Funnily enough, we got our first impression ( or should I say, first “reminder” ) while still on the ship from Busan. The ship is Japanese ( but managed together with a Korean company ) so it has more of a Japanese “flavour” one might say – tatami rooms that could sleep up to 10 people, its own “sento” ( hot bath ) and, something else we have only ever seen in Japan – beer sold from vending machines ( common not just on the ship but all over Japan ) ! Most people reading this blog live in North American or Australia – in any of those countries it would be emptied by under age kids in short order !! The Japanese, though, are known for following rules – even adolescents, it seems.
Japan is the only country we have been to where beer ( and other alcohol ) is sold in vending machines.Our happy moment – finally leaving the Port of Fukuoka.The day was not perfectly clear on arrival in Fukuoka but was much better than the air quality we experienced in Busan.
After an extraordinarily long first day dealing with customs, carnet and insurance issues, it was exciting to finally drive out of the ferry terminal, with our van, ready to explore Japan. Fukuoka itself, a nice enough mid-sized Japanese city, does not have a ton of sights of interest but certainly enough to fill a day so we started our Japan sightseeing right there. On top of the interesting sights, a real delight was stumbling upon one of the city’s older, and very popular, yakitori restaurants; enjoyed the best wasabi-flavored chicken skewers ever, washed down with a generous serving of sake to celebrate our safe arrival in the country. Definitely a memorable moment, made more enjoyable by the company of some super friendly and helpful locals.
Downtown Fukuoka is a reasonably nice Japanese city, super clean, and very easy to get around.Ohiri Park Japanese garden, Fukuoka.Remains of Fukuoka castle. Mist show, Japanese garden, Fukuoka.
The flowers were beautiful. Azaleas in a Fukuoka garden.Loved this yakitori restaurant..!The sake came in a glass, placed in a box. They filled the sake to overflowing so that it almost filled the box. Once you finish the glass one empties to rest of the sake from the box into the glass. Perhaps it’s a Kyushu thing !
From Fukuoka, the plan was generally to travel southwest in the direction of Nagasaki. Where possible toll roads were avoided ( not hard to do ) giving us a great perspective on life in rural Kyushu; small towns, farms, fishing villages and the odd larger centre filled our first few days. Some great beach camping, scenic coastal drives and our first Michi-no-Eki ( literally “road side station” ) experience were highlights. We have nothing quite like a Michi-no-Eki; think of a farmers market, running every day from 9-5, with plenty of parking, impeccably clean toilet facilities and perhaps a small store. Place it on a main road so that passing travellers have a place to pull over, rest ( for a few hours, or even overnight ) and sample regional specialties that are for sale. These have only been around for 20 years but are now all over Japan…..well over 1,000 of them in fact, and they make great places to park up for the night as many Japanese (and others) do. It’s been a hugely successful idea- we are already fans.
Lois in a michi-no-eki near Nagasaki.Beach camping, just south of Fukuoka.Terraced rice fields, rural Kyushu.
Travel on Japanese back roads is slow, with much of it done between 40 and 60km/h but being in no hurry that gave us the opportunity to better appreciate the whole experience. Given that distances are not great, and the roads are usually windy in mostly mountainous conditions, the slow speed is not an issue- but I would not want to be driving across Canada at that speed. For most of our first few days the weather was either overcast or drizzling – unfortunate ( and unseasonal we were assured ) but it’s what we had so it limited some of our outdoor options.
By the time we reached Nagasaki, things had improved somewhat and we had reasonably clear days there. The A-Bomb museum and nearby Memorial to the Victims were priorities and both truly conveyed the horrors of war, especially nuclear war, well. Hard not to get emotional when looking at some of the displays – it was not lost on either of us that, given the Japanese people’s general longevity, and the fact that it occurred only 78 years ago, there would still be a significant number of survivors alive in the city with clear memories of it.
The impressive Memorial to Victims, right beside the A Bomb Museum, Nagasaki.Replica of the actual bomb that was dropped, known as “Fat Man”.Downtown traffic, Nagasaki.
In addition to the slightly kitschy “Megane Bridge” there were a few other sights we’d hoped to see in the city but had to abort those plans when we realized two things: a) Nagasaki’s streets are really narrow ( even for Japan ) and challenged our ability even just to turn in some cases, and b) while there were parking places which we would have happily paid for, they were all way too small for our 7m long van ! Worse, many parking spaces, (even those in open air locations) have height considerations which treat our van as a (perish the thought)….bus !!! Japanese parking lots consider our van to be enormous and where we have been able to park ( based on either length or height ) we have been hit with “bus” size parking fees ( almost 5 times what a car pays ) in some cases. Not something we can’t work around but definitely a consideration that will require a little more “strategizing” as we visit some of the larger cities ( in rural parts, no issue ).
“Megane” ( spectacles ) Bridge, Nagasaki.
Parked here, back in Fukuoka and assumed we’d pay the ( posted ) car rate of ¥700 ( $6 Cdn ). Did not notice the vertical bars (with hidden cameras) that measured our height and stung us for the “bus” rate of ¥3,000 as we departed. Height as a cost criteria – in an open air lot ? Ouch. We’re learning fast.First week in Japan.
I’ll wrap up this week’s shorter blog with a look at some facets of the country that are, well, uniquely Japanese ! Enjoy…
You Know You’re In Japan When:
…..the taxi diver is wearing white gloves ( and always opens the rear curbside door for you from inside the car ) !….the apples are blemish free, individually wrapped in clear film, and THEN wrapped again in protective foam mesh ! Always. And everywhere.….ditto for avocados ! ….in many fuel stations there is no “bowser” as such. Hoses are pulled down from ceiling pods in stations like this. In the big cities, it’s all about space !…..and finally, even a visit to a simple public toilet is high tech. This one is typical – seat heats up as you open the door, it automatically flushes as you stand up ( but the blue button on the wall allows for a manual flush). The other 5 controls on the wall ? Two controls for the bidet, one other for the bidet water stream strength, another for sound volume control ( the sound of running water is heard while you do your business ), and a manual “stop” control. The small, wall mounted seat in front of the toilet is to place an infant ( should you be carrying one ) ! They’ve got it all covered here…….
What follows here is a review of the process of shipping our Mercedes Sprinter van from Australia to Korea ( February 2024 ) and then on from Korea to Japan ( April 2024 ). A warning – our regular blog readers will find minimal information of any interest in this edition ( unless the excruciating minutiae of shipping a vehicle captivates you ! ) – the detail is provided for those who may be looking to do something similar with a vehicle, either from Australia to Korea or onwards from Korea to Japan. A little payback ( or paying it forward ) for the many who helped guide us in this process in the past.
Dropping the van at the Port of Melbourne for shipment to Korea.
After spending all of 2023 and the early part of 2024 travelling around Australia in our Sprinter campervan, we shipped the van via RoRo from Melbourne to Pyeongtaek, Korea. We shipped via a Wallenius Wilhelmsen car carrier that stopped in Fremantle, Singapore, Laem Chabang ( Bangkok ) and Kunsan en route and took almost 30 days. After almost 4 weeks travelling with the van in Korea, we took the Camellia Line ferry from the port of Busan ( Korea ) to Fukuoka ( Japan ). We hope that the details below will offer some valuable insights ( we’ve included pricing and contact info ) to overlanders ( or anyone else ) contemplating shipping to or from these ports. I know I echo the thoughts of every overlander in saying that THE most stressful part of life on the road is dealing with shipping, especially collecting your vehicle, and specifically off a RoRo ship. Fortunately, this time ours is a good news story.
Not our specific ship but the same shippingcompany and same type of ship.
Australia to Korea
We used Anthony Paratore of Bullock’s Freightmaster in Fremantle. Anthony was timely, competitive and very reassuring throughout. Highly recommended. We shipped RoRo, on a Wallenius car carrier from Melbourne to Pyeongtaek in Korea ( about 30 days ). We took marine insurance through Stewart Insurance Group ( Michael/Anastasia ) who were also excellent and prompt. Quote was based on our vehicle’s value so no point quoting insurance premiums here. They were very competitive and used Zurich, a major global player. Drop off at the Port of Melbourne was fast and easy, we paid about $150AUD for the required port escort and were in and out in about 45 minutes.
Anthony referred us to YCL Logistics ( in Seoul ) to handle to collection process in Korea. They were professional, prompt with communication and gave us white glove treatment all the way. Not cheap, but very much full service ( pick up from hotel, driven 2 hours to Pyeongtaek for vehicle collection etc, etc ). Our experience was complicated by the fact that Wallenius changed our port of delivery from Masan to Pyeongtaek and this added some time and expense to the process. No one’s fault, *&$# happens ! Kunsan, Incheon and Masan are far more commonly used and would have saved us some money certainly.
This is now our 4th international shipment ( 1 x container, 3 x RoRo ) and while the broad process is identical there are unique aspects of each that merit attention. In respect of Korea I should add this; while I can’t say it with absolute certainty I’m quite sure the majority who visit with their own vehicles come by ferry from one of Japan ( several port options ), Russia ( Vladivostok ) or China ( Dalian/Tianjin ). It seems that in the case of ferry arrivals ( vs RoRo carriers or container ships ) the port procedures and customs clearance processes are far simpler ( and hence far cheaper ). Our experience was on a RoRo carrier, from Melbourne ( Australia ) so the clearance procedures were quite a bit more involved and hence more expensive (we also got “white glove” treatment – just the way our Korean contacts worked which undoubtedly added to our costs ). I’m sure it could be done for less if one handled some of the process oneself ( as we’ve done ourselves in other ports ).
Costs:
We had exceptional service from Anthony Paratore at Bullocks in Fremantle and would highly recommend him. For a 42cbm vehicle we paid $4,970 AUD ( approx. $US 3,230 ) from Australia to Korea – this included shipping freight and all port charges in Australia except the port escort in Melbourne ( approx. $150 AUD). Vehicle insurance is extra and no point in me quoting it here because it’s based largely on vehicle value so will vary enormously. Michael at Stewart’s in Melbourne was very competitive with a policy from Zurich Marine – and super fast.
At the Korean end YCL also served us very well. Super people with multiple English speaking contacts ( JB, Emily and James ) and very “full service” but as a result they are not cheap. We paid $US 1,100 to pick up our van in Pyeongtaek when all various charges were added. Two things ( no one’s fault ) compounded the costs. Firstly, Korean Customs at Pyongtaek do not often handle individual vehicles (we were told ) and simply were not sure of some of the processes. They had to consult with the folks at Incheon and Masan in order to complete our clearance. At one point they even suggested that it may be required to bond our vehicle, place it on a flatbed truck and drive it to Busan since that is the port we intended to exit from and according to their understanding, we should enter and exit through the same port ! Our agent talked them out of that nonsense. Had the ship stuck to its original discharge destination I have no doubt the process would have cost less. According to our shipping agent, Incheon was the best port to enter Korea through if one had a choice ( we didn’t ! ).
JB Chang of YCL and I receiving our vehicle in Pyeongtaek. No damage, no theft !
That all said, the pick up process at Pyongtaek was incredibly easy and very fast. About 45 minutes. Only in Brunswick, Georgia ( in the US ) have we seen a vehicle released faster and with less fuss – about 30 minutes ( a striking contrast to our experience trying to clear the vehicle out of Melbourne when it first went to Australia !!). No one looked at the vehicle with us, no one checked that we had insurance (we did have it) – some basic ID checks, hi-viz vest and hard hat worn, proof of fees paid and we were on our way. All done digitally, practically no paper. So simple.
What Went Well:
Well, the most important thing of course – we got our vehicle in perfect condition with no damage and (critically) NO THEFT ! I went to extreme lengths to ensure that everything of value that was left in the van was secured in the garage compartment under our bed and that it was able to be locked separately from the rest of the van. Unless customs wanted to check it when it arrived in Korea ( which I could facilitate ) there was no way port staff or ship-board crew could access our stuff. No one ( from the port staff ) accompanied us to the van when we collected it ( just my agent and I ). Fortunately no one in Melbourne made us unlock that area of the vehicle when we dropped it there ( in some ports they do ). This was a huge relief based on two significant thefts on past RoRo transits.
Vehicles coming and going at Pyeongtaek port.
What Did Not:
While originally routed from Melbourne to Masan ( in the south of South Korea ), once at sea the shipping line changed our unloading port to Pyeongtaek ( nearer to Seoul ). This caused hassles and costs for our agents, and we were stuck dealing with a port not familiar with what we were doing.
Summary:
We felt the shipping cost to Korea was excellent value given typical shipping costs these days. We felt the clearing costs in Korea ( on our particular shipment ) were higher than normal ( partly for reasons noted above ). It cost more than twice as much to clear our van in Korea than it cost to clear our vehicle in Brunswick, Georgia just 2 years earlier. I would have expected costs in the US to be higher than Korea; not so ! I would not assume these costs we paid to be normal, however, and am sure it could be done for well under $1,000 at other Korean ports. We know of people that paid considerably less than us.
Korea To Japan
We chose the Camellia Line ferry to transport our van from Busan ( Korea ) to Fukuoka ( Japan ). I cannot speak highly enough about this company. They did an excellent job from start to finish and we would recommend them highly. We booked it all via email through YJ Choi of the Busan office ( [email protected] ). The ferry was on time ( arrived early in fact ) and they were super well organized from A to Z. Staff at the office spoke English, as did their port staff and staff on the ship. We were personally escorted to the ship with our van, through customs in Korea and again in Japan. They explained exactly what documents we needed ( passport, Carnet, Int’l Drivers Licence, and vehicle registration documents). They took care of issuing the basic Third Party Insurance needed to get road-ready in Japan and directed us to the JAF ( Japan Autombile Federation ) office in Fukuoka for Carnet validation.
Arrived at Busan Port International Terminal. A huge but extremely well organized place. Getting there from our campsite was challenging, the only time we ( briefly ) got lost in Korea.
About to leave Busan, 10pm at night.
Costs:
There was lots of room, ours was the ONLY private van/car on the ferry.They allowed me to inspect the lashing process and made sure I was happy it was tight. Have never had that before !Because we were shipping a vehicle the ferry company more or less gave us a personal assistant from start to finish. We were the only private vehicle on the ferry, along with a young Korean guy who had a motorbike.
Costs:
We paid 726,000 Korean won ( $537 USD ) to ship our 3.5 tonne, 42cbm van along with driver, passenger and a 2 berth deluxe private cabin with its own shower and toilet ( 536,000 for the van and driver, 90,000 for the passenger, and 100,000 for the cabin ). In Japan we paid approx. ¥32,700 ($212 USD) in charges – ¥5,000 port fees, ¥3,000 Carnet validation at JAF, ¥16,000 Surety Deposit at Japan Customs and ¥7,700 mandatory Third Party Insurance for the van. Camellia Line had a good reputation, was used by others we knew of and sails on the shortest route from Korea to Japan. I believe the Pukwan ferry carries vehicles as well but sails to Osaka ( further, and more expensive ). For those interested there are also ferries from Korea to Russia ( Vladivostok) and Korea to China ( Dalian ) although the Russian one may not be running at present.
On board the “New Camellia”.
What went well:
Everything, until we got to Fukuoka where the delays at Japan Customs cost us many hours of wasted time. It was a very long day ! Throughout the delays in Japan the Camellia staff were excellent. They could not apologize enough. The actual customs inspection in Japan was cursory- they barely looked inside and never even opened the rear doors. They seemed more interested in our trip around Australia and Korea than anything else ! On that note, the customs inspection in Korea was very basic as well. Super fast and easy.
It took a long time to do the paperwork at JAF where the Carnet was validated on behalf of Japan Customs and necessitated us commuting half way across Fukuoka. Not a slick process.
What did not:
It was a long wait at the terminal in Fukuoka for the Carnet to be processed.and documents signed. And then more signed, and then more when I asked that Lois be allowed to drive the car as well. Supposedly, if arriving in Japan by ferry, one is not “required” to have a Carnet but that was never presented to us an option – they asked us right from the beginning about the Carnet so we never explored the TIP option. I will ask more about that and update this section if I find out further information on it, it may have been an easier way to go.
Not the QE2, but hey, it’s an overnight ferry ! The cabin was large, comfortable, on the top deck, had a huge window with private toilet/shower.
Celebration time ! Paperwork all done in Fukuoka and we could ( finally ) drive away ! Here with Camellia staff member and agents for Japan Customs.
Summary:
We would highly recommend this route to Japan. Comfortable ferry, smooth crossing, well priced and very well organized. We had briefly considered shipping directly from Australia to Japan but decided to include Korea on the route for a few reasons; there was much of it we had never seen before, what we had seen had changed a lot in 40 years, and finally, we knew that the ferry crossing from Korea to Japan was quick, easy and ended up being even less expensive than we thought. It’s also a less popular destination for overland travellers which provided a more unique experience. For only an additional $US700 or so it was a very small price to pay to include both countries on our itinerary, and we are very glad we did.
What Next :
We are now in Japan and excited to begin exploring the “Land of the Rising Sun”. We will shortly start making plans to confirm space on a ship out of Japan for later this ( northern ) summer. Details on that once we have them.
An old overlanding trick we learned long ago was to start thinking about your exit from a country shortly after you arrive. That may seem a tad hasty, but it really isn’t, especially when your only route out is by sea and there is just one ferry line that takes vehicles to your destination. Such was our predicament in South Korea.
Camelia Line ferry, Busan ( Korea ) to Fukuoka ( Japan ). Courtesy, Klook.
With that in mind we reached out to the Camellia Line once we knew we had our van on the ground here. Lucky we did- turns out that the week we hoped to ship on to Japan was the ship’s annual “maintenance” week ( hence no sailings ). We’d thus need to bring said departure date forward a few days or push it back over a week, so we opted for the former, giving us a bit less than a month here, rather than a bit more. Still enough time but we’d have to ditch plans for Jeju-do ( a popular island in the far south of Korea ), plans that were not in any case firm and would have necessitated yet another long return ferry ride. Being a bit “shipped out” at this stage we were quite happy to limit our travels to mainland South Korea.
Adjusting for the earlier ferry date, our remaining time here would allow for a swing south to Gyeongju, out west to Gayasan National Park, down south to Namhae and east on to Tongyeong before wrapping up in Busan from which we were now booked to sail on to Kyushu, Japan. All places highly recommended by the Koreans we’d met and which, judging by the visits of overlanders ahead of us, had been popular with them as well.
Early in the week we passed this sign on the expressway – had no idea we were travelling on part of a 20,000+ km highway that stretched from Japan to Korea to China to India and on to Turkey. Such is the Asian Highway, the AH1.
If Kyoto is the cultural heart of Japan, Gyeongju is its Korean twin. A smaller, easily navigable city, it has more temples, palaces, burial grounds and other historic sites than the average visitor is ever likely to see ( including us ) so we leaned on “Dr. Google” to give us its top 3 or 4. Excellent choices, all, and our time was well spent between the magnificent Gyeongju National Museum, Bulguksa Temple, Donggung Palace and Woljeonggyeo Bridge. If you’ve a real passion for Korean history, this is the place to spend time- so much of Korea’s dynastic history was centred in this part of the county and remnants are everywhere. Our pick was the National Museum, so informative, and the displays and organization overall were just first class.
Ornate gold, Gyeongju National Museum.Stone carving, Gyeongju National Museum.Armour plate from a warrior, Gyeongju National Museum.Donggung Palace viewed across Wolji PondWe were ( pleasantly ) surprised how often we saw young Korean girls at tourist sites wearing the traditional costume. We noticed it in Seoul, Seoraksan and again in Gyeongju.Woljeonggyeo Bridge.Ditto.Bulguksa Temple.
From Gyeongju the next move was west, via Daeju ( another massive Korean city ) to Gayasan National Park. It’s famous fo a couple of well known hikes and the historic Heinsa Temple. Enjoyed the temple but got mixed directions on the hikes – ended up on the wrong trail and walked far further than we had to for a less impressive experience. We figured the exercise never hurts !
Beautiful drive into Gayasan.Namsan Jeilbong peak. Gayasan NP ( at least this peak ) was a bit disappointing simply because there was so little foliage on the trees at this time. We’d see more stunning vistas elsewhere.On the hike to Namsan Jeilbong peak ( Gayasan NP ).Pathway to Heinsa Temple, Gayasan NP.Heinsa Temple.Heinsa Temple.Heinsa Temple, inside, home to the Tripitaka Koreana , the most complete collection of Buddhist texts, engraved on 80,000 woodblocks between 1237 and 1248.
Our next move was more or less directly south to the island of Namhae – decidedly greener, warmer and in general, prettier than the landscapes we’d seen so far. We managed to score an amazing campsite right on the water at Sangju Beach which, in one fell swoop, redeemed our hitherto disappointing view of Korea’s camping offerings. Fantastic to meet some great locals who insisted on sharing some Korean BBQ food with us and introduced us the Soju, Korea’s national drink – not bad!
Best camping in Korea so far – Sangju Silver Sand beach. We were definitely “wowed” !It was more reminiscent of Thailand than Korea. Water not quite as warm, mind you…!A great evening was shared with our Korean camping neighbours………..who introduced us to “soju” ! Amazing hospitality.
In addition to great beaches and some of the prettiest views we’ve seen in the country, Namhae is home to the Admiral Yi Sun Shi museum and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit, honoring Korea’s most famous naval hero ( globally ranked up there with Nelson and others ) – 23 battles and no losses, an incredible record. One of his great tactics was to use so-called “turtle ships” to defeat the numerically superior Japanese forces who threatened Korea at the close of the 16th century. Turtle ship replicas and Yi memorials are common in the southern islands, the very area in fact, where many battles were fought 400 or so years ago.
Legendary Admiral Yi, Namhae.A replica 16th century Korean “turtle ship”, Tongyeong harbour.Wall mural, Admiral Yi museum, Namhae.
Traveling the scenic coastal roads around the islands of Namhae, Tongyeong and Geoje would consume most of our remaining time in Korea, a very relaxing way to wrap up our time here. As has been the norm everywhere in this country the Korean people have been unreservedly warm, friendly and helpful – without exception they have been impressed to see foreign travellers exploring their country in some depth ( and, truly incredulous that we brought our own vehicle ! ).
Koreans do their own version of fried chicken ( hugely popular here ) and we were constantly asked if we’d tried it. In Namhae we did – it is absolutely delicious, best we’ve ever had !Typical coastal scenery around Namhae and Tongyeong. A really beautiful part of South Korea, which we spent days just exploring.
Hallyeohaesang NP, Namhae. A very steep climb near the top but the views made it worthwhile. Beacons like this, atop high peaks, were part of a smoke and fire signal communication system to warn of enemy invasions.
From Namhae and Tongyeong the outlying islands are all connected by bridges ( and then quite a long undersea tunnel ) back to the mainland again, just west of Busan. Busan, Korea’s second biggest city and a major port, stretches more or less lengthways across the south coast. It’s a thriving, bustling place and the many offshore highways ( nowhere to build more highways on the coastline ) afford great views of the city and and its mountain backdrop. We’d heard in advance that, rare among big cities, it had an an incredible spot to park up for the two nights we’d be there – the Busan Yacht Club. A truly amazing spot, central, in a very upscale neighbourhood with all amenities nearby. Predictably it is packed with campers ! If one needed any proof that Korean’s have taken to camping, or RV’ing in a big way, this was it. Our time in Busan was mostly organizational, arranging the shipping out, scoping out access to the International Ferry Terminal ( unfortunately right downtown ) but also managed some exploring and last minute shopping ( there is plenty of choice ! ).
Finally made it to Busan. A massive city, the drive in was, er, shall we say, interesting ! Parked up at everyone’s favorite, the Busan Yacht Club. They seem to allow lots of campers in here – it was full to overflowing. Rare to get a place like this in the heart of a big city – and on the waterfront.
View from Busan Yacht Club at night.
I’ll close this week’s blog on a little historical footnote. As we were walking along a downtown Busan street to the subway, we passed a huge walled complex with a police presence out front – we were unsure of what it was initially. I then noticed the bronze statue of a young Korean girl sitting, just staring ahead with an empty chair beside her. I then recognized what it represented and where we were ( we’d not gone looking for this ). She was the symbol of thousands of young girls ( and older women ) taken away from their homes and used as “Comfort Women” by the Japanese Army during WW2. It’s been a hugely contentious issue between Japan and Korea for decades, the Koreans feeling that the Japanese government has not properly acknowledged what happened, nor atoned for its war-time actions. A number of former comfort women survive to this day, and for many years have sought to bring visibility to the issue. That building the statue sits in front of ? The Japanese Consulate in Busan.
Comfort Women monument, Busan.
By the time this blog goes out we’ll be in Japan so I have added a separate “shipping” edition this week as previously promised – all nitty, gritty detailed shipping stuff so not a relevant read to most. Oh, and for those interested, Lois won the bet – in almost 4 weeks there we saw tons of RV’s and campers but not one single other overland traveller who shipped their rig in, ( darn ! ).
While very excited to be returning to the Land of the Rising Sun, we leave Korea with real sadness and a huge appreciation for the places we visited, the amazing people we encountered and a real “Wow” of total respect for the incredible economic miracle Korean’s have performed in developing this amazing country into what it is today. We hope, one day, to visit again.
Korea: Random Observations:
Each week as we roam around, we encounter situations, places and practices that we find interesting and which really shine a light on the people and culture of a country. As we leave Korea, I’d thought I’d share some here:
Filling the van ( with water ) required some creativity at times – here, we asked a fuel station attendant if we could use his tap/hose and he graciously obliged. Korean fittings differ from ours – lucky I have a gravity fill input on one side ( it’s saved us often ). Just like any other time we have needed assistance, Koreans have always been incredibly willing to help – no matter how weird our requests might seem !ATM’s are everywhere in Korea, but not all are linked to the global Cirrus/Plus systems. We tried many before we were directed to a specific location with a “Global” ATM. Quite nerve-wracking when you think you’ll have no access to cash ! We were both offered coffee and cookies by the staff, just for making a withdrawal ( a no-fee withdrawal, no less) ! Amazing….While at the bank ( with the Global ATM ) I noticed they provided a selection of reading glasses for elderly customers to use who might come to the bank without their own. They are all about service here……..and are acutely aware of the needs of the elderly.It’s a fact – Koreans are getting old. You see road signs everywhere warning you to watch out for the elderly ( and you see LOTS or very elderly people ); as we approached these signs our Korean “Naver” navigation app would say, “Caution, ‘silver’ zone ahead !”. South Korea also has the world’s lowest birth rate and it is a source of national concern and much discussion.HomePlus is a great grocery store, but in Gyeongju, exiting the gated parking lot required that a code from our shopping receipt be input into a machine that gave us an exit authorization, linked to our licence plate number. Ummm, what to do with a Canadian plate ? The helpful staff member came out and gave us an “override”. Sometimes there is too much technology in Korea !
As we left the Imjingak area I took a rather serendipitous opportunity to deal with a nasty little issue that had arisen just prior to leaving Melbourne. With only days left in Australia the water pump had failed ( camper water pump, not van engine water pump ). No time to deal with it there and we could get by on bottled water short term, but knowing we needed a long term solution I purchased a new one while in Canada and brought it with us to Korea. I had the presence of mind to bring all the small imperial measure fittings that might also be needed, but forgot that I would need a drill to remount the replacement unit. Where to rent a drill in Korea ? Fortunately, as I knocked on the front door of the first “campground” we were to stay at, I noticed the owner had (sitting right there on a nearby counter ) just what I needed! The inclusion of a loaned power drill made the steep campground fee bearable and within a few hours I had the old pump removed and the new one installed – bingo, we had running water again. Pure bliss, and a good start to another week in Korea.
Our first formal Korean campground ( well, perhaps “formal” is a stretch ). We were alone there, too early in the season for most Koreans. Hey, the owner had a drill, which I desperately needed, so we stayed.There, to my left as I walked inside to pay the campground owner, among a slew of other tools, was an old ( but still working ) drill.….and once it was all done, we had running water again.
Folly that we might think just by leaving the Imjingak and Gangwha Island area we’d be done with the heavy South Korean military presence. In fact, as we headed east towards Sokcho ( on the coast ) we saw more military vehicles, more military installations, heard more military jets and saw more military “devices” than we had back nearer to Seoul. On reflection, this should not have been surprising. Although only at certain points were we again close to the border with North Korea, there are of course many points along the northern frontier that a possible invasion might come from ( as was seen in 1950 ); to that end the South lives in a state of constant readiness. Troops, both US and ROK, are based in various camps in the area and all civil infrastructure is designed in such a way to quickly thwart the progress of any North Korean aggression – a few images below will explain that ( pretty clever, the South Koreans ! ):
At random points near the N. Korean border, large concrete blocks are balanced on the roadside, usually on both sides, ready to be deliberately collapsed onto the road. A small explosive charge is all that is required to destroy the supporting “legs” and hence make the road impassible.We passed countless military vehicles like this, and many tanks.
Our travels east took us on a bit of a zig zag route (generally avoiding freeways) through the pretty lakeside city of Chuncheon, Hwacheon, the incredibly circuitous ( but very scenic ) route to the Peace Dam Park and on, eventually, to Soeraksan National Park, our next major destination.
The Peace Dam was constructed solely to prevent South Korea being destroyed by an accidental ( or deliberate ) flood created by a dam breach on the North Korean side of the border.The base of the dam is massive and designed to stop a deluge from the North.We were able to ring the Peace Bell,( made from old shells and casings from past conflicts around the world ).The bell is missing one tiny piece – it will be added when Korea reunifies.Saw some of the fullest cherry blossoms on a lakeside walk in Chuncheon.Ditto.Saw this “campsite” in Chuncheon and asked about staying….….turned out their focus was on selling “glamping” ( for a couple of nights – or more- in an on-site upmarket tent ). We would come across this kind of camp site quite often. They were not interested in us parking on site !
Soeraksan is one of Korea’s top national parks and stunning in its landscape – neither Lois or I expected mountains this high, this rocky, nor ( so late in the year ) to still be snow-capped ! A very pleasant surprise. Sadly, what was not a pleasant surprise were more “Public Alerts” on our phone addressing the poor air quality ( blamed on particulate matter from Chinese factories just across the West sea ) which left otherwise beautiful days with a blue-ish haze; not conducive to good photography, unfortunately. This would follow us for the next few days. We actually spent a couple of nights at Soeraksan and got in some lengthy ( well, lengthy for us ! ) hikes and a spectacular gondola view. Two weeks later and the cherry blossoms would have made it even nicer ( more of that down south we hope ) but we were just a bit early for that this far north and this high.
First views of Soeraksan NP. Surprised to see snow.Mountains, Soeraksan NP..A cable car / gondola made for a speedy ascent.Views from here were wonderful.Selfie, Soeraksan NP.Sheer rock face, Soeraksan N P.
Statue of Buddha, Soeraksan N P.
While in the Sokcho/Soeraksan area we had finally made a couple of important ( to us ) discoveries. First, we discovered a Korean laundromat ( we’d been struggling to find one ! ) and second, we realized that “HomePlus” was in fact a giant Korean grocery store ( which we also desperately needed ) and not ( as we had assumed ) a Korean version of Home Depot ( a large North American hardware store ). Now we could both wash our clothes and, finally, stock up on life’s little luxuries. The selections at HomePlus were indeed impressive.
After getting by with 7/11 type convenience stores we finally stumbled upon a “real” grocery store. Heaven !Been to a lot of laundromats in our travels, never to one that had a special machine for washing shoes ( and a shoe drying machine beside it ) ! Sokcho, Korea.
Beyond the attractions up north, there was a geographical gap (further south ) to the next areas of interest to us. Korean’s we’d met encouraged us to fill that with further exploration of more of their excellent National Parks. Beyond Soeraksan we travelled to and hiked in Chiaksan NP, and took a rather twisty, circuitous and very narrow road around Korea’s largest lake, Chungko, which delivered us some of the best cherry blossom viewing on the trip so far.
Lois, Chiaksan NP.Chiaksan NP.
Further south, through Danyang, a popular tourist area for Korean’s, we made a couple of pit stops to check out at least a few of Danyang’s famous “8 views”. These were less than notable, and we were glad we’d not detoured too significantly to take in these “attractions”. If they were a bit underwhelming, the UNESCO recognized Hahoe Folk Village in nearby Andong definitely was not. A very well preserved traditional Korean village with buildings dating to the 1500’s, it was very impressive. Very authentic ( and still lived in ) it was also surrounded by some of the best cherry blossoms we’d seen in Korea so far. Only after we’d almost completed our visit here did we realize that no less than HRH Queen Elizabeth herself had visited in 1999 !
Us, walking the cherry blossom pathway, Hahoe village, Andong.View across rice field and cherry blossoms to traditional Korean village, Andong.Hahoe Village, Andong.Hahoe Village, Andong. Dodamsambong, ( 3 Peak Island ), supposedly representing the typical love triangle of ancient Korea ( husband, wife and mistress )Sainam cliff, Danyang.
I’ll close with a few important learnings from this past week on the road here ( seems there is some tip or trick we pick up almost every day ! ):
Expressway rest stops serve two other useful purposes ( in addition to offering fuel): a) a place to get rid of rubbish ( rubbish bins being VERY scarce in Korea ), and b) a place to park up for the night when all else fails ( they’ve saved us once already ! ).
This is where we usually have to go to dump our garbage bags ( expressway rest stops ). It is very difficult to dispose of rubbish in Korea.Typical highway rest area, this one near Danyang. A safe park-up when nothing else is available.
2. The country has more tunnels than any other we have ever visited ( and yes, we’ve been to Switzerland ! )
3. Almost all car washes in Korea are those low clearance automatic ones – we looked long and hard to find a high clearance hand held spray wash ( and still only just made it underneath ). Ten days in the country before we found one like this.
4. We’ve accepted that we’ll never figure out how to get a Korean toll payment machine to accept our credit card ( or even cash ! ). Wait long enough, though and one of these ever helpful toll collectors will come out of the toll booth and help us out !!!!
5. And, finally, we realized there ARE other campervans in Korea ( many people had us believe we’d be the only ones ). Here, two others parked beside us at Soeraksan and below a few more we saw free camping in a municipally designated free camping area near Imjingak. That said we’ve yet to meet anyone else who brought their rig in – Lois and I have a bet going, I say we’ll see at least one, she thinks not. Who’ll win….?
Here, we’re parked up at Soeraksan, wedged in between a couple of Korean “camping cars”.Korean campers, roadside designated camping area, near Imjingak. Still not mainstream in Korea but catching on.
As our first few days in Korea wrapped up we were feeling optimistic about next steps – namely, getting to Pyeongtaek port and arranging to collect our van. Separated for almost 7 weeks, we were anxious to be reunited with our rig. Staying in downtown Seoul hotels was a nice change of course, but there is nothing like having your own wheels – and bed, and kitchen, and bathroom, and sofa and…..basically, all your stuff in one place ! We had missed that.
Prior to heading down to Pyeongtaek with JB from YCL Logistics, we still had some more sightseeing to do in Seoul. This thriving city of over 10,000,000 is Korea’s economic and cultural hub and offers much to the visitor. Imperial Palaces, famous markets, great restaurants, home of “K-pop”, one of Asia’s hippest suburbs, an amazing War Museum and a truly vibrant downtown. Connecting it all is one of the best, fastest, cleanest and most affordable subway systems we’ve seen anywhere. Especially notable was the lack of graffiti and the fact that the subway information was always posted in 4 languages ( Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese) – there are not many places where you see that and just another great example of the lengths Korean’s go to in order to make navigating this huge city as easy as possible for all visitors. We also found the Korean people to be incredibly friendly – more than once people actually approached us ( when we were staring blankly at maps ! ) to offer assistance. Safe to say that Seoul left a great impression on us and had us hankering to see more of the country.
Street near our hotel. Street name in English, Korean, Japanese and Chinese.Meticulously clean Seoul subway – seen here at a quiet time of day !Must say, this was a first : our hotel in Seoul ( room was on the 3rd floor ) offered a “ Life Line”. Upon opening the box it was a nylon rope you could use to exit via the window in case of fire. Luckily we had no need to use it !Wander the backstreets and you occasionally find a gem. This local restaurant offered the best prosciutto pizza we had eaten in ages.Always nice to get a good “foodie” surprise.Throughout the museum the Koreans go to great lengths to recognize the support of all UN nations who supported the South against the North Korean invasion.One is left in no doubt as to who the “bad guys” were.The museum has Douglas MacArthur’s famous old corn pipe.One of the greatest planes of WW2, the P51 Mustang saw lots of action in Korea.This was touching. A monument at the Korean War Memorial depicting two brothers, separated when the Korean peninsula was divided, leaving one fighting for the North and for the South. They actually met on the battlefield. Monument depicting the split of Korea and the hope that one day the Korean people will see their country unified.General Yi Sun-Shin.King Sejong, Seoul. A revered leader, King Sejong is credited with developing the Hangul alphabet which Koreans now use. Previously they used Chinese charactersNational Museum of Korea – ornate royal garment.Gyeongbokgung Palace, SeoulGyeongbokgung Palace, SeoulModern art, downtown Seoul.First we found Gangnam station……..…..not far away we found Psy !Gangnam – hippest part of town in Seoul. Can’t beat Gangnam Style !
I’ll leave the full “blow by blow” blog of vehicle importation steps in Korea till we leave and merge that with the steps for exporting the vehicle. Putting it all in one place and tagging it appropriately will make it accessible via a general Google search to those that follow us in Korea and wish to see what’s involved. It’s absolutely invaluable to have a current example of what the process looks like. But, more on that in a few weeks.
JB Chang escorted us to the Port of Pyeongtaek and after some minimal signatures, ID checks, and a short wait we walked through the gate to see our van. All alone, covered in a light coating of dust, but otherwise in perfect shape ! The inside was still quite clean (we’d left it sparkling ), things appeared in order and, most importantly, no one had tampered with the Slicklock on our rear doors, which secured them closed. That was a good omen, because in all likelihood everything that we had stored inside the garage area of the van was likely to still be there. Using a key that only I had, the Slicklock was opened, and there before me was everything neatly stacked just as we left in the Melbourne . I can’t overstate what a huge relief that was given that we had seen some serious theft from both previous RoRo passages. No need to fight with insurance companies, no need to pay large excess/deductibles, and most importantly, no need to be living without critical items that are not easily replaceable on the road ! I gave Lois a big high 5 as I drove through the gates to pick her up – she was waiting just outside. A very nice start to our road travels in Korea!
JB drove us from Seoul to Pyeongtaek in his own car, a very nice new BMW.Pyeongtaek International RoRo Terminal ( PIRT ) through which our van was unloaded ( Photo courtesy P.I.R.T. ).Thank you, JB !Out of the port, first step was to fill the van with diesel. Hmmmm, how to distinguish between the diesel pump and the gasoline/petrol pump when everything was written in Korean. No room for error there…!
We had driven a couple of hours south of Seoul to pick up the vehicle and now we would begin our planned route around the country. Step one was to get out of Pyeongtaek and find a rest stop for the night ( it was getting late ) and step two was to head into the city of Incheon where I had really been looking forward to visiting the Memorial Museum of the Incheon Landing ( sort of a Korean War “D Day” equivalent – in WW2 terms ).
First lesson learned in Korea ( which came as little surprise ) – there aren’t many formal campsites here (in the Western sense) so we knew we would be relying on tips from those that went before us who had documented their rest stops on the trusty iOverlander app. A quick glance at the whole country map revealed that there certainly were not very many of these and most of those were three or four years old (hence, probably of dubious relevance today). Furthermore ( as we would soon discover ), of the few campsites that did exist, many were closed because it was not yet high season. Finding a place to stay each might require more creativity than we thought……
Thanks to notes from a lady who last stayed here way back in 2019 we found the parking lot where she rested, near a Catholic Church, not far north of Pyeongtaek. It was late, and we were tired; “any port in a storm”, as they say.
The second lesson came in Incheon. As big and congested as the city is we did not find driving there to be difficult but it certainly helped that JB had tipped us off to some of the unique Korean driving rules. We found the Incheon Landing Memorial with no drama at all but got the shock of our lives when we saw the parking lot. While a memorial like that in most western countries would have a large parking lot for cars and tourist buses, we could see no such provision here, and with the extremely narrow lanes and tight corners, there was obviously no way I was going to navigate a 7m van through the place. Worse, there was absolutely nowhere, within a reasonable distance, where I could park our vehicle. A full hour after trying, we just threw in the towel and headed on out of the city. Note to self – sometimes it might be easier to park on the outskirts and take the subway in to the centre of town !!!
Having wrapped up our sightseeing in Seoul before leaving to get the van in Pyeongtaek, our aim for the rest of the week was to explore the areas north west and just north of Seoul, all of which closely bordered North Korea. From past personal experience, and recent updates from other travellers, we knew there were a couple of great spots for getting as close as possible and thus having a birds-eye view into the Hermit Kingdom. One thing we knew we would not be doing, somewhat sadly, was re-visiting the “truce village“ of Panmunjom. We’d luckily visited it back in the mid ‘80’s but tourist visits were now suspended after an off-duty US soldier dashed across to the North during a tour of the DMZ back in 2023. Over the next few days we travelled to Gangwha Island ( west of Seoul), the Imjingak/Panmunjom area (to the north), and finally the Odusan Memorial Tower – all provided interesting access points and/or harrowing tales of life in North Korea as well as showing the immeasurable pain and suffering caused by the conflict.
Blue dot shows where we visited/stayed on Gangwha Island. The Han River is just 1.8 km wide here.Access to this area is tightly controlled – here, a passport check with a Korean Marine.The 60x binoculars provided a clear image across the river. Easy to see people walking in the fields.On Gangwha Island we met Ahrum, a Korean lady who owned the restaurant at the viewpoint and who gave us some great travel advice (and served up delicious Korean food). She’d lived for 5 years in Canada.Military checkpoint on Gangwha Island. They allowed us to park up nearby for the night. If nothing else it was secure !Parked up for the night at a military checkpoint, one of the stranger places we have camped on the road !Display from the Korean War at the Greaves Museum, Imjingak. Showing the actual demarcation between the Korea’s.One of the saddest displays at the Greaves Museum. A letter from a 16 year student soldier to his mother just before he died in the war. I had no idea so many of that age were involved.Odusan Memorial Tower display of statements from North Korean defectors. It lists examples of the North’s many breaches of the UN Declaration of Basic Human Rights.
Another telescopic viewpoint of the North at Odusan.
We really enjoyed our time along the border with the North.Of the several locations one can visit, we most enjoyed the experience on Ganghwa Island. Quiet, relaxed, far less touristy and yet provided an excellent opportunity to look over the Han River to what goes on in the North. On a sadder note, the Odusan Reunification Tower, while providing probably the closest visual perspective, also provided some rather grizzly examples of what life is like in the North via first hand accounts of recent defectors. We seriously have no idea how lucky we are if we live in any free, Western democratic society.
Our exploration of the North Korean border region complete, we’ll next head east towards some of Korea’s great national parks and northern coastal regions. Stay tuned.
We are Lois and Jeff, of Kelowna, BC, Canada. Recently retired with a serious overlanding travel bug, we hit the road in our truck camper in May 2019, initially tackling the Pan American highway. The PanAm completed in April 2022, and truck camper sold, we plan to continue exploring again later in 2022 in our Sprinter 4×4!
