Updated: 02/02/2025
i had a feeling i would spend my 21st birthday abroad, but didn’t know for sure until it actually happened…. even though i purchased my flight back home one month prior….
my birthday has never been a huge deal to me. i was debating whether my 21st bday should be something big because i would become a “legal adult” in the U.S. i was even making plans since the beginning of the year with a friend from Hawaiʻi to go big and have a party in Las Vegas and everything.
tbh i’m the type of person who likes to plan but i am also the type of person to go with the flow and think “it is what it is”
i would have wanted to fly home earlier and do all the planning but then i would not have fully enjoyed my time abroad. it was my first time in Korea and i didn’t know how long it would be until i returned so i wanted to spend as much time there as possible. i was also preoccupied with last-minute shopping for gifts and souvenirs, packing, finishing up school, etc. although i finished school about 2 weeks before the last day of living in the dorms (Dec 22), i decided i wanted to stay longer. i also booked a ticket to a show on Christmas day so i KNEW i would be in Korea for my birthday.
my birthday was like any other normal day. i spent some time solo adventuring to see the filming locations of one of my favorite K-dramas, True Beauty. i had wanted to visit them all semester so i’m glad i was able to see them. after that, it was a busy day. my friends and i met up at Myeongdeong to shop. we also went to Seoul station for last-minute snacks, did karaoke, and returned to their hotel to celebrate. shoutout to my friends for spending the day with me and making it feel special even though we were all exhausted. since Caitlin’s birthday was coming up around the same time, they bought two cakes for all of us to eat. one was a really cute My Melody (Sanrio character) cake and the other was a yummy chocolate cake from Paris Baguette. we stayed up until about 6:00 AM playing games and slept over at their place.
my bday was a lot of fun this year but also interesting. i’m not trying to give any ideas or anything…. but let’s just say since the drinking age in Korea is 20 and i was 20 already, i didn’t feel much of a difference turning 21 there haha….
