All grown up..

6th graders in Korea are about 13 years old. From the start of the semester to now, I have watched my students grow out of their sweet adorable phase and officially enter the beginnings of being teenagers. I now catch my boys, who once loved me in a platonic fashion, talking to me while staring at two things that are not my eyes. Their compliments, which were once precious and innocent, now come in a flirtatious manner. No longer can I lean over their desks to help them with their work, and  I must now limit all and any body contact to high fives at the VERY MOST.

I didn't see it coming, everybody warned me, but I had this hope that they would stay innocent and adorable forever. I was in denial for a while, my coteacher would tell me how he can see the difference, but me.. no I didn't see it, in my eyes they still were my little ones. But it all changed in one day, with one incident.

I had handed out a worksheet to the class and my students were completing them at their desks. The worksheet I handed out had a few areas that I knew some of the students would need help with, so while giving the instructions I told the class if they needed help with anything they were to come to me at my desk. The students came up and one by one I helped them out. One of my boys came up and I began to explain what he was supposed to do. I went through the same explanation that I used with the other students to help clarify.As I was giving the explanation, I felt like he was looking at me, but not focusing on what I was saying. 

Me: "Do you understand?"

Him: .......

Me: "Do you understand?"

Him: "oh, no teacher."

I  noticed that while he was looking at me, he wasn't looking me in the eye but I couldn't figure out WHAT he was looking at. I checked my face in the computer's reflection thinking maybe I had something on it, nope. I looked back at him and he was still staring elsewhere, so I followed his gaze, which went straight down my straight down my shirt. This isn't the first time I had encountered this problem from men, but this was my student. My innocent, sweet, adorable student, not some adult pig thinking with the wrong head.

I clapped my hands in front of his face and tore him from whatever inappropriate thoughts that were going on in his mind. He immediately turned beet red, mumbled sorry and scurried back to his desk. I was just as embarrassed as he and put on a sweater even though it was 85 degrees (29C) and humid. And that is how I taught my next 5 classes, despite my boiling innards and being drenched with sweat.

This opened my eyes, I now see my boys in a different light. While I still love them and enjoy teaching them, they no longer are adorable or sweet. They now have joined ranks with the other teenage boys (and many grown men) and are predators with a one track mind.

#CHEERSTOTURTLENECKSANDTOPBUTTONS

Alone but NOT lonely

"Do you have a boyfriend?"  The most common question asked to me since moving to Korea. But what is worse than being asked that question frequently is the response I get when I say no.

Korea is the land of couples. Foreigners and Koreans alike. It is as if people move here an immediately seek out companionship and those that grow up here latch on to another as soon as they hit dating age. 

I find that Korea has somehow found away to devalue the glory of being single.  Unlike back home, people here (Koreans and non Koreans) express pity towards me when they find out I am single, often offering to set me up on dates or wanting to go out with me so they can help me meet somebody special. When did being single go out of style? At first, I was fine having the "I'm single" conversation but the unwanted pity, advice and questions prying into my personal life have begun to irritate me.

Responses from people when they find out I am single                           What respond with in my mind
"Oh, no boyfriend. so sad, are you lonely?"                                                -No I have this person who                                                                                                                                                      is always around, myself.

"Why don't you have a boyfriend?"                                                             -I think they ran out of my size

 "But you're pretty"                                                                                         -And that matters...how?


Something about living in Korea has given people the belief that being single is only being half of a person and that you NEED somebody to make you complete.

I am not against relationships or falling in love. My last relationship was great and I do not harbor any negative feelings even though it has ended. I am not that bitter person who hates love and anything of the sort because things didn't work out for me. In fact, I am in love. I love being single.

There is nothing negative about being single. Being single allows me the freedom to do what I want when I want to. I do not have to consider another's feelings or preferences in any of my decisions.  If I want to spend all of Sunday unshowered, in my pajamas, eating ice cream out of the carton or go out drinking and partying all night long, there is nothing stopping me. I can spend hours exercising, watching sports, reading books, lying in bed doing nothing with out worrying about sharing my free time with another. Being single has never once held me back, rather it has been beneficial. I often think, if I were in a relationship before I had come to Korea, would I still have made the move?

Being single also make it 100 percent okay for me to be selfish and think about MY wants, MY needs and MY desires. Once a person gets in a relationship you lose that, you begin putting the other before yourself. Your wants, your needs and your desires become THEIR wants, THEIR needs and THEIR desires. And at the age of 24, there is no way in hell I am ready to do that.

I get asked often if I ever get lonely. No, never. Not once. Not a single day of my life. Lonely? I LOVE being alone. I probably love it more than is healthy.  I never feel the need for companionship. If I want to do something and none of my friends want to go, then I will go alone. I have traveled the world, gone to concerts, movies, theme parks, sporting events, festivals and a variety of other things by myself and have never once felt lonely or any self pity.

I know there are those that are reading and thinking that something along the line of  "I don't know what I am missing," or "that when you find the one, nothing else is better" and yes, I believe that completely, but I am not ready to give up what I have now. If the day comes when Shemar Moore or Daniel Henney realize that I am the one for them, I will welcome it with open arms. But until then, I am going to continue on happily, alone BUT definitely not lonely.


#CHEERS2BEINGSINGLE

my Korean anniversary

September 1st will be mine and Korea's anniversary. And even though I had planned on only being here for a year, when the end of winter came and the arrival of warm weather, vacation and blue skies arrived, I entered a stage of happiness and re-signed for another year. I now will be under contract until September 1, 2014. (Come winter, I, with out a doubt, will regret this decision)

Coming to Korea was an escape from having to face real life. I consider this a pause, a vacation, a break on the inevitable time where I will have to begin to establish myself in a career, pay grown people taxes, own adult things like houses and cars, give up spending Friday nights in the club and Saturdays attempting to detox before spending Saturday night at the bar. Possibly participating in an adult relationship with long-term commitment, putting  somebody other than myself first and giving up spending Sundays unshowered, looking like chewbacca, in my underwear, eating ice cream from the carton, while immersing myself in the cheesiest of romance novels or trashiest of television shows.

Teaching in Korea minus the hours that I sat and thoroughly warmed my computer chair as I flipped through mindless websites with nothing to do but try to pass time without offing myself, I have loved. (In Korea we have 20 vacation days to use in our first year, the school has about 40 vacation days, so those extra 20 days we are required to come in to work, despite NOBODY else being around and "desk warm." ) My co-workers and school have both been nothing but great to me. And because I have a zero crap tolerance, my students who started out as insubordinate creatures, have now become well behaved teacher's pets. I couldn't have asked for a better situation.

Life in Korea itself ..... has been interesting. Here every time I walk the streets, enter a room, get on a bus or subway EVERY SINGLE eye that isn't a foreigner is on me as if I were Hitler, Jesus or Tupac returned from the dead. Unfortunately it isn't because I am outstandingly good-looking or endowed with the body of a goddess, it's because I stand out in every single way possible, my appearance, nationality, ethnicity, height, size and language I speak. Despite me being here for a year, people are still surprised that I can eat with chopsticks, like Kimchi, and can eat "spicy" food (to a person coming from a minute north of Mexico, there is nothing spicy about Korean food). When I read something in Hangul, despite it being the easiest alphabet to learn in the world, I receive a bigger reaction than the death of Michael Jackson. And because I am a westerner, which is also defined as a fast, easy and slut here, I have been petitioned for more sex than 6 prostitutes could handle in a lifetime.

But despite the annoyances that any foreigner living in a different country would encounter, life here has also been amazing. I have met people from all over the world and now have acquaintances that span the globe. Next year when my time comes, I will be leaving with a small amount but wonderful lifetime friends. I have been exposed to the orgasmic flavors of Korean food. I have been able to experience a city with public transportation that puts the rest of the world to shame, a city where being hung over is not just accepted, it is expected. A place where floors heat, where there is quick, cheap and delicious front door delivery service for ANY Korean food you could want. A land of self-service bars, alcohol that cost less than water and "service." (service is what Koreans call free gifts that you receive at stores and restaurants for shopping there, ranges from accessories, side dishes, discounts, extra amounts of whatever you buy ext..) I have a job that allows me to not only travel the world and spend money on whatever my heart desires but also to save for what my dad calls "a rainy day." And on top of all of this, I am able to work on my master degree while maintaining my social life.

While I am more homesick than a pregnant woman in the morning, I have high hopes for the next year. I will be adding more stamps to my passport, finishing a large chunk of my degree, setting myself up for a grown up job in America, gaining more weight by feeding all of my cravings with no guilt, hopefully saving enough for a "rainy year" and preparing myself for that unfortunate thing called adulthood.

#CHEERS2MAKINGITTHISFAR

A week in the hospital

A series of unfortunate events: I got athlete's foot for the first time EVER that I treated with over the counter medicine, didn't work. The athlete's foot morphed into a bacterial infection. But not any normal bacterial infection, this was one that was unaffected by oral antibiotics so after taking a series of  ineffective pills the bacterial infection then evolved into staph infection. But my entire calf, ankle and foot region looking similar to Frankenstein's STILL wasn't enough, the staph infection then infected my blood, which landed me in a Korean hospital for a week.

I am very close with my family so when there is anything wrong with me I go to them for advice right away. Even though I know what to expect from each person already. 

My sister will give me a worst case scenario diagnosis. 

Me: *cough *cough

My sister: "You have tuberculous, you need to go see a doctor. "

Which then I usually ignore because one way or another, whatever is wrong with me always equals a hospital visit.

My dad blames my sickness on my awesome social life.

Me: "My tonsils are swollen"

Dad: "You need to stop drinking so much."

Me: "I tore a ligament in my knee."

Dad: "You go out too much, you know you do have a home."

Which then I usually ignore because I love my social life.

And my Mom will treat me like I am taking my last few breaths on earth.

Me: "I have a cold."

(3 hours later)

Mom: "I went to the store, I got you Tylenol cold, NyQuil, DayQuil, lemons, tea, some new patches that will help you with congestion, some herbal tea in 7 flavors and 6 different kinds of soups."

Which then I usually eat up because who doesn't like being babied by their mother?

And this time was no different. I told my family that my athlete's foot got infected (I didn't mention it was after a 2 day rave where I spent 32 hours dancing in my tennis shoes) and my foot had swelled 4 times its normal size.

My sister
 "You have staph and the infection can get in your blood, you have to go to a hospital. You know they can amputate your foot right?"

My dad
First he gave me sound advice on how to treat my foot. But then of course he told me, "You ought to keep your butt home sometime." 

My mom
Shipped me some Tin-actin, new inserts for my shoes and bought me new shoes.

But as I did in the past, I ignored the warnings figuring that one way or another it would heal itself. WRONG. 2 days later my foot was not only huge but my ankle and calf also swelled up and I had shooting pains. Still ignoring my sisters advice to go to a hospital instead that Monday I went to a clinic and saw a doctor there. The doctor prescribed me some antibiotics, gave me some cream and sent me on my way. I thought I was in the clear, 3 days of antibiotics and taking it easy at most and then back to normal. No instead I got 3 more days of even worse shooting pains, I was limping around, I had a fever and my foot and  ankle swelled up MORE.

But I still didn't think it was hospital worthy. I continued to teach, ignoring my families advice along with the pleas from my co-teachers to allow them to take me to the hospital. The was no way I was going. And then Friday came along. I woke up to an email from my mom. It was a link to a website about staph infections. First listing the symptoms, swelling, pain, redness and fever... I had them all. Then showing what could happen, blood infection, skin burns, bone infection and potentially death. Not exactly something one wants to read before breakfast.

It was then I decided that I should probably go to the hospital. I went to work first and I taught all of my classes and had lunch, I was trying to prolong making this trip but my co-teachers realized what I was doing, called me a cab and sent me on my way.

There are not many things I fear. But number one on the list are hospitals. I hate hospitals, they terrify me. They mere thought of them gives me the chills. At the ripe age of 24, before this visit, I had never gone to the hospital with out my older sister or Mom in tow, I am that reluctant to go and I am that afraid of them. After being dropped off at the hospital I sat outside for about 20 minutes, Google searching home cures for staph. No luck. So I went in. After checking in I had to wait, the doctor was at lunch. I can't ever control my emotions when I am in a hospital so while I was sitting there my palms started to sweat and I was unable to sit still. I started a conversation with my sister. The conversation was going fine until she said, "you're probably going to have to stay a few days."

First tears started running down my face. It was like a dam had broken in my eye sockets. I couldn't stop the tears from coming. Then I started to have a panic attack. I couldn't catch my breath, my thoughts were scattered and I was shaking. I put my head between my knees trying to get myself together, it was ridiculous, I hadn't even stepped into the Doctor's office or received a real diagnosis and I was already a mess. There I was, a tall black person with big curly hair sitting in the middle of a Korean hospital as if I already didn't stand out enough now I then started to cry and breathe as if I had just run for my life, needless to say EVERYBODY  was staring at me. I couldn't even be embarrassed,  I was too worried about just being there, who cared what people thought about me.  It took a few minutes but I finally pulled myself together just in time to be called into see the doctor.

The doctor visit was short. I sat down he looked at my foot and in broken English told me he was going to give me antibiotics. I then told showed him my previous prescription. After he looked over it he told me he was admitting me. I was confused, I didn't quite understand him because of his accent.

Me: "Excuse me? You're whating me?
Dr: "Admitting you."
Me: " Admitting what to me?"
Dr: "Here. You must stay. 1 week at least."

I finally understood and it made me hysterical. I started laughing first, I put my head in my hands and sat there and laughed and laughed. I couldn't believe this was happening to me. My sister's worst case scenario actually came true and my Dad was right, my social life was the reason why I was here. I finally realized that the poor Doctor was sitting there watching me lose it probably reconsidering to send me to a psych ward.   I gathered myself together and he stent me on my way to check in. Before going to my room I had to go through a series of tests. I had to get an X-ray, blood test and urine test all located in different departments around the hospital. I wandered around like a lost puppy for a while trying to figure out where I needed to go. My brain was mush, any common sense I had was lost. Finally an older Korean woman (an aujumma) noticed my struggled and helped me out. She took my paper figured out where I needed to be and then walked me to each department by hand and waited while I was tested before sending me off the the 8th floor, my home for the next week.

My room had 8 beds including my own and my roommates were my seniors by 40 years minimum. I was told to wait for my doctor so he could go over my actual diagnosis. I sat on my bed waiting, feeling sorry for myself, I was thinking that it was going to be the longest and most boring week of my life. As I sat and moped one of my new roommates walked over and handed me a plate full of snacks and then begin inspecting my body. I had no idea what she was doing, at first I just assumed she were checking if I were real like most other Koreans do and then I realized that she was just trying to figure out what landed me, a spring chicken, in this coup with old hens.

The doctor came in and you would have thought that he was giving a public speech, everybody gathered around to see what  the foreigner had. The Doctor explained that I had a staph infection and they found it in my blood.

Doctor: "You'll be here at least a week."
Me: "Why so long?"
Doctor: "Because this is very dangerous, you can die."

You would think that  telling somebody that who just had a hysteria attack in your office BEFORE receiving a diagnosis would be a bad idea but I didn't freak out. At that same time he was telling me what was wrong, I had one aujumma massaging my back and another practically spoon feeding me Korean goodies. My usual fear was replaced by comfort from these strangers.

During my stay I had awesome roommates and hospital staff. My friends and co teachers were around to keep me sane. My Mom decided that me being in a Korean hospital was a good reason to add me on Facebook and along with my sister chatted with me everyday. I was able to catch up on some reading(again thanks to my sister and her kindle account), indulge on as much white rice as I wanted and blame all weight gain on the situation, as well as plan my next 3 vacations.

While my stay wasn't bad, my fear of hospitals is still not cured and I am more than happy to be back to my everyday life.

#CHEERS2NEVERGOINGBACK

What I miss most about home....

1- Grocery Shopping
   -I miss going to the grocery store and shopping with ease. Being able to quickly navigate through isles and pick up exactly what I want and need with out having to consult my dear friend Google Translate every 4 seconds. I miss being able to QUICKLY read signs to find the best deals. I miss produce being CHEAP. The days when I could buy a watermelon with the extra change in my car. The days when apples didn't cost nearly $1.50 EACH. Gone are the days when I could quickly swing by the grocery store and pick up items for my weekly meal prep. I now have to plan a block in my day to grocery shop because it has become an hour and a half scavenger hunt.

2-Sarcasm
  -Just doesn't translate. I miss not feeling like a complete a** every time I am sarcastic.

3-Shoe Shopping
  -My shoe fetish has been tamed here in Korea. I am more likely to see the Lockness Monster walking down the street on a leash than I am to find a pair of shoes in my size here. I am an average Western size 8.5 (American size) but when I walk into a store and ask if they carry that size you would have thought I asked for the original copy of the Declaration of Independence gift wrapped in sheets of gold. The employees look at me as if they were saying "WHY would we carry that MONSTROUS size? and WHAT kind of beast wears it?"

4-Mexican Food
  -There is NO real Mexican food in Korea. At 5 am when I am waiting for the first train to start running, there in NOTHING more in the world that I desire more than a California Burrito. Nothing satisfies an alcohol induced body like a 2,000 calorie burrito that is OOZING with cheese, sour cream, guacamole, french fries and carne asade, especially after you DROWN it in red salsa and lime juice. I dream of the day I am able to stumble into Roberto's on 3rd and molest a burrito in the most unladylike manner surrounded by my dearest friends laughing at the mayhem we caused that night.

5-Sports
  -Don't take this the wrong way, sports in Korea (especially baseball) are great. But I miss turning on ESPN after work, watching AND understanding the highlights. I miss the days when sports aired in the evening so after a long day I could glue myself to the couch (with said Mexican food ^) and watch whatever game that was on. Unlike now, watching sports either requires me to stay up all night long or wake up at some ungodly hour (4 am), to go to an over crowded, over priced bar and sit (if I am lucky enough to find a seat) among loud, annoying and drunk fans. And the days that I am one of those loud, annoying  and drunk fans, I miss, as mentioned previously, Mexican food.

6- Communication
  -This is a broad topic. I miss speaking fast. I miss walking into a store or restaurant and not having to worry about comprehension issues. I miss the independence speaking the home language allows you. If my sink were to break at home I'd have no issue in calling a plumber (my dad) but here in Korea, I called for a plumber and  an electrician showed up. I miss ordering delivery on my own and having EXACTLY what I want be exactly what I receive instead of it being a surprise each time. I never know what I am going to get, I may think I ordered chicken but might just receive 3 pizzas and a cola. I miss understanding everything that is going on around me and not going through my everyday life as if I were playing charades, having to communicate with hand gestures and body movements.

and  last but definitely not least......


7-Clevage
  -I miss cleavage not being considered the work of the devil. When having a bit of cleavage didn't automatically place you in the "she's fast, cheap and gets around" category. When using cleavage to your advantage was something universal to most (those with it) women, widely accepted by all women and beneficial in so many ways.  But I ESPECIALLY miss when having cleavage was just something awesome.

#CHEERS2HOME

PS: Korea is amazing and I love living here otherwise.

Photos: Sports Day and My Sweet, Sweet Children

This week my school, as well as many other schools in Korea, held Sports Day. Put simply, Sports Day is an entire day devoted to a mass competitive P.E class. The students get together and they compete in different physical events. The groups who win the most events receive a small prize. This year was my first Sports Day and I had an amazing time. Luckily,  I didn't have a designated job like the other teachers so I  was able to circulate among my students, watch them compete, cheer them on and take as many photos as I could.

Photos of a few of the events

6th and 5th Grade students

3 leg race

Ball carry race

Pig Hop Wrestling (Last man standing = winner)

When the teacher blew the whistle the students had to rotate clockwise with out letting the sticks fall to the ground.

The students had to pass the balls backwards one by one and put them in a basket at the finish line.

Jumping Rope. Team with the most consecutive jumps wins.

Capture the flag. Students had to take the flags off their opponents backs, last team standing wins.

Shoe throw. Students took turns kicking off their shoes trying to land them in a circle  for points.

Photos of my Sweet, Sweet Children (mostly my 6th graders) ^^

My favorite 6th grade class

Some of my favorite boys.

If I had to adopt children, they would be them. 

My school year has so far been absolutely amazing. Despite the at times demonic 2nd graders, my students really do make my day, everyday. As the 2/3 mark of my contract approaches, the question is, will I re-sign for a 2nd year?

#CHEERS2MYSWEETSWEETCHILDREN

Hiking *unedited

Korea is a very mountainous country. A quick google search informed me that in Seoul alone there are 37 mountains. I quickly discovered that the "mountains" back home that I am familiar with are more like small piles of dirt. Korea has real mountains and this weekend I hiked up one.

A friend of mine who is really into hiking invited me to join him on a group hike that was being held for his friends' birthday. He always has spoken so highly of hiking and how much he enjoys it. He, like me, is very into fitness and staying in shape and spoke highly of the good work out that hiking was. The only "hiking" that I have done is Cowel's Mountain back home in San Diego. Cowel's Mountain is enjoyable but it is very much like San Diego's weather, nice, easy to deal with but in no way does it prepare you for the rest of the world.

My friend and I arrived at Dobongsan (the mountain that we hiked) before the rest of the group, so we had enough time to sit and grab coffee. It was an absolute beautiful day and we were able to sit outside on the coffee shop's patio. The coffee shop was located at the base of the mountain near the entrance so sitting outside allowed us to watch all the people that were going on one of the various trails the mountain had to offer. Before this hike I had a preconceived belief that hiking was a walk in the park because of the type of people in Korea who were "hikers." Sitting at the coffee shop just reaffirmed that belief. About 5 percent (rough estimate) of the people that I watched head up to the mountain  were people who looked remotely in shape. The other 95 percent were old men and women that were wearing florescent hiking jackets with matching pants, carrying hiking sticks, wearing visors or big floppy hats, strapped in big burley boots and fit with a "hikers" backpack. There were also small children, a few men wearing work blazers and young females who looked as if the only physical activity that they ever engaged in was getting out of bed every morning (and that could possibly be a struggle).

I sat there drinking my coffee silently mocking this whole notion of hiking as a work out. Walking up hill, I doubted that I was even going to sweat, anything a 60 year old 5'0ft woman could do, I could do backwards with one leg. I am in very good shape, I work out everyday alternating between various activities, weight training, circut training and cardio. I was so confident in how easy this was going to be I texted my trainer to possibly see if he could keep the gym open so I would be able to get a REAL work out in after the hike.

And then half way up the hill I felt my lungs about to collapse.

If I were hiking at the pace of the average hiker I would have been okay. But I am too competitive. If Mattle were to make a Barbie inspired by me it would be Competition Barbie, and she would be wearing yoga pants, two sports bras, obnoxiously bright colored sneakers and her accessory would have been a trophy that loudly displays #1.

I was raised in a family with too many kids to count, that there is a natural breeding habitat for competition. Sibling rivalry was and constantly is INTENSE. The street that I grew up on only had boys who were my age, me being the only girl I was constantly proving myself to be "just as good" (or in my case better) than the boys. Who could run the fastest, eat the fastest, win the most games, fight the best, who was the strongest, smartest anything that we did growing up we managed to turn into some type of competition.  I have also played sports for as long as I could remember. All I know is competition. I am the girl at the gym who races the people next to her on the treadmill. I was the girl who TRIED to bust the curve in my classes. My friends and I compared test grades, SAT scores and constantly tried to one up another. I have NEVER let my nephew or niece (younger by 8 and 12 years respectively) beat me in anything, they had to EARN their wins. I am that competitive.

In our group of hikers we had a gentleman who was from Colorado and had been hiking all of his life. He was also about 6'1 with long powerful legs. That man floated up the mountain. He looked as if he were walking on clouds. He kept a stead pace of about 100 MPH and avoided the mobs of Koreans with ease. I accepted the fact that there was no way in hell I was going to be able to beat him. This was my first time hiking and he was native to it but I am too competitive to settle, if I wasn't going to beat him I was at least going to keep up with him. Each 1 of his steps was 3 of my own. I matched his graceful steps and composure with thunderous stomps  and ragged breathing. But I kept up. We were moving rather quickly so a few times we had to stop and wait for the rest of the group. I cherished these breaks. They gave me time to collect myself and slow my pounding heart down a bit. I was dripping in sweat, I looked like death and I felt as if there wasn't enough oxygen in the world to satisfy my need at that moment. It was one of the hardest workouts that I have had in a very long time.

The last leg of the hike kicked my butt, literally. My entire legs, hamstrings, quads, calf muscles and knee tendons were on fire. Each time I had to lift my leg to take a step up felt like I were lifting tree stumps. By this time all the boys were a bit of the way ahead of me. Mr. Colorado kept telling me to imagine like I was a Mountain Goat.  I felt more like a remote control car that was running out of battery power, my pace was steadily declining and the end just seemed to NEVER come. When I was near failure, ready to take my own break and sit down a bit, my friend shouted down from up top. "Come on Kala keep going." The older Koreans behind me heard him say my name and were witnessing my slow death first had. They them chimed in and gave me words of encouragement. "Okay Kala!" "Fighting." I couldn't quit then. My pride was on the line. My competitive flame was relit and I dragged myself up that hill. In my mind I told myself that I was NOT going to let a mountain defeat me and if it did I had better die trying to conquer it.

And I conquered it. I, along with the rest of the group, made it to the top. The physical challenge alone was enough of an accomplishment for me. I loved the feeling of success. I had pushed myself beyond my limits and overcame the challenge at hand. But in addition to the feeling of accomplishment at the top of the mountain was an AMAZING view. We were over-looking the city and could see for miles upon end. Spring has just started so the mountain was covered in fresh blooms and green leaves. It was absolutely breath taking.

At the top of the mountain we rested, we ate, some napped, we chatted and soaked up the scenery before we had to begin our decent down. Going down is much easier than going up in the aspect of physical pain because there isn't any. But again, I was keeping pace with Mr. Colorado and his friend who was a graceful as a ballet dance. She pranced down this mountain like a deer would across a grass felid. I am not poised or graceful so I instead bulldozed my way down the mountain. I felt like a child taking it's first steps, with each on I wasn't sure if I were going to remain upright or go tumbling down like a boulder. But I made it, was able to some how manage to keep myself upright the entire time and avoid injuring myself.

By the end of the hike, my quads were unsteady, my lungs were raw, my knees were sore and my feet were cursing me. The Hour and 30 minute trek home was a battle to keep myself awake to avoid taking a nap on the stranger's shoulder next to me. And by the time I got home I wanted nothing more than to lie in my bed and watch trashy TV.

The hike has made me make two promises to myself.
1-I will never again talk trash about the hiking gear wearers in Korea.
2-I will remain physically active for the REST of my life. The old Korean hikers are proof that there are NO EXCUSES.

#CHEERS2CHALLENGES


Here are a few pictures from the hike.

*unedited