Monday July 2 Our flight from Jeju Island was just a quick hop (1 hr). When we arrived at Gimpo Airport, we did the usual – grab our bags and find the information desk to ask about the best way to get into the city. The nice lady at the desk provided us with a city map and directed us toward the AREX airport express line which stopped at a station 1 subway stop away from the one nearest our hotel. The half hour ride cost something like $2 Canadian for both of us. Every time that happens I feel a bit ashamed that Toronto isn’t providing the same sort of service. It would really add value to the city.
Category: Asia
South Korea – Jeju Island
Thursday June 28 We started a bit slowly after our big night at the ball game in Busan. We packed up, checked out of SUM, and took a cab to the airport, where we grabbed lunch before taking a quick hop over to Jeju Island. Cabs are very cheap in South Korea, which is great because it was to be our primary form of transportation on the island. Jeju is a volcanic island dominated by a single peak (Mt. Halla, or Hallasan), which lies to the south of the rest of South Korea.
Upon arrival we picked up a map and a bus schedule, hailed a cab to our hotel, and promptly fell asleep until dinner time. Too much fun the night before! We wandered the area around our hotel and found a street full of restaurants and bars. We thought we’d try a place called Red Station advertising “hot chicken”. We ordered two types (wings and chopped up meat) and some rice balls on the side. No false advertising there! It was pretty spicy. One thing I really liked is that they provided plastic gloves to wear while eating the wings, so you have clean hands when you’re finished eating. What a great idea!
South Korea – Busan
Monday June 25 We landed in Busan, and had a quick chat with a young Korean seaman before we disembarked the ferry. He asked us where we were from and if we felt ok during the voyage (there were ~2 m swells on the ocean, and a few people were not doing so well). We both did ok, although it is as bit rougher on the water in a jet boat than it is on something that moves a bit more with the waves!
We were the last to get through immigration and customs, and once we were through we asked for a map and the location of the nearest bank machine that takes foreign cards, as we were going to have to pay for the balance of our hostel booking in full upon arrival. Getting money turned out to be a bit harder than in Japan, but after visiting a few banks we finally found one that worked! We took our ~10 minute walk over to the hostel, which was tucked away on a side street next to a big market and got our room squared away. We shared with a fellow from Hong Kong named Bob, and someone else we didn’t meet until later on.
Last Days in Japan – Hiroshima and Fukuoka
We have safely arrived in South Korea, and I’m sitting in our hostel in Busan, writing up this account of our last few days in Japan. I found Japan to be an amazing country, and everywhere we went, I discovered even more things I wanted to be able to see, but couldn’t in the time that we had! I can definitely picture myself returning soon. Our last few days here were filled with nice surprises – Hiroshima and Fukuoka both turned out to be way more interesting cities than we expected they might be!
Kansai Region Part 2 – Osaka, Nara and Lake Biwa
Well, our time in Japan is drawing to an end, and I feel like our vacation is coming to an end. Normally, I would be starting to stress out about getting back home and back to work, but this time it’s only our time in Japan that is ending, and a new adventure will be starting in South Korea. We are both loving being in Japan, and see ourselves coming back here in the future.
But we’re not quite done with Japan yet, although we have said our goodbyes to the Kansai region for now. Here’s how we wrapped up our stay there:
Kansai Region Part 1 – Kyoto and Osaka
We’re spending about 10 days in the Kansai region of Japan. We have been having a hard time deciding what we should do and what we should leave for next time because there is so much to do in this part of Japan! We have had a pretty packed itinerary since arriving from Tokyo, and we have a little more to squeeze into our last few days here before we move on to Hiroshima and Fukuoka. Here’s what we’ve been up to lately!
Tokyo: Food, Shopping, and People Watching (and a day trip to Nikko)
When I left you last time, we were on our way to meet a friend Atsushi for a dinner cruise on Tokyo Bay. Here’s what we did in Tokyo since then:
Friday June 8 due to my misguided estimation about how long it would take to reach our pre-determined meeting place with Atsushi, we missed the shuttle bus from the station to the pier, and nearly missed the boat launch too! Thankfully Atsushi called the company to let them know we were still coming, and we jumped in a cab (something not reccommended except for occasions like this as the cabs are very expensive here). Thankfully we got in just in time to get on the boat. It was a fantastic expereience – all you can eat monjayaki and okanomyaki (oishii – delicious!) and all you can drink beer! Yum! The cruise was intended for Japanese people, so Atsushi was our very own translator and tour guide. It was fun to learn how to cook the dishes, and to see Odiaba and the rest of the Tokyo skyline all lit up too. What a great way to wrap up a week!
Tokyo: The First Few Days
Today is our third full day in Tokyo, and we’ve just checked in to our second hotel. We have had some exciting days with lots of walking, sightseeing and good food! Tonight we meet up with a friend for a dinner cruise on Tokyo Bay, and until then we thought we’d put our feet up, upload photos,and check in with the rest of the world.
To summarize the last few days:
Another Big Change: Our Asian Adventure!
I have a couple big announcements today. The first is that I have wrapped up my M.Sc degree! I will miss being a student in the Ziegler/Morrill lab, but after waiting for feedback from the examiners and making the requested minor revisions I am certainly excited to know my degree will be sent to me soon.
The second is that on Monday we are beginning a long awaited extended holiday in Asia. We are beginning with a flight to Tokyo and a rail journey through Japan, followed by a high speed ferry to South Korea. After that we will visit China and some time in Taiwan rounds out the last of our plans. I will be using this space to document our journey, so look forward to more frequent updates!