The Beautiful Oregon Coast

After two lovely weeks with my sister and her family in Hawaii and San Diego, it was finally time to return to my home state of Oregon. (since leaving Korea, I had been living out of a suitcase for over a month due to shipping my belongings overseas)

Flying is so easy now. I used to complain about anything over 6 hours, but after 16 hour flights over oceans, any flight in the U.S. is a breeze.

Especially when I fly from Portland to my tiny hometown. It’s less than thirty minutes, they don’t even have time to serve drinks! It’s marvelous. Plus, I got a view of my familiar rocks of home.

Now you’d think I’d go straight to bed and sleep for two days after all this travel wouldn’t you? Nah, I went on a road trip with my parents.

It was my birthday weekend so they decided to take me to my favorite place in Oregon, the coast! We have our favorite spots, but lately we’ve tried to explore new coastal towns, you know, to be fair.

We decided to start at Cape Meares. (get ready for a bunch of adorable shots of my parents) Now, be warned, the road to this place is long, windy, and feels kind of like a trap. But I promise, you will eventually get there.

Cape Meares has so many beautiful things. It has an adorable, short n’ stubby lighthouse, and the biggest Sitka Spruce in Oregon. If you are super lucky, you can even spot a few whales (I’m not apparently).

There’s tiny, private beach villages along the coastline that I definitely want to live in. (I plan on retiring as soon as I get published so I can write in a house on the coast with a window facing the Pacific)

This was such a beautiful view, I tried to capture it with watercolor, and quite liked how it turned out! (click painting for color)

I couldn’t help it, they were just so cute.

We also saw the Octopus Tree. A very strange and unusual tree! I purposefully didn’t include a photo, because you should just go see it for yourself!

Down a hill that you will complain about climbing later, you can find your way down to the Cape Meares Lighthouse, but make sure to enjoy this view on your way down.

I told you, my parents cannot hold in their cuteness.

Or their tendency to be blown by the strong coastal winds…

Ok, last one I swear.

Ok I lied. I just want these criminals to be brought to justice.

It was a perfect ‘Welcome back to Oregon’ day.

Our first day done, we drove to Garibaldi for dinner at Pirate’s Cove. Wow, this food was delicious. The view was beautiful with bald eagles circling the bay! Reviews online are mixed, but we had an amazing experience.
We checked into The Ashley Inn in Tillamook that evening. This is such a sweet place with continental breakfast (which we missed), complimentary coffee (which we took advantage of), and DVDs to rent (which we didn’t notice until we were leaving).

Tomorrow held cheese, ice cream, and a land of Enchantment…

Snorkeling in Shark’s Cove

There are few times in life that I have experienced true and perfect happiness. Once was when I held my nephew in my arms for the first time. Another was when I went snorkeling for the first time.

Most tourists go to Hanauma Bay to snorkel. You are nearly guaranteed to swim with sea turtles, that is if you can find a parking spot. Because it’s so well known, it is very difficult to get in. The parking lot fills up quickly and early, so unless you want to walk a few miles uphill, I suggest Shark’s Cove.

(click postcard painting for color)

It’s located on the North Shore, right off the side of the road, as part of the Pupukea Beach Park. There were a lot of people, but it didn’t feel overcrowded. Plus there were food trucks across the road! There are public showers and bathrooms too.

Now, I am not a swimmer. I never had lessons growing up, so my technique is similar to a dog’s, only not as good. The first few times I tried to snorkel were traumatic due mostly to the fact that my mask wasn’t positioned properly. Every time I would pop up for air, my air tube would dump into the water behind me. After that was remedied, I fell in love. I let my body completely relax and floated with the fish.

This is a horrible photo, but it’s the only one taken of me in the water. Being unable to swim has made me fearful of the ocean most of my life, even though I love the water. It’s a complicated relationship. But when everyone was out having lunch, I went back in by myself without flippers (surprisingly I felt more out of control with them on) and stayed for nearly an hour just watching the fish swim right next to me. I can’t describe how amazing it was, I just know that I was happy and content with the world in that moment.

Next stop: Hale’iwa!

A cute little town on the North Shore perfect for shopping for souvenirs, grabbing lunch, and enjoying the sweetness of life in Oahu. I found a lovely clothing shop that I could’ve spent all of my money in. Luckily for my bank account, I was sopping wet from snorkeling and couldn’t try anything on.

A must-go would definitely be Matsumoto Shave Ice, the place to get authentic shave ice. It is delicious and pretty! (click the photo to see it in color) You can add azuki beans(sweet Japanese red bean), condensed milk, and mochi! Prices are very reasonable.

Since we’re already talking about food in Hawaii….

Have you heard of Taro bread?? It is magical and so very tasty. Did I mention it was purple? Take a look by clicking the photo.

Next up are Malasadas. True, these are Portuguese donuts, but they are especially delicious when you get them at Leonard’s in Honolulu. You can fill them with custard, chocolate, or coconut and have them rolled in sugar or li hing (salty dried plum powder).

There were so many wonderful new foods to try, and we had most of them at the Paradise Cove Luau. This event is so much more than a dinner!
Here are just a few things you get to do:

• Learn to braid a headdress (flowers determine your relationship status)
• Imu Ceremony (revealing the roasted pig from the underground oven)
• Hawaiian Revue (traditional dancing)
• Complimentary Mai Tai Punch as you walk in
• $12/Adult, $8/Youth & Child Cove Card (to get drinks!)
• Hawaiian Luau Buffet (out of this world good)

We chose to be cheesy and get our photo taken, purely to say we held parrots.

Definitely a beautiful family night you won’t regret.

So did I get any beach time? A little bit. When you have a gorgeous redhead for a sister, her lovely fair skin isn’t too keen to roast under the hot Hawaiian sun. However, we did get to spend some time on a tiny little beach on the SE corner of Oahu called Makapu’u Beach.

The waves were crazy powerful and they did not recommend swimming. There were a few brave surfers, but as the tide rolled in we had to evacuate. It was beautiful though!

I loved my first trip to Hawaii, and I cannot wait for more visits!

Dharmaville & Pineapples

A must-do when visiting Oahu is the Dole Plantation, especially for a family outing. Not only do they have delicious food (pineapple ice cream),but also train rides, mazes, and itty-bitty pineapple gardens. The maze was huge and complicated, and we didn’t finish because it was roasting hot. I highly recommend bringing an umbrella for sun protection!

Once we left and continued North, we saw the sprawling pineapple fields that just go on and on! It was incredible.

Yes, I did paint this pineapple. No, it doesn’t look that great. But I had fun regardless.
(click photo for color)

Our next stop was something I have been dreaming about since…September 22, 2004. That date is significant if you’re a Lostie, which I was for a solid six years. Yes, we went to Dharmaville (aka YMCA Camp Erdman).

There are many websites and blogs about Lost filming locations and which ones are open to the public or not. I can now tell you from experience, you will have no trouble visiting this one. I just checked in with the camp counselors who had me sign in and wear a bracelet which let them know I wasn’t a crazy person. They also gave me a brochure with details about each house where they filmed.

Needless to say, I was stoked.

I’m pretty sure this was Benjamin Linus’ house

And I want to say this was Kate and Claire’s, but I don’t remember, and I lost the brochure.

I was very calm for being an extreme Lostie back in the day.

I was very thankful to Camp Erdman for letting me geek out (and my sister for driving to the North Shore so I could run around screaming)

Lake Tekapo & Queenstown

 “Far over the misty mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away ere break of day
To seek the pale enchanted gold.”

                 -J. R. R. Tolkien (The Hobbit)

I tell you, I felt like Thorin Oakenshield himself passing o’er the misty hills of the South Island. I am grateful however, that I didn’t have to go on foot.

I haven’t been a passenger on a road trip in a very long time, and it was a hard adjustment. I didn’t control the music (uf, that was a tough one), I didn’t control the stops, and I had virtually no foot room the entire week of traveling. But, complaints aside, the view from my window was pretty great.

Our next pit stop was Lake Tekapo. I could’ve stayed here all week. It doesn’t offer much for entertainment or night life, but the view was spectacular.
The world was quiet here.

We stayed in a YHA (Youth Hostel & Accommodation & Travel) that had a certain charm to it. Despite the dewy musk, I rather liked the communal living. What I did not enjoy was sharing a room with five other people. Did I mention it was co-ed? Yeah, not used to that. I honestly hate sharing my living space. (haha, why did I do this, right??)

After some greasy Chinese food, we headed for a nice soak in the hot springs . It was a great start to the trip, and we girls bonded over a long walk back in the rain.

Sadly, we were set to leave this cove of serenity the next morning, but I managed to sneak a few photos in before they left without me.

The Church of the Good Shepherd, built in 1935, was the first church built in the Mackenzie Basin.

I couldn’t get over how beautiful this place was. It’s the perfect location to disappear for a week or two and just enjoy creation at its finest.

By lunch, we pulled into Queenstown which sits right on the edge of Lake Wakatipu.

Here we stayed in one of Haka Tours‘ hostel locations (yay no dewy sheets!!). The space was much smaller, but the amenities made up for it. We had two kitchens at our disposal, free WiFi, a TV room, and it sat in a prime location just a block from the center of town.

 

We spent two and a half days here, which was a nice break from all the driving. I sampled some New Zealand brew which wasn’t bad! It was a little bitter for my taste, but definitely drinkable. Also tried out the famous Fergburger which was delicious, but the twenty minute order line was a little ridiculous.

On the drive in, I spied some para-gliders overhead and thought it looked fun.

So I did it.

Was it amazing? No, not really. I was looking forward to more….well, just more. I’ve been skydiving before and I think that was the problem. There is no real thrill to para-gliding. The best part was running off the cliff. From there on, you’re sitting in a harness for a few minutes and then you land. I asked my instructor to do as many ‘tricks’ as he wanted, so we spun and rode the wind currents as best we could, but it just wasn’t doing it for me.

This wasn’t their fault at all. In fact, I highly recommend this experience for families, even for kids! There isn’t an age limit as far as I know, just a weight restriction. So young, old, anybody can do this, trust me. It is a very mild ride.

I figured I’d enjoy the view since I was already up here. Got some crepes n’ coffee and did just that.

Queenstown was a quaint little tourist town (dubbed the adventure capital of New Zealand) that I would end up revisiting later that month! (but that’s another story)

As we drove out of town, The Remarkables looked well….remarkable! On to Wanaka!!

Charlie Chaplin in Christchurch

After a blissful wedding weekend in the North, I headed down South to Christchurch. I was to spend the evening with another friend from my time at Disney!
These two ladies were lovely and the most gracious hosts!

They are also blessed to own a majestic Persian queen named Frida. I am not a cat person, but she was real cute. She showed her love and/or curiosity all night long, tenderly pawing my face. Or she hates me.

Alas, we would only spend one night together as I was leaving for my first ever Tour Group the next morning. Thankfully, my dear friend took me for a quick drive around the city and a last-minute-supply run. I forgot to get a converter at the airport. This is safe right? Meh, it worked like a charm.

We had lunch at the cutest cafe that could’ve been plucked straight out of Portland. Local art covered the walls, re-used industrial materials were given new life and purpose, plus, a secret bookcase door lead to the bathroom. Oh, and the bathrooms?? Depending on who you choose (Luke, Leia, Han…) you are read to while you do your business. I got to listen to a bit of Harry Potter! Let me clarify: there is not a random dude sitting on a stool reading in each bathroom. It’s a speaker people, simmer down.

This place was honestly my favorite part of Christchurch. Those tubes you see on the ceiling? They deliver fries. There’s also an old sewing machine which doubles as a water fountain. You have to run the pedal and turn the wheel. It’s hipster heaven, I know.

Another perk was a doorway that led to a video shop next store. That’s right. A good old fashioned movie rental store (and also a theater). They had categories! They were so specific and fun, plus apparently they change often. I’M MOVING TO NZ TO WORK HERE. I never wanted to leave. The only downside was this heinous thing:

This statue was so unsettling!! I didn’t notice that it wasn’t a person until I stood right next to him, and his red eyes were staring me into a pit of hell fire. Real creepy. First thing to go on my list.

As a thank you to my lovely hosts, I wanted to give them something special. I noticed they had a few original artworks hung from their friends. I decided to paint their dearest feline, Frida. She was an excellent model.

So, back to my super exciting Tour Group!! It was seven days long, covering most of the South Island. A friend recommended Haka Tours to me, having just went on a two week tour with them and loved it. Her pictures looked great, and their website was super helpful and detailed, complete with online helpers who answered any question I had, no matter how stupid.

They have a road-trip-with-your-mates approach rather than a rigid schedule of long speeches over the PA. This sounded perfect to me, so I went for it. As my first day was in Christchurch, we walked the city for a bit, funnily enough, re-visiting a few places I’d already been (including the cafe!).

Some history on Christchurch –  In 2011, the city was hit with an earthquake, causing several aftershocks for months afterwards. The city was devastated, leaving an eerie skeleton behind. After five years, there is still much work to be done. Where once stood the pride of the city, Christchurch Cathedral, there are piles of rubble and unstable scaffolding.

It truly was a somber sight, but seeing how people have come together in light of what’s happened was encouraging. On many buildings were massive works of street art, making an otherwise desolated place, look beautiful.

I was joining a group of sixteen people, eleven of which had already been on tour for a week on the North island. From here we were headed to Lake Tekapo. Which is where my next post is headed!

Tokyo Disney on New Year’s Day

So technically, we didn’t go to Tokyo Disneyland, with the castle and the princesses and parades. We went to the more adult park next store called Disney Sea. After comparing the two, the rides I wanted most to ride were there. Plus, it was New Year’s Day, and I figured Disneyland would be more crowded.

First impressions, everything was so pretty. Everything looked brand new! This park has been around for 14 years and it looks incredible. Pluto was even there at the gate to greet us!

The view as you enter is the great Mount Prometheus. It has a ride inside it, as well as a role in the night show, Fantasmic. It also periodically spits fire.

We explored American Waterfront, which includes Toy Story Mania!, the Tower of Terror, as well as a mishmash of American-esque culture, architecture and restaurants.

 

Instead of The Twilight Zone being the driving theme of this ride as it is in the U.S., they decided to go with an explorer theme (mimicking the park’s attractions) basing it off a man named Harrison Hightower, a shady guy who stole artifacts from all over the world, landing him a spooky cursed item. It was fun, smart, and hey, they avoided paying royalties to CBS!

We went inside Uncle Scrooge McDuck’s (a gift shop) and tried on a few silly things.

Silly was sort of a theme for us.

There were tons of old presidential propaganda posters everywhere.

Duffy the Disney Bear is HUGE here. There’s an entire store devoted to it. There’s a zillion different outfits, accessories, you name it. These were very old bears being displayed by an old man. He graciously let them model for me.

A view of Mediterranean Harbor

On Mysterious Island (where the mountain is) are two rides and a restaurant. This is the gift shop for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

We made reservations for Magellan’s, a super swanky place, for lunch!

While we waited for our time, we explored the fortress around the restaurant.

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Lunch was delicious. We splurged and got the four course meal, which made us feel a lot like Jack Dawson in Titanic. It was very good.

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Next, we hopped aboard the Disney Sea Electric Railway to get to Lost River Delta, the land where our next ride was. On the way, we passed over Port Discovery where the water rides are. The ride below is called Aquatopia, and it looked to be a sort of bumper cars on the water. IT WAS COLD PEOPLE. Why those people risked getting wet was beyond us.

Lost River Delta had the ride I was most excited for, Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. I didn’t get to ride it in California, which was a huge bummer, because I wanted my mom to ride ‘my ride.’ I say it’s mine because it has the same ride path and vehicles as Dinosaur: the ride at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando, where I worked for two years.

Indiana may have been running around, but all I heard was Dr. Seeker yelling, “Abort! Abort!” in my head.

Next, we headed to Arabian Coast. An Agrabah themed land. It was beautiful!!

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We didn’t feel like riding rides, but if we had, Jasmine’s Flying Carpets was there!
Instead, we headed for Mermaid Lagoon in search of dessert. (well, I had another search in mind). Yes, I found my secret treasure trove, full of whose its and whats its galore, most importantly, my Prince!!

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The line for Ariel was super short, plus the caramel popcorn cart was right next to it.
It was fate.

Freezing our butts off (if only), we headed back to American Waterfront to get a good seat for Fantasmic!. Now I had seen it at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but this show was incredible. It was done on the water, with stunts, and fireworks, and dancing, and DRAGONS WITH HUGE AMOUNTS OF FIRE. I was thoroughly impressed and almost forgot how cold I was.

I left for South Korea the next day. We shared our last ramen together at the airport. It was a wonderful trip and I can’t wait to return! We plan to go to Kyoto next time, and perhaps even The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Japan!

I can’t believe I can now say I’ve been to Korea and Tokyo. Is this real life?

This postcard represents my ‘horizons being broadened’ with Mt. Fuji on the left, and Namsan with Seoul Tower on the right.

Everyday Life in Korea

One thing that I love about living here is how much money I save. Not only are prices super low and the exchange rates beneficial, but I just don’t spend as much. While I was living in D.C., the only thing everyone did was go out. Brunch, dinner, drinks, shows, etc. Everything cost money, and a lot of it.

I’ve gone out a few times, but it’s different in another country. I feel odd ‘letting loose’ here. I don’t want to misrepresent Americans, which I know is ridiculous. As if my actions could change an entire country’s perspective of the U.S. based solely on my drinking habits.

So when I’m not tiptoeing around, I hang around my neighborhood, Dongbinggo-dong. There’s two coffee shops right down the hill from me, both equipped with ample seating and WiFi.

I use them as an office. Initially it was because I had no desk at home and needed the work space, but now I’ve grown to like it. If I’m home, I get lazy and don’t want to write. Netflix, art projects, books, pretty much anything seems more fun. If I get out of the house dressed like a human rather than a sweatpants ad, I feel more energized and committed to writing. I love it because the plug-in stations face the window, so I can be around people, but anti-social too-aka-perfection.

Plus, there’s a perk. Macarons. I have never been a huge fan of these. Well, my friends, I was eating scum compared to these little pieces of paradise. I’m addicted.

When I’m not trying to write the next big fantasy novel, I like to take walks. Fall here was really pretty. Plus the leaves are humongous.

 

I love this building. I think it’s a museum or something, but I like to pretend it’s an upgraded Sandcrawler.

Is my nerd-bone showing??

Honestly though, my adventures have been spread out lately due to the cooooold weather. But in a positive light, I have been trying to catch up on my reading (Tolkien takes forever) and postcard project.

I’ve been exploring watercolors, as some of you may remember, and recently found paint-able postcards. It combines two of my favorite things: art and mail!!

I’m still trying to get my mom to start painting again, so I bought her a blank set too. I sent the first one out yesterday, hopefully she gets the not-so-subtle hint. Also, I am terrible at animals. This was supposed to be a wolf….

I did take my first trip since I’ve been here though! Stay tuned for my Tokyo Christmas adventure!!

January in the City

WARNING: this is a really long post.
(So, go pee first, get a drink, and make sure your chair is comfortable.)

It was the infamous year, 2012, the end of the world as the Mayans knew it….or the Aztecs. Pssh, who cares, they blew it.

In honor of this gift of time, a road trip was planned. The destination? I’ll give you a few hints: the site of nearly every disaster/superhero/fashion/action…OK let’s face it, every cool movie.

Yep. The Big Apple. Good ol’ NYC. I’d never been frankly because I didn’t think it was going to be as great as everyone said it was. I know, blasphemy right? New York City is supposed to be the Mecca of all dreamers, dancers, actors, wall street-ers…

I thought I could live without it.

Thankfully, I didn’t have to. Because this place is incredible.

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DAY 1

For starters, we decided to shack up in Jersey and take the train in everyday
(to save $$ and avoid driving, and my sister brought her two dogs)
classic hotel myspace selfie

Times Square was our home base, aka Penn Station. I was overwhelmed at how alive it felt. It was pretty late when we finally got into the city, but there were gobs of people and cars. –I grew up in a town where everything closed up shop around 6pm.
We ate at Ruby Foo’s, which could’ve been a bad choice to some locals. But we thought it was pretty good! Naturally, we had to just take a peek into the four story American Eagle and enjoyed our 15 seconds of fame.

We walked around a bit, went to a bar called Rattle & Hum and called it a night. It was cold!! (we went in January remember?)

We were zonked out on the train home. Yeah yeah, we were rookies.

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DAY 2
So, New Jersey seems to be the ugly step-nephew of New York. I feel bad for it really. It’s like putting the prettiest girl in school next to the pimply chubster all year. Not cool man. I felt bad for Jersey, so I tried to find the unique beauty it had to offer.
Well I tried.

Back in the city, we thought we’d get a quick coffee before picking up our Tour Bus Tickets (yes, we are those people) and prepare to not have any feeling in our bodies the rest of the day.
-side note- We actually bought The New York Pass which for lack of a better word, is a Fast Pass for all the attractions in the city (Disney folk will get it).
It was icicle weather and we were going to be sitting on top of the bus, in the wind, happy as clams. Well, there’s no such thing as a ‘quick coffee’. The line at starbucks was freakishly long, and the bathroom was something I never wanted to experience. But here was our view as we sipped our brews.
And onto the bus we went.

PHOTO INTERMISSION
(these were all taken from a moving bus, hence the slightly askew angles)

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Our guide was Bruce, a true New Yorker (so they all say…) He really did know everything about the city though and he was funny! I think he told us he was a writer and his wife was a photographer. I gave him my card 🙂
THE FERRY QUEST

Ok, there was nothing noble or questy about it, just sounded better than ‘The Circle Line Cruise‘  — I don’t remember much of this because I fell asleep where it was nice n warm inside. It’s not my fault guys, they gave me hot chocolate, and I couldn’t feel my cheeks. I did snag a few shots before I passed out though. 

Lady Liberty was getting some major refurbishment so we couldn’t go inside to see if Mystique was one of the statues. Bet she was.

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DAY 3 ~ Fifth Avenue

We couldn’t leave without doing a few corny tourist stunts. First stop: Tiffany’s

Unfortunately, it was closed. I mean, even the windows were bare. Rude.
Didn’t stop this from happening though.

Next door was Trump Tower. Now, I get into some pretty ridiculous positions to get a halfway decent photo, but sometimes I can come across a little creepy. Apparently, this lady either thought I was drunk, or trying to look up her dress. Either way, her snooty glance fit perfectly in her surroundings.

And just a few blocks away was the grand, the majestic, the never-expanding Central Park. I planned to spend a good part of the day here, because there were just so many things I wanted to see, an overconfident, obese squirrel definitely being one of them.

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However, as beautiful as it was, we jumped in a cab about thirty minutes in. My bones were starting to frost over.

We popped back to Jersey to let the little pups outside, took a tiny rest and headed back in for one final night…..

Food always comes first. Everyone knows this. Heck, even Jesus knew better. Break bread first. —We ate at the highly recommended John’s Pizza. The line was long, like outside long, but it was worth the wait. To start, we had Garlic Cheese Rolls, followed by a classic Basil, Mozzarella, Tomato Pie, and finished it off sharing a Coffee Canoli.

By this time, I think the cold was getting to us. My brother in law tried his best to take a nice photo of us, but it was a lost cause.

It was a warm and welcoming place. Very family oriented. With full and satisfied bellies, we ventured out to see the city the way it was meant to be seen. 
The Empire State view was definitely better than the ‘Top of the Rock‘ (Rockefeller Center), but 30 Rock had other charms to offer, such as a tour through Jimmy Fallon’s studio (back when he was Late Night) which pretty much rocked my world. I almost lost it, almost.

It was a fast weekend. After all, we were only in the city two and half days, but we jam-packed it in! We had one last look at Times Square and headed back underground, back to Jersey, back to real life.