Busan Beaches!

 

I am finally on vacation! Ah, the taste of freedom is sweet and sorely missed. A friend of mine, Greg, invited me to come visit a friend of his in Busan this weekend. I had no other plans, so I happily obliged! Busan is a south western metropolitan city which has the 2nd largest population in the country. Also, it's right on the sea. Which sea, you ask? It's kind of complicated.... Anyway, we left Saturday and I met Greg's 'ole college buddy, Gun. Then we went out drinking and clubbing (ha!) and we all got a little drunk and had ourselves a grand time.

Gun taking in some Sun.

The next day, we planned a trip to the beach! The weather threatened rain, but it managed to stay at bay. And then WE went to the bay! har har har... The water was warm and the air was warmer so it was nice to swim and lounge around. We went to Gwangalli Beach, the smaller of the two largest beaches. The water was a little dirtier but it was less crowded. It had this really big bridge out over the water. It was cool and an eyesore at the same time.

I wanted to do a beach post, so I took the opportunity and flashed some pictures! I also wanted to show off my new headband/handkerchief. Teehee!

-Anna-

swimsuit: Urban Outfitters (billabong)(also, from last year)

shorts: ebay

bandana: Korean subway

There was this strange little statue out on the water. I asked Gun, but he didn't seem to know what it was for.

On Monday, Greg and I were on our own with looking around so we hit up the fish market. Busan is right on the beach so they rely a lot on their seafood for revenue. It was basically just a long street with tons of sea creatures, alive, dead, and dying. Yeah, maybe a little gruesome. Now, I'm not too big on seafood, so maybe some of the appeal was wasted on me, but I will admit it was worth the trip. 

wtf gross phallic things which are not actual penis'.

We got lunch at a seaside restaurant which served.. you guessed it, fish! So Greg and I ordered sashimi (raw fish) and fried fish. We also got A TON of sides (which is typical in Korea, but DAMN). And they just kept coming! There was shrimp and smoked salmon and kimchi and soup and raw veggies, chicken, pork... and more that I couldn't even identify. It was all real yummy, you know, for fish, and we were thoroughly stuffed when we finally managed to fit it all in our bellies.

surprisingly not the full spread.

I also got a local dish, dwaeji gukbap (돼지국밥), which is a rice/pork soup. It's quite delicious! Add a few tiny shrimp and some kimchi for flavor, and you've got a scrumptious hot dish.

Oh and one more story:
So Greg and I went to this bar our last night out, and a few beers into the evening, I manage to drop my glass three inches off the table. Typical, right? Hahaha, so the thing shatters in to a thousand little pieces! Not even big chunks, noooo, tiny little bastards that land all over arms and thighs and table and floor. I have nothing too bad to show for it, but I did manage a few little nicks.

So that was my first adventure of my vacation. My second will begin tomorrow when I visit Elly's hometown on the eastern coast. I don't remember the name of the city, but it's not overly big. I'll be staying with a friend of hers, one I met a few weeks ago when I went camping! Awesome, right? I'll be hanging out with a normal Korean family who I barely know for four days. What a new adventure! I finished the first Game of Thrones book, but I have to wait to borrow the next one. So I'll be taking John Green's Papertowns, and J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, so I'll crack into those during my trip. See you in a week or so!

Sincerely yours,
Anna