With Korean public schools back in action after a month long vacation, English hagwon (private academy) teachers are back on the late 1-9 pm schedule. During the summer vacation, hagwon teachers work 'normal' hours: 9-6 pm.We do not receive an enjoyable month off like those lucky foreigners who wrangled their way into a public school position.
Weekend in Busan
However, we did enjoy the five-day weekend that almost all of Korea takes off at the same time. This meant that the few days we spent on Korea's most famous beach, Haeundae, nestled alongside the east coast city of Busan was mainly about dodging people. Because it was the busiest days of summer we found ourselves part of the crowds walking down the streets as well as riding the waves into shore. The beach area was covered with a canopy of umbrellas. This is the first beach I have ever been to where you can sit on the sand all day without being touched by a ray of sunshine. Unlike the popular western belief where health and beauty are associated with the acquiring of a golden glow, pale white skin color is what is desirable in Korea. We grew accustomed to seeing fully clothed people sitting around and swimming beside us. The water was swarming with yellow inner tubes that are arguably more fun than boogy boards (and they do hurt less to get bonked in the head with). Considering the number of fellow beach goers, I really should have been less surprised when I was slammed into by a wave of bodies as the water crashed down. The unofficial beach equipment system requires you to pay $6 for an umbrella, sand mat, and an additional $6 for a lovely yellow tube. Whoever runs this non-municipal business is a genius (considering these pictures) and apparently backed by gangs (rumor has it). Foreigners are known to get ripped off and charged more since it's easy to take advantage of those who you can't actually communicate with. Luckily we were not. As it turns out, space and shade are very valuable commodities on a Korean beach.
Yeosu Expo Trip
Another busy summer day was spent at the Yeosu Expo. This event was held from May-August in Yeosu, South Korea; the southern most area of the country. This year's Expo theme was 'The Living Ocean and Coast'. The architecture of the buildings constructed for this event was remarkable. Entering the Expo park area felt like entering a theme park or a village. Again, since this was the peak summer vacation week and the last day of this event, the park was ridiculously full. Lines were hours long and exploring all the pavilions would be (and is) impossible (especially in the time we had). We knew this would be the fate of the day, however, considering such a global event is not often hosted in a country, let alone, city near you. We decided to be part of the 8 million people to visit. We waited an hour and a half to go up the renovated, abandoned silo tower to get an elevated view of the park and the southern ocean. The aquarium was by far the most popular pavilion. The line was over 3 hours long but fortunately I was able to reserve a few spots and we skipped to the front of the line. Woohoo! It was beautiful and well worth the trip. Aside from the pushing, shoving crowds and humid heat, it was an outing to remember.
Getting around with the KTX (Korea Train Express)
One of the best ways to get around Korea is with the KTX. The trains' opperating top speed is 305 km/h (190 mph) allowing us to get from Daejeon (middle of the country) to just about anywhere in Korea in about 2 hours for less than $25. It's fast and afordable. The summer months are very busy for the KTX so booking weeks ahead of time is necessary for the popular destinations such as Seoul and Busan, and special events like the Yeosu Expo.
