Busan Trip!

I am here to write to you about the trip that Chris and I went on a week or so ago. We haven't done all that much traveling this past year but this trip we had been planning on for a while. We had 3 extra days off because of the Children's Day holiday here in Korea. So we packed our backpacks and headed south to the second biggest city in Korea, Busan.
Busan is a harbor city and very beautiful. It's a lot calmer than Seoul and you can actually get a seat on the subway. We stayed in an amazing hotel called the Commodore. It looks like an old palace with it's traditional architecture and decor. You can see it in the picture.
We took the train there, we really enjoy traveling by train it's very peaceful and you get to see so much of the country side.
Our first stop in Busan was Taejongdae Park. (known for great views of the ocean) Unfortunately the weather was cloudy so we didn't get to see much of the ocean but we had fun hiking the trail and watching this old Korean lady cut up raw seafood and serve it to people while it was still moving on the plate. Seriously Chris and I could have gone down to the beach and ate all that shellfish and octopus pretty much right out of the ocean. You can't get much fresher than that. But we just enjoyed the safety of watching it happen and not partaking. Next we headed to Yongdusan Park where the Busan tower is located. Since it was Children day the place was crowded but there was lots going on. We were listening to this traditional performance when out of no where this guy with a camera walks up to us and asks for an interview. We have no idea if it ended up on TV but it was fun to do. From there we walked to the Jagalchi Raw fish market. Never in my life have I seen so much raw fish and all kinds a seafood. It was quite an experience to see all these people making their living by selling what comes out of the ocean everyday. Our favorite part was watching the people put the escaping octopus back in the buckets they'd continue to climb out of! :) This ends the first day of adventuring.
Day 2 consisted of a nice restful morning and getting to the beach by lunch time. Our first stop was Haeundae Beach. A very famous one in Korea, each summer it is packed out with people. We had another cloudy day so we pretty much had it to ourselves. After a walk along the beach and to this light house we decided to see the aquarium. I don't really like going to zoos and aquariums I feel bad for the animals in such small spaces. But, Chris convinced me and it ended up being really neat. Sharks and sea turtles swimming by your face is a pretty cool experience.
After a late lunch we headed towards the UN Korean war memorial cemetery. We got there too late and couldn't go in. So we decided to head towards the second most popular beach in Busan called Gwanganlli Beach. Have fun trying to pronounce that. :) It has a great bridge that is lit up all nice at night. We also walked that beach and spent some time listening to the waves and relaxing. It was such a blessing to be able to see all we did in a couple days and have a bit of time to rest and relax.
The next day we did head out to another city but I will save that update for next week on a new blog.
We have four weeks left now and it feels surreal. Definitely enjoying our last bit of time.
School is busy as we are prepping things for the teachers that will take our places.
Well that's all until next week!~