As I prepare to leave Korea, I lament falling in love.

Mountain highs plummet into romantic lows after a pefect date at an abandoned theme park leaves me heartbroken.

The east coast escapade peaks with a goblin festival, waterfalls that make me scream, tears, love, loneliness, cycling up in the air, and a penis park.

An escape to the east coast kicks off with a North Korean settlement, followed by Korea’s hardest hike. As I sleep on top of a mountain, I fall in love.

Museums, history, Hangul, noraebang, raw marinated crabs, a fancy tower, and a transformative date at a drag club. Magic begins to engulf Seoul.

I return to form as I explore Seoul’s attractions, enjoy great food and friendships, and hurry to make the most out of this period.

Ilness, tragedy, meerkats, nightclubs, and another wild birthday party, this time in Pyeongtaek. At least Korea never sees me bored.

Seoul Pride takes partying to new extremes.

A drama-free visit to Jeon-ju offers delicacies, lotus flowers, hanboks, and a hanok stay.

The friend-zone saga ends in the worst way possible as I party alone in Beomil and finish volunteering at the hostel.

A reunion in Miryang offers nuggets of wisdom. Yet drunken antics at the hostel and a stab in the back put the final nail in the friend-zone’s coffin.

Busan and Miryang’s attractions are too dull to numb the pain of being friend-zoned.

Back to volunteering at the hostel, my friends make the most out of their twenties, while I face rejection after rejection.

An escape to obscure Tongyeong and remote Somaemuldo proves how special Korea can be.

Surprises at a surprise party make for an unforgettable night of pain and friendship.

The northern escapade continues with my second abandoned sex museum in Korea, followed by a martial arts temple stay. Korea finally becomes special to me.

An escape to Pohang and Gyeong-ju kicks off with a zero gravity simulator, hostel shenanigans, and a taste of freedom.

Clubbing in Busan and cleaning a hostel shed light on the duplicitious nature of humans.

I begin volunteering at a party hostel and take a break from fast travel as I slowly explore Busan’s temples and go on dates.

Welcome to paradi – I mean, Jeju Island! Have some mandarins while you run into sexual sculptures.

Festival-hopping, N Seoul Tower, Seoul City Wall, Insa-dong, Jamsil, and the Buddha’s birthday make me ecstatic to share this splendor with people, and sad when they walk away.

Hongdae, Bukhansan, Myeongdeung. The more I hike, party, couchsurf, and form instant connections, the more I learn about my new self.

Seong-su, Han River, Seoul Forest, Suwon, Hongdae – partying, cycling, picnicking, couchsurfing – who needs rest, when you’re in Seoul?

Palaces, hanok villages, festivals, the Blue House, and a mountaintop temple. No one cares enough to find me – while I am finding a whole new land.

Welcome to South Korea! Here’s a bunch of markets and palaces.