busan

Visit to Oryukdo Skywalk

What is it?

A relatively new seaside attraction that opened up in 2013, located on a cliff on Oryukdo Island. I’ll talk more about whether you should visit further near the bottom of this post.

The drive from Haeundae Beach to Oryukdo took us over Gwangandaegyo, also known as the Diamond Bridge. I never get tired of the view:

As long as you don’t think about possibility plunging to the depths of the sea, you’ll definitely enjoy the view!

One of these days I’ll have to check and see if I can walk up there.

After that was a short journey through one of those quaint, little towns that lies at the entrance to the mountain road that will take you to the cliffs on the other side.

Koreans enjoy livening up their industrial plants with cheerful murals

Made a quick stop on the mountain road to make sure we were headed in the right direction and not to Japan or something.

When we arrived, it was unexpectedly packed! I’m talking a small road filled with cars and tour buses. Turns out it was just our bad luck. Like, an hour later, the roads were clear.

So we parked a little farther out:

A pleasant stroll downhill. Pleasant so long as you don’t think of the journey back up with a cranky baby.

The whole area by the seaside is breathtaking. The views definitely merit that word. It’s like being in a masterpiece of a painting or walking in a dream.

And the air. Holy crap. It’s so fresh. If Mentos grew naturally, this is where you’d find a motherlode. Makes you feel refreshed and relaxed at the same time.

I’d never want to live here, because I’d never want to get tired of seeing such beauty.

Anyway, on to the Skywalk!

From here, it’s just a short walk up to the Skywalk proper:

Admission is free and you’ll have to cover your shoes before entering:

Here we go:

If you have vertigo, probably not the best idea.

The Skywalk itself was OK. Probably because I’ve experienced similar platforms that were much, much higher up like the Euraka Skydeck’s ‘The Edge’ in Melbourne and even the walk in Cloud Forest at Gardens by the Bay in Singapore.

The Littlest Dictator was quiet… for a moment.

Next, we walked down to the bay, where there’s a small market for fresh fish:

The trailer is a little restaurant if you’re in the mood for seafood

Should you visit?

Depends, really. The natural beauty of Okyudo Island is enchanting, surreal even. If nature is your thing, I’d highly recommend it.

If you’re going solely for the Skywalk though, then you might want to give it a pass.

The place is a major pain to get to, and if you took public transport (excluding cabs), it could easily take you more than an hour to reach.

More details here:

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=1981825

Dear GOD has the baby always been this heavy??

December 22, 2016 0

Beautifully Foggy Day

After it rained, something awesome happened. Well, awesome to me, anyway. There’s fog! Thick, low fog. I love this weather, man. Not too many days like this in Singapore.

Here’s the view on a clear day:

Now with the fog:

So I’ve got the idea to sell some of my pictures via stock photography sites, and one of them recommended bright and sunny days. But I don’t know man, there’s just something about cool, foggy weather, you know?

Reminds me of some shows set in Victoria-era London and Silent Hill. The fog also slows things down… adds mystery.

Perfect for sitting with a warm cup of coffee while reading a book or watching a horror movie or doodling.

Think I’ll go and create something.

December 21, 2016 0

On Minor Earthquakes and Snow in Korea

Looks like a pretty cloudy day today, and it’s projected to snow across most of Korea tomorrow! Most… just not Busan. GODDAMMIT.

However, I do have a plan! Ready or not, I’m hitting Jangsan Mountain early tomorrow morning, possibly before sunrise. I WILL HAVE MY SNOW.

It’ll probably kick my unprepared ass, though

In the past month we’ve been here, I’ve received two or three earthquake (!!) notifications. If you have coverage here, you’ll get an alert on your phone.

Oh yea and the apartment has a scary-as-hell alarm that goes off followed by an announcement.

Apparently quakes happen regularly, and you only get notified if it goes beyond 2.0 on the Richter scale.

Seeing how they’ve had major ones recently, I was a little spooked at first. But yea, it’s nothing to get too worried about. Overall it’s a pretty stable country. Japan however…

December 21, 2016 0

Warm Weather, a Cafe, a Playground

Coming from tropical Singapore, I never thought I’d say this, but it was a balmy 17 degrees Celsius (I know… I know… must be losing my mind).

Couldn’t resist taking the Littlest Dictator outside. I’ll also include a bit about a cosy café we visited a couple of days ago.

So here’s a comprehensive review of Ladife with all the details you need before deciding on a visit: Yea, it’s pretty good.

So the first thing I did today was get my bandaged replaced:

So the doc says it looks good and tomorrow should wrap up the entire treatment. Still feels I’ve been ripped off but eh, it gave me a reason to head somewhere in the day time after putting the Littlest Dictator to sleep… at goddamn 2am. Holy crap can she go!

Over here, pedestrians tend to give way to cars. NOT ME

Once we reached home, I had a ton of crap to do. But ahh dammit. It’s not often we experience what I call ‘Ideal Baby Weather’.

Because I was alone and a genius, I didn’t take pictures of the playground we visited. So um, here’s another playground we went to the other day:

So she has this thing where if she’s interested in someone or something, she just stares. What can I say? Babies are not known for their social graces.

Seeing how she looks more like her Korean mom, whereas I look like an escaped convict from a maximum security facility in Pakistan, it made it look like I was trying to cheer up a reluctant kid I’d just kidnapped.

I swear, if she’d just shouted ‘No! Want mama!!’ it would not have ended well for me.

Overall though, it was a pretty good day. Here’s a picture I took of some flowers:

December 20, 2016 0

An Interesting Article on the Limitations on Travel for Some

A little something different this time. There was once when even the idea of travel (except to neighbouring Malaysia) didn’t enter my mind. It was impossible

This article really hits home for me. By all means travel the world and extol its virtues. Just don’t be a dick about it.

http://matadornetwork.com/life/lets-stop-pretending-travel-accessible-everyone/

December 19, 2016 0

Stumbled Across a Wet Market

Just remembered to post this. Back when I was walking around looking for a gym, I happened to stumble across a wet market near the Haeundae Cultural Centre.

Reminded me a lot of the wet markets in Singapore, which will soon be all gone (if they’re not all gone already).

I gotta admit, it felt a little awkward taking these pictures without buying anything

Besides the stuff you’d normally find in a market like fresh fish, fresh meat, fresh vegetables, fresh cocaine, you’d also be able to find Korea-specific stuff like whatever these are:

So yea, a cool little wet market.

December 18, 2016 0

Not a Bad Day

Weather’s not that cold, and I was hoping to get a bit of sleep before the wife and her mom headed out to the Lotte Premium Outlets (I’ll be sure to post more about this awesome place later).

Unfortunately the Littlest Dictator had other ideas and after much screaming (hers not mine) (maybe partly mine) I tagged along.

This is much harder to navigate when you’re a 200lbs adult.

Yea not a bad day. So far. Soon I’ll be left alone with the baby. I must prepare for battle.

December 17, 2016 2

Wasted Opportunity?

Spent most of the day today in this room:

It was 25 degrees Celsius inside, but I was so out of it, I actually thought the curtains were of a special material that kept the heat in or something. And then I looked at the thermostat 😂.

So far on this trip, I’ve injured my hand…

On the plus side, it makes me feel a little bit like Ryu

… developed a slight fever and now have an annoying cough.

At first it got me a little down. Sure I’ll be here until mid-February, but I had so many plans which I’ll now have to change.

But man, there are worse ways to spend three months, you know? I mean, I’m in a goddamn luxury apartment by the sea:

And I’m warm and I’ve got access to a car here. Sometimes you just need to smack yourself in the face and realise just how fortunate you really are.

Sure the plans will change, but it’ll still be pretty damn awesome.

Also, I’d have to be a real ass to complain about being able to enjoy this view every day:

December 16, 2016 2

Brief Evening at Haeundae Beach

We decided to have a nice stroll along the beach yesterday and earlier this evening. Simple, right?

Now in Singapore, all you had to do was ensure the Littlest Dictator basically isn’t buck naked.

But here, check out all this crap:

And then we wrapped her in 20 woollen blankets

So first we headed to the clinic to get my bandage replaced:

If the pinwheels are spinning rapidly, then you’re probably freezing your little kimchi off

Superman’s weakness isn’t kryptonite, it’s Korean fried chicken places blatantly flouting copyright laws

Finally arrived at the clinic.

The nurse cackling manically probably shouldn’t worry me.

Bandaged replaced, onwards to the beach!

But first…

Again, the cold… it makes you… do things.

Finally…

The pictures don’t do it justice. It was so beautiful and surreal, like you were walking in a painting or one of those really slick promotional videos on big screen TVs at E Mart.

My wife’s Samsung S7 did much better:

Samsung: The S7, this time the camera actually works!

Now back to my crappy pictures!

That car insisted on being in the picture

Baby was getting restless. Fortunately just outside Paradise Hotel…

Trees and lights! A restless toddler’s kryptonite!

The journey back up the hill is a good workout for your quads, and will prompt you to remind yourself over and over again ‘It was worth it.’ “Was it really?” ‘Shut up brain! It was totally worth it!’

Totally… worth it. Dear GOD has the baby always been this heavy?

Sunset at Haeundae Beach is definitely a sight to behold. And best of all? No crowds!

December 15, 2016 0

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Busan in Three Months

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