Busan has an awesome hiking culture - the city is literally surrounded by gorgeous, epic, emerald mountains; it's like living in some secret, protected 'dent' in the world. Any given day you're sure to pass countless tiny packs of old Korean men and women, decked out in full hiking gear (walking poles included) hustling their way to the next mountain. Despite their age, any one of them could surely kick my butt...those people mean business.
Around 9am today my friend and I trekked over to Jangsan mountain (about a 15 minute walk from my apartment) to the trail entrance, and started to make our way to the top. I have been on hikes before, but this one was definitely a trip. Make no mistake, Korean hikes are not comprable to Canadian hikes. Back home, this thing would be Everest. Any true hiker living in the Bu would call me lame for marveling at Jangsan (it's outdone by so many others here) but compared to Ontario, this thing was Everest.
This hike itself was a purely 'Korean' experience - difficult to describe - Korean experiences are something that just can't be explained. Over the course of 5 hours I witnessed countless 'adult playgrounds' (a popular fad here, where awesome and fun workout equipement is placed in random areas throughout the city), buddhist temples, grandma & grandpa hiking groups (faster than me, at the ripe old age of 25), and one 70-something man walking that damn thing without shoes. At one point my friend Tom and I had to lay on a bunch of rocks for an apple break, and just laugh at everything we'd witnessed pre-noon today.
Anyway, I will post mountain pictures as soon as I have them. It definitely won't capture the beauty (and height!) of that monster, but I promise to take any of you for the journey if you visit.
Enjoy your Saturday, Canada. Thinking of you all!
xo, b.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Friday, March 18, 2011
Savage Night
Parties in Busan don't finish until well into the next day. And I don't mean the wee hours of the morning, I mean 9,10,11am the next day. This is mainly due to the fact that bars here don't close, they stay open until the last, demolished guest is ready to stagger on home...or, in some cases, the nearest park bench.
Needless to say, last night's St.Patty's celebrations were nothing short of crazy. And the place to be? Busan's favourite foreigner hang-out and only Irish Pub: Wolfhound.
I love Wolfhound because once you're inside, it's identical to any other pub I'd find back home. The food is delish, and it's a rare English-only zone - great for those times when I find myself in serious need of a break from the constant buzz of Korean. My coworkers and I stop by each Monday night for cold beers and half-priced chicken tenders, gotta ease into the workweek.
The stories of Wolfhound are legendary. Those four walls have seen more crazy crap since that place opened 6 months ago than most bars will see in a lifetime. Just the other Sunday during a ritual beer-ing session (dubbed 'Sunday Fundays') I watched a guy pay his friend $50 to pull his pants down and allow him to fire 3 darts into his bare butt. I'm still cringing. This is the side of Busan that makes me wonder...
Last night was right up to par. I stopped in for literally 2 minutes after dinner with some friends, but promptly left because I just couldn't take it. It was only 11pm but people were already getting naked. That place was going to be trouble. Sure enough, I woke up this morning to a facebook status update from Wolfhound stating: cracked couches, tables broken, ran out of Guiness and Cass, plumbing effed, police came...thanks for coming. Savage night.
Bleh. I had way more fun picking wedding colors with Rhi at 1am.
Needless to say, last night's St.Patty's celebrations were nothing short of crazy. And the place to be? Busan's favourite foreigner hang-out and only Irish Pub: Wolfhound.
I love Wolfhound because once you're inside, it's identical to any other pub I'd find back home. The food is delish, and it's a rare English-only zone - great for those times when I find myself in serious need of a break from the constant buzz of Korean. My coworkers and I stop by each Monday night for cold beers and half-priced chicken tenders, gotta ease into the workweek.
The stories of Wolfhound are legendary. Those four walls have seen more crazy crap since that place opened 6 months ago than most bars will see in a lifetime. Just the other Sunday during a ritual beer-ing session (dubbed 'Sunday Fundays') I watched a guy pay his friend $50 to pull his pants down and allow him to fire 3 darts into his bare butt. I'm still cringing. This is the side of Busan that makes me wonder...
Last night was right up to par. I stopped in for literally 2 minutes after dinner with some friends, but promptly left because I just couldn't take it. It was only 11pm but people were already getting naked. That place was going to be trouble. Sure enough, I woke up this morning to a facebook status update from Wolfhound stating: cracked couches, tables broken, ran out of Guiness and Cass, plumbing effed, police came...thanks for coming. Savage night.
Bleh. I had way more fun picking wedding colors with Rhi at 1am.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Still Kickin'
For those of you who were worried, yes, I'm still alive. And, I'm sorry for almost falling off the face of the planet the last few months.
With regards to the recent news about Japan, all I can say is that everyone I know in Korea is safe and sound (thankfully). I didn't know any of the foreigners who had been visiting at the time of the tsunami, which is unreal to me because my friends take weekend trips by ferry over there all the time. The whole thing happened right after 'spring break' for the public school teachers here, so they were back in the country already.
I'm happy with the action that Korea has taken to aid the tsunami relief efforts, though I have to say that it is somewhat surprising. I really don't want to blog about it, but Korea-Japan relations are historically strained, to say the least. Since moving here, I have learned much about the way that the Koreans and Japanese think about one another. If you are curious to know more, send me an email. I'll happily share, in private.
Ok I really hope everyone is well back home! Miss you all & I promise to write again soon.
b.
With regards to the recent news about Japan, all I can say is that everyone I know in Korea is safe and sound (thankfully). I didn't know any of the foreigners who had been visiting at the time of the tsunami, which is unreal to me because my friends take weekend trips by ferry over there all the time. The whole thing happened right after 'spring break' for the public school teachers here, so they were back in the country already.
I'm happy with the action that Korea has taken to aid the tsunami relief efforts, though I have to say that it is somewhat surprising. I really don't want to blog about it, but Korea-Japan relations are historically strained, to say the least. Since moving here, I have learned much about the way that the Koreans and Japanese think about one another. If you are curious to know more, send me an email. I'll happily share, in private.
Ok I really hope everyone is well back home! Miss you all & I promise to write again soon.
b.
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