March 2017

Longquan Peach Blossom Festival // This is Chengdu, China

If there’s an art to attending a Chinese festival, I’m the dumb kid who eats the paint.

How Chaotic Are Festivals in China? // This Is China

Give me some time and I’ll be linking to a How To Successfully Attend a Festival in China article right here.

But for now, I’ll admit that my attendance at the Longquan Peach Blossom Festival was a short-lived one. The mass of people that shuffled along the uneven paths, the noise that blared from horrendous sound systems, and the foolish purchases that were being made all around me — it’s not my style.

But perhaps it’s yours?

If you’re interested in attending the yearly festival, I’d love to tell you everything I know. I must warn you however, you might not like what you find.

More

Eating it Raw in the Largest Fish Market in South Korea – Jagalchi Market

Eating Raw Fish in South Korea's Largest Fish Market

Busan’s Jagalchi Market (자갈치시장), the largest fish market in South Korea, has taken up two very different places in my memory. The first one is a very positive place, where the memories of incredible lunches, lively atmospheres, excitement and intrigue all sit. The second place is dark. It’s usually avoided at all costs. This memory is based on the 8 or so rats that we saw scrounging through a pile of garbage (watch the video til the end).

I hate rats. When we go to a country for the first time, we always keep a rat count. Vietnam took the title during our first trip to Southeast Asia with 5 rats in 22 days (a rat every 4.4 days). But, in the matter of 10 seconds, South Korea managed to make Vietnam look like the outskirts of Alberta with a total of 9 rats in 12 days – a rat every 1.33 days.

That being said, this article is about fish, not rats, so I’m going to focus on the positive memories of Jagalchi Market. But know, as I write this with my feet off the floor, that those rats are haunting my memories.

More