Hey, everyone! I have been in South Korea for just over a week now. I’ve been exploring pretty much every day (although not all day) – with day trips to Gamcheon Cultural Village, Igidae Coastal Trail, and Eulsukdo Island being the highlights.

Intro to Busan

I touched on this a bit in last week’s blog post, but I had flown from Taipei to Seoul. I stayed in Seoul just one night and then took the train down to Busan. Later in the month, I’ll be back in Seoul to reunite with my Queenstown roomie Jasper. I had booked my flight from Taipei before I knew he would be joining me, otherwise I would have flown into Busan. I had two main reasons for going to Busan:

1) the novelty of taking the TRAIN TO BUSAN, the name of perhaps my favorite zombie movie of all time (Korean zombies are arguably the best zombies)

2) one of my oldest friends, Gooby/Lauren’s mother is from Busan. Well, a town two hours away

So, really, I didn’t know much about Busan prior to going there. I certainly wasn’t expecting it to be a massive city like Seoul, but it was! It has been difficult to escape the chaos of city living since I’ve been on this travel adventure haha, but with day trips, it is certainly possible.

I didn’t do much the day of arrival in Busan. I was a bit wiped from the commute from Taipei to Seoul, followed by Seoul to Busan and I also had to type up the Taiwan travel blog. First night was a wash, BUT, I did have the bonus of a PRIVATE BEDROOM for the week. The price was about $22 USD, which is often the price of a 4 or 8 bed dorm room. So, obviously I splurged. I will certainly be doing that whenever possible. It is necessary to decompress and not have to share space with others whenever the opportunity arises haha.

The next day, I was well-rested and ready to begin adventuring around town.

Busanjin District

Typically on my first fresh day in a city, I like to get a bearing on my surroundings and understand the area I’m staying in. I mostly just walked around a lot. The area I was staying in was (I am only now learning with a quick Google search) the Busanjin District, which included smaller areas like my Beomcheon-dong area and also some major nearby areas like Seomyeon.

Pretty early on in the day, I stumbled upon an underground shopping mall, which apparently is a common thing in some of these Asian cities. I can’t say I’ve ever seen anything quite like it before. Some of these stores were literally just… shoes. And not like a shoe store you might be thinking of. It was a pair of shoes, directly next to another pair of shoes, directly next to ANOTHER pair of shoes. Shoes filled the entire room haha. And that’s how many of the stores were. There would be the occasional bakery or mini-grocery store. I got myself a red-bean pastry. I love those damn things!

(Side note: I must mention that I have been on the search for a place that sells… just a single banana. At all of the grocery stores here, you have to buy them by the bunch. I’m not sure why I didn’t do it when I first got to Busan. About halfway through, I was like, “okay, I really need some fruit” (I haven’t had fruit since I left America LOL) but I didn’t think I would eat all the bananas in time before moving to the next spot. I will definitely be getting some bananas. TODAY.)

I walked the length of the underground shopping mall and then continued along. With a quick search online, I found that Busan Citizen’s Park was within a reasonable walking distance. I was hoping for a nice nature-y area, but it wasn’t really that. However, there was a free history museum and since it was pretty cold outside, I went in to warm up. South Korea has been COLD so far, but as of today it starts to heat up. I only have two sweaters with me and thought that would be enough. It hasn’t been hahaha but I couldn’t justify buying a coat when it warms up soon and after Japan, I’ll be in very warm areas. Alas.

I also came upon a random food market! It was much bigger than the ones I’d seen in Taipei.

The history museum was quite interesting. I learned that the park actually used to be a Japanese army base, and a US army base following that. I never would have been able to guess, but after learning it, some of the structures around the park made more sense.

Later in the day, I wandered around the Youth Street, which was a pretty hip area. Picture tons of food joints, different arcade shops with multiple lighting (one arcade was all neon pink, another was green). I ended up returning to Youth Street a lot in the evenings just because it was such a vibe. There was one storefront that literally had one of those carnival rides that just spins around and around and around.

To finish up my evening, I went to get one of my favorite Korean foods… bibimbap. And it came with kimchi!!! My other favorite. And honestly the only Korean foods I really knew prior to coming here hahaha. One really nice thing about South Korea is that whenever you order at a sit-down restaurant, you get all these pickled sides (banchan) that come with the meal. I have really been filling up my belly here.

Beomil-dong

I had a lazy morning, working on a drawing and just taking it easy. In the afternoon, I went to get tofu soup, which Lauren had recommended. It was delicious and the amount of sides that came out with it was quite frankly absurd. The tofu soup itself was really yummy.

I didn’t have a totally set agenda yet, but the night prior, I had looked up some attractions to look at. But for this day, I really wanted to get to a more “old street” vibe. Already, it seemed, I was trying to escape the busy-ness of city life. What I hadn’t yet seen in South Korea was the mix that Taipei was giving me – a combination of busy, city streets, and quiet, tucked away, more local-feeling alleyways. In South Korea, it all felt… modern. New. CITY.

ChatGPT recommended I check out Beomil-dong area, so I headed in that direction and I’m glad I went. I got my first view of… well, one perspective of the skyline, and was also able to see some really cool-looking homes. Some of them were quite colorfully painted. It was neat to see the cluster of small, colorful homes combining into the tall, modern buildings of the city.

I also was able to stumble upon a small hiking trail at the top of a hill. I was hoping to spot a raccoon dog, which is a nocturnal creature native to South Korea. It looks like a mix of… a raccoon and a dog. Obviously! I didn’t see one, but I did find myself at what seemed like a place of worship.

It was windy, cold, and getting dark, so I decided to head to… a sauna! It was only $7 USD which is a steal, and gave access to their dry sauna, hot pools, and a gym if I wanted. I wish I could say I stayed for a long time, but even after cooling myself off with water in between the dry sauna and the pools, I was getting overheated haha. That was a really nice treat, though, and the perfect escape from the cold.

I didn’t take any pictures there. Sorry, pervs!

Gamcheon Cultural Village

This was likely my busiest day yet. I took the bus down to Gamcheon Cultural Village. Gamcheon is a spot famous for its vibrantly painted houses, kind of similarly to Beomil-dong but even more so. It also has lots of little Instagram-y spots, with little cartoon sculptures to take pictures with, or heart-shaped archways, etc.

Once I’d arrived, I snapped some pictures and overheard two girls talking in Spanish. It had been some time since I’ve practiced with another human, so I asked them if they speak Spanish (obviously). We had a conversation for a minute or two. In retrospect, I find it kind of funny that the most connection I’ve had with someone else in South Korea was not in English… but Spanish. Haha.

The language barrier is REAL, y’all! Some people know a little bit of English in Busan. Surely there are some people who are incredibly fluent, but no one that I had interacted with. While I don’t feel lonely, it is… a lonely FEELING? If that makes sense? To not be understood, or to have a hard time communicating. It’s kind of hard to describe. I’ve never experienced this before. In Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, yeah, I was a foreigner. But now I actually FEEL like a foreigner. But I think there will be some growth in that area in the coming months. I’ll get comfortable with it. At the moment, I find myself timid, soft-spoken, and embarrassed that I don’t know the language. But as Jasper has reminded me – I’m a tourist! It’s okay to not know the language.

I walked around Gamcheon for a while and then wandered to the proper downtown of Busan, where the Busan Tower lives. It was my goal to get to that damn tower and take a picture of it. I was confused why I hadn’t seen any views of it yet, but once I’d gotten to Yongdusan Park, I understood. The tower itself isn’t actually all that big!

I also went to some other popular spots – BIFF square, Gukje market, Bupyeong Kkangtong market, and Jagalchi fish market.

BIFF square has some great food stalls. I ended up getting kimbap (Korean sushi), and then later a waffle with marshmallow smushed between it. I also got a hotteok which was honestly incredible. It’s sort of a pancake glazed in honey that has seeds stuffed into it. It doesn’t sound like it would be that great, but trust me. It was.

BIFF also had those “water droplet” snacks, which basically looks like a solid drop of water. The street vendor drizzled a sweet sauce on it, scooped some crushed nuts next to it, etc. It was a whole production. A group of people were watching him put it together and even though I was about to buy my own, that group grabbed a spoon and let me try theirs. Despite the language barrier, the kindness almost brought tears to my eyes. After feeling kind of alone and misunderstood as an English-speaking person, the gesture really touched me in a big way. That made my day!

Gukje market was known for its clothing. So many clothes! I was tempted to buy some, but I’m trying to err on the lean side for the moment. Because I only have a little over a month between Korea and Japan, I’ll then be venturing into much warmer territory. I don’t want to be buying warm clothes when I’ll need to buy clothes for warm weather soon.

Bupyeong Kkangtong market was… chaotic. So much food. A lot of seafood. It was kind of sad to see the tanks with all the octopi, eels, etc. I was like – oh, man, I’ll be snorkeling with those creatures soon enough! Haha.

And lastly, Jagalchi fish market, which was more of the same. From what I understand, there’s an inside portion and then an outside section. Basically, fresh fish right from the sea. That area is right by the water, so the fishermen come in, clean the fish, and then have it ready to order.

I was more interested in going to the top floor of the market to get better views of the city.

That was a busy ass day. At night, I went out to eat and then played games in the evening.

Also, my apologies for not taking pictures of EVERY meal I had. I’ve never really been a food photographer but I’m trying to share at least some of the dishes I have, so you guys can check them out.

Igidae Coastal Trail

One thing I was really looking forward to doing in Busan was hiking the Igidae Coastal Trail. It was supposed to be a two hour hike and I think that ended up being about right.

I started at the Oryukdo Skywalk, which had a transparent walkway that was built in a way where you could see the ocean beneath you. And then I began the hike!

It was lovely to be in nature again and to get a better sense of what nature South Korea had to offer.

The coastline was pretty dramatic, with some islets off in the distance. The hike went up and down, up and down. There were a lot of stairs involved but luckily my knees survived OK.

Lots of seagulls flew along the air currents. Despite it being a cloudy day, the sun peeked through every now and then.

The hike pretty much hugged the coast the entire time, but occasionally drifted into more wooded areas. Overall, it was a pretty solid walk. I’m glad I went! And much to my surprise, it was NOT crowded. I was prepared for more Yehliu Geopark-sized crowds, but thankfully that was not the case at all.

Once I’d returned back home, I showered, rested up, and then went out for FRIED CHICKEN in the evening. My brother Dan had been raving about South Korea’s fried chicken. I finally found a good spot for it. I’ll be getting more fried chicken once Jasper is in town – he loves fried chicken haha. He would get KFC like once a week in Queenstown.

I also got myself some dessert from a food stall and bubble tea. Yum! I really overindulged that night. There has been a lot of indulgence on this trip so far. But hey, gotta try all this food while I can! (Funnily enough, I have actually returned to my normal weight after leaving the Midwest. Frigid weather + sedentary lifestyle because of said weather + lots of food = Steve gaining weight lol.)

Eulsukdo Island

I had met a German girl at my hostel who had been living in Busan for a long while. I asked her for some recommendations on things to do, and when I told her I like wildlife, she recommended Eulsukdo Island. It is a great spot for migratory birds and is a sanctuary area, so that was my next big spot.

I took the train to get close to the area, mailed some postcards (which was quite the feat given the language barrier lol), and then made my way to Eulsukdo Island. There is a bridge, making it easy to walk to.

And boy, were there actually a lot of birds near the water! I’m not even sure what all (or any) of them were called, but I got some pictures.

I was hoping to get some closer encounters, but no such luck this time. I did see some heron, crows, magpie-looking birds, and some other small ones that looked kinda like the silvereyes in New Zealand. I’m also pretty sure I spotted a juvenile Australasian-crested grebe!

Being in that element really reinforced that is truly my happy place… searching for wildlife. I love walking slowly, listening for the sound of an animal moving, and then trying to spot where it is. I think I would have made a great hunter in a past life haha.

After a few hours in Eulsukdo, I returned back to the hostel. In the evening, I got some food and then watched a show. This was also a big day for me because Lady Gaga released her Mayhem album. I spent an hour giving that its first listen. I’m really thrilled with it. It has been five years since her last album, and life was very different back then (2020 – Covid, etc.), so it’s very special to have new work to listen to.

Haeundae Beach

My final event in Busan was meant to be going down to Haeundae Beach to see the drone show in the evening. I had a chill morning. I worked on a drawing, exercised, showered, just kind of lounged around. In the afternoon, I went and got army stew from a restaurant and then headed down to Haeundae. I had gotten there too early – the show was meant to start at 8pm.

It was cool to see the beach – really pretty sand and the water looked relatively calm. I bet it would be an excellent spot in the summertime. Maybe it would even be good for snorkeling? Not sure.

The area was lively, with lots of people around. There were buskers doing tricks and playing music along the beachfront, offering entertainment to the crowds. There were nearby food stalls, too. Down the alley that had the food, there were tanks filled with eels. There was also a man who was flaying the eels and it was strange because even though their heads had been cut off and the skin/scales had been shucked, they were still squirming. Very eerie.

I was trying to kill time but really I was looking forward to being back home and re-packing, chilling out, etc. I ended up getting bubble tea about 20min before the show was scheduled to start. Just before 8, I found a spot, sat down and… hm. Nothing’s happening.

I then looked it up and found out it was in GWANGALLI BEACH. DAMN IT! The show was only 10min long, so there was no way I was making it to Gwangalli in time. I took the train back home and relaxed the rest of the night haha. Chaos. I thought the drone show which happens every Saturday would be a cute cherry on top of my time in Busan, but the world had other plans for me.

Alas. That’s how it goes sometimes!

Miscellaneous

One of my first thoughts when getting to South Korea was… where are the motorcycles/scooters at? After witnessing Taipei teeming with scooters, it was kind of bizarre to go to hardly any scooters at all.

The train to Busan was actually a high speed rail train. At times, it was going at such a speed that my ears kept popping. Crazy experience.

In positive news, my shoes are now BROKEN IN! That was such a pain during my time in Taiwan. My feet were hurting the entire time haha. Now they’re all good.

There was a dude with a big, green parrot on the subway. Very unexpected. The parrot was super well behaved.

One evening, I had a conversation with a Korean guy from Seoul who was in Busan for work. I noticed that he was talking about work and his job a lot. At one point, he asked me what my goals were, which kind of made me laugh. I was like umm, well right now it’s to travel. I guess eventually it would be to have a home, a dog, a partner, and a job that allows me a good work/life balance. When I asked him the same question, the goals were all work-related. Achieving hierarchy, climbing the capitalist ladder (that’s not verbatim). I was shocked to learn that he has NO vacation time. As we were talking about his job, he would say, “Oh, it’s good. But sometimes [insert something here that pisses me off about my job/boss/etc]. But it’s good!” It was almost like he was book-ending it with compliments in case I was secretly recording him and was going to send what he said to his boss.

I also reached out to a Queenstown friend, Daisy, who is going to be visiting her family in the Philippines during the time I’m there. I asked her where exactly she’s from and said I’d love to meet up with dinner. Well, she one-upped that and offered me a place to stay. She also mentioned her sister’s husband is a dive master. She said, “let’s go hiking and diving!” COUNT ME IN! Not sure if that will come to fruition and I don’t want to totally take advantage of the generosity/hospitality, but if she really means it, I would be super excited to do all of that with her!

Art of the Week

A little something. Not super pleased with this one, but they’re all a learning experience, right? Just a reminder that I do have a lot of my artwork on my RedBubble site, which is linked on the sidebar. I’ll be adding this one and some other more recent ones soon, too!

I am also still working on my book, slowly but surely. Once again, if anyone wants to read the first draft once it’s done, please do let me know. It would be much appreciated to get some constructive feedback. I will say, it is very hard to NOT write a love story lol.

Reflections

I was on the phone with my mom the other day and she told me she gets the feeling that where I’ve been going hasn’t really been my jam so far. And she’s right, it really hasn’t. I have been in a concrete jungle in South Korea for the most part… but I want real jungle. Am I amazed by Busan and South Korea? Yes. Am I often in awe? Yes. Is it my happy place? No. I want to be in warm weather, constantly searching for wildlife, and/or snorkeling. But that will come soon enough. I didn’t come to Taiwan, South Korea, or Japan in search of those things necessarily. I knew it would be something different, and that for the most part, it would be the chaos of big cities. I don’t regret having come here, because I am enjoying myself and I am enjoying the food. But I think the best is yet to come, for me.

With that said, I have just arrived in Gyeongju today, which is about an hour from Busan by train. It is home to quite a few UNESCO heritage sites. I’ll be here for the next four nights, so I’m looking forward to that. Already, I feel I can breathe a little easier. Less people on the streets, less busy. It feels good to get away from the chaos.

Until next time, sending you all my love. xx