Day 03: The East Busan Explorer (Oct 2019)

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Sunday, 13th October 2019

After breakfast at Toyoko Inn this morning, I embarked on a half day East Busan Exploration Tour with Klook to bring me to places that were not easily accessible via the Busan Metro.

Our tour group today was small comprising of two ladies from Malaysia and another three visitors from South Africa. From the pick-up point at Busan Station, the six of us proceeded straight to the Oryukdo Skywalk, one of the many cantilever glass bottom skywalks scattered along the rugged coast of Busan. It was extremely windy when we arrived so we should count ourselves really lucky that the attraction had remained opened despite the bad weather.

After spending about 30 minutes at the Skywalk, our mini-bus proceeded further along the coast to the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple. This is a very popular Buddhist temple dating all the way back to 1376. The sign at the main entrance reads, "the Most Beautiful Temple in Korea" which I fully agree given its remote location facing the Sea of Japan.

Another stop on our itinerary this morning was the Jukseong Dream Church. This is the filming location for the 2009 drama, "Dream" took place. I had not watched the show prior to my visit so I could not fully comprehend the significance of this site. Apparently, the church became an instant Instagram sensation after the drama was released. According to our guide, the building was retained in order to allow more people to visit.

We ended our half day tour on a sweet note with Hotteok, a fried pancake served in a paper cup which is really popular across Korea. Our guide also shared that one of his favourite food is the Gukbap or pork soup with rice. There were a couple of restaurants along Haeundae Beach (where the bus would be stopping) serving this Busan's staple that I could try.

For sure, I couldn't wait to taste that for myself during lunch.

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