As the days in March dwindle, and winter slowly loses its grip on the Korean Peninsula, my impending trip to the Indian subcontinent looms larger and larger ahead. If I largely eschewed technology with my previous trip to the Philippines, I will not allow myself that luxury on this journey. Although disconnecting from the outside world made for a better vacation, I was far less prolific than I wanted to be, despite frequent journal scribblings. So I’ve decided to invest in a small notebook computer, and commit myself to writing on a daily basis throughout my trek.
India
This country has long been on my “Top 5 Destinations” list. Sixteen days feels woefully inadequate for a country with such amazing history and culture, but it’s a start. The trip was first proposed by my Danish friend Christine. I had just come home from a Saturday night out in Seoul, to find this message waiting for me on Facebook (with a margin of error of plus or minus one emoticon), “Hey – wanna go to India in April?”
My response, as inebriated as it might have been, was simple and to the point, “The short answer would be ‘Yes.’ The long answer would be ‘Hell yes.'” She, in turn, threatened to kill me if I was kidding.
This was not a tough decision: either a couple of weeks exploring India with one of my all-time favorite couchsurfers, or death? I had already chosen the former.
In planning this trip–and I use the term “planning” loosely–it seems that we have a very similar philosophy. We both want to have a place to stay in Delhi when we arrive, but try to keep things as negotiable as possible from that point on. So far, our itinerary reads, “Delhi, Agra, Pushkar? Khajuraho? Etc?” We’ve both had countless recommendations, almost all of them conflicting. So, we’ll take India as it comes, and see where the adventure takes us.
We’ve agreed that she’ll take the photos, and I’ll write. So far, so good.
Other Things
Travel aside, I’ve had plenty in and around Seoul to keep me occupied. I’ve been writing for a couple of different outlets. The first, as I’ve already discussed, is Groove Magazine. My column on the implications of Kim Jong Il’s death was published this month. I’ve also nearly completed a feature piece on dating in Korea (which will be released as a series of columns on this site).
I’ve also been helping a coworker, Kenny, get his website, krbookreviews.com, off the ground. Granted, my help has been minimal thus far, but I will be writing some book reviews for his site. I think my first review will be on a biography that I recently read, David Crockett: Lion of the West.
In non-writing news, I have moved into my new apartment, and it has been better than I had previously hoped it would be. I’ve been sleeping great, Sydney is happy, and I have a couch. What more could I really ask for?
Finally, my new soccer team, the Kimchi Kickers, got our first win of the season on a blustery, at times snowy, Saturday afternoon. I opened up the scoring for the game, with a well-placed (albeit not particularly hard) shot into the lower far corner from about 15 meters out. The other team would equalize before halftime, but with the wind at our backs in the second half, we went on to win by a comfortable 3-1 score. It was a rewarding experience, particularly after three 2-1 defeats in four games this season.
So, life is pretty good at the moment, and it seems that April is shaping up to be even better. My trip to India begins April 7, so be sure to read my updates.
Kimchi Kickers, after our 3-1 victory.