Well in my last blog I mentioned the construction of a huge swimming pool on the beach. Thanks to Megan I have discovered that the Busan Sea Festival starts on Wednesday, and the pool has been just the start of the beach transformation. At the other end of the beach an absolutely monster outdoor stage has been constructed on the sand and at about the half way point another smaller stage has also popped up. The Sea Festival is essentially a music festival that runs for about a week. The centre pieces for this entertainment are the various beaches around the Busan area. More to come.

The Busan International Film Festival is apparently one of the premiere film festivals in the world, and it is held at one of the most spectacular buildings I have seen. The Busan Cinema centre has the longest cantilevered structure in the world. By day it is a very shiny piece of very modern architecture. At night it is transformed into a mesmerising light show. Lights are huge here. Everything from buildings, boat, beaches, even trees are lit up at night. But not just illuminated. Invariably it is a full on light extravaganza. And the cinema centre is one of the best I have seen, not simply for the show, but also because of the sheer size of the roof. At the cinema centre is a massive outdoor/indoor movie screen. Whilst the screen and the seating are under cover, there are no walls, so it's a little like sitting in a grandstand at a sporting event. It really is an amazing place. Just down the road from it is a place called BEXCO. This is essentially an exhibition and convention centre and the sheer size of it is a little hard to take in. Again all glass and shiny metal, it dwarfs anything that we have in Australia. It is 3 times bigger than the Melbourne Exhibition Centre (Jeff's Shed).

I know I have mentioned the weather a few times. Just so you know it is officially hot here. Apparently the current high temperatures are very unseasonal and I have heard that it hasn't been like this for around 100 years. Even the locals are trying to find ways to keep cool and ice cream sales are exceptionally strong.

Wednesday night arrived and the local baseball team, Lotte Giants, were playing the NC Dinos, who come from a city a bit to the east of Busan. This was without doubt the most entertaining sporting event that I have been to, and I'm not sure where to start. I'll start with the bag security check as you walked in the gate. I'm not actually sure what they were looking for. It appeared that you were able to bring in unlimited quantities of food and drink, from pizzas to plastic bags full of beer bottles. I'm not sure that anybody actually watched the game which the Giants lost 6-9. There was so much happening off the field that the game almost seemed to secondary to the whole night. Through a bit of luck I had bought a seat near first base which is where the off field action took place. Non stop music, cheerleaders, a very active MC, lots of dancing, mascots and huge crowd participation. At one stage I thought we were at a pop concert. The ground lights were turned off and everyone turned on their phone torches and swayed gently in time with the very melodic music. It was hard to see this happening at the MCG at a night game. And the piece de resistance towards the end of the game. Pinkish coloured plastic bags were handed out. Everyone "inflated" them, and then tied them on top of their heads. It had to be seen to be believed. The real purpose of the bags was for the crowd to put their rubbish into and then deposit them in a bin on the way out. Now that's what I call stadium cleaning.

I've been in Busan almost 4 weeks, spent a lot of time in the beach area but haven't actually had a swim. Saturday morning looks good weatherwise so off I head with Monica, a friend of Megan's who has just arrived back from a trip to the USA. By 10.30am the beach is already quite busy. The hundreds of umbrellas have been erected, the floatable toys are ready for hire, jet skis and even a jet boat are open for business and the Koreans are ready for their day at the beach. Very few of them seem to swim though, it is more about paddling and water play activities. But the water temperature is just right and I'm surprised at how long I stay in the water. After dinner that night we head back to the beach and there is a concert in full swing on the largest of the newly constructed beach stages. It's free entry and just pick a spot on the sand. The entertainment is good and the special effects are unbelievable. Water cannons, fireworks, flame throwers and a light show that is simply stunning. It's a very relaxed way to end the day. On the way home we discover the Korean honesty that is so often written about really does exist. Monica drops her phone on a very crowded beach. After about 15 minutes of backtracking and searching, to no avail, she heads off to the police station which is on the beach promenade. When she arrives there she is presented with her phone, complete with cash, credit cards, ID etc which had obviously been handed within the 15 minutes since she had lost it. Quite amazing really.

Only 1 week left in Busan. Time seems to have slipped by quite quickly, but I feel that I covered most of the things that I wanted to do. The constant hot weather has presented a few challenges but my time here has been interesting and a lot of fun.