Guest Post

So tomorrow morning, around 6:00 a.m, Anne-Reed is going to leave for Beijing. After having had her by my side for the last nine days, the idea of having to reorganize my mental and physical spaces to account for her absence is kind of weird and already a little sad. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the habits of daily life, walking the same route to the same places to see the same things, that sometimes you really do forget about how great your city might be. Seoul through a visitor's eyes was very illuminating for me because I got to do so many things that I wouldn't have done without Anne-Reed being here, and for that I'm so grateful to her. And she was such a trooper, always game and open-minded to almost anything. Her curiosity and adventuresome spirit never wavered, two qualities that I admire so much in her.


I think one of my fondest memories of her visit will be the day we went to Changgyeong Palace. It hadn't even been the marquee event of the day, but we kind of stumbled into the grounds (because it's connected to a bigger palace), not really expecting much, and found ourselves in an unbelievably beautiful area. There was a lake filled with koi fish and ducks, a lush side pond filled with lilypads, and everything was bright green, very different from the drab buildings and concrete just outside the palace walls. I would never have known this place existed without Anne-Reed.

When she leaves, I am going to miss her a lot, like I always do whenever we go our separate ways. But I also know that the next time I see her will be filled with as much adventure and love as this trip has been, and for that I can't wait! Until then, I guess I'll just tide myself over by reading her blog :)

-Jieun