Busan Jagalchi (Fish) Market [자갈치시장]

Visited one of Busan's famous fish markets, known as Jagalchi Market. It's one of the best known seafood markets in the whole of South Korea. This market started in the late 19th century and roughly 30% of the seafood consumed within the whole of S.Korea is distributed from here. The entire place is really colorful and it has a really nostalgic feel to it. Definitely one of the places that you have to visit when you are in Busan.

한국에서 제일 유명한 전통시장 중에 하나는 부산의 자갈치시장이다. 얼마전에 갔다왔는데 너무나 인상깊었다. 사람도 다양하고 곳도 이쁘더라. 자갈치시장은 꼭 가봐야 할 곳이라 부산에 간다면 가보세요.

As Busan is also a city, it isn't hard to get around with the train and bus services available.

Just take the Busan Line 1 (Orange), get off at Jagalchi Station and out from exit 10.

Once you're out you should be smelling fish everywhere, so just follow the stench.

부산은 도시라서 돌아다니는 게 별로 어렵지 않다. 지하철도 있고 버스, 택시까지 탈 수 있으니까.

부산 1호선 타서 자갈치역까지 10번 출구 나가자마자 자갈치시장은 어딘지 알 수가 있다.

물고기 냄새 따르면 됨.

The first few impressions I had of the market were the diligence of the people. In my country, Singapore, people do sell the same things, but they do not sell the exact same things side by side another vendor. Here in Korea, as you walk down, you realize they are selling the exact same products next to each other. I wonder how they fight the competition and get the edge from consumers. On top of that, you hardly see any young people around, and the ones who are selling are people who look like they are in their 50s and above, old enough to be my mother. 

도착할 때 제일 인상깊었던 점은 시민들의 성실과 헌신이다. 싱가포르에 이런 시장에서는 엎에 있는 사람이이랑 똑같은 상품이나 팔지 않는다. 경쟁력도 높고 이기적인 성격이라서 부산의 이런 상황은 싱가포르에서 볼 수 없다. 

At first glance you see that they are all at work, waiting for customers to come and purchase their fresh catch of the day. The place was really surreal and it seemed so second nature to them which makes it seem like they have been doing it for years upon years.

사람들이 친절해 보이고 얘기도 많이 나누는 모습으로 일하면서 시간을 보낸다. 도시에다가 이런 분위기가 진짜 신가하고 재미있었다. 

Apparently this is a great place to buy seafood so people who live in Busan actually come all the way here just to buy their seafood instead of buying them together at the supermarket along with the other groceries. On top of that, the restaurants nearby actually cook the fish they catch for customers. If you're looking for a seafood fix in Busan, this is the place to go. The food is really fresh and they're really good too. If you're looking to eat king crabs, king prawns or fish, this is the place to be. They have different types of grilled fish that are really really delicious. 

자갈치시장에도 해산물은 좋다고 들었으니 근처에 있는 식당에 저녁식사를 하러 들어갔다. 새우랑 생선구이 시켰고 반찬도 많이 주었다. 싱가포르랑 서울보다 저렴하게 해산물을 먹을 수 있으니까 너무 좋았다. 비싸지 않은 데다가 너무나 맛있었다. 

I ordered fish and prawns but the prawns were not really that nice since grilling them makes the flesh dry and flaky. The fish however, was grilled to perfection. It wasn't too dry and it was really flavorful. I would definitely recommend having the fish! I can't remember what it's called in Korean but it's the one that they will recommend as the best.

If you're ever in the neighborhood, or are planning to visit Busan, this is a place to go for seafood and a little touch of the people's livelihood.

만약에 부산으로 여행가거나 맛있는 해산물 먹고 싶으면 꼭 가보세요. 부산 자갈치시장을 진심으로 추천한다.