It seems almost like a dream now, but nearly a month ago my parents and Nick traversed the Pacific and met us for a whirlwind tour of Beijing (and Shanghai) and Seoul. Having not seen them for 8 months, you can imagine my mom was looking forward to this trip even more than we were—and her Hilton points provided us with awkwardly luxurious accommodation throughout.

We had a long weekend for Buddha’s Birthday and Children’s Day at the beginning of May, so we took took the opportunity to escape—dare I say, defect—to Beijing. The more time we spend in China, the more we love it, and our five days there were perfect with great food, spectacular sights, and wonderful company.

While my parents took a quick jaunt to Shanghai, we brought Nick back to Korea to hang out in our neighborhood for a couple days. He got to see our school and meet some of the students, and when Mom and Dad were done with China we met in Seoul to spend their final days in Asia relaxing and introducing them to our favorite haunts.

We all had a great 10 days together, and Nick was able to stay on here for another week, which gave him the inside scoop on our life here in Korea. After all the wining and dining, I bet he left wondering what we ever complained about, but I’m sure he’s happy to be sleeping on a proper mattress again.

Here are the best shots from Beijing, as well as some from Seoul so far this spring (there are a couple videos forthcoming):