Busan Firework Festival

Trevor and I had a large plethora of adventures to choose from this weekend.  One in particular definitely popped out against the others: fireworks!  Busan is the 2nd largest city in South Korea and every year they put on a firework festival that attracts gigantic crowds.  And by that I mean there were more than a million people crammed onto a beach and the surrounding area to witness the firework spectacle.

The show was scheduled to start at 8pm but Trevor and I decided to spend the earlier part of the day exploring Busan.  Somehow, each attempt at adventure was smoldered by some cause or another.  For example, we decided to go to the largest mall in Korea for some possible shopping only to find that just about everything was way overpriced.  I even felt guilty window shopping there.  Like I wasn't even rich enough to look at what they had to offer.  Just for kicks and giggles, we even checked the price tag on a winter coat with a fur-trimmed hood.  More than $2,000 for a coat!  I'm sure some of you are like ya, ya I've seen more expensive things but seriously I thought a high-end expensive coat would be like a couple hundred not a couple thousand!

Anyways, another failed adventure occurred at the aquarium.  We had seen a poster advertising 50% off the entrance fee between such and such dates so we thought what a great way to spend our time and do it for half the cost right? Wrong! We got the aquarium and saw a sign showing all the prices.  For a regular customer, it was about $25 per person.  We weren't sure if this was already the 50% off, or if that was the normal price so we decided to ask one of the workers.  She said it is the normal price so we thought we could both get in for the price of $25 all together.  Wrong again.  In order to get the 50% off, you had to prove you are a citizen of Busan.  Foiled again!  We weren't really prepared to be spending $50 for an aquarium so we moved on to plan C.


Plan C was to go downtown and explore street vendors selling novelty items.  We got there and explored around for a little bit and stopped at a cart selling some jewelry and headbands and other such accessories.  We got talking to the vendor and told her we were going to attend the firework festival that night.  She said if we were planning on doing that, we ought to have been there by now.  At this time it was 4pm and the show wasn't supposed to start for 4 more hours!  We had heard there are a lot of people that go to the festival but according to this kind lady, the beach was bound to be packed already and she told us good luck as we scurried toward the nearest subway entrance. Plan C thwarted.

Speaking of the subway, we got a taste of how many people were going to the festival when we were cram-packed in like a can of sardines.  People push and shove in order to get where they need to go as fast as possible.  There were even guards at each of the doors at major stops to stop people from getting on once the car got too crowded.  People would even try to push and shove past the guards so they didn't have to wait an additional 3 minutes for the next train to arrive.  Not being a big city girl myself, I was baffled by the amount of people and their desperation to get to their destination.

After getting off the subway, the sardine-like crowdedness did not cease.  That lady downtown was right!  The whole beach was already jam-packed!  Unfortunately the best place we could find was somewhat blocked by a couple of trees.  I was disheartened thinking the fireworks would be a bust as well because we wouldn't really be able to see them.  Thankfully, the show was so great I was wrong.

Past the beach, out over the open water is a giant bridge that goes from one sort of peninsula to another.  The bridge was all lit up and even had special lights that scrolled words across the bottom of the bridge.  Out in the water there were several boats which I assume were also used to launch fireworks.  8:00 couldn't come fast enough.  We had already spent most of the day standing or walking so I was anxious to finally take a nice break and watch the fireworks.

To my great delight, the firework show was spectacular. Seriously it was beyond amazing.  I was extremely impressed with the magnitude of everything it took to put on such a show.  There were countless numbers of fireworks set off timed to music that was playing.  It must have taken great ingenuity and calculations and countless hours planning to make the show work like it did.  The fireworks were splendidly symmetrical and came in an array of shapes, sizes, colors, and effects.  The show went for a duration of about 50 minutes which was much longer than I had expected.  It was such a fantastic thing to behold, the few trees ended up only slightly blocking the splendor.  It was definitely worth the wait and I'm so glad that we decided to go.  I would go again in a heartbeat if given the chance.  I would even spend all day at the beach to get an even better view of the show.  I wish I could share with everybody what it was really like but Trevor and I were too busy enjoying ourselves to try and film the whole thing or take too many pictures.  Trevor did get a couple of small clips and I'll share one of them below.  The crowded subway ride back to the bus station didn't even bother me because I was so satisfied with the firework show, there was almost nothing that could annoy me at that point.  I guess there are some advantages to big cities!

Time for the truth

It has almost been 6 months living here in Korea.  Can you believe it?  I know I can't.  And we still have about 9 months left!  I figured I've been living here long enough and have had enough experiences that I can offer a few opinions on Korea and Korean culture.  Just as a reminder, this is an opinion piece.  Take it with a grain of salt and know that I'm simply expressing my thoughts based on observations and experiences.  Feel free to comment on your own opinions or questions you have about the culture.

The first thing I want to mention is the fast-paced lifestyle especially found in big cities.  "Time is money" is certainly a phrase that describes Korean everyday life.  This concept is especially noticeable in public transportation.  Trevor and I ride the bus often.  It is our main source of transportation since we don't have a car.  Every time we ride, I hope and pray there is an open seat because otherwise, we are bound to get thrashed around like Willow Smith's hair.  The bus drivers speed off as fast as they can and slam on the brakes at the last minute before each stop.  I've learned to take a surfer's stance in order to keep my balance especially if I can't cling to one of the poles.  There is a lot of pressure to get on and off as quickly as possible and not to waste any time.  Heaven forbid if you need to ask the bus driver if he goes to a particular stop because that of course wastes time.  We've even been told no they don't go somewhere even though they actually did because the driver just wanted to leave.

You also have to be quick at the grocery store.  I feel like we are always in the way because we are trying to compare prices or figure out how much something costs or deciding which brand of something to buy.  Get what you want and move on seems to be a more popular approach to shopping.  The worst part is getting in line to check out.  They are so busy, they don't even bag stuff for you.  If you want something bagged, they will hand you however many bags you ask for (so hope you calculate correctly or you're in trouble) and you can either shove everything back in your cart and find a place to the side to bag everything, or frenziedly bag everything at the same rate it is being scanned so you don't hold up the line.  Either way, you have to be lightning fast or people start to get annoyed pretty quickly.

I also don't feel comfortable in any sort of shopping scenario.  There is a word here called 부담 (boodam) which is basically like social pressure.  At a department store, there is a person in every section of the store.  And by that I mean someone at the purses, someone at the ties, someone at the socks, someone at the scarves, someone at the perfume, someone at the umbrellas, etc.  Their job is to pressure you into making a purchase. If you even glance at one of their items, they will hop over and tell you all about all their other products and give you some prices.  I personally do more window shopping especially as a tourist as opposed to going somewhere with the intention of buying.  I just want to look!  The same goes for farmers markets.  Everyone is selling the same basic stuff but everyone of course wants you to buy theirs.  Old Korean grandmas will sit on the corner and shout out the prices of their food.  One time I was even grabbed by the arm by an old lady trying to get me to buy some fruit.  It was a very uncomfortable experience and it certainly makes me NOT want to buy stuff from the 부담 people.  Instead of looking around, I walk away because I don't like the workers to approach me.  I feel rude just walking away not buying something after they spend so much attention on me.

This next topic I know I should be grateful for but I can't help but be annoyed by it.  Korean people are extremely hospitable, almost to the point of being overwhelming.  This is especially true when it comes to food.  They LOVE giving foreigner's a taste of their beloved Korean food.  Don't get me wrong, I am willing to try more Korean food but just like any normal person, I'm not going to love or even like everything I taste especially since most food here isn't like what most people are used to in America.  When invited to a meal, you are expected to eat A LOT.  If you finish your plate, they will inevitably tell you to eat more and/or put more food on your plate.  I just want one plate of one dish and that's it.  I know I should be happy that they are being so nice but I start to get overwhelmed with the amount of food and how strange it is to me.

One thing I can't get enough of however, is everything cutesy.  Cute and quirky is all the rage.  Cute umbrellas, notebooks, socks, stickers, and any other imaginable accessory.  Here it's perfectly normal to have a pink and white polka dot umbrella with little cats on it (yes, I have one :D).  It brings out a sense of innocence and youth that is so refreshing.  One thing I've seen that does take it a little far is how much people cutesy up their pets.  Some people even dye the fur of their little dogs because they think it's cute.


The last thing I'll talk about today is nature. Ulsan is a very big city (and not even the biggest in Korea) and sometimes it is hard to get caught up in the hustle and bustle and be lost among the never ending buildings.  One thing I have noticed, is that even in big cities, there is always somewhere to go to enjoy nature.  There are several parks (usually with exercise equipment for anyone interested) and hiking trails and if nothing else, trees and vegetation along the sidewalks.  In fact, Trevor and I spent some time this weekend at a GIGANTIC park where we rented a tandem bike which was a lot of fun and good for us too!

I have more opinions which I will probably share later but I figured this was enough for now ;)

Gumi Friends (not Gummy)

When living in a foreign country, I think it is extremely beneficial to create friendships of many kinds.  This weekend Trevor and I were able to spend some time with some friends who live in a place called 구미 (Gumi pronounced goomi).  I've mentioned them in a previous post when they came to see us in Ulsan so it was our turn to give them a visit.  They were extremely hospitable and provided us with memorable experiences.  

The first day we were in Gumi, we went on a hike that led to a waterfall.  Although the waterfall was more like a small drizzle (I've seen more impressive water action coming from my kitchen faucet), the hike was very beautiful and definitely worthwhile.  There were so many picturesque spots throughout the hike so excuse us exceeding our photo quota for the week.  Just past the waterfall, there was a small "cave" (more like an indent in the hill) that was set up as a meditation/worship area for Buddhist monks.  The view from the cave showed most of the mountainside all the way down to the valley below.  I'm saddened that our cameras couldn't catch the full splendor of the beauty around us.  Just so you are aware, these pictures don't even do it justice.  

Coming back down from our hike, the Kim family showed us a booth in the park where a famous man was doing traditional calligraphy for free.  He used a brush and ink to write wise sayings on thin cloth-like paper using old Chinese characters.  He worked so decidedly with every stroke and you could tell he had been doing this for a while.  My favorite part to watch was the area where he makes a series of small characters.  You can really see the detail and focus he puts into his artwork.  The one Trevor and I got said something along the lines of if you have family, and your family unit is good, then everything else will be good too.  Here's a video of the calligrapher at work.

That night, the Kim family treated us to dinner.  We had what is called samgyeatang which is basically a soup with a whole chicken stuffed with rice.  The soup came out literally still boiling it was so hot.  This meal is tricky for me because you have to pick off the pieces of chicken and discard the bones yourself.  I still struggle a little bit with chopsticks and I'm a slow eater to begin with so let's just say I didn't come in first place as far as finishing the meal goes. 

The next morning, we all took a drive to go to a traditional Korean Buddhist temple.  It is just starting to be fall here so the leaves are beginning to change so there were so many colors and once again pretty pictures to be taken.  The temples here were similar to the ones I posted about from our 4th of July adventures but some of these ones were even perhaps a bit more vibrant, detailed, and colorful than the first.  It was such a nice day to walk around, enjoy nature, and gaze at the beauty around us.  

After seeing the temples, the Kim family took us to dinner AGAIN (they are so nice!).  We had more traditional Korean food.  This meal mainly consisted of a huge variety of side dishes (note that each individual dish pictured contains something different) with the main attraction being pork.  My favorite was the pork that was red and spicy.  I'm pretty sure it was cooked on an open grill because it tasted kind of like that grill-charred taste that you get.  So good!

Our weekend was so much fun and it wouldn't have been as accessible and easy without the generosity of the Kim family.  

Seriously this is how my pics look when I'm putting together the blog, then they turn into scrambled eggs when the blog is actually viewed.  NO clue how to fix it.  Sorry again!

추석 (Chuseok)

*Disclaimer* This post will probably be best to see on a desktop or laptop as opposed to a phone or other such smaller device.

Last weekend and into Monday and Tuesday of this week, we celebrated Chuseok which is kind of like the equivalent of Korean Thanksgiving.  It is a time where families get together and prepare a lot of food and remember their deceased ancestors.  For us it meant Trevor got a few days off of work so we got to explore Korea more.  We took the opportunity to go to Andong to see the Mask Festival that is pretty famous there.  It has been somewhat difficult to discover any deep or significant meaning of the mask festival or of the individual masks.  All I could gander was that it's just a fun time to gather and show traditional mask dances, look at traditional masks, eat fair food, and just have fun.

There were a plethora of booths to visit from a large assortment of food booths, to novelty jewelry, to make-your-own-mask booths.  I tried my best to be connected to Trevor in some way or another because I was constantly distracted by things to see all around me.  Luckily, there weren't very many foreigners there so it was easy to spot anyone in our group. We went there with my friend Janelle and her adorable baby Ryan, and a new friend Elizabeth who came with Janelle. I think this time around, I'll post a picture or a video and then talk about it below the picture/video.

These first three are just a couple of items of entertainment.  You can strap your kid to some poles and a trampoline, or watch an entertainer spin around to drum beats.  Not pictured: lock your kids in a giant plastic bubble and set them in a swimming pool and make them look like a hamster.

 Booths, booths, everywhere.  Make a mask, buy some jewelry, eat fried food, hold a bug. There was so much to look at and do and especially a lot to eat.  My favorite food were Turkish Kebabs (not like meat on a stick like you're thinking).  They were pieces of chicken wrapped up with some sort of cabbage slaw in a tortilla with a sort of spicy sauce and another sauce that was something like ranch dressing.  It was pretty delicious and I regret my initial skepticism toward them.

You can't go to fair with a bunch of statues and masks and not pose like them, right?  We did our best to imitate the best statues.  How'd we do? :D Someone even came and took a picture of me and the pig having a fist fight.  He asked who was going to win.  I was, of course.

Baby Ryan.  What a cutie! He attracted all the attention because Koreans LOVE to see little white babies especially with his big blue eyes.  Way to steal the show Ryan! ;)

 Just some more fun stuff to look at.  I think the theme of the festival this year had to do with clowns so a lot of the masks/statues were more along the comical side.

There were several traditional mask dances in a big theater occurring throughout the day.  We were able to go to the Chinese one.  Although I didn't understand a word that was said, it was still fun to try and follow the story line.  There was some fun acrobatics, fire breathing, and quick mask changes.  A couple of the actors had like a bunch of different masks and somehow changed the masks like with a sharp shake of their head.  Every time the mask changed on a character, the audience simultaneously erupted into ooh and aahs.  It was really fun to watch.  I'll show a couple of videos below for you.

The whole play/dance was accompanied by a small band playing traditional Chinese music which was kind of cool too

Now please enjoy an odd tidbit that was hard for me to decide whether it was creepy or hilarious.

Trevor says the carts are called rickshaws.

The last day of vacation, Trevor and I went on a fun little hike in the hills about 5-10 minute bus ride from our house.  It was really pretty and had a little stream alongside the path and a couple of places that had bridge to cross the stream.  Sometimes it's nice to get away from the noise and congestion of the city.  Here are a couple of my favorite pictures.