Travel Diary: Of Cloudy Skies and Gloomy Monday Morning.

Out of desperation, we chose this one shabby inn by the river to spend the night. I was strained from the climb we did that day, and all I wanted was to lay in a bed and get a decent shut-eye. I wasn't up for adventure driving around at night to look for a more decent place which is probably impossible to find in that area. The parking lot was empty, and that was the first sign that I won't be getting the rest I needed. At the reception area on the 2nd floor, a dog barked at me. Just how often do you get that? The room didn't look so bad, the TV is ancient but is still in good working condition, the sheets smelled clean and nice, they even got a hairdryer which is basically the only thing I need in the morning. I was tired but I can't seem to force myself to sleep. At half past four in the morning, I was still awake fanning myself as the air conditioner wasn't working properly. I woke up the next day with a throbbing headache from lack of sleep, and no amount of coffee or tea could cure it. It didn't help that the skies were all dark and hazy, it kinda added to my cheerless mood. The room didn't have a decent ventilation, except for a very small window which is about the size of a person's head. I felt suffocated so I had to drag Chris out of the place before the clock turned 8.


Our 3rd day started with a visit to the river. It's beautiful and the air is fresh, but the heavy rains the night before tinged the water with a light cappuccino color.

We walked a little further down to the side of the river, I thought it would be fun if we could dip our toes in it. The water wasn't as muddy when you're near, and it looked pretty safe for a dip.

There was a bridge there that cars use to cross the river. Standing there gave us a good view of the river and the mountains surrounding it.

We had lunch at a restaurant nearby. It was just a simple and very traditional dish that you could only get at a riverside restaurant.

Cheolla is one beautiful province. I like the traditional side of it. I love their food and their warm friendly people. Our journey there ended when we crossed this road that serves as a boundary between Cheollanamdo and Gyeongsangnamdo. See how beautiful the road is? Most of the roads there look like this. The side adorned with beautiful pink and purple flowers.

We were officially in Gyeongsangnamdo shortly after, and the first county we visited was Hadong. The most important tourist destination there is this small village where they sell medicinal roots, teas and other concoctions. The place is really rural, and I even saw a guy wearing hanbok while toiling the field.

A few hours later, we arrived in Namhae. It's a group of small and big islands, some are still uninhabited to this day.

The view here is spectacular, it's just that the clouds were dark and it's hazy everywhere, so the picture didn't turn out to be as good as I wanted it to be. But then again, it's the skill that matters right? And sadly, I don't have any.

Namhae is a popular tourist destination in Gyeongsang province, and they make sure the roads are all post-card pretty with colorful flowers.

We went to Sangju Beach after taking the picture above. There are couple dozen of beaches in the area, and Sangju was the most popular one judging by how many people were there on a cloudy Monday afternoon. Sadly, I left the camera inside the car before we headed to the beach to swim.

The next stop was this place called "German Village". Koreans who migrated to Germany decided to help the village by creating 25 German-style houses. It became a popular tourist destination from then on. Some of the houses are empty, but most of them are occupied. I saw a barbecue grill at one of the porch there, and some were drying clothes in their backyard. It's amazing how people could live here. Imagine your house being photographed, ogled, and scrutinized every single day. That must be tough!

We then went to Boriam temple, the most prominent Buddhist temple in Namhae. It's auspicious location on top of Mount Geumsan with jagged rocks surrounding it is a view to die for. The Joseon Dynasty King meditated here when all of his 7 sons are plotting wicked things against each other to be the next king.

When we left the temple it was already dark and we decided to spend the night in Namhae. We found a place to sleep near this bridge.

Motels lit with a hundred neon lights at night always catches my eye.

Where we stayed the night before was anything but comfortable, and I'm just thankful that the next place was nothing like the other.

It boasts amazing view of the sea, a cute little balcony, and 1:1 parking. But all those things didn't make up for the lack of space. See how the flat screen is mounted on the wall, above the comfy couch. This is just wrong.

My taste buds were up for something exotic that night, and we almost pulled over to a whale restaurant. But I still have my principles you know.. And not eating endangered animals is one of them. Besides, whales are so rare it might cost us an arm and a leg. We settled for something much, much smaller. This dish is called A-gu-jim or steamed Black mouth Angler and bean sprouts. It's a rare dish and a bit on the pricey end. But it's good. I really like it's chewy texture.

We had a good meal, and the room was nice, cold, and comfortable. I slept like I haven't slept for days..