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South Korea

syyskuuta - marraskuuta 2017
37-päiväinen seikkaillu — Tim In Japan Lue lisää
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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 18

    Seogwipo (Mimong Guesthouse)

    15. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    It's a good travelling day as the weather is pretty ordinary. There's a bit of drizzle around, umbrellas everywhere.

    I bought replacement Asic Kayanas yesterday - same size and sole. The old Asics had well and truly done a full tour of duty and have been consigned to the care of Hotel Amber Central. To continue my retail therapy, I bought a beanie from the local K2 shop. It replaces the one that didn't make it back from Mt Fuji. With the weather cooling I will soon need it.

    I check out and roll my luggage up to the Halla Hospital stop and take the intercity 182 bus. This bus is reasonably express and has storage underneath for my luggage. It runs pretty much North-South and is therefore more direct than other buses.

    After an hour or so we pull into Jungman Rotary in Seogwipo. This is my stop, I'm caught a little unaware but fortunately other people disembark before me and buy me time to get my things together.

    I roll my luggage down one of the streets radiating from the rotary (or roundabout) and eventually find the Mimong guest house. It's run by a couple who look to be in their early 40s, the husband speaks some English, his wife not so much. My room isn't ready, no problem for me as I am early and am quite happy to leave my luggage there to check in later.

    No, they instead head upstairs to ready the room. This takes around 10 minutes. They then ask me about breakfast options and I am able to welcome them into the world of coeliacs. No bread nor cereal thanks. Fruit OK. Cheese OK. Yoghurt OK.

    Once that's all done I'm able to go to my room. Like most Korean accommodation, it has a landing just inside the door where I take off my shoes. The bathroom is next to the landing. Then there's an inner door into the main room. I find that closing this inner door at night blocks much of the sound from the hallway outside.

    For the remainder of the afternoon I walk around Cheonjiyeon waterfall. Note that I say "around" as I don't see the waterfall itself. The signs are confusing so I just take photos in the vicinity. The first photo is an interesting sculpture in the waterfall's park, the last photo is from near my dining destination that night (barbecued pork belly).    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 19

    Jungman Rotary

    16. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Why a post about a rotary? What is a rotary anyway? And why aren't there any photos?

    To answer your questions, a rotary is a roundabout and this particular rotary comprises 4 lanes and 6 exits. So it's big, not quite L'Arc De Triomphe but big enough for your average Jeju driver. Students of Chaos Theory converge here from all parts of the world. So what are the roundabout rules here? It's not possible to work it out by observation, right of way seems extremely random. Some cars end up stationary in an inner lane, unable to navigate to the outer lane they need. But I didn't see any accidents ..

    I'm waiting for a bus on the rotary periphery so I have time to watch the action. I plan to shoot some video, but at that moment a car decides to park in front of the bus stop entrance and blocks my view. A beep from the next bus to come to the stop, ignored by the car driver who walks into a shop. Out 5 minutes later with a box.

    By this time my bus has arrived, so here endeth the discussion.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    11
    Päivä 19

    Saryeoni Forest

    16. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Soegwipo town is perched quite high from its port area. This makes it windier than any other place I've been to on the island. As it's also drizzling, its not a pleasant day in town. My head cold is still annoying me, so I decide to go for a stroll in a forest as therapy.

    Saryeoni Forest is to the east of Mt Hallasan. It is possible to catch a bus close(ish) to one entrance, walk through the forest to another entrance and catch another bus back to Seogwipo. So I'm back on the 182 bus which takes me to the Goryeo intersection. It's 1500 metres or so to the forest entrance, then I'm in.

    The lady at the information booth is very helpful about the route I should take (first photo). The red bits of the trails are off limits. There are a few other hikers (strollers) going the same way as me. It's not that I'm sprinting, but I overtake the people in front of me and then it's clean air (as they say in F1).

    Because it's quiet on the trail I catch a deer by surprise. I hear it crash through the undergrowth where it had been grazing, then I briefly glimpse it. It's off the trail by 30 metres or so. This slows me down subsequently as I'm on guard for other animal encounters, sadly it's the only one.

    As I progress along the trail, I meet more people coming the other way. It becomes clear why when I reach the other park entrance (my exit). There are many cars parked here, so their occupants don't walk through but only to a point where they then backtrack to the car.

    I have to catch 2 buses to return to Seogwipo. This makes it a longer day than I expected. Back at Seogwipo I stop in at Cafe Wookun for a hot beverage. I order a latte and the server brings it to my table. But it's not what I call a latte, it is a flat white (my coffee preference) and the best coffee I've had since leaving Brisbane.

    I take a 40 minute bus trip later that afternoon to Jungmun. I eat at Soul Kitchen which offers Western food. I have a salmon fillet which comes with potato wedges, probably the 2nd best meal I've had overseas (after the steak in Suwon). Definitely worth the 80 minute round trip.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 20

    Yeongsil Trail (Mt Hallasan)

    17. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    As much as I would like to hike to the summit of Mt Hallasan, it's not realistic due to my physical condition and my location on Jeju. Instead I will do a shorter hike called the Yeongsil Trail.

    I ask my erstwhile Mimong hostess for transport information. Not easy for her to explain, she calls her husband, speaks to him, hands me the phone and he promptly hangs up! Then he walks in a minute later so he can explain in person. I will need to catch a bus to Jungmun, no problem, exit the bus at the elementary school, walk back to the rotary and catch the 240 bus for the "1100 road".

    Somewhat unusually, it actually pans out. I catch the bus to the Jungmun elementary school, walk back to the rotary and look at the timetable. Buses are hourly and the next one is some time away. There is a cafe nearby, I order a latte, receive a flat white (YES!) and sit outside to observe while sipping the coffee.

    Shortly after finishing my coffee, the 240 bus arrives. I'm hoping it will go to the Yeongsil ticket office rather than just the Yeongsil entrance. Fortunately it does which saves a lot of time. From the ticket office there's still a 2.5 km walk to the trailhead, around 30 minutes walking.

    The weather's pretty good today so there are panoramic views as the trail ascends. Plenty of crows around also, they seem to dominate the higher terrain. Autumn colours are everywhere, Mt Hallasan is always present and the sea can be seen in the distance. There are quite a few hikers out today, but it's not too crowded.

    I want to catch the 14:22 or 15:22 bus back to Jungmun so I won't hike to the end of the trail. Instead I stop at Witseoreum Shelter, which is at 1700 metres. It's an ideal lunch stop as it has a restaurant, toilets and places to sit. The wind whistles through here though. What looks to be a school group packs up lunch and move out - the crows move in to pick through the scraps.

    I've eaten, rested and so it's time to head down. Still a lot of hikers coming through but the weather has taken a turn for the worse. Clouds move in and obscure the view, looks like a morning hike was the better option.

    At the trailhead I realize that I will probably miss the 14:22 bus by 10 minutes if I walk back to the bus stop. So I hand over 7000 won and take a taxi to the bus stop. Bus turns up a little late, I may have made it by walking but why risk it?

    All good coming back to Jungmun, then to Seogwipo. It's 16:45 by the time I return to Mimong. I'm looking forward to a long hot bath to rest my aching feet. My erstwhile hostess tells me she hasn't made up the room, I tell her not to bother. Second day in a row, hopefully tomorrow is different!    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    1
    Päivä 21

    Cheonjeyeon Falls, Jungmun

    18. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ 🌬 19 °C

    This should be a post about "Spirited Garden" but isn't owing to my abject failure in bus navigation. So I needed to take a bus from Seogwipo to Dongwang junction and then take an 820-2 bus from there. Dongwang junction is actually a rotary with 6 exits, and each exit has a bus stop. So I didn't realise this until too late ...

    After wasting the whole morning on this exercise, I take the 281 bus back and disembark at Jungmun's Cheonjeyeon falls. I find that I will have to PAY to see the falls. Having seen Iguazu, Victoria and Niagara falls for free I'm expecting big things from these falls! But first I duck across the road to "Soul Kitchen" and have a steak lunch (with potato wedges!).

    Fortified in body if not in mind I walk back to the falls and pay my entrance fee. Fortunately I can put my bag in a locker there as there are quite a few steps along the way.

    The falls comprise three different viewing points. I read later that Jungmun is the most touristy part of Jeju and you do get a sense of being milked as the falls are pretty but not overly spectacular.

    The most spectacular aspect is the selfie I took 😂. Anyway all posted photos are from the falls. I didn't have any coins to throw into the "Fountain of Five Blessings" so I threw my credit card in instead. Nothing's come up on my statement since then so I presume that I remain unblessed 😄    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 22

    Jeju to Yeosu

    19. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    There's a bit of travelling to do today, a one hour bus trip, a 40 minute flight followed by another one hour bus trip.

    At breakfast I chat to a young Melbourne guy who's cycling his way around Jeju. That's the way to do it, no waiting for buses or being stuck in traffic jams. Then I give instructions to a couple of French girls about how to get to the Yeongsil trail. So breakfast takes longer than usual ...

    I had planned to spend more of the morning in Seogwipo but decide to take the 10:25 bus to the Jeju airport. I pack up, farewell my gracious hostess and hit the road with my luggage. Well as far as Cafe Wookun anyway, which is on the way to the bus stop. I stop in for a final flat white then cruise to the bus stop.

    Catching the 181 bus back, it's pretty much on time. We pull into the airport around 11:30, I find a seat and have something to eat and drink. No rush. I check in my luggage a little after 12 and head to the departure gate. Even though I'm flying domestically to Yeosu, I still need to present my passport at a checkpoint before the usual security screening. No fingerprint check or retinal scan fortunately.

    Done and dusted, I browse some of the shops and spend 5000 KRW on a box of Jeju cactus chocolates. I like the taste a lot, not sure whether they'll make it back to Brisbane! We board at 1:15 and I spy an English language Korean Times newspaper as we board, so I snaffle that to read on board.

    Not that the flight is long enough to get through the paper, it's barely 40 minutes from take-off to landing. As we fly lower to land, a vista of islands is presented below us. I see some sandy beaches and bridges connecting islands. Very picturesque.

    Arriving in Yeosu, my luggage is available very promptly. I haul it to the bus stop and wait for the #35 bus. I'll be on this bus for an hour for the princely sum of $1.30. It takes a while for the bus to show (2:40) and I have to haul my megaluggage on board, where I hold on to it tightly to prevent it assaulting other passengers. Although the bus isn't crowded at this point, the bus goes past a school later and fills up with schoolkids. Me and my luggage take up a fair amount of space!

    However most people decamp before I do, so at my stop I'm able to haul my luggage down the stairs and out. It's a 10 minute roll to Hotel Elena, which will be my home for the next 3 nights.

    There is an e-mart around a kilometre away so I head up there and spend around 73 AUD on food and drink. I buy a bottle of Chilean red wine, a couple of Somersby apple cider 500ml cans, a 3 pack of canned tuna and vermicelli. Back in the game for home-cooked meals! I am laden down for the walk back, but it's all good as I enjoy the vermicelli and tuna later.

    I also duck into a convenience store where I buy a pack containing cherry tomatoes and grapes. I am also curious about Soju (Korean vodka) so I buy a bottle that is maple flavoured (see photo). This is popular with the kids, but it's not the same as our alcopops. It's 17.5% ABV and not particularly sweet. Surprisingly it tastes better drinking out of the bottle rather than a glass.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 23

    Yeosu Day 1

    20. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Yeosu is a bustling port town with a population of around 300,000 and was the site of the 2012 Expo. The weather today and tomorrow is near perfect, as can be seen from the photos. Temperature range between 17 and 22 degrees with a light breeze, really good weather for hiking or sightseeing.

    My hotel (Elena) is in an accommodation district that has many options for food, drink and coffee in the area. I want to catch a bus to Busan in a couple of days, so I walk up to the bus terminal (across the road from the e-mart). That's done, so I decide to take a bus to the Expo site. The bus I take gets there eventually and not particularly directly.

    The Expo site, like Brisbane's, is a cut down but still functional site. I find a tourist information kiosk there, who give me English brochures and direct me to the Sky Tower.

    The Expo site sits on a former cement factory and two 55 metre high silos have been artistically transformed into the Sky Tower. I buy a ticket for the observatory on the 20th floor and ascend. The views from the observatory are breathtaking. There are many islands spread out across the sea. I take in the panorama while drinking a banana smoothie. In the next booth a 60ish man takes a brief nap while his wife wanders around. Isn't retirement great 😚

    From there I want to go to Manseongni Beach, which is famous for its black sand. The bus service there and back leaves a little to be desired. Even though it's only 3 km away, I don't think it's possible to walk there. Anyway the bus comes eventually and I take it to the beach.

    I haven't brought my thongs so it's tricky walking on the pebbles and rocks (after taking off my shoes and socks for a paddle in the water). There are a few people around, but given it's mid-autumn it's not too crowded.

    Back on the bus, which can drop me not far from the ferry terminal. I'd like to buy a ticket for a trip tomorrow, but the woman at the tourist information kiosk outside tells me that I will have to wait until tomorrow morning. Ah well. I take the 555 bus back to the hotel. Yeosu is set up in such a way that there are gaps between districts so walking is not an option.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 24

    Geumodo Island ferry trip

    21. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    A great day all round 🤗🤗. On the down side, I didn't find a sandy beach, and I MAY have paddled in water containing raw sewage, but on the up side the weather was perfect and the travel went without a hitch.

    I bought 2 tickets at the ferry terminal for a round trip to Ham Geum port on Geumodo island. The ferry going over was to leave at 9:50 and the return trip would depart at 4:05 pm. It was a car ferry and would make 2 stops at other islands before Geumodo.

    Although it's a Saturday (and you know what THAT means), there aren't the usual weekend crowds. On the ferry I sit outside taking in the view. On Korean ferries there can be an internal room with wooden floors and a landing for shoes. It seems to be mostly used by women and children. Bit of a waste to sit there today as there are magnificent views of various islands as we proceed. Very different from the other ferry trips I've taken on this holiday.

    We arrive on Geumodo at around 11:15. I remember it's a car ferry and successfully avoid the cars disembarking. A notice board supplies some information on hiking around the island. My plan is to walk clockwise along the main road, look for a sandy beach, swim, eat my lunch and return to port for the ferry back.

    The road is quite elevated from the sea. This means the views continue to be stunning as I walk on, but it does make it problematic finding a trail down to the sea. I walk through a small fishing village which also contains quite a few persimmon trees. Back on the main road there are stretches of long mesh tarpaulins along the side of the road where the locals are drying baitfish. I see no other hikers all day.

    I eventually reach a village called Daeyu around 1:15. This is the end of the road and my lunch spot. Although it's on the water, there are no beaches. I take off my boots and socks to dip my feet into the water at a jetty. Although there's a pipe nearby, there are fish as well as they jump into the air periodically to catch insects.

    Long walk back, maybe 13 km in total. I'm running low on water and end up with none on the returning ferry. However, I do get to enjoy the sunset over the water (took way too many photos). We reach Yeosu a bit before 6 and I catch the 555 bus back to the hotel.

    I have been looking forward to the Bledisloe Cup match from Lang Park, but daylight saving (in Sydney and Melbourne) means that it starts an hour earlier than usual. So I miss the first half. But I see most of the 2nd half and celebrate the win with soju and red wine. Go Wallabies! Hope that ticket for their match against Japan is waiting for me in Tokyo 🤔

    POSTSCRIPT: I woke up the next day and noticed rashes over the lower parts of both legs. They do go away within a few days thankfully.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 25

    Busan Day 1

    22. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ 🌬 20 °C

    I'm off to Busan for 4 days today. Staying at the Stanford Inn at Jagalchi. It's a bit more upmarket than where I've stayed recently. Mind you, full marks to Hotel Elena for having a laundry room around the corner from my room. I did a lot of laundry ...

    I roll up to the bus station for the 10:20 bus and board without issue. The bus will reach Busan around 1:15 pm. Fortunately there's a stop along the way to buy food or have a toilet break. None of the Korean buses have a toilet on board.

    The bus station in Busan is quite close to Nopo subway station, which is the terminal for line 1. Luckily my hotel is not far from both Nampo and Jagalchi stations on this line. It is an hour long trip with around 23 stops.

    I always enter the metro's last carriage when I'm hauling my luggage. It's not crowded at Nopo station but as we progress the post-lunch crowd come on board. One particular group is, shall we say, a little pissy? One of the guys in this group is hugging one of his mates (I luv you man) and then leans against my luggage. And then half-sits on my luggage. I am concerned he will be gored by my luggage as it has a nasty spike (somehow).

    Anyway no international incident occurs and I detrain at Jagalchi station. There is a map showing the station exits, for some reason it is inverted (south at the top, north at the bottom). Consequently I end up on the wrong side of the road walking in the wrong direction. Big sigh.

    Eventually I navigate my way through the masses of locals, tourists and street vendors. Room 1408 is alright, good city view.

    Given I'm here for 4 nights, I want to stock up for meals, snacks and ... alcohol. There's a bus that runs through 2 e-marts and its stop is not far from here. It doesn't look too far ...

    This is where things go pear-shaped. Busan is a big city. It's a Sunday. There is a lot of traffic. The bus trip out takes way longer than expected and it's airless on the bus. Nobody opens a window but everyone over 40 dresses like they're living in the Arctic. It's a windy day but not cold, certainly not on the bus.

    Anyway I leave the bus and check out the first e-mart. Closed (Sunday?). I go back to the bus stop to wait for the bus to the 2nd e-mart. Across the road 2 girls are dancing to K-Pop music to drum up trade. I don't envy them, they are finding it tough going in the wind.

    So the next bus comes and I take it to the 2nd e-mart, which is around 2.6 km along the road. This is part of a large shopping centre. Most of the shops are open in this centre, but not the e-mart 😥

    So I take the bus back to the hotel. Stand all the way. It takes an hour with the traffic. Nobody opens a window, but it's a free-for-all as far as coughing and spluttering are concerned. I try not to breathe ...

    It's a Dante-esque level of hell. I buy some supplies at a convenience store just to keep me going. I think about how much time I spent on public transport today.    Lue lisää

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  • MatkaajaSouth Korea
    Päivä 26

    Beomeo-sa Temple

    23. lokakuuta 2017, Etelä-Korea ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    I don't want to go out. I'm still depressed about yesterday afternoon's abject failure (not the first time that phrase has come up in this blog) and haven't had that much for breakfast. Ah well, I'll have a latte at Cafe Angel-in-us around the corner and think about things.

    As it's just after 9 I practically have to wake the server as the cafe is empty. In case you haven't realized, the ROK population are not morning people. This cafe will however be chockers at 7 pm.

    Anyway the weather is too good today to not do anything. The wind has dropped from yesterday. So I decide to go to Beomeo-sa temple. This temple is a working temple that offers a templestay program, where outsiders can live like the monks do for a day or two. Not me, unfortunately, as I'm on a tight schedule.

    The subway stop for the temple is quite a long way back towards Nopo. So I'll try to come back through smaller trips. From the temple's subway station it's a 3 km uphill walk to the temple. Or you take a taxi. Or you take bus 90, which comes within a couple of minutes as I'm considering my options. Lucky that.

    There are quite a few people on the bus. Maybe it's because it's FREE to visit the temple on a Monday? Never mind, it's all good and peaceful. There are a number of monks scurrying around, as this is a working temple. One of the photos shows a monk carrying what looks to be a chalice.

    It's a very tranquil setting in the hills. There is an adjacent forest with streams to help meditation. The forest also hosts a number of hiking trails that are particularly popular on the weekend. All in all, a good place to come to relieve stress.

    I decide to walk down rather than take the bus. It's an easy hike back to the subway with some forest scenery.    Lue lisää

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