Sure, I could afford first–class, but my Hangul (Korean language) was only slightly better than the English of the pretty ticket agent.

With my backpack and hiking clothing, I must have looked like I was travelling on a thin wallet. So I ended up with a ticket in steerage for the night–long passage from Pusan to Chejushi on the passenger ferry Doraji Ho.

About midnight, the seas rose in fury, and bodies began rolling into each other in the dingy, crowded passenger compartment. Someone used a barf bag, and the stench filled the packed quarters. With churning stomach, I went up to stand on the deck and quickly discovered that the only way to keep from losing my dinner was to stare at the horizon, and rock back and forth, letting the stalwart ship pitch beneath me.

I saw another boat passing, and quickly reached for my camera. I knew it would be a long exposure, even with the full moon. I pressed the camera tight to my face, but instead of looking through the viewfinder, I looked out at the moon with my other eye, keeping the moon in one spot while I rocked back and forth with the swells. Then I pressed the shutter release for the several second exposure, catching the other boat as it crossed the moon shine on Doraji Ho’s bow wake.