Where it's at
For some of the oddest sea food you will ever eat, head to Busan, a real sea town which is - apart from Seoul -
the only other place in South Korea where you can let your
hair down for a night out. It is a raucous melange of masts,
loading cranes and buildings; honking cabs, trains and the
throbbing air horns of passing ferries are heard; suited businessmen,
deck hands, navy cadets and fishmongers mingle.
Fisherman's friends
The best thing of all is that here you can find the famous Chalgalchi Fish market, a photographers dream, with
rows of hawkers selling their oceanic fare. They sell masses
of fresh fish, squid, and sea cucumbers here
and visitors buy their dinner and take it down to a local
restaurant where they prepare it there and then.
Raw like sushi
This is where the culinary drama begins. Many Koreans enjoy
eating their fish as fresh as it gets - they call it sashimi - i.e. raw. In fact, with the case of their octopus it is
very raw indeed. The octopus is fished out of the tank in
which it has been merrily swimming, then popped straight into
the mouth. Alive.
It's supposed to be a healthy meal, but flailing tentacles
are not to everyone's taste and most Westerners tend to gag
when the squid goes through its death spasms and starts shooting
ink down their throats. Try it and see! |
