To Infinity and Busan

I didn't get to Busan this weekend--not right away, anyway.

A friend from Goeje asked me about training for the upcoming half-marathon together. To him I replied that I was not ready to do the five-mile run that he proposed to do on the weekend, then suggested that we go to Sareyando instead and do a three hour hike.

Long story short, I ended up going to the island of  Yeonhwado with He Jae and Lizzy instead.
Yeonhwado just might be the most beautiful place on Earth. Imagine: rolling hills, lush trees and greenery, and sliding rock faces, terminating into crashing waves. There is a temple there, and at the highest point there is a pagoda, and a large statue of the Buddha. I have no pictures. Sometimes you have to just enjoy the scenery for yourself.

Unfortunately, we arrived rather late and the last boat back was scheduled for four thirty or so. I suggested staying the night at a min-bak but my company wasn't receptive. While we waited for the ferry, which was half an hour late, my friends milled around the little village and enquired about scuba diving, while I played with one of the doberman-colored dachshunds that littered the island.

When Sunday rolled around, I figured I might as well go to Busan. So, I took a us out of Tongyeong in the afternoon. Once arrived I headed for the downtown area, to continue my quest for a decent burger. What I ended up with was an odd piece of food that had all of the requisite parts of a burger, yet wasn't quite the same thing. It was a stack of burger innards on top of a soft bagel, kept erect by a long toothpick. In ascending order,  a handful of sauteed onion was followed by a super-thick slice of tomato, a bulgogi patty, processed cheese, lettuce, and finally a large, undercooked slab of bacon. The sauce was a mixture between BBQ sauce and something like mayonnaise. It tasted pretty good, but a burger it was not. The search continues.

I wandered some more, and ended up at the mother of all Lotte marts--massive shopping complex that looks like the Vancouver library's older, dumber, more narcissistic brother. I bought Krispy Cream donuts, underwear, socks and (hallelujah) English books.

I decided to book a bed at a hostel at the last minute instead of wandering around for a jimjil bang. I am there now. Check out time is in half an hour, so I am going to have a shower and check out Hundae beach.