The beach was very beautiful, and even though we only had a short time, it was a very relaxing morning! On the way back, we wandered through the alleys next to the beach which in a few hours would be packed with people eating lunch. There was booth after booth set up with live fish, that you would presumably pick out and have prepared for you on the spot.
After the beach, we had lunch at this AMAZING restaurant in Busan. We were up on the second floor, and we could look out the big windows and see the ocean. It was a restaurant where we sat on the floor. They had a great meal for us veggies: bibimbap served in a smoking hot stone bowl. The rice was on the bottom, and it was still cooking when presented to us. So we let it sizzle for a few more minutes, then when we stirred everything up, the rice was brown and crispy and delicious! Mmmm.
We left Busan after that. I would really like to come back to that city someday! It reminded me of the pictures I've seen of Rio or other cities in South America - ocean surrounded by mountains, crowded with high rises and the hills overflowing with homes and buildings on the mountains, that look like they could all fall over any minute.
Lunch in Busan
Leaving Busan
After lunch it was back on the bus! It was turning out to be a gray rainy day! And cold. And of course the bus was FREEZING!! I had my fab pashmina with me though, so I snuggled in that.
We headed to Gyeong-Ju, an historical city with lots of ancient artifacts. First we toured the Gyeong-Ju International Museum. It was pretty neat - but what I mos remember now is that I found a soda machine, and enjoyed a can of Pepsi and watched the rain from underneath the museum roof. That was very pleasant. The museum was made up of several buildings with different objects and art in each. Another feature, like at every temple, was the big bell.
I was really moved by this Buddha statue:
I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but this weekend in Korea was their Independence holiday, so these historical sites and temples that we visited over the weekend were crowded with people celebrating the holiday!
From the museum we moved on to the burial site. We drove by all of these beautiful, perfectly shaped mounds. We got out to tour one of them. On the way there, it was barely sprinkling. We went inside one of the mounds, and our guide told us the history and meaning. When we got outside, it was actually raining. I'd gone this whole time resisting buying an umbrella, and really wishing I had one now! I clomped back to the bus and got back in, soaking and cold. I dried off with my towel, as best as I could.
We went to dinner after that. The bus driver had some trouble finding the entrance to the restaurant. He pulled some pretty crazy moves in our huge tour bus. But we had a great dinner that night - one where more dishes kept coming out, it seemed like it would never end! Then we checked into our hotel, the Gyeong-Ju Educational Center. The hotel wasn't as nice as before. It was very old-fashioned, almost 60's style (?), but it was very clean. But tiny. And there were three of us again. And two beds. What!? We did get another roll-away bed. And, like it says on our itinerary, we "cheak in hotel and take a rest."
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