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Huinnyeoul Culture Village: The Most Colorful Place To Visit In Busan
Like most people, I’ve been to the more well-known Gamcheon Culture Village, but did you know there is another colorful and more coastal culture village in Busan? Yes! The Huinnyeoul Culture Village (희여울문화마을) is a colorful seaside spot to see art, enjoy cafes and food, and have a good time with friends or family walking along the coast. Looking for something to do in Busan? Look no further. Here’s what you need to know about the Huinnyeoul Culture Village in Busan, Korea: (This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a certain percentage of a sale if you purchase after clicking at no cost to you. Thank you for…
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Spa Land Centum City In Busan Is The Best Korean Spa In Korea
Whether you live in Korea or are just coming in to visit for a short time, a visit to a local Korean sauna or Korean bath house is an absolute must. The jjimjilbang, or Korean spa, is a part of culture that I have grown to love. Did it take some time to get comfortable hanging out in the buff with strangers? It sure did. Is it necessary to be nude when you visit? At some point. But is it absolutely worth it to visit a Korean bath house and experience the exfoliating, the heat therapies, and more? Yes yes, 1000 times yes and the premier place to do it…
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Songdo, Busan: A Beach, The Busan Air Cruise Cable Car & A Suspension Bridge Too!
Songdo is an area in Busan that might be overlooked for hotspots like Gwanganli or Haeundae but honestly, it won my heart a couple weekends ago. Songdo is home to a lovely beach as well as bridges to walk across while looking at the Busan heonnyeo finding sea creatures, the Songdo Marine Cable Car, also known as the Busan Air Cruise, and the recently added suspension bridge and lookout too. Basically, if you’re looking for things to do in Busan or where to stay in Busan with things to do, this might just be the perfect spot for you. It’s one of those areas that you could easily get a…
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Busan, Korea: Everything You MUST See, Do, Eat & Try!
Busan is the second largest city in Korea and one of my favorite places to visit. If we weren’t living in Seoul, Busan would be our home for sure…. and not just because my husband is originally from there. This city on the southern coast of Korea has beachy vibes and tons of seafood to eat along with some mountains just north and all kinds of fun in between. If you can’t live there, a weekend… week… or just any time at all should be spent in this coastal city down south. Want to know how to get to Busan from Seoul? Read on. Busan is definitely a must visit…
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12 Fun Fall Festivals in Korea
Fall is one of those seasons that is just dazzling in South Korea, if you’re not staying indoors depressed that summer is saying goodbye for another nine months. From cultural and traditional events to foodie fun and performances, too, there is much to enjoy all around the country. Here are 11 Fun Fall Festivals in Korea to check out. While festivals might be the best way to enjoy the season, there are plenty of other things to do like find the fall foliage and eat the cinnamon hoddeoks from the street food carts. Of course, do NOT forget that there are some gorgeous flowers that bloom in the autumn and…
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Yeonji Park’s Lake in Gimhae
While most people probably don’t head out of Busan to the nearby city of Gimhae unless they’re going to the airport located there, my in-laws live in that ‘burb so I am always on the lookout for places to go around town when my mother-in-law is not trying to fill our bellies. On previous trips, we’d stumbled upon the dilapidated and abandoned Gaya Land Amusement Park, learned about the historical relevance of the area at King Suro’s Tomb and enjoyed Dongrimsa and Eunhasa Buddhist temples located nearby. While there for Chuseok this past weekend, we decided to find a park so that the little one could enjoy some swings and…
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Live Music Fun This Summer!
It’s difficult to imagine a better way to enjoy summer than with friends, some drinks and live music. The warm weather is begging people to get outside and the music festival summer extravaganza is about to kick off! Here’s a list of the festivals to look out for to listen to live music and dance the summer away: 1. HaeBangChon May Festival May 22-23, 2015; HaeBongChon local bars & pubs, Seoul This year is the 10th anniversary of HBC fest and if you’re looking for a good way to kick off the summer with some good eats, craft beer and loads of foreign bands, this is the local fest for…
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How To Set The Table for Jesa
On Seollal, before anything else, family members awake very early to cleanse themselves and dress in nice clean clothes. They may even wear a Hanbok, a traditional Korean style of clothing. Next, the table will be set. The table setting varies from region to region and family to family, but there are some basic rules that are followed everywhere.
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My Top Ten Adventures of 2014!
This year was full of new adventures for me and for my husband and not all of them included travel. I used to think traveling someplace new was all an adventure could be but, this year I learned that adventures can come in all shapes and sizes and experiences. 1. New Orleans, Louisiana: For our trip home this year we didn’t exactly go home. Instead of heading to my home state of Ohio, we headed to the Big Easy with my family to celebrate some big birthdays. We enjoyed the beautiful historic buildings and homes that lined the streets of the French Quarter and filled our bellies with the very filling…
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Haedong Yonggung Temple & The Seaside Views In Busan
Buddhist temples are not terribly difficult to stumble upon while in Korea. There are temples in the middle of Seoul daring those that enter to just try and find quiet solitude and there are temples dotting the mountains across the country so any hike becomes that much more interesting with the addition of a tour of one. Rarely, though, do you find a seaside temple in Korea. Haedong Yonggung Temple (해동용궁사), which means Korean Dragon Palace Temple, is probably the most popular and widely known seaside temple in South Korea and it truly does live up to the hype that brings so many visitors to its gates in Busan, Korea.…
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Korean Eating: Where To Try Daegutang in Busan
Not all stews in Korea are spicy, though depending on where they are served, some may be spicier than others. Daegutang (대구탕), or cod fish stew, is one dish that is very different if you pop into a shop to eat some in the north versus the south. In the north, the soup comes out with a deep red broth. It’s spicy and is more akin to maeuntang (매운탕), or spicy fish stew. In the south however, the cod is boiled and served in a broth that hasn’t had spices other than salt, pepper and garlic added. The result is a deliciously simple yet flavorful and filling dish that allows…
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Gaya Land: Abandoned to Revived Amusement Park in Korea
Just a short walk from my in-laws house, I spotted a Ferris wheel and never one to pass up a good view we headed in the direction only to find ourselves at an abandoned amusement park. I have never been one to enter places where entrance is clearly not permitted, but this was different. The front entrance wasn’t fenced off in any way and the signage didn’t make it sound too serious if we did enter. This article is from when we visited Gaya Land as an abandoned amusement park, but it is now open and revived again it seems and you can visit in Gimhae, Korea. (This post contains…
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Taejongdae: A Must See in Busan, Korea
Taejongdae Resort Park (태종대), named after the 29th King of the Silla Dynasty, King TaeJong, who enjoyed shooting arrows off the cliffs, is a must see for anyone traveling to Busan, Korea. The southernmost tip of Yeongdo-gu offers beautiful views of the ocean, cliffs, and on clear days people can even spot Daema, or Tsushima, Island of Japan. This is one of the top tourist spots in Busan and it’s worth the trip it takes to get out there. Whether it’s sunny, rainy, spring, summer, winter, or autumn, the views are gorgeous and the walk around the tip of the island, fun and energizing. The varying shades of blue as…
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My Top Ten Adventures of 2013!
2013 was a great year for traveling. Not only did I get to see some fantastic places in Korea, but I also enjoyed quite a few trips abroad. Here are the top 10 places, here and abroad, that I saw in 2013. What a year! 1. Fukuoka, Japan: We started off the year with a trip to Fukuoka, Japan in February. It seems as the end of winter nears we always start to get a little cabin fever, not that we live in a cabin, or that we completely hibernate all winter, but we just need to get away. I had been to Fukuoka before, as had my husband, but this…
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Jagalchi Market In Busan: How To Get There & What To Eat!
Jagalchi Fish Market (부산자갈치시장) is a must see for anyone headed to Busan on the southern coast of Korea. The fish market is the largest fish market in South Korea and fun to check out even if you won’t be dining but just want to see some amazing seafood delights. Each booth of the market is run by an older woman, who may not seem so kind on the outside, but that’s just the strong southern demeanor. They seem used to foreigners ogling their fishy goods and snapping pictures without purchasing and just look the other way. Fishy water and maybe some fishy guts cover the small umbrella covered alley…