Busan at a glance.

Busan (Officially Busan Metropolitan City), formerly spelled Pusan is South Korea's second largest metropolis after Seoul, with a population of around 3.6 million. It is the largest port city in South Korea and the fifth largest port in the world. The city is located on the southeasternmost tip of the Korean peninsula and faces the Korea Strait. The most densely built up areas of the city are situated in a number of narrow valleys between the Nakdong River and Suyeong River, with mountains separating some of the districts. Administratively, it is designated as a Metropolitan City. The Busan metropolitan area is divided into 15 major administrative districts and a single county. The natural environment of Busan is a perfect example of harmony between mountains, rivers and sea. Its geography includes a coastline with superb beaches and scenic cliffs, mountains which provide excellent hiking and extraordinary views, and hot springs scattered throughout the city. Busan enjoys four distinct seasons and a temperate climate that never gets too hot or too cold.
Busan is the second largest city in Korea. Its deep harbor and gentle tides have allowed it to grow into the largest container handling port in the country and the fifth largest in the world. The city's natural endowments and rich history have resulted in Busan's increasing reputation as a world class city of tourism and culture, and it is also becoming renowned as an international convention destination.

Some Facts about the city:

- Busan was the host city of the 2002 Asian Games and APEC 2005 Korea.
- It was also one of the host cities for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
- It is a center for international conventions in Korea.
- On November 14, 2005, the city officially announced its bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics Games
- Busan is home to the world's largest department store, the Shinsegae Centum City and is pursuing a large number of multi-skyscraper projects, including the 110-floor, 510m-supertall Lotte Super Tower, which is slated to become the world's third tallest building in 2013, after Burj Khalifa in Dubai and Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan.



Travel to Busan. You will not regret it.

Busan, a city that makes you fall in love with it.

Just as simple as the title says it. It's not only the fact that we love it because it's so different from the other korean cities (Busan has the bigger concentration of foreigners in the country) or because it's a port (the 5th bigger port in the world), but it's also due to its enormous potential; either economical, social or touristically, Busan stands alone by itself.

This port city is the most important port in South Korea; therefore, it has an enormous economic potential since people can explote resources, sell them and also receive some from other places in the world.

Considering social characteristics about why Busan is so spectacular, the firdt thing that comes up in my mind is the huge ammount of different cultures you can find in the city. There are latin people, african and european citizens, etc .. even different asian comunities (like Indian, Chinese and Japanese) have a lot of people in the city of Busan, whether is studying, working or just enjoying the city.

And in tourism,  Busan has beaches (like Gwangalli,Songjeong and Dadaepo Beaches), temples (like Bermosa and Haedong Yonggungsa), the AmNm Park and the Oryukdo Island, among many others. It's definitively a city worth visiting for everyone who wants to know a rich culture.

You may think .. why would someone from South America enjoy so much the city of Busan ? well, the answer is quite simple. Busan and Valparaiso are really similar in the three characteristics already mentioned. Here in Valparaiso we have cultural diversity, economical activities related to ports and fishing, and also we have a lot of touristic places to visit (they will be more detailed in a next article).

As you might have realized already, you don't have to wait for Busan to come to you. You go to Busan, you will not regret it.

What's going on here ?

Well let me tell you first .. I've had the 2 most hectic days of my life so I've been a bit away from all the internet world .. but gladly i'm back to tell you what's going on here in Chile.

As some of you may know, soccer is by far the most popular sport here in Chile, having almost 9 million (we are 17) of viewers every week. And today to be more precise, the elections to choose the new president of the ANFP (National Association of Professional Football), and they we're the most covered event in the week.
Besides, life has been quite quiet here in the country.

Moving on to the Valparaiso city, it continues with its hectic way of life since the forum has began. People from all over the country and from other nations as well have been traveling to the port and the city to watch the different activities that the government has prepared for the people. If the aim of this forum was to make Valparaiso more known worldwide, the objective has been completed with honours.

That's all from my side right now. Tomorrow .. a different day, a different article, as usual.

(:

We are closer than what we think

18124 Kms. 23 hrs in a flight. More than 9000 nautical miles.

That's what separates Busan and Valparaíso. However, these are just numbers. Pure mathematics. But do they really establish how closer we are between each other ?

As some of you may know, both cities have a lot in common. They have sisterhood and cooperation agreements, the government authorities tend to visit each other, and both of them are touristic spots. But that's not all.

Busan and Valparaíso are known in their respective continents for being the biggest port in the area. In the case of Busan, it's the 5th biggest post in the world (in terms of size, load and infrastructure) while on the Chilean side, it used to be (somewhere around 19th century) the most important port in the world.

Both cities are also very passionate in terms on sports (mainly soccer) and, call it coincidence, but the local teams aren't exactly "the best team on the country" ; either Busan Ipark or Santiago Wanderers have the support of the city, but that's not enough to produce a good display on the field.



Yes, we are a lot of kilometers away. But who said that distance isn't there only to be shortened by people ?

Strengthening relationships

I had the chance, a few weeks ago, to work as an interpreter for a Korean delegation here in Valparaiso, city located in the central area of Chile, due to the "Universal Forum of Cultures" that is being hosted here. To be honest, I didn't know much about Busan (or even South Korea) at the beggining when I first heard about this. After doing some research to get to know the city, I realized that this was one of the opportunities that come across once in your lifetime.

I knew I had to take the risk and work with them.

I met some really nice people in the process and I also had the chance to know more about Busan, the country of South Korea and their culture. It was a marvelous experience to be the bridge between two different culture that don't even speak a similar language. And there I was, connecting them to strength their relationship as sisterhood cities (hence the title of the article).

To be honest, now I know a lot more about Busan.

I also know that Valparaiso and Busan have a lot to share and, since we have the tools to spread our ideas globally (thanks to websites and communications) and we're able to be a "voice" into the internet world, I decided to start this blog: to strength the relationship between Valparaiso and Busan, but there's more.

It's about culture, helping each other and maintain the established links; We have to let the world know how two really different cultures can be a global example of cooperation and friendship.