강원도 여행
Friday, May 9th, 2008
I had a really long weekend recently and decided to take a short personal vacation. I headed off to 강원도 a province on the north-eastern edge of Korea. It is famous for the mountains and beaches, but I was just looking to get out of 서울. All of my long-distance travel within Korea has been by train or car, so I decided to take busses this time around. I boght a ticket for 강릉 and settled in what turned out to be a 4hr drive. It should have taken around 2~3 hours, but I guess everyone else had the same idea! I was hoping to speak as little English as possible on this trip, and since I was travelling alone, I stood a pretty good chance to getting to do just that. When I got to 강릉 the first thing I did was find a PC방. When travelling in Korea, it’s always a good idea to go there first. I used it to get my bearings in the city using Naver maps, and try to locate a good 찜질방 to spend the night in. With all my information, I sat out to get a taxi. I wanted to practice a particular pattern in the real world, something new from my class: It works out to “what’s a good thing to…….?” or “what’s the best way to…….?”
So, I started my conversation with the taxi driver:
저는 강릉에 처음이라서 뭐 하는게 좋을까요?
This is my first time in 강릉, what should I do?
He responded by listing all the things that were on my tourist map, so I guess I had sucessfully asked the question. He recommended going to the beach, seeing some old traditional houses and temples, etc. And of course eating 회 fresh, raw seafood. So he dropped me off at the 찌질방 and I went off to find dinner. I stumbled across a 왕갈비집 a few blocks away. They were advertising one serving for 8,000 원. However, I haven’t had much success at these places ordering by myself. They aren’t so into that, and usually require that you order two servings. But since I was eating alone, I had to ask the 아줌마 about that:
안녕하새요? 혹시 혼자서 주문하면도 돼요?
Hello, excuse me, but is it alright if I order by myself?
She turned around and looked at me and imediately responded with:
돌어오세요! Come on in!
I ordered a mamoth sized portion of marinated pork with all of the fixings. It was delicous and I had a really pleasant conversation with the 아저씨 who was cooking my meal for me.
In the morning, the weather was looking pretty awful. I went to a convienience store to have some yogurt and juice and get a recommendation about what to do.
ME: 오늘 날씨가 안좋아서 뭐하는게 좋을까요?
Today’s weather isn’t so good, so what is there that’s good to do?
CLERK: 어린이날이라니까 어린이랑 놀았으면 좋겠죠?
Today is children’s day, so wouldn’t it be good to play with your kids?
ME: 사실은 어린이 없으면…
Actually, I dont have any kids…
CLERK: 없으면은 그녕 여자친구랑 지내 보새요
If you don’t have kids, then just spend time with your girlfriend.
ME: 근데 혼자서 왔어요.
I came here alone!
CLERK: 혼자서 왔군요. 그런데 바다에 가보고 경포대에서 구경해 보세요.
Oh you came alone. In that case, go to the beach and also do some sightseeing at 경포대.
I didn’t really leave that conversation with anymore information than before, but I headed to the beach. (The weather cleared up just a short while later) That’s where the picture came from! There isn’t much more to say about the trip. I also went to the nearby town of 속초. But I really enjoy travelling around Korea outside of Seoul. It is where I can really see the benefits of my Korean study.
Posted by 오민 (Austin) in Travels in Korea, Explore Korea |
May 10th, 2008 at 12:37 am
Are these rocks? I can’t figure out what they really are..
Wow, 8 thousand won, is that cheap? Do you get a drink for that, too? I suppose such prices can only be found outside Seoul… And was the kalbichip a big place or just sort of a tent?
May 10th, 2008 at 3:10 am
Being a foreigner, do Koreans ask you a lot of questions (where are you from, what brought you to Korea, where did you learn Korean)? Or are they more reserved? I imagine they would be curious, but probably not ask everything they were wondering, out of politeness.
Beautiful scenery…I can’t wait for my vacation. Not for a while yet
May 10th, 2008 at 11:44 am
(..is jealous)
May 10th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
Austin - you’re doing exactly what I plan on doing in late July - unfortunately, that’s during the rainy season, isn’t it?
Anyways, yeah here’s an older photo of a more “close up” on those “armor units” on the beach. http://s104.photobucket.com/albums/m166/matthew254/?action=view¤t=2441_1185155249.jpg
Keep us informed Austin!
May 10th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
유리시…Well, they are manufactured rocks. Think of small metal jacks, only the size of a VW beetle.
It wasn’t a large place. I think that maybe only 20 people could be eating at the same time. 8,000원 isn’t all that cheap. Outside of Seoul, you do get more for the money, but 8,000 is a pretty normal price for one serving of 왕갈비. And no, that never includes a drink. I ordered a beer also to inflate my bill, so they would like me, since I was eating alone. ^^
Bouks… I have all kinds of conversations. Some people are very reserved But I don’t think it’s because they are trying to be too polite. I think they are reserved because they don’t really know how much Korean I can speak, and are hesitiant to have a conversation with me. This is the case with most of my coworkers. When people ask questions there are a few that almost ALWAYS get asked: Where are you from? Why are you in Korea? Do you like spicy food? Then they usually make some comment about how I can speak Korean so well. Sometimes that leads to questions about why I am studying Korean. It rarely gets beyond that, unless I know the person, or they are a taxi driver. Maybe 2/3 of the time, a taxi driver will indulge me in a decent conversation, but I almost never use a taxi. ㅠㅠ
And, sometimes they ask all kinds of questions. I’ve been asked about my salary before. But at the time, I had no idea how to say the number in Korean.
I was really pleased that only a few people complimented me on my Korean. If you get through a 2-3 sentence converstaion with a Korean 9 times out of 10 they will say “한국말 잘 하시네요!” It’s nice to be complimented, but usually I hear that after I’ve said something as basic as “안녕하세요” or “미국에서 왔어요” I hardly think that saying 2 simple sentences means I can speak Korean well.
Matthew… Yes, I expect it be raining almost non-stop during July. That is the wost month for rain. Ah, well!
May 12th, 2008 at 6:32 am
Hey, I went on a weekend trip to Sokcho a few years ago when I was studying abroad and visited that same beach! We went for the fall foliage at 설악산. We even ate at a 갈비집 there. Who knows if it was the same one, though, because we just told the taxi driver to take us to *any* 고기집.
May 12th, 2008 at 6:35 am
And apparently the purpose of that jetty is two-fold: to slow down erosion of the beach, and to thwart North Korean amphibious landers.
May 12th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
저 바위들 위에 서서 파도를 맞으면 정말 시원할 것 같아!!
요즘에 날씨가 더워지니까 그런 생각을… ㅎㅎ
May 12th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
As you know, 오민, I was in 강원도 that weekend, too. I remembered seeing those “jacks” and wondering about them.
Most people I encountered only spoke Korean, so of course I had to practice my Korean with them, and they were usually impressed. Near 오색온천, the hot springs area, the hotel man spoke excellent English, and told us about the hot springs. That was a real surprise!
It is nice to be complimented on one’s Korean, but it means a little more after trying to have a more sophisticated conversation, as opposed to “where are you from? what brings you to Korea” conversations.
May 15th, 2008 at 4:58 am
Don’t feel any encouragement after being told I’m good for just saying a few daily sentences…kinda makes u sad, coz, like, every new person 1 out of 2 wil tell the same polite formula no matter what my level is… and some long-term acquaints, who’s words are important are more objective, coz they can really appreciate the progress i’ve made, so when they do say it was good, gosh how good it feels!) but not so often though..T.T
May 16th, 2008 at 12:44 am
What’s staying overnight in a 찜질방 like? Is it allowed? Are all 찜질방 open 24 hrs?
May 16th, 2008 at 8:45 am
Well, 찜질방 is a unique experience altogether. You can read a great over view here:
http://wiki.galbijim.com/Jjimjilbang
Sleeping is hit or miss depending on lots of factors^^ I don’t really love sleeping there, but will do it since the cost is between 1/5 and 1/10 of what a hotel-style room would cost. There is usually a dark room (often they are separated for men and women) called 수면실 or “sleeping room.” There are usually mats, and sometimes pillows and blankets. Some people also sleep in the wide common areas as well. The cleanliness of it all is a bit dubious unless you can get a fresh blanket from the counter…anyway, I just make sure to shower well in the morning!
With so many people sleeping in the same room, it can be noisy and a bit annoying with the snoring and occasional ringing cell phone… but I put up with a lot to pay so little!
May 16th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Sleeping in a 찜질방 is one of my top recommendations for a foreigner to experience in Korea. It’s really great to wash all of that grime from the air off and just chill. I used to go about every couple weeks.
I even stayed overnight at a 찜질방 way out in 까치산 the time that I took a wrong train coming home from a friend’s and got stranded when the subway closed down. (No thank you, several 만원 taxi fare. You can rip someone else off tonight.)
May 17th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Jeff ㅋㅋㅋ… I definitely would have done the same thing.