So you thought that spring had already sprung upon us, but last night & today there’s snow & freezing-rain, and it’s going to be at or below zero from the rest of the week… Well, Korea’s always like that, a “false spring” in late February is quite common; they say “the wind envies the flowers” or something like that (tells you a lot about Korean society, right there!). However, following this last desperate “surge” of the cold, the glories of springtime will indeed be flowering across the peninsula, and that means it’ll be time to “get out of the door, light out and look around” again (as the good ol’ GD sang), time to spend your weekend days going around to see all the great places hear you haven’t been to yet, hopefully in pleasant company…
The Royal Asiatic Society’s Korea Branch offers guided tours almost every weekend, to a wide variety of places of natural beauty or cultural interest (usually both together). They are often led by expert expats who show and explain interesting stuff that you might never see or know on your own. Some of the destinations are among “Korea’s greatest hits” like Gyeongju or Seorak-san, while others are places you’ve never heard of yet are quite worth your while to visit. Great opportunities for photography always abound.
The RAS is a non-profit organization, and these tours are quite reasonably priced, often cheaper than if you drove your own car to these places; members get a further 10% discount. This is a good chance to see some great places and meet some new people who are also interested in Korea. See the first two responses to this topic for a list of the tours being offered in the next month. As always, more complete information and making reservations is available by looking on the RAS website and then calling 763-9483.
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Sat 3/10: Pottery Kiln Tour of Icheon Area (1 hour from Seoul)
One of our best “visual aid” tours! A trip to the kilns of the masters to watch them create masterpieces from clay to celadon and porcelain, viewing time-honored traditions at work. The city of Icheon has long been one of Korea’s great ceramic-production centers, and today several leading artists have their studios there. You can buy some of their reproductions of Korea’s national-treasure pottery, or original-design ceramic artworks, if you wish. We often also visit an onggi (big kimchi jar) workshop on our way back. (w34,200 for non-members, w28,500 for members)
Sun 3/11: Sujong-sa Temple, Donggu-neung and Geumgok Hong-neung Tombs
A pleasant day spent driving along the beautiful North Han River Valley, just above Seoul, starting with a 90-minute RT hike to the temple of Sujong-sa [Water-Bell Temple] nestled beneath two majestic ginkgo trees near the crest of the northern mountains, a walk that offers great views, then a scenic drive along the Han riverbank on our way to exploring the Donggu-neung (East Nine Tombs) and Namyangju’s Geumgok-dong Hong-neung & Yu-neung, (tombs of the last two Joseon kings, some of the most elaborate royal tombs in Korea, with excellent stoneworks).
(w39,000 for non-members, w32,500 for members)
Sun 3/18: KTX Bullet-Train One-Day Tour of BUSAN
You may have passed through Busan, Korea’s second-largest city of 4 million bustling residents, on your way to or from somewhere else or to party with some of its legions of multinational expats, but have you ever really seen its sights? This trip is a chance to tour all the most famous ones (except Beomeo-sa) in one long day, going round-trip from Seoul on the new KTX 7am to 10:30pm. We will visit Yongdu-san Park (views of the city), then the famously dynamic Jagalchi Fish Market, the scenic Taejong-dae cliffs, the UN Memorial Cemetery, the City Museum and the Haeun-dae bay (with one of Korea’s most famous beaches, the APEC Conference Building & Garden, memorial for Choi Chi-won, and optionally the Busan Aquarium.
(w143,000 for non-members, w123,000 for members, covers transportation and guiding only; bring or buy your own meals)
Sat 3/24: MA-I-SAN [Horse-Ears Mountains] and the MUJU Gucheon-dong Valley
I want to especially recommend this one, as i myself will be leading it, and it visits some of the most beautiful scenery in the nation (especially with the cherry blossoms blooming!) and one of Korea’s most fascinating and visually-amazing cultural sites.
We will journey by bus to the NE corner of North Jeolla Province, formerly very remote but now easily accessible by the new expressway running through there. We will first visit Muju’s Hanpung-ru Pavilion, last remodeled in 1783, considered one of the three finest old pavilions in its province. Then we proceed into the lovely but little-visited Deokyusan National Park, taking a two-hour round-trip hike to the legendary Baeknyeon-sa [White Lotus Temple] deep in “Muju Gucheon-dong” long known as one of the prettiest valleys in Korea.
After lunch at a nearby restaurant, we’ll drive over to Tap-sa [Pagoda Temple] in Ma-i-san Provincial Park – a place so spectacular that if you haven’t been there yet, you really gotta go there, that’s all i can say. Check this out: http://san-shin.org/newdis-02.html
I’ll do my best to thoroughly explain what’s going on here to everybody… it’s on every tourism calendar and brochure these days, truly one of Korea’s most attractive, characteristic and evocative tourist sites.
(w46,200 for non-members, w38,500 for members covers transportation, entrance fees and guiding only; bring or buy your own lunch & snacks)
Sun 3/25: Danyang Area, with Worak-san National Park, Gosu Cave and Boat Trip on Chungju Lake with Cheongpung Cultural-Folklore Village
More natural splendor in the center of the nation. Robert posted some great photos and information about this area last fall… a great day spent in the spring weather!
(w52,200 for non-members, w43,500 for members covers transportation, entrance fees, boat-tix and guiding only; bring or buy your own lunch & snacks)
Sun 4/1: Walking Tour of Seoul’s less-known Joseon-Dynasty Buildings
One of the RAS is most popular tours, for good reason; i’ve taken it twice. From 9am through 3:30pm we follow Peter Bartholomew, the top Western expert on Joseon architecture and city-planning (does his own show on Arirang-TV sometimes), around northern central Seoul. He thoroughly explains the cultural and historical background of the Seoul palaces and other remaining Joseon architectural landmarks, as well as some rare and recently excavated or reconstructed royal treasures, showing and teaching things you never would have seen or known on your own.
(w10,000 per person, bring or buy your own lunch)