One of my favorite things about the Daegu area is the surrounding mountain ranges, offering quite a different view than the endless horizon and sea views we have here in Jeju. Leaving Buksam we were headed East, ironically despite living on an island we chose two different seaside destinations for this trip. To be fair though the East sea is different and Yeongdeok is an area I've never explored so I was looking forward to seeing a new portion of Korea. Not to mention the town is home to the famous King Crab, and as any vacation should be, ours was fueled by food. We also decided to splash out for accommodation, opting for the room with a private pool and jacuzzi. After years upon years of budget solo travel I'm still adjusting to this lifestyle of treating myself. We arrived in the late afternoon and the first priority after dropping our bags was to fill the jaccuzzi, I was wasting no time to take advantage of a seaside soak - now vacation had begun. The hotel had checked with us earlier in the day to see if we wanted the pool filled with warm water, but at a $80 surcharge we decided to pass. A baby in cold water, I made it no further than my shins, but Seohui did manage to do a few laps in the pool before joining me in the hot tub, a much more relaxing and enjoyable spot for the afternoon. I taught him the term "pruney fingers" and after we were both adequately waterlogged we decided to dry off and start to think about dinner. There wasn't too much to consider as we knew King Crab was on the menu, it was more a matter of getting ready and out the door and then choosing a restaurant among the numerous options. I knew the area was known for King Crab, but I didn't expect an entire "Crab Village", then again I'm in Korea and nothing of the like should be much of a surprise. Almost all of the restaurants we drove past were empty and although Seohui had previously chosen one based on Naver reviews, we made a last minute change and pulled into another. The host made a lengthy show of all the crab options, various prices and types - some local and others imported from Russia. I was at a loss for what or how to order so everything was up to Seohui and I was just along for the ride. Our first course came out and included various banchan, salad and raw fish, the most surprising of which was probably the tater tots that accompanied a fried fish, but it was all pretty tasty. Soon the crab was served and I kid you not the platter was half the size of our table. The crab was divided into claws, knuckles (?) legs and body, each of which were pre-cracked, making it all the easier to eat. It always makes me laugh how the soup and rice served at the end of a meal is called "식사" which literally translates as meal - as if after eating two tables full of food we were finally being served our meal. There was more banchan, a crab soup and probably the highlight of the meal for me, a crab fried rice served in the shells of our crab. My appetite had been iffy the first few days of our trip, but we had no problem finishing every ounce of food that was served to us. If you had to compare our compatibility based on eating alone I'd confidentially say we're meant to be. The following day I had hoped to enjoy sunrise from the hot tub, but cloudy skies and the promise of rain dashed those dreams. I was still up early, an oddly annoying habit for this vacation, and took the opportunity to do a bit of yoga and enjoy quality video chat time with family back home. With checkout not until 11am and any plans of touring the coast ruined with rain, we took advantage of another hour in the hot tub before it was time to pack up and head south towards Gyeongju, a town we both frequented 10 years ago. Seohui went to university in Gyeongju while I frequently visited EPIK teacher friends who were living there while I was working in Buksam, oddly our time in the city missed overlapping each other by only a year. Still full from the previous nights dinner I skipped breakfast that morning, which meant that by the time we arrived in the city I was more than ready for lunch. We made a quick stop at Seohui's alma matter, Gyeongju University, which may or may not be on the bring of demise, apparently due to years of corruption and poor management. We then drove across town to 맞자당 one of a few restaurants he had suggestion for quality hansik - my favorite style of Korean dinning. Three tour buses were preparing to depart as we pulled up to the restaurant, confirmation that we made a great choice in stopping by the university first. I was surprised to see that the restaurant was directly across the street from Gyeongju's Love Castle, a unique park/museum I took my mom to visit 10 years ago. I was dismayed to see that the business was clearly no longer in operation, and couldn't help but wonder what happened to all of the statues inside, most notably the giant on the hill. With a variety of options on the menu we opted for the biggest set of them all, bulgogi, grilled fish, hot stone pot rice and two soups - again we eat well. The food was delicious, but I expected nothing less, and per usual the table was empty on our departure. Earlier this year one of my friends said a huge dating red flag for her is a man that doesn't eat well, and I could not agree more. We spent the afternoon downtown walking through the tomb parks and again taking note of the changes. I pointed out of the tombs my friends and I used to gather at on Saturday afternoons, and was once again taken aback by the fact that I was reminiscing in a country that is not my own, but had grown to feel like home. We saw more tourists from more countries than I had in a long time, which is good news for Gyeongju as site outside the central downtown made me believe it had lost it's appeal and was becoming a ghost town. Tired from more early mornings and long drives we decided to check in and rest at our guesthouse, finally changing our scenery from ocean view to one of a bit more nature, despite being less than 10 minutes from an amusement park. The pension offered tons of amenities: a billiards room, bbq, table tennis, bicycles and games but with only 2 rooms booked, it was rather quiet on our visit. Our night was lazy but perfect, another hot tub, take out food, a movie and Korean version of couples jenga. The following morning also began slow, no rush to be anywhere with yoga and breakfast on our patio before a brief stop at Bulguksa temple, one of the more famous in Korea and a place I hadn't visited since 2013 - I guess it was time for a 10 year reunion of sorts. As we pulled up and saw full parking lots and rows of tour buses I almost changed my mind, but ultimately decided to stay. The entrance to the temple is lined with rows of various blossoming trees and while the cherry blossoms had already fallen there was another variety still in full bloom. Of course this meant all the visitors were out with their tripods and selfie sticks, and while annoyed I was, it was also entertaining to watch the struggles. The temple was much quieter, just a beautiful as I remember, and seemingly never ending. Each corner you turned led to another hall, steep staircase or narrow doorway. I've always enjoyed temple grounds in Korea and see another temple stay in my future, just have to figure out how to get a discount on the nightly rate :) Exiting the temple we finally caved and bought our trendy Gyeongju bread, a sweet red bean filled dessert which is obnoxiously only sold in boxes of 10 or 20. I swear I bought a single in my past visits, buy maybe I just found a sweet ajumma who took pity on my being alone. Two cities filled with food, relaxation and memories and it was time to head back home for some more family time before continuing on to the last leg of our trip in Busan.
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AsiaKoreaWhere to start. After living on and off in this country for nearly 10 years I have memories, experiences and stories galore. I'll now always be a bit partial to the Land of the Morning Calm. Filled with delicious foods, beautiful nature and friendly people, I'm always happy to return. Archives
June 2023
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