Byeonsanbando National Park & the Nissan

This Saturday Ben and I ventured southwest to Byeonsanbando National Park. Its one of Korea's coastal parks and from several different parts of the hike you could see the Yellow Sea. Several people had told me I had to see Jikso Falls (pictured above) so we did. More impressive than the waterfalls of Kansas, but not as impressive as I've seen before. The area was pretty and we even got to see a big toad and a slug. The last picture above is from the main hall of Naesosa, a local temple and one of the many temples in Korea you can stay overnight at. From what I've read and heard though there are only a few in the country with an English translator, so you'll have to brush up on your Hangul before you venture to one. The woodwork on the buildings in and around this temple are really amazing. After hiking around for a few hours, we got back to the parking lot and I had a melon pop (melon flavored ice cream like popsicle) and Ben had some frozen treat that is in a plastic bottle and you have to use your hands to warm it up so you can eat it. Not the easiest of things to enjoy. Melon pops are one of my favorite things here. Now for the fun part of the day. We get into the car, my lovely Nissan Skyline, and we start driving. The car is making some strange noises and as we enter Buan, the battery light comes on. I pull over, thankfully near a car place. It is at this moment in time I wish I had spent more time learning Korean. The mechanic spoke only Korean and so did his 8 or so friends that came by as well. At first there was the mechanic and two other guys. One guy called someone on the phone that spoke very little English, but more than the mechanic. I can't remember how it happened, but we were told the water pump needed to be fixed. Eventually another guy came up and called his son who spoke good English who then came and helped us out. This is sounding much smoother than it actually went down. It was what you probably imagined would happen in a foreign country where you don't speak the language. A lot of pointing, waving, saying what you want in your own language and hoping the other person understands. It was happening on both sides. Anyway, we hired a tow truck to take us back home for 150,000 Won (approximately $150.00). We didn't really have much of a choice. Oh, and did I mention that Korean mechanics are not allowed to work on Japanese cars or even get the parts? Yeah, they were probably thinking "this is what you get with a Japanese car." Maybe not, I'll never know. Now it turns out that the only place I can get a new water pump is Japan. So I'm going to spend the next few days calling some places in Japan to see if they can send me a water pump. Fun times.