Sok-Cho Beach Trip

Last weekend was the first time that Katie and I have travelled further than Seoul. Eight of the English teachers from ECC, took the four and a half hour bus ride early Saturday morning to a city called Sok-Cho on the east coast of Korea. The aim was to get some well deserved beach time even though the weather forecast was for thunderstorms on Sunday.

We arrived midday on the Saturday after a fun bus ride through mountains with sheer drops on one side and rock faces on the other. The road was a lot like the Haast pass, and let me tell ya these Korean bus drivers sure know how to push the buses to the limits. The weather was hot, overcast and humid but that did not stop us hanging out on the beach for the best part of the afternoon, swimming in the sea, playing badminton, and doing the human alphabet of everyones names.

Once everyone had worn themselves out and soaked up the rays which still burn you through the clouds (I should know) we went out to a Kalbi restaurant where we devoured pig and many other excellent Korean dishes including raw fish which Jenny and Laura ordered and had delivered to the restaurant we were at. Raw squid and flounder are actually quite tasty.

The night saw us head to a little amusement park on the water front where some of us rode the viking ship, played on the bumper cars and other rides for under ten dollars each. Granted all these rides would never pass safety standards in any western country but they sure were fun. It was my first time on a viking ship and the words yelled at the top of my voice "I'm going to fall out, we're all going to die" seemed to amuse most of the other teachers. I came off the ride shaking and with a hot sweat, well I thought it was hot, everybody else said I was really cold. But these kind of adventures have to be done in life.

As we continued to wonder down the shore front we noticed that most people were riding bikes, and some of them were motorized. Now boys being boys we had to check it out, and sure enough you could hire mini motor bikes for $5 (half an hour) and race around all the pathways and on the grass. These little bikes could really go. Afterward we all agreed that it was the most fun we'd ever had for five bucks and there would definitely be time to play with them on Sunday. This was the end of the night for Katie and myself as Katie was still getting over a cold.

After a cozy night in one room with all eight of us on the floor, it was back to the bikes for another ride before heading back to Uijeongbu. Now what was a 4.5 hour bus ride there is not the same back. 6.5 hours later we arrived home after being stuck in traffic jams, experiencing thunderstorms, and taking shortcuts through country roads in the bus. Still it was worth being tired the next day at work and everyone agreed that it was money well spent.

Now how much would this sort of weekend cost anywhere else in the world. I bet it cost more than the $80 I spent the whole weekend, including accommodation, food, entertainment and transport.

I wonder where our next adventure will be?

To view more pictures from our Sok-Cho adventure click here.

Jared (a.k.a fatti)