Busan

Cherry blossoms right outside my apartment

Haeundae Beach, Busan, South Korea

Lighthouse in Haeundae Beach, Busan

Dude is totally smoking



I went to Busan this weekend for my friend Tashia's birthday. She's leaving soon and she wanted to celebrate in a beach town away from Daegu. It was a fabulous weekend full of laughs and birthday celebrations. Busan looks like southern California, if so-Cal had only Koreans! We ate Mexican food (completely lackluster), got our hair done (I felt like I was going to a wedding), and just generally spent the weekend hanging out and having fun. We tried to go to a casino, but I think that 20+ foreigners scared the staff, and a couple people didn't have their alien cards, so they wouldn't let us in. The hotel we stayed in is what's called a "love motel." Deduce what you'd like from this moniker, but we were only staying one night, and it was less than $35 per room. Sold! No, it wasn't trashy like it sounds!

On Sunday we set out to have an authentic Korean brunch, at Bennigan's! Ha- obviously not authentic Korean. After eating the most gluttonous, disgusting, calorie-ridden meals of our lives, we took a walk along the beach towards a lighthouse I spotted in the (not so close) distance. It was a very beautiful walk full of scenery. Busan is a great city- and definitely has a different vibe than the mountainous city that I live in.The KTX train ride there and back was great, too. (Though we got shushed once- you aren't "allowed" to talk loudly on trains- which is weird because it seems that most rules and laws are mere suggestions here, except for that!) We could see all the landscape outside, including the famous Korean cherry blossoms. They are so beautiful here. I guess they're blooming later than normal this year, but once they bloom they'll be around for about a month. I'm so excited that spring is here. 3 cold months in NYC followed by almost 3 more cold months in Korea was brutal! I was cold for almost 6 months straight.

Field trip tomorrow at school! We're going to the arboretum! Yay.