Chasing Sunsets

Tell us where you’re from and what brought you to Singapore.
I’m a Korean American from Brooklyn, New York where I worked as a Corporate Strategist. I’ve always wanted to focus on the Asia-Pacific Economy Cooperation (APEC) offices, so when the opportunity to transfer to Singapore three and a half months ago came up, I took it!

What do you enjoy most about your job?
I like the autonomy I get in terms of implementing my creativity to businesses, getting to create ideas, and seeing them in action.

That and getting to move to Singapore has been great so far—I definitely have no regrets on that front! In fact, I think I’ll be living here for a while.

Work aside, how do you like to spend your time?
I love doing all kinds of water sports. I just got my diving license at Tenggol Island in Malaysia, and I’ll be going to Lombok, Indonesia for a surf camp next week.

I also like solo travelling as it gives you a better appreciation of the country instead of simply hanging out with friends in a new place. You’ll end up meeting more people too because people tend to be more willing to approach you when you’re alone as compared to when you’re in in a group.

You’re currently learning Chinese as well. Why did you choose to pick up a new language?
I worked at the United States Embassy in China for a bit, and living there really got me interested in the country and culture.

With the traditional Chinese characters in particular, you can see the roots of the Korean language as well, so it’s very cool to see the pictorial representations of words beyond the Korean alphabet that I’m familiar with.

What have you been loving eating since moving to Singapore?
My favourite local food place that I’ve tried so far is Kok Sen Restaurant at Keong Saik Road.

Other than that, I cook at home everyday. I cook mostly Korean dishes like dakdoritang (spicy chicken stew) and doenjang-jjigae (soybean paste stew)—lots of soups which are a big comfort food for me.

What are you looking forward to as we approach the end of the year?
I’ve started combining work trips with holidays and I have many trips planned for the next few months, so I’m just excited to have a good time and enjoy having more movement in my life.

Where or what is home to you?
When I went abroad recently, I couldn’t wait to go home and realised that I was actually picturing my apartment in Singapore, even though I’ve only been here for a few months.

I think because I’ve relocated so much in my life, from Korea to the different parts of the States, I don’t have a physical place I call home, so I guess for me it’s just where all my stuff is at the moment (laughs).