New Life New Rules

April 21, 2020April 20, 2020Leave a comment

In 2009 we had a dream. Our dream was to immigrate to New Zealand. Back then we still haven’t studied, I had just lost my job at the flower shop and we wanted to get away. But getting into New Zealand meant that we had to have qualifications in our professions and experience would be a plus. We set out to get our degrees. I got mine in Education and my husband got his in Accounting (because these were jobs in high demand). By the time we had finished New Zealand didn’t need teachers or accountants any more. We wanted to leave so we applied for teaching jobs in Korea, in November 2014. By December we both had job offers and we got on our flight on the 31st of December and landed in South Korea at 12pm on the 1st of January 2015

Skip forward 4 years to the beginning of January 2019 when my cousin sent me a new report about New Zealand hiring teachers because of the shortage of primary and early childhood teachers. I did my English test and Teacher Registration and 8 months later I arrived on the sunny North Coast of Auckland. Unfortunately my husband had to wait until October before he could join me as we have a a little dog and her permit took a bit longer than expected.

Now let me tell you another thing. Since just after we arrived in Korea we wanted to start a family. We’ve been trying for years to have a little baby but to no avail. We saw doctors and specialist and all they said that it might be stress, so we kept trying hoping that maybe someday we might have less stress. I remember when I told this story to my colleague she said that I should keep faith because there is something in the water at our school because all the cooks always get pregnant. I laughed it off as one does when you’ve been trying for so long…. but still… here I am, sitting and writing this post to you with my little girl kicking in my belly. Shortly after my husband arrived I fell pregnant and we’re expecting our little one to arrive at the end of July 2020

This just goes to show that once 1 little thing in your life changes, everything might change.

Apartments in Korea

June 11, 2019June 9, 2019Leave a comment

When we first came to Korea, we were very ignorant of how things work here. We had “free” housing included in our contract so we were very happy to know that we didn’t have to pay rent every month. The problem was that we didn’t expect what was waiting for us here. Our apartment was a little bigger than a shoe box. After about 6 months we asked our director for a bigger apartment. We were now living in a one bedroom apartment and although it wasn’t huge, it was big enough for the two of us. We lived in this apartment for another 3 years. Before we moved down to Busan we decided to try and get a housing allowance instead of the housing the school offers. Check out the type of apartments given with contracts in Korea.

When we were negotiating our contracts, we both asked for a housing allowance to rent our own apartment. We got a lovely 2 bedroom apartment in Marine City, Heaundae. Here is our monthly rental breakdown

1,000,000 won – rent
300,000 won – management fee; free gym, sauna, parking, electricity

We’ve lived here for almost 6 months and although the apartment is more expensive than anticipated, we’re very happy with our decision to live in a 2 bedroom apartment.

What would you prefer?

Why would anyone go vegetarian?

May 29, 2019May 29, 20191 Comment

When I was 16, I once considered changing my diet to vegetarian. It sounded like a great and healthy idea. I started off by telling my dad, who was the cook in our household,to stop giving me meat for dinner. Being a household that relied heavily on meat as the biggest part of our meals, I felt hungry all the time. The lettuce and tomato for lunch also didn’t cut it, I constantly felt hungry and underfed… so naturally, I gave up.

A few times over the years I’ve considered trying a vegetarian lifestyle again but I was always reminded of how starved I felt when I tried it in High school. About 2 years ago my friend told me that her family will no longer eat meat. Later I started doing Yoga and saw a lot of yogis eating vegan or vegetarian meals but still… I was afraid to try it because of my teenage experience.

It was only when I moved to Busan that I met a vegatarian, who doesn’t shout his beliefs at me, who told me about how he became all vegan. His journey took over 10 years. He first started cutting out certain meats, then fish, dairy and eggs until he ate only vegan foods. This sounded like a better way towards eating vegetarian.

Cutting out a whole food group at once has never sat well with me, but doing it slowly, over time can work, especially that it now gives me time to experiment with healthy dishes to see what works best for me, instead of deciding to eat only lettuce and tomato …

Fire Meditation and why you should try it

January 15, 2019January 14, 2019Leave a comment

Sky above, Earth below, Fire within.

Referring to the fire within our souls, the use of fire meditation can awaken the fire within you.

For the first time ever, I tried fire meditation. I was drawn to it because I am a fire sign and often find strength in the thought that my sign is ruled by fire. The benefits from doing fire meditation however is indescribable. Immediately after the meditation I felt relaxed, but in the week that followed I felt invigorated and enlivened. It was as if I had a new appetite for life. To think that a few minutes of staring into a flame can has such an effect on you is just amazing

What you’ll need

A candle, a quiet place and a table. The table is so that you don’t have to strain your neck if the candle is on the floor. It is better to keep it at a higher level.

How to:

Sit with your legs crossed, either in lotus pose or crossed legs depending on your level.

Start of your meditation practice with 2 minutes of Kabalabathi breathing

Take 2 normal breaths
Now inhale then exhale rapidly and forcefully pulling in your abdomen with a backwards push
Follow on from here with a rapid inhalation and exhalation (through the nose) pulling in your abdomen with each exhalation
Continue for 1-2 minutes. Always listen to your body, if you need to breath normally, then take a break.

Now light the candle and continue breathing normally (for example 4 inhale 4 exhale)

Stare into the candle for 5-8 minutes. Notice how the flame moves, connect your inner flame with the candle flame. Focus your inner energy on the flame

Now close your eyes. You will see the flame for a few more minutes in your minds eye. Don’t let it go, keep focusing on it until it disappears ( about 2 minutes).

Namaste

Salad in a class Detox smoothie

December 25, 2018December 18, 2018Leave a comment

The first time I tried this smoothie the idea of it made me think of how Micheal in GTA 5 shivered after drinking his green juice. In the end my first green detox smoothie wasn’t even half as bad as I had thought.

The recipe I will share with you today is one that I’ve come to love and enjoy drinking before heading out to gym. The combination of cucumber and parsley, leaves a fresh taste in your mouth while the pineapple gives it a sweet and sour element. You can add some ice if you like but to me the frozen pineapple makes it cold enough especially during winter months

It is also an easy way to get your greens in without having to chew it