Korea: So Close Yet So Different

For Golden Week, I went across the East Sea to South Korea. The Korean Peninsula is just a hop, skip and jump away from Japan. Just a super-short flight from Sendai (I think Seoul is the only international destination from that airport) and I was in a land of spicy food, loud noises, and dirty cities. It was a fantastic trip. I spent some time in Seoul and Busan (also written Pusan). There wasn’t too much of the historical type stuff to see because the Japanese destroyed most of it over the centuries (just like in Japan there isn’t too much non-reconstructed stuff to see because the Americans destroyed it). Also, South Korea’s number 1 national treasure was destroyed in a fire in February of this year. However, I saw a palace, and came in time to see the changing of the guards, who were all wearing fantastically colored outfits and fake beards. I also went on a few hikes and celebrated Buddha’s birthday with lotus-flower lanterns.