Catching Up

I don’t know if you know this about me, but I really am not a fan of writing. And, when I had a chance to not blog for a while, I kinda took advantage of it, and then it got out of control. So I will try to catch you up on the past 2 months of our lives. Is it sad that I am only doing this because Jonathan has been badgering me to blog and I figure it is better than starting job applications?

Reasons and Night Life

Editors Note:Those seeking cool pictures of our roamings should wait for a few more days for their fix.  This post is mostly philosophical in nature.

Wherever we roam, we inevitably encounter fellow travelers.  While we may share the same locale, and often the same nationality as them; our motivations for traveling are usually different.  Many backpackers are simply looking for excitement with a different backdrop.  Often this takes place separate from the local culture. 

Some are looking to meet new people. To gain new experiences, to test themselves. A few are seasoned veterans who simply enjoy having each day greet them with a different face.  An even smaller number fall in love with a country, a people, and become permanent ex-pats.

Still more are seeking a freedom they cannot have or are unwilling to use in their native settings.  Being freed from obligations, expectations, and cultural limitations is an interesting litmus test of a person's basic nature.  When you are accountable to only yourself what are your limits?

An intriguing trend in the budget/ backpacker community is the tendency to use travel as sort of a rolling review of nightlife.  The typical backpacker on this kind of course is checking off landmarks, and canned experiences from social media during the day; and hitting up the "local" (read familiar backpacker) bars and hangouts at night.  Change locations and repeat.  This is most common in big cities with well established routes and infrastructure for budget travelers.  The Internet has made this easier by concentrating information and connecting people.  Thus reducing the difficulty and variety of experiences. 

I have no right to judge, nor its my experience representative, but I feel it is a shame to waste such great opportunities hung over in a dorm, checking off lists on Facebook, and Skyping your friends back home. 

I may be a bit biased as I find most clubs and some bars to be difficult, at best, settings for socialization.  I have also concluded that inebriation is a hindrance.  Being married means I am not hunting for hookups either.

So, why do we travel?  I guess what most people see as reasons to stay home we see as exciting opportunities.  The unknown is still scary, but the reward far outweighs the risk and frustration.

On that note we will be concluding our visit to South Korea shortly.  Be looking out for some cool pictures once we recover from the inevitable jet-lag.

Today in Pictures

Fresh from my thumbs of thunder here's some Koreatastic photo-ness.

A little taste of home.  Straight from Louisiana to my South Korean table.  They really like their spice here.

It is very important to know I am not welcome in their ladies room...

I guess they didn't have the Mexicans to inspire the tortilla chip.

I thought this was an air freshener at first.  I wonder what butter fresh would smell like? Delicious I would bet.

The often-imitated-but-never-duplicated American cheeseburger.  And yes, those are pickled peppers on the side.  Almost everything here is served with a pickled something. Jen loves this.

It is formulated to provide fresh and clean...

A little bit of heaven.  This bottle most likely cost more to import than our meal cost to make.  We decimated that bottle.  

Hefty import tariffs on prepared foods make the only cheap beer the local Cass (its just as bad as Nicaraguan beer).  This Heineken was on sale for 9,000 won (about 9$US).

The fabled empty bus.  Even more rare than a pink unicorn.  We have been lucky to see it once since coming here.  On a related note, Koreans produce no body odor.  Though, they do smell slighty of fermented cabbage (kimchi) and garlic.