2016 in review

Last year I didn't finish this post but this time I managed. So here's a review of 2016:

(Once again I used questions that I found from my friend's blog)

RELATIONSHIPS

1. Did you get a new friend? 

Yes, I met really nice people at my internship company and during my travels. 

2. Did you do something new?

Travelled to Malaysia, did an internship, visited new places in Seoul and Osaka, went to see Thai movies and lived in Thailand somewhere else than Bangkok (Laem Chabang).

The view from my balcony in Laem Chabang.
Even though some days I kinda hated it when I was there
but nowadays I often miss it. 

3. Were you in a relationship? 

Yes and no. Kinda...

4. Tell a couple of the best memories from 2016? 

Concerts (EXOluXion in Kuala Lumpur, EXO'rDIUM in Osaka, Dream Concert 2016) & trips to Seoul + my time in Thailand. 

5. Did you fight with any of your friends? 

Luckily no. 

ME

1. Did you change a lot during 2016? 

I don't think so but I feel like I got more confident and bold. I also got more used to doing things alone (no wonder because of the amount of travelling I did alone and the many months I lived alone in Thailand).

2. Did you gain weight? 

Probably yes but not sure #notfriendswithmyscale

3. Did you go to the movies alone? 

Luckily I had always someone with me (hate going to the movies alone).

4. Did you get a piercing/tattoo? 

Nope.

5. Who was the best new person? 

The people who I was closest with in my internship company + my Japanese friend's family who were such nice and caring people when I met them in Osaka. 

6. Did you keep your new year's resolutions? 

I didn't make any resolutions mainly due to knowing I couldn't keep them anyways. 

7. Did someone close to you give birth? 

Yes, my brother's wife gave birth to their second child. 

My godson ❤

8. Did someone close to you die? 

Fortunately no. 

9. Which countries did you visit? 

Thailand (from January to July), Malaysia (twice), South Korea (twice), Japan.

10. What would you want from 2017 that you couldn't get/have in 2016? 

Finish my studies, see EXO or BTS in Europe, attend BTS's concert (wherever), get a job (even a summer job), new iPhone, better Korean skills and see my friends more often. 

11. Which date will you remember from 2016?

 The day I started my internship.

Almost every day when I left work, I got to see a nice sunset.
I miss that too from my internship. 

12. Your biggest achievement? 

I made it through my internship and even without failing. I had my doubts about how would I succeed but after I finished my internship, I was very satisfied with myself and how I did everything. 

13. ...and the biggest failure? 

I couldn't decide my thesis subject and start planning/writing earlier than I did. If I had the subject earlier and also started writing earlier, it would have helped me a lot this spring. 

14. Did you suffer from injuries? 

I was once again lucky enough to avoid injuries (except having some problems with my toes due to bad shoes).

15. What was the best thing you bought? 

Definitely all the concert and plane tickets I bought. 

16. For what did you spend the most of your money? 

Travelling, food and Kpop. 

17. What got you the most excited? 

Spending time with my foreign friends, attending concerts and seeing new places during my travels. 

Visited a Korean palace for the first time.
Can't wait to visit another one. 

My last evening in Thailand. I really miss these two!
They helped me get through my internship and final months in Thailand.

I also had a great time at my friend's wedding
with my best friend ♥

18. The people of 2016: 

People at my internship company, Shiho with who I spent almost every weekend last spring in Thailand & my family and friends in Finland. 

Shiho, my rock during the spring ♥

19. Compared to 2015, were you happier or sadder in 2016? 

Since 2015 was a really great year for me (especially August-December), it's quite hard to say whether I was happier or sadder.... Even though I was really sad when I had to leave Thailand and I missed many people during the whole year, I would say at least I wasn't sadder. Was I happier? I'm not sure but at least I felt happy and excited many many times last year :)

20. Fatter or thinner? 

Quite the same.

21. Richer or poorer? 

Poorer...

22. What would you have hoped to have done more? 

To spend more time with my friends in Finland. 

23. ...what about less? 

Eat so much candy and snacks. I really should have toned it down a little sometimes...

24. How did you spend Christmas? 

On Christmas Eve I was at home with mom and Otto. Christmas Day I spent at home with my whole family. 

25. If you could go back in time and change one moment from 2016, what would it be? 

I would have told a friend how I really feel about him when we hanged out one day during the spring. And on that day I would have otherwise acted differently too.  

26. Did you fell in love in 2016? 

Not in new people but in many k-dramas and k-pop groups. 

27. How many one night stands did you have? 

0.

28. What was the best TV series you watched? 

Damn this is too hard... Since it's impossible to pick only ONE here's a few of my favourites from last year: The Walking Dead, Fear the Walking Dead, Chicago Fire/PD/Med, The Last Ship, Criminal Minds (+ CM: Beyond Borders), Designated Survivor, The 100, Hawaii Five-0, New Girl, Mom, The Zoo, Baby Daddy, Devious Maids, AGT + a bunch of Korean dramas (Descendants of the Sun, Signal, 38 Task Force). 

29. Did you hate someone in 2016 that you didn't hate before? 

I didn't really hate but I did start disliking some people. 

30. What was the best book you read? 

I read a few books but I didn't finish them (yet).... The 5th Wave, Insurgent, Zoo. For Christmas I also got the Cursed Child -book and I've read almost half of it and it's really good. 

31. ...what about the best music finding? 

Since I hardly ever listen to Western music nowadays, this finding definitely comes from Kpop! In 2016 The absolutely best new finding was BLACKPINK! Right away after they released their 2 first songs: Whistle and Boombayah, I completely fell in love with them. There aren't so many girl groups that I like (I tend to listen to the same few groups I already know) but there was something with BLACKPINK that caught my eye and ear. Since they debuted last year, they released another album and 2 new songs they promoted and those songs were really great too. Now I'm just eagerly waiting to see them perform live someday because they completely slayed in 2016! There's another finding that came to a very close 2nd place: NCT 127 (+ NCT U). Both of those NCT groups debuted last year and event though I wasn't familiar with NCT U, which promoted first, after I discovered it and their "7th Sense" song, I was hooked. The 7th Sense -song was catchy and somehow different + the choreography was on point so I was very happy to have discovered them. I even got to see  After a while, NCT 127 debuted with "Fire Truck" which was even better! Some of the members were from NCT U but there were also some new ones so it was quite interesting. A couple of other new  boy groups that I discovered and started listening were SEVENTEEN (yes I know I was a bit late) and PENTAGON which debuted in the fall. Especially PENTAGON caught my attention with their first 2 songs and I'm eager to see what they come back with the next time. 

BLACKPINK ©Youtube

NCT 127 ©Kpopmap

In addition to these very good new findings, I was blessed to hear new songs from my favourite Kpop groups. BTS had 2 comebacks with "Fire" in the spring and later in the fall with "Blood, Sweat & Tears". First I was hyped about "Fire" since it was very catchy and the live performances were unbelievable but when their 2nd comeback came, I was blown away! I couldn't believe how much better they were even after "Fire". "Blood, Sweat & Tears" I would say was the best in 2016 if I consider the song, MV, live performances, choreography and outfits. There was something in every aspect that I loved so much, I got to admit that even EXO's comebacks weren't as good. BUT EXO slayed in 2016 too! They came back with "Lucky One" and "Monster" in June. They made another comeback later in the summer with "Lotto" and in December they released a new Winter album with a title song "For Life". "Lucky One" and "Monster" were a whole new style and concept for them and they feared that fans wouldn't like them but at least I liked them. I thought they were a refreshing change and it was good that they showed a new side of them. Choreographies, even with "Lotto", were very good (as always) and I loved how some of the members really got the chance to show their strengths and I felt like some members had even proved their skills a lot. "For Life" wasn't unfortunately promoted on any music shows (but they still managed to win! Good job EXO-Ls!) but I think it was compensated with a very nice MV and the song also showcased the great vocals every member has. I would say if you were a BTS and/or EXO fan, you were really blessed last year! Another group that I need to point out is SISTAR. My favourite girl group made a comeback in the summer with "I Like That" which I was soooo satisfied with. It was a different style than their few previous songs but it was just good since they went back to their "Give it to me" and "Alone" eras which were the best in my opinion. They had an interesting choreography which included removable skirts that came on and off during the performances. I really hope they would come back with a similar style the next time too. 

EXO - Monster ©Kpopmap

SISTAR - I Like That ©Kpopmap

32. What did you want and got? 

I got a really good internship place abroad just like I wanted to. I also really wanted to go to a EXO concert and I was lucky enough to be able to do that. In addition during the whole year, I wanted to travel to Osaka to meet my Japanese friends and in December I got to do that which was amazing. 

EXO + my dear Japanese friend = ♥♥

33. What did you want but didn't get? 

In addition to seeing EXO live, I really wanted to attend BTS's concert but I couldn't do that. I also wanted to get a new iPhone but in the end I convinced myself to wait until Apple releases the new models this year. 

34. What was your favourite movie in 2016? 

This question is almost as bad as the questions about best TV shows and music.... Let me say right away that also for this question I just can't pick ONE so bare with me. In 2016 there a lot of good movies but for me the best ones Captain America: Civil War, Deadpool, The 5th Wave, London Has Fallen, Allegiant, Independence Day: Resurgence, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Doctor Strange and Patriots Day. There were many others I enjoyed too: Arrival, 10 Cloverfield Lane (was really amazed when I found out this was a sequel to the Cloverfield movie), Central Intelligence, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Cell and Pandemic. Last year I also watched many Korean movies, old and new, and the best new ones were Train to Busan, Tunnel and Pandora. Train to Busan definitely deserved all the hype it got in Korea and even all around the world. 

35. What did you do on your birthday?

I didn't do much, just stayed at home and watched my favourite TV shows. But during the next weekend I celebrated with few of my friends; we stayed at my place talking and playing Just Dance games. It was a very nice evening & just what I wanted. 

36. Who did you miss? 

My dad who I miss every day ❤  I also missed Otto and my mom a lot when I was still in Thailand. 

37. Who or what kept you sane? 

Definitely k-pop and also the chances to travel a few times. The time I lived in Thailand was also really helpful and kept me positive even though sometimes I felt lonely and missed my friends and family. The support I got from my friends and my mom was so great that I can't even thank them enough so they were a HUGE part that kept me sane through the year. 

38. Did you have obsessions? 

Fooooooooood. 

39. Did something annoy you a lot? 

Yes....my laziness. I hate how lazy I was in many things last year. I wanted myself to be more active, go outside or do Blogilates pilates videos at home but no, I spent most of my time just laying in bed etc. I also would have wanted to use more time for learning Korean and Thai but I didn't do that either because of my laziness. Okay sometimes I was just too busy for it but usually I was too lazy to pick up my books and practice. Hopefully this year I will be more active in many ways! 

40. Was 2016 the best year ever? 

I'm not sure but it was definitely one of the best ones. There were sad and scary moments but mostly fun and great days which helped to get through the negative moments. 2016 was full of unforgettable moments which I'm really thankful for.