Sunshine and Bagels -- The Little Miss Thinks

This song is such beautyyyyyyyy :) Every time I listen to these slow, soft songs, it takes me back to the roots of my love for Korean ballads... Lee Soo Young, Wax, sigh... those were the days. I'll admit... I had reservations during the first 20 seconds or so... but my love for Bang Yong Guk forced me to persevere. And boy am I glad I did.... What an amazing song!!!!!! I love the beats, the jams, the confidence, the stepping, the amazing vocals, and of course the beautiful people. As some can attest to, I developed quite a thing for blonde-haired men during my time abroad. Haha. And six, beautiful, blonde-haired men? It's mah jam!!!! Also... can't wait to watch live performances. Excited for these beautiful vocals! And as Xuemin says, it reminds her of 1TYM. Which also harkens to the origins of my Korean music love... sigh. Taebin :D

Some movie trailers for movies I'm looking forward to watching: Painting our guns, painting our guns for the bank robbery... cause we're going in with our plastic guns and cops will shoot us in the face... LMAO YEEEEEEE! ___ Update wise, still feel jet-lagged. Bird in a cage.

Leaving was incredibly sad of course. Thanks to Henry, Nicole, and Kevin for seeing me out. I was a mess. Long, horrible flight back -- lots of turbulence, so much so that the crew had to strap themselves down. I thought I was going to die over the Pacific. Haha. Motion sickness, blech. My dad, Ngoc, Hien, and Lisa greeted me as I came off the flight with balloons and a sign, hahaha -- one of my secret desires I can cross off my bucket list. After the mess of lugging my 3 bags on two airport carts through customs and the secondary security check, it was a welcome sight. Thanks for coming to see me! It's both nice and sad to be home. Nice to be able to see my family. Sad because I'm back to reality. First, unpacked. Trip to Fresco (recently opened near my house) and Target. Napped then cleaned. Firecrackers, whee! First meal: tacos -- so yummy! Second meal: fruits. __ Also, feeling jetlagged -- super tired, super nauseous. I forgot how expensive everything is. Why ...

It is a little late now... but better late than never. I said goodbye to Nepal earlier today. But first, a recap. Day 7 Neha's mom was worried about my lonesome adventure -- I was planning to go explore parts of Kathmandu by myself -- not much, just Thamel and the Royal Palace museum... so instead I slept in. Kekeke, oh how I love my sleep. We then packed and I realized that I wouldn't have another chance to buy last minute souvenirs. So yeah, off I went on my short and fun adventure. I had plans to go buy 2 shirts and 4 hats in Thamel... I returned with 1 shirt and 12 hats. OHHHHHH, the shopper's remorse that I have. Oh wells, much to late for such regrets. I finished packing and later that evening, Neha's mom picked us up some pizza from a place that their family frequently orders from. Pizza by lantern light on the floor :) Pizza was delicious and the talks were fun. Neha's dad opened up some wine -- what a classy family! Last chance to eat some mom...

In case you didn't know this already, I'm horrible at updating my blog. However, I am attempting to make a genuine effort to log all of my Nepal experiences. I can't remember all the details and I don't have the patience to sit and recollect and type for what may take hours... so instead I will do highlights/brief summaries. Haha. Day 4: Durbar Square, Wedding Pre-reception Neha and I woke early on this day and returned to Durbar Square. I tried on my top for my sari and though it was a little loose, Neha didn't want to compromise the top by having the store fix it. By the way, if you are ever in Nepal, the store I went to is called Chanda Chakori. The workers are extremely nice, the store is clean, the saris are beautiful, and the value is amazing (as in, they don't scam you and give you great quality)... or at least it seems like it to me, Neha, and Neha's mom. Note: Pictures will be posted at a later time. As well, we recorded a video of him puttin...

Again, I woke up late today. Le sigh. Why do I love sleep so much? Past noon, I finally awoke and yay! was able to take a nice warm shower :) Today was the first day of a holiday in Nepal and so we had an extra special lunch that consisted of different types of roots (to warm you up). Also, had goat meat. YUM! Tastes a lot like lamb to me... i'm an uncultured meat eater. Neha and her mother did not agree. They find the two meats quite different. Following lunch, we were dropped off at the Monkey Temple (aka Swayambhunath). At this central temple, there are numerous stupas, many holy monkeys ( who are quite mischievous -- i saw some of them steal cotton candy from visitors!), and a main stupa. It was absolutely gorgeous. Not only that, but because of its high location in the mountains we had quite an amazing view of Kathmandu Valley. I had my first real transactions with homeless people in Nepal. Not so much transactions as two separate experiences of being followed by homel...

At the current time that I am typing, it is 1:11AM on Sunday, January 15, 2012. I'm currently sitting in Neha's former room, now her brother's bachelor pad. Neha sits a few feet away from me on the bed using her computer, listening to Korean music, and simultaneously looking through her old photos and playing Monster World. She just sneezed. Haha. Bless you, Neha! But before I write about everything I've done while in Nepal... I should first recap on everything I experienced prior to coming. The End of South Korea adventures As my days in South Korea have been winding down, it's been extremely sad... The end of my first, individual, independent experience abroad. There are many things I didn't get to do and there are many things I wish I had made time for -- Noryanjin fish market in Seoul, Jagalchi fish market in Busan, a repeat trip to Busan, the Sooul Museum of Art, a visit to Apgujung, more visits to Gangnam and especially a trip to the underground Gang...