I've noticed that my diet hasn't been the best in the last few weeks. I've been eating out a bit more than I would like. I hate to say but I've been busy building new things on the web, work projects, and life overall. I'm taking a well deserved holiday soon to a place special to me in Mexico. I've been thinking how I need to cleanse and detach myself from the US food culture. I want to stay away as far from chemicals and additives. Don't get me wrong these are found in all countries, especially in processed foods.
I'm excited to get some homemade food in Mexico. I'm excited for fresh ingredients from the farms and gardens in the village I am staying in. I feel that it's hard to know where your food is coming from when in the United States.
The goal is not to eat at any US-based chain fast food places or hamburgers, pizza - you know the common fast food culprits? This should be relatively easy because those are far away from the village I am staying in. Fast food has infiltrated even the most remote places. I want to indulge in so many authentic foods I don't get the chance to eat except when I am in Mexico. This is a change to reconnect with my roots, reform past relationships and find parts of me that United States culture has suppressed. Food is a good way to reconnect with lost parts of me. I will attach to good things and detach from bad things. At least for a while.
This is part of a three or four part blog series. These posts will be interactive on my website (https://lifeofpablo.com) . I am in the process of rebuilding my website so stay tuned.
Here I am in South Korea getting a snack at a convenience store. Everytime I go to one, I reflect on convenience stores back in the United States. Convenience stores in the United States are usually gas stations at the same time. Living in California you see convenience stores as standalone locations more often. Convenience stores back home get a bad wrap because they sell not so healthy food or are simply over priced. It's not so much in Korea. Yes, there are things that are overpriced but not as bad as you would see in the United States. Korean Convenience Stores are a whole different experience..
â„ïžKOREA IS LIVING IN THE FUTUREâ„ïž
Common convenience stores are GS25, Nice to CU and 7/11. They are all over the place. It's hard not to walk from one corner of a block to another corner of the same block without passing a convenience store. This is pretty consistent in most of Korea. The cities of Seoul and Chuncheon are good examples. Two or three years since the pandemic, many did stay open pretty late or open 24 hours. They are just there whenever you need something. You can buy a snack, a beer (or many), toiletries and more! I've even found socks after my shoes got soaked in the rain. Prices are not overly expensive taking in consideration that the exchange rate between USD and WON are in the favor of the American consumer such as myself.
The experience at every convenience store is different. You never know what you'll find. I'm not sure how it is decided on what is carried in each store. I do love the element of surprise.
Korean Convenience Stores will fill the void in many aspects of life. They are considered important in Korean Culture and Socialization. You'll often find tables inside and outside of the store. I find it hard to find a normal bar establishment. Even if I did find a bar, it could be expensive or hard to get into. Convenience Stores are a meeting point to socialize especially if there is seating available at the location you visit. I really enjoy getting a beer or a few with friends and just talk about our day, our hopes & desires, and just having tipy conversations. I've had some really deep moments here with others. One of my favorite moments was finding a convenience store in a large park and making my ramen right then and there!
What really shocked me was the Seoul WorldCup Stadium when I went to a soccer match. There I found a GS25 with prices similar to one you find on a random street.
Overall, I'm happy with convenience stores here! I sure will miss them!
I will share this information in a lesson in the near future with others.
Here are my favorite items I get from the convenience store:
Small pack of coffee
A cup of ice - use it for any drink you need to make cold (or colder.)
Gimbap
Beer
Ram
Snacks such as fried
Ramen
What is nice about convenience stores is being able to cook instant ramen in-store seconds right after you buy it.
Being away from home these last few months have been great. I enjoy the freedoms, living independently and eating good food whenever I want. Life has treated me good here. Until more recently, a certain stage of being away finally starts. Lately, homesickness has really started to kick in. Iâve really started to miss my friends, family and things I really took for granted back home. It really is bad when I am craving my momâs homemade food. (Mexican Food.) Midterms and all the studying is really killing my vibe at this point of the semester. My program is not your typical study abroad program that you go away for 3 months (not to mention that it doesnât even apply to your major) on a semi vacation. I actually have to try real hard as my french studies here in Strasbourg France will help me graduate next year. Enough bashing.
With all this, one just feels that they are slowly losing control. Sure I am enjoying myself out here in France but still there is this emptiness of something that I have been away from for far too long. Hopefully, I hope some sort of enlightenment will come bring me back to life. Then It hit me, I would see my friends in just a few weeks. I honestly couldnât believe in such short time I would be right in front of them.
So I would be meeting up my good friend Sammy and soon-to-be friend Mitch. They have never been to Europe before, so I figured why not show them around Paris, a city that I know decently and use my French to get to Point A to Point B and of course with the help of good olâ Google Maps.
Paris- Weekend 1
These guys had a hell of a time getting to Paris during the 24 hours before arrival. Iâll let them explain that one.
So I picked the guys up from Charles De Gaulle Aiport. I still feel bad on making you guys wait for me. :/ I ran up to my dude Sammy and gave him a bro hug! It has been way to long since I have seen that dude! I also got to meet Mitch and got to know him more through out the weekend. Cool Dude! So I showed them around Paris. To be honest, Paris is beautiful with history written all around. As with any major city, Paris is no exception, it is dirty and smelly. I really hope that the guys did not have too high of hopes for the âCity of Love.â Paris is overrated in my opinion but why not take advantage of leaving Strasbourg for a few days.
So we went to various monuments such as The Louvre, Arc of Triumph, Versailles and so much more. Many of the places were breath taking. The Eiffel Tour is always a good place to scope out as well as walking along the Seine River. Getting around Paris is no piece of cake but we managed. Never have I ever gone up so many round staircases. Climbing the Cathedral of Notre Dame was such a struggle. Whenever you are in Europe, walking is really the way to get around.
Night life in Paris is pretty popping! We went to a few clubs in the Grand Boulevard District! This district did not disappoint. I wish we could have checked out a few other ones. One of my favorite places was the Irish Pub. Music, dancing, girls and drinks. Man was that a fun night!
We ate some good food throughout Paris. The guys had their first legit French Croissants and baguette sandwich. Itâs totally acceptable to have a sandwich on you at all times. I also had them try one of my favorites, a kebab sandwich. Man are they delicious! Sammy had actual ramen noodles for the first time ever! Overall we pretty much stuffed our faces all weekend.
Bruxelles- Weekend 2
Ah Bruxelles!! The place known for its deliciouos fries and waffles. You have no idea how much I stuffed my face this weekend. Just writing this post makes my mouth water. Was eating all this food this worth it? You bet it was!! When I arrived in Bruxelles, it was gloomy and misting. Not the way I wanted to start the weekend. The weather stayed the same all weekend. That did not stop the fun.
Spending the weekend in Brussels was totally worth the waffles! The sugar definitely made me bounce off the walls. #belgium #worldtravel #unkstudyabroad
A post shared by Pablo Morales (@pablo.morales1) on Mar 19, 2017 at 9:55am PDT
We checked out many popular attractions throughout the city. There was so much we saw, I started to lose my mind a bit. One of the coolest places I saw was a âWorld Shop.â They had souvenirs and artsy things from all around the world. I was so intrigued with the place that I ended up buying a few things from there.
The other purpose of coming to Bruxelles was to meet up with our friend Kellie and Sammyâs brother, Louis. It was good to see some other friends from back home. I missed those two! Kellie is just a keeper, to keep a long story short. These two are actually on Spring Break right now. I am so jealous of you guys spending your holiday in Malta! I hope you enjoy every second of it!
Bruxelles treated everyone well!
These last few weekends have been pretty awesome! It was good to see a few friends from back home. I couldnât of asked for a better time. Traveling becomes more exciting when you are hanging out with people you know and love. I canât wait for the next adventure with them! So, is it sprangggg breakkk yet? I wish!
"Today we are making crĂȘpes in French class. CrĂȘpes are a French delicacy in the Brittany region. One of my favorite french foods in the world! This is the advantage of taking a foreign language. One finds out the more delicious food that you would of never expected of ever finding.
Being away from home these last few months have been great. I enjoy the freedoms, living independently and eating good food whenever I want. Life has treated me good here. Until more recently, a certain stage of being away finally starts. Lately, homesickness has really started to kick in. Iâve really started to miss my friends, family and things I really took for granted back home. It really is bad when I am craving my momâs homemade food. (Mexican Food.) Midterms and all the studying is really killing my vibe at this point of the semester. My program is not your typical study abroad program that you go away for 3 months (not to mention that it doesnât even apply to your major) on a semi vacation. I actually have to try real hard as my french studies here in Strasbourg France will help me graduate next year. Enough bashing.
