Beauty in Korea {and our renewal interviews for year 2}

For those of you who are new here to my blog, my husband (Farmboy) and I have been teaching English in a small town in the South West corner of South Korea since June last year. We packed up our first little home after getting married in 2012 and decided to head out here to build a nest egg and do what we love doing most, traveling and adventuring together. We were here in Korea back in 2010, as a dating couple in the bustling metropolis of Daejeon. After finishing up one year we headed back home to South Africa to get married and get a feel for the job market (which obviously wasn't very exciting as here we are again!). This time around we are able to put a lot more money away as we now live together and share expenses (we chose not to live together before we were married) and because we are in a very small town out in the country. South Korea offers many benefits to their English Teachers (free housing, return flights, renewal bonuses, extra pay for being out in rural areas and for being at multiple schools and relatively inexpensive living costs).  Farmboy teaches at 4 schools, whereas I am lucky enough to be at just one, an all girls middle school. It has been an amazing experience so far, and we have, as planned, decided to stay in our same town and at our same schools for at least another year. 

Since June last year we have been to Malaysia, Vietnam, had to cancel a trip to Mongolia  and traveled extensively around Korea. There have been highs, and a lot of lows (being in a country where EVERYTHING is done so differently from your home country is difficult. The food is strange, the people can be strange, the way that a school is run is strange, the kids can be terrors and you will miss your family and friends more than you can ever prepare yourself for. But, at the same time, if you don't throw yourself head first into situations like these you will never find out how strong you are as a person and how much you are really able to handle. And then there are the positives too (our jobs aren't exactly rocket science and in most cases we are treated really well by our schools). There are days when all I want to do is go home, have babies and spend all day photographing them while baking up delicious chocolate treats. But then I am reminded that this opportunity here in Korea allows us to save for a house back home, meet interesting new people and travel the world. 

BUT the title of this post is about beauty and Korea ( and our interviews), and I seem to have gotten side tracked...I had planned to do an outfit post here, hence the pictures below, but it has turned into more of a reflective post on our time here. This often happens when I blog...and to be honest happens all day in my classroom (my kids love this as it inevitable means less learning and teaching and more stories about South Africa).

Where am I going with this...oh yes...Image and looks are extremely important here in Korea. That sounds awfully shallow but when you live here long enough you being to understand the reasons why. I do not agree with the Korean mentality that beauty is everything, but when someone spends time on their appearance and care has been taken to look neat and tidy this translates to an overall better image of that person than someone who looks sloppy and smells funny. Koreans always look amazing, their makeup and hair is always immaculate and they always look incredibly smart. It gives off a sense of pride, pride in their appearance and pride in who they are. On the other end of the scale, this obsession with outward beauty has led to a unbelievable amount of money being spent plastic surgery, makeup products and diet pills. I understand that for Koreans appearance is everything, this is ingrained into them from birth, and culturally this something us Westerners will never really be able to fully understand. For us, beauty is linked to vanity and is seen as something more on the negative side of things than what it is for the people here. 'Beautiful' people get boyfriends, get married and have a family. If this doesn't happen, the older generation will have no one too look after them when they get to old to work. That is pretty much how it works here. The older generations worked incredibly hard to put their kids through school and university so they can get good jobs. It is then expected that they will provide and care for their elders. It seems a bit odd considering our Western mindsets, but here in Korea there are very few old age homes. Family members are cared for until death, living with their children and their families. Hence why there is such a strong emphasis placed on family.

So it seems that beauty leads to a family which leads to safety and security for the old. Beauty is that important to Koreans. Having said that, I think that one should always try to look neat and tidy, and have a certain level of pride in our appearance. But as the younger generation starts to blend into the same person (having had the same procedures to achieve the perfect lips/chin/cheeks/eyes/mouth) as shown by the latest K-pop (Korean Pop) singer, it starts to be ridiculous. The young women in this society seem ashamed of their Korean looks and heritage , opting for eye lid surgery, cheek implants, lip injections, eye brow lifts and contacts to achieve an impossible level of beauty that borders on lunacy. Here is an article and the picture that went with it which circulated a few years ago about the Miss Korea pageant, I'll leave it up to you to decide for yourself whether or not the contestants all look the same (they are beautiful, for sure, but they look eerily similar, wouldn't you agree?) 

I have nothing against plastic surgery, I know lots of people who have had some form of surgery or another, and it's a very personal decision. What I don't like is that it's being done to such a point that people are barely recognizable as their 'pre-surgery' selves. I must still say that I do have Korean girl friends who don't agree with the plastic surgery craze, so it's important for me to note that not every Korean woman has undergone surgery. But, it is alarming when I ask my middle school girls (13 - 15 year olds) whether they think plastic surgery is a good thing and 65% of them put up their hands and tell me what they are going to have done when they are old enough. It's as common as makeup shopping, and apparently Korea is the cheapest place in the world to go under the knife. You can get your eye lids done during your lunch break and be back at work the next day with little to no recovery time needed.

It's rather strange that the first thing a Korean person will say when they meet you will have something to do with your looks "Oh...beautiful", "Pretty", "Handsome", "Small face", "Big eyes". It's all very flattering at first, but, when you actually think about it, it's really strange. Would the first thing you tell someone when meeting them for the first time be "Oh, you have such a small face. And really big eyes. And you're so pretty"? For Koreans, a small face is seen as 'cute' and whereas a big face is seen as masculine (my students have told me that this is why they make the 'peace' signs with their hands and fingers in pictures, to make their faces appear smaller and therefore more cute and feminine...bizarre).  

And now after all of the above, it seems rather conceited to be posting pictures of myself all dressed up. But I wanted this post to be an outfit one, and then I got a little carried away with the topic of beauty and anyway, here we are now.

This is what I wore to our renewal interview last week. We were meeting with the VIP's in the Education Office and had been advised by friends to go all out to really make a good impression. There have also been lots of rumors of budget cuts and a number of our friends have been been moved/lost their jobs due to these cuts. So we really did want to make a good impression, and were rather nervous throughout the entire interview. But, after lots of smiling and bowing we were done in a very short amount of time and have just been told that we have been accepted to renew. Phew! Then those heels (as little as they are were killing me!) and thin stockings in the middle of winter were worth it!

What do you think about plastic surgery? How do you feel about the fixation with beauty that seems to permeate not just Korea, but the entire world? Are we all just shallow beings, or are we trying to hide what we think is ugly, in the hopes that people will love us for who we really are? I've spent a lot of time thinking about these things since being in Korea, i hope this post today has given you something to think about.

x 

February through Instagram

March has just arrived, and with it the first signs of spring. All of our colleagues have said this has been the mildest winter they have had in years, especially in our small town out in the country. But, for me I have had to layer up all day everyday and as soon as I arrive at school I have had to spend half an hour thawing in front of the heater. The temperatures haven't been excessively cold (to my poor South African body they sure have felt excessive) but it's been the wind chill that has made it worse.

But yesterday we had a balmy 12 degree (Celsius) high and I removed my down jacket for the first time during the day...yippee! I might soon be able to stop wearing my gloves to bed!

Here is a little look back at some Instagram snaps from last month:

Island hopping in Korea

I'm not sure you can really call visiting one Island here island hopping, but I like the sound of it for the title of this blog post. On valentines day, Farmboy and I had the day off as our schools had just ended for the 'spring vacation'. It certainly is starting to feel a little like spring, even if the icy wind hasn't been notified yet.

Our little town is a 40 minute local bus ride from the sea, and to make the most of the nice weather we headed out to Wido island for a picnic lunch and a stroll. Wido island is very small, and it's best not to get caught up on the term 'island' as most of the islands here in Korea look nothing like the exotic patches of paradise in the rest of South East Asia. Even with that said, it was still a lovely day out and the underfloor heating on the ferry ensured a good healthy afternoon snooze both there and back again, lying on the floor, sandwiched between some loud snoring Koreans.

As with most of the public transport here, things tend to be delayed for odd reasons (perhaps not so odd if we are able to understand more of the messages barked out by bus drivers) we nearly missed the last ferry back to the mainland. This wouldn't have been much fun as there are not hotels or restaurants on the island. Luckily, a friendly policeman spotted us wandering around aimlessly looking for the bus that dropped us off earlier and he escorted us to the ferry. We do so love Korea and it's friendly people...

Vietnam through Photographs

Farmboy and I escaped the cold of South Korea for the sun, sea and sand of Vietnam over Christmas time last year. Or that's what we thought we were doing when we booked our flights the months previous, but only a few weeks before leaving we were told it had been snowing up North in Sapa, right where we were headed.

In spite of the chilly weather we experienced in the North, the central regions were wonderfully warm and we even managed to get two swims in! Our pale forms were a bit of a sight, but with our smiles we blended right in with the other tourists. We are known for searching out the quieter parts of cities and countries, but we were unable to escape the crowds in Sapa and Hoi An. We didn't mind though, it's all part and parcel of traveling these days.

I will be posting more in depth information on our 12 day trip to Vietnam (Hanoi, Sapa, Halong Bay & Hoi An) but for now I leave you with some photographs from an epic trip to an incredible country. It was one of our most favourite trips so far (even being on par with our honeymoon to the Greek Islands) and we will most certainly be going back to HoiAn.

The food was amazing and incredible cheap, the public transport, or rather the transport that was most readily available (metered taxis) were a complete rip off and despite being one of the most budget friendly countries in South East Asia, it became our most expensive trip due to missing our flight home. Thankfully we teach English in Korea, and can just about afford to make that mistake once, and only once. Besides, we got to spend 12 hours at the airport with no money, 1 coke, 1 bowl of Pho noodles and the movie Frozen on Farmboys ipad with 13% battery life...what more could you want for your last day of holiday together.

Enjoy

x

Winter adventures

We are in the middle of winter here in South Korea. And boy oh boy has it been cold. We haven't had nearly as much snow as we thought we would (friends in our town told us the snow last year was knee deep from December). Perhaps we are still in for a surprise. I do hope so, as somehow the snow makes the winter cold more bearable. This is probably due to the fact that we don't get any snow where I'm from in South Africa. It's still a novelty and every time it does snow you'll find me outside trying to catch snowflakes in my mouth!

Thursday this week marks the start of Chinese New Year here in Korea, and it's a big holiday for everyone. Farmboy and I are off as of tomorrow and are heading to the mountains to go skiing. We have skied twice before, both times back in 2010 when we were living in Korea the first time. We loved it so much and are very excited to get back on the slopes. However, Farmboy has some crazy idea in his head that we are both ready to snowboard and that we won't even be 'wasting our time' with the skis.

Ummmm....I'm a little nervous to try snowboarding, even though I have been told it's similar to wake boarding, something I can at least do (I mean if getting up on the board and being frozen in one place and refusing/being too full of pride to allow myself to fall is called 'doing' it then I am brilliant at wake boarding!).   

I'll be posting the odd photograph on Instagram (@roxyhuton) if you'd like to follow along in the many 'falling flat on our bum' photographs that are sure to follow. 

I've had to invest in a down jacket, gloves, numerous scarves, thermal underwear and ear muffs. Farmboy handles the cold much better than me, as is evident in the picture below:

You can also tell just how 'beautiful' our country town is...with rolling green fields and snow capped mountains...or should I say skyscrapers and dead patches of grass scattered between derelict houses. But we do love our small town. It has it's own charm, the least of which is the kind and friendly people we share it with.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Don't forget to enter the giveaway I am hosting with MissMilly entitiled {Be your own Valentine}...click here to enter to win some lovely washi taped goodies.

Turkey {a recap}

For our honeymoon in 2012, Farmboy and I headed Greece to spend our first few days as a married couple. It was a wonderful holiday. We had a 6 hour layover in Turkey, and being the we-must-make-the-most-of-every-second-we-are-in-another-country kind of people that we are, instead of making a beeline for the only cafe open at 5am, we headed out the doors of the airport to explore Turkey.

Thank goodness South Africans don't need a visa as we had done no research on Turkey and this was our first time leaving the airport during a layover. In other words,  we really had no idea if we would be allowed back in time to make our connecting flight to Athens. But, being adventurers at heart, we made it back in one piece and had an incredible few early morning hours exploring Istanbul.

What was saw in those few hours was really beautiful and we wished we had had a few days to really explore the country. As much beauty as there was, there were rather too many eyes looking me up and down and making me feel uncomfortable, even at 6 in the morning. I didn't know this before, but Turkey is an Islamic country, and so even though I was dressed rather conservatively, my head was exposed thereby drawing rather a lot of unwanted attention. If you, like me, don't feel comfortable with so much deliberate staring, then pack a light scarf to wrap around your head. I didn't take any offense to the looks, it is a cultural element of the country, we deal with cultural differences a lot in South Korea too, and you learn pretty quickly that people aren't being judgmental or rude, as humans we show interest in the unknown and the different. We become like little children who can't help themselves but stare and try our best to work out why people are doing something different to what we do.

I hope you enjoy the photographs. If you have any recommendations on places to go in Turkey, please drop me a comment below. Farmboy and I really want to head back there in the future.

Cambodia Through Photographs

When Farmboy and I were living in South Korea back in 2010, we headed over to Cambodia for the first of our holidays.

Here are a few photographs from our travels through an incredible country full history. They were mostly taken by Farmboy, I learned everything I know about photography from him.

We spent time in Siem Riep so we could see the Angkor Wat temples and ruins, took an over night bus to the coastal town of Sihnoukville and from there, a boat took us to paradise (aka Lazy Beach).

You can read a full in-depth post on the how's and the what's over here on our old travel blog. 

We were a little younger in these photographs, and we have learnt since learnt a little more about traveling and what to pack (most importantly a first aid kit for the bumps and scratches and tummy aches you will inevitably endure). 

If you have any questions about our trip, please feel free to pop me an email here.

x

See you in the New Year!

Source

Dear CGS readers,

It's been an interesting year...if you'd like to catch up what's been happening these last 12 months, here are a few highlights:

-Celebrated 1 year of marriage...for which Farmboy made this video (I love this man to bits!)

-Returned to South Korea to teach English

-Spent our summer holidays traveling around Malaysia

-Photographed some gorgeous people, namely Caitlyn and Laura and I did a traditional Korean wedding shoot for Minhee & James

-Had some stressful situations involving a laptop

-Took part in a Creative Business Series aimed at inspiring other creatives to follow their dream and launch their own businesses

-Started a new series interviewing married women on their lives after their Wedding Days...for some matrimonial inspiration have a squizz at my Life After the Dress series

-Featured in 2 online magazines for photography (Photographers in Korea & Consol Glass Ebook Christmas Chapter) and 2 real print magazines (Wedding Inspirations and Grazia)

Last but not least I built, designed and launched this newly branded website and my online stationery store selling hand picked, boutique stationery in the form of pretty packages. Click here to start shopping <3

2013 you were good to me, but I am very much looking forward to the adventures that lie await in the new year.

Thank you to each and everyone of your lovely comments here on the blog, and on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.

I'm looking forward to bringing you lots more pretty-ness next year.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year and a wonderful festive season with your family and loved ones.

As of tomorrow, Farmboy and I will be soaking up some sun in Vietnam, and so the blog will be back to normal by the middle of January. I will continue to post bits and pieces on Instagram if you'd like to follow along.

Happy holidays everyone!

With Love,

Roxy

x

Happy Weekend!

We're in for more snow this weekend...here's a little glimpse into the snow we've had over the past couple of weeks. Some of these were taken on my walk home from school last week, and the last one was taken by Farmboy out and about in Jinan one weekend.

This weekend I plan on getting crafty with some last minute Christmas decorations, and I am off in search of a pan to bake my granny's special Apple Crumble...here's to hoping I can find something suitable in my little town.

Have a lovely weekend! 

x

Do you have any exciting plans on this the last weekend before Christmas?

x

November through Instagram

So December is here, and has been for a week already. Goodness me. Christmas is now right around the corner. Have you got your Christmas gifts sorted yet? I'll be posting some online shopping ideas in the next few weeks, as well as some fun DIY ideas to get you in the festive mood. Have you been opening an advent calendar to count down the days? Have a look at this fun DIY I got up to a few weeks ago.

AND it's nearly all systems go for my new website and store! Feels like I have been talking about it for months (well, I really have) but not the day is nearly here...I am so excited to share with you a whole new level of pretty-ness. 

Watch this space!

x

Here is a little look back at some Instagram snaps from November...our trip to see the Autumn leaves, I wrote all about blogging and where to begin in our {Creative Business} series started by my fellow blogger friend Caitlyn, and of course stationery, stationery and more pretty stationery...

Happy Friday & Happy Thanksgiving!

Farmboy and I aren't American, and as such we don't celebrate Thanksgiving Day. But, we know it's a very special day for America, and it's always a good thing to give thanks for what you have and to be thankful of just how much you do have in life.

So, here is a little list of what I'm thankful for. I'd love to know what you are thankful for today, pop me a comment below <3

And I also had to share these beautiful photographs of a Thanksgiving table, found via The Glitter Guide.

I'm thankful for the following big (and small) things:

*our feather duvet for the very cold nights we have been having lately

*my hot water body (aka my hubby, Farmboy)

*that we are able to keep warm while the temperatures plummet, and many people around the world, especially at home in South Africa, barely have a pile of sticks to make a fire with during the winter times

*for each and every comment here on my blog

*for my family, ALL of them, from my step parents and step sisters, to my baby brother (who actually isn't a baby at all!) and to having all 8 sets of grandparents alive and well

*my sweet students who surprise with me little handwritten notes and chocolates when I least expect

*Whatsapp and Skype (and Facebook!) for being able to keep in touch with family and friends while we are here in Kimchi land

*for our jobs here in Korea. It's far to easy to get used to the stability, comfort and the disposable income that comes from ESL teaching in Korea. I am so grateful to have a job like this right now, when so many of our friends are back home in South Africa are either hating their jobs, or desperately trying to find one

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

x

Autumn in South Korea {Naejang Mountain, Jeungeup, Korea}

Here are some photographs from our trip to one of the most famous mountains to see the Autumn leaves here in Korea; Naejang Mountain. We were told that the weekend we had decided to go was THE weekend to see the leaves, and although you can't really tell from the photographs (I am a bit of an artist at concealing unwanted elements!) the WHOLE of Korea seemed to be with us to see the colourful show of nature.

It was spectacular, we simply have nothing like this back home in South Africa, and I literally had to be dragged away from each and every tree (you can only have so many photographs of leaves I was told).

October through Instagram

And so another month has come and gone. We are enjoying the beautiful Autumn colours and falling leaves here in South Korea (we don't get anything like the colours here back home in South Africa) and so have been going a little nuts over the reds and the yellow hues. But, it means winter is fast approaching, and apparently our little town of Buan gets a ton of snow. Brrrrr!

But, at least the snow makes pretty pictures (trying to look on the bright side here!) and it also means a new, big and fluffy feather duvet is a completely justified purchase, right??

Heres to a new month full of opportunity. Happy November everyone.

x

A weekend in Pohang, South Korea

This past weekend Farmboy and I headed to the city of Pohang which is on the eastern side of South Korea. We met up with some new friends, Laura and Richard (who are just the nicest and coolest people ever...they both lived and worked in Hollywood...and have loads of stories about all the celebrities that ate in the restaurants they worked at. How cool is that?!). I am going to be sharing some gorgeous photographs I took of them soon! Laura also writes a hilarious blog about life here in Korea...click here to visit her blog.

Here are a few Instagram snaps of our whirlwind weekend (it was a 5 hour bus journey to get to them from us here in little ol' Buan, and so many a nap was taken, and the evidence is below. I became a cushion for Farmboy, I'm sure that should have been the other way around?). We ate lots of delicious (that does not include the bug larvae!) food and had a wonderful weekend away. We also spent our first night in a Love Motel (but thats a post for another day).

Enjoy!

x

September through Instagram

 We are in the second week of October already, and it's starting to get very chilly here in South Korea. I miss last months lazy Autumn evenings, wearing pretty dresses with no need for a cardigan. Now its straight into jackets and scarves and hoodies and boots!

So long September.

x

Our {Love Story}

Farmboy and I have been married for just over a year now, so I thought I'd take a little time to tell you how we met and how our love story began. It's quite a long post, so grab a cup of tea before settling in.

I was in my third and final year of University, having decided that I was going to make the most of the short time I had left, I joined a campus based NGO called Galela Amanzi (which means 'pour the water' in one of South Africa's many languages). Galela Amanzi had been voted the Campus project for the year, and was aimed at setting up water tanks to collect rainfall for the local townships. So here I was; the epitome of a city girl, sparkling earrings, nail polish that matched my scarf, and perfectly done makeup...all ready and eager to get involved in something meaningful. And there he was, unshaven, barefoot, plaid wearing...ready to make the world a better place. 

Here are a few photographs to help you set the scene:

One Friday evening, after a long meeting about how we were going to manage to secure funding for our next water tank, it was time for the committee set up for the fundraiser we were having the next day. It just so happened that Dale and I were the only two available to make the t-shirts needed for the boerie roll (a South African take on the American hot dog) sale. I had no problem meeting Dale alone at his house, I did have a boyfriend at the time of nearly five years, and thought it would be absolutely fine to hang out with a rugged but all too intriguing (don't forget the barefoot part!) farm boy.

Something happened that evening, something that I could not even begin to explain. Maybe it was listening to a young man open up about the huge part that God played in his life, or listening to tales of real farm life, or maybe it was just the intensity of hearing someone not afraid to speak their mind and being open about their faith that did it, I'm not sure. Having been brought up Catholic, having a Jewish Dad, not really ever being interested in going to church, and having gone through the disintegration of my parents marriage, something happened to me that evening. I realised that I was far too attracted to Dale to spend any more time with him while having a boyfriend, and I flew home that Sunday (two days after making t-shirts) to do one of the hardest things imaginable... break up with my boyfriend. It was not an easy decision to make, I hod to break someones heart, to break something that was over five years in the making. But, although it was difficulty and there are a million different ways it could have been done, it was the right thing to do. 

I flew back the following day and began a whirlwind of a romance with Dale. In the beginning nothing mattered, it was all butteries and fairytales. But slowly, reality hit when Dale had to fly to Botswana for a research assignment, and I was left in my small University town, all alone, to think about what the last few months had meant. Had I jumped into this relationship too soon? Was I missing my ex? What did the future hold for Dale and myself? Did I need to be single to find out more about myself? Was I crazy? The only thing I never questioned, was whether I has made the right decision in ending things with my ex. Even though I missed him terribly in the beginning, our relationship had become one of deep friendship rather than romance.. I had peace about that decision, even if it was the only thing I had peace about at that stage.

A few months later I started going to church with Dale, and my eyes and heart were opened to the wonders of a living God. A god who loves and cherishes his children no matter what. All the terrible things I had done had been forgiven, I was washed cleaned of all I had been, and I was finally excited for the future and what it held for me, and my relationship with Dale. Nine months into our relationship, and Dale and I decided to move to South Korea to teach English. What an adventure. Living in a foreign country, having to adjust to a completely different culture and way of life was made all the easier by having someone special to share it with. The adventures in Cambodia and the Philippines, while managing to still find a good church to keep us grounded, was just a glimpse into life as a Foreigner in Korea.

We touched back down on South African soil in March 2011,  to the reality of life in South Africa. Dale spent six long months looking for a job, I decided to return to studying my life long dream of becoming a a teacher and we both moved to Pietermaritzburg (Dale first to live with his Grandparents) and me following later on once my University year began.

Dale propsed a year later (you can read and see all the photographs of that very special day here) and we were married six months later on Dales family dairy farm in Kwazulu Natal (click here) to see more wedding photographs).

At the beginning of this year, after much discussion, Dale left his job and we arrived in South Korea for our second adventure of teaching English here. We are in a very small town in the South West corner of Korea. Our plan is to spend the next few years here, traveling the world and saving enough money to buy a house back home. 

Adventures lie await for us, some disguised as difficult circumstances, others as interesting and new friends.   

Life is what you make of it, it's time to stop worrying about what the future will bring and whether all your ducks are in a row. Enjoy every moment of every day. If you don't like what you're doing, stop. Take a break. Go on holiday. Tell that special person how you really feel. Smile at everyone. Thank God for the small, as well as the big things in your life. 

And most importantly, take lots and lots of photographs as you go along. 

x

One year after saying {I do}

My dearest Farmboy made me the sweetest gift to celebrate our one-year anniversary. Click here to see the post he wrote and the video he put together after blog-napping this blog. I love him to bits for his creativity and thoughtfulness (and for a million other things that he does everyday). 

So here we are, 365 days after me walking down the aisle to meet my prince charming (click here) to see more photos of our vintage farmyard wedding which took place of Farmboy's family dairy farm in South Africa).

In the past year we have moved into our first little home together, unpacked wonderful wedding prezzies and started getting used to a daily routine and house hold chores together. Then we packed up all those wedding presents and our lives in South Africa and moved to South Korea where we are now living and teaching English. We adventured in Malaysia and have furthered our love for Korean coffee shops.  All of this in what seems to be such a short time. 

Well my dear Farmboy, the best is yet to come and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life having adventures with you.

Blog-napped by hubby. Yes this is happening

Words to self...

OK this is going to be fast, brutal and messy, she is sitting next to you and could peep over at any second.

Words to innocent bystanders...

If you guys out there, the readers, are confused about the change in tempo, tone, poor grammar and general lack of prettyness - its because this blog has been taken over, kidnapped, hi-jacked and blog-napped.

Yes you read right for one brief moment today I have managed to get the queen away from her Mac-Book-throne, and its given me the chance I have been waiting for. You might wonder why Im using the her blog for this and the truth is Im not sure but I know she will love it to bits and thats all thats important right now. And lets be honest, she is a blogger and everything that ever happens in our life eventually winds up here anyways.

Words to my princess...

Hello my dove... I figured this would be a fun way of getting your attention. Its been 365 of the best days of my life, heres to many more. You are my everything.

Our one year anniversary.

{Away in Seoul}

Farmboy and I are spending a few days in Seoul to celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary {which is on Monday} and to see more of the sights and sounds of this fascinating city. The past 3 days have been public holidays here in Korea (Korea has a LOT of public holidays!). These holidays have been for Chuseok, Korean thanksgiving which is traditionally a time spent with family, making lots of traditional Korean dishes  and honoring ancestors. 

I won't be blogging for a little while, so if you'd like to follow along on Instagram (@roxypearce) you're sure to find lots of strange and interesting photos of our time here in Seoul.

Have a lovely weekend everyone.

x

{South Korea} the Food

Lots of friends and readers have been asking us about the food here in Korea. There are a lot of noodles, a lot of rice and a lot of meat (in-between some rather strange veggies). So here are some snaps of food here, in between one or two home cooked meals and a yummy cheese burger.