Week 7: April 1-7
Spring season is in full bloom, and I'm so excited for warmer weather and cherry blossoms everywhere. I noticed a lot of places have special cherry blossom drinks, food, and even merchandise. For instance, Starbucks takes its merchandise to another level. They have new Spring merchandise to celebrate the new season. I tried their new cherry blossom chocolate cake decorated with a little bear holding a cherry blossom flower and strawberry matcha latte. (Both were really good!) After, I went to a Spring festival near the Lotte World Mall with a friend, and basically, they decorated the park with a pink bear called Bellygom. You could take pictures with the plush and they also had live music, merchandise, and more. After walking around, some of the cherry blossoms bloomed near the lake so we went to go take a walk since the weather was perfect. Within the next week or two, all the cherry blossoms will be in full bloom and I can't wait!
For the rest of the week, I decided to go to the SM store, DDP museum, Orerak Bakery, Sanrio Lovers Club Cafe, and yet another cup sleeve event in Hongdae. But, the highlight of my week was going to KBS Music Bank (a K-pop show music award show for when artists come back with a new single/album) to see my favorite groups enter the venue! Due to Covid, they aren't allowing any audiences to watch the actual show but I thought it was pretty cool that you could stand outside and see the artists as they enter and exit the venue. Although it's only for a few seconds, they normally wave to the fans and then leave. Regardless, I was still happy to see 3 of my favorite groups! It was a unique experience to actually see them in person and I'd probably go back again another time before I leave.
Aside from the fun activities, one of my classes started to have in-person classes. I was really excited to finally have some human interactions and I realized how much more focused and engaged I am in a different atmosphere. Hopefully, at some point, more of my classes will go in person because I find it much more fun to talk with other students as well rather than seeing them through a screen.
Bellygom Festival, Cafes, Cherry Blossoms, Seeing MC Sunghoon & fun in Hongdae!
Week 8: April 8-15
Traveling to Busan has always been on my bucket list because I've heard/seen that they have the nicest ocean views with amazing seafood to eat. My friends and I decided to plan a spontaneous trip there for five days. We decided to catch a plane there as it was way cheaper and faster than catching the KTX train. It was about $69 USD for a roundtrip and it only took about 50 minutes to get there. If we went by train, it would've taken around 3-4 hours and the cost was double the price. We also stayed at a place called K-Guesthouse and it was a hostel. We got two rooms for the four of us and the room had a bathroom, mini-fridge, tv, and two twin beds in each room. It was super nice for the cost luckily! We only paid 18,000 won ($15 USD) per night and the location was in Seomyeon which is located almost near the middle of Busan. The location was great as we were in the middle of everything we wanted to see/do. If you know what Myeondong is like, Seomyeon is the equivalency to that so there were a lot of alleys filled with restaurants, clubs, and stores near us. On Saturday, we went towards the ocean side and visited Haeundae and Gwangalli beach. The weather in Busan was perfect and sunny and wasn't super hot either. As we were walking around it made me realize how much I miss the scenic views like this. After exploring, we decided to get lunch at a sushi place nearby and that was the best sushi I've had yet. There were so many raw fish options and for an affordable cost. My favorite was the salmon and tuna as it was super soft and fresh! The place is called "Sushimaiu" and I believe there are multiple locations in Busan so I definitely recommend it if you're looking to eat good sushi! As the sun was setting we decided to go back to Gwangalli Beach to try and catch the sunset but also came across this place with grilled clams. We ate there for dinner and of course, it was delicious! Basically, you put the clams on the grill, add mozzarella cheese, and hot sauce, and you're done! I've never eaten anything like this before so it was a memorable experience for me, especially where Busan is known for having the best seafood. After eating, we sat at the beach and waited for the bridge to light up. There was also a drone light show which we weren't expecting but nonetheless, was really cool to watch.
The next day, we went to Songdo to ride the Busan Air Cruise which is a cable car that takes you over the ocean near Songdo Beach. We decided to pay 5,000 won extra to get a cable car with transparent floor glass so we could look below us. I'm glad we decided to take the cable car because the view was so pretty. After we arrived at the place, there were hikes you could do and a lot of other things to explore. We could only stay for a little so we decided to take a 20-minute hike down to the ocean and then take some pictures on the rooftop. I definitely wish we could've stayed longer to do more hiking trails there but it was still a lot of fun. Monday was our last full day in Busan and so we went to go visit the Gamcheon Cultural Village. I was looking forward to going here the most because it's known for having a view of the colorful buildings overlooking the village. We took a taxi and got dropped off at the top since I think walking there would've taken way too long. The view was really nice and we went to go visit the Little Prince Statue which is a famous place where everyone goes to take pictures. Along the road, there were cute little souvenir shops and cafes, and murals. We came across a Jungkook and Jimin mural and I know a lot of fans come here to take a look but luckily we just stumbled across it. For the rest of the day, we just went back to Seomyeon to walk around and relax since we were all tired from having a jam-packed day the past few days. I had so much fun with my friends over the weekend and it was truly an unforgettable trip!
Fun in Busan!
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