Shedding My Japanese Skin

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Korea is a lot like its food, spicy.

The people, the weather and the general atmosphere of this small peninsular country had this fiery air to it that made it seem light-years away from what I was used to in Japan. It felt real.

People said what they wanted to and weren’t afraid to let their emotions fly in the middle of crowded streets, the woman had a sass about them that a Japanese woman could never dream of in all their years, the air smelt and felt like the country was contained in a giant fermenting pot of spicy kimchi and the food had a flavor to it that would set anyones taste buds afire.

It felt refreshing to step into a society like this. It felt like I had shed my Japanese skin of over-politeness and restraint. I could do, say and act as I felt without worrying about anyone judging me. People spit, burped, littered, yelled, laughed, talked and lived with such unrestraint that I felt free again, relaxed.

Sarah and I were only in the country for a little over a week but in that short amount of time we traveled from the far south in Busan to the far North in the DMZ and saw what the sprawling city of Seoul had to offer in between. The trip took us to fish markets, Korean spas, love hotels, beaches, mountains, cities, the borderline between the divided Koreas, and a stones throw away from North Korean soldiers.

This is one of the best parts about this country. You can see and do so much in such a short amount of time. I couldn’t even imagine covering a country from north to south like Japan in this amount of time. Even after two years of living there I have yet to make it to its farthest reaches in Hokkaido or its southern most island in Okinawa. It is just too big and too expensive. However, this isn’t a problem in Korea. The country is small and the transport is cheap, which make it an ideal place to explore.

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Photos

Fishy
In search of lunch at the Jagalchi Fish Market and opting out of eating live octopus.

Jagalchi Fish Market
Grobe Fish

Mmmmm
Photo opt at the North Korea/South Korea border. Safe but sketchy.

Sandwiched
Sarah reliving her Israel training days

Stand Off
South Korea vs North Korea. The N.K. soldier is off in the distance by the building. The S.K. soldier is the one in front of the blue house. The dividing line between the two countries divides the blue house in half... crazy

The Crunch With A Punch
roasted silkworm cocoons

Tasty Treats
hard to resist

Slicing and Dicing
one down

#1
One of my new favorite summer foods and the one word I can now read in Korean, naengmyeon. Served in a bowl of ice with vinegar and water and loaded with noodles, veg and an egg.

Haeundae Beach, Busan
The craziest, most overcrowded beach either of us had ever seen. We walked around for an hour in disbelief. It is even listed in the guinness book of world records for the amount of parasols they have set up during the summer season. Strange claim to fame but there sure are a lot of parasols.

Haeundae Beach Take Two
burying their friend

How are you Hamayuu?
practicing our search and rescue skills on the ferry to Korea

Octopussy
Jagalchi Fish Market

Seoul Tower Pavilion
A quality place to chill and cool off in the evening. The view is pretty good, too.