Booked Flight Home!

I am excited to share that after 9 months in Korea, I have officially booked my plane ticket back to the States!  I actually booked it 2 weeks ago, but I am just as excited about it (and visiting home) today as I was then.  I have to say that 9 months has gone by pretty fast, but on the same token I feel like I have been here in Ulsan for quite some time now.  Every once in a while I go back through my blog archives and can't believe how long ago orientation seems to be at this point.  I have already had so many amazing times and made so many great memories, and I'm honestly in no rush to stop making them!  I do miss my friends and family back in Ohio, but once I have my visit I will be more than ready for another year here in Korea!

Below is my flight itinerary from Busan to Cleveland (it almost takes 24 hours with layovers!!):

Leave Sat, Aug 25 23hr 56min Total time Depart Busan United Airlines 7988 Economy | Airbus A320 215 mi | 1hr 0min 7:20 AM Kimhae (PUS) | Terminal D Stop 1 Seoul 8:20 AM Incheon International (ICN) Seats: | Seats are pending airline approval. Flight 7988 Operated by ASIANA AIRLINES Change planes. Time between flights: 4hr 20min Depart Seoul United Airlines 890 Economy | Boeing 777 758 mi | 2hr 20min 12:40 PM Incheon International (ICN) Stop 2 Tokyo 3:00 PM Narita Airport (NRT) | Terminal 1 Seats: 35-J | Seats are confirmed. | Meal: Snack Change planes. Time between flights: 1hr 0min Depart Tokyo United Airlines 838 Economy | Boeing 747 5,130 mi | 9hr 20min 4:00 PM Narita Airport (NRT) | Terminal 1 Stop 3 San Francisco, California 9:20 AM San Francisco Airport (SFO) | Terminal I Seats: 35-K | Seats are confirmed. | Meal: Dinner Change planes. Time between flights: 1hr 25min Depart San Francisco, California United Airlines 415 Economy | Boeing 757 2,157 mi | 4hr 31min 10:45 AM San Francisco Airport (SFO) | Terminal 3 Arrive Cleveland, Ohio 6:16 PM Hopkins International (CLE) Seats: 25-F | Seats are confirmed. | Meal: Food for purchase

I will be home for 2 weeks, in which time I will visit Painesville, Cedar Point and Toledo.  I plan on going home Saturday to sleep off my ridiculous jet lag (losing 13 hours + traveling) and then visiting friends and family until Wednesday.  That is when I plan on going to Cedar Point, and the goal is to meet up with some Toledo friends there in order to catch a ride to the Glass City for a visit.  I will stop by the University of Toledo, and hopefully see lots of friends while I'm there!  My brother Pat Manary will come out and visit Toledo Friday evening, so that we can spend that Saturday together while making our way back to Northeast Ohio (making a stop in Cleveland for who knows what).  I will then be able to enjoy the labor day weekend with my family and some close family friends.  The final week in my hometown is still a clean slate at this point,however I expect to have a full schedule seeing old co-workers and friends.  I hope to go to the beach a couple times, maybe go camping, and definitely see a concert or two.  When Saturday morning rolls around I will be making my slightly shorter, but still very long journey, back to Ulsan.

Return Sat, Sep 8 20hr 15min Total time Depart Cleveland, Ohio United Airlines 5897 Economy | Embraer RJ135-145 310 mi | 1hr 25min 10:50 AM Hopkins International (CLE) Stop 1 Chicago, Illinois 11:15 AM O'Hare Airport (ORD) | Terminal 2 On-time performance: 70% | Seats: 14-A | Seats are confirmed. Flight 5897 Operated by EXPRESSJET AIRLINES DBA UNITED EXPRESS Change planes. Time between flights: 0hr 41min Depart Chicago, Illinois United Airlines 851 Economy | Boeing 777 6,571 mi | 13hr 44min 11:56 AM O'Hare Airport (ORD) | Terminal 1 Stop 2 Beijing 2:40 PM Beijing International Airport(PEK) | Terminal 3 Seats: 35-A | Seats are confirmed. | Meal: Lunch Change of airlines. Time between flights: 2hr 10min Depart Beijing Asiana Airlines 316 Economy | Airbus A320 765 mi | 2hr 15min 4:50 PM Beijing International Airport(PEK) | Terminal 3 Arrive Busan 8:05 PM Kimhae (PUS) | Terminal I Overnight flight.

I have to say I am excited about everything right now.  I'm excited to go home, I'm excited to come back, and I'm excited to continue my journey after Korea.  I just received 3 job offers from my applications to Taiwan, but they will have to wait until the Fall of 2013 for me!  Seeing that (and the pay raise that it would give me) is really exciting, because I know I am just scratching the surface of my journey through life.  I can't stress enough how lucky I feel to be in this situation, and as I have said before: definitely seize the opportunity to travel and work abroad if it ever presents itself, you won't regret it!