TRAVELING THROUGH PHOTOS, FINDING MY VOICE, AND A SMALL ANNOUNCEMENT

It's another beautiful Tuesday! Well, I'm actually writing this draft on a rainy Monday afternoon and I wanted to take advantage of the weather as I rest for a while. The cool breeze and sound of the raindrops truly spark unspeakable joy in me and I wish to extend that feeling to you guys today by taking you to one of the places I dearly miss. I also have something for all of you at the end of the post so if you happen to reach the end, I wish for you to enjoy my little gift! You might also want to plug in your earphones, light up some candle, and listen to my Rainy Days Playlist on Spotify as you read on 🌼

The heydays blog was originally designed to celebrate and document my travels. I wanted an avenue to document my travel memoirs and share with you some ideas you might want to try if you happen to be planning a trip to the same destination. I knew well and acknowledged that we all have our different styles and priorities when we travel, but it is also nice to bump into those who resonate with you from time to time; and more than anything, it's the act of looking back at each photograph that I look forward to the most as it brings me back instantly to how it felt at that moment, what was really happening around me when I captured it and what went on the next. 

If you have been reading the blog for quite some time already, I'm sure you'll pretty much observe that I mainly capture three things whenever I wander around: Architecture, Interiors, and Landscape. I usually gravitate to observing and capturing how these three interact with each other and the people around it; It always feels like watching different scenes from a movie and I get to capture these moments and gestures that are both obvious and inconspicuous at the same time.

Honestly, I truly miss going around. I know I'm not in any position to complain right now when the whole world is in chaos, but it is an existing truth and I know a lot of people feel the same way as I do. For now, the only thing I and the rest of us can do is to look back at photographs and video clips while remembering specific moments in different places that inspired, amused, and healed us in more ways than one.

The cold breeze and relaxing ambiance recently reminded me so much of my Spring trip to Jeju Island. It's definitely one of my favorite trips because of the vast lineup of sceneries and breathtaking landscapes. Jeju Island is usually known as a weekend vacation spot - a place to spend a day or two usually with a loved one, family, or group of friends. But with the kind of traveler that I and my husband are, I would honestly say that 2 days will not be enough. To say that there are a lot of things to experience and visit would definitely be an understatement, Jeju has that definite charm that will make one dream of moving up there and starting a quiet island life away from the city.

I took the time to look at my previous Jeju trip and I wish to show you guys eight of my favorite places on the island. Take note that these photographs were taken way back 2016 and you might want to check if some establishments mentioned in the entry are still operating (I checked, and as far as I've seen, they're still open). One thing is for sure, no matter how much the restaurants and cafes change, the breathtaking mountains and trails, as well as the different museums, are all there to capture your travel musings. 

VISIT THE YEONGMORI COAST AND THE SANGBANGSAN MOUNTAIN

Two things to appreciate and experience here: Land and Sea. The long trail or hike will eventually reward you of a beautiful panoramic view of the surrounding mountains and the deep blue sea. If you are someone who enjoys hiking or trekking, this one is definitely something not to miss out on. And honestly, if you haven't hiked before, I would say this is probably a good start for you. Make sure to be dressed for both sun and rain and remember to wear the right footwear ;) To see the rest of my adventure in this place, I wrote about it here.

CATCH THE SUNSET AT AEWOL

When I was researching for places to visit, this came to the top of the list mainly because of the famous owner of this cafe that sits by the seaside. More than this given fact, I would truly recommend this place for its majestic view of the sunset and for the brilliant design concept of the cafe. More photographs and information about the place can be found in my Aewol blog entry.

BIKE AROUND UDO ISLAND

This is definitely one of my favorite memories of Jeju and I do not regret every second of it! It was my first time to bike around a place for hours and it was only me and my husband who navigated around the place, stopping when we felt like it, basking in the moment of each beautiful scene. See how time somehow stopped for us in Udo here.

STOP AND SMELL THE FLOWERS AT CAMELLIA HILL

You come to Jeju to get some sense of healing and I would say that it does the job really well for those who have an open mind and heart to see, explore, and discover. One of the places that would do just that would be Camelia Hill. It's an outdoor park that exhibits different species of trees, plants, and flowers that bloom on specific seasons. Knowing this fact, each season is a different experience and color, and definitely something to keep looking forward to seeing. More of my Camelia Hill experience in this entry.

SEE A WORLD RENOWNED JAPANESE ARCHITECT'S MASTERPIECE IN BONTE

I consider museums and gallery buildings artworks themselves. I truly believe that the shell is an introduction and connection to the deeper parts of the contents inside. This is one of the reasons why I really take time to research on museums and galleries and study who designed it and investigate the design process as well before or after visiting the place. There really is something so serene about being in a Tadao Ando building; it could be the site to building context or the marriage of ideas formed into one space, but experiencing it is truly a learning experience for a designer like me. See more of my fangirling moment over Tadao Ando's work here.

MARVEL ON A CHURCH IN THE MIDDLE OF A POND AT BANGJU

Another architectural wonder in Jeju, I would say! The Bangju church definitely defied the typical church design where a huge cross sits on top of a gable roof or the presence of stained glass and figures. Itami Jun took a specific story and text in the Bible and interpreted it on each design element present in the Bangju Church. I wrote about my visit to the church here.

LEARN MORE ABOUT LOCAL ARTISTS AT THE LEE JONG SEOP ART STREET

This place is not too far and you need not wait long in car or bus rides. If you're just looking for a place to walk around in, experience local art, and appreciate crafts, then the Lee Jong Seop art street is definitely a must go to fo you. Directions and information about this quirky place in my entry here.

FEEL ENCHANTED BY THE ART AND SCENERY AT THE JEJU GLASS MUSEUM

It was my first time seeing a whole museum dedicated to glass art and it was definitely an awesome experience! We were able to see the workshops, read on the process of making, and appreciate different styles of the art. Making art is a tedious process in itself and glass art is definitely one that demands a lot of patience, dedication, and creativity. What makes this museum special would be its outdoor curating setup which I loved. I think that glass art interacts with the outdoors in a lot of layers and its reach to the viewers become more personal and experiential. More art and information on the place in my Jeju Glass Museum entry.

Trips, locally and abroad really do a lot to our soul. I truly believe that we all need that pause or even a much-needed reset. I came to Jeju at a time where I was transitioning from singlehood to married life. There were a lot of questions brewing in my head at that time: priorities, career, grad school, starting a family, finding my creative tone and voice. I was 27, a little bit confused and creatively drained. This trip truly refreshed my heart and mind in a lot of ways and it also brought me and my husband closer. Up until today, we would randomly talk about our Jeju trip, laugh about silly mistakes, recall the beautiful encounters and places we discovered, and long for the delicious treats we came across with while going around. 

I wanted to keep that memory of Jeju so much and I wanted to extend that to those around me. This is why sometime in 2017, I decided to curate some of my favorite photos from the Jeju trip and create a 2018 Heydays Pocket Calendar. The idea was really simple, have a piece of enchanting sceneries and moments in your workplace or study area; to feed our creative souls and to help up look forward to weekends and holidays. I was not really expecting that the small project had a good amount of response when I launched it and while the project meant to be an annual thing, I really wasn't able to sit down and conceptualize anything at all last year because I knew I had to deal with myself first before I could really put out my brand and my voice.

The past few months spent in isolation did a lot of things to me; while I was truly getting burnt out from being confined and seeing the same things constantly, I was also given more time to sit down and gather what truly matters to me. One of them would be my creative voice, I realized that I had it all along-I never really lost it, I just didn't believe in it. I realized that I just caved in and gave up to the pressure of catching on and 'making it' and eventually believed in lies like 'i'm not good enough', 'this is not what people expect from me', 'this feels too shallow', and a whole lot more. In the process of doing so, I momentarily forgot the most valuable thing in life: look to what is eternal. It took a while for me to realize that I really do not have to please anybody, that all I have to do is stick by God's standard and not mine or anybody else. While these things take place, I am reminded to just look back to how and why I started; I am reminded by the experiences I've collected as well as the skills I learned to acquire along the way.

With this, I have learned that my voice, no matter how tiny or basic it seems, will reach and resonate with those who need to hear it and relate with it at the right time and place. All I need to do is to press on and keep creating and eventually evolve and improve as I move forward. And as a start of that leap, I wish to continue to use this platform as a source of inspiration to all of you. Starting this month, I shall be giving away monthly desktop and mobile wallpaper layouts for you to download and use. Hopefully, through the things that I will be giving out to you, I am also extending the spirit of positivity and hope-to keep looking forward, to keep yearning and learning, to keep creating, to keep moving; to simply keep living, knowing that things will pass and better days are ahead.

Here's what you will be getting from me monthly:

-A printable monthly calendar (5x7in size)

-A desktop calendar wallpaper

-A mobile home screen wallpaper

-A mobile calendar lock screen wallpaper

DOWNLOAD YOUR OH HI, JULY! CREATIVE PACK HERE (Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @heydayswithhanna) 🙏🏼❤️

I've talked about this idea with my husband sometime around March, I was telling him my desire to jumpstart the heydays brand and most of which are still very vague and needs refining. He did however gave me an idea to look back at things I've already been doing and to start small. With the situation we are all currently in, it's still best to give what would help or uplift, in my own way. Hence, the idea of monthly supplying you, my dear friends and readers with monthly images and positive reminders in true heydays fashion came to place. I hope that this will inspire you, give you some sense of joy and hope in the midst of all things bleak around us. July is a very special month for me as it is my husband's birth month, which is why I chose this image that has his favorite color-teal and high contrasted blooms to uplift you whenever you need it.

I hope you all enjoy this simple gift as much as I did creating it 💖

Wishing you all a fruitful and inspiring July and as always, a Happy Heyday!

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