Time to Go

Tomorrow, I will be flying to Seoul, South Korea to start my year long adventure.

It feels almost entirely unreal to be getting everything in order, downloading itineraries, shoving the last bits and pieces into my over-loaded suitcases. I have spent the past two months trudging my way through the visa application process for South Korea while trying to figure out how to pack everything I will need to live for a whole year into airplane luggage.

But the last two weeks have not been all work and no play. I got the absolute pleasure to watch my cousin Adrian marry the wonderful Rochelle, while catching up with almost the whole Heaton clan in the Portland area. It was the first time in years all of the cousins got to get together, now with the wonderful two additions, our photos couldn’t look better.

Post-wedding, my parents and I headed down the Oregon coast to camp at the Umpqua Lighthouse State Park. We were joined by my mom’s best friend Lora and her husband Russ, two people who I count as a part of my “third side of the family”, which is made up by a hodge-podge of longtime family friends from my parents’ lives.

Lora, like my mom, is an amazing artist, and so we spent our time out on the beach, my mom and Lora painting, me reading, and my dad and Russ exploring the surrounding wilderness.

After Lora and Russ left to head back to Elko, we were joined again by my cousin Felicia and her boyfriend Seth. This time, we spent our time moving around. We did one long hike through the (no joke) Oregon rainforest, stumbling upon snakes and frogs and alien looking mushroom-fungus-flowers.

We spent five days at Umpqa and then packed up camp, spent one night in a hotel in Medford recharging and doing laundry, and headed to Crater Lake National Park. Once again, we reunited with family. This time, it was my cousin William and his girlfriend Laura who both had flown in for the wedding the week before (there are now so many Laura/Lora’s in my life, and I am so blessed). My aunt Rhea also was able to join, and so we had a perfect party of six.

We spent the only full day we had in the park exploring the immense beauty of Crater Lake. Formed from the massive, destructive explosion of Mt. Mazama almost 8,000 years ago, Crater Lake is a jaw-dropping place. The lake is set so deeply into the caldera that the hike to the lake from the parking lot and back was equivalent to tens of flights of stairs. Thanks to Laura, I just barely managed to make the hike back up to the car.

Now, though, we are finally here.

Tomorrow, I will board a 12 hour flight to Inchon airport in South Korea.

I will start my job training on the 12th of August, and that will be only the beginning.

If all goes to plan, my time in Korea will be as wonderful as my past two weeks have been (though I’m hoping there will be more WiFi and fewer mosquitos).