Merry Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas Eve.

It's officially Christmas Eve here in Pohang, South Korea.  It's that time of year for caroling, Christmas cookies and my Mom's famous heart attack casserole.  Unfortunately for yours truly, this year will be a little different.  Christmas Eve for me will consist of playing with the  cutest kids in creation, eating Korean food and riding a bus to the airport for a beach vacation with some of my closest friends.  Not exactly a down home Christmas, but one that will definitely be remembered.

It doesn't exactly feel like Christmas.  Without the snow and the familiarness of home it just isn't the same.  Maybe that is the reason why I am not feeling more homesick than I am.  Of course reading the Facebook statuses about a winter wonderland Christmas or singing Christmas carols in a language I actually understand make me homesick, but somehow it doesn't seem real all the way over here.  When I don't see all of the reminders of what I am missing I almost forget about it all.  Of course I remember and miss my family and friends, but the fun of what I miss is somehow replaced by the fun and memories I am making.

This time tomorrow I will be on a bus and headed for the airport.  My duffel bag is packed full with tank tops, flip flops and sundresses.  The weather is forecasted for 92 degrees on Christmas day in Bangkok, Thailand.  A far cry from the blankets of white snow that has been covering the the majority of the midwest during the past few weeks.

From December 25th-Janurary 2nd I will be in a country where there are a million things I want to do.  In Thailand I want to ride an elephant, go to the tiger temple, lay out on the beach and so many more.  I have a vague list of things I want to do but if they don't get crossed off it's ok.  I'm honestly just excited to get away from Pohang.  Get away from Kids College.  Get away from my itty bitties.  An entire week of sun, relaxation and fun with some of the best people I know.  I consider myself blessed.

To whoever is reading this, I hope you have a merry Christmas and a happy and fulfilled New Year.  Thank you for coming with me on this journey through the ups and downs in Korea.

See you in 2011.

Noise

It's nights like tonight.  When it's so quiet I can hear the rain fall on the eaves of the apartments across the alley.  So quiet that I can hear the tick-tock-tick coming from my watch in my backpack.  So quiet that every recessed memory comes out of hiding and is begging to be the forefront of my thoughts.  Quiet.  Still.  While sometimes I love this quiet more than I can even say,  I miss having noise.  The sound of the garage door opening and knowing my dad is getting home from work.  Hearing the dogs bark outside, whining to come in.  The noise of Mom sweeping the kitchen floor.

In Korea the noise is different.  The noise is of construction workers, scrambling to finish the building they're on. Of mosquitoes that somehow creep their way into your apartment at 2am and buzz and buzz until you're awake holding your shoe as a weapon.  Of honking taxis, desperate for your body in their cab so that they can make their nightly fare quota.  The noises are different.  The noises are not as comforting or as familiar.  They are just noise.  Like the sound of a tv when it switches from Golden Girls reruns to the black and white static that fills the screen.

It's weird sometimes the things you miss.  The noises.  The smells.  The familiarity.  Tonight,  I miss the noise of home.  The familiar sounds of family.