Haeundae Beach Market - Busan

Haeundae Beach in Busan, South Korea is amazing and so is the market that runs parallel to it one block from the sand. It's a narrow alley spanning the width of a city block with everything you could need from restaurants to dumpling stands to clothing stores to disgusting entertainment. One of the things that they are known for there is their eel. This guys skins eels alive for maximum freshness and I'm guessing it's also to attract customers. Take a look:

 Sadly, we didn't sample the eel as the time we were there, it was to settle a craving for Mandu. We are going back in a month so I will try and give the eel a go and get back to you.

Steamed Mandu

Alex kindly offers the Mandu lady a sip of her Cass Light 

Geumjung Mountain Fortress and Seokbulsa Temple

While in Busan, Alex and I headed out to do some hiking. We had read about about the massive Geumjung Mountain Fortress and it's expanse of hiking trails. We sought out Seokbulsa Temple, which we had read had beautiful rock carvings into the mountain where it was nestled. We went on Buddha's birthday which we thought might be an extra special (or busy) time to see the marvel.

Getting to Seokbulsa Temple:

We took the gondola up which apparently saved us 45 minutes to an hour of hiking. It was $7 roundtrip and we enjoyed the view. Once at the top we began hiking to the South Gate. In Koren, South Gate is 남문, so look for signs for 남문. When the path splits without a sign, take the path on the left. It will lead you to the picture featured below:

Once you find yourself and the foot volley courts shown here, follow that girl to get to the Seokbulsa Temple. Then turn left at the next path.

You'll then come to this sign, a kilometer or two from the foot volley courts. Follow this couple down the rock "stairs." When you get to a road, take a right. The road will get crazy steep but you can do it. You'll be at the entrance to the temple in less than 30 minutes.

Seokbulsa Temple in Busa, Korea

The stone carvings were absolutely stunning for their detail. The scale of them and their location made it all the more...spiritual. I really don't understand how they did it. The outdoor prayer area was surrounded by 7 or 8 enormous statues carved into the mountain itself. 

It was hazy, but the view from Seokbulsa Temple was incredible.

The clockwise swastika is apparently a Buddhist symbol for good fortune used long before the Nazi's.

 The South Gate of Geumjung Mountain Fortress:

Defending The Realm

note: All photos were shot with my 50mm lens (hence the lack of better landscapes).

Busan Beaches at Night

The vibe in Busan is chill. It felt much more casual than Seoul and this was further exaggerated on the beaches at night. Families gathered to light fireworks, couples cozied up and enjoyed the music, and friends gathered to drink a few beers. Both fireworks and drinking in public are legal in Korea so you can imagine the laid back scene.

There are two major beaches in Busan, Haeundae and Gwangalli. Both are massive beyond what I imagined. We stayed 3 blocks from Haeundae Beach so we got to know it better. Haeundae seemed to have more fireworks and had live music. A couple of guys were set up with speakers, a laptop and an acoustic guitar providing the finishing touches on an incredible atmosphere.

Haeundae Beach, Busan

Fireworks at Haeundae Beach, Busan 

Fireworks and music at Haeundae Beach, Busan

Gwangalli has a spectacular view at night, as the Gwangan bridge is all lit up. If you are in Busan, you need to check out both of these beaches at night.

Gwangan Bridge from Gwangalli Beach, Busan

Fireworks at Gwangalli Beach, Busan

Gwangalli Beach, Busan 

Gwangalli Beach, Busan

Jalgachi Market - Busan

A couple of weeks ago was Buddha's Birthday. We had a four day weekend and decided to take this golden opportunity to take a trail to Busan, Korea. Alex and I tried getting KTX high speed train tickets a month in advance, but since it was such a busy travel weekend, the tickets were already sold out. So we ended up on the "slow" train, where we traveled just about the length of the country in 5 hours.

When we arrived, we hit the ground running before even going to our hostel. Our first stop was the Busan tower to get a lay of the land. We then headed to the famous Jagalchi Fish Market. We were told it is one of the largest fish markets in Asia. We figured this was as good a place as any to try Sannakji or live octopus. Check out the video. 

The massive building at the bottom is Jagalchi Fish Market 

Hunting it down

Gwangan Bridge

Gwangan Bridge

This is a thing

Please don't eat me. 

She just caught a live fish to show a customer and ask if it will do. Kind of like a bottle of wine at a nice restaurant.

I was taking a picture of the restaurant sign above this couple. They thought I was sneakily taking a picture of them until I pointed above them to the sign. They were cool so I gestured if they wanted me to take a picture of them after all. They complied. I love Koreans. 

Our chef Jacky of Jacky's Seafood. We think this guy may be a celebrity chef. There were pictures of him in the restaurant of him on TV.

We have been waiting for the right time to try Sannakji (live octapus) and what better place than Jagalchi Market? We found this legit looking stall on the 2nd floor of the market called Jacky's Seafood. We told the waitress we'd like Sannakji and she gasped in surprise. I think she thought we were brave for gringos.  It is apparently a dangerous thing to eat because of the suction cups on the tentacles. It is possible for the suction cups to stick to your esophagus on the way down and the heimlich will not help to dislodge them. So, yes. It is possible to die from eating this.

The plate came with a dozen side dishes that filled us up more than we had anticipated. When the Sannakji came, it was squirming all over the plate. It was cut up in small pieces and covered in sesame oil for our safety. As you'll see, it was quite difficult to pick up. 

After getting a grip on it and dipping it in the usual red pepper sauce, it was delicious. It was tender and fun. While chewing, you could feel and hear the suction cups popping like pop rocks. I took my time to make sure I chomped on each suction before attempting to swallow. I would definitely have this again.