Things I will miss about Korea

Korea has introduced me to some incredible people and experiences. I've made my home there and found my favorite places to eat, walk, or have a cup of tea. This is a list of the top five things I will miss about Korea. The list does not include people or places, but rather things I will miss about everyday living.

5. Walking or biking to work. My work was a 10 minute bike ride along the stream. Not only did I LOVE my bike, Bert. But the ride to and from work was a soothing transition to and from home. I will definitely remember that route for the rest of my life.

4. Digital door locks. I never had any keys in Korea. My apartment was a digital door lock, where you just had to enter the right code. No worries about being locked out ever. In general, Korea is so safe I hardly had to worry about anything ever getting stolen. I'll miss that as well.

3. Heated floors. Many apartments are heated through the floor. There is nothing like a warm heated floor to lay on on a cold winter day.

2. Jimjilbangs. I have come to love public bath houses. There is nothing more relaxing than decompressing in a warm bath, putting on some pajama type robes and lying around with the sole purpose of relaxing. Korea's got something special with this.

1. Banchon. With unlimited individualized side dishes, you could personalize every single bite. It was always a tasty surprise what kind of banchon came with your meal. I will miss you Korean food!

Anne's Birthday and Thanksgiving

This weekend was Anne's brithday and we celebrated by doing one of her most favorite things, walking up a mountain.

Charles and Leslie on the hike.

I couldn't think of a better way to spend my last weekend in Busan. We hiked to the top for a view of the city.

We made it.

After the hike, Anne has us over for a proper American Thanksgiving feast.

I had a lot to be thankful for this year, especially to Anne. Without her, I wouldn't have even gone to Korea in the first place. She's a real inspiration in my life.

Busan Firework Festival

Each year Busan holds an International Firework Festival. Thousands of people come to watch the majestic display of fireworks being shot off with the backdrop of a lighted bridge. They even have a firework competition between countries. I had been looking forward to this even before arriving to Busan.

From early in the day, they block off the streets for for patrons to claim a spot.

Buses filled with police came to make sure everyone stayed safe.

I was lucky enough to be with some coworkers who knew where to go to watch the show.  We were able to go onto a roof of a bar to watch the display. They didn't lie when they told me it would be breathtaking. Here are the pictures, some of which I played around with some camera settings.

Kat's Visit

I received an email from Kat asking me if she should come to Korea for a visit. Of course I said "YES"! And a week later she was here. How lucky and surprising it all worked out like that!

The first day, I met up with Kat in Nampo. I showed her around the area and we sat in the cafe on top of Lotte Department store.  We share a tea and cakes from Opp's Bakery.

The next day we went to PNU for cupcake decorating at Dan Hana.

Like a Kat in a cupcake store!

Kat and I made themed cupcakes of ourselves and some of our friends. We call ourselves the "Wild Bunch" because of a ridiculous old-time photo we all took one day at Six Flag amusement park. The five of us have been getting together for annual amusement park excursions for the past 5 years. We've been to all the major amusement parks in California and then some.

Jerry, Janelle, Kat, Jonathan, and Eric.

On another day we stayed in Oncheonjang and went up the mountain on cable cars to look at the view.

We bought some steamed buns for lunch.

Up the cable car >>>

@ the top!

One of the last nights she was here, we went to Gwangali Bridge to meet up with Anne.

Kat: Is this sacred?
Me: No
Kat: Then I'm going to climb it!

* sparkle *

Kat as glow-in-the-dark-wolverine-baseball-player.

Anne shooting fireworks from her magic wand.

The last thing we did was got to the Filipino area in Busan Station for a proper Filipino breakfast.

fried fish, fried egg, and garlic rice.

I am so grateful for the week with Kat.  It is really something special when you have a piece of home with you in a place so far away. Thank you for visiting Kat! <3!

Dadaepo Fountains and Beach Camping

After the Yoga Flow and Glow, Anne and I went to the Dadaepo Fountain of Dreams. It was a fountain show similar to the World of Color in California Adventure. Each night during the summer they play different songs.  At the end of the show, they open the fountains for the public to run through!

Here's some video from Anne's last trip to the fountains.

Next, we met up with Leslie and Charles for some duck barbecue.

Hongju, a great mix with soju!

Earlier that day Leslie bought a North Korean money. Bizarre to see it in person.

That night we camped right on the beach. In the morning, I woke up to sunshine in my eyes and the sound of waves in my ears.

We found a dino-friend.

Shabu Shabu and Busan Tower

The next morning we stayed in Dadaepo for a Shabu Shabu lunch. Coco Shabu was a really clean and modern restaurant.  

Pouring in the broth...

We consumed all this food.

Platter of veggies!

Meat and dumplings!

They gave us coconut juice! For free!

The Dadaepo gang: Me, Charles, Leslie, and Anne

food as art, sort of.

My favorite part of the shabu shabu experience, the rice-egg porridge!

Next, we went to Nampo to go up Busan Tower.

Couple leave their locks on the gates as a symbol of their love.

Busan tower has a 360 degree view of the city. Here's some highlight pictures from the top.

We stayed in Nampo and had drinks at Muppy's. At Muppy's you get your own small private seating cubicle. Then you can order from their HUGE drink menu.  They have a special where you can order one drink, then get unlimited refills for any drink at the same price. I had two milkshakes and a chamomile tea.