Reset search
Japan & South KoreaJapan & South Korea
SatelliteEdit route

Japan & South Korea

March - April 2024
Frankfurt,
Tokyo,
Hakone,
Kyoto,
Osaka,
Himeji,
Kobe,
Hiroshima,
Fukoka,
Busan,
Gyeongju,
Seoul,
Frankfurt Read more
  • 24footprints
  • 3countries
  • 22days
  • 404photos
  • 35videos
  • 22.6kkilometers
  • 20.0kkilometers
  • 2.3kkilometers
Follow Calendar Share Bucket list
Date ascending
  • Japan & South Korea
    1
    Day 10

    Osaka Daytrip

    March 28 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    Before heading off for a daytrip to Osaka, we had a second breakfast in the Nishiki market and had some incredible Wagyu beef skewers 😯

    First thing we found out in Osaka is that the tube has an amazing sound when you arrive at the station (we made a little video of it). It feels like you levelled up in a video game! In Osaka we also stumbled across Japan's public broadcaster, NHK, overlooking the incredible Osaka castle.

    We then made our way to Dotonbori for some crazy retail therapy and of course more courses of delicious food (Udon).

    For our final stop, we made our way back to the main train station to see where the locals eat and drink when waiting for their trains home. The two basements of the 2nd Ekimae building have been taken over by a maze of hole-in-the-wall style izakayas.

    We then enjoyed a peaceful ride back to Kyoto on the famous Hello Kitty train.    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    111111
    Day 11

    Himeji Castle Daytrip

    March 29 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We had a little excursion to the rather impressive Himeji castle. It turned out to be an excuse for more food, as they were having a student-led food festival. So instead of beating the crowds at the castle, we had an early lunch.

    The castle was really quite stunning, and evey bit as instagramable as the cherry blossoms. The castle gardens (Koko-en) were calming and absolutely beautiful.

    We then made our way up the mountains to Arima Onsen for an incredible Kaiseki meal and a soak in a hot bath. 😌    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    1
    211
    Day 12

    Kobe Sake Day

    March 30 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    We woke up in Arima Onsen after another lovely night's sleep on Tatami mats! Laura has very much decided she needs a new less squishy mattress now.

    We had an incredible traditional Japanese breakfast of savoury fish, soup etc as well as a tiny bit of granola and yoghurt for Laura's sweet tooth.

    We then made our way to Kobe for some sake brewery tours (and tasting). It was great learning a bit more about the brewing process and even better having a go at the self-serve sake machine.

    We then stumbled onto our Shikansen on our way to Hiroshima which is famous for its Okonomiyaki and oysters and the Okinomimura specifically, which is two floors of an old tower office block given over to hole-in-the-wall restaurants and grills.
    It was warm, smokey and absolutely delicious.    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    211
    Day 13–14

    Hiroshima

    March 31 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    The Peace Memorial Park with the Atomic Bomb Dome and the National Peace Memorial Hall were a must see for us on our Japan trip. We are so glad we went. It was deeply moving and a special exhibition about Japanese child soldiers who were among the first responders after the bombing. It was as impressive as it was harrowing. Walking around the park really does show the emphasis the memorial puts on "peace".

    For lunch we had another Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki at Nagataya. From there we bumbled into a street food festival near Hiroshima castle. Those amazing festivals are popping up everywhere to honor the start of sakura season. :-)

    We then made our way to the Shikansen and Fukuoka - but not without delicious Eki Bens (train food boxes). Delicious and fun to eat!

    Right outside our hotel In Fukuoka was yet another street food and music festival going on 😂 and the delicious smells and strange sounds drew us in. We finally had the chance to speak to some locals as well. Beer definitely helped with that!    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    1111211
    Day 14

    Fukuoka

    April 1 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    We walked through the canal city towards the perfect cherry blossoms finally in full bloom in Maiziru Park and the ruins of the old castle (which they seem to be rebuilding!) 

    There we stopped for another street food market snack and then had a look at the fish, ducks and swan boats in Ohori Park. 

    On our last stop in Japan we made sure to visit some more shrines and temples, they are all so unique and beautiful, it really doesn't get boring. Then we went to a utopian looking shopping center, and perfect filming location, for some tomato ramen. Unfortunately the big Japanese Garden was closed but we did find a tiny little one surrounded by high rise buildings in the old town - a little oasis in the middle of this "small" city of 1.5 million.

    For our last meal in Japan we couldn't leave Fukuoka without having an original, simple tonkotsu ramen. It turned out to be the best ramen of the trip! 

    After struggling to fit in all of our shopping, we're ready for our next stop in Busan and South Korea!! 🇰🇷    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    111
    Day 15

    Fukuoka > Busan

    April 2 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    We had an early-ish flight from Fukuoka to Busan, enjoying some original Japanese Starbucks coffee (it's a thing), and flying over the beautiful island of Tsushima - where one of our favourite games is set.❤️

    We landed in Busan where, fun fact: you aren't allowed to take any pictures of the airport, as SK is still under a war footing with NK!

    We saw some absolutely perfect endless cherry blossom roads from the bus, before making our way to downtown Busan. It's a completely different vibe to Japan already. very lively and a lot more chaotic. But our high rise Airbnb directly at Gwangalli beach had some lovely views in store for us. (The names of some of the hotels and shops are also very funny here as they use a lot of english).

    As Korea is renowned for its food, we had to get ourselves some K-BBQ, Beer and Soju, and signed up for a 3 hour waiting list. It was totally worth it!    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    1212
    Day 16

    Busan (Morning)

    April 3 in South Korea ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    We started our sightseeing day in a rainy Busan by going for a picturesque ride on the Sky Capsule. Unfortunately, the weather from Hakone caught up to us again and we were denied some beautiful views of the ocean. But no matter the weather, coffee and cake would be waiting.

    After warming up and drying out, we went to the somewhat harrowing Jagalchi Market - the biggest fresh seafood market in all of South Korea. They have the most baffling array of seafood and left us hungry - but for something vegetarian. 😂

    Wandering through BIFF square where the Busan International Film Festival takes place, we finally got to try some of the local tteokbokki: a sweet, spicy fermented chilli stew with squishy and bouncy rice cakes. Heaven!    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    1
    21112
    Day 16

    Busan (afternoon)

    April 3 in South Korea ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    In the afternoon we made our way to the Busan Museum of Movies + Trick eye museum, where Charlie got roasted by a dragon and Laura finally learned something about films. 😄

    Without fail, learning builds up an appetite, so we went looking for something weird - and found it in the form of a cheese corn dog, covered in potato cubes and then dipped in...sugar!? While weirdly delicious, it didn't quite hit the spot, so we made our way back to Gwangali beach for some well-earned beer, soju and fried food. There are a lot of places where you order via little tablets which makes it really easy for travellers like us even though some of the translations are quite hilarious. Also: We didn’t order draught beer at first because we thought the picture was beer topped with whipped cream. 😂 The actual head it came with was quite adequate though.

    We ended the day by writing a letter to ourselves at a little lit up hut on the beach promissory that the letter will be sent in a years time. We‘ll see. 😉    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    111
    Day 17

    Gyeongju Day Trip

    April 4 in South Korea ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    We decided to give our feet and brains a bit of a day off and have a little touristy day trip to Gyeongju, a UNESCO world heritage site 1,5 hours outside of Busan.

    We had a look at the Yangdong Folk Village, Koreas largest still existing traditional village, dating back to 1484 where we also got a really good traditional lunch.

    Then we went to Bulguksa Temple where we got to see some stone features from the 8th century AD. 😮 As a lot of Korea has been destroyed several times these temple shrines are national treasures of Korea. There were also some really steep stairs everywhere.

    Next stop for the tourbus were the ancient royal tombs of Daereungwon, a complex of more than 20 impressive burial mounts. This is where our tour guide made us take the cheesiest pictures. 😂
    We then got some more delicious cheese-filled coins before heading off for some picture perfect shots of the Woljeong Bridge. Sadly, no one fell into the river, through it would have made an excellent picure.

    To finish our day before our cozy journey back to Busan, we walked around the Donggung Palace and garden, which was beautifully lit up.

    With feet relaxed, next stop Seoul!    Read more

  • Japan & South Korea
    Day 18

    Busan > Seoul

    April 5 in South Korea ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    We said goodbye to Busan beach, which had rudely decided to have glorious sunshine.

    While the ICE might be faster than the Korean KTX, it can only dream of being this punctual and have train food this gooood.

    We arrived in Seoul, found us some fried chicken, some snacks, and some more street food at the famous Myeongdong market. We then retired with a decent drink overlooking the Seoul Tower. Charlie also couldn't wait to start his new K-Skincare program. 😂    Read more

  • 2024© FindPenguins
  • Home
  • About us
  • Blog
  • Group Tracking
  • Press
  • Terms
  • Privacy Policy & Cookies
  • Support
  • Legal notice
  • English