Korea Travelogue: Day 11 - Busan, Haeeundae Beach, Dog Cafe
Day 11 Itinerary (Part 1)
Seoul >>>> Busan
Haeeundae Beach
Dog Cafe (Angel D.O.X)
Omg it's already mid-August 2015 and I'm still not done yet with this Korea travelogue >_< gahhhhh really homg. okay gotta try and finish this ASAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!
Moving on, we left Seoul early the next morning for Busan. There are several ways to get to Busan but we chose the easiest option via KTX because it didn't make sense for us to take a plane from Gimpo Airport to Gimhae Airport as the travelling time is pretty much the same if we took the train. Didn't pre-book our tickets because we weren't sure if we could wake up on time (LOL!) however, I strongly advise you to get a KR Pass because you can save some moolah - not significantly but hey, every cent saved will mean more makeup for me HAHAHA! You can read all about it here.
Note - the KR pass is not available over the counter so you definitely have to do the booking prior to taking the KTX. We didn't do it FOL so we had to buy the tickets at standard rates.
Managed to snag a family seat for 4 so there was a table in between each pair. It was crazily crowded the day we left for Busan but all 4 of us actually knocked out all the way to Busan because of the early wake-up time.
Food from the convenience store to sustain our empty tummies ^^
Reached Busan station in approx 2hrs 50 mins andddddd.... it was only 11am then lol. Still bright and early yo! But honestly that 2 hours odd of additional sleep was good hahaha. All of us had just brought along a small bag for our 2D1N trip to Busan, leaving the rest of our belongings in the Seoul guesthouse. Made our way to Haeeundae station via metro (yes, Busan has a metro system in place - yay for easy navigation!) where our hostel for the trip was located.
Got sidetracked by all the cute pet shops along the way to the hostel - super duper cute puppies! We spent a good 15 mins outside the store's window taking pics of all the puppies haha. Tempted the brother by sending him pictures of the puppies, told him the dachshund was damn cute and pretty!
Made another pit stop at this restaurant which we randomly walked past on the way to the hostel because it was nearing lunch time by then. FYI the journey from Busan station to Haeeundae station took about an hour :/
Address
흥콩반점0410+ / Hong Kong Banjum 0410+
부산광역시 해운대구 중동1로 29 (부산 해운대구 중동 1394-81)
Opening hours: 10.30am to 9.30pm
Their signature dish seems to be the jjajangmyeon 짜장면 so that was what we all ordered along with an order of tangsuyeok 탕수육.
The jjajangmyeon was fairly good although our best jjajangmyeon eaten so far was at the store in Hongdae. And the tangsuyeok was pretty decent as well, the batter was cripsy!
Ok and then we finally made our way to our hostel - Popcorn Hostel (Haeeundae Branch) to drop off our baggage! Link to Popcorn Hostel's main website.
Directions
Take the metro to Haeeundae Station and exit via Exit No.1. It's a 10 minute walk from the station to the building where the hostel is.
Address for reference: 11F Marin Tower, 1398-7, Jung-dong, Haeundae-gu, 612-010 Busan, South Korea
Our stay for the night was the family room with private bathroom. When making the reservation I mentioned that it was for 4 adults but the room that we stayed in could actually fit 6 adults! It's actually much bigger than the sleeping area in TP's Apartment for 5 so I'm pretty sure you can fit 6 large luggages on the ground as well.
Room had a tv and small dresser which we didn't utilise at all due to the short stay.
Bathroom was also clean and adequate.
Review
My impression of this hostel is pretty good actually. Room was very well-maintained and price is pretty reasonable actually (~SGD100/night for the family room). Location was good because Haeeundae Beach is just a stone's throw away. However because this branch is located at the eastern part of Busan while the happening and more touristy areas are in the western side of Busan (closer to Busan station) so if you're just looking for convenience, I still recommend that you stay closer to Busan Station. Popcorn Hostel has a branch at Busan Station as well so you can definitely check that out! They serve breakfast as well (toast and the usual hot beverages) to all guests.
Now to officially kick-start our Busan leg of the trip - Haeeundae Beach! :D
Haeeundae Beach in its full glory during the cold winter lol. FYI it was slightly warmer in Busan during winter time but I really wish that the next time I come to Busan it'll be in summer so that I can really soak up the activities happening there lol.
Directions
From Haeeundae Station, take Exit No. 5 or 7 and walk straight towards the direction of the beach.
Address for reference: 부산광역시 해운대구 해운대해변로 264 (우동)
Busan Aquarium is also located here if you're keen to visit.
Yep, bunch of crazy girls who went to a beach in the middle of winter lol. Totally not dressed for a beach vacation xD
And what is going to the beach without feeding seagulls huh? This is truly doing it the Korean way.
Remember to bring a packet of shrimp crackers (easily available at any convenience store or supermarket) then start throwing them in the sky like what this lady was doing. We didn't do it because we..... just didn't lor lol. But it was fun seeing the seagulls swarming around her and her son for food!
Till the next time, Haeeundae beach!
Got sidetracked (yes, we get distracted fairly easily) on our way back to the metro station by this soft serve shop! It is never too cold to have ice cream, even in the coldest of weather ya :D
The honey comb craze is really everywhere homg!
Our orders. I went for the cone (top left) and it was pretty yummy! I like that the soft serve is not overpowered with the smell of milk and at the right consistency. Doesn't melt as fast though it could be due to the cold weather really lol. The bff had the one with honey (bottom left) and I really liked it as well! The honey comb craze was at its peak then in Singapore and I really didn't like the ones I've tried locally so the Korean one was a surprise for me really, wasn't expecting to enjoy the taste that much.
By then it was around 4pm and we decided to head to this dog cafe that the bff had researched prior to the trip (I left the Busan itinerary to her solely because I was lazy and just followed blindly haha!). The original plan was to head to a dog cafe in Seoul but we kept skipping it due to the packed itinerary in Seoul and we wanted a more chill pace in Busan so... dog cafe it was!
Here's the dog cafe we went to: Angel D.O.X 엔젤독스
Directions
Take the metro to Jangsan Station and exit at Exit No. 3. Walk straight ahead and look for the dog cafe on the 2nd floor opposite a Tous Les Jour. It houses a pet store on the first floor.
Address for reference: 1315 Jwa-dong, Haeundae-gu, Busan, South Korea
More squishy puppies in the pet store!
The dog cafe is located on the second floor so upon entering the pet store, just head all the way up the stairs. Entrance fees for adults are KRW8,000 and comes with a beverage.
We were one of the few groups there so it wasn't very crowded on weekday afternoons. But can I just say how shocked I am with this dog cafe? The way the dogs looked were T_______T And the place was definitely under-staffed. When the staff served us our drinks, she headed back to the grooming section and we were just left there alone with other guests and the dogs. Even though I don't own any dogs, you can tell how poorly maintained the dogs were in terms of appearance. The dogs were yelping non-stop (sumpah, really non-stop) at the gate and there was even a dog which had vocal problems - its bark was very muted but no staff came to attend to them. Aishhhhhh, really disappointed by how poor the place was maintained and didn't enjoy it a single bit. It was a stark contrast from another dog cafe which we visited as well on another day. Anyway, still managed to spend some time at the dog cafe (maybe about 45 mins to an hour?) to interact with the dogs.
The toy poodle jumped onto my lap and settled there because it looked very deprived of human contact. SIGH.
Wanjun was the champion because all the dogs were clamouring for her lol! Anyway, this marks the end of the first day in Busan. Will be back with the second half soon!