Busan

We had only one day in Busan with my mum, and it was the rainiest, foggiest day of our trip. I am sure Busan is much much nicer when it's sunny, summery and you have enough time to explore all of the coastal areas. We were mainly after Dalmaji-gil, as the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, but even that sight would have been a little nicer if the weather was clearer. Still, we enjoyed the trip, and it was very funny to be constantly mistaken for Russians (more on that later).

The most comfortable way to get downtown from Busan airport is to take the airport limo bus. It's right outside the arrivals terminal, but you have to buy tickets in an office prior to boarding, as the driver does not sell them.

Most of Busan, as far as we saw, was not very different from Seoul, except for the coast. Also, cherry blossoms were in full bloom already, as Busan is in the south of Korea.

Busan has beautiful beaches, but the weather wasn't really fit for a nice stroll along the coast. We tried, but we only kept seeing this horror-esque scenery.

 

We took the bus to Dalmaji-gil, which is a very very long street lined with giant cherry trees. It is surely one of the top places to see cherry blossoms in Korea, if you ever have the opportunity to schedule a trip during the short blooming season.

There is also a small Buddhist temple near the eastern end of Dalmaji-gil, so we decided to go take  a look. I really enjoy discovering temples which are not that popular with tourists, as the atmosphere feels more unique.

In the evening, we wanted to explore the area aound our hostel (whch was located near the harbour, as we originally planned to take ferry from Jeju and not a plane), and we found a "Chinatown", which, in reality,  was more of a Russian town. The gate and decorations were interesting, but the shops and restaurants didn't seem special in any way. 

We also went to check out the underground shopping area and Lotte department store, which was my mum's first visit to one in Korea. She loved the premium food section, since it is very different from European grocery stores, even the premium kind. There was also a water fountain performance and on the roof, there is an observatory (free!), though it closes early, especially during bad weather, so we came again next morning. Surprisingly, the cosmetic stores in Busan didn't have tax refund option, but when I paid in cash and looked disappointed at the lack of tax refund application forms, I got a huge lot of freebies, plus a 10% discount on the most expensive item, so it was even better than tax refund, haha.

Yours truly

Vita