New title

For me, that is, not for the blog: tante. Tante is Dutch for aunt, and it's what this little guy will call me once he learns to talk. (I guess the Van Hulzens should get some sort of citation here since we're copying you all on that!) William David is almost three weeks old now. He's tiny, but I can tell he's strong - I feel him tugging on my heart strings all the way across the Pacific. (awwwww - you probably all know that I'm not too sappy or sentimental - but really, I can't wait to meet and cuddle with Will when I'm home at Christmas!)

Maybe I should change the blog title, or at least add a subtitle: traveling is awesome, but it has a downside - being so far away from loved ones. It's been fun hosting visitors here the past couple of months (watch for updates on my travels with Kirsten here soon), and I look forward to Mom and Dad's arrival on Friday. Remember that the rest of you are always welcome, too!

Home Stretch

My students are taking their final exams this week, and I'm finding it hard to believe that my first semester here is nearly finished. Since mid-terms I've had a seemingly bottomless pile of papers to go through - rough drafts, final drafts, rough drafts, final drafts - I still love my job, but I am really looking forward to summer vacation!

Last Saturday I took a break from grading to go biking with some friends along the Han River. There are miles of bike paths and quite a nice stretch of riverfront park, a bit of an oasis in the concrete jungle that is Seoul. Loads of people were out enjoying the beautiful early summer evening - playing soccer, strolling, running - some of them just for fun, and some, as this first picture shows, out for a real workout. We saw a number of bikers dressed in full gear like this (and other bikers in high heels or suits and ties - no joke!). There were also lots of serious in-line skaters, some of them decked out like Olympic speed skating teams, crouched and zipping in syncrhonized lines, arms swinging as they weaved in and out among all the others sharing the busy bike path.


Here's a shot of me with Crystal in a rose garden - one of the many flower beds we biked past. Behind us you can see one of the 20-some bridges that span the Han River in Seoul. (Thanks for the photos, Crystal!)