By Jihyun Noh and Jiwoo Lee
If you are the type of person who keeps writing a travel bucket list, you probably have destinations all over the world. However, you should think about many factors when choosing destination, such as security, cost, weather and culture. Considering all of them, especially, culture, exploring Korea will be valuable trip in your college life.
Last week, "Korean Idol" group, BTS appeared on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and proved the popularity of K-pop. Besides this "Korean Wave" of music, one can experience various cultures that depict Korean, including food, history and play.
Here are six travel experiences to try.
Experiencing Han-bok (traditional clothes of Korea) in palaces: Everyone wants to the experience of being a princess, prince, king or queen once in a lifetime. If you come to Korea's palace, you can easily achieve your dream.
We recommend Gyeong-bok Palace, which is the oldest palace in Korea (built in 1392), and translates to "enjoy the great blessing." Even though more than 50 percent of this palace was burned during the Japanese colonial period, one can see the architectural beauty of traditional Korean culture.
Wearing traditional clothes of Korea, Han-bok, can be a special chance to experience real culture by walking the palace as if you were a prince or a princess in the Joseon Dynasty. One can also get a great selfie and make special memories with a friend not only in palace, but only the Buk-chon village that the senior officials of Joseon Dynasty lived in.
For more information about borrowing Han-bok, go these websites,
http://www.seohwahanbok.com/ https://seochonnadri.modoo.at/. Hours of operation are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (January-February; closed on Tuesday). Closing time changes depending on the season. If you are under 18, you can only pay $1.38 (1,500KRW), and if you wear Han-bok, you don't have to pay admission fee.
Plus, a last Wednesday "Culture Day" offers free admission for everyone. If you go to Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5) or Gyeongbokgung Station (Line 3), you can find it easily. Find more information here:
http://www.royalpalace.go.kr:8080/#
Riding bike in U-do (East Island of Jeju): If you are the person who really likes going outside when you get stressed, we recommend riding bicycle in U-do.
U-do is a small island that can be reached in 15 minutes by boat on the east side of Jeju Island. In two hours, one can ride a bicycle and make a right turn, seeing seven outstanding sceneries such as three beaches that are popular for their unique colors and lighthouse. As of this year, cars are prohibited, so visitors can enjoy nature more.
Except for 10 minutes of breathtaking uphill, you'll be able to blow away all the stress you've been taking while you come down, crossing the cool wind. Most people only have half a day and then go back to the land, but why not take a day off to stay here?
This Island is famous for making quality peanut rice wine. We recommend eating this rice wine together with the raw fish and water lilies here. When you return to the U.S., we are sure you will have it in your hand.
Also, we want to recommend a unique guest house that can have a seafood and rice wine party with a variety of people who come to freedom from all over Korea, and you can taste delicious local food in the morning for free. It's guaranteed to be the best taste.
For more information, visit
https://soseombadang.modoo.at/. Average fee of renting bicycle is $9.20 (10,000KRW) for three hours. Do not worry; you can easily rent a bicycle near marina. From Jeju Airport, take Exit 2 and take the 110-1 or 110-2 bus. Cost is 4000 KRW and it takes about one hour to go to Seongsanpo port. You can take boat to go to U-do.
Participating in a local festival: What do you think is the most important factor for festivals to succeed nowadays? We think it's capturing the eyes and mouth of the audiences for a reasonable price.
We introduce the newly emerged festival that best reflects this trend. Do you know the word "Chimac"? It is a compound word for enjoying chicken and beer together. This festival, which has started to revitalize the traditional chicken market economy of Dea-gu, consists of five parts. In chimac premium zone, one can enjoy chicken and beer with 1,300 people - and also join the EDM party at 9 p.m.
In Chimac Live Pub, one can taste various types of hand-made beer and imported beer in an oversized tent. The jazz and indie bands will perform, and a and cocktail and chicken competition will be held, too.
"Why don't you go there and try a variety of chicken and beer with reasonable price? I ate five kinds of chicken at one-third the price," Seo da-bin (24) said.
If you are lucky, you can get a chance to try them for free.
No permission fee, near subway station. Just go to Duryu Park and enjoy! This festival will be held in third week of July (schedule can be changed).
Walking in the Moonlight - Naksan Park: It is a big misunderstanding if you thought there is only Namsan Tower, which is a good place to see night view in Seoul.
Naksan Park, a castle road that covers Seoul's subway Hyehwa Station and Hansung University Station, offers a new sight that cannot be seen in Namsan Tower.
The way you get off the subway and walk up to Naksan Park is a charming point of walking. There is no official road to the park, but the footsteps that you are walking on can be a road to reach there.
There is a laundry built on a steep hill, a café that is lit under a faint streetlight, and houses that make supper and smell like stew. As you climb up the castle road, you will see the bustling city of Seoul under your feet.
There is no admission fee, and the park always opens 24 hours a day, so whenever you want to walk along, you can start. If you are afraid of getting lost, go to Hyehwa Station Exit 2 and look for the Maroney Park on the left. Several signs from Maroney Park will lead you to the entrance of the park.
Meeting NANTA performance: Would you believe there is a sword-waving exhibition throughout the performance? NANTA is a percussion performance made in Korea in 1997, where the sounds are created by tapping the things commonly seen in everyday life. If you see actors wielding a knife and knocking a chopping board in front of you with a bat, you will feel the excitement that you have never experienced before. It will take away the tension and stress that strangely wrapped you up these days. You may be stretching your palms and hitting your knees hard.
It can be easily found in many cities in Korea, including Seoul, Daejeon, Daegu, Busan, Gwangju and Jeju. Instructions for further explanation and reservation can be found at
https://www.nanta.co.kr:452/en/.
Riding in the Moonlight - Gyeongju: Gyeongju is the place where elementary school students in Korea go on their school excursions. Boasting a long history and called the kingdom of the millennium, Gyeongju is attractive during the day, but it is even more beautiful at night. Many of the sites that make up Gyeongju are close together. Therefore, it is easy to go around sightseeing places by bicycle even in dark night.
The reason why Gyeongju is more attractive at night is because the sites are beginning to shine beautifully at night. Recommended course is, before the sun goes down, eating dinner with Ssambam, the Korean traditional food that pairs rice and meat with a variety of vegetables, and then going to the grave, Cheonmachong with sunset, seeing Cheomseongdae where the evening light turned on, and taking the pictures of Anapji in the pond in the Donggung and Wolji. Do not forget to buy a famous Gyeongju bread on the road and eat it as a snack when you walk around the city.
Bicycle rentals are available at many stores in Gyeongju city. Rental times and fees are different. If you want to take a leisurely stroll through the night of the Gyeongju, it is also possible to walk around without renting a bicycle. The web site below is the address of the tourism office that has easy to see the map and highlights in Gyeongju:
http://guide.gyeongju.go.kr/deploy/eng/.