Parcly Taxel: So exhausted was I from wading in freezing air the previous night that Luna shared a dream of hot chocolate, keeping me tranced until the sun was halfway up. Now I had to find brunch, but Busan is a harbour and port city so what better things are there to eat than seafood?
Spindle: Especially the seafood pancakes at the Jagalchi market, which made even my mouth water. Crabs, abalone and sashimi were also served up — pity that Parcly couldn't feel much since I slurped up her emotions…
Parcly: With my belly filled, I had a look around the harbour, which looked like a metropolis on the east colliding with Rocinha (the most famous of the Brazilian slums, in Rio de Janeiro) on the west. Then came the shopping belt, which had anything and everything: one-mare establishments, posh and famous names, cosmetics, clothing and culinary delights crammed on one street. Suffice to say that I don't fancy hanging out at places like this and- WHOAAAA- [crash] Owwwwww!
Pinkie Pie: Oopsie! Did my mountain of shopping bags hurt you?
Parcly: Yes, and are you crazy?
Pinkie: [silent, eyes shifting]
Parcly: Anyway, after that episode of window-shopping I went to the aforementioned "favela", Gamcheon. While there are a few helpful signposts scattered across the alleys and stairs to prevent it from being an urban Everfree, it gets dank beyond a few minutes. Houses are haphazard in orientation and position, their doors and windows shut; deep whistling permeates the air and nothing else, almost as if a few lone souls are still looking for an exit long after their bodies crumbled.
Spindle: Fortunately, her body didn't crumble and she found the well-trodden road again, with much clopping to be heard.
Parcly: The hastened nightfall forced me to retreat somewhere indoors — my magic was spent from craning my head around the walls in Gamcheon like a snake. Eventually I wandered into another shopping centre, where I had ramen for dinner.
Then I discovered the loud, wild underground arcade, replete with classical fountains and vinylic music blasting from all corners. Much irreverence for me, but Busan is the second city of South Korea and its ponies move with the zeitgeist.
Spindle: Parcly still holds on to her own traditions. I hitched her on my back for a blitzing escape back to where we were staying, in a quiet apartment on the outskirts of it all.