Happy Fourth!

Yesterday was quite an international 4th of July celebration for me. Two friends of mine threw a picnic to celebrate America's Independence Day, Canada's Independence Day (July 1st), and a Korean friend's birthday, all wrapped up in one! We enjoyed good company, good weather, and good food. After the picnic, a few of us stayed to play Apples to Apples, watch a movie, and, when it finally got dark out, shoot fireworks in the park. We definitely drew a lot of attention there; a bunch of Korean kids joined us in cheering and waving sparklers, and a group of Americans who saw us-- one of whom turned out to be a North Carolina native-- hurriedly bought some fireworks of their own to add to the festivities. It all made for a really great day full of friends and fun.

I would have to say that for me, though, the absolute BEST treat of the day was the amazing batch of red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing that one of our Canadian friends made to celebrate Canada Day.

So yummy!

I haven't been able to do any baking myself over the past year-- oven's are a rare thing in Korean households. So it makes me really excited to know that I will VERY SOON be back in the states and will once again be able to bake lots of sweet treats of my own! In fact, that may be one of the things that I'm most looking forward to doing, so I'll just give you fair warning now-- don't be surprised if this travelogue suddenly transforms itself into a baking blog in about a month's time... :)

Happy Birthday, America!
I can't wait to see you soon!