Blogs from Gyeongsangnam-do, South Korea, Asia

Before leaving Yeosu, we made one more stop - Odongdo Island in Yeosu. There's a lighthouse on this Island but as it was a Monday, and it seems Monday is a rest day in Korea, it was closed. Still island was very pretty with lots of great photo locations. RoJoSo though were not looking at the water and foliage ... they were on the hunt for The Penis Tree. After successfully finding the Penis Tree, it was back on the bus to continue our journey. Having covered western coast of South Korea, and now the southwest seaside areas, we were now heading east towards Busan. En route, we stopped at Jinju to visit Jinjuseong Fortress. This Fortress has ties to the Japanese invasion and served as a safeguard from Japanese attacks. Within the temple lies Uigisa ... read more

14th May: I had taken a late night KTX down to Busan the night before. We stayed at the Busan Inn, a small love motel very close to the station. I didn't spend much time there, but it was a great little place, clean and right next to the train station. After a quick breakfast in one of the many coffee shops near the station, we set off on our journey. First, we took the subway to Hadan Station, which is located on line one and it took about twenty minutes. I don't know if Busan is the best place to get to Geoje from, maybe Tongyeong is better, but this worked well for us. We came out of Hadan Station at exit three. The bus to Geoje comes from the island in the middle. It ... read more

I have been to the temple at the top of the mountain before, a few years ago. However last time I cheated and took a minibus part way up the mountain, so I only had to walk for about 10-15 minutes to reach the temple. Coming back to Namhae, I couldn't resist heading back to this temple, as it has some of the most stunning views I have seen in Korea. Seeing as I a bit fitter than I was a few years ago, I was more than happy to do the hike (also there was no other option this time). We left our pension around 6 am, it was only about a ten minute drive to the starting point for our hike. I don't know why I bothered packing my headtorch as it was really ... read more

5th Sept: We had taken the bus down from Seoul overnight and the traffic had been good. We arrived at Tongyeong in the early hours of the morning and slept for a bit longer, until it started to get light. I came out of the bus, to see that we were parked up near the water. The area was a bit ghetto, as there were a few people (I presume to be tramps) sleeping outside. I was dreading to go to the bathroom, but was pleasantly surprised at how clean they were, there was even toilet paper and soap, which can be a rarity in Korea. The sun was rising and the sky was a beautiful pink color. I took a little wander along the front to see the turtle ships. Turtle ships got their name ... read more

A couple of weeks ago, I went to Everland in Seoul with my friend Charles. Everland is basically South Korea's version of Disney with different themed areas, characters, and rides for people of all ages.... just much smaller than Disney. I had heard many people mention different aspects of Everland and decided I wanted to go at least once while I was in Korea. Usually, I try to blend in as much as reasonably possible in Korea. Unless I am in an area of Busan with large numbers of foreigners, I tend to avoid drawing a ton of attention to myself as 'waygook' (foreigner). I speak Korean as much as possible, I don't take a ton of selfies with normal Korean stuff.... and, when I do take selfies, I don't do the stereotypical 'peace sign' that ... read more