Busan, South Korea: Day 2

Day 2: Gukje Market, BIFF Square, Jagalchi Fish Market, Gamcheon Cultural Village, Taejongdae Park, China Town

So waking up the next morning, I was determined to do everything on my list and have a productive day. I had some pastries I bought the day before for breakfast, got dressed, then situated my route for the day. In Busan, it seems like public transport is abundant. But unlike Japan, city buses are used much more frequently.

I first wanted to go to Gukje Market and when I put in the destination into Google Maps it showed me that the best way was to go by city bus. So, a bit skeptical but trusting, I headed to where Google told me to catch the bus. A funny detail about Google Maps in Korea is that when it has a section you must walk, the route shows you a straight line to get there, as if you could fly there. So because it didn’t have the actual walking path, I had to just look at the map and follow it like a maze to the bus stop. I actually had the same thing happen in Seoul so must be something with South Korea and Google Maps.

The bus experience was interesting. So as you travel in strange places, you learn that you must be super observant to get by. So being that I had no idea how city buses worked in Korea, like how to pay, how much, which bus, etc. I was carefully watching the bus stop sign and people around me. My phone told me the number bus I should ride, and luckily for me, the bus stop I was at had an electronic screen that changed and told you which bus was coming up next and approximately how far they were. Perfect! I had never seen such an advanced bus stop sign! So this made finding my bus really easy. I saw on buses that passed before that the fee for a ride was 1,200 won a ride (about $1.20 usd). So with that in mind, I got my money out and put it in my pocket so I wouldn’t be scrambling for my wallet as I got on the bus. Like in Japan, people in Korea also had a transportation card that they scanned on buses and at train stations. Most people had this and didn’t even have to fumble with cash.

After successfully getting on the right bus and waiting for about 30 minutes before arriving at my destination, I soon was in Gukje Market. According to my research, refugees who fled to Busan after the Korean War set up stalls to make a living which soon became the start of Gukje Market. Gukje Market is also the largest market in Korea. I’ve been to a handful of markets in my travel and Gukje was very similar to ones I’ve seen before. There were stalls after stalls all selling similar things. From clothing to kitchen ware to children’s shoes, the market had a variety of things a person would be interested in.

After walking through the market, I decided to go back to the front side of the market to get some noodles from some old lady street vendors I had seen when coming in. I had seen an exact photo of the scene in front of me online when researching Gukje. I like to try different foods when traveling so I pulled out a tiny plastic chair and pointed to a bowl of noodles. It seemed like this little cluster of old ladies sold primarily noodles or kimchi as a side. I wasn’t even sure what kind of noodles these were but luckily for me, I have no known allergy so figured anything would be ok. There were bowls of noodles all set out for display. When you choose to sit down, the lady picks up a bowl then puts it in a strainer which then goes into a pot of hot soup to be softened and heated. Then the heated noodles and broth go into a bowl that is covered with plastic and lastly, a dollop of some spicy sauce put on top. Simple but appetizing and only costing me 2,000 won. The noodles were just the right amount of spiciness and nice texture too. A little off puting detail was that I found a small hair in my noodles but like any good traveller, I took it out and just kept on. That may gross out some of you but it comes with eating in strange places that probably aren’t FDA approved. So aside from that detail, the experience of having street side noodles in Gukje Market was pretty cool.

Once I inhaled my bowl of noodles, I really wanted to check out BIFF Square to find a street snack I had read about in my research, ssiat hottaek. Once entering BIFF Square it was very easy to find because there were lines behind both snack trolleys in the square. Ssiat hottaek is a deep fried dough that is then cut in the middle to be stuffed with a sugar/cinnamon mix as well as nuts. It was so yummy and cheap! It only costed me 1,200 won. A nice mix of soft and gooey with crispy and crunchy. I stood along the side street as I watched people come and go, take photos, buy street food, and enjoy the energy of BIFF Square.

BIFF Square is a popular tourist place because it promotes Busan’s film industry. The 428 meter long street has not only shops but also film inspired statues and hand prints molded into the group of famous movie stars. I saw all this while walking through but with those things being the only thing that was film related, I didn’t get much of a feel for the film industry in this place.

Busan is a coastal city so the seafood here is known to be of high quality and really fresh. Like Seoul, Busan also had a fish market that ended up being really close to BIFF Square. So as soon as I was done with my snack and walking around, I headed to Jagalchi Fish Market right across the street to check out the catch.

When I was in Seoul with my brother and Bao, one of our favorite things was the fish market there so I was really looking forward to what this fish market would be like. Jagalchi was unlike any other fish market I had seen before. It was so clean! It was in a warehouse but instead of cement floors, there were tile flooring and everything was neatly kept. One of my favorite things about this market was all the vendors weren’t yelling at you to buy their stuff. So I could freely walk through and just take a look at what everyone was selling. One interesting sight was this woman preparing to butcher a huge fish. The poor thing was bleeding everywhere! I tried to stay longer to take photos but felt like I was intruding on her butchering process so kept on walking.

In Seoul, I had other people to share food with so we took advantage of buying fresh animals and having them cooked in a nearby restaurant. Busan was different though because I was alone. I didn’t want to buy pounds of something and not be able to finish it. So I just walked around the first floor of seafood vendors then decided to go upstairs to see what was up there. What I found was a large eating space filled with warm light from the massive windows. It looked like such a nice place to sit, eat and be with friends! I wasn’t intending to eat but as I walked by the large windows and people enjoying a meal, a woman stopped me and showed me a menu and tried to entice me to buy something. I thought, “what the heck! Sure!” and pointed to a fresh fish bibimbap. I had no idea what fish it was but it was the only thing in a budget I wanted to pay for without feeling wasteful if I didn’t finish (it cost me 10,000 won). The seating area was on a raised platform where you take off your shoes prior and sit on low tables. The place just looked so comfortable with warm window lighting and spacious tables so i felt like I had to take advantage and eat a second lunch.

My second lunch was just ok. I think I enjoyed the sitting area more than my food. Another issue I kept running into was I kept having to use the bathroom at the wrong moments! In Japan, it would probably be ok to leave your stuff at the table and run to the toilet quickly but in Korea I had no idea how safe it would be to leave my bag. So with the urge to pee, I quickly rushed my food so I could find the bathroom.

After finding some relief, I decided to walk off my lunches around BIFF Square. I saw that there was Yongdusan Park nearby so found my way there. Once I got there, I saw it was a few sets of escalators going up to the park. Thankfully there were escalators because it would've definitely been a little hike. A fun thing about going up to the park though was seeing this outdoor work out area. I’ve read about these before but never really seen one. Basically, it was like a park with a bunch of outdoor workout structures. This area of the park was full of senior citizens and all of them were men! I wanted to take a photo but the entrance to the park was so small that anyone would notice you coming in so I just kept on going on the escalator.

Yongusan Park contained Busan Tower as well. The tower and the park weren’t so impressive but there was one interesting thing I found there. It was like a shelter for homeless people to get meals freely or help if ever needed. Apparently it was started by a monk ages ago and was kept part of the neighborhood because of the hope it kept for the people. The house itself was colorful as well and welcomed visitors but I was too shy to go in so proceeded to my next destination.

Once I went down the stairs to leave the park, I hopped onto a bus to head to Gamcheon Cultural Village. In my research, this was one of the places I was really looking forward to go. The pictures looked so fun and colorful, I had to make it here before the day was over. Like I said before, Google Maps in South Korea has a little glitchy problem. Because of this, I got off a stop too early and ended up having to walk up a hill to get to the village. Once I got to the right entrance, I saw many other tourists taking photos and starting the walk around the village like myself.

Gamcheon Cultural Village was really awesome! This village is actually composed of residential homes as well as art spaces and cafes. The special thing about this place was that all the houses were painted pretty pastel colors and art could be seen at every corner. There were even random art spaces that were just blank rooms with writing on the walls. It was a little creepy to explore  the winding streets alone but luckily it was a beautiful day out and there were many other people on the main roads. Because this was also a residential area, there were signs that said to not be too loud and to respect people’s private properties. Because this was true, I was a little careful about which turns I took but this place was like a maze! It was so easy to end up walking down a tiny alleyway and not know how to get back to the main road.

The village was actually pretty big and I only ended up walking half of it before finding my way back to the city. It was soon going to be dark and my battery on my wifi and phone were dying. I didn’t want to be away from the main city for long so decided to fit in one more place before the day ended, Taejongdae Park. I took the bus back down to Nampo-Dong area and found a tourist policeman who lead me to the right bus to go to Taejongdae Park.

It was about 5 pm at this time and in my research I had read that the park closed at 8 pm on weekdays so I was sure I would be fine with time. After sitting on the bus for nearly an hour, I arrived at the park and walked towards the train tour entrance. Upon walking to the ticket booths I saw that it was pretty empty. Oh no! Don’t tell me they’ve closed! Turned out they changed the opening times and that they actually close at 6 pm now! Just my luck! So with that out of the question, I didn’t want to waste a trip there so I walked around the surrounding area and found a walkway that lead out onto a cliff side. It was a little eerie and deserted so I quickly took a photo and left.

Because my pocket wifi was already dying when I was at Gamcheon Cultural Village, I had turned it off to conserve the battery. Thankfully I had just enough to turn it back on to check the bus schedule on how to get back to a familiar area. Once on the bus, I saw the route took me through Busan Station. I had seen in a tourist map earlier that near Busan Station is Chinatown so I hopped off and decided to walk around a bit. By this time it was already dark so most of the shops were closed. Chinatown in Busan was actually a little dodgy after dark with so many places closed so I didn’t stay long.

After getting back to Gwangalli, I figured I should eat something for dinner. I wanted Korean food but I honestly didn’t pass by any places that looked appetizing. I ended up at a grilled cheese place that was a little off the main road. I had passed by it earlier and made a mental note to come back. I had a bulgogi grilled cheese sandwich which a side of seasoned fries that was really yummy and costed about 5,500 won.

The nice thing about staying at Gwangalli Beach is that the walk home is always bright and lively. This evening I saw the bridge was lit up and many people playing music, drinking, or just hanging out near the beach. Times like this I really wish I had a companion to enjoy the atmosphere with. Instead, I made a stop at 711 and got some dessert to take back to the hotel room.

What a day! I was happy I did so much and was so productive. Now to tackle day three!



xx
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