Korea
In this episode of The Travel Bug I’m taking you to South Korea, a place where the east meets the west, and an ancient culture collides with the modern world. Squashed into the South Korean Peninsula is a population of over 48 million people, with 487 inhabitants per square kilometer…that’s more than 10 times the global average!
Seoul is quite literally the soul of South Korea. It’s the second largest metropolitan city in the world. The high-rises go on forever and there seems to be no end to the sprawl. If you include the entire expanse of this urban giant, which is known as the Seoul National Capital Area, then we’re talking 25 million people!
Changdeok Palace is one of the major tourist drawcards in the city, and attracts more than just international visitors. It was built in 1405 and is one of the Five Grand Palaces built by the kings of the Joseon Dynasty. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site, having been recognized as an outstanding example of Far Eastern palace architecture and garden design, also for the way in which the buildings blend in with the topography of the site, instead of imposing upon nature. This design is largely based around confusion ideology.
The following morning I found my way to the Seoul Museum of Art to checkout the national sport of South Korea and the world’s most popular martial art – taekwondo. Its roots lie thousands of years in the past and today, it’s an Olympic sport that is practiced by both sexes and people of all ages. It’s used to promote strength, flexibility, balance, and most importantly discipline. Taekwondo, or the way of the hand and foot, is far more than just a technique for fighting. It’s a way of life that beautifully reflects the Korean culture.
After working up a sweat on the Taekwondo arena, it was time for something a little more relaxing. So I made my way across town to Itaewon, where I visited a jjimjilbang, which is a Korean dry sauna. Locals have a belief that heat therapy, or as they call it, jjimjil, can help cure minor ailments, boost metabolism and regenerate their bodies lost energy. This is why these dry saunas are hugely popular. Jjimjilbangs are equipped with rest areas, snack bars, spa baths, rooms offering beauty treatments, and are generally for both sexes. They are really cheap to visit and at many of them you can spend the night.
Leaving Seoul I made my way to one of Korea’s biggest festivals, but on the way there I stopped in the city of Suwon at Hwaseong Fortress. Here I tried traditional Korean archery before spending the afternoon exploring the fortress grounds. It sits in the middle of a major Korean metropolis that houses over a million inhabitants. The fortress walls once encircled the entire city, but modern urbanisation has seen Suwon spread far beyond the ramparts. Though, the stronghold still dominates the landscape and plays a huge role in shaping the daily lives of the people here and reminding them of their countries past.
Continuing my journey from Seoul I left Suwon and eventually made it to the costal town of Boryeong. There are countless events held around this nation throughout the year, and the one that attracts the most international visitors is the Boryeong Mud Festival. Each year, mud is dug up from nearby flats, trucked into the beach and dumped at a ‘Mud Experience Land’. Festivities continue day and night, and include mud slides, mud wrestling and mud massages – basically all things mud!
Leaving the coast I traveled inland a couple of hours to explore the region around the city of Yeoju. I visited a peaceful town called Oaem-ri folk village. It’s a living museum that preserves the old ways of Korea from 500 years in the past. Walking through the streets you are taken back to the traditional roots of life in a farming community. Artifacts from centuries ago, such as water mills and the totem pole guardians at the entrance to the village, all add to the atmosphere.
Next I traveled to one of Korea’s most sacred sites, the tomb of arguably their most beloved leader, King Sejong the Great. He was the ruler of Korea from 1418 to 1450 and amongst other things, invented a sundial, a rain gauge and a celestial globe. Though it was his development of the ingenious 24 letter Korean alphabet, which enabled people of all classes to become literate, that has had the biggest influence.
From the peaceful grounds of the tomb I traveled north-east to an area outside the city of Sokcho, a place where the mountains meet the sea. I went there and headed into Seoraksan National Park to see a part of South Korea that often goes unexplored by travellers, and to be in a place where the air is clean and clear, to experience a very rare astronomical phenomenon.
From the park I headed to a Buddhist temple that runs a program where people are able to stay there for a night and live the life of a monk. Each day usually starts with a 4am, pre-dawn prayer session, then the hours are passed with meditation, prayers and communal meals. There are various other activities, but for the most part, it’s about gaining a better understanding of Korean Buddhism and attempting to find your true self amongst the harmony of nature and the temple.
My trip to Korea was coming to an end, but on my way back to Seoul I made the foolish mistake of wanting to stop the bus and have a quick look at something that caught my eye on the roadside…bungee jumping!
