Eeeewwwww...Fish Markets...and the delectable Korean delicacy

Seagull in Busan, Korea

Okay, so here’s were we get into the slightly graphic photos. Now, keep in mind that I don’t mean to be culturally insensitive. I respect different cultures and enjoy learning from them. However, what I encountered today was a little more than my American nose and tummy could handle.

Busan Harbor

We had taken the boat between Nagasaki and Korea and it was an overnight trip. The arrival port was for the city of Busan (which is pronounced Pusan and means “Mountainous Cauldron”). Busan is a large and busy city. It sits on the tip of South Korea and has many more people than I would have imagined. Downtown Busan sits on a harbor then comes inland from the sea port. The most prominent building is the main Fish market, which can be seen from all sides. It’s very modern and inside there are rows of market stalls full of fresh fish.

Busan, Korea Harbor

We had been told that the Korean fish markets were world famous and we must visit them, so off we went. As we came up from the subway stop, we saw a large archway that seemed pretty inviting and the Fish market building could be seen in the distance. We crossed the street and walked under the arches. There were many cars, motor scooters and bikes that kept zipping past us on the narrow street. Every few seconds, someone was honking or willing to run over you if you didn’t move.

Vendor on the way to the fish market

There were a lot of people talking, laughing, yelling and general noise making which was a little disorienting. Along this street we began to notice a few venders on each side with pallets of veggies or greens. Then a block later, a few buckets of fish became visible here and there as we weaved in and out of the crowd. Ahead, wecould see what looked like an entrance to a street market that was spilling over with more locals darting about.

Fish market in Busan Korea

As we reached the entrance it was obvious that it was fish…fish like things and things from the ocean which I had never witnessed before. The first thing to hit you was the smell. Now, you would expect a fish market area to smell like fish, so we were fine and going with the flow. Although there were people going in and out of the main fish market building, it seemed that the street market was much more appealing.

Fish market in Busan Korea

There were so many varieties of fish and sea creatures that I couldn’t even tell you what they all were. I recognized the obvious clams, large squid, and multiple bowls of smaller squid and small shells of something. People were scrambling to pick out handfuls of everything and placing them in bags or paper. This must be a wonderful way for the locals to get their fresh meals every day. While I appreciate fresh seafood, there is no way that I could cut up and cook something with it’s head still on, or while it was trying to slime from my fingers. There were some buckets that were so disgusting that I couldn’t even describe what I saw…but I’ll try as we go along.

Fish market in Busan, Korea

We began walking down this tiny, narrow path between the many, many pallets and buckets of sea life. I say life, because much of it was still alive. In fact, at one point I ran across my first bucket of live squid. Ahhhhhh….I wanted to pet one so bad. They were about 10 inches long and kept swimming around the little bucket, sometimes they would open up their web of tentacles and push forward in the few inches of water they had. They were so cute and I felt really sorry for them. I wanted to buy them all and take them with me. I’m sure there would be some logistical problems with that, but at the moment, I was in love. I dare not stick my hand in there though because Korea market ladies look really mean. I’m sure they’re not…okay, I’m not sure, but I was afraid that I would get yelled at, so I didn’t.

Fish Market in Busan Korea

Even when I took photos, I held the camera down and snuck photos from fear of being mobbed by little Korean mothers who were running these booths. You’re thinking I’m being really rude right now…but I have to tell you, one of them literally shoved…and hard…my friend out of the way because he was in the middle of the path where she wanted to move one of her umbrella stands. Yes, you would have been scared too!!!

Fish market in Busan, Korea

We kept walking…and walking. Ten minutes of fish viewing….slain manta rays…20 minutes of walking….slimy, bloody tube-like creatures that keep writhing around inside of clear plastic bags (what the hell???)….30 minutes of walking…where’s the exit? No exit. Yes, my friends, we were in the world’s longest fish market. The smell started to become very overwhelming. Oh…I left out a few things.

Fish Market in Busan Korea

Okay…first, each vendor would pick up cups of water and splash it over their dead (or alive) catch..then the water would run down into the street and create large puddles….and you have to walk through these puddles…in your brand new Sketcher walking shoes.

Fish Market in Busan Korea

Hungry?? Of course you are…so, a friend of ours decided to be brave and pet a sea slug…or the ancestor of a sea slug. A friendly Korean man who happened to be running this booth, picks it up in front of him…chop, chop, chop and offers a nibble to our friend (after a dollop of hot sauce). Another man gets into a “dare you to eat it” romp with our friend, and after a few childish back and forths…our friend plops it in his mouth. I know what you’re thinking…YUM!!! Right?” Chew..chew…chew…nothing was happening, it couldn’t be chewed up,so he walks away from the grinning Korean man and promptly spits it out when he was out of sight.

Fish Market in Busan Korea

Now, in case you have worked up a good appetite, we are stuck blocks inward in this market (fish on both sides) and began noticing little kitchen like set-ups that contained a couple of burners, a couple of woks and the smell of fresh cooked seafood. As we discovered, you can simply pick through your choice of variety buckets of whatever happens to be laying there and they cook it for you on the spot. Lots of Kimche (I don’t know if I spelled that right) to be added if you like. Okay, maybe this is a cool idea, but it really, really didn’t seem sanitary.

Fish market in Busan, Korea

Anyway, I apologize if I have offended anyone with my colorful description of the Korean fish market, as this is their way of life and certainly acceptable and respectful in their culture.

Exit from the Fish Market

However, after walking for an hour through this we finally found the way out and I was very happy to breath in some fresh air. By the way, I have LOTS of colorful photos of the fish market that can be viewed by clicking HERE. Keep in mind that there were hundreds of these booths and I could only photograph a few.

Korean Temple and Evil Billy

Monk at the Korea Buddhist Temple

I have to admit that I was a little nervous about going to Korea, at first. I think it stems from the problems that lie with North Korea…but that has nothing to do with South Korea, so I know it makes no sense. Perhaps it has something to do with a smaller amount of tourism than other asian countries which might lead to the same sort of nerve racking problems I had in Prague (Czechoslovakia) years ago…when no one knew english and everything kept going wrong.  Regardless, my worries about Korea were all in vain.

Busan, Korea

Don’t get me wrong, Korea was a little confusing and a bit overwhelming. My first impressions of the city of Busan was that it was exploding with color from absolutely millions of signs advertising god knows what…everywhere.  A bus dropped us off  in the middle of insanity central. There were people everywhere and it was somewhat early. The ONLY thing that looked familiar was a Starbucks that nestled itself in next to a hotel and some other shop. The traffic was worse than a NYC block.

Busan Korea

Billy and  I managed to find some stairs that led down to where the subway would be. There were some deserted hallways that went off in different directions as we entered the underground system. It was obvious that this part was for underground shops that had not opened yet. A nice Korean policeman happened to be down there and realized we were trying to figure out how to get to the train. He motioned in one direction and we marched off for a city block or two (underground) until we finally found the subway entrance. Next came the computerized machines where you buy tickets. Thank God there was a button that said “English”. As I was trying to put Korean money into the machine, a nice young man came over and tried to explain in one or two english words, that I would have to get change from another machine to use smaller bills. 

Busan Metro Station

After all was said and done, we walked further down some stairs and managed to catch a train . All we knew was that there were a bunch of symbols on the train map showing where we were and there were some symbols showing were we needed to be…..about 20 stops further….out in the middle of nowhere. 

Suburbs of Busan, Korea

So, what I can’t figure out is if it’s always my fault that we’re tracking off to ridiculous places to see temples….or if Billy is using some kind of Jedi mind trick on me to make me think that I want to see temples. I like temples, but there are lots of them and I have to tell you…most of them are upwards. They don’t EVER seem to build them on flat ground. 

Train ride to the temple

We rode for a long time on the train. Hundreds of Koreans got on and off the train and eyed us curiously. There were no other tourists…I’m thinking it’s not a norm for this particular subway. After about 15 train stops, an older man approached us and said “Hello” in English.  I am ALWAYS suspicious. I’ve learned my lessons over the years about people trying to take advantage of tourists. However, as he began to talk, it became clear that he was a nice man and simply wanted to practice his english. He was a retired professor from the local university. Then came the questions…..lot’s of questions. 

Busan Korea Metro...just a few more stops

Perhaps Koreans are comfortable with asking  probing questions of each other or complete strangers, but he wanted more detail than I would even tell my mother. No harm done though, we just smiled and answered as best as possible. 

Passing train

Now, on the map, it shows that such and such temple is at the end of the subway exit. Very simple…ride the train, get off see big temple. Not so. As we walked up the stairs to above ground, we looked up and down the street and it was clear that we had ventured into a suburban outskirt that looked nothing even remotely Zen.  I saw a random car repair shop, a small bakery and a few signs I couldn’t decipher. We decided to walk up the block a ways to try and find a direction sign for the temple, and a cab driver jumped out…”Take you to temple!!” he exclaimed.  As usual..I say no…I don’t trust anyone…let alone cab drivers. “No thank you”  I nodded. Now we’re nasty Americans.  I walked on confidently and rounded a street corner. There is a sign that says…”such and such temple” with an arrow pointing that way. We keep walking….and walking….”There’s no temple here Billy…lets go back to the subway.” Yeah, right…like that ever works. No we must keep walking., why would I bother pretending otherwise? After walking another few blocks…we see a sign that says “such and such temple….3.5 Km s” Ahhhh!!!!

Taken on our hike up the hill

Okay, so…I’m not a wuss….I can handle a good walk, but I have to explain…the sign pointed uphill…up a mountain road. I’m going to leave out the endless whining, complaining, arguing and colorful explicits that ensued, but let’s just say that I didn’t get my way and ended walking up the mountain road…ahead of Billy (evil Billy) in a huff and bitched the entire way. (I don’t want to hear it Leslie!!!). In my defense, it was hot..humid..mosquitos…trees on both sides so that you could not see anything and I had walked for eight hours the day before. We had no water....but doofus HAD to go see the temple.  

Entrance to the Temple

So….after what seemed like hours of mountain trekking, sweating and plotting Billy’s future demise, we finally reached the top. A gate appeared before us and it was clearly our temple. Yes, folks, I have to report that there were hundreds of more steps involved in our temple viewing process. The monks feel much, much more at peace at zero oxygen levels. 

Entrance to the Temple

After we reached the top of those stairs, I hear…“Water…1 dolla”….those were never sweeter words. There was a little old Korean man with rusty english selling  various items out of a cart. I would have given him 20 dollars for that darn bottle of water. 

Korean Temple outside of Busan

Now, here’s where I eat humble pie. Although Billy (evil Billy) didn’t know what we would end up seeing at the end of my torturous trek up mount ridiculous, the results were worth it. The temples were beautiful. There were mountains surrounding us on three sides, filled with trees turing the color of fall. 

Temple grounds

There was a wonderful breeze that you can only seem to get that high up and a quietness that made it all special. The smell of incense was blowing through the area, along with the fresh smell of trees and nature. Luckily, at this height, the oppressing humidity from the city was not as present.

Temple Grounds

It was interesting watching the people meditate in various temples buildings (including outside on some mats) and watching monks lead a meditation chant along with incense and chimes. 

Temple Grounds

There was an upper and lower courtyard area to the compound, but the sounds of chanting and bells were heard everywhere.

Buddhist praying at Temple

I was very quiet as a snapped a few photos here and there. I tried to be respectful to the people and their customs. I used a telephoto lens to capture shots where people were partaking in their rituals. There were people inside out outside of the various buildings. These Buddhists (below) were sitting outside in front of a small Temple.

Buddhist at the Temple

There were a number of buildings on this mountain that made up the temple compound.  These buildings were hundreds of years old, but rebuilding and maintenance were obviously necessary. 

Temple Grounds


There were men who were re-roofing some areas.  It was possible to buy a roof tile which would have your name signed on the underside by a temple representative and it would be placed in the reconstruction. The grounds were actually quite a bit larger than what I'm showing in these photos. You could easily spend quite a while up there just walking around. 

Temple Grounds

What I really liked were the multiple colored lamps that were strung along the lower pathways of the main entrance of the Beomosa Zen temple. 

Lanterns on the Temple Grounds


Once you reach the second tier, there were multiple yellow lanterns. I’m not quite sure if there was any significance to the color (like there is in China).  I have placed multiple photos of the temple in my Flickr album HERE.

Korea and the City of Busan

Korea was a great place to visit, specifically Busan.  Although english was barely spoken,  there were plenty of kind people who helped out along the way. There were many circumstances where a local would step in and make sure that we were okay or that our needs were communicated well. I guess it’s in the nature of the traveler to be wary of strangers when traveling, but in this circumstance I was very pleased with the kindness of strangers.

Shopping Street in Busan, Korea

Korea had the flare of “Korea Town” in any major U.S. City, but on a much larger scale. Advertisements and colorful billboards are plastered everywhere, much more so than Japan. It becomes hard to know where to look and what to make of it all. I found the prices to be reasonable, overall,  with the exception of a few “tourist” type restaurants here and there that would jack up the prices to astronomical proportions. I’ve learned to avoid this type of thing when I travel.

Busan Korea

Korea is a mixture of old buildings with modern new buildings. There’s old world Korean life along small alley ways and MTV generation style adverts blaring from LED displays. There’s dirt covered streets running into expensive shopping centers and expensive cars driving alongside rusty old bicycles.

City of Busan Korea

An extensive subway system makes it easy to get around and outside of Busan and the prices were more than fair at $4 approximately for a pass that you can use all day.  Overall, I felt safe in all the areas we went to. I don’t really wonder around at night, so I’m not sure if it’s still safe then.

Shopping Street in Busan, Korea

You will see thousands of vendors lining many streets as you walk around, this is true for downtown as well as miles out in the busy, overgrown suburbs. I found the harbor view to be beautiful and was happy to run into a group of locals playing the drums and symbols in a wonderful chorus as crowds gathered around. I spent some time watching the fishing boats coming in and unloading their catches. I really enjoy photographing ships and old boats.

Fisherman in Busan, Korea

As I spoke about in the fish market post, there are some unusual eating places along the streets. On some of the regular, non-commercial streets, there were tiny, open, little “store” fronts which were basically just an older Korean lady and a few hot plates. 

Busan Korea

She would have various things that were available to cook for the day and there were a couple of stools that you could sit at and eat. It reminded me of the tiny nonexistent kitchens that you get in some NYC apartments, but there was no door or entrance,  you just sat at the “counter” right there on the street. These seemed to be quite common and popular around the city.  I suppose it’s kind of like walking up to mom’s kitchen and letting her cook you something. Again, not the most sanitary looking places, but I imagine they are well respected in the local areas.

Busan Korea

This area of Korea also has some amazing beaches a number of miles out. In fact, the beach areas are quite famous. Busan, itself, doesn’t look like a beach town, but Haeundae beach can be reached by subway and is lined with five star resorts. I didn’t stay there because I’ll be spending so much time at other beach areas over the next few months, but I hear that people come from all over the world to visit the beaches here.

Busan Korea

Korean immigration was pretty easy and I would imagine that if you watched your P’s and Q’s as in any country, you’d be pretty darn safe and happy visiting there. As usual, you can click HERE to view my photos of Korea.

Busan Korea Port Information

The port for Busan, Korea is located a bit far from the center of town. It is not a great distance, but there is no way you could walk it. Also, it is generally the case that you will be required to take a bus that is offered by the cruise company, rather than try to find a taxi. It took about 20 minutes to get to the shopping area of Busan, by bus, but I am not sure what a Taxi would cost. Again, I don't remember if you are even allowed to take a Taxi from the port, and the area around the port is kind of run-down. Busan was extremely safe and although people don't seem to smile much, they were generally helpful and kind. There are more posts  and photos of Korea in my blog, which you can access by clicking on the "Korea-Busan" link in the "Topics" section on the side bar. There are plenty of photos that you can link to also.