I have explored nearly all of the southern half of South Korea, including cities such as Busan, Masan, Changwon, Daegu, Daejeon, Jindo Island, Jeju Island, Udo Island, Hamyang (of course), Geochang, Gyeongju, Gwangju, Gurye, Jirisan National Park, and Jinju. It is a job in itself to travel to these places, much less to write about them. What I will do is post a number of pictures from a variety of these places that I think capture some of the things that I have seen.
Beyond this, my upcoming plans are this:
I am going to the Korea Mudfest on July 12th, it should be a hoot. You can see more info on it here.
July 18th I am going whitewater rafting and the bungee jumping into the Hanata River, in northern South Korea. I can't wait.
July 21st I am going by boat to Japan until July 28th, where I will be in Osaka and Tokyo, and perhaps a few other areas. The boat ride is 18 hours and is essentially a mini cruise, with music, food, and other people. It should be super interesting. Japan I know will be out of this world.
Lastly, I am leaving South Korea, this wonderful place on August 2nd and flying straight to Germany through Beijing. It is there that I begin my real voyage backpacking through Europe. I will begin from Berlin, and travel to Spain, France, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Portugal, England, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, and anywhere else I can get to. I am going to try and live and work in France if possible, staying there as long as possible to work on French and experience French culture. If I do not succeed, its back to the USA, and ultimately NYC (most probably in October).
So, thats that. Here are the pictures. I will try to post more often, but it is getting more difficult
Above: Sub Zero Ice Bar at Hongik University in Seoul
Note: That is a sculpture of exactly what you think it is. And I am holding a cup made completely of ice too. You can see some more info on it here.
Above: World Soccer Cup Stadium
Below: Paragliding in Jeju Island
Below: Sunset at Seongsan Ilchulbong (Sunrise Peak)
Below left: Jeju Island, Below right: Udo Island Black Sand Beach
Below Left: snorkeling off of Jeju Island near Hamdeok Beach
Below: Daegu Vs. Busan Baseball Game
Above: The Hite (thats right) beer Mascot
Below left: Jindo Island Martial Arts, Below right: Olympic Park in Seoul monument
Below: Jirisan National Park Camping Trip
Above left: Stink bug
Below left: Wish lanterns at Hwaeomsa Temple in Gurye County
Above: Korean's National Treasure #12
You can find some information on Hwaeomsa Temple here
Below left: More Hwaeomsa Temple
Below left: Jindo Island Mysterious Sea Splitting, Below right: Bearded lady
Above left: Staircase in Jindo Island,, Above right: The Legend behind the Mysterious Sea Parting
Above: Demiliterized Zone between North and South Korea, Panmunjon
More info here.
Below: 3rd Annual World DJ Festival in Seoul.
Note: I am right under the big yellow ball
Below: World DJ Festival the morning afterwards...
Below: Asiatic Black Bears from the Bear Preservation near Gurye County
Below: Gyeongju, one of the most historical places in Korea! Here I met with the most awesome of all lady's, Chun Levin's sister, Tina, who took me around and showed me everything there is to see in this wonderful town! Below are some of the things we saw.
Above: Gyeongju Observatory
More info here on why this observatory is so important.
