Asia
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Halloween Fun in South Korea!
Halloween is one of my favorite holidays! I have always had fun and good memories of it. I really enjoy seeing others and myself dress-up in creative costumes! Although Halloween is a foreign holiday in Korea, it is becoming more popular over the years. In schools, some children come to class dressed up in costumes on Halloween and enjoy learning about the holiday. In one of Korea’s largest amusement parks, Everland, the entire theme of the park is associated with Halloween during the fall season. In fact, I have never seen a theme park so decorated with such elaborate Halloween decorations. Besides spending the day enjoying the Halloween atmosphere, we…
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Wild Whitewater Rafting in South Korea
The first time Jason and I ever went rafting was in the Naerincheon Stream of Inje, South Korea. Back in Canada, I had always had a strong desire to try my hand at rafting. Unfortunately, the opportunity never arose. When we came to Korea, it was definitely the beginning of a new and adventurous chapter in our lives! The first big adventure we embarked on was rafting. We met some really nice Koreans, who also shared the same enthusiasm for adrenaline-pumping activities like us. Our rafting instructor was an extremely fun, knowledgeable and entertaining guide. The Naerincheon Stream has some of the best rapids and surrounding landscapes in South Korea.…
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Floating in the Dead Sea
While in Israel, we decided it would be fun to float in the Dead Sea! The Dead Sea is actually a lake that lies between Jordan and Israel/Palestine. This body of water contains so much salt that it is not possible for any living creature to survive in it. However, for humans swimming and floating in the Dead Sea is not harmful. In fact, due to the high salt levels, people can float easily in the water. The Dead Sea has also become very popular among the locals and tourists due to the water’s healing properties. Apparently, it is the composition of the salts and minerals in the water that…
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Taiwan’s Natural Wonder: The Taroko Gorge
The Taroko Gorge is a 19 km long canyon located in Taroko National Park, one of Taiwan’s eight national parks. Most visitors either ride a bike or scooter to visit the most attractive areas of the gorge. However, we decided to spend a day walking along the paved road and hiking trails to see all the highlights of this magnificent natural wonder. The main hiking trail we followed was called the Shakadang Trail. It was one of the most beautiful parts of the gorge. The scenic views of white rocks within the clear turquoise waters and the ubiquitous green trees were breathtakingly gorgeous. Along the way, we also saw this…
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Witnessing the World’s Largest Flower: The Rafflesia
Situated in Malaysia, The Cameron Highlands is one of the country’s most extensive hill stations. It is home to plenty of vegetation, fresh as well as cool air, and the world’s largest flower, the Rafflesia arnoldii. To witness the Rafflesia fully bloomed is a very rare event. This unisexual flower opens up after 9 months and only lives for 5-7 days. This flower is one of the 28 species that belongs to the genus Rafflesia, which is now becoming endangered. It is a huge five-petaled flower that can weigh up to 10kg! Interestingly, this parasitic flower has no leaves, stems, and roots. To obtain nutrients and water, the Rafflesia attaches…
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Learning to cook Thai food in Bangkok!
Getting ready to cook Thai food in Thailand for the first time! Both Jason and I love eating Thai food. So, while we were in Bangkok, Thailand, we figured why not take a cooking course and learn to make a few of our favorite Thai dishes for ourselves. Early in the morning, we met up with our friendly cooking instructor and headed off to the vegetable market. We were shown how to carefully select all the fresh vegetables and ingredients for our dishes. We had decided to make Green Thai curry with chicken, Pad Thai with chicken, papaya salad, and sticky mango rice. These are some of the most basic…
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Incredible Sand Sculptures at Fulong Beach, Taiwan
Every year since 2008, the Fulong Sand Sculpture Art Festival has been held at Fulong beach in Taiwan. According to the World Sand Sculpting Association, this 3km stretch of golden sand has highly adhesive qualities, which make it the best beach in Taiwan for sand sculpting. In Canada, I had seen a handful of ice sculptures before. However, this was the first time I had visited an exhibition of sand sculptures. I had always been impressed by the ice sculptures I had seen back in Canada, but upon seeing the sand sculptures I was overly impressed. The details and creativity of each display were incredible. I couldn’t believe the artists…
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Elephant Bathing in Laos!
Riding an elephant is fun. But, what’s better is riding an elephant into a river! This adventure was one of my highlights in Laos. It was just incredibly fun! At first, it was a huge physical challenge for me to get on the elephant. Watch the video below and you will see. Then, to ride an elephant without really holding on to anything secure was also another challenge. But, it was an exciting challenge! Eventually, I managed to sit on the elephant. My guide taught me an instruction to yell at the elephant so he would move forward. Of course, the elephant never listened to me no matter how loud…
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A Beautiful Sunset in Kota Kinabalu
A couple enjoys the radiant colors of a sunset, as it illuminates the vast South China Sea. After traveling around the world for one year and living a year in Taipei, Taiwan, we decided to travel around Southeast Asia for 3 months. The first destination we went to was Kota Kinabalu in Borneo, Malaysia. It was while strolling near the city’s pier that I took the photograph of this beautiful sunset. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets, I had ever seen. I loved seeing the reflection of the sunset in the water. Where have you seen the most beautiful sunset?
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To Braid or Not to Braid?
Traveling isn’t only about visiting the most wonderful sites in the world or meeting new people, it is also about trying new things for yourself. The story I am about to tell you today, begins in Jerusalem, Israel. About 3 months into our one-year World Trip, I met this very nice Canadian girl, who convinced me of the value and convenience of having braided hair while traveling. Not having to style your hair everyday because it would already be neat and tidy sounded very pleasing to me. I had made up my mind, and at the first opportunity I would braid my hair. About 5 months later, while I was…
