spirited away

I spent this evening after work walking around COEX mall trying to get myself into the Christmas spirit. I thought seeing mall holiday decorations would do the trick, but it just didn't feel the same. First of all, there were not nearly as many decorations & twinkly lights at COEX as there are in the malls back home. In addition, I felt that the entire underlying buzz and commotion of Christmas was missing from the crowds. Like I said, it just wasn't the same. Christmas here is not really about getting together and spending time with family...Koreans see Christmas as more of a bank holiday, something akin to Valentine's Day if anything, since people here usually spend it with their significant others instead of their family. So yes, even though I continue to see a growing amount of Christmas trees and lights every day, it still doesn't really feel like Christmas to me, not at all like it should. And I still have no idea what I'm doing for my winter break...probably just relaxing and baking cookies. Well, I'll figure something out.

Saturday I made that Thanksgiving dinner for myself and some friends, which was great since I didn't have to eat it all on my own. Everything turned out really well, and they all said the food was wonderful. I made everything myself, with only slight help from Amanda, who peeled the potatoes and squash for me. I also made another sweet potato pie with a made-from-scratch crust that turned out fabulous. Here's some pics of everything below:




I've also been spending time taking black and white photos of different scenes around town. The black and white thing is a new hobby of mine...I guess I just like the way it turns the image around and adds a whole new perspective to the shot. Here are some of my favorites thus far: