As I’ve said before, summertime in Seoul is hot – one of the only respites being the singularly wonderful invention of air conditioning. -But it is perfect weather to spend some quality time with the sun, sand, and some ocean waves. A group of coworkers and I planned a girl’s trip to the seaside city of Busan to do just that. Busan, located in the southeastern part of the peninsula, is South Korea’s second most populated city, and probably its most popular summer destination aside from Jeju.

When the day finally arrived we were all excited. Once we completed our Saturday classes we hailed a taxi – and after navigating some typically congested weekend traffic, we arrived at Seoul Station to catch our KTX train to Busan. I’m happy to report our train was zombie-free (unlike the movie of the same name) …although when I was waiting for the restroom, there were zombie-like sounds emanating from an adjacent room, and I never did see anyone exit… so who knows? But ultimately, we made it to our destination zombie virus free (thankfully). Though if it had happened, I feel pretty confident in my ability to survive a zombie apocalypse. I’ve watched much too much Walking Dead to not have learned something, right?

Upon arriving in Busan we found the subway station to reach our final destination: Gwangalli Beach (광안리해수욕장). After climbing a million stairs, huffing and puffing (I swear there were so many stairs) – we emerged into the breezy ocean air. Our hostel was a brick building close by with “Win-Win House” scrawled across its face in white letters. We dropped off our bags – trying not to making too much noise as there was a guy sleeping on the floor of the living room. It turned out that we didn’t need to take so much care – this man’s ability to sleep through noise was pretty impressive – he was a living room fixture for most of the time we were there. And yes, he was alive guys, I already said this trip wasn’t like the horror movie.

Korean Beaches are filled with brightly colored umbrellas, and floating tubes in neon yellows and greens that bob around throughout the ocean, both easily available for rent. Just like tourist beaches everywhere it was packed with people enjoying the ocean. Since it was later in the day, we spent only a little time on the beach – then went across the street for some food.

After eating dinner while watching the sunset over the ocean, we enjoyed some beverages from the nearby convenience store. In Korea, there is no open container law so convenience stores double as cheap bars, complete with plastic tables and chairs outside. We ended up taking our drinks to the beach to watch the lights from the Gwangandaegyo Bridge (광안대교). The remainder of our night was spent in typical Korean fashion: a few drinks and laughs at a nearby bar ending with singing our hearts out at a noraebang (probably slightly (very) off-key).

The next morning we enjoyed a western style breakfast at the cute Brunch Cafe Ean – its long line was evidence of its popularity, and the food didn’t disappoint. The pancakes were particularly delicious.

My favorite part of the trip came after breakfast – most of the girls wanted to return to the beach, but a friend and I decided to check out the beautiful Haedong Yongungsa – a Buddhist temple by the sea. This temple is unique as most Buddhist temples in Korea are situated within the mountains, this one sits on a cliff overlooking the ocean. A walk through a busy market street led us to 12 statues representing the 12 animals of the zodiac – animal heads atop human-shaped bodies. And beyond them, an 8 story pagoda where you could pray for traffic safety. It was a hot day, but the rest of the trek was worth the sweating – as we came upon the temple proper we were in awe, the view was majestic. The whole temple was a unique and beautiful experience.

We met up with the rest of the group afterward to see Busan’s most famous beach, Haeundae (해운대해수욕장), where we ate Mexican food (I would say it was more Mexican inspired). We ate a lot of not-Korean food, I know. Mostly, the evening we were there, we saw a bit of the beach at night and a ton of magicians – I’m talking an endless stream of different magician acts along the beach. The majority of them juggling, breathing, or swallowing fire. So random….haha. We roamed around Haeundae for a while longer until it was time to head back for sleeping and catching the train back to Seoul early the next morning.

Busan was the perfect summertime weekend getaway – fun beaches, a picturesque temple, and many other things to see and do. We definitely could not fit it in all in one weekend. I hope I have another chance to explore Busan while I’m still in Korea!