Korea: Nostalgic Views in Hwajeong

One of the best parts of living in the little make-shift office turned bedroom I had in Korea was the largely unobscured view offered by the large windows within, offering me a glimpse out onto the city of Hwajeong as the sun rose or faded into the horizon and all the various shades in between. Hwajeong, while not really Seoul proper, is still quite a bustling little suburb and full of life, so I'd often overhear whooping shouts and excited calls from people celebrating below, at all hours of the night. It was fascinating, and often quite beautiful. The trade-off was that occasionally I'd be awoken early on my day off and told that the office was needed for the home owner's work purposes and to, more or less, make myself scarce. These things. In theory, I could have found a small apartment somewhere in Seoul and rented it for cheaper than what I paid for my sometimes less-than-private space, as many of my friends and their cohorts in a different field emphasized, but my living arrangement was already predetermined in a contract that outlined my work requirements and obligations prior to my even arriving to Korea. I'm not bitter about it, though there were times during my stay where I'd get frustrated by feeling trapped in a situation that wasn't always to my benefit. The other rooms in the apartment were rented out on AirBnB for a higher rate than what I was paying, so I was getting a deal, but there were often strangers coming and going outside my bedroom, or an awkward wait for the shared restroom in the morning when several of us had obligations to tend to. Some of the AirBnB guests stayed on for a longer term, and we got to know eachother a little better in the brief encounters in the kitchen or hallways, but some nights I'd find myself answering the door to an exhausted stranger I hadn't been told to expect, a potentially spooky situation depending on the circumstances. I digress. In the end, I'm immensely grateful for having had the opportunity to live and work in such an incredible place as South Korea, and while I certainly wish I'd had more information going in, I'm still very much glad I went. 

Road Tripping: Pioneer Park in St. George, Utah

If you want to get THE best view of St. George, then Pioneer Park is the place to go! It's not much further up the road from where we were in the previous post, and the big rock overlook is easy to spot from anywhere in the city. Such a prominent landmark makes it easy to identify and locate, and if you get lost you could surely ask any local and be pointed the right direction. There's a bit of a trek to get to the viewpoint after parking, but it's nothing terribly arduous so don't worry if you're not in outstanding physical shape. If you can climb some stairs, you'll be okay. If you struggle with a narrow stairwell, then be forewarned, the route to the top of the rock is a roughly defined stairway in stone that could be slippery or a little difficult if you have mobility difficulties or it's just rained. No rain fell on us this day, so we're grateful for that, and we were able to get a photo together near the edge of the large rock thanks to a friendly couple who happened to pop up to take in the view around the time we did. We traded phones and cameras for photos, an even exchange. 

I don't know if you can tell from my body language or not, but I was ready to be away from the edge. Despite working at the Stratosphere tower on the 108th floor for years, I'm not too keen on heights, especially out in the open like this with the wind blowing my hair about. We got our photos and took some for the other duo, then went back to our hike where we were less precariously perched near the edge. There's a lot more to the park than just this big rock look out point, after all! It's a pretty massive park, with 52 acres full of hiking trails and biking paths. We'll definitely have to make a point of it to explore the area more in depth next time we find ourselves out in the area. The colors in the stones remind me of home, Valley of Fire and Red Rock, but all the trees and greenery add a lush contrast to the usual views we get. It's not that Vegas and the nearby areas don't have greenery, any trip out to Mount Charleston to admire the bristlecone pines and aspen will quickly affirm that we, too, can have forests, but these are different. While landscaping choices are going to divert from the traditional Fremont Cottonwoods or Honey mesquite, the fauna is going to be subtly different from what we're used to in our stretch of desert. 

It's always a good idea to try to get a new perspective whenever possible. This was a nice glimpse of the city and we enjoyed our visit. We'll definitely make a trip back out this way at some point in the future, perhaps when we can spend more than a day exploring all that it has to offer. With so many miles of hiking trails, and the nearby nature reserves, there's so much to see and we'll definitely have to plan an overnight van-stay. 

10 things to do in Vegas this summer (part two)

There's no shortage of ways to stay entertained in fabulous Las Vegas, but if you need some inspiration for things to do this summer this list offers the second half of five out of ten (previous five can be viewed here) of my picks for things to do in Las Vegas during the summer season of 2018! 

6. Take in the view from the High Roller at the Linq promenade

If you're one for spectacular views from above, then this is one opportunity you won't want to miss out on! You can go during the day or night, or try to plan it out to catch the spectacular sunset views. The Linq promenade is easily accessible from most of the Strip as it's right in the heart of it all. The Linq promenade itself has plenty of restaurants, bars, shops and other entertainments to keep you busy for hours, if not days, if you stay nearby.  It's attached to both Harrah's and the Flamingo/ 

7. Jump off of the tallest tower in the city 

If simply gazing out at the lights and admiring their beauty isn't thrilling enough for you, you can try jumping off of the Stratosphere tower after taking in the view from the 108th floor. It's not hard to spot the Stratosphere and it's used as a landmark for orienting oneself by locals for a reason, and it's a hop-skip-and-a-jump away from Downtown and Fremont districts, so if you're still riding that adrenaline high you can also...

8. Zipline over the crowds under the Fremont Street Experience

Keep that adrenaline rush roaring by hopping a quick ride (bus, Lyft, Uber or even a rental bike) down to Fremont Street, at the North end of the Las Vegas boulevard strip. Here you'll find some insane people watching coupled with ample booze and mayhem to keep you entertained for hours. Within a short amount of time walking under the television screen-topped street, you'll likely encounter screaming butts flying overhead. Those would be the zipliners, who grabbed tickets to Slotzilla before you. You can join their ranks and zip over the street in a seated or superman style pose. 

9. Dance to some Reggae in the Desert 

Get funky with Las Vegas's largest reggae festival! General admission is $24.99 per person, making it one of the more affordable all-day music festivals. 

10. Dive-in movies at Wet'n'Wild! 

Same idea as the Dive-in movies at the Cosmo, except this time it's at Wet'n'Wild! Wet'n'Wild is a chain with several locations, so it's a little less limited to -just- Vegas, but there's definitely a lot of fun to be had between swim and screen time with the family! This will be especially appealing to those of you who don't want to be in a casino environment and the movies are much more family-friendly overall, with fun features like Moana, Despicable Me and even the Lion King (because who doesn't want to sob hysterically at the water park?)... 

Hope this provides you with some entertainment this summer!

Thanks for stopping by!

💕

XOXO,

NAU

Vegas: Cliffside views near Valley of Fire state park

You might recall from a recent post how I mentioned a previously unrealised fear of heights. That fear absolutely and positively remains, and taking these photos was a real test of my willpower. Antho had no qualms stepping right up to the edge of this cliff, which is visible during the drive from the West entrance of the park back to the interstate. The road winds it's way along the precipice and this was one of the first times we've come back this way. I found it a lot more nerve-wracking being on the right-hand side of the road next to the cliff than trek out to the park on it, as you're nestled up against another mountain going in. Antho managed to talk me into going over the line in the rock up to near where he was standing here, but I wasn't entirely comfortable with it. The view, of course, was absolutely stunning and in that regard I'm quite glad to have pushed my comfort-zone and gone as close to the edge as I managed to. After our overnight campout at the Arch Rock campsite, our visits from the friendly ground squirrels and the tie-dye photoshoot we were pretty ready to be heading home, but Antho couldn't resist pulling over to take in this view. There was no one else in sight while we strode across the desert towards the edges, which come quite abruptly to their descent. As I mentioned, it really was quite a stunning view and I'm glad I made the uncomfortable approach to take it in. I don't think I'm going to be playing along the edges of cliffs again any time too soon, but this was a worthwhile moment and I'm glad it happened. It helps having someone as supportive and patient as Antho to hold my hand and offer kind words to soothe my nerves along the way. We've been together for almost 4 years now and gone on many adventures, from Chinatown and ferry rides in Oakland, walking from Golden Gate Park to the Golden Gate Bridge and the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco, to our local staycations. I'm looking forward to many years more. 💘 

More photos below!