Pohang is a port city in the south east of Korea, just above Busan and Ulsan. It’s not on most people’s bucket lists! However, I’ve heard good things about it and I’ve been nearby in some very beautiful parts of the country; Gyeongju, Juwangsan, and Busan to name a few. I had a few days to spare and wanted to escape the snow and cold of Seoul. Unfortunately, I caught a cold the day before I was go and so delayed the trip by one whole day (cancelling trains and accommodation, thankfully without penalty).
Day 1
I got the KTX in from a snowy platform in Seoul then took a bus into town somewhere near my hotel and the place my SOCAR was parked. I drove north to a few places on the coast, but didn’t really have a strong plan (still feeling a bit under the weather).
Igari anchor observatory
Igari anchor observatory (이가리 닻 전망대) is a fancy pier over rocky beach and sea. I walked to the end of the pier for some nice sea views. I had some odeng back on land before heading onto the beach. I found a lonely go-stop card and got arty with it! Then I headed off for a coffee stop.
Cafe Fotopia
Cafe Fotopia (카페포토피아) is a place with baked goods (yay) and a whole photo studio with themed areas. It’s not what I was expecting! I had a look around then had cream cheese on bread for brunch with coffee.
Then, because I’d ‘lost’ a day being ill, I decided to drive down to the south part of Pohang where I knew some other attractions were.
Hand of Mutual Shake
It took almost an hour to drive. I drove past a few things of interest but didn’t really stop. The main thing I wanted to get to was at the eastern tip of the peninsula south of downtown Pohang. The Hand of Mutual Shake (상생의손) is an installation of a giant hand out in the sea. There are other hand sculptures in Homigot Sunrise Square (호미곶해맞이광장). It’s a large park and resort area. I stuck to the coastal part marvelling at the giant hand sculpture; it seems to always have at least one seagull perched on one of the huge fingers! The pier is also nice with a metal sculpture of an octopus (Spoiler alert: Pohang is home to Posco Steel, so art here is pretty…metal).
Japanese houses street
This is a small area on the far eastern part of the peninsula with a few Japanese styled houses. Some have cafes and restaurants. Most were closed unfortunately due to the season. I had a quick mooch around before heading back to the hotel. A bit of a waste of a drive to be honest! Again, if I had been feeling better and had more time, I could have easily made a day of it in this area!
I drove back to the SOCAR parking lot, then walked to Hotel RazaB. It was pretty nice for the price (apart from the hair-clogged drain in the shower… I would stay again though).
I took a wander around the streets trying to find food; not a lot around to be honest; places closed for the day or the season? I found a decent sushi place before heading back to the hotel for Netflix and a pretty restless sleep (on account of my cold).
Day 2
I got up feeling way better than the past few days. Took a shower, then a bus north to the beach area.
Brunch
I had found a brunch cafe called May 25 (메이25). They made me a great eggs Benedict and coffee. I even got a truffle chocolate under a glass cover. I had to make use of the facilities and my food got a bit cold because I tool so long…ha
Beach sculptures, Pier
The weather was super clear; cold and crisp with lovely bright winter sun and blue skies. I walked along the beach and took some photos of the cool beach sculptures; again, all in steel! There’s a pagoda styled pier to check out. The beach is much nicer than I expected, really nice actually. From here, you can see the Posco steel factories in the distance. It look stangely beautiful in the distance looking at in the the blue skies and lovely deserted beach.
Spacewalk
I took a bus one stop north to the park that contains the Posco Spacewalk, an impressive steel walkway that looks like a rollercoaster for pedestrians. It was windy, but not enough for them to close it. It was also surprisingly busy! Also, it’s free! I walked up and tried not to be bothered by the way it wobbled in the breeze. It has looped sections, obviously for looks, but it was still sectioned off, like anyone would be silly enough to try and climb it… Someone is bound to have tried, I’m sure!
Museum
In the park is a free art museum, a good place to escape the wind. Also, I always enjoy walking around galleries because the buildings are always well-designed. There were some good exhibitions; paintings, and some spooky video works which affected me emotionally.
Beach, Home
I ended up walking back to the beach, looking at but not stopping at any cafes. I then ended up walking all the way back downtown to near where I stayed. I was just aimlessly killing time at this point! I walked over the bridge near where I’d picked up my SOCAR, then wandered towards a market area that didn’t know existed. I’ll have to save these things for another trip. I took a bus to the train station then returned to Seoul.
I’d come back here. It’d be nice in the summer I think. Also, there are some nice hikes around in the north and south parts I’d like to try. Plus of course I’d like to spend time when I’m feeling less grotty!
Places I visited in Pohang: