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Busan (부산(釜山)) (formerly romanized as Pusan) is a city located in the south-eastern province of South Gyeongsang, South Korea. It is the second-largest city in South Korea, and has the largest port in the country (5th largest in the world), the biggest department store in the world, beautiful beaches and mountains, spas, and tasty seafood dishes.
Busan's many unique beaches attract tourists from all over South Korea, especially in the summer. But the beach is not the only thing to see in Busan. The vibrant seafood market in Jagalchi is the most famous seafood market in Korea, and walking through the old part of the city such as the Gamcheon offers a cozy atmosphere. It is also home to many events and festivals, such as the Busan International Film Festival, one of the most famous film festivals in Asia.
Busan... Read more
Busan (부산(釜山)) (formerly romanized as Pusan) is a city located in the south-eastern province of South Gyeongsang, South Korea. It is the second-largest city in South Korea, and has the largest port in the country (5th largest in the world), the biggest department store in the world, beautiful beaches and mountains, spas, and tasty seafood dishes.
Busan's many unique beaches attract tourists from all over South Korea, especially in the summer. But the beach is not the only thing to see in Busan. The vibrant seafood market in Jagalchi is the most famous seafood market in Korea, and walking through the old part of the city such as the Gamcheon offers a cozy atmosphere. It is also home to many events and festivals, such as the Busan International Film Festival, one of the most famous film festivals in Asia.
Busan has a sub-tropical climate with a hot, humid summer and autumn along with a mild winter. Busan typically doesn't experience snow.
The Busan Hanaro Card (하나로카드) is a very useful travel card system that can be used on:
The four lines of the Busan Metro—Red (1), Green (2), Brown (3), and Blue (4) can connect you to most places of interest in Busan. Both signage and announcements are in English so finding your way is easy.
Check carefully the direction you want to go, since once you go through the gate it may not be possible to change platforms in many stations. For example, the Green line (2) goes between Jangsan and Yangsan which is confusing to begin with.
Metro cars have specially designated seats (with obvious green stickers) for elderly, disabled and pregnant passengers. You can sit in them as long as you are prepared to give up your seat to someone who needs it.
If you are staying for a bit, then consider buying a Hanaro card (하나로카드). T-money cards and some other metro cards for other cities also work for the Busan metro.
Also, note that the journey times can be quite long compared to overland travel. For example, Haeundae to Busan station is less than 30 minutes by taxi but over an hour by metro.
The Busan Gimhae Light Rail (Purple) line meets up with both the Brown (3) and Green (2) Metro lines. The light rail provides a convenient way for transiting to Gimhae International Airport. Apart from the airport and Gimhae town, there are not many places of interest on this line. The light rail ticketing is not integrated with the Busan Metro, and therefore a separate ticket is required to change between them. The Hanaro card can still be used to pay for tickets.
There are dedicated train stations around the city of Busan however the locations are not great and the frequency of trains is low. It is almost always preferable to take the metro or bus. For example you could take a train from Busan station to Haeundae station, however, it would be more convenient to take the metro.
There are plenty of taxis prowling the streets of Busan. Fares increase by 20% between midnight and 4 AM.
If you look like a foreigner, then you are liable to be directed towards a black "mobeom" at a popular taxi rank. There is no problem however to use a cheaper 'plain' taxi instead.
You can use the Hanaro public transport card to pay for taxis as well. There is, however, no discount.
Most taxi drivers do not speak English, although some may speak Japanese, so if you can show the name in Korean of your destination it will help a lot. In Busan, almost all taxi drivers are friendly towards foreigners, although they often assume that a foreigner wants to go a long distance such as to the airport.
Finding and catching a taxi in good weather is easy. When it is raining then you will be waiting a very long time before an available taxi stops for you.
Busan has a good, efficient and comprehensive city bus system, although unlike the metro system it is only in Korean which makes it very challenging for foreigners to use. The front of the bus has the destination displayed in Korean, English, and Japanese. Inside the bus, the route maps are only in Korean, and the bus driver is unlikely to be able to speak English. If you plan to spend a long time in Busan then it is definitely worth learning how to use since it will open up locations to you that are not seen by most tourists.
It is worth using a Hanaro card (see Metro Section) since these can be used for transfers between buses and metro trains: just swipe your card when leaving the bus.
The front seats of the bus have yellow seat covers, which mean they are designated for elderly, pregnant or disabled people. You are allowed to sit as long as you give it up when a more deserving person boards.
Note that the ride on the bus can be very bumpy on Busan's hills, therefore at rush hour you may find yourself standing up for a long journey and swaying about the whole time!
The Busan municipal government publish a smartphone application for Android - 부산버스 (Busan Bus) - that makes planning your bus journey very easy (provided you can read basic Korean). You can enter your origin and destination in Busan, and it will provide the fastest route with real-time updates on the location of the bus.
South Korean cities do not have a bicycle culture and the streets of Busan are not particularly safe for cyclists (Drivers are not used to them). The only options for this are in the touristic Haeundae district.
Due to the mountains and valleys, Busan lacks a natural city center and is very much spread out in every direction. This means that walking around the city is impractical.
However certain sights are clustered together in a way that makes walking around them possible.
This is the old town of Busan with a lot of post-war buildings, large docks, and atmosphere. This is the place to see the heritage of the city.
Easy to overlook, the north part of the city has few tourist attractions. Nevertheless, it offers excellent hiking opportunities, the famous Beomeosa Temple as well as vibrant student life around the PNU university.
The western part of the city is full of industrial parks leading to docks and the airport. There are however some nature areas preserved, such as the Nakdong River Estuary Migratory Bird Sanctuary and Taejongdae Park.
As Korea's second-largest city, there are a large number of events. The online Busan Haps magazine has a listing of new events in English.
The mountains around Busan have some good hiking trails. It should be noted that hiking trails are not well marked in Korea, even if you can read the Korean script. Do your research before you hike.
Hiking clothes are a must-have fashion item in Korea these days, even if they only get used in the local mall. Prices are extremely high, so you should purchase what you need before coming to Korea.
Korea is justly renowned for its great seafood tradition, and Busan as Korea's main coastal city provides possibly the best opportunity to try fresh seafood caught locally.
Jagalchi fish market where most of the seafood is landed. You can turn up at 07:00 for delicious grilled fish and a variation of Korean 'hangover soup', although many experiences at both the high and low end are available to you throughout the day.
International market where everything is available at very cheap prices. You can eat Spicy Glass Noodles, Chungmu-style Gimbap and Ssiat hotteok(sweet Korean pancake stuffed with seeds), etc.
Note that restaurants in Korea can open and close frequently, although if an establishment listed below has closed then another good option is likely to be found close by. Korean restaurants also usually serve only a few specialty dishes, so check with your party beforehand. Vegetarians, as elsewhere in Korea, should be mindful that there are limited options in Busan.
Busan as a coastal city is well known for fresh seafood. Note that restaurants in Korea can open and close frequently, although if an establishment below has closed then another good option is likely to be found close by. Korean restaurants also usually serve only a variation on a specialty dish, so check with your party beforehand. Vegetarians should select a restaurant with suitable dishes since the customization of orders almost never happens.
There are dishes you should try in Busan that are not typically available in other parts of Korea.
Dong-nae pajeon is a seafood and green onion pancake, an affordable and popular Busan dish.
Daegu Tang (대구탕) is a delicious flaky cod soup with vegetables. You will find dedicated restaurants for this on the east side of Haeundae beach.
Bokguk is a soup made with pufferfish, the type of which is extremely poisonous. (The same as Japanese Fugu) There are many places in Busan licensed to prepare pufferfish, but you may want to know what you are getting into! Typically there are cartoon pictures of a fish looking like a balloon outside, so should be easy to spot.
There are dishes you should try in Busan that are not typically available in other parts of Korea.
Busan has thousands if not tens of thousands of drinking places scattered throughout the city and popular spots include Nampodong and the area around Busan National University.
Just look around, and look up, on most streets if you are looking for a bar. Any tall commercial building is likely to have a few inside, usually with English words displayed and often the German word 'Hof' that indicated a place for eating and drinking.
The Kyungsung University area has the most selections in terms of density and sheer numbers of drinking establishments of any area in Busan.
Gwangalli beach in Suyeong is a great place for a drink, especially at night time with the Gwangan bridge lit up over the bay.
In Haeundae, most of the bars that appeal to westerners are on the main street (Gunam-ro) between Haeundae metro station (exit 5) and the beach.
In Haeundae:
Currency exchange is possible near Nampo-dong and Hauendae at banks such as KB (Korea Bank of Exchange), BS Bank (Busan Bank) and NH Bank. Withdrawing cash at an ATM with your foreign MasterCard or Visa is usually simple, with most cash machines have an English language option. American Express cards are more difficult to use.
Generally speaking, Busan is as safe as most places in South Korea, which is to say very safe.
Busan is very safe to roam around freely at night. Be a little bit cautious when most bars close at around 3 AM. Do note that some bars stay open until the business dies down and in many cases, this may not be until sunrise. Also, take care in the area around Busan Station. If any place could be deemed seedy in Busan (which would be a stretch), this area could be considered so.
On the metro late at night, you may encounter elderly men who are rather vocal, and under the influence of alcohol, who may be unpleasant towards you. This is however unlikely to be dangerous, and you should move to another metro car.
There are occasionally sand storms from China covering Busan. You should avoid going outside if one passes through.
Driving standards are rather erratic in Busan, even by general Korean standards. Be careful of zebra crossing without traffic lights since they are effectively ignored. Korean women driving large SUVs with mobile phones glued to their ears are a common sight, as are the in-car TV entertainment systems running in many vehicles. Also be wary of scooters/mopeds, since they tend to follow even fewer road rules and are often trying to deliver something very quickly. Switching between sidewalk and road as it suits.
Beaches in Busan do experience riptides, and lifeguard cover outside summer is limited.
There is a tsunami warning system and signs on the beaches, although the risk of a tsunami is far less than in nearby Japan. In the unlikely event, a tsunami warning is issued for Busan or the South Korean coastline, head to the top of a tall building or higher ground. Higher ground not being easily accessible on Haeundae Beach.
Every summer the local press gets very concerned about foreigners behaving badly on Busan beaches, usually by photographing Korean girls wearing bikinis, although the same press publishes similar photos of foreign women on Busan beaches. Since it can be a police matter, be careful what pictures you take on the beach.
LOCAL TIME
4:18 pm
May 19, 2022
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North Korea attacked South Korea on June 25, 1950, and captured almost the entire country. Only a small area (on the bottom of the map) of about 10% of the entire country was left. This area was called the Pusan Perimeter named after the port of Pusan (from 2000 Busan ). We... |
The railway bridge over the Nakdong River
Busan
was blown up by the Americans during the Korean War in order to impede the onset of the North Koreans.
During the peacetime, the bridge became a memorial. It is now a pedestrian bridge. A road bridge was built nearby.
We came to the... |
During the Korean War, the North Korean army reached
the Pusan perimeter
. In one of the battles, the North Koreans surrounded the Hill 303 with US mortars. Americans confused the attacking North Koreans with reinforcement troops of South Korea and as a result, they got captured. The fights... |
We came to another military museum in Waegwan.
As usually, there is a military equipment in front of the museum.
Stairs to the right of the museum lead to the monument.
This is the view from the monument.
Let's go to the museum.
We were first shown a movie about the war.
There are military... |
The ancient city of Gyeongju is located in the southern part of the Korean peninsula near the coast of the Sea of Japan. Once it was the capital of the all-powerful ancient Korean state of Sil and the most prospering city of East Asia. Prime of the city has fallen on the VII-IX centuries when Silla... |