Hiking Disaster

From what Leo and Marie told me it sounded as if a three day hike in the Jirisan National Park would be a lot of fun.  I repacked my bags, bought some supplies and head to the National Park.

For all my eagerness disaster was in store for me.  Severe dehydration, hyperthermia and disappointment.  Near the top of the mountain - which was a long, hot and humid uphill slog – I realized I’d done myself a little nasty and wouldn’t be able to make the distance.

The walk back to base camp was painful.  Re-hydration, then setting up camp and getting some food in me was all painful.  Every movement I made would send a spear of pain through my body, followed by stiffness until it eventually subsided. I’d never experienced anything like that in my life.

This is the closest I’d ever brought myself to doing serious damage to myself.


I did pass a beautiful temple along the way.  Kinda worth seeing it.

Back so soon?

With my tail between my legs I returned to Busan.  Everyone was a bit surprised to see me back to soon after my foray into the wilderness.  Me too!

Tipsy Treasure Hunting

Today I had my first experience of hiking Korean style.  I woke-up with the idea of giving Geocaching a try.  I found a few sites at the Geumjeongsanseong Fortress on the outskirts of Busan.  I walked from the north side through Beomeosa Temple to the southern end.  On the way I met an elderly man taking a rest on a rock under a tree sipping on what to me looked like a refreshing drink.

Refreshing indeed!  He motioned me over and offered me a full glass of the stuff.  Not to be rude I took a big swig and found it to be potently alcoholic - makgeolli.   On finishing the glass I was fully 2 degrees lighter in the head.  Korean's often take a good supply of alcohol when they go hiking.

Alas the geocaching was a failure.  Just couldn’t find the bloody box after about an hour’s searching.  Too bad.

At the hostel I met Leo and Marie from Scandinavia, Denmark I think.  They gave me the idea to go hiking at Jirisan National Park.  And a brand new First Aid kit.

Got me sea legs!

I arrived in Busan quite early in the morning.  The ferry in fact gets to Korean waters quite early in the morning but doesn’t dock until about 8am.  I assume it's because the customs and immigration people haven't arrived at work.

My first impression of Korea, well Busan, is that its dirty.  There is a lot of litter in the streets of Busan.  After arriving at my hostel, Blue Backpackers, I checked in and went immediately to bed.  Even though I’d slept on the ferry I was still tired.

When I woke up around 12am I went for a walk to Gwangalli Beach.  On the way met a strange dude who decided to follow me the whole way to the beach.  His Japanese is better than his English so we spoke mostly in Japanese.

This first encounter with a Korean let me know how brand infatuated Koreans actually are.  He kept going on and on about what brands he liked and which he didn't.  Obviously Korean branded cars are his favorite but he also likes Ferrari.

A Teary Goodbye

Leaving Japan was a lot more emotional for me than I thought.  There were a whole lot of conflicting thoughts going through my head.  Was it a good idea for me to not re-contract or should I have stayed longer?  Did I make the right choice?  What about the good friends I'd made in the past 3 years?  Was I doing them a disservice by not staying?

These are the types of thoughts going through my head.  But in the end I made the choice myself and I was stuck with these emotions as I got drunker on the last Asahi Beer I'd drink in Japanese waters for some time to come.


An Osaka high school soccer team on their way to a training camp in Busan kept me company in my drunken state.