Tag Archives: August

Special visit

The past few days have been a busy blur of copious amounts of good food and buzzing all around Korea like we were tourist again. This time the only difference was, we had bumblebee and Kelsey along for the ride!

Yes, Kelsey, this young woman has more depth, kindness, loyalty, boldness, grace, honesty and wisdom than I ever knew could exist in a person! Oh! And she’s family to boot!! Cousin Kelsey, you my dear are nothing short of amazing and we are SO happy you chose to come visit us again before starting your new exciting adventure on the East coast! We cannot wait to watch you go on to do big things!

Backpackbees

Belated Birthday Post

I read in an article recently that every woman’s love language is cheese, carbs and chocolate. While I only partially agree with that statement, I am absolutely 100% convinced this is why the invention of Spanx skyrocketed!

We celebrated my birthday the other week and boy did we indulge in what they claim is every woman’s love language! There was A LOT of cheese, carbs and yes even, gasp, chocolate!

I woke up Monday morning, after an entire weekend of celebration, was eating breakfast and realized after all the celebrating we did, we didn’t light any candles and I didn’t make my birthday wish. I texted Mr. B and he replied, “QUICK! It’s still your birthday in the states light a candle and make your wish!”.

It’s true! Can you believe I almost forgot to blow out candles and make a wish on my birthday?

I stood in our kitchen hummed happy birthday tune to myself and made my wish JUST in time. Whew! Talk about a close call… Ha-ha! Not to mention, it gave me an excuse to eat a bite of the banana cake I baked for my birthday. Cake at breakfast is always a win in my book!

To me it wasn’t just about making a birthday wish on my birthday, it was about taking that moment to appreciate my life, all the blessings, the wonderfulness and everything that made this past year so special.

The days leading up to my birthday, I couldn’t help but reflect back on the past year of changes in my/our lives. Changes for better, changes for worse. From family to friends, loss, fears and sadness to happiness, excitement and new beginnings. Remembering that life is very sacred, this world we live in is so fragile and the kindness that used to bloom from everywhere is becoming more and more scarce the older I get.

Mr. B and bumblebee spoiled me with so much love, wonderful gifts, quality time together and delicious treats (traditional birthday breakfast complete with morning mimosa, sushi bento box lunch, home cooked duck breast, my favorite carrot cake from My happy place)! Dear friends made it even more special by throwing a little themed party of around the world. So. Much. Fun!

How do you celebrate birthdays?  Do you have birthday traditions, or do you strive for something unique each year?

Backpackbees

Seoul’s Sip & Paint

Eek! Can you believe I almost forgot to post about Kelsey and I’s Sip and paint class in Seoul last weekend? Or, as my Uncle described it, gulp and drip. Ha ha ha! You may also know the class as paint and pour, or corks and canvas.

Before I get into that, we started off our morning with an early lunch at the Bakers Table in Itaewon. We grabbed panini’s and soup. It was perfect….well except for my genius idea to have soup. Folks, it was at least 90 degrees out. I have no idea what I was thinking. Perhaps I was excited because I heard pumpkin? Yep, they got me with sweet pumpkin soup.

But really, we had a blast! Kelsey signed us both up as a birthday gift, what a sweetheart she is! We had been talking about the sip and paint class she did in the states with penguins and the fun that she had. I hadn’t taken a class yet, but really wanted to try one out. Luckily, Art & Seoul started to offer a variety of classes to take and Kelsey jumped right on it. That gal! I’m telling you!

The idea is that you get together with a group of friends for a relaxing class of sipping, painting and creating! You bring your own alcohol, tag the bottle with your name, you can bring snacks, but there were some light refreshments to nibble on too.

We were immediately greeted by the lovely host, directed to find our canvas where our paint brushes, paint and smock were. We had a super upbeat and informative instructor that guided us through our masterpiece step by step at the perfect pace. Our instructor was patient and fun! I think Kelsey and I asked for black pain about a zillion times and thankfully she didn’t seem to mind one bit. After all I guess she knew going into instructing us that we we’d be a group of tipsy armature artist.

Half of the class painted Buddha, the other half painted cherry blossoms. We pre-selected Buddha. The colors and creations that I got to see come out on everyone’s canvas was the best part to me. When I was there painting the memory of my grandparents telling me about my dad and I coloring when I was little popped into my head. They asked how I did with staying in the lines on my picture and at the time my Dad say, “Well there is room for improvement.” Dad, hopefully I got a little better with my color technique.

Cheers to many more classes!

Backpackbees

Sisters in Seoul Continued

The past weekend and week were just gorgeous! You know the kind. We did a little exploring around Seoul with the sisters and we’re absolutely diggin’ it! Straight kicking it cousin style. Ha Ha! I’m sure missing these ladies since they have left, I know Kelsey is too.

We treated ourselves twice to Wood & Brick. You guys, this place is just the most sweetest, charming place. Gah! I feel like so many places now pale in comparison. We also had the pleasure of meeting the owners and it only added to my love of this place. They had such a passion for their food, bakery and customers. The best part was they just re-opened the newly remodeled bakery.

Eek! Oh, I almost forgot, french macarons! You know I’ve made it my mission to search them out everywhere we live. Wouldn’t you know that Wood & Brick not only has macarons, but they have delightful ice-cream sandwich macarons too! Think flavors like banana, camel, mango, and green tea.

Ohh and then there was this cake. I celebrated part of my birthday during the week. Yes, you read the last sentence correctly. Part. The rest of the birthday festivities will be this weekend. Stay tuned.

Mr. B and Kelsey whipped up the cake of my choice. Earl grey with a lavender buttercream frosting. It was a silly mess in our kitchen but full of big laughs and memories I’ll never ever forget. Thank you guys!

^ Kelsey after they realized the lavender did not need to be pulverized. Oops.

Ps: These flowers are killing it too. One from Mr. B and the other from my talented friend Sunny. Swoon. I’d love to keep my house full of fresh-cut flowers year round if I could!

Backpackbees

Sisters in Seoul

I love when the sky looks like cotton candy or a beautiful water painting. That was the view from our place of Friday evening. It just begged to be captured for beautiful memories in the future.

So, Mr. B’s other cousins, Kelsey’s sisters, made it to Seoul to visit and travel around with Kelsey before she departs South Korea. They asked me if I’d like to meet up with them on Saturday morning and swing by the flower market at the Express bus terminal, and grab brunch. Unfortunately, the flower market was a bust. I think it has to do with it being so darn hot here. It was a shame they couldn’t see what we did from our last trip in the Spring. Nonetheless there were still some beautiful flowers. (I didn’t photograph).

After we left the flower market, we headed to Dean & Deluca. I’m so infatuated with this place. Each time I go I find myself wanting to learn more about seasoning salts, oils, and whatever else grabs my attention and mind. I picked up wild porcini sea salt and pumpkin butter. To say I was pretty excited is quite the understatement.

Two of us had the summer seasonal ricotta salad, one had tiramisu French toast, and the other the ricotta banana pancakes. The food just doesn’t disappoint! (Again, sorry no photographs)

From brunch we headed to Yeouido island only a few short stops away. We walked through the park taking in all the green, but keeping an eye on the really dark large storm clouds that looked like they were creeping in.

Do you see the gourds that are growing from the top and hanging down? We all joked about it falling on someone, but seriously all jokes aside, that would hurt if you didn’t expect something like that to fall on you. Eek!

From the park we crossed the road and went to the waterfront. Kelsey and I really enjoy the last time we sat with our feet dipped in the cool water. At that time it was really relaxed with minimal people…this time hardly any elbow room. Check out all the tents and children! When we walked under the bridge all you could see were tents upon tents. It looked like we were on some hippy compound, I was digging the vibe. Eventually we settled on a place and relaxed. This really is one of my favorite spots of the city. I love watching the people at the park, looking at the talk buildings across the way, and watching the Seoul boat tour putter up and down the river.

Addresses:

Express Bus Terminal: Lines 3, 7, 9.

Gangnam Flower Market: Exit 1 of the express bus terminal train station, the building next to the Shinsegae Department Store and the Bus Terminal. Go into the bus terminal, turn right and look for the escalators, go up to second floor.

Shinsegae Department (Gangnam) store B1, 19-3, Banpodong, Seocho-gu, Seoul

Dean and Deluca: Located on the basement food-court in Shinsegae Department.
Website : http://www.deandeluca.co.kr

Yeouido Park
120, Yeouigongwon-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul
서울특별시 영등포구 여의공원로 120 (여의도동)

Backpackbees

Around The Table

“It’s about what happens when we come together, slow down, open our homes, look into one another’s faces, listen to one another’s faces, listen to one another’s stories. It happens when we leave the office and get a sitter and skip our workouts every so often to celebrate a birthday or an accomplishment or a wedding or a birth, when we break out of the normal clockwork of daily life and pop the champagne on a cold, gray Wednesday for no other reason than the fact that the faces we love are gathered around our table. It happens when we enter the joy and the sorrow of the people we love, and we join together at the table to feed one another and be fed, and while it’s not strictly about food, it doesn’t happen without it. Food is the starting point, the common ground, the thing to hold and handle, the currency we offer to one another.” ~ Bread & Wine, by Shauna Niequist

F o o d. F o o d is four little letters that make up a word, that is sometimes overrated but often underrated. Think about it, no matter what language you speak, where you come from, or how far you go, food is made as an offering, an extension. Its used when words cannot be expressed due to sadness, or in times of celebration and happiness, or even as simple as when there is a language barrier. Ah food.

I turned my friends down earlier in the week when invited out for dinner because I was just to sad, upset, and feeling guilty to even fathom enjoying fun or enjoy food. I cashed in my rain check this evening and tonight I met around the table with a few good friends. We of course dined and enjoyed Saengsun jun (Korean pan-fried fish). After a really hard week, it was nice to just sit back relax, share memories, chat, and dine together in one anthers company at this dinner table. The older I get (I can say that now with another birthday under my belt as of August 14th) the more I realize how much I love to gather around the table with my family and good friends.

I even took along my camera to capture the moment and share with you all. Enjoy!

Backpackbees

Messy

The original mastermind behind the recipe I am going to share with you all stated that this dish looks like the inside of her car. Messy, unorganized, basically a chaotic mess…. I have to say, this dish easily applies quite well to our current state of mind too.

Messy.

We have had a really challenging past few weeks, topping everything off with losing our beloved family pet, Bean cat, yesterday morning. She fell very ill and passed very quickly thereafter. We still can’t believe that she is actually gone, nor do I ever know if we will ever be able to accept the harsh reality of it all.

A gigantic ball of a mess.

I really like that this blog is positive and uplifting showcasing our experiences and the good memories of our life as we live and travel around the world. However, I feel that I, we, are in a really messy state of mind dealing with our loss. I’m not sure how this post is going to go.. I can hardly form complete thoughts from moment to moment, but typing or writing out things in the past has always been therapeutic and added a little peace.

There are still so many questions that we know will never be answered. Still so many things that race through our minds. All of the what ifs. All of the things we are beating ourselves up inside over. The guilt, the remorse, the anger of it all, not getting the chance to tell her goodbye.

Bean holds such a special place in our hearts. We adopted her as a kitten in our home state of Pennsylvania. From Pennsylvania Bean traveled and lived with us through all of our marriage monumental moments. She moved from our first home in PA, to our first apartment in VA, to our first overseas home in South Korea. Gosh she was such a brave spitfire of a cat! She was always with us, no matter what! Always there to greet us when we got home every evening, and always there to wake us up every morning (oh was she was good at that!) she kept us both company earning two Masters degrees with us (Trust us, she earned those two Masters degrees too, she put many hours sitting patiently in our office on the desk or chair alongside of us). When Mr. B would travel for work, or when he moved to South Korea for the first six months without us, she was there with me through it all. She kept us laughing, kept our spirits lifted, and rarely was bad.

Last night going to a place we call home, feels no longer like a home. There is such an emptiness in my heart and in this space. The silence is just so loud and feels so hard to deal with. This is the first time in over five and a half years that I have ever felt so incredibly alone. I know that I have a loving partner who is always there for me, a loving caring family, and amazing friends that are all over the world, however…I am so alone without her here. Everything we do reminds us of her. Any sounds that we hear from our neighbors makes us think its her getting into something or jumping up onto the table, but it’s not.. We went to bed last night so badly wanting to call her in to jump us with us… but we couldn’t.

It’s always such awkward feeling when you have a dear friend that loses a pet of family member. You never quite know what to say to them. You know that no matter what you say never is going to really help, but you offer those words of encouragement, blessings, prayers, etc. However, those words, thoughts, blessings and prayers were dearly appreciated. We truly are so thankful for everything from everyone and want to say thank you to the masses as best as we can. Knowing that you all were sending those prayers Bean’s way and for us meant the world. Thank you all so much.

As I said earlier, messy… perfect dish to sum everything up.

Brown Butter Garden Vegetable Pasta Bake

Recipe slightly adapted from How Sweet It Is.

Ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat pasta, like ziti or rotini
1 zucchini, chopped
1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes
1 small red onion, chopped
2 ears of fresh corn, cut off the cob
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 bag of shredded mozzarella cheese, or whatever you prefer

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare water for pasta and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add pasta to cook. Drain when finished.

While pasta is cooking, heat a large pan on medium-low heat. Add in olive oil, then add in onions, zucchini, corn and tomatoes with salt and pepper, stirring to coat. Cook for 10-15 minutes, tossing occasionally, while softened.

While pasta and vegetables are cooking, heat a small saucepan oven medium heat. Add in butter and whisk constantly, stirring until bubbly and brown bits appear on the bottom, about 5-6 minutes. Remove and set aside.

Turn off heat under vegetables and add in pasta. Drizzle in brown butter and add in cheese, stirring well to coat. Put pasta into oven safe baking dish. Pop the dish on into the oven and cook for 10 minutes, or just until cheese is all melted and bubbly. Remove from oven, pop open a nice bottle of champagne or wine and please say a toast in remembrance of our dear Bean cat.

Backpackbees

Brunch & Bolaven

What’s going on in your part of the world?

It’s Sunday morning here, a tad bit overcast, but I’ve got high hope for the sun to make an appearance today. Unfortunately, the weather is forecasted to take an ugly turn shortly. Yes, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center, we’ve got Typhoon Bolaven moving towards our little Korean peninsula. The typhoon is expected to make landfall on/or around the afternoon of August 27th and will continue to move north bringing heavy rain of 50-100 mm. and strong winds. EEK!

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No worries! We’re prepared to hold down our happy abode with plenty of snacker packers ( he-he! that’s for Cassie & Josh). However we are concerned for our dear friends that have been staying with us. They need to catch a flight early in the week out of Korea to their next destination, London. Please send your prayers and good thoughts with them as they continue on with their journey.

Onto the best part of the blog, brunch!

After service today, I spent some time with a new friend, ate amazing food at Craftworks Taphouse & Bistro, and chatted about everything under the sun, or clouds in this case. It was basically a dream.

I snapped quick pictures with my iPhone of the menu so that I can drag Mr.B back the next time. I really liked the hidden back off the street atmosphere, and of course the food! MMMmm MMMmm MMMm!

Vegetarian eggs benedict.

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Just for you, I have included the delicious menu too!  Drool and enjoy!

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Check out the map coordinates here

Pairs

So many good things come in pairs,

like ears and socks and panda bears.

But, best of all are these set of twins,

with their extra laughter, and double grins!

G-Babies- Dig into your chocolate icing;
Enjoy all of your gifts, too!
The very special reason for this day
Is to celebrate the two of you!

Happy Birthday!!

Love, The Bees