Thanks to my friends and family, I had the best birthday this year!

My mom took me out for my first meal of eel. Yes, eel. At first, I really, really didn’t want to eat it. They sliced the eel while it was still alive, so we watched its heart beat and body wiggle on the grill. Honestly, I was freaked out, but trying to be respectful as the restaurant owner and workers watched us watch the cooking eel.

Then, I had my first bite, and it was great! I shouldn’t have been surprised, but it tasted really good. Probably because it was cooked to perfection, but it was light like fish but buttery like pork. I would definitely eat that again.

I was really lucky that the Lotte Giants were playing the night of my birthday, because I love baseball in Korea. The Giants had a terrible game, losing in a shutout.

I had some really incredible friends that were able to make it to the baseball game. They helped to dance ourselves onto the JumboTron! It was surreal seeing myself on that big screen; something that has never happened to me. They even chose my friend, Greg, to become the King of Milkshakes. He was asked to pass out hundreds of ice cream milkshakes to the crowd. Even after the game, people recognized him on the streets and cheered for him. I still laugh thinking about it.

It was a really good birthday.