The Kimchi-ite: The Korean Folk Village, A Perfect Escape From The City

by Jonathan Kramer on

Seoul and South Korea as a whole are undoubtably modern. But less than a century ago, much of what makes the country so modern today did not exist and people lived much more simply. Farming was by far the most common occupation and people lived in villages, not cities.

Having not left the city limits in months, it’s hard for me to comprehend a world without LTE service and Wi-Fi in the subway. I decided to escape from Seoul, with its omnipotent television screens beaming down on most intersections, to a more traditional location. The Yongin Korean Folk Village was the perfect choice for a quick escape from the city.

A period reenactor making “ppeong twigi,” puffed rice, a traditional Korean street food. “Ppeong” represents the sound of the contraption when making the snack; watch this video to hear for yourself.

Located in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, just an hour south of the city, it is very easily accessible from the center of Seoul. There are numerous folk villages all over Korea but this is one of the most popular and most fully realized.

A rock at the entrance of the village onto which people tie their messages and wishes, a common sight in ancient Korea.

The folk village is a fantastic look into historic Korea, with houses, food, scheduled musical performances and traditional ceremonies, all representing the different eras in Korean history.

A parade of dancing drummers commemorating the coming harvest. Further proof that Korean history has the best headgear.

The townsfolk staff walk around in period clothing and farm animals are on hand to show subsistence farming of the day. It’s a surprisingly large place; walking the perimeter of the village can take about an hour.

A Choga-jib, thatched roof house, representative of peasant houses in southern, warmer regions.

Being able to walk around the different styles of houses is immensely interesting. Different layouts and designs are used for different regions and classes of people. You can even play with some of the farm equipment used to make food such as rice cakes.

A traditionally themed 7-Eleven near the entrance of the Korean Folk Village acts as a suggestion not to take your trip inside too seriously.

It does have a bit of a tourist trap feel; the 7-11 with a traditional, Korean-tiled roof is one of the glaring examples – even though it is by far my favorite convenience store on the peninsula. In many ways a trip to the Korean Folk Village is a trip to a theme park trying to pass as a museum. But it’s a much better way to see Korean history than looking at miniatures and artists’ renditions, as you would do in a museum.

All smiles during a harvest ceremony in the Korean Folk Village.

The best way to get to the Yongin Korean Folk Village is to take Seoul Subway Line 1 to Suwon Station. Then, take exit 5 and once outside of the station you will find a tourist information office. There, you can get a ticket for a free shuttle bus that will take you directly to the Korean Folk Village. The staff is multi-lingual and can guide you to the bus stop in English, Korean, Chinese or Japanese.

Go back into “The Kimchi-ite” archives here for more on Korean culture, food and oddities.

[All photos by Jonathan Kramer]

Hipster Hats that Make Me Happy

by Pam Mandel on

We’re no Portland or Brooklyn, but dude, you can’t swing a cat in Seattle without hitting a 20 something in something tweedy, a vest, maybe, and a flat cap. The thing is, you need a good hat in this town, it’s not totally impractical to protect your melon from the relentless drizzle that dampens our spirits and waters down our Americanos. As much as I try to mock the bearded skinny jeans what on earth is your day job and did you think about how that tattoo is going to look when you are 50 plus all that bacon is bad for you set, I can’t argue with a good hat. I just can’t.

Which is why I left the house in a Tilley Endurable Ivy Cap. I joined the hipster masses and you know what people said? “Nice headwear!” The other style I tried, the Tec-Wool, got the same response. What did I say? I said you can’t argue with a good hat. No one even tried.

Here’s what I like about the Tilley winter caps. They have quilted lining and tuck away low profile ear flaps, so they’re really warm and get warmer when you pull the ear flaps out. There’s a secret pocket in the top where you can keep your bus pass or your marching orders or that love letter that really appeals to your brain. They’re made of a very water resistant wool and they keep their shape when you smash them in your backpack with your laptop and your refillable coffee canister and all the other stuff you carry around. There’s a little cinch strap inside so you can adjust the fit — a nice touch. Both caps come in a tweedy brown or a textured black that’s really a very dark charcoal gray. And I think I mentioned, they look great.Both caps are $76.00, a pretty penny to drop on a hat, but they come with a lifetime guarantee which includes — get this, insurance against loss for two years. You’ll need your receipt or registration form, so don’t lose that too, and if you can prove you bought a hat, Tilley will replace it. Really. I asked, twice, because I didn’t believe it the first time. The lifetime guarantee will outlast hipster fashion, I promise you.

These things are great for wearing out and about around town, to the microbrewery, while shopping for artisanal cheeses or smoked meats, or heading to a knitters meetup, but they’re also great for travel to blustery cold places where you just need to be warm. Want one? Measure your head (they come in multiple sizes) and to the Tilley website.

Oh, and yes, that’s me in the picture. I look like a freaking hipster. I don’t care.

Gadling Gear Review: Winter hat and gloves

by Pam Mandel on

Seattle was recently choked by the kind of snowstorm that we’re not supposed to get. It was followed by an ice storm, something I’ve never had the joy and/or terror to experience. It was also great gear testing weather. I unpacked my snow gear and the big parka, the long underwear, and wrapped my hands and head in SmartWool’s “Snowflake Pop” knits.

I like hats with earflaps because well, they keep your ears warm. Even though I’ve rabbited on much too much about how I love SmartWool, I didn’t believe that the hat would not be itchy and that it would not keep the wind off. I was wrong, it’s super soft and my ears did not itch. It totally gave me hat hair, but whatever, pretty much every one in my city has hat hair right now. As for warmth, it was a frigid 28 degrees F and I was pelted with freezing rain and I was certainly warm enough. Caveat — I was wearing the hood to my parka to keep from getting too wet. I’ve been wearing this littlle hat regularly since the temperatures dropped. I only have one wish for it — the braids on the ends of the earflaps are a little short. Sometimes, you want to tie those things up so your ears aren’t covered. When I turn the earflaps up, they stick out and I look like Yoda. Not a good look.

The matching knitted gloves make for a cute set, but they’re not as weatherproof as I needed them to be. They got damp on the finger tips while I was taking pictures of the ice and my hands got cold. The wind bit through as well, the knit isn’t tight enough to really keep the weather out. The following day I wore them with a pair of glove liners (mine are from Icebreaker and no, you can’t work an iPhone in them) and that made all the difference. If I wanted to stay warm, I had to keep stuffing my hands in my pockets. The gloves are good for cold but not wet — blustery day at the bus stop? Okay. Rain and sleet and snow? Not so much so.

SmartWool’s Snowflake Pop hat is $45.00, the gloves are $35.00. They come in a couple of different colors — a cranberry, a turquoise, and black. There are (ooooh!) matching socks, too, if you have to go all crazy with your winter accessories and need to match them all the way down to what’s inside your boots. In short, good stuff for cold; you’ll need more if you’re going to be in wet weather.

Protect your melon; pack the right hat.

by Pam Mandel on

This is kind of gross, and I’m a little bit sorry for that, but I still have scaly bits on the tops of my ears. This because I burned the daylights out of them by wearing the wrong hat while on a recent adventure. I made it worse by neglecting to apply sunscreen to my poor ears — I’ll skip the part about what happened when I started to peel.

I pack a baseball style cap for my travels. I’d picked up a Sun Tripper cap from Sunday Afternoons while at the Outdoor Retailer show. It’s really cute, it’s that military shape, it’s got a split bill so it packs down nice and flat, and it’s got a stretchy drawstring on the back so it stays on your head in the wind. This matters; I watched the wind take a travel-mate’s cap and hurl it into the desert, there was no retrieving it. My cap stayed securely on my head the whole time. I also found that the funny little pocket in the top of the hat was actually useful. I tucked my ID and a little bit of cash in there, it was nice to have a secret stash and I didn’t worry about my head being pick-pocketed.

But as I’ve mentioned, I needed coverage for my ears. This was a tactical error on my part — I should have gone with a safari hat instead of just a cap. Sure, the extra coverage looks a little silly, but my ears hurt like hell and did I mention, they were kind of gross about a week later. Sunburn isn’t a joke, even when it’s limited to the tops of your ears, and I could hear my doctor’s voice in my head giving me the melanoma lecture. What I’m saying, is go with the extra coverage. Sunday Afternoons has some other options that I’d have done better to choose for this trip. I won’t soon forget that painful sunburn and I don’t expect to make that same mistake again. Get the coverage, people. The Sun Tripper cap is 24.00, the safari range starts there and goes up to 48.00. There’s a convertible cap too — just snap on the ear and neck coverage — that goes for 28.00. That would have kept the sunburn at bay.

In addition to sun coverage, I was delighted to find that I still had my SmartWool beanie in my photo bag. I’d used it to wrap up some camera gear I wasn’t using, but I ended up wearing it on cold mornings and evenings in camp. This stretchy little reversible beanie takes up negotiable space in my kit (really, I’d no idea it was in there!) and I was delighted to find that it had hitched along with me on my camping trip. SmartWool brands this little cap as a “training beanie” — whatever with that. I’m calling it a travel beanie and leaving it right where it is, stowed in my photo backpack, holding my lens polarizer. I’ll be happy the next time I find the wind is biting my ears or the night is a little cold. 25.00 from SmartWool.

Packing for a Camping Safari: What’s in My Bag?

by Pam Mandel on

600 dollars for vaccinations, that’s what I spent in preparation for an upcoming trip to Tanzania. A pile. Still, it’s better than the alternative: getting a near fatal or certainly trip ruining illness. Now that the sticker shock has eased and I’ve got full use of my arm again, I’ve turned to gathering my belongings for an upcoming safari trip.

Here’s a round up of what’s in my bag.

A cotton sleep sack from Cocoon. I’m doing a camping trip; most of the time I’ll be sleeping in a tent. I’m packing my old down bag because it’s lightweight and warm, but I’ve added a sleep sack permeated with insect repellent. It’s good for warmer nights that don’t need a sleeping bag, the few hotels I’ll be in, and I’m all about not getting bitten. Speaking of which…

Serious DEET packed bug repellent. The travel clinic I use recommends Ultrathon from 3M. I’ve got some cream to pack and spray for my clothes — I’ll do that before I pack. My sprayed clothing will be protected for more washings than they’ll get on this trip. The cream is 34% DEET — that’s a lot of DEET, but it works, it really works. I used this same system for Southeast Asia and I did not get bitten once.

Packing cubes: I’m not usually a system packer, but I’d like to keep the dust out of my things just this once. The cubes I’m trying out are from Innate. (I’ve stuffed them inside the bag I reviewed here.) I’m hoping they’ll convert me into an organized packer, if nothing else, they’ll keep my clothes fairly clean, and whoa, is my luggage neatly organized. Sure, my things are crazy wrinkled, but whatever.

A cute sun protection cap. It’s tempting to go all pith helmet on this trip, but I’m a baseball cap wearing kind of girl. Mine comes from Sunday Afternoons. It’s vented, has a drawstring to hold it on in the wind, got 50 UPF (ultraviolet protection) in the fabric, and a little pocket on the inside for holding… um, your hotel card key? Your beer money and ID?It’s also got a split bill which means it packs down flat.A lightweight, mostly second hand wardrobe. There’s a reason you see travelers dressed in khaki and pale green colors. The biting bugs (it’s all about the biting bugs) like dark colors. Pale earth tones? They’re not so interested in those. I have long sleeved shirts — to keep the sun off — and very lightweight pants. The pants are from Ex Officio, I reviewed a few of their products here, but I’m also trying out their BugsAway line.

Running shoes and sandals. I’m always stumped by shoes when I pack. Luckily, there are a bunch of cute new mary-jane styles that come on sturdy hiking type soles nowadays; they’re good enough for dress up in most cases. On this trip, I’m not doing any huge hikes or anything that requires nice footwear. I’m looking at a running shoe/hiker hybrid from LOWA and a pair of Chaco sandals with Vibram soles. I don’t need anything else. Hmm, maybe flip-flops for the shower?

A windstop fleece jacket: Word has it that nights get cold in the bush and the mornings can be a chilly too. I may pack the pocket loaded Valkyrie from Triple Aught Design that I reviewed here, but it’s equally likely that I’ll pack the corporate branded by an out of business start up fleece and just leave it behind.

Still on my wish list? A pair of really good binoculars. New noise cancelling headphones; I’ve got 20 hours of flying each way and mine developed “issues” on my last long haul flight. A rain shell that packs down to almost nothing, just in case. My mom keeps trying to send me one of those vests with all the pockets, I think I’ll let her. A “Swahili for beginners” audio book. I need to pick up some sunscreen and some airplane snacks and all those last minute odds and ends that you end up stuffing in the outside pockets on your pack.

Have you been on safari? Anything you wish you’d packed but didn’t? Besides, you know, a much better camera lens and a past that allows for more luxurious travel in the present?

Photo: Selous River Camp by Willem vdh, Creative Commons/Flickr.