Late during my previous day in Busan, after having spent the afternoon exploring Gamcheon Culture Village, I had learned that Typhoon Chaba was going to be hitting South Korea overnight. The bulk of the storm hit in the early morning hours, but by the early afternoon, the skies were clear. I had spent the storm […]
I spent two full days hiking in Seoraksan National Park, exploring four different areas from the entrance near Sokcho. On my first day, I took the bus into the park from my hotel around 9am. There is just one way into the park, and it is a dead end, so the bus didn’t get too […]
One of the highlights of Busan is Gamcheon Culture Village. In recent years, artists & residents have turned what was once a hilltop slum into a beautiful lively neighborhood. Gamcheon is located outside of central Busan, but it’s fairly easily accessed by the city’s metro system. I took the Metro south from Beomnaegol station, which […]
When I began my trip to Japan & South Korea, one of the key things I wanted to do was experience a Japanese baseball game in Fukuoka. South Korea has its own baseball league called the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO). When I visited Seoul, I was able to see a Doosan Bears KBO game at […]
South Korea has a great drinking culture, but until recently, quality beer was not part of it. However, in recent years, there has been an explosion of craft beer in Seoul. This craze has been fueled both by local interest in better beer, but also by Seoul’s position as an international city that has residents […]
I visited Jinju, South Korea for the Jinju Lantern Festival. The annual event is the highlight of Jinju’s calendar, and the primary time that the city gets visitors each year. However, there’s one noteworthy landmark that is worthy of a visit to Jinju any time of year, even just as a day trip if you […]
One doesn’t usually associate massive cities with hiking, but thanks to a ring of mountains surrounding the center of the city, Seoul, South Korea is one of the world’s best cities for urban hiking. While there are many mountainous areas to hike around Seoul, the unique Seoul City Wall & its trails make for a […]
One doesn’t usually associate massive cities with hiking, but thanks to a ring of mountains surrounding the center of the city, Seoul, South Korea is one of the world’s best cities for urban hiking. While there are many mountainous areas to hike around Seoul, the unique Seoul City Wall & its trails make for a […]
There are several lantern festivals in South Korea each year, but perhaps the most famous is the Jinju Lantern Festival (full name Jinju Namgang Yudeung (Lantern) Festival. Each October, hundreds of thousands of people flock to the city of Jinju in southern South Korea to see the Nam River come to life. The festival has ties […]
One doesn’t usually associate massive cities with hiking, but thanks to a ring of mountains surrounding the center of the city, Seoul, South Korea is one of the world’s best cities for urban hiking. While there are many mountainous areas to hike around Seoul, the unique Seoul City Wall & its trails make for a […]
While Jongmyo Shrine is not one of the Five Grand Palaces of Seoul, it was still a very important site of the Joseon Dynasty. It serves as a shrine for deceased members of royalty. Jongmyo is located not far from Changdeokgung Palace. Like the many of the palaces, Jongmyo Shrine is situated in a park-like area with […]
Central Seoul is filled with historic buildings and monuments, among them the Five Grand Palaces of Seoul. These royal palaces date back hundreds of years to the Joseon Dynasty, but thanks to the wars of the 20th century, most of them are now faithful reconstructions. The palaces have distinctly beautiful architecture, plus the grounds themselves […]
While visiting trendy, technologically-advanced Seoul, it’s easy to forget that just an hour away lies an entirely different world across one of the most heavily fortified borders in the world, the South Korean border with North Korea. The two countries have remained in a standoff since the end of the Korean War in 1953. No treaty was ever […]
Ramen is one of Japan’s most famous dishes. Each region of the country has their own popular style. Fukuoka is famous for being the home of tonkotsu ramen. Tonkotsu ramen is not for the faint of heart. The broth is made by simmering pork bones for a very long time. How long? Some ramen shops […]
Although Japan’s craft beer scene is growing, I went to Fukuoka with fairly low expectations. While it is one of the bigger cities in Japan, there are fewer expats and tourists than elsewhere. That said, I was pleasantly surprised that Fukuoka had a handful of nice places to drink craft beer. Here are my favorite places […]
