We boarded a bus early Wednesday morning and headed to Busan. Busan is one of Adam and my favorite cities that we really haven’t had too much of a chance to explore. So, we had a nice sleepy bus ride complete with Rotiboy snacks from the rest stop.
Once in Busan, we took the subway all the way to the end of the red line to find our love motel which was kind enough to hold our luggage for the day. After we gave them our stuff, off to Nampodong we went.
Nampdong is famous for the Busan Tower as well as the huge fish market and shopping area. We stopped by all of it, purrused the shopping, checked out the view from the tower and had a fantastic lunch.
At the Jagalchi Seafood Market, the Korean women handed Adam, this strange looking sea animal that looked very much like a mans “part” she was showing Adam how to squeeze it to make water pour out of the tip. Then she had Adam repeat, and well we had a nice size audience watching us by the end…and all getting a kick out of the foreigners with the man like fish thing. Also know that if you buy fish at the market, take it to the second floor and they will cook it for your lunch!
After taking a long walk up the city streets searching for treasures at the PIFF Square, or Gukje Market (this is where the international film festival takes place, Adam found sunglasses…we went to Youngdusan Park.
Up the Busan tower we went and at 189 meters above the ground, we had a great view of the city and the clouds rolling in.
We played some traditional korean games. Only Adam and Jeff were able to do them correctly, but Shawn and I tried really hard!
At the bottom of the tower was a statue of a famous person, although we have no idea who. The boys all fell in love and wanted to climb on her.
Then, we headed back to Hadan which was where our hotel was, after a few subway stops and a bus ride, we made it back to our Love Motel “V” The owners were super nice and the artwork was quite fun.
We had one last stop out for the night for dinner, we thought we were going to a galbi restaurant, but it ended up being these choices “intestine, chicken feet, spicy intestine, spicy chicken feet or squid.” We opted for the squid. I don’t think it was anyone’s favorite meal, there were two squid left over after dinner and if you know these boys, there is never any left overs…so we called it a night and got some rest, Japan was awaiting us!
How do you build a life around adventure and travel?Intentionally and incrementally. Most families who live this way did not leap from conventional to adventurous overnight. They built remote work capacity, paid down debt, tested longer trips, and had increasingly honest conversations about what they actually want from their lives. The leap feels bigger from outside than from inside.
What does an adventurous family lifestyle actually look like?Different for every family. For some it is long-term travel. For others it is weekend adventures close to home. What connects them is intentionality about how time is spent and a preference for experiences over accumulation. The version that fits your family is the right one.
How do you balance adventure with stability for kids?By finding stability within the adventure rather than treating them as opposites. Routines, rituals, and family rhythms travel with you. Familiar foods, bedtime routines, and predictable family dynamics provide stability even when the location changes. Kids need consistency in relationships more than consistency in geography.
What has travel taught your family?That people are fundamentally similar across cultures in what they want for their families. That comfort zone is a smaller circle than it feels from inside. That the things worth having in life require effort and discomfort to get. And that time together doing hard interesting things is the most reliable source of family closeness.
How do you handle the pressure to live conventionally when you have chosen differently?By getting clear on why you made the choices you made and returning to that clarity when the outside noise gets loud. Most families living unconventionally describe an initial period of explaining themselves that gradually gives way to just living the life. The explaining becomes less necessary as the results become visible.
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