In one of my previous posts I included a drawing of an adorable kitty wishing everyone a Merry Christmas. It’s now on shirts and sweaters and other stuff in case you’re into this sort of thing.
In the next couple of days, I hope to walk the length of this old railway track near Haeundae Beach. Been putting it off since last year. The time is now!
Went back to the clinic this morning to get my bandage replaced. Man was it a beautiful day!
Since it’s pretty close to the beach, figured I’d take a detour on the way back.
So I went from here:
To here:
Not a bad trip.
There are many things I love about Korea, but these DRIVE. ME. CRAZY.
…sometimes.
So I was in deep trouble. This particular morning was our anniversary, and with all the crap that had been going on, I’d realised too late that my original gift idea wouldn’t work, due to time constraints.
Yea, yea, that’s not an an excuse I know… I know…!
I’d gotten the flowers preordered from before, but I couldn’t find what I was looking for in Jangsan… matching hats for my wife and our Littlest Dictator. This morning was basically a do-or-die (possibly literally) situation.
Got my brother-in-law up to drive me to Shibsegae Shopping Mall, once the world’s largest mall in the world (it was in the Guinness Records, if I’m not mistaken).
We got there on a cold morning at 10am.
And… they were still closed!
Normally it wouldn’t be a big deal to me, since they were going to open at 10.30am. Except in my haste, I did not dress for the really cold morning.
Ah well. Decided to walk around a bit to warm up.
Didn’t realise that Bexco (a major exhibition and convention centre) was so close by).
We grabbed a quick coffee at the nearby convenience store and headed underground to one of the main entrances.
Turns out there were others who just couldn’t wait to get their morning shopping in. I wonder if they too had messed up in a big way like I did!
The place is huge. I moved from floor to floor, communicating in a mixture of very basic English and sign language (the latter mostly).
It reached the point where I’d almost given up and decided to have a bit of stupid fun instead.
This is a man who has lost all hope:
At long last I found them!
These, plus the flowers basically meant I could continue to breathe the cool free air 😂.
My hand now looks like a wrinkly apple with an attitude problem, but the pain’s almost gone so hopefully I’ll be able to resume my workouts tomorrow!
Anyway, we visited the ancient Haedong Yonggungsa temple recently. First built in 1376 (and my little sister calls me old!) and situated on a cliff by the sea, the views you get are breathtaking.
Here’s the entrance from the car park:
On the way to the temple proper, you’ll come across many vendors on either side of the narrow path selling souvenirs and unique (and a little overpriced) snacks.
The weather was really nice. I just suck at taking good pictures.
This was pretty good, actually.
Gets pretty crowded on the weekends.
Totally worth it.
There’s also a trail that leads you directly to Songjeong Beach. Definitely trying this out next time I’m there.
Hopefully I’ll be able to return at least one more time before we leave.
Getting there:
We drove there, but if you’re going by bus, as per the Visit Korea site, take the subway to Haeundae Station (Busan Subway Line 2), and then head to Exit 7. Take Bus 181 and get off at Yonggungsa Temple Bus Stop.
It’s still a bit of a trek to get to the entrance though, so if you have leg problems, it’s best to pay a bit for a cab to drop you off.
For those who don’t know me (which would be most of you since I only started this blog like, a week or two ago), I’ve been hoping to encounter snowy weather for AGES.
The last time I touched snow was about four or five years ago in Jangyu after I arrived just a little bit too late during an unusually cold day in that part of Korea. There were only small piles of it left on a mountain.
Ever since then, I’ve been hoping to see snow again. Each year I always get so close. SO DAMN CLOSE. I mean goddammit there was even once where it snowed JUST AFTER I LEFT.
With these being my final three months in Busan, I’ve got a plan. Right after the coldest night, I will scale Jangsan Mountain. There’s got to be snow up there.
Every week once or twice I’ll practise going up Jangsan. Once the time comes, I intend to reach the summit hopefully in less than three hours. What? A guy can hope, can’t he??
Be scaling you real soon…
One Weird Dude's Busan Blog 