Busan (Pusan), South Korea

Holy mackerel!  We’ve seen some big seafood markets before but never anything on the scale of the Jagalchi fish market in the harbour city of Busan on South Korea’s south-east coast.  Line after line of live, fresh, frozen and dried seafood of every description stretch to the limits of visibility down the gleaming market, and outside in the streets and alleyways the piscatorial extravaganza continues in every direction.  How can the people of Busan eat all this seafood? 

Mid afternoon yesterday we took a subway to Shinsegae Centum City, Busan’s (and the world’s) biggest shopping complex with nearly six million square feet of floor space.  Every brand name boutique is here, along with floor after floor of quality merchandise and entertainment options: cinemas, ice skating rink, spas, a golf driving range, gym, art gallery and restaurants.  We spent some time in the dazzling Food Hall bulging (the Hall, not us) with specialty products from the four corners of the globe (if a globe can have four corners).  There’s certainly an air of affluence in Busan and South Korea generally.

By sunset we were standing on the sand at Gwangan Beach, one of Busan’s pleasant seaside suburbs, and we watched the coloured lights on the bridge flicker into life as we ate our Australian beef burgers, a welcome change from kimchi.  From there it was a dozen or so stops on the subway back to our hotel in downtown Busan.  We’ve never seen cleaner subways – we couldn’t spot a speck of litter or scuff mark on the floors.

Down on the waterfront today a woman was hot smoking mackerel on a grill over smouldering charcoal.  We ordered two plump fish that melted in our mouths while we watched some older guys with extremely long, tapered, fishing rods flick their baits into the water off the pier just out from our table.  Behind them, Busan carried on with its eclectic business.