And with that, it's over.

So.. it's over. 2.5 months, gone like the wind.

It was an awesome trip! Needless to say, it didn't come without some bumps, but for the most part, it was great. We met great people, ate great food, saw great things.. it was just great haha.

Even though I've only been home for a few days, it feels like the trip kind of didn't happen.. like it all happened so quickly.. it feels a bit surreal to be back home again. The skies are blue, the grass is green, it's hot and humid.. really nice weather.. no crowds.. no people anywhere actually lol.. I have to pay tip again.. boooo lol. The good stuff is that I get to see my family again, my glorious bed and bathroom, my cute little bunny, my car, weather is good.. everything is back as it was before I left.

I went to the grocery store yesterday and felt like I was in another country and that I didn't speak the same language as them haha. Although.. there are a lot of immigrants here speaking their own mother-tongue, so I guess it's not completely weird for me to be a bit confused at this point hehe

Food is salty and sweet as anything.. so bad =p so easy to gain weight here because you have to drive everywhere and food is saturated with sugar and salt.. and there's not much to do, and the weather is really hot right now, so I'm inclined to stay indoors sitting on my caboose. Since I'm not yet used to Canadian food and cooking anymore, I've been eating a lot of plain bread, or with natural peanut butter, and fruits, which I suppose is healthier for me anyway! Fruits ftw!

I'm going to Halifax is less than 2 weeks, so I'll do a post on that, but for now, I will wrap things up for my 2011 Asia-Pacific trip. So some other general comments about the trip...

• Bring small shampoos and whatnot cuz if you run out, you can just buy more.. but if you bring a big one, you'll just end up lugging it around for the trip and will have weight troubles for your luggage on budget airlines
• Pack light.. everyone tells you this, but really.. you'll probably end up buying so much stuff, you might as well leave most of your old clothes at home
• Really be careful about your luggage weight for budget airlines..
• Middle Eastern airlines ftw! Boo Air Canada =p
• Definitely bring and wear sunscreen, especially in Australia and New Zealand, where the ozone layer is pretty much gone
• Asians don't generally wear hats or sunglasses, they carry around umbrellas to shield from the sun.. so you'll definitely look like a tourist if you're sporting those stylish shades
• Bargain down 50% at markets (I'm horrible at bargaining, so I have no other real tips other than that)
• Don't forget your camera battery charging at your aunt's house and then leave town and not have your camera for 2 weeks in Malaysia =(
• A pocket dictionary is helpful if you don't know the language at all, but an electronic dictionary is more helpful if you do know a bit of the language

There's more I'm sure.. lots of tiny tidbits of info here and there but I can't bring myself to remember or write them all down.. so if you have any other questions, feel free to leave a comment and I'll get back to you!

Time to sort through my 4000+ photos and videos! ^_^

Ok thx bye.

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Sold my soul to Seoul

Alrighty guys, last week of the trip commencing! It's a bit sad cuz there won't be anymore trip blog for a while.. that and the fact that I'll be back to "normal" life again lol.. well, I'll be in Halifax for a week, but after that, who knows.. it's ok though, cuz for your entertainment (haha), I'll return to doing my English/Korean blog at hoodie09.blogspot.com and back to making YouTube videos! :)

This past week in Korea has gone by quickly but it also feels like we've been here for quite some time. During our stay here so far, we've managed to meet up with quite a lot of people, which is nice cuz after being with the same people for 2.5 months, it's a nice change of pace to have some new company and new faces in our pictures =D AND even though sightseeing is pretty awesome, for me, the most memorable thing is meeting new people and building these memories together *tear*

So about this monsoon season.. turns out we were just at the start of it so there weren't many rainy days, but for our last week here, it's pretty much going to rain every day. It's not too bad cuz there are still things to do, but you know.. sightseeing and whatever else you do is more pleasant in sunshine.

Anyway, today was sort of a slow "rest" day for us. We hung out with a couple of people, but headed back to our hostel by about 4:30pm, which is considered a really short day for us because we're usually out on our feet for about 12 hours a day. I even got to take a 3-hour nap today! Crazy eh!? Haha

So as usual, I'll leave you with some pictures. We saw the palaces this week and did some shopping, to sum it up.

Peace out!

Mmm healthy snacks on a rainy day ;)

Crazy little floor space in our hostel room

Gyeongbokgung Palace

Me and a guard

Changing of the guards

View of N Seoul Tower from below

Fancy schmancy toilet lol

Secret Garden behind Changdeokgung Palace with some friends =)

Friendly Garfield posing for me

Me, Mark and Himz outside Deoksugung Palace

Bupyeong Underground Market

Wading in the water by the Han River (dunno if you're allowed oops lol)

Dinner with Alyssa's friend Boyoung (side dishes ftw!)

Namdaemun Market

Hello Seoul!

Yayy in Seoul now! Last leg of the trip.. spent my birthday wandering around the Bukchon Hanok Village and Myeongdong Market. I love the bustle of the city, the hoards of people everywhere.. the city is vibrant and alive and I'm lovin it!

I love being greeted when I enter and leave a store or a restaurant.. and the general politeness of people. Of course if there's a sale in a small clothing store, you better watch out cuz dem girls have their eyes only on the clothes and if you're in the way, they'll push their way past to get to them lol. That's probably true of any country though haha

Weather-wise, it's quite nice. Definitely not as hot and humid as Malaysia so it's bearable and enjoyable. As for navigating around, it's pretty easy cuz there's English spellings of places, and the metro system makes announcements in 4 different languages (Korean, English, Mandarin, Japanese). If you're lost, ask the younger crowd as they're more likely to know English (though it may be limited, they're quite willing to help!).

Hmm what else.. everyone here is crazy thin and are dressed really well. Korean fashion is no joke!

Lots to tell but too lazy.. almost forgot to update the blog actually haha. Anywho, pictures!

Ahjumma making kimbab

First meal in Korea.. bibimbap =]

On the subway..

Somewhere in the Bukchon Hanok Village

Myeongdong during the day

Myeongdong at night

Shyabu shyabu (hotpot) with the girls, and Alyssa's two friends

Sign at Itaewon

Mark buying some honey stringy dessert thing

Korean bbq ^_^

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2.5 more weeks left =(

We're in the last week of Malaysia now. Just spent the past several days in BM and Penang. Was awesome seeing my cousins again.. been a long time, but even so, it felt completely natural to be with them again and that I had never left. I miss that closeness! I wish I had more cousins back home. I definitely miss the big family dynamic.

We did more touristy things in Penang like visit the Kek Lok Si Temple, a couple of the Buddhist temples, and the botanical gardens. It rained a lot of the time we were in Penang but we still managed to see a few things.

My friends' parents have been asking them if they're tired of travelling, mine haven't asked though haha. Good sign right! Means that they're not worried? Haha, anyway!

As for me, I'm not tired of travelling.. but I am tired a bit. We do get the occasional off day where we don't do much, but it's nothing like just sitting at home. That being said, I don't regret any one moment of being on this trip. It's been a learning experience - for both on the tricks of travelling around the world, and also of how to travel with other people.

Am I ready to return home? I'm not sure.. I do miss my family.. and my stomach and health miss home haha (I've managed to get sick twice within 2 months) but I'm definitely not ready to start "real" life yet.. not that I really have to worry about that right away anyway, but I'll have to think about it eventually haha.. meh. Later, later!

Anywho, here are some pics! Peace out.

Some canon at Fort Cornwallis in Penang

Freedom memorial thing in KL

Bird Park in KL

St. Anne's Church in BM

Kek Lok Si temple in Penang

"Sleeping Buddha" in Penang

Some beach in Penang

Black sesame soft ball thingy in sweet ginger syrup

Steamboat a.k.a hotpot for Father's Day

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First week in Malaysia

Hey all!

So it's almost been a week in good ol' M'sia (Malaysia). The flight from Singapore to KL was really short.. 30 minutes as I recall? Pretty much listened to like 4 songs, filled out the customs card and bam - landed in KL.

Was a bit confusing at first because I thought KLIA and LCCT were the same thing, but apparently not. The budget airlines land in LCCT, and you walk from the airplane to the terminal. Anyway, that was that.

So Malaysia is a place to eat and shop. Beware - if you have a sensitive stomach like mine (hyperacidity), Malaysian hocker food is delicious, but very oily.. and it is hard to find fruits and vegetables, except in the supermarket.

As far as touristy things go, so far, we've seen Batu Caves (my second time), and the Petronas Twin Towers. Batu Caves is always cool to see, so that was fun. Petronas Towers were not that great in terms of an attraction, but it's something that everyone has to check off their things-to-see list right?

In terms of malls, we've mostly checked out Berjaya Times Square, Pavilion, and KLCC. Pavilion is mostly hi-end stores like Prada and Gucci, with some mid-range stores like Forever 21. KLCC is like Pavilion. Berjaya Times Square is huge.. 12 levels or something like that.. the first 4 are store stores, and the rest of the mall are those stalls like Burgis Street, where you can't try anything on, but stuff is realz cheap.

One crappy thing that happened was that I left my camera battery charging in my aunt's kitchen this morning, the day we were going up the Twin Towers.. so sad. We're staying 2 days at the Renaissance cuz apparently Malaysia is the cheapest place to stay at a 5-star hotel. Then we're off to Penang for 6 days.. so I gots to find me a camera battery and charger ASAPs!

Hmm.. what else.. oh public transporation is bleh here compared to Singapore. There are like.. 3-4 different transit types, done by different companies, and they only meet up at one point - KL Sentral.

Anywho, will leave you with some pics again.

Peace out ^_^

Sky bridge at Petronas Twin Towers

View from Petronas Twin Towers

In front of Petronas Twin Towers

Chillin outside dem towers

U-Kiss had a performance at Pavilion, but too lazy to wait 8 hours to get free seats

Batu Caves take 2!

Second set of stairs at the top

Baby monkey with really blue eyes.. vicious monkeys lol

See ya!

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5 days of fun in Singapore!

Singapore was absolutely awesome. Out of all the cities and towns I've visited so far on this trip, this is one that I can definitely say I'll return to.

Aside from the usual touristy things you can do like visit museums and architecture, for me, Singapore is all about eating and shopping. Food is cheap, and shopping is everywhere. There are tons of large indoor shopping malls and Bugis Street is where you can do your cheap bargain shopping, as well as eating. Most clothing items are around $10 a piece.

Chinatown was pretty cool. Lots of places to buy souvenirs. They all pretty much sell the same things, but it's more about walking around and seeing where you can find your items for the cheapest. There are also lots of indoor complexes like the ones you see in Pacific Mall in Toronto. And of course, lots of places to eat as well. In Singapore, you can buy a good plate of food for as cheap as $3 SGD.

We visited Sentosa Island too. Lots of families there vacationing on the beach or seeing the other attractions. Oh, there were tons of people all over the places because for the entire months of June, it's school holidays for all the kids.

Also met up with my cousins whom I've not seen for a long time. It was great seeing them and not to be biased or anything, but I'd say I have the coolest cousins ever! These cousins are from my dad's side. On my dad's side, I'm the second youngest cousin and on my mom's side, I'm the second oldest. It's a big difference of course, because when you're the youngest, you get to be spoiled haha. And when you're the oldest, you get to do the spoiling. It's fun either way ^_^

Singapore is great to visit, but I wouldn't live here long-term or raise a family. Why? It's ridiculously expensive for housing and cars (not that you'd need a car cuz the MRT system is good). A government subsidized 3-bedroom apartment costs $500k to buy, and a non-subsidized one costs $1 million. Yikes!

You'd have to be really rich to drive too cuz a Toyota Camry costs about $150k and then you have to buy a $50k licence to be able to drive it up to 10 years.. so pretty much $200k to drive a car. After 10 years, you have to either scrap it, or pay more money to keep driving it because of the pollution from older cars. No thanks!

The city is ridiculously clean. You're not allowed to eat or drink on public transportation or MRT stations so it's really clean there too. You can pretty much walk barefoot in the MRT stations and not feel uber dirty. There are lots of other rules too, which you should probably familiarize yourself with before coming.. like not littering, or spitting gum, etc. Don't be afraid though.. just behave yourself haha.

It's hot here.. but people don't wear hats or sunglasses. You may see the occasional person carrying the umbrella though. I don't think people wear sunscreen either, but as a foreigner, it's probably not a bad idea to slap some on before heading out.

Anyway, I would definitely come back here to visit so I absolutely recommend to anyone who wants that Asian flavour but are afraid of visiting Asian counties. Oh yes, water is drinkable here too, and the official languages are English, Malay, Chinese (Mandarin), and Tamil.

So I'll leave you with a few pictures! See ya!

P.S. bring tiger balm cuz I've got about 6 mosquito bites already!

Somewhere outside Bugis Street

Some street in Chinatown

Somewhere at night in Chinatown

At Mount Faber

View from the cable car to Sentosa Island

At Sentosa Island

Touching a ray at Underwater World (Sentosa Island)

Songs of the Sea light/water show (Sentosa Island)

Merlion (Sentosa Island)

Night view of Sentosa from the cable car

Some shops at Bugis Street

Merlion (Marina Bay)

Marina Bay Hotel

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