I had lived here the better part of three years before I went on one of the very popular DMZ tours. Although I was non-plussed by the price and not terribly excited to go, I was glad I did. The tragic division of the Korean Peninsula has created a unique glimpse into one of the most chilling reminders of the Cold War. Far more than a hokey tourist trap, the DMZ is an exciting and frightening place.
In Part 1, we took a look at some of the most popular DMZ sights located in Gyeonggi Province. For Part 2, let’s see some of the organized tours that will take you there.
Just one hour from Seoul is a peculiar land of misnomers – kilometers of barbed wire line Freedom Road and block access to the sea, and the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is the world’s most heavily armed border.
An estimated one million troops stand at the ready along both sides of the 4-kilometer buffer that has divided the Korean Peninsula since a 1953 armistice paused a bloody, fratricidal war. In the 50-some years since, the DMZ has seen occasional flare-ups, an axe murder incident and the discovery of invasion tunnels capable of funneling 10,000 North Korean troops an hour toward Seoul. Yet, in spite of the ever-present danger, or perhaps because of it, the DMZ endures as one of South Korea’s most popular tourist destinations.
War, colonization and rapid industrialization have decimated Korea’s architectural heritage, and yet an astonishing amount of it still remains, especially outside the big cities. And thankfully, local and federal governments are making increasing efforts to preserve what’s left of old Korea, especially the numerous “folk villages” that dot the countryside. Among my favorites is Nagan Folk Village (낙안읍성민속마을), located in South Jeolla Province.
Apologies for the paltry posting over the past few weeks. I’m at the end of a vacation home to visit with family and friends. I’ll be back in Seoul on February 1st and hope to have new posts about Gyeongju, The Dongchun Circus and Korea’s ski resorts up soon… as well as answers to all your questions!
Although Seoul is one of the world’s largest cities, its residents don’t restrict themselves to the concrete jungle. Thankfully, the city is also home to many popular green spaces that bring a natural balance back to city life.
Located in southwest Seoul, Boramae Park (보라매공원) is an oft-overlooked city park in a similarly forgotten neighborhood of Sindaebang-dong. The name “boramae” means young hawk in Korean, which is a hint to the air force base that occupied the area for 27 years. As the former home of the Korean Air Force Academy, today the park includes a small airpark with mothballed jets on display. Stairs even allow visitors to get an up close peek into the cockpit of an F-4D Phantom fighter-bomber.
A snapshot of the first sunrise of 2010 from a few kilometers south of Gampo, on Korea’s eastern coast (near Gyeongju). I hope everyone has a healthy and happy New Year!
This is my fourth winter in Seoul, and while it does get awfully chilly at night, there’s just something about how this city celebrates the season that makes it a fun time to be here. For example, if you walk by the Lotte Department Store in Myeong-dong or the Shilla Hotel along Euljiro Street, you can always count on fantastic displays of colored lights, and the other day I almost got run over by a horse-drawn carriage lit up like a Christmas tree prancing towards the Cheonggyecheon (video link).
Here’s a video about the Seoul neighborhood of Bukchon (북촌), one of the last parts of Seoul where you can find a sizable number of traditional Korean homes, called hanok (한옥). The area is located between Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung palaces. Here’s a link to the original post on Seoul’s “north village.”
Yikes! I know it’s been a while since my last post. I’ve got quite a few in the works but I haven’t had enough time to wrap them up. Apologies and I should get them up shortly. Thanks for your patience!
Think that winter is when you stay bundled at home? Think again! Korea’s distinct four seasons guarantees a packed winter festival season, a boon for travelers who enjoy ice fishing, sunrise watching and fireworks to ring in the New Year. As always, be sure to check out the Korea Tourism Organization’s great interactive festival website (Go here).
Boseong Tea Fields Festival of Lights (Boseong, South Jeolla Province) December 11-January 31
Boseong is justly famous for its beautiful rows of green tea fields, and its most famous plantation has turned its dormant season into a light show. For seven weeks, from 17:30 until 24:00 every day, Boseong’s orderly rows of tea will host an elaborate light show. See computer-generated photos of this year’s show on the website.
(more info: call +82-61-1330 or visit here [Not a terribly helpful site].)
If you take a look at the date, November 11th, and use the number “11” in lieu of the month’s full name, you may notice that you have four “1”’s all in a row. Well, in Korea, that’s all you need to create a popular holiday.
And since the mid-1990s, November 11th has been celebrated as “Ppeppero Day,” named after a snack sold by the Lotte Confectionary Company. The long cookie sticks, typically dipped in chocolate, share the same shape as the number “1” and thus, have inspired an annual ritual of young lovers and office workers exchanging gift boxes of the candy. Not surprisingly, everywhere from swanky department stores to corner convenience marts all try to cash in on the marketing gimmick turned cultural phenomenon.
Many may assume that Korea is a tea-based culture. Indeed, Korea has an indigenous tea culture that goes back centuries. But ever since King Gojong became the nation’s first and best-known coffee lover in the late 1800’s, coffee has taken the nation by storm.
More recently, the wildly popular TV drama, “Coffee Prince” captured Korea’s love of java. Today, global giant Starbucks competes with local brands like Holly’s, Ediya and Café Pascucci. But while you can get a decent cup of joe at any of these places, paying 5,000-won or more is a small extravagance. So, why not enjoy your bitter brew at one of Seoul’s best cafés?
Design seems to be a passion of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon. At the very least, he’s put an emphasis on improving the city’s aesthetics, from restricting the unsightly signage that clutters up the sides of many buildings to commissioning a top architect like Zaha Hadid to create a 400-billion won Dongdaemun Design Park and Plaza.
The latter was to coincide with Seoul being named the 2010 World Design Capital, but as such huge projects tend to go, the 83,000-cubic meter plaza is now set to be completed in 2011. So in the meantime, Seoul City officials have sought to build public interest and enthusiasm for good design through the Seoul Design Olympiad.
Although I’m completely unqualified to do so, here’s a quick Korean language lesson.
The word “san” (산) in Korean more or less means mountain. That’s why every mountain in Korea has the “-san” suffix, e.g. Seoraksan, Bukhansan, Jirisan, etc. Trouble is, living here I’ve become familiar calling Korea’s peaks by their Korean names (fancy that!), so calling Jirisan “Mount Jiri” just doesn’t feel right. When translating to English, however, it’s unclear that it’s a mountain without the obligatory “Mt.” title. So what’s my awkward compromise? Mount (Mountain Name)-mountain… something tells me my opinion on this will change shortly.
Anyhow, given that autumn color has started here in Seoul, I wanted to put up some photos from a quick trip last year to, ahem, Mt. Gwanaksan (관악산), located in Southern Seoul.
Here’s a new video blog about the Cheonggyecheon (청계천), perhaps Seoul’s best-known urban renewal project. To read the original post with photos, go here.
The onset of autumn each year in Seoul often means an uncharacteristic calm and quiet in the city. No, it’s not that over 10 million residents decide to slow down to watch the leaves change. It’s because late September or early October marks Chuseok (추석), Korea’s annual thanksgiving holiday that’s among the most important dates on the Korean calendar.
As a modern city, Seoul has adopted many of the conveniences of our globalized society. So, today, it’s commonplace to see familiar global brands, foreign fast-food chains and the fusion of eastern and western styles and cultures.
Of course, these adaptations are convenient for many of us, yet they often lack the specific Korean cultural flavor that makes living in Seoul a special and unique experience. Luckily, truly Seoul-specific places do remain in the city, and in my experience, some of the best ones are the traditional markets. Among them, my favorite is the Jungang, or Central Market (중앙시장), located near the city’s Great East Gate, better known as Dongdaemun.
I’m getting very excited for the annual danpoong (단풍) or autumn leaves here in Korea. And, thanks to an anonymous commenter, now we have the 2009 “color predication” chart for South Korea (I’ll admit the term is a new one for me).
Anyhow, thanks to David Hasenick’s site and I hope this helps folks plan their autumn trips… I’ve got plans to visit Naejang Mountain, Seorak Mountain, Jusanji and Gyeongju… just hope they all pan out!
I’m always surprised by how quickly a metropolis like Seoul can transform into bucolic countryside, thanks to the city’s efficient rail network. In under an hour and for less than two dollars, one can step out of the hustle of Seoul and into rural Korea.
One of the best places within easy reach is Yangsuri (양수리). Located in Gyeonggi Province’s picturesque Yangseo Township, Seoulites know Yangsuri as a convenient and romantic getaway — the perfect place for a day-trip or weekend escape. Located at the confluence of the north and south forks of the Han River, the island-like Yangsuri is the kind of place that can put an urbanite back in sync with nature..
For over 20 years, the curved pink glass tower known as the 63 or yooksamBuilding (육삼빌딩) has stood on the eastern tip of Yeouido Island. Beyond its beauty, the iconic home of the Daehan Insurance Company was Asia’s tallest skyscraper when it was completed in 1985. As a testament to the skyward race since then, today the tower’s 249 meters don’t even break the world’s top 100 list..
Deep in South Jeolla Province is one of Korean Buddhism’s three most important temples, Songgwangsa (송광사). The name, which translates as the “Extensive Pines Temple,” was originally founded as Kilsangsa about 1,200 years prior during the Silla Dynasty. As one of the nation’s “Buddhist jewels,” Songgwang Temple is one of the main training centers for Korea’s Jogye Son (zen) sect and has produced 16 national masters, including Master Chinul.
I’m in the process of migrating DiscoveringKorea.com to a more flexible blogging software… It will take a few days to re-work the design and fix technical kinks. Afterward, I expect to introduce some great new features.
In 2002, Korea and Japan welcomed the world as joint hosts of the World Cup football tournament. Soccer stadiums were erected all across Korea. Seoul’s World Cup venue was placed at the city’s far western end in a place that many people probably wouldn’t have selected just a few years earlier.
That’s because World Cup Stadium is located next to the Nanjido Landfill, a massive disposal site that operated until 1993. Like any metropolis, Seoul produces millions of tons of garbage, and Nanjido was the nation’s largest uncontrolled landfill. But what may sound like an inauspicious place was transformed into a pretty spectacular one when nature was encouraged to reclaim the land.
Summer may be peak festival season in Korea, but I much prefer traveling during the autumn months, when the temps fall, the leaves turn and the crowds are a little less crazy. What follows are some of Korea’s best autumn festivals. Also be sure to check out the Korea Tourism Organization’s great new interactive festival website (Go here and then look for the festivals icon on the right side).
During Seoul’s hot, late summer weeks, if you’re walking along the colorful streets of the Hongik University neighborhood, you may very well happen upon a seemingly impromptu performance. That’s because for the past 12 years, Seoul has hosted perhaps Asia’s largest Fringe Festival, a three-week showcase of independent and underground art installations.
During the summer, Korea’s national flower, the mugungwha (무궁화) or Rose of Sharon, is in bloom across the city. And each year, August 15th is celebrated as Gwangbokjeol (광복절), or Korean Independence Day. But before Korea’s liberation, millions of Koreans participated in activities to free themselves from Japan’s brutal colonialism. And perhaps the most important site in that struggle is Tapgol Park (탑골공원), in central Seoul’s Jongno District.
Some of the Discovering Korea blog’s recent visitors came here by way of TBS eFM 101.3, and here’s why. Starting this past Saturday, I’m hosting a new travel segment on the Saturday edition of The Steve Hatherly Show, produced by Jin Min.
Just like my other Korea-related travel and culture shows, each week I’ll describe a new destination in Korea. But what’s different is the show’s conversational format. Originally from Canada, Steve has lived in Korea over nine years, and so far it’s been fun to talk with him on the radio about travel opportunities on this beautiful peninsula. Just like my KBS shows, I’ll cross-post content to this blog.
If you’d like to listen to my new show and you’re located in the greater Seoul area, tune into TBS eFM 101.3 MHz on Saturdays, between 14:05-16:00. The show is also available in Busan, Gwangju and elsewhere in Korea. PC-users can listen via TBS’s TOY Internet Radio – a free download is available on their site.
Finally, I’d like to incorporate listener tips and questions, so I hope you’ll send them my way. Have a great week!
August 15th is Gwangbokjeol (광복절) or Korean Independence Day, which celebrates the defeat of the Japanese during WWII and Korea’s liberation after 35 years of oppressive colonial rule.
In honor of the day, let’s head to Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province to visit the Independence Hall of Korea. The extensive complex was opened to the public in 1982, and serves to collect, preserve and display a wealth of data about the Korean civilization, with a special focus on the nation’s early 20th century independence movement against Japan.
On August 1st, 2009 Seoulites welcomed their city’s newest landmark. After 15 months of renovation, Gwanghwamun Plaza (광화문 광장) is now open to the public and is sure to become a major city attraction.
One of the best things about Seoul is its efficient and inexpensive public transit system. It’s a mind-boggling number, but the metro rail system facilitated over two billion passenger rides in 2008. Seoul’s network is the world’s third most heavily used, behind only Tokyo and Moscow.
Today, the massive system consists of 15 lines, with two more to open in the next year. On June 24, 2009, the inaugural journey of Metro Line 9 began at 7:00 am from Gaewha Station (계화역) in western Seoul for its 25.5-kilometer journey to Sinnonhyeon Station (신논현역), in southern Seoul.
I wanted to introduce a new device that I picked up during a quick week spent in the U.S. a couple of weeks ago. So far I’m liking my mino-HD Flip Video camcorder. The picture and sound quality is better than my previous camera, and it’s just easier to use, mostly thanks to its small size and built-in USB.
It’s not all great, however. Things get awfully blurry while panning and the zoom button can be awkward to push. Also, when editing it’s been more difficult to stabilize the video… but overall, so far so good. Now I just need to learn how to use a tripod! I’m looking forward to hearing what you think of future videos. If you have other toys to suggest, I’d like to hear about them.
In June 2009, the United Nations’ scientific and cultural organization, UNESCO, added 40 royal tombs built over five centuries to its list of world heritage sites. The list includes nearly 900 places of cultural or physical significance located in some 148 nations.
Currently, South Korea has nine world treasures on the list, with three of them located inside Seoul. Although most of the Joseon Dynasty’s royal mausoleums are located outside the capital city, eight tombs are within the city’s limits. So to celebrate the honor, we’ll take a look at two of Seoul’s Royal Tombs.
In lieu of the Eiffel Tower or Sydney’s Opera House, Seoul city officials believe that natural landmarks can best symbolize the city. Like the taeguk, the yin-yang symbol at the center of the South Korean flag, the Han River creates harmony as it calmly bisects the massive city.
Thankfully, 12 riverside parks line the Han River. These 40 square kilometers of park lands are visited by nearly 60 million people annually, and ambitious efforts are underway to improve this already impressive network of green space in central Seoul.
Late June is typically when the jangma (장마), or monsoon season hits the Korean Peninsula. This means three weeks or more of heavy downpours, and even when it’s not raining, it’s still muggy and hot. Given these conditions, I thought it time to profile a good place that’s inside and air-conditioned.
The Gangnam Underground Shopping Arcade (강남지하상가) is located beneath the Express Bus Terminal in Seoul’s Seocho District. From the terminal you can take a bus basically anywhere in South Korea. Since three subway lines converge here, you can imagine it’s a busy place. Come here during rush hour and it’s quite a slog trying to move against the current of human bodies that’s transferring between subway lines.
Seoul is always changing. In what feels like just weeks an old neighborhood is razed and huge new apartment towers stand in its place. This dynamism is part of the city’s excitement. But in this relentless push forward, too many of Seoul’s most historic areas are being destroyed. One example is Pimatgol (피맛골), located in the central Jongno District. Read the rest of this entry »
Sorry for the 1.5-week blogging hiatus. I’ve been filling in for a friend at the news side of KBS and haven’t had time to post. But thanks for your patience and I’ll upload a couple of video posts and even a good, ole-fashioned non-video post of a destination outside of Seoul shortly.
When looking at the urban grit of Seoul neighborhoods, you’re forgiven if the words “good design” don’t come to mind. But seeing how quickly South Korea rebuilt after a devastating civil war, it’s not surprising that design just wasn’t a priority.
However, observing traditional Korean architecture and culture, it’s obvious that in times of peace and prosperity, pre-modern Korea honed a highly sophisticated design aesthetic. Which is why today, as a world economic power, it makes sense that South Korea is eager to recover its design legacy. In fact, Seoul’s mayor, Oh Se-hoon (오세훈) has made it one of his top priorities.
Spurred into action by Mr. Michael H.’s recent comment, here is a quick run-down of 12 summertime festivals going on around Korea. They’ll be hot and busy, but that’s what summer in Korea is all about. If you go, I’d love to hear about it!
Muju Firefly Festival (Muju, North Jeolla Province) June 13-21
Hurry down to South Jeolla Province to see one of Korea’s natural monuments in action. The firefly is the inspiration behind this festival, which also includes trout fishing and rafting.
(more info: call +82-63-1330 or visit here [Korean only].)
3rd World Taekwondo Culture Expo (Muju, North Jeolla Province) July 3-10
In the run up to finishing a Taekwondo Park in 2013, the city of Muju holds its expo celebrating Korea’s national sport. Events include an “extreme” Taekwondo performance, a Taekwondo musical and an open tournament. If that’s not enough, participate in making a large vat of Jeonju bibimbap for 1,000 people.
(more info: call +82-63-1330 or visit here.)
On Saturday, an estimated 1,500 people marched along the Cheonggyecheon (청계천) stream in downtown Seoul. The main event of the 10th annual Korea Queer Culture Festival (KQCF) marked South Korea’s largest-ever celebration of homosexuality. The procession was led by a troupe of pungmul folk musicians and three trucks outfitted with rainbow flags, dance platforms and speakers playing Korean pop. Locals wearing “God made Queer” buttons marched with foreign English teachers and teen boys donning mouse ears and pleated skirts.
Seoul’s Incheon Airport (ICN) has received yet more industry plaudits. This time around, the 2009 Skytrax survey of some 8.6 million passengers named Incheon the best airport in the world, edging out perennial favorites Hong Kong International and Singapore Changi International. Free internet, showers, and one-to-six hour guided sightseeing tours while you wait for your connection will do that. I’m a huge fan.
