Korea

Korea

Working and living in Seoul, South Korea from 2008 to 2014 was an amazing experience.  The biggest advantage to living in a foreign culture is that it changes your view of your home culture since you gain an outsider's perspective.  I worked as an instructor of English as a Second Language (ESL) at two private academies and one university.

Seoul's Gangnam business district

Gangnam at night

What Gangnam is most famous for now.  The song is actually a parody of people who act pretentious while living in upscale Gangnam

With friends at a birthday jazz jam

Jazz fan friends

Home-cooked traditional Korean meal

Jazz street art nearby the Jarasum Jazz Festival

Met one of my jazz heroes, pianist Robert Glasper, at the Jarasum Jazz Festival

Jam at Jazz Alley

Kindergarten class

Trying to look like a proper uni lecturer

 The jjimjilbang aka Korean sauna: One of the best things about Korea

Bard, the great traditional Irish music band of Korea

Taebaek mountains of southeastern Korea

Yongyeon Cave near Taebaek City 

Ireland

Ireland

March 2014 Visit

I had the great opportunity to visit Ireland over St. Patrick's Day so I did a backpacker bus excursion.  The people of Ireland rank up there with New Zealanders for being among the friendliest people I've ever met.  The Irish "gift of gab" was also apparent as I heard one amazing story after another from new friends.  The "craic" (good times) was mighty.  I was also lucky enough to be able to hear my fair share of traditional Irish music, of which I'm a big fan.

Countryside of the northwest

Trinity College in Dublin

Gate of St. Stephen's Green, which is prominent in the Irish film "Once"

Crowds getting ready for the St. Paddy's Day parade

The Cliffs of Moher

Guinness Storehouse with friends from the backpacker bus

The grave of W.B. Yeats

Blarney Castle

Singapore

Singapore

December 2013 Visit

As a fan of futuristic cities, I'd always wanted to visit Singapore.  I was told that  the multiculturalism was one of a kind and that the skyline appears to have popped out of sci-fi movie set.  Both true.  It was also extremely clean everywhere and the public transit system was awesome.  I was incredibly impressed by S'pore in every way.

Marina Bay Sands Hotel and the double-helix DNA bridge

 

The double-helix bridge walkway even features the four DNA bases: T, A, C, and G

The simple yet amazing Singaporean dish chicken rice as it comes at a hawker center food stall.  There's great food everywhere in Sing

Durian milkshake, not bad if you can take the smell

Gardens by the Bay

Amazing skyline, need to shave

Downtown as seen from the Singapore Flyer ferris wheel

The main mosque of Arab Street.  Should've gone inside this gorgeous structure

 Indonesian graffiti exhibit at a local art museum

"Supertrees" at Gardens by the Bay.  These spectacular vertical gardens collect rainwater and are solar-powered

There's an upper walk that snakes among the supertrees

View from the upper walk. Is this planet earth?

New Zealand

New Zealand

December 2013 Visit

Talk about a pristine natural paradise.  NZ is the closest to utopia the world will ever know.  Stunning beaches, mountains, glaciers, forests...NZ has it all.  A highlight of my trip was meeting Bret from Flight of the Conchords on the street in downtown Wellington.  I'm a huge fan of the duo's quirky comedy.  Another highlight was having a summer Christmas at the house of a friend I'd met in Korea.  Everyone I met in NZ was incredibly friendly and fun to talk to. 

  Sadly, I only had time to take a backpacker bus through the North Island even though everyone raved about the South.  As impressive as the North was, I can't even imagine what the South might be like.

Cathedral Cove on the Coromandel Peninsula

Bridal Veil Falls in Waikato

  

Landscape of the North Island

 Hangi: the traditional Maori method of smoking food (delicious!)

 Mount Ngauruhoe aka Mount Doom 

 Taihape Gumboot Throwing Lane where I got to participate in a gumboot throwing contest.  Apparently it's a NZ tradition!

 Mount Ruapehu

 A friend bungee jumping in Taupo

The windy Wellington sign, which I was told most Wellingtonians do not like

 Wellington's Weta Cave: the workshop for NZ movie magic

 View of Wellington

First time I'd ever had a summer Xmas barbeque.  Was a great time.  I felt like an idiot not knowing what to do with the Christmas crackers.  We don't have them in the US! :)