Busan Korea, Bali Beds, and a "Blood Moon" - a Total eclipse of the Moon.

Storms produce amazing skies I think.  After leaving Hiroshima
early and spending two days bobbing in the sea,
we finally got into the port of Busan South Korea,
one of the world's largest ports.

South Korea has done an amazing
job of building up their industrial strength
which is evident in the amazing port.  

The coast guard and fire boats were all based in the area 
where we were docked, so they did a little demo for
us.  Lots of shouting on foghorns!

Ship-building is one of the main industries in Korea. 
There was a tour of a ship-building factory
close to where we were docked which apparently was amazing. Very high tech.  
I have never seen cranes as large as the ones in Busan, and there were literally
miles of them.
The city is not pretty, but it is busy and Korea's economy has been steadily building, 
despite a few set-backs over their history.  They had to create their own industries in 
order not to be dependant on Japan, and clearly they have succeeded. 
 Samsung and electronic products are another of their exports.  The majority of the 
resource asset is in North Korea, which has been a problem, but through their work 
ethic and determination, South Korea has become independent and definitely a world 
player in trade.

It was great to get off the ship after a few days of bobbing
around
in the Korean Strait, and we took the shuttle into town.
The fish market was huge, and very busy.  Just choose a
from the tank, take it to a restaurant, and they will
make a raw fish lunch for you.

Miles and miles of live, or dried fish!

The little back streets are busy and
full of people and goods.  This was
an area around a film festival 
that was going on.  Most of the shopping
was pretty cheap and not high quality,
and lots of imitation of high end brands.
Not great shopping, but great people watching.

On October 8th there was a a Full Hunters Moon and 
Total Lunar Eclipse.  The moon was directly opposite the Earth 
from the sun, and passed completely through the Earth's dark
shadow (umbra).  The moon got darker and darker, and then turned 
a rusty or blood red colour.

These are the "Bali Beds" which are on the back of the ship
on the top deck.  A small group of us had
booked them for the night, and so got into
our jammies and went up to view the moon.
There were 5 of us, and we made a
lot of noise before going to sleep after
the eclipse!

The start of the eclipse.....

Leaving Busan.  

Busan in the distance.  The view from the Bali beds, as Busan fades away.

A stealthy selfie.  Bank robbery anyone?

I did not have the camera or lens to magnify the moon as it changed but it was
pretty cool to see.  It was white, and then dark.  

As the moon was passed into the dark shadow of the
earth, it was very clear to see the movement.  I was surprised
at how quickly it all evolved.

Et voila!   The moon changed to this rusty blood
colour.  Wish I had a telescopic lens!

"Full Hunters Moon", also known as "Travel Moon" and "Blood Moon".  By any name it
was the first eclipse that I have seen with such detail.  I take for granted the sun and the moon
and the stars, but seeing this phenomenon made me so aware of how complex and
miraculous the universe really is.  

Love being tucked up in bed with a good book, especially in the open seas off the coast of
Korea.  Perfect. 

The Bali Bed experience was really something, and I especially loved the feeling of being in the open air.  Well, 
kind of.  At least my face was in the open air.  I was the only 
one of the group that had a hat, and it matched the blanket, so they had to
keep checking to see if I was in there!  Live lump hunting!
Bye Busan! Bye Blood moon!  
Next stop Seoul.