The First of Many

Korean’s are known for loving a good hike, which is a good thing since everywhere you look you can see a mountain. From my 15th floor apartment I can see a mountain called Bowmunsan, ‘san’ meaning mountain, so in full English it’s Bowmun Mountain. This was the first mountain I tackled in Korea, and it’s the mountain that lead me to set my first goal for my time here, and that is to visit every National Park in South Korea. I obviously cannot climb every peak in every National Park, but I hope to climb at least one mountain in every park. Bowmunsan is not in a National Park, but it is beautiful nonetheless, and it is a part of my new view, something that I look at every morning I wake up.

Bowmunsan is 458m high, and marks the city’s southern edge. It gave me an amazing view of the city to the north that I will call home for the next 12 months, and a view of the mountainous countryside to the south.

I went on this hike with my new Korean family, Mary, Ben, and Laura. We brought a beautiful, colourful, and tasty picnic lunch with us, along with a picnic mat, badminton rackets, cameras and our smiling faces. We had our picnic at the top beside a lookout. We then walked along the ridge of the mountain to another of its many peaks, where we saw a great view of the city and caught a beautiful dusk sky with the mountains to the south of us. It was a great first hike in Korea, and a looong walk home since we came down the mountain a different way than we went up and couldn't find a taxi, but it was amazing in every way.

Looking Forward

This blog is the beginning of a new chapter in my life, that I am both excited and sadened for. I am sadened for the things I have lost, and excited for the things I have to gain. Before I can look forward, I feel as though I need to give tribute by looking back at those people, and experiences that have contributed to my life. I have added pictures to show where I have been, who I have met, and how I have come to where I am now. I am only going back as far as 6 years as I feel it was the beginning of the largest growing period of my life. I was starting University, which turned out to be the best years of my life thus far because of the people I met along the way, the knowledge and motivation I obtained, and the adventures I had. At this time in my life I was also starting a relationship that would turn out to be the best 5.5 years of my life thus far, simultaneously with Uni.

In these 4 years at University I made friends that I know I will have for my lifetime. The growth through learning and living together has formed a bond that is so strong and unbreakable, no matter how far apart we all are. The trips we had to New York City, Chicago, Washington, Baton Rouge and New Orleans, and Haileybury have provided me with some of he fondest memories to date. The many drunken nights causing a ruckess in downtown Guelph will never be forgotten and some will never be surpassed in level of shenanigans!

In third year I was lucky enough to go to Adelaide, South Australia for a student exchange. It was a life changing experience that despite the amount of debt it put me in I wouldn't trade it for the world. I met so many amazing people, saw so many amazing things all over Australia, New Zealand and Fiji, and strengthened my relationship (of 3 years at that point), through learning that no matter how far we were from each other that we wanted to be together...this relationship brought much happiness to my life in every way.

Meeting new people who would become very close friends, becoming part of a family other than my own, spending summers by the pool, at the boat, or at the cottage, with both friends and family, learning how to wakeboard, getting better at snowboarding, and having many firsts together. This was truly an amazing relationship on every level, that enabled me to grow with someone, yet also on my own.

From all of these experiences and adventures, however, I have also learned that things change. Things can change overnight, they can change gradually, they can change slightly or drastically, but they all lead you to something new, to the next step in your life. Every experience leads us to the next, whether they are a relationship, an adventure to the unknown, the chance meeting of an interesting character, a death, a new life; all of these, good or bad, shape our lives.

And this leads me to the present day, sitting in my room in a 3 bedroom apartment, on the 15th floor with a view of a South Korean mountain, and the city that I will temporarily call home. I am sitting here because of all of the people I have met, and experiences that I have had in my life. But 2 recent events have lead me here at this specific moment.

Following the end of a 5.5 year relationship, and 3 weeks later the death of my Papa (grandpa), I have set out to start a chapter in my life, set against the backdrop of South Korea. A place where there are no reminders of the things I have recently lost, and a place where opportunities are endless, adventure is plentiful, and the food is delicious! Korea is the Land of the Morning Calm, and I hope to find this calm they speak of for myself. In my short time in Korea I have come to realize that this is meant for me. Not just Korea, but the experience of living in a new country, with new people, new environment, new start, new adventure. I know I will go back and forth at times as my confidence in myself can be ridiculously low, but when I am sad I look out my window and feel a sort of relief that I am where I am and am certain that at this exact moment I am right where I should be, right where I am meant to be.

Although the events that lead me to make this move were not positive, they are what brought me here and I am exactly happy in this very moment. I am trying to see the sunny side of those once catastrophic events, without them I would not be here and for that I must be thankful. Albeit in a bitter sweet kind of way at times. I miss the person I loved deeply for 5.5 years and still feel a part of me is missing, but I know in time that hole will heal and until then I can look out my window. I miss the family I became a part of, but I can find comfort in knowing that I touched the hearts of some of the most amazing people I have ever met. I miss my friends, and family, but I know they will always love me for me no matter where in the world I am. Most of all I miss my Papa because he is the one person of all of the people I miss that I cannot see again, or speak to through email at any moment, but I know that he is with me and is proud of me for being strong.

I am now in a place where I have nobody else’s agenda to consider. I can now ask myself “what would you like to do?” and that question is completely self-specific, for what I believe is the first time in my life. I have to look at this as an opportunity to discover what I look like, feel like, think like, and talk like when I am not merged with someone else. I have to believe that I deserve this time in my life for me and me alone.

After all of that blabber, I will end this post by saying that my blog will be a casual account of my travels, experiences, ups and downs, revelations, blossoming of new friendships and cherry blossoms, and the indulgence of the Korean cuisine...yummm. And today I have begun sharing my journey by looking back in order to look forward.

Let's call this a tribute to my peeps :o)

“you can’t change the past, you can only mold your future” ~told to me today by a very wise roommate :o)