Plans changed slightly when we were told that a bad storm was coming and we might become stranded on the island if we decided to go. Instead, we chose a small town about 3 hours away that was having a theater festival that weekend. The town was called Geochang and when we arrived, we were all pleasantly surprised by the large amounts of grass, trees and flowers. These are things that are not commonly seen in Busan.
Our first priority was to find a place to sleep for the night. This town was extremely old and some of the Korean traditional houses (Hanoks) dated back 300 years! Unfortunately, due to the popularity of the festival going on, there were no rooms left anywhere!
Nam went out in search of a room while Migon, Amy and I walked around and observed the area. We came across this large tree (which was said to be 600 years old!) with a patio beneath it. When we walked closer, we were greeted by a group of old men. They were so friendly and so interested that “Americans” would visit their town. Amy and I had a nice time interacting with them while Migon translated. We got to talking and they suggested that there might be a person who would let us sleep in their house.
Nam was still on the search when we were led to a room in a family’s house that they were offering us for the night. It wasn’t super traditional, but it was a place to sleep and that was fine for us.
We later found out that pretty much the entire town is one large family and their spouses. Everyone works together in this close knit community and it seems like there is a great sense of unity.
After we put our things away in our room, we went back outside in search of food… we were all famished by this point. There was a small restaurant that we went into and Nam took care of the ordering (It’s so nice to travel with people who speak the language… not everything is such a struggle). When our food came out, it was a HUGE platter of chicken, veggies, potatoes and sauce all eaten with rice and small side dishes. There was more than enough and it definitely hit the spot!
As we were dining on the floor, Amy was the first one to sprawl out after overeating… the food was delicious, but we were all rather full by the end. We decided a nice walk would be nice. Goechang has a large river that runs through it and it’s the perfect place to walk or play in the water. We went for a stroll and got our feet wet… it was so nice to be back in nature!
There were many things going on in the area. Huge groups of people were camping and the smell of a campfire made me extremely nostalgic for my family’s annual ‘cousin camp’. it was great to see so many children outdoors interacting with their families and having a great time.
We had planned to go back to our room, get our swimming gear and head down to the river to swim but there was an announcement saying that heavy rain was approaching. This sped up the process a bit and we decided to go into the water immediately.
Now, the thing about Korea is that people are very conservative. At the beach, it’s rare that you’ll see a Korean in a bathing suit; usually they’ll go swimming in shorts and a t-shirt or even jeans! The river was no different, people were swimming in full, outfits. This posed a slight problem for me because I didn’t want to be walking around with wet clothes for the next two days SO I decided that I would go in the river in my underwear and tank top.
When I mentioned this idea, Nam was slightly horrified and told me that people would stare at me. This is not new news for me though, because people always stare, so what’s the difference?!? In the end Amy, Migon and I went in slightly scantily clad while Nam sported her capris and t-shirt.
It was really enjoyable being in the water. Although it was slightly cold, we had fun splashing around and floating on the tube Nam bought. It was a beautiful evening and we were surrounded by nature and laughter.
After we came out, we grabbed some munchies and headed back to our room. There was a little girl talk, a lot of chocolate and then everyone drifted off.
The next morning we got up bright and early. Migon took a bus back but Nam, Amy and I decided to keep on exploring for the day. It was forecasted to be strong rain and a possible storm but by mid-morning the sun was shining and it was beautiful! We took a walk around the town to see all of the beautiful historic hanoks. The landscape was SO different from Busan. In Busan, it’s rare to see grass or a tree; here there was vegetation everywhere—so refreshing! I didn’t realize how much I’d miss nature, but when you’re in a city crammed with 4 million people, there not a lot of room for gardens and lawns.
After our walk we packed up and took a taxi. During our taxi ride, Nam was talking with the driver and he told her about this beautiful park about 30 minutes away. Instead of going to our original plans, we decided to take the driver’s advice and he took us to Namwon.
This area was also a beautiful camping spot with a river. The day had cleared up beautiful and it was the perfect weather. We hiked up this big hill and came to a Buddhist temple at the top. There weren’t many people around so we freely explored the grounds and even rang the bell.
The temples here are so intricate and beautiful. You can see the immense work and dedication that goes into building them. I’m always interested when I see someone bowing down and saying their prayers in front of a Buddha. Although it’s not something I believe, it’s interesting to witness it.
After the temple we walked around and came across this big, beautiful waterfall. It looked so natural and powerful. We kept exploring and eventually walked out to the water’s edge where we put our feet in. I walked out a little but could barely take two steps because the current was so strong, I’d get washed away.
We kept wandering and soon came to an area where there were many people playing in the water. Again, Amy and I had our suits on while everyone else was fully clothed. This area was great because the current wasn’t too strong but it was still fun.
The most interesting thing was that the constant stream of water had eroded a water slide out of a large rock. Beneath it, the water was very deep so you could ride down this water slide and then plunge into the water below… very thrilling!
I was slightly nervous to do it at first but then I saw an older lady go in and have a blast and I thought if she can do it, so can I. Nam isn’t a strong swimmer and she was nervous about going in so she put her tube around herself, Amy helped her at the top and I was waiting for her at the bottom. When she did it, she loved it!
We spent hours playing and lounging in the water… a great way to spend time together and to relax. When we got hungry we ordered some food at a nearby restaurant and discussed how wonderful the past couple of days had been.
Eventually, we took a bus back to the larger area of town and then boarded a bus back to Busan. The bus was supposed to take 3 1/2 hours but it ended up taking almost 5 due to traffic and I have recently realized that I’ve inherited my mother’s poor ability to travel. I was feeling very carsick on the ride home and Nam was so great and tried to find things to help me… she was being such an awesome ‘mother’.
I was happy when we got back to Busan but even more pleased about the past couple of days. What an awesome way to spend summer vacation!
