moving in the rain is awesome. . .

But... we are all moved in to our new apartment and it's going to be great once we find our way through the mayhem of boxes and bubble wrap.  We moved all weekend with the help of some friends and a borrowed massive truck (that was so big... well, just an American sized pick up) that the truck wouldn't fit into the underground parking garages... forcing us to move all our junk in the drizzle.  At first it was stressful but by the end we were laughing.  Our new place is closer to work, closer to friends, closer to the newer, hipper part of the city so overall it's great.  It's actually a little larger and brighter than the other apartment.  Not on the 28th floor anymore but the 11th isn't too shabby, still have view of the river.  So cheers to our new place, we'll get some apartment photography up soon once we're unpacked!

shanghai

Shanghai is a bustling city, an intriguing juxtaposition between traditional and modern. The rich Chinese culture contains beautiful architecture, an array of food, and a genuinely friendly and helpful people. The communist history is interesting, often housed in French architectural remnants leftover from the era of European trade one hundred years ago. The French neighborhoods are a reprieve from the gritty Chinese city life, with tree-lined boulevards and quaint houses, ritzy shopping and western street cafes. Pudong is the most cutting edge part of China's most modern city. It is the area east of the Yangtze River where new high rises are springing up, international architects and urban planners are developing the new Shanghai, which isn't quite there yet, but well on its way. The history and shopping are well worth the visit... and the dumplings are superb!

Helicopters and Singers

Shanghai, China.
The Sunday morning choir practice in the French Concession at Fuxing Park.




The Joys of life:
Matthew got a remote control helicopter in Quibao near Shanghai.
Click to see the happiest kid ever.

soccer_north korea v south korea

World Cup Stadium, Seoul

Saipan

We've been married a year!

Can't believe how quickly it's flown by.

To celebrate, we spent a long weekend in Saipan,

a South Pacific Island near Guam.

. . . so beautiful.

this picture doesn't even do it justice

ahh, seriously?!

Mom and Dad visiting us in Seoul

My parents came out to visit us in Seoul last spring and we had a wonderful time together.  It was good to show them around the city and have them experience firsthand what our lives are like on a daily basis... which has proven to be complicated to explain over the phone!  We took them to korean barbeque, cooked in with them a few nights, and showed them all the things around town that we have enjoyed.  Most every day we would find ourselves relaxing at a coffee shop or tea house and catching up on the last year of our lives... trust me, I know where every Starbucks in Korea... it's like a little refuge of peacefulness from the mayhem!  Here is a picture of my beloved parents at the Gyeongbok Palace, in full springtime bloom.

This is in front of some of the highly secured buildings along the the border between North and South Korea.  The DMZ runs along the 38th parallel and remains the most heavily guarded border in the world.  We took my parents with us on a day trip to see what it was all about.  It was definitely a worthwhile visit, but disturbing and sad as well. [kind of scary!]

the cherry blossoms

Cambodia and Vietnam

Rad part of the world.

The highlight for us was seeing all the history and understanding what the Cambodian people have been through. It was a heavy trip in many ways, seeing what destruction and pain came from the mass genocide during the 1970's under the Khmer Rouge.

Vietnam is beautiful....... we spent the end of the trip at a beautiful beach called Mui Ne, in south central Vietnam.  Everything is relatively inexpensive and the food was nothing but phenomenal the entire time, both in Cambodia and Vietnam.  Here's a few of our photos:

Cambodia and Vietnam

We started in Siem Reap, Cambodia, to see the famous Angkor Wat Temples... a massive civilization constructed over 900 years ago that housed a civilization of a million people in its hayday. It was in a strategic location for the trade routes between India and China. These temples are somewhat raw - you really can walk around anywhere, it hasn't yet become so commercialized - which makes the exploration all the more interesting.

It's the dry season during the winter. In the summer, the fields are flooded so the houses are built on stilts.

Kim and me riding in the tuc-tuc.... with our Krama scarves

Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Precious little boys singing for us...... they had this rehearsed with hand-motions and all (see video below)

Angkor Wat, Cambodia