Exploring Andong: Traditional Korean Culture, Tasty Flavors, and Peaceful Sceneries!

The great thing about studying abroad through CIEE, is that they host so many different activities and programs that allow the students to get to know each other and experience more Korean culture. One example of this is a trip that they offered to visit, Andong, a city in South Korea known for its Korean traditional culture. It was a two day, one night trip.

Getting There

We started out the day taking a chartered bus from the CIEE office in Jongno to Andong which took around 4-6 hours (including the rest stop). At the rest stop, we were able to buy snacks and use the restroom before finishing our drive to Andong.

Note: Often there will be rest stop locations during bus travel which is a perfect time to get a quick meal, charge your devices, or use the restroom before hitting the road again!

Day 1 - Folk Village Tour, Traditional Meals, Night Scenery

Once we arrived in Andong, our first stop was a restaurant for lunch where we got to eat rice, chicken with potatoes and carrots, Korean pears with mayo (interesting combination!), and other sides dishes.

After this, we went to the Andong Hahoe Folk Village, a traditional folk village from the Joseon Dynasty, where had a brief guided tour and saw traditional hanok and thatched-roof houses. It was really cool to learn that Queen Elizabeth II had visited the Hahoe Village in 1999, to celebrate her 73rd birthday. We learned that she removed her shoes before entering the traditional houses, following custom and showing respect to Korean culture. It’s also listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site!

Viewing the houses was really therapeutic and gave me a deep sense of gratitude and contentment. My friends and I took many pictures in front of the sceneries and marveled at the beauty of both nature and the architecture.

Next, we headed to a restaurant where we had bibimbap with tons of side dishes and kimchi stew (kimchi jjigae). Lastly, we ended off the night by going to the Wolyeonggyo Bridge. It was so beautiful to see families and couples walking together along the bridge. There was also moon boats floating along and lighting up the water.

After this, we headed to the hotel for the night. At our hotel, we slept on traditional Korean floor mattresses called yo (요). It was honestly not uncomfortable at all and was really cozy. It wasn’t too hard, which I also liked.

Day 2 - Traditional Activities + Folk Music Performance

The next morning, we had a tour of the Hogye Seowon Confucian Academy and got to participate in Mokpan Printing (traditional woodblock printing) and a traditional book binding activity. Both activities were really fun and I would love to learn more about book binding in the future! I also love calligraphy and arts, so it was pretty cool to see the final product!

For lunch, we had Korean mackerel with a bunch of side dishes like rice, Korean pears and mayo (again haha), side salad, mushrooms, etc. This was my first time trying mackerel before, and can I just say that I absolutely loved it. It was salty mackerel, so eating it with rice and other side dishes helped to balance out the saltiness of the fish. It was soo good!! I have to find more of it in Seoul! :~)

After this, we made our way back up to the Hogye Seowon, where we learned about the six Confucian arts and participated in activities in each of the arts. Lastly, we listened to a traditional Korean folk music performance, featuring the daegeum (large bamboo flute) and the gayageum (a 12-stringed plucked zither).

Reflections

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Andong. Although it took us a while to get there, the experience was still totally worth it. I felt like I got to eat more traditional style foods and really experience what traditional Korean culture looks like. The Joseon Dynasty style-architecture, the delicious food, and the cultural activities, all made this trip feel truly like I was learning about what life was like for those within the Joseon Dynasty and what important Korean traditional elements still remain today. I especially enjoyed this trip as I have lots of interest in learning about Confucianism and its effect on Asian societies (as well as its relation to other cultures and religions).

I LOVE ANDONG!!

Thanks for reading til the end :) Stay tuned for more!