Tongyeong

Next I went to the town of Tongyeong-si. It’s an island town a ew hours west of Busan. There are many islands around it and it has a very terminal to take people to a number of them. I took the bus to Tongyeon, and when I got there, likely looking confused as I tried to figure out where I would get lunch my bus driver came up to me. He asked if I needed help finding my next bus and I explained that I was trying to figure out where to get lunch and he offered to join me. Never being one to turn down a Korean picking the restaurant and ordering for me I obliged and we went to the restaurant across the street. I got this cold noodle bow which was delicious and really interesting. It had glass noodles and was served in a cold broth with pork and hard boiled eggs and lots of veggies, but what made it really interesting was that it also had tons of tiny flakes of ice in it to keep it cold. I’ve never had iced soup before, but it was really really nice and I image in the summer it would be fantastic. It was also served with a hot cup of bone broth to sip on. Such an interesting and delicious meal. After dinner we parted ways and I headed to my hostel. 

My hostel was nice, although a bit different. It was run by a Korean guy, who lived in the Netherlands for 20 years and then moved back and turned his hour into a gust house. He was very friendly, though and super helpful when it came to giving advice. I think in retrospect I wouldn’t stay at this hostel again, but only because it was really far out of the way. I was under the impression that it was more central to the city and it is close to some attractions, just not any of the attractions I wanted to go to. He did a good job of trying to connect his guests though, which was nice, if sometimes a bit forced. I ended up spending time with this Australian lady in her 60s who was plesant to be around, if a bit of a chatterbox. I went to dinner with her and let her talk my ear off a bit, but it was nice because we were able to go to a Korean BBQ restaurant which I hadn’t been able to go to before because they have a 2 person minimum per table. It’s actually quite common that restaurants here have a 2 person minimum per table. This is mainly at restaurants where you have a grill per table (like 60% of restaurants have this) and they bring out your food uncooked and you/they cook it at your table. It’s delicious, but I think because they have to set up a whole grill and tend to your food they don’t want to serve single people, which can be quite inconvenient as a solo traveler. I always find somewhere to eat, but it does reduce your options significantly. 

Anyway, the BBQ was really good, we got thin sliced pork belly which was grilled in front of us and we had access to a ‘salad bar’ this had a variety of fresh greens, but also pickles, eggs, rice cake noodles, potatoes, leeks, mushrooms, sauces, and more. You grab a bunch of veg and stuff from the salad bar and you put it on the grill with your meat and cook it up together. It’s really nice and a cool experience. I like that you get to pick all your sides and how much they are cooked, and it was all quite delicious. 

The next morning I went to a nearly island. It was a bit of a journey to get there. See, I thought I was near the ferry terminal, but it wasn’t the correct ferry terminal for the ferry I wanted to take, so it ended up taking me about an hour and a half to figure out the bus situation. Luckily the hostel owner was really helpful in telling me which buses to take and the times to get there or else I think I would have gotten lost for sure. When I got there I went for my big hike and it was absolutely stunning. There were 5 peaks along the trail and the trail went up and down the mountain, but between a few of the peaks were suspension bridges that prevented you from having to climb down too far. It was still a bit of a late hike, but very do-able and so stunning. There were very few other people on the trail too which was nice and kept it peaceful. The few Koreans I came across were so nice and took pictures for me and chatted with me a bit in broken English and she shared chocolates together. 

On the ferry back I saw 3 girls from Belgium who were staying at my hostel, but they were a bit stand-offish and didn’t seem to want to talk to me… neither did they offer me a ride back to the hostel despite them having a car which would take them 20 minutes to get back while by bus would take me at least an hour. I found it a bit… rude, but I let it go. On the bus ride back I ran into some other issues… while I got on the same bus as I rode there… it did not take the same route, and my phone was at 5% battery. Not ideal. I got to a stop and a Korean lady looked at me and made a big X with her arms. I smiled and pointed as if to tell her I was riding a few more stops but shes said ‘last’ and I understood… I had to get off the bus. Slightly frazzled I got off the bus and started trying to read the signs for the other buses, she came over and typed out on her phone ‘where do you need to go’ and I told her and she figured out which bus I needed. It was really kind and helpful as it was dark and my phone was almost dead because I forgot my backup battery in my other backpack and I was just going to start taking random buses in the correct direction and hoping  I recognized something eventually. She was a bit of a savior to me that day. 

When I got back to my hostel finally I was relieved, and it was just in time for dinner and the Australian lady and I went for chicken soup. The chicken soup had an entire chicken in it. A small chicken granted, but an entire chicken. Bones at all. Also 2 entire crabs. It was a bit strange to pick out the bones and the shell from my soup, but it was really delicious and well earned after a big walk and a bit of a confusing journey home. 

The next morning I learned that I would be the only guest staying in my hostel that night. I thought, well thats a bit awkward, but fine, and my host told me he had friends visiting from out of town and offered for me to join them for dinner where he would make oysters and fish. I tried to decline, but he insisted and I agreed. During the day I wandered the city and looked at a traditional art museum where intricate artwork was made with mother-of-pearl shells and inset into armoires, bowls, cutlery, boxes, etc. Some of it was so incredibly detailed and it as all so beautiful. In the afternoon I went to a coffee shop overlooking the ocean to work a bit and rest while snacking on ice cream and coffee. The ice cream cone was make out of shortbread biscuits and that was really really yummy. 

In the evening I returned to the hostel to have dinner with my host and his friends. It was a bit awkward at times because only 2 of the 3 spoke English so many conversations were had in Korean, but as they drank more (I abstained from drinking) they were braver with their English. The food was good and the company was nice enough if a bit boring at times, but during those times I focused on enjoying the food, which is never a bad plan. 

The next morning they left for a hike early and I had the hostel to myself before I left town which was quite nice and relaxing.