Music Video: Here It Goes Again, OK GO

Ok friends, dance your little hearts out...work out style...

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Ok+Go&search=Search

Welcome back to snowboard school

I kicked off the 2006-2007 ski/snowboard season like a true snowboarder bum: arriving with a carload of stuff, a few packets of ramen, and a friend's couch to crash on. Like every year, by opening day, I did not have a place to call my own. But still, the urge to lace up my boots and wax my snowboard called early (and so did the need to build a paycheck), so I was happy to suit up. By 9:30am on November 17th, I was happy to be standing in a circle among old friends, sharing highlights from our summers, and excitement about the upcoming winter season.

Greg was my buddy who let me sleep at his apartment for a week while I looked for somewhere to live. Despite the slim pickins, I knew things would work out; they always do. And when it did, I was lucky to get a housing voucher from work and move into Greg's apartment at the last employee housing effort in Vail--"The Ghetto" or "Timber Ritz" (Timber Ridge), located just across the highway from the mountain will be my home for this winter. Minus a small complication moving out the mountain employee who had parked my soon-to-be-room by mistake, things should be moving nicely by week two.

The past week was filled with highs and a few lows. Starting off the season with two refunded lessons was an unexpected beginning to the previous season filled with hard work and rightful rewards: One involved a student-teacher back stab, figuratively speaking, and the other was a literal open wound. A seemingly cool wanna-be snowboard instructor left my one hour private lesson with a big smile on her face...But her price-conscious attitude left her feeling unsatisfied with Vail's uncompetitive value for money, so she turned around and complained about feeling "pressured to purchase another lesson," to recieve two free hours of private instruction. What shit! (Maybe karama will give her a big kick in the butt). The second low of the low's was a freak accident which occurred under my watch: A girl caught her toe edge while unloading the beginner chair lift, landing in a back-bending scorpion, snowboard smacking her smack dab in the back of the head...young woman crying, blood dripping on her white pants...not a happy moment. It was quite upsetting, actually. Meanwhile, I'm suffering from a uncomfortable and painful rotator cuff injury…Not a good start for ol' Jules…But, as I said before, things will work out; they always do.

Alas, the highs always outweigh the lows and it has been wonderful to return to a place I love so much. The familiar faces and friends are cherished here, indeed. There is not just one particular person or persons here who makes me happy—everyone makes me happy. From lockeroom chats to beers at Mez, I am thankful to return to a fun, warm community of familiar faces. It's great being a "returner", knowing the lay of the land, who's who, and having an idea of what to expect for the months up and comming. It has been a pleasure to return to Vail for my third season.



AND, the exciting news...seems that I might be working some TV jobs here in the Vail Valley. More details later...

Home at last!

...20 hours and eight security checks later, I arrived safe and sound to the place I call home, Colorful Colorado! My oh my, it feels good to be back (however long that may be). It's quite wonderful to sleep in the same bed, have all access to a stocked fridge, and a car at my disposal...these are the little things one misses while away from home.

The family is well. Mom and dad were excited to show me the pictures from their Europe trip, and it was cool to see the places I recently visited in their photographs. Mark is enjoying CU, and he came home to teach me the 'tricks of the trade' for my new Mac.

If you have not already guessed it, I'm broke. I spent every cent that I saved from working in Korea. Four months teaching, two months in Europe and a new computer later...back at zero! Not too shabby...I guess that's better than being in the hole...

Traveling Jules travels no more. For now.

In a few days, traveling jules will hopefully (crossed fingers) unpack her backpack in a nice Vail lockoff (finding housing in Vail is impossible!) and begin teaching people how to do toe and heel side turns again. Instead of jumping on trains and navagating around cities, I will be jumping over ledges and navagating around through the trees. Here I come!

From the bottom of my heart, thank you friends and family for "Traveling with Jules" throughout Europe (and thank you for your kind words about the blog)! ;)

I hope I will continue to find interesting things to write about in Vail so I blog all winter! I can cover various topics like: how many inches of fresh powder we got overnight, how many days in, and how many fur coats seen...

Stay tuned...

Swiss Stop #4 - Snowboarding the Swiss Alps

Some thought we were crazy to go snowboarding in Switzerland the first weekend of November with a forecast of 0°F (-18°C) and 25mph (40km/h) wind, but that doesn't stop two hard core snowboard chicks like Chiara and me! On Saturday, my brave partner in crime, Chiara, met me halfway between Lausanne and Belinzona for an early season snowboarding weekend. She and two friends picked me up in Visp, and we made our way to snowboard two ski resorts open year round, Sass Fee and Zermatt. Chiara came prepared with an extra pair of long underwear, fleece, ski socks, coat, pants, goggles, beanie, and boots and dressed me in the car (Chiara is a good friend, indeed!). She also lent me her 154cm snowboard. It was about 10 centimeters too big and loads stiffer than my board back home (but free)--which reverted my snowboard skills down to a sloppy level 4. She, too, was handicapped, as she rode her sister's 157cm board with no edges on somewhat icy terrain. That was our first day in Sass Fee, the day Chiara and I bruised our thighs on crotch wrenching T-bars and looked like beginner snowboarders on the hill. :P

(Pictured: Views of crevasses in the glacier at Sass Fee)

(Pictured: small avalanche seen from the lift line)

Day two went much smoother. Chiara picked up her skis for a change, and I rationalized rental equipment. My legs, which suffered a bit from the damage done the day before, burned a bit in my beginner Burton boots with built-in forward lean.

We hopped on three humongous gondolas / cable cars--the Glacier Express carries a hundred people per car--before reaching the top. Zermatt, the the southernmost ski resort in Switzerland (which also easily connects you to Italy by snowboard in winter), is at 12,739.5 feet (3,883 meters) high. My jaw dropped when I saw the view. Wow. It was beautiful (and a beautiful day too, despite the bad forcast). The scenery was so different than Vail. The ragged and sharp rocky peaks of the Swiss Alps were far from the tree covered mountains back home. One cannot say which one is better, but the only word I can use for comparison is "different."

(Pictured: Views of some steep chutes in Zermatt)

All day, we had excellent views of the Matterhorn, Switzerland's most famous landmark (and key icon from the Swiss chocolate bar Toblerone). It stands 14,692 feet (4,478 meters) above sea level.



(Pictured: Trails covered at Zermatt during this early weekend in November)


(Pictured: Juliana Hotel, Juliana and the Matterhorn)

We had a fun drive home. We drove from one Swiss canton, Valais, to another, Ticino, passing through the Cento Valli (hundred valleys) road in Italy. We didn't really cover one hundred valleys, though we did do over a hundred sharp switchbacks as if we were on a sick amusement park ride. Anyone who is the least bit motion sick or hungover should NOT attempt to drive on this road! The cool part is that I have crossed the Swiss-Italian border eight times on this trip!


(Pictured: No cars are allowed in the town of Zermatt)

Swiss Stop #3 - Lausanne

Laurent, who was my best friend and roommate in Australia, is the man who introduced me to the wonderful world of traveling. He took me out of my shell on my first big trip away from home. Together, we trekked up and down the East coast of Australia during our Easter break from Uni. We sang songs in the car, ate chicken with our fingers, giggled until our stomachs hurt, and we even saw the late Steve Irwin, may he rest in peace. He also made me camp in the car and sleep in unusual places. We slept on the beach in wet sleeping bags, in a hammock-like bunk bed in a dirt floored tent the forest (Gagaju), and on the bedroom floor belonging to a teen stranger (Gavin)... Laurent introduced me to the world of backpacking. It was a magical semester, living with a vibrant and happy soul like Laurent. So, as you can imagine, it was a pleasure to visit my great friend on my tour through Europe.


I stayed with Laurent (pronounced LAH - HAU) at his apartment / parents house for seven days. His family lives in a beautiful home on Lake Geneva, which they built themselves, in Lutry (near Lausanne), the French part of Switzerland.

I met his beautiful girlfriend Lydia (who looks like Katie Holmes/Sandra Bullock) and his dynamic family of eight. His household was a whole lot more colorful than the Brady Bunch--Four boys, two girls, eight cats, three lizards, packs of rats (to feed the lizards), one parakeet, and a partridge in a pear tree. I loved having a place for dinner at the table of eleven. It's not the typical American family, albeit it's not the typical Swiss family either, but a happy home indeed.

His mother, Martin, is very smart. She makes the older kids cook dinner one night each week. Laurent cooked a special Swisss fondue for me--I still cannot believe these people consider bread, cheese, and pickles and full meal! What happened to the pyramid of foods? Anyways, it was delicious!


It was great to finally meet Laurent's little sisters Charlotte, who is adopted from Haiti, and Jade, who was adopted from Vietnam. Jade, at the tender age of fifteen, was a sweetheart, and we bonded over a few discussions about kitties and crushes. I also fell in love with the four new kitties, but I was disappointed to be reminded of my stupid allergies.

We started our week together driving all the way to Zurich for a party. Again, sleeping in an unusal place: a University office hallway.

We also went to a Halloween party!
Don't get the wrong idea, they DO NOT celebrate Halloween here...not really. Halloween is more of a commercial holiday in Switzerland. But, Laurent knew how much I loved Halloween and he made his association organize a costume party on my behalf! jk.
I was happy to bust out my bellydancing costume and souvenir from Turkey.

It was a shame that Laurent had to work all week, ah yes, the same thing happened when he visited me during Christmas and New Years week two years ago and I could not get a day off. Still, I entertained myself quite well with several day trips.

As Lausanne is the official World capital of the Olympics, I visited the Olympic Museum and enjoyed the visual markings of the high, long, and triple jumping records.



I took a scenic train ride through the colorful peaks and valleys to Gruyères, where I saw the cheese making process and the Gruyères castle and village.



I also toured Montreaux's Chilion castle and the popular town of Vevey.

Everday, I always managed to get lost (which is annoying when the trains run on the hour), but, I always found my way home to Laurent's each evening, just in time to watch a few episodes of Nip / Tuck.

Until next time, Au revoir Laurent!

Up next: One last visit with Chiara. To the Matterhorn!

Turkish Delight

(Pictured: Shop storefront; The Spice Bazar; Lanterns at the Grand Bazar; Turkish Delight Candy)
Jayne teases that I am stealing all of the attention, as "boyfriend #104" continues to flirt with me. Today, the cook, the guy at Turkish night, and the tour guide have each privately mentioned to me that they like me. İt seems that, in Turkey, İ am quite popular. İ am never ignored when walking down the street. İ get lots of looks--some observing, some curious, some flirtatious, but never unkind. Everyone wants to know where İ am from. They guess Japan, sometimes China, and the good ones guess Korea (They usually ask a second time when I tell them I'm from America). Just as the white people in Korea were often stopped at random and asked to be in a photo with strangers, now I'm the freak (say cheese!). I have been in a number of photographs with unknown Turkish friends and families. They love the way my eyes disappear when I smile. Turkish men and women who pass me in a shop, the bathhouse--anywhere really--lovingly smile at me and pinch my cheeks! The Turks sure love me, yes they do! And, İ would be lying if I said I didn't love them back.

İ`d like to attribute these positive interactions to my cheerful disposition and friendly manner, but İ think the reason stems farther than that. The Turkish people are extremely friendly, but I have a one up because of my face. İ have been told numerous times that Korea and Turkey are friends. İnterestingly, a lot of men in the tourism industry in Turkey (and İ say men because I`ve rarely noticed women working in the restaurants, shops, etc.) know the same or more Korean words than İ do! I`m often greeted "Annyeonghaseyo!" by Turks and given a big smile when İ reply İ`m from South Korea. Looking at history, Turkey sent a number of troops to fight in the Korean War, which initiated a strong a partnership. This feeling of brotherhood was strengthened when Korea hosted the 2002 World Cup. During the final match, Korea vs. Turkey, players from both sides of the field waved both flags. There seems to be a special relationship between Turkey and Korea, and I happen to recieve the benefit. Click here to read more: http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/
200606/kt2006061420175053000.htm




(Pictured: Carpet weaving; Learning the double knot technique; Dogs in Cappadocia; Preying Mantis` dinner; Raphael; Pebbles at Olympus Beach)
Our travel itinerary wasn`t fully sorted when we arrived, as Jayne and I had booked this excursion only days before, but we quickly made plans; one week sitting on the beach, one week traveling around. İn reality, our 14 days panned out: four beach days, four rainy days, two days in Capadoccia and two days in Istanbul, and two days traveling. (Pictured: intricate pottery design)

My traveling partner Jayne and İ were quite a pair. She is a tall blonde measuring in at 6 foot one, and I am just barely five feet. We laughed as we were constantly greeted as a German and a Jap, "Guten tag!" "Konichiwa!" We had a lot of fun, though we didn`t always see eye to eye, both in stature and ideas. We stood on opposite ends of the table on many topics--which was interesting for discussion, bad for our nerves--both of us learning to agree to disagree many a time. (Pictured: sunburned bottoms)
(Pictured: Shopping at the Grand Bazar)

We had a unique experience in Turkey, as our visit fell during Ramadan (Ramazan), which is a special time (thirty days) for Muslims devoted to fasting, praying, and helping the poor. Jayne disliked being woken up every morning at 5am to the wailing "Come and pray!" call coming from the mosques. But, İ almost enjoyed the soundtrack as a piece of culture (of course İ slept through the 5am call but heard it four other times throughout the day). I learned a bit about the Muslim religion, visited some mosques, and got to observe a few special rituals during my visit.

(Pictured: Women only section for prayer, A Mosque in Mangavat, The Blue Mosque in İstanbul)

During Eid ul-Fitr (Şeker Bayramı), the sweets holiday and the three day celebration at the end of Ramadan (Ramazan), I met a kind and genuine Turkish family. They lived in a tiny stone house near an former monastery in Cappadocia. A woman wearing a headscarf stood outside her hut, and stated, "Japan?" as I walked by. She smiled and nodded when İ told her İ was from Korea. We stood there for a moment, realizing we probably could not talk to each other any more than that, but I stepped forward hoping we could continue. The woman waved for me to follow her inside her stone house, where İ met her mother and her two girls. I grasped the woman`s palm, kissed the back of her hand, and then pressed it against my forehead; a ritual that young people do to older people during Ramadan as a sign of respect. In return, she offered me a sweet (ie. the Sweets Holiday) and squirted some lemon Pine-Sol scented oil in my hands for cleansing. İt was really special to participate in this cultural ritual.


We also got to spend Eid ul-Fitr (Şeker Bayramı) among other Turkish families at the touristy Turkish night. We saw all kinds of traditional Turkish dancing, belly dancing, and even whirling Dervishes (a twirling dance performed to obtain relgious ecstasy)! We even practiced whirling a bit ourselves later that night...


Naturally, along with every celebration comes food. İ sure do love a bit of Turkish Delight! "Skyrockets in flight, afternoon delight!" Actually, İ Jayne is the real lover of Turkish Delight candy, and İ really enjoy a hot cup of apple tea. Jayne and İ tasted a variety of kebabs during our stay: the iskender kebab, sis kebab, donor kebab, and, our favorite, the testi kebab ("the crack pot")...Serefe (cheers)!

We also ate loads and loads of Turkish bread--did İ hear there`s a national statistic about Turks being a top eater of bread??? According to the bible--İ mean Lonley Planet--"Turks eat four times as much bread as any other nationality." The pomegranate orange juice mix was also very tasty.

WEEK ONE: SIDE (SEE-DAY)
Our first week of holiday was designated for sunshine and relaxing on the Mediterranean Coast, thanks to the cheap 94£ (about $160, airfare and accommodation included) package deal. We, along with a busload of mostly unfit English tourists and families, enjoyed the Mediterranean off-season as best as we could. Four days of unusually horrendous downpours spoiled the fun at times and our moods were understandably variable like the weather. İ threatened to forever call Side "Sucky Side" before the sun came out again. The lightening storms did provide understanding as to why this area produced so many stories about Greek and Roman gods.


(Pictured: Temple of Apollo)
In Side, we had one sunny day and burned our butts bright red! We then pampered our asses with a Turkish bath (hanam) later that evening. After soaking in two saunas, İ was scrubbed down with a scrubbing glove (similar to the Korean method), washed with warm bubble water (again, again!), and then given an relaxing oil massage.

İt was nice to be in once place for a week. We became familiar with a few restaurants and got to know some of the locals. Özcan and his pet turtles Donatello and Leonardo had us back at Harmonie for seconds and thirds. Actually, it was Ozzy`s Turkish dancing and singing that we came back for ;)


We also rented a car and explored around Olympus and Chimera. First of all, let me tell you, there`s nothing like a game of "Get the hell out of my way" of to get your heart pumping. Just as we had been warned in the guidebook, the Turks overtook anytime, anwhere. Cars passed me at high speeds, on blind curves, in the dark, in the rain, AND at high speeds on blind curves in the dark and in the rain! They overtook on hard shoulders. They pulled out at a moments notice. They rode rear ends at speeds seen in the Fast and the Furious. Hallelujah we were home at last!

Olympos and Chimera were memorable, too. We wonder if this is the site where the Olympics were started. Chimera, the eternal flame, was probably the coolest sight seen on this trip. We watched the mysterious flames shoot straight out of the ground, thanks to the mystical forces called spontaneous combustion. This is supposedly where they got the idea to carry a torch for the Olympics.


(Pictured: Flames from Chimera; Flames from Chimera; Ouch, my poor feet walking on Olympos beach; The view from the top of the ruins;)

(Mosaics found in the ruins at Olympos)

WEEK TWO: CAPPADOCIA AND İSTANBUL
Week two was off to a late start, being that the 5am tour bus to Cappadocia forgot to pick us up two days in a row! By the second day, we gave up on our 3 day tour and decided to do Cappadocia ourselves, taking an overnight public bus instead. At 5am on day three, we two oddballs were dropped off on the side of the road, alone but with a bus station in sight. We sent positive energy to the Turkish woman whom helped us book that ticket--Since the real bus was fully booked, a new Turkish friend organized another bus to make a special stop for Jayne and İ. At that hour in the morning, there wasn`t much we could do, especially running on such little amounts of that thing called sleep. We were hurting! A second wind, and İ had convinced bus some bus station employee to open the travel agency office. İ begain organizing accomodation and a day tour for Jayne and me, making myself at home, by helping myself to the computer and phone. We laughed when the real agent walked in and found me in his desk! İ cheekily smiled and asked if he`d like me to book him a tour...

Cappadocia was so cool. The picturesque views were stunning and unlike anything İ`ve ever seen before. This area is a special place for Christians, as early Christians moved here to hide and practice their faith. They carved houses out of the volcanic rock and lived in fairy chimneys! They also dug out underground cities; the one we visited was over eight floors deep! İ loved Cappadocia because of the scenery (especially from up above in the hot air balloon!) and because we got to sleep in a cave...As you can imagine, İ took lots of pictures.


(Can you see the animals?)




And then, we arrived in Istanbul. "İs it İstanbul of Constaniople?" lyrics sang in my head as İ reveled at the fact that İ was in the only city in the world built on two continents! I rode the ferry North on the Bosphorous Strait, and looked to Europe on my left and Asia on my right. I`d been to both Europe and Asia, but never at the same time! İ have been traveling in Anatolia, the Asian part, this whole trip. Interestingly, only 3% of Turkey lies on European grounds. Isn`t it funny that Turkey could fight for accession into the EU with only 3% of it in Europe! But, that is a whole other topic. I spoke to a few people about the issue, and it seems that there are mixed feelings about joining the EU, just as there are mixed arguments for the whole of Turkey. Some parts are extremely modern while other areas are not.

Istanbul was another big city, full of cool looking mosques with minarets at every hill top. I crossed the bridge for which the cardgame Bridge was named after, and watched the men fish in the Golden Horn, and women wearing beautiful headscarves passed by. Jayne and I haggled like crazy at the Grand Bazar, saw the Blue Mosque and famous Aya Sofia, and visited the Black Sea. Perhaps a turquoise pashmina and belly dancing costume and were the perfect souvenirs.

Though my trip through Turkey was a long one for this trip-- staying for two weeks in one country was longer than any other country on this trip--it was a short visit in the big picture. İ have barely scratched the surface of the vastly interesting, fascinating country called Turkey. The moment İ arrived, I knew my time here would feel short, and it did. Oh, Turkey, how İ hope to come back!