After the European winter hibernation, we found we were pining for a bit of Asia, the sights, the people and above all, the food…so the April holidays in NL gave us a great opportunity to have a bit of an extended trip to introduce ourselves to Korea.
This blog will give you some basics, and we’ll follow up with some more detailed blogs on some specific spots linked in.
A bit about Korea
The Republic of Korea is what most of you will know as South Korea , together with its northern neighbour The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (yes, really!) drops down as a peninsula from the south eastern corner of China.
5 millennia of history that has seen mythical rulers, Kings, Emperors, Invaders (Japan made Korea a colony in 1910), Wars (notably the Korean war of 1949/50) has now culminated into this Asian Tiger that rules the world of electronics, heavy industry and Pop Music!
A Super modern country today but as you visit you’ll see that the country reserves a special place for the Joseon era (14th – 20th centuries) in much of the architecture, traditions, costumes and mannerisms.
Why Go?
Wonderful people, centuries of history, K-Pop, dressing up in traditional hanbok outfits in even more traditional hanok villages, cherry blossom, green mountains to explore, mist enveloped temples to contemplate, and a glimpse over the border to the North from the DMZ.
Oh and of course the food..Korea is all about the food – BBQ, bibimbap, kimchi, the freshest seafood, crispy fried chicken, noodles (both hot and cold), banchan (the prolific side dishes you get with each meal), street food, market food, fast food, slow food, royal banquets;
to say that food is important here would be an understatement, it is a gourmand’s paradise where every event is accompanied by food and even going for a drink requires some snacks be had with them.
Where streets and parts of towns are even named according to their specialty.
Practice your chopsticks before you arrive though as you’ll only find spoons (and the occasional lost-looking fork) as the other piece of cutlery. And don’t be surprised to find scissors on your meal table, they are not there for some mid-dinner paper crafts but are used to cut large pieces of bbq meat or to get your noodles down to an acceptable slurping length.
And how to select and find your restaurant…age seems to be important and you’ll find the ‘since date’ on most restaurants…also very handy when you cannot read hangeul, you can search out your destination by its year!
When to go?
There are two main periods to go…spring (around mid april) when the days get a bit warmer and the trees explode with cherry blossom…this was our chosen time;
and autumn when the colours of fall decorate the beautiful hills and mountains…that we want to go back for as it looks like it will be beguiling at that time of year.
Getting there and around
Upon landing at Incheon International Airport, give yourself some time to cover off some preparation work before moving on – get some cash (credit cards are popular, but cash is still better for transport, tolls and out of the way places); and pick up a personal wifi hotspot, an awesome essential that will keep you connected for your whole stay, just 4 Eur a day if you pick up from the airport from a provider like SK or get a super deal of 2 Eur p/d unlimited data by booking through Trazy. Wifi is in plenty of places in Korea, but the freedom of your own hotspot (like in the car on on public transport) is great and will allow for Instagram posts no matter how remote you are.
Then catch the 40 minute (Arex) train into Seoul, spend a few days to aclimatise by exploring the capital and then pick up a rental car and explore all!
Renting and driving a car here is super easy…highways criss-cross the country and driving is relatively controlled…and feel like an arcade game at times with all the lights, bings and bongs along the way (do remember to get a international driving license before you go).
We rented via Lotte/Avis, paying about 35 Eur p/d for our small but perfectly formed Kia Morning. It’s a bit of a handicap that Google maps does not give directions in Korea, so you’ll have to use a local version such as Naver or Kakao but cars like the Kia come fully spec’d up with integrated satnav in English.
We did not drive in Seoul, but almost everywhere else had good cheap /free parking, so no worries there. Outside of Seoul, you’ll also find a lot of attractions and sites that need a car to get to, otherwise you’ll be relying on buses, that Matt just hates to do (even if driven by Kitty)!
For discounts on transport and things to do (especially in Seoul) check out Klook, and a bit of pre-booking will save you a fair few Won.
Where to go?
With your own car and short stops you could probably do a circuit of the peninsula in 10 days and get in all of introductory sites, but we gave ourselves 2.5 weeks to spend a bit longer in a few places…not long enough to do everything, but a great introduction.
Go clockwise or counter clockwise as you wish, here we’ll split up the trip into:
Seoul and surrounds – for the bright lights, food and cosmetic shopping heaven of Myeongndong,
where free samples will enhance your beauty!
trendy Gangnam,
the historic heart of Gwanghwamun,
and daytrip to Suwon with its crazy poo house museum!
The DMZ – a daytrip from Seoul but a world away and a chance to see across one of the world’s most heavily fortified borders…although it looks like the purpose of the border is in trying to prevent it of the hordes of selfie grabbing tourists that line up ready to invade the North!
The West (particularly the regions of Jeolllabuk-do and Jeollanam-do) – where you will find the traditional village of Jeonju to stay in a hanok and explore in your Hanbok
to tuck into the original bibimbap
and wash it down with some milky makgeolli (unfiltered rice wine);
The bamboo forest of Damyan
and the spectacular Green Tea terraces of Boseon.
Busan and surrounds – seafood, hot springs and spas, beaches, the colourful cultural village of Gamcheon
and a couple of the country’s most stunning temples and friendliest monks
The East (the regions of Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gangwon-do) – endless attractions to keep the roaming tourist occupied, from historical villages,
waterfall treks,
and manicured phallic parks!
This itinerary is by no means all that Korea has to offer but should give you a great taster of this wonderful country. One particular missing spot for us is the paradise island of Jeju, but rest assured we will get to it in the future.
So if you want to know more then check the links above to the different areas and enjoy the royal banquet that is Korea!