Jinha Beach

A month or so ago there was a conference for all the hagwon teachers in Ulsan. We were told that we didn't have to go, because most of it was going to be in Korean. There was going to be only one presentation for foreigners and we decided to give it a shot and maybe pick up some useful tips on how to handle little demon spawns in class. It was only an hour long and to say the least, a total waste of time. Afterwards Jean, Lindie and I were starving and decided to go and look for a place to eat. We found a little Korean restaurant that sells super cheap hamburger sets - burger, chips and a coke. To our surprise it was really good.

After we ate we split up again and Jean and I headed back to Mugeodong, got my camera and a map and then hit the road again. Destination: Jinha Beach. Jean had been there before on an exploring trip with Lindie, but we still weren't sure where exactly to get off. And just as it happened with Jean and Lindie, we missed the stop where we were supposed to get off and went way past the beach. We got off at the next stop and decided to walk back, taking the same path they did the previous time, walking down the same steep hill, through a dumpsite, past a lonely grave in the middle of nowhere and through the most disgusting little river filled with plastic bottles, garden chairs, suitcases and an old deflated rubber boat. It took us a while, because neither of us wanted to set foot in the water. It looked like it was filled with chemical waste and we were not in the mood of getting infected and growing new body parts.

Eventually we made it and we were on the beach. About a hundred meters or so there is a little island in the ocean. When it is swimming season and we go there again, I planned on swimming to it, and will probably be chased by Koreans, because they have a thing abouth swimming in the ocean. If it just looks like you can't stand anymore then you are too deep and the lifeguards start to go ape-shi... uhm, crazy and put up a huge scene.

The little island.

Next to the beach is a bridge that goes over the river to another village. It is not just any bridge, it has an elevator that takes you up to the top so that you don't have to take the spiraling staircase, probably for those who goes shopping in Jinha and then goes back to their village on the other side of the river. We obviously wanted to cross the river, and we totally took the stairs... Unfortunately I don't have any photos to prove it. Mind you, the view from the elevator was quite nice.

I tried to take a photo of us by balancing the camera on the bag, and

a very friendly Korean guy came up to us and offered to take the photo.

Beautiful lights on the beach.

The whole bridge: On the the sides you can see the stairs we took to the
and in the middle of the spirals are the elevators, the ones we didn't take.

After some fun on the bridge we decided to head back home and after we eventually found the busstop we waited for what felt like a month for the bus. Always an adventure in South Korea.