Since Ryann was here for a while, I suggested we use the weekend to visit another city in Korea. Where else would you want to go but the next largest city in Korea that happens to be 20 degrees warmer than Seoul and right on the ocean? So bright and early Saturday morning, Ryann, her cousin Sierra, and I boarded a KTX to Busan.
Since our hostel was located in a neighborhood further from the train station and we couldn't check in until 2:00, we decided to explore the downtown area and have lunch before heading north. Our first stop was the Jalgachi fish market, the largest fish market in Korea. Seafood is a staple in the Korean diet (and given the fact that the country is a peninsula, your seafood is always fresh), and Busan is known for having some of the best seafood in the country. The fish market was really huge and so much fun to walk around and look at all the strange shellfish. We spent the whole morning wandering from booth to booth looking at all of the oceans bounty (including sting ray!).
All kinds of shellfish: gooey duck, abalone, mussles, clams, scallops, crabs, lobsters, and more
This is just the front of the market. It went on for about a mile or so.
The three of us are pretty adventurous girls, and we all wanted to try the Korean specialty sannakji. While you can get it all over the peninsula, it is most fresh in Busan. Sannakji is basically a young octopus that is killed and quickly chopped into very small pieces, dressed with sesame and laver, and served still squirming around on the plate. Don't worry, the octopus is definitely dead, its just (as Anthony Bourdain says) "too stupid to know its dead". The key to eating sannakji is to chew quickly and vigorously before you swallow, otherwise you risk the cups suctioning onto your throat/cheek. Its such a strange sensation but you can easily pull it off and keep chewing. It actually tastes pretty good, like the ocean, and overall was an enjoyable experience. Here is a delightful video for your amusement. It actually looks a bit worse in the video than it did in person.
After that appetizer, we grabbed some real lunch of whole broiled fish that was delicious! I wasn't quite adventurous enough to eat the eye, but Sierra went for it! After the market, we headed toward BIFF square, a huge shopping area where the international film festival is held. We also went to the top of Busan tower to get a great panoramic of the city. The park below was full of families out enjoying the sunshine (did I mention it was almost 65 degrees and sunny!).
Busan Tower on a sunny day.
We headed up to Haeundae next, which is where our hostel was located. Haeundae is the main beach/restaurant/party area and was so cool to explore. We went down to the beach just after sunset and everyone was out listening to street performers and shooting off fireworks. After dinner, we headed to an Irish pub to celebrate St. Paddy's day with Irish Car Bombs and green beer!
So excited for a beach and new friends!
The girls out for St Patrick's Day. I forgot something green...
We woke up early the next day to head to Haedong Yonggung Temple. This is an absolutely beautiful temple situated right on the cliffs with great views of the ocean. It was super crowded but still so cool to explore. It also had a cool little market out front where I got a dress and a bracelet. After a delicious mandu lunch we headed to the aquarium to play with starfish and see sharks. Then we headed to the station and somehow got tickets on one of the last open trains back to Seoul that night.
This was actually a tank at the aquarium to celebrate White Day (March 14th, where the boys buy gifts for the girls). The teddy bears are IN the water with the (lonely?) fish.
Dolphin Baloon headband. Enough said.
Great view of the temple right on the water.
Just get rid of the industrial ships spewing black smoke in the background and you've got heavan!
All in all it was an excellent Busan weekend. I can't wait to go back later in the year for some beach chilling and seafood feasts!
xo Julie
No comments:
Post a Comment