Seoul - Busan - Jeju Island! - Korea Trip Day 4

Korail tickets

And we rode the train to Busan! That saved us a lot of money for 1) No overnight stay fee on a hostel 2) Cheaper fare (only 27 USD) while KTX costs around 57 USD. I remember some budget travelers do this especially when they are touring Europe. The cons are of course its a bit tiring (not as comfortable as lying in a bed) and you don't get to see view of the countryside. I suggest that you bring something to cover your eyes for they are not turning off the lights. Well that is if you can't sleep with the lights on. Luckily I always bring my buff when I travel because its super functional, and in this instance I used it as a sleep mask.

We arrived at Busan maybe around 5 in the morning and there are no lounge (or we don't know) or even seats with back rest that we can doze while waiting for the city bus tour -- another way to go around Busan in an easier budget friendly way. 

It was way colder in Busan at that time, maybe because it rained overnight. For 10USD you get to roam around Busan. Its hop-on and hop-off and it arrives on time. There are two loops Haeundae Loop and Taejongdae Loop. With one ticket you can take both loops. We took the Taejongdae loop first. We didn't bother to sit on the upper deck because its too cold for us.

For our first stop, its Taejongdae Park! The park is equipped with lockers (thank goodness!) and you HAVE to ride train that goes around the park. At first we thought of just walking around the park and its a good thing that we rode that train because the lighthouse is far! If I am not exhausted from walking around Seoul for 3 days and if we have a lot of time, I'd probably walk around the park. Its a very cloudy and cold day but that didn't hide how great the park is. Its picturesque and cliffs are awesome. Little did we know that King 2 Hearts were shot there. I remember that bloodied scene. As I look on, I recall a familiar place and I think the chair that Seunggi used are still there at that time.

Taejongdae Park	towards the lighthouse
Yeongdo Lighthouse	awesome cliff
all smiles	out of breath

EX.HAUS.TED!

Exhausted from hiking to-and-fro we head to the bus stop. We did not get off to the other drop-offs because of exhaustion and limited time. We just got off Busan train station have our lunch there and hop to Haeundae loop. Still I am sad for not eating seafood in Busan my mouth right now is craving for sashimi... sigh. 

Haeundae Beach is empty when we arrived maybe because its a weekday or because its just freaking cold to swim. I like the golden sands and the long stretch of the beach. It is exactly how it looks like on the dramas and movies that I watch. It somehow reminded me of YongSeo when they feed the birds there. We didn’t stay there that long, we practically just waited for the next bus to come.

Thank you!	this will be super crowded during summer
just us and the birds	Shark!

Its swift and short... our Busan trip. We were supposed to use the train (because I want to experience Busan train system too) or bus to go to Gimhae Airport but we don’t have much time left. Hehehe nah.. actually we had a hard time looking for the bus and the entrance to the train station. Now I wonder whether that big Busan train station is connected to the local train station. I.don’t.know. And so we held a cab to Gimhae and now we really don’t have time.  Why Gimhae? Because we are going to Jeju Island!

I really wished we stayed at Busan for at least 3 days to really get to experience Busan.  Well actually for me to taste Busan. I love seafood and I know its abundant there. I even ready to eat live octopus (the small kind) that you just wrapped it on a chopstick, dip to sesame oil and shove it my mouth and hope that my mouth is stronger than the tentacles of the octopus! Its on my bucket list along with bungee jumping. 

took a pic of Jeju International Airport

Outside the airport

Banana Uyu to keep us company

And we landed at Jeju Island! You have 2 options in Jeju Island, 1) to stay in Jeju City that's where the airport is 2) Seogwipo City which is further south, roughly 1.5 hours via bus. We stayed at Hotel Good Inn because it promised a view and its a bit cheap. I remember saying "I want a room with a view" while picking up a hotel. No we did not stay on those posh hotels which I promise myself that if I'll go to Jeju Island again, I'll stay to one of those hotels.

We took the Airport limousine to Seogwipo. Again arriving to a new place at night is scary. I realized that we are on an island that if we get lost it will be difficult. Actually we hop off on the wrong bus stop - World Cup Stadium (we should stop on the next). Oh taxi, how do I love thee? let me count the ways.. of course we hail a cab to our hotel which is maybe 20 minutes away from the bus stop. 

I just realized that we did a lot that day. From mainland South Korea to the island of Jeju. Never did I imagine that I actually visited Jeju Island. Its a place where you usually get to see in Korean dramas and sometimes when they say that they are going to that place it brings excitement to people faces. So I never thought that that opportunity will come to yours truly. I feel very blessed.Thank you God!