Korea Archives • Folksy Travel by Bill Smale

May 28, 2023May 28, 2023

Jeju Island has been a desired destination for 40 years. Finally i land here to find it very developed, with a lot of scenic views and a very welcoming atmosphere in this semi autonomous part of Korea. If you visit i highly recommend renting a car. Buses are few or far between especially the journeys to opposite sides of the island.

After lemonade everything else becomes an “ade”

The south side of Jeju has some nice waterfalls

This is a volcanic island so expect scenery similar to the big island of Hawaii

A fighter against the Japanese Imperial Army

Have you ever seen this excellent a portrait of an honest chicken?

May 20, 2023May 20, 2023

Gwangju – Korea (another break from Europe)

The photo above would indicate that Gwangju is a town of ancient automobiles, but actually, it is very much a university town. We thought the most interesting part of the area would be the bamboo forest, so that’s where we went.

This forest is often used for television and movie production

Bears, real or fake, enjoy being in this forest

May 19, 2023May 19, 2023

Gyoengju – Korea (a break from Europe)

This city is one of the most important cities in Korean culture. It is the birthplace of the Kim family. Several stories passed by me. One is the Silla king had a phoenix lay a golden egg in front of him and a baby popped out. Kim in Korean, Chinese and Japanese means GOLD! In my travels here, once 45 years ago, the streets had no golden eggs laying around but I am sure there were many Kims.

This is an astrological observatory built in the 7th century. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheomseongdae)

people do these rock towers for good luck

there are many dozens of these tombs around the city. they look like large mounds

the almost ccompletely rebuilt “traditional town” (model) with the walking bridge on the right

a school for manga and animation creation, a huge Korean export

an excavation site around a former castle

May 5, 2023May 5, 2023

Seoul – first stop

what’s the first thing that comes to mind when you first step off the plane in Seoul? For me, it’s food! But that’s because I’ve been eating Korean food since 1976 and very religiously. Kimchi was something I always kept in my refrigerator for at least three portions a week. But this city has really a lot to offer in terms of modernization and things of interest. Koreans have a tremendous sense of their own history and culture so going around the city you’ll find many parks and places where they are trying to restore some of the very old historical buildings. You also find many people including foreigners dressing in traditional Korean outfits (HanBok) to visit those traditional castles and temples. But my first impressions of Seoul were, The transportation is excellent and everything else in the city reminds me so much of Tokyo. This is a very clean, organized, and easy to get around city.