Every fall there is the Korean thanksgiving called Chuseok. A perfect time to visit another city! Here is what we did in Busan for three nights. I travelled with Noelle and met up with other exchange students that travelled to Busan too for the holidays.
Busan sights for three nights
Staying at the Local
We stayed at a new hostel near Busan station. It was really fresh and on our last day they even had a night with free wine for all the people staying there. It was great. The owner really got everyone included so it was easy to meet the other people. The breakfast they served was great and the owner cooked pasta with curry sauce for everyone with Eagles´song Hotel California blaring out of the speakers.
Busan tower
The Busan Tower really did exceed my expectations. Great view and they really have thought about everything. Even during the elevator they had a video to watch about Busan and had a lot of different rooms where you could take pictures. More impressive than the tower in Wando.
Beach temple in Busan
After visiting many temples you kind of get the point of what they look like. But a temple near the beach is in my opinion something extra. So we went to the Haedong Yonggungsa temple and had a nice windy visit with a lot of other tourists. The temple was smaller than I thought though.
There are a lot of food stalls on the way so you could stay a couple of hours around the area but we wanted to move on to the net stop.
Near the beach temple there is an outlet and a mall. Not so impressive and not that cheap. Good to skip this one and maybe try other outlets instead.
Spa Life
Say spa to me and you make me smile. And what says vacation and relaxing more than spending a couple hours at a spa? This spa was a new experience though. In the bath area with the pools everyone is completely naked. The bath areas were separated for men and women but still…
The only sauna in the naked area was the Finnish sauna, which actually was quite “cold” (60 and 80 degrees and no water to throw on the stones – fellow Finn´s will understand). Then there was 12 other saunas to visit and for these you got sauna clothes, a t-shirt and shorts.
All saunas had themes such as pyramid room, Bali room and wave dream room. This area was for both men and women. There also was an entertainment area where you could watch TV, eat or enjoy 15 minutes in a massage chair.
Oh did I mention the spa is connected to the world’s largest shopping complex Shinsegae Centum City?
Gamcheon culture village
A village called the Machu Pichu of Korea. After looking at pictures of Machu Pichu I do not see the resemblance but nevertheless it was a cute and colourful village quite near the centre of Busan. 🙂 A great place to just walk around the narrow roads and take pictures and end up at a cute café for some food and drinks.
Travelling to Busan and eating hot dog with a stranger
Travelling also can mean fun encounters with people. This trip was no different.
We took the train to Busan which went pretty quickly but the way back we took the bus and thanks to the traffic jam it we sat over seven hours in the bus to Seoul (it should have taken four hours).
What made the bus trip better is the Korean man I sat next to. He was this older man on his way to meet his family in Seoul. We talked a bit and at times it was difficult to understand his English but I tried my best and he was so sweet, I’ll tell you why.
During the trip back we had two stops when one could go buy food or use the restroom. During the first trip this man came back with two hot dogs, one for him and one for me. We talked some more and he showed me pictures of his wife and daughter and talked about his work and my life as an exchange student.
I then bought some cookies on the other stop so I could offer him something as a thank you. And when we arrived in Seoul he gave me a bottle of water. The kindness of Koreans is really nice and welcoming.
“So did he adopt you already”, Noelle joked. This is just an example of how kind the Koreans are.
To summarize this post, Busan is a city with a lot to offer. Also has cinema centre, fish market and a bridge to try out. Staying for three nights is good so you can see the main sights.
What do you think about Busan? Comment here below and share your thoughts!