I woke up on my last day in Tokyo with few expectations. By 11 am, I had to somehow explain to my insecurities that I would be naked by noon– in front of strangers.
Continue reading “Naked by Noon: A Traditional Japanese Onsen Narrative”
Tag: new blog
Six hours from Athens, and still an ocean away from home, my train finally halted to the lovable town of Kalampaka. Awaiting me here was not an adventure that I was eagerly anticipating, but an experience that would center my spirit, connecting an earthly bond between reality and fantasy in the “Middle of the Sky.”
One of the most memorable messages I have ever embraced was learned in a place of my greatest fears.
There’s a lot going on…
Many people have asked this million-dollar question, and I’ve never quite known how to come through with a million-dollar answer… I just knew I didn’t want my experience to be easy, common, and, in a weird way, too comfortable. Before I could even realize it, South Korea robustly granted all three of my wishes though at one point in time it was literally the last place on earth I would have ever thought I’d go. Exploring the why of this adventure is one I definitely had to answer in retrospect in order to tell the whole truth… Now six months removed from my first East Asian travels, I think I can honestly articulate the madness to my method.
Confession: I TOOK NONE OF THESE PHOTOS. I guess I’m officially a fraud. They were actually taken by Hannah (hannahandthefirstcrusade.wordpress.com) so any and all photo creds go to her! Be sure to check her out!
***
Some people say that a nation’s big cities never capture the dimensions of its people’s culture or history. Ehhh… true? However, I would say that there are a few places in Seoul that may peak your interest in these areas since they give you a quite a bit of historical and cultural tease. Surrounded by mountains and the metropolis, Gyeongbokgung Palace of the Joseon Dynasty (1395!) did just that for me.
Many people told me what to expect when I came to Korea… lol.
Wow… when I would entertain the idea of me starting a blog I would think, “This really should have happened YEARS ago.” Well truth is, it did. Twice. Two times too uninspired to continue, though. But for some reason, this seems like perfect timing… Continue reading “An Introduction”
