When we arrived at Busan Station off the KTX from Seoul, we got directions to the subway from a girl working in a tourist information booth. The subway was right outside Seoul Station! Using our tmoney cards that we purchased and loaded in Seoul, we were able to easily hop on a subway bound for Haeundae Beach. The subway stop was about 4 blocks from our hotel, so it took us about a 5 minute walk to get there. The Hotel Riviera is not located on the beach, but for $50 a night, we weren't complaining. The hotel actually began on the 7th or 9th (I can't remember which) floor of the building, with a cluster of shopping stores on the floors beneath. Across the street from the hotel was a Coffee Bene coffee shop where we visited for food and beverages one morning. Our room was clean, but it was clear the hotel needed some updating. Once again, we were NOT complaining for $50 a night. It was a steal and I would totally stay here again. It was in this room that I met another fancy toilet like the one in Namsan Tower N. Grill Restaurant! (see video below)
The weather in Busan was cloudy and a bit breezier and cooler than in Seoul. This was a welcome change from the heat and humidity we had been enduring further north! Because tourist season hadn't really kicked in yet, we weren't battling crowds, and we liked that. We were able to explore the area at a leisurely pace without the hustle and bustle of Seoul nipping our heels.
Our first night there, we took a late night stroll down by the beach where we encountered several male vocalists with a guitar set up in various positions along the beach walkway each doing their own thing. All of them were extremely talented and we stopped to listen and photograph them. The trip here was worth it just to hear them. I wish they had been selling cds of their music because their sweet, flower boy voices were hypnotic and I felt like I was being lulled into a kdrama coma. It was magic! We could have sat there all night just listening to them, feeling the warm air and people watching. Teppy wanted to light off fireworks on the beach like we saw in the dramas, but for some reason, we just never got around to it. I wonder if Teppy will keep that as a regret when we look back on our trip. I hope not, but one never knows. For me, the first night was an amazing experience and I will always remember it. I thank Teppy for taking it upon herself to make that night happen. Without her as my travel partner, I think a lot of what we accomplished on this trip would not have happened. Teppy is a fearless traveler. She used to work for United Vacations, so she travelled for a living and is somewhat of an expert. Me? Well, I'm the kind of traveler who lived in Croatia for a year and never left my apartment. I guess that sums up our differences. I need help when I travel. I need Teppy!
Our 2nd night was similar. (Notice that I completely skipped the full day between our nights in Busan. That is because I am dedicating another entire post about it. There is way too much to write about and this would be too long of a blog post to read). In Busan, there is a super long awesome bridge called the Gwangan Bridge. It is the longest bridge in Korea, so I knew I had to photograph it. Teppy and I set out to the bridge by taking the subway one station from ours and then walkikng to the water front. It was about a 30 minute journey. It was kind of misty outside, so we both had our umbrellas. As we got closer to the water front, we saw a gigantic Trump tower sticking out of the sky. I swear that guy has his hand everywhere, doesn't he? Well, he's smart. Busan is an up and coming international city and his tower is right smack in the middle of some kick ass real estate on the beach and in view of the spectacular bridge! Once we took our photos, we followed the water front path back to our beach. It was a pleasant walk and the drizzle had stopped. It was about a 45 minute walk back to the beach, but it was fun to look at all the hotels and high rise towers lit up in the night sky. Back at Haeundae Beach, we went and ate at a western hamburger joint and then headed back to the hotel. The following morning, we had to catch our airport limousine from the Novotel Hotel so we could get our flight to Jeju Island later that afternoon.