now and it was even better than I had imaged!!! I'm currently editing through my photos so I will be posting TONS about my short weekend there. Let's just say...i'll definitely be planning a trip back soon :)