my adventure blog
TYPE: PERSONAL travel BLOG
PHOTOGRAPHY: SHOT ON CANON EOS SL1
[08.2019 - 12.2019] Asia: Seoul, South Korea
I studied abroad at Yonsei University for Fall semester! It was pretty easy to get used to the heat and means of transportation with the T-Money card. You can just reload your transportation card at any convenience store! During the winter, it gets super cold. Check out some of the vlogs that I took in Korea (updated weekly)!
Culture Shock!
Cars are parked literally anywhere and will go anywhere even if it’s TIGHT.
Restaurants
Hot and cold water is offered at basically any restaurant and it’s usually self served.
You will usually have to go to the counter to pay and they’re great about splitting the bill!
However!!! During the night, there’s bags of garbage/trash left everywhere.
Korea doesn’t really have any garbage cans out in public and they’re really particular with separating trash, recycling and plastic!
Mosquitos are so scary… Please bring ointment! (summer)
Alcohol Culture
Everyone drinks so much… SOJU is cheaper than water!
Koreans are very conservative!
Males aren’t allowed in female dorms and vice versa.
If you sneeze, no one will say bless you AHAH :(
Explore more than just Korea! I went to Japan and Taiwan during my time in Korea! It was about ~$200 round trip! See for more pictures —>
[03.2019] East Coast: New York and Pittsburgh (PA)
A change in scenery.
Pittsburgh has SUCH a different vibe! It’s at the same time modern and traditional. Our Airbnb was located around the Bloomfield District, but you could totally walk around Shadyside which has cool shops and cafes! It’s super cold but when we went during March (spring break), we were lucky enough that it wasn’t snowing! Though it would have been nice to see some snow :/ We visited Carnegie Mellon and it’s fascinating how their Design classes are so much more smaller (as opposed to a UC where each class is ~200 students)! At CM, each class is around ~30 students and I feel like that allows for stronger friendships. During our stay, we met a really awesome dude at Caffe Mona who gave us desserts on the house! He actually recognized us from a brunch place on a previous day! He noted that our style/fashion caught his eye, haha. I guess it’s something about how Californians dress?
From $1 pizza to different cultured foods, how could my stomach ever forget New York? I am reminded of San Francisco – the city life, with the alarming smell of piss (no offense) mixed in with the smell of delicious bakeries, and the people who seem to always be in a rush. This energy was exhausting. My friends and I took the subway to almost anywhere, but the most tiring thing was the walking. After each subway stop, there was walking and walking. Needless to say that all the places we went to were all touristy and beautiful, but… it was draining. We’d wake up around 7-8 each morning to explore the city and then get back to our Airbnb around midnight. This back and forth, the transportation and the traveling was endless, but necessary.
HIGHLY recommend visiting these restaurants/stores!
Levain Bakery (their pastries are AMAZING)
Xi’An Famous Foods (numbing spicy noodles are SO GOOD)
Milk & Cream Bar (bomb a** dessert!)
Ippudo New York (extremely good ramen place located above the subway, haha)
Ess-A-Bagel (the bagels are honestly THE BEST)
ANY pizza place near Times Square! (they’re only $1 and taste amazing!)
Touristy Spots c:
The High Line
Top of the Rock
Empire State Building
NY MOMA
Ellis Island & Statue of Liberty
Brooklyn Bridge (sadly, we didn’t get to go :c )
Wall Street
Times Square
Central Park
9/11 Memorial Museum
Cathedral of Learning
[06.2016 - 08.2016] Asia: China & Hong Kong
Visiting Hong Kong and China was not at all what I expected. The last time I was in Asia was probably during elementary school and I hated it. Why? Well, the weather was extremely hot and all I could remember was having mosquito bites everywhere. Coming back to what my parents called home at an older age, I see, feel, and hear the difference in culture. Being torn between identities and becoming one single entity in Asia as a Chinese-American… or should I say American-Chinese? The food is delicious, the views are gorgeous, the experience as a whole was amazing. I wish to travel more and have the opportunity to interact with different people.