Gimhae, the neighbouring city to the west of Busan, is worth a day-trip when you plan to visit the southern tip of South Korea.
You can experience a rail bike park and learn to make a clay art at Clayarch Gimhae Museum.
Our trip in this town was scheduled on the last day of our four-day trip to Busan. We were advised by Busan Tourism Organisation to ride the rail bike in the morning when the sunshine is not too strong.
Known as Gimhae Nakdong River Rail Bike, the service is operated on the old railroad crossing Nakdong River, or Nakdonggang, which is the longest river in the country.
The old railroad was closed in 2010 after 100 years of operation. The city of Gimhae wanted to use the facility to promote tourism. It initiated the Gimhae Nakdong River Rail Park project in 2013.
Indoor and outdoor activities include the 3km rail bike, wine tunnel, train café and bridge observatory.
When we arrived at the old train station, we saw 24 rail bikes. We were grouped in four for one rail bike. Two passengers were at the front row cycle. The rail bike has a roof, hand break between the two cyclists and a rear mirror. The other two passengers at the back row had boxes under the seats for keeping bags.
Once we took our seats, we had to fasten our belts. I was on a passenger seat for the first half of the route which was about 1.5km. One of our cyclists was in his 60s and he could easily ride our rail bike smoothly.
Persimmon trees bear fruits along the street. Karnjana Karnjanatawe
Along the route, I could see rice fields, a village and mountain ranges. The railroad also crosses a local road. Before reaching the intersection, there was a traffic light and an officer to give us a signal to stop or go.
The highlight of the trip was cycling on the vintage railway bridge, which reminded me of Memorial Bridge (Saphan Phut) in Bangkok had it been painted in green. The bridge is over the Nakdong River. It's truly scenic.
After crossing the bridge, there is a U-turn stop. We switched seats between cyclists and passengers. We biked smoothly until almost the end of the route. I felt I had almost run out of energy because the track seemed to have a long slope up a hill. My cycling partner and I had to put in a lot of effort. We couldn't shift any gears because there were none. Soon another bike in our team came close to us.
"Push. Push. Make it faster," I heard them shout from behind. Finally, they decided to push our rail bike with theirs to help us get up the slope and reach the finish.
After a bit of exercise, we needed some refreshment. Next to the station for the rail bikes is a tunnel.
The old tunnel was renovated to be a wine warehouse, restaurant and 3D art museum.
Gimhae is famous for its raspberry wine so we shared a bottle. Our senior cyclist liked the fruity smell and the sweet taste. He even wanted to buy some bottles to bring back home.
But we were not yet ready for the airport. Our last stop was Clayarch Gimhae Museum.
The name "clayarch" comes from the words "clay" and "architecture". The aim is to show artistic works in the field of architectural ceramics, according to museum spokesman Kim Jim Ho.
Those who visit the museum will surely notice the colourful wall of its main exhibition building, the Dome House. Kim pointed to the exterior wall and said that it is decorated with 5,000 ceramic tiles. Each tile was created by Shin Sang-Ho, the famous Korean clay artist, whose works have earned international recognition.
Each ceramic tile has its own unique pattern. Together they create a big piece of contemporary art. This work by Shin is regarded as the prominent exhibition of the museum.
The dome has a large space for housing exhibitions which rotate every six months. The museum always shows ceramic arts created by local and international artists.
The museum also has a landmark structure called Clayarch Tower and other facilities including Cubic House, which houses another three exhibition halls, a children's studio workshop and ceramic creative centre for artist-in-residence programmes.
Visitors can book ceramic workshops or wander around its park to enjoy a panoramic city view. The museum is located in a community which has been known for traditional ceramic works. There are more than 100 ceramic factories in the area. They also open their shops to offer ceramic products.
Our time passed quite fast in this city. Gimhae can be a destination where families and friends can enjoy fun leisure activities.
