For those interested in learning Korean vocab, the suffix 'seom' refers to island while 'dongbaek' means Camellias. Hence, the name literally translates to "Island of Camellias" and there is no surprise why: camellias are known to bloom everywhere during winter to spring. Dongbaekseom was originally an island, but due to years of sand accumulation, it is now connected to the mainland. Don’t let the word “island” fool you though. In reality, Dongbaekseom is rather small and we managed to walk around the island in less than an hour.
Besides the famed mermaid statue, the other major attraction at Dongbaekseom is the Nurimaru APEC House which was built especially for the 2006 APEC meeting. Everything is preserved as it was and visitors are able to view the round table where the various heads of state sat as well as meeting rooms where negotiations took place. It was a rather strange place to visit and I suppose it will only be appealing to the hardcore history buffs.
But the main reason why people come to Dongbaekseom is because it offers unbeatable views of the Haeundae shoreline.
Pro tip: if your taxi driver drops you off near the main driveway at the Westin Chosun Hotel, you will see a fork in the road where the entrance of the park is. I would suggest turning right in the direction of the APEC house, not the left which goes to the mermaid statue. From the APEC house, you'll be able to make a loop around to reach the mermaid statue and beyond that, there will be a lovely coastal trail that leads all the way to Haeundae Beach.
Our visit to Busan was really well-timed because it was a week before the start of the Haeundae Sand Festival. Already there were many sand sculptures in place and lots to see and photograph. The bigger sculptures were still a work in progress and tractors were seen moving huge mounds of sand everywhere. Still, we were super happy as we managed to get a taste of what the sand festival was all about!
It was nearing 4pm by the time we left Haeundae Beach. We only managed to complete a short section of the beach but time was a-calling and we had to get a-moving!
We took a cab over to the nearby BEXCO (벡스코) to visit the Hanbok Experience Hall as we read online that it allows visitors to try on Hanboks or traditional Korean dresses! BEXCO (which is short form for Busan Exhibition and Convention Center) is a super massive exhibition space that spreads over an area of three football fields! The Hanbok Experience Hall is tucked away at the far right end of Exhibition Centre 1 so do check out the floor directory to make sure you are walking in the right direction.
The guide at the Experience Hall was so nice! She was Korean but studied in Taiwan so she was fluent in Chinese. She gave us a tour of the premises, taking time to explain the significance of each piece of Hanbok displayed! I didn’t know that there are so many different types of Hanbok and there’s so much meaning behind each one! After the tour (here's the best part), we were treated to a FREE hanbok fitting!! The guide (let's call her Ms Kim coz i forgot her name) helped us to select a beautiful hanbok each and decked us out with many traditional accessories. She also helped us to take tons of photographs and directed us in a variety of excellent poses. After our mini photoshoot, Ms Kim left us to our own devices and encouraged us to take more selfies and photos! By now it was totally past closing time, but yet Ms Kim was so patient and kind and let us cam-whore to our hearts' content and didn't chase us out! How's that for excellent service! This was one of the best experiences of our entire trip and we have Ms Kim to thank for it!! Thank you for your warm hospitality! Busan is daebak!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thanks for your comment!