Damyang Bamboo Forest

First time I read about Damyang Bamboo Forest (담양대나무숲) was from a chapter in Yonsei KLI reading textbook about the Damyang Bamboo Festival and it sounded like a pretty cool place. On the continuation of my road trip with Hannah & Noah (see part 1 & part 2 here), we stopped by this place to check out the forest. I gotta say it didn't live to my expectations, or maybe I was just imagining too much stuff when I read that article on the textbook. Plus, we went there not during the festival week, so it's a pretty regular day with nothing much going on. It's still pretty tho. 

One thing that I found weird was they have these non-realistic-looking plastic pandas scattered around the forest. I mean, why? Really, why?? I certainly think that it's not necessary to have those pandas in the forest. But oh well. If you want to go check out this place, go during the festival week cos it looks like there are much more actions going on in the forest according to this article. 

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Beach Break

Growing up, family trips were part of my annual school break activity that my family always did. Living a couple of hours away from the sea, I've spent a good couple of summers just hanging out in a cottage by the beach with family and friends, spending our day playing in the sand, soaking up the sunshine and swimming in the sea. No worries. No stress. Just enjoying the summer days before school starts again. Life feels so much simpler on those days. 

This day felt a little bit like those old summer days. After we left Bosoeng Plantation, we just happened to found this quite beach around the area and decided to took a pit stop there. Took blankets with us and laid one on the shaded area on the beach and we just sat there snuggling under the other blanket to keep us warm. Noah has been driving for hours and didn't get much sleep, so after a couple of minutes he dozed off for his much needed rest. Hannah and I did more talking while looking at the calm sea. Nothing much was really going on around us. Saw ahjummas and ahjussiss bending down, working on something on the beach, three women walking back and forth with their dogs, and group of older people having a picnic a couple of meters away from where we were sitting. It's not necessarily an interesting beach, but it's a perfect place to just relax, chill and let your mind wanders. Plus having great companies really makes a difference. 

We talked for about two hours without realizing it. About our lives in South Korea, our faith, our future, our past experiences. Time flew when you are enjoying each other's company, really. After Noah woke up, we took a stroll on the beach, stretched our bodies and left for lunch. It was a fine relaxing late morning at the beach. 

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Bosoeng Green Tea Field

After a three hours or so road trip from Seoul, we pulled up at Boseong Green Tea Plantation's (보성녹차밭 대한다원) parking lot around 9.30am. The place was quite. Nobody was in sight. Hannah, Noah, and I made our way to the plantation. What I remember the most about that morning was the cool breezy morning air, warm sunlight, and birds chirping. Being able to clearly hear the sounds of nature is just something that you can only experience outside the hustle bustle of the city. And that morning was exactly that, a peaceful morning listening to the sounds of nature. 

Noah bought warm cups of tea for three of us and we slowly made our way up the hill while talking amongst each other. I remembered we were talking about how the air is really different here. Fresher. And we were a little bit disappointed because in some parts of the plantation, the tea leaves weren't in full bloom yet, so the field wasn't all green and there were bald spots here and there. Even so, the view was still nice. We spent some of our time just in silence, taking in our surroundings while snapping away with our phones and cameras. When we got to the top of the hill, we sat on the benches to enjoy the view and to catch our breaths. We stayed there for a while. Just talking and enjoying each other's company. When a big group of people came up to the resting area and we saw other people were starting to make their way up, we decided it's time for us to go and that was the end our peaceful morning. 

p.s: May is the month you want to go visit the plantation to see the full bloom of the tea leaves. They also have Green Tea Festival during that time of year.

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Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

One of my favorite things to do when I'm in the bay area is visiting Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. And so, during my last trip, I did just that with my sisters and my mom. It always fun visiting this place because there are so much things to do. This time, I can't helped to fall in love with all the colorful fresh vegetables that were on display all over the market. I think because I haven't been here for a while, I'm once again fascinated with all these bright colors. 

Of course after exploring the outdoor area, we went inside the Ferry building to sightsee some more. As soon as we entered the hall, we're greeted by the crowd of people shopping at the different stalls along the hallway. People lining up to buy their fresh groceries, vendors offering their product samples for people to try, and some people are dining at their favorite spots are common sights for a Saturday morning in this place. Hope I can visit this place again soon.

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Gahoedong Catholic Church • 가회동성당

On a cold sunny saturday morning, I stepped into this cathedral that combines both Korean Hanok and Western-style architecture. The place was quite. Peaceful almost. Lights coming in through the glass sliding doors on the sides of the Hanok. People quietly looking around the area admiring the structure of this complex. This is a perfect place to just be still and rest from all the hustle bustle of the city. 

I've passed by Gahoe-dong Catholic Church (가회동성당) in Bukchon Hanok Village numerous times before, but never once I entered the place. It's one of those places where you have to step inside to find out the charms of the building. The combination of east and west architecture definitely is very interesting. We also went to the rooftop and greeted with the view of rows of Hanok rooftops with the mountain on the background on one side, as well as the modern city skyline on the other side. 

If you are interested in finding out more about the history of the Catholic church, they have a history exhibition hall in the first floor of the building. 

And for those of you who are celebrating Chinese (Solnal) New Year this week, hope you have a good new year holiday! Spend some times with the loved ones, eat lots of good food, and hopefully get some rest as well. 새해 복 많이 받으세요~ :)

*Special thanks to Robin for showing us this place :)

Here are my photo walk buddies that day. Check out their blog/instagram for more awesome pictures:
@seoul_stateofmind, @ian_mckay, @happyboil, @inner.pastiche