South Korea's success story is starting to crack 🇰🇷 | S8, EP167

Journey to Busan

The narrator leaves Gyeongju late and notes that hotel check-in times in South Korea are enforced strictly. On the way to Busan, she passes Ulsan’s large oil-refining and port facilities. She then explores Busan before her ferry trip to Japan.

Exploring Busan

She visits Gamcheon, a hillside neighborhood known for its narrow lanes and colorful, art-covered homes. The area grew after the Korean War, when refugees settled on the hills near an abandoned Japanese cemetery and reused building materials—including tombstones—for their homes.

The narrator also reflects on Busan’s history as a major port and as South Korea’s wartime provisional capital. The neighborhood’s historic streets contrast with the city’s modern districts, including one filled with plastic-surgery and dermatology clinics.

She observes that appearance and thinness seem to carry considerable social importance. She also notices smoking restrictions and designated smoking areas, and visits a self-checkout shop selling low-sugar and high-protein foods. However, she cannot pay with the methods available to her.

Population and Social Pressures

The narrator discusses South Korea’s declining population and notes that Busan has lost residents as young people move to Seoul for work. She considers several possible factors behind the country’s low birth rate:

• High housing costs and the expectation that men should own a home before starting a family
• Career pressures on women
• Traditional expectations around childcare and housework

She wonders how Korean society will change over the coming decades.

Food Highlight

She tries ssiat hotteok, a sweet Busan pancake filled with cinnamon, sugar, and seeds such as pumpkin seeds. She calls it delicious and jokes that she will go to the gym afterward.

Notable Details

• Locations: Gyeongju, Ulsan, Busan, Gamcheon, and the route to Busan’s ferry to Japan
• Food and products: Ssiat hotteok, low-sugar and sugar-free snacks, and high-protein drinks
• Speaker: The travel narrator from Itchy Boots