FERRY FROM BUSAN TO JEJU

I had a vague plan for Korea, but nothing set in stone. When I started doing research on Korea I knew one thing for sure, I wanted to take a ferry somewhere. I decided on Jeju, the largest island off of Korea's coast (also the most southern point of the country and a popular vacation destination for Koreans, but more on that later). From Busan there is a daily (except sunday night) overnight ferry to Jeju. The ferry leaves at 7pm and arrives in Jeju 6am the next morning. In the summer this is probably amazing, but this time of year the ferry left and arrived, while it was dark out. I have never taken an overnight ferry before but it ended up being great! I sprung for the 2nd class 4 person bunk bed room (vs sleeping on the floor with upwards of 30 other people). The latter would have probably been much more interesting but I really wanted a good night of sleep. The cost for the 11 hr ferry ride was 57,000 won (or about 53 bucks).

After catching up on some photo editing and talking to my roommates for the night (two students on there way to Jeju to cycle around the island) I had a good night sleep and woke up at Jeju ferry terminal the next morning!

This was not my ferry, but a ferry adjacent to it. The one I was taking was about the same sizes.... just a lot older.

Passengers boarding.

Busan at dusk.

A worker checking tickets.

A small arcade on the ship.

Oh man, a night club. I cant say I stayed awake long enough to check it out.

There was this weird map highlighting different country with sterotypical pictures... I think this stereotype is "the creepy American pedophilia"

Goodbye Busan!

Unfortunately I was on the wrong side of the Island to get really great shots.

Then again there is always the local fish market to check out at 6am.

Boats in the harbor.

BUSAN, KOREA! PT 2

I spent the rest of my time in Busan just wondering around, seeing the beaches, a few more Temples and the harbor during the day. Loading fish off the boats into trucks.

Fish boxes.

The harbor had a nice raw feel and there didn't seem to be any parts off limits.

The docks and the market.

Busan street food, an entire alleyway!

These guys approached me and had me take a snapshot of them with one of Busan's many bridges (which everyone seems super proud of) and the background.

The tough women of the fish market.

Sunset at the fish market.

Buddha by the beach.

The best no smoking sign I have ever seen. This thing much have been 10 feet tall.

Busan, Korea

Between the fact I have been to Japan before and the cost of traveling there, I decided to spend a bulk of my free time in Korea. I have also always been interested in Korea and I know only a few people who have traveled there. After visiting Japan and China, I also thought it would be really interesting to visit Korea to see how these three differ, especially due to their past history. I started off my trip in Busan (flying there from Tokyo), the second largest city in Korea. Busan is a really interesting city around the sea and the mountains. Despite the boring highrises, the city was very visually interesting. My first impressions of Korea is that it is a nice half way point between Japan and China. Its more rough around the edges then Japan but not as difficult to travel in as China (mostly due to the fact people here are really really friendly and its some much smaller in size).

After spending time in mostly large cities, I started my trip off in Busan by heading out of town to the Beomeosa Temple, which has many hiking trails around it. I happened to be there after morning rituals and I was offered a free lunch (especially awesome since they only serve vegetarian meals at Buddhist Temples!). After that I climbed up to the fortress wall. The hiking trails were awesome, but due to the time of the year they were pretty icy and dangerous.

After a short hike, I headed to downtown Busan to check out some of the markets. The markets were really interesting and it wasn't long until i stumbled upon some street partying. After observing for a little while I was offered shots of Soju and given fruit! Did i mention Koreans are friendly?

After that I headed down to the harbor and the fish market for sunset. After shooting photos from a bit I met a nice student named "Coon" who ask if I wanted to have dinner with him. After the famous "Beijing Tea Scam" (pretty much someone posing as a student befriends you and ask if you want to go for tea, then they take you to a super expensive tea house and you get stuck with a super high bill... the only scam i have ever fallen for!!!) I was a bit hesitant but I could tell Coon was sincere. We had a nice dinner and once again the table of old men across from us insisted on giving us shots of Soju and candy (once again did I mention Koreans are the nicest?).

That pretty much just sums up my first day in Korea. The sea, the mountains, the harbor, the merchants and the markets really make for a lot of exploring. If you ever head to Korea, make sure to visit Busan, its worth it.

Busan, Korea

Beomeosa Temple

#1 - Beomeosa Temple #2 - Fortress Walls, North Gate

A wrong turn took me down this street. All the store fronts looked like this.

Street market festival.

#1 - This guy rocked. I had no idea what he was saying, but he did a little dance for me. #2 - Lots of fun alleyways to explore.

A guess its not just metal shops that look like these.

#1 - Man watching karaoke at a street festival #2 - Busan street market.

Busan harbor at night.

Fire at the fish market.

A business man steps out of a fish market restaurant to take a phone call.

#1 - The Busan fish market was very different then Tokyo, most of it was outside.... #2 - ...and almost all the stands were run by woman.

Holding an octopus. It made some pretty wild sounds when she plucked it off her gloves.

TOKYO FISH MARKET

Well maybe its not really a "photo essay" but here is a group of photos from the famous Tokyo Fish Market, the largest in Tokyo. I knew I would see a lot of fish markets in Korea but I still decided to go down and check it out. In the long run I'm stoked I did. It was definitely a very visual and interesting place. We (My friend Kristen was showing me around) didn't get there until about 9am but there was still plenty of action until about 11am. In addition to the fish market, there are tons of other alleyways in the area. After a helpful local started talking to us, Kristen and I went to a tiny hole-in-the-world tempura restaurant that seat about 8 people. We shared a table with to busy and angry looking businessman... anyway, it was the best tempura I have ever had!

If you ever end up in Tokyo, go check out the fish market, you won't be disappointed!