Busan: Aquarium and Haedong Yonggungsa

I’ve been quite fond of Busan ever since my first trip there way back in 2001. Previously, I’d always had a good time on my trips to Busan. I went to Busan this past Sunday… and unfortunately, I didn’t have that great of a time. Let’s just say my trip was frazzling. Nonetheless, despite a stressful day of oversized crowds, obscured photographs, and motion sickness, I did get some decent shots.

My first stop was the Busan Aquarium at Haeundae Beach. I’d been to the aquarium twice before (read about my 2007 trip here), and thoroughly enjoyed myself both times. Of course, one of those trips was on a weekday, and the other was on a Saturday. As many Korean schools (both public and private) hold classes on Saturday, Sunday is the day for families to do things together. This should have occurred to me before I set off for such a family oriented destination as the aquarium. Ooops. The place was packed with parents and small children, all pushing and shoving and jostling to get closer to the various tanks and exhibits. Meanwhile, I was frustrating myself by trying to figure out the best ISO and other settings for shooting fast moving fish in the extreme low-light of the aquarium… and of course I was inevitably bumped from behind or cut off in front almost every time I depressed the shutter. I swear I got better pictures in there four years and two cameras ago, which is incredibly frustrating. I left after about half an hour.

I’d heard several people talk about the Haedong Yonggung temple – located on the rocky coastline not far from Haeundae Beach – describing it as beautiful, stunning, picturesque. When I’d left Daegu on Sunday morning, I’d thought I might go to Haedong Yonggungsa in the afternoon if I had enough time. After leaving the aquarium feeling thoroughly stressed, I figured what I needed was a peaceful afternoon at a Buddhist temple.

Getting from Haeundae to Haedong Yonggungsa was a little complicated, as it involved two different buses. While the bus systems in Korean cities are generally efficient, they’re definitely a challenge to those of us with limited knowledge of Korean. Still, I successfully made it to Haedong Yonggungsa. Unfortunately, so did at least a thousand other people.

I don’t know if Sundays are generally popular days for visiting Haedong Yonggungsa, or if March 13th was a special day for Buddhism in general or Haedong Yonggungsa in particular… but ohmygod. At one point, there was literally a human traffic jam:

In addition to being overrun with people, the temple was in the midst of either putting up or taking down lanterns. The entire temple was overstrung with ropes upon which lanterns had either recently hung or would soon be hanging. As such, many potentially great angles for photos were blocked by ropes and the poles from which the ropes were strung. I got some decent photographs, but nothing like what I was hoping for. And the crowds! Ugh.

See what I mean about poles and ropes?

The final nail in the day’s coffin came as I left Haedong Yonggungsa. The second of the two buses that I’d taken out there had been full, but it was nothing compared to the bus I left in. It was crammed beyond capacity, filled with so many people that I literally could not move. It was hot. And there was no ventilation. And five minutes into the ride brought us into stop-and-go traffic. As you might expect, I began to feel motion sick. I actually had to force my way off the bus a stop too soon just to keep from puking all over my fellow passengers. I’m sure that at the time they thought I was an incredibly rude foreigner, but they really should thank me for my efforts. Sigh.

I like Busan, really, I do… but the overwhelming crowds of Sunday just made me feel so relieved to get back to my quiet corner of the outskirts of Daegu – and reinforced my desire to move to the Timbuktu of the former Soviet Union. Anyway, despite my bitching, I did get some decent photographs. You can see the whole set by clicking here.