For the Stophers' final weekend in Korea we went to Busan, the big city of the south. It's somewhere we'd been looking forward to visiting since we arrived in Korea, so I had high expectations.
With a population of over 4 million, Busan is a huge city that sprawls out, over and around mountains for miles and miles. This makes it pretty difficult to fit a lot of sightseeing into a short weekend, but we did our best!
First we headed to Nampodong, home to the famous Jagalchi fish market, which fortunately for me, we didn't have time to visit, and Busan International Film Festival which is held every October. For our first real view of the city we "climbed" Mt. Yongdu (Yondgusan), which conveniently has escalators all the way to the top. Atop Mt. Yongdu there was a lot going on; there were hundred of people preparing for a concert, people in costumes entertaining kids, stalls selling all name of tacky souvenirs, and a musical instrument museum. The main attraction though is Busan Tower and the 360 degree panoramic view you get from the top. It was impressive.
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| Ladies in traditional hanbok dresses take the escalators up to Busan Tower. |
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| Busan harbour, from Busan Tower |
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| View from Busan Tower |
Among the entertainment at the base of the tower was this white booth and next to it a sign asking us to express our art. Can you guess who drew the 'F'??
We thought it would be nice to take a boat trip and see some of the Southern coast, however finding our way around the harbour turned into quite on ordeal. Trustingly following our tourist map to a place marked "sightseeing boat quay" we ended up at a deserted port, with no boats, no tours and no other people. After walking through a tunnel that turned out to be a dead end, and consequently climbing through a window, we eventually found the entrance to Busan's Passenger Terminal. The Passenger Terminal too looked decidedly deserted; the few people in the waiting area looked like they were passing the time, rather than actually waiting for a ferry, all the counters were closed and the place was in darkness. When we finally located a member of staff she didn't speak a word of English.
Fortunately, Korea's fantastic tourist hotline saved us once again. You can call 1330 from anywhere in the country and get tourist information in English and free interpretation, 24 hours a day. Every country should have that! After a long three way conversation with the terminal employee, we pieced together enough information to get us on a boat. We took at bus to Taejongdae Park, a rocky headland south of the harbour, and found ourselves a boat ride.
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| These restaurants/tents serve some of the strangest, most exotic raw fish I've ever seen. |
I'd been so busy trying to organize the boat trip and make sure everybody was happy that it wasn't until I got to the port that I remembered I hate boats, and the ocean, and that I get terribly terribly seasick.
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| At least I made it on to the deck for a photo. |
The boat trip included a stop at the tip of the headland, where you can climb over rocks and try to spot the dinosaur footprints that the signs claim exist. You can also sample perhaps the freshest fish you'll ever eat. Ajumas (older ladies) with buckets of live fish and brightly coloured head-wear will kill and prepare the sea creature of your choice, and serve it to you raw, on a plank of wood over looking the sea.
Very exciting you might think, but with my stomach still rocking from the boat trip, I barely managed to swallow a mouthful before I had to politely throw up over the edge of our make shift table. Sure-fire way to impressed the in-laws!
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| Ric, Jez and the raw flat fish |
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| Ajumas + buckets of live sea monsters = restaurant |
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| Korean sea penis fish. One of the ajumas picked one up and squirted Ric with it! hehe! I think they're lovely. |
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| These are called sea squirts (몽애) Ric ate one and said he wouldn't recommend it. |
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| Colourful rocky cliffs at the tip of Taejongdae. |
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| Taejongdae boat cruise. |
After a long day sight seeing we went to Gwangalli beach. Although we just missed the sunset, we were there in time to watch the sky turn from grey to black, and for the beach to come alive with the neon lights of the bars, restaurants, karaokes clubs and Gwangan suspension bridge.
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| Gwangalli beach |
We hit the bars, including the highly acclaimed Fuzzy Navel, which is featured in the Lonely Planet. The guide, as well as several sources online, describe the area as a beach bar paradise with cool graffiti-ed beach front shacks serving food and beer. In fact, all of the bars are major chains that you can find anywhere in Korea, and while it was nice to be close to the ocean, there wasn't anything particularly special about the bars.
After quite a few beers Ali and Alan called it a day, closely followed by me, whilst Jeremy and Ric stayed out until 6am sampling Korea's night life.
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| In Waa Bar, Gwangalli |
The next day we were up early to visit Yonggung Temple. Needless to say Ric wasn't feeing too fresh and Jeremy never made it out of bed!
Unlike most temples in Korea, which are hidden away in the mountains, Yonggungsa overlooks the sea. Despite the overbearing Sunday crowds and the scaffolding that had been erected everywhere in preparation for Buddha's birthday celebrations on the 17th, the temple was rather beautiful.
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| Yonggungsa |
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| Yonggungsa |
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| Yonggungsa |
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| My dear boyfriend, for some reason, rubbed the belly of the son granting Buddha! So, erm... watch this space! |
After visiting the temple we walked along the coast to Songjeong beach, which in spite of the glorious weather, was really quiet. As much as I'd have liked to lie there for the remainder of the day (/week) it was already time for Ali, Alan and Jez to start their long, long journey back to England. So we grabbed a terribly greasy pizza outside the station and took the KTX home.
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Songjeong Beach
Thanks for visiting Stopher family, it was great having you!
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